"Tomorrow is the preliminaries for the Nationals. Let me say this one last time."
Takeuchi spoke sternly, and the Kaijo players immediately stood up straight and listened seriously... all except for Kise and Kota, who looked more like they were on vacation. Kota even let out a yawn.
"The prelims start with a knockout stage. One loss and you're out, so I want you to give it your all in every match!"
As he spoke, the coach shot a sharp glance at Kise and Kota, making both of them snap to attention with suddenly serious faces.
"The matches are split into four blocks—A through D. Only the first-place team from each block advances to the final round. The finals are round-robin style, and only the top three qualify for Nationals…"
Takeuchi sounded serious, but deep down, he wasn't all that worried. Kaijo had always made it to the Nationals. In this region, they were basically the big boss. Especially this year—their team was ridiculously strong. The odds of them not making it were about the same as a meteor randomly crashing into the gym and wiping them all out.
He hadn't even bothered to check out the competition. What's that? You don't even have a single member from the Generation of Miracles? Sorry, but you came here just to lose. Honestly, it felt like a waste of time using his team to even run plays against them. With Kise and Kota on the squad, he could afford to be that arrogant.
Still, even if qualifying was practically guaranteed, Takeuchi couldn't show that in front of his players. Gotta keep up appearances—make it seem like there was pressure even when there wasn't.
"You can take it easy in the prelims, but don't get cocky. We're way stronger than the others, but don't mess around with nobodies and, most importantly, don't get injured."
"Our goal is to win the Nationals! Got it?"
"Yes, Coach!"
Takeuchi rubbed his chin, thinking if he'd forgotten anything. Just as he was about to dismiss the team, Kasamatsu spoke up.
"Coach, I heard our first opponent brought in a foreign player. Seems like a lot of teams are doing that this year."
Takeuchi blinked. "Huh? Is that so?"
The entire Kaijo team let out a collective mental facepalm. Seriously? Was it really okay for a coach to care this little? He hadn't even researched the opponents. Kota gave him the dead-fish-eye stare. He knew what their coach was like—being a bit cocky wasn't bad, but this level of confidence bordered on comedy.
Takeuchi cleared his throat when he noticed the players' looks.
"It doesn't matter. Even if they brought in a beast, the gap in team strength is real. Basketball is a five-man game, remember? Alright, go rest up and get ready for tomorrow. Dismissed."
As everyone began filing out of the gym, Coach Takeuchi called Kasamatsu back.
"Hey, Kasamatsu. Give me a copy of that opponent intel you've been gathering."
"Yes, Coach."
....
First Day of the Prelims
Inside a spacious gym, one team had arrived early. It was Kaijo's first-round opponent: Nanri High.
"We're screwed, Captain! Our opponent is Kaijo! How are we supposed to beat them? This feels like a one-and-done kind of year…"
"Relax. So what if it's Kaijo? They're just people too. Besides, we've got Brown on our side this year."
The captain pointed at the tall Black guy warming up on the court.
He was tall, with insane physical potential. What stood out most was his very long neck—Kevin Brown, Nanri's foreign exchange player this season.
Brown tossed the ball up, took a few steps, and casually finished a clean self-alley-oop dunk.
The Nanri captain threw an arm around his teammate, beaming. "See that? No finesse, just raw talent. With Brown on our squad, we're unstoppable!"
"A monster, huh? Unstoppable? Where?"
Kota had just walked into the gym and, hearing that, casually strolled over with a big grin.
The Nanri captain frowned. "Who the heck are you? This is a game venue. Go play somewhere else if you're just here to mess around."
Before Kota could answer, one of the Nanri players tugged the captain aside and whispered, "Uh, Captain… his uniform. That's Kaijo's."
Wait, what? The captain turned around sharply. Sure enough, Kota was wearing a Kaijo uniform. His tone immediately softened.
"Ah, sorry! Didn't recognize you as a Kaijo player! You weren't at Nationals last year, right? Haha… ha…"
Then he remembered — Hold on. We've got a foreign player this year! We don't need to be scared! His confidence returned, chest puffed, ready to throw some shade.
"That guy? Meh. If he's a 'monster,' then our ace must be a god."
Kota smiled, clearly unimpressed. He'd already seen through Brown: tall but average athleticism, shaky shooting, awkward footwork. Without his height and weirdly long neck, the guy would probably lose to Kagami in a one-on-one. Honestly, his neck might be his most valuable stat.
Before the Nanri captain could clap back, the rest of Kaijo entered the gym.
Kasamatsu immediately sprinted over and dropkicked Kota to the floor. "You idiot! Who told you to run off ahead, huh?!"
After dealing with Kota, Kasamatsu turned to the Nanri captain and bowed.
"I apologize. I lost track of this idiot. If he said anything rude, please forgive him."
He didn't even ask what Kota had done—he knew his point guard too well. If Kota showed up early and didn't throw a few verbal jabs, Kasamatsu would legally change his surname to Kota.
"Don't just lie there—come apologize too!"
"Sumimasorry!"
"Ah… it's fine, really."
The Nanri captain gulped, awkwardly swallowing the trash talk he'd planned to deliver earlier.
There was no denying it—Kaijo had presence. Just standing together, they radiated confidence and pressure. It was the aura of an elite team.
Kasamatsu yanked Kota back into line. No need to air dirty laundry in front of the competition.
Kota stood up straight, already sensing another lecture coming.
"It's my first big tournament. I was nervous, so I thought I'd scope things out early… not trying to ditch or anything."
Kasamatsu didn't let him off. He opened his mouth again, but Kota cut in quickly.
"Senpai, I've already analyzed their ace! That foreign guy? Total bust."
Kasamatsu crossed his arms and looked toward Brown, waiting.
"That guy's got nothing but height and neck. Our ace would destroy him."
As he said it, Kota yanked Kise out of the lineup to distract Kasamatsu.
Kise, hearing the praise, couldn't help but beam. He rubbed his nose smugly.
"Geez, Kota, comparing me to that guy? Come on. Don't worry, everyone—while I'm here, losing isn't even on the menu!"
Kota sighed in relief. Crisis averted. No lecture this time.
Meanwhile, on the Nanri side…
"Brown! Those guys were talking trash about you! You gonna take that?!"
The Nanri captain reenacted what he imagined Kaijo said with wild exaggeration. He'd just "accidentally" overheard a bit while pretending to use the bathroom near Kaijo.
Brown glanced over toward Kaijo, a flicker of disdain in his eyes. Kota caught that look.
"Don't worry. I'll show those little twigs what real basketball looks like."
Then he returned to his dunk show.
The Nanri captain walked off, satisfied. Brown watched him go with visible annoyance.
If it weren't for the paycheck, no way I'd come to this tiny country full of midgets. Basketball is a sport for giants. How do they not get that?
He whistled, shaking his head.
These Japanese teams really are easy money.
BEEP—
"Prelim round one, Kaijo High vs Nanri High is about to begin. Starting players, please take your positions at center court."
Kota leaned over to Kise with a smirk.
"Hey genius, crush that guy for me. I don't like the way he looked at me. It felt like I owed him money or something."