"Thud..."
With a clear sound, Sudo Ken accurately caught what Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had thrown at him.
It was a basketball.
Moreover, it was the basketball Sudo Ken often used, one he had even brought into the classroom.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had thrown this basketball at Sudo Ken, forcing him to stop and catch it.
Sudo Ken froze in place, still holding the basketball.
"----"
The entire classroom instantly fell silent.
Everyone looked at the frozen Sudo Ken, exchanging bewildered glances.
No one had expected this, had they?
Sudo Ken, who had ruthlessly shoved Kushida Kikyo aside even when she stood in his way and had fallen into a rampage, had actually stopped because of a basketball.
Thus, everyone could only look at one another, completely unable to make sense of the situation.
Fang Li alone remained as though he were uninvolved, ignoring the situation around him as he spoke to Kushida Kikyo, who still had not recovered in his arms.
"Are you all right?"
Only then did Kushida Kikyo come to her senses.
"I-I'm fine." As though relieved, Kushida Kikyo instinctively said to Fang Li, "Thank you, Nanaya."
"It was nothing." Fang Li did not act any differently just because he had a beauty in his arms. His tone remained calm, and without the slightest hesitation, he released the girl.
That broke the classroom's deathly silence.
"Have you calmed down, Sudo?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka asked tentatively, though his tone remained completely flat.
"Ayanokoji..."
Holding the basketball, Sudo Ken glared at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
Yet Ayanokoji Kiyotaka simply looked back at Sudo Ken as though he had not noticed.
"This is your basketball, right?" Ayanokoji Kiyotaka said. "I seem to remember you telling us before that your dream was to become a professional basketball player."
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's words surprised the entire class.
"A professional..."