Chapter 16 Yukimura's Rampage: I've become your plaything too...
Yukimura, holding the tennis ball, gave Risa a meaningful look. When their eyes met, she gave him a sweet smile and mouthed silently:
"Are you surprised by this kind of support? God's Son!"
Keigo Atobe understood the girl's lip movements and burst into laughter.
"Interesting! Looks like I've become part of your play today? Huh?"
“It seems…” Yukimura withdrew his gaze and chuckled, “I’ve provoked a wildcat with sharp claws.”
Atobe raised an eyebrow at Yukimura: "Do you need me to give you some private time?"
"No need." Yukimura suddenly stopped smiling, his eyes sharp as knives.
"Ten minutes."
"Um?"
"I'll take care of you in ten minutes."
The stray hairs on Yukimura's face fluttered in the wind, "And then..."
He looked in Risa's direction and said, "I will properly 'thank' this enthusiastic supporter."
Atobe paused for a moment, then broke into an excited smile: "Arrogant! Then let me show you what you're capable of!"
In the following match, Yukimura's offensive suddenly became incredibly fierce, with each shot carrying astonishing power.
Atobe retorted while teasing, "Taking your anger out on me isn't very gentlemanly, Yukimura."
Despite Atobe's best efforts, he was ultimately defeated by a final smash at 9 minutes and 58 seconds.
"Game, Yukimura, 6-2."
The entire room fell silent.
As Yukimura turned to leave, he lifted his shirt to wipe away sweat. His perfectly defined muscles, visible beneath his sweatshirt, drew screams from the girls in the audience.
Then--
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he walked straight to the audience seats.
As Risa watched Yukimura's figure draw ever closer, her crisis radar went off like crazy.
Suddenly, I had a feeling that I had gone too far.
As the ancients said:
Of the Thirty-Six Stratagems, running away is the best.
Just as Yukimura was about to step onto the steps, Risa suddenly sprang to her feet and dashed toward the exit.
She nimbly weaved through the screaming crowd, like a wildcat darting about, her hair tracing a hurried arc in the air.
Once outside the tennis club, Risa didn't care about anything else and ran for her life.
Only after turning two corners and confirming that no one was chasing her did she lean against a vending machine by the roadside, panting heavily.
"You little punk. You think you can mess with me..."
She calmed her erratic breathing and was about to breathe a sigh of relief—
"Bang!"
An arm suddenly braced itself against the vending machine beside her ear. The crisp scent of mint instantly enveloped her, mixed with the heat from her workout, making the tips of her ears tingle.
"You run really fast." Yukimura's voice came from above, slightly out of breath, "Matsuno-kun..."
Risa turned stiffly, her back pressed against the cold vending machine. Yukimura braced himself with his other hand, completely trapping her in this small space.
As he looked down, the sweaty ends of his hair brushed against her cheek.
“Um…” Risa chuckled awkwardly, “If I said I was sleepwalking just now…”
"Sleepwalking?" Yukimura leaned closer, his voice tinged with dangerous pleasure. "Now... how about trying what it's like to be awake?"
The vending machine clicked open, dispensing a can of grape-flavored Fanta. A boy wearing a white baseball cap stood nearby, casually withdrawing his hand from pressing the button.
He pulled down his hat brim. "Excuse me, I'm sorry to have disturbed your sweet talk, but could I get some juice first?"
I'm very thirsty.
Yukimura: "..."
Risa: "..."
Ryoma Echizen casually squeezed through the gap between the two, bent down and picked up the can of Fanta. With a "snap," he pulled the tab and took a big gulp.
“You’re still far from it.” His amber cat-like eyes swept over the two of them. “If you want to flirt, I suggest you find a safer place.”
Yukimura's eyes narrowed slightly: "Little brother, it's very impolite to interrupt others without permission."
"Oh, really?" Echizen took another sip of juice. "Then you guys continue."
He turned to leave, but then turned back and added, "Just a heads up, Sanada-senpai is coming this way."
"...and there are also many spectators who want to watch the excitement."
Risa turned her head and, sure enough, saw Sanada striding towards her with a dark face, followed by a group of students who were eager to watch the drama unfold.
(This is bad...)
(This has really gone too far...)
Remembering the burning, almost murderous gazes of those girls, Risa instinctively shrank closer to Yukimura.
This ostrich-like act seemed to please the boy. He raised the corners of his lips, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her away in full view of everyone.
Echizen watched the two figures disappear into the distance, and the vast "pursuers" behind them, then took another sip of Fanta:
"Ah, youth."
_
The two ran through the courtyard to the vicinity of the teaching building.
Risa's breathing was erratic, and black mist appeared at the edges of her vision. Her legs felt as heavy as lead.
"Yukimura..." she gasped for breath, "Stop, stop for a moment... I can't take it anymore..."
(The ancients were right...)
She thought desperately.
Those who understand the times are wise...
If she keeps sprinting like this, she might become the first transfer student at Rikkai University to die from exhaustion.
The moment that thought flashed through her mind, the figure in front of her suddenly turned around. Risa couldn't brake in time and crashed heavily into his arms. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed into his embrace.
If Yukimura hadn't steadily supported her with his arms, she probably would have already slid to her knees and kowtowed to him on the spot.
Thinking about it this way, Yukimura doesn't seem to hold grudges that much. She had just provoked him like that in front of the whole school, yet he still cared about her image and didn't make her kneel down to him.
Just as Risa was beginning to change her opinion of him—
"You're done for so quickly? Where did your arrogance go?"
A gentle voice came from above, with a hint of amusement.
Risa opened her mouth, but could only gasp for breath. Her chest heaved violently, like a fish tossed ashore by the waves.
An unnatural flush spread from her cheeks to her collarbone, and beads of sweat clung to her eyelashes, blurring her vision.
I'm going to die...
A metallic taste of blood surged in my throat, and my lungs burned with a fiery pain.
This body probably used to skip even gym class...
In both her past and present lives, she had never been this miserable. It was worse than running 800 meters in two minutes during the high school entrance exam's physical fitness test, and more painful than filming all night and then rushing to three concerts.
She rested in Yukimura's arms for a full two minutes before she finally regained normal breathing.
"Looks like someone needs to work on their physical training." The boy's smiling voice came down from above again.
Risa tilted her still flushed face upwards, unexpectedly plunging into that deep purple sea. The overwhelming beauty so close at hand left her mind blank for a moment.
"Where do you want to go on your date tonight?" He tilted his head slightly, stray hairs brushing against his brow bone.
Risa blinked her wet eyelashes, her face completely innocent: "A date? What date?"
“It’s just…” Yukimura suddenly leaned closer, his warm breath brushing against her sensitive earlobe, “someone promised in front of the whole school that if I win the game, he’ll…”
“Oh dear,” Risa interrupted lightly, “that’s just a cheering slogan.”
“But everyone seems to have taken it seriously.” He glanced meaningfully at the end of the corridor, where several girls were whispering to each other on their phones. When they saw them, they immediately blushed and hid away.
"I'm afraid the campus supertopic is already in an uproar right now."
Risa followed his gaze and sighed helplessly. Looking at Yukimura again, she lingered on his refined features for a few seconds, then raised an eyebrow: "Yukimura-kun…you really want to go on a date with me?"
"Matsuno-kun, are you going to back out?"
"I was worried about you." She chuckled, and as she slowly backed away, her fingertips deliberately traced his arm, moving downwards. "Going on a date with me... comes at a price, it's dangerous, you know."
Yukimura's gaze followed her finger, sometimes close, sometimes distant, like a feather brushing past lightly, creating an indescribable subtle feeling.
Just as it was about to fall into his palm, his eyes darkened slightly, and his fingers curled up slightly—
"Sanada-kun!" Risa suddenly called out to him from behind.
Taking advantage of the moment Yukimura was distracted, she slipped away.
"7 PM, Central Station." After stepping back to a safe distance, she winked mischievously. "See you there, Son of God~"
Yukimura watched her graceful departure, then looked down at his wrist. The warmth of her touch still lingered there, faintly burning against his skin.
Is it dangerous……
That's absolutely true.
In the distance, Sanada walked over with a dark expression.
"You were too lax! You guys were just now—"
“Sanada,” Yukimura interrupted him, a smile playing on his lips, “I might have to go to the hospital this afternoon.”
"What?!" Sanada tensed up instantly. "You...are you injured?"
“No,” Yukimura said slowly, “just go for a routine checkup.”
"...?"
"I want to confirm..." He looked in the direction Risa had left, "whether I'm addicted to some kind of dangerous substance."
Sanada: "...???"
“Just kidding.” Yukimura looked at his friend and said with a smile, “After all, the true essence of a flawless game is to enjoy the fun of tennis, which also includes the off-court competition.”
A gentle breeze swept by, stirring up a few fallen leaves.
Sanada stood rooted to the spot, his expression frozen into a perfect blank.
After a full ten seconds, he finally pulled his hat brim down heavily.
"Yukimura! You've been far too lax!"
The instigator—
Yukimura has long since passed away.
-
As Risa turned the corner of the teaching building, she was blocked by a figure in bright yellow.
Risa: "Eh... Akaya?"
"Risa-nee!" Kirihara's face turned bright red, and his dark curly hair trembled with his movements.
"Are you and the minister really going on a date?!"
Risa sighed, "...This is a misunderstanding."
"But the whole school is talking about it!" Kirihara stamped his feet anxiously. "Even that arrogant Echizen from Seigaku said he saw you two being all lovey-dovey in front of the vending machine."
Risa almost choked on her own saliva: "...That brat in the hat, how can he be so gossipy?"
“Risa-nee, the minister…” the boy lowered his voice, his emerald eyes filled with worry: “He’s really terrifying, don’t go and mess with him.”
Risa's heart softened when she saw Akaya's puppy-dog-like, wet eyes. She was about to explain—
"How about this? Risa-nee, I'll help you escape! Let's go buy Shinkansen tickets right now!"
"ha?"
Before Risa could react, a soft cough came from behind her.
"Chiye."
Yukimura stood at the end of the corridor, his smile eerily gentle.
Kirihara froze instantly, mechanically turning his head: "-Captain... I um..."
Yukimura approached slowly, each step making Xiaohai tremble: "Senior Liu said you need to memorize 100 English words, and he'll be quizzing you later. If you get them wrong, you'll have to drink his newly developed Liu Juice."
"Huh?! No way! I'm going right now." Kirihara rushed towards the classroom as if his life depended on it, stirring up a gust of wind.
Risa: "..."
We promised to help her escape.
really--
A man's words are deceitful.
Regardless of age, weakness, illness, disability, or kinship.
A note from the author:
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