They all have hidden attributes!

Mrs. Igarashi gestured towards the inside of the corridor, smiling politely as she said, "Please look for the door number. There are other contestants preparing themselves mentally."

"Thank you for your hard work." Makoto Takahashi nodded and led Hanakawa Kaori into the corridor, arriving at the door with a nameplate bearing the name of Nekoya Hina.

He raised his hand and knocked on the door twice. Hanakawa Kaori shouted at the top of her lungs, "Hina-nee, my brother and I have come to see you!"

“It’s me,” Takahashi Makoto said.

"Acheng? Wait, wait for me!"

From inside the door came Hina Nekoya's panicked voice. Makoto Takahashi and Kaori Hanakawa exchanged a glance and stood in the corridor to wait.

Two minutes later, the preparation room, located further down the corridor, opened.

Makoto Takahashi glanced over instinctively and met the gaze of a pink-haired girl.

Before I could even look away, the other person had already darted right in front of me.

Wow, that was fast.

"Hello handsome, my name is Mizuno, Mizuno Shizuka."

Shizuka Mizuno politely extended her hand from a safe distance: "Please give me your contact information."

Of all the people Makoto Takahashi had ever been approached by, she was one of the more polite ones.

"no!"

Hanakawa Kaori spread her arms, blocking Takahashi Makoto's path, and glared at him menacingly: "This is my brother."

Even in places like Japan where there's a culture of flirting, it's considered very presumptuous to approach someone who isn't alone.

"Where did this anteater come from? Shut up, brat."

Mizuno tilted his head slightly, briefly revealing a gloomy expression, before smiling at Takahashi Makoto again: "I'm 16 years old this year, and I just returned to Japan not long ago. I don't have any friends in Tokyo yet."

"That dialect is so corny." Hanakawa Kaori's cheeks puffed up like mochi.

"You're the one who's being so noisy."

"How could there be such a stupid color as pink!"

The sounds of the two arguing drifted into the preparation room, and Nekoya Hina still hadn't figured out how to face Takahashi Makoto.

I worked so hard to get a date with him, and now I need him to cheer me on? How pathetic!

Never mind, let's just get rid of Mizuno first.

She opened the door and met Mizuno's gaze with a sharp look: "This is my friend. Are you going to use underhanded tactics again?"

"Oh, your boyfriend?"

Shizuka Mizuno stood on one leg, swaying as she checked the name on the doorplate.

“Friend.” Nekoya Hina reached out and pulled Takahashi Makoto into the preparation room, and Hanakawa Kaori followed her in.

"He's not my boyfriend, so what does it matter? I like handsome guys the most."

Mizuno grinned and gave a strange laugh: "Hehehe, this is your fourth loss today, right? It wouldn't be good if you lost again. I'd rather go on a date with a handsome guy than play a boring match with you."

This was clearly an off-field tactic. Nekoya Hina tried her best to stay rational and slammed the door shut on her.

"If we win, how about I give you my contact information, handsome?"

Mizuno Shizuka's voice came from outside the door. Nekoya Hina took a deep breath and forced herself not to get angry.

"I'm furious. They're clearly very strong, but they have absolutely no sportsmanship."

She turned to face Takahashi Makoto and Hanakawa Kaori, trying to sound cheerful: "Makoto, what brings you here?"

"Hanaori was worried about you, so I brought a bento box with me."

After what just happened, Takahashi Seiya had a general understanding of the current situation.

He put down the insulated bag he was holding and asked curiously, "Is she your opponent today?"

"The opponent this morning, well, is quite crucial, but I will win."

Hina Nekoya's attention was clearly not on the bento; the heavy pressure of the round-robin tournament prevented her from relaxing: "That monster, I heard, was kicked out of the A team abroad because he harassed the opponent before the match, so he came back to Japan to develop his career."

"If that's the case, simply winning isn't enough, Hina."

Makoto Takahashi patted her stiff, tense shoulder and said with a gentle smile, "Even after joining Team B, she'll still be a formidable opponent for you, right? You have to defeat her, both in matches and in your heart."

Since there's no way to relieve the pressure, the only hope is that things will turn around.

"That's right, that's right, Haruna-nee, she just called me an anteater, teach her a lesson."

Hanakawa Kaori nodded vigorously and said angrily, "You'll be able to pin her backhand in a moment, no problem at all."

"I'll give it a try; she's really strong."

Hina Nekoya let out a weak sigh and said somewhat dejectedly, "She's much stronger than the two of us. She's probably about the same level as Reiko-senpai. In terms of strength alone, she could probably participate in the Olympics."

"Yangcai" (阳菜).

Makoto Takahashi gently embraced her from the front. Hina Nekoya looked up and her gaze lingered near his throat.

"W-What's wrong?" Nekoya Hina's cheeks were slightly flushed, reminiscent of fresh fruit.

Makoto Takahashi stared intently into her seemingly trembling chestnut eyes, then suddenly asked, "Give me a kiss?"

"Huh?" Nekoya Hina stared wide-eyed as he slowly approached.

Makoto Takahashi kissed her closed pink lips gently, in a way that wouldn't upset her; they were soft and elastic.

Hanakawa Kaori covered her eyes with both hands, peeking at the two through her fingers.

After fully savoring the soft, moist pink lips, Makoto Takahashi released his hand and said calmly, "I've already decided on the date location for this weekend."

“So long…” Nekoya Hina uttered a strange adjective.

"She's quite skilled at it," Hanakawa Kaori chimed in.

"Your reaction is pretty good, Hina, you're so cute," Makoto Takahashi teased.

Before he could finish speaking, a knock on the door broke the ambiguous atmosphere in the preparation room.

"Cat House, it's your turn!"

Upon hearing Miu Takeda's voice, Hina Nekoya mechanically replied, "I'm coming—"

After saying that, she walked towards the door, her eyes still glazed over, devoid of any fighting spirit.

Hanakawa Kaori turned her gaze away from her gently swaying chestnut ponytail, pouted slightly, and glared at him: "Brother, it seems like Hina-nee is destined to lose."

"Wouldn't it be better if we had no worries?" Makoto Takahashi asked uncertainly.

"That's not a bad idea. Anyway, I'll tell Sister Xing."

Hanakawa Kaori smiled mischievously and reached out to hug him, saying, "And Maya-nee, are you alright?"

Upon hearing the blatant threat, Makoto Takahashi's lips twitched slightly.

"It's better for me to be honest."

"Then please confess now, brother. I want to supervise you," Hanakawa Kaori persisted.

Makoto Takahashi pinched her cheeks with both hands and leaned down to lightly peck her peach-colored lips.

"Brother is so perfunctory!" Hanakawa Kaori stomped her foot angrily.

"Sweetie, don't miss Hina's match."

Makoto Takahashi patted her head, and Hanakawa Kaori looked up at him with a slightly resentful expression, saying, "Just patting my head won't make me feel better."

When faced with a sulking younger sister, it seems there's no other way but to spoil her.

Makoto Takahashi closed the door to the preparation room and locked it behind her as she looked on with bright, expectant eyes.

After hugging Hanakawa Kaori, she angrily raised her head up and buried it in her chest for a while before slowly raising her youthful face.

"I want to do it myself."

Seeing Hanakawa Kaori's mischievous smile, Takahashi Makoto had no choice but to make her soft and cute as soon as possible so as not to miss Nekoya Hina's match.

Chapter 212 Unyielding Spirit

Snap, bang—

The badminton shuttlecock soared through the net, and in the empty gymnasium, the loud sound of the shuttlecock hitting the shuttlecock carried the explosive feeling unique to smashes.

Makoto Takahashi and Kaori Hanakawa stood on the second floor, leaning on the railing, their gazes fixed on the energetic figures on the court, even their bouncing chestnut ponytails exuding a sense of vitality.

"Why does it feel like Hina is being led by the nose by the other party?"

Makoto Takahashi couldn't look away. Hanakawa Kaori, standing beside him, followed the flying shuttlecock with her eyes and said listlessly, "Brother, huge amounts of energy can cause neutral molecules to carry an electric current, and the same goes for the shuttlecock."

"I've decided to study humanities."

"That is to say, the stronger you are, the more you can confuse the other party's senses and judgment, and create fear."

Hanakawa Kaori, as a friend and former rival, is well aware of how difficult Nekoya Hina's current situation is:

“Whenever Hina’s spike is caught, she loses confidence, but that is also her strongest weapon. Mizuno has been deliberately giving her opportunities, but Hina doesn’t dare to, because she is afraid of traps and afraid of being caught.”

"This sounds ominous." Makoto Takahashi pondered for a moment, then summoned the system and opened Hina Nekoya's data panel.

[Lv.3 Badminton], the opponent's level is [Lv.4], only 1 level difference.

"The situation is a bit bad. The opponent is playing a winning style and is constantly wearing down Hina's stamina. Hina is not only usually very moral, but also pursues sportsmanship. The score may widen soon."

As soon as Hanakawa Kaori finished speaking, the flying shuttlecock brushed the net and landed in a tricky way.

"Effective, 10-8."

After the referee scored, Hina Nekoya walked to the net, bent down to pick up the shuttlecock, threw it to Mizuno on the other side, and then adopted a serious and focused posture, watching her opponent's movements intently.

Amidst short, labored breathing, sweat dripped onto the ground.

No one understood the strength of their opponent better than Hina Nekoya, and she never felt that her opponent was also human.

The unpredictable trajectory of the ball made it difficult to judge, and the subconscious urge to give up arose, with negative thoughts constantly arising. It was necessary to concentrate and suppress the sigh that welled up in one's throat.

If they lose, it will be four losses, and they will lose the chance to advance on their own. Even if they are lucky enough to advance, they will still have to compete with Mizuno for Group A.

It wasn't just her; other contestants from Group B, such as Miu Takeda, were also in a very cruel and terrifying situation.