Hi guys!
Another Chapter completed~!
I recommend reading this fanfic with music like Mezame by Kajiura Yuki (I'm sorry but I'm not sure about the spelling...), Can Do and Rimfire by GRANRODEO.
But I have tons of school work so I will be updating slower… Gomen for that…
Anyways, let's be positive and read this another chapter!
DISCLAIMER: IT'S NOT MINE! ;_;
Chapter 10: The Soldiers
Mai was standing in front of her dorm room and inserted her key in the doorknob and twisted it when she heard exhausted screams that are getting louder and louder.
"Open the door!"
"We're begging you! Open the door!"
"Open the damn door!"
Mai turned to the sound and saw the three idiots, all panting and sweaty, running towards her with blood shot eyes. Mai screamed like the ones
in a horror movie and quickly opened the door. Before she could enter, a flash of red, black and blue ran past her and shut the door.
Nao fell on the floor, face first then Chie fell next and then the one on top is Natsuki. Duran barked and jumped on top of her master, not knowing
that they are tired and not playing.
"I wanna sleep already!" Natsuki grumbled while trying to get up.
"Idiot! You need to take a shower or else this room's gonna stink…" Nao sighed.
"Speaking of shower, I'm first!" Chie yelled as she got up. A sound of a door being shut forcefully was heard. Chie turned to the sound and looked at the whole room and
noticed that Natsuki was gone.
Chie sighed. "She beat me to it…"
"Are you guys crazy!? What's the matter!?" Mai yelled as she entered the room.
"We're trained like hell… That shower feels good…" Natsuki said when she emerged from the bathroom.
"My turn!" Nao and Chie both yelled at the same time as they rushed to the bathroom. Chie was pushing Nao and Nao was nudging
Chie's side. But Nao suddenly kicked Chie's side and went in the bathroom.
"No fair…" Chie whined. Natsuki just patted her back and went to her bed.
A few minutes later, Nao got out of the bathroom and Chie went in to take a shower.
Natsuki petted Duran, smiling slightly. "You're coming with me in Inter-High, okay boy?"
Duran just barked in agreement. Natsuki laughed and hugged the puppy.
After the idiots took their bath, they all went to their beds.
"Mikoto, chew your food, will ya?"
"Akira-chan, just leave Mikoto-chan alone. She can handle herself…" Aoi smiled.
"Whatever…" Akira sighed and went to bed.
"Mmm! Arigato for the food Aoi-chan!"Mikoto grinned.
"Ah, that's nothing… You should sleep soon…" Aoi said.
After watching cartoons, Mikoto went to bed.
"Shizuru-san, what are you thinking?" Yukino asked.
"Nothing at all, Yukino-san. I just like the breeze…" Shizuru smiled.
"The windows are closed, bubuzuke…" Haruka glared at the Kaichou.
"Ara, I'm just testing your awareness and alertness, Haruka-chan…" Shizuru said.
"Yeah sure…" Haruka went to bed.
Shizuru sighed and went to bed, thinking about a particular midnight haired beauty.
As they all went to bed, they all think of the same thing.
'The first day of Inter-High is tomorrow…'
Natsuki woke up before Mai's alarm clock rang. She got out of the bed silently to avoid waking up the others. She grabbed her clothes and
got in the shower. She turned the shower on and let the ice cold water run through her body. After the cold one, she proceeded
to the hot one to wake herself up.
After she got changed, she went out of the bathroom and saw her friends' sleepy faces. She smirked and pulled out a megaphone from who knows where and turned it on.
"WAKE UP ASSHOLES!"
"It wasn't me!" the charcoal haired girl bolted up.
"Is the kitchen burning!?" Mai yelled.
"Burning!? Fire!? Fire!? Where!?" Nao said as she sat upright.
Natsuki Kuga, at that time, was temporarily dead. Cause of death, laughing at her roommates.
"You asshole! What the hell was your problem earlier!?"
Nao tried to strangle Natsuki as they went to the gym.
"Me? I have no problem. But if I have, after seeing your faces, it'll be gone…" Natsuki laughed while petting Duran who was on her head.
Now the three tried to strangle her but it's too late, they got in the gym.
"Oh, you guys are early…" Midori said, nodding at the gang.
"Ohayou Gozaimasu, minna-san~!" Natsuki greeted at the team, the cheerleading club, and the Student Council.
"Ara, something's wrong with Na-chan…" Shizuru inquired.
"What do you mean?" Reito asked.
"Na-chan never greets anyone… But when she makes jokes or… pranks, she will be in a good mood." The brunette explained.
"Well, as I observed, Natsuki-san's roommates are in a bad mood…" Yukino pointed at the blood shot eyes of Natsuki's roommates, glaring at the said person.
"Okay guys! Enough chitchat, let's stretch it up!" Midori instructed.
The team nodded and dropped their bags and proceeded to stretch. Some members grabbed some balls and tried to shoot.
Duran went to Shizuru and used his snout to get her attention. Shizuru looked down and saw the cute puppy, his head tilted to the side.
"Ara, Duran-chan~!" she picked up the puppy and cuddled watched the interaction between the two and smiled.
'They look cute together… But what about Shizuru and m—stop that Kuga! Just friends remember?' she thought and continued to stretch her legs.
"Damn, those girls look hot…" Nao whispered to the girl with bifocals.
"Yeah… Look at them stretch…" Chie smirked.
Suddenly a hand grabbed and pulled Chie's ear to the floor.
"Chie-chan's right… They sure look hot." a voice rang in Chie's ears and sent shivers and fear down her spine.
"A-Aoi-chan… Hey… I didn't notice you there…" Chie said with a quivering voice.
The whole team laughed their ass off at the interaction.
"Whipped…" they all said.
"S-Shut-up!" Chie glared at them.
Natsuki sneaked behind Chie and did a whipping action with her hands while laughing her ass off.
"You damn mutt!"
"Okay guys! It's already 5:30! We need to get there at seven and it's a long ride to Fuuka Stadium! So cheerleaders wear your jackets and
team, wear your track suits! Use the home! Let's go!" Midori ordered.
The cheerleaders and the Falcons went to their respective lockers and got changed.
"Heh, it's been so long since I played… I'm still nervous…" Chie said while putting on her track pants.
"It's normal dumbass…" Nao scoffed.
"I'm so excited! Mikoto gets to play!" the golden eyed girl grinned.
Akira just shrugged it off and continued to meditate. On the far corner, they didn't notice the ace player completely dressed, sitting down the bench with
her hood up. She opened her bag and took out a blue tape. She started taping her hands when Riku noticed her.
"Why do you need to do that?" she asked gesturing at the taped left hand.
"I don't want sprains or broken bones so I put this on…" Natsuki shrugged.
"Why is it blue? You always tape your hands black or white…" Karin added.
"This is the tape I always use during competitions… But unlike practice games, I don't take them off…" she answered after finishing
the tapes. The team nodded in understanding and left the locker room.
The cheerleaders emerged with blue short miniskirts and blue and gray top.
"Wolf whistle…" Nao said.
"Okay guys! We will ride on three vehicles. The car, the van and the bus. Obviously the bus is for the cheerleaders. So the car will be for the
Student Council and the van for us! So everybody prepare!" Midori explained.
"Youko-sensei! Please let us ride on your bus!" the second years pleaded to their medical teacher, with their knees on the ground.
"Well, so that's how you hate Midori's driving huh? Okay, I'll let you!" Youko smiled at the gang's seniors.
"Arigato Gozaimasu!" they all bowed.
The Three Idiots looked at each other. Natsuki began to smirk.
"Last one has a shit in her pants!"Natsuki said while running to the direction of the van.
"Hey! Wait!" Chie and Nao yelled.
The three vehicles went to the Fuuka Stadium's parking lot for the contestants and parked there. The three groups parted ways. The cheerleading club near
the audience seats, the Student Council in the VIP seats and the basketball team on their room in the gym.
"Sugoi… So many people watching…" Akira said.
"Wait, so what does Zipang look like?" Mikoto asked.
A sound of a bus halting was heard. They turned to the sound and saw a dark green bus with some words at the side. 'Zipang Soldiers!'
"That's their bus?" Shizume said.
The door of the bus opened and girls wearing dark green track suit came out. What caught their attention was a tall blonde player wearing a smug
face. Actually, all of them are wearing a blank face except for the blonde girl and a dark blue haired girl who was wearing a grin.
'Probably first years…' Midori thought.
Natsuki looked at the direction where Midori was looking. Her eyes glinted with amusement and her lips turned to a smirk.
'It's her… This better be good…' she thought and followed the team.
After they entered and got settled, Midori gathered them around. They all obeyed and followed the instruction.
"Okay guys, this is just the preliminaries… So don't let your guard down. Risa, your group will play first with the other four teams before Zipang. We need the
first years for Zipang. Understand? We need not to exert much strength today for the freshmen." Midori explained.
"Hai!" they all answered.
"Okay! Risa and company, go get changed and we'll go to the court. You guys will be on bench." The coach ordered Risa and pointed at the gang.
After getting changed they went on the court and went to warm-up. Midori called them, "Guys, run through the half court and try to reach the hoop."
The second years nodded and went to the court. Nao was watching the Zipang team warm-up. Some members are stretching, others are taking shots.
"I don't feel something weird to them. They're like normal…" she said.
"Don't judge them… They might be strong." Chie nudged Nao.
"Yup, maybe stronger than us…" Natsuki said while lying on the bench, spinning a ball with her knuckles.
"What!?" the other two exclaimed.
Natsuki smirked and shrugged, "Just saying…"
"That can't be… After 2 weeks of non-stop training, we'll lose? No way in hell!" Nao gritted her teeth.
"Calm down asshole… We won't lose… Let's just cheer our sempais and get ready for the game with Zipang." Chie said.
Natsuki didn't listen to the conversation and looked at the VIP section and saw the chestnut haired goddess. The said goddess looked at her
and waved. Natsuki blushed and returned the wave.
"Mutt, are you crazy? Why are you waving?" Nao asked.
"Of course she's waving at Shi-chan~!" Chie grinned.
"Shut up! It's not like that! We're just friends!" Natsuki defended herself.
"We aren't saying anything like that…" Nao smirked.
Natsuki stopped with that. 'Why am I so defensive? It's really not like that… We are really just friends…' she thought.
Shizuru sat with Haruka, Yukino and Reito. The Student Council came with the team to represent the school. They were watching the team warm up when
Shizuru felt a presence looking at her when she looked, she saw Natsuki watching her. She blushed but covered it quickly and just smiled and waved at Natsuki. Even though
the player was far from her, she can see the girl's blush.
The preliminaries went on and the Fuuka Falcons continued their way to the end with Risa's group. The gang kept cheering them on.
"Ganbatte, sempai~!" they yelled.
Karin panted and smiled then nudged Risa.
"Damn, they sure are energetic and pumped…" she said to Risa.
"Yeah…" Risa nodded and grabbed the ball and shot a 6 feet high three. The ball went in with no effort. That shot earned another win for the Fuuka Falcons.
"WHOOOOOO!" the three idiots jumped on their bench and did a victory dance.
Haruka and Reito cheered on their seats.
"Yeah!" they cheered.
"AND THE FUUKA FALCONS WILL ADVANCE ON THE PRELIMINARY FINALS!"
"Alright!" Midori cheered.
The team celebrated and went to their room. They all jumped for joy for the victory they achieved.
"Okay guys, let's not get carried away. There's still one more obstacle to get through for us to go in Quarter Finals. And this obstacle is a
big one. So let's be serious…" Midori said with a serious face. The team nodded and listened.
The team went out of their room and went to watch Zipang. But when they got out, all they hear is cheering sounds on the other side of the court. The
voice of the announcer rang the whole court.
"AND THE ZIPANG SOLDIERS WILL ADVANCE ON THE PRELIMINARY FINALS! THEY WILL COMPETE AGAINST THE FUUKA FALCONS! AFTER THIRTY MINUTES, WE WILL START THE GAME!"
"Coach!" Kuroi called her.
"Kuroi-senpai? Where have you been?" Mikoto asked.
"Well, coach told me to watch the Zipang game while you're playing…" Kuroi said.
"So what have you got, Kuroi?" Midori asked.
"Well, the thing here is, all of them, big or small, is damn fast. Maybe faster than Kallen." Kuroi said.
"With their speed, they can make fast plays and strategies… Totally a weapon…" Midori said.
"What should we do coach?" Akira asked.
"You guys should 'wake up'… Coz it's time…" Midori smirked.
The gang nodded and went outside. The green eyed coach smiled.
'At least they know what to do…' she thought.
"Coach, where are they? The game's starting in five minutes…" Riku told her coach.
"Just wait for them…"Midori said.
"Ara, why is Natsuki not here?"
"Ah, Kaichou-sama, they're doing something…"Matsuri said.
"What's that?" Reito said.
"What they've been practicing two weeks ago…" Midori answered.
"Sumimasen we're late!" Mikoto entered the gym. The four others just followed. They were all sweaty but not panting.
"What took you so long?" Riku asked.
"Sorry… We got carried away…" Chie grinned.
"I'm so sleepy…" Natsuki yawned.
Nao whacked her head. "Idiot! You shouldn't be sleepy at a time like this!"
"Guys, get ready… Four minutes and you'll be playing…" Midori told them.
"Hai!"
The gang took off their track suits revealing their team jersey underneath the gray shirt.
"Oh and Natsuki, you'll be a bench player for Zipang…" Midori said.
"What!?" the gang exclaimed.
Natsuki was about to retort when she saw Midori's eyes. They're telling her that she has a plan. She just nodded and sat down the bench beside Shizuru who is petting Duran.
"Ara, it seems that Na-chan changed…" she said.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Natsuki asked.
Shizuru assumed a thinking position then hugged Natsuki. Natsuki blushed at the contact and kept squirming.
"Shi-chan! Let go!" Natsuki exclaimed.
Shizuru ignored her and kept hugging her. "Because Na-chan doesn't think before she acts or retorts~!"
Natsuki stopped squirming from the hug. She sighed and said, "Coach has something on her mind. And if it means I have to sit here
until the end of the game, I will… It's for the team."
Shizuru loosen her hug and sat down properly.
"Ara, you really have changed… Natsuki doesn't say things like that… But…"
"But what?" Natsuki urged her to continue.
"But I think it's cute~!" she smiled brightly and hugged Natsuki.
"Argh!"
"Kawaii~!"
"Arf, Arf!"
Midori approached Riku who's drinking coffee with her sister.
"Hey Riku! You'll be a starting player. You'll replace Natsuki."
"Okay sure…" Riku nodded.
Midori called the attention of the gang. The members of the three idiots glared at her.
"Why is Nat in the bench!?" Chie glared.
"Yeah! We need her you know!" Nao growled.
"You idiots…"
"Huh?"
"Can you hear yourselves!? You're fucking relying on Natsuki!" Midori yelled which made the two shut their mouths.
Midori regained her composure and continued. "Good, you're not blabbing shit anymore. Now let me explain. Zipang has a reputation to resemble themselves as
a soldier. They have a strategy to 'finish it quickly and swiftly' thus, making their speed a deadly weapon. So I'm putting Riku in to test their speed since she's as fast as
Nao who is the second fastest in the team. Because I can predict that they will already start speeding up at the first quarter. Understand?"
"Hai…" the gang nodded.
"NOW, WE WILL START THE COMPETITION BETWEEN FUUKA FALCONS AND ZIPANG SOLDIERS! ALL PLAYERS, PLEASE PROCEED TO THE COURT RIGHT NOW!"
"Okay guys! Let's go!" Riku yelled.
"Hai!" they said and went to the court.
"Oh, wait." The coach said. The gang turned to her.
"Don't do 'it' until Natsuki's in the court…" Midori said.
They all nodded and went to the court. They all fell in line, facing the Zipang starters.
'Woah... They're all kinda little... Come on Chie, focus... Don't underestimate them...' the charcoal haired girl thought.
Nao looked at the girl in front of Chie. Her eyes widened at the sight of the girl.
'That's the tallest girl in Zipang! A foreign exchange student...' she thought.
"Stand!" the referee said. They all stood erect.
"Salute!"
"Let's have a good match!"
"Centers in front please..." the referee instructed. Chie and the blonde girl went in front and got into position. The others also got into their respective positions.
"Ara, that girl with Chie-san is quite tall." Shizuru said.
"Please be safe Chie-chan..." Aoi whispered.
"Don't worry Aoi-san. Chie-san can handle them." Yukino patted Aoi's shoulder.
"Ganbatte Mikoto-chan!" Mai cheered. Mikoto heard her and gave her a grin.
"Don't worry about them..."
They all turned to look at Natsuki who had a towel on her head. Her hands opening and closing, meaning she is so bored and wanted to play.
"What do you mean?" Haruka asked.
"I mean that even if that blonde girl is tall, she doesn't jump high... Chie jumps higher than her..." Natsuki explained with a bored face.
The others listening nodded in understanding and watched the team. They didn't know that the midnight haired player was scanning the blonde.
Name: Jessy Clad
Skills: Triple Fake
PRIIITTT!
Both centers jumped at the same time to reach the ball.
'Huh? She jumps so high... Darn... I can't jump that high! I thought I can intimidate her by my height!' Jessy thought.
Chie slapped the ball to Mikoto who caught it and walked to their basket, calling a play. She felt a presence behind her and suddenly, a hand snaked out
and tried to grab the ball. Having a fast reaction time, she used her body to block the hand to avoid the steal.
'Ehh!? That was close... They're so fast!' Mikoto thought.
A gush of wind ran past her and tried to steal the ball. Mikoto dodged and ran to the half court and passed the ball to Akira.
"Nice pass." She said and walked her way. She felt two hands swatting the ball out of her hands. The ball fell out of Akira's hands but she quickly recovered and caught
the ball before they stole it.
'Damn it! They're fast!' she thought and passed the ball to Nao.
Nao felt the presence and immediately passed the ball to Chie who grabbed the ball tightly. She positioned herself and jumped to take a shot
but unfortunately, she was guarded by Jessy.
'Dammit, her wingspan!' Chie thought. She quickly dropped and passed the ball to Riku. Riku quickly shot the ball with a high ark and went to the hoop.
'We barely made that shot…' Chie thought, gritting her teeth in irritation.
The team just remained silent because they know that this was hard on them. They got into defense as a brown haired girl came running towards them.
"All we need to do is steal the ball and make quick release shots. Be quick also…" Riku told them.
"Hai!"
Mikoto quickly rushed to guard the brown haired girl. This made the girl halt and dribbled the ball in a slow pace.
At the bench, the Falcons and the Council were nervous as hell. This really is a hard time for them especially without the help of Natsuki in the court. The said player sat
on the bench and saw that Mikoto went to guard the Zipang's point guard. She tried to scan the brown haired player.
Name: Chiyo Akiyama
Skills: Telescope
"Mmm… Just as I thought… This will be good…" she said to herself.
The brown haired girl known as Chiyo stopped dribbling and positioned herself to drive. She took a step forward and got ready for a drive.
'You may be fast but your feints are not so good!' the golden eyed player thought.
Chiyo charged but halted and passed the ball to Jessy. Her eyes widened when Mikoto was able to block the pass and grabbed the ball and quickly sped up to
their side of the court.
'She intercepted it!?' she thought.
Mikoto quickly ran to the basket but was guarded by an orange haired girl. She stopped and did some right to left crossovers. She faked a drive and did the Feline drive twice faster than before.
Natsuki tried to scan the orange haired girl. She nodded in understanding at the girl's information.
Name: Akemi Fujimoto
Skills: Wind Steals
While Mikoto went to the basket, she faked a shot and passed it to Nao. Nao was stunned when suddenly a girl with the same hair color as Akemi's appeared before her and guarding her.
Natsuki quickly scanned the player and got the information she wanted.
Name: Amaya Fujimoto
Skills: Flash Shot
'They're damn fast than I expected…' Nao thought.
She dribbled the ball and did a Web Spinner to the girl who got out of balance and fell. She got through and passed the ball to Chie who did a quick release to the ring.
"It's not over! Get our score back!" Chiyo said and ran to the basket.
A blue haired girl ran beside her and said, "Well senpai… I think we underestimated them ne?"
"Oh shut up... Guys! Show them what we've got!" Chiyo said after ignoring the blue haired girl.
"Hai Captain!" they yelled and got into an outside three position. They began blocking Fuuka's defense.
Mikoto got out of the one who marked her and went to guard Chiyo. Chiyo's pupils got bigger and her vision darkened but she can only see with her circular
vision just like a telescope and she spotted Amaya free. She passed it to her without Nao knowing and took a shot behind the three point line. She shot the ball fast and
the ball went in with ease.
'So fast release!' Nao thought.
'A Flash Shot…' Natsuki thought while watching the game.
Mikoto took the ball and sped to their basket when a gush of wind ran past her and swatted the ball out of her hands.
'Wha!?' she thought. She looked and saw Akemi gripped the ball tightly.
'The Wind Steal… Fast, but has weakness… Better reveal it once I get in.' Natsuki smirked.
Akemi ran to the rim and was guarded by Akira. She suddenly passed the ball to Jessy who was behind the 3-point line. Chie tried to guard her and Jessy suddenly
went to fake a drive then jumped for a shot. Chie jumped too but Jessy dropped to the ground and positioned herself to drive.
'A drive to the left!' Chie thought as she got ready for the drive. Though, her thoughts were wrong because Jessy drove to the right and took a shot. The ball went in the hoop effortlessly.
'Hmm… So that's the Triple Fake… Two physical fakes and a mental fake…' Natsuki thought.
"Man, this is difficult for them…" Kaori said.
"I never thought they would be that fast…" Matsuri added.
"Coach, this is difficult for them in the second quarter…" Risa told Midori.
The buzzer rang signalling the end of the first quarter with the score of 34-28 in favour of the Zipang Soldiers.
"FIRST QUARTER OVER! TEN MINUTE BREAK!"
The team went back all panting and sweating. The bench players went to help them by giving them their water bottles.
"Damn, their faster than I thought…" Riku said.
"Their steals and shots… Unpredictable." Chie added while the others nodded in agreement.
"We should get Natsuki in coach…" Kallen suggested.
"No…"
"Huh?"
"Don't let Natsuki in yet…" Akira said. The others nodded in agreement.
"We'll finish this second quarter without Natsuki's help!" Nao said.
"Very well then, I'll give you a new plan to do in this quarter. After that you will sleep…" Natsuki said.
All of them looked at her with curious yet eager and flaring eyes.
"BREAK OVER! PLAYERS, IN THE COURT PLEASE!"
"Guys, wake up…" Kaori said nudging the players. They woke up with renewed strength and energy.
"Alright! Let's do this!"
"Hai!"
They all went in the court and proceeded to play the game.
Footsteps sounded in the gym's hallway. The people cheering Fuuka and Zipang were getting louder as the clock ticks.
"Eh? Tell me again why am I here!?" a tanned blue haired boy said with a bored face.
"Well, first is she is here…"
"So?"
"She's playing against Natsukicchi~!"
"EHH!? Why the hell didn't you tell me Kise!?" the tanned boy exclaimed.
"Well, you didn't ask…" Kise sighed.
"Come on!" the tanned boy dragged Kise in the gym doors.
"GO FUUKA!"
"GO ZIPANG!"
The two teams have been playing for three minutes and they made a high paced play which resulted to drastic increase in their scores. The score is now 46-46.
"Nice! Keep that up!" Kallen yelled.
"That's good! A tie!"Risa cheered.
"Go and win Falcons!" Haruka yelled.
"Okay guys! Let's do it!" Chie said.
"Hell yeah!" they replied and got into position. Chie marking Akemi, Nao with Amaya, Mikoto guarding Chiyo, Riku guarding the blue haired girl and Akira with Jessy.
"What!? Are they that desperate!? A little marking that tall one!?"
'What the hell are they thinking!? Marking me with this girl!'Jessy thought.
Chiyo who was handling the ball, used the Telescope. Her pupils got bigger and saw an opening for her to pass to which was Jessy. She passed the ball to the
tall girl and tried to shoot but Akira kept with her, pushing her out of her comfort zone.
Jessy gritted her teeth and tried to charge Akira who was behind her. Suddenly, Chiyo saw the plan and yelled, "Jessy! Don't!"
But it's too late.
PRIIIT!
"Green 16! Charging!" the referee said.
"Goddammit!" Jessy yelled.
"You better stop that or else I'll give you a Technical!" the referee scolded.
"It's okay… We still got it." Chiyo said and took the ball and did a throw in to Akemi.
"Akemi, here!" Jessy yelled.
Akemi passed to Jessy who attempted to shoot but Akira was still guarding her.
"You can't stop me you little brat…" Jessy hissed.
"Try me…" Akira smirked and continued to guard her.
"Your girl's kinda hot-tempered…"Riku commented while guarding the blue haired girl.
"Yeah… She needs to know when to cool down." The other girl sighed.
Jessy gritted her teeth in irritation. Akira was still and can keep up with her and she can't believe it.
'I can't do the Triple Fake with her or else I'll get a foul again!' she thought. She has no choice but to shoot. And so she did. The ball bounced off the rim and fell down.
"Rebound!"
Riku left the girl and charged to the falling ball. She jumped high and got the ball.
"Fastbreak!" she yelled and passed the ball to Chie.
Chie grabbed the ball and passed it to Nao. Nao then passed the ball to Akira. Akira did a bounce pass to Mikoto and Mikoto did an overhand
pass to Riku who was guarded by the freshman girl.
Riku rolled the ball in her hands and lowered her hips. She did a very low and fast drive to the left. The blue haired girl reacted to the drive but Riku suddenly halted and took a fast step back.
'A fake!?' she thought.
Riku turned around and did the same pace and position of her drive but this time to the right. She was so fast and got past her. She continued that
same pace and position while rushing to the basket. It's like doing a drive to many people falling in line.
'No one can stop me when I do the Infinite Drive!' Riku thought and did a shot that went in, adding two points to the Falcons.
"Alright Fuuka!" Haruka yelled.
"Nice! Turnover!" Reito added. Shizuru and Yukino just laughed at their friends' antics.
"Fujino-san?"
Shizuru turned to the sound and saw the blonde she met at Kaijo together with a tanned guy she haven't met yet with blue hair looking really bored.
"Ara, Ryouta-san?"Shizuru said.
"Eheheh… Don't call me Ryouta-san! Kise is fine~!" Kise grinned.
"Okay then, Kise-san." Shizuru smiled politely.
"Where's Natsukicchi?" he asked.
"Ara, she's at the bench…" she answered, pointed to the team.
"Thanks~! Come now, dumbass!" he smiled and dragged the blue haired boy to the team.
"Six minutes remaining for the second quarter… Still a lot of time…" Midori said.
"And not all of them are showing off yet… There's still one…" Natsuki replied, looking at the blue haired girl in the court.
An arm encircled her shoulders. A very familiar deep voice rang through her ears. "Yup… But I'm sure who will win…"
Her eyes widened when she turned to the owner of the arm. A tanned dark blue haired boy was smirking, looking at the court.
"A-Aomine-kun! Why are you here!? Too Gakuen is far from here!"Natsuki exclaimed.
The tanned guy known as Aomine just shrugged. "You see, I came here to watch her… Nah, kidding. I came here to watch you… How
will you handle her…" he grinned, ruffling Natsuki's hair.
"Aominecchi! You idiot! Why did you left me there with my fans! You know they're always crowding me!"
"Kise-kun?"
"Ehh!? Natsukicchi? Why are you not in the court!?" Kise asked, settling down beside Natsuki.
"Yup, I was actually thinking about that…" Aomine yawned. "If you're not there, the game is boring…" he added.
"Coach told me not to go in yet…" she answered.
The other members of the team just stared at their interaction. Like it's nothing… Like normal people. They looked at the tanned guy. The second years huddled up.
"I-Is that…" Matsuri started.
"Aomine Daiki…?" Kaori added.
"The Unstoppable Scorer? The Ace of Teiko? Aomine Daiki? I can't believe it…" Kallen said.
"Me neither…" Risa agreed.
PRIIITT!
"ZIPANG TIMEOUT!"
Both teams went to their respective benches. All tired and panting but have smiles on their faces since the scoreboard agreed to them in this quarter. The score is 68-59 in favour of the Fuuka Falcons. Only five minutes left in the quarter.
"Hi guys~!" Kise greeted.
"Hey Kise-kun!" they smiled and waved.
"Nice game you got there… Handling them without the help of Nat… I'm impressed…"
They looked to see the one talking only to gawk at the person.
"A-Aomine Daiki!" Chie exclaimed.
"What!?" Nao added.
"THE Aomine Daiki!?" Akira said.
"Sugoi!" Mikoto gaped.
"Wow… They have worse reactions than us…" Risa said at the second years who just nodded and did a facepalm.
"Yo…" Aomine said with a bored face doing a two finger salute.
"Hey…" they said.
"Do you think I should say it Aomine-kun?" Natsuki asked.
"Nah… Let them find out…" Aomine shrugged.
The team rested for two minutes and got in the court. The Zipang started the throw in. Akemi got the ball and went to the basket when Mikoto and Nao started guarding her.
'Double team!? They're getting aggressive!' Akemi thought.
Mikoto slapped the ball and it was suddenly out of her hands. She tried to follow Mikoto but Nao was blocking her way.
'Damn… Screen…' she thought.
Mikoto sped up and did a shot to the basket. The ball went in effortlessly.
"I don't like this… They keep widening the gap…" Chiyo muttered.
"That kid has nice shot…" the blue haired girl said.
"You know what…" Chiyo called her.
"Yeah?"
"It's your turn…" Chiyo said.
She just smirked and craned her neck. "Alright… Time to start…"
Chiyo got the ball and sped up to the court. Before Mikoto and Nao can perform a double team on her, she passed the ball to the first year who was guarded by Riku.
"I'm sorry but you're gonna lose…" she told Riku.
"Go try…"Riku said.
The blue haired girl did a crossover to the left and did a fast drive to the right. Riku widened her eyes at the speed.
'So fast! I didn't have time to react!' she thought.
The girl ran towards the basket and halted. She planted feet on the floor, raised her arms and took a three. The ball may not have a high ark but
it went in the hoop.
The team widened their eyes at the shot. The Zipang Soldiers went to their defense positions.
'That was so fast!' they all thought.
Ai turned to them and smirked. "I told you, you will lose… I'm sorry but the game's just starting…"
They gaped at her and slowly went to their positions. Mikoto caught the ball and went to the basket. Chiyo rushed and guarded Mikoto. Mikoto did
the Feline Drive and got past Chiyo. Mikoto passed the ball to Nao.
A hand reached out and grabbed the ball before it reached Nao's hands. Nao's eyes widened at the sight of the first year intercepting the ball.
'When the hell did she get here!?' she thought.
She grabbed the ball and went to the basket. Riku guarded her with Chie at the back.
"You can't stop me now…" she said.
"We'll try our best… Like you said, the game's just starting…" Riku replied.
The girl smirked and did a drive to the right and got past Riku. Chie stopped her from continuing. She did a crossover left to right and did a fast drive to the
right. She then did a lay-up and the ball went in the hoop.
"This is so not good…"Riku said.
"No… There is a way to keep the gap widening… Run & Gun!" Chie yelled.
"Okay!" they all replied.
Mikoto sped her way to the basket but before she came towards Chiyo, she passed the ball to Nao. Nao passed the ball to Risa. Risa did an over
pass to Akira. Akira did a behind pass but bumped her elbow to the ball so that the ball will go to Chie.
'An elbow pass!? Very few people can do that!' Amaya thought while guarding Akira.
Chie caught the ball, jumped and took a shot. Jessy also jumped and raised her arms upward to block the upcoming shot.
"I won't let you do that!" she said.
Chie withdrew her hand, stretch her hand behind Jessy's back and did a lay-up. The ball rolled at the rim and went in the basket.
'That was close…' Chie thought.
Chiyo grabbed the ball and ran with full speed on the court carelessly. Because of that, Nao was able to steal the ball and ran past the careless girl. Nao was
guarded by Amaya. Nao did a behind pass to Riku and sped to the court. Riku was suddenly guarded by Akemi, but that didn't stop her. She did
the Infinite Drive to Akemi and did a bounce pass to Chie.
Chie was about to sped up but she was double teamed by Jessy and the blue haired girl. Chie did a behind bounce pass to Akira who sped up and did a Scoopers.
'Damn it… Even though she is here, they can close the gap… They're also fast…' Chiyo thought. She looked at blue haired freshman who was all panting and sweating. 'She's getting tired too…' she added.
Chie looked at the girl and nudged the captain. "Captain, that number 8 is tired already… We should take advantage of it…" she said.
"You're right… Don't exert much effort in the remaining time okay? I'll take care of number 8." Riku said.
"You sure?" Chie reassured.
"Yeah! Don't doubt on your senpai!" Riku scolded.
"Okay…"
Chiyo rushed to their basket and was guarded by Mikoto. She passed the ball to Jessy who sped to the court.
"Kuso… Ten seconds… And Zipang on the lead with 75-72…" Kise murmured.
Jessy passed the ball to the panting girl and was guarded by Riku. She jumped high to shoot the ball.
A shadow covered her as she saw Riku jumped higher than her. Fury and eagerness to win on her eyes.
"I'll stop you no matter what!" Riku yelled.
She slapped the ball out of Ai's hands and fell on the ground.
The buzzer began to go off signalling the end of the first half.
"THE FIRST HALF IS OVER! FIFTEEN MINUTE BREAK!"
The freshman descended to the ground first. Riku followed but her left foot wasn't in right position when she got down. She winced and fell on the floor at the painful contact.
"Itai!" she groaned.
The other four turned to her and rushed to her aid.
"Senpai!"
"D-Daijobu…" Riku replied and tried to stand up but failed. Chie and Nao fortunately caught her before she fell.
"Senpai you're not okay!" Akira said and they went to their bench.
"What the hell happened!? We didn't see it coz number 8 was covering her…" Kallen said.
"She fell on the wrong footing…" Mikoto answered.
"Damn…" Midori said.
They let Riku sit down on the bench and raised her left foot and let Youko inspect the injury.
"Well, it's just a sprain but I suggest that you won't move your foot much to avoid more injuries." Youko told Riku who just nodded.
"Well, it's just the right time… I planned for Natsuki to enter in some time in the second half. Risa, you'll sub first." Midori said. "Like Natsuki said, you should
sleep to regain your strength drastically..." she added.
"Ara, we saw what happened." Shizuru said, the Council walking towards them and sat down on their bench.
"Shouldn't you be on the VIP?" Nao asked.
"We can't ignore what happened to Riku-san." Reito replied.
"Well, we can't talk right now since we'll sleep…" Akira bowed apologetically.
"It's okay..." Yukino bowed in behalf of the Council.
Aomine stood up and went to the Kaichou. He looked at her up and down and nodded his head appreciatively.
"So, you're Fujino? Nat's friend?" he eyed the Kaichou.
"Ara, yes. I'm Shizuru Fujino…" she bowed.
"No need for that… By the way, you have nice boobs… Nat will surely like you." Aomine said.
Right from the bench, the sleeping emerald eyed player bolted up from her seat and rush to Aomine, clamping his mouth shut. Kise just laughed his ass off.
"Ne, Shizuru-chan, he is really that frank… He's Aomine Daiki." Kise said, trying to control his laughter.
"S-Shi-chan! Don't mind what he said! He's the boob addict!" Natsuki quickly defended.
Shizuru, trying to hold her laughter and her amusement to the interaction in front of her, just smiled. "Ara, ookini for your compliment Daiki-san."
Aomine smirked and took off the hand from his mouth. He put his arm around Natsuki's shoulder and pointed at the crimson eyed goddess.
"What do we have here Nat? A Kyoto-ben? Didn't you tell me before that you have a Kyoto-ben accent fetish?" he said, grinning at the blushing and fuming Natsuki.
The other two Idiots bolted from their seat and slowly looked at Natsuki with perverted grins on their faces.
"We'll take note of that…" they both said perversely before going back to sleep.
"Ahou-mine!* Shut up!" Natsuki growled.
"Hahah! Okay, okay… I'll stop if you promise me to defeat Zipang." he said.
"Yeah, yeah…"Natsuki said, going back to her place to sleep.
Aomine suddenly sat beside Shizuru which made her curious. Aomine whispered to her ear.
"Take care of her… She did it to you before right?" he said.
"Ara, I don't know what Daiki-san means…" she replied.
Aomine shrugged. "I know I'm just teasing her, but believe me, she cares for you. Well you're her bestfriend and all and since she never stops talking about
you in middle school. And she said that she will wait for you two to meet again."
After a few minutes, the team seemed to have taken rest very well. The voice of the announcer rang through their ears.
"HALF TIME BREAK IS OVER! ALL PLAYERS, PLEASE PROCEED TO THE COURT RIGHT NOW!"
The team, with Risa now on the group, went on the court. It's Fuuka's throw in so Mikoto passed the ball to Risa who was being guarded by the freshman.
"I'm sorry about number 4…" she said.
"It's okay… It's not your fault about what happened to my sister…" Risa replied. "But I'm sure that you will lose…" she added.
"You two are really sisters… But like I said to her, you guys will lose…" she smirked.
Risa did a drive to the right and did a quick turn to the right. She got past her but she kept up with her. Risa did the Everest Jumpshot that went 6 feet off the
basket and went in the hoop with ease.
"Yeah! Alright! A tie!"
"Go Falcons!"
"Not so fast…"
They all turned to the blue haired girl, who was wearing a smirk, holding the ball and rushed to them. They all went on defense and prepared for Zipang's attack.
Her first encounter was Mikoto she drove past her with an almost blinding speed. She halted at Akira and ducked, did a crossover between her legs and drove past to the
left. She halted and raised her arms in a perfect shooting form. She shot the ball and went to the rim.
"Wow! They're back at three point difference!"
"Go Soldiers!"
"What's Fuuka gonna do now!?"
PRIITT!
"Fuuka! Member Change!"
"Yeah!" Mikoto grinned.
"Alright!" Chie and Nao did a high five.
"At last she's gonna play!" Akira smiled.
'What the!? They're like they didn't play! So much energy!' the Zipang team thought.
"Natsuki… Wake up…" Kallen said, nudging Natsuki awake.
"I'm up, I'm up…" Natsuki said, taking off the towel off her face.
Standing up, Natsuki stretched her arms and legs. Duran barked at her. She turned to her puppy.
"Thanks for cheering me boy!" she said.
"Ara, Na-chan…" Shizuru started.
"Yeah?" she asked.
"Win, okay?" the brunette smiled.
"I'll definitely win, Shi-chan… For you…" she said, whispering the last part not looking at Shizuru.
"Ara…" the brunette whispered, staring at the blunette's back.
Natsuki gave a high five to Risa indicating that she will change members with her.
"Your mark is-" Risa stated but was cut off by Natsuki.
"I know, I know… Number 8…" she groaned and went to the other four.
"Alright… You came…" Akira said.
"I was about to think that you're not gonna be in, mutt…" Nao added.
"Okay! I'm all pumped!" Chie said, doing a fistpump.
"Natsuki-kun! You got in!" Mikoto gave Natsuki a high five.
"Yeah, yeah… Let's get this over with…" Natsuki said.
The blue haired freshman turned to the new member and saw that the number 7 was supporting her hand with tapes. Blue tapes to be exact.
'She's familiar…' she thought.
"Long time no see… Ai-chan…" Natsuki turned to look at the Zipang number 8.
The girl known as Ai turned and saw a pair of very familiar emerald eyes… Very bright emerald eyes. Then she remembers the owner who she used to see always with her brother and the other basketball team members in middle school.
"N-Natsuki-nee?" Ai said.
"Natsuki, you know her?" Chie asked.
"Yeah… Her name's Ai Daiki…" Natsuki answered.
"What!?" they exclaimed.
"Daiki? As in Aomine Daiki?" Nao asked.
"Yeah... She's Aomine-kun's sister..." Natsuki shrugged.
"Oh, would you look at that... Aicchi is quite shocked..." Kise grinned.
Aomine laughed and smacked Kise in the back of his head.
"She must've shit her shorts right now!" he said.
"Damn... This is bad... Too bad..." Ai shuddered.
"Who is she Ai?" Amaya asked.
"She's Natsuki Kuga..." Ai answered.
"Kuga? Never heard her name..." Akemi said.
"She's a member in my brother's team in middle school." Ai said, still staring at the midnight haired player.
"You mean, she's at Teiko before?" Chiyo said.
"Yeah..." Ai nodded.
"Look, I don't know what you're talking about, but why are you fools being so scared about? She's weak!" Jessy growled.
"You shouldn't say that, Clad..." Ai glared at the foreigner.
"And why is that?" Jessy rolled her eyes being called by her last name.
"Because, I always challenged her in middle school. She accepted it and we did tons of one on ones. Never did I win against her..." she explained.
"Whooo! Go Natsu-chan! Ganbatte! Go crush them!"
"Who the hell is that?"Chiyo asked.
"That would be my dad…" Natsuki said.
They looked at the blonde man in the VIP section who was waving his hands like he's being blown by the wind from a jet engine.
"Now I'm more embarrassed…" Natsuki groaned.
"Quit talking! Let the game start!" the referee said.
Everybody went to their positions and Zipang started the throw in. Chiyo passed the ball to Akemi. Akemi gripped the ball and walked her way to the basket.
"Remember this missy, you're team's gonna get crushed..." Jessy hissed at Akira
"Shouldn't I say the same thing to you?" Akira smirked.
"Heheh... Nice game... Leading the team with three points..."Natsuki smirked at Ai.
Ai just smiled but her heart was slamming out of her chest.
When Ai didn't replied, Natsuki just shrugged, still smirking at the Zipang ace.
"Well, I'll be back shortly..." she said and sped past Ai.
Ai widened her eyes at Natsuki'sspeed, her reaction time didn't survive that tremendous speed.
'So fast... I can't defeat her... She's never been so fast like that in middle school...' Ai thought.
Akemi did a crossover between her legs and prepared for her drive but suddenly, a rush of wind went past her and suddenly the ball was out of her hands.
"Wha!?" she turned and saw Natsuki with the ball, running to the basket.
'Did she just did my Wind Steal!?' she thought.
Natsuki continued to run towards the basket but a shadow loomed over her. Jessy started blocking her.
"You won't get past me, weakling! You might defeat Daiki but she's different than me!" Jessy glared.
"You know what, all I can say is Ai-chan's better than you..." Natsuki said.
Natsuki did a fake drive and then a quick turn and took a shot. Jessy jumped in time to stop Natsuki from shooting. Natsuki dropped and went a
drive position. Jessy fell back and readied herself for the drive.
'A drive to the right!' she thought, getting ready for Natsuki.
But she's damn wrong. Natsuki jumped again and leaned back, shooting the ball 7 feet off the basket and into the hoop with a swish.
Jessy widened her eyes at the shot. She stared at Natsuki who gave her a shrug and went to defense.
'A fadeaway that is so damn far the basket!? H-How!? And not a single sweat!' she thought.
"The game's just starting Ai-chan..." Natsuki smiled at the shocked Ai.
Chiyo gritted her teeth and took the ball and sped her way to the mid-court.
'Damn... We're crumbling...' she thought.
"Hey Nat, should we do it?" Chie asked.
"After they shoot..." Natsuki said.
"Jessy!" Chiyo passed the ball to Amaya who did a tap pass to Jessy.
"Akira! Go!" Natsuki said.
Akira rushed to guard Jessy. Jessy ignored her and took a shot. The ball bounced off the board and was caught by Mikoto.
"Let's go guys!" Mikoto said.
Everybody went to their places and got ready for the new play. Chiyo lost it and rushed to Mikoto, getting into defensive stance.
'Uh oh... I think she lost it...' Mikoto thought. Her pupils began to dilate and her vision showed the top view of court.
Mikoto saw that Akira is available and made eye contact with her. Akira nodded and got out of Jessy's defense and sped towards Mikoto.
'I think the two weeks of hardcore training has been paid off... After two weeks, Mikoto has developed a very useful weapon as a point guard...
The Eagle Eye. A mental ability which allows the player to have wider court vision…' Natsuki thought.
Mikoto passed the ball to Akira who caught it sped to the basket. Jessy followed her and was able to get ahead of her and block her way.
"Not this time missy!" she growled.
"One more 'missy', and I'll shoot this and you can't block it!" Akira glared and did an elbow pass to Nao. Nao grabbed the ball and did a bounce pass towards Amaya.
'Is she crazy!? Passing me the ball? Better take the chance!' she thought as she tried to grab the ball.
But before she can touch the ball, a hand swatted it away and to the hands of the charcoal haired girl.
Chie grabbed the ball and grinned, "Nice pass Nat!"
Amaya turned to see the new member of Falcons appeared in front her, giving the girl with glasses a wave.
'When did she get here!?' she thought.
"Yeah, yeah..." Natsuki said.
Chie grabbed the ball when Akemi guarded her. She smirked and dribbled the ball in a slow pace.
"Are you sure guarding me that far?" she asked.
"Huh?" Akemi said.
"Are you sure? Guarding me that far..." Chie repeated as she took a shot.
Akemi widened her eyes as she realized how far Chie was when she took the shot.
'W-When did she went that far!?' she thought.
The ball went in the basket in a flawless yet fast manner. The crowd went wild at the shot.
"Sugoi!"
"Such a high ark!"
Chie just grinned and raised her arm, holding a V sign with her fingers.
"Nice shot Chie-san!" Akira said.
"You're just lucky when you did that Barrier Shot!" Nao said.
"Hey! Like you can do yours!" Chie argued.
"Hell yeah I can do it!"Nao retorted.
"Will you guys shut up and get to defense..." Natsuki groaned.
They nodded and went their way to the opponent's court. Nao pointed at Chie and glared at her.
"I'll show you what I've learned during the two week training!" she growled.
"Show offs..." Natsuki grumbled and sped her way to Chiyo and stole the ball.
"What!?" Chiyo said.
Natsuki was suddenly guarded by Ai and Akemi.
"Such weak defense..." Natsuki said and jumped high and passed the ball to Chie.
Chie caught the ball and passed it to Nao who is right behind the 3-pont line.
"Show me what you got then!" Chie yelled.
Nao grabbed the ball and quickly shot it to the basket. The ball went in forcefully.
Amaya, who was guarding Nao, was beyond stunned at what happened.
'A quick release!?' she thought.
"Hell yeah! I'm a 3-point shooter now!"Nao grinned.
'After weeks of training, Nao became a Quick Release Three Point Clutch Shooter… A compatible weapon for a power forward…' Natsuki thought.
Ai took the ball and sped her way to the basket. Suddenly, Chie guarded her together with Nao.
"You can't pass through us!" they both said.
Ai did a crossover and ducked then drove between the two. They smirked as their plan went to a complete succession.
SQUEAK…
"Won't you impress me a little… Ai-chan…"
Ai's eyes widened as she saw Natsuki guarding her with a smirk planted on her face.
'Shit… This is damn bad… But I have to!' she thought.
She did crossovers between her legs with a great speed and did a drive to the right. She bounced the ball to her left hand and proceeded to drive to
the left. Her eyes widened as she saw Natsuki still keeping up with her. Never giving any sweat.
'Damn it! She read what I want to do! So fast! I can't get past her!' she thought. She looked to her side to see Natsuki gone.
'W-Where is she!?' she asked herself.
SLAP!
The ball was up in mid-air and was caught by Natsuki. Natsuki grabbed the ball and passed the ball to Chie.
'I didn't know Natsuki can use Misdirection that time… She was beside Ai all along yet she didn't notice her…' Chie thought as she sped towards the basket.
"Akira! Your turn!" Natsuki said as she passed the ball to Akira.
Akira grabbed the ball and dashed to the basket. Jessy followed her and tried to guard her.
"Give up missy! You're gonna lose!" she yelled.
"I told you to stop calling me that! You're gonna suffer!" Akira said, gritting her teeth.
Akira halted her dash and got ready to shoot the ball. Jessy stopped in front of her and raised her arms up to block the shot. Akira stretched her arm backward
and shot the ball. Jessy widened her eyes at the ark.
'I-I can't block the shot!? So high!' she thought.
'Before, I can only guard my tall marks in defense. Now, after working hard for two weeks, I have developed a shot that can't be blocked by my tall marks! Making it a
weapon of offense! The Rising Hook Shot!' Akira thought with a smirk of victory, seeing the face of Jessy.
The ball went so high in the air and went in the basket with swiftness.
"D-Damn…" Jessy murmured.
Chiyo grabbed the ball and sped her way to the other side. Mikoto blocked her way and started guarding her.
'Damn… I can't do anything… She will know what I will do!' Chiyo thought.
She passed the ball to Jessy but the ball was intercepted by Mikoto. Mikoto grabbed the ball nad sped her way to the basket. Mikoto was guarded by Amaya and Akemi.
'D-Double team!?' she thought. She used her Eagle Eye and saw Natsuki speeding up beside her. She passed the ball to Natsuki who caught it and sped to the basket.
Natsuki closed her eyes and concentrated. She felt a gush of wind rushing to her left. Natsuki did a crossover and stepped back, did another crossover and side-stepped to
the left and rushed to the basket. She opened her eyes and saw that Akemi have her eyes widened.
'She predicted my steal!? H-How!?' she thought.
'She heightened her senses and felt for the steal which is predictable… Didn't thought about that…' Midori thought.
Natsuki sped to the basket but was guarded by Ai. Ai has fury in her eyes and the want to win.
"That's it Ai-chan… Try hard…" Natsuki said.
"Don't call me that…" Ai replied.
"I will if you deserve it…" Natsuki shrugged and jumped high and shot the ball.
Ai also jumped and tried to block the shot. Her nail touched the ball and the ball bounced off the rim. Ai caught the ball and rushed to the basket. She drove past
the team and shot the ball, adding two points to Zipang.
"You failed to get the ball in!? Impossible!" Chie said.
"H-How? Is she that strong!?" Nao added.
Natsuki laughed loudly.
"Don't be idiots… I did it on purpose…" Natsuki smirked.
"Why?" Akira asked.
"It's boring to keep scoring and owning the game… The audience will just leave, knowing who the winner is…" Natsuki shrugged.
The game went on for a few minutes and the sound of the awaited buzzer was heard, signalling the end of the third quarter.
"THIRD QUARTER OVER! TEN MINUTE BREAK!"
Both teams went back to their respective benches, all panting and sweating.
"That was fun…" Natsuki said.
"Yeah…" Chie panted.
"The score's 97-95… With us leading…" Akira added.
"I know that you're tired and all… So this quarter, I'll do it myself…" Natsuki shrugged.
"What do you mean? We won't play?" Nao asked.
"Nah… All you have to do is to steal the ball and do fakes… Then pass it to me…" Natsuki said.
"What are you planning?" Midori asked.
"To make Zipang fear Fuuka…"
"BREAK IS OVER! PLAYERS, PLEASE PROCCEED TO THE COURT RIGHT NOW!"
"So, what do you say? You can get your rest…" Natsuki said.
"Sure… Better watch something good…" Nao smirked.
"Okay!" Mikoto added.
"Fine…" Akira stated.
"Okay… But make us win, okay?" Chie grinned.
"Yeah, yeah…" Natsuki groaned.
They stretched and went to the court to start the throw in. Aomine yawned and slouched in his seat.
"I know what she's gonna do…" he said.
"Eh? What is it, Aominecchi?" Kise asked.
Mikoto got the ball and passed it to Chie. Chie passed the ball to Nao. Nao made a bounce pass to Akira who did an elbow pass to Natsuki who was being guarded by Ai.
"I can see that you're getting real Ai-chan…" she said as she saw Ai's enraged eyes.
"I'm gonna crush you Natsuki… I'm gonna make Zipang win!" Ai replied.
"Well, what you're showing right now, isn't gonna beat me…" Natsuki smirked.
"It will! I'm gonna win this!" Ai exclaimed.
"Let me ask you a question…" Natsuki stated.
"Huh?" a confused Ai said.
"Have you ever played with your brother? Have you seen him play?" Natsuki asked.
Ai widened her eyes in realization of what the midnight haired player meant. "You wouldn't…"
"Oh yes I will…"
Natsuki bounced the ball to the right and tilted her body to the left. The ball was in mid-air, in front of Ai's face. Ai took this as an advantage and tried to grab the
ball. But her attempt was stopped when suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed the ball with a blinding speed and drove past her.
Ai's body can't move. Her reaction time can't take the speed emitted by Natsuki. This is something she didn't expect from the midnight haired player. This is beyond scary.
'That move… That's… Aomine-nii's move!' she thought.
"Natsuki will mimic me in the whole fourth quarter… Simply put its speed versus speed." Aomine said.
"She can do that? We all know that you're damn fast… Even I can't do it in one glance…" Kise gaped.
"Even I don't know she can mimic me..." Aomine said.
Everyone widened their eyes Natsuki's speed. Ai gritted her teeth and followed her to the basket with almost blinding speed.
"Not yet!"
Ai jumped after Natsuki to block the shot. But her body bumped forcefully against Natsuki.
PRIIITT!
"You're right… Not yet…"
Natsuki turned her hand backwards and shot the ball from behind. The ball went in the hoop adding two points for Falcons.
Ai widened her eyes at Natsuki. She descended on the ground first. Her hands couldn't stop shaking.
"Green 8! Defensive foul! Basket counts! One free throw!" the referee said.
"Alright! Nice…" Chie said.
"Come on Ai-chan… I thought you're better than that…" Natsuki said and went to the free throw line.
"Dammit…" Ai cursed under her breath.
Natsuki held the ball and took a shot which went in swiftly. The crowd went wild at the shot while the crowd cheering for Zipang went completely silent.
Chiyo caught the ball and sped her way to the basket. She gaped at the formation the Fuuka was doing.
The four others were forming a U shape under the 3-point line with Natsuki in the center. The four others were guarding the Zipang with such precision while Natsuki waited at the back.
'If they're busy guarding the others, who will steal the ba-' Chiyo's thoughts were interrupted when she realized that the ball was out of her hands.
"What the!?" she turned her back and saw Natsuki with the ball speeding towards the hoop.
'She was at the back, far away from me! When did she get here!? How!?' Chiyo thought and turned to her teammates.
"Stop her!"
They quickly rushed and got ahead of Natsuki and got into positions. Natsuki suddenly halted and dribbled the ball in a slow pace.
Chie went beside Natsuki and nudged her. "What formation should we do?"
"Nothing. I told you to rest so rest. No formation. I'll handle this." Natsuki said as she went closer to Chiyo.
The gang just nodded and stood back and just watched Natsuki do what she was going to do.
"I'm sorry but we need to win this…" Natsuki said and got into position. Chiyo said nothing and got into defense.
Natsuki threw the ball towards Chiyo who was surprised and tried to reach for the ball. A hand grabbed the ball and drove past her.
'What!?' Chiyo thought.
Natsuki sped up and stopped in front of Akemi. But before Akemi could react, Natsuki turned and drove past the shocked Akemi.
As Natsuki was closing the gap between her and Amaya, she didn't stop this time as she drove a fake to the left then to the right. Amaya didn't have time to chase
her. Her body was like a frozen iceberg.
"There she goes again, doing an impromptu move…" Aomine smirked.
Kise and the others looked at him inquisitively. Aomine just groaned and sat up properly, crossing his arms on his chest.
"I guess Kise told you that Nat can invent moves. Impromptu or planned, still works impressively. She rarely uses impromptu ones but
today, you're seeing one…" he explained.
Natsuki got past Amaya and got guarded by Jessy and Ai. The three of them jumped when Natsuki got near the basket.
"There's no way!" the two Soldiers said.
But that didn't stopped Natsuki as she was still in the air while the other two are already going down the court. Natsuki dunked the ball with a bam
in the hoop. The supporters of Fuuka went wild after seeing the dunk.
"She broke past five people!? Sugoi!" Mikoto grinned while the others have their eyes widened.
"She really is the mysterious ace… So many tricks in her sleeves…" Chie said.
Natsuki just walked to the other side while thinking of the drive that she did.
'It's been so long since I did some impromptu moves… What should I call that one? Well, based on my analogies, my drive can make the opponent 'freeze' on their
spot… Maybe I should call it Cold Rush…' she thought while getting on defense position.
'How can she go past five of us!?' Ai thought. 'She drastically improved…' she added.
'If this keeps up, we won't last much longer…' Chiyo thought as she grabbed the ball.
"Run & Gun!" she said and passed the ball to Akemi.
Akemi caught the ball and went her way to the basket. She passed the ball to Amaya who did a bounce pass to Jessy. Jessy caught the ball and did an overhead
pass to Ai. Ai positioned herself to a shooting form and took a shot.
SLAP!
"Damn, Ai-chan… You're too slow…"
Ai widened her eyes as she saw that Natsuki was in front of her and already intercepted the ball. She grabbed the ball and sped up to the basket.
"Speed up Soldiers!" Chiyo yelled at the Zipang. The team nodded and went to follow Natsuki. Chie and the others just looked at the scene.
"Show off…" Nao scoffed.
Chie whacked her head. "Idiot! She's helping us! Not showing off…" the others just nodded.
"She knows that we've been playing for thirty minutes… She's not showing off…" Akira agreed.
Natsuki sped up and was guarded by Jessy. Natsuki jumped high sideways and positioned her arm to a hook shot. Jessy quickly reacted as she jumped and
raised her arm to block the shot but she was beyond shocked when she saw Natsuki higher than her.
Natsuki threw the ball to the basket and it went in with great force. Everyone was stunned at the shot Natsuki made.
"What shot was that!? A hook?"
"A jumpshot?"
"That was freaking formless! Sugoi!"
'Those formless shots… Aomine-nii was the only one who can do formless shots because he can shoot in any angles… That's why he's
the Unstoppable Scorer…' Ai thought in both amazement and horror that was tingling up in her spine. She looked at the
score board. 118 – 99 with Fuuka leading.
The Zipang did another Run & Gun to get ahead of the Falcons. The other team just did a man to man defense. Mikoto intercepted the ball from Amaya and gave it to Natsuki.
Natsuki caught the ball and sped her way to the basket. Ai followed her with great speed just like before and got ahead of Natsuki. She assumed a defense position while waiting for Natsuki.
Natsuki stopped in front of the hoop and jumped to shoot the ball. Ai also jumped, raising both of her arms to stop the shot.
"I'll stop you with all I've got!" she said.
"Yeah, yeah… You talk much…"
Natsuki leaned back one hundred seventy degrees while still holding the ball. Ai gaped at how far and low Natsuki was getting.
Natsuki smirked and shot the ball so high that Ai's arms can't reach it. The ball went into the basket so swiftly. The crowd exclaimed some 'ooohhsss' and 'Sugoi!' at the shot.
'How can she do that!? Her body was almost parallel to the ground!' both teams thought.
Aomine widened his eyes. 'She can do that!? Her body's lower than mine! When I do that, I can do just one hundred sixty!' he thought.
'Ara, Natsuki… Amazing…' the chestnut haired goddess thought.
"Wow! Natsukicchi really improved!" Kise grinned.
"She didn't just improve…" Aomine said.
"What do you mean?" Kise asked.
"She's really like that ever since… She hasn't showed anything yet…" Ai told herself, watching Natsuki do another shot.
As the minutes go by, Natsuki can't be stopped. Concluding that in the game of speed, Zipang will lose.
Mikoto passed the ball to Akira who did an elbow pass to Nao. Nao caught the ball and looked at the scoreboard. 145 – 108, Falcons taking the lead with ten seconds left on the clock.
'I don't need to exert effort in this… It's decided.' she thought and passed the ball to Chie who was standing behind the 3-point line. Chie gripped the ball tight and did the Barrier Shot once again.
A flash of blue ran past her and stopped in front of the opponent's basket and jumped. Chie widened her eyes at the sight.
'Ai Daiki! She jumps so high! Dammit, she can block the ball!' she thought.
'What should we do!? She'll be able to block it!' Akira thought as she rushed closer the basket.
'I can do this! The ball is just inches away!' Ai thought as she blocks the ball.
"Is that all you got? You really don't learn…"
Ai's eyes widened when she saw Natsuki in front of her and also higher than her.
'When did she get here!?' Ai thought.
Natsuki caught the ball that Chie tried to shot and turned in mid-air. The turn is not just a normal one. She did a 360 degree turn in mid-air and got past Ai and dunked the ball with
so much force that the sound rang in the whole court.
The awaited buzzer was heard, ending the game. Ai fell on the floor first then Natsuki followed. At the time Ai's feet closed its gap on the floor; her body went limp and slumped
on the floor. Exhaustion and fear throughout the game has taken its toll on her.
"GAME OVER!"
"You wanna know why you lost?"
Ai looked up to see Natsuki in front of her. She hung her head in defeat, knowing the answer.
"First, you're not yet strong enough. Second, your shot are the complete opposite of what I do. Your shots always have form. If you're out of form, you're gonna
miss. That's why you won't play with Aomine… He's the complete opposite of you." Natsuki said, not looking at her.
"Let's play sometime… Okay?" she added and went to the team.
Ai widened her eyes at what Natsuki said. Tears fell from her eyes because of happiness. She was able to play with her again. And this time, she gave her all
and all she didn't know she could give.
The Zipang Soldiers just stared at the ball that was on the floor. They couldn't believe it that an academy that was only made three years ago has defeated their school
that was made twenty five years ago. And their school's specialty was basketball. The Soldiers was too laid back and the Falcons taught them a lesson.
"We… lost…" Chiyo said.
"I can't believe it… How?" Jessy added. The twins just hung their heads in defeat.
"Heh! Don't be so sad about it! There's nothing to be gloomy about!"
They turned to Ai who was already at her feet, grinning like nothing happened. Ai went to Chiyo and patted her shoulder.
"Cheer up Captain! This day is great! We've been too confident and Fuuka helped us realize it. We should be thankful!" she grinned and gave the Soldiers a thumbs up.
Chiyo smiled and nodded, "You're right Ai." She turned to the others. "Let's go Soldiers!"
The team nodded. "Hai! Captain!"
"But I still can't believe we lost!" Jessy said.
"Suck it up!" the twins said, grinning.
"Cheh…" Jessy just huffed.
"Yeah! We won!" the four others cheered.
"All players, please line up!" the referee said. Both teams line up, facing each other.
"The score of 147 to 108, the winner, Fuuka!"
"Thank you very much!" both teams bowed.
"Alright! Congrats guys!" Midori grinned, patting each one on the back.
"Congratulations first years." Riku said, saluting them.
"Arigato! Captain!" the gang bowed.
"Natsuki!"
"Huh?"
A weight was slumped on Natsuki, catching her off guard. She then saw the familiar chestnut locks of her very supporting best friend. Scent of lavender
enters her nose and suddenly remembered the one hugging her and blushed.
"You were amazing there Na-chan!" Shizuru said, breaking the hug, missing the warmth and the scent of the sea mixed with sweat in Natsuki.
"I told you… I will win." Natsuki replied.
"Well, well, well, that was awesome Natsu-chan!" Takeshi said, grinning.
"Thanks dad… But you don't need to cheer so loud when I'm in the court." Natsuki groaned.
"N-Natsu-chan's ashamed of her father? I'm hurt!" Takeshi turns around and made sobbing sounds.
"Shut up will ya?" Natsuki glared.
"Natsu-kun?" a deep Kyoto accent rang Natsuki's ears. She turned around and saw an exact replica of Shizuru except that this woman is more mature and has violet eyes.
"Ara, it is you~!" she squealed and hugged Natsuki.
"Shitsu-obasan?" Natsuki blurted.
"Mother?" Shizuru said.
The gang and the other members of the team just remained silent.
'We're not gonna react at this one…' they thought.
"Ara, Okaa-chan? Why are you here? I thought you're in a business trip." Shizuru wondered.
"Ara, I am sweetie… I'm with Takeshi. I'm having business with him." her mother replied.
"I invited Shitsuki here so she can watch my daughter since it's been so long and Natsu-chan is gonna be the vice president of the company." Takeshi explained.
"Ara, Natsu-kun, you have grown! And ara, you're tanned! It's so sexy~!" Shitsuki commented while Natsuki blushed. "What a cute blush~! Kawaii~!" she added.
"Ara, okaa-chan, stop teasing her. She's too young for you. Though I agree with the tanned part…" Shizuru winked.
"Are you on my side or what?" Natsuki grumbled at her.
Shitsuki looked at her watch and turned to the two. "We would love to chat but we should go now, we have a flight to U.S. to discuss some business." Shitsuki said and Takeshi nodded.
"Bye Natsu-chan! Congrats and Good luck." Takeshi hugged Natsuki who returned the gesture.
"Ara, Shizu-chan, give your mother a hug." Shitsuki hugged her daughter who just laughed at her antics.
"Ara, before I forgot, I left some money in your account Natsu-kun, so you can celebrate your win." Shitsuki winked.
"Uhh… Arigato but you don't need to do that…" Natsuki scratched her cheek.
"Ara, I already did. And besides, we won't be seeing each other every day so better just spoil you." Shitsuki said.
"Sayonara, puppy~!" Takeshi said and left with Shitsuki following him.
"I said don't call me that!" Natsuki yelled.
As the interactions and the cheering continued, they didn't notice a lone figure watching them from afar. Storm-like eyes watch them with disgust. The figure said nothing and left.
"I'm so sleepy… I wanna go home…" Natsuki said while petting Duran.
"But what about the celebration? Shouldn't we have a party or something?" Nao said.
"We can just do it tomorrow Nao." Chie smirked.
"Alright team! Let's go home!" Midori said.
"Alright!" the team cheered.
The team, except the gang, went to the bus with the cheerleaders. The Student Council rode the car and the Three Idiots ran to the van which is also
called the 'Deadly Van' ever since Midori sat in the van's driver seat. They went home talking about the game that have been played very well. The bus was loud
because of the cheerleaders singing Only Girl by Rhianna.
"Hey, isn't this song pretty sexual?" Kaori asked Risa.
"Yeah… My sis and Kallen likes it though…" Risa replied.
"How can you say that?" Kaori asked.
Risa didn't say anything and pointed at the seat behind them. Kaori looked and her jaw dropped when she saw Kallen and Riku singing with the cheerleaders.
"Take it off!" Kallen yelled.
"Take it off Youko-sensei!" Riku added.
"What!? You're so disrespectful Riku!" Kallen blurted.
"Why is that so?" Riku countered.
"She can't take it off coz she's driving! Maybe later!" Kallen grinned and patted Riku's shoulder.
Youko, who can hear the too loud conversation, just sighed.
"Kids these days… Hormones…" she mumbled.
Then the van was the total opposite of the bus. It was a complete and total silence. Which is very, very weird, right?
Midori looked at the rear view mirror to see the gang sleeping soundly. Mikoto is on the floor, sleeping with drool drooping down her mouth, mumbling something about
ramen. Chie had her head tilted to the side, the window supporting her head, her glasses disarranged. Akira was leaning forward, her sweaty head leaning on the seat
in front of her. Nao had her body upside down. Her head on the floor and her feet on the seat. Natsuki had her head tilted back and her mouth gaping open, with drool coming
from her mouth, pooling her white shirt.
Midori just smiled and focused her eyes on the road. 'Well, they worked hard for their new moves… I never really intended to do that…' she thought.
While Reito was driving, Haruka blabbered about the Fuuka's win to Yukino and Shizuru was staring out the window, thinking of Natsuki.
'Ara, Natsuki was amazing back there… I know she was playing basketball before, I've seen her play but this is something new… She really changed for the
better, no, for the best…' she thought.
After the ride, they got out of their own vehicles and went to their respected rooms. After changing their clothes, they went to bed but before Natsuki hopped on her
bed; her phone rang with the new phone ringtone, Rimfire by GRANRODEO.
She picked up her phone and excused herself and went outside. She flipped open her phone and pressed the call button. "Hello?" she said.
"Yo, Nat…" the deep voice rang.
"Aomine-kun, why are you calling?" Natsuki asked.
"I just wanna thank you coz you dunked some sense in my sister's head…" Aomine said.
"I should do that to you sometime…" Natsuki smirked even though she can't be seen by the blue haired guy.
"No you won't…" Aomine retorted.
"You can't stop me, Ahou-mine…" Natsuki said.
"Whatever. Just do your best at the Quarter Finals… You have a great team…" he said with a serious tone.
"We're a great team too you know…" Natsuki said.
"We're not a team… We're a brotherhood, Nat. Remember that…" Aomine replied.
"Sure… A brotherhood…" Natsuki nodded.
"You better sleep now, your team is having a party tomorrow…." the tanned guy said.
"Yeah… Thanks Aomine-kun…. Bye." Natsuki said and ended the call.
Natsuki just sighed and looked at the full moon that was visible even inside the room. She stetched a bit and went back to the dorm room. She carried Duran and went to bed.
"Good Night Duran… We're both tired…" she said, petting Duran's head.
"Arf!"
Natsuki gazed her eyes at the window, looking at the full moon again.
"Good Night Shi-chan…" she whispered.
At the same time, the brunette goddess was looking at the beautiful moon, shining brightly.
"Good Night… Na-chan…"
Hooray~!
Another chapter accomplished~!
Sorry if the update took so long. I had a one week writer's block...
I called Aomine Daiki 'Ahou-mine' because Ahou means 'fool'...
Thanks and leave a Review, it's my medicine!
You can recommend the next team who will fight Fuuka together with your review!
If you want status about the story or you just want to be friends with me, you can follow me on Twitter on KazukiKenji11~!
ARIGATO GOZAIMASU!