I do not own any of the Naruto or Kuroko no Basuke characters. Their ownership resides solely with Masashi Kishimoto and Tadatoshi Fujimaki.

Normal speech - "Kurama"

Flashback – kurama

Sound effects – kurama

Chapter 12

"Oh my god! What happened to your face?" she screamed out at seeing Naruto's face full of bruises. She reaches her hand out to lightly run a finger over his cheek but quickly pulls it back when he winces in pain.

"This is part of my punishment for getting suspended. My managers gave certain friends of ours free reign to beat the crap out of me." He grumbles as he sits down on a nearby bench.

Just as she's about to sit down next to him, she gets the fright of her life when a really big fox comes trotting down the pier to sit at Naruto's feet. Naruto shakes his head and begins scratching the fox behind his ear.

"Kurama, you know Hima-hime doesn't like it when you sneak out of the house." The fox responds by wagging his tail and lying down next to the bench to take a nap.

"Okay why is there a giant fox following you around?"

"Oh, this is Kurama. He's part of the family really. I have a close family friend that worked on him just after he was born to make him grow to live as long as a human would. The jump in size is just a side affect of that."

Conversation between the two of them flow easily between subjects as they catch up on what they missed in the past few days.

"Oh, I thought of something that might help you." She gives him a curious look that tells him to go on. "Well, I think that a reason why you still feel hurt and things over that guy is because you have no way of releasing what you feel. Talking is fine and everything but sometimes you just need something more."

"What do you use to let go of everything then?"

"I play ball. I leave everything on the court. You might not know this but I am a very hot-headed person. I use basketball to get rid of any anger or frustration that I might have. So all we have to do is find something you enjoy doing and then work that into you letting of everything."

She sat in silence, contemplating what she actually enjoyed doing and wondering how it might help her.

"Well… I love singing…"

"That's great!" he exclaims with excitement. "So write a song. Put everything that you are feeling into words and write them down. Once that's done can put music to the words you wrote."

"What if…" She looks down shyly, to afraid of making eye contact with him. "What if you don't like it?"

"Me? Why would my opinion matter?" Naruto questions her in confusion.

"Has anyone ever told you that you can be really slow sometimes?" she questions back with a giggle.

"Yeah, all the time." He answers seriously. He smiles a genuine smile once he hears the laugh that erupts out of her. "I like hearing that."

"Hearing what?"

"You laugh like that. So carefree, without anything to worry about." She ducks her head to hide the blush on her face. He sees it but decides to rather let it go for the moment. "So tell why my opinion matters so much."

"Cause I care about you, you big doofus! I don't want what I write down in the song to hurt you in anyway. I don't want to lose you in anyway…" her voices trails off towards the end. He looks at her and can easily see the vulnerability she tries so hard to hide.

"Ey, look here." He gently lifts her chin up with his finger. "You won't lose me. In fact, I was thinking that as soon as I find out your name, I'll introduce you to Himawari."

A shocked expression takes over her face.

"You'd want me to meet your daughter."

"Why wouldn't I want my best friend to meet my daughter?"

"Ey, can I ask you something?" Naruto's sudden question carries through the mostly empty gym.

"Yeah you can." Kobe answers as he takes a ball from the full basket next to him and makes a free-throw.

"Why do you focus on mid-range shooting when I know you are quite good and shooting it beyond the arc?"

Kobe takes awhile to answer but Naruto doesn't mind. He learnt early on that Kobe likes to think his answers through before voicing it.

"Mid-range shots are sort of like a warm-up, to get you going in a game and to find your range. At least, that's how I view them. If I become confidant with my mid-range shots then I feel good about taking shots beyond the arc." Another swish indicates another free-throw made. "I practice them so much because they are my comfort zone. They are what I revert back to if nothing else seems to be working."

"What about lay-ups and dunks and things like that?" Naruto questions again as he makes his way to the middle of the court and starts going through his routine dribble with the ball.

"I'm confidant in them as well. The thing is, I don't like using just one type of shot. It makes it easier for the defender to handle you and shut you down. Mid-range shots are unique because there's so much space from where to shoot them from. Plus, the give you the option of going to the basket, stepping behind the arc, or just shooting the ball from where you are.

For me, the worst type of person to defend is someone that can score from anywhere on the court. So that's what I tried so hard to become. Even if I wasn't catching fire, the other team always had to keep an eye on me because there was nowhere on the court that I wasn't a threat."

The two men continue the routines in silence. Naruto's suspension was almost over and Kobe was getting stronger by the day. In fact, Naruto was amazed at just how good Kobe Bryant really was. He made it look so effortless when he was in a game but it was here, in the safety provided by closed doors, that Naruto was able to witness just how much work was put into perfecting his game over the years.

Naruto noticed something else. Something that excited him more than almost anything else he felt before. It was the competiveness shown by Kobe. For so long Naruto thought he would never find someone who took basketball as seriously as him but how wrong he was. Everything they did turned into a competition. Even though he was just a Rookie and Kobe was past his prime, the two of them weren't scared to lay it all out on the court. What excited and frustrated Naruto was the fact that he barely won any of the competitions the two held. He would only barely manage to come out on top in 3-point shots. Everything else though, Kobe utterly dominated.

"Why do you do it?" Naruto asked as they both sat down on the chairs next to the court. "Why keep doing this even though you have proven yourself to be one of the best?"

Kobe leans back into his chair and allows a wistful smile to fall onto his face. Even though he might never admit this to anyone, he sees a lot of himself in Naruto. The drive to proves his worth and become the best was the exact one he had when he was younger. He took Naruto under his wing to provide the help he felt he never had in the same position.

"In the beginning I was just a kid fresh out of high with big dreams about being the best and proving everyone wrong. I was so young that my parents had to sign a contract for me. I grew up in Europe so coming here to America, with all its racial stereotypes, instantly made me an outsider since I hardly encountered that in Europe. Basketball was the only thing I had to prove I belonged. After awhile, it became the thing that allowed me to stand above everyone else." Kobe shakes his head as if to clear away some of his memories and leans his elbows onto his knees. "I won't sugar-coat anything. Some people might take offence to what I'm about to say but I have a feeling that you will understand me perfectly.

When I started out, I wanted nothing more than to be the best. I wanted it so bad that I pushed away my teammates and everyone willing to help me. I didn't get along with Shaq even though the two of us could've have gone on to be on of the greatest duos ever. I was fixated on being the alpha, the guy everyone turned to. Now, at my age, I'm content on be considered as a top 10 maybe even top 5. I don't want that for you. You coming into the League against Lebron can be compared to me coming into the League against Jordan. The difference is that you have a shot at beating him while he's still in his prime so that you won't just have comparisons to look at. I'm not content with being one ring away from him. I want to be on even footing with him. It's selfish, I know, but I wouldn't be where I am today without that mentality of wanting more.

Don't settle, Kid. You don't want to have any regrets. I know how you are feeling about all this and I probably understand you better than anyone. Play as best as you can every match; beat any and everyone who steps in your way; and when Lebron and his generation retire, knock down anyone who attempts to take your spot. I'll give you the tools to be better than everyone who came before you. Its up to you to make sure you stay better than anyone who comes after you."

"You know, if the Lakers can keep there record the way it is, they have a really good shot at reaching the play-offs this year. Stephen A., Skip Bayless… your thoughts?"

"We are too early into the season to be praising the young man the way we are." Skip starts things off. "Yes, he is doing exceptionally well but it cannot last. He will tire out eventually and then what? Who will the Lakers have to turn to? They are putting all their hopes on the shoulders on a rookie who can't even play a full half yet! My advice? Tank the season and get a high draft pick."

"I think a lot of people are forgetting something very important. Excuse me, not something but someone: Kobe 'Black Mamba' Bryant!"

"You can't tell me you believe that he will make that much of a difference!"

"Oh and why not? They will have some amazing fire-power with players that can score wherever and whenever. Add onto that, the Lakers will have one of the best, if not, the best lockdown defenders this league has ever seen with their rookie shaping up to be just as good. Plus, they finally have someone to replace Steve Nash when it comes to moving the ball around court. To me, if the Lakers can gel properly, there is no reason why they won't be able to win the entire thing come next year."

"You are delusional. A team cannot and should not place itself on the shoulders of someone that can only play one quarter! Its absurd!"

"He's averaging: 13.5 points, 6.7 assists, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game. And that's all from that one quarter that he gets to play! I don't care who the hell you are! That is amazing stats to put up for just one quarter."

"Naruto, your suspension is up. From what Kobe told me you are coming along nicely in terms of conserving your energy while playing. There's a new formation I wanna try out that might just be able to help you play for longer durations in the game." The coach informs Naruto.

"Coach, what do you mean? Am I starting?" Naruto questions in excitement, a huge grin on his face.

"We are gonna give it a trial run in the match against OKC. Now, I'm not saying that we'll stick to this new formation but if it works out well then you'll definitely be playing a lot more."

Naruto walks out of the office with a skip in his step. He makes his way towards the gym and finds it completely empty. In the confines of the deserted gym Naruto allowed a vicious grin to final fall upon his face. He could feel his entire body starting to heat up, itching to prove his worth as a starter.

He's broken out of his thoughts by a sudden smack to the back of the head. He whips around with his fist already moving to whoever hit him. At the last second he notices that its Kobe standing before him. Naruto manages to stop his fist a hair's breadth from Kobe's jaw. The thing that scares Naruto about the whole incident is the fact that Kobe didn't even flinch. He just stood there with a bored look on his face even though his eyes had a stern glint to them.

"Need I remind you of the fact that the last time you decided to let your emotions get the best of you, you had to be carried off of the court." Kobe states sternly to a sheepish Naruto.

"Hehe, sorry Kobe." Naruto replies as he retracts his fist.

"Okay, lets go over some of your observations on OKC."

"Right! The only two we really need to worry about are Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Westbrook is the main ball handler while Durant is a scoring machine."

"Okay, how do you plan on stopping them?" Kobe asks curiously. "Westbrook is quite quick and explosive. Durant is tall as hell and can score just about anywhere he wants."

"I plan on defending Westbrook. If he's the main ball handler then it only makes sense to focus on him more than Durant. Even though Durant is the more lethal player, I can't stop him yet. I'm still not used to playing at this level for a full game. If I try and stop Durant or both Westbrook and Durant, I will just tire myself out too quickly and that won't help the team in anyway."

"Smart thinking." Kobe nods his head. "On offense I think you should just roam around and perform screens for match." He holds up a hand when it looks like Naruto is about to protest. "I don't want to hear it. You tire out quickly because you are not efficient when it comes to selecting which shots you should take. Yes you score points but you are also wasting a lot of possessions. Possessions that someone else on the team could have used to score."

Naruto hangs his head in shame as he realises how right Kobe is. Now that he really thinks back on it, he can recall plenty of times when he should have passed instead of taking a shot.

"You are currently a PG on this team. That means when you are brought into the game in that position it is pass first, score later. When you are in the SG position its even more important to carefully select your shots as you will be the team's sniper. SF you can do whatever you want when you have the ball but make sure it benefits the team."

"But what about when no one else is knocking it down? Do I still pass or what?"

"You catch fire." Kobe shrugs carelessly. "You hype up the team and, if you are at home, you hype up the crowd. You're PG. You should know this. If your teammates aren't scoring, how do you get them into rhythm?"

"You give them easier shots…" Naruto trails off. "You attract the attention of the opponents, creating more space for your teammates to gain confidence again."

"Exactly. It's no use feeling like you on fire if your shots aren't falling. First test the waters, find your range, then go at them."

"Thanks Kobe."

"Don't mention it, Kid."

"Kobe! Wait up."

Kobe turns away from his office door to see Magic making his way over to him.

"What do you need Magic?"

"I wanted to talk to you about Naruto." Magic gestures towards the office door. "May I?"

Kobe opens the door and lets Magic walk in before he does the same. The both make their way over to the table and sit at opposites ends. Both men know that this is a serious conversation.

Not one to waste anytime with formalities or pleasantries, Kobe dives right in.

"What did you wanna talk about?"

"I want your honest opinion," Magic knows that Kobe isn't someone he can beat around the bush with, "what are your thoughts on Naruto and where you see him in a couple of years?"

Both men stare intently at each other, wanting to give nothing away but at the same time knowing that they had to for the sake of the franchise.

"In 4-5 years, he'll be at the same level I was in my prime. That's without me taking any other factors into consideration. If he was to be properly motivated, or have someone truly piss him off that much, I have no doubt he'll make good on that promise of his."

"You really think that highly of him?" Magic questions. "I mean no offense, I am quite fond of him as well, but you truly believe he'll be as good as you say?"

Kobe leans back in his seat and Magic can see that he is getting lost in past memories. While still in a daze Kobe replies in a distant voice.

"He has the same drive as I did back when I started. The defining difference between the two of us is the fact that he is much more mature than I was. He makes use of everything and everyone around him. He is not holding himself back. His work ethic already rivals my own. I just spent a few days putting him through a variety of exercises. The scary thing about it all is that I could physically see him improve with each passing day. Even when he managed to perform a move correctly, he kept at it until it almost became second nature to him. At one point we were having a conversation while he was busy landing shots from all over the court. I don't think he realised what exactly was happening but the concentration level on him is astounding."

Magic soaks all of this up with surprise. You would hardly ever find Kobe praise someone. To hear him speaking this highly of anyone was enough to reaffirm Magic's belief in Naruto.

"What would you suggest is the best course of action to take with him?"

"He needs a PG." Kobe answers without hesitation. "I noticed that as he got more comfortable with his role in the team and finally being able to play against people above his level that the PG position isn't a right fit for him. Granted, he can still play it better than most, he will become much better suited to the SG or SF position."

"So," Magic begins thoughtfully, "a PG whose main focus is passing the ball would be best for him. That might be hard to find as most PG's out there right now are basically just SG's and SF's playing the PG position."

"Don't forget that person pick will also have to be okay with giving up the spotlight to Naruto. You must have noticed that the crowd plays off of Naruto's performance on court. It's the same reaction the happened when Michael started the second 3-peat."

They carry on the conversation for a bit longer, discussing who would be the correct fit and other irrelevant matters. Eventually Magic makes his way towards the door. With a hand and the doorknob, he turns around and asks Kobe his final question.

"When are you going to tell him? Do you not think, since you are basically his mentor, that he deserves the right to know something as big as that?"

Kobe turns away from Magic and looks out the window in contemplation.

"I will tell him when we reach the finals next season."

Shikamaru and Naruto walk down the corridor towards the Laker's lockerroom. Himawari was perched on top of Naruto's shoulders and was waving at everyone that passed by them.

"So let me get this straight. You want the whole family to spend a day in a park, relaxing, messing around, and interacting with the public? Not that I'm opposed to the idea, but why?"

"You aren't the only one in the family who is popular with the public. Don't forget that a lot of our family businesses deal with the public either directly or indirectly. Plus, we all just need a day to relax."

"Eh, that's probably true." Naruto swings Himawari off his shoulders and hands her over to Shikamaru. "I noticed that Sasuke is becoming more grumpy. Sakura must be keeping him up with all the weird pregnant cravings."

Shika takes a hold of Himawari's hand and begins walking down the tunnel into the stands.

"Just make sure you put on a good showing tonight."

"Always!" Naruto answers with a grin.

Naruto crouched down in anticipation of the tip-off. He was standing off to the side in the spot a SG would normally stand. He was surprised to find himself on the starting line-up ahead of Kyle but he was going to complain.

"Okay, so I played SG before but not at this level. Any advice?" Naruto questions.

"Yeah, cause you are a rookie, the aren't going to put their best defender on you. For the first few minutes just go through the motions. Don't draw attention to yourself. If they make a substitution and a bench player comes on to defend you then go straight for the basket. The defender won't have a read on you yet so you should get pass him easily." Kobe answers as Naruto tightens his laces.

"And shooting from beyond the arc? Shouldn't that be my main focus?"

"Absolutely not! You don't want to draw attention to yourself so quickly. Plus, if your shots don't land there is a good chance of you becoming frustrated."

"Frustration leads to mistakes."

"Exactly."

Naruto looked over at Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant. Durant looked like his normal self. His posture was relaxed as he waited for the game to begin. For some reason this irritated Naruto. It was almost as if he didn't view the Lakers as a threat. However, Durant was not the player that Naruto's gaze kept going back to. Even though most of the film he watched and notes he read told him to put most of his attention on Durant, his gaze kept going back to Russell Westbrook. It wasn't as if Westbrook was even looking at him. No, his gaze was on the ball in the ref's hands. The intensity of the gaze however, was what captured Naruto's attention.

Naruto often got told that when he played all-out, with nothing holding him back, his gaze reminded people of a predator stalking its prey. Absolute focus. So much so that it unnerved anyone who happened to look into his eyes. For the first time in his life, Naruto understood what all those people meant.

He could feel a drop of sweat roll down his back. Even though Westbrook was standing still in a crouched position, not drawing anything to draw attention to himself, the amount of pressure he was releasing so much that Naruto just knew this was going to be a tough game.

The game finally began when Pau won the tip-off. Nash dribbles the ball up court while Naruto jogged to the corner. He kept an eye on Westbrook, that uncomfortable feeling from earlier not fading away at all. If anything, it increased drastically when compared to before the game.

Pau steps up and creates a screen for Naruto. Naruto gets into open space and raises his hands to catch the ball already on its way. Just before it reaches him, Westbrook jumps in the way for an interception and races down the court. Naruto chases after him but is unable to make it in time.

Naruto inbounds the ball and once again jogs up court. The game wasn't off to a good start but he wasn't going to let that affect him. He quickly cuts right into open space and receives the ball before bouncing it into the hands of Pau who makes a lay-up.

Nothing else of interests happens in the 1st quarter except both teams scoring quite a bit, with Westbrook being involved in almost all of the Thunder's points. The more Naruto kept an eye on Westbrook the more frustrated he becomes. For some unknown reason, Westbrook's style of play was rubbing Naruto the wrong way.

Naruto got taken out of the game towards the end of the quarter to rest up. With the Laker's losing their most energetic player the Thunder take the chance to begin widening the lead.

Sitting on the bench allows him to better study Westbrook. While Durant is scoring most of the Thunder's points, its Westbrook that keeps attracting Naruto's attention and ire. Half-way through the 2nd quarter the Thunder bench Westbrook and Durant, causing Naruto to jump up.

"Coach! Sub me in while they are out?" Naruto exclaims.

The coach opens his mouth to say no but then catches the looks in Naruto's eyes. The look is filled with anger. The very air around Naruto feels so violent that the rest of the people around them started paying attention.

"Okay… you and Kyle will sub in." the coach says with some hesitation in his voice.

Naruto jerks his head in acknowledgment before taking off his tracksuit and walking onto the court with a purpose. He had with him his favourite teammates to play along side: Kyle and Pau.

Kyle inbounds the ball to Naruto who surprises everyone by exploding towards the basket in a dead sprint. The defenders, unable to react in time, which him fly by as he jumps in the air and slams the ball through the hoop with a violent authority.

As he lands he faces the Thunder's bench and locks gazes with Westbrook. Both men unyielding in their silent confrontation as Naruto casually jobs backwards to set-up on defence.

As the quarter continued to wind down, he could feel himself falling back into that state of mind he fell into when he trained with Akashi. His concentration level was increasing with every passing second that ticked by. The sound of the crowd surrounding him was slowly fading away.

Naruto drives to the right of the defender marking him, making sure to keep the ball out of reach. Using his left foot he spins back around, leading the defender right into the screen set-up by Pau, and takes a step back three just as the buzzer sounds.

Naruto doesn't celebrate with the rest of the team. He hurriedly makes his way into the locker room and covers his head with a towel. His frustration and irritation levels at an all time high for reasons he still cannot explain.

"Its because you two have a similar playing style and mentality." Naruto snaps his head up at the sound of Kobe's voice. "That dominating style of play that Westbrook uses is almost identical to your own. While he is more direct-to-the-basket and you are more street ball, both of you want to utterly crush your opponent. What you are feeling right now is the desire to stake your claim and superiority over someone who is quite a good rival for you."

Naruto hangs his head back down to think over what Kobe just told him. It made sense now. It was uncontrolled excitement he felt before tip-off. He wanted nothing more than to go up against Westbrook and prove he was better.

"Namikaze!" The coach's shout breaks Naruto out of his thoughts. "I'm benching you the 3rd quarter."

"What!? Coach! 3rd quarter is mine!" Naruto exclaims in disbelief.

"Yeah, well I'm taking it away from you. The rest of the team will keep the game as close as possible. We need you to rest up." Naruto notices everyone's attention on him. He must have missed something important earlier while he was lost in his thoughts. "You will be coming on in the 4th. Your job is to go out there and win us this game. Can you handle that?"

once again, review and let me know what you think. i had trouble finishing off this chapter so i decided to leave it like that and focus on the next one. i'll try and keep most of the teams as close to real life as possible due to where i wanna go with the story. i don't want Naruto to be on a super team or something close to that