Disclaimer: I don't own Karuko no Basuke

A/N: Because I have the GoM together at Rakuzan, they did not get to keep their three Uncrowned Kings (Could you imagine? Scary!). I've put Kotaro Hayama at Kaijo (switched with Kise) for the story, but I'm not including a description of the practice game except a reference in this chapter that Seirin won. Since Kagami isn't playing for Seirin here, my account of the Shinkyo-Seirin game doesn't really match up with the anime and combines a little of the Kaijo and Shinkyo games for expediency. If there's a term for something that means "OOC game play" that's basically what is going to happen here. I hope it's not too confusing and that you like this chapter. :-)

The Shadow Stratagem

Chapter 10

It was a few days later when Kagami inadvertently set in motion events that would change the level of rivalry between Kuroko and the Generation of Miracles. Since Kuroko's revelation the previous week, they had added basketball to almost every conversation between them. And in the spirit of friendship, Kuroko had told Kagami about Seirin's first game in the Inter High qualifiers. They would be playing Shinkyo High, a team that had rapidly improved with the addition of an international student from Senegal, Papa Mbaye Siki. After practice, Kagami had asked Aomine what he knew about the Shinkyo team, and the rest of the Generation of Miracles overheard the exchange.

"Eh? Why do you care about Shinkyo, Kagami? If we come against them we'll barely have to break a sweat, they're nothing to worry about."

"Oh. So they're not very strong? I saw the bracket for the Inter High preliminaries, they have a match this week, and since this is the first round of the competition, I was just wondering how it might go."

Akashi looked over at the pair and he had a strong suspicion as to the reason for Kagami's question. He kept silent for the moment as he continued to observe the situation.

"Tch. Not for us at least. I doubt they'll make it very far in the bracket. Do you know who they're playing? That'll probably tell you right away if they'll even make it past the first round."

"Yeah they're playing Seirin. I thought I might go watch the game since Kuroko's playing and I don't know how far they'll get, so I want to support him at least for now." Kuroko had told Kagami the others knew he was on the Seirin team so he didn't think there was any reason to hide his interest in the game.

"An excellent idea, Taiga. We should all go support our schoolmate, we're not truly rivals yet, so it would be the gracious thing to do." Akashi's voice was calm but he was feeling excited. He hadn't actually seen Tetsuya play and he was interested to have the opportunity to evaluate the other's skills.

When Kagami told Kuroko they were coming to watch the match the Kuroko had merely nodded. He had expected that would happen eventually. The nature of the tournament meant that there were opportunities for other teams to scout your own efforts, and really he could not expect any less from Akashi-kun. If Seirin won, it gave Akashi an early opportunity to see their strength; if they lost, Akashi would be on hand to reinforce the inferiority of his team's attack.

Kuroko recalled the team practice following his revelation to Kagami. His teammates had quietly offered their support in light of Kuroko's disappointment and he'd appreciated their understanding. Himuro had been amused – he'd commented that Taiga wasn't one for deep thinking so he'd probably need a more concrete experience to understand. Kuroko had privately relayed Kagami's surprise at Himuro's presence in Japan and his seeming nervousness about their eventual encounter. Himuro had been silent for a moment before his grey gaze focused on Kuroko again. He'd simply stated they had things to settle but it would be coming soon enough.

The other members of Seirin were similarly accepting of their Rakuzan spectators. They couldn't afford to let their guard down at any stage of the tournament so it was possible they might have to show all their cards early on. But they didn't have a choice so in the end, everyone merely shrugged philosophically and continued with their training. Riko had been extremely proud of the team for not buckling under the pressure and Kuroko had been happy to see everyone's resolve.

Now they just had to win.

-Seirin's match against Shinkyo-

As Seirin warmed up they noticed that the Sengalese player not yet arrived. Tanimura, Shinkyo's captain, wandered over to them and asked if they had really managed to defeat Kaijo, and Hyuga answered in the affirmative with the disclaimer it had been a practice game.

At that moment, Papa Mbaye Siki entered the gymnasium and with an apology for being late, was brought up to speed by his captain that Seirin had defeated Kaijo and their Uncrowned King, Kotaro Hayama. The tall player looked dismissively at them, he saw no threat among the assembled players, and simply stated, "They brought me here to beat the Uncrowned Kings and Generation of Miracles. But it seems there will be no challenge here after all." Seirin visibly fumed at this low estimation of their skill but resolved to show the other what they were made of.

"Dad," as Seirin had dubbed him after having difficulty pronouncing his name, proceeded to walk away but stumbled into Kuroko, who he hadn't seen standing there. He frowned and lifted Kuroko in the air, saying loudly "No, little boy, the court is no place for children." When Kuroko's shirt rode up and revealed his uniform underneath, the international student was stunned, "You're a player? If an Uncrowned King lost to a child like him…are all of them children?" He set Kuroko down with a look of disgust as he walked away.

Up in the stands Kagami frowned. He knew Kuroko was probably not the strongest player but that was still very rude in his book. Aomine snorted, "He's not wrong, Tetsu's not very impressive looking on the court. But if he's comparing us to children, well, if Seirin loses we'll be happy to show him soon enough the strength of the Generation of Miracles."

Kuroko's teammates couldn't help it, they were giggling at the mistake. However, at the soft "Honestly, I'm getting annoyed" from Kuroko, they all immediately quieted and even Aomine lifted an eyebrow in surprise at the look on the Kuroko's face, though he hadn't heard the comment.

"Kurochin has a temper." Murasakibara's matter of fact observation was delivered as he worked on opening a package of seaweed crisps; he frowned as the bag proved to be more difficult than expected. "They should be careful."

"Who, Seirin? You think he's too emotional to play?" Kise was surprised by Murasakibara's comment, one didn't normally think of Kuroko as a volatile person.

The purple haired teen, already annoyed that his snack was proving troublesome, glared at Kise for his misunderstanding. "No. The other team. Kurochin doesn't like being underestimated. You should know that, Kisechin." Kise flushed at this reminder but kept silent.

As the teams lined up to begin the game, Papa Mbaye Siki was yawning and could not have looked less interested if he'd wanted to. The match started and the tall international student was easily able to take the ball over the shorter Seirin team at the tip off.

He was, however, unprepared for the swift steal that Himuro managed to perform; the shooting guard sent it to Hyuga who immediately sank a three pointer. Midorima analyzed the shot and concluded that while it was not on his level, it was a good one. Kagami watched Tatsuya with something akin to pain in his eyes; it had been a long time since he had played ball with the other teen and he missed it.

Dad was angry at this early upset and when Shinkyo moved for the counterattack he was ready to get the points back. He lazily shot the ball high above the Seirin players and smirked at their reactions. This would be easy. The Shinkyo team seemed to share this thought as they congratulated their star player and prepared to continue sending Papa the ball.

Tanimura addressed Hyuga after hearing the disappointed groans from Seirin's bench. "Are you one of those hardworking teams? We see a lot of them. What's wrong with having strong players? We're not breaking any rules and it makes the game easy, we just have to pass him the ball."

"Eh? We have our own strong players. There's nothing wrong with using strength, but don't complain about the results if your policy is to rely only on him. We're an offensive team for a reason." Hyuga's reply seemed to confuse the other captain as he couldn't imagine Seirin being able to counter Papa's strength.

However, with Mitobe guarding him Dad found his usual accuracy was greatly reduced because he couldn't get into the position that he wanted to. The silent player infuriated the tall international student, who was finally forced to retreat from the attack position because of the center's defensive style. "It's a good strategy for them, since they can't jump high enough to block those shots, they've concentrated their efforts on keeping Papa unsettled while they go for outside shots." Akashi's assessment was delivered casually but it held appreciation of the plan.

Shinkyo caught a break when they managed to block one of Hyuga's shots and take possession of the ball, but they were astonished to have the ball immediately stolen by what seemed like magic as they had forgotten about Kuroko.

The Rakuzan delegation all frowned, they had also forgotten Kuroko was playing and had lost sight of him among the more dominant players. Akashi kept his eyes trained on Tetsuya for a while, seeking to uncover the secrets of his style. It was difficult; the phantom player rarely had the ball for more than a moment as he seemed to primarily pass to his teammates; especially the one with the fascinating Mirage Shot that had been deployed so effectively against Shinkyo. But as he watched the other team continually seem to lose track of Tetsuya, Akashi understood the technique was related to misdirection, a logical way to use Tetsuya's minimal presence to Seirin's advantage.

The teams seemed fairly well matched; the score stayed close as each team worked hard to make their shots and defend against the other. It was not until Dad saw what appeared to be a loose ball coming toward him that Seirin's true attacking power was revealed. He didn't notice the blue haired player's movement until the ball vanished from his sight. Kuroko's deflection of the ball toward Himuro was fast and powerful, and Dad was unprepared for the swiftly orchestrated dance between the two as they moved in between members of Shinkyo's defense.

Himuro caught Kuroko's eye and because of their long practice with this plan, they synchronized instantly for Himuro to fake an advance while Kuroko moved to receive his pass and immediately send it back around Shinkyo's defense, allowing Himuro to score without interference. Dad was incredulous at this coordination and as he swung his arms around to chase after Himuro, he accidentally, but forcefully, struck Kuroko, causing him to fall down. The referee called for a time out as Hyuga and Himuro both went over to their teammate to ask if he was alright. Kuroko was bleeding and looked disoriented, he tried to say he was okay but it clear he was not and Riko asked for a first aid kit. After Kuroko was helped off the court Seirin struggled to keep the game a close one; they'd lost momentum and their ability to get around the other team without their blue haired shadow.

"I knew we didn't have anything to worry about. Felled with a single blow? Pathetic." Kise's comment was bored, he hadn't wanted to come in the first place and his fairly low opinion of Kuroko hadn't been changed by this performance.

"Shut up, Kise. Kuroko's shorter than we are, the angle was worse for him." Kagami's defense was immediate and angry but Kise merely shrugged. Basketball was a sport of size after all, it was exceedingly clear to him that Seirin fell short on several levels.

Akashi watched the proceedings with an apparently dispassionate expression. Internally he was divided; if Seirin was so weak that the removal of one player was all it took to defeat them then they were not ready to advance. On the other hand, he found he did not care for the method with which Tetsuya's team would be neutralized if that happened.

The score steadily crept away from Seirin, with Shinkyo leading by a 22 point margin in the third quarter. Riko was watching the team anxiously and in response to Furihata's question about any possibilities to recover, answered only that they needed Kuroko, who was still lying down on medical mat behind their bench.

"Very well, I'll be going then." They turned to see Kuroko shakily getting up, the bandage covering his head making him look even more pitiful than he sounded.

"No Kuroko-kun! You can't play!" Riko was surprised he was even able to stand, and he wanted to get back on the court?

"But you just told me to go. Please, if I can make a difference, let me go out there."

The coach eyed her injured player, taking an assessment of his overall condition. Her scan reassured her that he was better than he looked. "Okay, Kuroko-kun. But if it looks like you're in trouble, I am subbing you out immediately. Go get them!"

Murasakibara hadn't really been paying attention to the game for a while but he did notice Kuroko's conference with his coach. "Kurochin's coming back in." The others swiveled their heads to verify this statement and almost all of them were incredulous at this turn of events.

"Are they crazy? He looks like he can barely stand! This is suicide!" Aomine's surprise was not unwarranted.

"No, they're not that desperate; they mean to win. He wouldn't be allowed to come back in if it wasn't intended to assist with their victory, so they must have a plan." Midorima's opinion on the matter notwithstanding, it still looked like Seirin was in a difficult situation.

Kuroko waited for the "Seirin! Member Change!" announcement to be called from the officials before heading out to the court to replace Koganei. Himuro watched his partner return and with a quiet "Let's go, Kuroko-kun," they were ready to engage their opponents. The tone of the game changed – Seirin's morale visibly rose with the return of their phantom and it was if they'd all received an energy burst as well. Suddenly, Shinkyo's lead looked less than secure, and Seirin quickly clawed back up to a single basket difference.

"They work well together." If there was a hint of wistfulness in Kagami's comment, none of the others mentioned it.

"Kurochin probably has to; he's not a normal player. That other one seems like he's strong enough on his own though."

"Tatsuya's strong. I can tell he's even stronger than the last time I saw him."

"Taiga, you seem to have an endless string of interesting acquaintances." Akashi's softly drawled observation was not without bite.

"I know him from America- he taught me to play basketball."

Aomine quirked an eyebrow before teasing, "Then he's definitely improved because you sucked when you got here."

As if that was a pre-designated signal, they all turned their attention back to the match and paid careful attention to the battle being waged in front of them.

It was exhausting, but because Kuroko had regained his effectiveness from the unanticipated break, he was able to reapply his misdirection against Shinkyo. The watchful eyes of the Generation of Miracles noted that his overall stamina was low; they could tell he was almost at his end, but they simultaneously recognized the determination in his eyes that stated he would tolerate nothing less than victory.

"He's like me" Akashi realized with some surprise. Tetsuya's style was different from his own, certainly, but as Akashi watched he noticed that Kuroko's passes inspired the team to work more effectively and that he frequently caught up with individual players to hold quick strategy sessions as situations warranted it during the game. It was a bit like looking into a distorted mirror – Tetsuya was not powerful enough to take on the captain's mantle, true, but he was incontrovertibly strengthening the team and facilitating their strategies to a notable degree.

"I thought you said he scored a basket against you, Aominecchi. He hasn't taken a shot in this game. All he does is steal or pass. What fun is that?"

Aomine frowned, "Maybe it was a lucky shot; Tetsu might not have mastery over it. But he definitely can do it at least some of the time."

Midorima snorted, "Idiots. Look at his form – he's still unsteady from his injury. Kuroko's nowhere near our strength even at his best, but you can tell he's fighting disorientation right now. See how he keeps tilting to correct for imbalance before he pivots to change directions? He won't risk using an ability he doesn't have absolute confidence with while in this state and most likely his shots are not his strongest weapon. If anything this should tell you how self-assured he is about those passes and steals; you can't see any decrease in their power despite the injury."

Papa was not giving up yet, however, and by sheer determination he and the rest of the Shinkyo team kept the score close as the seconds ticked away. He wasn't having his usual point run because of Mitobe's pressure defense but he wasn't so inexperienced a player to be continually shut out even with the frustrating conditions at hand. The final six seconds had the score tied 71-71 but Papa refused to accept a loss at the hands of a team with a child on it. When he finally managed to dodge Mitobe and was about to shoot the winning basket, he was unprepared to see Kuroko speeding toward him and the smaller player forcefully slammed the ball out of his hands toward Himuro; who gracefully evaded the stunned Shinkyo members to sink a three point buzzer beater, affording Seirin the win, 74-71.

Akashi took in these final moments silently. He recognized the results for what they were. It reinforced his understanding that Tetsuya was dangerously committed to his goals. There would be no bluffing or intimidation that would work here; it was an interesting proposition to consider.

The last thing Kuroko saw before he was swarmed by his teammates was Akashi-kun's unwavering stare from the stands. By the time the joyful huddle disbanded, Akashi and the other Rakuzan athletes had left.

-After the game-

Once Kuroko was examined at the local hospital and given the all clear, the team felt they could truly celebrate their win. It was a combination of relief at advancing, not having serious harm done to Kuroko, and sheer giddiness in response to the endorphins flowing through all of them. The team could even pick up on the small indicators of delight in Himuro and Kuroko; neither of whom was known for being very expressive.

Riko saw a truck advertising free steak pass by and suggested they have a meal together in honor of the occasion. The Seirin team soon found themselves faced with a task that seemed as equally difficult to accomplish as making it to the Inter High finals – a four kilogram steak was set in front of each player, they had thirty minutes to eat it or each of them that failed would have to pay ten thousand yen. Needless to say, it was unlikely they could pay for one unfinished steak, let alone the bill that would be presented for the team as a whole. Kuroko took in the daunting situation and calmly pulled out his phone and tapped out a quick message to Kagami-kun. The others didn't notice this action but they would soon be grateful for Kuroko's foresight.

They were all wearing their "Seirin, FIGHT!" faces and gamely attacked the challenge, but it was quickly proving to be overwhelming. Kuroko tapped out after less than an eighth of his steak had been consumed, with a polite "I give up" as he daintily dabbed his mouth with a napkin.

"KUROKO!" was collectively groaned as they realized the blue haired player was absolutely useless in this battle. They paid no attention to the door opening as someone entered the restaurant; they were all too busy trying to force another forkful of the tasty, but gargantuan, steak into their mouths.

"Hey, Kuroko, great game! Are you done with that already? Can I have it then?" Kuroko looked up to see Kagami and with no small relief, he passed the plate to his large classmate as the tall redhead claimed the seat across from him.

"Thanks for coming, Kagami-kun. Yes, please finish it."

Kagami waved casually to the Seirin team as he began attacking Kuroko's steak. Kuroko smiled and quickly introduced his friend to the others. Everyone had mixed reactions at seeing him in person after hearing about the Rakuzan student from both Kuroko and Himuro.

"This is delicious, I should order more!" Then taking note that many of the others seemed to be done, he asked them to hand it over to save him the trouble of getting up. There was an immediate pile in front of the redhead who wasted no time cheerfully launching into the fray. Kagami's arrival was a stroke of good fortune for the Seirin team as he easily conquered the enemy – meaning everyone watched with fascinated horror as the tall redhead seemed to merely inhale and the food disappeared.

"I see some things haven't changed, Taiga. Did Kuroko-kun summon reinforcements?" Himuro's soft voice was amused as he watched Kagami's swift and efficient decimation of what had seemed an insurmountable task for ten individuals but proved laughably easy for this one champion. Kagami paused with his fork in midair; he'd very carefully avoided looking at the enigmatic teen seated next to Kuroko but it seemed he wouldn't be able to continue doing that.

"Yeah. Well, watching the game wasn't the same as playing, but I still got fired up so I was hungry anyway. Kuroko mentioned your team was here and said if I was still in the area I should drop by." Kagami unconsciously fiddled with the ring he wore around his neck and Himuro's mouth flattened as he took in the gesture. It was instantly noticeable how the air between Kagami and Himuro seemed to thicken with tension. The Seirin team shifted uncomfortably, they weren't sure what to do as this reunion was clearly fraught.

"Kagami-kun, Himuro-san, I apologize for rushing your reunion like this. But in order for Kagami-kun to save us, he must finish the food in the next six minutes. Please pardon my selfishness; however may I ask for a brief pause in your discussion?" Kuroko's intrusion broke the tension and everyone laughed as Kagami and Himuro both looked surprised by Kuroko's statement.

Kagami smirked self-consciously before reaching over and lightly punching Kuroko's shoulder. "You bastard. Fine, I'll save you guys this once." He quickly returned to the waiting steaks as the owner of the establishment was frantically staring at the clock, wishing for the time to wind down before the teenager could finish.

Himuro agreed as well. But the older teen actually excused himself, saying he had an errand he had to take care of. After obtaining Riko's permission and taking his leave of everyone, he slipped out. Kuroko followed him to ask in private if he was okay. Himuro nodded his head and thanked Kuroko for his concern. "I'm not ready to just sit down with him until the other matter is settled. So I can't stay. But I'll see you soon Kuroko-kun, please take care since you're injured."

As Kuroko started to go back inside he caught a flash of yellow out of the corner of his eye and turned to see Kise casually leaning against the fence and looking at him. The blond had a nonchalant smile and gave a small wave in his direction before calling out, "Good game, Kuroko. Do you have a minute to talk?"

Kuroko hesitated briefly before going over. "Hello Kise-kun. What can I do for you?"

"Let's walk a moment." And so Kuroko found himself silently accompanying Kise down the sidewalk, there was no real destination in mind but as fate would have it they ended up outside a street ball court and Kise nimbly scaled a bench to sit along the backrest and stretch his legs down over the seat.

"How's your head? You went down pretty hard."

"It's fine. The doctor said I should rest but that otherwise no permanent damage was done."

Kise eyed him before slyly asking, "So you told him the truth, hmm? I was surprised. But when we found ourselves ordered to attend this match, to support you of course, after Kagamicchi asked about Shinkyo, we all knew."

"Yes, I told him. On the whole its better, neither Akashi-kun nor myself can use it as leverage anymore."

"You're still hung-up on this idea that you're somehow protecting Kagamicchi, aren't you? I don't understand you, Kuroko. Winning is everything in sports. I saw you today; you don't play with the goal to lose any more than we do. The only difference is that we don't have to work as hard as you do to ensure that. Rakuzan's basketball wins, so it is right. Once he gets a few games under his belt, Kagamicchi will be more like us. Will he still be so precious to you when that happens?"

"Kise-kun –" Whatever Kuroko was going to say was cut off as Kagami came flying toward him and roughly shoved him.

"Bastard, why'd you run off with Kise like that? Your coach, who by the way is threatening that a Boston crab hold will be in your very near future, is really pissed off. You left without taking your bag so we couldn't call you. That's not very smart when you've just been injured, idiot."

Kagami then glanced over at Kise, saying shortly, "Yo."

The blonde pursed his lips before asking "Were you listening?"

"I sure as hell was! Why'd you kidnap Kuroko like that?

"What? Who cares if I talk with him a little bit?"

"Seirin does, apparently. They can't go home yet. You know he's injured, they were worried. Their coach is going on about responsibility or something like that."

While Kagami and Kise continued arguing in this way, Kuroko noticed some thugs arriving at the basketball court and that they began hassling the group already having a game. There was a snarky offer from the new arrivals to settle it with basketball, which the players that had gotten there first uneasily accepted.

At first, things were going well. But when one of the interlopers that had been standing on the sidelines intervened and blocked a shot despite the three-on-three design, then kicked the downed player, it was clear the game was taking a dangerous turn. Kuroko had already been moving to their side and his voice was tight from anger, "There's nothing fair about this. This isn't basketball. Besides, violence is bad."

Kagami and Kise couldn't believe their eyes as they took in the smaller teen, his head still bandaged from his earlier injury, apparently prepared to intervene and take on the five large males that were bristling with aggression. "What the hell is he doing?" Kagami asked incredulously.

Even Kise wasn't sure how to react to this and they both went striding over as another of the bullies gripped Kuroko's collar in his fist and was starting to lift him off the ground, asking "What do you think you're doing?"

The ringleader laughed however there was no kindness in it. "To think there's still guys like this nowadays. Fine, we'll settle this with basketball." It was abundantly clear they were planning to destroy Kuroko for his impertinence.

Just as those words finished leaving the thug's mouth, Kagami's hand dropped onto Kuroko's head as he and Kise came up behind the smaller teen.

"Mind if we join, too?" Kise's request was playful but you didn't have to strain to hear his intention to wipe the floor with the bullies. He glanced over at Kuroko before adding, "We can't let you have all the fun, Kuroko."

"Tch, why'd you get involved, you bastard?" Kagami's question held annoyance yet he was secretly excited to have the opportunity to blow off some steam; he'd been riled up for a while now. The would-be bullies looked scared now but Kagami wasn't through. "Five-on-three's fine. Bring it on."

This pissed the five ruffians off and one of them barked out incredulously, "What'd you say?" as all of their faces were twitching angrily. They were confident of their abilities and so the match was set.

It took only a few moments for the trio to achieve their goal and this was made even more incredible by the fact the three of them had not played together before. Kise was taken aback by how quickly he caught onto Kuroko's rhythm and it was as though they'd been in sync a thousand times before this as he barely needed to check to know when Kuroko would send the ball his way. He was impressed; it hadn't come across as clearly when he'd been observing during the earlier game, but Kuroko appeared to constantly assess positions and adjust for it as he sped around and redirected the ball to either Kagami or Kise.

Kagami and Kise had more experience with each other's styles because of Rakuzan's practices, but this felt different even to them. They didn't have a pre-planned strategy designed by Momoi, Akashi, and the coach; instead they were playing instinctively, and oddly enough, together. The three players that had first been on the court could only watch in amazement as the bullies were defeated quickly and decisively.

After they left the court, Kagami immediately began scolding Kuroko, "What the hell were you thinking Kuroko? Did you imagine you could win if it turned into a fight?"

Kuroko replied evenly, "No, they would have beaten me up." He flexed his arm, "Look at these guns."

Kagami's exasperated "You don't have any!" made Kise chuckle and look at the shorter male consideringly.

"I thought those guys were terrible. I just wanted to tell them." His eyes were calm and his tone was resolute.

"You should've considered the consequences first!"

"I forgot to. I'm sorry." He may have allowed a hint of an apology to creep into his reply but it was clear he was not sorry for intervening, only for causing worry for someone else.

It was likely they would have kept on this theme if Kise hadn't interrupted them. "We should let Kurokocchi get back to his team." He met Kuroko's eyes, "I'm interested now. Don't lose before we get to play you."

Kuroko easily picked up on the significance of Kise's words, including the newly added suffix to his name, and he nodded slowly in reply.

They might well have all departed then, if a coolly amused voice hadn't interjected, "Ryota, Taiga, it seems you've found the hero of the hour." They looked over and saw Akashi standing with Aomine, Midorima, and Murasakibara. "Ryota we grew concerned, you said you'd only need a few minutes. Taiga had the grace to excuse himself more thoroughly."

Kise began to offer an apology but Akashi waved it off. "Never mind, this is just as well anyway." His eyes stayed on Kuroko for what seemed a long moment. "Congratulations, Tetsuya. Today was an important victory. It was an informative game, certainly."

"Thank you, Akashi-kun. I am honored all of you could attend."

"We wouldn't have missed it, I assure you. You have a few more rounds in the preliminary bracket, but after today's game, I am expecting great things from you, Tetsuya. I will be following your progress closely. Don't disappoint me." Akashi didn't wait for a reply, simply turned and left, with Kise scrambling after him in an apparent effort to make up for his earlier delay.

Midorima spoke up next, "There is much I would like to say to you, Kuroko, but now is not the time. Enjoy today's victory; however you'll have to join us in the finals before you can hope to make your point." He inclined his head toward his remaining teammates and Kuroko before swiftly following after his captain and Kise.

Of course Murasakibara was next. His expression was more remote than Kuroko could remember seeing before. He advanced toward Kuroko and stood silently for a minute or so, staring at Kuroko without blinking. Finally Murasakibara reached out and gently patted his head. "I told you, Kurochin, that you could get hurt. You'll need to be more careful if you want to make it very far in the tournament." Kuroko was speechless, that was not what he'd expected from the other teen. But then he continued, "Akachin won't underestimate you, Kurochin. And we won't either. Be ready for that." He left, apparently headed to join the other two that had already departed. His long legs would quickly eat up the distance even without additional effort.

Aomine chuckled darkly. "You've done it now, Tetsu. Everyone's all excited. I think we can have some fun now." He waved insouciantly and loped off, but not with the others; he was headed toward an arcade.

Finally it was just Kagami and Kuroko. The redhead looked down toward his friend, "Kuroko…it was a good game. I'm not sure where this leaves us, though. I can see that Seirin's a decent team, and you and Tatsuya are formidable. But.." Kagami trailed off and waved vaguely in the direction the others had been standing, "Rakuzan's dominance in basketball has held for a reason. I think you might need to seriously contemplate what you're up against."

Kuroko met his eyes without a hint of hesitation. "Kagami-kun, nothing is certain. We can only speculate based on past results, but nothing is sure until we actually play. For all I know of you, and what each of you knows of Seirin, there's nothing to preordain what happens during the game itself. Each of us will prepare as best we can, and if today's match inspires them to take the game seriously, I can consider that a step toward change. But it shouldn't just be because of me, whatever challenge they're feeling is something that should be brought to every game; otherwise the point hasn't been made. I don't think it'll be easy Kagami-kun. But surely that's the whole idea."

Kagami shrugged, "You think a lot, Kuroko. I just play. But you're right, it wouldn't be that easy."

Kuroko tilted his head, "Kagami-kun, did you hear what Kise-kun said earlier?"

"Yeah and don't think it doesn't piss me off that you think I need protecting. But honestly, what kind of change can there be? Whatever, I'm happy enough to be playing. We'll see what happens from there. You better get back to your team though, Kuroko. I'm pretty sure Riko wasn't joking about that Boston crab hold."

At the reminder of Riko's threat, Kuroko gulped and noticeably paled. He didn't doubt he'd be in trouble. "Uh, Kagami-kun, may I borrow your phone? I better call Riko-san as soon as possible."

Kagami laughed and handed over his phone. He didn't envy Kuroko as he heard the angered voice emerging from the phone once it connected. As he watched his friend try to placate his angry coach, he realized that the spirit that led him to fight this bizarre battle with the Rakuzan starters was the same idealism that inspired his conflict with the bastards from earlier. Kagami didn't understand all of Kuroko's views, but he knew that in Kuroko's mind, such events were related. He was excited about Rakuzan's debut match that was scheduled for two days from now; he planned to invite Kuroko to the game. Well, he amended mentally, that was if Kuroko was still alive after his coach got through with him. He wasn't a betting man, however he had serious doubts about Kuroko's continued longevity if someone didn't manage to calm that woman down and fast. Kuroko hadn't batted an eye about the possibility of being beaten up by those thugs, yet he looked positively queasy at the threats being hurled his way via the disembodied voice of the young woman on the other end.

When the call was finally over, Kuroko handed the phone back. "Kagami-kun, it is a good thing Riko-san only serves as a coach and doesn't actually play basketball. Nobody would be able to stand against her. I'm supposed to head back toward the restaurant now. Thank you for your help today. I'll see you soon."

Kagami nodded and wished him luck before traipsing off himself. He absentmindedly played with the ring around his neck again; he had a lot to think about from today. And he needed to call Alex. If anyone had the insight he needed, she would.