Title: Love Hoop: Rebounds
Rating: T (language warning)
DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha belongs to Rumiko Takahashi and Kuroko no Basket belongs to Tadatoshi Fujimaki. Two respected mangaka! I do not own the characters in any way nor the story plot. Only the idea of this fanfiction!
MizukixTsukiyomi's Notes: Ta-da! The surprise has arrived! Now before you go ahead and read, there are a few things to say.
1) These are "small" chapters that will take place outside the basketball setting of the original series 'Love Hoop'. Basically random moments that were not or could not be shown in the original series due to time or people just wanting to get straight into the main story line.
2) The contents will be based on either Bonus CDs, Drama CDs, OVAs, Replace chapters, or even ideas I come up with. I will TRY to put this in order of the timeline in the original series, but I can't make promises because a random idea can strike me and I will write it.
3) This is mostly dialogue and about interactions, so just enjoy and don't look too deep into it, okay? I mean, I enjoyed typing it as I needed an escape from some personal stuff and homework that was giving me headaches.
Well, other than that, enjoy. I will try to update this as fast as I can, but obviously Love Hoop needs to finish first (also, hope the fandom isn't dead...reviews went down in Love Hoop, but oh well). So enjoy! This idea is part from one of the Bonus CDs in the Kuroko no Basket series, but obviously I incorporated the favorite miko.
Setting in Original 'Love Hoop' Series: After chapter 6
1st Rebound: Misunderstanding Chase
A soft sigh passed rosy lips as blue orbs scanned the almost vacant campus. Leaning against the warm wall beside the boys' locker room, the miko placed her hands behind her as she lowered her sight to her feet. Just how long did she have to wait? She was beginning to think guys took longer time to get ready than girls now. 'I am not even sure why Riko-senpai put me in charge of training these two. What can I teach them?'
Taking a glance to her right, she saw no sign of the door opening. The whole team beside herself, Kagami, and Kuroko had left as Kagami and Kuroko had to work on their team work before their game against Shinkyo. Getting used to the basketball environment was tougher than she thought, but she did not mind the work. In fact, she felt overjoyed to share moments with the team; they made her feel welcomed even though she knew nothing about the sport.
'At least Izuki-senpai gives me a good laugh with his puns,' she chuckled to herself, placing her hand over her lips. 'But even if I do enjoy spending my time with them,' her lips gave out a pout, 'I have a lot of homework and they are taking their sweet time in there!'
Hearing the sound of a door creak open, her attention was drawn to the two first years coming out with their uniforms. Kagome pushed herself off the wall before turning to face the phantom player and tiger: "what took you two so long?"
"Kagami-kun kept worshiping his shoes," Kuroko spoke flatly, earning him a confused look from the miko.
"I was not, baka!" Kagami shouted. "I was looking at them because they look worn out!"
Scratching her cheek, the miko tilted her head to the side. His shoes were worn out? She was no expert in the sport – or any sport – but she was sure that shoes needed to be taken care of well. "Do you think they will last until the Shinkyo match?" she questioned.
"I think so," he sighed, remembering having seen his favorite red shoes completely used from all the times he had played. It had been a while since he last bought some. "But I have a feeling I will need to find some just in case."
Turning to face the tiger beside him, Kuroko gave out a blink with his eyes: "then why don't you go buy some at the department store at Shibuya? They have a wide selection. Besides, if the coach finds out about your shoes…she will probably kill you."
Shivers ran up and down the tiger's spine as he pictured Riko preparing her knuckles for being irresponsible. The last thing he wanted was to pay for a hospital bill for himself. With a heavy sigh escaping his lips, he adjusted the strap of his bag: "Yeah, you're right."
"Eh~, it's been a while since I have been to Shibuya," gold eyes scanned the busy streets of the city as people walked back and forth on the path he was on and the one opposite of his. Crowds of people gathered as some carried bags and bags from shops as others simply huddled in groups. Sounds of cars and talks over took his hearing senses the more he walked into the crowd of people. "It is way too crowded here."
Placing his hands inside his pockets, he blinked as he caught sight of the tall building constructed with glass windows and a huge TV display advertising the different brands offered inside. "Oh, Nanbu Department Store?" The blonde male scratched the back of his head as he checked the time on his watch: "I guess while I am here, I might as well stop and buy some clothes or something…"
"Kise?"
Hearing a voice call out his name, the blonde basketball ace turned his head to the left to see none other than the captain of his basketball team. "Ah? Captain!"
"What are you doing here?" the Kaijou captain questioned, raising a brow at his first-year.
"I could ask the same to you, captain," Kise smiled, surprised to have been found by Kasamatsu at the most crowded place. He did not even know Kasamatsu was the type of follow crowds.
Kasamatsu scratched the back of his head as he closed his eyes: "I had to set up our practice match for next Sunday."
"No way…with Seirin!?" Kise exclaimed, more than ready to take them on again and get his revenge. After experience his first lost, he felt pumped to jump into the next match and give more than what he could offer. "I can see Kagomecchi again!"
"We just played a game with them the other day, remember?" the captain's eyebrow twitched, unable to take the glow of Kise's smile as he knew he was thinking about Seirin's manager. Shaking the image away from his head, he decided to change the topic. "So, what about you? What are you doing here? At your modeling job again?"
"Just finished," Kise chuckled, giving Kasamatsu a wink.
Deciding to ignore the wink from the blonde, Kasamatsu gave him a nod before narrowing his eyes at him. "Just don't overdo it, okay? You are Kaijou's ace."
"Hai, hai," Kise nodded. Noticing a white object in Kasamatsu's hand, he tilted his head to the side before pointing to the target of his curiosity. "What is that in your hand, captain?"
"Huh?" Kasamatsu lifted his hand a few inches to show Kise what he had. "It's a pack of free tissues I got from around the corner."
"You were handing out the tissues, Kasamatsu-senpai!?"
"Why the hell would I come all the way to Shibuya to hand out tissues, baka!?" Kasamatsu's hand quickly gave a smack on the back of Kise's head, hoping some common sense would be placed in. Seriously, could he not think about his speech before actually saying it? Hearing Kise's groans of pains, Kasamatsu slowly took out the sheet of paper from his bag: "it is advertising for this department store. See, it is for the sports department on the tenth floor."
"Huh?" Taking the advertisement into his hand, Kise blinked as he read the contents on the paper. His eyes widened a fraction as he saw the offer: "Oh!? Limited edition Taisho basketball shoes…eighty percent off!?" Lowering the paper from his eyes, he took a step forward: "Captain, we can't pass this up!"
Kasamatsu's lips curved into a smirk: "Right?"
"As expected of my captain," Kise chuckled. "Come on, let's go!"
Kasamatsu turned his head over his shoulder as he felt the blonde beginning to push him from his back. With a tick beginning to twitch over his forehead, he shouted to his first-year: "Oi! Don't push me, baka!"
"This place is huge!" the tiger exclaimed, taking glances left and right at the many available shops inside the department store. The moment he had taken a glance at the map at the entrance, he was surprised by the many floors with the departments all separated by category. "What floor is the sports department again?"
"Ano…"
Kagami blinked as he heard the low voice behind him. Turning around, he came to face the phantom player's confused expression: "what is it?"
"Kagami-kun, you came here to buy basketball shoes for yourself, right?" Kuroko asked.
"Yeah, I told you my old ones are starting to fall apart. Who knows how long they will last."
"So then why are we here?" Kagome cut in, pointing at herself and the phantom player. Just as she and Kuroko told him where the department store was located, Kagami had dragged them with him to the busy crowd. She had homework for Kami's sake!
The tiger sighed, feeling at fault for bringing them against their will, but he was still unfamiliar with Japan. "There are too many different kinds here and I wouldn't know which ones to get."
"What makes you think I would know?" Kagome raised a brow. The last thing she would be an expert on were basketball shoes.
"Let's see…"
Kagome's eyebrow twitched as she saw the tiger looking at the paper in his hands. "Oi…," she spoke, seeing he was too concentrative in his search for new shoes. With a low sigh, she turned to the silent phantom player: "do you need anything from here?" she questioned. The least she could do as their manager was to assist them, right?
"Kagome-chan, look," Kuroko made his way past the miko before noticing the advertisement of a product. The miko blinked as she followed behind, not sure what had caught the phantom player's attention. Taking one glance at the tiger, she sighed and quickly followed suit.
"Okay, tenth floor! Oi, Kuroko! Kagome! Don't wander off like you two usually do. I would never be able to find you in this crowd-," Kagami blinked as he looked behind him with two missing people. The spots were completely empty and he had been talking to himself!? "O-Oi! They are both gone already!? They were here just a second ago!"
"Huh?"
"What's up, Kise?" Kasamatsu questioned, stopping in his steps the moment he noticed the blonde basketball player stop in front of him.
Kise tilted his head once to the side as he signaled his captain to look to his right. "Look over there, captain. Is that…?" Kise blinked again as he noticed not only his former teammate, Kuroko, but Seirin's manager also as they both looked at…makeup? "Isn't that Kurokocchi and Kagomecchi?" he asked. "They are both by the cosmetics display."
"Eh?" the Kaijou captain blinked, raising a brow as he saw the phantom player give the female a lipstick. "I have no idea."
"Yes! That is them!" his lips formed a wide smile.
Kasamatsu blinked as he caught a blur of gray run past him and towards the duo across the path of the store: "O-Oi! Kise!"
"I think this color would suit you best, Kagome-chan."
Taking the light pink lipstick in her fingers, the miko tilted her head to the side as she took off the top and took a closer look at the color. Why Kuroko had taken her here was beyond her, but she came to realize it had been a long time since she had shopped for herself - let alone make up. "I don't know, Kuroko-kun. I have never really used makeup."
"What about this one?" Kuroko asked, giving a dark shade of red.
"Eh?" she blinked. "I can't wear that, Kuroko-kun!"
"Hey~!"
The miko's spine jolted as she heard the familiar voice coming from behind. Seeing Kuroko taking a step to the side to see the incoming person, she stepped in front of him: "N-No! Don't make eye contact! That will only make him feel welcomed!"
"Eh?"
"Kurokocchi~! Kagomecchi~! Oi!"
"Ah, Kise-kun…," Kuroko worded out, seeing the blonde having stopped right behind the miko. "It's been a while."
"What are you talking about?" Kagome raised a brow, placing the two lipsticks back on the display. "We just saw him the other day at the practice match.
Kise's grin widened as he leaned closer to the miko; ignoring her step back from the close proximity. "See! Kagomecchi remembers every day that we meet! I feel so special!"
"Stop attracting so much attention, Kise!"
Hearing the other incoming voice, both Kuroko and Kagome blinked to see the black haired captain coming beside the blonde. The miko's lips curved into a small smile before she gave him a small bow with her head: "Hello, Kasamatsu-senpai."
"Domo," Kuroko bowed along with her, seeing the captain's slight blush on his cheeks.
"Y-Yo…," he stuttered, avoiding the blue eyes of the miko. Of all places, why did he have to come across them?
Kise took a glance between the miko and his captain before a sweat drop appeared on his head. Giving a frown, he felt his heart crack a bit seeing the miko had not even acknowledged him. "Kagomecchi~ why are you so much happier to see him than me?"
The miko's eyes glided to meet his begging orbs before she released a sigh in defeat. "Hai, hai, Kise-kun," she nodded before being brought into a tight embrace. "Oof! K-Kise-kun!" a dust of pink colored over her expression as she felt Kise's tighten his hold on her.
"What brings you two here?" questioned Kuroko, slightly pulling the miko's arm back to free her from the blonde's hold. If anything, Kise was getting far too close to someone he had just met.
Kasamatsu adjusted his school bag over his shoulder as he gave out a shrug, "just a few errands."
"But what are you two doing here?" tilting his head to the side, Kise's eyes moved from the miko to his former teammate. It was beginning to enter his mind why the two would be together in such a public place. His pupils widened as realization hit his mind: "Don't tell me…!"
"Huh?" both Kagome and Kuroko blinked, waiting for whatever dumb idea Kise could give.
"You two are on a date!?" he exclaimed. He shook his head as tears ran down his eyes before placing his hands over the miko's shoulders. "H-How could you do this to me, Kagomecchi!? We were supposed to go on a date first!"
Feeling the nerve on her forehead throb, the miko sent him a glare: "stop making assumptions on your own!"
"We….are not on date," Kuroko spoke, dropping his view to the floor.
'C-Chotto…why does he sound disappointed!?' Kagome looked over her shoulder, seeing the sad gaze on the phantom player's expression.
Kuroko raised his head as he began to look around his surroundings: "we are here with Kagami-kun, but I guess he got lost somewhere."
"Ah! I finally found you two! Don't disappear on me like that, bakas!"
With the tiger's voice making its way to their attention, the group turned to see the red head making his way through the busy crowd of shoppers before finally standing in front of them. No doubt by the look on his eyes he was annoyed they had left him alone.
"You were the one who disappeared, Kagami-kun," Kuroko cut in, earning him a tick from the tiger.
"In our defense, you were too stuck on the map to be paying attention where you were going," the miko sighed before turning her head away from his glare.
Kagami took a step forward before he blinked upon feeling two pairs of eyes on him. Raising his view, his pupils widened upon seeing Kise and the Kaijou captain behind his teammates. "C-Chotto…Kise!? And Kaijou's captain!? What are you two doing here?"
"Yo," Kasamatsu greeted, saluting him with two fingers on his head.
"Eh~ did Kagamicchi get lost?" Kise smirked, raising an eyebrow to see the tiger's fuming embarrassment.
"Like hell I did!" he shouted back. The last thing he wanted was to come across the Generation of Miracles while looking for new shoes. "And stop calling me that!"
"If he is calling me that, you might as well be too," Kagome whispered. She was not the only one going to get sucked in by Kise's nicknames.
Kuroko placed his finger over his chin as he caught both Kagome's and Kagami's attention. "It is his way of acknowledging you two. You should feel honored."
"Exactly," Kise nodded.
"But we don't like it!" Kagami and Kagome exclaimed, earning them a small whine from the blonde.
Kasamatsu exhaled as he saw the conversation going nowhere besides an argument. Crossing his arms, he raised a brow at the group: "So? Are you three off from practice?"
"Well, yeah," the miko replied, turning away from Kise's want of attention, "I was just watching these two since the coach put me in charge of them before the match against Shinkyo. I was~ supposed to go home after practice, but we came to do a little shopping – well, Kagami-kun did," Kagome continued giving the tiger a small glare.
The tiger scratched the back of his head as he gulped. He knew he should avoid the female's eyes as he heard the heavy tone she used. It was not like he dragged her against her will – she had a choice. "Tch, look, I will buy you food or something to repay you for your trouble, okay?" he sighed.
"Me too?" Kuroko pointed at himself.
"What the hell!?" he exclaimed. "What do you mean you too!?"
"You brought me here, too, Kagami-kun."
Scoffing at the comment, Kagami sent him a mild glare: "you might as well buy some basketball shoes yourself. Who knows when you will need them?"
"You make a good point," the phantom player nodded. His shoes were in good condition, but it was better to be safe than sorry. They had a long journey of basketball ahead of them after all. "I will make up mind once we start looking around."
The Kaijou captain placed his hand over his hip as he heard the conversation between the three Seirin members. Shoes? So they were here for shoes? "Are you three here to buy basketball shoes, too?" he questioned.
"Too?" the miko repeated, seeing the small smirk on Kasamatsu's face. "Are you here for that, too, Kasamatsu-senpai."
"Yup," he nodded back before letting his smirk widen, "and I can't let you three get ahead of us…to buy the limited editions."
Confusion swirled within the miko's head as she saw the smile on Kasamatsu's and Kise's expression. Limited edition? What were they talking about?
"I see you three are trying to get ahead of us," Kise scoffed with a smirk as a soft 'evil' laugh escaped his throat.
"W-What the heck are you talking about?" questioned Kagami.
"You are kind of creeping us out," Kuroko added, taking a step back. He was sure his other two members were just as confused as he about whatever Kaijou was talking about and hearing Kise's laugh was something he did not want to hear.
Taking a step forward, Kise's lips stretched into a longer smirk as he saw the three Seirin members take a step back. Raising his index finger to their attention, he parted his lips to speak, "you three haven't forgotten, have you?"
"Forgotten what?" Kagome questioned, raising a brow cautiously. Could he not just get straight to the point?
Moving his index finger side to side, Kise took another step forward: "You know, that thing we talked about the other day. I am sure you at least remember that, Kagomecchi."
"Kise-kun, just get straight to the point."
Kagami choked on his saliva as heard Kise's words. Grabbing Kagome's and Kuroko's wrist, he ignored the surprised looks on their faces. "Kuroko! Kagome! We are going to run for it!"
"Eh?" Kuroko blinked.
"Come on! Let's go!" he exclaimed, pulling the two teens and sprinting off into the crowd of people inside the department store.
"Itai!" Kagome winced, feeling his tight grip on her skin. She was sure he was beginning to leave a red mark of his fingers. "Please let go of me, Kagami-kun!" What had gotten into him in the first place? They did not even get to know what Kise was talking about! Reading his aura, Kagome blinked as she felt a mysterious uneasiness around the tiger: 'what is he nervous about?'
Kise and Kasamatsu were left blinking at their disappearing image, unsure what had occurred in front of them. Lowering his hand, Kise's lip twitched: "E-Eh?"
"What was that about?" questioned the Kaijou captain.
Releasing a gasp, Kise's eyes widened as he saw the trio running further away from them. "W-Why are you running away!?" he exclaimed his question. His eyebrows furrowed in annoyance as he saw the tiger's grip on the miko: "There is no way he is going to separate me from Kagomecchi! Wait up!" he shouted as he ran forward. It was bad enough he barely got time to see the miko and now Kagami and Kuroko were taking her away?!
"Oi! Kise!" Kasamatsu shouted, extending his arm out. His shoulders relaxed down as he saw the blonde disappearing into the crowd with females left staring at the model. "And there he goes…geez, what the hell is going on? Oi! Kise! I am going on without you, you hear!?"
"Hurry up, you two!" Kagami exclaimed past his hurried breaths.
The miko's eyebrows furrowed a bit tighter as she noticed sweat slowly appearing over the tiger's forehead. "What has gotten into you, Kagami-kun? You are acting like you are running away from a crime or something."
"We are going upstairs!" the tiger added, completely brushing off the miko's comment.
"Kurokocchi! Kagomecchi! Kagamicchi! Matte!"
A grumble was heard from the tiger's chest as he saw the blonde ace getting closer to their spot. Looking ahead, he blinked at the sight of the escalator: "Look! Let's use the escalator!"
"Kagami-kun…that is the down escalator," Kuroko blinked, seeing people coming down from the fifth floor.
The miko's eyebrow twitched as she caught on Kagami's plan. There was no way-
"We are taking it backwards!" he finished the thought for her.
"There is no way!" she objected, ready to turn and leave. She was quickly pulled by her arm once again as Kagami used all his strength to make it to the top. 'What the heck is he!?'
Kise blinked as he saw the trio having made it all the way up using the down escalator. Left in regaining his breath, his shoulders dropped down: "S-Seriously!? Kagomecchi are you really running away from me!? Kagomecchi~!"
Heavy pants were heard as the red head rested his hands over his knees. He only hoped he had placed a good distance from the blonde as he needed to regain his lost oxygen; the crowd was not even helping with his escape! "I think…we finally…lost them," Kagami spoke through long inhales before checking his surroundings. He winced as he felt a hand smack the back of his head. Looking behind his back, he glared at his attacker. "What the hell, Kagome!?"
"Those are my words!" she exclaimed back. "Could you please explain what the heck is going on? Why are you making us run like maniacs in the store!?"
"There would be hell to pay if one of the Kaijou guys caught us," he huffed, rubbing the spot behind his head.
"Eh?" Kuroko blinked, tilting his head to the side. What was Kagami talking about?
"Kagomecchi! Why do you keep running away!?"
The three looked to their side, seeing Kise waving at them with a look of betrayal. Wait…why was he looking for her only?
"Nani!?" Kagami blinked, seeing Kise coming closer to their spot. "Why is he still chasing us?!"
"Perhaps because you are running away!?" she shouted. Kise was the type of chase after and listen to his own curiosity! Did he not get that?! Kise was probably just as confused as they were.
Kagami cursed under his breath as he searched for another escape route. Where could he go? They were dealing with Kise and no doubt he would catch up. "Let's use the elevator!" he exclaimed, pulling Kuroko and Kagome once again.
"I rather no," Kuroko sighed, "I am exhausted."
"It is not up for debate! This is partly both of your faults, you know!"
"Our fault!?" Kagome exclaimed, tugging back.
"Forget it!" Kagami argued back, before pulling them inside the crowded elevator. "Just come on!"
The miko blinked, watching as Kise increased his speed as the doors to the elevator slowly closed. "I won't let you get away, Kagomecchi! I have been running every day since our game-!" She winced as she heard him crash against the doors as people in the back commented in whispers 'if he was okay' and 'who was he?'. A low sigh escaped her throat: 'I did not sign up for this.'
Rubbing the tip of his nose, Kise followed the elevator with his eyes as he saw the number of floors it went. "Ah…just missed them. They are heading up?" he blinked as he tried to come up with a reason as to why Kagome and the other would try to run away from him and his captain. "W-Wait! I get it now! They are trying to buy the limited edition shoes before the captain and I do!" With a low snicker escaping his lips, his fingers curled into his palm: "Well, we can't have that! I will take the stairs and cut them off!"
"Do you think he is gone?" Kagami whispered.
"Hai," Kuroko nodded.
The miko watched from the back as the two teens looked out the rack of clothing. Why did it feel like she was watching two kids? Crossing her arms, she walked around the rack while ignoring Kagami's protests that it wasn't safe. "Can we just go buy your shoes, Kagami-kun?"
"Hai, hai," he sighed, coming out of the short rack as women shouted from the shock of his sudden appearance. "Well, I am glad we at least gave him the slip."
"The fact that Kise-kun fell for it makes me worry about his future," Kuroko whispered, his eyes scanning for any sign of the blonde.
"Yeah…me too," Kagami nodded.
Kagome shook her head before turning to face the tiger. She could already feel the impending headache being released the more she ran away without reason. "Do you mind explaining what is going on? All we have been doing is running away."
Scratching his cheek, Kagami sighed as he took another look around to make sure they were alone. "Well, it is about what happened at the practice game."
"Huh?" she blinked.
"I dunked the ball and broke the hoop, remember?"
The phantom player nodded as he remembered the events of the practice game against Kaijou. Even they had been taken back by Kagami's strength to break the hoop from the backboard. "Oh yeah," he whispered, "you were angry when we were told only to use half the court."
"And you two were egging me on!" he shouted back. It was not like he had done it on purpose! "Their coach was pissed about it. Our captain told me he demanded that we compensate them for the damage."
"I wonder how much that would cost," Kuroko wonder, placing his fingers under his chin in thought.
The miko raised her palm as all five fingers were shown: "Five hundred thousand yen," she spoke flatly. In the end, she was the one in charge of making calculations.
"That is a lot," the phantom player blinked, seeing the miko give out a tired sigh.
"Yeah but-"
"There is no way I could afford to pay that!" Kagami cut off the miko's words. "I mean, I am just a high school student! I bet you their coach is just pissed that he lost against us!"
Giving out a few blinks, Kuroko tilted his head to the side as he observed the red head. Why was he even panicking about it? "Kagami-kun, you are always buying a lot hamburgers and such, so you must have money."
"I am not rich!"
"Besides, I paid for his last meal there…," the miko sighed, remembering her first meeting with the red head; she had paid way too much for that meal.
Ignoring the looks of the two, Kagami pointed his finger at them as his eyebrows furrowed down together. "We can't let them catch us, got it? That goes for you two. You two are guilty by association!"
"That could be a problem…," Kuroko whispered.
Sighing under her breath once more, the miko watched as Kagami and Kuroko cautiously made their way forward. She shook her head as she began to rub her temple: 'If only they knew…'
"Oi! Kise!"
"Captain!" the blonde called out, seeing the Kaijou captain coming towards him. In the middle of his searching, he had no luck in finding his targets. Where could they have gone? He was sure they had taken the elevator to the eight floor.
Kasamatsu exhaled as he saw time tick on his watch. Did Kise not know the meaning of limited edition? "Get over here!" he exclaimed. "The shoes are going to be sold out!"
"But…have you seen them?" he whined, turning his head left and right for any sign of the Seirin members. If Kagami and Kuroko were trying to keep Kagome away from him, then that was mean of them!
"No I haven't seen them."
Kise scratched the back of his head, almost feeling as if they were being watched. "That is weird. Do you think they were really trying to buy the limited edition shoes before us?"
"If you ask me, Higurashi-san looked like she didn't know what we were talking about when I mentioned it," the captain spoke, remembering having seen the girl's confused look.
"Eh~, but that doesn't make any sense! Kagamicchi is one thing and even I can understand if Kurokocchi avoids me, but Kagomecchi? I am going to cry, captain!"
Kasamatsu gave him a kick behind his back as he saw the blonde stumble on his balance. "And I couldn't care less! Besides, it would be more understandable if Higurashi-san was avoiding you at this point!" Kise was definitely the dense guy!
"When things get rough, you have to persevere!" Kise smirked turning his head to the other side. "Captain, lend me a hand! I will not give up on Kagomecchi!"
"Huh?" Kasamatsu's eyebrow rose with a twitch. "Why are you dragging me into this!?"
"Because they might be taking Kagomecchi away from me, captain! Or they could be hiding something from us. Either way, this is shady," Kise began to sprint ahead, "come on, let's go!"
The Kaijou captain shook his head as he watched his blonde teammate get deeper into the growd of shoppers before he set his hand over his hip. "Does Higurashi-san have to deal with everyone like this? I almost feel bad for her…"
"Oh? These jeans are pretty slick," Kagami commented, seeing the price of the clothing. He showed them to the phantom player as he got a nod of approval. "Wait, we don't have time for this!"
"Says the one who is shopping," Kagome sighed before refolding the jeans Kagami had left over the other ones. Just how long did they have to run like criminals inside the store? She was beginning to think she had to pull an all-nighter now to finish her homework.
"Kagami-kun…"
The tiger turned to face the phantom player, seeing his big blue eyes on his person. "What is it?"
"I was beginning to think…"
"Yeah?"
"What if we just left?" he finished, getting Kagome's attention on the conversation. "Kise-kun and Kasamatsu-san live in Kanagawa, so they are bound to leave soon."
Kagami exhaled, seeing where Kuroko was going with the plan. He had thought about it too, but he had to complete his task! "Did you forget why we came here in the first place!?"
"Technically," Kagome cut in, "Kuroko-kun and I didn't need anything to begin with, remember?" she narrowed her eyes. "You dragged us here! I have homework to finish, Kagami-kun!"
"I will do it for you, okay!?"
'How come I feel like my grade would plummet if I let him do that?' the miko's raised a brow. Feeling her headache beginning to subside, she really hoped Kise had given up on looking for them. Why were they playing cops and robbers? "Look, guys, about the hoop-"
"You can't run forever!"
"Ah, here he comes," Kuroko spoke, seeing the familiar blonde male coming towards them as people moved out of his way, "and Kasamatsu-san is with him."
Kagami scoffed as he tried to come up with another escape route. He was beginning to think that even in this big place, there was no escape or hiding spot! "They just don't know when to give up, huh?! I can't afford the damn repairs!"
"Kagomecchi~!"
"Why the heck is only after me?" the miko pointed at herself. "Kagami-kun, you dragged me into this!"
"I told you! You are guilty by association!" he shouted back.
As the two argued about who was at fault, Kuroko looked at one of the mannequins beside the summer deals. "I have a plan," he spoke, gaining the attention of the miko and tiger.
"A plan?" blinked Kagami.
"The best place to hide a tree is in a forest," he quoted, earning him a even more confused look on the duo.
"Huh?"
"Where could they be?" Kise groaned. He was sure he had seen the three talking around the eight floor. Now where the heck where they? "They should be around here somewhere…"
"There shouldn't be anywhere for a huge guy like Kagami to hide," Kasamatsu sighed, looking to left and no sign of the red head or the female. "Kuroko is a little different though…we barely even notice him if he is standing in front of us."
The blonde male stopped in his steps as his eyes were caught by the tall mannequin standing in front of the men's department. Tilting his head to the side, he noticed the structure of the body as he came to see the familiar split eyebrows and stiff face. "Huh? What is up with the giant mannequin?" he questioned. It was not normal to see such a tall structure of a human when it came to clothing. "It has a really tense looking face for a mannequin and I feel like I have seen it somewhere before. Not to mention his red hair…," giving it one last look, he shrugged his shoulder before resuming his search down the path, "I guess it's just my imagination. Let's keep searching, captain!"
"Are you freaking blind!?" Kasamatsu quickly grabbed the back of Kise's collar as he dragged him back to stare at the mannequin. "That is obviously Kagami!"
"No kidding!" Kise's eyes widened.
"Shit!" Kagami cursed, earning him a surprised look on the customers as he began to take off the accessories on him. "It didn't work, Kuroko!"
"If he is here, then that means Kurokocchi and Kagomecchi are nearby!" Kise exclaimed, turning his head left and right in search for the two. "Where are they, Kagamicchi!?"
Kagami turned his head to the left as he pointed the direction down to the women's department: "over there."
Both Kise and Kasamatsu turned their heads only to see a vacant department. "Eh?" blinked Kise. "No they aren't-!" His eyes widened as he caught the red head running the opposite direction and having a good distance between them: "O-Oi! Matte!"
"Baka~! Catch me if you can!" sticking out his tongue, Kagami resumed his escape before disappearing into the escalator.
"That is it!" Kise grumbled. "Damn it! Wait for me!" he shouted, charging forward as he ignored Kasamatsu's shouts.
"Oi! Get a hold of yourself, Kise!" Kasamatsu turned his head left and right as he tried looking for the phantom player and manager. "Where the heck did they even go? Well, finding them would be like looking for a needle in a haystack…," with one last sigh, the captain followed behind the blonde as they made their way to the escalator.
"Looks like hiding behind you was for the best," the miko whispered, peeking her head out from Kuroko's shoulder. She never thought using Kuroko's lack of presence would become of use to her. The whole time Kuroko had been standing still like a mannequin behind the Kaijou members and they had not even noticed? 'Wait- why am I even hiding!?' she shook her head as she placed the sunglasses down on the table along with Kuroko's hat. "Let's go find Kagami-kun…"
With his steps slowly down, the tiger placed his hands once again for what seemed the tenth time on his knees as he tried to regain his breath. "I am totally worn out…," he whispered to himself. Taking a look ahead, he noticed he had arrived on the ninth floor.
"Kagami-kun."
The tiger jumped from his spot as he looked behind him. His eyes widened as he noticed the phantom player and miko standing with a nonchalant expression. "Oi! Quit sneaking up behind me! What the hell, Kagome!? Are you learning his tricks too?!"
"We simply followed you here," she huffed.
"Damn it, man…those two are a pain in the neck," Kagami sighed as he looked around his surroundings once again. "They are as bad as you, Kuroko, when it comes to never giving up."
"Domo," Kuroko nodded.
"That wasn't a compliment!"
Kagome exhaled as she tried coming up with another plan. She was beginning to think Kise did not know the meaning of giving up. "So what now? What do we do? The plan we used probably won't work a second time."
"It didn't even work the first time!"
"Not my fault you stick out due to your height and hair!" she shouted back.
"At any rate," Kuroko cut in, "they are going to catch us sooner or later. We should come up with another plan."
"Found you, Kagomecchi!"
"See," Kuroko blinked as he pointed his finger at the incoming blonde.
Kagami's eyes widened as he quickly made a run for it with the two behind him. "Come on!" he shouted, making his way through people and racks.
The miko blinked as she noticed the department Kagami was headed for. Turning her head to the right, she pointed at the location ahead: "Oi! Kagami-kun! This leads to the women's lingerie department!"
The tiger gulped, knowing it was a risk to take, but he had to do it! Shaking the doubts away, he continued his pace in his run. "I know that! But we have to shake them off somehow and this is the only way!" As soon as he stepped in inside, he winced as he heard the many yells of the women inside as they called me a 'hentai' and 'creeper'.
"What the heck are they thinking?" Kise blinked, stopping right in front of the lingerie department. Shaking his head, he prepared his pride, "I guess I have no choice. Here I go!"
Looking over her shoulder, the miko's ears were soon filled with comments from the women as they saw the blonde running past them with saying of 'handsome' and 'dreamy'. A sweat drop appeared on her head as she heard Kagami's groan.
"Oi! Why is getting compliments!?" Looking to his left, he saw no sign of the phantom player. "K-Kagome! Where the hell is Kuroko?!"
"Huh?" she blinked, seeing no sign of the ghostly haired male. Where did Kuroko go!?
"Wait up!" Kise shouted.
"How long are you guys planning to keep this up!?" Kasamatsu yelled. He hated wasting time and that was exactly what he was doing! "What about the limited edition!?"
Heavy pants continued as Kagami and Kagome finally lost Kise and Kasamatsu in the trail. Kagami shook his head as his hands rested over his hips, "I can't take this anymore. This is worse than the sprints we ran yesterday in practice! Also, where the hell are we?!" he exclaimed, seeing nothing but camping gear in their surroundings. "The outdoor department!?" Kagami groaned as he slid his hand over his face, "all I wanted was to get a new pair of basketball shoes…"
"And all I wanted was to go home, baka!" Kagome rolled her eyes. Even if she was partly annoyed, she was beginning to get humor from his reaction out of a broken hoop.
"Kagami-kun. Kagome-chan."
The two blinked as the voice made its way into their ears. Turning their heads to each other, they began to look around for the source of the familiar voice. "Was that…?" Kagami whispered. He was sure he had heard Kuroko's voice. "Where are you, Kuroko?"
The miko blinked at the orange tent behind them as she raised a brow at the aura inside. Crouching down, her hand stopped mid-way from unzipping the tent as she saw the opening coming undone itself. "Right here," he spoke, peeking his head out before Kagami and Kagome took a step back.
"In a tent!?" he exclaimed back.
"What are you doing in there, Kuroko-kun?" Kagome questioned with a tilt of her head.
Kuroko shifted inside the tent as he tried to leave some room for two. "We should be safe in here. Let's come up with a plan while we hide."
"I guess we are desperate," Kagami groaned as he made his way inside first.
Kagome could not help but feel her eyebrow twitch as she saw Kagami's tall built shift inside the tent. If Kise could not see the obvious form from the outside, then he was definitely oblivious. The miko sighed before noticing the familiar look on the tent having a similar look to the one she had used in the feudal era: 'nostalgic…'
"Kagome-chan, come inside," Kuroko spoke, breaking her out of her memories.
Trying to make her way inside, the miko zipped the tent closed before setting herself between the phantom player and the tiger. She felt her shoulders stiff as both of their builds easily over towered hers; she was beginning to feel claustrophobic.
"It's pretty cramped in here," Kagami commented, trying to find a comfortable way to sit.
"It's because you are big, Kagami-kun."
"Uruse, Kuroko," the tiger groaned. "So what are we going to do?"
"Shh," the miko quickly placed her hands over their lips as she felt Kise's aura coming closer to the tent. Ignoring the questioning look on the tiger, she looked over her shoulder as a shadow could be seen. 'Kise-kun and Kasamatsu-senpai are outside the tent…'
Kise sighed as his eyes scanned the department; no sign of the people he was looking for. "That is strange…I was sure they came in here. My intuition tells me they should be somewhere around here…"
"What kind of intuition is that!?" Kasamatsu questioned.
Kagami stiffened as he heard their voice a few feet away from the entrance of the tent. "T-This is bad," he whispered behind the miko's hand, "they are going to find us and they are going to make us pay the five hundred thousand yen!"
"Calm down," Kagome sighed, placing her hand on his arm, "they can't see us from the outside, remember?"
Releasing another side, Kise scratched the back of his neck as he began to feel lonesome. "Kurokocchi and Kagamicchi are so heartless trying to take away Kagomecchi away. They shouldn't be selfish…"
"Aren't you tired?" Kasamatsu spoke. "It is obvious Higurashi-san and the other two hate you."
"Hidoi!" Kise placed his hand over his chest as his captain's words stung. "That hurt, you know!"
The Kaijou captain placed his fingers over his chin as he began to think back when they first came across the Seirin members. He was beginning to feel like there was a big misunderstanding between the two groups. "Wait, didn't you tell them something when we saw them?"
"Huh?" the blonde blinked, "what did I say?" Crossing his arms, Kise tried hard to rewind his memories before remembering the exact words he had told the three. "Ah! That's right! I told them if they haven't forgotten about the other day."
"I don't know why, but I was sure I saw Kagami's face go blank the moment you said that. That is when he took off."
"Really?"
Raising a brow, Kasamatsu turned to face the blonde's confused expression, "what did you even mean when you said that?"
"I meant about my revenge…"
"Oh," the captain nodded, finally putting the pieces together, "I wonder if…remember at the practice game when the coach snapped and told Seirin to pay for the broken hoop? I think Kagami might have misunderstood you. I think he think you are making him pay for it."
Kise's eyes widened as he listened to his captain's reason. It was starting to make sense! "Eh?! That is the problem!? That is the reason they have been running away from me!?"
"We already spoke to the principal of their school and everything got settled. We are actually to blame since we were using old equipment that was not checked. We should be grateful that it was broken before anything serious happened," Kasamatsu raised a brow as he remember having spoken to their coach about the issue. "The coach told me he had let Seirin's coach and manager know about it…so why did Higurashi-san not let Kagami know?"
Inside the tent, Kagami sighed quietly as he heard Kasamatsu's explanation; feeling a heavy weight on his shoulders slowly lift. "So that is what happened," he whispered, turning his head to see both Kagome and Kuroko staring at him with dead-fish eyes, "O-Oi, why are you two looking at me like that? Besides, why didn't you tell me, Kagome?"
"I tried to!" she exclaimed in mid-whisper.
"Well, next time we run into them, we can just explain what happened," Kasamatsu spoke. "But if we don't hurry-," a sudden chime in the ceiling was heard before a woman's voice came to the attention of the customers.
"An announcement for our customers: as a result of your patronage, the special sale on sports shoes in the shoe department on the tenth floor have sold out and will now come to an end. Arigatou gozaimasu!"
As the chime ended in an echo, Kasamatsu's vein popped out of his forehead as he slowly turned to face the blonde. "Kiiiseeee!"
Kise's sweat dropped appeared as he felt the rage from his captain a few feet away. Putting his hands up defensively, gulped nervously: "h-hai?"
"We missed our chance because of you and your damn chasing!" Kasamatsu's leg quickly came towards the blonde as he kicked away before sending him flying towards the orange tent. Seeing the blonde tumble over the tent, he blinked away his anger as soon as he heard voices coming from the crashed tent. The Kaijou captain raised a brow, noticing two structure under the orange fabric before seeing the blonde over another person, "o-oi…"
"I-Itai…," Kise mumbled under his breath as he came on his hands and knees. The sound of a low whine came from underneath as he saw the form of a person. "I think I just heard someone-," he blinked the moment he noticed the two people beside him try to move as the one underneath him tried to voice out something. "H-Huh!? Wait, what!? There is somebody inside the tent!" Keeping his place over them, he used one hand to completely move the tent away before his eyes widened. "K-Kagomecchi!?" he exclaimed.
The miko cracked open an eye as she felt the soreness already hitting from her back. She had tried to move away the moment she saw Kise's shadow coming their way, but Kagami's person had restricted her to do so! "Itai….oi! Kise-kun! What the hell do you think you're doing!? That hurt!"
"A-Ah….," the blonde's lip twitched as he came to see the position they were in; not that he minded. A smirk curved onto his lips as he inched closer to the now blushing miko: "eh~ what do we have here?"
Ruffling their way out of the tent, Kagami and Kuroko noticed the miko caged underneath the blonde's arms as she tried to back away further into the floor. The phantom player took a step forward as he caught Kise's attention: "Kise-kun, what are you doing?"
"Kurokocchi and Kagamicchi!?" Kise exclaimed, raising his head to meet the two Seirin members.
"That is where you were hiding?" Kasamatsu blinked.
The tiger's eyebrows furrowed as he saw the smirk play over the blonde's lips. No doubt they were making fun of him for over thinking. "W-We were not hiding from you! Listen, Kise, we were just in a hurry to buy the basketball shoes before they sold out, okay?"
"Eh?" Kise blinked. "So that is what this was about after all?"
"No it wasn't!" the miko shouted, grabbing the attention of the males. "Also, how long are you going to stay like that!?"
The blonde lowered his eyes to the caged miko before his smirk returned: "aren't you comfortable?"
"Definitely not!" Kagome quickly pushed him off before she came back on her feet. Dusting off her skirt, she gave out a low grumble: "And this was not about that," she spoke. "Kagami-kun thought you were going to make him pay for the broken hoop so he had us running away from you two."
"O-Oi! Kagome!"
Kise sighed as he gave out a pout. The abandoned feeling that lingered within him had suddenly drifted off as he heard Seirin's reasoning. He was beginning to worry the more they ran away. "Really?" he blinked. "But there is no way I would do something like that! I have been crying because I thought you two were trying to take Kagomecchi away from me!" Clearing the clinging tears from his eyes, he quickly jumped forward as he lunged for the miko, "but now I am relieved! Kagomecchi!"
"Hold it!" Kasamatsu spoke, holding Kise from the back of his collar.
The miko took a few steps back as she came in between the phantom player and the tiger. The last thing she wanted so be in a caged hug by the blonde ace. "Sumimazen," she whispered, "we would have stopped this whole fiasco if Kagami-kun had given me the chance to explain to him about the hoop."
"U-Uruse!"
"Well, now that has been solved, I promise you three I am going to do it," Kise spoke, sending the Seirin members a smirk.
"Do what?" Kagami raised a brow. This guy could not get to the point, could he?
Kise chuckled under his breath as he sent them a wink: "basketball, of course. Our defeat the other day was a rude awakening for me. Now I really want to put real effort into practices and the games. I had never lost before, after all. As far as basketball goes, I don't ever want to lose again. I am going to practice harder and get my revenge on you, Kurokocchi. Kagomecchi."
"Oi…what about me?" Kagami's eyebrow twitched.
"Kise-kun…," the miko whispered, seeing a different side of the blonde. Had the loss in the practice game opened his eyes to different possibilities?
Kasamatsu sighed as he took a step forward, glad that the whole chasing routine was over. "We managed to clear this misunderstanding, so I guess all's well that end well, right?" A sigh passed his lips as the announcement reminded him about the shoes he had wanted. "Even though none of us were able to buy basketball shoes, but since we are all here, why don't we go grab some udon or something?"
"Udon!?" the miko's eyes sparkled, surprising the males as she took a step closer to the blushing captain.
"I guess Kagomecchi liked udon," Kise chuckled.
Kagami raised his hand as he felt his stomach begging for some food: "I second that!"
"Let's go, Kurokocchi!" Kise smiled, turning his head over his shoulder as he saw the phantom player glued on his spot. "Huh? Kurokocchi?"
"I would really like to, but…," Kuroko's eyes glided to the mess of the collision they had made from the tent. Not only had the tent been torn down, but a few of the display items were scattered about, "look, that collision did quite a mess."
"A-Ah…," the four them spoke, finally realizing they did do a mess.
"It is completely ruined," Kagami whispered.
The sound of whistles gained their attentions before seeing the phantom player point to the incoming security," there are security guards coming this way."
"Ah!" shouted Kise, taking a step back. This could not go on his record! He was a model! What would the media say!?
Kagome's eyebrow twitched as she saw the guards running towards them: "don't tell me it's about…"
"…paying for the damages!?" exclaimed Kasamatsu.
"So I am still not off the hook!?" Kagami shouted. "I said I don't have any money, damn it!"
"Would you like some tissues, sir?" handing out a small packet of tissues, the miko gave out a smile as more and more males came to surround her for the free gift. Since when was Shibuya this crowded? A tick appeared on her forehead as she remembered the pile of homework she had inside her school bag. Now here she was handing out tissues as payment for the wreckage they had made at the outdoor department. "I wanted udon…," she sighed tiredly.
The Kaijou captain handed out two packets as he continued on with the job, "we are from Nanbu Department Store! Please take some tissues!" Releasing a scoff, he placed his hand over the basket as his eyes narrowed: "Oi! Why did I have to come all the way to Shibuya to hand out tissues, baka!?" he shouted, seeing the blonde and red head handing out tissues to the females without trouble.
"This is because you had to go and kick Kise," Kagami grumbled under his breath.
"How is this my fault!?" he exclaimed back.
"Just watch where you are aiming next time…!"
The miko sighed as she elbowed the tiger in his ribs as she heard the tone used against the senior. "Oi, Kagami-kun, he is our senpai!"
"A-Ah…right…sumimazen," Kagami bowed his head slightly.
Kasamatsu shook his head as he heard a few squeals coming from the females as Kise continued to hand out the tissues. "Just look at him hamming it up over there," he whispered, coming to stand beside the miko.
"We are having a bargain sale in the women's clothing department!" Kise exclaimed with a grin. "Here! Take a pack of tissues!" One after another came as Kise was close to being done with his stack of tissues. Comments on his looks surfaced in the crowd as females even came for seconds.
"I think he might have found his true calling," Kagami whispered under his breath.
"That is for sure…," sighed the captain.
The three looked over their shoulders as they saw the phantom player being passed without acknowledgement as he took out the tissue packets from his basket. "Have some tissues," Kuroko spoke softly, following the older male with his eyes as he was completely ignored. Seeing an incoming house wife, he took out another and bowed his head slightly: "here, take some tissues." He tried once again with a group of high school students: "ano, would you like some tissues? Take some, please?" With a soft sigh, the phantom player placed the packet into the basket before turning his head to the three staring at him, "what should I do? No one notices me…"
"How can you be that useless!?" exclaimed Kagami.
"He is trying his best," Kagome glared.
"We can't go home unless we finish this job!"
Feeling her vein pop out once more, the miko turned to the tiger as she pointed her finger at him: "we could have gone home a long time ago! Besides, this would have not happened if you would have just listened to me, Kagami-kun!"
"D-Don't remind me…," the tiger looked away, remembering the embarrassment he felt of having ran for the wrong reason.
"Looks like I win this round," Kise smirked, sending them a wink in the middle of his task.
"Take you revenge somewhere else, baka!" Kasamatsu smacked the back of his head.
Kuroko blinked as he saw the miko take some of the tissues from his basket: "Kagome-chan?"
"Please tell me the other Generation of Miracles are not as bad as him…," she sighed, handing out another packet. "Please tell me they are much easier to handle." The phantom player blinked as he remained silent and returned to handing out the packets. "O-Oi, Kuroko-kun…don't ignore me. Kuroko-kun?"
MizukixTsukiyomi's Notes: Well there we go, the first Rebound chapter. I have a few scenarios already outlines and such, but I will have random days on Tumblr where people can put in their own ideas! I will set up an author's note on my profile on Fanfiction when the times comes. I really do hope you enjoy. This was just a fun chapter for people to enjoy to get out of the basketball stuff from the original (as we know we are getting to the more serious matches).
Well, now to return to write four essays that are all due the same day...wish me luck.
Please review?
Ja~ne!