CHAPTER 4 - Jam-Packed July (3)

[COOLING TIME]

Amid the humidity and heat getting worse since summer had arrived, having no air conditioner was hell-like torture. It was not until next week, as the student council had feebly promised, that the A/C unit was going to be installed inside their classroom.

Even the top snipers in class, who were usually cool and composed, were now dripping with sweat with their faces lamenting. Thankfully, Korosensei has created a pool for them within the forest. At least they would not have to walk for an hour before being able to enjoy the cool waters.

"I don't think I'm going to last until I get home," Chiba moaned as he walked with Hayami by his side. They were on their way to the storage shed for their after-school practice.

Hayami lifted her head to look at him as they entered the doorway. "Should we skip today?" she queried.

He went inside and rummaged through a container of weapons before pulling out a rifle. "Or let's test the new weapons out."

After discovering Korosensei's weakness in water, Karasuma had requested waterproof guns from the ministry. The customized set, which could now be used underwater, was just delivered yesterday.

She nodded. "Good idea."

They changed into their school swimsuits before heading down the pool, new guns in their hands. Hayami tied their targets onto the branches while Chiba tossed the 'koro sensei balls', the ones that could sink, into the water.

Karma, who was relaxing on a nearby tree branch while drinking strawberry milk, caught sight of the two. His mouth formed into a smirk as he fished out his phone.

When Hayami had just finished setting up the last target, Chiba turned towards her. "Ready?" he asked.

She raised the rifle with her free hand on her waist. "Let's do this."

They stayed afloat in the clear sparkling water as they tried to shoot the targets on the trees only to find steadying themselves while aiming a difficult task. That's why they used the floating boards as support for their arms, letting go of them when they swam underneath to shoot the 'koro sensei balls'.

Then Hayami reemerged from the water with Chiba following shortly. "Time duration: 12.26 seconds," Ritsu announced through Chiba's phone on the rock.

"Hayami has hit all of her targets by 10.05 seconds, faster than Chiba by 2.21 seconds."

Chiba swam towards the edge, resting his arm on the stony surface near his phone. "Moving targets are my weakness. Maybe I should try to improve my dynamic visual," he said.

"It is true that long-distance shooting is your specialty while Hayami is more competent in balancing and kinetic sniping. This gives her an advantage in this setup where the targets are swinging in mid-air and moving around underwater. But that does not mean that your skill has no use for a water assassination," the pink-haired AI said with a wink.

Hayami was sitting by the side with her legs hanging in the water when she looked down at Chiba. "Ritsu's right. Our accuracy is already top-notch but we have to improve our speed. We can catch up with Korosensei's Mach 20 if we can mesh our abilities well," she stated as she fixed her pigtails.

For the second round, Chiba floated in one position to shoot far-off targets while Hayami swam around for the rest.

When Ritsu had stopped the timer, she clapped her hands together with a huge grin. "Record time is 10 seconds! With Hayami quickly targeting the ones within her range, and Chiba handling the targets that were too far away, you two were able to cut the time by 2.26 seconds. I'm sure, with more practice, you will be able to reach the best record of 7.14 seconds."

Confetti burst off in the background of the screen as Ritsu continued to clap. Hayami and Chiba exchanged glances before smiling triumphantly.

Forgetting his main purpose of spectating them, Karma became amazed at the pair's accuracy and teamwork as if they were two peas in a pod. He had been observing and analyzing the shootout, reaching the conclusion that he would not be able to pull that off alone.

After helping Hayami get up from the pool, Chiba turned around when he had felt a wet and heavy sensation touch the skin of his back. He twitched, slightly looking over his shoulder to see Hayami leaning on his back with a dazed expression, her hand on him for support.

"Hayami!" he cried out worriedly. He was about to hold her up when something pulled his arm. He found himself plunging back into the pool right before seeing the smirk crossing her face.

Hayami giggled as she jumped in after him. She, then, sloshed him with water to which he counterattacked. The two kept on splashing each other while laughing.

The urgent worry that Chiba had earlier was replaced with glee.

Having enough of their 'fun', he shielded his face as he drifted towards her. He grabbed both of her arms, lifting them when he saw her smiling pretty face. He felt a jolt followed by a loud thumping inside his chest.

Hayami ceased trying to break off from his grasp when she had noticed his frozen state. Filled with scrutiny and inquiry, her emerald orbs pierced through his hair, which prompted him to let go.

Something has changed within him. Whatever it was, the person himself did not know.

Of course, Karma took snaps of their playtime in the pool until the moment when Chiba held Hayami in close proximity. He hummed to himself as he jumped down.

He was so going to make a compilation about the two.