A Basket for Money

by fullmoonlonewolf

Kiyoshi Teppei is hospitalized for his knee injury, but he can't just lay there and do nothing! He calls up his cousin to come join Seirin, for a price of course. Shiroki Hikaru agrees, and on the way meets Kuroko a weird fellow who's like a ghost... Will the new substitute help Seirin to victory? KurokoxOC with Slight tendencies of HaremxOC

7. Chapter 6 (With Secret Date Omake)

Warning: Just wanted to let you know it is slightly un-edited... there will be typos (probably around 10) I'm doing my best to address them (as I'm re-reading this for the 10th time) Looking for typos is like trying to hunt for lice... You only find a few, when literally a hundred more are waiting in the depths...

Gomenasai about the long wait and typos... Was under writer's block and also sometimes the story just wasn't flowing right...

So I've decided to make the max cap at 30k words, or I'll split the chapter into two parts. But I decided against that for the last one, because it was already in one spot... It was just a very muddled mess and hard to edit. BUT I've fixed it, yay! Also the basketball game shall be short, since I did kind of separate it into two parts.

Well hope you enjoy this next chapter, any questions that I think shall come up shall be addressed below.

Also looking for a beta :P if you guys don't mind

o0oOo0o

---

Red eyes widened, as Kiyoshi's dunk was blocked by Aomine. Kagami and Kuroko continued to watch the game from the bench, as Kagami was twitching with rage and anticipation, his muscles warmed up from the first two quarters. It seemed like a constant battle of the gap; as Seirin was trying their hardest to catch up. After a struggle in the 2nd quarter, the change of flow was in Seirin's hands, as Kiyoshi and Shiroki were totally in sync. It was crazy scary how well they were working so well together. It was like they could read each other's minds with how well they were playing, they didn't even need to make eye contact.

Suddenly the dynamics of the game changed when Aomine came onto the court. The tempo reversed, as it was once again in Touou's hands.

Quickly Seirin went back on defense, but Touou took their golly time down the court. Aomine tossed a lob to Imayoshi. The others ran down the court, but their offense took on a different form. Aomine was on the far right side of the court, but the other four had made a box on the left side, leaving a lot of room in between Aomine and his team.

Aida frowned. "They are trying to separate our zone defense to allow Aomine more room to move around." She knew the team was made up of its own genius's, but never before had she seen a play like this.

Imayoshi, dribbled the ball, as Izuki guarded him. Kiyoshi had motioned for Shiroki to guard Sakurai, as they were closer in build and height. Mitobe was now currently guarding Aomine. Aomine frowned, his eyes on Shiroki in the corner guarding Sakurai.

"Oi Shiro, scared to defend me!?" The two teams looked between the two, as Aomine smirked.

"I can guard you just fine from over here!" Shiroki sent a jesting look with her eyes, as black clashed with midnight blue.

Aomine laughed, as his coach glared at Aomine's careless attitude. Now wasn't the time to start up a casual conversation with the opponent!

"How you going to stop me if you're cowering in the corner?" Aomine jerked his head, as he was now maintaining eye contact over Mitobe's shoulder.

Imayoshi passed the ball to Aomine. "Focus Aomine!"

Shiroki stuck her tongue out, as she winked at Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi nodded, as he stood between Wakamatsu and Aomine, but partly behind Wakamatsu. Wakamatsu frowned, as standing behind the opponent wouldn't let the opponent know what the defender was doing, but it would allow for a more favorable approach for the opponent to catch a pass unless the defender was quick enough to stop it. On defense, it was always a better position to stand in front of the person you're guarding, not behind. Wakamatsu stepped forward more towards the key, as he watched Aomine dribble the ball.

Aomine quickly dribbled by Mitobe, but Hyuuga came in for help, as both he and Mitobe trapped him. Aomine easily got out, as he lobbed the ball high up in the air, before going to the corner and grabbing the ball. He picked up the ball for a shot, as both Mitobe and Hyuuga jumped for the block.

Not on my watch you little shit! Hyuuga glared through his glasses, but his eyes widened as he saw Aomine's form change. What the? What kind of form is this!

Aomine's back was now parallel with the ground, as he backed off from the two in midair. He looked to the basket as the ball released from his hands. His eyes widened, as he saw Shiroki running to Kiyoshi.

"Boost!" Shiroki called, as Kiyoshi grinned.

Kiyoshi bent over, as Shiroki planted one foot on the Kiyoshi's back, her foot connecting with his number 7 as she jumped high up in the air. Everyone on the Seirin and Touou bench dropped their jaws.

What kind of jump is that?! Is that even legal!?

Aida's eyes were distracted by a sprinting player. She gazed at Kiyoshi, who was already sprinting to the other side of the court. The others on the bench also looked on over in the direction Aida was so focused on.

Wait? Is this a run and gun?!

Shiroki gained air, as her hand successfully blocked the ball. She grinned, as she chucked the ball on over to Kiyoshi.

"Go!"

The ball whistled past both teams, everyone still in shock, as Kiyoshi caught the pass, before dribbling and easily laying up the ball. Shiroki rolled into her parkour fall, as she went out of bounds, almost taking out a couple empty chairs from Touou's side. She quickly got back up, as she ran back on the court. She was grinning wildly, as she ran up to Kiyoshi.

"I told you I'd get to use that block in a game!"

Kiyoshi ruffled her hair, as Wakamatsu stared flabbergasted. He was so shocked, all he could do was look on with his jaw dropped, his finger pointed at number 22. He regained some sense, as he turned to the referee, who's whistle was hanging in his mouth.

"Th-That has to be an illegal move, right?!" Wakamatsu shouted.

Both referee's called a technical timeout, as they went and looked through the rule book. The teams made their way back to the benches. Aida quickly hit both Kiyoshi and Shiroki over the heads, as they sat down on the bench.

"What the heck were you two thinking?! Boost?! What lame kind of name is that?!" Shiroki rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, as the team then turned to Aida in question.

"Eh, you're not mad about Shiroki just using Kiyoshi as a boost in a basketball game?" Izuki questioned.

"Well, she blocked it, didn't she?" Aida reasoned.

Kagami got up with a roar. "But, Coach! If she had fallen from that height and landed wrong, she could be out for the game, heck maybe even the season!"

Kiyoshi patted Kagami's head. "Oh it's okay, Hikaru and I have done that move plenty of times. Except, only when there is enough room on the court. Since they were boxing out one part of the court, it left us plenty of room, didn't it Hikaru?"

Shiroki nodded profusely, before retorting to Kagami. "Bakagami, Teppei-kun knows best when it comes to basketball! Next we should show them-"

"If we can do it..." Kiyoshi quickly hushed her, before she could give away any more surprising moves that they could do. Aida looked between the two, before scanning Shiroki's legs. She frowned, noticing their numbers had gone down a little. She definitely wouldn't be able to do jumps like that all around the game.

"Just, be careful you two." She said, as the whistle blew.

The referee's motioned for the players to go back on the court.

"We have reviewed the National basketball rules, and the move is allowed. Only if the jumping party lands or connects with another party that is standing still is it to be a technical foul." Shiroki nodded in understanding, as she and Kiyoshi exchanged a very suspicious looking eye signal, as Hyuuga's and Izuki's eye twitched.

"They have more questionable plays, don't they?" Izuki muttered.

"Hopefully, they won't show us anymore in this game." Hyuuga let out a sigh. Kiyoshi came with enough problems on his plate... His cousin only seemed to add desert, refreshments, and a show.

Aomine cracked his neck, as he looked back at the Seirin pair, his eyes glowering with envy. It was just like when he and... That was in the past now. He only had himself he could depend on.

"Imayoshi, give me the ball."

The captain gave a questioning glance at Aomine, as he passed the ball. Aomine's eyes gleamed, as his grin became more feral. No more holding back, no more boring players, no more blue eyes boring into me... Just me and the ball.

Aomine lurched forward, as Izuki came up to stop his dribble, but Aomine just by passed him.

Aida's eyes widened. His agility is astounding! To be able to stop and then pass on by at a full sprint!

Mitobe and Hyuuga came up at the same time, giving a double man screen, but Aomine just bounced ball between Mitobe's feet before sprinting by him. He picked up the ball, as he continued with it towards the basket. Almost there! Aomine's adrenaline rush was kicking in, as he saw Shiroki standing in front of him, with Kiyoshi behind her. Guess Shiro's not going to use that boost jump with him.

Shiroki ran forward, as she tried for a steal, but Aomine went past her. However, he did stop in front of Kiyoshi's towering figure. He immediately crossed over the ball, but didn't notice Shiroki's form swarming through his legs, as she stole the ball. Touou Gakuen's eyes widened, as Seirin started hooting and hollering at their famous 'under-legged' player at picking up the ball.

But Aomine wasn't done.

He quickly came after Shiroki, as she flinched at his imposing silhouette, she stared at midnight eyes. Very feral, aggressive, angry eyes.

She quickly crossed over to change direction. Wakamatsu ran over, as the two trapped her in the corner. Aomine made the first move, reaching for the ball. Shiroki crossed the ball over to her left hand, as she turned her back to them. Shiroki was now facing away from the players, as she continued to dribble the ball.

Aida bit her lip. Shit, she won't be able to see the court, let alone see anyone else to pass to!

Kagami stood up, as his hands cupped around his mouth. "Why are you running!? Attack!"

Shiroki's ears picked up that up, as crossed the ball between her legs. She couldn't pick up the ball, the referee would call a dead ball in 5 seconds.* She'd have to drive or pass!

Aida bit her thumb, as she stared at the two freshman on the bench. "Kagami, Kuroko. It's time you guys went back in. Momoi won't have much information on you two, and it's already hard for Izuki and Hyuuga to get any points in."

The two nodded, as they went up to the table.

The light and shadow could see Shiroki, as she bounced the ball dangerously close to the border line, as the referee kept on eye on it. Touou's coach, Harasawa Katsunori, watched with impatience, his eyes narrowed, trying to will the ball to hit the line. The Seirin players on the court gathered closer to the corner, as everyone tried to get open for a pass.

Kiyoshi's eyes widened as he yelled at the other Seirin players. "Back up!"

Only Mitobe responded, by going under the basket where he was followed by Wakamatsu. Imayoshi quickly replaced him, as they continued to trap Shiroki. Shiroki's could hear her heart beating wildly in her ears, as all she could see were black jersey's up in her face, and beyond that more people crowding in. They're too close... too close! Shiroki blinked fast, trying to get their silhouettes out of her line of vision. She tried peeking to see if help was nearby.

The ball's pace of bounce was increasing, as Shiroki was now panting. She was pacing back and forth in the little room that Aomine had given her, but her eyes were racing all over the room, away from the crowding in figures. She pulled herself further into the corner, as she barely had room to take a step out, as Imayoshi and Aomine trapped her in further.

Kiyoshi yelled to Hyuuga and Izuki. "Back up! You're only trapping her in further!"

Izuki backed up only a tad bit, drawing his defender further away. Hyuuga tried getting in front of his defender Sakurai, as he called out Shiroki's name.

"Kiyoshi! A little help!" Kiyoshi noticed the edge in her voice, as Aomine came only closer, swiping his hands at the ball. He didn't quite consider the fearful look in her eyes, or the uneven breathes coming from her throat.

Kiyoshi pushed through the gap, as he set a screen in front of Aomine. Shiroki took the liberty of getting out and quickly passing it to Izuki. Shiroki and Kiyoshi ran back to offense, as Shiroki lagged behind him.

"You okay?" They jogged down the court, as Shiroki bent her head, her arm wiping at her face.

"I'll live. Just don't let them trap me again." Kiyoshi gave a pat on her back.

Mitobe was trapped by three players, as Imayoshi took the steal. Aida's eyes narrowed, knowing full well that Touou was not going to be easy, but she didn't expect three-man traps.

Aida's eyes viewed the game, hoping for a dead ball or some stop to the flow, because Touou was only gaining more points at this pace. Aomine only seemed to be getting more riled up, and charging in for the basket, than shooting from afar. Kiyoshi couldn't block the skilled power forward from dunking.

Kuroko and Kagami's legs were starting to feel uncomfortable. How much longer for a dead ball so they could go in! If not... Aida would be forced to pull a timeout, as the time on the scoreboard clicked on.

Aomine was racing down the court, as he passed by the Seirin players, and his 'teammates' were staying out of his way. Kiyoshi was making his way back to the free throw line, along with Shiroki.

"Shiroki, you take base!" Kiyoshi stopped at the three point line, as he stood in front of Aomine. Shiroki continued running, until she was closer to the basket, to prevent any easy lay ups. Aomine ran up to Kiyoshi, as he went left, but Kiyoshi followed him. Aomine's smirk fell, as his eyes narrowed at his new defender. Hmph, so he's better than he looks. Aomine's eyes glanced at his injured knee. If Satsuki is right, then it should be hard for him to pivot... Not like it'd matter with my speed.

Aomine quickly faked left, as he passed by on the right, but his eyes widened as Shiroki appeared right before him, as if she knew he'd passed on the right. He stopped again, to avoid get a charging foul. His teeth gritted together, as he impulsively decided to pass Shiroki. However, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kiyoshi was behind her. Oh, so they just plan on slowing me down? Then I'll shoot!

"Boost!"

Aomine hadn't even fallen into his shooting form, as his eyes widened as Shiroki shouted out the trigger word for their team work duo block. How had she known what he was thinking?!

Aomine held the ball, but Shiroki smirked, as she ran forward. "Trap!"

Kiyoshi ran forward, as Aomine held onto the ball. He clicked his tongue in frustration. An amateur move on his part, he had picked up his dribble, so now his only option was to shoot, pass, or pivot until 5 seconds for a dead ball. He glanced back at where Kuroko and Kagami stood. Like hell he was going to give them a dead ball!

Aomine held the ball low, as Shiroki drove between his legs for it. Kiyoshi moved, as Aomine brought the ball up. Kiyoshi took the steal, before Aomine could defend against him. Shiroki ran forward to the offense, as Kiyoshi tossed her the ball.

"Hikaru!"

She turned back, catching the pass, right as Wakamatsu came up right behind her. Shiroki knew he was there, otherwise Kiyoshi wouldn't have called out to her, it was a warning mechanism of their own, simple and predictable, but they could use that to their advantage. Shiroki's eyes widened as she saw Aomine racing towards her. Not another dang trap! I hate you two!

She quickly passed the ball, to the nearest player; however, by that instinct, she passed it to Kuroko, who currently was out of bounds. Shit! He's not in the game yet!

The whistle blew. "Out of bounds, black ball! Member change."

Shiroki hung her head in shame, as Aida was fuming on the sidelines. She suddenly felt the presence of Hyuuga behind her, as he glared at her.

"Aida and I will come up with a befitting punishment for that stupid move." She gulped audibly, as her 'clutch-mode' captain walked off.

Hand smacked head, as Shiroki winced from Kagami's blow. "You're so stupid! We weren't called into the game yet! Argh! You best be happy that I'm going to direct all this anger at Aomine!" He ruffled Shiroki's hair as a makeshift apology.

Kuroko, however, had been staring at Aomine, as he came up to him. Their eyes met with hostility at first, as Kuroko's morphed more into a sullen state.

"Was wondering when they would put you in, Tetsu." Aomine's eyes also calmed down, but they seemed to hold of a more regretful look in them, which he quickly masked with indifference. Kuroko didn't respond to him, which made Aomine's hands clench. So he was going to ignore him now...

"Coming on to show off with your new light?" Aomine remarked. Kuroko's face didn't falter, as he glanced at Aomine.

"Aomine-kun. I made a promise to Momoi-san." Kuroko looked to Satsuki, before reaffirming his gaze on Aomine.

"Oh, and what would that be?" Aomine questioned, his haughty tone all too pronounced.

"That I'd defeat you."

Aomine let out a roar of laughter, before his eyes narrowed at Tetsu. "Oi Tetsu, you've never told jokes; and frankly that one sucked."

"I'm not joking, Aomine-kun."

Aomine's eyes lingered back over to Kagami. "And this is the guy that's going to help you, I'm guessing." He jerked his thumb at Kagami, while Kagami was being held back by Shiroki. Kagami really wanted to lay a thick one on Aomine's face.

"We're all here to help Kuroko-kun." Shiroki interjected. Aomine gave a frown at that.

"Pfft, like you guys could defeat me. Don't get cocky just because you blocked one shot, Shiro."

Shiroki and Kagami came on over to Kuroko, as Aomine glared at the three.

"Well, I haven't seen you shooting, since I have. " Shiroki ruffled Kuroko's hair, as Aomine smirked. So he may have been dunking the whole time, but there was nothing wrong with showing how weak their defense was to his charges and drives.

"Well, you haven't tried guarding me one on one, since you went hiding in your corner. In fact, you haven't been holding onto the ball at all that much. What was that ridiculous throw out of bounds?" Shiroki removed her hand from Kuroko's head, as he tried to fix his hair. Kagami gripped Shiroki's shoulder.

"Shiroki will be changing that, now that we're on the court." The referee blew the whistle, as the players made their way to their respective positions. Touou was on offense once again, leading by 4 points. There was only 2 minutes left on the board for the third quarter.

Imayoshi passed it to Sakurai, as Shiroki came out to guard him. Kagami was quick on Aomine, as both of them were fighting one another: One trying to be free, and the other trying to block. Sakurai passed to Wakamatsu, who was being blocked out of a nice spot by Kiyoshi. Wakamatsu passed it out back to Imayoshi.

The megane captain, passed it Aomine, as his grin perched on his lips, his white teeth pillowing out. Kagami tried to block, but he ran right past him as he drove by. He pulled up for a quick jump shot, but Kagami was right behind him, as he jumped for the ball, but swiped and missed. Aomine's fake grin fell off his lips. This guy... Is just as serious as Shiro? The ball fell through the net, after rolling around the rim for a while.

"Damn it!"

Shiroki ran back beside Kagami, as she gave him a friendly pat. "Almost."

"Yah, but I still want to block him. When you did it the first time, you should've seen his face." Kagami dropped his jaw, as his tongue drawled out. He then brought his fingers to open up his eyes dramatically.

Shiroki chuckled, before hitting him in the arm. "We're supposed to be focusing on the game?"

Kagami gave a playful smack back, as Aomine saw the exchange. He knew this feeling in his chest. It was one he had decided to hide with the many that afflicted him long ago. But its green, butty head had risen up in his throat, as he scratched at it with displeasure. He was not jealous. Aomine Daiki was jealous of no one.

After all, the only one who can beat him was him.

Izuki brought the ball up once again. Only 35 seconds left, and with the score 90 to 80. He quickly scanned the area, for any weak points with his eagle eye; however, Touou didn't have any.

He passed to Shiroki, who drove in, before passing it to Kuroko. With a quick flick of his wrist, the ball bounced to Kagami. Aomine intercepted the pass, already familiar with Kuroko's gameplay. Kagami grit his teeth, as he went back to go guard the power forward. But Kuroko had a small grin on his face, as he already saw Shiroki driving in between the two power forwards. She stole the ball, as she passed it to Kiyoshi, who went in for the dunk, as Wakamatsu responded too late for the play.

The bell rang, as the score shined 90 to 82. Everyone sat on their respective benches, as Aomine glared at Shiroki. His eyes narrowed further, as he saw Shiroki squirt some water from her water bottle at Kuroko's face, as Kagami laughed. How could he just have the gall to smile like an idiot, whilst spraying water at Kuroko's face! They were losing! Maybe only by 8 points, but if they didn't lighten up the gap, they'd lose! Aomine's gut lurched, as he remembered Shiro's words.

Sure, you scored more points... but you didn't feel like a victor, I bet. Aomine's fist hit the bench, as the rest of his team flinched. The coach cleared his throat.

"Aomine you should be paying attention." Momoi's clipboard connected with the back of his head, as he let out a few curses, before glaring at his childhood friend.

"So, Aomine it seems you already know this 'Shiro'. Well, I want you to tire out Seirin. There's only 10 minutes left, use everything you got Aomine."

Aomine cracked his knuckles, as he rolled his neck. He didn't think he'd have to go into the zone. Not that he could probably will himself into it, not with all these conflicting feelings of playing Tetsu... so soon. Not to mention the jealousy- He wasn't jealous, why on earth... how could he, Aomine Daiki, possibly be jealous?

Aomine let out a sigh. There was no way he would be able to go into the zone in this mental state. He wanted to win yes, but with his feelings tugging at his heart strings, his eyes peered out over at those three. It reminded him too much, too much of the good old days. He was having way too many wavering thoughts to enter it. That would mean to go all out, he'd have to use every trick in the book that he knew of. He'd have to crush their spirit, and likewise crush their score and increase the gap to show who was really stronger.

The buzzer went off, as the players marched onto the court. Imayoshi passed the ball to Aomine, as he let out a breathe. For too long he had to hold this hopelessness in. For too long he had to hold back his skill. For too long he had to watch everyone have fun with his game, his sport, his life... While he just stood there, taking all their shit. He was going to show them, what he was holding back.

Kagami stood in front of him, waiting to defend. Aomine stood still, way too still, like a dead man, and the only thing indicating he was alive was the bare movement of his hand bouncing the ball. Kagami fell into his defensive stance, as the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end.

Aomine felt different, Kagami thought. Suddenly with a burst of speed, he was running down the court. Kuroko stepped in, but he bypassed him easily. He dribbled past Izuki, as the only two defenders left were Shiroki and Kiyoshi. But as he prepared himself, Kagami came out of nowhere, as Aomine picked up his dribble. He inwardly cursed himself, but quickly brought the ball up, as he went for the formless shot.

"Boost!" Aomine gritted his teeth, as he hesitated on releasing the ball, and saw Shiroki's form sailing through the air. As soon as she started to lose air, concentrating on her land instead of the ball, Aomine threw it into the basket. Everyone in the stands stood up, cheering for the Ace's shot.

Aomine picked himself up from his fall, as he locked eyes with Kagami. Kagami didn't know what to call the feeling he saw in Aomine's eyes, but never would he wish it upon his worst enemy. Kagami backed up, as Aomine's form stood up, as he turned to walk. After a few steps, Aomine turned over his shoulder.

"I won't lose to you in skill today." His eyes glowered with ferocity, as Kagami's fist clenched. Kagami's throat went dry, not knowing what to say to him, for the first time. He had a feeling that there was something deeper, something he didn't know, that was fueling Aomine. Kagami flinched as Shiroki poked him as he turned to her.

"Geez, you're getting fat, your love-handles are getting jiggly."

"What?!" Kagami gritted his teeth, before pinching her own love-handles. "Look who's talking hypocrite!"

Shiroki slapped his hand away. "Better, now you don't look so down. Just cause we're down by 10 points doesn't mean we still can't catch up. Let's go!"

Kagami jogged behind her, but was surprised. He looked down? He didn't feel down, he was just shocked a little. Did he feel pity for Aomine? The whole time he had been watching him, he knew that he wasn't a team player. That he was strong. But, he didn't trust anyone, and nobody trusted him, they just trusted his strength. Kagami caught the pass from Shiroki, as he dribbled up to Aomine.

Kagami went in for the dunk, as Aomine blocked him. Kuroko got the rebound, as he passed it to Kiyoshi.

"Now, Hikaru!"

Kiyoshi threw the ball between Wakamatsu's legs. Wakamatsu turned to focus on the ball, but Shiroki caught the ball, going underneath him. Wakamatsu gritted his teeth. Shit, he was just trying to throw me off on who is in control of the ball!

Shiroki pulled the ball up, but was startled when she faced Aomine. Since when was he behind Wakamatsu! Shiroki tried passing it to Kagami, but Aomine stole the ball, as he raced down the court, with Kagami trailing him. He's even faster than Kagami! Aomine dunked the ball in, as all of Seirin stared in shock at the Ace of Touou.

"M-monster..." Hyuuga muttered.

"How can a team just change with one addition of one person...?" Koganei's tone was in disbelief.

Aida closed her eyes, tears threatening to spill. At this point, we may not even... We're still down 12 points, and we can't stop Aomine...

"Hurry up Bakagami!" Shiroki shouted. Aida's eyes opened, as she saw Shiroki running to the other side of the court. "We still have 8 minutes to go all out!"

Aida saw how all of Seirin, on and off the court, spirit lifted a bit. This girl... Could her hidden ability... be to lift up our morale?

Kiyoshi picked up the ball, as Kagami passed it to him. Shiroki ran to the opposite wing side of Kagami, as Kiyoshi took control of the point guard position. Touou eyed the change of play with caution. Kiyoshi faked a pass to Shiroki, as he passed to Mitobe. Mitobe moved to do a hook shot, but passed it to Kagami, as Susa was already preparing to block it. Kagami caught the pass, as Aomine guarded him. Kagami's eyes narrowed, as Aomine glared right back. Kagami passed it to Kuroko, as Kuroko shot the ball. Aomine's eyes widened. Kuroko can shoot! No... Kuroko will never change his style of play... He can't. It's going to be an alley-oop play with Kagami!

"Boost!" Aomine's eyes widened, as he continued guarding Kagami, preventing him from getting closer to the basket. Blue eyes watched, as Shiroki jumped off of Kiyoshi's back and dunked the ball in. Shiroki let go of the basket, as she stumbled a bit from the fall, but didn't fall over.

"Yah! I was finally able to get a dunk in! Beat that Kagami!" They ran back on defense, as Kuroko gave her a high-five, while Kagami ruffled her hair.

Aida's smile disappeared, as her expression frowned as she saw Shiroki's pacing hitch in a few places.

It must be that boost block... Her leg's are going to give out on her, just like Kagami's jumps make his legs give out on him.

However Aida couldn't get a good read on them, as everyone was running up to defense.

Aomine stood there, alone, as he looked at their retreating silhouettes. Imayoshi came dribbling up.

"We can just hold onto the ball for the rest of the quarter, and keep the gap at 10." Imayoshi's eyes twinkled with a subtle sly feel. Aomine's eyes wandered to his captains, already knowing that he was testing him.

"No, we'll crush them." Aomine stole the ball from him, as he sprinted forward. He quickly bypassed Seirin's defense, as he dunked it in. Aomine watched as Kagami ran back to offense, and he eyed Kuroko, getting ready for his 'Cyclone Pass'. The ball shot forward with insane speed, but Aomine stopped the ball.

"Do you really think you can beat me, Tetsu. You haven't changed at all... And I've outgrown your pathetic style. It hasn't changed one bit, and it'll never beat me."

Kuroko's eyes widened, as dread and despair dully shimmered in his eyes.

"Don't get so cocky, Ahomine!"

Aomine flinched, as Shiroki stole the ball. Shiroki dribbled down the court, when suddenly Aomine came up in front of her. She tried to dribble under him, but he smacked the ball as he dribbled past her. Her eyes widened, as she saw Aomine's form retreating back to Touou's offensive basket. No way... He just stole the ball away from me as I was trying to drive under him... No one has ever done that before.

o0oOo0o

"Man, just imagine if Shiroki-chan was playing in our game with her cousin. She'd probably would've blocked Midorima's shot with Kiyoshi." Takao turned to his senpai's as Otsubo murmured.

"The next time we face them, we'll have to make sure those two don't use that. Along with the 'two man underground drive'."

"You mean when Kiyoshi screens the opponent, and she drives under both of them?" Miyaji questioned.

"Yes. It seems most useful if Kiyoshi is holding the ball, but they can also use it if she is in possession of the ball."

"Man, Shin-chan is missing a good game." Takao muttered.

However, Shutoku's shooting guard was getting enough commentary from an old ally of his, as he stood with the blonde model as they watched the game.

The two teams were battling it out, as Shiroki repeatedly blocked Aomine's shots. However, only Kiyoshi and Aida seemed to be noticing her condition was getting worse as she reacted slower and her sprints held less fervor.

"Shirokicchi is so cool! Makes me jealous of Kiyoshi-senpai and how well they work together!" Kise pouted, as he watched the game with more excitement as Aomine was getting more aggressive. "He seems to be getting serious..."

"Aomine seemed to be 'playing around' in the 3rd quarter, but now he's just reverted back to his mongrel ways of play." Midorima watched as Seirin's ball play started to focus more on Kagami and his jumps. He let out a sigh, as Kuroko's style of play still hadn't changed at all from middle school. He did respect Kuroko's style of play, but it would never improve if Kuroko wouldn't change. His style of play depends on other players, therefore to improve he would have to have the others improve. Midorima flinched as Kise playfully knocked him on the shoulder.

"You're just jealous of Aominecchi."

Midorima scoffed, and denied Kise's claim. However his mind replayed how Aomine had been acting throughout the game.

His eyes narrowed as he watched Aomine shoot a three, as it was blocked again by Shiroki. "I think he is the one that is becoming jealous..."

"Eh, jealous of who? Aomine is never jealous, he's the best around!"

Midorima's eyes lingered upon Shiroki's form, as she smiled at her teammates, making sure they weren't worried about her drastic 'boost block'.

"I guess you're right for once Kise. Aomine isn't jealous." But Midorima smirked, as Aomine's eyes tore away from his opponents. Or at least he's trying to convince himself he isn't.

The score was now 100 to 97. With only a minute left, both teams were sweating like crazy, as they had been running up and down the court. Shiroki guarded Imayoshi, but then made the wrong move. Imayoshi took this chance to drive past her, but Kuroko came and stole the ball. However as Kagami went for the pass, Aomine came in and blocked him. Shiroki intervened as she tried getting the ball, but only managed to tap it out of bounds.

Kiyoshi eyed Shiroki, as her legs wobbled a bit.

"You okay there, rocket booster?" Kiyoshi questioned, while giving a slight ruffle. Shiroki partly buckled under this, but then regained her ground with a single step.

"It takes more than a couple jumps to take me out, Teppei-kun." She gave a dazzling grin, as Kiyoshi smiled back.

"Out of bounds, Black ball!"

Aida signaled for a timeout, as she was marked for her last full timeout. The referee blew the whistle.

"Seirin, timeout. Full. Start!"

The players quickly made their way."Shiroki, I want you play point guard outside, and Kiyoshi you play it on the inside." Shiroki nodded hesitatingly, but Kiyoshi ruffled her hair.

"It'll be fine, we'll just use our telepathy as always." Shiroki smiled, as the whole team looked back in confusion.

"Wait, you two have telepathy?"

"Why-" Kiyoshi looked at Shiroki.

"-of course." Shiroki smirked as she finished the sentence.

"We've always-" Shiroki wrapped an arm around her taller cousin's shoulders.

Kiyoshi grinned, "-been able to-"

"think in synchronization." And quite eerily they said the last part at the same time, as they both started to chuckle at the same time. Aida's eyebrow twitched. She quickly pulled Shiroki aside.

"Okay I'm going to tell you a number. Kiyoshi, you have to guess it."

Kagami looked flabbergasted. "You're going to test it! Now of all times!"

"Hush, Bakagami!" Kuroko and the team held back Kagami, as he wanted to yell a certain few things to his coach. Aida whispered in Shiroki's ear, as she then turned to Kiyoshi for the answer.

"89."

Aida gasped. "You-you... How did you guess it right?!" The whole team looked between the two cousins as they just smiled.

Kiyoshi titled his head as he spoke. "Why do you-

Shiroki shrugged her shoulders as her voice interrupted. "-speak of guessing?"

"When it's apparent we knew." Kiyoshi and Shiroki smiled at the end, as their voices spoke in unison. Aida quickly whacked their heads.

"Okay I won't ask anymore. But stop acting like twins!"

"Yes Coach."

"Yes Coach."

Aida gave them another whack, as Shiroki moaned in pain while Kiyoshi chuckled. Shiroki sat down, as Kuroko noticed her legs were shaking quite vigorously.

"There that's better." Aida gave a nod.

Izuki sat on the bench. "Well that was surprising..."

"Well it would make sense for them to be in perfect synchronization, for a lot of their moves they have to trust each other's movements to be formed and correct. They have to be really okay with being close to one another and not messing up. Although the telepathy thing is questionable."

Fukuda scooted closer. "Why do you say that?"

Koganei gave a chuckle, as he interrupted. "Shiroki signaled with her hands what the number was."

All the second years nodded their heads, as the freshman let out a sigh.

Kagami smirked. " I knew it couldn't be something as ridiculous as telepathy!"

Kuroko retorted. "But you looked like you believed them, until Koganei-senpai pointed that out."

Kagami turned red, but then the buzzer went off.

"Well, time we go!" Shiroki cheered, as they went onto the court.

Wakamatsu passed the ball to Imayoshi, as he slowly brought the ball up. Aida's eyes narrowed, as she watched them pass the ball around, before shouting.

"They are letting the time play out, go attack for the ball!" Hyuuga quickly guarded Sakurai, as he released the ball to Wakamatsu.

Harasawa grinned. "That's what we want you to think."

Wakamatsu passed it to Aomine, as Kagami had left him alone. Shiroki's eyes widened. Her legs were shaking, but she could jog up and down the court quite fairly well.

"Boost!" Kiyoshi immediately lowered himself so Shiroki could have a good amount of space to jump, but Wakamatsu blocked him off. Shiroki's eyes narrowed. That's not enough to stop us!

Kiyoshi reacted, as he screened Wakamatsu. Shiroki ran underneath them both, but she ran three feet away, before turning 180° and running back to Kiyoshi. Aomine released the ball, as Shiroki jumped off the ground. Shit I might be late... No I have to block this or we won't win! She landed on Kiyoshi's back with her right leg, as she jumped off towards the ball, coming off a bad twist as she sailed through the air. Her hand caught the ball, as she saw Hyuuga down the ways. She pulled her arm back as she chucked it at Hyuuga, as he ran to the three point line and shot the ball.

However, after coming off a bad twist, and having to throw the ball at an awkward angle, as Shiroki came down she rolled, but the force ended on her left knee.

Hyuuga made the shot as only 30 seconds were left, and the score was now 100 to 100.

Aomine picked up the ball as he raced back down, by passing Kagami, Hyuuga and Kuroko, leaving only the two people able to block him. Shiroki quickly stood up, as her legs shook and Kiyoshi stood next to her. She slightly leaned onto her cousin.

"We should call a time out..." Kiyoshi murmured.

"Right when the enemy is charging, I don't think so!" Shiroki ran forward as she tried to stop Aomine's drive. He backed up, before crossing over and dodging her, but that gave Kagami enough time to catch up and run slightly ahead of Aomine. Aomine grinned as he and his rival went head to head. Aomine tried going left, but only made a couple feet ahead, before Kagami jumped in front of him.

"Sorry Kagami, but this is where it ends."

He ran past the baseline, as he jumped and shot from behind the basket. Kagami's eyes widened, but Shiroki ran towards Kiyoshi. She jumped, but Kiyoshi was standing up straight, as her left foot connected with awkwardly with his shoulder. She jumped up higher, as she was now hovering over the basket. Aomine's eyes widen. She immediately hit the ball towards Kagami, as he kept hold of it as the 3 seconds on the board dwindled.

2

Shiroki was falling through the air, as she twisted to avoid a standing Wakamatsu. Kagami passed the ball back to Kuroko.

1

Her right knee hit the floor, as she rolled underneath the basket. Kuroko hit the ball to Hyuuga as he caught the pass. Hyuuga quickly released the ball, before Sakurai could defend against him.

0

The buzzer sounded, as the ball rolled around in the basket. Both teams held their anticipation as the ball rolled around, threateningly on the outside.

The ball fell through the basket, as the referees counted it. Seirin's bench danced with joy, as Hyuuga threw his fists up in the air at his first buzzer beater. The 2nd years ran off the bench, all of them tackling their captain to the ground. Kuroko and Kagami looked at one another as they tapped fists, smiling at one another. The freshman trio were crying, as was Coach Aida, although she was doing a much better job of not sobbing heavily unlike the freshman.

Touou on the other hand just looked on at the board in amazement. Aomine put a hand to his face, as he felt a flurry of emotions. He quickly walked off the court, as he grabbed his things and stormed off, before Momoi could make him come back to bow to the other team. She chased after him, as the coach of Touou was just standing there, shell shocked at the loss. The rest of the bench warmers were similarly distraught. The other four lined up, as everyone on Seirin's team lined up, save for the two cousins, while one stood up looking down at the one laying on her back breathing in the air.

"We won, right?" Shiroki's head lay against the cool court, as Kiyoshi's head turned towards the scoreboard, making sure his eyes weren't blind.

"Yeah. We won."

Kise and Midorima were just looking at each, before looking at the board.

"I don't believe it! Seirin beat Touou?!" Kise shouted, before hugging Midorima. He promptly pushed Kise away at his full extended arm's length, shoving him off and telling him to go die. Momoi stalked back onto the court, dragging a moping Aomine back onto the court by his ear. Midorima was smirking at the sight, as Kise was chuckling. But as Kise turned to the former shooting guard of Teiko, his smile lost its appeal as Midorima's stern gaze was turned else where.

"I'm very sorry for his insolence. Now go bow to Tetsu-kun!" She shoved him, as he gave her the finger. Momoi retorted with sticking her tongue out at him repeatedly saying 'loser, loser, loser.' Which was quite working in making him riled up, as it was hitting his sore spot.

"Eh, so how's it feel like Aomine? We're quite the challenge." Kagami teased as a smirk lay on his lips.

"Hmph, you and Tetsu, I could take you on any day! That last shot was just luck..." Aomine's demanor changed, as he looked down the court, behind Seirin's back. "Oi, what's wrong with Shiro?"

The Seirin players turned around, as Shiroki was trying (to no avail) stand up, but kept falling down. Kiyoshi was offering a helping hand, but she was ignoring the help, as she tried standing up on her own. Aida looked on, as everyone on the bench was fidgeting to help out, but they had returned to their bench. They had to wait until the reconciliation bow was done. Touou's bench also looked on, a bit of pity glowed in Momoi's eyes. She knew it must've been all those jumps, in which the last two that she had done were not correct.

Shiroki wiped the tears that were threatening to spill on her cheeks. She was embarrassed and she had lost feeling in her legs below her knees.

"Teppei-kun. Can you carry me?" She gave a crooked, fragile smile, as Kiyoshi's gaze lowered. Shiroki could feel the tears forming, but she held them back. She wasn't going to cry on the court. She already looked weak and pathetic that she couldn't get up, she wouldn't demean herself anymore by crying like some baby.

"Of course." He gripped her, as he hauled one arm over his shoulder, and her feet half dragged, yet half walked with him as they lined up. Aomine's expression was dimmed to a grieving one, as he looked upon the skinny, fragile form. They bowed to each other, as Kiyoshi got down and gave Shiroki a piggy back ride. Shiroki had buried her face into his back, not wanting to look at anyone in the eye.

"Everyone will be able to handle Senshinkan and Meisei, right?" Kiyoshi questioned, as Aida nodded furiously. The other teammates nodded, swearing not to lose to them.

"Okay good, I'll be taking this little one to get checked on."

Hey I'm not little! I used to be taller than you, you know! Shiroki wanted to shout out, but abstained from doing so.

The team packed up, as they headed into the lockers to freshen up for the next game, and Touou headed off to prepare for their's against Meisei. Kiyoshi slung over both Shiroki's and his bag over his shoulder, as he hefted Shiroki on his back. They headed off to the nurse's room, as Kiyoshi's steps echoed in the hallway, along with muffled whimpers from his cousin. Kiyoshi's hand clenched a little harder, as he closed his eyes with regret of pushing his cousin.

"It'll be okay. It'll be okay." Kiyoshi kept repeating those words, but more to himself than to Shiroki. He muttered quietly. "It has to be okay..."

o0oOo0o

Kiyoshi walked through the hallways, as he headed up the stairs.

"Teppei-kun." Shiroki murmured.

"Hai?" Kiyoshi responded, glad that Shiroki had stopped crying and was talking.

"You have no idea where we are going, don't you?" Her eyes were red, but not that swollen, as she peered over his shoulder, casting an unsettled gaze at Kiyoshi, before the end of the hallway he was walking down.

"... Maybe."

Shiroki's forehead bumped against the spot between Kiyoshi's shoulder blades, as he chuckled. "We'll get there eventually." He said encouragingly.

"More like we'll get there when everyone is already gone." Shiroki sarcastically remarked.

"Oh there's someone up ahead. Ask for directions? Please, Hikaru?" Kiyoshi turned back, giving his best puppy dog face, to which Shiroki smacked a hand over it.

Hikaru waved to the female duo, as they stopped. They were first surprised, but when asked for directions, they giggled as they pointed in the direction Kiyoshi had just came from.

"You'll go down there, make a left and it should be on you right at the end." The shorter one of the two replied.

"Thank you very much, Ouja-sama's." Shiroki gave a gallant wave of a hand, as she dug her fist in Kiyoshi's back, making him bow. They giggled, as they continued on their own path, making a right as Kiyoshi made a left.

Kiyoshi balanced Shiroki with one arm, as he rubbed the spot Shiroki dug her fist into. "You're stronger than I remembered you to be."

"Or you could've become softer in the hospital." Shiroki chuckled, as Kiyoshi pinched her leg. "Ow!"

"Who's the one that is too weak to stand on their own legs?" Kiyoshi retorted, as Shiroki pouted. She then pulled on Kiyoshi's collar, as he backed up.

"Hey hey, we're here!"

The duo went inside, as the nurse came up to them. The nurse rolled her eyes, as if she had seen enough nonsense already today.

"So what happened here?"

o0oOo0o

Seirin easily defeated Senshinkan and Meisei, the scores being 98 to 76 and 86 to 70 respectively.

Touou also defeated both of them; their game against Meisei was 156 to 42 and their game against Senshinkan was 105 to 31.

Aomine dragged his feet with his team, as Momoi made him tag along. God, he was not going to live it down that Seirin had beat them. So yah he was late, but they were still in the finals. They'd go against Seirin again, if Seirin could make it that far. His feet shuffled along the hallway, as he was far back behind his team, being trailed by Momoi.

"That's why you should've come earlier~" She was bouncing along, after having lectured him to not underestimate Tetsu-kun and his team.

"Ch, that ridiculous jump should've been a technical foul. No way they would allow that in the pro-leagues." His eyes sauntered towards the glass paned windows. Really, how could the ref's just allow that! So what if it was an awesome block -not that Aomine admits to that-, it still had to be an illegal move somehow. The referees just interpreted the rules wrong!

"So, are we coming to practice from now on?" Momoi said in her chilling high voice.

Aomine scoffed. "Hell no. I need to go hang out with Shiro. See what other moves he has got."

"Dai-chan!" Momoi gave a hit to his shoulder, as he hit her twice as hard back. She let out a yelp in pain, before puffing her cheeks up. "You know, Shiro-kun is only so good because of her dynamics with Kiyoshi Teppei! If you came to practice once in a while, and we played as a team, we would be able to defeat them easily!"

"Look, I'll come to the game on time next time. That'll give me enough time to crush them." Momoi frowned, as Aomine clearly hadn't changed after the loss. He only seemed interested in learning about a single opponent and just coming on time. He still didn't want to bond with the team, in fact, he wanted to bond with the wrong teammate! He shouldn't be bonding with Shiro, he should be bonding with the rest of Touou! Momoi tapped her cellphone, as she brought it to her lips.

"Well then, I guess while I'm at practice all alone, I'll just have to get Shiro-kun to keep me company." Momoi argued. Plus it'll give me an excuse to see Tetsuya-kun more often!

The whole team turned at this.

"Why does this 'Shiro-kun' have to come to our practice's!" Wakamatsu shouted indignantly.

"Manager, I don't think it is wise to have the enemy come to any of our practices." Imayoshi reasoned.

"Oi, don't be dragging Shiro around just because you got big boobs." Momoi smacked Aomine over the head, as he rubbed the bump that was forming.

"That would be a good idea." Harasawa murmured.

The whole team then turned to their coach in surprise, as Momoi sparkled with hope, while the rest of the team looked on confused.

"Wait- WHAT?!" Wakamatsu exploded.

"Momoi-chan, if you could arrange a practice match, that would be very helpful. I would like to see how Riko-chan will respond."

Imayoshi gave a sigh, before turning to the team. "You know what that means~ Double training for the InterHigh."

The whole team unanimously groaned, save for Aomine who just let out a gruff grunt. Coach thinks he's smart, but he can't manipulate me to come to practice. Harasawa's eyes gleamed, as he turned to Momoi in the back.

"Also Momoi-chan, please do not tell anyone, but myself when the practice match is. I'll announce the date the morning practice of the day." Aomine's fist clenched at that. Oh so that's how the coach was going to play. He would need to come to morning practice in order to find out if they would be playing Seirin that day. Well he could always just come up with an excuse not to go. He wasn't going to be manipulated into anything, he was Aomine Daiki!

The Touou team continued walking towards the exit, until they rounded the corner to see Seirin headed in the same direction. The team glared at the one that they had lost today, as they trudged out of the gym. Shiroki and Kiyoshi had been absent from the Meisei and Senshinkan games. The power forward of Touou glanced over as he saw Shiro was currently getting a piggy back ride from Kiyoshi.

Aomine's eyes sullened at the sight. Momoi took note of this on her clipboard.

The two teams were approaching the same exit.

Hyuuga spoke up first. "Good game today."

Imayoshi nodded, as he then gestured to Shiroki. "Is he going to be fine? It's such a shame a fine player gets pushed past their limit in a game that wasn't even the championship."

Aida boiled over, ready to give this man a lesson in the Boston-Crab-hold, but Kiyoshi and Hyuuga held her back, along with one hand from Shiroki.

"Hikaru will be fine." Kiyoshi's smile attempted to placate the two warring factions, as he hefted her higher.

"Yup yup. Besides, it's not like I'm in any pain. I can't feel my legs." She smacked her calf loudly for emphasis. Both teams jerked their heads at said statement.

Kagami quickly pulled at Shiroki's jacket. "What do you mean you can't FEEL your legs! You're not paralyzed are you?!"

"Oh no, no. The doctor just said I bruised my patella, so I'll only have temporary... temporary shock. It'll only be like this for a couple more hours." Seirin's team let out a sigh of relief, as Harasawa gave his condolences to such a poor accident having to occur today.

Shiroki waved her hands frantically, as Kiyoshi wobbled a bit in the shift of weight. "Oh no, the fault is all mine. But it was really a great game! Wakamatsu is a really good center, and Imayoshi is really hard to read. Sakurai has a super fast release, it makes me quite jealous. And then there is Aomine who is all in a league of his own!"

The players either coughed or blushed a little at the sudden praise, but Aida jumped up and hit Shiroki on the back of the head. Hyuuga gave a creepy smile, as he mouthed, 'I'm going to deal with you later'. Kiyoshi and Shiroki both paled.

Momoi waved to Kuroko with a smile, before turning to Shiroki.

"I hope we get to hang out more often. You should definitely show me more of your cool techniques." She added a wink, as Shiroki grinned.

"Sure why not-" Immediately Hyuuga and Kagami pushed Kiyoshi back, whilst having a little arguement with Shiroki.

Aida just grinned malevolently, as Harasawa glared back with a fake smile.

"See you in the InterHigh." Aiko hissed out.

"Like wise, Riko-chan." Harasawa seethed back.

Touou walked off, as the others turned to Shiroki, with a not so happy gaze. Kiyoshi grinned, but Shiroki knew all to well that wasn't his 'happy grin'.

"Wh-what?" Shiroki's body was tense, as she was preparing for the worst. Were they going to throw her off the team? Make her do 'dog' work for the rest of the time she was in the club? Make it so she had to give up her pokemon games to Aida, as she would have done the same training to her as she did to Hyuuga to make her achieve clutch time?!

Her face paled, as Aida spoke. "Why do you seem so close with Momoi and Aomine?"

Shiroki's face perked up in confusion at the question. Coach's high tone and fishy smile made the question seem ominous. Exactly what did Coach want her to say? She decided to answer it honestly, as the team was waiting on her. "Oh we hung out for a while... Maybe I met up with them 2 or 3 times before this."

They all nodded in understanding.

"Oh, and I was also Aomine's slave for four weekends."

The team stood their for 3 seconds of shock, before they all crowded around Kiyoshi, trying to swipe at the poor injured girl.

"Wait, what?!" Koganei blurted out.

"That's it, you aren't going anywhere near him ever again!" Kagami scolded, as he pulled at her cheeks.

"Kiyoshi, you need to keep an eye on her!" Hyuuga glared at their Center.

"Exactly what did Aomine-kun make you do, Shiroki?" Kuroko's worried expression make Shiroki feel guilty.

"How did you even end up in a situation like that?! HUH?!" Kagami pinched her nose, as she cried out in pain.

Shiroki sweatdropped, thinking she shouldn't have let out that piece of info. Oh how Seirin was going to be the death of her...

o0oOo0o

"Okay the teams moving on have been named!" Aida shouted from the doorway of the gym.

Everyone perked up, as the practice had just started. Shiroki and Kuroko were helping each other stretch. Coach was waving slips of papers, as Hyuuga distributed them.

"Touou, Kaijo, Rakuzen, Yosen, Meisei, Onita, and Kirisaki Daichi are going to join us for the InterHigh. It'll be just like the pre-tournament, and the top four schools will be automatically placed for the Winter Cup."

Kuroko felt Shiroki flinch at the last name. She quickly rolled her shoulders, as Kuroko could feel her trying to release tension in her muscles. He gazed at the name on the slip of paper. His eyes narrowed as he remembered how Aida was going over how Kiyoshi had been out earlier that season because of a person who played at Kirisaki Daichi.

Shiroki unlocked her arms from Kuroko's, as she got up to help Kuroko stretch forward. She was pushing on his back, as they both read the slip of paper held between his hands.

"So, we'll be going against Meisei again."

Aida nodded, as the team continued their stretches. "Nothing we can't handle. But after that we'll be facing Kirisaki Daichi."

The other freshman could feel the atmosphere of the 2nd years and Shiroki darken, as Shiroki had straightened up and stood there silent.

Kuroko spoke up. "Is Kirisaki Daichi strong?"

Shiroki replied, as she looked towards Kiyoshi. "It's not that they aren't strong... they just aren't fair."

Kagami's eyebrow quirked. "Aren't fair?"

"They like to play dirty. They've been know to foul opponents and keep them out of the season with injuries." Aida responded, as everyone turned to Kiyoshi, who was still stretching.

"Ara? Am I doing it wrong?" Kiyoshi asked, as he stretched his hamstrings.

Hyuuga smacked his forehead. "Learn how to read the atmosphere!" He let out a sigh. "Anyways, the rankings will be based on who come out with the most wins. We'll be going up against all the teams on this chart. As you can see, after Kirisaki Daichi will be Kaijou, and they'll be wanting revenge from our practice match. Afterwards is Onita, then Yosen, Rakuzan, and finally Touou."

"So we'll have a lot of training to do." Kiyoshi reminded, as the team groaned in unison. Aida quickly blew her whistle against that.

"We won't have much time to train! Our next game is in a week. Oh, and although school get's out for summer vacation in two weeks, you can say goodbye to your holidays!" Another groan came from the team. "Stop complaining! Besides, it's not all for not. I've found a cheap place near a beach and the mountains!" Some boys on the team perked up at the word beach. Beach meant the cool water, warm sand, and babes... babes in bikinis! Shiroki's eyes lit up at the mountains part. She had never gone camping before, and being out in the wilderness would be fun! "So you best get ready, also because we are low on funds. I'll need to cook for all of you at the training camp."

The team suddenly went pale, save for all the 1st years.

"Mi-Mitobe can cook for us!" Koganei hurriedly rushed out, the 2nd years nodding in agreement.

"You guys will be too tired out from training, so I'll have to cook for you. If you even have energy to cook, then I'll have to adjust the training regime to be even harder. Besides I've been getting better." Aida smiled, as the 2nd years only paled even further.

Hyuuga quickly rounded everyone up, save for Aida, as they huddled in the middle of the gym. "I hate to say it, but if we don't die from her training regime, we'll die from her food."

Koganei quickly nodded. "It's true, no matter what she cooks it always tastes wrong..."

Shiroki just shrugged her shoulders, as she quietly uttered a suggestion. "Then why not have someone teach her?"

Lightbulbs went off in the 2nd year's heads. Izuki quickly nodded at the idea. "I agree, why not have someone, who can cook, teach her! We could have a taste-testing day during lunch!"

Furihata interjected. "I'm sorry for interrupting, but who knows how to cook?"

The 2nd years pointed to Mitobe, while Shiroki pointed to Kagami and Kagami pointed back to Shiroki. They all simultaneously spoke.

"Kagami can."

"Shiroki can."

"Mitobe can."

The 2nd years then pointed fingers at the Shiroki. "You can cook?"

Shiroki gave a half nod. "Kinda, I guess. I can't cook cuisines or anything fancy."

Kagami raised a hand at that. "Same here."

Mitobe gave a nod. "..."

Koganei nodded in a agreement, "Right, high-schoolers wouldn't have enough money for the right type of equipment for cuisines or fancy things like that."

Hyuuga gave an annoyed scoff. "We're getting off point, and Aida is starting to get curious about what we're talking about. Okay last day of school, we'll all have lunch in the home-economics room. It'll be empty that day, I know. So who'll teach her?"

Mitobe gave a shake of head, as Koganei interpreted. "He's already made some plans at lunch for a teacher conference. Something about extra credit for Calculus to avoid summer school."

Hyuuga then turned to Kagami and Shiroki with pleading eyes. "One of you two, please?"

Shiroki immediately pointed a finger at Kagami. "He's a better teacher than I am."

Hyuuga's eyes gazed at Kagami, before he could protest. "Then the team is counting on you, Kagami."

The group huddle dispersed, as Kagami's mouth flapped open and closed. "Wait... but... what... I didn't even agree!"

o0oOo0o

The game with Meisei was un-exciting, as they swamped them 76 to 58. The freshman trio even got to stretch their legs, as Shiroki and Kiyoshi would cheer from the sidelines. Aida wanted to save Kiyoshi's knee for the games they would need him in, and even though Shiroki's numbers were normal, Aida didn't like how easily they fluctuated, ever since the Touou game. The cousin duo had sat through the whole game, but they mostly cheered on everyone else with their smiles.

"Good job everyone! Also remember how excited you guys are to practice during summer break for the Kirisaki Daichi game!" Aida twirled, as daises popped up in the background. The team's demeanor dropped a notch.

They parted ways, Kiyoshi keeping an eye on Shiroki's back as her silhouette became smaller and smaller between Kagami and Kuroko, their houses in different directions.

"Come on you idiot, we have to get moving if we wanna make it to your grandparent's house in time for dinner." Hyuuga picked up a coffee can from a vending machine as he tossed it to Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow, while giving a confused grunt.

"It's a gift... For getting out of the hospital." Kiyoshi gave a smile, before opening the can and taking a sip.

"Hey Kiyoshi, what are you planning?" Hyuuga gave a disconcerning look, as the center had a suspicious grin on his face.

"Nothing. Why do you ask?" Kiyoshi 'innocently' responded with a grin.

"You're smiling. And it's creepin' me out." Hyuuga retorted.

"Well it's a nice night out, and a long time since I've had to walk home after an exciting day."

Hyuuga let a small smile fall on his lips, as they walked side by side. He had to agree, it had been too long since they have hung out.

"So, Kiyoshi, what is your cousin like?" Hyuuga slipped his bag over his shoulder, as he eyed Kiyoshi.

"Hmm, before she was a delinquent or after?" Kiyoshi questioned.

"YOUR COUSIN WAS A DELINQUENT?!" Hyuuga shouted out of shock.

"For a while... When I first met her, she punched me, and I ended up with a bloody nose." Kiyoshi chuckled at the memory.

Hyuuga looked at the man, hoping he was joking. But the man just kept drinking as he continued on. "I heard from her brothers that she was the leader of her several upper and smaller schools. She gave up her last year of middle school started though."

"Wait she was a leader of several middle schools?"

"No of course not, she was the leader of several highschool's." Hyuuga paled, trying to imagine Shiroki as a deliquent. He just couldn't do it.

"She-She was just trying to do it to prevent bullies right?" Hyuuga reasoned. It made more sense for that. He didn't think Shiroki was the type to get violent, she was almost as happy and go lucky as Kiyoshi. Yah she could get angry, but it was like a little kitten throwing a hissy fit, she'd calm down right after.

"I'm not sure, from my recollection she'd just beat up people if they pissed her off. Back then she used to have such a short fuse." Kiyoshi gave a few pats on Hyuuga's shoulder. "But she changed for the better, after I introduced her to basketball. She's not violent now, at least not without reason."

"Reason?"

"Like if you say the 'taboo' words, or take her money without suffiecient cause or without permission, or if you pick on her 'precious people'. Oh, but you don't have to worry Hyuuga, Shiroki has very good control over her temper now. At least, if her older brother isn't around."

"Why do you say that?" Hyuuga wondered why Kiyoshi would mention that. Didn't Shiroki mention she had tons of brothers, but Kiyoshi only spoke as if she had one.

"Don't look so confused Hyuuga. Shiroki only has one 'blood brother', the rest are her step-brother's. They are all family to her, but her one blood brother... They didn't have the best of relationships. Let's just leave it at that."

Hyuuga nodded, slightly ignoring how Kiyoshi had just read his mind. "So Shiroki won't be going be trying to kill us all?"

"Nope, I highly doubt you guys could bring up significant reason for her to get mad." Kiyoshi calmly stated.

"You've seen her get mad at Kagami though? Shouldn't we worry about him." Hyuuga couldn't imagine Shiroki getting violent, but Kiyoshi wouldn't lie to him about his kind of thing. He wasn't about to have some mad-nutcase go violent on his teammates, even if she was part of the them.

"Those are just small fights. It just shows how close they are in friendship. It's when she's mad that I'd get worried. You'll know when Shiroki is mad. If I had to describe it, the atmosphere is completely different. It's as if her very persona has taken a flip, and you can just see her anger and hate ebb into the air around her. Her fists are clenched, shaking; and she just gives off the aura of a scary person."

Kiyoshi's smile faded, as Hyuuga watched him. He had barely taken any sips from his drink, as it was now hanging lowly.

"But... Her eyes, are different though. They look so lonely. So hurt. I don't want to see her like that again..." Hyuuga put a hand on Kiyoshi, as he seemed to be relapsing into a memory, a bad one at that.

"Don't worry. You said so yourself, Shiroki wouldn't act like that around us." I didn't even think she of all people could have ever acted like that...

"Right. See you later Hyuuga." Kiyoshi looked both ways, before parting from Hyuuga. Hyuuga shook his head in exasperation as he grabbed Kiyoshi, and continued walking.

"Idiot! We're still four lights away from you're house!"

"Sorry..." Kiyoshi chuckled.

o0oOo0o

The team was now preparing for the Kirisaki Daichi game, as it was 10 days away. Aida had given a new training regime sheet to Shiroki, practicing more on endurance rather than speeding her up. If she was going to last in any of the games, she would need to bulk up more on endurance, especially against Kirisaki Daichi. Shiroki was making her daily run, as she heard her alarm go off. She stopped jogging, and stretched her muscles, in the new stretches that Aida had shown her.

"Good morning, Shiroki."

"Oh, Kuroko-kun. Didn't see you there." Shiroki was surprised at his presence, but she didn't jump. She was more worried that he might've been running near her, and she hadn't noticed him.

"I just got here." He was jogging in place, as the dawn break glow still shown. His sky blue hair was illuminated by the glow of the sun, as Shiroki blinked at how his hair seemed to shine, before quickly dulling as a cloud flew in front of the burning star. She motioned her head forward, as the two jogged together. The months were getting warmer with summer, as they jogged next to each other side by side in a t-shirt and shorts. It was cool out, not too cold so you have to wear a jacket, and not too warm where you're clothes would stick to you uncomfortably. Kuroko's shoulder would bounce against her's every once in a while, but before Kuroko could murmur an apology, he'd turn to see Shiroki smile, and lightly bounce against his.

"I really like mornings like this. It's nice to go out." Shiroki stretched her arms above her head, as Kuroko nodded in agreement.

"So Kuroko-kun, you were friends with Aomine, right?"

Kuroko's mind replayed an image of the last time he saw him, his eyes sullened as he stared at Shiroki. He could feel a bit of heat rise in him.

"Hai. Why do you ask?"

"I was just curious about the relationship between you two. You guys seemed really close."

"Did Aomine-kun say anything about me?" Kuroko's mind replayed Teiko's moments, some of the more embarrassing ones he had with the team, as his steps shuffled, before regaining their rhythmic pace.

"Not really, no. He wouldn't talk about you with me. Seemed like he missed you, and it was too hard for him to even speak about you."

Kuroko's eyebrows rose up in suspicion. That didn't sound like Aomine at all. Aomine had told him he didn't even need him to pass him to anymore... He just abandoned him, threw him away like an empty Popsicle stick.

"Are you sure you weren't mistaken that maybe he didn't speak of me, because he didn't like me."

"There's no way nobody can't like you!" Kuroko's cheeks burned, but he continued jogging beside Shiroki, as she continued. "I just thought, that if you guys were close, it's sad that you both were joined by basketball, and then stripped away from each other by it."

Kuroko muttered a low agreement. Shiroki could feel she had maybe touched an emotional spot in Kuroko, although his face didn't show any evidence.

"And maybe... it can once again bring you two together." Kuroko looked at Shiroki, waiting for her to continue. "I mean, just because we are on different teams, doesn't mean we're enemies. Sure we are fighting for different goals, you want Seirin to win, and he wants Touou to win; but, we all play because we love basketball right. So shouldn't that love be enough for you two to be friends? You guys used to be teammates, and even though you are on different sides, it doesn't mean you have to quit your friendship... unless both of you don't want to get back together... ugh this sounded so much better in my head. It now seems like I'm trying to rekindle a broken love in some romance sappy movie..."

Kuroko chuckled, as he gave a pat on Shiroki's shoulder. "I understand what you are trying to say. But Aomine and I separated for different reasons than what you are thinking. I don't know if it's possible... but if there is a possibility of it happening, I wouldn't object to the chance."

Shiroki smiled. Well now she knew how Kuroko felt on the subject. Now to find out what Aomine thought...

o0oOo0o

The whole team was gathered, except for Mitobe and Shiroki; as they were in the 3rd year's home-economics room. The soft-clicking sound of knife hitting cutting board rang through the air, as everyone sat in anxiousness. Hyuuga's eyes were hidden by a mysterious glare in his glasses. Izuki's knife and fork shook in his hands, as his face was paler than usual. Koganei had beads of sweat pouring down his face, while Mitobe just sat perfectly still. Kiyoshi was standing up, observing the first years, who were all calm, but were tense by their upperclassmen's apprehensiveness. Nigou sat next to Kiyoshi, wagging his tail, unaware of the atomsphere of the situation.

"Here it is!" She set out plates of curry, as everyone opened their eyes to look at the food.

The Seirin team's jaw dropped, as they stared at the plate of half rice that was watery looking, and the whole vegetables covered in some type of gooey sauce.

Koganei couldn't believe his eyes. Why are there whole vegetables! What was all that tapping from earlier!?

Hyuuga's eye twitched. Coach's cooking skills haven't improved at all. There's no way you can tell her to practice!

"Just ignore what it looks like. I'm sure it tastes fine!" Aida gave a little cute tilt to her head, as Hyuuga swallowed a breathe, before reaching with his spoon to taste the curry.

"Then, thanks for the food." Everyone else muttered the same, as they took a bite.

Everyone's taste buds rejected the food, as they flinched at the horrible taste and texture, save for Kuroko who was expressionless as always. Kuroko quickly chewed and swallowed, but did not further his suffering by quickly throwing away the food, while all attention was away from him.

It's so bad! Was the unanimous thought ringing through the males in the room.

Tsuchida gave a few testing bites, as his face scrunched up. The rice is soft like porridge!

These crisp uncooked vegetables remind me of a salad! Also the meat is raw! Koganei made weird faces as he tried swallowing his only bite of that dish.

Izuki examined the food, as his mouth moved to chew his food, as he concentrated all his will not to spit it out. The sauce is mysteriously bitter and sour!

Hyuuga took gulps of air and water, as he finally finished his first bite of the food. This is a massacre of flavor!

"Let me know if you want more!" Aida stirred the pot full with a ladle, as the other's couldn't believe she had made an entire batch of it.

Everyone hesitantly took another bite, as they worked on downing the food. Aida noticed everyone's strained looks, as she twiddled her bandaged hands behind her back. "It wasn't very good, was it?"

Hyuuga's eyes widened, as he saw Aida's sullen face. He looked down at the food, his spoon hanging off the edge of the plate. Damn it, you're the captain of this team! If you were able to go up against the Kiseki no Sedai, how are you not able to go up against a plate of food! Man up!

Hyuuga took his spoon as he downed the rest of his plate, as everyone else watched in awe. As he finished, he got up, walking towards the door.

"It was good, just a little bit too spicy. I'm going to go get something to drink." The door slide open, as everyone watched Hyuuga exit.

"It had a unique flavor, but it was made with the most important ingredient. It had love. But you may have gone somewhere wrong in your cooking." Kiyoshi gave a small grin as he turned to Riko. "Why don't you try making it again?"

Aida gave a small nod. "Okay."

What men! You guys are true men! The freshman trio stared in respect, as the 2nd years were nodding their heads at Hyuuga's and Kiyoshi's words.

Izuki went outside, to go and tell Hyuuga how impressive he was, but stopped as he found Hyuuga lying passed out just a couple feet away from the door. "Hyuuga!"

Riko went into the back to get more ingredients, as Kiyoshi put a hand on the table to steady himself. Large beads of sweat hit the white surface, as Kiyoshi looked up at his teammates.

"Can anyone teach Riko how to make it?" Kiyoshi strained out.

"Wait a minute Kiyoshi! You're dripping in some kind of weird sweat!" Koganei murmured worriedly.

Kagami shifted in his seat, as Riko came out with everything she would need to make curry. "Oi, Coach, you need to boil the water first before you put the vegetables in." Riko nodded, as everyone turned to Kagami.

"What?" Everyone pushed him out of his seat. Hyuuga had named him head chef teacher today, so he was going to do his job!

"Ne, Coach, have Kagami teach you how to make curry! He's a really good cook!" Koganei insisted, as and the others crowded around the pair.

"Eh, is that okay with you, Kagami-kun?" Riko asked hesitantly.

"Sure, but I'm a strict teacher..." Kagami gave a glare at the clock. Just where was Shiroki or Mitobe when he needed them!

o0oOo0o

Shiroki helped Izuki drag Hyuuga to the nearest vending machine, as he chugged down a bottle of water.

"I thought I was going to die..."

Shiroki started to fan Hyuuga with one of her notebooks, as Izuki let out a sigh. "I thought you were already dead."

Hyuuga's phone buzzed, as he flipped it open. "Oh no..."

"What is it Hyuuga-sempai?"

"Riko is making more..." Hyuuga held a hand to his head, as he felt like crying in a hole and dying. Izuki and Shiroki helped him to his feet.

They slowly walked back to the home-economics room, as they met up with Mitobe. "Ah, Mitobe-sempai! Hyuuga is getting cold feet."

"I am not getting cold feet!" He denied.

Mitobe opened the door, as Hyuuga straightened himself up, and walked in, Izuki and Shiroki following behind him.

"Oh it looks good!" Shiroki commented, as the curry now looked normal. Kagami gave a smirk, as Riko smiled.

"I got it right this time! Dig in!"

"Itakidamasu!"

Everyone sat down, as they took their first bite. Once more everyone in the room flinched, save for Kuroko and Shiroki.

Aida's face fell, as she looked shocked. "You're kidding! Why!?"

We don't know either... Koganei munched on the food, his face in a tight line.

What is this? Tsuchida pondered, as he let a spoonful of the curry fall back to the plate. It looked normal, but tasted anything but normal.

The only thing I can say is... Izuki thought, if he had to give a comment.

Everyone agreed mentally on one thing. It's disgusting as ever!

"Kagami! Didn't you make it with her?" Koganei questioned as his tone faulty blamed him.

Kagami rubbed the back of his head in confusion. "I did. I even tasted it."

Koganei looked back to Coach, as he tried to figure out the mystery. "Then why?" He muttered. He eyed Coach, as she looked at the soup in a ladle, testing out the consistency and taste, her eyebrow scrunching in confusion. Coach's inability to cook is beyond human understanding. It's almost amazing...

"It's good." Kuroko said.

Izuki let out a sigh. "Kuroko, it's okay. You don't have to do anything crazy."

"No it really is good." Kuroko repeated. He took another bite, trying to prove his point.

Kiyoshi's eyes narrowed, as he speculated that maybe Riko just hadn't... maybe...

"Kuroko, did you serve yourself?" Kiyoshi asked.

"Yes. They forgot about me, so..." Kuroko quietly spoke.

"Riko could you serve another plate?" Kiyoshi turned to Riko, as she looked on depressed at the pot of curry.

Shiroki raised her empty plate and spoon. "I'd like another serving!" The team turned to her in shock. She actually likes the Coach's cooking!

"Ugh, sure." Riko went and got a plate, as she got a wooden spoon. "First, you put rice on the place. Then, before you pour the sauce..." She started to sprinkle stuff onto the rice, as Koganei nodded his head.

"Wow Coach. You're serious, even adding cheese... Wait! What are you putting on there!" Koganei shouted, as Aida gave a little sad sniffle.

"What are you talking about, Koganei-kun. I'm just adding protein's and vitamin C powder."

Everyone jumped out of their seat, as they shouted at her. "That's it!"

Riko prepared everyone a 'normal' batch of plates, as they all hesitatingly picked up the spoon and tasted the food.

"It's normal..." They all let out a relieving sigh. Aida pouted.

"If it's good, then just say it tastes good!"

o0oOo0o

Everyone stood alined next to one another, as they had finally made it to the beach. Shiroki was in between Kagami and Kuroko, as the freshman trio stood on the side of Kagami. To Kuroko's left was Aida, as the 2nd years stood to the left of her. Izuki breathed in the sea breeze, as he grinned.

"I smell the beach. We must reach it quickly!*"

Hyuuga glared at the point guard. "Izuki, shut up."

Koganei quickly glanced at the girl's in swimsuits, as they made their way on over to the waves. "Let's go swimming!"

Hyuuga quickly grabbed him by the collar, before he could go sprinting off. "This is a training camp! Not some vacation! You idiot!"

A black sedan pulled up, as Riko turned around. Everyone else followed suit, as the tinted window rolled down.

"Oi brats." Everyone felt chills go down their spine, as Riko's father slipped his sunglasses down from his eyes. "Lay a hand on my daughter, and I'll kill you." The menacing tone didn't help add any friendly feelings, as Hyuuga swallowed a lump in his throat.

"Yes sir!" Everyone replied autonomously.

Riko just waved, as she was unaffected by her father's intimidating demeanor. "Bye bye Papa."

The black car sped off, as Hyuuga let out a breathe he was holding. "The Coach's dad..."

Koganei just tugged on his collar, as the heat was becoming overwhelming. "He's as scary as ever."

Izuki looked back at the beach, as he pointed in the distance. "So what are those?"

Everyone looked, as they saw two baskets spaced apart at around a normal outside court size, lying on the sand with white court lines.

Aida giggled. "My Papa brought those here for me."

"Wait don't tell me we're..."

"Exactly. We're going to play basketball on the sand." Aida simply stated.

"What?" Furihata whispered. Shiroki shrugged her shoulders as they turned back to their coach.

"Think of the team's power as an equation. If the individual's numbers are low, we'll never make a big number. What Seirin needs to do now to keep up in the league championships, is to improve the skills of each individual player. However, don't get the wrong idea. We're not building a team of individual strengths, but increasing each one's ability, so when we combine as a team, we'll be stronger than our opponents. Seirin wins as a team."

Aida then pointed down at the ground. "In order to improve basic skills such as shooting, passing, dribbling... We'll need to improve the foundation of your legs and hips. That's why we're practicing on the beach."

Kagami twisted his foot around in the sand. "This is going to make us twice as tired..."

Aida ignored his comment, as she grinned. "We'll first start off with three times the amount of regular practice." She then took off her school uniform shirt, as it revealed a dark navy sleeveless top. "So let's get this training camp from hell started!"

o0oOo0o

The burning sun continued to rise, as the players played practice games in the sand. Kagami was working on getting open, as Kiyoshi ran to guard him. He slipped in the sand, as Izuki just passed him the ball. The ball hit the ground, as Coach blew the whistle of the dead ball. Shit I can't move at all! Damn sand! Kagami gritted his teeth, as he picked himself up off the ground.

Shiroki sat on a towel next to the practice match, watching everyone. Looks so tiring...

"Shiroki go in for Kawahara!" Shiroki immediately straightened up, as her eyes searched for Kawahara's head.

"Yes!" She tapped his hand, as looked around for a 2nd year to guard. Her eyes caught Koganei's, as she ran on by to guard him. Currently Kuroko, Kiyoshi, Hyuuga, Furihata and Shiroki were on one team, while Kagami, Mitobe, Izuki, Fukuda, and Koganei wore blue jerseys and were on the other team.

"Start!" Aida threw the ball up into the air as Kagami and Kiyoshi faced off for the ball. Kagami missed the tip, as Kiyoshi passed it to Kuroko. Kuroko looked down the beach, as he saw Shiroki heading towards the beach. He quickly hit the ball, using his misdirection, but the ball came to a stop as it hit the sand. Hyuuga clenched his fist as he held back his anger, willing himself not to hit his kouhai.

"Idiot! You can't use bounce passes out here!"

Kuroko nodded, as he looked back at the ball. Suddenly, he could feel someone ruffling his hair. He looked up at Shiroki, as she was grinning.

"Don't mind. We'll get them on the next one! Passing is your number one skill right? We'll win." She patted Kuroko's shoulder, as Kuroko smiled back.

"Don't get cocky, Shiroki!" Kagami bustled through the two of them, seperating them. Shiroki stuck out her tongue childishly.

"Kagami is just jealous he's not on the awesome team!" Kagami waved it off, as Mitobe picked up the ball. "Okay! Time to go on defense!"

Shiroki ran to go guard Mitobe, as Furihata marked Fukuda, Hyuuga chose Izuki, while Kiyoshi defended against Kagami. Kagami held onto the ball, as he looked around for an open player.

"Over here!" Koganei shouted. Kagami tossed him a hard pass, but Kuroko stole the ball, as he passed it to Furihata. Furihata passed the ball to Kiyoshi, but Hyuuga blocked him from taking a single step. Shiroki ran in between both their legs, but as she got the underhanded toss from Kiyoshi, she tripped.

"Ah, running on the sand is harder than I thought..." She thunked her fist on her head, as she idoitically stuck her tongue out. Aida blew the whistle.

"That would've been traveling, Shiroki!" She then handed the ball off to Koganei, as they restarted the play.

The team played this way for another 5 hours, before they fell over from exhaustion and heat. Most of the boy's had taken off their shirts, save for Kiyoshi, Kagami, and Kuroko. They were now having a lunch break, as Shiroki and Kuroko 'volunteered' to go get drinks.

Shiroki stretched her arms over her head, as she peered on over to the phantom player. "Good job today."

"You too, Shiroki." Kuroko monotonously replied. They walked side by side, as the sun was high. Shiroki wiped the dribbling sweat from her brow, as she saw Kuroko as sweating and was red. He seemed to be panting harder than usual, which made Shiroki worried.

"Hey, Kuroko. You okay?" She asked.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?" Kuroko looked at his front, wondering if something was wrong.

"You just look like you're about to overheat. Your face is red, and you're sweating a lot. Well, a lot more than usual."

Shiroki took the bottom of her shirt, as she lifted it, wiping Kuroko's face clean. However Kuroko's eyes widened, as he tried to distract his eyes from the toned form of Shiroki's abdomen. He could see her muscles ripple gently, as she scooted closer, cleaning his whole face off. His mind was going crazy, as his eyes strayed to her hip, where there was a mole peeking out from the border of her shorts.

"There." She straightened out her shirt. "Now you're not so much a mess. Ah, but your face became redder. You sure you don't want to take your shirt off like everyone else? It is pretty hot out."

"I'm fine." Kuroko averted his gaze, as he looked at the empty street. Shiroki shrugged the silence off, as she swung her arms behind her head.

The convience store came in sight, as the two walked in, heading straight to the refrigerated drink section.

"We'll just get the electrolyte rehydration drinks, along with Kagami's soda. Um... you can get the water, while I get the flavored drinks?"

Kuroko nodded, as he headed on over, picking up the H2O. He picked up 10 of them, as Shiroki brought over the canned drinks. Kuroko went to reach for his wallet, but it was gone. He quickly processed that he must have left it with his bag, which he was going to get, but Shiroki had pulled him away before he could get to it.

Before Kuroko could voice his plight, Shiroki was already paying for the drinks. She quickly picked up the bags, as she walked towards the door.

"Hey, Kuroko, you coming?" Kuroko picked up his pace as he followed her.

It was weird. He first knew Shiroki, and always she would pay for everything, even though she would constantly put up a small fight against, but fold in the end. Yet this time, he didn't even usher her, and she automatically just did it. This wasn't right?! The man was supposed to cater to all the needs of the woman he was pursuing, but here Shiroki was doing the opposite. Did she like him too? Was she trying to impress him, from the very moment she met him? But she didn't even know him? Kuroko looked on over, as he saw her carrying all the bags.

"Excuse me, Shiroki." Her gaze turned to him, as looked at the bags. "Since you paid for everything, the least I could do is help carry them."

"Eh, you sure you aren't tired? I don't mind really. Besides it'll help build up my upper body strength. Kagami and Aomine have been making fun of how fat and lazy I've become lately." Shiroki pouted at the last thought, which made Kuroko somewhat frustrated.

Shiroki's eyes weren't only on him, they were also on others... Others who were stronger than him, it made him feel vunerable in the fact that Shiroki's gaze wasn't set on him, not like it used to be. Before they joined Seirin. Kuroko reached for the bags, as he pulled at two of them. And what was with her calling herself fat... Shiroki was perfect the way she was.

"Kagami-kun and Aomine-kun must be blind. You're perfectly fine." Shiroki blushed, as she followed Kuroko, as he sped up the pace.

"Thanks Kuroko-kun. You're a nice person."

They made their way back, as Coach picked up the ball, as everyone settled on the new refreshments.

"Okay, everyone! We're now going to go play in the gym!" Everyone made their way on over.

"We'll have one practice round, and then I'll show you your running route afterwards." Riko informed the team.

"Yes!" Everyone shouted back.

Quickly as the game started, everyone realized how much easier moving around was. Kuroko ran past Fukuda, as he passed to Kagami, who did a lay up.

"Ah, you could've dunked that, Kagami." Shiroki looked at him questioningly, "Did you hurt yourself outside?"

"No... I just... didn't feel like it." Kagami looked at the basket, before Hyuuga and Kiyoshi smiled at one another.

Aida smiled. So Bakagami has finally learned to control his emotions that lead him to jumping all around the place. Now he'll finally be able to hold back some of his energy not only for one game, but for the future games as well.

The practice match ended shortly, as Aida noticed everyone's movements had improved. Papa was right about the sand helping out.

o0oOo0o

The team jogged along the beach barefoot, as the morning gave way with the crash of the waves and cries of seagulls. Shiroki ran behind Kagami, as Kuroko trailed in the back of the group, watching their silhouettes. The 2nd years made up the group before them, with the freshman trio behind Kagami and Shiroki. Aida was in front, as she looked back behind to see the group.

They continued as Aida guided them along the route that they would be following for their evening run, and the route they would continue to use for the rest of the week. They slowly made their way back to the hotel, as Aida prepared the equipment on the beach. The 2nd years were taking bath's first, while the freshman trio wanted to explore the hotel a bit more. Shiroki helped Kuroko stretch, as Kagami reclined on the floor.

"Hey, I heard from the receptionist that we're not the only high schooler's here." Shiroki noted.

Kuroko and Kagami raised their eyebrows at that, before Kagami waved it off. "Must be some summer vacation a group of friends decided on... Just coincendence that they came here."

"That could be it... But she said that there was a lot of them, and they were wearing uniform's." Shiroki held a hand to her chin, thinking on what it could mean. Kuroko rose up from his stretch, as he looked between Shiroki and Kagami.

"This place is used as a training camp for other schools as well." Kuroko stated. Shiroki's eyes lit up, as Kagami let out a sigh, already knowing what nonsense was going to fly out of her mouth.

"Do you think it might be another basketball team! That'd be so cool! We could have a practice match or-"

"Don't be ridiculous." Kagami interrupted. He flinched as he saw Kuroko glaring at him. "I mean- The possibility of that is practically zero. Besides we should be focusing on 'our' training as a team."

"Right, sorry. I lost sight of the goal for a second." Shiroki rubbed the back of her head. Suddenly her stomach growled, as the other two males looked at her. "You know when Aida's going to be done cooking?"

"We could go check on that right now." Kagami got up, as Kuroko and Shiroki followed suit.

They went out in the hallway, heading towards the stairs, and that's when black eyes caught sight of bright green hair.

"Eh? Midorima-kun?" The shooting guard of Shutoku turned, as Kagami pointed his finger accusingly.

"What are you doing here!?" Kagami glared at him, as Takao came up the stairs, before grinning at the sight.

"Ah, Shiroki-chan." Takao walked past the glaring duo, as he strolled up right in front of her. "You're looking cute as ever."

Shiroki blushed, as she stammered back. "W-W-Wh-Wha-What a-a-ar-are yo-yo-you ta-tal-talking a-a-ab-about?" Takao was giggling madly to himself, as he laughed at how easily embarrassed Shiroki was, that is until he locked eyes with Kuroko. He quickly lose his amused expression, as he paled underneath the cold gaze of the shadow of Seirin.

Kuroko took a step forward towards the point guard of Shutoku, as he quickly scrambled behind Midorima.

"Oi, you didn't tell me Kuroko could be so scary!" He whispered to Midorima. Midorima looked confused, before turning away from Kagami to Kuroko. His eyes widened at Kuroko's menacing gaze, before connecting the dots. No wonder Kuroko acted so overly protective of her.

"It's what you get for messing around with people, Takao. Come on, let's go."

Kagami let out a gruff noise, before yelling at them. "Oi! You never answered my question."

"The question really is what are you doing here? Shutoku has had a long tradition of coming here for summer conditioning." Takao looked between three accusingly.

Shiroki coughed lightly into her hand, as she tried focusing on her words. Little pink tinge stained her cheeks, as she explained the situation. "Coach Aida wanted us to train for the championships, so she brought us here because it wasn't expensive. We had no idea Shutoku would be here."

Midorima let out a scoff, turning away, as Takao followed him. "Of course you didn't. Well, don't think we'll let you join us in practice."

"We wouldn't dream of it!" Kagami shouted, as the duo rounded the hallway. "Freaking pompous bastard."

"Kagami!" Shiroki hit him in the arm, as he turned around. "There was no need for that."

"What?! It's the truth." He defended himself, as he rubbed his arm. Man that was going to be extra sore tomorrow.

"We were going to go check on the food?" Kuroko reminded them. Shiroki and Kagami nodded, as they made their way to the kitchen. Little did they know of what they were about to step into.

---

Omake: Just because there is more, doesn't make it merrier

---

A quiet thump could be heard, as Shiroki's school bag fell to the ground. Her eyes widened in confusion, as she now saw 3 of the uncrowned generals making their way on over in her direction. She quickly fumbled for her bag, as her pupils scanned the area for a quick getaway. No doubt through her mind, they must've known she sent the chocolates and wanted to have a few words with her; probably the unkind kind.

"Yo, you're Shiroki Hikaru, right?"

Shiroki mechanically nodded her head, as her lips twitched into a forced smile. Shit shit shit... They are going to kill me!

A hand landed on her shoulder, as she registered the limb to belong to Mibuichi Reo. "Here." He shoved a ticket in her face, as Shiroki didn't respond, until 30 seconds later when her hand ridgely went up to grab it. Her eyes scanned the piece of paper, as her eyebrows scrunched in confusion.

"A ticket to an amusement park?" She questioned.

Hayama slung an arm around her, as he grinned mischievously. "Basketball players deserve a break once in a while. Plus it'll be fun, you won't be going alone."

"Who else will be going?"

Nebuya pulled off Hayama, as he grinned. "Well, it could be someone you may or may not have wanted to hear speak a couple words to you."

Shiroki's brain re-wired itself, as she was filing through the man faces she had seen over the past 8 months. The only logical conclusion she could come to, was that it had to deal with her note to Mayuzumi Chihiro.

"Chi-chan likes amusement parks?" Shiroki questioned. He didn't seem the type to dwell with crowds or go to a noisy loud place like that.

Mibuichi shrugged his shoulders, "Well, you'll find out. Just be in front of our school at 8, and you'll be rewarded."

"Rewarded?" She quickly thought back to the note she wrote him, as her eyes lit up. "I'll be able to play one on one with him!?" She asked excitedly.

Hayama snickered, as he grinned devishly at her. "Sure and after playing one on one with him on the court, you can spend the night and play one on one with him in bed-" Quickly a hand was covering his mouth, as Mibuichi glared at him.

"Ignore him, just be there at 8, okay!" The trio left as Shiroki stared at the ticket in front of her. So if they were going to an amusement park, and then play one on one, and then retire back at home, what should she wear? Shiroki's eyes narrowed as she planned for the next day in her head, not noticing Kagami and Kuroko coming up behind her, as she continued to stare at the ticket, her brows furrowed together in concentration.

"Oi, Shiroki... Oi. Oi! Oi Hikaru!" Shiroki jumped as Kagami ran his index finger down the nape of her neck.

"Hey hey! That tickles!" She rubbed at the spot, as Kagami looked at the piece of paper in her hand, while Kuroko observed the situation.

"What's that?" Kagami asked, whilst taking the said questioned item, as he looked at it.

"A ticket to an amusement park? I never knew you liked to go to amusement parks?" Kagami questioned. Kuroko looked to Shiroki, already having a few questions of his own to ask, but he waited for her reply.

"I don't even know. Never been to one. I suppose it'll be fun, since those three said it be a nice place to relax at."

"Oh, going with Furihata, Kawahara, and Fukuda? That seems like fun. Leaving me and Kuroko out of it surely didn't hurt our feelings." Kagami sarcastically remarked.

"Not those 3. I meant Hayama Kotaro, Mibuichi Reo, and Nebuya Eikichi from Rakuzan."

Kagami held the ticket hostage, as Shiroki tried to reach for it. "Wait what? You're going with those three?"

"I think they aren't going... or maybe they are... but I do know for sure Chi-chan will be going, and that if I go I'll finally get to play one on one with him." Shiroki jumped quickly, snatching back the ticket. Kuroko however, quickly slid behind Shiroki as he took it from her when she had her guard down.

"Why do you think they would do this, Hikaru?" Kuroko read the ticket, immediately recognizing the place as an amusement park for couples. His eyes narrowed.

"Probably due to the choko's I gave them." Shiroki pondered out-loud.

Kagami's eyes widened. "You what?!"

Shiroki let out a groan, already preparing Kuroko as a shield. Great, and my day couldn't get any worse.

o0oOo0o

Word got around, as Kagami told Himuro, while Himuro told Murasakibara, and Murasakibara just happened to run into Momoi at the cake shop, who then ended up blabbing it to Takao, as Takao the took this information to Midorima, who vehemently protested in taking part of stalking said 'set-up date', who then ran into Kise who convincingly made him let the cat out of the bag (more like annoyed the hell outta him, because Momoi wouldn't tell him), to which then Kise told to his captain, and now Shiroki was standing in front of Rakuzan in nice loose sleeveless white shirt, with a blue and light grey skirt, black spandex underneath, with a light coat on top. She had bobby pins to keep her over flowing bangs out of her face, she'd have to get a hair cut soon, as she had avoided it for the whole time in japan. A stray hair tie on her wrist, in case the longer wisps near the nape of her neck decided to get wild when she would go to eat. She checked her cellphone, as it turned to 7:50. Her eyes squinted as she saw two silhouettes in the distance, before she pointed at one of them and made out an indignant cry.

"Takao Kazunari, why are you here?!" It was too soon, way too soon to be meeting him. After laughing her butt off from the video Midorima sent to her of his 'tortorous' valentine's day, she quickly saved that sucker onto her micro chip, several usbs, and a whole case of dvds, to make sure she'd always have a copy.

"Geez, is that anyway to greet me, Hikaru-chan." Takao planted a hand on his hip, as he stood in front of her.

Shiroki glared at the pointguard of Shutoku, before letting out a few words in a venomous tone. "Don't. Call. Me. That."

Takao laughed, as he turned to his idol beside him: Kasamatsu Yukio. "Kasamatsu-senpai, Shiroki-chan is being mean to me."

"If she doesn't want you calling her that, then don't do it." He replied back, as he stood by Shiroki.

"And why are you here Kasamatsu-senpai?" Shiroki questioned curiously.

His cheeks flared, as his gaze averted her questioning eyes. "I-I just couldn't let you go alone with Mayuzumi Chihiro..."

"Oh that's okay, Tetsuya already said he was going to come along after I explained it to him." Shiroki gave a cheerful grin, as she then checked the time on her phone again. Kuroko usually did appear at the last minute, but she was slightly caught off guard by the appearance of these two.

"Exactly Kasamatsu-san. I'm already going to be Hikaru's escort."

The two pointguards flinched, as Shiroki looked to Kuroko at her left. "Did I miss you again?"

"No, I just got here." Kuroko replied. "Why are you here, Takao-kun?"

Takao leered towards Shiroki, as she felt chills up her spine.

"I was told some interesting things, I thought I'd check something out worth... 'recording'."

Shiroki bit her lip, so damn Takao knew something in the amusement park would make her squeal, make her scream, or worse: make her bawl like a baby.

The three boys started to argue whether it was really necessary if the other party was needed, that they didn't notice Shiroki being whisked away.

Kuroko turned to Shiroki. "So Hikaru, it's 8 and he's not here, shall we continue anyways."

The three looked at the empty spot of where Shiroki was, before they noticed the bus leaving.

"Shit, he's already kidnapped her!" Takao shouted.

Kasamatsu quickly hit him. "Calm down! We know where they are going, we can just take the next one!"

o0oOo0o

Shiroki took a seat next to Mayuzumi, as he sat next to the window. She glanced on over at the third year, as he averted her gaze and went back to reading his book. He was flipping through the last of the pages, as he was nearing the end of the book.

"The protaganist's love interest dies in the end, and he ends up killing her brother. Then he dies from the disease he caught in chapter 18, whilst having no heir to rule his kingdom, and thus it's split into 4 districts under the ruling of his only remaining relatives."

Mayuzumi turned his head, glared a bit at Shiroki, before closing the book.

"You're still not going to talk to me are you?" Shiroki pouted.

Mayuzumi turned his head as he faced the front again. Really, his teammates were way too pushy. He didn't even want to come out today. If it was his choice of a date, they'd just go to the library or stay in a quiet relatively 'not-crowded' area. But no, his comrades in basketball just had to give him a ticket to an amusement park or threaten to get Akashi in on it.

Mayuzumi shuddered at the thought of Akashi being any part of this plan.

"Sorry Chi-chan. I think it's also a little cold in here. We can share my scarf if you want to." Shiroki held up the offering, as she waited for the silent male to respond.

He turned back to the troublesome girl. Really he might have a strange infatuation, or he was just interested in her because she was the only female that seemed to be even his type, whatever that was. But sometimes this girl was seriously flawed.

"You're shivering, so I'll take that as a yes." Shiroki wrapped the scarf around both of them, as Mayuzumi's ears turned red, but nothing else happened.

He had never once spoken to her, but she just goes on her merry way of actually talking to him. It'd be illogical to not guess that maybe she had some sort of inkling of positive feelings for him, but to him it was just illogical for her to like him as well, because he hadn't done ANYTHING nice towards her. Was she secretly the type that liked 'stoic boys'. Because Mayuzumi knew he wasn't a tsundere, so he wasn't going to be kind to her anytime soon, if it was even in his blood.

"But really, you and an amusement park? I never took you as the type to like those types of places." Shiroki commented, as she noticed his lack of participation in the conversation. To this day, she still has not heard him speak.

Mayuzumi let out a gruff grunt of disagreement, as Shiroki looked at her ticket. Shiroki slowly pulled the strings together.

"... But Mibuichi-san, Nebuya-san, and Hayama-san... they- this..." She raised her piece of paper that would allow her entry into the park, "so then that means you didn't know. Thank Kami-sama..." So it was only Takao who was planning on making her day a living hell. Well that was good to know. That meant she could trust Chi-chan to not try and take her on some ride or event that would end up scary the living daylights out of her.

Mayuzumi raised a brow, as he stared at the 1st year. Shiroki flinched under his gaze. "D-Don't think I'm going to t-tell you my w-weakness, j-just because we're going t-to a place that may c-contain it."

Mayuzumi's eyes narrowed, as Shiroki scooted a bit away from him. The scarf around Mayuzumi's neck tightened in hold, as it brought his face closer to hers. The bus jolted, as gravity went against him, and he held up his arms to prevent their faces from colliding. Black eyes stared into grey ones, as Mayuzumi pulled back quickly, jolting her forward, as he sat up straight. She loosened the confining piece of clothing.

"Okay, maybe shouldn't have wrapped it so tight..."

The bus rang out their destination, as they walked out. Mayuzumi already unwrapped the shared the scarf, as he wanted some more space between the two of them. However, Shiroki stuck to him just as an annoying bug would. He peered down at her, as she brought her lips to a tight line.

Shiroki mumbled out, "I get lost easy... and I don't want to be alone in an unfamiliar place."

Mayuzumi looked ahead, as the ticket lines were full, but the attendance and entrance lines were less crowded. Well he knew where he was going, since he already had the damn piece of paper. He grabbed the end of Shiroki's scarf, as he dragged her along.

"Okay okay, I'm coming. Couldn't you just grab my hand or arm? Trying to kill me here?" He ignored her, as she pouted.

"Still not talking to me... Well I surely can't play at that game. Sometime during today you will talk."

Mayuzumi would've rolled his eyes at that statement, but he felt pairs of eyes on him. Very familiar sets of eyes. He growled as he quickened his pace, all knowing too well that the stupid 3 that had set this up were no doubt following them.

Either that, it was the boys that he saw with Shiroki earlier this morning. Mayuzumi could tell that the blue haired one, and the point guard from Kaijo had inkling feelings on her, very much the ones that he was questioning he had. However, it looked like the freshman from Shutoku had other intentions with Shiroki, ones that Mayuzumi felt very uneasy with. Well he certainly wouldn't leave her alone with that bad egg.

Mayuzumi looked at the amusement park map, as he tried to find the ride that would be most secluded. He pointed to it on the map, as he looked at Shiroki.

"Really, the merry-go-round at 10 in the morning? No one is going to be there..."

He gawked at her, the look in his eyes crying out 'that's-the-reason-we're-going-there-no-duh'. Shiroki shrugged her shoulders, as she followed him.

"So how am I supposed to stop myself from losing you, since you have a low sense of presence and you don't talk to me."

Mayuzumi's brain clinked in tandem at the statement, it being very true. Shiroki took matter into her own hands, from the lack of reply. She shoved her scarf in his hand, as his hand gripped it.

"Since you so abstainly hate human contact, and feel you must ignore me and continue on in your little bubble... I'll just let myself be dragged along." Mayuzumi glared at her, as she held her hands up as if she was in a stick up.

"Okay okay, so that was a little harsh. I'm sorry. But it's better than linking arms, right?" Mayuzumi gave a curt nod, as he led the way, taking a slow pace, as Shiroki followed.

"Ah I see it." Shiroki spoke, as her finger pointed it out. Mayuzumi's gaze followed hers, as his eyes lingered on the empty merry-go-round. "So we'll ride it, til other people come?"

Mayuzumi tugged her forward, before she could jinx their day even more.

"I'll take that as a yes..."

o0oOo0o

Little did the two know that they were alone, as Rakuzan starters followed their every move. (Akashi was at home, lounging about and playing shougi while the TV screen connected to the camera that Mibuichi was filming with was screen casting on the TV)

"Why the hell is the merry-go-round the first ride?" Nebuya growled out, as Hayama was crouched behind him, as Mibuichi peered over the bench they were hiding behind.

"Who knows?" Hayama let out a yawn out. "This is so boring... When does he take her to a hotel and actually finish off the job."

The two snickered, as Mibuichi scowled over their thoughts.

A static voice could be heard over a cellphone. "Eikichi, Kotaro, if you keep making immature jokes, just as you had on the way there; I will quadruple your training regime."

The two immediately shut their lips, before they could retort back. Akashi had recently upped their training regime, and they didn't want to make it any worse for themselves.

"Eh? What is the freshman from Shutoku doing here?" Nebuya narrowed his eyes, as he saw other figures start to appear as well. "What?! The other phantom guy is here and so is that... what's his name from Kaijo?"

"Kasamatsu Yukio." Mibuichi quickly filled him in.

"Yah him! What are they doing here?" Nebuya saw as they came closer to their comrade, his fists clenching. "You don't think..."

"I'm guessing Shiroki is a popular lady..." Mibuichi grinned. "This is turning out more interesting than I thought."

o0oOo0o

The Rakuzan trio followed the others, as they made their way around the park. Different attractions and rides caught Shiroki's interest, but she didn't dare say anything. The tension coming off of the four males in front of her was staggeringly fearsome. The only tension she could compare it to was Akashi's presence, and even that might not be as strong as this.

"Well this is fun isn't it, Tetsuya?" Shiroki smiled. Tetsuya could only nod, as he glared at the other intruders.

"Ne Hikaru, let's go on that one!" Takao quickly pulled her along, as she watched Tetsuya, Chi-chan, and Kasamatsu-senpai disappear from sight. She then turned back to the Shutoku pointguard, as he lead them to the house of horrors with an all too evil smirk. She immediately paled and struggled against the shorter man.

"Let go! No I hate horror movies! You're going to kill me, Takao!" Shiroki protested, but Takao just tugged her along.

"All the more for revenge against you and Shin-chan." He whispered, as Shiroki cursed her luck. She saw the other three run after her, as Takao pulled her into the cart, as the safety latch locked on them.

Shiroki's eyes were pleading with Takao, as he just smirked and whipped out his cellphone. "This is going to be fun, I promise."

"SAVE ME!"

But the other three were too late, as another couple came into the line and bordered the cart behind Takao and Shiroki. In an all too fast action, Mayuzumi and Kuroko bordered the same cart to chase after Shiroki and Takao, but Kasamatsu had chosen to go to the exit. He had missed the forms of Mibuichi, Hayama, and Nebuya fitting themselves in the cart behind Kuroko and Mayuzumi.

Kuroko and Mayuzumi tensed, as they could hear screaming, all to well knowing it was Shiroki.

Shiroki on the other hand, was clinging to Takao, tears streaming down her face, as she bit into her arm, trying to calm herself down and not be so loud. Takao was holding in his laughter, as Shiroki gave a silent glare through her terror filled eyes.

"Y-y-y-you'll p-pa-p-p-pa-pay f-fo-fo-for th-th-thi-this..." She dug her face more into her arms, as Takao looked into his cellphone.

"Ah sweet revenge. You know I'll never let you live this down, right? Ah come one Shiroki-chan, it's not that bad. I could've done something even worse."

"Ah I'm going die!" Shiroki shouted, as another monster popped out at her, as scurried further into the constricted space of the seat, trying to run, but banging her legs and body against Takao.

Finally the ride came to an end, and as soon as the latch bar came back up, Shiroki dashed for the exit, as Takao just chuckled, making sure that the film on his cellphone was decent, since it was pretty dark. Shiroki bolted so fast, she ran into Kasamatsu. They both fell over, as Shiroki scrambled to get off of Kasamatsu's legs, while Kasamatsu was already sitting straight up.

"Sorry Kasamatsu-senpai!"

"Oi, you okay?"

Shiroki took a few breathes, as she wiped her eyes. "Please don't ever make me go on another scary ride." Shiroki put her hands together, her head bowed, as she begged on her knees. Kasamatsu quickly got up, helping her up. That's when he realized nobody else was around.

"Hey, how 'bout we go grab something to eat? Is your stomach up for it?"

"Yah, that sounds good, any place far far away from here, please."

"Sure." Kasamatsu grabbed Shiroki's hand, as hers shook in his. He looked on over to her to see she was still shaken up. "You going to be okay?"

"Yah. The sooner we eat, the better."

"Then we best hurry then." Kasamatsu picked up the pace, as the two sped off. Takao exited the sales room, as he held onto some pretty good snapshots of Shiroki.

"Oh this is priceless... Hey Shiroki-chan-" He peered on over to the crowd, when he didn't see the familiar head of black hair. "Ara? Where she'd go?"

Suddenly he felt two harsh grips on his shoulders, as he turned around to Kuroko and Mayuzumi, who didn't seem all too happy.

"That's my line." Kuroko growled. Takao felt a chill up his spine. Note to self: I must never piss off stoic people ever again, they could turn out to just be harboring very very dark sides.

"I don't know?" He chuckled nervously, as Kuroko and Mayuzumi's glares doubled in strength. He could just feel a large wieght on his shoulders.

"You were just with her..." Mayuzumi scowled. Where could she be? Oh god, she was terrible with directions. What if she got lost in the park?! Damn it, this is exactly the reason why he didn't want to come to here in the first place.

"Oh this is getting good." Mibuichi zoomed in on the camera, as Nebuya and Hayama munched on popcorn and churros.

Kuroko blinked, as he realized the other person that was missing from their group. "Where's Kasamatsu-san?"

All the lightbulbs went off, as the two phantom's killer rage burned with great ferocity. Takao paled and slightly felt worried about the fate of his favorite point guard.

o0oOo0o

Kasamatsu sneezed. He paused from eating, as Shiroki looked at him curiously.

"Catching a cold, Kasamatsu-senpai?" She took another bite out of her food, as Kasamatsu rubbed his nose.

"Don't think so."

"Should take care of yourself, Kasamatsu-senpai. Also you have little bit of food here." She pointed to her right cheek, as Kasamatsu quickly grabbed a napkin and wiped his right cheek.

"No, no. The other side. Here I'll get it." Shiroki reached over the table, as she swiped her thumb over the crumbs of the sandwich that Kasamatsu was eating. "There better." She smiled, as Kasamatsu tried summoning his best poker face, but the two pink tints still appeared against his will.

Shiroki's phone went off, as apologetically raised her hand. "Is it okay if I take this?"

"Sure." Kasamatsu relaxed in his chair, as Shiroki opened her phone.

"Hello?"

"Hikaru, where are you?" Shiroki's eyebrows scrunched together in worry. Did Kuroko sound panicked?

"I'm with Kasamatsu-senpai. We are eating at the sandwich parlor north of biggest rollercoaster in the park. You okay-"

"Okay, we'll be on our way Hikaru. Don't move." Shiroki pouted, as the line hung up. She wasn't a little child. Sure she didn't have the best sense of direction, but it wasn't like she was alone. She just said she was with Kasamatsu-sempai.

"Everyone is headed on over here." Kasamatsu just nodded at the piece of info, as he took another bite into his sandwich. Shiroki finished off her food, as she took a sip of water.

"Shiroki, what ride did you want to ride on?" Kasamatsu stared at her, as he leaned his chin on his hand.

"Eh?" Shiroki looked puzzled.

"We haven't been on a single ride that you've suggested. Isn't there any ride you wanted to go on?" Kasamatsu pulled out the map, as they laid it out in front of them.

"Umm... We've been on almost all the rides. I don't mind going on all the rides everyone else wants to go on-"

"That's not answering the question." He gave a playful smack to her arm, as she rubbed the spot.

"That hurts." Shiroki whined, before sticking her tongue out.

"Well maybe if you answered the question instead of beating around the bush, I wouldn't have to punish you." Kasamatsu smirked, as Shiroki looked on at the map.

"I guess... I'd like to go on the Ferris Wheel. I've never been to an amusement park before. We should be able to see the whole entire park from up there right? It be awesome to be up so high." Shiroki's face beamed with excitement, as Kasamatsu blushed at her expression.

"Ne, Hikaru. Do you want to go right now?" Kasamatsu wavered his gaze on over to the massive wheel. It would just be him and Shiroki, in one passenger cab, all alone, high up off the ground, for about a couple minutes. Maybe, maybe then... He could finally confess his feelings to her. If not it'd be a nice special moment, just between the two of them.

"I'm not sure... Tetsuya said to wait... Maybe we can tell the other's when we group up? It has enough room for four people, right?"

"Yah, b-but the view right now would be nice. I-If we wait, we might not get such a good view." Kasamatsu stammered out.

Shiroki looked at the sun, as it was beginning to set. "That's true..." Shiroki looked at her phone, before looking at the observation wheel.

"The lines will get longer at night." Kasamatsu stated. Because everyone will want the night view...

Shiroki got up, as she picked up her trash. "Okay, I'll just text Kuroko, so the others can meet up with us."

The duo picked up pace, as they headed off to the ferris wheel!

o0oOo0o

Kuroko, Mayuzumi, and Takao quickly walked on over, after they figured out where Shiroki was. They were about 5 minutes away, when Kuroko's phone went off.

"Please wait a minute." Kuroko took out his phone, as he read the text.

Tetsuya, Kasamatsu-senpai and I will be headed towards the Ferris Wheel. We can meet up there, or afterwards somewhere else if you want? Sorry, I just really wanted to go on this one ride, since I've never been to an amusement park. I'll meet up with you soon!

Kuroko's grip tightened on his phone. His Hikaru was going on the Ferris Wheel with Kasamatsu Yukio alone... Kuroko didn't like it. He also knew that Kasamatsu Yukio harbored feelings for the same girl, and he was already going in a frenzy panicked mode because she was alone with him. He could feel his thoughts racing. What were they talking about? Were they getting along better than himself and Hikaru? Did she prefer to hang around with him?

"Sorry. I have to be somewhere." Kuroko sped off, he didn't need the other two to help him out. They'd only get in his way.

"Hey, Kuroko looked really pissed." Takao commented. The Rakuzan trio came out, as Mayuzumi gave them a glare.

"You three... Don't tell me, you've been here the whole time." Takao flinched, as he realized he was alone. So he took this as his leave to go somewhere else. Plus he already had the footage that he wanted, along with perfect photo evidence.

"Well, look at the time. I'll just leave you gentleman to do your thing. Bye." Takao speedily ran off, as Mayuzumi went back to glaring at his teammates.

"Well you're date ended in disaster. Not only did you lose the woman, but you ended up getting cock blocked by three other guys." Nebuya and Hayama chuckled, as Mibuichi put on a small smile.

"It's fine. I learned a lot about her."

The other three raised their eyebrows in question. Mayuzumi just smirked. "She's gonna grow up to be a pain in the ass next year for you guys."

He stalked off as the other three chased after him. "Wait, what do you mean by that?! Come back here, you bastard and tell us everything you know!

o0oOo0o

Kuroko halted to a stop, as his hands rested on his knees. He took deep frantic breathes, as his lungs stung with pain. Sprinting all the way across the park may have it's drawbacks, but he wanted to stop, at all costs, Shiroki from getting on the Ferris Wheel with Kasamatsu. He quickly scanned the line, as he flowed through the crowd easily. He didn't see her, as stood by the entrance. After a few minutes, he spotted Shiroki and Kasamatsu walking and talking together as they made their way to the Ferris Wheel. Kuroko's fist clenched, as he saw Shiroki holding back a fit of giggles, as Kasamatsu smiled next to her.

"So next thing I know, the girl's are all over Kise, and Moriyama is just fuming with jealously."

"You're team sure is the best." Shiroki chuckled. "It sounds great to be a Kaijo player."

"Too bad, that you didn't join Kaijo." Kasamatsu let out a sigh. "Even though you wouldn't be able to play, you could still be manager."

"Well. I don't know... Seirin will always be-" Kasamatsu looked up, as Kuroko walked in between the two. Shiroki stepped aside, as Kuroko positioned himself in front of her. "Tetsuya?"

"Hikaru, would you mind waiting in line for us. I have a few words with Kasamatsu-san." Kasamatsu flinched underneath Kuroko's harsh glare.

"S-sure." Shiroki looked worriedly between the two, before turning her back and getting in line. She reasoned it must be something between men to talk about, since most of the time Kuroko had no problem speaking in front of others with her around.

"Kasamatsu-san, we need to talk."

Kasamatsu gulped, as he shivered. Never before had he felt such a cold feeling go down his spine, but those monotonous words seemed different than usual.

o0oOo0o

Shiroki got at the end of the line, as it started to crowd up. She waited 5 minutes, before peering around her for the other two, waited another 10, then another 15, before finally she started to get really worried. She had waited 30 minutes, and still there was no sign of the others. She didn't mind going on the ride by herself, but they should at least tell her that they left... She let out a sigh, as she stepped closer, but was still far away from the front of the line. She rubbed her arms, as she remembered she had left her jacket with Kuroko, after the roller coaster ride. He probably was still carrying it.

"Sorry for taking so long."

Shiroki flinched, before letting out a relieved breathe of air, as she turned to see Kuroko. "There you are Tetsuya. I was starting to get worried."

"I'm fine. Sorry for making you worry." Kuroko stood next to her, as they waited in line. Shiroki looked around, her eyebrows raised in question.

"Where is everyone else?"

"They needed to go home." Kuroko replied.

Shiroki suspiciously looked at Kuroko. He had replied awfully fast. But what would he gain from lying to her? "I see." Shiroki blew on her hands, as the sun was long gone, and the night sky came out a couple minutes ago.

"Here's your jacket." Kuroko held it open, as he helped Shiroki put it on.

"Thanks."

"Next in line!" The attendant cried out.

The Seirin pair stepped forward. "How many?" The guy asked, looking quite bored.

"Just two." Shiroki held up two fingers as well, as the guy nodded his head to the cabin compartment.

"Go on in then."

Shiroki walked with a little bounce in her step, as Kuroko followed. She sat down, as Kuroko took the other side. The door closed, as the attendant slid the latch on. The ride moved and hitched as they started to depart and load the other passengers.

"Have you ever been on the Ferris Wheel before, Tetsuya?" Shiroki asked, before looking out the window. She peered on over to Kuroko.

"Yes." Kuroko looked out the window, as they started to rise again.

"That's cool. Do you like it? I'm sorry if you didn't want to come on." Shiroki rubbed the back of her head nervously, forgetting to completely ask if he wanted to come.

"I don't mind. I'm actually glad that you finally chose a ride."

Shiroki's gaze went back to Kuroko, as he looked at her. "Huh? What are you saying?"

"Well this whole day, you've just been going on the rides everyone suggested. You never chose for yourself, although this is your first time here."

Shiroki fidgeted in her seat, contemplating on her retort. "Well, since everyone has been here before, they have better experience of what the good rides are?"

"You're too nice, Hikaru." Kuroko deadpanned.

"I thought that wasn't a bad thing." Shiroki's eyes moved back to the window, before they lit up with excitement. She got up out of her seat, as she placed her face as close to the piece of glass as she could. Kuroko followed her gaze, as they both looked at the park.

"Wow! Just look, Tetsuya! You can see everything! The whole city is lit up, it looks so alive at night. Look, look! There's the teacups that we went on earlier. It was funny looking at Takao's face. Ah, there's the water ride we got on, and Kasamatsu-senpai got soaked! The merry-go-round looks pretty at night! We should go on that one together. It was pretty nice going on their with Chi-chan." Shiroki looked back, but then frowned as Kuroko seemed in a dull mood.

"Ah, sorry. You must not be enjoying the ride, since you've seen everything before..." Shiroki muttered, but Kuroko got up, as he slowly approached her.

"That's not it, Hikaru." Kuroko hesitated. "I haven't really thought up of anything to say."

"That's fine. If you say that's not it, it must be something else... Do you wanna talk about it?"

Black met sky-blue, as they locked gazes. Kuroko opened his mouth, but closed it, much like a fish out of water. He wasn't sure of what to say.

"Hikaru... I..." He closed his eyes as he thought of the words, the words he's always imagined speaking aloud. "I... I-"

But a finger met his lips, as he looked at Shiroki.

"It's fine." She said. She smiled as she pulled Kuroko into a hug. "It's okay if you can't tell me what's troubling you. Just know I'm here for you."

Kuroko let out a frustrated sigh into Shiroki's shirt, as she was completely misunderstanding the point! However, his body betrayed him, as he wrapped his arms around her, leaning further into the hug, as he rested his forehead on her shoulder.

Shiroki brought up on hand on his head, as she gently ran her hand through his hair. Really she was going to get the secret to his silky smoothness sooner or later! Kuroko pushed himself forward, as Shiroki back up into the seating area of the cabin. Kuroko sat in her lap, as she hummed a small tune.

"Ne, Tetsuya. Thanks for joining me. This will definitely be the most bright memory out of today for me."

Kuroko's eyes widened, as he felt a small smile on his lips. "Me too."

Shiroki felt Kuroko move in her lap, as he held her hand. She rubbed her thumb across the bottom of his palm, as she smiled back at him.

Suddenly the ride lurched, as Kuroko was bumped into the seat, as he regained his balance and sat next to Shiroki. The door opened, as the same attendant from before leaned on the compartment.

"Okay, time to get out, you two lovebirds."

Shiroki burned a bright red, as Kuroko's cheeks sprouted pink. Did he see them sitting together?!

"W-wait. We... It's not like... I mean-" Shiroki protested. But the attendant just popped his bubble of gum, as he pointed behind him.

"Exit is on the right, now move it. I got more people to attend to."

Kuroko gripped Shiroki's hand tighter, as he pulled her along, before she could say anything else. He could feel a small grin tug at his features. The attendant thought they were a couple... and that thought just made his day all the more brighter.

He rustled through the crowd, as Shiroki followed. They finally made it to a fairly open space, only a couple people lingered about or were passing through.

"Well, I'm all out of ideas. Wanna head home or do anything else, Tetsuya?"

"I'm okay."

The two made their way towards the exit. They filed through exit machine, as they walked back, waiting at the bus.

"Well today was really fun. I'm glad you were there Tetsuya." Shiroki looked up and down the street, before taking a seat.

"I had fun too." Kuroko took the spot right next to her, as their knees touched.

"You sure? You didn't look like it in the Ferris Wheel." Shiroki pouted.

"I was just worried over nothing." Kuroko still hadn't let go of her hand, ever since they left the giant wheel.

"If you say so." Lights appeared beyond the darkness of the street, as the bus approached. The two stood up, as the vehicle came to a slow stop. Suddenly as the doors opened, they saw an angry Taiga walking down the steps of the entrance door.

"There you two are! Do you know how late it is!? I swear you two drive me nuts-" Taiga stopped as he saw Kuroko and Shiroki holding hands.

"Oi, I thought you went out on a date with Mayuzumi? Kuroko was this a secret date-"

Suddenly Shiroki stomped onto the bus, as she got really close to Taiga's face. "Date! Whoever said this was a date! I was just hanging out with friends! Oh crap! I just remembered I never got to see what the amusement park looked like from the very top of the Ferris Wheel!" Shiroki let out a frustrated grunt. "And I even forgot my one on one match with Chi-chan!"

Shiroki's form went limp, as she bit her lip in regret. She definitely had forgotten why she had come in the first place!"

The bus driver honked the horn at them, as they were the only people on the bus at that time. "You coming, going, staying, or what?" She scowled, as she looked at the three teens.

The three payed the bus fare, as they sat together, Kagami with Kuroko, and Shiroki in front of them so they could keep an eye on her. Kuroko glared at Kagami, as now Shiroki had only thoughts of hunting down 'Chi-chan' and getting him to play one on one.

"Kagami, I think I'm cursed." Kuroko quietly spoke. Kagami raised a suspicious eyebrow, but Shiroki paid no heed as she was currently too caught up in her own plans.

"Cursed?" Kagami whispered.

"At the exact moment when things are going great for me, someone from Seirin always has to come and ruin it." Kuroko added a glare to Kagami's way. he flinched, as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Sorry, didn't mean it, Kuroko." He let out a sigh. "You always have next year."

Kuroko jabbed Kagami in the ribs, as the last comment wasn't helping.

"I got it!" Shiroki shouted, as the other two jumped from the sudden loudness from their fellow teammate.

"I just have challenge Chi-chan to a one on one. If I win, he has to speak a full speech to me! If I lose I'll just be his slave for all of winter break."

The other two reacted violently, as Kuroko looked alarmed and Kagami gripped the top of Shiroki's head. Already she'd had served Aomine, Murasakibara, Akashi, and Moriyama. They were not about to have her enter another sticky situation like the last Moriyama incident!

"NO MORE BEING PEOPLE'S SLAVES, YOU IDIOT!"

---

o0oOo0o

*Dead ball: When a player has dribbled, and then picks up the ball, and then is heavily guarded (like a person is up in their face, not backing off like 3 feet), after 5 seconds the referee will call a dead ball. -Because if you think about it, someone could just stand their all game and not give up the ball if someone was guarding them which wastes time; henceforth the deadball rule. Key thing is that they have to be heavily guarded, if you are just standing next to them, not acting like you are guarding them the referee won't call it. I have seen strange occurences of where it has and has not been called on a person who was dribbling the ball... the play above in the story was not one of the 'has' cases-

*Another pun by Izuki

*Kinagama = Yah I used google translate, was trying to go for slow or something like that... but then the words 'snail-paced' popped up, so I decided to go with that...

o0oOo0o

Questions that I thought would pop up:

Touou vs Seirin, with Seirin winning?

Yah I know I deviated from canon, big surprise there

I wanted to show the type of moves that Kiyoshi and Shiroki have together, as they are a whimsical bunch with awesome moves... enough that this teamwork pwns Aomine... okay along with slight work with Kagami and Kuroko...

Aomine lost... so why doesn't he change perspective?

I vaguely went over how he is still in denial of HIMSELF actually losing, by using the excuses he came late or that Shiroki's move should've been illegal... So he doesn't consider this lost of Touou to actually mean he is weaker than Kagami/Seirin, but that they are stronger than what he originally pinned them to be, so he won't underestimate them next time. Plus, Touou still moves onto the actual ringlet of battles to come, where they will face off once again with Touou for the championship. So Aomine is planning on proving his superiority once and for all there.

It's kinda like Aomine view it as playing a big tournament of ja-ken-pon... He might've lost the first round, but in the end he still came out on top (like Touou's score was massively overpowered compared to Seirin's when it came to the other teams they had played)

Shiroki and Kiyoshi? Boost block?

I have been re-reading and looking up NBA rules of basketball, including international rules, and as stated in the story above, it is only a technical foul if the party jumping lands on a standing still party. It's probably what made this chapter come out so late.

Seirin is already meeting all the other teams before Winter Cup?

Well I would gladly love to write Shiroki in for the next 3 years of her life at Seirin High, but unfortunately she is a transfer student and will only be staying for 1 year... okay maybe 2... I still haven't figured that out yet :P

Maybe I'll make a poll on that.

She's gonna meet them all at once in the InterHigh and it's also to have some character interaction later on that will be important... teehee

So Shiroki's legs? She couldn't feel them?

Okay that might've been mary-sueish on my part to make them seem like a GOM move... BUT I do have one excuse... She can't use the move by herself and there has to be some restrictions (such as ample room)... Both were applied with Kiyoshi (needed a person to safely jump on -lol not the kinky way-) and going up against Touou (who specializes in making enough room for Aomine)... So this type of game play will just be as rare as Ichigo going into Hollow Form... okay maybe not as rare but meh you get the point.

I also wanted to show that she isn't invincible. She had to sit out two games, while Kagami and Kuroko kicked ass, but besides that point, Shiroki still isn't up to par with the GOM. She could only go up against them with the powerful light/shadow duo and Kiyoshi.

So how come no one can tell Shiroki is a girl?

I was hoping I wouldn't have to outright tell... but she is a cute androgynous person... I know you've seen those people! I think it happens with a lot of celebrities where they are so beautiful that beauty can quickly switch gender!

Not saying Shiroki is like stunning beautiful or anything... I was trying to play more that she's more androgynous looking that the norm.

Plus she is flatter than Aida... That's saying something :P

Okay I may have over played that on the Seirin team itself, but I wanted to show just how everyone goes along with her 'boyish' personality. Sure there were some who were weirded out at first (Kuroko/Kagami)... but they learned to grow and accept... and then learned some more that oh Shiroki = girl...

Plus I like how she can 'trick' almost everyone... Well not everyone... but meh :P

I don't think I'll ever reveal to Aomine that she's a girl... just because their (so-called) 'bromance' is cute in my opinion.

If more doubts or questions come up, I'll address them here and via a PM

I hope I don't lose readers because of this chapter... but if I do oh well... the story must go on!

o0oOo0o

Guest-chan desu: Lol I never knew writing a harem could be quite as fun as this! I just hope it tis all realistic in Kuroko no Basuke setting... Although I guess I'll have to explain more about Kuroko's crush/love... I'd really like to only admit it tis a crush now, but it shall fester and grow into love, hopefully it won't be deemed as a yandere crazy possessive love... Idk... I love going across spectrums and getting into almost ANYTHING... But yes endgame is KurokoxOC although I won't promise it to be a happy ending...

I'm thinking about ending it three ways: Good, Bad, and Friendzone (aka bad, but not as bad as the bad one)

Guest: *blushes* oh you tease! This is not the best one. Although I'm glad that you liked the update!

emo steve: Well I still haven't given out that yet... Probably won't until either the Kirisaki Daichi game or the one against Rakuzan... Still haven't decided which one I wish to reveal that on :P

Meisa-tan: Thanks for all the tips! I will definitely include them in the next chapter! Because unfortunately most of this chapter was written BEFORE you wrote your review... and it's hard for me to kinda re-write the story. I hope you can accept the past mistakes, as I try to grow on in skill for the next chapters. Hopefully you'll still stick with the story.

Thanks for all the critiques *gives you marshmallow-chocolate heart*

MalakAO: Why thank you! I love doing the omakes as well :D Hopefully this one was to your liking as well! I shan't ever stop! I just may release really slowly, and I apologize for that. But real life is a b****... and sometimes holds us back, but it can never hold me down!

MRoque: Your words continue to make my heart go doki doki. Seriously every time someone tells me they actually like this, I open the text document and add like 5k words! Sorry bout the slow update... Just this chapter was a real b**** to write... It was hard, because I knew the events and how I wanted them to end, but hard to implement with all the characters and stuff.

royalpurple153: Yes it has been too long... School just loves to make me only focus on it... Stupid narcissistic school! Hopefully you liked this update :D

MRocks: Yes I'm still alive! Just barely though... And scissors! My worst enemy! Oh no! I'm typing I swear I'm typing the next chapter! Just anything but the scissors!

Let me just lock myself up in this room, and not come out until I'm done with the next chapter...

o0oOo0o

So yah I've decided to make my life a living horror, as I now have to come up with 4 new games... T0T

This will be the end of me...

Also I have a question for you readers!

If any of you read/watch Haikyuu how would you feel about me writing an OC insert in Nekoma High School?

I will continue to update this one, if I did another story. I already know the path I want for this one, it's just hard writing it out, without making the characters OOC...

Anyways leave a review or pm to my question please :D