A/N: Sorry again for the long upload. I don't own anything about KNB! Just my OCs.
The training sessions put on Kuroko and Kagami for the past year and a half were like the spartan training since ancient times. It usually ranges from going around cones, shooting in all kinds of angles, running miles per day, jumping like there's no tomorrow, and of course passing. Kagami specifically working on vertical jumps. The explosiveness left when he jumps makes other players stumble. He posterizes like a monster already at his age. His muscular form were improved drastically. When you look at him, it seems like his muscles are gonna explode due to it being very huge, specially his leg muscles. His trainers chases him with a motorcycle, forcing him to run like Usain Bolt. Making him very formidable in driving and jumping. His momentum alone makes taller opponents evade in fear. His shooting skills are improved too.
Kuroko however, got a very peculiar technique. He makes flashy passes, but no one can see it. Though at first he can't get anything right due to confusion and his limits at that time. One time he was rushed to the hospital when he overworked himself and was forbidden to play for two weeks after he got out of the hospital. Through the hellish practices he went, he became one or the greatest disciples Jason Williams ever had. Gaining few sweet tricks up his sleeve. His quickness and handles are godlike now. He's very agile in the court, adding to his already sneaky technique makes him very good at crossing over any challengers that dare to guard him. If you think that he is going right, you will be made a fool, because he actually went to the left. If you hesitate even for a millisecond guarding him, you're a goner. His shooting is further refined. Making several floaters here and there. Making mid range shots. Shooting few threes. Doing crazy layups. All these added with his so-called "Vanishing Shot". This technique makes the ball look like it teleported to the rim. His stamina and strength is improved too. Adding little muscles here and there. His passing is superb, not saying that it is not good before, but now, it seems like he's a passing machine. Add that with improved intellect, his assist stats are off the charts! Not only that, he steals the ball better than the past. Disrupting passes, confusing players and the audience alike, and simply just taking the ball from his opponents hands. With him on the court, the contenders they face already have a handicap.
Puberty him him hard, stone hard. He now stands 6'1 (or 185 cm for non-retard measurements). His body became leaner and more muscular, like ripped muscular. His face didn't change much, just his jawline looking more solid. His hair became a little bit longer, making it very unruly and messy. The girls in his school squeals whenever they see him. Though his attitude hasn't changed much, he is still the quiet boy who cares for others, his confidence grew just a little bit though, making him a little bit seen when he isn't playing, much to the girls' delight.
Kagami introduced Kuroko to Alexandra Garcia a while back. She is Kagami and Himuro's basketball teacher. Alexandra is rather fond of Kuroko. She thinks his eyes and hair were like that of a dog's. So she acts as if she was the affectionate master of the pet Kuroko, spoiling him every now and then. It's another talk when it is time to train them of course. Treating them like slaves whenever they got hold of the ball. They did surpass her though, after a very long time, they learnt how to intercept her attacks and get past her. But it still needs great effort. She is like a guardian to them now, though officially when they go back to Japan because no other family members except for Kuroko's 16 year old sister will accompany them on the way back to their home country.
'Just a few more days before going back, how are they now?' Kuroko thought as he stuffed clothes in his duffel bag. He hasn't heard from them since he sent that photo to Momoi.
*Knock knock*
Kuroko stood up and opened the door, looking down to see his sister. (I'm having trouble describing her, so let's go with a Rem lookalike)
"What's the matter Shiori-san?" Kuroko asked as he let her sister enter his room.
"We'll go back earlier than expected onii," her sister, known as Kuroko Shiori.
"When?"
"Tomorrow, let Kagami know."
"Okay," with that her sister left the room after hugging him. They were pretty close, seeing the way they interacted with each other. Kuroko especially since he protects his little sister away from horny dudes. She is soft spoken like Kuroko and talks straight to the point. She is the only one besides Momoi and Kagami who sees Kuroko with or without his sneakiness.
Grabbing his phone, Kuroko dialed Kagami's number. He waiter for a few minutes before someone answers at the end of the line.
"What?" Kagami answered with annoyance in his voice.
"We'll be leaving tomorrow," Kuroko answered.
"WHAT THE HELL?! I HAVEN'T ARRANGED MY THINGS YET!" Kagami cried. Kuroko heard some background sounds as Kagami finished his answer, hearing some 'LET US SLEEP YOU APE!' and 'EVERY NIGHT YOU'RE LIKE THAT'.
"I wish I hadn't known you," Kuroko replied in a deadpan manner.
"Ugh, I've just woken up. I'll go fix my things," with that he held up his phone sighing.
'I just wish the teammates I'll be having are great.' Kuroko thought to himself.
*Pant pant
Kiyoshi Teppei and his teammates are going above their limits now. After their loss to every school that has a GoM member happened, they went to their full extents. They cried their hearts out after each defeat, but these losses make them stronger, more determined than ever to have their comeback. Kiyoshi especially since he went through hell and back with his condition. His injuries did not hinder him from reaching his goal, it made him better even. He always thinks, 'mind over matter solves it all'. He will get the gold in their third year for sure.
"YOSH! LET'S GO FOR ANOTHER ROUND!" Hyuga shouted to his teammates.
"HAI!" they cried back.
And that is the thing they did in their summer 'vacation'.
The arrival section in Haneda Airport is bustling with people. There are those who would buy from their souvenir shops and those that go straight to the exit. Some will go visit their families and some will take a vacation. But for people like Kuroko and Kagami, the reason why they came back is to make old friends realize the deeper meaning of unity and friendship.
"Stay close to me Shiori," Kuroko said to his sister.
"Nn," she replied.
Hands holding, they made their way to the exit. They grabbed a taxi and told the driver the address.
The house was not much, it's clean and spacious and can house 4 people. The lack of furniture made Alexandra annoyed, since she will be the one managing those. And frankly, she is very carefree to an extent that laziness is not rare for her. But responsibilities are responsibilities after all. Now, she applied for gym teacher in the school Kuroko and Kagami admitted to.
"Hey Tetsu! Let's go to the court and play streetball!" Kagami shouted to Kuroko.
"Okay," Kuroko turned to his sister, "want to come?"
"Hai onii," his sister smiled.
They made their way to the court as they saw teenage students that look like they sell drugs for a living, to see one is smoking shamelessly made Kuroko think they are delinquents.
"Let's go back," Kuroko implied.
"What? We're here, why turn back?" Kagami replied.
"Why can't you read the situation? They are delinquents in school! Let's turn back," he said a little more forcefully.
"Nah. They can't be bad guys at their age trust me," Kagami turned to the dudes playing, "hey you guys! Let's play ball!"
They looked over to Kagami now, then their eyes drifted to Shiori. Eyeing her like they will ravish and take advantage of her. She clutched her brother's shirt tightly. Unbeknownst to them, Kuroko watched the whole scene unfold before him. He now let his invisibility turn off, he turned to glare at them.
"I told you this was a bad idea," Kuroko said without leaving his eyes off to the delinquents. "Hey! I don't like the way you looked at my sister," he said with venom in his voice. The delinquents turned to Tetsuya now. He is still glaring at them. Their girlfriends looked up to see him. Blushing furiously and sighing as they saw the 6 footer.
"What?" one of the delinquents said, "Let's play basketball and I'll make you look embarrassed in front of your lovely sister," he said 'lovely' without its loveliness.
"Let's get this over with," Kuroko turned to Kagami, "I'll be the one playing, don't interfere."
"What? I came here to play," Kagami whined.
"We'll eat later, my treat."
Kagami lightened up as Kuroko said this, "Yeah yeah fine, go make them eat dust."
"I'll take out three of you, once you've blocked one of my shots or missed one will be your victory. Lasts until ten minutes, till then we'll compare scores," he said to the one who is currently eyeing her sister that looks like he can be qualified to fight at cockfights, mostly due to his hair that is straight up right in the middle giving him a chicken look.
He turned to Kuroko and laughed, making others laugh too. 'Yep, he's clearly the leader' Kuroko thought.
"Haa, fine but don't go crying just because you lost loser!" the chicken-man said.
"You go first chicken," Kuroko said triggering the teenager. The low like just snarled in return. Now they weren't gang members or anything that will give them hard time in prison. They are still teenage kids that went out of way. So they wouldn't do anything to Kuroko and co.
The man grabbed the ball and went past Kuroko. He smiled smugly as he thought this was an easy one. Though as he went past by him, he is suddenly stopped again seeing Kuroko in front of him. It looked like an opposite deja vu. He went past him and still in front of him? What happened? This was one of his 'tricks' as Kagami says. He makes his opponents thinking that they got past by him easy and be confused as to why he was suddenly in front of them. This is called the 'Vanishing Wall'. A technique he got after extensive footwork sessions. It is simply moving after your opponent made a move and quickly moving in front of them. The twist however, is moving out of the way a little bit and moving quickly into position as the guard blocks the attacking player the way to the basket. But that's not all, after the enemies' bafflement, Kuroko will steal the ball directly from the enemies' hands. Mix that with Kuroko's magic tricks and voila, the moving wall is served.
Kuroko grabbed the ball from the chickenman's hands. He drove to the basket and saw that he was stopped by the other two members of the enemy team. It was intentional however, to demonstrate his 'Vanishing Layup'. Another skill inherited when he was doing vertical jumps and reflex training. It looks like a regular layup, but he quickly switches the ball to his other free hand and finish with a layup. Making it look very fast and athletic. Though you can change the ball's position to make the situation in your favor, it is still limited because you're still in the air, and anytime you will fall. So Kuroko made the right decision to improve on his vertical jumps to jump higher and get a longer flight duration when fighting airborne battles.
He quickly switched the ball to his left hand to avoid the block on the right, and quickly switched it to his right to avoid the one on the left. He then finished with an underhand layup.
The crowd looked in amazement as they saw the beautiful show of athleticism Kuroko displayed. The girls screamed as Kuroko flicked his hair to the side displaying a very cool action. Their boyfriends obviously not amused by that, they looked more determined than ever to stop Kuroko. It is not possible for him to make all of his shots against three people right? Oh, how they were wrong.
The 'match' continued to play. Kuroko displaying various skills he learned from the past. Dunking and stealing wildly. He can dunk now due to his vertical training. It is not as flashy as Kagami's dunks though. After learning how to, he got excited to the fact that he tries to dunk every goddamn time. It did not last though, as he was blocked by Kagami in every attempt. He then learned that dunks are blockable after that so he settled with layups. But he dunks whenever the coast is clear and safe to do.
He was like a miniature whirlwind, getting past the enemy while making crazy shots. Confusing the enemy more that they fall by themselves. Stealing the ball like there is no tomorrow. And of course playing to his hearts content. It was a long time since he smiled while playing basketball (a week actually because he hasn't played and arranging the requirements for his new school). The score was a devastating 38-3 in favor of him of course. They were in awe of him as he wasn't just tall, but very skillful too. He is now their new idol and muttered apologies to him after the match. Kagami walked over to him and said,
"Hey Kuroko, you never went easy with them," Kagami said.
"You're very cool there onii," her sister said. As it was rare to see her sister watch his brother play basketball.
"Thanks, I didn't like the way they looked at you earlier," he turned to Kagami, "I was going easy on them."
"Yeah yeah, you always say that even though you don't show it," Kagami said. Kuroko just tilted his head and was innocently confused.
"I was toe to toe with them Taiga," he said.
"YOU COMPLETELY DEVASTATED THEM, YOUR LEAD IS HIGHER THAN 30!" Kagami yelled.
Kuroko answered in an intellectual fashion, "Oh."
"You just play and play and enjoy every moment yet you don't know what is happening. You need to be more focused in the game," he said.
"I am focused," Kuroko answered innocently.
"NOT THAT KIND OF FOC - ugh forget it, this is useless," Kagami said. He was very annoyed everytime Kuroko did that. He is not like that in professional matches though. He is more alert of what is happening in the court and the scores and movements of each player. Kagami then stated, "Let's go back, you clearly shown your skills and I HAVEN'T EVEN PLAYED!"
"Let's play Kagami," Kuroko said.
"Nah forget it," Kagami said. It was such a rare occasion that he refuses to play 1v1. But time passed as he suffered more defeats than victories against Kuroko.
Kagami turned again to Kuroko, "So, your treat? I'm starving"
Kuroko nodded as he checked for money in his pockets, "bollocks," he said, "I actually forgot my wallet at home."
With that Kagami yelled and yelled in the neighborhood gaining generous glares from their neighbors.
Momoi is reminicsing about the times she had with Teiko. She was smirking as she remembered Kuroko bumping fists with her childhood friend. How she wished to go back to those times. She was thinking about the tutors Kuroko had with Kise as she received a text message. She let go of Kuroko's medal and grabbed her pink phone with a picture of the GoM as its background picture. She received a message from an unknown number. She was reading halfway as she smiled from ear to ear. Crying with tears of joy.
From: unknown
Hey Momoi, it's been a long time. I hope this is still your number. I changed it after leaving. Wish you were well, let the others know. I'll be transferring to a nearby school in Tokyo. It's called Seirin High. Tell the GoM my regards.
-Kuroko
The next morning, she went out early in the morning to arrange the papers of transferring to another school. One where a Kuroko Tetsuya will attend to. After doing the job, she called out the whole GoM for a meeting. It was unusual for them to hear that Momoi called a meeting, so they complied and set the location in a cafe near Tokyo station.
"What's this about Momocchi?" Kise asked Momoi.
"I'll go straight to the point," Momoi said as she was holding her breath, "Kuroko's back."
With the bomb on the table, the GoM couldn't contain their smiles. They were looking for this moment for a very long time. Akashi mostly due to the challenge was focused on him. Not directly though, but he knows it. He was the captain but didn't care for his teammates. They are still on the belief that winning is everything and their teammates are just nuisance to them. All they were looking for is an opponent worthy enough to make them tremble in excitement.
Midorima adjusted his glasses and held his lucky item for the day tightly. Kise slammed his hand on the table jumping excitedly. Murasakibara tied his hair. Aomine made a fist and was very amused with the situation. And Akashi was staring out the window thinking how much Kuroko has changed.
Rakuzan won last year's winter cup. Seeing Akashi's future opponents made him calculating at the time. He was measuring how good his opponents have become after summer break.
"Oh yeah, I'll be transferring too," Momoi said, "I will be going to where Kuroko will go."
"Yeah as planned," Aomine said, "get that runt in shape."
Kise stopped from jumping and asked, "Where?"
"Seirin High," she said as the people around her are giving incredulous looks, so she quickly supplied, "don't ask me but that is his choice."
Murasakibara stopped as his potato chip was midway up to his mouth. He was just sitting there, with his mouth open.
"Why there when he can join other good teams!" Kise said. He was the most vocal of them when it comes to Kuroko.
"He just keeps giving surprises," Aomine said.
"Let's just see what he has gathered through the time he spent practicing," Momoi said as the food was taken to the table by the waitress.
"Yay more snacks," Murasakibara lazily said. He still has his ponytail on.
The group ate with tension filling them figuring what has become of Kuroko without over a year of communication. Just as they finished and went outside to go their separate ways, they went to face the station and got past three people with a boy that has blue hair. This particular blue haired boy was accompanied by another bluehead female and a redheaded bulk. The redhead was shouting his lungs out saying something about not playing. The bluehead was just facing the book he has and holding what looks like his sister. The group looked back to see just the redhead and the bluehead walking in the distance.
"Didn't know there is another blue haired kid other than Kuroko," Kise said.
Unaware of the situation, they just walked through their stations to go back home, excited for the great unknown.
HI! So the standings in last years winter cup are as follows (since Kuroko and Kagami were out for a year):
Rakuzan - WC champions
Shutoku - 2nd Place
Too - 3rd Place
Yosen - 4th
Kaijo - 5th Place
Now don't get freaked, but I though hard about this. Rakuzan obviously the first. Why Kaijo is at 5th is that Kise is still growing and got a lot of potential. Keep your eyes into him this year tho. He might be more formidable than other GoM members. Shutoku is second due to Shintaro improving his threes. Too is 3rd because of the still laid back attitude of Aomine, missing quite a lot of games. And Yosen is 4th because Murasakibara keeps getting frustrated about his opponents. He fights seriously with other teams with GoM members of course. But still wasn't enough to get him into the zone. So 4th for them. But look out for this team. Kuroko coming back with Kagami by his side supported by Alexandra as their coach will disrupt these teams! So better watch out!
