Snapshot (Haikyuu Fanfiction Series!!!)

33. Exams K.O.

Oh, I almost forgot exams were coming. I've been so distracted with the Inter-high preliminaries. I look at the team to see their reactions and see Hinata, Kageyama, Nishinoya, Tanaka shaking with lifeless eyes. That's strange...I turn to Tomoyo to ask her what was going on, but she's staring out and avoiding the topic all together.

"You know that right?" Takeda-sensei repeats. "It seems that Tokyo's test period is basically the same as ours, so that means the joint practice will take place right after that," he tells them and they start shaking endlessly with fear. "So you might expect already that there will be supplementary lessons to attend for any of the subjects you fail," Takeda-sensei points out and that deals the fatal blow for the five.

Nishinoya and Tanaka try to make their escape and start sprinting towards the exit. "Tanaka, Nishinoya, where do you think you're going?! There's nowhere to run! Ennoshita, catch them!" Daichi shouts.

A glint of joy appears on Ennoshita's face, "Sure," he says and traps the two and pulls them back by their collar to Daichi.

"Failing...Failing...Sakura, what's a failing grade?!" Hinata asks and I stand there surprised.

"I've never failed, so I don't know," I shrug, "You just have to do really bad to fail."

"But what number is failing?!" Hinata asks again and I jolt back in surprise.

"You're worried about that!?" Sugawara exclaims in shock.

"Kageyama's not breathing!!" Yamaguchi points out and he shrieks when he notices Tomoyo. "Tomoyo!! She's dead!!!"

I twitch at the chaos taking place. This is crazy. How bad can they be in school?!

"Well, seeing as we are told to balance club activities with our studies, we have to show the results reflecting that," Sugawara says, seeing the five school failures break out.

"I never get failing marks," Tsukishima smirks and pokes Tomoyo's lifeless cheeks.

"Me neither," Ennoshita says, holding Nishinoya's and Tanaka's collars so they won't try and escape again.

Yamaguchi chuckles, "I've got to work at it a bit or things could get hairy."

"Same here," Asahi adds and turns to me, "What about you Sakura?"

"Hm...I can get things done," I tell him, "I just need to make sure I put some time into it," I say with a small grin and the two of them nod in agreement.

Hinata sprints to Takeda-sensei. "If we beg the vice-principal with everything we got, then he'll definitely....!" Hinata pleads to Takeda-sensei.

"Even if we get the vice principal's permission, if you have to take supplementary lessons it takes priority...!" Takeda-sensei says firmly and Tomoyo falls to the floor.

"Haha...I've already failed as a coach before doing my job," Tomoyo says with fading hope.

"But Tomoyo, you have such great notes?!" I question in surprise, "How are you doing so bad at school?"

"School is like a dungeon!" Tomoyo cries, "it locks you up and makes you learn things that you don't want to know," she agonizes, "You're forced to just learn and learn and learn!" she exaggerates, "Tests are the devil's work!" I take a step back. Tomoyo's pretty much broken. I can't really do anything about her.

I turn to Hinata for some help with Tomoyo, but I end up finding out that he needs help too. "Coach!" Hinata shoots his head up and runs to Coach Ukai, "Coach, you can help me get through this, right?!"

"Well...You're a student, so it's unavoidable..." Ukai says, avoiding any eye contact with Hinata, "I'm not exactly someone you should be asking..."

"N-No way...!!" Hinata cries out in despair.

"Show some spirit! What's important is your outlook!" Coach Ukai encourages him, "Mind over matter!"

I should seriously support them. I pat Hinata on the back. "You can do it Hinata! You can pass the exam if you keep a positive mind and believe you can pass," I cheer him up.

"That's right, Hinata! You'll be alright if you don't agonize over it," Sugawara comes over to comfort him with me. Hinata's mood seems to lighten from the encouragement.

"Really? Ever since I started high school, I've never scored double digits on a 60pt quiz, do you think I'll be alright?" Hinata asks with some hope.

"Eh!?" Sugawara and I stiffen hearing Hinata's test scores.

"Huh?!" Hinata says surprised by our reactions.

Hinata should have just said nothing. I can't even imagine how bad Nishinoya, Tanaka, and Kageyama are doing at school...If Hinata's that bad, are the others just as bad?!

I try to rationally think. Tanaka and Nishinoya and Tomoyo...They're my senpais. They can't be that bad at academics, right? They're second years, so they must know some things. I turn to Nishinoya and Tanaka to make sure they're doing okay, and I jerk back in surprise seeing their bodhisattva faces. "Hey, quit it with those bodhisattva faces you two!" Sugawara frantically says.

"Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!" The five of them scream.

"They can do it if they try. It'll be fine, it'll be fine..." Takeda-sensei repetitively mutters to reassure himself.

"You keep it together too, sensei!" Coach Ukai says watching Takeda-sensei's spirit fly away.

"Ahahaha, this pandemonium!" Tsukishima laughs at the chaos.

"Stop using such big words!!" Tomoyo cries out covering her face, "My life is over!"

"Don't lose your heads!" Daichi shouts and grabs Tomoyo's head. "We still have time before the tests. Do you think we can show our team's full power without these five idiots!? No, we can't!" Daichi exclaims to the entire team.

"That kinda makes me happy and sad at the same time," Tanaka says.

"I don't want to be an idiot," Tomoyo whines and gets out Daichi's grasp.

"We're doing this....All of us are going to Tokyo...!" He says with a frightening aura surrounding him.

"His eyes glazed over," Sugawara comments slowly moving away from Daichi.

"That's scary," Asahi shudders.

This week is going to be interesting....