Pairing: Kirisaki Daiichi/Kuroko and any combination of the team
Word Count: 4,994 Words
Hope you like this chapter. Next chapter will be soon.
It had been two weeks since their first meeting with Seirin at Maji Burger. Hanamiya and Kuroko walked down to the gym together for practice, discussing general strategies when they were surprised to see Kagami next to the entrance of the locker room, a crowd forming around the mysterious stranger. The Uncrowned King rolled his eyes and shoved the second and third string members into the changing area while he and Kuroko addressed the unexpected guest. The Seirin ace locked eyes with the phantom of Kirisaki Daiichi, a jumble of emotions glowing from the heated, red irises. Yesterday, the second years introduced the new recruits to Kiyoshi Teppei, the founder of Seirin's basketball team, and why he was in the hospital. Taiga was here to confront the source of his confusing emotions, Kuroko Tetsuya. Why would a prodigy that had such skill and talent join a school with such horrible tactics? Why would Kuroko wish to be a subordinate to the Uncrowned King that found those kinds of things amusing? Why would both talented players find pleasure and joy in such basketball? The wild-looking teen sighed. Kuroko glanced at his annoyed Captain, a little unnerved by Hanamiya's thick eyebrows twitching erratically.
"Hello Kagami-kun," Kuroko greeted and was surprised when Kagami did not react.
"Why are you here?" Makoto asked. Taiga shrugged his shoulders. Truthfully, he did not know what he was trying to accomplish with this visit, but he wanted to confront the phantom, sixth man.
"I visited Kiyoshi Teppei yesterday." The red-and-black haired man said. The ebony-haired teen could not stop an amused smile surfacing. "They told me everything that happened during the match in the Winter Cup preliminaries. How your Captain ordered his teammate to jump late for the rebound and tear Kiyoshi's knee." Hanamiya chucked at the Seirin freshman's words. It felt good to hear his accomplishments from other people. "Do you really find that so funny? People getting hurt and suffering because of you?" Kagami growled.
"I just find it incredibly amusing and sad that your four-eyed Captain is still spreading that rumor about me." The point guard explained. Tetsuya smiled a little at the memory, making Taiga glare at the transparent teen. "You never answered my question though. Why are you here? Shouldn't you be practicing? I can't imagine your hard-working, goodie-goodies for teammates would skip such a thing."
"I'm here for Kuroko. I… I want to play one-on-one with him again." Kagami finally settled that a match would be the best way to confront the Miracle boy.
"Kagami-kun, I cannot simply skip practice to play with you." Kuroko said flatly. The Seirin, power forward blushed at the sky-blue teen's blunt words, making Hanamiya mockingly laugh at Kagami's embarrassment and calling him an idiot for his behavior. "I am sure that Captain Hanamiya would not mind if we had one after practice. Would you mind that?" The cyan-colored teen asked the Captain and Coach.
"Do as you please after practice. Just don't get yourself injured. Next week is out match with Shinkyo Academy." The Uncrowned King allowed. Hanamiya turned to the Seirin rookie. "Oy you, if you want, you can watch us practice on the bleachers. Just don't disturb us." Kagami nodded, not knowing what else to do with his free time, and went into the gymnasium while the Uncrowned King and Generation of Miracle prepared for practice.
Kirisaki Daiichi did not like the unknown student from another school watching them, but they would not say anything if their Captain and Coach gave his approval. They did agility and stamina building drills, things that were ordinary to the Seirin ace. The only thing odd to Kagami was that Kuroko was always last to complete the training exercises, and that he appeared out-of-breath every time. Hanamiya had even allowed the Generation of Miracle a few minutes to rest after they were done while third string went to shooting practice. In fact, the practice seemed more pretty similar to his regimen at Seirin so far. It was a bit distracting though to see the Center player sleeping on the bleachers next to him, doing none of the exercises with the rest of the group. Why was he excluded out of this? Where were the dirty tricks? How were they able to execute these injuries without being seen or noticed if they did not practice it? Were they just that confident in their abilities? He knew that Kuroko was part of an elite group, and that Hanamiya belonged to a tier of players that were just one level below the shadow's, but what about the others?
First string versus second string would start; they were practicing their decided plays for next week's official match with Shinkyo Academy. Kuroko stood by the bleachers with a whistle dangling from his neck, eyes steeled and ready. Another second string member tossed the ball into the air and Hara jumped quickly to get the ball for the first string. While the second year did not have the natural, leg strength of Kagami, he was swift and coordinated well with his team. But pretty soon, Kagami saw the ugly practices that the devious team in teal was known for. They screened the transparent teen's vision, just as they would any referee to do brutal, physical damage. They never made contact with the other teen's bodies, but from his elevated position, the red-and-black haired teen could tell what they were practicing for. It was horrible how gracefully they did these moments, how well-placed they were, and how much fun they had doing this. This kind of precision and timing was even hard for Kuroko to point out and whistle punishments to. Kagami noticed that the dead-eyed teen was the most aggressive of the members of the basketball team, immobilizing several, second string members, and getting them penalized while keeping his movements secretive and hidden from sight. As much as the Seirin ace hated to admit , they were skilled, had good strategy, and a decent amount of natural talent to have the sight to spatial differentiate these strategies. This kind of cheating was a special skill in itself.
"Member change! Kuroko, switch with Furuhashi, and Seto, get up!" Hanamiya commanded. The large, sleeping man on the bleachers snapped out of his slumber. Tetsuya handed Kentarou his hair wax, kissing the mole on the Center player's forehead before getting ready for the practice match himself. The open affection surprised Taiga; Was Kuroko now dating the Center player instead of Hanamiya?
"Isn't it kind of awkward dating another person on your team?" Kagami asked the shadow of Kirisaki Daiichi. The invisible, sixth man shrugged.
"I'm kind of seeing all five of the other first string regulars, that's how this team works... and it hasn't disturbed our team's dynamics." The Seirin, power forward's eyes bugged out and he remained silent. The phantom handed the whistle to Koujirou, congratulating the fellow, small forward for his efforts before regrouping with Makoto and the other first string members. Kagami checked the score, surprised that it was already third quarter and that the drastic difference between the regulars and the other members led to a landslide lead of 86-24. Perhaps this was another strength to their strategies. When one was too busy getting angry, they forget about the important thing, which is the scoreboard. Taiga knew that he would need to control himself if they were to face Kirisaki Daiichi.
Despite being handed the whistle, handing out penalties and delivering blows did not seem to be the agenda of the first string or Koujirou, the referee. For some reason, the ball kept getting stolen by the first string very easily by either Hanamiya or Kuroko, and they would usually pass it to Yamazaki, Hara, and occasionally Seto. It was strange. How could the Miracle boy and Uncrowned King steal this many passes? While the point guard did score sometimes when the others were not open, the invisible, sixth man would always barely touch the ball. Why did the talented player not make any shots and add to the score? Was he just so confident? Did Tetsuya not score unless the team was pressured? Another strange player was Seto Kentarou, the borderline genius did not seem focused on the score either and spent most of his time moving randomly. Why did they place him on the field? The guy who wore the number twelve jersey was clearly the superior player, yet apparently he was considered a second string member compared to the man with the slicked-back hair. By the end of the third quarter, even with the unusual, playing style, the first string had dominated and not let the second string gain any points. 126-24 was brutal, and it was almost pointless to play any further.
With curving passes, incomplete vanishing drives, and the completed Spider Web, the regulars beat their fellow teammates with 168-24. Kagami was thoroughly impressed with the bad boys' team. Kuroko was slumped over with a small smile on his face, a layer of sweat covered his body and his chest heaved deeply from the practice match. Hiroshi rubbed the rookie's back, and gave the shadow his needed water bottle. The shooting guard sent an annoyed glance at the Seirin ace, and gave a last, lingering rub on the sky-blue teen's back before fetching for his own towel and refreshment. The youngest regular walked up to Taiga, asking the red-and-black teen if he wanted to grab some popsicles with Kirisaki Daiichi before their match. It surprised the Seirin, power forward how friendly the small forward was to him.
"Um… sure, are your teammates fine with me tagging along?" The wild-looking man asked, remembering their irritation towards him and his team when they interrupted their celebration at Maji Burger after defeating Kaijou. But then again, there was also the tension that was due to the jealousy of the intimacy of Kuroko and Hanamiya's current, new intimacy. Surely, if they were able to play basketball together, learned to share the sky-blue teen, and wanted to hang out peacefully with one another, would probably mean that there would not be any disruptions.
"I do not see why they would object; they are the ones that are 'tagging along' to see our game. They want to make sure that I do not get injured." The shadow explained before rushing back to the changing rooms. The answer did not totally calm the Seirin ace, but he decided that he could always call him teammates for support if something weird happened. Taiga watched as the third string put the equipment away, a little unnerved how tired but happy they looked. Do they not realize that they are playing for such a despicable team? Kagami did not understand how anyone could find this kind of basketball desirable. The Seirin freshman knew that Kuroko and the other regulars were coming out because he could hear the orange-haired, shooting guard's booming voice telling the phantom to stop coddling Hara. Apparently the power forward of their team grazed his thumb during the game, and Kuroko was treating the wound similarly to if he were treating a young child's scrape from his grandmother's daycare. The standard hydrogen peroxide solution and bandage were not the problem for Hiroshi, but the tender kisses the invisible, sixth man gave to the tiny, insignificant scratch and the lavender-haired teen milking Kuroko's kindness as much as he could. Kagami shuddered. While he knew Kuroko's skill in basketball had merit, he could not help but think his coach Riko's theory of the transparent teen somehow emitting pheromones to make basketball players fall in love with him might also be plausible.
"Do you really want to play Seirin's power forward?" Seto asked the sky-blue teen. Kuroko nodded.
"Yes Seto-sempai, it would be beneficial to the growth and development of my style if I could frequently practice with Kagami-kun. Teamwork is more than being able to accomplish strategies accurately and flawlessly as a unit, but as an individual that can be dependable when the other team is able to pressure us. As much as I hate to admit it, that was one part of teamwork that the Generation of Miracles always got right." The phantom's motives made sense, but it still bothered Kentarou that Tetsuya felt that he could only accomplish this by practicing with Taiga. "I would ask Hanamiya-sempai to help me with this task, but fulfilling the roles of Captain, Coach, and ace while being a student is already too much responsibility for one person." Kuroko answered, knowing what the Center player was thinking.
"Why me?" The point guard asked.
"Your ability to score from any angle and way is similar to Aomine-kun's." The cyan-colored man said. Hanamiya nodded. Kuroko turned to the waiting guest, who just stared awkwardly at the Kirisaki Daiichi students. When asked why he had such a weird expression on his face, Kagami was silent for a full minute, trying to find the right words to describe what he was thinking and feeling.
"Why are you guys such jerks, but also so awkward and dorky?" Kagami asked seriously and honestly. The bad boys in teal all looked at each other, not knowing how to react or what to say to the Seirin, power forward. "Uh, never mind… let's just grab some popsicles and play on the court. I'm going to score against you this time." The red-and-black haired boy dismissed. The group of seven boys walked out together, Kagami and Kuroko leading the way while the rest trailed behind quietly. During the quiet walk, Taiga realized something. "Wait, if your teammates are tagging along, does that mean that you wanted to eat popsicles with me?" Tetsuya nodded. "Why?"
"I haven't had a popsicle in a while." Kuroko shrugged. "The last time that I had one was with Aomine-kun in Middle School." This statement caught everyone's attention.
"Aomine, the guy I remind you of? Look man, if you're still pining over an ex-boyfriend, I'll just let you know that I don't swing that way. I don't care about who or how many people you're dating, as long as you play basketball well. But I'm not into guys…" The Seirin, power forward made clear.
"I never dated Aomine-kun, nor have I ever had any desire to do so." The shadow said with no emotion. Kazuya muttered in an irritated voice that he was the only power forward Tetsuya liked before blowing a big bubble. "But there is still a part of me as a shadow that admires the light." Hanamiya narrowed his forest green eyes, and aggressively pulled at the fellow, basketball prodigy's shirt collar to halt the younger's movements. He did not look pleased with Kuroko's words. "Is there something you want from me Hanamiya-sempai?" Those brilliant, milky-blue eyes had nothing but confusion in them, but due to the placid nature of the shortest member of the basketball team, it was always hard to be sure what Tetsuya was thinking.
"If you are thinking of going back into the light, I'll make it clear now. You are not going to escape my grasp on you. You belong to me, to this team, and you made a vow to keep it that way. If you do not remember this, there will be terrible consequences to face phantom." The Uncrowned King practically hissed in a low and dangerous voice against the Generation of Miracle's ear. When the point guard let go of his subordinate's shirt, the sky-blue teen only turned around quickly to wrap his arms around Makoto's neck and calmed the anger with a sweet, unexpected kiss. Hanamiya, while he felt his negative feelings dissipate, he kept the scowl on his face. He would not show weakness, even if he was around his friends. A king, crown or no crown, had his pride. The bad boy of basketball pushed the Miracle boy away, and was furious to just see a small, knowing smile on Kuroko's face. When did the rookie get good at reading his thoughts and movements? The bad boy huffed and glared down at the shorter man.
"While I admire the light, we can never get along again. Only darkness can help me accomplish my goals." The cyan-colored man said. Kagami sighed. Why was he here with these creepy, awkward-as-hell people? Oh right, they are good at basketball… "The store shouldn't be too far from here." Kuroko continued as if he were not just minutes ago threatened by his Captain and Coach. They did eventually reach the convenience store, Hara grabbing some packs of gum as well as sharing a twin, cherry popsicle with Yamazaki. Seto and Hanamiya shared a guava-flavored one, while Furuhashi and Kuroko had a blueberry one between the two of them. Kagami with his large appetite ate both orange-flavored ones himself. The tall, freshman's ravenous eating habits reminded the point guard of Nebuya Eikichi when it came to meat. It was a disgusting memory that made Makoto shudder in displeasure. As everyone ate, they walked down the street, trying to find the nearest street court for them to play at. Every time they passed by one however, it was always occupied by a large group of people that were merrily playing. "I don't know if we will be able to find a court Kagami-kun." The invisible, sixth man muttered quietly while licking his popsicle. Taiga was about to shrug and call off the search for a basketball court, when he saw one open that was two streets away. The red-and-black haired teen pointed at the fenced off area, and dashed excitedly towards it. Kuroko tossed his now bare, popsicle stick in the trash and followed the Seirin ace.
Just as they did last time they played, Kuroko started with the ball. The ghostly teen dribbled the ball, impressed by the other first year's defense and lack of openings. But when the slightest distraction of some passing kids chatting loudly amongst each other, the shadow ducked down and sprinted around the Seirin, power forward. For the first time, Kuroko finally executed his vanishing drive as desired, passing by Kagami who only stood in shock from the feat. Kazuya stopped in mid-blowing his bubble from disbelief, and Koujirou's dead eyes widened in amazement. Hiroshi and Kentarou watched in silence, while Makoto only smirked at the shadow's improvement. The phantom drove forward, swerving around when the Seirin ace regained composure and tried to steal the ball from the unnoticeable, Miracle boy. Just as Taiga's fingertips were about to brush the ball, the sky-blue teen with agility and grace spun the ball with impressive spin, making it swivel out of reach and back into his waiting hands.
Kuroko was doing his best at confusing and misdirecting Kagami's animal-like instincts. While they were feral and more thoughtless in nature than his or Hanamiya's style, that did not mean it made players like the red-and-black haired teen were less intimidating, in fact, probably the opposite was true.
While for the most part, the invisible, sixth man dictated the flow and evaded the taller player, there were times that the tiger would unexpectedly lunge and the shadow of Kirisaki Daiichi could barely react and slip through Kagami's openings. Openings Kuroko knew he could not count on when it came to Aomine, due to the tan teen's skills, and their knowledge of each other. Yes, Tetsuya needed to continue to play against the brash, power forward to know if he had a chance against the monstrous light. A light so powerful, that it caused the sun to disappear.
Hanamiya watched the match closely; knowing how draining this must be on the younger's weak body. While the apparition-like teen's states had improved since he had joined their team, Kuroko was not going to be running a marathon any time soon. Not only that, but this type of misdirection that relied only on himself and how long he could handle the ball like this carried great risks. The orange sphere has the highest presence and priority in all players' minds, meaning the player holding the ball had the second highest presence, making them visible to everyone. This meant that not only did Kuroko risk maneuvering past people and it cutting into his stamina, but he was also slicing the amount of time his misdirection had effect. Instead of forty minutes, the usual maximum time that the phantom had had of court time, was most likely cut to thirty minutes if the transparent man kept doing more than his usual touch passes. This was probably why Teiko Middle School reserved him as a trump card, due to the strict time limit on his skills, lack of endurance, and the risks it carries if he did anything further. The Uncrowned King was grateful that Furuhashi had his own specialty in martial arts incorporated into his basketball style to use when the youngest regular needed to recover.
The stalemate was threatening to break with Kagami's attempts getting closer to success and scoring. With that kind of pressure, the shadow needed to act and find a way to get the advantage again. He had only been handling the ball for nine minutes, yet he was extremely exhausted. Sweat dripped from every pore, and his mind was starting to become slow. When the phantom saw a dizzy hand come into his vision, through desperation, the light-blue boy shot the ball in the air with his palm. Kagami did his best to block the ball, but it seemed to phase through his hands and gracefully went through the hoop, making the score 2-0 in Kuroko's favor. The regulars of Kirisaki Daiichi watched and their mouths gaped in awe. They never saw the rookie shoot, and they certainly never saw someone shoot the ball from their chest and followed through with their palm. Was it intentional? Did the shadow finally overcome his limitations? Kuroko gave a soft smile and collapsed into a sitting position. Kagami snapped out of his amazement and fetched the ball. So that was how Kuroko scores for his team… it was an unorthodox form, but when was anything about the Generation of Miracles that was not strange? Before the teen with forked-eyebrows could compliment the sky-blue teen, the bubblegum teen rushed and leaped in to give a bone-crushing hug to their youngest regular.
"Aw Kuroko, you did it! You shot your first basket!" The lavender-haired teen said excitedly.
"Oy, you're going to suffocate him if you keep doing that Hara! Give Kuroko some room to breathe!" Yamazaki growled at Hara. This was Kuroko's first basket? Kagami finally realized why all those other times he saw or played Kuroko were the way they were. The phantom, sixth man that was part of the Generation of Miracles was one of those players that was so specialized that he could only do what he was taught to do for his team, passing or stealing. Taiga did not know whether to laugh in joy or misery. He was compelled to play against a person who could not dunk, had little-to-no stamina, and the first time Kuroko scored a basket during his High School basketball career was playing one-on-one against him.
"Thank you Furuhashi-sempai," The teal-haired boy said softly as he accepted the dead-eyed teen's offer of water. He grabbed the bottle and took a big gulp. "I am sorry, but I cannot continue playing anymore Kagami-kun." Kuroko said before relaxing in Hara's strong arms. "Just these ten minutes of play was too much for me after practice." Kagami shook his head in disbelief at the situation.
"No, it is okay. Now get your cellphone out. I'm definitely going to win next time!" Taiga declared. Though he knew that his teammates would not like it, Tetsuya nodded and pulled his cellphone out of his pocket to add the basketball-obsessed freshman for a future match. Kagami beamed a bright smile after he got the phantom of Kirisaki Daiichi's number, and Kuroko could not help flashing a smile back at him. Kazuya tightened his grip around the youngest member a little annoyed by their friendly behavior towards each other. The transparent teen had them for emotional support. Before the lavender-haired man could warn the red-and-black teen for his obnoxious behavior, the devious boy in teal heard angry, approaching footsteps. Soon all of Seirin High School's basketball team was standing outside the gate, visibly upset that not only did their ace skip practice, but was hanging out with the team that injured their other ace and Center player Kiyoshi Teppei. Kagami waved nervously at his team, knowing he was going to face some major consequences. Hyuuga opened the door to allow Riko to enter first. She walked slowly and calmly into the basketball court, appearing tranquil and merciful. Oh, how wrong they were on those assumptions… before the wild-looking teen could even express any shock, the Seirin Coach pinned the massive player down to the ground and contorted his legs in an uncomfortable position over her strong shoulders and slender but toned back.
The players of Kirisaki Daiichi winced. No one envied Taiga at the moment.
"Hey, I'll try to call you soon..." Kagami said in a strained voice to Kuroko.
The day of their first official match with Shinkyo Academy came quickly. They arrived early to warm up, wanting to make sure the second string were ready in case their opponents were so terrible that the first string would benefit more from practicing then from playing a game with them (it was a likely possibility due to the team being only average until they had a foreign, exchange student enroll and join their team). Kuroko was loosening his wrists, dribbling a ball casually as he watched the others shoot, stretch, and other activities to warm up their muscles. While the phantom wished to practice that unorthodox shot that he used against Kagami, Hanamiya advised him to only practice that more in their school's gymnasium only to keep their potential weapon hidden from the competition. As the cyan-colored teen glanced up, he saw a tall figure with green hair, and knew that his Captain's orders were probably correct. It was only inevitable that after their former, trump card beat the copycat, that the others would show interest in Kuroko's team and their progress. Midorima left to get a drink, and left Kuroko remembering to keep his focus on the present match. The petite, pale male turned his attention to the opposing team. They were even worse players than he imagined, and the exchange student from Senegal was nowhere to be seen.
Tetsuya shrugged and sat down on the bench, knowing that he would most likely not enter until the third quarter. As soon as the passing specialist did that, he was pulled into Seto's lap. It was not an unusual thing; the elder man liked to cuddle with Kuroko as if the youngest, first string member was a teddy bear. The Center player was sitting on a relaxing, foldable, lounge chair, and a light blanket was draped over him. Quickly, Kentarou positioned the smaller teen under the blanket and pressed them close together. The smell of subtle cologne and Seto's natural scent filled the sky-blue boy's nose, instantly calming and lulling him. Kuroko stared up at the sleepy man, watching him slip the sleep mask over his eyes and curl his large, muscular arms around the shorter boy's tiny waist. The invisible, sixth man smiled, charmed by the protective hug and the light snoring from the elder man's mouth. Since they were only going to play third and fourth quarter, Tetsuya rested his head against Kentarou's sold frame, and closely followed the Center player into dreamland. His light-colored eyelashes brushed his cheeks as his eyes fluttered closed, and his head snuggled in the crook of Seto's neck. Hara took a picture of the pair, too engrossed by the adorable sight of the two of them cuddled together to hear the dark-skinned foreigner enter the arena.
Papa rubbed his forehead, cursing Japan's structures for not being tall-friendly before promptly apologizing to his Coach that he was late. The green-haired, Miracle boy came back, red bean drink in his hands, and he appeared confused. Where was Kuroko? The actually challenging player was here now…
"Captain… that is so unfair…" Papa pouted with tears in his eyes. Tanimura was shocked by his ace's sudden change in mood.
"What's wrong? You aren't nervous, are you? Sure, these guys have one kind of good player, but he's not good enough to be part of the Generation of Miracles." The Shinkyo point guard said, making Makoto visibly annoyed by the rude words.
"No, I mean it is not fair that our opponents are allowed to cuddle with their girlfriends when they aren't playing! How come we can't do that?" Siki frowned and pointed at Seto and Kuroko. Midorima turned to the direction the African, exchange student and blushed. Kuroko comfortable cuddled and pressed against his tall teammate, sitting on his lap, and both of them were sleeping peacefully under a light blanket. The emerald-colored teen averted his gaze, mumbling how Kuroko never seemed to notice how his actions could be so easily misinterpreted. Hara laughed heartily at Papa mistaking Kuroko as a girl and as Seto's girlfriend, when the young boy was one of the Generation of Miracles that Shinkyo Academy was so concerned about.
"Huh, that is a little inappropriate…" The Coach of Shinkyo Academy pointed out. Hanamiya shook his head and went to assure the other Coach.
"No, both of them are players on our team. They are our reserve." The bad boy of basketball explained.
"You allow girls to play on your team?" Papa questioned.
"Kuroko is a cisgender boy, not a cisgender or transgender girl." The Uncrowned King said, trying to hold in his laughter. Hara and Yamazaki held nothing back, and cackled to the point of breathlessness. Furuhashi glanced at the youngest regular, and could not help but think he could understand the Senegal student's confusion. Kuroko was pretty cute like a girl.
Well, Midorima is still oblivious. Can't wait for Kuroko to break the news to him.