cote react to

part 18

"Huh?" Nagumo grinned at no one. "Their year looks promising. Too bad, I'm graduating earlier."

"Hirata-kun looks so badass!" Sato cheered.

"Hirata-kun is so cool!" Shinohara agreed.

"Hey , since the two of you are only pretending, can I snag him?" Sato whispered to Karuizawa.

"Huh?!" Karuizawa squeaked. "Hirata-kun and I haven't talked about that."

"Aw." Sato pouted.

"Huh?"

"I know what you're thinking," Hirata continued.

Ryuuen snorted, indicating that he had no idea what Hirata meant. Hirata continued.

"You got Class D's participation table, and you obtained detailed information about all our students' athletic abilities, too. You've made good use of that information. We're not stupid. We have a few tricks hidden up our sleeves."

"Ooh. I'd be scared if that weren't such an obvious bluff. Look at how far apart Classes C and D are now. Doesn't it fill you with despair? Even if you know the truth, it does you little good now," said Ryuuen.

"I just have one thing to say to you. Before the day ends, I'm going to show you something interesting," said Hirata.

"My heart's all dokie dokie." Sato placed a hand on her chest.

"Interesting?" Ryuuen said. "I'll be the judge of that."

"Where's our class?" Nishikawa asked.

"There." Hashimoto pointed, "It seems we are discussing something."

"And our class?" Yume asked. "It looks like we're having fun while the other classes playing hard against each other and strategizing."

Ichinose frowned, "Yes. It seem so." She look down in thought.

"Something interesting, huh? I'll be looking forward to it."

Ryuuen didn't sound fazed in the slightest. He probably had no reason to be, considering that he went on to handily take first place in the 200-meter dash.

"There's a little over an hour left until Sudou's turn, huh?"

The dash continued for the second- and third-year students, followed by a fifty-minute break. If Sudou didn't return before the break ended, it'd be
checkmate. With our ace in the hole gone, we'd never win. Only one person in our class could get to him.

"Horikita, huh?" Ike said.

Ishizaki looked confused, "Horikita-san?"

"It must be Horikita-san." Hashimoto nodded.

"Aha! Horikita-san!" Shibata flicked his fingers.

Students and teachers alike looked at her direction.

"Stop looking at me." Horikita gritted her teeth.

I wondered if Horikita understood just how vital her role was. After I placed third in the 200-meter dash, I waited for her to finish her own race.

"Horikita, do you know what happened with Sudou?"

"I saw it. He realized what a disappointment he was, then ran away."

Sudo flinched. Yeah, that gotta hurt.

"That's harsh, Horikita-san." Hirata frowned.

"Well...yeah, I guess that's true."