"Clear your mind…
Focus only on the basketball…
Imagine yourself sinking into a pool of water…
What the heck does that even mean?! Who can understand this abstract nonsense? Is this guy seriously teaching me?!"
Himuro stood on the court, dribbling with one hand, replaying Kota's bizarre instructions over and over in his head. An entire hour passed, yet he still couldn't grasp it. Frustration boiled inside him.
At first, Kota stood right beside him, constantly nagging him to stay focused. But when Kota realized he was just repeating the same boring lines, he got tired of standing, plopped himself down next to Araki, and the two started mumbling about something else entirely.
"Tomorrow's cheat meal again, huh? I want steak."
"You already had your cheat meal yesterday."
"What?! No way. I don't remember that."
"Oh really? Who was the guy lying on the yoga mat refusing to get up, whining about wanting steak?"
"…Was that me? I don't rememb—hm?"
Right in the middle of arguing with Araki about a steak dinner, Kota suddenly glanced toward Himuro, eyes narrowing like dead fish. He groaned:
"That guy's spacing out again. And here I am wasting my precious 'mentoring rookies' time on him."
Araki blinked, followed his gaze, then asked:
"How can you tell?"
Kota puffed out his chest.
"Obviously I can see it. His dribble rhythm just sped up—means he's getting impatient. I bet he's about to challenge me one-on-one."
Sure enough, almost on cue, Himuro stopped dribbling, turned, and said politely:
"Kota-san, this training method isn't working for me. Could I trouble you to spar with me in a real match?"
Though polite, both Kota and Araki could hear the irritation in his tone.
"See? Called it." Kota stood up, winked at Araki while slipping his phone into his pocket.
She just stared blankly. This guy never misses a chance to act cool.
"No problem. How do you want to play? First to 21?"
Kota jogged onto the court, grinning. After chatting on the sidelines so long, his hands were itching for some action anyway.
"Okay, 21 it is," Himuro nodded. Then hesitated. "And… could you show me the Zone?"
He tossed the ball to Kota with a polite gesture.
Kota hesitated. Truth be told, Himuro was strong, but in a straight duel? With Kota's size and weight advantage, he could crush him easily—even without the Zone.
But Himuro's serious expression, arms already spread in defense, left him little choice.
Kota sighed. "Don't blame me for this…"
The last time he went full power like this was against Seirin in the Winter Cup final.
"Sorry, Himuro. With Araki watching, I've got to look cool. Which means… you're about to be embarrassed."
...
"Thanks, Kise-senpai!"
Outside a supermarket, Yuki and Kise stood with popsicles in hand after a ramen meal. Naturally, Kise was paying—senpai privileges.
"C'mon Yuki, don't be so formal. Just call me Kise. Wait—no, I am your senpai. Fine, call me Kise-senpai! That sounds cooler!"
He kept licking his popsicle while stressing over which title sounded more stylish.
"Alright, Kise-senpai" Yuki replied calmly.
Kise nearly melted. This kid made it sound so natural, so friendly.
Meanwhile, passersby noticed the handsome duo. Kise's looks were already legendary, but Yuki wasn't far behind. He still had a bit of a boyish face, but his sharp features promised serious heartbreaker potential in the future.
Kise even overheard a group of girls across the street debating who got to ask for their contacts. They argued so long about "fair distribution" that nobody acted.
"Hey Yuki, do you like someone? Or maybe someone likes you?" Kise suddenly asked, slinging an arm over his shoulder with a teasing grin.
Naive genius Yuki, absolutely clueless about romance, answered without hesitation:
"Of course! I really like Kise-senpai. And Kota-senpai too."
Kise froze, then burst out laughing. Oh. That kind of "like". He leaned down and whispered an explanation.
At first, Yuki just listened carefully, though Kise's closeness made him fluster. But once the "lesson" got rolling, the car shifted into overdrive—Yuki's face went scarlet, steam practically rising from his cheeks.
Kise chuckled. "So… got a crush or not?"
"N-no! Absolutely not!" Yuki shook his head furiously. The kid had never dated, never even held hands with a girl—this was way above his pay grade.
"Anyone confessed to you then?" Kise pressed.
He expected a clueless "no" but Yuki suddenly remembered the girl who asked for his contact earlier that day.
His awkward silence said everything.
Kise's eyes lit up like floodlights.
"Who?! Did she confess? What'd you say?!"
"N-no! She just added me on social media! No confession or anything!" Yuki flailed, face crimson.
Kise couldn't stop smiling. Teasing juniors really was the best—especially ones as innocent as Yuki.
"You know, Kota was the same in his first year. Never dated either. Though his personality was… very different from yours."
Yuki stiffened. "So I'm like Kota-senpai…?"
"Eh? I just meant the dating part. That guy now? Winning in basketball and romance."
Kise chuckled, then grew thoughtful. "But in a way, you two are similar. Both made a splash as first-year point guards, no reputation before that. Kaijo must be a point guard factory or something."
Kise laughed at his own joke, but Yuki took it seriously. "And then? What happened after?"
Kise scratched his head. "Well, back then, our captain Kasamatsu was the point guard. Then Kota came in, and Kasamatsu had to move to shooting guard. Eventually, even the captaincy went to Kota."
He smirked. "So maybe if you work hard enough, you'll bump Kota to shooting guard and become captain yourself."
Yuki's eyes burned with determination. "Kise-senpai, I'll do my best—for the point guard spot!"
"…Wait, you're serious?!" Kise gawked.
"Oh boy. If you think you can take the main PG spot from Kota, you'd better train like crazy. Still…" He grinned slyly.
"Wouldn't it be hilarious if Kota recruited his own replacement? Talk about shooting yourself in the foot."
....
Shark Gym.
Swish!
The ball snapped through the net.
Kota looked at Himuro, now staring blankly, and smirked.
From the sideline, Araki sighed, keeping score:
"21 to 4. Kota wins."
"Impossible…"
Himuro's hands trembled. His first true clash against a Miracle-level player—yet he hadn't even scratched him?
Was the Zone really this terrifying?
Kota, oblivious to Himuro's inner turmoil, whistled his way toward Araki, wearing a smug grin.
Kota: "Pretty cool, huh?"
Araki: eyeroll
Another classic Araki eye-roll. Kota just shrugged, grabbed his phone, and saw a new email notification.
He opened it, paused, then licked his lips.
"Miss Masako, you don't need to pick me up at school tomorrow."
"Hm?" She tilted her head.
Kota waved his phone with a grin.
"Got invited to a gathering. Your ace will be there too. So no dinner for me tomorrow."
"Oh, I thought you were just scared people might say I'm your sugar mama."
"…No worries. People already say that."
"…Good. Remember—no greasy food."
"…Good?! Seriously?" Kota rubbed his nose. "Fine, fine."