The next day.
Shohoku High School · Gymnasium.
Aoi Kunisaku arrived earlier than usual.
But today, there was something off in the air inside the gym.
No one knew what was wrong with Sakuragi Hanamichi, but he was staring hard at everyone he saw. Muttering, "Kill you with my eyes."
As soon as Aoi Kunisaku arrived, Sakuragi Hanamichi ran over excitedly and started locking eyes with him.
"Kill you… kill you… kill you with my eyes…" Sakuragi Hanamichi kept chanting like a spell.
Aoi Kunisaku stared back without a single change in expression.
Shimizu Kanon watched from the side, her eyes turning into dots, completely dumbfounded.
What the heck?
Did Sakuragi Hanamichi's brain break?
That wouldn't be good.
No matter what, Sakuragi still counted as one of the team's fighting forces.
Shimizu Kanon spoke up, concerned. "Sakuragi-kun, are you feeling okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
But Sakuragi Hanamichi ignored her and just kept glaring at Aoi Kunisaku. Not blinking even once, still muttering, "Kill you… kill you… kill you with my eyes…"
Uh…
Shimizu Kanon didn't know what to do for a moment.
Ayako came over and quickly pulled her aside. "Don't bother with that idiot. Who knows what he picked up from Akagi-senpai this time. He's been like that since he got here."
On the court, Akagi Takenori staggered mid-step and nearly tripped.
Black lines covered his face, and a cold sweat dripped down his forehead. For some reason, he felt a little guilty.
Last night, Sakuragi Hanamichi had asked him to teach some secret moves.
He got annoyed and pointed to his eyes, saying, "Keep your eyes on your opponent. Make them freeze with just a stare."
Who knew Sakuragi would interpret it like this?
Back with Aoi Kunisaku—
He looked at Sakuragi Hanamichi's bloodshot eyes and couldn't help feeling speechless.
This guy had to be an orphan now, right?
How did someone with that level of brainpower survive this long?
He didn't want to waste time on him.
Expressionless, he turned and walked away.
Sakuragi Hanamichi, seeing him walk off first, immediately burst out laughing. "Hahahaha! I knew it! This move works! Just watch me shine in the next game!"
Everyone in the gym twitched at the corners of their mouths.
Shimizu Kanon finally figured out what was going on and laughed. "Sakuragi-kun sure has energy."
Rukawa Kaede muttered "idiot" under his breath, then walked up to Aoi Kunisaku. "Let's play one-on-one."
This wasn't the first, second, or third time Rukawa had challenged him.
He practically asked for a match every day, though Aoi Kunisaku didn't always agree.
Of course, whenever he did agree, it always ended with Rukawa getting crushed.
This time was no different.
In front of everyone, Rukawa Kaede got slammed to the floor by Aoi Kunisaku yet again.
…
Three days later.
Back at Kanagawa Gymnasium.
But unlike the last two games—
This time, a heavy cloud hung over Shohoku's team.
Not only were Aoi Kunisaku and Shimizu Kanon late again, but Mitsui Hisashi and Sakuragi Hanamichi hadn't even shown up.
Two official players missing.
Kogure Kiminobu paced in place, muttering, "Aoi Kunisaku being late is one thing, but what's going on with Mitsui and Sakuragi? They're still not here? What the hell?"
He turned to Akagi Takenori and asked, "Do you think something happened to them, Akagi?"
But the moment he saw Akagi Takenori's face, he broke out in goosebumps, cold sweat streaming down.
Akagi looked like a volcano about to erupt. His face had gone red-hot, his clenched teeth were grinding, and the veins on his forehead bulged like they were about to tear through his skin.
Holding back his fury, he growled, "How should I know?! Those three damn idiots…"
...
In the stands—
Akagi Haruko and her two friends had also arrived.
When she saw that Mitsui Hisashi and Sakuragi Hanamichi were missing from Shohoku's lineup, she looked worried and muttered, "What's going on with Sakuragi… and Mitsui-senpai too…"
Elsewhere—
Ryonan's group had also arrived.
They were surprised to see Shohoku missing that many players.
Aida Hikoichi said with confusion, "It makes sense if Aoi Kunisaku isn't here, but Mitsui Hisashi and Sakuragi Hanamichi are both gone too. What's going on?"
Koshino Hiroaki crossed his arms and said, "Maybe Sakuragi Hanamichi already got kicked out. But with Mitsui Hisashi missing too, that's weird."
Aida Hikoichi started imagining things. "Could they be doing some kind of secret training? And maybe Aoi Kunisaku is too? No, no, I have to write this down!"
With that, he started scribbling notes in his notebook.
...
Time ticked by.
Shohoku's players were looking more and more down. The cloud hanging over their heads was turning into thunder and lightning.
A heavy mood started spreading on the Shohoku bench.
Just then, two figures appeared at the team tunnel entrance.
"We made it just in time."
A familiar voice came from behind them.
Everyone on Shohoku turned around and saw Shimizu Kanon and Aoi Kunisaku walking up.
Kogure Kiminobu saw Aoi Kunisaku and immediately brightened up. The cloud over his head vanished. He ran up and said, "Aoi! That's a relief. With you here, I'm not worried anymore!"
Huh?
Aoi Kunisaku and Shimizu Kanon were both confused.
What's that supposed to mean?
Kogure explained, "I don't know why, but Mitsui and Sakuragi still haven't shown up. We were just freaking out about it! Now that you're here, you can take their place on the court."
Shimizu Kanon looked around. Sure enough, Mitsui Hisashi and Sakuragi Hanamichi were nowhere to be seen. "Did they both oversleep or something?"
Everyone nearby facepalmed in unison.
Ayako stepped up and said, "Today's opponent is Kouhata High. Their strength is about the same as Miuradai, but don't let your guard down."
Akagi Takenori looked at Aoi Kunisaku and said, "Since those two aren't here, you go in first."
He felt slightly more at ease now that Aoi Kunisaku was here.
Aoi Kunisaku took off his jacket, revealing his No. 9 jersey. "All right then, guess I'll loosen up a bit."
But everyone around just stared at him in confusion.
Noticing the stares, Aoi Kunisaku frowned. "What's wrong?"
Ayako covered her face. "We're wearing white jerseys today."
Aoi Kunisaku looked down and saw he was wearing the red one.
Shimizu Kanon smiled awkwardly, grabbed his arm, and ran off toward the locker room. "I'll help him change. We'll be right back!"
Everyone from Shohoku let out a helpless sigh.
Akagi Takenori closed his eyes and grumbled, "Unbelievable. Not one of them is reliable."
Soon, Aoi Kunisaku returned in the correct uniform.
Both teams lined up on the court.
As soon as they saw No. 9 walk out, the crowd stirred.
Word had already spread that Shohoku had a powerful No. 9.
They hadn't seen him last time. This time, they were watching closely.
"Aoi Kunisaku is on the court!" Aida Hikoichi said excitedly.
Koshino Hiroaki added, "He's actually not late today!"
"That's not the point!" Ikegami Ryoji chimed in. "The opponent is Kouhata. Shohoku doesn't need Aoi Kunisaku for this one!"
Sendoh Akira explained, "It's probably because of the starters. Shohoku's bench is really shallow. With Mitsui and Sakuragi gone, he's the only one who can fill their spot."
...
Tweet—
The referee tossed the basketball into the air.
Shohoku High School vs. Kouhata High School officially began.