Hey, guys! Sorry about the late update, but things are going to be slower from here on now. I don't know if I'll be able to upload once a day anymore. Gomensai! *bows*
iiAnimeLover: Yush! ... I have no idea how to reply to your comments... *sweatdrops* Thanks for your support, though~!
Generation of Writers: Very true, haha~ Shweet! Do you change it that often?! Wah...!
Spoiler: duo blue hair action
Happy readings~
"I've been thinking, Seijurō... about change..." Shirogane murmurs airily to the redhead.
"Change?" he questions lightly. He smiles cordially towards a few passing girls, causing them to giggle and blush darkly. The white-haired girl pays no attention.
"Hai... Even though we easily made it past the preliminaries, things are slowing down. Our current strategy is too straightforward. The other teams are catching on too quickly to our plays."
"I have thought about that as well." Akashi voices. "What do you think we should do, Riyeko-hime?"
"I think we should look for a sixth member." she states bluntly, glancing up at the red-haired boy beside her. His crimson eyes widen slightly in surprise as he returns her gaze.
"Another player?" he echoes slowly, processing the information in his head.
"Someone who can conveniently change the flow of the game whenever we want. I wish for that kind of player!"
Akashi watches as her otherworldly white orbs light up in excitement. He ponders the prospect of adding another member to the team. It is a pretty solid idea. Even he had begun feel the stagnant plays during the tournament. the redhead makes a mental note to inform the other players to watch out for potential talent.
If it's what hime wants, we have no other obligation but to obey.
"Have you seen Daiki around lately?" Shirogane asks Midorima. The green-haired boy shakes his head before making in another three-pointer. The ball soars high, almost touching the ceiling before aiming straight into the basket. "Eleven seconds. Not bad." She glances at the stopwatch. "Put more underspin on the ball. It'll float more and increase the ball's time in the air."
"You should ask Akashi or Momoi, they're usually the ones babysitting the airhead." he replies, bouncing another basketball before crouching down in a shooting position.
"After practice, let's go look for him." she says. "I'll get the others, too." Midorima frowns but complies to his captain's wishes.
"Knowing him, he's probably in one of the more secluded courts." Akashi hypothesizes. Shirogane had managed to gather Akashi, Midorima, and Murasakibara to come with her on an expedition to find the MIA blue-haired player. They stop to listen to the faint noise of squeaking basketball shoes and a familiar voice. Rounding a corner, they find the door to one of the single gyms open with light spilling into the hallway.
"He's probably practicing by himself. Let's go." Midorima turns away, his expression uninterested now that they had found where the blue-haired player had disappeared off to. Shirogane tugs on his jacket sleeve.
"Matte... I hear another voice." she whispers, straining her ears.
"Shall we check?" Akashi suggests.
"Daiki!" Shirogane waves while peeking into the gym, drawing the attention of the tanned male and his companion. "There you are. I was wondering where you've been." Shirogane steps into the bright light with the three boys mimicking her movements behind her.
"Ah... the other gyms have too many people." Aomine explains, gesturing with his hands.
"Well, I don't mind but-" her eyes flicker to the other person in the room. "Eh? You again?" She identifies the pale blue-haired boy from the third-string. According to the other coaches, he had almost no potential in basketball and was one of the weakest players on the team. Shirogane eyes him with interest.
"Nani? You know him, hime?" Aomine asks, resting a hand on his waist. "We've been practicing together lately."
"I've never seen him before." Midorima comments, adjusting his glasses. Akashi hums in agreement, staring intently at the silent boy. Why is Daiki practicing with him?
"It's because he's not in the first-string... So, how do you know him, hime?" Aomine repeats his question directly towards the white-haired girl.
"I've seen play before." she shrugs offhandedly. However, the gleam in her eye tells a different story. He just could be the one...!
"Huh, I see..." Murasakibara speaks up for the first time, pocky sticking out of his mouth. "Hey, let's go already, Ri-chin." he grumbles, munching on the chocolate covered stick.
"Chotto matte... I'm a bit curious..." Shirogane's lips tilt upwards slightly as she observes the boy in question.
Midorima shoots his captain an incredulous glance. What are you saying, Shirogane? I highly doubt he's a good player if he's still in third-string.
"He could be the one I'm looking for...!" she blurts out gleefully. The others blink slowly. Akashi had informed them of their captain's plans but were doubtful that a player of this boy's caliber would benefit them at all. "It may be possible that he has some secret talent entirely different from ours."
The pale blue-haired boy's eyes widen upon hearing these words. Am I finally being noticed?
"Seijurō, I want you to discuss things with him. Consider this as training..." Her voice is heavy with implications. The vice-captain nods, understanding the hidden message and steps towards the silent boy. "The rest of us will leave you two alone." She glances pointedly at Aomine who opens his mouth to protest. He immediately snaps his jaw shut and shuffles out of the gym obediently with the others, leaving Akashi to deal with the newbie.
"Ne, ne, Daiki. What's his name?" Shirogane asks, hooking her left arm with his right one. She hooks her other arm with a reluctant Midorima who looks away at the contact. The purple-haired giant trails behind them, still eating his pocky sticks.
"Hah?! You've met him before but never asked for his name?" the blue-haired player asks incredulously. Midorima resists the urge to facepalm at his captain's absentmindedness. Even though the girl was intensely focused on court, it could be said the exact opposite when off.
"Iie! That's why I'm asking you." she replies straightforwardly with a cheeky wink.
"His name is Kuroko Tetsuya. He's a first year like us." Aomine explains, adjusting the shoulder strap to his bag.
"Sōka? Strange how I have never seen him before." Midorima frowns thoughtfully. Murasakibara nods.
"Well, he does have almost no presence..." the blue-haired boy muses.
"So how did you meet him, Daiki?" Shirogane questions innocently, turning her large white pupils towards him. He freezes, thinking back to the moment where he thought Kuroko was a ghost haunting the gym. He had been scared out of his wits, not that the others needed to now.
"Uh... I just bumped into him... when he was... uh... practicing by himself..." Aomine stutters, half lying.
"Oh..." Shirogane nods understandingly while Midorima shoots him a deadpan look at his obviously terrible lying skills.
Obvious to most people, that is. The green-haired player glances at his naive captain with mild exasperation. How could such a terrifying player be so innocent?
Akashi strides out of the gym and into the darkening landscape. Waiting on either side of the door are Shirogane and Midorima with two entirely different expressions. Shirogane can barely conceal her excitement while Midorima has a disgruntled frown on his lips.
"Wah, Seijurō, did you get him to agree?" the girl chirps, clinging to his arm. Her dark pupils are dilated- eating up almost all of the whiteness in her irises- as they stare up into his emotionless red orbs, flickering with a hint of triumph.
"Please don't pretend like you don't know, Riyeko-hime." he replies smoothly, tugging on a strand of white hair that had fallen onto his shoulder. Shirogane pouts cutely with a hint of mischievousness.
"Ne, you spoil all the fun, Seijurō."
Midorima's frown becomes more pronounced at her childish banter. She was acting as if this decision wouldn't impact them at all. As if, if she does screw this up, their spots in the team won't be in jeopardy. He lets out a low hiss of air.
"I can't really say I'm pleased with your doings. But I'll leave it to you two." The green-haired player shakes his head before pushing himself off the school wall. The trio being to walk off campus together with Shirogane situated in between the two taller males. "Shirogane, do you really think he will change?"
Said person shrugs without a care. "Heh, who knows?"
Akashi glances over Shirogane's head and at the tall shooter. "On a side note, I do think he will work better without too much distraction. You'd have the courtesy not to mention this conversation anymore."
Midorima shivers, a tingling feeling shooting down his spine. A cold sweat forms on his brow. The vice-captain frightened him sometimes. He intimidated everyone on the team. Except for one.
"Eh, Seijurō, do you think we'll get him in before Nationals is over? After all, I want this thread to form as soon as possible." the white-haired girl hums, swinging her arms freely. Her hands brush both of her teammates' as they swing back forth like a pendulum. Akashi makes an unintelligible sound, his answer neither positive nor negative.
"It all depends on his drive."
"Aomine still meets up with Kuroko-kun on a nightly basis."
"Sōka?"
"Should we intervene?"
"... Iie. Perhaps Daiki will give him the drive to develop."
"It's already been a months, now. Nationals is over."
sigh "A disappointment, really. Oh well, he'll come soon enough. For now, we do nothing."
"Hai, Riyeko-hime."
The first-string and the reserve players were just beginning their warm ups.
"Look, hime! I can do the splits now!" Aomine calls boastfully from the other side of the gym. He was doing a side split with his hands resting in front of him. Suddenly, a dark shadow falls on his stretched form. The blue-haired player slowly looks up. "Eh? Wha- ITAI!"
Murasakibara crunches methodically on his chips as he sits heavily on Aomine's back. The tanned player struggles to hold up the giant's weight, his legs burning as they feel the stress of the added weight.
"Good job, Atsushi! Helping your friend stretch is a good thing!" Shirogane flashes the lazy member a thumbs up, totally ignoring the struggling blue-haired boy underneath him.
"Oi! Get... him off!" Aomine howls, finally shoving the purple-haired boy off of him. He groans as he shakily raises to his feet. He teeters a bit, almost toppling back down, wailing.
Midorima bites back a scoff.
However, Murasakibara is still on the ground from when Aomine threw him off. The giant is strangely on his hands and knees, staring at something on the ground.
"Are you alright, Daiki? Atsushi?" Seijuro asks dully with a basketball in his hands. Shirogane ambles over as well to see what the commotion is about.
"Ri-chin... my chips..." Atsushi whimpers. His chips are scattered along the wooden gym floor, half of them crushed due to the impact. He grabs the short girl into a comforting hug, tears streaming comically down his face. The others could vaguely hear his mumbling as he rocks the white-haired girl back and forth. "Starve... snacks... die..."
A pale arms pokes out from Murasakibara's muscular arms and pat this side of his face soothingly. "Oi, Atsushi. I'll buy you some more later, okay? Just go eat your other snacks or something."
The purple-haired giant nods dutifully and releases the girl before pulling out another bag from nowhere. The squeaky sound of plastic being torn open echoes quietly across the court. The reserve players stare perplexed at the sight.
Shirogane shakes her head with a sigh, white coils bouncing around. She turns to the others with her hands at her hips. "The rest of you, get back to practice!" They scurry to comply their captain's demand.
One of the upperclassmen runs over to retrieve a stray ball, only to collide head on with someone at the entrance. He rubs his head tenderly, wincing in pain. Did I just run into the door?
"Sumimasen, senpai." a hollow voice speaks up. The upperclassman glances up before identifying a pale blue-haired boy.
"Uwah! Wh-Who?!" he shouts in alarm before scrambling backwards. Did I run into him?! I didn't even notice him there! Another upperclassman enters the scene.
"We have a visitor." he announces. Everyone's head immediately snaps towards the voice.