"Oh no… it's that tall guy who interrupted our class earlier today," Shino muttered nervously to himself, stepping back slightly. The tall student in question stood in front of them, staring at the fallen bike on the pavement. His expression was unreadable.
"Oh, this is yours, isn't it?" said Noboru, casually scratching the back of his head. "My bad, I accidentally knocked it over. Don't worry, I'll pick it up."
"Screw that. I'm gonna kick your ass," growled Tadao in a tone so cold and sharp it made Shino flinch.
"All he did was drop your bike, and he explained it was an accident. He even offered to pick it up. There's no need to fight," Makoto said, stepping in calmly.
"Yeah, he's acting like it's one of the latest models," Noboru scoffed. "It's just a piece of junk if you ask me."
"You're gonna pay for that, punk," snarled Tadao. Without warning, he rushed at them. His fist collided with Noboru's face, sending him flying back and crashing to the concrete, headfirst. Blood smeared against the pavement as Noboru let out a pained groan.
Tadao turned to Makoto next and threw another punch. Makoto raised his arms just in time to block, stumbling back under the impact.
Shino, startled and terrified, fell to the ground.
"Shino! Go and call our seniors—we need their help! Hurry!" Makoto shouted, gritting his teeth as he struggled to hold his stance.
Shino got up, his legs shaking beneath him, and took off running toward the basketball gym, his heart pounding with every step.
"Not bad. You blocked my punch," Tadao said with a twisted smirk. "Let's see how long you last while I pummel you. And I hope that little runner brings the whole team—I'll beat them all to a bloody pulp."
Groaning, Noboru pushed himself up with a shaky hand. His eye was already swelling, and blood dripped from his lip.
"You're gonna pay for that," he spat, his voice trembling with rage. He charged at Tadao again, ignoring the throbbing pain in his head.
Meanwhile, inside the gym, the rest of the team was growing impatient.
"I wonder what's taking them so long," Nanaho said, glancing at the clock.
"Yeah, the vending machine isn't that far," Hayato muttered.
"You want us to check on them?" Liam asked, already halfway standing.
"That's okay, Liam," Yukio replied. "Knowing Makoto and Noboru, they're probably arguing right now. Shino would just be standing there, waiting for them to stop."
Tetsuo, growing restless, picked up a ball and began shooting baskets again. Tomoe watched him with quiet admiration, smiling to herself.
"They're really taking their sweet time," Takahiro said, mostly to himself.
At that moment, Shino burst into the gym, panting and red-faced. "Guys—please help!"
"What happened?" Hayato asked as he and Liam rushed over.
"It's that guy from earlier—the one who disrupted class. He's out there! Noboru knocked over his bike by accident, and he just… he just started attacking them!" Shino cried, breathless. "I don't know if they're okay…"
"He's fighting them? Then we need to stop this," Liam said. Without another word, he and Hayato bolted out the gym doors.
"Wait! Don't act recklessly!" Nanaho shouted after them, but it was too late.
"Let's go, Takahiro," Yukio said, and the two of them followed.
"Tetsuo, Tomoe—you go too. I'll get a teacher," Nanaho instructed.
Outside, Makoto and Noboru stood bloodied and bruised, still barely holding themselves up. Makoto's nose was bleeding. Noboru's right eye had swelled shut.
"Had enough yet?" Tadao taunted with a sneer.
"Damn it… this guy's strong," Noboru growled through clenched teeth.
"We can't beat him," Makoto muttered, breathing heavily. "We've only been able to defend ourselves."
"Brace yourselves. Here I come!" Tadao shouted, rushing forward.
But before he could reach them, a blur moved in front of his path. Liam grabbed him with both arms, lifted him clean off the ground, and slammed him into the pavement with a thunderous crash.
"How dare you hurt my teammates?" Liam growled, his normally calm voice full of fury.
"Thank God you got here," Makoto gasped, collapsing to the ground. "Are you two okay?" Hayato asked, kneeling beside them.
"We're fine… now," Makoto muttered.
Shino, Yukio, Takahiro, Tetsuo, and Tomoe arrived moments later, their eyes widening at the sight of the wrecked pavement, the blood, the bruises.
"You'll pay for that, you son of a—" Tadao began, but Liam shoved him back down and pinned him, keeping him locked to the ground.
"Crap… this bastard is strong," Tadao thought. "And his hand—it's huge…"
"Are you guys alright?" Shino asked, his voice shaking.
"Yeah… I'm fine," Makoto nodded. "Thanks to you, Shino. You got help just in time."
"Let go of me, you bastard!" Tadao snarled, struggling violently.
Yukio stepped closer and looked at his face. His eyes widened, the color draining from his face.
"I know this kid…" Yukio whispered, more to himself than anyone.
Suddenly, Tadao roared and smashed a punch into Liam's nose. Liam reeled back, releasing his grip. Free once more, Tadao unleashed a rapid flurry of punches to Liam's gut, finishing with a savage uppercut that dropped the towering boy to the ground.
"I don't care how many of you there are!" he shouted, his voice laced with rage. "I'm going to kick all of your asses!"
He locked eyes on Shino and charged.
Shino froze, terror gripping him. He collapsed to the ground, hands over his head, bracing for the blow.
But it never came.
Tetsuo, faster than anyone expected, grabbed Tadao mid-swing. With fluid movement and startling strength, he flipped the attacker over and slammed him to the ground.
"Whoa! Tetsuo just flipped him!" Makoto and Noboru said at once, completely stunned.
Tadao groaned and blinked through the haze of pain. Vision blurred, he staggered to his feet, grabbed his bike, and climbed onto it.
"You assholes better watch your backs!" he barked. "You're all going to pay for this! When I'm done, the basketball team will be no more!"
He revved the engine and sped off, disappearing down the road.
"Tetsuo, are you alright?" Tomoe asked, brushing dust off his shoulder.
"I'm fine," he said quietly, glancing down at his hands.
"So you're going to ask Tetsuo if he's unharmed?" Noboru said indignantly. "What about me? I got my ass kicked!"
Liam groaned and sat up slowly.
"You alright, bro?" Hayato asked, crouching beside him.
"Yeah… just a scratch," Liam said with a faint smile. Then he wobbled, his knees buckled, and he collapsed again.
"That kid's strong," Takahiro said in disbelief. "He actually took down Liam, and Liam's nearly two meters tall!"
"He was about my height," Yukio said grimly. "And he had tremendous strength…"
Tetsuo walked over to Makoto and helped him up, draping his arm over his shoulder.
"Thanks, Tetsuo," Makoto murmured, eyes heavy with exhaustion.