Chapter 459: [459] Hachiman's Stratagem
Chapter 459: Hachiman's Stratagem
"I knew you'd come, Hikigaya-kun."
Facing Hayama, Hachiman smiled. "Hayama, it's you, after all."
Hayama returned the smile. "Of course. I know very well that if we can stop you, Hikigaya-kun, our victory in this match is almost assured."
"Oh?"
Hachiman raised an eyebrow. He noticed that, unbeknownst to him, a considerable number of opponents had surrounded him, clearly intending to corner him.
From the sidelines, Yukino and the others watched with growing tension.
However, Hachiman's face showed no signs of anxiety. "Is this your strategy, Hayama? Are you sure you can hold me off like this?"
Given the situation, Hachiman's question might have seemed laughable. After all, he stood alone, while Hayama had gathered ten men to face him. A one-versus-ten scenario typically suggested overwhelming odds in favor of the larger group.
But there was no hint of a smile on Hayama's face. Having experienced the forest training camp, he knew Hachiman couldn't be judged by conventional standards. This understanding led him to insist on deploying ten men, including himself, to confront Hachiman.
Even so, Hayama harbored doubts. After all, Hachiman was known for his extraordinary strength, even capable of taking on a bear barehanded.
...
As expected, despite being alone, Hachiman showed no fear or nervousness facing Hayama and his ten men. His face still bore that faint, confident smile.
Seeing this, Hayama grew more uneasy.
Then Hachiman spoke, still smiling. "Don't worry. I won't go too hard on you."
Hearing this, Hayama felt a slight relief. He wasn't sure they could defeat Hachiman, and even if they could, he didn't want anyone getting hurt. That wasn't an outcome he desired.
However, with Hachiman's assurance, Hayama felt more at ease.
Turning to his team, Hayama gave a clear directive, "Everyone, give it your all. If we don't, we will surely lose."
Hachiman smirked at this. "You're really something, Hayama. I promised to go easy, and you tell them to go all out."
But before Hachiman could voice his complaint, Hayama and his team of ten launched their attack.
"Let's go, everyone!"
With Hayama's rallying cry, the group charged at Hachiman with full force.
Meanwhile, Ebina's voice came over the loudspeakers once again, "Oh, look! Led by Hayama, a large group is attacking Hachiman. Are they trying to pin him down? This is so thrilling!"
Apparently, Ebina had managed to get back on the microphone.
Hachiman felt a bit embarrassed by her commentary, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. He swiftly sidestepped the first two attackers who reached him.
However, the next moment, two more opponents lunged at him, attempting to tackle him to the ground.
However, it was still futile. With a light tap of his toes, Hachiman leveraged the momentum to gently evade backwards, causing the two attackers to crash directly onto the ground.
The white team's members didn't give Hachiman a moment to catch his breath. They launched another attack, but this time, they showed more cunning. They had people charging at Hachiman from both the front and the rear, clearly attempting a pincer movement.
But who was Hachiman? Could he be trapped by such a simple tactic?
As the boy in front of him reached out to grab him, Hachiman acted first. He seized the boy's arm and simultaneously stepped to the side, pulling him towards another attacker.
"Ah!" "Ah!"
Two cries rang out as the two boys aiming for a pincer attack collided with each other.
"Indeed, not easy to deal with."
Seeing several failed attempts to attack, even Hayama's expression soured a bit. However, he refrained from intervening lightly, evidently waiting for the best moment to act.
With each failed attack, the frustration among the white team's members grew palpable.
Hachiman clearly adhered to his promise; he hadn't initiated any attacks so far, primarily focusing on evasion. Given his current physical strength, a single strike from him would suffice to end the fight.
Finally, after another failed assault, Hayama grew visibly anxious. He turned back to the defenders behind him and spoke again.
"Everyone, send more reinforcements. If we can just hold him down, we can win."
Upon hearing this, ten more members of the white team's defense rushed towards Hachiman. Together with the initial ten attackers, there were now twenty members in the assault team, a clear indication of their determination to deal with Hachiman.
Yet, Hayama still didn't rush to intervene, clearly cautious to prevent any unexpected developments.
Thus, an intriguing scene unfolded on the field: numerous members of the white team surrounded a single individual, yet struggled to subdue him, whether attacking in pairs, trios, or from all sides.
Hachiman moved within the encircling group like a nimble dancer, effortlessly evading the attacks of the white team's members who couldn't lay a finger on him.
Witnessing this scene, some female spectators couldn't help but be captivated. Hachiman now exuded an unexpected elegance, especially reminiscent of his piano performance at the cultural festival...
Well, now Hachiman's status among the girls was almost on par with Hayama, making him the second white knight in their hearts.
It was foreseeable that more girls would confess or write love letters to Hachiman in the future.
...
However, it's worth noting that intentionally or not, the battlefield was gradually shifting away from the white team's flagpole.
Seeing this, a smile played on Hachiman's lips. Once he managed to draw the white team's members further away, he suddenly shouted out.
"Zaimokuza, go for it!"
"Ooooh!"
Upon hearing this, Zaimokuza, who had been waiting on standby, as previously planned, yelled loudly and charged straight towards the white team's flagpole.
Seeing this, the white team members who had been surrounding Hachiman quickly withdrew. However, they were late to react. In desperation, the defenders left at the flagpole once again divided into three, attempting to block Zaimokuza's advance.
Unfortunately for them, they underestimated Zaimokuza.
With his immense mass came tremendous force. The three defenders were completely unable to withstand his push and were forced to retreat repeatedly.
Although they didn't completely stop him, they did manage to slow down Zaimokuza's advance. This bought enough time for the earlier attackers to regroup.
Just when the audience thought the sudden assault would be effectively repelled by the white team, a figure suddenly darted out and swiftly charged towards the white team's flagpole.
It was Hachiman himself.
Taking advantage of the fact that the white team members focused their attention on Zaimokuza, who had drawn their gaze, Hachiman broke free from the encirclement.
By the time the white team members realized what was happening, it was too late.
Hachiman's speed was astonishing; he was almost at the white team's flagpole in the blink of an eye.
However, at that moment, another figure blocked his path – Hayama.
Hayama had remained still and composed throughout, even after Zaimokuza launched his attack. His eyes were fixed solely on Hachiman the entire time.
Because he knew, Hachiman wouldn't just defend; he would attack as well.
As expected, just as Hayama anticipated, the moment the white team members were distracted by Zaimokuza, Hachiman launched a direct assault.
But even if Hayama had guessed what was coming, what difference would it make?
Hachiman had no intention of prolonging the match any further this time; he was prepared to end it with one decisive blow.
Looking at Hayama standing in his way, Hachiman just smiled faintly. In an instant, he charged towards him and struck directly.
"What... is this?!"
Hayama felt as if he were as light as a feather in front of Hachiman. His whole body seemed to float.
With his superior combat skills, Hachiman effortlessly brought Hayama down.
However, true to his promise, Hachiman didn't use full force, and his technique was gentle, ensuring Hayama wasn't hurt at all.
After losing Hayama, their last line of defense, the remaining two members supporting the flagpole were like mere illusions, also easily brought down by Hachiman.
"Thud!"
A crisp sound rang out as Hachiman successfully kicked the white team's flagpole.
"Whistle——!"
At that moment, the referee blew the final whistle.
"The match is over! The winner is the red team!"
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