RWBY Watches Kuroko no Basuke

by triscythe59

After the event of the Breach, Team RWBY receives a package from an unknown source that introduces a sport that they have never heard off and a Generation of Miracles that play the game. RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth and Kuroko no Basuke is own by Tadatoshi Fujimaki.

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm back and with an all-new Fic! I know you guys want me to work on other Fics, but I couldn't help but make this crossover. And I am proud to be the first one to make a RWBY x Kuroko no Basket Crossover. I hope you all like it. I decided to hold the opening and ending away to give them more reactions for a few episodes.

---

Ruby Rose, the youngest student of Beacon Academy, is relaxing in her team's dorm room and her teammates.

The little red sighed as she lay on the top of her bunkbed. "I'm so bored…"

"Really, you dolt?" Weiss raised a brow as she sat on her bottom of her bunkbed. "It's the only day one of the month from our time off Beacon."

It was not long ago after the girls had to go through the Breach, and the girls, along with the other students and transfer students of Beacon Academy, are given time off before the Vytal Festival starts.

"I can't help it!" Ruby wined. "I just wished for something exciting to happen."

"Geez, Rubes, I can understand what you mean, but there's nothing wrong in relaxing for the day." Yang grinned, sitting on the top of her bunkbed as she sees her sister pout.

Blake just silently rolled her eyes as she laid down on the bottom of her bunkbed as she quietly read her book.

Ruby grumbled. "I just wish something new happens today." And as if her wish was answered, they heard a knock from their door.

*Knock, Knock, Knock*

The girls all looked at the door. "Huh? I wonder who that could be?" Blake asked as he placed the book away and stared at the door.

Ruby used her Semblance and quickly zipped towards the door. She opens it and peaks her head out. "Hello?" Only to find that there was nobody there. She raised a brow in confusion, and before she was about to close the door, she sees a package on the floor with their team's name on it.

"Who was at the door Ruby?" Yang asked.

"Someone left a package for us." Ruby answered, getting her teammate's attention.

"A package?" Weiss raised a brow as she walked out to see it for herself. She looks at the package and examines it, then she lightly frowns. "It doesn't say who it's from."

"What?" Blake raised a brow as she, too, walked out to see the package.

"Who do you think to send it to us?" Yang joined her partner as she looked around the halls, checking if there was anyone around. "Should… we report this?"

"I think we should." Blake nodded. "I'll call one of the pr–" Before she could finish her sentence, the sound of tape being torn was heard.

The girls see Ruby giddily opening the package as she brought the box to their room.

"You dolt…" Weiss facepalms, disapproving of how her partner acted without thinking as she closed the door.

"Welp, no use thinking about it now." Yang shrugged as she looked at what inside the package with her sister. Soon her fellow teammates did the same.

They found a couple of videos and books and messages inside.

"What's all this?" Ruby looks at the video case with interest. "'The Basketball Which Kuroko Plays'?"

Blake looks at one of the two books. "'How to play Basketball' and 'The Origin of Basketball'?"

"What's Basketball?" Yang raised a brow. She knows what a ball is, but what does a basket have to do with it?

"Maybe this letter may tell us." Weiss says as she took the letter and begins to read it out loud.

'Dear Team RWBY,

I certainly hope you receive this package. I have heard much about you and your friends and your achievements, so I have decided to deliver these videos and books to you about a sport called Basketball and a story about remarkable people about your age playing this game.

I'm sure none of you heard it before, seeing that this sport is from a different dimension. That's right, I said it! It's from a different world where Grimm, Semblance, Aura, and Faunus don't exist, so don't think too hard about whatever you believe it or not. All I ask is that you give this video and sport a chance.

Who knows? You might learn something new about this game.

I hope you and your friends would love this sport and the show that I sent you as much as I do.

From,

A friend.'

There was a moment of silence after Weiss finished reading the letter.

Weiss was in pure disbelief hearing that this package is from a different dimension.

Blake was still reeling because there is no Faunus where this package came from and was a bit suspicious of who this 'friend' is.

Yang didn't think much about it the whole dimension thing but was growing curious about what Basketball is.

While Ruby's eyes sparkled in excitement to learn that their package came from another dimension, and someone was kind enough to share something they love with them, it made her curious to know what this sport is all about.

"I say we watch it!" Ruby cheered.

"You don't actually believe in this nonsense?" Weiss raised a brow towards her partner.

The leader just shrugs. "Not really, but are you not a least a bit interested in what this sport is about."

"I agree with my baby sis, I don't believe much about the whole dimension thing, but I won't lie about being curious about Basketball." Yang grinned while Ruby was happy that her sister agrees with her.

"I don't believe this…" Weiss shook her head and looked at Blake. "What do you think about this?"

"I think… we should at least watch one episode if it is as good as the letter says." Blake voiced out.

The heiress sighs, feeling that the vote was unanimous. "Fine. One episode. If it's not good, then we report this to the professors."

"Yes!" Ruby cheered then she picked up her Scroll. "I'm calling JNPR! I'm sure they would like to watch this with us."

After a few moments, Team JNPR came to their room and were explained about the package.

They are skeptical about the dimension thing, but they are interested in the sport and the show based on it.

As they prepared the videos with their television in their dorm, Blake decided to read out what Basketball is, the rules, and how to play from the two books. Thankfully, it wasn't much to go through. Plus, where the show is taking place.

After finishing a description of the sport and its origin, they can't help but say that the game sounds interesting and fun to play and that there is strategy on the physical sport.

"Okay! Is everyone ready?" Ruby asked as everyone nodded readily to watch the show. "Right!" She smiled as she pressed the remote and began to play the first episode.

The scene opens, showing the inside of a basketball stadium.

"The Teiko Middle School basketball club." The narrator said in the background as images of basketball players are facing against each other, a scoreboard of the two teams showing their scores, the audience, photographers, and judges watch. "An incredibly strong team with over one hundred members and three consecutive championship wins."

"Wow… this Teiko Middle School sounds amazing." Pyrrha says in awe.

"Sounds a prestige academy like Beacon." Weiss points out even admitting that she is impressed by this school's history.

"Even within that brilliant history," Images of five young basketball players appeared and one girl who is holding a clipboard. "a group of five prodigies known as the "Generation of Miracles" stood above the rest."

"The Generation of Miracles…" Ruby, Jaune, and Nora say in awe.

"Okay, I gotta admit that sounds like a badass title." Yang grinned at the cool name.

"I wonder how they earned that title?" Blake wondered, saying that the title holds more weight than it sounds.

"However, there was a strange rumor concerning the Generation of Miracles." The scene changes into a small building inside a personal basketball court you can find in any school for training. Inside stood five young players, but their faces are not shown due to the bright light. "Despite being relatively unknown and lacking a game record, was one more member recognized by the five prodigies."

The scene changes, showing a human-shaped shadow floor while a basketball was close to the said shadow. "A phantom sixth man." The scene now shows the back of a young boy who owns the shadow, his face not being shown, but the color of his air is light blue.

"A phantom sixth man?" Ren raised a brow.

"A rumored person who is part of the Generation of Miracles?" Weiss said, wondering how something like that is possible.

"I'm betting that person is the main character of the show." Ruby said.

"Let's watch and see." Jaune said.

---

The scene now shows a sign saying 'Seirin Private High School'.

Inside the school, gates are numerous young students walking on their first day of school while surrounded by seniors who are offering numerous clubs for any new students who want to join as petals from nearby Sakura trees fall.

"Wow! So pretty!" Nora says in awe since she likes them pink while the others agreed with her. "What kind of trees are those?"

"Those are Sakura trees." Ren answered. "You can mostly find them in Mistral."

"Seirin Private High School?" Weiss read out the sign and was a bit curious about what the school is like.

"Interested in Rugby?"

"Have you ever played shogi?"

"You gotta play baseball if you Japanese!"

"Swimming! It feels great!"

Countless students in their respective uniforms on the clubs they part off offered and demonstrated their clubs to newcomers getting a few interested and excited for their four-year stay in Seirin.

"Look at that! So many students in one place." Jaune points out. "You think this the first day of school?"

"Looks like it." Pyrrha said. "I think those students are recruiting people, and it's a regular school for civilians."

"The letter did say that there are no Grimm, so it would be logical to point out that they do not require any Huntsman Academies."

"So many clubs… Rugby? Shogi? Baseball? So many sports I never heard off." Ruby says in awe. Is this what it's like for a noncombat school?

"Basketball! Basketball club!" One student shouted as he smiled and raised a sheet of paper showing details of their club. He is relatively short and has spikey, dark brown hair and blunt bangs. He wears Seirin's winter uniform, which is composed of a black blazer and pants. His most distinctive feature is his mouth that's curved like a cat's. This is Shinji Koganei, a second-year student.

"Looks like we found our club." Yang said.

"Is that boy a Faunas?" Blake questioned, seeing how his mouth looked like a cat's.

"I don't think he is. The letter did say that there are no Faunus in this dimension." Weiss pointed out though still not believing about the idea.

"Kogenei, you can't be serious?" A boy behind him said with a raised brow. This boy has straight black hair that reaches his eyes. His eyes are narrowed and resemble an eagle shown without pupils due to how entirely black it is, and he wears the Seirin uniform. This is Shun Izuki, a second-year student.

"Another member?" Nora tilted her head. "At least we know the guy with the cat lips name is."

"What's wrong with how he's saying it?" Ruby asked.

"Probably there was no flare at how he is recruiting." Yang comments.

"How else am I supposed to say it?" Shinji asks as he turns his head to look at him.

Shun hummed and raised his finger, and said. "'New kids, join the club! The basketball club needs some serious help!'"

Pyrrha giggles. "That's one way to recruit people."

"They don't really need help that badly, do they?" Ruby says, a bit worried.

"I've had enough of your jokes, Izuki." Shinji deadpans then turns to another person behind Shun. "Mitobe, make sure they hear you!"

The said person has medium-length black hair parted to the sides but with one strand of hair between his eyes. He also has very thick eyebrows. This is Rinnosuke Mitobe, another second year.

"Another member." Weiss comments. "We now know at least three of them now."

Mitobe turns to Shinji and silently nods his head with a smile, then passing the papers to new students. Without saying a word and with his mouth closed from the beginning.

"Huh? Why didn't he say anything?" Ruby titled her head.

"I think he must be mute." Blake answered.

Yang slightly narrowed her eyes as she recalled a particular ice-cream-themed mute, she thought against back in Mountain Glenn but quickly brushed it off.

Shinji just gives deadpanned look with a strained smile. "He isn't even gonna open his mouth. How scary…" Then suddenly a student with blue hair passed him. Shinji snapping back to his job and quickly talks to the student. "Hey, do you have a minute?"

"Hey! It's the blue-headed guy." Jaune points out.

"Looks like we finally get the chance which this guy is." Ruby smiled, feeling a bit excited to see this Miracle.

Except he didn't talk to the bluenette, but the student that was behind him.

"Wait. What?" Ruby's smile dropped to a look of confusion. "Why did he choose someone else?"

"Maybe he didn't see him?" Pyrrha guessed.

The said bluenette was reading a book as he walked through the crowd.

Then another student sees an opportunity. "You're a reader, aren't you?" The student asks… behind the boy who was coincidently reading another book. "How about the literature club?" He offers as he hands the student a sheet of paper, almost smacking the bluenette's face, but the said boy ducked his head and continues his walks, typically as if nothing happened.

"What the–, did the guy just seriously just did that?" Nora watches in disbelief.

"I… I think he did." Ren says even in bewildered at the sight.

"Now that was just rude." Weiss frowns at what she saw.

"Sorry, but this is just a manga." The student apologized as he took the offered paper.

"Manga are books too." The student said, utterly unaware that he nearly hit the bluenette.

"And why is everyone around him ignoring what happened? Especially to the said person?" Blake raised a brow even when she was reading a book while walking, she is always careful, thanks to her Faunus traits, but it was like he was never there for this boy's case.

The said bluenette continued to walk with his book in hand until he notices a whiteboard behind a protective glass that showed directions in his new school. His face was shown he has light blue hair that he styles to his left. His eyes are blue, and he has a blank gaze. His skin is pretty pale. This is Tetsuya Kuroko, a new first-year student.

"Huh… so that's what he looks like." Yang comments. "A bit plain if you ask me."

"He might be more than what he appears." Pyrrha said.

He gazed at a particular location on the whiteboard that has the word 'Basketball' on it.

---

Back to the three offering positions for the Basketball club.

"Basketball! Basketball club!" Shinji shouts as he gives papers away.

"Join the club, and you'll be cute, too!" Izuki quotes while Mitobe continues to do the same in silence.

Yang snorted at Izuki's comment then laughs. "What? 'you'll be cute, too'?"

"Ooh, ~ does the sport make you cute?" Nora asks with a bit of sparkle in her eyes. Even innocent Ruby was curious.

"Please. From what I can gather in this sport, I doubt a rough playing game makes you cute." Weiss scoffed.

"Are you guys in the basketball club?" Someone spokes up as a shadow covers Shinji's face. Curious about who said it and what's blocking his view, he looks up and looks up and sees a tall student wearing the school uniform, accepts he leaves his blazer open, showing his white shirt underneath and wears a necklace with a ring around it. Still, his face was not showing due to being outside of screen view.

"Who's that?" Jaune asked though he couldn't see the said person's face, he couldn't help but feel somewhat intimidated by him.

"Maybe a potential recruit?" Pyrrha guessed just like her partner. He could feel something from the said person, and the rest of her friends thought she could figure what it was.

---

The screen now shows two students sitting next to a table outside with a 'Boys' Basketball Club' sign indicating that they are part of the club.

"Oh! Two more members." Ruby asked.

"The girls must be an assistant in the club." Blake said.

"What made you say that?" Yang asked.

"The sign on the table says, 'Boys' Basketball Club'." This earned an 'oh' from Yang.

Ruby silently giggled at the Deja Vu.

"Just a few more would be nice." A young girl sighed as she held a sheet holding a list of people who joined. She has caramel-colored short hair, and she has average height with a thin, boyish figure. She wears a female winter uniform that is a white shirt with a dark blue sweater over it. She also wears a short white skirt and a sailor necktie. This is Riko Aida, a second-year student.

"Not many members?" Ren comments. "I wonder why?"

"We couldn't even get ten." The boy next to him said when he finished drinking a cup of cold tea meant for newcomers. Has short brown hair and grey eyes. He wears glasses and is of average height and build, and wears the school uniform. This is Junpei Hyuga, a second-year student.

"Less than ten? Don't tell me there are only four boys in the club." Weiss comments.

"Is that bad?" Ruby asked, not seeing the problem since she knows that the standards Huntsman team is a four-person team.

"The required number of people in an official game should be five vs. five." Weiss reminded her partner. "If it's less than that, they won't be to participate in any official games."

"It might be that not all the members are there or that this is a newly formed club." Ren says, looking at the logic for the lack of members.

"We're just getting started," Riko said as she places the list down and smiled, points out her fingers, and began to list down things. "We're a new school. If we win the Inter-High and Winter Cup, we'll be a big deal starting next year." She finished with a confident grin.

"So Seirin is a brand new school? That's kinda cool." Jaune comments.

"How many years old do you think this school is?" Nora asked.

"Judging by how experienced these students are, I would guess that they are second-year students, so Seirin is about two years before its founding." Blake said.

"That's so cool! A school that's about to make a name for itself!" Ruby's eyes sparkled in anticipation as he is interested in this Inter-High and Winter Cup.

"Are you casually putting pressure on your captain?" Junpei deadpans with a forced smile feeling a bit of weight for being the captain.

"So he's the captain?" Yang comments.

"No pressure at all." Blake sarcastically said.

"Hyuga, have you always been so delicate?" Riko says with an innocent smile but with a hint of sarcasm.

Hyuga drops his shoulders and lowers his head at that stab but acknowledged what she meant. "I will do my best. I will do my best."

"Pft! Hahaha!" Yang laughs. "Oh, I like her! She knows how to treat her friends right."

"She definitely does." Pyrrha giggled while the others chuckled.

Riko then usually smiles as she looks around. "I wonder how the recruitment is going? If they could just bring in a few promising ones, that would be..."

Suddenly the sound of footsteps could be heard, and she turns to see Shinji being lifted by the back of his blazer, crying like a frightened kitten.

The viewers slightly jumped, not expecting the boy with a cat-like smile just to appear like that and definitely not expected to see him being lifted like that.

"Kogenei?! Whose carrying him like that?" Ruby squeaked.

"The boy from earlier?" Jaune nervously said.

"The new students are here." He whimpered.

"What?" That was all Riko said, slightly stunned at sight.

"Is this the basketball club?" The young boy's voice questioned, making Riko and Hyuga look up, seeing a very tall boy giving him an overwhelming aura, which some say is like the intensity of a wild tiger. He has two-toned dark red and black hair and red eyes. His eyes are pointed and narrow, and his eyebrows are pretty thick and split in two. This is Taiga Kagami, a new first-year student.

"Woah…" Ruby muttered as she shrunk a bit in where she sat.

"This guy is a first-year?" Yang says with eyes wide open, seeing how tall he is.

"He's… he's huge!" Nora shouted. "Maybe as tall as Yatsu!"

"And intimidating…" Jaune gulped at the boy's appearance.

'He reminds me of a tiger even though he's human…' Blake mentally comments while also feeling a bit intimidated.

Riko and Hyuga were stunned as they gapped at Taiga's appearance until Riko broke the silence and nodded. "Yeah."

'Who the hell is this guy?' Riko said in her head as she stares at the boy, who stares back with an intimidating gaze. 'He's got the intensity of a wild tiger!'

"I was just thinking the same thing!" Nora shouts.

"Really? So was I." Ren comments.

"What about you, Blake? Did you notice that too?" Yang asked her partner.

"I… I did." Blake honestly answered.

"I want to join..." The tiger man said as he dropped Shinji and took a foldable chair, and sat.

"What?" Riko stuttered.

"The basketball club." The tiger man answered.

"Oh! So he does want to join!" Ruby says in a bit of excitement.

"Hmph! With someone with a brutish appearance like that, I suppose he fits the sport well." Weiss comments.

"Um?" Riko blinked a couple of times but smiled, seeing there was a recruit in front of them. "Welcome, welcome!" She said as Hyuga passed a cup of cold tea to her. "Just wait a sec!" She takes the cup then offers it to the new student. He takes it and takes a sip.

"I'm sure you know, but our school only opened last year." Riko explained to the newcomer. "Our seniors are only second years, so I'm sure someone of your build would probably quickly…"

"I don't care." The new student cut her off as he begins to fill his application. "I'm going after I leave my name."

"A competitive player." Pyrrha lightly smiles.

"You want to face him, don't you?" Jaune smiles towards his partner, who lightly blushes.

"W-well, if it's a combat tournament, I would like to face him." Pyrrha stuttered in embarrassment. To be honest, now that she has a good read at him, she can quickly tell that this man is strong.

After he finishes, he gives it to Riko. She studies it now, learning about his name, but she blinked in surprise. "Huh? You don't have a reason for joining?" She says as she notices that a question asking the reason for joining was left blank.

"Do you need to answer that to join a club?" Ruby innocently asks.

"It's not really a requirement when joining clubs." Pyrrha points out.

Taiga finished drinking his cup then crushed the plastic with his hand. "Not really." He simply answered as he stood up. "Basketball's the same, no matter where you go in Japan." He begins to walk away but not after throwing the crushed plastic in a trash bin.

By throwing it behind his back and shot it perfectly. Without even looking.

"Pft! Show off." Yang scoffed but was impressed by it.

"He sounds really arrogant." Blake comments.

"I suppose for a well-known sport. It would be normal to say that like how well-known Huntsman Academies are." Pyrrha points out.

Riko looked at the bin, then back at Tiaga, who looked back at his should then turn back to where he's walking.

"He's terrifying!" Shinji gasps as he sweats as he leans on the table. "Is he really a first-year high school student?"

"I was surprised too. He can be mistaken for a second year." Weiss agreed with the frightened boy.

"He's one in a million." Shinji blinked to look up to see Izuki and Mitobe now with the others as they watch Taiga walked off.

"You! Where have you been hiding?" Shinji shouted in accusation.

"Ha! They left him." Yang laughed.

"Yang! That's not funny!" Ruby scowled at her sister's action. "You did the same thing to me!"

"But it did get you Weiss and Jaune in the end." Ruby cutely puffs her cheeks but knows that it was true.

"Don't remind me…" Weiss rubs her temples, no wanting to recall their first meeting while Jaune just chuckles.

Hyuga takes the application and takes a look at it. "Kagami Taiga." He reads out. "He went to middle school in America. He must've learned from the source."

"Taiga?" Yang laughs at the pun. "Wow! Even his name describes him for being a tiger!"

"What an odd coincidence," Pyrrha giggled while the others find it humorous.

"Either way, I'm sure he'll be extraordinary." Riko said.

"Yo." The looks at Shinji, who was looking at another application on the table. "You forgot this club request."

"Oh, sorry." Riko apologized as he took the paper from the kitten's face. "Let's see, Kuroko Tetsuya… Huh?" She raised a brow and looked closer at the form, not remembering seeing this before.

"Was there someone else there?" Nora tilted her head, not recalling anyone before or after Taiga appeared.

"I… don't think so?" Ren says unsurely.

"I was here the whole time, but I don't remember him at all." However, what caught her attention was the 'reason for applying' question was answered saying 'Played for the Teiko Junior High School Basketball Club'.

"Teiko?!" Everyone said/shouted in unison.

"You mean the blue-headed guy?" Yang says in surprise. "But we didn't even see him."

"Maybe he just got one of the papers and signed while Taiga was talking with them?" Jaune says but wasn't sure himself.

"But they and we should have noticed him." Weiss points out. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know." Ruby said. "But at least we now know his name."

She quickly takes a closer look at the question catching Hyuga's attention. "What's wrong?"

Riko gasped as he moved the paper away from her. "H-He's from the Teiko basketball club!"

"Teiko?" The captain says in surprise as he took the paper to confirm it. "You mean the Teiko?"

"I guess everyone who plays basketball all know about that popular school." Ren points out.

"Yeah!" Riko nodded. "And if he's a first-year, he must be from… The Generation of Miracles!"

"How did she come to that conclusion?" Blake raised a brow. "For all, we know it could be another member who isn't part of the Generation of Miracles."

"She's probably excited that someone from such a strong team is now willing to join there's." Wiess deduced.

"Like how you were about Pyrrha?" Yang teased, making Weiss blush at her attempt to make Pyrrha her partner while the said Invincible Girl just chuckles nervously.

"The Generation of Miracles…" Hyuga muttered before quickly looking at the girl. "That famous group?"

She nodded happily before comically berating herself as she groans in annoyance. "Why can't I remember that golden egg's face?"

…

"And that guy just came back from America." Riko says in the background as Tiaga continued to walk unknowingly that the said former Teiko player is fowling him with his book in hand. "This year's first years could be ridiculous!"

"He was there the whole time!?" Jaune shouts in shock.

"Okay, something is going on here." Yang said, also kind of freaked out about Kuroko's sudden appearance.

"Maybe it's his Semblance that turns him invisible?" Nora guessed.

"But this world doesn't have Aura or Semblance." Ren reminded her partner.

"Then how come none was able to notice him?" Ruby asked while no one had the answer.

---

Episode 1 Q: I AM KUROKO

---

"'I AM KURKO'? That's… an interesting introduction." Blake comments.

"I suppose Kuroko's appearance is… unique in its way." Weiss slowly said.

The scene now shows a building where the court is.

Inside are second-year players in their regular training clothes, with Riko and the new first-year recruits showing seven of them, including Taiga.

"Looks like we jumped straight to the club trials." Pyrrha said.

"There's Taiga, but I don't see Kuroko." Ruby said as she tries to look for Kuroko.

"Maybe he's late?" Jaune shrugged.

"All right, looks like all the first years are here!" Shinji shouts.

One of the first lightly nudged his should to his fellow peer and whispered to him. "Hey, isn't the manager cute?" He whispers, talking about Riko, who was talking to Izuki.

"Oh, she's not an assistant?" Nora blinked.

"She's a second year, right?" The student whispers back to him. "If only she were a little sexier…"

The girls viewing a gave a deadpanned frowns at the first-year boy's comment while Jaune and Ren slightly blushed and looked away in awkwardness.

Weiss groaned in disgust. "Ugh… men."

"I'll admit that Riko has the looks, but I won't hesitate to give them a good punching if they gave my sister that looks." Yang declared as she crossed her arms while Blake just rolled her eyes.

"Yang!" Ruby shouts in embarrassment.

Then suddenly, the two first years received a punch in the back of their heads by Hyuga. "Morons, you're wrong."

"Hahaha! Nice one!" Nora clapped her hands, and Pyrrha giggled.

"That's what they deserve!" Weiss smiled.

The boys rubbed their heads in pain then looked up to see Riko before them. She also wore a pink whistle around her neck and held a clipboard.

"I'm the boys' basketball club coach, Aida Riko." The second-year coach introduced herself. "Nice to meet you."

"Wait. Did she say, coach?" Blake blinked a couple of times while everyone widens their eyes at that.

"What?" This shocked the new first years, not excepting her to be their coach.

"It's not him?" The first-year said as he pointed at the older man who was sitting at the far back.

"Was that old man always there?" Jaune asked.

"I think I saw him from afar." Ren answered.

"I suppose it would make sense to think he would be the coach." Weiss said.

"That's our advisor, Takeda-sensei." Riko said as the said older man smiles while his body shakes.

"Seriously?" The viewers all said.

"Seriously?" Another first-year said, surprising the others again.

"You've got to be kidding."

"Oh! We all just did an echo!" Ruby giggled, seeing that her friends did the same thing as the first year.

"That's pretty cool." Yang admitted with a grin.

"Now that you're acquainted with Takeda-sensei, I'll have you guys first..." Riko in a tone of seriousness as she turned her back to them.

"I wonder what she's going to ask them to do?" Jaune wondered.

"With an expression like that, it must be very serious to test them if they are qualified to join the Basketball Club." Pyrrha said as she recognized the look Riko gives, like how her trainers provide before she entered Beacon.

She faces them again with a severe expression. "Take off your shirts!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

There was complete silence at what Riko demanded for the first years until Weiss broke the silence. "I'm sorry, did I hear that right?"

"Huh?" That was all they muttered before it took a moment before the girl's word registered in their heads.

"What?" They all shouted in shock, not expecting the coach to say straight up that to him.

"Oh Oum! She did say it!" Weiss blushed in horror hearing such an indecent thing.

"Eww! Why would she ask that?!" Ruby blushed a storm as she covered her face with her hood.

Yang was laughing her butt off as she held her sides, blushing a bit, and her partner just blushed a bit as well but stayed silent with her eyes wide open.

"How bold!" Nora laughed while Pyrrha blushed a storm, never expecting that to happen, and the two boys just felt a bit uneasy for the girl to say that with such seriousness.

"Why?" All the first year shouted while the second years were not surprised by Riko saying that she simply smiles.

"Why indeed?!" Weiss cried out still. "Is this girl really the coach?"

"I don't know… but I like her more and more." Yang chuckled as she slowly calmed down from her laughing.

---

The scene enow changes now, showing all the first years lined up shirtless.

Some of the girls blushed a bit at the sight while one of them whistled at the company.

"Yang!" Ruby blushed.

"What? I'm just whistling." Yang grinned.

Riko walks to them and begins to examine them.

"W-what is she doing?" Jaune said, noticing what Riko is doing.

"You, you're not very explosive, are you?" Riko says to one of them. "I bet you can only do 50 side jumps in about 20 seconds, right? You'll need to do a little better for the basketball team." She says as she continues to examine the other boy and points out his flaws. "You're too stiff."

"What?" Ren blinked in surprise along with his friends.

"Did she… just examined him and said the results just by a single look?" Blake blinked.

"Seriously? She's right." The first-year said when Riko pointed his flaws.

"She was right?" Ruby says in surprise. "But how?"

"Do some stretches after you bathe." Riko says in the background.

"What do you mean?" The other first-year asks, being slightly freaked out as he and those who she examined.

"How'd she know that just from looking at us?"

"You should strengthen up a bit." Riko continues her work.

"Her dad's a sports trainer." Hyuga answers with an impressed smile.\

"Her dad?" Yang raised a brow.

"Try some sprints on your own." Riko says.

---

A flashback shows a younger Riko with her father, looking at the clipboard and examining it.

"Oooh! A flashback!" Nora said.

While the young Riko was watching a shirtless man running on a treadmill with a breathing apparatus.

"That's interesting…" Weiss said as she studied the person on the treadmill. "A kind of treadmill training that tests the limit of how much you can run."

"That's a kind of the line training exercise." Pyrrha comments.

"Collecting data and creating a training regimen." Hyuga explains. "It's a skill she picked up from observing bodies and data every day at his workplace since she was a child.

"I see… so she developed a keen eye of observation in studying an athletes' body." Blake says in awe and fascination.

"It's like a Semblance! Is that really possible?" Ruby says in awe and curiosity.

"I think so." Yang answered. "I mean, dad and uncle Qrow are the best Huntsman because they trained really hard when they were our age."

The screen takes a close-up of the older Riko's right eye. "When she looks at your body, she sees all your physical abilities in numbers."

For example, the reflection of her eyes shows the first year's number stats like from a video game.

"…What?" Jaune muttered in confusion, seeing what Riko sees in her eyes.

The reason? There are cute minor characters and emojis and numbers that measure the said students' stats.

"…What is this?" Weiss slowly said though admittingly she thought that it's cute even Blake felt the same.

"Oh my gosh, that is so cute!" Ruby giggled along with Pyrrha agreeing with her.

"Wow! Is that what she always sees? I so like to see something like that!" Nora smiled while Ren was worried, thinking what would happen if his partner would have such delusional images through her eyes.

Yang laughed, liking Riko even more now.

---

"I wouldn't expect any less from a coach." Hyuga finishes.

The flashback ends, showing the older Riko gapping at the last first-year Taiga.

"What?" Taiga asks. Despite not showing his serious expression, his voice was slightly disturbed by Riko's staring at his muscular form.

"I wonder what she's gapping about?" Yang grinned.

"Yang!" Ruby wined in embarrassment.

"Aside from Yang's vulgarness." Weiss's eye twitched, but she composes herself. "Judging by Riko's reaction, I would take that she discovered something about Taiga."

'What..." Riko muttered in her head. 'What is this?'

Riko's point of view shows cute cartoony-like forms showing Taiga's stats and numbers that reached over nine thousand.

"Whoa… okay jokes aside, even I can tell that that's a big deal." Yang widens her eyes, seeing Taiga's stats.

"This guy really is strong…" Jaune says in awe.

'All his numbers are through the roof.' Riko's thoughts in disbelief. 'These aren't the numbers of a first-year high school boy! I can't even see his potential.'

"She can't see his potential?" Nora tilted her head. "Does that mean Taiga can keep growing stronger?"

'This is the first time I've seen anyone like this.' Riko continues to gap in shock at Taiga's potential. 'Such raw talent!'

"He really is one in a million." Pyrrha muttered while wondering what kind of Huntsman he would be if he were in their world.

"Coach! What are you staring at?" Hyuga shouts, making Riko snap out of her gapping.

"Yeah, girl. Don't want to make a misunderstanding." Yang grinned while her sister and friends' groan.

"Sorry!" The coach apologizes then looks at her clipboard. "Um…"

"You looked at all of them." Hyuga answers confirming if she missed anyone. "Kagami's the last one."

"The last one?" Ruby said in confusion. "Is Kuroko not there?"

"I think he might be there." Jaune said as he recalled the times he was there but not noticed.

"Really?" Riko says before she looks up and looks around. "Is Kuroko here?"

"Oh, that kid from Teiko…" Hyuga remembered now understanding why his coach was like that.

'I thought I'd be able to pick out someone that strong when I saw him.' Riko thought as she rubbed the back of her head in confusion. "Looks like he's not here today." She says, then raised her arm up. "All right, let's get started with practice!"

"Oh. Guess he's not." Jaune comment.

"Why's that?" Nora asked.

"I guess he's late?" Ren guessed unsurely.

But before anyone could do anything, a certain someone appeared right in front of her.

"Um, excuse me." Riko froze right where she was. Now having a good look at who was right in from of him. "I'm Kuroko."

Some of the viewers shrieked or jumped at Kuroko's sudden appearance from out of nowhere.

"W-w-w-wha–, where did he pop out from?!" Weiss shrieked in fright.

"Better yet, when did he show up? He just… appeared!" Blake's eyes widen, not expecting that to happen.

"Holy crap, that startled me!" Jaune breathed out.

"Did anyone see him come in?" Pyrrha asked while calming down a bit.

"I don't think so, nor did I even hear him come in." Ren shook his head as he calmed down a bit.

"Man, that crazy!" Nora commented.

"That was quite a jump scare." Yang punned, much to everyone's annoyance.

"Yang!" Ruby shouted, but thankfully that got everyone back to normal.

The reaction she made at Kuroko's sudden appearance? She screamed in fright while surprising everyone.

"At least she's taking well." Yang sarcastically mused.

"What? How long have you been there?" Hyuga shouts in surprise, not even noticing that Kuroko was already in front of their coach.

"That's what we want to know too!" Jaune shouted as he raised his arms up.

"I've been here the whole time." Kuroko simply said as if this was a daily thing for him.

"The whole time! As in, right there with the first years and in front of her the whole time?!" Weiss shrieked, not believing what she is hearing.

"Oh my gosh! How could they not notice him?" Ruby squeaked.

"Did we even notice him?" Ren points out, and that got everyone wondering.

'He was right in front of me, and I didn't notice?' Riko gapped in disbelief as countless questions began to flood her head. 'What? Did he say he's Kuroko? What? He's practically invisible!'

Nora gasped. "Could it be a Semblance?"

"Or maybe he's just unnoticeable?" Blake tilted her head.

"In that level? That would be crazy it was." Yang points out.

"What? This guy was a part of the Generation of Miracles?" Shinji said as he and Hyuga walked up to them. "He couldn't have been a regular, could he?"

"Oh yeah! I forgot about that." Ruby snapped out of her shock and was getting excited.

"Of course not. Right, Kuroko?" He turns to the first year.

"I played in games." Kuroko simply said.

"Yeah! He… wait, is that all?" Ruby titled her head. "He's not going to say he's a part of the Generation of Miracles?"

"Maybe he doesn't need to?" Pyrrha said.

"Right?" Hyuga smiled but dropped in confusion. "What?"

"What?" Then Shinji followed.

Then at the same time, the two shouted, much to Riko's annoyance. "What?!"

Some of the viewers chuckled a bit at their reaction.

"Imagine what would people react if you answer like that?" Jaune whispered to Pyrrha, and she just giggled.

'The Generation of Miracles? What's that?' Taiga wondered. Being away from Japan did make him missed a few things.

"He doesn't know about them?" Nora asked.

"He was away for a long time, so I suppose this is the first he heard about them." Ren reasoned.

"T-Take off your shirt!" Riko stuttered.

"Now she sounds like she's begging." Yang teasingly grinned.

"I swear, Xiao Long if you make one more joke…" Weiss sternly glared at the blond, who raised her arms defending manner.

"Okay, okay, sheesh, ruin the fun."

"What? Okay." Kuroko said with a blank expression, not even a single hint of shock or embarrassment in his voice, but there was confusion.

"Well, he's taking it well." Jaune comments, not sure to be impressed or slightly disturbed.

As Kuroko took off his shirt, Riko began to examine him, only stunned by the result.

"I wonder what she found?" Ruby wondered.

---

The scene enow chances. Riko is now in a public bus wearing headphones as he looked out the window. Actives are done, and it's already dark.

"Looks like the day ended." Blake pointed out.

"But what about Kuroko's stats?" Nora wondered.

'Who is he?' Riko wonders as an image of Kuroko's stats reflected in the winder showing that the numbers are less than five hundred showing that he was weak. 'His stats are way too low.All his numbers are below average. On top of that, he's already almost at his limit. There's no way he could have been a regular on such a strong team. What on Earth...' She drifted on her thoughts, wondering how a boy like him could be a player in such a strong team.

"What? He's that weak?" Ruby said, feeling a bit disappointed at the result.

"Not going to lie, but the moment I saw him, I didn't really find him all impressing." Yang points out.

"I'm sure there more to him than that." Pyrrha defended Kuroko while she couldn't help but compare him to Jaune.

Jaune was thinking about him comparing himself to Kuroko, but he decided to wait and see what kind of person he is first.

---

The scene now changes to a public basketball court where a basketball was shot at the hoop.

Taiga was practicing late as he caught the ball. He dribbled it and went to the free-throw line.

"Looks like Taiga is doing some late-night training." Pyrrha comments.

"I'll admit it is impressive for a sport that involves aim and accuracy." Weiss admitted.

He jumps and positions himself to shoot but was caught off-guard, seeing someone outside the court making him misfire, causing the ball to hit the ring bounce, landing right towards the figure catching it.

It was Kuroko.

"Again?! Seriously! Where does he keep popping out from?" Yang screamed out.

"I won't be surprised if he popped right next to us." Nora joked.

"Wait, he is?!" Ruby cutely freaked out as she looks around.

"When did you get here?" Taiga asked, not expecting to see Kuroko.

"Nice to see you." Kuroko says.

"Not even going to bother to answer, are you?" Jaune deadpanned.

"What the hell are you doing?" Taiga questions as he places his right hand on his hip.

"What are you doing here by yourself?" Kuroko counters as he passes the ball back to Taiga.

"Well, he certainly knows how to counter." Pyrrha chuckled.

"Nothing." Taiga answers as he caught the ball. "I'm not doing anything."

"Is that so?" Kuroko said as the two remained silent as they stared each other down.

"Awkward~" Nora jokingly sang while the others chuckled.

"I was in America until my second year of middle school." Kagami spoke, catching Kuroko's attention. I've been appalled ever since I came back by how low the standards are here."

"That's one way to break the silence." Blake sarcastically said as she raised a brow.

"Are we going to listen to his life story?" Weiss raised a brow.

The first year narrowed his eyes. "I'm not looking to play basketball for fun. I want to play a more serious game that really gets me going."

Pyrrha slightly flinched at that comment. She mentally sighed, understanding what Taiga meant. Ever since she became the Invincible Girl, there hasn't been any fight she hasn't found challenging, and most people would avoid her because of her title.

"Looks like that sport means more than just fun for him." Wiess comments understanding somewhat being a Huntress means very much to her. A feeling felt with everyone.

"I heard all about you." He said to the shorter first year. "I've heard all about the supposedly strong Generation of Miracles from our year. You were on that team, weren't you?"

"Oh, I know that look." Yang slowly grinned.

"I have a pretty good sense of how good others are." Taiga continues as he spun the basketball on his right index finger. "People who can succeed smell different from the rest." He then threw the ball back to Kuroko, making him catch it.

"Is that true?" Ruby looked around.

"I heard that there was an unspoken thing for athletic people when they eyed each other on the field." Pyrrha explained. "I think the same would be said for experienced Huntsman."

"But something's not right with you." Kuroko looks at the ball and back to Taiga, still staying silent as he listens. "The weak should smell weak, but you… You don't smell like anything. And your strength has no scent."

"I think it's safe for me to say that we all notice that." Blake comments.

"But you have to admit wouldn't it make Kuroko some kind of Wild Card if no one can tell how strong he is." Nora excitingly said while the others see her point.

Ruby gasped. "That would definitely make him one of the Generation of Miracles!"

"Let me see it." He challengingly grinned at the former player of Teiko. "Show me just how good your Generation of Miracles really is!"

"I wonder if Kuroko will accept." Ren wondered, also curious at what said Miracle could do.

Kuroko was silent for a moment. Then he reached for the zipper on his blazer. "How fortunate. I was hoping to play against you too."

Taiga frowns as Kuroko takes off the blazer and throws it away with his right hand while holding the ball on his left arm and, for the first showing a severe expression on his face. "One-on-one."

"Okay… that was epically cool!" Jaune grinned in excitement.

"Is it weird that I'm suddenly pumped up for a game I've never heard of?" Ruby was giddy in excitement about where she sat.

"Nope! I'm pretty much excited too." Yang grinned in excitement.

Taiga grinned in anticipation. "You wanna go?"

---

The scene now opens Kagami dribbling the ball and Kuroko facing him in the center of the court.

Everyone watches in anticipation—a newcomer rookie vs. a Miracle.

The match begins.

"It's starting!" Ruby smiles while everyone leaned a bit closer.

Kagami charges in as he jumps with the ball in his right hand while Kuroko tries to block him, but Kagami performs a dunk.

Despite the taller teen making the first score, he felt something wrong. 'He's…'

In another round, Kagami quickly passes Kuroko with the ball.

In another round, Kuroko has the ball, but Kagami easily steals it.

In another round, Kagami performs a fake and passes Kuroko. Again.

'He's…'

This time Kuroko has the ball and shoots the ball in a shooting position. But Kagami quickly slaps the ball away, making it bounce to the ground and causing Kuroko to chase it.

'He's so bad I could die.' Kagami drops his shoulders in disappointment.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…Oh good gods, that was painful to watch." Yang deadpans in disappointment.

"That was a waste of time." Weiss deadpans as well, while Blake did the same.

"Is he really a Miracle? I-I'm starting to have my doubts." Nora slowly said.

"I may not fully know the game well, but even I can tell he performed terribly." Ren calmly said.

"I-I'm sure he's holding back." Ruby slowly defended.

"I'm sorry, Ruby, but I know what holding back is, and that is nowhere in the term holding back." Pyrrha stated, making the red girl slouch.

"I'm sorry!" The Invincible Girl apologized while Jaune just patted her in the back while he chuckled nervously.

'Even though they weren't blessed with physical strength, there have been plenty of athletes who have excelled by polishing their skills.' The first year thought about the simple logic when training in sports or other physical activity.

'But this guy's hardly better than an amateur at dribbling and shooting. He doesn't do anything well.' He mentally sighs as Kuroko now picks up the ball and walks up to him. 'This is ridiculous.'

"That's a lot of criticism there." Jaune flinched.

"But he's not wrong." Weiss added.

"You've gotta be kidding me." The taller teen says, then shouts at the shorter teen in both anger and disappointment. "Were you even listening? How much do you have to overestimate your own abilities to think that you could beat me? I can't believe how arrogantly you challenged me!" He accusingly points his finger at him.

"He didn't look arrogant when he accepted the challenge." Ruby frowned.

"You're really invested in Kuroko, aren't you, Rubes?" Yang raised a brow then teasingly grinned at her. "Is there something you want to tell us?"

"W-what? No Yang! I'm just saying that we should give Kuroko a chance! We are only halfway to episode." Ruby quickly defend with a blush o her face.

"And so far, I'm not impressed." Wiess snarked said earning a mild glare from her partner.

"You can't be serious." Kuroko nonchalantly replies as if nothing happened, surprising Tiaga a bit. "Of course you're stronger than me. I knew that before we started."

"Wait, what?" Jaune blinked along with the others. "He knew he was going to lose from the begging?"

"Why would he still accept the challenge?" Nora wondered.

This answer only got Kagami angry. He expressed it by grabbing Kuroko by the collar of his shirt and pulled him closer to his face. "You wanna fight? What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Take it easy, Taiga!" Yang's eyes widened, sure she can get angry from time to time, but even she wouldn't go that far over a game.

"Basketball must really mean a lot to him." Ren comments.

"I wanted to see how good you are for myself." Kuroko answered still with his nonchalant expression.

"Wait… he was testing him?" Weiss widen her eyes at what Kuroko was doing.

"Was that why he was doing terribly?" Blake comments.

"No… like I said, he wasn't holding back, he… well… is just not good." Pyrrha slowly said as she flinched, not liking to be that honest.

"What?" Kagami says in disbelief before letting Kuroko and places his hand on his head and sighs. 'Unbelievable. There must've been something wrong with me too. He's just so weak that he doesn't smell like anything. This is stupid.'

"Way to brush him off like that." Yang frowns.

"Um…" Kuroko says as he offers the ball to Kagami, wondering if he still wants to continue the game.

"Enough." Kagami said as he raised his hand then walked away to get his belongings on a bench. "I'm not interested in the weak."

"Now that's just mean!" Ruby pouted as she frowned.

Just because Kuroko is weak doesn't mean he wasn't giving his all." Jaune said, feeling that Kuroko was doing the best he can like how he was before Pyrrha trained him.

Kuroko silently stares at his fellow first-year as Kagami took his blazer and hanged it over his shoulder. Then he looked back at him. "Let me tell you one last thing. You should quit basketball."

Everyone gasped at the sudden bluntness Taiga just did.

"No matter how much you try to cover it up with nice words like "effort," raw talent is a fact of life. You have no talent for basketball." Kagami bluntly says without a shred of hesitation in his voice.

Everyone did not like how Taiga treated Kuroko over one game.

Yang's eyes turned red after hearing such a stupid reason. "That…" but before she could start swearing, someone else beat her to the chase.

"BASTARD!" Everyone shifted their heads in shock and looked to see that it was Jaune to shouted with an angry expression on his face.

"J-Jaune…?" Pyrrha muttered, shocked seeing her partner like that.

"Just because he sucks at what he doesn't mean you can bring him down like that!" Jaune shouted in anger and was starting to freak out his friends.

"Jaune! Calm down!" Pyrrha shouted as she tried to calm him down.

"You're scaring me, Jaune!" Ruby says, feeling a bit afraid and worried for her first friend in Beacon.

Jaune blinked and looked around, seeing his friends' reactions. He felt terrible and slowly calmed down. "Sorry…" He muttered.

"Jeez, Vomit boy, I don't like how Taiga said to Kuroko as well, but that was crazy what you did." Yang crossed her arms.

"Sorry… it's just…" Jaune rubbed the back of his head with his hand as he tried to say the right words. "Hearing what Taiga said just hit pretty much at home."

This made everyone frown at that answer, and she was a bit worried for the blond.

"Do you… want to talk about it?" Ruby slowly asked, hoping to help him.

Jaune thought about it for a moment before she shook his head. "No. Not right now, at least." He smiled, glad that Ruby wanted to help.

As they returned to watching, Pyrrha places her hand on Jaune's shoulder, giving him a reassuring smile which he smiled in return.

Before he walked away, he was stopped by a few words. "I don't accept that."

"What?" Everyone said, not excepting for Kuroko to answer back with a calm voice.

"He doesn't sound like it affected him at all." Ren points out.

"What?" The tall first year turns his head to Kuroko, who walked to get his belongings on the same bench.

"First of all, I love basketball." Kuroko explains. "And also, I don't share your opinion. I don't care who's strong or who's weak."

Everyone was stunned at how simple Kuroko's reason for playing basketball and how he views people who play the sport. In fact, it was an admirable trait.

"Wow… he loves the sport as much as we love being Huntsman." Ruby commented with a smile.

"I suppose he does have a redeeming factor despite his play." Weiss admitted.

This made Kagami raise a brow in confusion. "What did you say?"

"I'm not like you. I'm a shadow." Kuroko answers as the screen show his large shadow behind his back.

The moment Kuroko declared being a shadow, everyone suddenly felt a shiver in their spines.

"Woah! My spine just shivered." Ruby squeaked.

"You too?" Jaune asked. "Mine too."

"Holy crap, I felt that too!" Yang rubbed her arms.

"Renny! What was that?!" Nora cried.

"I… I don't know." Ren admitted.

"What on Remnant was that!" Weiss cried out, never experiencing something like that before.

"It looks Kuroko is hiding something after all." Pyrrha says as she calms down.

Blake stayed quiet as her eyes widen as she stares at Kuroko's shadow. "What did he mean by 'shadow'?" She muttered, and for some reason, she was growing interested in learning more about Kuroko. She didn't know the reason yet, but she felt something about him that caught her interest.

---

The next day back in the sports building of Seirin. It's raining, but all members are inside.

"Don't you just hate rainy days on a school day?" Yang comments as everyone was back to normal.

"I don't." Blake said, then lightly glares at Yang. "And not because I'm a cat Faunus." Yang raised her hands in a defending manner.

"What? A mini-game?" Inside the court, the two teams are separated as they prepared to play a practice game.

"A mini-game? It looks like we are about to watch the sport in action this time." Weiss said.

"Oh, I'm so excited!" Ruby squeals in excitement. "I wonder who the teams are?"

On the first-year side, they all wear yellow sleeveless shirts over their casual sportswear. Each shirt had a number on them.

Kagami was No. 11, and Kuroko was No. 5.

The other three first years are Koki Furihata No. 8, Koichi Kawahara No. 7, and Hiroshi Fukuda No. 6.

"I can't believe we're playing the upperclassmen already." Koichi says in surprise.

"So, it's first years against second years." Pyrrha mused.

"They're sending the more experienced team against the new recruits?" Jaune said in slight surprise. "Doesn't that seem a bit unfair?"

"I suppose it's a way to test how capable the first years are." Ren deduces.

"Do you remember their record from last year they told us about during our first meeting?" Hiroshi asked Koichi. "They went to the finals in just their first year."

"Really? There that strong?" Yang mused.

"Come to think about it. We never got the chance to fight any of the second years or above during Combat Class, haven't we?" Nora points out.

"That because only those from the same year can face against each other, but in Vytal Festival, we are permitted to face them." Weiss points out earning an 'oh'.

The said second-year team was wearing blue sleeveless shirts as they stretched and wore up for their game. Hyuga is No. 4, Shinji No. 12, Shun No. 10, Mitobe No 13, and another second year with short, spiky black hair. He has very thick eyebrows, and his eyes look like they are closed, narrowed down to thin, horizontal lines. This is Satoshi Tsuchida No. 8.

"Looks like we see all five of the second-year students." Blake comments. "I'm honestly surprised they manage to make it in the final with that little numbers."

"Are you serious?" Koichi says in disbelief.

"That's not normal." Hiroshi comments.

"What's not normal about that?" Nora asked.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. It's always better to have stronger opponents than weaker ones." Taiga confidently grins as he walks ahead for the Tip-off. "Let's go."

"Well, at least someone is pumped up." Jaune said, still not liking what Taiga said to Kuroko.

'Let's see exactly what these rookies can do.' Riko smiles as she blew her whistle.

In the center of the court, Kagami and Mitobe stood inside the white circle as Riko holds the ball for the tip-off. Everyone was paired against their opposing players outside the ring, while oddly, Kuroko was not paired.

"Hey, why isn't Kuroko paired up?" Blake asked after learning about the rules and basic strategy in basketball.

"Maybe they don't notice him." Yang jokingly said.

Riko bowed her whistle then tossed the ball up in the air, making Kagami and Mitobe jump for it. Kagami was higher and used his right hand to throw the ball to Koichi.

"Wow! Taiga can jump high." Ruby shouted.

Koichi caught the ball and dribbled it. His team scattered to give him space while they blocked the opposing second years. Taiga was opened as he waved his arm, but Shun, Shinji, and Satoshi stopped his way, so throws the ball upwards towards Kagami, making the three try to jump and block it but was too high.

"You really can't stop moving in this game…" Pyrrha comments. Basketball may not have any combat on it, but she will admit that it shows teamwork and hand-eye coordination.

Kagami jumped higher than the three and caught the ball. Without hesitation, he charges towards the basket. He leaps high in the air Mitobe jumps and tries to block him, but Kagami powers through, pushing him away and performs a strong slam dunk.

"Woah!" Everyone watching shouts in shock and awe.

"What was that!?" Nora asked with a huge smile on her face.

"I read it on the book. It's called a Slam Dunk." Blake says with a grin on her face even she admits that was cool.

"A Slam Dunk? That name fits it perfectly!" Yang says with a huge grin.

"Okay, I'll admit that was awesome!" Jaune admits while he couldn't help but smile in awe.

"Amazing…" Weiss says in awe.

"There was so much power in that dunk." Pyrrha muttered in awe.

"This is so cool!" Ruby shouts in excitement.

Everyone was shocked and awed by sight.

"That dunk was unbelievable." Koichi gaped.

"Amazing…" Koki muttered.

Even the girl coach was stunned by what she saw. 'He's better than I expected. Such destructive force for such unpolished, intuitive play.'

"Wait. You mean he can get even better?!" Yang's eyes widen at that fact.

"Riko did say that she couldn't see Taiga's potential." Ren reminded them.

While the said first year was still hanging by the basket but then dropped down.

"This is unbelievable." Hyuga grinned as he wiped the sweat off his forehead. 'He's more than ready. He's a real monster.'

"A monster indeed." Blake muttered.

Taiga was on fire in the following minutes as he did two more dunks making the first-year team lead by 11 points while the second years with 8 points.

"He's on fire!" Nora cheered.

"He's really strong." Pyrrha says in respect.

"I can't believe the first years are this strong." Hyuga pants as he and his fellow second years are slightly winded themselves.

"Kagami's doing it all by himself!" Shinji points out as he gasps for air.

"He's doing it by himself? What about his team?" Ruby questioned.

"He probably meant they're passing the ball to him to score." Weiss comments.

Usually, people would feel confident when their winning, but for Kagami, he looked irritated.

"Why isn't Taiga looking happy?" Jaune wondered.

'Shit!' He mentally swore as he watches a particular first year. 'That kid still has me on edge!'

"Is he talking about Kuroko?" Blake asked. 'Crap… I nearly forgot about him.' The Faunus nearly smacked herself for forgetting, but she didn't know that everyone had the same thought when she mentioned Kuroko.

That said, the first year was Kuroko, who has the ball in his hands as he looks around his teammates. Suddenly the ball was slapped away by Shun, giving Shinji a chance to steal it.

"A steal?" Kagami shouts in disbelief.

"It's him again!" Koki says as he charges in. "Keep it together!"

"Awe, man… he is not helping his team." Nora said, feeling sorry for the little guy.

Kuroko jogs back in the game as Kagami just grits his teeth in annoyance. 'For all the profound things he says, he can't play for shit! Guys who are all talk…'

"We get. You don't like him." Jaune frowned.

"But his actions are affecting his team." Weiss points out. 'Seriously. Was the whole 'shadow' thing just for show?'

Shinji passes the ball to Mitobe, giving him a chance to score with a layup.

But was blocked by Kagami as he slapped the ball away. 'Piss me off more than anything!'

"Woah!" Everyone shouted again.

"He blocked the shot!" Ruby shouts in awe. "Is that aloud?"

"As long as the ball isn't over the ring, or else it will count as a score." Blake said.

"So high!" Hiroshi gasps.

"Nothing can stop Kagami now!" Koichi cheered.

Kagami landed back on his feet while he scowled, showing that he was not losing this match.

"Looks like someone hates to lose." Yang said she could understand since she doesn't want to lose either.

Riko shorty blew his whistle, indicating that the ball was out of bounds giving the second year the ball.

"Time to put them in their place." Hyuga smiles with determination.

Shun smiled and nodded in agreement. "It's on." Hyuga hummed, showing that the second years are just getting started.

"Looks like the second years are about to keep up their game." Ruby said, getting more excited.

As proof Hyuga, Shun, and Shinji triple-teamed Kagami, who has the ball.

"Three on one?!" Weiss blinked in surprise.

"With Kagami, I suppose it would make sense." Pyrrha said, seeing the logic in it.

'Three?!' Kagami mentally shouted in his. He tried to move, but Hyuga moved closer, making the first year restrict his movements.

"He's stuck in place." Nora points out.

"They're desperate to stop Kagami!" Koichi shouted while he was being blocked by Shinji now.

"They're double-teaming him even though he doesn't have the ball!" Hiroshi shouts while Shinji left Koichi and is joined by Shun as they continue to block Kagami. "They have no intention of letting him touch the ball!"

"This is some fast pace play the second years are doing." Jaune blinks, having a hard time catching up, seeing that the second years are switching pairs to block Kagami.

Kagami gritted his teeth as he was forced to watch as the first years began to score while showing their skills as they continue to block Kagami.

The score was now 15 to 31, making the second year's lead by sixteen points.

"Oh no! The second years are winning!" Ruby panicked.

"Looks like they're in a sticky situation." Nora commented.

"They're good." Hiroshi gasps, followed by Koki and Koichi.

"There's no way we can win." Koichi comments as he pants.

"I've had enough." Koki tiredly said.

Which was the wrong choice of words when Kagami grabbed his shirt and angrily pulled him towards his face shocking him and the other two.

"Seriously?! Is this guy that easy to piss off!" Yang raised her arms in aspiration.

"'Enough'? What the hell are you talking about?!" Kagami shouts in rage.

"That is not a good thing to happen in any team." Weiss frowned, knowing it well that

Before a fight was escalated, a certain first-year walked behind him and bent his knees, hitting the back of Kagami's, making him bend his knees, causing him to slightly lose balance and making him let go of Koki while the other first years' gap. "Please calm down."

This earned a lot of laughs despite Kuroko's sudden appearance. Plus, it was an excellent way to defuse the fight. Or just make it worse.

Kagami's response? He slowly turns with an angry expression with a forced smile on his face with a vein popping out. "You bastard…"

The other three first years watch in horror while the second years just raised a brow and had a deadpanned look on their faces.

"Well, that escalated quickly." Ren sarcastically said.

"Looks like Kuroko is brave enough to stand on his own after all." Pyrrha comments impressed at Kuroko's action despite his weak form.

"Looks like they're fighting." Shinji points out as he raised a brow.

He and Shun watched the comedic display as Kagami was attempting to punch (in a comedic way) Kuroko, who was dodging (in a comedic way) while three others tried to stop (in a comedic way) the fight from escalating.

"That's just ridiculous…" Wiess shakes her head.

"I think it's hilarious!" Nora giggled uncontrollably.

"How long was Kuroko there, by the way?" Jaune asked. And at that moment, almost everyone froze the moment Jaune asked that question. "What's wrong?"

"Did… did anyone even notice Kuroko this entire time?" Ruby asked while everyone just looked at each other to confirm that none of them did, and Jaune was beginning to notice that too.

"What… does that mean?" Yang slowly asks.

"I… think something big is happening." Pyrrha slowly answered as they returned to watching.

However, Shun gasped as he looked closer. This caught Shinji's attention. "What's wrong?"

"Was he in the game?" Shun asked.

"Kuroko? I dunno." Shinji admitted.

"Even the opposing player forgot he was there?!" Weiss widen her eyes in shock.

"I think I'm starting to see what's happening now." Ren said, getting everyone's attention.

"What do you mean, Renny?" Nora asked her partner.

"Let's watch first if my theory is right."

Overhearing the conversation, Riko gave a deadpanned look as she held her whistle on her teeth. 'Even I forgot, and I was the referee.'

At that very moment, her words slowly made their way on her head, making her gasp causing her to drop her whistle. She carefully eyed Kuroko, who didn't seem bothered by Taiga while being held by the other first years. 'How long has he been in?'

"Oh, Oum all-mighty…" Ren's eyes slowly widen, realizing his theory is correct. "I was right."

"What? What is it?" Nora asked.

"Everyone can't see Kuroko in an official game. Even the referee." Ren said as he looked at his friends. "Do you know what that means?"

It took a moment for everyone to realize what the R of JNPR was talking about until Ruby was the one who broke the silence. "It means he can freely hide himself among the players in the game…!"

This got everyone gasped in realization.

"Let's keep watching." Ruby said with a small that is growing on her face.

---

The scene shows the building outside while showing that the rain has stopped.

Hiroshi dribbled the ball back in the game while Kuroko was ahead of him while he shook his right wrist.

"Excuse me. Could you just pass me the ball?" Kuroko asked while walked ahead without turning to him

"What?" Hiroshi said, confused by Kuroko's sudden request.

"What? Why would Kuroko ask that? He can't do anything when he has the ball." Blake comments.

"I don't know… but I think we are about to see a Miracle in play." Yang punned with a grin on her face. And on a rare occasion, her friends chuckled.

"That was a good one, sis!" Rubes compliment her, which earned a silent 'yes' from the blond.

"You can do it! Three more minutes!" One of the first years who handled the scores outside of the game cheered, showing that the scoreboard is still 15 to 31.

"I wonder what Kuroko will do now that they are way below." Weiss said, curious about what Kuroko will do.

Blake remained silent as she slowly studies what the said Miracle will do to change the game's pace.

'What can you do with the ball once you get it?' Hiroshi mentally questioned while Satoshi was blocking him, but he did what Kuroko asked and passed threw the ball to him. 'At least don't let them take it.'

Kuroko blocked Shun to prevent catching the ball. The ball was close to Kuroko, but from the third point of view, a second-year was blocking Kuroko on the screen.

That's when it happened.

At that moment, Kuroko gazed his expressionless sight on his right.

The viewers perked up at that moment and silently leaned closer to see what he will do.

Then suddenly, the ball was now flying over the second year, surprising them as they all turned to where it would land.

On Koki's hands. Giving him the chance to score a point.

The viewers were silent, and they slowly blinked at what just happened.

"Wait. What?" Ruby rapidly blinked, confused about what just happened. "What just happened?"

"I… I don't know…" Weiss blinked, also confused. "It all just happened fast."

"Didn't that guy just pass the ball to Kuroko? How did the ball end up to someone else?" Jaune said, trying to figure out what happened.

The second years were momentarily stunned before Hyuga broke the silence. "It went… What?" He stuttered even he was having a hard time processing what happened. "How did that pass get through?"

"Even they didn't notice it." Yang breathed out in disbelief.

"Was this part of Kuroko's disappearing act?" Nora asked Ren.

"I… I don't know." Ren wasn't even sure himself anymore.

"What did Kuroko do?" Pyrrha was confused but knew that Kuroko was responsible for it.

"I… think we're about to see something amazing." Blake says as she begins to grow more interested.

Even Riko was stunned as she tried to make heads and tails of this as she tried to study Kuroko. 'Why do I feel so uneasy? Is something unbelievable happening?'

"I think I can speak for all of us that we are thinking the same thing." Yang comments while everyone agreed.

The game continues. Koichi has the ball, and Shinji was blocking him and saw Kuroko wide open.

"Kuroko's open again!" Nora shouts.

"Maybe this time we can see what he did." Jaune says.

Not missing this chance, he passes the ball to him. The ball was thrown to him in slow motion, but in a third person's view again, one of the second years blocked Kuroko's position.

"Oh c'mon! Why do you have to block our view?" Ruby pouts.

Then suddenly, the ball curved-forward through a sharp spinning passed on towards Hiroshi, who caught in slight surprise along with the others close to him.

"Woah! Did you see that?" Yang says in shock.

"That was a sharp pass!" Blake says in awe. "Did Kuroko do that?"

"Go for it! Shoot!" Kagami shouts with a smile on his face, and with that, they earned another score.

Throughout the game, this continued. Koichi suddenly caught the ball before the second year realized too late.

"What?" Shinji muttered.

The ball passes through Mitobe, and Kagami, surprising them.

The Ball passes bounces between Hyuga's legs as he blinked in surprise, leading Koichi to catch it as he made a layup earning another score for the first years.

"What's going on!?" Nora shouts. "The ball keeps appearing out of nowhere!"

"How is Kuroko doing this?" Ren says in awe. "Even the second years are having a hard time."

"They passed the ball and made the shot before we realized it!" Shun said in disbelief.

"What's going on?" Shinji questioned.

---

A flashback is showing how Kuroko did it.

"Finally! Maybe this flashback will show us how he does it." Weiss says.

When Koichi passed the ball to Kuroko (without the second years blocking the screen), Kuroko used his right hand to quickly caught the ball, then spun it forward, making the ball curve as he passed it.

"Whoa…" Ruby says in awe. "Did you see the way he handled the ball? That was amazing!"

"I have never seen anyone passing a ball like that." Jaune says in awe.

"Agreed." Weiss says as she replayed the pass on her head. "The moment the ball was passed towards Kuroko, he used his free hand redirected it to his fellow player, and to add speed and momentum, he spun the ball to give it its sharp pass."

"That's… ingenious." Blake mutters in awe.

'Is he using his lack of presence to pass?' Riko deduces as the flashback plays all of Kuroko's passes. 'He's not even touching the ball for very long! Could he be diminishing his already weak presence even more?'

"He's combining his lack of presence and passing skill together to make such a tremendous result…" Weiss says in awe. "This skill… this is Misdirection!"

"Misdirection?" Ruby asks, but thankfully the show explains it.

'Misdirection. A technique used in sleight of hand tricks.' As proof of the skills capabilities, another scene shows the ball mainly being focused being passed to Kuroko as he simply caught it then quickly threw it other his head. In contrast, everyone was primarily focused on the ball rather than the said person who threw it last. As if he was never there! 'He's drawing his opponent's attention away from himself. To be more accurate, he's not using his lack of presence, but directing his opponent's attention elsewhere.'

"That's amazing!" Pyrrha breathed out in awe. "I know what misdirection is, but to use in such a way in sports… I can't begin to describe how remarkable that is."

'He's the invisible regular of Teiko who excelled at passing. I'd heard rumors, but I didn't think he actually existed. The phantom sixth member of the Generation of Miracles!'

"The phantom sixth…" Jaune mutters in awe. "Despite his lack of physical skill, his Misdirection makes up for it tremendously!"

"A Miracle that supports his team from the shadows…" Blake says in awe as she now grows to respect Kuroko even more.

---

Back in the game, Kuroko catches passes the ball over his head.

He passes the ball to his right.

Ha passes the ball behind his back.

This time it was Kagami who caught in surprise. He momentarily looks at the ball before quickly heads towards the basket.

"This. Is. Amazing!" Ruby cheered. "Kuroko has completely changed the pace of the game."

"So this is Basketball…" Weiss mutters, now growing to acknowledge how amazing this sport is.

'Damn it. I got caught up in Kuroko's passing!' Hyuga mentally swore for letting Kuroko guiding the game at his pace.

Kagami shoots the ball and hits the basket earning another score for the first-year team, making it 36 to 37.

"There just one score behind!" Jaune cheered.

"Go first years!" Nora and the others began to cheer.

"I don't believe it! It's a one-point difference!" One of the students shouts in disbelief.

Shinji now has the ball and passes it to Mitobe but only to be blocked by Hiroshi landing the ball to Kuroko's position where he caught it.

"Kuroko got the ball!" Yang shouted.

"Crap!" Hyuga gasps as he chases Kuroko noticing that the basket is entirely unguarded.

"Go, Kuroko!" His teammates cheered as he rushes to the goal.

"Go! Shoot the ball!" Pyrrha cheered.

"This game really makes you excited!" Ren lightly grins.

The first years smiled, the second years try to catch up, and Riko smiles in anticipation.

Kuroko was close to performing a layup.

"Go!" Everyone cheered.

And the result? The ball missed its mark and bounced off the ring.

And the viewers nearly faltered at the sight.

"Seriously… he even sucks as scoring?" Yang chuckles.

"I got really excited there!" Ruby wined.

The first years dropped their jaws, not expecting that to happen. However, the ball was caught in mid-air by known else but Kagami.

"That's why I hate the weak!" He shouts and makes a slam dunk. Thus, making the first year's win by one point. "You have to make the shot, dumbass!"

And unknown to Kagami, Kuroko was smiling.

"Yeah! Kagami saves the day!" Nora cheered.

"And it looks like he is now acknowledging Kuroko's skills." Jaune smiles, starting to warm up to Kagami.

---

The scene that the day has ended. With the screen now showing a fast-food building.

"And the match is over." Yang sighs as she relaxes. "Who would have thought I would be so pumped out after watching one match?"

"I know! It was so exciting! Especially Taiga's skills and Kuroko's Misdirection and lack of presence!" Ruby cheered.

"I will admit Kuroko's skill in support is superb." Weiss admitted. "Just imagine a Huntsman team with a person like that."

"Starting to like this sport and show now." Blake lightly grinned. Weiss slightly blushed but nodded in response making the Faunus in hiding giggle. "I like it too. Especially at Kuroko's skills."

"It's a shame it's not about combat, but I am amazed at the teamwork and play that Kuroko and Taiga did." Pyrrha smiled.

"I wonder if we can do something like that!" Nora jumped in her seat.

"I doubt we can do what Kuroko can do thanks to his lack of presence." Ren says.

"I wonder what the over Miracles are capable of if Kuroko's specialty is passing." Jaune wondered if Kuroko is this strong, what would the others be like?

Inside, Kagami made his purchase.

"Looks like Kagami is having dinner." Ruby points out.

"Thank you very much." One of the employees bowed with a smile as Kagami took his mountain tray filled with wrapped burgers making a few customers look at him.

"He even eats the same amount of food as Nora?" Jaune says in disbelief.

"I wonder if I can have an eating contest against him?" Nora says in excitement.

"Let's not, please." Ren sighs, not wanting to imagine that kind of sight.

Kagami took a seat and began to unwrap his burger, and began to eat. Only to freeze when he sees a familiar face sitting on the same table with him.

Kuroko was drinking a drink as he stares at him.

Everyone lightly jumps at Kuroko's appearance slowly. They are getting used to it by now.

"Why does he keep showing up like that?" Ruby wined.

"I doubt he can help it." Pyrrha comments.

This causes Taiga to nearly choke on his burger and stared wide eyes at Kuroko at his sudden appearance.

"Hello." Kuroko simply said.

"What a simple greeting." Yang sarcastically says with a chuckle.

Snapping out his shock, Taiga swallowed the burger. "Where'd you come from? What are you doing?"

"I was sitting here first." Kuroko said. "I like this place's vanilla shakes."

"I'm willing to bet that annoys him." Blake comments.

Kagami just scoffed with a smile. "Go somewhere else."

"Rude." Wiess frowns.

"I don't want to." Kuroko muttered while he drank.

"Man, he knows how to be defiant." Jaune comments.

"If someone sees us, they'll think we're friends." Kagami said as he looked around.

"This is my usual hangout." Kuroko answered, not changing his mind at all.

"Neither side is budging at all." Nora giggles.

Kagami just sighed. He took one of his burgers and passed it to Kuroko, who caught it in slight surprise. "Here." Kuroko looked at it then looked at his fellow teammate. "I don't like guys who suck at basketball, but you've earned yourself one of those." He grinned towards the shorter boy.

Kuroko smiled and thanked him. "Thanks."

"Aww, they're friends now!" Ruby cheered happily that there is no bad blood between the two now.

"That's good." Jaune smiled, glad Taiga apologized (in his way) to Kuroko.

---

After there their meal, the two walked on the streets in the city.

"Just how strong is the Generation of Miracles?" Kagami asked Kuroko, who was still drinking his shake. "If I played them now, how would I do?"

"That's what I like to know too." Wiess wondered. "If Kuroko specializes in passing, I can only imagine what the other Miracles specialize on."

"You think Taiga has what it takes to face them?" Yang asks.

"You'd be destroyed instantly." Kuroko bluntly said without hesitation.

"Do you have to put it like that?" Kagami growled as a vein popped.

Everyone laughs at the scene.

"That wasn't nice!" Ruby said but laughs.

"I guess since Kuroko knows the other Miracles well, he didn't need to butter it." Pyrrha laughs.

The Miracle ignored his yelling and explained. "The five prodigies have each gone on to play for their own schools. One of those schools will stand at the top."

"Interesting… so the Miracles have decided to compete against one another." Blake says in interest.

"Now that's something I like to watch." Yang grinned in excitement as she imagined a battle between two Miracles.

The two then stopped on a crossing as they wait for the green light.

"That's great." Kuroko turns to Kagami, who was grinning in anticipation. "That's the kind of thing that lights a fire in me."

"I can't help but agree with Taiga." Pyrrha says with a competitive smile. "Hearing about strong people makes me want to face them."

"Easy there, Pyrrha, there basketball players, not Huntsman." Jaune joked, earning a slight blush from her.

"I'm sorry!"

He smiles in determination. "I've decided. I'll crush all of them and become the best player in Japan."

"Now that's the spirit!" Nora cheered.

Kuroko remained silent before he broke the silence. "I don't think that's possible."

"Hey!" Kagami comically shouts at the Miracle.

"Now that was just mean!" Ruby pouted. "Why is Kuroko being mean?"

"I don't know if you have a hidden talent or not, but you wouldn't even be able to reach their feet as you are now." Kuroko says as if it was a simple fact. "You can't do it alone."

"Alone?" Ren said in confusion.

The light on the walkway turns green, letting Kuroko and Kagami cross the road before facing Kagami fully.

"I've also decided." Kagami looks at Kuroko in confusion.

"I'm a shadow." Kuroko looks down at the ground as passing cars pass them. The car's shadow covers the Miracle then looks up at Kagami while the passing lights shine at him. "But the stronger the light, the darker the shadow, and the more it accentuates the light. I will be the shadow to your light and make you the best player in Japan."

Everyone's eyes widen at that declaration.

"I see… so that's why Kuroko was testing Taiga in that one-on-one match. He was testing if he is worthy of being his partner." Weiss says, now understanding Kuroko's intentions.

"With Kuroko's Misdirection and Taiga's skills, they're unstoppable!" Jaune's eyes widen in realization.

Kagami's eyes widen at the declaration before he smiled. "Look who's talking. Do whatever you want."

Kuroko smiled, glad that Kagami had accepted his offer. "I'll do my best."

The scene ends.

"That was awesome!" Ruby cheered and looked at her friends. "You guys want to keep watching?"

They all nodded in agreement which made Ruby smile even more, then she started to play the next episode.

---

A/N: Another fic is done! I hope you like this and continue to like it.

Next Update: Ruby's Mansion (Until the final chapter)