Kite, His Ball and the Team's Pain (鳶とボールと仲間の痛み, Tobi no Boru to Nakama no Itami) is the ninth episode of the Ahiru no Sora anime. The opening theme is Happy Go Ducky! which is performed by the pillows. The ending theme is Tsubasa which is performed by saji.
Synopsis
Kenji's fate was sealed the moment he laid hands on those upperclassmen. Luckily for him, Sora has never been one to give up without a fight.
Summary
As soon as Kenji was about to receive his suspension from the advisor, Satsuki, Kuzuryū High, sophomores, Yasuhara, Masahiro, and Nabe came to the rescue. They brought the troubled seniors with them; they all are Nishiwaka's henchmen, who provoked Natsume into a fight. They were trying to recruit Kenji into their faction, and when Natsume denied his enrolment, an altercation occurred, and as a result, Tobi fought them in self-defense. However, Satsuki didn't reverse his decision and told Natsume in metaphor along the lines of saying life is tough and be brave enough to face the consequences.
Later on, under the Kawasaki bridge, Tobi meets Chiaki, by chance. Hanazono requests Kenji for a paper towel. Afterward, both of them mainly have a conversation about basketball, and during that time, Kenji receives a phone call from Juri. Momoharu also joins in the conversation later. Meanwhile, at school, Sora begs his teams' advisor to reconsider Kenji's expulsion and follows Satsuki to the men's washroom. During that time, Natsume also joins in and requests the advisor to reverse his suspension, as he vows to take Kuzuryū High to the Inter-High Tournament. The Principal overhears their conversation and instructs Satsuki to give Natsume a second chance.
Kenji officially joins the basketball team and teaches his teammates how to dribble, as he explains it like sticking to the ball. Kite, later on, tells Sora about his father, who passed away in a construction accident. His basketball ball is his prized possession, as it's the last gift given to him by his late father. Momoharu instructs Kenji to apologize to Yoshino, but it turns out he's dating her now. Chiaki, upon hearing that gets very jealous and tells Natsume he wanted to date Yoshino and must now face his wrath.
Later on, the Kuzuryū High boys' team goes on a trip to watch the Inter-High District Qualifier game between Shinmaruko High and Eirin High. At first, Tokiwa's team struggles; however, Maru High wins the match due to Chiba's persistence and Tokiwa's analytical skills. While exiting the court, Tokiwa sees Sora and his teammates. He tells Kurumatani that his team needs to climb up the ranks if they want a rematch with Shinmaruko High; otherwise, Kuzuryū High will be left behind. Sora gets excited and tells Tokiwa; his team will become better in the future to avenge their defeat against Shinmaruko High.
Characters by Appearance
- Yasuhara Shinichi
- Masahiro Saki
- Ryuuhei Nabeshima
- Kenji Natsume
- Sora Kurumatani
- Masayoshi Satsuki
- Chiaki Hanazono
- Momoharu Hanazono
- Juri (flashback)
- Yasuhara Shinichi
- The Principal (debut)
- Madoka Yabuchi
- Yoshino
- Tokitaka Tokiwa
- Masaharu Choji
- Shinichi Chiba
- Kento Sawa
- Hiroshi Kuchiki
Episode Staff
- Storyboard: Shigeru Kimiya
- Director: Yasuyuki Fuse
- Animation Directors: Park Changhwan, Hong Yumi, Ahn Seok, Kyosuke Maeda