Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

The April wind blew into the classroom.

Sakuragi Hanamichi sat in the last row of Class 7, Grade 1 at Shohoku High School, by the window, his hand supporting his chin, his gaze passing through the glass window onto the few cherry blossom trees in the schoolyard that were shedding their petals.

He ultimately didn't make it to Ryonan University. Coach Taoka had tried his best, but basketball is ultimately a niche sport in Japan, unlike baseball.

When he told Yanai the news, she was silent for a few seconds. Her expression wasn't clear under the streetlights, but her fingers gently tightened around his arm, and then she said, "It's okay, we're both in Kanagawa, it's not like we can't meet."

Of course, other schools also approached Sakuragi with offers of special admissions. For example, Takezono successfully recruited Oda, and Shohoku and Takezato also had contact with him. However, Sakuragi's poor academic record and lack of funds deterred them.

Then he came to Shohoku. It was a public school, the tuition was cheap, and it wasn't too far from home. More importantly, with his grades, there was nowhere else he could go but Shohoku.

The bell rang in the corridor during the break, and the Sakuragi Army and the other three rushed over from the direction of the next class. Takamiya Nozomi's head was the first to stick his head in from outside the window, followed by Ooku's hand grabbing the windowsill, and Noma squeezed in from the other side. The three heads were squeezed against the window glass.

"Do you think Hanamichi confessed to Yanai or not?" Da Nan's voice was very low.

Takamiya nudged Da Nan aside, securing the best viewing spot in the center of the window for himself. "That guy's so stubborn, he won't tell me no matter how I ask. Last time I asked him how far things had progressed with Yanai, whether they'd reached base, and he practically headbutted me and sent me to the infirmary."

Noma crouched under the windowsill, only half his head and a pair of eyes showing. "Ever since he started playing basketball, he hasn't played with us much. And after meeting Yanai, I don't think he'll ever break his record of failed confessions."

Yohei walked out of the classroom and approached the trio of students waiting for him, glancing at Sakuragi, who looked dejected inside the classroom.

He didn't participate in the three-person discussion because he knew something they didn't.

He had seen Sakuragi and Yanai strolling on the street several times. Yanai had her arm around Sakuragi's, and Sakuragi's face was beaming like a blooming chrysanthemum, like a golden retriever being walked by its mistress.

That kind of scene doesn't need words to explain; what the eyes see is the truth.

The afternoon school bell rang a little longer than the break bell, and the students in the classroom scattered like birds released from their cages.

Takamiya Nozomi ran over from the next class, followed by Da Nan and Noma. The three of them stood side by side in the corridor, blocking half the width of the classroom doorway.

"Hanamichi, there's a pachinko parlor having a big opening sale today, let's go have some fun!" Takamiya's voice was so loud that people from the class across the hallway turned around to look.

Sakuragi stuffed his textbooks into his backpack and zipped it up. "No way, this genius is going to sign up for the basketball club."

Da Nan took a step forward, his face clearly saying, "Are you serious?"

"The school's extracurricular activity clubs haven't even started recruiting yet, there are still a few days until then, you idiot. Take a few days off first. Signing up for the basketball club on the first day of school? You're in too much of a rush."

"That's right," Noma chimed in from the side, "We haven't played pachinko together in ages, let's try our luck."

Takamiya, Okusu, and Noma spoke in turn, their voices overlapping like three sparrows circling around food.

Yohei followed Sakuragi out of the classroom without saying a word, but his gaze fell on the other end of the corridor.

He narrowed his eyes. At the other end of the corridor, a tall figure was walking towards him.

Takamiya was still nagging Sakuragi to go play.

Da Nan added reasons from the side, and Noma embellished the story. None of the three noticed the figure approaching from the other end of the corridor.

Takamiya caught something out of the corner of his eye. His mouth stopped, closed, and then opened slightly.

Da Nan noticed Gao Gong's unusual expression and followed his gaze. His mouth also opened wide, even wider than Gao Gong's.

Noma noticed the expressions on the two people's faces, glanced at the other end of the corridor, and was also stunned.

Sakuragi was completely bewildered by the four people's reactions. He tucked his backpack under his arm, turned around, and looked curiously down the corridor.

Sunlight streamed in through the corridor window, blindingly bright, making him squint. The figure, backlit, drew closer, the hem of her school uniform skirt swaying gently above her knees, white socks, black leather shoes.

Yuri Yanai stood in front of him, looking up at him. Her eyes curved into two crescent moons, and her eyelashes cast thin shadows on her eyelids.

She reached out and took his arm. The movement was natural, as if she had done it countless times.

She turned slightly to the side, shifting her weight a little, and looked up at his completely stunned face.

"Surprised? Unexpected?"

Her voice wasn't loud, but every word reached Sakuragi's ears clearly.

His tone carried a smug "I knew you'd look like that" quality, with the last syllable rising in pitch, like a cat licking its paws after stealing a fish.

Sakuragi's brain completely short-circuited at that moment. His mouth was still open, his eyes were still wide open, and he looked like a statue that had been frozen in place.

He could feel the warmth of her palm on his arm, and the sleeve of her school uniform brushed against his arm.

The wind in the corridor blew through the gap between the two people, making a few strands of hair by Yanai's ear flutter.

The four members of Sakuragi's gang stood still, their expressions different yet highly unified: mouths agape, eyes wide open, and jaws practically dropping to the ground.

At this moment, the minds of the three members of Takamiya Nozomi were completely blank. They looked at Yanai, then at Sakuragi, then at Yanai's arm around Sakuragi's, and then back at Sakuragi's face, which was smiling like a blooming chrysanthemum.

But they were certain of one thing: whether or not Hanamichi had confessed to Yanai seemed to be no longer important.

Yohei looked at Sakuragi's incredibly bright smile, then at Yanai's smug grin, and sighed inwardly.

Unexpectedly, the eldest daughter of the Yanai family, for the sake of Sakuragi, that big idiot, actually rejected going to a private school with a better environment, just like herself, and instead came to Shohoku, an ordinary public school.

I just don't know how she convinced her family. She went to great lengths to come to Shohoku and go to school and play with the Sakuragi Army.

Looking at the two who were all lovey-dovey, the four members of Sakuragi's gang stood still, like four clotheslines that had been forgotten to be taken down.

Yohei was the first to react, and his brain made an accurate judgment at that moment: if he stayed any longer, he would probably be overwhelmed by the couple's PDA.

"Let's go beat up Pachinko, let's go!"

Takamiya Nozomi, Oonan, and Noma nodded simultaneously, and the four of them turned and left.

The corridor fell silent. Most of the students had left, leaving only a few cleaning staff.

Yanai still had her arm around Sakuragi's, not letting go, and pressed her whole body against Sakuragi.

Sakuragi stood there, feeling like a plant that had been watered, with every cell swelling and becoming fuller from the roots.

He lowered his head and looked at Yanai.

"Um, what are you doing at Shohoku? Shouldn't you be at Ryonan?" Sakuragi's voice was a little strained. He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"My family arranged for Ryonan." Yanai looked up at him, his light brown eyes reflecting his face. "But I chose Shohoku myself."