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Chapter 21

"Alone we can do so little, together we do so much."

- Helen Keller

The boys marched out onto the court with an air mixed with confidence and nervousness. They were sure that they could win, but at the same time, after watching the first half, they were somewhat nervous as to what will happen in this half.

Meiko then went into their positions, but Kise and Kuroko noticed something odd. By the right wing at the three-point area there was Masato while in the paint there was Hayato. Seeing their set-up, to anyone it would seem as though Hayato is the power forward while Masato is the shooting guard.

"Ah, they're doing it now, huh?" Ishikawa said as he folded his arms. "It'll be interesting to see this."

"Doing what, Coach?" Kuroko asked.

"When they switch positions." He replied. "To fool their opponents, mostly."

"The last time they did that, it was in the leagues." Hoshizumi joined in. "They had switched shirts instead." He then chuckled. "It proved to be effective, our opponents did their research but didn't know what to do when who they thought was the shooting guard was the blitzing through defense like the power forward and etc."

"They could do that?" Kise then asked. "Play like each other, I mean."

"Of course they can. They aren't twins for nothing." Kikuchi nodded. "While Hayato can be a good power forward, Masato's threes don't always go in. In a sense, he still needs work."

"I see." Kise nodded. He then grinned, wondering to himself what sort of play they'll show. After all, they hadn't worked their asses off for no reason.

But still, this team is a strange one. First it was their manager who is actually a power forward and now their shooting guard and power forward can play like each other.

The whistle then blew and the gameplay began.

It started off with a throw in from Morino, immediately; they sped off towards Meiko's half of the court.

When Four reached at the top-of-the-circle, he then passed the ball to Eight. The power forward then drove towards the net, and seeing this, Hayato moved up to block his path. When this happened Eight was a bit cautious, being that he had gotten a firsthand experience of how dangerous Kise was. He made sure not to underestimate anyone from that team anymore.

He then dribbled on the spot, trying to break away from Hayato. But the Yatogami gave him a smug smirk, throwing him off a bit. Before he knew it, he saw Hayato move off, seeming as though he was allowing Eight to continue. But when he turned around, he bumped into Abe. In that moment of distraction, Ogiwara hurried over and knocked the ball from his hands, sending it bouncing towards Masato's direction.

The dark-haired boy then sprint for it, but his defender ―Five didn't give up. The two had basically reached for it at the same time, and sadly, it went rocketing down towards Ten who was at Meiko's net.

Mochida prepped himself was the onslaught, and when Ten had received it, pivoted on his leg to make a shot, Mochida timed it just right. Ten released the ball, but Mochida slammed it back to the court, Masato snatching it quickly and then passing it to Abe.

The bespectacled teen then headed towards Morino's net, Hayato and Ogiwara the closest to him. Reaching into their court, Morino had quickly entered their defensive positions. Abe tsk'ed' at this, but nonetheless, he decided to test out what Kuroko had been teaching him ―them. It still isn't up to Kuroko's level as he'd just witness, but nonetheless, once executed perfectly, it's fatal to the opponents.

Abe then stopped and allowed his teammates to get comfortable. Hayato got into the paint, Masato was by the left wing, Ogiwara in the same position in the opposite direction, Mochida was close to the left baseline area and unmarked.

"Ogiwara! Hayato! Masato!" he then shouted.

When three boys heard this, they prepared themselves to receive the ball. And luckily, none of Morino's players know who they were. Abe then passed the ball to Ogiwara who without hitch, made a chest pass to Hayato in the paint. Quickly, the Yatogami then passed the ball to Masato. He then bent his knees after which he straightened and released the ball, making a three.

Morino were peeved at this.

They knew that Kuroko and his annoying passes were now gone, but Meiko was still passing the ball annoyingly quick.

"What's up with those bastards?!" Eight snapped. "First it's the ninja and now this!"

"Calm down, we'll get them back." Four then soothed. However, he was just as pissed as Eight.

On the bench, everyone cheered at the success of that.

"It worked! It worked!" Kikuchi chirped. This was a side that Kise and Kuroko have yet to see. "Thank god,"

"Well, they were taught by my Kurokocchi after all." Kise said with pride.

Everyone else paused at that.

Kikuchi and Hoshizumi and grinned mischievously, Ishikawa looked indifferent. The man wasn't really reading too much into this, since his boys were just thirteen. He believed that the blond couldn't have been talking about anything apart from friendly terms.

"Kiku-cchi, you look like you're scheming something." Kise said. "Your face is scary. You too, Captain."

They shook their heads without uttering a single word after which they refocused to the match. So far, the match was progressing fairly smoothly. For each team, multiple baskets were made, defense tried their best to block shots, drives and passes, the offense did their best into trying to evade these blocks to earn points for their teams.

By the time the third quarter was done, Morino's progress could be seen, their points catching up with Meiko's.

When the teams returned to their benches, in the space of Ishikawa, Kikuchi gave the boys a little pep talk.

"They're catching up, if we lose this match you know what will happen to you four, right?" he said this to everyone except Mochida, since he had been playing since the first quarter.

"Don't worry, Kikumo," Abe smirked. "We'll put them in their place."

Kise laughed lightly at the boy's confidence. "That's how it should go Abe," he said.

"Of course, I can't let Kuroko's hard work go down the drain." He grinned at Kuroko. "Right, sensei?" he then added as he threw an arm over Kuroko's shoulder.

"It's good that you think that, but there is no need for you to put your arm on him." Kise then said, viciously throwing the boy's arm off his Shadow. Even though he had a smile, his face was darkened, as if sending out a warning.

"What's wrong with that, idiot?" He hissed. "We're all teammates. Why are you behaving jealous anyway?"

Kise scoffed. "I have all right to be."

The tension between those two rose, Kuroko feeling a bit stifled as he was right in between the two. But when he looked at their faces, he couldn't help but chuckle. They were classic.

"They're at it again?" Hayato then asked. "What's wrong with them?" For a fact, Kise and Abe's arguments were as common as Hayato's and Abe's 'compliments' of each other. It's become such a commonplace that Hoshizumi nor Kikuchi will move to do something about it.

"And Kuroko is always being caught in the middle of it." Masato said. He then shook his head, "It's sad."

"But then again, shouldn't Haru know that Kuroko is practically off-limits?" Hayato then asked again. "I mean, not even Ogiwara who's the guy's childhood friend can even look at him too ―" he didn't get to finish his sentence.

Ishikawa then clapped his hands together to get their attention. They've had enough fun now. "Ogiwara, your defense is a bit too lax. Raise your arm a little bit more and help out Mochida, he's been playing since the first quarter. I know Kise taught you better than that, right?" he then turned to Hayato, "Since they're catching up, the threes are important."

"You can count on me; after all, I am the Great Yatogami of the Land of Meiko." The bleached-blond boy nodded. "Plus, my High Priest is by my side. We shall conquer those evil spirits and purify this land."

"That's right." Abe nodded. Kuroko and Kise blanched. That's something they think that they'd never get used to.

Ishikawa then continued, "but keep going at it boys. Don't give them an inch, if you do, it'll be the end."

"Hai!"

The referee then blew his whistle, signalling that the break was over. They headed back out, and in comparison to the other quarters, this quarter was high paced. It started with Meiko's throw in, Hayato gave the ball to Abe.

The blond then dashed to his spot, glad that his brother is back to being a power forward. This means, he'll vent out all his frustration for not receiving passes from Abe earlier.

Abe dribbled off to the top-of-the-circle and as usual, waited a bit for the others to get into position.

"You know, that's very dangerous." Kise then muttered to Kuroko.

"I know." He agreed.

"What is?" Kikuchi asked. Yes, he had heard what Kise had said to the light-blue haired teen.

"It's just that should we encounter top-tier teams, for Abe to be waiting until the others get comfortable is a dangerous move." Kise explained. "Normally, teams won't wait and the other thing, that gives the opponents chances to beef up their defences. That'll make it even harder to pass the ball around or escape."

"I see." Kikuchi said as he scribbled on his clipboard. But looking at the boy's face, Kise and Kuroko felt sorry for the others. But then again, they may get roped into it as well, Kikuchi pardons no one.

They then looked back to the match in time to see Abe passing the ball to Hayato using one of Kuroko's tricks that he was taught. The shooting guard received it with ease and not wanting this to go to waste, Hayato sunk it. When they were heading back to defend, Hayato then said to Abe,

"What was that pass, you bastard?!"

"Shut up, I got you the ball didn't I?! Be grateful, you asshole!"

"Haah?!" Hayato looked like he was about to strangle Abe. "Pass the damn ball more to the left! The shitting left! Is that so much to ask?! If you don't do it the next time, I'll kill you!"

"Can't you just move to receive it?!" Abe countered. "Kill me? Ha! I wonder how a decapitated head will accomplish that!"

While Hayato and Abe were bickering as they went back to defend, the others sweat dropped.

"Are they going to be alright?" Kise asked nervously. "Are we going to be alright?"

"You should be used to them by now." Hoshizumi sighed. "They are best friends, you know."

"Best friends don't threaten each other with such murderous intent!" Kise said. "Right, Kurokocchi?"

Kuroko gave him a look. "In what era are you living?"

Everyone cracked up at that statement.

"Kurokocchi…?" Kise said in shock. But then he remembered the many times he's had with Kuroko. The smaller teen had often time threatened him with an Ignite to the face, but he notices that Kuroko doesn't verbally threaten; instead he jabs in the side rather harshly.

"…I get what you're saying." Kise then said while subconsciously holding onto his side. "Best friends really abuse each other." He shivered.

Hoshizumi laughed at the blond's statement.

They were then taken out of their thoughts as they looked back at the match. Meiko were on the defense, but Morino's onslaught was fierce. Eight and Eleven charged in with power, Four got his teammates into the right positions so that they could receive and pass the ball quickly without hitch.

Four then passed the ball to Eleven after which he and Five assisted with defense. Eleven then seemed to be heading closer to the baseline when Ogiwara blocked him. Masato then turned his attention onto Eight, not wanting him to get any closer to their net.

Mochida was on guard, but playing from the first quarter was really taxing. Even Ishikawa saw this, and made a decision. He looked to Hoshizumi and the captain knew what this meant. Slowly, he then began to change, but Kikuchi stopped him.

"Coach, I think you should let Kise go instead." He said.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, I want to see how well the blond can play as a centre." Kikuchi grinned. "He's teaching Mochida and Ogiwara so I'd like to see how good he is for himself."

Ishikawa chuckled lightly. But, he gave into Kikuchi's wishes, being that the boy as never failed to disappoint him. "Kise, get ready." He then said to the blond. But, for a fact, he was curious as well.

"Eh?" the blond was taken by surprise. "Me? Why?"

"Your defense is good, is it not?"

"Ah," Kise then took off his shirt and proceeded to put on his jersey's; Hoshizumi gave him a thumb's up.

Back to the match, Eleven had managed to get the ball to Eight, since he had retreated back to the wing zone and shot the ball. However, looking at the trajectory, everyone could tell that it was an alley-oop.

Mochida had jumped for the block, but sadly Eight had more power and strength in his legs. He dunked against Mochida, blowing the teen to the floor. Morino then headed back to defend, Ogiwara and Masato assisted Mochida to his feet.

But then, they heard the sound of the whistle.

"Meiko, member change!"

Ishikawa then gestured to Mochida and the boy made his way off. By the time he reached at the sidelines, Kise placed a hand on his shoulder and said,

"Well done, Mo-cchi."

"Yeah, go give them hell, will you?" he said jokingly. He hadn't realized that Kise had basically called him 'Mo' since the others often time calls him 'Mochi'.

Kise grinned. "Of course; I need to expend all this energy." And then again, Kise wanted all the practice he could get. Since he was basically filling in for a centre, he decided that he'll stick to copies of such, and if needs be, he'll use a copy of Murasakibara…only if needs be.

When he walked onto the court, he saw the faces of Eight and Eleven blanch in horror. Just as they thought that they were relieved from him especially.

"Coach sent you out, huh." Abe said quite bitterly. "I thought he would send Captain or even Kikumo."

"Don't get in my way blondie," Masato said while giving him a nudge. "You had free reign in the first half, now it's my turn."

Kise chuckled, however, he ignored Abe. "I'm only going to be playing centre, so there's nothing you should worry about." He said to Masato.

They then went on the offense, Kise lagged behind in the back, since he was now a centre and not a small forward. Abe had once more stopped by the top-of-the-circle, well, since he was blocked by Four. Kise then came up behind him and without hitch, he passed the ball to blond. Kise then bounce passed it to Ogiwara, who received it with ease and drove towards the net with Kise jogging as well.

However, the blond was then stopped by Eight, who wanted to keep him still. With a blank stare, Kise then dashed around him, heading to the net in case there is a rebound or something. Of course, this was infuriating to the older boy, but nevertheless, he decided to leave Kise to Ten. If there's one thing that they have the advantage with, it's height.

Ogiwara had then reached into the paint, and then passed the ball to Masato. Upon receiving the ball, the boy smirked evilly and navigated around Eleven with a swift crossover.

He then managed to make a shot while Kise tried his best to keep Ten at bay.

Meiko then returned to their half to defend, Kise wearing a big grin on his face. The blond was just excited to be in a match, and judging at how this match is going, there's a highs chance that he won't need to use a copy of Murasakibara.

Morino had then entered their court; Abe hadn't even moved to block Four at the usual spot. Abe was in the free-throw circle with Masato and Hayato on both sides of him at the left and right wings. Ogiwara was behind Abe in the paint, while Kise was the net.

Morino found this strange, but nevertheless they continued on. Four then passed the ball to Ten while Eleven and Eight went to mark both Masato and Hayato, Five went to Ogiwara. Ten continued onward to the net, where he had to encounter Kise.

He stopped and dribbled, preparing a plan in his head to get pass the blond. From the first half, he knew that the blond was not to be underestimated. He paused a while and saw that everyone was in a man-to-man defense. That means, there's no one free for him to pass the ball to.

"Tsch," he hissed when he realized that he'd have to face Kise. But then again, he noticed that Meiko had subbed off their centre, he was starting to wonder if the blond can actually fill that hole. Having good defense is one thing, but being a centre is a different story.

He then decided to take a gamble.

He shot the ball to the net, but then made a dash to catch it when it rebounded. However, he missed the smirk on the blond's face.

As Ten had shot the ball and moved off, Kise turned around and jumped for the ball, snatching it before Ten could. He then passed it to Abe, who the sprint downwards to Morino's net, of course, Four chasing him.

Masato and Hayato were the ones who followed, leaving Kise and Ogiwara down in their court, the two boys preventing their markers from following the others. The moment Abe neared the free-throw circle; he then passed the ball to Hayato who was already in his usual spot. And, from the advice that Hayato gave him, Abe made sure to give the bleached-boy the ball he wants.

Hayato grinned when the ball landed squarely in his palm and swiftly he made a three even though Eight had managed to graze it. It spun around the rim of the net before going in.

It was then that Morino had called another time out. It was clear on their coach's face that he was upset, seeing that Meiko was getting away with murder. He shouted at his boys, and even Meiko could hear all that he was saying, after all, the gym echoed.

After two minutes, the referee blew the whistle, and the teams once more headed out onto the court. And ever since then, the match became a constant run-gun. With five minutes of gameplay left, both teams went head to head, Morino being the most aggressive since they were behind on points.

Eight, Eleven and Ten were the core of Morino's offense, since they were bigger than the Meiko players. Often times, Four would pass the ball to either of those three and they'd storm into Meiko's court, hoping to get some points.

However, against Kise's defense, they failed miserably.

The blond would keep whoever with the ball stalled and in one place, sometimes, even causing Eight and Eleven to pick up a foul for holding the ball too long. Morino were more than angered about this, but sadly, they couldn't do anything about it.

And with Kise on such good defense, the others had nothing to worry about…mostly. He moment Abe gets the ball, he'd dash off towards Morino's court, Ogiwara, Masato and Hayato already ahead of him going towards their positions. And of course, Kise lagged behind, as he told Masato, he won't be getting in their way of having fun.

In these times, Abe would mostly pass to Hayato so that he could land his threes and give them more of a lead, however, when things look bleak should he pass to the Yatogami, he'd pass it to Masato or Ogiwara. Or sometimes, passes it to one and instructs him to pass it to the other depending on the situation.

The two boys ―Ogiwara and Masato never failed to make use of the ball whenever they were given it. On offense, they made dunks and layups but on defense, they tried their best to keep their markers in check. It wasn't as solid as Kise's (even though he's in another league), but still, it made Ishikawa wear a face of satisfaction.

By the time the match had ended, Meiko emerged the winner.

xxxx

The boys went back to their normal routines at school, practice becoming even more intense as Kikuchi had requested Kuroko and Kise's help once again to improve the team. He had a video of their match against Morino, and thus, the three boys tweaked their regimen somewhat.

Ever since then, they've had practice matches, it being Ishikawa's idea to see just how they've grown. He's been working with the three boys (Kikuchi, Kise and Kuroko) as whenever they come up with something for themselves and the others, he has to make sure that it isn't something that'll kill them off.

In practice, when the other boys had seen what was in store for them, they nearly fainted. Add to that, Kikuchi had given them something to worry about:

"Rest assured, we'll be slaving out until the Winter Tournament." He even added a smile.

But outside of the court, Kise's life at Meiko was still a bit sad and lonesome. He was still being treated as the 'delinquent that must be avoided', and no matter how much he tried to socialize with the people of his class, it always ends in failure. He couldn't understand why they had that image of him, as he doesn't get into fist-fights, he doesn't disrespect teachers, his uniform is pretty normal (minus the stitched cuffs). Kuroko and Ogiwara assists sometimes, but the students have it that Kise is forcing them to. There was even a vicious rumour going about that he's bullying Ogiwara into doing his bidding.

But what he couldn't understand was the fact that Hayato and Abe had many friends. They looked the part more than he does, but yet they are still treated normally. He found that extremely unfair.

At first, the blond decided to ignore it, thinking it'll blow over, but his middle school life was getting disastrous. It was then that he thought of taking Masato's advice and ditch the cap, but he was still worried about the attacks from the female populace. While being isolated, he found that (in comparison to Teikou and Kaijou of his previous life) this was actually quite peaceful. He could practice without girls passing by the gym and screaming, Meiko could keep practice matches (even though it was only one at the time) and there won't be a crowd of screaming fangirls present. As a matter of fact, he could simply walk in peace. He's always dreaded whenever his photobooks came out, or when he's in a magazine.

But, he needed friends. And not just Kuroko and Ogiwara and the other guys from the club, as a matter of fact, he only shares classes with Kuroko and Ogiwara. What if one day they aren't at school? He's going to be extremely lonely and feel the effects of the isolation more.

Kise didn't know what to do.

But, unbeknownst to him, his cap wearing days will be coming to an end.

It was an ordinary Thursday, Kise and Kuroko doing everything like it was their ritual. They met up at the train station, boarded it, and chat about many things along the way. They entered the schoolyard together, people steering clear of the two due to Kise's look (which wasn't all that scary, it's just that the cap darkens the area at his face). They made it to their classroom peacefully, and the moment they opened the door and entered, everyone paused.

Ignoring them, the two made their way to their seats, and continued their talk. However, since there was no one near them, they began to talk about basketball related things, and how to improve themselves and their teammates. But, the two realized that the other students were talking in a hushed tone.

Ogiwara had then came in, greeted his other friends before sitting with Kuroko and Kise.

"What's up?" he greeted.

"I think your classmates are scheming something. I'm scared." Kise said. Kuroko and Ogiwara looked at the boy with a mocking expression due to what he said lastly.

"I don't think they are, and if that's the case, I don't think it's anything to do with you. Or us." Kuroko replied.

"You're scared? Don't make me laugh, Kise." Ogiwara chuckled. "You're just paranoid." He then let out a groan as though he remembered something. "Shit, we have P.E with 1-C today, right?"

"Yeah, it shouldn't be a surprise." Kise shrugged. "Isn't this the usual?" but then he added, "We have pool today though. I don't think we'll be sharing the pool with them."

"It's just that from practice yesterday, I'm still sore." He whined.

"Get used to it. You want to win in Winter right?" Kuroko asked.

"Of course," he said with vigour.

"Then don't complain." Kise added. "As the saying goes, no pain no gain."

Then, not long after, the homeroom teacher came in, and they settled down.

The first two periods went on quite smoothly, and now it was time for P.E. However, this time, they were going to the pool. But, yet again Kise was lucky since he had lied about being hydrophobic.

When they had arrived at the changing rooms, Kuroko and Ogiwara had parted ways with him as he had headed directly outside to the pool deck. The instructor wore a sympathetic face and then encouraged the blond to take swimming lessons to get over that fear. He quickly denied, lying once again by saying that it's too traumatizing.

Soon after the boys and girls filed out of the changing rooms, and Kise took his seat on the bench by the fence while he watched the others ―Kuroko, have fun. However, Kuroko had stayed rooted in the shallow area, while the more experienced swimmers headed out further towards the deep end. But, it was fun for Kise, he laughed at their stupidity ―once, they had attempted to play 'Drown the Victim', where a number of them would attack a single person, trying to get them underneath the water. It was hilarious, but frightening. It was then Kise realized that middle school boys could jump so high, it seems as though they're flying.

But, the class had come to an end, and the students made their way out and to the pipe to wash off. Kuroko was the first one out and was walking with Kise back to the changing room, but that was when it happened.

Two of their male classmates ―Oda and Akagi, were racing each other to the rooms like idiots. Everyone who was in their path shifted a bit so that they could pass, however, due to where Kise was walking; he had to make a step to his right, ending up close to the edge of the pool.

But then, Oda had to swerve around a fellow classmate, ending up in Akagi's way. The taller boy then had to side-step but in doing so, he managed to crash into Kise, sending the poor blond right into the pool.

Everyone froze at that moment when they didn't see Kise come up.

"Kise-kun!" Kuroko shouted out, getting onto his knees and stretching his hands out hoping that Kise would grip them. Ogiwara jumped in to rescue the (supposedly) drowning boy, meanwhile, cries for the instructor echoed, but by the time the man reached, Kise and Ogiwara had already surfaced and were swimming towards the wall. But, the blond's clothes were soaked. So too his cap, which had served as a fangirl repellent.

"Kise-kun, you're alright? Right?" Kuroko then asked. He was genuinely worried.

"Yeah, I just feel disgusting right now." He said as he pushed the wet hair out of his face. "God, I'll need a dryer." He then proceeded to wring the water out of his golden locks, but then he noticed it. More like felt it.

He looked to the others and saw that the eyes of his entire class were on him.

"Ah, hello." He greeted trying to ease the uneasy atmosphere.

"You…you…" one boy stuttered unable to complete the sentence.

"You're handsome!" they then screeched in shock.

"Well, I am a ―" he broke off as he felt Kuroko grab his wrist and walked off with Ogiwara following. They hurriedly made their way to the changing rooms, and the two boys then gave Kise their towels to dry off. But, of course, his clothes were still soaked.

After Kuroko and Ogiwara were done, they then accompanied the boy to the nurse, where he got a spare to borrow. Luckily, only the shirt was a little big but it was nothing to worry about.

Lunchtime proceeded like normal, Ogiwara recounting everything that happened in P.E to the others, Masato giving Kise a smug smirk to set off the blond. But nothing happened as Kikuchi and Hoshizumi were already sending out their warnings via the 'emit dark aura' method.

But apart from that, they chatted like usual, teasing Kise about what's going to happen the moment he leaves the clubroom. This got the blond on edge, but Kuroko soothed the blond by rubbing in his back.

"It's going to be fine, Kise-kun," Kuroko said. "You're just over-thinking it."

Kise made a small smile. "Fine."

But, they missed the looks of mischief on their teammates' faces, but Ogiwara was the only one who wore a different expression.

When lunchtime was over and it was time to head back to class, Kise's worse nightmare came true. The female populace swarmed him ―some for his good looks, some for his autograph since they recognized who he was.

And from then on, Kise's life at Meiko was never the same as before.

xxxx

In another prefecture, life at Teikou was the usual. Their practices were becoming more and more hectic, due to the fact that the actual Summer Championship was basically upon them. They've had numerous practice matches, all of which they won ―dominated to be exact.

In his 'grief', after practice, Aomine would practice like always before he met Kise and Kuroko, but most times, he'd ask for a one-on-one with a fellow first stringer. He couldn't ask the guys in the second gym as they'd deem that unfair as the difference in their strength is quite obvious.

Aomine would challenge any of the first stringers that he's seen, and go on to crush them. It wasn't that he purposely did that, it was just that once he's started, images of Kise flashed into his mind and he ends up venting out his anger and frustration in the one-on-one match. And before he knew it, the boys would give up, and cease playing.

Whenever they had matches against the second string, while everyone played with seriousness, Aomine played with too much. The moment he received the ball from Akashi, the tanned boy would let loose on the court, although there are times when he would pass the ball to the others, even to Haizaki.

It was during this time that the coach ―Sanada Naoto began noticing Aomine's growth. It wasn't just him; Nijimura and Akashi were both aware of it as well. They didn't think much of it, only viewing it as just him growing. But little did they know that Aomine just wanted something to take his mind off the sessions that he used to have with Kise.

But, the time of the Summer Championship drew near, the regulars were ecstatic about it, however, for Aomine, he was greatly conflicted.

While he was glad that he's going to be playing in the Championship, there was another part of him that was saddened. He wouldn't play against Kise in this championship because their school hadn't made it. He'd have to wait until the Winter Tournament before he'd even have a chance to face the blond. And given Kise's ability, he highly doubts that, as since Meiko hadn't even made it past their leagues (Momoi's info), that could only mean that they don't have the skill.

He sighed. There's no way that Kise, a boy who recently learned how to dribble (Aomine would give him a passing grade but not an excellent one) would make it to the finals to face them. Or rather, make it to the Tournament itself. And that's all the way in January.

Talk about waiting forever.

Aomine was greatly dispirited. But that still didn't stop him. He continued to practice with fervour, continuing to ask around for one-on-ones. He'd play Haizaki sometimes, and in those sometimes, he'd beat the silver-haired teen, prompting him to go improve on what he's lacking.

Aomine would ask Murasakibara but the boy was too lazy to agree. Midorima was out of the question since he was always off by himself shooting and gave off a 'don't come near me when I'm shooting' vibe; Akashi and Nijimura were often time busy, so anyone who he catches would have to suffice. There were also times when after their weekend practice, he'd go to a street court, where he'd encounter other guys and demand a one-on-one or even three-on-one or whatever depending on how many of them are there.

And, like before, no one really paid attention to Aomine. Everyone blew it off as him growing and improving his skills. But sadly, it wasn't just Aomine's skills improving…

…it was the birth of a monster.

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