ALL TIED UP

As the game resumed, Makoto dribbled up the court and passed to Tetsuo, who was guarded by Takahiro. We can't afford for him to score another three-pointer, so we have to play it safe this time around, Takahiro thought to himself as he applied pressure. Out of nowhere, Yukio set a screen for Tetsuo, who utilized it and dribbled to an open spot. He then shot a three-pointer that swished. Should have known they'd pull a stunt like that, Takahiro thought to himself.

On the next possession, Hayato came down and quickly shot a three-pointer that rattled in.

"Yes! I made it!" he said excitedly.

"That shot was pure luck. You can't be taking risks like that—what if it was a real game and that shot mattered?" Makoto asked.

"Well, I didn't miss, and now we're still close in score, so it was the right decision," Hayato replied as he ran back on defense.

Makoto dribbled up the court and signaled for a screen from Yukio. After utilizing the screen, Yukio ran to the rim, with both Liam and Hayato following. Makoto then stopped and pulled up for a mid-range shot that swished.

Hayato came down once more and called for a one-on-one against Makoto. Although the two of them were equally matched in height, Makoto was always ahead of him and managed to steal the ball.

Crap, he stole it, Hayato thought as he chased after Makoto, who drove toward the rim. Glancing behind him, Makoto noticed Shino also trailing them. He smiled and swiftly passed the ball to Shino, who took two steps and scored a layup.

It's clear that Makoto's team has the greatest advantage, but what was I supposed to do? We couldn't have Yukio and Liam on the same team, Nanaho thought to herself.

Upon passing the ball to Liam in the post, he spun around and easily scored a layup on Yukio. On the next possession, Makoto passed to Yukio, who established a triple-threat position while being guarded by Liam. He faked a shot, causing Liam to react. He then drove to the baseline, where Liam managed to maintain his defense. Yukio spun out of the way and attempted a layup, thinking he got free. However, Liam jumped into the air and swatted the ball to the ground.

Securing the loose ball, Hayato quickly threw a long pass.

"Noboru, catch!" he shouted.

After catching the ball, Noboru scored a layup.

Makoto then brought the ball down and quickly passed to Yukio, who went up for a layup. However, Liam once again jumped into the air to block him. Yukio then passed to Tetsuo, who scored a layup.

"Come on, Takahiro! Keep an eye on him—he's really swift!" Hayato said.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I'll get him next time," Takahiro replied.

After reaching Makoto's team's half of the court, Hayato quickly passed to Takahiro, who passed the ball back and cut through the key. Hayato then faked to the right to draw Makoto's attention before passing to Takahiro, who attempted a layup. Tetsuo was on him, preparing to block the shot.

Using his experience, Takahiro used his body as a shield between the ball and Tetsuo, then shot a layup that swished.

"You might be talented, Tetsuo, but there's still a lot of room for growth and experience," Takahiro said as he ran back on defense.

"I'm so glad we made it on time. There's no way I'm missing a single practice," Harumi said to her friends.

"Yeah, me neither. I just love watching Yukio play basketball," one of her friends replied.

"Yeah, you're right. Shino is so adorable!" another friend added.

"Let's do our best to cheer them on during training, okay?" Harumi said, and all her friends agreed excitedly.

After receiving a pass from Makoto, Tetsuo dribbled the basketball and was met by Takahiro, who guarded him well.

This kid really takes a lot to guard, and we're around the same height as well, Takahiro thought to himself.

Tetsuo dribbled left, causing Takahiro to cut him off. He then spun to the right and locked his pivot foot in front of Takahiro, giving him no chance to block, before taking two steps and shooting a layup that swished.

"Wow, nice one, Kawaguchi! Brilliant play!" a girl cheered.

"Nice shot, Kawaguchi! Keep it up—I'm rooting for you!" another shouted.

"Tetsuo, that was a nice shot! Great work!" Harumi shouted as she smiled.

I know those voices... It's those damn annoying fangirls again, Noboru thought, irritated.

"How many times do I have to tell you girls to stop coming here? You're distracting us from training! Don't you have anything better to do than gawking at our captain, Tetsuo, or Shino? Come on, get lost or something!" Noboru snapped, shooing them away with his hand.

"Hey! How dare you talk to me like that? You don't own the gym, so you can't tell me what to do!" one of the girls shot back.

"Yeah, she's right! We're not here to watch an ugly dwarf play—we're here to watch them, so just shut up and avoid us," another girl added.

"Who the hell are you calling an ugly dwarf? I'm taller than all of you! Now, please leave before I make you," Noboru said angrily.

"Uh, Noboru... You do realize we're still in a game, right?" Hayato asked awkwardly.

Knew he was going to be a pain—he's ruining the possession flow, Makoto thought to himself, annoyed.

"But from where I'm standing, you look like a tiny speck compared to the rest of the team," the girl said.

"Says the girl with freckles on her face, trying to cover them up with those goofy glasses," Noboru shot back.

"Are you saying I look weird?" the girl asked, tearing up.

"That was uncalled for! You made her cry!" her friend scolded.

"If you've got a problem with me, then just leave," Noboru replied.

Nanaho then walked onto the court and slapped him on the head.

"Ouch! That hurt! What was that for, Nanaho?" Noboru whined.

"You're in the middle of an important game, and you let outsiders distract you. Now I'm really upset. You're going to stay after training and clean up everything by yourself."

"But that's unfair, Nanaho! They started it! And how can I do everything alone?"

"Noboru, come on! Look alive!" Hayato called as he passed the ball to Noboru, who quickly passed it to Liam. Liam easily scored another layup.

On the next possession, Yukio scored a two-pointer. Immediately after, Hayato shot a three-pointer that swished.

Makoto, crafty as ever, easily crossed Hayato and got to the rim, where Liam was waiting. He then pulled up for a paint shot that swished.

Liam then drove to the rim and dunked the ball.

Makoto passed to Shino, who, in transition, beat Team Hayato to the rim and scored a layup. Immediately after, Noboru got the ball on a fast break and scored a layup.

Makoto seized the opportunity to utilize Tetsuo on the wing and passed him the ball. Utilizing his swiftness, Tetsuo crossed Takahiro, who played excellent defense. However, everyone was stunned when Tetsuo turned around and shot a floater that swished.

"Come on, Hayato! Only a couple of seconds left—you need to score!" Nanaho urged.

No need to worry, Nanaho. There's no way I'll let them take the first quarter, Hayato thought to himself as he calmly dribbled upcourt.

Makoto stepped up to guard him. As the clock counted down, Hayato called for a screen from Liam. After receiving the screen, Hayato dribbled to his spot and shot a two-pointer that swished at the sound of the whistle.

"Hell yeah! We're back in business!" Hayato smirked.

"This game is intense. They're really fighting out there. Thirty to thirty—it's all tied up!" Nanaho said, impressed.