"Soar" is the fifty eighth chapter in Ahiru no Sora.
Chapter Summary[]
The friendly sports competition at Kuzuryu High is underway. The first-year students at Kuzuryu High have performed well, especially this year. In the basketball tournament, both Sora’s class and Kenji’s class won their first and second-round matches, and they will compete against each other in the semifinals. While Sora is waiting outside the school’s gym doorsteps, Nao meets him. Nanao praises Sora for the great efforts he displayed in the basketball matches. However, she questions him that he didn’t attempt to make a single three-pointer. In between their conversation, Chiaki also joins and explains to Nao that the reason is simple he switched his role from a shooting guard to a point guard. Hanazono further commented that since Sora is a novice point guard and the fear of making mistakes is something many beginners go through. Sora agrees with Chiaki’s viewpoint and states that he still in the learning phase and is trying to gain experience on being a point guard in this tournament. Upon hearing, Chiaki apologizes to Sora that it is his fault that he made him switch to point guard and further states switching from a shooting guard to a playmaker (point guard) is not an easy transition for anyone. Upon concluding, Chiaki urges Sora to play as a shooting guard in the semi-final match. Nao also agrees with Hanazono’s opinion. However, Sora refuses and tells them he will play as a point guard in the upcoming match.
The semifinal match between Sora’s class and Kenji’s class is about to start. All the Kuzuryu High basketball team members are present at the court. Chiaki brings all his favorite snacks to watch the anticipated match. Upon entry, he notices that there is a lot of female presence at the basketball court. Hanazono suddenly decides he wants to join Sora’s and Kenji’s match. The referee stops him and states that he is a second-year student and can not participate in this match. Before the tip-off, Kenji asks Sora why he didn’t pass the ball to him during the Kitasumi High practice match. Sora states that everyone on the team didn’t have any stamina left and believed that they would have badly lost if the game went on overtime. Upon hearing, Natsume responds that he had the energy left out of everyone on the team to make that final shot and urges Sora to make rational decisions. The match starts, and Natsume’s team wins the tip-off. Kenji has the ball possession, and Sora is guarding him. A confident Sora states that he will stop him. A calm and collected Natsume displays his excellent basketball dribbling skills, quickly passes Sora, and efficiently scores the layup. All the female spectators get excited at watching Natsume. Chiaki sees it and gets all jealous at the attention Kenji is receiving.
Sora has the ball possession, and he is playing the role of point guard on the team. Instead of going on offense by himself, Sora chooses to pass the ball to his teammate. Sora then heads inside the three-point line, receives the pass from his teammate, and attempts to score. While he is in motion to make the shot, Kenji blocks him, and Natsume scores another layup. Kenji’s team lead the match by a score of 4 points. Being a bit frustrated at the given moment, Sora decides that he doesn’t want to be a point guard and decides to go on offense. Sora’s teammate requests him to pass the ball; instead of doing that, he chooses to attempt a three-pointer. The ball touches the rim and heads out of bounds. An astonished Natsume stares at Sora and quietly praises Sora’s shot selection for that moment. Upon seeing, Nao asks the question to Chiaki that does he believe that Sora has the potential to become a good point guard? Chiaki states he is still in the learning phase and believes Sora can become a good point guard for their team with more practice.
Characters[]
- Kenji Natsume
- Sora Kurumatani
- Koga (flashback)
- Nao Nanao
- Chiaki Hanazono
- Momoharu Hanazono
- Masahiro Saki
- Yasuhara Shinichi
- Ryuuhei Nabeshima