"Both teams, please greet each other."
"Let's have a good game!"
"Hey, Kota, standing in front of that guy really makes you look shorter, huh?"
Kise whispered to Kota while nudging him with his elbow. Somehow, Brown — despite his absurdly long neck and being far away — still managed to hear it.
"I'm not on the same level as you rookies" Brown said in broken Japanese. "Watch carefully and learn how real basketball is played."
He gave Kota a mocking glance. Among Kaijou's starting lineup, Kota was indeed the shortest.
Kota raised an eyebrow and whistled. "Wow, this thing in front of me almost looks like a human."
"What?" Brown didn't get it. Before he could react, the referee's whistle blew.
BEEP—
The game was about to begin with the tip-off.
Kota glanced at Brown's still-confused expression and sighed.
"Foreigners are no fun. They don't get trash talk. Cuts the damage in half."
As he passed by Brown to get in position for the jump ball, Kota casually dropped,
"Please teach me how to play basketball, Mr. Giraffe."
Brown finally understood and shouted, "Fuck!" right as the referee tossed the ball into the air. Fueled by rage, Brown leaped with full power.
Kobori could only watch helplessly as Brown slapped the ball away. He really was too tall.
Brown rushed into the front court and signaled for the ball. But as soon as the Nanri point guard passed it his way, Kota—predicting the pass—darted in and intercepted it right before Brown could catch it. Seizing the moment while Nanri was still stunned, Kota dashed coast to coast and scored with ease.
As he jogged back after the basket, Kota passed by Brown and lifted his right hand, forming a finger gun aimed at him.
"Bang!"
Brown was absolutely livid. His face twisted with rage—though honestly, it was hard to see; the only visible part was his white, wide-open eyes glaring.
"Give me the damn ball!" he barked.
Seeing his bared teeth and furious face, his teammates dared not argue.
Brown went on a rampage. Kise, who was defending him, was both annoyed and impressed.
"Damn, Kota gets the glory, and I get the bruises."
It was Kise's first time facing someone this tall and lanky. Brown's skills were average at best, but his weird style made him tricky.
"Ugh, this guy's height is a real pain in the neck…"
Another shot went in right over Kise's face. He groaned.
Suddenly, he felt a gaze on him.
Kota was watching nearby with a half-smirk. Kise immediately flashed an awkward smile and turned his focus back to Brown.
As soon as Brown got the ball again and prepared to shoot, Kise stepped up his defense, cutting down the space Brown had to work with.
Brown frowned. Since shooting was now difficult, he charged toward the paint.
But with his high center of gravity and poor ball security, he left the ball exposed. Kise seized the opportunity and grabbed it with both hands. Brown tried to hold on, but strength-wise, he was no match.
Kise twisted his body and yanked the ball away, then launched a long pass to Kota, who had somehow slipped into the frontcourt.
Kota always had a knack for being in the right place at the right time.
He caught the ball, turned to grin at Brown, then casually laid it in—two more points.
Passing Brown again on his way back, Kota said in perfect English:
~"You're nothing but a long neck, Mr. Giraffe."
Brown looked like he was about to explode. Being taunted again and again by a short guy pushed him over the edge.
He charged at Kota from behind, fist raised.
Kasamatsu, who had been keeping an eye on him, immediately jumped in and pushed Brown away. But because of the momentum, Brown's punch missed Kota and hit Kasamatsu square in the face.
Kasamatsu clutched his cheek in pain but stood firmly between Brown and Kota.
Kota turned around at the commotion, his eyes instantly going cold.
Kaijo's players rushed over and pinned Brown to the floor. The referee was frantically blowing his whistle, and Takeuchi ran from the bench, signaling his team to hold Brown down but not retaliate.
"Let him go" Kota said, his voice calm but chilling.
Hearing Kota, the players released Brown.
Brown slowly stood up, face twisted in fury. But he didn't dare move—Kaijo's players were still circling him like a pack of wolves, ready to pounce if needed.
Kise dropped his usual carefree demeanor and stared coldly at Brown. So did the rest of Kaijo. Their glares were so intense that Brown froze, terrified this would turn into a full-blown brawl.
Ironically, not a single Nanri player came to help Brown. Sure, he had thrown the first punch, but the truth was — none of them liked him. Since joining the team, he'd strutted around like a king, bullying others. They were practically rooting for Kaijo to give him a lesson.
While the tension in the gym reached its peak, Kota clapped his hands and smiled cheerfully.
"All right, fellas! Let's not crowd the ref. Give him some space, come on."
Kaijo players stepped back. The ref, finally able to breathe, signaled a timeout.
As Kaijo backed away, Brown regained some of his bravado and muttered, "Fucking bitches…"
The referee heard it, frowned, and made a firm ejection gesture. Two security guards entered and escorted Brown out.
Even as he was dragged away, Brown kept ranting.
The Nanri captain tried to calm him down — only to be cursed out as well. His face turned red with anger. He'd disliked Brown from the start, and now, having disgraced the team, Brown was still mouthing off. Fed up, the captain stormed off after him, muttering things like "damn giraffe" and "walking neck tower." Odds are, the two would be scrapping behind the stadium soon.
The referee looked toward the chaos and signaled for the game to resume. Both captains had to be subbed out, and replacements entered for each team.
Kota glanced at Kasamatsu, who was now getting checked by the medical staff on the bench. His eyes turned cold.
"Too bad the neck monster's gone. Guess we'll just have to vent our frustration on the rest of you. Try not to cry, okay?"
Though Kota was smiling brightly, his words sent chills down Nanri's spines.
Kise also dropped the act, eyes lowered as he scanned the Nanri players.
Honestly, he had planned on giving that giraffe a proper lesson. But like Kota said — no choice now but to use the rest of them for stress relief.
BEEP—
Game over.Final score: 120–19. Kaijou wins.
The five Nanri players stood stunned on the court. The past forty minutes had been pure torture. Aside from the ten points they scored before the fight, they managed only nine more. Realistically, none of them would want to touch a basketball again for a while.
Kota walked straight to the bench and sat beside Kasamatsu.
"Captain Kasamatsu, are you all right?"
"Ah, just a surface wound. Nothing serious—won't even keep me from playing."
Kasamatsu glanced at Kota. He had watched the whole match. Sure, it was a bit cruel to Nanri, but he couldn't help feeling warm inside. He knew his teammates were standing up for him.
That punch? Totally worth it.