Disclaimer: Slam Dunk belongs to Takehiko Inoue-sensei. I'm just twisting the story for my own evil purposes...

Author's notes: I give my heartfelt thanks to those who reviewed (bows) and to those who bothered with my story although it was pretty short. Thank you 100x! To nonyaoi fans, sorry to disappoint but like reality said this is definitely (cough) (cough) yaoi.

Chapter 1: In which a redhead feels the first wave of repercussions...

It had to be a dream, Sakuragi thinks as he almost collapsed behind his desk, catching himself right before his head slams into hard wood, thus avoiding a sure fire way to get a concussion. On second thought... he could use a little memory loss right now.

It wasn't a dream. It was a fucking nightmare.

He could still feel their eyes - those who were at the gym yesterday - boring deeply through him, glaring at him like he was some kind of freak of nature after Rukawa had delivered those words. It hadn't been much different from the stares he used to get before and he wasn't the type to care. In those early incidents he had mindlessly assumed that it was because of his 'genius' that people all stare at him with what he dubbed as 'envy' glinting in their eyes. Of course, anyone could easily disprove that frail theory of his if given the chance.

Although Sakuragi was one who hardly ever understands the finer subtleties of human behavior, he also had his moments --rare flashes of insight that needs proper credit. And it was one of those times, him standing in the middle of the court with 30 or so pairs of eyes watching his every reaction, that he realized something big was going to happen that will change his life. Their gazes held mixtures of shock, confusion, anger, and yes, even envy –the kind that he knew he never wanted.

And it's that idiot Rukawa Kaede's fault. Fucking kitsune. If he had just kept his mouth shut like he usually did. It would have been hell of a lot easier if they could just beat the crap out of each other like before. At least he knew he could give as good as he gets and not just simply stand there, like yesterday, in the middle of the court gawking like a fish out of water.

He looks sleepily through the glass windows beside him, inner dialogues running rampant in his brain as he waits for the first period teacher to come. His reflection sports deep dark circles in his eyes caused by lack of sleep last night.

"Oi, Hanamichi!" Another face joins his reflection on the window. Youhei. "Ohayou! You're early today."

"Ohayou." He greets in reply, almost lifelessly. He certainly isn't going to tell Youhei he was early because he had been avoiding someone. Nope, it was an act borne of pure impulse. It had nothing to do with the fear of meeting a particular fox on the way, much less the danger of facing an entire horde of Rukawa's die-hard fans. He is a tensai, dammit! A fearless basketball tensai! Such insignificant things do not concern him!

The redhead turns to face Youhei and the rest of the Sakuragi guntai who crowded beside his desk, smiling like nothing bad had happened within the last 24 hours.

Maybe it wasn't such a big deal, he muses. So far, nothing of the terrible things he had thought would happen had befallen him. He admits things do turn out far from what he imagined them to be. But then again, his imagination isn't that reliable in the first place. He recalls a single occasion wherein he had been dreaming about asking Haruko out on a date...

...Haruko...

His lips settle into a grim line. Sakuragi remembers the dim shadow that had veiled Haruko's face during that incident. She had been hurt. Sweet, gentle Haruko...

"Hanamichi, are you still there?" Takamiya says, tugging his arm in the process to shake him out of his reverie.

"Of course the tensai is still here! Now what was it you were trying to tell me?" He snaps, a bit too loud for people's taste.

Takamiya scratches his shaved head. "We were going to warn you about something but we...uh...kinda forgot what it was." He answers reluctantly.

"Wait, Takamiya. I think I remember!" Noma exclaims, leaning closer to a sleep-deprived Sakuragi. A knowing smile grazes his lips. "It has something to do with Rukawa!"

Ookusu and Takamiya catches on what Noma was leading to, their lips curving into an unmistakable grin.

"Hai. Hai." They nod in synch. Simultaneously, they both open their mouths.

"Hanamichi, by the way, what happened between you two after he-"

"Hanamichi, could there be a possibility you would turn into a hom-"

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Takamiya, Noma, Youhei and Ookusu fall to the floor, clutching their foreheads racked by waves of pain. Newly formed bumps emerge on their heads, still smoking hot after the onslaught of Sakuragi's head butt.

"Itai! Hanamichi that was harsh!" Noma groans out loud. "We were only teasing, you know."

"Why do you have to include me?? I wasn't saying anything!" Youhei complains. He struggles to get up from his undignified state, only achieving little success.

"And I'm hungry!!" Takamiya interjects. "No wait, that sounds wrong."

All further protests they might have dies as their eyes meet a fuming redhead, standing with feet apart and towering over them with fists shaking in utmost rage.

"I don't care!!! Don't you dare tease the tensai about that incident!!! And never ever think I'm-"He pauses for a moment, either hesitating to utter the word or just plain considering any other terms that might be applicable. "...something you think I am!!!" He lamely finishes.

"Maa, Hanamichi, calm down..." Youhei's hand gently clamps down at Sakuragi's uplifted fists and putting it away where it could go nowhere near their faces. Half of it was done in concern, the other half? Well, let's just say the redhead's been getting too much attention for his own good. To prove the point, almost all of the self-proclaimed tensai's classmates were glaring daggers at Youhei and sending him warning glances. Make him shut up. Make him shut up.

"Stand." The student-in-charge announces, signaling the arrival of their teacher. The Sakuragi army scrambles to their respective seats.

"Bow."

"Sit." How could he expect that the guntai would let him go that easily especially when they were there at the gym when it all happened? Sakuragi thinks as he prepares himself with the prospect of an hour and a half of pure educational torture. At least, he could be thankful that only a handful of people knew all about it, 30 to be precise but still not the whole school. A little teasing from the guntai isn't too much to bear compared to what the whole school would've done about it. He grabs hold of his scarlet locks in frustration. Gah. He thinks too much that he's only getting a headache and it may not be all that worth it. He finally resolves that he should just leave those things alone and focus on basketball.

"Sakuragi Hanamichi!"

The voice pulls him back to reality. "Hai, sensei?"

The teacher sighed. "I just told the class to get their textbooks and turn to page 52. Would you care to join us?"

Sakuragi's hair color seems to spill into his cheeks. "Ah, gomennasai, sensei." He rummages through his bag to find his textbook but quickly remembers he had left the book inside his desk.

He lifts his desk open and then he knew, he knew never to ignore those rare flashes of understanding again.

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" The redhead lives up to his moniker as the resident loudmouth, letting out a terrified never-ending scream.

"YOUHEI!! NOW I REMEMBER!" Takamiya shouts amidst the redhead's wailing.

"WHAT??" Youhei replies, both hands protecting his ears for dear life.

"WE CAME TO WARN HANAMICHI ABOUT THE DUNGBOMBS PLANTED BY RUKAWA'S FANS INSIDE HIS DESK!" Takamiya answers enthusiastically before scrunching his nose in an act of disgust. "Ewww... that smells..."

"Great going, fatso. It's really helping us now." Murmurs Ookusu, who strains to keep his ears and nose in good working condition.

"WOULD ANYONE IN THE CLASS APPROACH SAKURAGI-KUN AND HELP HIM CALM DOWN?" The teacher calls out to her students, who, in her right mind, know that the chances that she calms down the incorrigible troublemaker was next to nothing. All students stare pointedly at the Sakuragi gundan. Noma, Ookusu and Takamiya, in turn, stare at the innocent Youhei.

"OH, MITO-KUN! HOW WONDERFUL!" Their sensei exclaims.

"Sigh... How come its always me?" Youhei mutters to himself.

A/N: What Rukawa said would have to wait for the next chapter...sorry --