What did it mean, no matter what, your big sister was still your big sister?
Mai Sakurajima proved it to Nodoka Toyohama through her actions. Calling it turning the rotten into the miraculous would have been an exaggeration, but Nodoka did believe that their group had practically become a different set of people overnight...
Wait, had everyone else switched bodies too, aside from her? After all, the example between her and Mai wasn't unique. Didn't Yukinoshita and Kasumigaoka have the same experience?
But just as Nodoka Toyohama was beginning to wonder, an accident occurred among the performers onstage. Perhaps they still hadn't adjusted to the change, but one of the members actually dropped her microphone during a transition...
Nodoka Toyohama: "..."
All right, they were still the same people!
There were even accidents during a LIVE performance...
Yet just as she couldn't bear to watch, Mai Sakurajima caught the microphone in time with her dancing steps and casually passed it back. A LIVE mishap instantly turned into a surprise performance, and the crowd's cheers grew even louder.
And so...
Nodoka Toyohama finally understood what a gap was. If the person onstage hadn't been Mai... if it had been her...
Nodoka Toyohama ran off again—or rather, she fled!
"What now?" Sogo Doma, who had followed close behind, stepped forward and asked after she stopped.
"I can't compare..." Nodoka Toyohama said, as though answering him, yet also muttering to herself. "I just can't compare at all..."
"Hm?"
"I'm saying I can't compare to Mai..." Nodoka Toyohama seemed to break down. "I can't even do her original job properly, but Mai can make my teammates so strong. Even when they make mistakes, she can still..."
Before she could finish, Sogo Doma frowned. "So, you're admitting defeat?"
"I..." Nodoka Toyohama lowered her head again.