A Mission …
Sendoh stood in the Heat's locker room at the team's South Beach training facility, sucking on a lemon peel. Sakuragi looked up from where he was changing, saw what Sendoh was doing, and laughed.
"Oi! Newbie! This isn't Japan. They don't suck on lemons here in America … here, have a Coke!" Sakuragi tossed Sendoh a can from the canister full of ice by the lockers, and Sendoh, surprised, dropped his lemon and snagged the can in mid-air.
Rukawa, watching Sendoh looking at the can suspiciously, sighed. "It won't bite."
Sendoh turned to Rukawa as he put the can down on a nearby bench, and smiled. "I'm still not used to you talking so much, Super Rookie." At this, Rukawa winced a bit, but Sendoh smiled apologetically. "Sorry, Rukawa, old habits die hard. It can't be helped. Tell me, why is no one else here? Where's the coach?"
On hearing Sendoh's questions, Sakuragi's face fell a bit, and he said, "Now you know my problem. This team system is too easy-going! It's all too easy! But, now that the old men are gone, we can take over." Glancing over at the bench where two other men sat, Sakuragi grinned. "Eh, Man of Fire?"
Mitsui glared at Sakuragi. "You know I hate that name! Bad enough I had to hear it throughout my senior year …"
The man next to Mitsui laughed, and replied, "Don't you mean senior years, Old Man? Remember, you're the one who couldn't let go of his dream."
Mitsui smiled. "True, Miyagi. No matter how much I tried to give it up for a career, basketball was in my blood. Then, with the coming of the Roar, I didn't have to give it up!" Miyagi and Sakuragi said at the same time, "MVP 2005!"
Everyone in the room except Rukawa laughed (though he did crack a small smile), after which a content silence descended on the room. Rukawa, having listened to the back-and-forth earlier, now answered Sendoh's questions. "That's why we have come to Miami, Sendoh. To show the world how great basketball can really be. We don't need an American coach for that. Just a good team full of people who want to win."
Sendoh looked around the room. With these four and himself, a good team was what they had, but knowing what he knew was coming, he also knew that winning wouldn't be as easy as the others thought. "I didn't come just to play with you guys. I bring news. Important news."
Sakuragi jumped up. "What news? Is someone else coming to play basketball in America as well? Is Wild Monkey coming? Fukuksu?"
Sendoh smiled. "They're all coming."
Mitsui and Miyagi turned to Sakuragi and Rukawa. "It's true," said Miyagi. "Once the Asian media found out that Sendoh had chosen to play in America, fans of the league's Asian teams demanded refunds. The WBL couldn't survive without Sendoh as its face in Asia and around the world, and once it realised this, all player contracts were voided and the league placed into bankruptcy protection. We're all free agents, thanks to Sendoh!"
Mitsui smiled. "And guess where the two of us just signed up to play?"
Sakuragi ran over to Mitsui and Miyagi, and started beating them on their backs. "Ah ha! I knew it! Wait until this genius shows you how to play in the NBA!"
Rukawa grinned despite himself. He had missed his favorite idiot ….
Sendoh continued: "All of the best players in Japan are now signing contracts in America. Maki, Jin, Fujima … Fukuda …. All in their primes, and all eager to renew old rivalries and settle old scores."
At that last name, Sakuragi had begun beating his own chest rather than the backs of Mitsui and Miyagi, to their immense relief. "Fukuksu! I shall beat him again! It has been too long since this genius destroyed him in Japan. Let him come. Let them all come! It will be just like the old days."
Rukawa listened to what Sakuragi was ranting about, but his mind was already thinking about potential match-ups for the coming year. "Maki …" he murmured. Sendoh, watching Rukawa, knew that, despite all that he had achieved in his career up to this point in time, he had never felt like the go-to man in Japan, what with Maki and himself, among others, dominating the league at various times, with either Maki or himself being the MVPs in the WBL during Rukawa's time in the league. Yes, Rukawa had won championships, but he had never been recognised as the best player. Sendoh knew that these omissions ate at Rukawa, and had driven him to succeed here in the NBA, just like the lack of an NBA championship had become a hole in his own playing career. "To be the best you must beat the best," Sendoh said quietly to himself, "and these players are definitely the best in the world. Beating up on Spanish and Croatian teams in the WBL may look like fun to fans, and such games padded my own scoring average, but I know I have made the right decision, just like in my senior year of high school …."
The next chapter will be a flashback to Ryonan vs Shohoku in the finals of the National Championships during Sendoh's third year on Ryonan's team, and his first as captain. Then, a flashforward to a game of basketball immortals ...
