Manga: Kuroko no Basuke

Creator: Fujimaki Tadatoshi

Author: Cheshire


Chapter Twenty-Seven: What She Can Really Do

~ * 'Do not walk behind me; I may not lead. Do not walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.' * ~ Albert Camus


The next day, after an embarrassing awakening when she found Satsuki, Naoki, Kagami and Kise eating noodles in her kitchen as she slept, she prepared herself for class and left after feeding No.2. She knew that her friends would be demanding questions out of her about her coach after their encounter at the hospital, but Takara didn't know how to answer said questions. Working herself over the edge was normal for her, a way to keep her moving. But her teammates seemed to think that she was 'killing' herself, which she thought impossible. She wouldn't die. With a heavy sigh, the blue haired teenager ran her hand through her hair and waited at a crosswalk, wanting the light to turn green so she could move. When it finally changed, Takara moved through the street with others around her, most likely heading to work or running errands seeing as they moved much faster than her. As she walked, she looked to her left across the busy street and watched as children and parents played on the playground, noticing some smaller boys taking shots at the basketball hoops.

With a small smile, Takara turned away and continued on her adventure to school, thinking about her competition. Maya knew she had been working the girls too hard, but this was an important time for them all as gymnasts. If they won, they would be attending Nationals and could be crowned as the best in all of Japan. It was important to Takara, because it was important to her mother. Her father and brother had played basketball, but her mother was a gymnast just like her. But in her early 20s, was in an accident that injured her shoulder and she was no longer able to perform and do what she loved. For this reason, Takara wanted to do well for her mother, and be able to see that smile on her face that brought back such happy memories. While running her hand through her hair, she took another heavy sigh and looked up when she realized she was getting closer and closer to school with all the students in uniforms coming up ahead. Thinking about her parents had mad her miss them, but she knew that they were working overseas just like her brother was in school. With a smile she pulled out her cell, starting to send her family emails just as the warning bell rang across Seirin's courtyard.


"..." Takara felt that familiar eyes were on her back as she tried to listen to her english teacher talk, but Kagami's eyes were hard not to feel.

"..." She narrowed her eyes, this was beginning to get annoying. Without looking, she could tell that his eyes were narrowed, trying to find anything that seemed different about her. Whether it be because she was tired, or maybe bags under her eyes that he couldn't see. Whatever he was thinking, Takara was not pleased.

"Kuroko, please read the next passage." Their sensei spoke and the short female nodded, standing up from her desk and beginning to read the english passage from a Shakespearean piece.

"To be or, not to be: that is the question:

"Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer,

"The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

"Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

"And by opposing end them?" Takara finished, looking up at her sensei to see that he had nodded a her, pleased at her reading.

"Good. Thank you, Kuroko. Now, can anyone tell me what Hamlet was trying to say while he said this?" He questioned and Takara sat back in her chair, leaning into her palm and staring out of the class window; Kagami's eyes still resting on her back. Was he not getting tired of watching her? She wasn't acting any different than normal, at least that is what she thought. After blocking out what her sensei was saying, knowing that no one in her class truly understood Shakespeare's writing since it wasn't their true language, she thought about how practice would be for the day. Or if Riko would send her home...

Kagami Taiga on the other hand, rested his chin on his crossed arms that were on the top of his desk. He couldn't help but stare at the blue haired female. She hadn't said anything, but that didn't mean that she still wasn't feeling weak like the other day in the hospital. Takara was normally quiet; Kagami knew this. But she was being a little 'too' quiet. And the fact that she hadn't made a blunt comment or anything since meeting up with him before class, made him curious. She hadn't spoken about last night either, a small smirk appearing on his lips.

'Maybe that was what was keeping her quiet.' He thought back on how Takara reacted when she woke up the other night...


' "Hmm... Ryouta... Are you still here?" Takara muttered as her eyes fluttered open, lifting her body from the couch and rubbing her eyes.

"Oh! You're awake!" The blonde said, Takara noticing that he seemed to be talking with a full mouth...

"Ryouta...?" She mumbled as she looked over the back of the couch, her eyes widening at what she say. Sitting at her dining room table was Satsuki, Naoki, Kise and Kagami who were all huddled around seven empty boxes of Chinese noodles; a few falling out from between the red head's lips.

"Oi, Takara, come eat." He said as he slurped up the noodles, holding up a few box on his right.

"We saved one for you." As she continued to stare at her friends, she felt her cheeks starting to burn up and with a small squeak of embarrassment, knowing she looked like a real mess, she fell back on the cushions and hide under a few pillows, accidentally waking up a sleeping No.2.

"Eh? Takacchi?" '


Chuckling under his breath, he lifted his chin off of his arms and smirked at the back of Takara's head.

'I wonder if she is thinking about that now.' He thought, leaning back in his chair, crossing his arms under his breath.

"Kagami, would you care to read the next passage?" Their sensei asked, the red head's eyes widening when he realized that his teacher was standing right next to his desk.

"Kagami, are you listening?" He asked with a slightly annoyed tone and Kagami swore under his breath.

"Right here." Takara said, surprising the red head with her speed of her turning around and pointing to the correct passage.

"Thanks..." He mumbled and glared at her when she smirked back at him, turning back around in her chair and pulling up her book so that she could follow along.

"...Hmph. I must be cruel only to be kind; thus bad begins, and worse remains behind-"


"No, go home." Riko said immediately when she spotted blue hair in the gymnasium, her eyes narrowed.

"Why would you even come? You should be resting! You heard the doctor!" The brunette shouted as she groaned, not understanding why Takara would not be listening to doctor's orders.

"But there is practice." Takara said bluntly, not wanting to leave.

"I have to get ready with the team for the Winter Cup." She said and Riko sighed, rubbing the back of her head.

"Yes, but at the same time you should be resting and not overdoing it. What if you faint again?"

"I won't faint."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I am only feeling slightly tired." She said with a blank expression and at that, all the boys on the team sighed.

'Is she serious?' Hyuuga, not wanting to hear this anymore, walked over to the two females and placed his hand on Takara's shoulder.

"Go home and rest, Takara. It would be better for all of us." He told her sternly and Takara could admit that she was shocked to hear his words. Her eyes slightly widened, but were quick to go back to a black stare. Silently, the blue haired female pulled his hand from her shoulder and turned around, grabbing her gym bag and leaving the gym. Making sure to shut the door on her way out, not hearing the heavy and slightly annoyed sigh that left Kagami's lips when she walked out.


"So they sent you home did they?" Naoki asked as he smirked into his cell, pulling his hair into a ponytail as he waited for hear a response from Takara.

"I can tell you are smirking, Naoki." She told him bluntly, causing the pink haired male to chuckle.

"And it's not funny. It's serious." Rolling his blue eyes, Naoki moved down the halls of his school toward the Touou gymnasium.

"Well you were in the hospital yesterday for fainting during practice. I think that is a good and serious reason." He told her truthfully, entering the gym and noticing that the team was already warming up under Satsuki's orders.

"But how am I supposed to improve if I'm not allowed to play?" Takara slightly snapped, still not happy about being told to leave the gym by Riko. She could handle herself, tired or not.

"It's because they care."

"They shouldn't have to."

"You haven't given them a reason not to, Taka."

"..." With a sigh, Naoki collapsed onto the bleachers and ran his hand through his hair.

"You fainted because you were overworked. Being overworked is not something that you should be used too." He told her, continuing over her silence.

"If I was your manager still I would have sent you home before you were even allowed near the lockers."

"But-" She started, but was quickly but off.

"No, buts."

"This isn't fair. I need to perfect it." She mumbled softly, Naoki almost missing it. But he knew what she was talking about. Satsuki had told him about the new move Takara was working on, and from what it sounded like, it was impressive.

"You have plenty of time to perfect it, you still have a month left until the cup." Naoki said, trying to be supportive, but he knew Takara was probably ignoring his words.

"Takara listen to me." He said sternly, hearing her huff in response, but still listening to him.

"Do not think of even going to the park and practicing, you know you have gymnastics tonight and you might faint again. Do you hear me?" Silence continued from her end and he groaned, leaning back on the other bleacher.

"Takara..." He whined, hearing her sigh from the other line.

"Fine. But that doesn't mean I like it. At all." She said and he chuckled, smiling into the phone.

"That's my girl. Now go home and take a nap." With another huff, the blue haired female bid her farewell and hung up the phone, leaving Naoki to sigh as he shut his phone. "What is wrong with that girl...?" He questioned, not noticing the shadow that loomed over him.

"What's wrong with who?" The second voice asked, causing Naoki to blink in surprise. Looking up, he spotted Aomine looked down at him with his towel over his head, a dark look in his eyes.

"Was that, Taka?" He asked, Naoki chuckling nervously at his question.


"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven-! No! Stop!" Maya shouted as she stopped the music, the five girls ceasing the routine and taking deep breaths.

"You all are off the beat! Remember, five is prepare and six is jump! Not six prepare, seven jump." She explained with a sigh, the other girls still breathing heavily as Takara took a sip from her water bottle.

"We have three more days girls. Three. We can not afford not having this routine completely memorized, it needs to be perfected." The gymnasts didn't speak and Maya shook her head, placing her hands on her hips.

"Take a break. We will continue after." She said, the girls nodding and quickly moving over to their bags.

"How many more times is she gonna make us run it?" Ayame groaned as she collapsed on the bleachers, the others grabbing their water bottles.

"I feel like I'm gonna pass out."

"We should be done soon." Misa said, fixing her hair. "We almost got it."

"I don't know how much longer I can keep leaping without falling."

"Don't be such a drama queen, Kara." Mitsuki said as she rolled her eyes, Kara glaring over at her as he rubbed her ankles to keep warmth on her muscles.

"If w keep working on it and just perfect like the middle like she wants, we should be able to leave." Takara said, fixing her ponytail as she sat next to her bag, the others girls glancing over at her.

"Oh? And why do you say that?" Misa asked as she rolled her eyes, Takara rolling her own.

"The middle is where we have the most tricks and that is also the place where we keep missing our counts." She explained, the girls starting to understand.

"If we can just get those counts, Maya will be happy and we can go home." Takara explained bluntly and Mitsuki groaned, leaning onto her knees.

"I'm so tired! Can't we just stop and start tomorrow? We'll be more awake then!" She whined and the other four agreed, a low sigh leaving Takara's lips. They would never learn.

"Time's up!" Maya called from the mats, her hands resting on her hips.

"We are going to run it again! This time perfect the counts or I'll give it to Takara as a solo!" She warned and the other four glared at the blue haired female who only rolled her eyes. Such children.


"No.2, I'm home." Takara called as she opened the door to her house, shutting the door behind her and locking it.

"No.2?" She called again, slowly slipping off her shoes and jacket which she hung on the coat rack.

"No.2?" When she didn't hear the puppy respond to his name a third time, the blue haired girl started to worry and moved down her hall before turning left and into the living room and kitchen.

"No.2, are you-" She started, her eyes widening when she saw 'who' was in her living room holding her puppy.

"Still leave the key in the plant, huh?" The person said, the husky puppy happily resting a top of his head, a scowl resting on his dark lips.

"Hm. Didn't know you had a dog." He said, reaching up and grabbing the scruff of the puppy's neck, ignoring the whine that left his lips at being taken from his perch. "...Daiki." She greeted softly, the darker skinned boy looking down at her from the corner of his eyes, dropping the puppy on the cushions.

"See that you're still able to stand." He said bluntly, placing his hands in his pockets as he leaned back on the couch, his narrowed eyes not leaving her.

"Yes. I am." She said, quickly moving out of his vision and behind the kitchen counter, knowing that his eyes were probably following her.

"...Hm." He said, starting to look around the living room as Takara opened her fridge, looking for something to eat.

"I suppose Naoki told you." She said, slowly looking over her shoulder to see Aomine looking back down at the husky who wanted to be picked back up.

"Heard him talking to you on the phone." He told her, running one hand through his short locks.

"Couldn't help but get it out of him." Aomine said with a slight smirk, thinking back on the nervous look in the pink haired male's eyes when he explained what had happened the night before.

"...I see." Takara said, reminding herself to tug the male's hair the next time she saw him. Knowing how much he liked his hair.

"How do you feel?" Aomine suddenly asked, throwing the blue haired girl off. "Excuse me?" She asked and he rolled his eyes, moving away from the back of the couch and over to the island.

"I asked, how do you feel?" He asked a second time and although she was surprised at his sudden curiosity, she nodded her head.

"Tired. But otherwise okay." She told him truthfully and he hummed, pulling up a chair at the island and leaning into his palm.

"...What?" Takara mumbled as she moved away from the stove, Aomine keeping the smirk on his lips.

"Do I make you nervous, Taka?" He asked, noticing her flinch at the nickname. "Hmm." He hummed, leaning back on the chair and started to slowly tap his fingers on the counter top.

"…No.2 seems to like you." Takara said, trying to avoid the topic of her nerves, noticing the scowl appear back on his lips.

"You know I don't like dogs." He said and she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Well you're the one who invited yourself into my house." She shot back and he smirked, a low chuckle coming from his throat.

"Change the position of your key." He joked and the two shared a small laugh, before Takara's eyes widened and placed a hand over her lips. Aomine had noticed this and narrowed his eyes again at his old friend.

"...Yes... I should hide that." She said, turning back to her cabinets to find some soup she could throw on the stove.

"...Hmph. I should leave." The old Teikou Ace said, pushing himself out of the chair and passing by the couch, No.2 started to whine at his abrupt departure.

"You'll be seeing me again soon, Takara." The dark skinned teen said as he leaned back through the hall door, the smirk back on his lips.

"And it won't be before the court." With that said, Aomine left the house and Takara flinched when the door was shut, her puppy now gently pawing at her ankles.


"You sure she isn't mad at me?" Riko asked softly as she and boys started to pack up for the night, practice now being over.

"She'll get over it." Kagami said as he cracked his neck, moving over grab his gym bag from the bleachers.

"She'll be fine." Hyuuga said, wiping some sweat from his forehead.

"Takara may be stubborn, but she understands that we are doing it because we care." Riko nodded at his words and looked down at her practice schedule for the next few days.

"I think we should take a break for the next two days." She said, catching the attention of her team.

"What?" The red head asked as the others surrounded their coach.

"Why would you cancel practice?"

"It's not because of Takara is it?"

"She's the ill one not us!"

"Come on, coach we need this-"

"Quiet!" Riko snapped, groaning as she rubbed her head.

"Can you at least let me finish because you all start freaking out about a cancelled practice?" She asked and the team stood silently, waiting for the brunette to speak.

"I was thinking that we should go and support Takara, and watch her gymnast performance." She said, surprising the boys.

"What? Why are you all looking at me like that?" Riko muttered, a pink blush appearing on her cheeks as she looked at her clipboard to avoid the stares.

"That's... um..." Hyuuga started, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Do we even know where it is being held?" Koganei asked, looking between his teammates.

"I'm sure we could figure it out. Just look at competitions in the area." Izuki offered and after a while the team agreed that they would surprise Takara at her competition, Kagami wondering how his friend was feeling.


"Takacchi!" Kise shouted happily as he opened up his phone when he noticed that she was calling him.

"How are you? Shouldn't you be sleeping?" He wondered as he leaned back on his couch, his feet on his apartment coffee table and muting the television so he could talk.

"I should." She said and he chuckled, scratching the side of his hair to get out some of the tangles.

"Then why aren't you? I know you have a competition in two days." He said and was met with silence on the other end, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"Takacchi? Are you there?" He asked and after a few more moments of silence, the blue haired girl responded.

"Daiki was here tonight..." She said, Kise's eyes widening with shock at what she had just told him.

"W-what?"

"He was in my house waiting for me when I got home. Guess he remembered where I left the spare key." She said with a dark chuckle, Kise whistling at the thought of the two of them being alone in her house... The tension.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly and she sighed, leaning into the cushions of her couch with No.2 resting on her lap.

"It... It wasn't as bad as I thought." Takara admitted, the blonde becoming interested.

"He... He asked how I was." She told him, thinking back on how the night went. "And although he still seemed like his sarcastic side, he also seemed concerned. It was... Weird." Takara said with a soft sigh, running her hand through her hair.

"It's been so long since we talked, just us two and not on the court. I didn't think we would still be so... Comfortable."

"Hmm." Takara could tell that the blonde was in thought, probably unsure on how to think about Aomine appearing at her house since the incident in their third year.

"I don't know if we can be like we were before," Takara admitted, scratching No.2's ears.

"But it was nice to see that somewhere in that basketball crazy head of his that he cared." She said and a soft smile appeared on Kise's face, he didn't like it, but he knew that if it made her feel better then he would let it happen.

"I'm glad to hear that, Takacchi. You two were really close in middle school. Just don't rush into a friendship again so quickly."

"Don't worry, I don't plan to. I still need time."

"Good. That's the best option."

"Thanks for listening, Ryouta." She said and he chuckled, leaning on his own couch and looking up at the ceiling.

"No worries. You know you can always call me! And am I still allowed to come see you perform?" He teased and a soft laugh came from the other line, making his grin widen.

"Yay! I got you to laugh! You know how hard that has been?" He said and heard her scoff.

"Oh be quiet. I can laugh, not just loudly." She said and he chuckled, looking at the time.

"Well, my dear Takacchi I should be off. I have a gig in the morning before school so I need some sleep. I'll call you tomorrow okay?" He said and when she agreed, he bid her farewell and hung up the phone, Takara running her hand through her hair with a soft sigh.

"Two more days..." She muttered as she looked up at the ceiling, thinking about how the competition with go.

"Hmm... What a weird day..."


Two days later, the same day as her gymnastics performance, Takara woke up early and decided to take a walk in the park with No.2, seeing as he wanted to get out of the house for a while. Dressing herself, she put the husky's leash on and the two left with her basketball bag over her shoulder. When they reached the park, the walk was nice and calm, No.2 jogging at a nice trot by her ankles with his tongue happily hanging from his mouth. As the two passed the basketball courts, she noticed a group of tall woman playing against one another, causing her to stop and walk. The woman looked to be not much older than her, but they were much taller. The blonde at the half court line dribbled through her legs before speeding past her friend and preparing a perfect lay up. Takara's eyes widened at the skill that the young woman had been showing, watching as they grinned and laughed with one another. A soft smile appeared on her lips and she was about to continue on her way, but noticed a group of guys moving onto the same court as the female players.

"You ladies done?" One of them asked with a smirk, and the blonde arched an eyebrow at his question.

"What does it matter?" She asked and Takara's eyes widened again at the sound of her voice, it was an American accent although she was speaking Japanese.

"American, huh?" He said as his friends chuckled, the other three girls crossing their arms over their chests and glaring at the man.

"What do you want?" A brunette asked with a slight snarl and he laughed, starting to spin his basketball on his forefinger.

"We want your court." He said and the girls looked confused.

"There are plenty of others courts." The third snapped, brushing her red bangs from her face.

"Play on another!'

"But where's the fun in that?"

"Give up the court."

"You ladies can just go home and leave basketball to the big boys." Both teams were now in one another's faces and the girls were furious while the boys were enjoying their anger. Takara herself felt her eyes narrow darkly at the rude behavior of the males. "Fine, we'll play you for it." The blonde said and the tallest male laughed, his four friends chuckling with him.

"There are four of you and five of us. You wouldn't stand a chance." He taunted the girls growled at him, knowing he was right.

"I'll play." Takara suddenly offered, surprising the nine players on the court.

"I'll be the fifth player." She said again and for a few moments there was silence until the males bust out laughing, holding their sides and bending over their knees.

"She'll play?!"

"What is she, 5'2?"

"What a laugh!"

Takara felt a vein pulse on her forehead and dropped her gym back next to her ankles, bending down and unzipping the bag, the females curious at her actions. After a moment, she tugged out her basketball and pulled a gray sweatshirt over her shoulders, one of the male's eyes widening as he hit his captain.

"What the hell?" He asked and the male pointed at her shirt, Takara's hands now on her hips as she watched their eyes widened. 'Teikou: Number 10' It read and that was all she needed to for them to see.

"Holy shi- She played for Teikou?!"

"The school of the 'Generation of Miracles'?!"

"This can't be right!" The male teamed all started to whisper harshly to one another before Takara rolled her eyes, ignoring them and making her way over to the female team with No.2 at her feet.

"Sorry for just butting in." She apologized, setting down her bag.

"N-no... It's fine." The blonde said, rubbing the back of her neck.

"You... uh play?" She asked and Takara nodded, holding her basketball against her hip as she looked over at males, who kept stealing glances at her.

"I do. I'm more of a passer than a shooter." She explained and the four nodded, all looking at one another for confirmation.

"Well... Thanks for helping us out." The blonde said, holding out her hand with a grin. "I'm Sabrina. And this is my team. Kathleen, Alexandra and Catherine. Nice to meet you." She said and Takara gave a nod, accepting her shake.

"Takara." She greeted and the other girls grinned, leaning over their captain. "Please, don't give her our full names." Kathleen, the brunette scoffed, holding out her own hand.

"Call me Katie, and that's Alex and Cat." She introduced, Cat fixing her red hair and Alex pulling her short black hair back by a headband.

"Are you from America?" Takara decided to ask bluntly, but mostly with curiosity.

"Ah, yes. We are here for a tournament." Sabrina started, the new team of five starting to move on their side of the court to warm up.

"We are playing Japan for the finals, our male team from America play this afternoon and we play tomorrow."

"Thought we'd get away for a while and practice without all the cameras." Alex told Takara with a wink, the blue haired girl giving a small smile.

"So you play right?" Katie asked, looking down at her short form.

"I guess you passing makes sense, since you're..." She led off, not wanting to offend her.

"Short? I know." Takara said, spinning her basketball on her fingers much to the other four females surprise.

"I'm also a gymnast, shortness tends to come with that." She explained and the four woman's eyes widened.

"A gymnast? No way!" Cat started out with a grin, her hands on her hips.

"Well, well. A gymnast basketball player. That's isn't something you hear everyday." Sabrina said with a slight smirk, Takara giving one back before hearing the males on the other side of the court.

"So, you still plan to play?" The captain of the male's team said and Sabrina narrowed her eyes, turning to face the opposing team proudly.

"Yes."

"Hmm. Prepare to lose ladies." He said, dribbling the ball at his side as his team got into their respected positions.

"Actually, I think you'll be the ones losing." Cat said as she moved to defense along with Katie.

"Can you handle being a forward?" Sabrina joked and Takara nodded, looking over at Alex who would be the other forward with Sabrina as point guard.

"Good. Let's show this guys what we are made of." The girls cheered and Takara gave a small smile, enjoying the energy this team was giving her.

"Yes." She said and turned to the male team, narrowing her eyes as she got into position, Alex moving forward to jump for the ball against the brunette male captain. "Ready?" He asked as he handed Sabrina the ball for her to toss, when Alex nodded the two bent their knees and Sabrina tossed the ball, everyone watching as the two jumped and who would get it first...


"Takara! Open!" Alex shouted and Takara was quick to sneak past the male forward and slam the ball down the court into her awaiting hands, with a slight wince Alex performed a lay up and the crowd that had come to watch cheered loudly.

"Watch her!" The brunette captain male snapped at his team as he growled, moving back into position as the girls all high fived Alex for the shot. A few minutes into the game, the female team was quick to learn that Takara had a powerful pass... One that had caused their hands to hurt for a while until they got used to it. And she was also quick on the court, sneaking through the taller players and doing her best to help them score.

Their game had caught the attention of those who were walking through the park, it's not every day you see a tall team from America playing some Japanese guys in the park. Sabrina knew she would owe her for this win later.

"Alex! Watch him!" The blonde shouted over to her friend, watching as Alex moved to block one of the males who was keeping his eyes on Takara.

"Watch it, he'll be after you." Sabrina said as she passed by the blue haired girl, who nodded and kept her eyes on the other players. The game continued on and the males were slowly starting to catch up, they were truly playing now that they knew the girls weren't ones to mess with.


"Hey, what's going on over there?" Naoki asked from across the street, a noodle box in his hand, Kagami on his right holding a bag of burgers along with his own box of noodles.

"Hmm, hell if I know." The red head said as he slurped up a few noodles into his mouth, the pink haired male rolling his eyes.

"Why I decided to meet up with you I will never know." He said and Kagami smirked, knocking his shoulder against the shorter male's and crossing the street.

"Damn you, Kagami!" He shouted as he followed after, curious on what was going into the park.

"What is it?" He asked Kagami who was a few inches taller and Kagami had a noodle hanging from his lips with widened eyes, causing Naoki's eyebrow to raise. "Kagami?"

"Looks like we found quite a show." He said and Naoki rolled his eyes, pushing through the crowd to see what he meant, the red head right behind.

"What kind of show are you talk-" He started, but was shocked to see Takara using one of her special passes on the court to a tall brunette who dunked the ball. "TAKARA?!" He shouted with surprise and Takara looked over at him with a look of surprise in her own eyes before she just waved.

"Hi, Naoki. Sorry can't talk, I'm in a game." She said bluntly and moved down the court, the pink haired male's jaw hanging over.

"Hmm. Interesting." The red head said with a smirk as he watched Takara run down the court.

"How could a little brat like her find herself playing with some Americans?"

The two continued to watch the game and Kagami noticed the brunette male on the opposing team was starting to get angry, his cheeks turning red. Before he could think his next thought, the brunette roughly knocked his shoulder into the red head female and sent her falling down on the cement court, the ball falling from her fingers.

"CAT!" Her friends shouted and Takara immediately turned to glare at the brunette, who only smirked in return.

"Time out!" Sabrina shouted and the audience started to boo at the male team, the brunette only scowling at them and saying it was an accident.

"You okay?" Katie asked as she went down to her knees next to the red head, who slowly nodded.

"Y-yeah... But this scrap is pretty nasty..." She mumbled as blood trickled down her leg, wincing at the pain.

"You can't play like this..." Alex said, rubbing her friend's shoulder.

"We need you for tomorrow, we need to keep you from injuring yourself further."

"But we can still win! The game is almost over and we're so close to beat those jerks!" Cat snapped, but winced again at the pain in her leg when Sabrina helped her up.

"It's fine, Cat. Let's just get you out of here." Takara stood silently behind the team, watching their sullen faces because they knew they had to quit. The blue haired female didn't want to have to stop, she wanted to help them win. It was then, that an idea struck her.

"Naoki! Come play!" She suddenly shouted and all eyes turned to her, the female's eyes wide with surprise.

"W-what?" The pink haired male suddenly shouted, finally processing her question. "Why me?" He whined and she rolled her eyes, a slight smirk on her lips.

"Because you finally want to show Kagami what you can do." She said and Kagami almost choked on the burger he pulled from his bag, not noticing the smirk slowly appearing on Naoki's lips.

"You know me too well, Taka." He said and moved out of the crowd and over to her, starting to put his hair into a low ponytail.

"I'll play."

"That way we have five players." Takara said, staring over at the male team who were scowling at the new comer.

"Think you can handle the last five minutes?" She asked and the brunette male nodded, whispering to his team as they moved to their positions.

"You think you can handle it?" She asked her own team and they grinned at her, helping Cat sit on the bench with some ice before joining her on the court.

"Now we owe you twice." They said and she shrugged her shoulders.

"Don't worry about it. By the way this is Naoki, a friend of mine from middle school." She introduced and the group all shook hands before Naoki joined Takara as a forward.

"What were you doing with Kagami anyway?" Takara wondered and he smirked at her, rubbing the top of her head.

"Wait till after we win the game." He said and she gave a small smile, nodding and turning back to the other team with a serious expression.

"Foul shot. Want to take it?" Katie asked Naoki and the pink haired male grinned, taking the ball and moving over to shot, the other males playing scoffing.

"Who is this guy?" One asked as Naoki dribbled a few times in front.

"Can he even play?"

"He looks like a chick."

"Shut up and watch-" The brunette started, but his eyes widened when the ball fell through the hoop, bouncing on the court a few times before rolling away.

"Whoa!" The girls shouted and Takara slightly smirked, watching as Naoki moved away from the free-throw line with a shocked Kagami watching his every move.

"Nice shot." She said and he grinned, rubbing his hands together.

"Been a while since I played, better make sure Kagami keeps watching." He teased and gently patted her back before moving to his position, Takara rolling her eyes and moving back to her own. The last minutes proved to be a tough game, but having Naoki help was proving to be a great choice on Takara's end.

"He scored again!" Someone from the crowd shouted as Naoki brought his arms down after his shot.

"Who is that guy?!"

"He's amazing!" A few girls squealed and Naoki waved at them with a smirk, causing their squeals to grow.

"You're as bad as Ryouta." Takara told him bluntly and Naoki laughed, placing his hand over his heart.

"Taka, you wound me!" He said and she hit his shoulder before moving back to her spot, ready to block anyone for the last minute and a half of the game. The other team moved down the court with speed and the girls for a moment had a hard time keeping them at bay, but Naoki was quick to sneak it and swoop the ball from one of the players and move down the court.

"Stop him!" The brunette shouted and his team tried to block Naoki from scoring, but Naoki smirked and tossed the ball behind him into Alex's arms and she took the shot, taking the win for her teammates.

"They won!" The crowd shouted with cheers as the team embraced, the boys scowling and leaving the court so they wouldn't have to face defeat.

"We did it! We did it!"

"Oh man that was awesome!"

"Great shot, Alex!" The American females all started to cheer together and Takara smiled softly at them, feeling Naoki's arms around her shoulder.

"You did good." He said and she rolled her eyes, sneaking out of his grip to go over to her team.

"Congratulations, I'm glad you won." She said and the four turned to her, grinning at the smaller female.

"Thanks to you! You were great too! Awesome passes." Sabrina said and Alex grinned, shaking her hand at the wrist.

"I think I won't be able to feel my hands for the next couple hours." She joked and the group all laughed, a small smile on Takara's lips.

"We should be going, but thank you again for everything. Hey! Come watch us tomorrow for the game! Give me your number and I'll save you two tickets." Sabrina offered and Takara was about to refuse cause she felt bad, but Naoki intercepted and gave her number anyway.

"Bye, Takara! We better see you tomorrow!" Katie shouted as they left and she waved farewell, hitting Naoki in the gut before she moved over to Kagami.

"Nice game." The red head said as greeting when she moved over, his third burger in his hand.

"How did you come to play with the Americans?" He wondered and she shrugged, moving over to the court bench to untie No.2 from the leg of a bench.

"Those guys were being rude to them cause they were female players and told them to get off the court, so I joined so they would have even teams." She explained and picked up the husky, allowing him to lick her cheek happily and crawl up onto her head.

"Sounds like something you would do." Kagami said with a smirk and Takara chuckled, shaking her head as she stood up from her knees, No.2 barking up at the red head.

"They were rude, of course I was going to play." She said bluntly and Kagami chuckled, gently punching her left cheek.

"I meant that as a compliment, dummy."

"How was that a compliment?"

"Are you really that dense?"

"No, not dense. Confused."

"Ugh, Takara-"

"He means that you would help those with basketball cause you love it." Naoki intercepted, a smirk on his lips as he grabbed Takara's basketball, letting his rest against his hip.

"It's a sport you love so you don't want any negative energy on the court." The pink haired male continued and Kagami rolled his eyes with annoyance, knowing that Naoki did explain it better than him although it was his own thought.

"So yeah, Kagami here did give you a compliment." The pink haired male teased and the red head growled, shoving him off.

"Get off. And you, don't expect another." He told her and she rolled her eyes, shoving her hand against his stomach, causing him to almost laugh because she couldn't even budge him.

"Come on, let's get you something to eat. You have to be at the show soon, right?" Naoki asked and Takara nodded, letting him take her hand and Kagami grab her gym back, the group moving through the park and happily arguing with smiles as they walked to find a good noodle shop for the blue haired player.


"Where should we sit?" Riko asked Hyuuga as the two of them moved through the front of their group, Mitobe and Teppei bringing up the back.

"This place is huge..." Koganei muttered as he looked around the large arena, Tokyo's pavilion stadium.

"It says that her group is the fifth out of seven to perform." Izuki said as he read the brochure that he got from one of the ticket handlers.

"She has four others in her group." He told his friends and they are nodded, looking at their own brochure's as they searched for a place they could all sit together as a team.

"Hey! Seirin! Hey!" A voice called, all their eyes widening when they realized who was calling them.

"Over here!" The group turned to their right and noticed a tall blonde happily waving over at them, a annoyed green haired shooter sitting next to him and Kagami along with Naoki on his left sitting with snacks.

"What in the world?!"

"Kagami?! You're already here?!"

"With 'Generation of Miracles' players?!" A few of them shouted as they moved through the crowd to get to the open spots that Kise had saved for the team.

"Kagami told me you were all planning to come, so I charmed some girls to give up their spots." Kise said with a smirk as he flipped his bangs, a few squeals being heard a few rows back and he waved.

"Sit down now or I will force you too." Midorima said quietly, but with dark eyes as he glared at Kise.

"Aw, Midorimacchi! Why the mood?" Kise asked and without warning, Midorima slammed his hand into the blondes stomach and Kise immediately fell into his chair, a smirk of satisfaction on the sharp shooter's lips.

"Told you I would force you to sit if you wouldn't." He said and for a moment, all of Seirin became nervous of the Shuutoku player, until Takao appeared from the stairs and back into his spot next to his teammate.

"Oh hey! Seirin is finally here! Took you long enough." He said as he took a sip of his soda, all their eyes now on him.

"Takao is here too?" Riko asked with surprise and he grinned, waving his ticket stub.

"I stole the second ticket from Shin. He didn't want me to come!" He whined as he stared at Midorima, who had finally given up and heavily sighed, placing his head in his hands.

"Where were you today, Kagami?" Riko finally asked her freshman player as her and the rest of them sat down in the empty chairs.

"I was with Naoki." He said bluntly, taking a big handful of Naoki's popcorn, ignoring the protesting 'Hey!' as he did.

"Doing what?" The brunette asked curiously, not have expecting the red head to hang out with the manager of Touou.

"He wanted to buy a gift for Takara." He said as he shrugged his shoulders, placing a finger in his ear.

"He wanted my advice or something, don't know why though." Chuckling, the brunette looked over at Naoki and noticed that he was having a conversation with Hyuuga, the two seeming to enjoy each other's company.

"He seems like a good guy. A good manager too." She said and Kagami rolled his eyes, now crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah well, he isn't what he seems." He said and Riko looked up at him with an arched brow.

"I thought that he was only a manager, good with bones." He explained, Riko slowly nodding at his words.

"But, I learned today that he can play, and he's good." He told her and her eyes widened with shock, looking over at Naoki before back up at Kagami.

"Guess I should have known that he could play too, he did go to Teikou after all." The red head finished, a slight narrow of his eyes as he also looked at Naoki, wondering what else the pink haired male was hiding.

"Welcome one and all!" A voice started over the speakers, causing the chatter of the audience to slowly die down.

"It now time for us to begin! Thank you all for coming to the National Gymnastics tournament!" He said and cheers and clapping rang throughout the audience, Seirin clapping as well and thinking of Takara's group.

"Please put your hands together for us first competitors! Osaka Gymnastics!"


"All right, we're next." Maya told her team from backstage, peeking out from the bottom of a small set of stairs to see the fourth team performing their routine.

"Two and four have been very strong, we have to do our best." She told her gymnasts and the five of them nodded, Takara rubbing her arms to help warm them up. "Go out there and blow the audience and judges away, remember all the work you've put into this routine and just-" She trailed off, a small sigh leaving her lips before a tiny smile appeared.

"Make me proud." With a quick farewell, Maya left her team and moved out so she could sit in the audience, the five girls all looking at one another with shock.

"Did... Did Coach Nozomi just... smile?" Misa had to ask, the questing coming out in a whisper.

"I... I think she did." Mitsuki answered and Takara herself had to admit that she was surprised at the moment of vulnerability their coach just showed.

"Thank you, Kyoto Dance and Gym!" The announcer said, bringing the girls out of their thoughts and to look at the stage, watching the other gymnasts running off the stage with applause trailing behind.

"You ready for this girls?" Misa asked as she adjusted her bun, making sure it wouldn't fall out.

"I'm ready! Let's make couch proud!" Ayame said happily and the other two agreed, Takara continuing to keep silent, but a small smile had appeared on her lips.

"Yeah, let's take home this victory." She finally said and the other four looked at her, all nodding in agreement.

"Yeah! Step and Out!" Mitsuki shouted as she put her hand out in front of her, the others putting their own hands on top.

"Step and Out!"

"Welcome! Step and Out Tokyo Dance and Gym!" The announcer said happily into the mic and the audience all cheered for the fifth team, Seirin players and Kise, jumping up from their seats to cheer for Takara who was now walking on with her team.

"Go, Takara!" Izuki shouted along with Koganei, Midorima clapping for her while Kise put his hands around his lips and shouted out.

"Go, Takacchi! Go!" He cried out happily and Midorima rolled his eyes, both he and Kagami pulling the blonde back into his chair. Takara herself had heard his loud cheer and rolled her eyes with a small smile, placing her blue ball at the front of the mat like the other girls. After the balls were set, they all moved back into the middle and stood back to back, Takara at the front and tip of the formation. Silence had now enveloped the stadium as they waited for the fifth team to start, Takara letting out a deep but quiet breath with her teammates before allowing her body to fall into the sound of the song...

'Let's go.'

" Regrets collect like old friends

Here to relive your darkest moments

I can see now way, I can see no way

And all the ghouls come out to play

Step and Out all allowed their bodies to sink down to the ground in deep plies at the beginning of the routine, their arms all at different levels giving them the look of a blossoming flower. Takara then crossed her arms over her chest and put all her weight on her right leg, the left lifting into the air until it was a perfectly straight with a tilt in her body while her arms flowed out away from her chest. Mitsuki and Misa then moved up from their plies and did three quick chainee turns out of the circle before performing no handed cartwheels with Karen, Ayame and Takara doing three back roll overs to meet the other two girls in a line. Once they were in a line, they all pique turns to the stagger themselves and all did body rolls with heavy breaths of release.

" And every demon wants his pound of flesh

But I like to keep some things to myself

I like to keep my issues drawn

It's always darkest before the dawn

After their breaths, Step and Out all bent backwards until they were in back bends and then slowly lifted their legs up, letting them fall out into splits. The girls all then bent their right legs and balanced on their right hands while the left went out at their sides, using their balance and strength to bend the right arms and then lift themselves back up. They then put their left hands back on the mats and used their legs to bring their weight back so they could return to standing and do arabesque turns with their arms and head facing up to the sky. After the turn, they all did a coupee with their bodies bent forward before jumping up and doing stag leaps with their arms forward and their chests out like their heart was leaping away from them.

" And I've been a fool and I've been blind

I can never leave the past behind

I can see no way, I can no way

I'm always dragging that horse around

Thanks to the leaps, they had moved forward with another stagger and then all did three back hands strings finishing with two flips in the air, their knees tucked to their chest. Once landed, they all then did one forward walk over to their left or right to make the circle they had created bigger along with a second no handed cartwheel. When they had moved into their new formation, the girls moved their right knees up and straightened it out until they were close to their heads, where the girls grabbed their ankles and pulled them to rest against their cheeks. They then maneuvered their bodies to the left and moved their legs behind their heads until they were in a scorpion position before straightening it completely, the back of their heads resting on the back of their right thighs.

" Our love is questioned, such a mournful sound

Tonight I'm gonna bury that horse in that ground

So I like to keep my issues drawn

But it's always darkest before the dawn

Releasing their legs, the girls all did a combination of a tombe port de bouree coupee with a jete leap and ending with a barrell turn. With their feet on the floor once again, the girls put their hands on their ears and shook back and forth before falling into straddle splits and slamming their palms onto the mats. They all then looked back up at their audience and did straddle split rolls overs, Takara, Ayame and Karen using their arms to push themselves up into handstands from the roll while Misa and Mitsuki moved to their knees. Takara, Ayame and Karen then let their legs fall back to the floor and all five rolled their shoulders, right then left, before the three standing all kicked forward, their legs in front of their eyes as Misa and Karen both did fan kicks to the left and maneuvering back into standing positions.

" Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa

The five girls all prepared their feet and arms quickly before performing five straight leg fouette turns and then jumping out of them with their hands up for the 'ooh whoa!'. Ayame, Misa and Mitsuki then moved over to grab their balls and kicked their legs to the sides of their heads before holding their balls forward with table top backs. At the same time Takara and Karen performed three more fouette turns before running over to their teammates and balanced their hands on Misa and Ayame's backs (Mitsuki in the middle) before pushing up and letting their legs fall straight legged over their heads, their chests and eyes pressed forward while their arms stretched to hold them up. Then the two bent their legs at their knees a few times before Misa and Ayame fell forward and the two rolled off, landing on their feet and all performing stag leaps on 'ooh whoa!'.

" And I am done with my graceless heart

So tonight I'm gonna cut it out and then restart

'Cause I like to keep my issues drawn

It's always darkest before the dawn

Takara and Karen landed and then quickly picked up their balls before turning to meet the other three in a straight line, where they all placed the balls on their chests and bent back, their right legs kicking into the air. After their legs came back down, the girls moved into back bends and then flipped over, allowing their colored balls to slide from their chests through their split legs and onto their backs, the girls all then falling onto all floors to balance the balls. Reaching back, the girls all grabbed their balls and brought them over their heads, pressing their against their chests before bending back and tossing them into the air. Once they were in the air, the girls all performed straddle rolls overs and caught the balls with their hands once they were back in standing positions.

" Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

Shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, shake it out, ooh whoa

And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

So shake him off, oh whoa

Starting with three girls, Karen, Ayame, and Misa placed their balls on the mats and started two back hand springs before the other two and on the fourth count, Takara and Mitsuki put down their balls joined in with two more before all did back aerials with no hands and straight legs. The girls all then started to jump and leap around the stage with their arms thrusting into the air at out to their sides and all coming together in a line where their balls were and Takara, Mitsuki and Ayame slammed their hands into the ground before coming up into table tops. Misa and Karen both did front aerials with kicks to the front before moving to Takara and Mitsuki, rolling over their backs with fan kicks. Once landed, all girls did two aerial flips back and then fell into splits, their hands falling to their sides and close to their specific balls.

" And it's hard to dance with a devil on your back

And given half the chance I would take any of it back

It's a fine romance but it's left me so undone

It's always darkest before the dawn

In the splits, the girls all lifted the balls up into the air and pulled them down as their legs came in, all leaning to one side with the ball and letting their other hand flow up and down. Step and Out all then kicked up with their left legs and rolled onto the flat part of their arms between the wrists and elbows, the balls still in their palms as their legs fell in front of their shoulders, creating a box like look with their bodies. The girls then rolled back out of them and Karen moved onto to her back with her legs open in a V and pushed higher on her shoulders while Misa grabbed her ankles and helped bend them down. Once they were bent, Misa jumped up and landed in a straddle split on the middle of Karen's feet, allowing herself to be lifted up in this position while Karen's legs moved to be straight. Behind them, Ayame had done the same as Karen and laid on her back, but Mitsuki had instead rested her lower back on Mitsuki's feet and had her hands behind her, gripping onto Mitsuki's. Takara then climbed up her friend's slowly and did the same as Misa, using the help of Ayame's feet and moving into a straddle split in the air.

" Oh whoa, oh whoa... "

Misa and Takara, once they balanced on their friend's feet, then rolled their heads slowly to the end of their song, the music fading out with the girls in their final position. After a few more moments of silence, and the girls breathing heavily after the routine, the audience all jumped up and cheered loudly for the Step and Out Tokyo team. Large grins appeared on the girl's faces and they all happily waved back at the audience, Takara giving a small smile as she waved, noticing her friends in the middle of the stadium. Hearing the crowd going wild at their routine, and also noticing her friends cheering for her in the audience, Takara realized something. She knew that she would always love gymnastics and wouldn't want to give it up for anything, but she also knew that that was not only who she was. She loved basketball. No one could take that away from her.

Basketball may have been what injured her in the past, but because of it, she made many friends and learned things about herself that she never knew about. It wasn't just a sport; it was part of her life. And playing with the team from America today, made her realize that it is a sport that can bring people together. Or rekindle old friendships... Allowing Misa and Karen to help her down, Takara hoped off of Mitsuki's legs and continued to wave at their audience.

'This is what I love to do... I'm not just a gymnast nor a basketball player... I'm me. I am Kuroko Takara and you all better watch out for me, because this is what I can really do.'


~ * 'Live your truth. Express your love. Share your enthusiasm. Take action toward your dreams. Walk your talk. Dance and sing to your music. Embrace your blessings. Make today worth remembering.' * ~ Steve Maraboli.


End of 'Chapter Twenty-Seven: What She Can Really Do'

Next... 'Chapter Twenty-Eight: Winter Cup is Here'


HERE IT IS! FINALLY! I HAVE GIVEN IT TO YOU! Sorry for my excitment for finally being able to give this to you guys! It has made me all giddy. I HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED IT! Dear god, cheoreographing that damn dance was hard and took soooo long. I had to think real hard about it since it's gymnastics and dance put together in one. So as you can tell, the aerials and etc were gymnastics and the leaps and such for dance. I hope you liked that! It took me forever to complete it and make it what I wanted. Plus I brought Aomine back for all of you Aomine fans out there! I hope that was enjoyable! And Aomine is totally the type to just break into her house cause he knows he can pfft. He knows where the key is so why not, right? I hope you all can guess that there is more to Naoki then you all thought~ He ain't jsut good with bones my dears! I can't wait to hear what you all think!

Now for the thanks yous to all the awesome people who reviewed the chapter! Thank you so much May Eve, animefan106, hitomi65, AnGell012, Lady Syndra, near4EVER, Zikarn Krais, LoVeLeSs AnD bEtRaYeD, XxdreamergirlxX, shinXlullaby, animefreak78990, xXxOtAkU-444xX, xDarkxKurokox, herondalefan, AliesEve, Zik, gigi323, Guest, scratchart123, Lucky Guard, hiwatari1708, animeangel98, vanilla Pen, Aztia, sweetygirl1994, PrimoGiotto5510, frania, Rigoudon3, PokerPair, Futakomori, ivyknightfire, Iliachenva'ar72, Lacie, Soul Vrazy, and Arfa! You have all been so wonderful to me and I appreciate you all so much! You're patience has been fantastic and so supportive! Thank you thank you! And... another surprise! The next chapter is already done so I'm going to let you all process this one for a day or two and then probably post up the 29th chapter! I wanted to make sure to have it ready for you guys since you've been so patient and deserve it early! Yay! Thank you again so much everyone! Hope you enjoy this chapter and please please review! I want to read your comments! Lots of love!

Cheshire


Edited as of October 20 2015: