The next morning.
At Seirin High School's morning assembly.
All the students gathered in front of the school building.
Buried somewhere in the crowd, Aida Riko was barely holding her eyelids open. God only knew how long she had been massaging her stubborn old man the night before before he finally calmed down.
But still
Those two monsters… were just far too much.
"Mmm…"
Thinking of it, Riko once again lifted the letter she held in her hand. It wasn't anything elaborate, just a few simple words.
During morning assembly, I'll show you my resolve!!
Basketball Club!
"It really feels like… after hearing what Shigure Akihito told Kuroko Tetsuya before he left, those two have been acting like they've been injected with pure adrenaline…"
"They're not planning to do anything stupid, right?"
But…
She had to admit, Shigure Akihito's words had been deeply encouraging.
Especially for Hyūga.
At the same time
On the rooftop of the school building.
"Hey!"
"Are we really doing this?"
"Yeah!"
"Of course!"
"You do realize—once we do this, there's no turning back, right?"
"Fine by me!"
Kiyoshi Teppei swung himself over the railing to the edge of the rooftop, took a deep breath as if drawing in the very breath of the stars, and then
With no hint of shame, shouted at the top of his lungs:
"I swear!!"
"Our basketball club's goal is to be number one in the nation! This year, we'll definitely earn a spot in the national tournament! First Year, Class E, Number 7, Kiyoshi Teppei!!!"
Izuki Shun: "Oh no… if we don't actually make it, this'll be a total joke."
Beside him, Koganei Shinji grinned, unfazed by the chaos. "Why not? Sounds fun. Count me in! First Year, Class C, Number 3!"
Down below
The sudden declarations from the basketball club threw the entire assembly into confusion.
"What the…"
"What are they doing up there?!"
"Those idiots…"
"Someone go stop them already!"
"Nearly gave me a heart attack… and if they can't follow through, won't it be embarrassing?"
"There's no way they'll pull that off."
Though Riko had half-expected this, seeing Kiyoshi actually go this far left her torn between laughter and being genuinely moved by his resolve.
Even if
That determination might be half thanks to Shigure Akihito.
Up on the rooftop
One by one, the basketball club members shouted their pledges. Izuki Shun wiped the sweat beading on his forehead.
"By the way… what about Hyūga? Did you manage to convince him?"
Hearing that, Kiyoshi froze for a moment, scratching his head sheepishly.
"Haha…"
"Nope. Didn't work at all."
Izuki couldn't help sighing in disappointment. But just then, Kiyoshi added with a laugh, "Even if I couldn't, someone else helped me out."
"Ahaha~"
"See? Chasing after him last night was the right call~"
Izuki: "!"
Izuki: "Wait, you mean..."
Kiyoshi: "He's here already!"
Turning his head, Izuki saw who had come storming onto the rooftop, radiating raw determination. Not some blond-haired delinquent lookalike
But the real Hyūga Junpei.
"Humph!"
"You bastard."
"Always spouting pretty words."
"The only reason I came is because I can't stand you! Saying things like, 'even I've faced despair before'—damn it, of course I know that! But even then, you're still one of the Generation of Miracles' Five Generals!"
"You and I could never be the same."
Though he spoke with bitter resentment, Hyūga's steps toward the edge of the rooftop were steady and unshakable. "Basketball Club member, same as them. First Year, Class C, Number 28, Hyūga Junpei!!"
As soon as Hyūga shouted those words, the disciplinary teacher finally stormed up with staff in tow.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?! Enough fooling around!"
"All of you, get down here!"
"Honestly…"
"Always causing trouble!"
"And this talk of being number one in the nation? Ridiculous. You lot could never achieve that. Be realistic! Such nonsense!"
Hyūga: "!!"
Hyūga: "What did you just say?!"
That last remark was the spark. Fueled by Shigure Akihito's words still burning in his chest, Hyūga's temper exploded.
"You're looking down on us?! Listen up! If we fail, then we'll all confess our feelings completely naked! Say the word, and I'll do it!!"
In that instant
The newly-founded Seirin basketball club collectively turned to stone!
…
Meanwhile
Elsewhere.
Teiko Middle School Basketball Club.
Facing his serious opponent, Kise Ryōta suddenly had a flash of inspiration. For some reason, he recalled a move his opponent had just used.
With both hands gripping the ball, Kise leaned forward to dribble past. As his defender lunged forward with momentum, Kise flicked the ball toward the defender's off foot, then slipped past in a blur.
Catching the ball again with both hands, he leapt into a shot—it looked as if he'd passed to himself for the jumper.
"Whoa!"
"What was that?! That's the move one of our school's players used just now!"
"Yeah, but… he pulled it off even faster than our own guy…"
"Did he just copy it on the spot? That was practically identical!"
The exclamations of the spectators rang in his ears. Kise blinked at his own hands, stunned, before a radiant smile spread across his face.
Wait, seriously?! That's all it took?!
Just like that, he'd done it.
It was almost…
Like Haizaki himself.
While Kise was still dazed by his discovery, Haizaki Shōgo pounced like a grey wolf, snatching the ball from the opponent. With ruthless speed, he slashed past defenders, only to be met by two men under the rim.
"Haizaki broke through!"
"So fast…!"
"But the defense is quick too, there are two of them!"
"Uh… what the..?!"
"!?"
"He went for the dunk anyway?!"
Just as the crowd thought it was too risky, Haizaki remained expressionless, eyes flashing with ferocity. In midair, he twisted, turning his back to the basket, and slammed the ball home with ease.
Kise Ryōta: "…"
Something felt… off about Haizaki today.
And what was stranger
He hadn't mocked Kise at all, even after seeing him successfully copy an opponent's move.
What on earth was going on?
END OF CHAPTER
CROWN BEFORE THE MIRACLES
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