3v3 Basketball

The first day, sunny.

The cafeteria was swarming with people.

"Sudo-kun, are you free later? Want to eat together?"

"Hm? Sure, I guess!"

The next day, rain.

"Sudo-kun, are you free later? Want to eat together?"

"Hm? Sure..."

Another day passed, sunny.

"Sudo-kun, are you free later? Want to eat together?"

"Hm? This has been going on for days, what exactly do you want?"

"What do you mean? I just want to be friends with you!"

Zhuge Linghao said with a grin.

Veins popped on Sudo's forehead: "It doesn't feel like it. What kind of scheme are you plotting?"

[Sigh, this is a classic case of a kid starved for affection, and also a classic case of paranoid delusions.]

Ayanokoji, standing nearby, was also puzzled: "Zhuge-kun, I also feel like you're hiding something."

Zhuge Linghao spread his hands: "Why say that? I haven't done anything strange, have I?"

"Fine, whatever. I'm heading to the club to play basketball now, you two can do whatever you want!" Sudo said, finishing his last bite of food.

"Let's go together, I'm coming too! Ayanokoji, you come too! Hmph, actually, I'm a basketball expert!"

"Oh, this is my first time inside the basketball club. Are those courts exclusive to you members?"

Zhuge Linghao acted like a country bumpkin entering the city—full of wonder at everything.

Sudo said proudly: "Of course. The school is wealthy and generous, the funding we get is ample, and the privileges granted to members are quite extensive!"

"I have to join the team practice." The redhead said, running off to gather with the coach.

Ayanokoji looked at the back of Zhuge Linghao's head and said abruptly: "You did well on the Midterm Exam, Zhuge-kun."

"Or should I call you... the mastermind behind the scenes?"

Zhuge Linghao shuddered. It turned out Ayanokoji had already seen through everything.

[So that means the 1 point of emotional value from Class D last time came from Ayanokoji.]

"Uh, uh? What are you talking about, Ayanokoji?"

"I saw you go to find Chabashira-sensei that day."

"Nani? You even discovered that?"

"Yes, I was just curious. What price did you pay for Chabashira-sensei to actually agree to change the Midterm Exam papers?"

Zhuge Linghao didn't answer, maintaining an air of mystery.

Zhuge Linghao decided to stop pretending and laid his cards on the table: "That's right, it was me! Ayanokoji-kun, you really are smart."

Ayanokoji said expressionlessly: "So, what is your purpose in approaching, or rather, monitoring Sudo this time?"

Zhuge Linghao opened his mobile terminal, looked at his 203,051 private points, and said casually: "Since you're so smart, why don't you try guessing again?"

Ayanokoji also caught a glimpse of Zhuge Linghao's massive point balance. After some calculation and deduction, he proposed a possibility.

"I understand. It's likely because this month's points haven't been distributed yet, and to prevent the 100 class points from being deducted, you are specifically keeping an eye on Sudo Ken, who is the most likely to cause a major point loss, right?"

Zhuge Linghao's face was filled with shock.

[Are you cheating? Do you have a system too?]

[This makes it seem like Ayanokoji can read minds. What a terrifying man!]

Zhuge Linghao grinned and gave Ayanokoji a thumbs up!

That's right, Zhuge Linghao was simply preventing any accidents from happening on Sudo Ken's end.

[I worked so hard to get those 100 class points; I can't let my 10,000 private points go down the drain so easily!]

Moreover, Ryuen had already issued a warning that he would target Class D after the Midterm Exam. This had become a thorn in Zhuge Linghao's side and was the biggest reason he hadn't been sleeping well lately.

And Sudo Ken was highly likely to become the entry point for Class C's attack.

Therefore, for the past few days, Zhuge Linghao had been using the excuse of making friends to stay inseparable from Sudo Ken, all to guard against a sudden move from Class C.

Basketball club free practice time.

"Hey, you two on the court, let's team up and play a game!"

"Are they talking about us?" Zhuge Linghao asked, puzzled.

"It should be," Ayanokoji confirmed after exchanging a glance.

At this moment, Sudo Ken rubbed his hands together and called out, "Zhuge, Ayanokoji, you two come over and join my team. Hurry up, I'm going to crush them!"

"Change of possession, play to 21 points. 3-pointers count as 2, 2-pointers count as 1. You guys know the rules, right?"

Three delinquents from Class C of the first year had formed a team, and one of them with green hair spoke up.

Zhuge and Ayanokoji shrugged, signaling they had no problem with that.

Sudo immediately started setting up his tactics: "When you guys get the ball, just pass it straight to me! You don't need to worry about anything else."

Sigh, basketball is all about teamwork. Do you think you're Kobe or something?

Playing like this, we're bound to lose!

After 10 minutes of intense competition, Zhuge Linghao was so exhausted he was nearly collapsing. Of course, Sudo Ken wasn't doing much better, as he had been double or triple-teamed the entire time, resulting in very low scoring efficiency.

As for Ayanokoji, he 'looked very tired, bracing his knees and panting.'

At this point, the score reached 13:19, the first match point had arrived, and Sudo's team was trailing by 6 points.

"System, I can't handle this anymore. Give me an Irving Experience Card!"

"Ding! 250 Emotion Points consumed. Irving Experience Card equipped!"

Zhuge Linghao's back pain vanished instantly, his breathing steadied, and he felt like he could carry a water bucket up to the 20th floor!

Used skill Death Wrap...

Used skill Flying Hot Pot...

Used skill Look Back Steal...

Having stolen the ball multiple times in a row, Zhuge Linghao was now being double-teamed by two people, while the third person guarded Sudo Ken tightly.

Zhuge Linghao had no choice but to pass to Ayanokoji. The open Ayanokoji did something incredible—he threw an airball...

Luckily, Sudo Ken, who was under the basket, caught the alley-oop and put the ball in!

Three minutes later, the score was tied at 20:20. The chance for Sudo's team to turn the game around had arrived!

Sudo Ken had accounted for almost all the points, scoring 18 in total, while Zhuge Linghao picked up 2 points from scraps, and the slacking Ayanokoji had 0.

At this moment, Zhuge Linghao, possessed by the spirit of Irving, poked the ball away for a steal and then delivered a no-look pass to Sudo Ken.

The three quick-reacting opponents swarmed the red-haired boy as he crouched to protect the ball, and Sudo Ken instantly lost his space to shoot.

"Give me that damn basketball!"

Zhuge Linghao activated his personal skill—the probability of others agreeing to your request increases by 50%!

Sudo Ken had already intended to pass, and with the 50% probability boost, he didn't hesitate; he put all his strength into passing the ball through the gap between the defenders.

The person closest to Zhuge Linghao rushed to recover, but Zhuge Linghao silently activated the Ankle Breaker skill. With an ultra-wide crossover, he shook the defender to the ground, then powered through two defenders near the free-throw line and took the shot!

Used skill—Clutch Killer!

The basketball hit the rim with a 'clank,' bounced, and then took a 'dangerous stroll' along the circumference.

Under the burning gaze of everyone, the mischievous basketball dropped into the net!

In the end, Zhuge Linghao, the hero of the hour, completed a high-difficulty left-handed drifting floater for the game-winner!

"Oh, oh, oh! We won! We won!"

Sudo Ken shouted excitedly, rushing over to hug Zhuge Linghao!

Ayanokoji also 'very excitedly' patted Zhuge Linghao's hair.

On the other side, the three green-haired delinquents from Class C stared at Sudo Ken like hungry wolves.

Just then, the phones of the three boys chimed.

"Ding-dong, 10,000 private points have been deposited for this month. Please check and verify."

"We're rich, we're rich! The school finally transferred the points!"

Zhuge Linghao, who had been waiting impatiently for so long, couldn't help but tear up!