Warning! Contains spoilers from chapter 175 - 182!
Kuroko no Basuke is copyrighted by Fujimaki Tadatoshi-sensei. Give him the best regards for creating this great manga!
The OCs are mine.
Warning: Akashi x OC. Later on it will be Midorima x OC, but the main story is focused on Akashi.
Alluring Gaze
Chapter 12
The Will to Keep Fighting
The whistle was blown, commencing the first round of Rakuzan High versus Shuutoku High.
From the bench, Sakuya watched the match silently with clouded expectation. After all, it was a match between Akashi and her childhood friend; who is supposed to be Midorima Shintarou.
She knows that Ryouhei-kun aka Midorima used to play basketball in his mean time. She often watched him played basketball in his backyard. He said once to her that it is not his hobby, but only as an activity besides studying. But to think that Midorima is known as one of the prodigies from the Generation of Miracles was a shock to her. It means her childhood friend has a unique ability compared to the other basketball players.
"Akashi-san once told me that Midorima Shintarou is a three-point shooter," Sakuya recalled the times when Akashi told her about his ex-teammates. She then watched Takao Kazunari dribbled the ball towards Hayama who is ready to defend him. But to his shock, Takao passed the ball to Midorima who awaits him from behind. Midorima then prepared his shooting stance; making Akashi rolled his eyes.
"You're always right? Don't make me laugh, Akashi," Midorima stated while glaring at Akashi and shot the ball from his position. "Don't talk like you know everything, when all you've had was victory." The ball soared beautifully in the air and got into the net; scoring the first three points for Shuutoku. Cheers from the crowd could be heard inside the gymnasium.
"Come, Akashi," Midorima declared a challenge towards Akashi. He pushed up his glasses. "As promised, I'll teach you defeat."
As for Sakuya, the girl was in awe. She never thought Midorima can shoot from that distance. Every time Midorima kept shooting three-points for his team, Sakuya was amazed.
She was stunned by the way Midorima Shintarou shoots the ball gracefully.
She smiled. Her childhood friend has become this magnificent in basketball. She somehow feels proud for him.
"You are so charming and cool like that, Ryouhei-kun," she thought to herself. Her eyes then caught Midorima's gaze for a moment when the green-haired man shot another three-pointer successfully. When their eyes met, Sakuya found something flickered in Midorima's eyes.
The determination to win.
"Another three-pointer!" someone remarked amidst the crowd.
"How troublesome..." Mibuchi complained. He swept the sweat on his forehead. "If this keeps coming on, there's no way we can stop Midorima's three-pointer. But," Mibuchi glanced to his captain who seems very calm. "I guess Sei-chan is waiting for the time to make his move, huh?"
Akashi noticed Mibuchi's gaze and replied it with his smirk. Mibuchi was quite surprised with that, but the black-haired man let it go and went to his mark. Akashi then focused his gaze into Midorima who was being marked by Mayuzumi. "My my, Shintarou also indeed went beyond my expectation," he pondered. "It's going to be interesting soon."
The redhead glanced to Sakuya who was sitting quietly while observing the ongoing match. "Sakuya is also observing well, although..."
Although he doesn't like it when Sakuya set her eyes on Midorima.
"What kind of feeling is this?" Akashi asked himself, but he smirked afterwards. "This is also going to be interesting, too."
He can't wait to find the answer to his nagging feeling.
The first round of Rakuzan versus Shuutoku ended with tie; 16 – 16. Both teams went back to their bench. Sakuya immediately handed her teammates their towel and let them took a seat so they can listen to Shirogane's preach.
"It's okay, Sakuya. Just take your seat," Akashi said to the girl after she handed him his towel. The redhead somehow knows Sakuya's mind. However, the girl only smiled to him and decided to stand next to Shirogane.
"It's going well," Shirogane remarked after the boys assembled together. He crossed his arms. "There will be no changes in our original game plan. I'll entrust you with small details of each game play. If there needs to be changed, follow Akashi's orders." The boys nodded to him. "What do you think, Sakuya?" Shirogane asked Sakuya's opinion next.
"I agree with you, Shirogane-sensei. I think we should stick with our plan and entrust the decision to Akashi-san," Sakuya agreed with the aged-man. "However, I do think that Shuutoku already realized our slow pace and they will be careful in the second round. I suggest you to be wary and not hold your head too high."
"As expected from Sa-chan~" Mibuchi praised Sakuya. His eyes filled with sparkles. He really is proud with Sakuya's sharp observation. To his enjoyment, Shirogane also thinks the same with him.
"You've heard her, boys. Commence with the plan," Shirogane demanded, earned a 'yes sir!' shout from his team.
After Akashi stood up from his seat, he approached Sakuya and tapped her shoulder to make her looked at him. "Let me ask you something, Sakuya."
"What is it?"
"What do you think about Shintarou in this match so far?" Akashi asked with low voice, and so he leaned his face closer to Sakuya so the girl could hear his words. Sakuya, who is not slightly disturbed with the closeness, rubbed her chin while pondering. Akashi then listened to her opinion while nodding to himself.
But for Midorima, he was not amused at all. Seeing his childhood friend that close to his ex-captain sure makes him irritated. Midorima's eyes keep twitching while he is listening to his coach's preach.
"The way that man plays is like shogi. You even saw him didn't make any noticeable moves. He has just been merely scouting the area," Nakatani Masaaki said to his team. "If he is about to make his moves, it's going to be now. Before that happens, we should make our moves first. And," Nakatani glanced to Midorima who seems agitated. "You should calm yourself, Midorima."
Everybody turned their head to see Midorima is glaring to Rakuzan's bench, particularly at Akashi who is still talking with Sakuya. The greenhead even frowned when Akashi is caressing Sakuya's cheek casually before going back to the court.
"Oi, Midorima. Get your ass here! Want me to bury you?" Miyaji snapped to Midorima because the guy is still sitting on the bench; not realizing that they are going back to the court to resume the second quarter. Ignoring his upperclassman's rage, Midorima walked into the court silently.
"Jeez, Shin-chan. Are you that jealous with him?" Takao approached Midorima and smacked the greenhead's back, making him almost stumbled. "Save your jealousy for later and focus for this match before you will disappoint your childhood friend for being cranky."
Midorima was pissed, but he was surprised that Takao knows about his childhood friend. "How did you know about-"
"You know that I and Meiko-chan are close, right?" hearing his sister's name, Midorima twitched. He knows Meiko also befriends Takao since the hawk-eye user sometimes visits his house and chats about random things with his sister. But the thing that he doesn't like about his sister is her blabbering. "Well, Meiko-chan told me about your childhood friend. And she also told me about you faking your own name-"
"Shut up, Takao. Leave me alone," Midorima drifted away from Takao, only to make Takao snorted at him.
"Oh well," Takao took a peek at Midorima's childhood friend who was sitting on the bench next to Shirogane. "She sure is cute. I don't know Shin-chan has that cute girl as his friend. And for Shin-chan to be jealous when other men approached her, she must be very important for him. Too bad Shin-chan is such a tsundere!"
"Don't look down on us, Akashi," Midorima declared when he approached Akashi. He glared venomously to the redhead. "Scouting for the whole first quarter? You seem to take it pretty easy so far. Don't tell me you believe you can win without even using your 'eyes'?"
"I'm not looking down on you all. In fact, I'm as cautious as ever," Akashi replied calmly. He ignored Midorima's wrath towards him. "I can't reveal my trump card that easily. However," his eyes then narrowed. "At this rate, the game might end without me even using it."
"…What did you say?"
The second quarter began. Takao got the ball first. But when he wanted to pass, he noticed that Midorima was being double-teamed by Mibuchi and Mayuzumi; making Midorima had difficulties to pass their defense. Takao was surprised with Rakuzan's decision, but he smirked afterwards.
"Well, just what we were expecting," Takao then passed the ball to Miyaji who was being marked by Hayama.
"One-on-one?" feeling excited, Hayama flashed with excitement. "Come!" the orange-haired guy declared.
A tick mark appeared on Miyaji's head. He forced a smile to Hayama. "What's with those glittering eyes?" and Miyaji dribbled the ball under Hayama's legs and quickly passed his defense. "I'm gonna run you over with Kimura's light-weight truck," he muttered darkly and passed the ball to Otsubo who's behind Nebuya and the Shuutoku captain dunked the ball in.
Hayama sweated. He didn't know Miyaji can be that good in dribbling. His shock got a scold from Nebuya. "Hey! Why are you getting owned so easily?!"
"You better not be sleeping! Get your act together!" Mibuchi also scolded Hayama. "Sa-chan reminded us not to hold our head high!"
"Kotarou…" Akashi muttered darkly to Hayama, making the orange-haired guy shivered.
"Whoa! I'll make up for it! So don't get mad, Akashi!" Hayama exclaimed while protecting himself from Akashi.
Akashi sighed. "Then it's fine. But if you don't get your head in the game, I'm going to have you switched and make you run 20 laps after the match for neglecting Sakuya's warnings earlier."
Hayama grinned to Akashi. "No problem! No one can beat me when it comes to dribbling!"
The match continued on. This time Hayama got the ball and faced Miyaji again. The blonde-haired man glared darkly to him. "Like I'll let you get your revenge."
"Nah, I'll do it. Will three be enough?" Hayama asked happily, only to make Miyaji confused. Hayama started dribbling the ball so hard and very fast with his three fingers; so fast that Miyaji's eyes can't follow the ball's movement. The ball was being dribbled with strong force that it makes loud noises. Before he knows it, Hayama already passed his defense with full speed and strong dribble; shocking the blonde-haired man. Hayama then jumped and wanted to shoot, but Kimura tried to block him. However, his effort was failed when Hayama did a double clutch and shoot the ball into the ring successfully.
"Don't worry! We'll take it back!" Otsubo said to Miyaji, who nodded in approval.
"Hayama-senpai sure is very quick," from the bench, Sakuya observed her teammates' progress. Although she often watches Hayama doing his dribbling many times in front of her, she is still amazed with his skill. "Just now he used three fingers, hm? It's really faster than the other day when he showed it to me using his two fingers."
"Yet, it's an eerie feeling," Miyaji pondered to himself. "I barely saw it with my own eyes. He only dribbled the ball with three fingers! If the secret to his dribbling is his concentration on the elastic power of his body to the tip of his fingers, and 'three' means the numbers of fingers he used to relay that power, it means there are two more stages above that dribbles?!"
Hayama used his strong dribble again and passed Miyaji once more even though the blonde-haired man tried to block him. Hayama passed the ball to Nebuya which the dark-skinned guy dunked immediately. The score now is 32 – 28 to Rakuzan's favor. "Nice pass!" Nebuya praised Hayama while smacking him hard on the head, making Hayama winced in pain. "Ouch! You Muscle Gorilla!"
Nebuya thanked him; not feeling offended at all, but only earned a growl from Hayama. "That wasn't a compliment! Also, I'm going to report you to Urenomiya for smacking me hard!"
"She's not your mom…" Nebuya sweated. Ever since Sakuya becomes the temporary manager and takes care of the team's needs, she has been like the team's second mother after Mibuchi. She often handles Hayama's mischief to the point she's just like his mother, which annoys Mibuchi greatly. But his teammates respect her; for being very patient around people like him and Hayama, even being oblivious of her bluntness towards Akashi.
"Crap!" Takao cursed. Although his team also scored some points thanks to Midorima, he felt the context of their ability is too different. Not only for Miyaji, Otsubo and Kimura are still having troubles. As for Akashi, the redhead only sent passes to the right places. "Even so, we're barely holding on!"
"Basically, everyone other than you is a hindrance. I'm sorry," Mibuchi remarked to Midorima. The greenhead twitched when heard that. "It's definitely true that even the two of us are barely holding you down, but for the other four, there's a much bigger gap. Especially him," Mibuchi glanced to Miyaji who's panting heavily since dealing with Hayama. "I wonder how long he can last against Kotarou?"
Akashi then stole the ball from Takao's hand, making the hawk-eye user shocked as Akashi passed the ball to Hayama's direction. Miyaji caught the ball, however Hayama easily took the ball from Miyaji's hand and dribbled past him and going for lay-up. Much to his dismay, Midorima suddenly appeared and intercepted the ball from his hand; preventing him from scoring.
"When did he?" Hayama was surprised with Midorima's action. "Wow, he returned so quickly!"
"Nice!" Takao praised Midorima's effort and immediately passed the ball to Midorima, although he was still being double-teamed.
Midorima glared to Mibuchi and Mayuzumi. "A hindrance? What are you blabbering about?" and when he dribbled past the two's defense, Kimura quickly screened Mibuchi from behind; allowing Midorima to break free. When he was about to shoot, Nebuya rushed to block him. But the dark-skinned guy was wrong. Instead of shooting, Midorima decided to pass the ball to the running Miyaji, who caught the ball easily. "There's not a single one in this team who is a hindrance," he declared while remembering the hard efforts his upperclassmen did after hard practice, and Miyaji successfully dunked the ball; scoring points for Shuutoku.
"Oh, nice dunk!"
"Shuutoku's not done, yet!"
"Yo," Miyaji approached Midorima when they jogged back to their respective spots and he patted him on the shoulder. "Nice pass."
Although it was only for a moment, Sakuya noticed it.
Midorima was smiling a bit.
She smiled. The scene she just watched somehow feels soothing and warm. She was glad Midorima has reliable comrades. And so, the second quarter keeps continuing on with Midorima's long range three-pointers; tying the score to 39 – 39 in the end of the round.
"Should we add one more?" Nebuya suggested to his team. He felt that they can't stop Midorima with two people marking him.
"There's no need," Akashi said as he approached his comrades. "Even if you add another one, it will bring a negative effect. The Shintarou right now is unstoppable even for the Crownless Kings."
"What should we do to stop him, then?"
Akashi smirked. "I will face him later."
As the second quarter ended, both teams have ten minutes interval and the other teams can use the court for warming up. As Shuutoku prepared to get back to their locker room, Midorima walked past Kise Ryouta who is going to warm up with his Kaijo team. Kise glanced to Midorima and smiled to him. "Your condition doesn't look so bad," he commented while glancing at the score board.
"Hmph. I don't know about that," Midorima declared. "Akashi hasn't used his 'eyes' yet. If he's going to use that, it'll be during the second half," Midorima's eyes hardened. "The real fight starts now."
Rakuzan also readied themselves to get back to their locker room. As usual, Akashi led his team. On their way, he met with Seirin's team who is going to warm up too along with Kaijo. Akashi noticed Kuroko's presence and greeted him. "It's been a while since the opening ceremony, Tetsuya."
Kuroko nodded to him. "Yes, Akashi-kun."
"It's Rakuzan… and Akashi Seijurou. Their atmosphere is totally different," Hyuuga Junpei remarked. He was amazed with Rakuzan's atmosphere. His eyes then caught a sight of brown-haired girl behind the taller guys from Rakuzan. "Hm? Isn't she…?"
Akashi walked again, only to face a furious Kagami Taiga. The Emperor looked up to him with annoyance, since Kagami looked down to him. "Yo" Kagami greeted him. "You better not have forgotten me. You sure pulled some crazy shit on me back then. Kise and you, too. I'll crush all of you."
"Of course I remember you, Kagami Taiga," Akashi remarked mockingly. "I do acknowledge your ability, but let me give you a warning."
"Akashi?" Nebuya peered to his back since Akashi was left behind by him and the others.
"The only ones who are allowed to look at me in the eye as I speak are those that serve me. No one that opposes me is allowed to look down on me," Akashi added and he grabbed Kagami's shoulder, and the next thing Kagami knew was he fell to the ground. His teammates were shocked seeing that, as Akashi glared to him. "Know your place."
"That wasn't strength… what did he just…?!" Kagami was shocked. He knew that Akashi only grabbed his shoulder, but he didn't know what made him fell down. He didn't feel any strength from Akashi's hand at all earlier.
"Kagami-kun!" Kuroko rushed to Kagami and checked his partner out.
"You too, Tetsuya. You'd better be prepared if you're planning to fight me," Akashi stated while looking to Kuroko. "The one who discovers your talent is me. You'll know what it means soon enough."
"And the one who discovers your rude attitude is me," suddenly Sakuya voiced up, shocking Seirin team completely. The girl suddenly popped out from behind Akashi.
"Ah, Sakuya," Akashi smirked to her even though the girl is giving him her piercing gaze. She was not amused with Akashi's act earlier.
"Please stop these things about 'looking to one's eyes' and 'opposing someone', Akashi-san. You are being rude just now," she remarked monotonously as she approached Kagami and Kuroko and offered her hand to the still-on-the-floor Kagami. "I'm sorry about this. Are you alright? Can you stand?" Sakuya asked politely like she usually does.
"I-I'm fine…" Kagami replied nervously as he stood up by himself. His eyes observed Sakuya's being. "Who is this girl? If she is with Akashi, it means she's also in part of the Rakuzan team. But her aura is very different compared to the others…"
"Is that so? I'm glad, then," Sakuya glanced to other Seirin members and recognized some of them. "Ah, you are from this afternoon…" she muttered while looking to Riko and Hyuuga's direction.
Riko smiled to Sakuya. "Yes. Thank you for the afternoon, um…"
"Urenomiya Sakuya," Sakuya bowed and introduced herself to Riko and the Seirin team. "I am currently the temporary manager for Rakuzan team. It's nice to meet you."
"A-Aida Riko! The coach for Seirin!" feeling the need to introduce herself, Riko bowed to Sakuya.
"Aida-san, then," Sakuya nodded to herself. "Sorry about the inconvenience. I hope you will forgive Akashi-san's rudeness to one of your teammates."
"Wow, she's so polite… and very different from Rakuzan's fierce aura!" Riko sweated. She waved her hand to hand. "I-it's okay, Urenomiya-san! Kagami-kun is an idiot, so it's fine!"
"Hey!" Kagami snapped to his coach, but he was silenced when Riko gave him a deadly look.
"There's no need for you to apologize on my behalf," Akashi demanded. The redhead didn't like it when Sakuya apologized to Kagami. "Let's go, Sakuya. The others are waiting," he said and he grabbed Sakuya's hand. His heterochromatic eyes then met with Kuroko's bewildered look. "Ah, Tetsuya. She is the one I mentioned that day."
Kuroko's eyes widened in shock. "So she is Akashi-kun's chaperone?" He pondered while inspected the said chaperone.
"Please excuse us," Sakuya bid her farewell to Seirin team as Akashi dragged her along into the locker room joining the others.
"Hey, Kuroko," Kagami called his partner. "He said that she is the one he mentioned before. You mean, she's his chaperone?"
Kuroko nodded. "I believe it's true. But I feel something was odd earlier."
"What do you mean by 'odd'?"
"How should I say it?" Kuroko rubbed his chin; thinking thoughtfully. "It's the first time I see someone who dares to confront Akashi-kun like that. That person… Urenomiya-san, right? She seems very normal around Akashi-kun. Her behavior is different from the rest of his teammates."
Kagami was confused with Kuroko's explanation. Riko decided to explain it further. "What Kuroko-kun was trying to say is Urenomiya-san is not afraid with Akashi-kun. If his Rakuzan comrades respect Akashi-kun like an emperor, Urenomiya-san treats him like a normal guy. You saw it, Kagami-kun. She even preached him when he made you fell."
"Yes, she did. But I still don't understand…" Kagami blurted out, only to make Riko sighed. "That girl seems to know you, coach. Did you two meet somewhere?"
"Yup. We met at the train station this afternoon. I was saved by Mibuchi-kun when I was going to drop by. She was with him."
"But to think that girl is Rakuzan's manager now…" Hyuuga muttered. "She must have something to pick Akashi Seijurou's interest. We should be careful whenever she's around," his team nodded in approval with their captain.
"Although she's not that scary compared to Rakuzan's aura…" Koganei exclaimed. He glanced to Kuroko. "But you know? When I saw her, she is somehow similar to Kuroko, don't you all think?"
"Eh?" Kuroko blinked. He pointed to himself. "Me?"
Everyone in Seirin stared at Kuroko. "Now that Koga said it, he's actually right," Kiyoshi retorted.
"They have the same eyes and their attitude is also polite," Izuki remarked. "Maybe you two are related? Your twin, Kuroko?"
"I'm sorry, but I am the only child in my family. I don't have any siblings," Kuroko replied monotonously.
"That's what he said. Anyway, both of them are different in terms of height," Kagami blurted out, only to receive an Ignite Pass from Kuroko on his stomach and Kagami winced in pain. Everyone sweated at their duo aces' behavior. They know that Sakuya is taller than Kuroko, but the light-blue-haired boy doesn't like someone mention about his short height.
"I'm sorry, Kagami-kun. My hand slipped," Kuroko remarked, making Kagami snapped at him.
"Bastard! You did it on purpose!"
It's the fourth quarter. The score is 63 – 49 on Rakuzan side. Ever since Akashi marked Midorima in the third quarter earlier, the greenhead couldn't shoot his three-pointers because Akashi always stole the ball from him with the help of his Emperor Eye. Akashi won't let Midorima shoot or pass. The redhead even can get past Miyaji and Kimura's defense easily by making them fall with his ankle-break. Shuutoku was being treated like kids by Akashi Seijurou. He is unstoppable.
"So this is the Emperor Eye," Sakuya thought to herself. "It can see the future movement of its opponents and negates their actions." She speculated while remembering the times when she was handling practice with Akashi.
"Try to shoot, Sakuya," Akashi asked Sakuya in the gym. It was already evening and everyone has gone home. Only the two of them stayed still. Akashi gave the ball to Sakuya and he stood in front of her; taking a defensive stance.
"But I can't play basketball, Akashi-san. Even shooting is impossible for me."
Akashi chuckled. "Do not mind it. I just want to show you my ability."
Sakuya blinked. "You mean the Emperor Eye?" Akashi nodded at that. "Um, I'm really nervous now. What will you do to me with that?"
"There's no need to be nervous. I'm not going to hurt you," he assured her. "Now, try to shoot."
Without much questions, Sakuya raised both of her hand to shoot. However, the ball was smacked from her hands even before she raised the ball up to her head; making Sakuya quite surprised. She stared at the deserted ball thoughtfully, before turned her head to see a smiling Akashi. "You made me shocked back there," she muttered monotonously, making Akashi chuckled.
"Pardon me. Did you see it just now?" he asked, which earned a nod from Sakuya. "Do you want to try again? This time, try to pass somewhere," he said after he took the ball and gave it back to Sakuya. The girl then raised the ball and wanted to throw it to her left, but Akashi once again smacked the ball from her hands. She was almost stumbled when he did that, and so the redhead held her shoulders to keep her balance. "My, I guess I was too hard earlier. Are you okay, Sakuya?"
The girl silently nodded while staring at his hands. "You are very quick to react, Akashi-san. You prevented me from falling. Thank you."
"Of course. If I am not reacting quickly, I will blame myself for hurting a lady," Akashi remarked after he released his hands from Sakuya's shoulders. "This eye can see everything; from minuscule movement of the muscles to the heartbeat. With this, I can time my actions perfectly to nullify my opponent's action, sabotaging whatever tactics the opponent tries to execute."
"Really?" Sakuya tilted her head innocently. "That's why you can block my actions earlier."
"It's because you were in Triple Threat," Akashi remarked, making Sakuya confused. "It is the most basic form in basketball that sets up all three motions: shooting, dribbling, and passing. No matter how fast you are in those, you will start with that stance."
"I see. And judging by your speed and reflexes, you can easily intercept the ball from the opponent," Sakuya added. Akashi nodded at that. "Is that ability can be applied other than basketball?"
"Yes, like I did to you earlier," Akashi stated, referring to when Sakuya almost fell to the floor. "However, it's hard to see your reaction, Sakuya. Actually it is quite difficult for me to initiate any action towards you."
"What do you mean, Akashi-san?"
Akashi shook his head. "I guess you can say sometimes I can't really read you at all most of the times."
"I wonder what did he mean by that?" Sakuya pondered. She then watched as Akashi faced Midorima again. The redhead had the ball and was blocked by Midorima.
"Akashi!" Midorima shouted in annoyance.
"Shintarou, you're strong," Akashi remarked while dribbling the ball. "But," and he ankle-broke Midorima; making the greenhead went unbalanced and fell to the ground as he dribbled past him. "You'll lose. Who do you think was leading you guys?" Akashi shot a lay-up; widen the gap of their points to 20. The score now is 71 – 51. "Even if it's the Generation of Miracles, no one can stand against me."
"It's 20 point gap!"
"Rakuzan is super strong! They are unbeatable!"
"Ryouhei-kun…" Sakuya stared at Midorima who is still on the ground. "There's no way that you will give up here, right?"
"Shin-chan…" Takao approached Midorima. When he wanted to help him up, Miyaji suddenly walked past them and smacked Midorima's head. "How long are you gonna stay on the ground, dumbass? I'm gonna mince you," he warned, making Takao sweated.
"Hey! Can't you see those words? Man up!" Kimura passed the ball to Takao and pointed to the banner entitled 'Never sway, never give up'. It was Shuutoku's banner.
"Don't give up!" Otsubo exclaimed. "We still have time. Let's start making a point!" and their seniors walked ahead of them. Midorima and Takao only looked at their backs.
"Hey, Shin-chan," Takao called. "Miyaji-san was super scary during practice, right?"
"…Yeah," Midorima agreed to him.
"Otsubo-san was also uptight and strict. He wouldn't let you slack off for a second even though the work was tough. I thought I was gonna die during training camps. I puked so many times. Ah, but Kimura-san's watermelons were great."
"…You're right."
"The more I look back, the more I want to keep playing basketball with these guys."
Midorima was silence for a moment, before he replied, "That's right."
The first-year duo regained their spirit again and ready to face Akashi. A hint of determination lingered in their eyes. The Shuutoku team hasn't given up yet. Sakuya smiled at the scene before her.
"Do your best, Ryouhei-kun."
Midorima glanced to Sakuya for a moment and he nodded to her, somehow he can read what's inside Sakuya's mind; like telepathy. "Let's go, Takao," Midorima said as he focused his gaze to Akashi. "We'll show him what we've got."
"Oh yeah~" and Takao suddenly sniggered.
"Why are you laughing?"
"Nothing. It's just why you nodded at her so suddenly?" Takao tried to hold his laughter. "What? Did you get telepathy from her? Man, your superstitious act can pull up this kind of thing? Pffft!"
"…Shut up, Takao."
Akashi widened his eyes in disbelief. He was shocked to see Midorima and Takao cooperation play. At first, he was bewildered when Midorima got into his shooting stance without the ball in his hands. Just as he jumped mid-air, he received the ball from Takao's accurate pass and shot his three-pointers. The redhead never thought Midorima would take that action, or rather, gamble. He knows that Midorima also never thought to do that play, but the greenhead believes in his team and so gave everything he got for it.
And for the first time, Akashi feels pressured. In terms of height, Akashi is in disadvantage. He can't steal the ball that high.
"I won't let you through, Akashi!" Midorima declared. The greenhead is marking Akashi who got the ball.
"It's pointless. Out of my way, Shintarou," Akashi stated as he dribbled the ball and ankle-broke Midorima. "My orders are absolute." He got through and going for lay-up.
"It's not over yet!" Midorima got up and rushed to Akashi. "Don't give up! There's no shame in falling down! True shame is to not stand up again!" The greenhead jumped and blocked Akashi from scoring. "Akashi!"
"What the heck?! He managed to catch up even after he fell?!" Hayama retorted.
Much to Midorima dismay, Akashi passed the ball to Nebuya instead. With that chance, Nebuya took the opportunity to dunk. However, Otsubo was quick to react and he smacked the ball from Nebuya's hand and Takao immediately caught the free ball. Mibuchi rushed to defend Takao, however Takao passed the ball to Midorima who has jumped mid-air and shot his three-pointer.
"No way!" Mibuchi panicked. "Even a normal three-pointer would be difficult in this situation. What confidence!"
Midorima's shoot got in, making the score is 71 – 60. "He made it! Three in a row!"
"The point difference is disappearing right before our eyes!"
"On top of that, they're going with full-court press defense?!"
"They are really not going to let them through," Sakuya mused. She then saw Midorima and Takao are double-teaming Akashi. "They are double-teaming him. Akashi-san, what will you do?"
Much to everyone's shock, Akashi backed away from Midorima and Takao and faced his own ring. Without much thought, Akashi shot the ball from his position, scoring his own goal.
"Akashi?" Mayuzumi was bewildered. How could his captain shot to their own net? What the hell is he thinking?
"When did I tell you that you could relax?" Akashi turned to face his team and scolded them. "The match is not over yet. The temporary point difference has made you slack off in the match. Even a few consecutive goals have made you uneasy. If the point difference had been smaller, we wouldn't have displayed such unsightly plays. It would be better if we don't have an advantage at all," he then narrowed his eyes. "Cool yourselves off a little."
"However, if we lose, my own goal just now would be the reason. You can blame me as much as you like. I will take responsibility and quit the club immediately. As a symbol of my atonement," Akashi raised his hand and smirked. "I will gouge out both of my eyes and give them to you."
His blunt statement shocked everyone in the gymnasium. Judging by his behavior, Akashi was really serious. "What are you saying, Akashi?! There's no reason to go that far!" his teammates scolded their captain.
"It's only if we lose. There is no problem if we win," Akashi put his hand down. "I am not worried because I have confidence."
Akashi's eyes softened and he smiled. "There is no way we could lose to you guys."
After hearing his words, Mibuchi, Hayama, Nebuya, and Mayuzumi had gotten their serious look on their face. Although it was very extreme, it gave a tremendous effect for them to be more serious.
There is no way they are going to lose. They are The Emperor of Creation, after all.
"Sei-chan," Mibuchi whispered to Akashi. "You made Sa-chan all tensed, you know?"
Hearing that, Akashi glanced to the bench to see Sakuya is looking at him with her blank look. Although she is expressionless, Akashi can see her hands are trembling. She was nervous and worried.
"You're too extreme back there, Sei-chan. You know that Sa-chan is not accustomed with this kind of thing," Mibuchi told him.
Akashi sighed. "That means we should win this match, right?" and Mibuchi nodded vigorously to him. "And I should be cautious with my words, too."
After that shocking remark, Rakuzan team progressed greatly. They regained their spirit and commence their counter attack; raising their score to 73 – 62. Even so, Shuutoku still has a chance. It is four minutes left. After all, Midorima's shots are unstoppable with Akashi's Emperor Eye.
"Too bad for you, Shintarou," Akashi remarked when he faced Midorima again. "The match has already ended," he glared mockingly to Midorima. "Let me tell you this. You will no longer be able to even touch the ball."
Midorima rolled his eyes. "What did you say?!" The greenhead was surely offended with that. "It's impossible, Akashi. Even with your Emperor Eye, you can't stop our shots!"
"It's true that height is a crucial factor when it comes to basketball. At first glance, it looks unstoppable. But let me educate you," Akashi smirked to him. "I am absolute. I can see the entirety of the future. It is but a simple matter to change it," he demanded with confidence.
The match still commenced. Shuutoku has been very careful for now on. They can't afford to make any mistakes. If they fail now, they'll lose their momentum. However, any mistakes will just give Rakuzan the control of the game. If that happens, there's no turning back for Shuutoku. Midorima glanced to Takao, giving him a signal to begin their battle. When he wanted to pass, however, Mibuchi and Mayuzumi blocked him; double-teaming Takao.
"Heh. We were already expecting something like this," Takao grinned. "If that's all it took to make me hesitate, I couldn't be Shin-chan's partner. Don't look down on us!" he declared and made his way through both of them. Midorima is already in his shooting position. Without doubt, Takao passed the ball to Midorima.
Only to be stolen by Akashi.
"Did you not hear me?" Akashi glared at Takao as he caught the ball. "I am absolute."
Akashi dribbled the ball and shot a lay-up, earning his team two points. The Shuutoku team was shocked to see that. Akashi had stolen the ball and made a swift attack. The redhead then turned to face Shuutoku. "That shot has its flaws," he stated. "Shintarou is left-handed, so the ball must come from the left. In addition, even though he does not have the ball, Shintarou's movements are the same as always. In other words, even without using Emperor Eye, I can easily find out his pass course and timing. I used the eye for a moment to move one step faster than Takao. So that once the moment when he can't cancel his move arrives, I would have already acted. The double-teaming also let him get through on purpose in order to shorten the distance between me and him."
"But, even so!" Takao was shocked to hear his explanation. "I was already aware of Akashi's position with my hawk-eye, and I had already grasped his speed from the first half. Even if he moved a step faster than me, he shouldn't have been able to reach…" and Takao realized the motive. "Don't tell me… he slowed down on purpose during the first half?! The difference in his speed was so subtle that even Shin-chan didn't notice?!"
"I couldn't have guessed that we had already fallen to your trap," Midorima stated.
"It's beyond my expectations, but not beyond what I can imagine," Akashi retorted. "Shogi and basketball, they're all the same. Didn't I always tell you? A strategic move only works when you plan ahead without your opponent becoming aware of it."
Otsubo's expression darkened. "He's not just relying on his physical abilities or talent… his plays are also frighteningly well-designed. This is the captain of the Generation of Miracles, Akashi Seijurou!"
"Shit! Shit! This is…" Takao cursed. "This is all Akashi's plan from the start!"
Sakuya sighed. Finally, Akashi's plan has been discovered by Shuutoku. But it is too late to stop him now. Realizing that fact, Sakuya can't help herself but feels pressured. She doesn't like this kind of feeling.
The crowd was cheering for both teams, making the stadium noisier than before. This time, Mibuchi got the ball. "I apologize. I find noisiness distasteful. Why don't you be much quieter? You also make Sa-chan's uneasy, you know?" Mibuchi took his shooting stance and going to shoot a three-pointer. Takao who was in front of him jumped to block his shot.
"Wait, Takao!" Miyaji shouted to Takao.
Much to Takao's dismay, Mibuchi faked; shooting a three-pointer while getting fouled. "I'm actually quite greedy, you know~" he remarked and so earning Rakuzan another points. Because he was getting fouled, he got a basket count from the referee. Nebuya approached Mibuchi and wanted to smack Mibuchi's back, but the man leaned away from him.
"Why don't you do more of those from the start, Reo-nee?" Hayama asked; dumbfounded.
"It's not like I can always make them, you know?"
And so, the game keeps continuing on. Rakuzan turned the tables. As Akashi got the ball, he confronted Midorima and made him fell down with his high-speed dribble. Akashi backed away and got into his shooting position. "It's over, Shintarou."
However, Midorima is still not giving up. He got up and tried to block him. "Akashi!" he shouted his name in anguish.
"Again, I must show my respect for you, Shintarou… and Shuutoku High School. Until the very end, not a single one of you gave up. However," Akashi shot the ball even before Midorima's hand can reach it. "You won't reach."
The ball soared in the air and went inside the ring; scoring the final score of the match; 86 – 70. The crowd cheered for Rakuzan's winning. Akashi narrowed his eyes while muttered, "Sleep, Veteran King."
The semifinals between Rakuzan High and Shuutoku High ended as the whistle was blown; signaling the end of the match. The Rakuzan team sighed. It's like they have been relieved from an ordeal. Sakuya watched silently as both teams lined up and bowed to each other, but sighed afterwards. "This is like some kind of fate."
The fate of being the Emperor.
They absolutely cannot lose. Other than winning means failure.
"It's natural for wanting to win. But," Sakuya clenched her white jacket. "Until now, I still don't like this feeling."
When Akashi wanted to go back to the bench, Midorima approached him for behind. The redhead noticed Midorima and called him. "Shintarou."
Midorima raised his hand to Akashi; offering him a handshake. "I lost," he declared. "But next time, I will… Shuutoku will win!" he said with his serious look.
Akashi was silence for a moment, until he spoke. "Let me express my gratitude, Shintarou. It has been a while since I played such a thrilling game. However, I am sorry. I cannot accept your handshake," he stated calmly, making Midorima twitched. "If you crave victory, become less compassionate. Victory is everything. I want to be your enemy."
"I see…" Midorima sighed. "You still haven't changed at all, Akashi. But even so, we will win next time."
"Ryouhei-kun," behind Akashi, Sakuya approached Midorima. The greenhead looked to her with his thoughtful eyes.
"Sakuya," he called her name. The greenhead raised his hand and patted her head gently. "I will explain everything to you after this. Is the corridor a fine place for you?"
The brown-haired girl nodded to him. "Yes," and she held Midorima's hand tightly with both of her small hands. "I'll be there for you, Ryouhei-kun."
Midorima frowned. Sakuya is worried about him. "I must go now," he said while looking at his teammates. Hearing that, Sakuya released her hands and let Midorima joined his comrades.
"Everyone, stand proud!" Otsubo exclaimed to his team. "Until we leave, don't let them see you break down! We're not the only ones who fought! Line up in front of the stands!"
Everyone from Shuutoku nodded to their captain. They lined up facing their supporters and bowed to them. "Thank you for cheering us on!"
"Let's go, Sakuya," Akashi told Sakuya who is watching the Shuutoku team left the court. When the redhead approached her, he saw Sakuya was clenching her fists and put them on her chest. Not long after, a drop of water flowed on the girl's cheek.
Sakuya was crying.
That behavior sure shocked Akashi. After all, the redhead never sees Sakuya flooding in tears before.
And he knows that it is not the tears for his team. It is the tears for Midorima.
"I'm sorry…" Sakuya wiped her tears afterwards. She tried to be strong. She turned to Akashi while wiping her tears. "I don't know why I am crying so suddenly. I… I'm sorry, Akashi-san… I can't stop my tears…"
"Do not speak anymore," Akashi demanded. He put his hand on Sakuya's back and brought her closer to him. His other hand rubbed her head. "Hold your tears. You can release it after we are back to the locker room. I don't want anyone to see you like this in the court."
Sakuya silently nodded and let Akashi dragged her to the locker room. His team was panicked when they saw the girl started crying again after they all assembled in the locker room, especially Mibuchi. Akashi, who was sitting next to Sakuya while comforting her, assured the black-haired man that Sakuya will be alright later. He ordered his teammates to leave the two of them alone there and promised to catch up after Sakuya has calmed down. Shirogane agreed with him and allowed Akashi the task to stay with the girl.
After they left, Akashi didn't mutter any words. All he did was rubbing Sakuya's head; comforting her, while letting the girl borrowed his shoulder. The room is filled with Sakuya's sobbing. His shoulder was wet by the girl's tears. He doesn't mind it, though. In his mind, he wants to make Sakuya stop crying. For him, a crying Sakuya is a hateful sight.
But it is more hateful when he knows that she cries for other man.
And before he knows it, he also hates himself for thinking that way.
…What a mysterious feeling indeed.
Author's Note:
Here I present you, chapter 12! All is about the battle between Rakuzan and Shuutoku!
I guess for those who have read the manga knows the ending of the match. As for those who haven't, sorry if this will be a spoiler for you! In the end, I tried to describe their plays. It was hard, really.
And so, Akashi feels he doesn't like Sakuya is thinking about other man. Yet, he hates himself for thinking that way towards her. Is this means Akashi has taken a step to discover his nagging feeling? Well, more will be revealed soon~ Oh, and I added some scenes to blend with the story. I like it when I made Kuroko 'slipped' his hand. Haha!
Christmas holiday is near. But that doesn't mean I can relax. After the long holiday, exams are coming up! Well, I'm not the type to diligently study (because most of my subjects are practical). And since it is December now, I must think of some special stories for Christmas and Akashi's birthday. They will be late, but at least I still making the stories for those special occasions…
Also, thank you for your favorites, following, and reviews! I will work hard to make some good stories for you all to read! Oh, and I will update the chapters whenever I have time. Sorry if it will be late.
Have a nice day! Please give a review if you have time, of course!