Unfortunately, as Sakiko felt the baton touched her hand, she was already in a sprint stance, ready to take off.

Before she could close her hand on the baton, she felt it slip away to the ground and ran.

"No... "

The crowd screamed at the scene in front of them.

Right now, Yuki was sprawled on the ground with the baton close to her and Sakiko a distance away.

"Yuki! Get up!"

Class 1 students yelled at Akamine. No one wanted to lose the match.

By now, the other athletes from the senior classes had already ran passed them.

Rather than feel dejected and give up, Sakiko took a quick turn and ran back to where Yuki was on the ground.

"You can do it, Sakiko. Run!"

Yuki picked up the baton and handed it over to Sakiko.

Not wasting any second, Sakiko took the baton and raced with everything she got.

"Wow, what a turn of event. Who would have thought that the leading class would be met with such a misfortune and drop from first place to last?" A female commentator finally spoke after the long silence from the commentators.

"Right now we have Class 2 at the lead with Class 3 coming second place and Class 1... Oh well, sometimes life's not fair."

"Sakiko!"

"Run!"

"You can do it!"

"We are counting on you!"

"Sakiko! Sakiko! Sakiko! Sakiko!"

"Oh my goodness, what is going on?" The female commentator asked no one in particular as she stood up from her chair.

"Oh I would tell you what is going on, Class 1 Ishida Sakiko who was left in the dust is now making her way forward and catching up with the other athletes," the first male commentator announced.

"It seems as though the cheering of her classmates gave her all the boosts. Look at that young star running and making up for the accident."

With each step she took forward, Sakiko pushed and pushed, running with all she got.

In a short period of time, she was already neck to neck with Class 3's athlete. She didn't stop there and increased her speed, running with every fibre in her being.

"Oh my God! Sakiko is now in second place and heading right for Class 2's athlete in a draw. This is unbelievable. How much stamina foes this girl even have?"

'You are getting there, keep going, don't stop. Keep going, run, run!' Sakiko chanted in her mind, her eyes narrowed and her speed increased, leaving everyone stunned.

No one had believed there was still hope after the baton dropped, but here she was proving them wrong.

In no time, she was now on the same line with the leading athlete. Right in front of them was the finish line

"Sakiko!!"

A voice yelled her name from the crowd and others followed.

He was cheering her on and that was all she needs.

In a few seconds, the race would be over. The girl at her side turned her head to look at Sakiko as she ran.

She could see the pure look of determination etched on Sakiko's young face and before she knew what was happening, Sakiko was ahead.

"Unbelievable, Sakiko actually came from behind and overtook everyone. Would Class 2's Sumire still be able yo win this race?"

"Sakiko!"

"Sumire!!"

With one last push...

"Yayyyyyy!!"

"And the winner is... Ishida Sakiko!"

The moment her body touched the ribbon at the finish line, her hands raised in joy as a satisfied smile spread across her face.

"Yes!" Sasuke said through gritted it, balling his hand in front of him.

She ran a couple more steps slowing down her pace as she went. She could feel her breathing come in a hot short burst from within her but that didn't matter, she won. She made her class win.

Soon, she was in front of the crowd where her friends and classmates sat. Sasuke was the first one to rush over, his face beamed with joy as he made his way to her.

Seeing her brother, she rushed towards him as well and stopped in front of him. "Sasuke, I..."

Before she could utter another word, he pulled her in for a hug. At the same time, her classmates all rushed down from their seats and engulfed both of them, lifting her up.

"This is indeed a time of celebration for Class 1. This is the first time in many years since Class one took home the relay cup. Congratulations," the second male commentator announced.

Looking at the children he felt a sense of joy, this was a race.

"I couldn't agree with you more, Mitsuki senpai," the female commentator spoke up. "Coming in second place is Class 2's Sumire and Class 3's ..."

"Sakiko! Sakiko!!"

"Oh well, that concludes today's race."

At the side of the track, Yuki sat on a bench with her head tilted to the side. Her eyes narrowed as she took in the scene before her.

She had intended for Sakiko to lose and then take away the spotlight from her when the whole class would be mad at her. Instead, she got more famous than before with her effort to win.

"I still have something for you."