Okay then, let's begin training, everyone," said Nanaho. Shino was tasked with repeatedly practicing layups. He dribbled the basketball and took a deep breath. "Here goes nothing," said Shino to himself as he drove to the hoop and took his two steps. He then shot a layup that swished.
"Yes, I made it! I'll do it again," said Shino as he picked up the basketball and returned to the top of the three-point arc. Yukio, Takahiro, and Hayato were tasked with footwork training to help them move more smoothly on the court.
"Come on, Hayato, don't let up now. Just ten more minutes to go," said Yukio.
"I'm trying my best not to," said Hayato, visibly in pain.
Tetsuo, who was tasked with working on being less predictable, crossed through his legs, then behind his back. He drove to the rim and faked a layup mid-air. He then shot a reverse layup that swished. Before the ball even fell, Tetsuo caught it and dribbled back to the start. He then drove to the rim again and shot a floater that swished.
Noboru, who lacked the stamina to play a full game, was tasked with running around the track. "Crap, I can't take this anymore. We've been running for twenty minutes nonstop. I feel like my lungs are going to burst. I'm about to pass out," said Noboru to himself, feeling nauseous.
"What's wrong, Mr. Takemoto? Did all that talk about enduring longer than us get to your head?" asked a girl on the track team.
"He looks like he's about to pass out," said another girl.
"All bark and no bite, it's hilarious," said another, laughing.
"You're about to be beaten by a bunch of girls. How do you feel about that?" asked a girl.
"Leave me alone and buzz off!" shouted Noboru furiously.
"I'm scared, please don't hurt me," said a girl sarcastically as all the track girls laughed and sped up their pace.
"Damn you, Nanaho, trying to humiliate me by making me train with these girls. I will not lose!" said Noboru to himself as he sped up his pace.
"Noboru looks like he's serious for once. He's really trying hard out there," said Naomi to herself as she watched Noboru running.
"Noboru's ego provides a great catalyst for his stamina training. I'm sure he doesn't want to lose to a bunch of girls, so he'll work hard and improve at a faster rate," said Nanaho to herself with a smile.
Noboru eventually caught up to the track girls. "I'm not going to lose to any of you, eat my dust," he said as he passed them.
"Hey! He's doing pretty good," said one of the girls.
"He sounds like a kid though," said another girl, chuckling.
Liam, who was preparing to run, got distracted and looked over at Noboru. "Wait, isn't he part of the basketball team? So why is he over here training?" Liam asked himself.
"Liam, focus! I'm trying to record your time here. Get on your marks," said Liam's track coach.
Liam then crouched down, awaiting the signal from his coach.
"Set, go!" said the coach. Liam took off and started running. In just a few seconds, he completed the 100-meter dash, and his coach recorded his time.
"Eleven point four seconds. That's 0.3 seconds slower. He's not getting better at all," said the coach to himself, disappointed.
"So, what's my time, coach?" asked Liam.
"Eleven point four seconds. You have a slower time," said the coach bluntly.
"I see, so my time has decreased, huh?" said Liam, trying to hide his disbelief.
"I'm afraid you won't be placed above last in the 100-meter race. Your time is decreasing rapidly. Usually, you'd get 0.1 seconds faster by the end of each week, but now you're getting slower each time you run. I suggest you consider doing field events. I don't want your hard work to go to waste. Some people just aren't cut out for sprinting," said the coach as he walked off.
Liam, who was saddened by the coach's words, held his head down. Nanaho, who checked her watch, blew her whistle.
"Training is over, you guys can rest up now," said Nanaho.
"Phew, that was quite the workout," said Yukio as he drank some water.
"Yes, it was," said Takahiro.
"I can barely feel my legs. I'm definitely going to be cramped up later," said Hayato.
"Me too. I can feel my legs tightening up," said Takahiro.
"Well, you cramping up is understandable," Yukio said as he laughed.
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Takahiro.
Noboru, who had finished running, was knocked out on the ground from exhaustion.
"Noboru, are you okay?" asked Hayato.
"He looks like a goner. May your soul rest in peace," said Takahiro.
"He was trying to keep up with the girls on the track team, but he forgot his limits. He ran for two and a half hours straight. That's quite impressive," said Nanaho.
"Thank you for working so hard, Noboru," said Yukio to himself.
"I'm getting comfortable with scoring layups now, but my right-handed layups could use some work. As for shooting…" said Shino to himself as he breathed heavily, reminiscing about what took place earlier in training. Shino lined up and shot a free throw, but the ball fell short and didn't touch the rim. He then attempted to shoot a two-pointer, but once again, the ball didn't even touch the rim.
Irritated, Shino tried shooting another free throw that airballed once more. He shot another two-pointer, and it airballed again.
"Come on, Shino! Flick your wrist and use your legs for power! You're barely even jumping!" shouted Nanaho.
"I only made a single free throw out of fifty and a single mid-range shot out of a hundred. I must be the worst shooter in history," said Shino to himself as he looked over at Tetsuo.
"Look at him, completely unfazed by his training regiment. He's amazing. Can I really catch up to him? He always keeps to himself and barely ever shares his thoughts. I wonder what he's thinking," said Shino to himself curiously.
"I wonder how Usagi is doing. What should I make for dinner tonight?" said Tetsuo to himself.