A/N: Thank you to all those who reviewed the previous chapter and faved this! This is where the part when I said this fic features like 90% of the KnB cast becomes evident haha.
Fiammie: Thank you! Nijimura-senpai is a magical being that all the current teams with Miragens must meet yes. You'll see in this chapter and the coming chapters!
Thank you also to booklover1209 and Orangetabby101 for your reviews! (yes Nijimura's so stubborn he deserves that bitch slap)
Kise didn't exactly consider himself to be a revengeful kind of guy—he was more of the go-with-the-flow sort of person, and on the competitive side—but he felt a very rewarding and rather evil feeling of satisfaction when he saw Aominecchi's blood completely drain from his face as his Touou teammates walked into the restaurant where they worked.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Aomine groaned, crouched as if to hiss like a threatened cat.
"Looks like we're all having some kind of weird reunion," Kasamatsu, already seated at a table with the other Kaijo regulars, mumbled as he chewed.
Just at the doorway, the four Touou regulars stood, looking like they were preparing to torture a felon instead of eating dinner—which was probably exactly what they were there for, in a sense. Imayoshi grinned, wicked, and regarded the collection of fellow highschoolers in the establishment. To one side, Kaijo was halfway through their meals, with Kise serving as their waiter. The Shuutoku regulars—sans Midorima—sat at a table beside theirs, in the middle of ordering their dinner. Aomine was standing to one side, balancing two trays of meals on one arm, very visibly hostile towards the new customers.
"Why the fuck are you here," Aomine snarled, venom dripping every word.
"We got a tip that our precious ace was working part-time," Imayoshi smirked, thin eyes mischievous. "So we came over to pay you a visit."
Aomine squinted, growling, complete irritation wrinkling his features. Sakurai shrunk behind Wakamatsu, squealing, "I'm sorry!" while Wakamatsu looked like he had won the lottery.
"More friends?" a big booming voice suddenly came.
Kise lit up, cheeks aching from smiling so widely. "Yeah, boss! These are Aominecchi's teammates!"
"Teammates you say?" the large boss beamed. "Give them a table then, Aomine! You be their waiter!"
Aomine actually hissed, teeth bared, and if it wasn't for the rather bloody-looking butcher's knife that the boss wielded, it seemed like he would have attacked him right there. The boss gave him a thunderous smack to the back, winking, and spun the knife around as he pulled a chair and gestured at the Touou regulars to sit.
"Sit, sit!" he grinned. "Aomine will be here for you lot for whatever you need!"
"Oh, we're looking forward to it," Wakamatsu beamed, his complete joy and elation very ill-concealed by his full, ear-to-ear grin. Aomine growled, and a large, strong hand on his shoulder brought him just short of stabbing his teammate right there.
To the side, Kise was practically choking on his stifled laughs.
Aomine grudgingly took his teammates' orders, and if it weren't for the utter joy shielding them (and the boss hovering nearby), his glare would have punched holes right through them.
"Want anything else, assholes?" Aomine grumbled.
Wakamatsu ignored the cuss with utmost delight. "Maybe an extra iced tea, waiter. Oh, and remember to bring us water, waiter."
Aomine's eye twitched. The sharpening of various knives at the kitchen was the only thing that kept him from strangling Wakamatsu where he sat. "I will murder you in practice," Aomine loomed, stiffly stepping back to walk to the kitchen.
"Well that's one way to get him to go to practice," Imayoshi smiled.
At the other table, as he merrily tended to his teammates, Kise chuckled, looking just as happy as the Touou regulars.
"Excuse me, Kise-kun," Imayoshi poked. "Would you mind making sure that Aomine won't try to poison our meals?"
Kise laughed, nodding. "No problem, senpai!" he chirped, walking to the counter just in time to swat Aomine's hands away from ingredients and condiments that had no business being in his teammates' meals—and drinks.
And apart from various attempts at poisoning the Touou regulars or dumping various beverages onto their heads, the dinner went normally—or as normally as a basketball-team-packed restaurant could go. The teams of Kaijo, Shuutoku, and Touou more or less bonded over the food—and torturing the freshmen waiters—and shared stories of some 'Great Nijimura, Former Captain of Teiko and the Rainbow Gang', which Aomine wanted to stab a fork at and Kise just chuckled after.
When the boss gave his freshmen waiters a break a tad earlier than usual (apparently to give them some rest because of serving so much people—though it seemed more like because of fear of possibly getting reviews regarding poisoned and/or mangled customers), it took Kise and his Kaijou teammates' combined efforts to stop Aomine from launching himself at his team. He cooled down when the boss handed him some croquettes, with some for Nijimura. Aomine huffed, shooting glares at his team, but relaxed.
"I'd really like to meet this Nijimura-san," Imayoshi said, leaning back after paying the bill.
"We're on our way there right now," Ootsubo told him, standing up with a basket of fruits in hand.
To the side, Kasamatsu had a similar basket. "I hope he's awake."
"Don't stress Nijimura-senpai out, alright?" Kise said, already waving as the teams stood to leave.
"Don't fucking visit at all," Aomine groaned, then eyed the bag of croquettes in his hand. "Or wait, just give these and leave."
Imayoshi accepted the bag with a smile. "We'll tell him you said hi."
Kise grabbed Aomine before he got to attack his team, waving happily as they left the restaurant.
On the way to the hospital, the group ran into Kuroko, with some Seirin regulars in front of him, holding two baskets of treats and looking like they were going to offer them to a shrine.
"I'm sorry, but why are you all here?" Kuroko asked, staring blankly at the collection of basketball team members gathered before him.
"Yesterday was a mess, so we wanted to properly introduce ourselves" Ootsubo said. "And we all want to speak to Nijimura-san."
Kuroko tilted his head to one side. "Why?"
"We've got a bunch of things we want to ask him," Takao chimed in. "Especially the captains. We want to know how Nijimura-san managed to be the captain of Teiko's basketball team. And the Generation of Miracles."
"Well, he's a very strong player," Kuroko remarked. "He was considered to be the strongest power forward back then, at least until Aomine-kun. He was also a good leader, although he was a different kind of leader compared to Akashi-kun."
"He seems like the serious, quiet type," Miyaji commented.
"He's different on the court though," Kuroko said immediately.
"I'm sorry, I still can't imagine someone like Aomine following that guy," Wakamatsu huffed. "Or anyone, for that matter."
"Aomine-kun—no, everyone was different back in middle school," Kuroko said, reminiscing. "And Nijimura-san was someone we respected ever since our first year." Kuroko looked thoughtful. "Teiko was very strict and competitive, and Nijimura-san constantly reminded us of that, but he was a senpai to us—the closest thing to a big brother to all of us, although none of the others would ever admit it."
The horde of basketball members looked at him in wonder, feeling a sense of awe frame the picture of Nijimura, former captain of Teiko's basketball team.
"Aomine-kun, in particular," Kuroko added. "Was someone who looked up to Nijimura-san."
"What," Wakamatsu gasped.
Kuroko gave a small smile. "Nijimura-san was a strong power forward, like I said. Aomine-kun also had a hard time against him, and very intently watched Nijimura-san's plays, until he overtook him. But even then Aomine-kun looked up to Nijimura-san, though he probably didn't realize it fully."
"I'm really having a hard time believing all of this," Wakamatsu slumped.
"It is in the past," Kuroko remarked. "But it's all true. Nijimura-san was a very good captain and senpai. Although he was a bit strict. And sometimes violent." Kuroko almost shuddered. "And he had incredible stamina, so he was able to handle both practice and being a senpai and captain." Kuroko recalled the time when Aomine-kun started skipping practice, and lost his smile while playing basketball. And how Nijimura-san patted his head after they'd won their second championship in a row, telling him that it was okay to be honest with himself. He had made Aomine-kun smile, which was something even Kuroko couldn't do at that time, and Kuroko was very grateful for that.
The group had to take three elevators to get them all up, and when they filed out into the fourth floor, Murasakibara and Himuro were ahead of them, and gaped when they saw the mess of high schoolers.
Reflexively, Murasakibara extended his long arms at his side, blocking most of the path to Nijimura's room.
"Too many," he said. "There's too many of you. Go away."
Himuro pulled his slack jaw closed, swallowing. "Wow. Yeah. What is this, a basketball tournament?"
"We brought food," Kuroko pointed out, and that seemed to do the trick.
"…Alright," Murasakibara lowered his arms, eyeing the food. "But don't be too messy. Mura-chin needs rest."
Himuro shrugged, opening the door and walking in, Murasakibara behind him. Seirin entered first, followed by the other teams. At the bed, Nijimura was inclined to sit up a bit, eating some hospital grub he didn't look like he wanted to eat, and he blinked when he saw them.
"We weren't able to properly introduce ourselves last time," Hyuuga started, bowing slightly, handing one of the baskets from his team. "I'm Hyuuga Junpei, from Seirin. This is Aida Riko, our coach, and then Kiyoshi, Izuki, and Koganei. You've already met Kagami." He gestured to his teammates, and then gave another bow. "Thank you for taking care of Kuroko."
Nijimura gave a small bow, awkwardly accepting the baskets, which Murasakibara helped out with. "Yeah, uh, no problem," he said, smirking slightly. "I hope he isn't giving you as much trouble as he gave me."
Kuroko pouted, and Kagami laughed. "This guy gave you trouble?" he chuckled, patting Kuroko on the head.
"Oh, definitely," Nijimura said. "He was a special case from day one. He took a little getting used to, for everyone."
"I wonder how that was like," Hyuuga smiled, ruffling Kuroko's hair. Nijimura smirked.
"I was also here yesterday," Ootsubo stepped forward, clearing his throat. "I'm Ootsubo, Midorima's captain from Shuutoku. This is my team." The Shuutoku regulars gave small bows, handing their basket over, which Murasakibara also took and then set on the bedside table.
"Thank you," Nijimura bowed his head again. "I trust that Midorima's always practicing dilligently?"
"Longer than any of us," Ootsubo smiled.
Nijimura nodded, approving. "I hope you haven't been tripped up by any of his bigger lucky items."
"It's happened at least once to each of us," Takao chuckled. Nijimura sighed, smiling.
Kasamatsu cleared his throat, stepping forward. "I'm Kasamatsu, from Kaijo," he started.
"Ah, Kise's team, then?" Nijimura said, turning to look at him. "So you're the captain, and then there's Moriyama, Hayakawa, Kobori, and Nakamura."
"I—yes. You know us?" Kasamatsu blinked.
"Kise doesn't shut up about you guys," Nijimura grinned, shrugging. "But, well, Kise doesn't really shut up in general."
The Kaijo guys laughed at that, nodding in agreement. They offered their basket to a sheepish Nijimura, and Himuro relieved him of the gift to put it on the table.
"This is from Aomine," Imayoshi spoke up, presenting the bag of croquettes. "We're his teammates from Touou."
Nijimura's eyes lit up at the sight of the croquettes, and he gratefully accepted, almost immediately pulling one out to unwrap it. "Thank you," he said meaningfully. "I'm Nijimura. You're lucky to have that brat."
"He's an amazing player," Imayoshi nodded, and his teammates grimaced, nodding as well. "But a brat, yes. Such a handful, that one. How did you deal with him when he was even more of a brat, Nijimura-san?"
"How did you deal with all of them," Kasamatsu added, leaning forward.
"You mean the previous team?" Nijimura cocked his head. "What's there to know?"
"Like—" Kasamatsu was gesturing with his hands. "How did you handle the Generation of Miracles, as captain? You weren't even in third year yet!"
"I barely did much, really," Nijimura said. "They were—are—outstanding players."
"Well in basketball, sure. But what about the brat part," Wakamatsu pointed out, finger raised up. "We all know they're monsters, but they've got weird-ass personalities to boot. How did you captain that?"
"Well for one, they weren't 'monsters' back in middle school," Nijimura remarked. "Or now, really. They're just brats. Talented brats." He looked thoughtful, remembering his time back in Teiko. "I guess I watched them grow."
"So—they were actually normal at one point?"
"Like I said, they're just brats," Nijimura smiled. "They were all talented to begin with, but they became as strong as they were—and are—because of hard work. They went through Spartan training back in Teiko. They even had stamina problems during their first year. They felt pressure." At that, Nijimura looked serious. "Being in Teiko's basketball club entailed a lot of pressure, but the team with the 'Generation of Miracles', as they started to call them, including us third years, got way more attention than anyone. And it bore down on us all."
The others took it all in silently, the thought of the pressure of excellence having escaped them, at least when it concerned the Generation of Miracles. Sure, they knew what pressure felt like, especially with people cheering behind you and reputations you had to uphold, but the position of Teiko and the Generation of Miracles was one they never reached. They never knew what it was like to have been the best. To have been called 'Miracles', and have everyone expect you to win every time—and by large margins. It was a different perspective, and they were slowly coming into terms with it, hearing it from Nijimura.
"It seems like they revert to their middle school selves when they're with you," Kiyoshi commented.
"Hah, yeah, it doesn't feel like they've changed much," Nijimura scoffed, glancing at Murasakibara, who was vacuuming up his bag of snacks.
"It's a side that we never really expected to see from them," Miyaji added.
Just then, the door to the hospital room opened, and in walked Kise and Aomine, looking exhausted and dirty with stains all over their clothes. Behind them, Midorima followed, and he froze when he saw the familiar orange of his Shuutoku teammates, deflating to a slump afterwards with a groan. Aomine growled when he spotted his teammates, shooting them stabbing glares as he moved to the side of Nijimura's bed.
"Nijimura-senpai, are these guys bothering you?" he grumbled, dropping into a chair next to Murasakibara.
"Senpai?" Wakamatsu hissed, and Kagami pat his shoulder.
"I know," he sighed.
"Nah, they brought food," Murasakibara mumbled as he chewed.
"So why don't you get out already," Aomine spat at them.
And Nijimura flicked him on the forehead, so strong that it actually sent Aomine reeling back with a yelp. "That's not your call, idiot," Nijimura scowled.
Aomine rubbed at his forehead, and his Touou teammates tensed, expecting some form of violent reaction from their ace, but Aomine just pouted, sitting back on his chair.
"Oh my god," Wakamatsu muttered under his breath. "I don't believe it."
By the entrance, the door suddenly creaked open, and Akashi swiftly slipped in, immediately spotting the large group of guys meshed around the room. He paused to take in the chaotic sight, when suddenly the door jerked forward, snapping Akashi back alert as he instantly pushed against it, keeping it from opening any further.
"Sei-chan, come on!" a voice from outside wailed.
Akashi grunted, struggling to push the door closed. "I said no," he barked, stern.
"Please Akashi please please please—" another voice called out from outside.
"We brought food!" a booming voice came, giving the door a knock.
"Aka-chin, what's happening?" Murasakibara stood, peering at Akashi's very strained effort at trying to shut the door.
"Atsushi, I need your assistance," Akashi grumbled, eyes flitting towards the room as he put all his weight into pushing the door. "And the others too—"
"Alright, you leave us no choice," someone called from outside.
Akashi's eyes widened, and he was about to call out to Murasakibara when the door heaved open, pushing Akashi a whole foot back into the room as large hands appeared on the door's edge.
"We're coming in—!" the booming voice sounded, and the door shoved open further, pushing Akashi back.
"Pardon the intrusion~!" a cheery voice came, and in stepped Hayama Kotarou, speedily slipping in from behind Nebuya. Holding the door open, Nebuya cackled, pushing inside while dragging Mayuzumi with him, Mibuchi following close after.
"R-Rakuzan?" Koganei gasped, stepping back.
Akashi sighed, giving up on the door as his teammates filed into the room, no less intimidating than they were on the court.
"You should have locked the door," Mayuzumi told Akashi.
"I was going to. Though Nebuya might have broken it down anyway," Akashi sighed, quickly stepping in front of his teammates as they walked in.
"Whoa whoa why are there so many people!" Hayama bounced, peeking over Akashi's shoulder. "Your ex-captain's famous!"
"I told you that you shouldn't have come," Akashi scolded, and everyone shuffled to give him and his team some space. Hayama cheerily greeted Izuki and everyone else he got close to, and Nebuya gave a friendly—though unnecessarily strong—smack to the backs of Ootsubo and Kiyoshi, greeting them with a gigantic smile while carrying a basket of meat. Mibuchi smiled at Hyuuga, who shuddered, and winked at Midorima, who also shuddered. Mayuzumi lagged behind them, quietly nodding at Kuroko when their eyes met.
They stood at the foot of Nijimura's bed, and Akashi made a small gesture towards his teammates. "This is my team," he introduced. "From Rakuzan. Mibuchi Reo, Hayama Kotarou, Nebuya Eikichi, and Mayuzumi Chihiro."
"It's nice to meet you Nijimura-sama!" Hayama burst, leaning forward on the bed frame.
"There's so much we want to talk to you about, Niji-chan!" Reo gushed, pressing close to Akashi as he eagerly leaned towards Nijimura as well.
"I brought meat to help with your recovery!" Eikichi beamed, stepping forward and lifting his basket of meat.
Nijimura raised an eyebrow. "What—'-sama'? Niji-chan?"
Akashi grunted at his teammates shoving, pushing them back. "Stop pushing," he snapped. "And don't bother Nijimura-san."
The three Uncrowned Kings looked at their captain, then erupted in squeals and bellows of disbelief, crowding over Akashi.
"What what! You use keigo when you're talking about him!"
"Sei-chan you're so cute!"
"This guy's amazing huh? Huh?"
"Is it because you like him, Akashi?"
"Oh my god, our Sei-chan?"
"I can't believe this. Wow."
"You mean Reo-nee is contagious?"
"What do you mean contagious."
"No no no Akashi's pure and precious, there's no way he'll get infected."
Akashi sighed, covering his face with a hand. To the side, Aomine and Kise were clutching their stomachs in the epic struggle to suppress their laughs, and across them, Midorima was looking away, hand clamped over his mouth and shoulders shaking with obvious strain at doing the same. Kuroko was in a similar position, fist pressed against his lips as his cheeks puffed, and beside him, Mayuzumi sighed.
"Pfft—" Nijimura snorted, a hand drawn up to cover his mouth. Akashi looked at him, making a light chuckle escape Nijimura's lips, and the rest of the Generation of Miracles stared.
When a small smile tugged at Akashi's lips, Aomine and Kise lost it, bursting into laughter at the side, Murasakibara chuckling beside them. A muffled sound cracked out from Midorima as he turned to hide his face, and Kuroko huffed, a small laugh floating out his mouth as he hugged his stomach with shaking arms.
By the bed, Nijimura grinned, shoving at Aomine's head and ruffling his hair, almost knocking his head onto Kise's, the two freshmen just laughing like idiots. Nebuya guffawed, presenting his meat basket towards Nijimura, and Mibuchi gave a small bow, chuckling under his breath. Hayama was laughing brightly, head thrown back with an arm around Akashi's shoulders, and Akashi was smiling.
Once again, the rest of the teams gaped at very unfamiliar sight that they beheld, feeling like they were seeing something that was extremely rare and precious. Without really thinking, Mayuzumi snapped a photo with his phone, giving a smirk. Everyone suddenly felt lighter, smiling and chuckling along with them, and it was a welcome burst of happiness to all of them.
"Thanks for the food," Nijimura said, eyebrow raised. "You're all lucky to have Akashi. I trust he's leading you well?"
"Oh yeah, definitely," Mibuchi cooed, looking like a proud mother hen. "Sei-chan's a great captain. He's even the student council president at Rakuzan!"
Nijimura snorted, smirking. "That's actually not surprising."
"But you were once his captain right?" Hayama chirped, leaning his torso over the footboard. "That's amazing! What was it like? How did you do it? You have to tell us stories!"
Akashi had retreated to the side of the bed, refilling a glass of water. "Give Nijimura-san some rest, Kotarou."
"Aw, but he looks fine!" Hayama pouted. "You're fine right? You're okay now?"
"Yes," Nijimura wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or amused at Hayama. "I've been telling these brats for days now that I'm fine already."
"No, you're not," Aomine barked.
"You slept like the whole day, Mura-chin," Murasakibara frowned at Nijimura. "And you had those chills a few times. And you still have a cough. You're still sick."
"Shut up, I said I'm okay," Nijimura scoffed, his last words getting rough around the edges, followed by a short fit of horrible-sounding coughs. His hand went up to his chest as a stinging pain pricked at his lungs, and Akashi brought the glass of water towards Nijimura. He laid a weak hand over Akashi's as he tilted the glass up, slowly letting Nijimura drink. He swallowed a few gulps, then pushed away to cough once, then continued drinking until the glass was empty.
Nijimura exhaled when he pulled away, leaning his head back onto his pillow. "Talk about bad timing," he wheezed, shutting his eyes to calm his breathing, feeling a muted pain throb at his chest.
"I think my heart skipped a beat," Mibuchi breathed, eyes sparkling at Akashi and Nijimura.
"See, you're not fine," Aomine huffed, tugging at Nijimura's blanket with a pout.
Nijimura sighed. "My throat was just dry," he scowled, lifting his head up again. "Fine. Kagami," he called out, making Kagami stiffen in attention. Nijimura pushed away the food tray at the over-bed table, pressing a button to incline the bed up. "Let's have another match."
Kagami paled, feeling himself flinch. "What, now?"
Nijimura nodded, fixing him with a piercing stare that made the others shudder as they saw his indomitable expression, feeling right there the presence of someone who was once called captain of Teiko's basketball team. "Yeah. Let's go."
Akashi stared at him. "Nijimura-san, you need rest," he said simply.
"I've had rest," Nijimura snapped. "Besides, you were the one who suggested this."
"But that doesn't mean that you should—"
Akashi was stopped short by a flick to the forehead, and Rakuzan's Uncrowned Kings gasped, literally scandalized and completely shocked over someone actually flicking Akashi on the forehead.
"No 'buts'," Nijimura rebuked, drawing his hand back. "I'm gonna try every time I can. You knew that when you suggested this, for sure."
Akashi's hand lightly hovered over his forehead, feeling the spot throb. He looked at Nijimura, and the Rakuzan members collectively gulped, looking like they were ready to throw themselves out the window. But to their surprise, Akashi just squinted, sighing, and simply replied, "Fine."
He looked at Kagami, who staggered back, feeling everyone else's eyes land on him.
"What's happening? What's Kagami gonna do?" Wakamatsu whispered.
"Kagami-kun, I don't think you have a choice," Kuroko poked Kagami.
"You just have to win, Taiga" Himuro said, pushing Kagami's shoulder.
Kagami groaned, feeling like he was getting sizzled under the gaze of the Generation of Miracles. Both Himuro and Kuroko nudged him forward, and he cautiously walked towards the bed, almost shrinking under Nijimura's stare as he bent forward.
Up close, he could see that there was more color in Nijimura's cheeks as compared to before, and a sharper shine to his eyes. He definitely looked better, and the air around him felt stronger and more pronounced, but Kagami sensed that Nijimura was still blunt around the edges, still a bit muffled by sickness. Nevertheless, there was no mistaking his strength, especially after almost losing the first time, so Kagami resolved it in himself to not hold back this match.
"Don't hurt Nijimura-senpai, Kagamicchi," Kise warned.
"If you hurt him I'll punch you," Aomine barked, squinting.
Kagami groaned. "I know. You said that already."
"On three," Akashi announced.
"What? What? What's happening?" Hayama looked as confused as he was excited. "What are they doing?"
"I think I understand," imayoshi smirked. "This is interesting."
Kagami clasped Nijimura's hand, instantly feeling that Nijimura was definitely stronger this time. He swallowed, setting his jaw, and met those sharp, steely eyes.
"Arm wrestling? Whoa why are they arm wrestling—"
Nebuya barked out a laugh. "I don't really get it, but this is definitely interesting!"
"This has Sei-chan written all over it," Mibuchi chuckled.
Akashi ignored them. "One."
"This is intense," Takao piped up, looking amused.
"I feel sorry for Kagami," Kasamatsu said.
"But there's no doubting he's a perfect fit for the job," Imayoshi remarked.
Kagami wanted to throw something at them, feeling Nijimura's fingers tighten around his hand.
"Two."
"You can do it, Taiga."
"Don't go easy on him, Kagami!"
"Three."
Kagami pushed, fully intending to take the initiative this time. But their arms were locked in their starting position right off the bat, and both their arms were trembling with strained effort at trying to overwhelm the other.
Nijimura tsked, clearing his throat and fighting back a cough. Kagami's eyes flickered towards him, and at that split-second distraction, Nijimura pushed harder, jerking Kagami's arm back. It seemed like he wanted to end it quickly, and Kagami felt beads of sweat starting to form at his temples when his arm lowered further.
"O-ohh! Nijimura-san's got the lead!" Wakamatsu half-cheered.
"Oi oi Bakagami," Aomine growled.
"Shut up," Kagami grunted, pushing back with a surge of strength. He moved about an inch up, and Nijimura supressed another cough, grumbling as he tried to keep his lead. Kagami remembered what Akashi had mentioned before—about Nijimura-san's not yet recovered stamina—and started to seriously wonder how much stamina Nijimura really has at his best condition. Being the captain of Teiko's basketball team and the Generation of Miracles called for serious energy, and having three part-time jobs alongside being the man of the house was probably even more exhausting. Going against him, even just at arm-wrestling, made Kagami conclude that Nijimura probably had more stamina than him, if he was already this good while in the middle of recovering.
From the corner of his vision, Kagami saw Akashi move to refill another glass of water. Kagami thought that It was definitely weird that Akashi entrusted his former-captain's hospital confinement to him, but he realized just then that rather than just simply trusting him to keep winning against Nijimura, Akashi trusted Nijimura more to recover at his own pace and at his own time. And as weird as the whole deal might have been, Kagami respected that—and he had gone and gotten involved anyway, so he was at least going to see this through.
He pushed, focusing his energy into his arm. Their positions shook, and Kagami adjusted himself to lock his arm right where it was, constantly pushing against Nijimura's with measured force enough to make sure that Nijimura's lead wouldn't go any further. After a few beats, he felt the pressure on his arm lessen, just slightly, and Kagami knew that his 'strategy' was working.
When he felt the pressure against his arm lessen even more and heard Nijimura's grunt, he knew that he had found the right answer: beat him back with stamina. Akashi had mentioned that Nijimura's stamina was shot, and though he was obviously strong and probably had more endurance than Kagami, he hadn't recovered enough to be able to beat the amount of stamina Kagami had. And though Nijimura was really hard to push back, it wasn't long before he had weakened enough for Kagami to reverse their positions and win.
When Nijimura sighed and leaned back, Kagami felt his arm go limp as they let go. Kagami slumped, giving a huge sigh of his own, and shook his arm weakly. The others around him were a mix of sighs of relief and cheers, and the Generation of Miracles relaxed, getting back into both scolding Nijimura and taking care of him.
"Let's have a rematch," Nijimura told Kagami.
"Tomorrow," Akashi said sternly, handing him a glass of water. Nijimura frowned at him, but relented.
"Good job, Kagamicchi!" Kise perked up, flashing Kagami a sparkling grin.
Kagami grunted, stepping back towards his teammates and getting sympathetic pats on his back. By the bed, Nijimura had started chomping on another croquette, and he offered Aomine one of them, which he gratefully accepted.
"I'll go get some drinks," Kuroko announced, weaving through the small crowd around him.
"Ah wait, I'll go with you," Aomine stood. He turned to look at Nijimura. "Want a sports drink?"
Nijimura nodded, looking grateful. "Please."
"Ooh me too, Aomine-kun," Imayoshi called.
"And me!" Wakamatsu tried.
Aomine glared at them. "Shut up. Get them on your own."
He snarled at their evil laughs and turned, Kuroko following behind him. Aomine swiftly opened the door and made to go out, but stopped short before stepping outside, making Kuroko stagger to a sudden stop.
"Aomine-kun?" he asked, trying to peer past Aomine's side.
"Fucking hell—Daiki?" someone outside said, and the voice was one that Kuroko knew all too well.
Aomine straightened up slightly, glaring suspiciously at the newcomer out the door, and he sounded almost content when he replied, "Haizaki."