Hey, minna! I was looking around and I noticed a lot of authors reply to their comments on their chapter... I think shall start doing that from now on! So, comment, comment, comment!

iiAnimeLover: Thanks for all your support! I love reading your comments! (I kind of condensed everything together since you comment so much- which I appreciate!)

LadyDream3512: Thank you! Please keep reading and commenting!

Kintoki Kin: I'll keep that in mind if I do, although it might be hard... heh... *sweatdrop*

Guest 1: Thanks for your comment! (I dunno what else to say...)

Andrea Carvajal:Thanks for the support!

Caigdimo: Kuroko might appear earlier than you think... *wink wink*

Monkey D. Writer: Isn't he just?! *fangirl fantasies* I'll also add in here how much I adore your pen name, very original~ And who doesn't love One Piece?

a fan: Oh, you are too kind~! Thank you! *fans self while blushing*

Guest 2: He is in the original plot line, but for story purposes, I kind of kicked him out... Sorry if you were disappointed!

Onto the story!

Spoiler: dat special someone is here!

Happy readings~

"Eh... Atsushi... How tall are you?" Shirogane asks, dribbling a ball lazily and occasionally passing it between her two hands.

"181 centimeters, I think." he replies. For once, both of his hands are empty. Shirogane had made sure of that.

"Wah... Sugoi... So tall... Have you ever seriously played defense before? I know you can dunk and you have a lot of power, but how well can you rebound?"

"Eh, not really. It's not as fun." he reasons childishly.

Shirogane sighs. "Well, let's make it fun, okay? Every time you get a rebound or block a shot, I'll give you a snack." Upon hearing these words, Murasakibara's eyes light up.

"Okay, Ri-chin." he smiles gleefully at the prospect of earning free food.

"Ready? Let's play!" she backs up the halfway line, still dribbling the ball. Murasakibara adopts a defensive stance and crouches in front of her, determined not to let her make a shot.

As soon as he blinks, the white-haired girl disappears from in front of him. "Heh?" The sound of the ball swishing through the net draws his attention.

"Ah, too slow, Atsushi! You've got to be faster than that!" she grins teasingly, picking up the ball again. She had just performed a layup, slipping past Murasakibara's defenses easily.

"No fair, Ri-chin! I didn't know you were that fast...!" he whines pitifully, upset by his loss.

"C'mon, this'll help you train to get faster, see? Your stance is nice, but raise your arms higher and stand on the balls of your feet. That way, you'll be ready for anything your opponent does." He nods like an obedient child and adjusts his position.

This time, Shirogane adopts some fancy movements with her feet, smoothly dribbling the ball in complicated patterns around her legs. Murasakibara's attention is drawn to her movements rather than the ball, allowing her to zip past once again.

"Keep your eyes on the ball. Concentrate!"

They start at the halfway line once again. Shirogane does the same dribbling pattern once again, breaking past his defenses quickly. Just as she is about to perform another layup, a large shadow suddenly looms in front of her. Murasakibara easily swipes the ball out of her hands, using his enormous height to his advantage. The ball bounces a couple times behind her before rolling to a stop at the wall.

Where did he come from?! That was amazingly fast...!

Shirogane shakes herself out of her stupor. "Sugoi, Atsushi! That was amazing! I didn't know you had it in you!"

"Arigatō, Ri-chin." the giant smiles lazily, petting her on the head.

"Well, now I owe him sweets..." she sighs to herself as she retrieves the ball. "Let's do it again, Atsushi. This time I won't go so easy on you!" She dribbles the ball once again as the purple-haired boy places himself between her and the net.

Shirogane fakes a left before cutting sharply to the right. However, Murasakibara's long arms get in her way, causing her to scrap her original plan. This time, she takes a step back away from her goal. The boy in front of her falters slightly in confusion. She crouches down, raising her arms above her head before letting the ball fly into the air.

The ball soars across the court and into the basket without interference. Shirogane smiles to herself, hearing the familiar swooshing noise the ball makes.

"Expect your opponent to do anything in a match, never be taken by surprise. It's always better to overestimate your opponent than to underestimate them." she lectures, content upon seeing the boy's shocked expression. "Ready? Once again!"

After hours of hard work, the two of the lay sprawled, panting and sweating on the gym floor. Shirogane's head rests lightly on Murasakibara's stomach as they both regain their breath.

"That was a good practice. Looks like I owe you five bags of snack, eh, Atsushi?" the petite girl gasps

"Mhm." the boy grunts, a satisfied smile appearing on his face. "Don't forget to buy them, Ri-chin." Shirogane rolls her eyes good naturedly before rolling her stomach and poking the giant's chest. "Let's get going, it's getting late."

"Here you go! Five bags, just like I said." Shirogane beams proudly at her accomplishment. She drops a plastic grocery bag down on the purple-haired boy's desk.

"Eh?" the lazy giant drawls, peering into the bag. Without hesitation, he tears one of the packages open and begins to eat from it despite that fact he had just eating breakfast twenty minutes ago. "Arigatō, Ri-chin."

"Nonsense." she waves him off. "I promised, didn't I? Besides, you earned it." Murasakibara chews contentedly, the snacks put him in a good mood that lasted the entire day.

"Ne! Chotto matte, Daiki!"

The blue-haired boy turns and impatiently waves for Shirogane to catch up. "Jeez, you're so slow, hime." He grins jokingly, ruffling the shorter girl's hair.

"Oi! Don't call me that!" she sulks, rearranging her hair with her hands. "It's just because my legs are shorter than yours! You're just too fast." she reasons. Aomine shrugs his shoulder nonchalantly.

"What are you going to teach me today, hime? Are you going to show me a super awesome, killer shot?" he asks eagerly. Shirogane sweatdrops at his enthusiasm.

"... Killer shot? Where do you get these ideas, baka?" she stares at him.

"I read in a magazine that you're super good at shooting! Is it true ya made over eighty points in one game?" he asks.

"Ah, um... Hai...?" her answer comes out more as a question rather than a statement.

"Teach me how to do that!" he demands, shaking the poor girl by the arm.

"Oi, oi, calm down." she places a hand on her forehand as she stumbles around, having trouble regaining her balance. Since when were there two Daikis? "Let's see what you've got first. Then, if you're good enough, I'll teach you something cool."

"Sweet!" he pumps his fist into the air. "Can't wait!"

"Hm... hm... Not bad, not bad!" Shirogane muses aloud with a basketball spinning on her fingertip. Aomine stands before her, hunched over from exhaustion. "Although, you're lacking stamina."

"Oi! Ya just made me run fifty laps around the school and then made me run through drills without a break! Of course I'm tired!" the blue-haired boy complains loudly.

"Ah, no matter. You're just a first year after all." she continues as if Aomine hadn't spoken at all.

"Hey! You're one, too, ya know!" he retorts angrily. Shirogane lets out a peal of soft laughter.

"Alright, go get a drink. We'll start again after you're done." Aomine groans before dragging himself off the court. He watches his captain lazily dribble the ball around imaginary opponents before performing a perfect layup. Basic moves.

"Daiki, let's play a quick game to ten points. That way I can see your offensive and defensive abilities."

Aomine starts with the ball and charges immediately for the basket. Shirogane easily reads his reckless charge and swiftly steals the ball out of his hands. She dribbles back the other way towards Aomine's basket. Stopping, she shoots from inside the box, only for it to be blocked by the blue-haired player. Aomine snatches the ball and quickly dunks it into basket, using his height to prevent Shirogane from blocking.

"Ne, Daiki, where'd you learn to play basketball?" she asks, watching the ball roll away.

"Eh, no one really. I usually play street basketball." he admits, scratching his cheek. His other hand resting on his waist.

"So you learned from just watching? Pretty impressive... But that explains why you have no set pattern to your play."

"Nani?"

"I mean, it's pretty hard to predict what you're going to do next. And you're style is very flexible, too. When you learn from a coach, there are basic positions that everyone learns, they're the foundations of becoming a basketball player. You, on the other hand, have not learned the basic at all. You've pretty much skipped over it."

"Uh... Okay, hime... Whatever you say..." Clueless.

"... Let's do a visual demonstration... Shoot from inside the box, no dunking." she instructs. Aomine does so. "Now watch me." The boy watches as she sets up for a shot before making it in. "Do you see the difference? You've got no stance at all."

"Uhhuh... Is that... bad?" he winces.

"Iie, on the contrary, I think that's quite good! That way you're opponent will never be able to predict your movements."

"Oh... Alright!" the blue-haired boy grins, perking up immediately.

"Let's finish our game."

Shirogane dribbles the ball in and swiftly fakes Aomine to the left. She brushes past him with incredible speed and stops under the basket.

"Oi, you did that last time!" Aomine starts, appearing in front of the short girl. To his surprise, she jumps backwards and away from the basket before shooting. His eyes widen as the ball passes easily over his outstretched hand and into the basket.

"Heh, not quite." the white-haired girl grins, rubbing her nose.

"Sugoi...! How'd you do that?!" Aomine demands. "You jumped backwards! How'd you get the ball to get in?! That shouldn't be possible!" Shirogane watches impassively as the hyperactive boy tries to copy her movements and attempts a shot like hers. His ball completely misses, going over the backboard. At the same time, Aomine loses his balance while trying to lean backwards and falls to the ground on his back.

"Ne, ne. It takes months of practice in order to make a shot like that." she informs him. His expression drops in disappointment as he accepts Shirogane's outstretched hand. "However, you might be a different case. Let's keep playing, okay? Maybe you'll get it along the way." Aomine brightens as he jogs back onto the court. The two resume their game with Shirogane making three more baskets the same way.

The game ends with Shirogane taking the win.

"Nice game, Daiki. It was a close one!" she grins, patting the boy on the back.

"It was 10-6! That's hardly close at all!" he complains. "Especially that cool backwards shot you did. I don't know how to block that at all!"

"Fadeaway."

"Eh?"

"It's called a fadeaway. It's quite hard to master, but once you get the hang of it, it's practically impossible to defend against." she explains. "You have to have good accuracy, strength, flexibility, and balance."

"Sōka..."

"On the bright side, you have three of those qualities thanks to your formless style of basketball."

"Really?! Awesome!"

"Hai! Starting from now on, you will be attempting the splits!"

"HAH?! NANI?!"

"Ne, Ri-chin, aren't you helping Zaki-chin today?" Murasakibara questions, his mouth full of food as usual.

"Hm, that's right. That is, if he actually shows up for practice...!" she frowns.

"Tch, good luck with that." Aomine snorts, rubbing her hair assuringly.

"Yes, the rest of us wish you luck, Riyeko-hime." Akashi states formally.

Shirogane sweatdrops. "Why are you guys acting like I'm about to be killed?!" she wails.

"Tch." Midorima pushes up his glasses. "According to your horoscope, you have the best luck."

"Really? Hm..." The five first years make their way to the gymnasium like a school of fish.

"He's not here!" Shirogane exclaims disbelievingly, an anger vein making its appearance on her forehead.

"Wow, Oha-Asa is actually right!" Aomine states admiringly.

"Of course it is." Midorima holds up a small cardboard box in his bandaged hand. "Cancer's lucky item is a box of matches, I should have good luck today."

"..." Sanda frowns, aggravated by the second year's lazy behavior.

Shirogane sighs. "I'll go look for him, coach. If I don't find him, I'll just watch the second and third string. They're practicing together today, right?" He nods.

"Ah... Gomen, but I think he went home early today. Haizaki said something about being sick." a second year basketball player informs her.

Shirogane grits her teeth, livid. "He knew we had practice together, today! I'll bet he isn't even sick..." The older male slowly back away from the livid girl, avoiding the dark aura coming off her in thick waves.

She sighs, keeping her temper in check. "Arigatō, senpai." She mumbles, turning away deep in thought.

"N-No problem..."

"Oh? Here again, Shirogane?" a deep voice resonated from behind her.

"Ne, Kobayashi-sensei. It looks like I'll be watching the practice today." she states wearily.

"That's fine. Maybe you'll spot future potential, eh?" he chuckles good-naturedly.

"Hm, maybe." she hums, a smile slowly forming on her lips. Basketball was always an emotion reliever for Shirogane, even if she was just on the sideline watching.

She seats herself on the one of the benches, the one with the best view of all the courts. The petite girl was small enough to cross her legs over one another on the bench. As she relaxed, she couldn't help but overhear the conversations that were echoing across the gym.

"Isn't that the first-string captain?"

"Ah! It is! Why do you think she's over here?"

"I dunno. Maybe taking a break or something... I can't believe a first year girl is better than us."

"Tch, I know right? I don't get it."

"Oh, maybe she's looking for new players!"

"Don't be absurd, no one in their right mind would quit being a first-string player. There's no extra space at all."

"Think she's helping decide the reserve players?"

"Probably... I mean they choose them out of us second-string players in case if someone doesn't show for a game."

"I really hope I can get into the reserve team since getting into first-string is out of the question now..."

Shirogane yawns, blearily rubbing her eyes. Her skin tingles at the curious stares of the players on the court. The third-string players had just arrived and were warming up along with the others. The pale girl dozes off as the two coaches organize the players accordingly.

A loud piercing whistle jolts the girl out of her slumber. Eh? Starting finally?

Shirogane watches the players critically, hoping to learn something new from her senpai. Considering over half of the students in the gym were older than her. Suddenly, a pair of pale blue eyes catch her attention. They're staring straight at her, without so much of a blink. The white-haired girl stares back for a few moments, noting the boy's small stature not unsimilar to hers.

Quickly, she scans his body physique through half-lidded eyes. He must be from the third-string, doesn't seem to favor any position either. Probably just a rookie. Her white irises slowly glide to the next player, placing the strange boy in the back of her mind.

"Anyone catch your attention?" Kobayashi suddenly materializes behind the short girl.

"Not really..." Shirogane doesn't bother to turn and face the coach, eyes still scanning the crowd of players. "No one's caught my eye... yet." She adds hastily.

"Hm, that's too bad."

"Have you chosen the reserves yet, Kobayashi-sensei?" she asks. "Our first came is coming up pretty soon."

"Not yet, all in good time. We'll be testing some chosen players in our first game as well. Then we'll decide." he explains.

"Oh, I see."

"Perhaps you want to join our practice session, today?" he offers with a sly smile. "Maybe you'll encourage our players to practice harder..." Shirogane shoots him a delighted yet mischievous grin.

"Sounds... fun..."