The system pulled up a diagram in Ari's vision, clean lines and arrows showing this so called CSRP.
'weird freaking name."
[CSRP - CATCH, SHOOT, REBOUND, PASS]
[PLAYER A STARTS UNDER THE BASKET WITH BALL]
[PLAYER B POSITIONS WITHIN THREE-POINT LINE]
[PLAYER B HAS THE BALL]
[SEQUENCE:]
[1. PLAYER A GESTURES TO A SPOT]
[2. PLAYER B SPRINTS THERE]
[3. PLAYER A PASSES → PLAYER B CATCHES]
[4. PLAYER B SHOOTS IMMEDIATELY]
[5. PLAYER A REBOUNDS (MAKE OR MISS)]
[6. PLAYER A PASSES TO PLAYER B WHILE THEY EXCHANGE POSITIONS]
[7. THEN THEIR ROLES REVERSE]
[8. THEN THEY REPEAT CYCLE]
'Ah....I get it now'
Yes, Ari very much did get it. And the implication of realisation slowly weighed on him.
This wasn't just a drill, it was designed to destroy you. Flow, stamina, concentration, communication, all tested simultaneously while already everyone was already tired from running around all day. One breakdown in the cycle and the whole thing collapses.
The coordinator was a second-year with a clipboard. He had a dead expression as he stepped forward. He looked rich. Everyone here looked rich.
"Divide into pairs. Two players each. Five duos per group." He paused and looked around. "We're choosing your partners. Not you."
A collective groan rippled through Group J. Of course they weren't choosing. That would be too kind. But in any case this way was much more fair. To a degree.
AriToru turned to take a long look at his group. He was, trying to predict who he'd be stuck with. He sure hoped it was one of those two. They looks competent. Then he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned. No one there.
AriToru looked down and immediately it's like his heart made tisk risk tisk sound.
The boy before him was around 186cm, but he was chubby. Not fat, exactly, but soft in an I played casual basketball sort of soft.
His yellow spiky hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat. He wore a tight Yoshimura tracksuit that did nothing to hide his flabs, the jacket unzipped over a plain white shirt that clung damply to his torso.
A round face, red Santa like cheeks from the running, and his breathing was still labored. This was the same kid who'd nearly collapsed during the suicide runs.
'Hes not even breathing properly.'
But he was smiling. Calm and serene. Like he'd just woken up from a pleasant nap rather than survived basketball hell. And was about to enter the next hell dungeon.
[HOST HAS AN ABSENT LADY LUCK]
[STATISTICALLY FASCINATING]
[THE ODDS OF CONSISTENTLY GETTING THE WORST POSSIBLE OUTCOME]
[WE SHOULD STUDY THIS]
The blonde boy extended his hand towards Ari. "Aihara Haruto."
"Toru Ari." Ari shook it, the hand was soft, like shaking a marshmallow, and absolutely drenched with sweat. No calluses. No roughness. Basketball players always had hard palms from constant ball handling. Some even had uneven fingers from dislocations.
Mr serene smile, yellow haired chubby boy had none.
Ari sighed internally. *I'm done for.*
The coordinator approached and handed them tags: Group J, Duo 1.
"Group J..." Ari looked at the tag, calculating. "That's the tenth group. Middle of the 20." So Group A to Group T.
"First Duo," Haruto read, his voice still impossibly calm.
Which meant—
"First Duo
"First Duo.....oh fu_
"You're up first," the coordinator announced, pointing toward the court. "Get in position."
.....'Yes system... We should really study my luck.'
Ari's stomach dropped. First meant all eight other students in Group J would be watching, learning from their performance, judging them. First meant hundreds of spectators would be paying attention, because the first duo always got the most scrutiny. First meant setting expectations, and if they failed...
He looked around the stands in an expression or pure horror. Horror at the concept of a flop._If they failed all these people would see. All the hot girls? All the potential close fr.... Oh yeah he didn't care about potential friends but still.
They couldn't fuck this up.
"Cool," Haruto said, that stupid serene smile was never wavering. "Let's do it."
Ari stared at him_eyed him to judge if this Haruto was messing with him or not.
Was this kid insane? Had he accepted failure so completely that he'd achieved some kind of zen peace?
But.....he had to commend him. His lack of fear calmed Ari down in a way.
They walked towards Group J court—one of six basketball courts spread throughout. Each is surrounded by an array of sits. You could see glimpses of other structures through a large arched opening at the end of a hall going down the pavilion.
The other four teams were most likely down there or another section or separate area.
When Ari turned towards the other court. He has blurry vision. Everything looked like it was infected with water. But that was just sweat. And smile strands of his thick thick black hair.
Be brought up pale bony mammoth fingers to wipe off the sweat from his void eyes. And then to swipe at his wet black bangs so he'd see properly.
What he saw was other groups, particularly group K because that's the group he was looking at.
He saw them preparing for the same drill, pairs of first years or future Yoshimura high basketball players—who know, we're taking their positions. Coordinators writing on their little note pads.
'Writing so fast. What in the world were they writing, no one has even started the CSRP yet'.
Though the spectators just behind the group J court were getting miffed, annoyed.
They weren't seeing anything impressive, waiting for someone to either excel or fail spectacularly.
Ari dared to step forward into the court where the coordinator was waiting for him with a molten BG500 in hand.
'Slick'.
Ari took the ball in his HANDS.
..... The coordinator moved back slightly and had an odd expression on his face.
'Does he know me from somewhere?' was the question Ari asked before he decided he didn't have enough mental focus or time now to ponder on the reaction.
But in trust the poor coordinator was freaked out at the sheer shape of Ari's hands.
Pale. White. With beauty marks dots on them. Bony fingers long with the joints protruding outward. Like some sort of....maul. The fingers of an animal.
The feeling of standing on the court for Ari now was....
It was something else. Obviously he'd been running across it for the last several minutes, so he knew how it felt. The sprung maple floor, the beautiful electronic scoreboards.
If you looked up you'd see LED High bag lights that illuminated the floor, everything it touches just glowed. Then aaaaall the commentators . And this...this would all be his if he just joined the team.
He knew that....but.
But now that he's actually holding a BASKETBALL an actual BASKETBALL Infront of people. On a BASKETBALL court..
It just felt heavy in his hands, physically and metaphorically. The outcome of the next five minutes would determine everything.
He turned to Haruto, forcing his mind into strategic mode. "We need a game plan. Pace or positions. Who starts with the ball, who's under the basket....who's shooting firs_"
"I'll start," Haruto interrupted, his voice still that infuriating calm.
What?!
Ari's internal panic sharp. The person starting with the ball had to rebound, make quick a quick pass...
And yet why was he so calm. About it. Haruto looked like his knees would give out any second.
"Y_You sure?" Ari tried to keep his voice neutral. "Starting means you handle rebounding and—"
"I know what it means." Haruto's dark green eyes wondered down as he let out a sigh of exhustion. But his face met Ari's directly. "I'll start."
There was something in his tone. Not arrogance. Not delusion. Just... certainty. Like he'd already calculated every variable and reached a conclusion Ari couldn't see yet. Maybe that conclusion was failure.
It was crazy. Yes that's it. Maybe the kid was crazy.
"Okay." Ari nodded, shoving down the dozen questions trying to escape his throat. "You start under the basket. I shoot first."
They took positions. Ari walked toward the free-throw line area, his legs were still burning from conditioning. Haruto moved under the tall rim.
'Sweet. All 10 feet.'
He was holding the ball, his round face was tired. But at least he gave off a focused aura.
Bounce. Bounce. Bounce.
The sound of Harutos three pounds went across Group Js court. This silence around them became physical—a pressure that made Ari's skin prickle. The eight other Group J students watched from the sideline. Beyond them, hundreds of spectators who had direct sight to watch Group J. Phones out, ready to record. Ready to judge. Some dudes were streaming.
"Ahh....the social media is probably going crazy right now".
The coordinator stepped between them, stopwatch in hand. "Five minutes maximum. Score as much as possible in that time. Ready?"
Ari and Haruto locked eyes across the court. Haruto gave a slight nod to the Coordinator.
Ari didn't even answer. He barely heard the question. AriTorus mind was elsewhere.
"System, advice?"
[WING IT]
"What?" Ari was shocked.
[THE GEAR SAYS WING IT]
T..the Gear? F the Gear. He needed the systems endless all knowing basketball knowledge right now. He was about to not just perform a drill he'd never practiced before but one he didn't even know about till today.
"You can't be serious right now."
[I AM SERIOUS TORU ARI]
['READ THE TEXT]
[WING_IT]
All this mental conversations was going on at super speeds in AriTorus head. Under all that black bush of hair. But fine. If it wasn't going to help him then he didn't need the system.
Ari's gaze was on Haruto.
'Poor boy, he's so tired.
It was best he let Haruto dictate the pace. If he forced it, Haruto would be bound to not be able to keep up or just tire out completely before the five minutes was over. Then who knows how much time and shots those lapses or flow breaks would clost them.'
At this point steam was coming off of Ari's head.
'He would let Haruto lead it. Slow and steady beat fast and floppy'.
[THE GEAR IS WITH YOU]
Ari..."Right."
Nothing mattered except doing his best. Not half assing it for even a second. He bounced on his toes once, feeling the soles of his Jordans grip the scrubbed floor, it went in just a tad...just a tad. Meant to protect those knees.
Bounced and bounced again on the tip toes.
'Legs. Don't fail me now.:
Heart would hammer against the ribs. Chthonic hands would shake from the weight of the moment.
The coordinator raised the stopwatch.
"Three."
You'd take a breath. Instinct overrides thought
"Two."
Your pupil would shrink and the void would narrow to an empty line
"One."
Everything disappears. Just the ball, the basket, and the blonde boy.
"Go!"
Haruto passed immediately—a clean chest pass that cut through the air with surprising velocity. Ari caught it at the top of the key, bounced it once to reset his grip, and went up.
His knees bent, the ball was raised up by a large shooting right hand. His elbows tucked. A jump shot that elevated him higher than normal. He jumped so high for it, too high that his form looked lost already.
The ball was launched.
It hit the front rim with an aggressive bounce, kissed the backboard, and then__
BASKET.
It rolled right in
[CALCULATING RELEASE HEIGHT]
[RELEASE HEIGHT = 11 FEET AND 3 INCHES]
The crowd stirred. A few surprised murmurs.
It definitely looked like he should have missed it.
But Ari didn't have time to process it.
Haruto already had the ball, and was moving. They passed each other trading the ball in the middle of the free throw line and Haruto's voice—barely a whisper—said: "Three-point."
Ari understood—but a three?.....fine. He reached the area under the basket just as Haruto got to the top of the key. AriToru gestured with his hands—*back, farther*—and Haruto took three quick automatic.steps backward.
Gimme gimme gimme
Ari's pass came—a safe bounce pass Haruto caught it, set his feet, and he raised it up. His hands moved the ball forward aggressively. Compact and his legs pushing his body more forward than upward
He SNAPPED quick.
The ball was shot in to the air in an aggressive, high arc, spinning fast.
Beforeeeeeeeeeee
BASKET
Right into the net. He scored the three.
The crowd's murmur got louder.
5 POINTS.
A timer appeared in the corner of Ari's vision.
[TIME REMAINING: 4:47]
They moved quickly. As usual Ari got to the court faster than Haruto readied himself under the rim. But this didn't matter. He couldn't force Haruto to go any faster. He knew this was his limit.
The switch came a bit behind him. Haruto adjusted mid-step ensuring the ball didn't slide away down the court embrassingly. Inside Ari thanked him. That would have sucked.
The ball came. Haruto was so tired the pass was weaker than it should have been.
But Ari...he was moving on RAW INSTINCT.
He was already rising for the shot when he caught the ball with his large slender hands.
He caught the ball and rose up in the same motion..... beautiful.
His legs SHOT HIM UPWARDS!
So high they dangled awkwardly. It was almost ridiculous to watch.....
AriToru released the ball over 11 feet again
Smooth arc.
But then....
BASKET.
7 POINTS.
Now no one could say their first points were a fluke.
[TIME REMAINING: 4:22]
Exchange. Ari now had the ball and ran down underneath the rim. Haruto called it: "Three-point again."
Ari had gotten behind the line. Before he gestured far left. Haruto stepped back—this time to the left corner, . He caught the pass, set, and—
**SNAP.**
The same violent wrist motion, that shot the ball like a canon aggressive arc.
MISSED.
It bounced off the rim and shot into the air.
But Ari was already moving. The rebound was his before it hit the ground, and he didn't hesitate. I don't even think he could hear anything but the basketball.
He Caught it with one maul....hand
And brought it down to clasp it with both as he landed back in the ground.
He immediately looked for Haruto.
They moved forward. The ball slipped into Harutos fingers. Exchanged then Ari got the pass at just the limits of the 3 point line. The thought of shooting a three didn't even breeze past his mind.
Bounce once. Leap. The shot was so ugly.
Whoever jumped that high for a jump shot.
But the rim was as clear as crystal.
Shot.
SCORED..
9 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 3:58]
The crowd was fully engaged now. Group J students on the sideline were on their feet. People from adjacent court, Groups I and K were turning to watch. The noise reached a new high.
Actual cheers. Short of a total uproar of so so many students watching this.
"Holy shit, they're not missing!"
"The tall one's release is insane—"
"Th..That's Ari." Tomomi was just able to find a sit. She'd attended class along with some of the other nerds. So the try out drafts had already started without her.
For a reason she didn't know....why was she feeling so flushed? There wasn't much doubt. That was the boy she met yesterday who asked her for directions. Toru Ari. Her classmate....
He looked nothing like before. His eyes looked like an animals. He was so focused....so intense. It's like he was some obsessed monster.
And she was right. To Ari there was only the circle.There was only the cycle. Catch, shoot, rebound, pass. Catch, shoot, rebound, pass. The rhythm became hypnotic, mechanical, beautiful in its simplicity. He was obsessed with it now.
Couldn't get enough.
SWITCH. Haruto was with the ball now. Pushed forward...low release and SNAP. It was another three po_
SCORED!!
12 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 3:35]
Ari's turn. He positioned at the free-throw line. The exchange was the smoothest and fastest yet.
But Lou, Haruto was eager to maintain momentum and have a low pass heading straight for Ari's thighs. He managed to push back to try and catch it but....SHARP. RED. VISION.
blurred his eyes with the ball CONNECTED with his fingers instead of his palm.
It was a sharp spike of pain that ran through his finger and knuckles and hands.
AriToru...pushed on.
And kept raising... He still managed to catch and shoot in the same breath. The ball was following a pre determined motion.
The release came at that absurd height, his arms fully extended. The painted middle finger rolled the ball.
SHOT.
BASKET!?
15 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 3:11]
[ANALYZING HARUTO'S FORM.....]
[ANALYZATION COMPLETE]
[IDENTIFICATION: SNAP SHOT]
"What?" Ari whispered during the switch as he gave the ball to Haruto.
[SNAP SHOT: SPECIALIZED SHOOTING FORM]
[COMPENSATES FOR A LOW RELEASE POINT WITH INCREASED SHOT SPEED]
[IT SACRIFICES HEIGHT FOR AGGRESSIVE INSTANT RELEASE]
[IDEAL FOR SHORT POINT GUARDS, THREE-POINT SPECIALISTS]
[EXAMPLES: STEPHEN CURRY, DAMIAN LILLARD]
[AIHARA HARUTO]
Ari could see Haruto—panting, sweating, moving slower with each cycle—and revised his entire assessment. This kid wasn't just some chubby first-year who got lucky. He was a specialist. A three-point sniper with actual deadly accuracy.
Next rotation. Haruto gestured. Three-point attempt.
SNAP.
Missed—badly. It hit the left back of the rim, bounced hard. But Ari was there, He got the rebound, found Haruto cutting. Pass. Catch. Shot—
Ari missed this time. His legs were giving out, his form was breaking down from fatigue.
15 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 2:48]
They kept cycling. Haruto hit two more threes—one a perfect swish, one rattling in after rolling around the rim surface. Ari hit three more twos, all from mid-range, his high release compensated for his deteriorating leg drive.
27 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 1:54]
They were slowing down noticeably now. Haruto almost stumbled on one cut, caught himself with visible effort. His face was bright red, his breathing ragged. But that weird calm never left his expression—he'd transcended the physical suffering. And scored yet another three.
BASKET
30 POINTS.
[TIME REMAINING: 1:31]
Ari positioned farther out than before. Haruto's pass came—softer now, his arms tired—barely accurate. Ari caught it, set his feet.
Jump, I'm still jumping.. the ball was released at the highest point yet. It followed a loose motion before hitting the edge of the rim and rolling inside.
BASKET.
32 POINTS
[CALCULATING RELEASE HEIGHT]
[RELEASE HEIGHT = 11 FEET AND 8 INCHES]
"How does he keep scoring those ridiculous jumpers?"
[TIME REMAINING: 1:09]
In the stands, Runa Mizuhara's pen had stopped moving entirely. She stared at GROUP J, her deep purple eyes were stretched in shock. A slow smirk spreading. You could practically hear the soft sound of her fully lips expanding for a smile.
So she asked, "Isn't that the tall boy who came late to register?" loud enough for the Yoshimura team to hear. But she knew exactly who it was she was targetting. She just wanted to see Yori's reaction.
Norikai Yori—6'10" of usually unflappable cool—tensed visibly. "It's him. That's... that's actually a...good jumper."
"Good?" Akihiko Heishi scoffed. His blonde hair caught the overhead lights making it look like they were glowing as he leaned forward, excited, "He's releasing the ball as high as you, Yori. Maybe higher."
Deevay Murray stood up completely. His accented Japanese came out with disbelief: "Thats got to be over eleven feet....but hes built like a twig"
The Americans attention turned to his Captain.
"Hey, Goro." Deevay reached over, shaking the team captain's shoulder. "Goro, wake up. Are you seeing this?"
Suzuha Goro groaned in his quiet existence.
Bright brown eyes opened slowly, lazy-looking but terrifyingly when they focused. His voice was calm even while half-asleep: "I'm watching. I'm watching."
He sat up properly because Deevay forced him to scrub his eyes while watching the two players.
And he was...amazed.
No
Yoshimura was amazed.