"Alright! Let's start cleaning!"
Wearing a cleaning apron and holding a mop like a weapon, Sakuragi ripped open the locked door of the basketball club.
"Uhh… are we seriously doing this?" Mito whispered, leaning close to Oliver.
"I can't help it," Oliver sighed, sounding utterly resigned. "Haruko-san said we should…"
It was already 8:00 PM. Oliver and the rest of the gang had snuck into the school through the back gate under the cover of darkness.
Two hours earlier…
"It's okay, Sakuragi-kun! My brother just doesn't understand you well enough yet!" Haruko had taken Sakuragi's hand in both of hers, looking up at him with sparkling eyes.
"If he gets to know the real you, I know he'll approve of you!"
"Haruko-saaaan…" Sakuragi was moved to tears.
And just like that, Oliver, Mito, and the others found themselves roped into Sakuragi's plan to secretly clean the basketball clubroom to prove Sakuragi's worth.
"Excuse me! The genius Sakuragi Hanamichi has arrived!!"
Sakuragi kicked open the clubroom door with dramatic flair.
Inside, however, was a nightmare: dirt-covered floors, scattered garbage, crusty gym bags, and the unmistakable stench of dried sweat. Cabinets stood open, stuffed with who-knows-what, and dust floated in the air like smoke.
"…This is disgusting," someone muttered.
They had even gone as far as asking Akagi's teammates what he liked. The only concrete piece of information they'd gotten was that he was a neat freak.
"How does a clean freak stand living in this mess?" Oliver groaned.
Sakuragi, undeterred, stepped forward with a mop in one hand and cleaning supplies in the other.
"Perfect! The dirtier it is, the more impressive it'll be once we clean it up!"
He threw brooms, mops, and rags at his stunned friends.
"If we shine this place up, I bet that damn gorilla won't be able to say a thing!"
"I think we already have nothing to say…" Mito muttered as he reluctantly picked up a broom.
"Seriously, is this really necessary?" Takamiya asked, stepping gingerly around the grime. "Wouldn't just a little good impression be enough?"
But then he caught the murderous gleam in Sakuragi's eyes and wisely shut his mouth.
"Um… you guys go ahead. Chika's still waiting for me at home, and you know how she gets when—"
"Oh no you don't!" Oliver growled.
But before he could sneak out, Ohkusu and Takamiya threw themselves at his legs, wrapping around his thighs like vines. Noma blocked his escape route like a defensive wall.
"Let me go, damn it!" Oliver struggled. "I'm not wasting my night like this! I just want to go home and eat Chika's cooking!"
"We're in this together, brother!" Ohkusu cried. "If we suffer, we suffer together! …That said, can I get a bite of Chika-chan's food, too?"
"Get your own dinner!"
"C'mon, Oliver!" Sakuragi clapped him on the back, grinning. "You believe in me, right? Then help your genius friend prove himself!"
"Do it yourself!"
Bull charge—START!
"Waaahh!"
Oliver tried to escape, shaking off the human barnacles, but they came back like rubber bands.
"Don't even think about running!"
"Damn it!!"
Realizing there was no escape, Oliver sighed heavily, picked up a mop, and resigned himself to fate.
"Alright. But you're buying me croquettes later. From that shop on the shopping street."
"…500 yen."
"1,000 yen."
"Fine, 1,000 yen! Just help me clean already!"
Sakuragi pumped his fist in the air, fired up.
"This is how I'll win back Haruko's heart! I'll join the basketball team, beat Kaede Rukawa, and prove I'm the better man!"
"Ugh…"
Dragging his mop, Oliver trudged toward the dusty floor. He was beyond exhausted. First, there had been the rooftop scuffle against that gang of thugs. Then, a draining one-on-one match with a powerhouse like Akagi. The constant use of skills had left him physically wrecked.
Even with his "Quick Recovery" skill, mental fatigue was catching up fast.
"Hanamichi! I want croquettes too!"
"Shut up!" Sakuragi snapped. "Where were you guys when the gorilla was badmouthing me?! Oliver was the only one who stood up for me!"
"You stingy jerk!!"
With that, the group finally got to work. It was noisy and chaotic, but surprisingly productive.
Oliver mopped the floor slowly but thoroughly. Noma changed water buckets like clockwork. Takamiya and Ohkusu swept dirt into piles while Mito and Sakuragi wiped grime off the cabinets and benches.
Time passed. Before they knew it, it was 10 PM.
"Alright—how does it look?!"
"Whoa…"
The basketball clubroom had undergone a complete transformation. The floors sparkled, the garbage was gone, the walls were wiped clean, and even the cabinets gleamed under the light.
"Ha ha ha ha!! Just wait until that gorilla sees this tomorrow!" Sakuragi laughed triumphantly, arms crossed, beaming with pride.
The others, on the other hand, were dead on their feet. Except for Sakuragi—the tireless monster—everyone was completely drained. One by one, they began to leave.
Oliver, swaying with fatigue, dragged himself down the dark street toward home.
"I'm back…"
The door creaked open.
"You're LATE!"
Standing there with puffed cheeks and arms crossed was Chika, clearly furious.
"Why does my idiot brother always come home so—HEY!!"
Before she could finish scolding him, Oliver suddenly collapsed.
"Brother?! OLIVER!! What's wrong?!"
Panic surged through her.
"What's the number for the ambulance again?! What is it?!"
She spun in frantic circles, searching for her phone.
"Chika…" Oliver groaned, raising a weak hand.
"I'm here! I'm here! What's wrong?! Don't scare me!!"
She grabbed his hand tightly, tears already forming in her eyes.
"I…"
Oliver smiled weakly, his voice barely a whisper.
"…I want some miso soup…"
And then he passed out completely.
"Brother?! BROTHER!!"
---
The next morning, Shohoku High School.
"Hehehe… let's see what that gorilla says now."
Sakuragi stood alone in the freshly cleaned basketball clubroom, arms crossed, grinning smugly.
To protect the fruits of his labor, he'd gotten up at five in the morning and rushed to school to make sure nothing got messed up.
He pictured Akagi's dumbfounded face in his head and laughed.
"Yup! This is it! Now I'll join the team, beat Rukawa, and finally, Haruko will fall for me! We'll walk to school together, walk home together, and then…"
Fantasy Mode: Activated
"Haruko-chan, you're too close to me… I can't walk like this…"
"No, Hanamichi-kun, I just want to be near you…"
"Oh? Well, I guess I can't help it… hehehe…"
Sakuragi giggled to himself, lost in romantic delusions of strolling arm-in-arm with Haruko beneath cherry blossom trees.
Little did he know…
The basketball team of Shohoku High School was about to be swept up in a bloody storm!
Far from the gym, a calm and elegant figure stood before the school gates—Chika Furukawa.
Her smile was gentle… but behind it was an energy that could shake the entire basketball club.
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