Guess who's back, back again! Turns out posting a chapter does wonders for your motivation, who knew? But yes, I'm back with a fast update because episode 12 is FINALLY written, huzzah! There's only one episode left for me to cover with the Shutoku game and then we can finally leave this arc behind.

In any case, thanks to AkiraMaris (Thank you!) for reviewing, all 77 followers, 58 favorites, and 6,515 readers!

Now then, we continue the Seiho game this chapter, and again fair warning, if you like Seirin centric stuff, this is not for you.

Okay, that's all I've got to say. Enjoy!

Chapter 9: The Senpai's Revenge

Midorima's favorite moment of every game was very simple to find, if you knew what you were looking for.

It was the exact moment the basketball left his fingertips and made its way through the hoop, just as it always should. At that exact moment, it was as if everything were in slow motion, as the names of Midorima's soulmates whispered goodbye to the ball seemingly only seconds before the swoosh of the net was heard.

"That's three in a row!"

"So this is Midorima Shintaro of the Generation of Miracles!"

Voices praised Midorima, but he barely paid them mind. He had proven his superiority to the opponent enough. Now was the time to put the rest of the plan into motion.

"Captain." Midorima called out to Otsubo.

"What? You're finished?" Otsubo asked as he turned back towards the sharpshooter.

"Yes. I have a feel for it." Midorima confirmed. And if I am to face Kuroko later, you will want me to rest.

Of course, anything less than him facing Kuroko later would be an insult to the name Generation of Miracles that they seven bore.

Kise glanced off to where Shutoku was playing curiously, watching as Midorima switched out with another player only five minutes into the game.

"They're benching him only after five minutes?" Kise said aloud. It was an odd sight, after Teiko, where the only people benched were usually Kuroko, Akashi and Kise himself in turn. Once a game started at Teiko, it was rare that Aomine, Midorima or Murasakibara were ever benched unless they were injured. "Those guys seem to be taking it easy."

"Of course they are. Their opponent is just a middle tier school." Kasamatsu agreed. "There should be no surprises. If there are going to be any, it'll be over here."

Silently, Kise agreed, as his eyes shifted back to the Seirin and Seiho match, his eyes seamlessly following the ball as Seiho passed it almost as fast as Kuroko could (of course, maybe Kise was biased, but Kuroko and Akashi were the best at passing, no martial arts could top them!) and he only watched as Tsugawa tried to score a point, only for Kagami to knock the ball out of his hands.

"Foul! White 10!" The ref yelled as he blew his whistle.

"I thought Seirin's engine was finally running when Kagamicchi scored, but they haven't managed to take another step." Kise mused, disappointment clear in his voice and his no doubt cold gaze.

"You can't call yourself a King just for playing good defense." Kasamatsu scolded, as if Kise didn't know that, as if he wasn't a Miracle, the one who copied offense and defense seamlessly. "Their offense is exceptional too."

"Hmm…" Kise hummed, disinterested. Kasamatsu continued speaking, as if trying to drag Kise out of the apathy just starting to cling to his shoulders.

"Seiho may not have prodigal scorers like you or Kagami, but they're a different type of team. They incorporate old martial arts into their offense too. Seiho isn't a team of prodigies. They're a team of experts."

And Kise could see that (though he resented the comparison between himself and Kagami. The boy may have earned Kise's respect, but that didn't mean he was equivalent to even Kise, the weakest Miracle. It was only through Kuroko, Kise's real equal at Seirin, that Kagami had gotten close enough to Kise at all), but he also knew there was something Kasamatsu was forgetting.

He allowed a smirk to form on his face, well aware of the blizzard of determination slowly increasing in the back of his mind, the pale blue bright and earnest and seen.

"There are some experts on Seirin too."

"Out of bounds! White ball!" The ref shouted.

"A nine point difference, huh?" Tsugawa mused a second before he ran right into Kuroko.

"Sorry." Kuroko apologized, looking up at the taller Seiho first year, memories of the last time he faced this boy running through his mind.

"You! Who are you? Have you been playing this game?" Tsugawa shouted as he, rather comically, jumped back from Kuroko.

Well, that answers if he remembers me or not…

"I'm Kuroko Tetsuya. I have been." Kuroko stated.

"You're kidding! Seriously? You've got so little presence!" Tsugawa cried, still sounding scared.

I am aware. It is how I helped crush you last time, Tsugawa-kun. Kuroko thought. Aomine and Kise had enjoyed that, seeing Kuroko scare Tsugawa after he forced Kise to hold onto the ball for too long. Kuroko had enjoyed that game, quite a lot.

"You're a first year too? Hey, did you know? Last year, our team was ahead of yours by 20 points in the first quarter. That's why I want to make it 30." Tsugawa bragged with a large smile on his face. "Well, don't let it get you down!" With those words, the Seiho first year ran past Kuroko and patted him on the shoulder as he did so.

And Kuroko felt the first sparks of anger in his gut, for his senpai as well as for himself. They thought Seiho was undefeatable? Fine, Kuroko would prove them wrong.

Kise's excitement at what was no doubt about to happen was a shooting star in the back of Kuroko's mind.

"Fine." Kuroko stated, hearing Tsugawa stop behind him and turn back. "I will make sure I am not disappointed."

Then Kuroko got to work.

When Izuki next passed the ball to Kuroko, he passed behind the defense, sending the ball straight to Mitobe, who took the chance and scored.

Kuroko could hear voices talking about how the ball seemingly moved by a boomerang, with everyone trying to figure out just how it happened.

Perfect. Then let us continue.

Kise couldn't stop a pleased giggle from passing between his lips as he watched Kuroko.

"Looks like the iron wall of Seiho's defense has never seen a pass from inside their wall before." Kise smirked.

He remembered all too well how often this exact play worked perfectly at Teiko. If a defense proved tougher than Kise and Aomine could handle, Akashi always trusted Kuroko to get them out, with Momoi pointing out exactly who the best targets for this play were. This meant that, now, Kuroko could perform the play all on his own. And watching the shock as Seiho, or any other enemy, attempted to wrap their mind around what happened was always the best. It was a close second to seeing enemies underestimate Akashi, after all.

From there, the game began to take off as Seirin finally began to make their way through the fight.

18 seconds left.

19-16, Seiho.

And Tsugawa caught the ball, giving Kuroko a perfect opening that he had been waiting all quarter for.

The ball left Tsugawa's grasp and the first year Seiho student froze, looking back at Kuroko in shock. His shock gave Kagami the chance to steal the ball and pass it to Hyuuga, who instantly threw a three pointer.

The ball swished through the hoop and the buzzer went off.

"First quarter over!" The ref shouted as Kuroko gazed at the scoreboard.

19-19. A tie.

"I heard this guy said something stupid again." Iwamura stated as he held up Tsugawa by his jersey, as if he were a cat.

If Kuroko were more expressive, he probably would have rolled his eyes. But he did not.

"Yeah. Honestly, it brought back memories of last year's trauma." Hyuuga smiled.

"Sorry." Iwamura apologized, and Kuroko had no doubt he meant it.

"But it's fine." Hyuuga continued, gazing at the scoreboard. "We got over it."

"This game is just getting started!" Riko said as they all rested at the bench. "Keep the formation as is! You're being led by their passes too much, so keep your zone tighter. Also, Kagami, you have a lot of fouls. If you just try to match your opponents like a wuss, they'll control the flow of the game. Remember to play offensively!"

"Yeah!" Kuroko chorused with his team.

The buzzer went off.

"Second quarter, begin." The ref yelled.

Kuroko noticed as soon as they started that Seiho was no longer pulling any punches. Their defense was at full power and even tighter than before.

That was fine. Kuroko shined best when the situation was difficult. Or rather, his shadows were darkest when the situation was difficult.

Kagami caught the ball, but Tsugawa wasn't giving him an inch. Instead, as soon as Kuroko was close enough, Kagami passed between Tsugawa's legs and Kuroko hit the ball, sending it back to Kagami.

But then Iwamura ran up to guard Kagami and stop him.

But that was not enough to stop a Miracle. Seiho was not strong enough to stop a Miracle, even one as weak as Kuroko. Because his weakness made him strong, the perfect support.

Again, Kagami passed under Iwamura's legs and Kuroko batted the ball back towards him, allowing Kagami to score.

It was as simple as that, making it past two of Seiho's defense.

Kise could feel so much pride for Kuroko in that moment, he knew it showed on his face and he raised his right hand to cover half of it, to hide the expression from the world.

Kuroko's mind sparked in the back of his, a sparkling landscape of deadly ice.

"They can make it past that defense?" Kasamatsu gaped, obviously impressed.

"They're more in tune with each other than they were before." Kise explained. He wondered if this was what it was like to witness Kuroko and Aomine find their rhythm back in their first year at Teiko.

At that moment, Kise's heart squeezed with the need to be back there, with those six people, where he belonged.

Not yet...you have to hold out…

"But there's one thing bothering me." Kasamatsu said, drawing Kise back to reality and away from thoughts that wouldn't change a thing (thoughts he couldn't give a hint to Kuroko about) and found his senpai watching a panting Kagami. "That's way too much sweat for the second quarter."

As the next set began, Kuroko couldn't shake a feeling of doom that had nothing to do with Kise's sudden worry in the back of his mind. No, it had everything to do with Kagami and he realized too late just what he was so worried about.

His Light moved to shoot the ball, when-

"No! Don't do it, Kagami!" Hyuuga screamed what Kuroko could not as Tsugawa fell to the gym floor.

The whistle blew

"Offensive foul! White 10!" The ref yelled as a '4' sign was held up, signifying Kagami's fourth foul.

And as Kuroko looked at Tsugawa...the boy smiled.

"That idiot! What is he doing?" Kise growled, frustration itching under his skin, combining with the frustration that Kuroko emanated from fracturing icicles in his mind.

"He'll have to back down." Kasamatsu noted. "With only one foul left, he'll be too scared to make any plays."

Kise wanted to scream and groan and pull out his hair. If this third rate Aomine messed up one more time, there was too small of a chance of Kuroko and Midorima facing off. Because while Kuroko can work with a full team, he was always best with the Light he coordinated with, whether that had been Aomine, Kise or, now, Kagami.

"Excuse me, I'd like to make a substitution." Riko said as Kuroko carefully watched the court.

"I'll be fine!" Kagami cried as he realized what was happening, turning to their senpai to plead his case. "I just have to make sure I don't get any more fouls, right? I can do it!"

"Well, it works out." Hyuuga sighed. "We were planning on subbing you and Kuroko out anyway."

"Me too?" Kuroko repeated, surprised. After all, he was a Miracle, and if they didn't have Kagami, wasn't it imperative to have him instead? But as he looked at his senpai...he saw something else instead.

It didn't matter to them whether or not he was a Miracle. But rather...this was their revenge, their fight, just as Midorima was Kuroko's. And as Kuroko watched, Hyuuga laid his right hand on his left shoulder in a motion Kuroko recognized and his wrists practically burned watching someone else perform it.

"We decided before the game started you'd only be playing in the first half." Hyuuga explained, his eyes stern as he looked at the two first years, even as his grip tightened on his shoulder.

"But why? Why would you do that?" Kagami demanded, having obviously missed the unspoken declaration Hyuuga had made. A quick glance at Riko revealed that she was crossing the fingers of her left hand and Kuroko understood.

There was someone missing here, that these two felt strongly for, for a reason Kuroko understood all too well.

"For one reason." Hyuuga stated. "In order to beat Midorima, we need you two. Even if we win this game, we'll need a strategy to beat Midorima in our next game against Shutoku. As we predicted, Shutoku is already conserving Midorima's strength. We can't win if you two are spent."

"But if we lose this game, we won't even have the chance-" Kagami started to argue.

"We know it's a gamble." Hyuuga cut in. "But if we can conserve the two of you, we'll have a slim chance of beating Shutoku, and going to the championship league."

"We'll beat Midorima even if we're tired, so let us-"

"Kagami-kun, let's do as they say." Kuroko cut Kagami's protests off this time, his voice firm. It was the voice he used whenever someone threatened the other Miracles in any way.

"What?" Kagami gaped at Kuroko in shock.

The phantom looked up at his new Light and stated firmly,

"I trust our senpai."

This is personal, this is revenge, I would be a hypocrite if I argued now. Besides, I chose this school not so I could make it great, but because it already was. Trust them, Kagami-kun.

"Well, don't worry." Hyuuga said, his voice firm and full of resolve. "We'll beat Seiho."

"Seirin, member change." The ref called out as the whistle blew.

"I haven't played in forever." Tsuchida smiled as Kagami and Kuroko approached him and Koganei.

"Let's show them what we can do, Tsucchi." Koganei smiled.

"If things start to go badly, I'll play!" Kagami insisted as he high fived Koganei.

"What are you talking about? You've got four fouls." Koganei scoffed. "Leave this to us."

Silently, Kuroko followed behind and high fived Tsuchida before he sat down on the bench. And as he turned back to the court, he almost couldn't suppress a smile. Whatever Hyuuga had said to Tsugawa, it had thrown the Seiho first year off. Good. It seemed as if Kuroko was right to trust the rest of this game to them after all, even as his skin itched with the need to make sure he won.

Trust them and wait… He reminded himself. It was a game he'd been playing for some time now, he could play it for longer.

"Oi, oi." Takao's voice cut through Midorima's focus on the game and he might have scoffed at him, had the next words not left his mouth. "Seirin benched their first year pair. Are they throwing the game?"

Midorima glanced over at the other court and it took him only moments to figure out just what Takao had missed.

"No, they're doing just the opposite." Midorima stated, his left middle finger burning almost. "They intend to win."

Kuroko watched as Hyuuga and Mitobe teamed up, getting the score to 31-30, Seiho.

"He can dunk?" Kagami asked in disbelief.

Kuroko could feel pride in his team beginning to stir in his heart. They could do this, he knows they can, even if they lacked the Miracle that allowed them to beat Kaijo.

The game continued on from there, though Kuroko could see Kagami had a rather serious look on his face instead of cheering like the other first years. This, of course, led to Riko pushing her fist into his face to make it relax.

"Why do you look so serious?" She demanded. "They're not that bad, so don't worry."

"Yes!" Kagami agreed, his voice muffled from Riko's twisting.

Kuroko turned back to the game, watching as Mitobe scored hook shots, Hyuuga blocked shots and scored threes, Izuki watched the lay of the game, Tsuchida performed admirable defense and Koganei managed to score a lay-up when Mitobe was stuck.

"They're going at it harder than I expected." Kise mused, feeling the same slivers of respect Kaijo had earned from him start to form for Seirin. True, they weren't miraculous, but they didn't require a Miracle to win, not when they were facing a Miracle-less team like Seiho. The odds weren't impossible, not yet.

"This seems to be working a lot better." Kasamatsu noted. "They formed a team around Kuroko and Kagami this spring. In other words, it's still developing. Hyuuga's outside shots and Mitobe's hook shots. The offensive team revolving around those two they're playing right now is the other set-up Seirin spent a year creating. They must have been practicing hard to win since last year's defeat. One other thing I noticed is this team's key player is the guy I matched up against the other day."

"It's not their captain?" Kise questioned, wondering just how strange this was. He had noticed it too, after all, that the one yelling out strategies wasn't Hyuuga, but Izuki, the point guard. But Kise had never been on a team where the point guard hadn't been captain or calling out strategies, he'd always just followed Akashi and Kasamatsu.

"Hyuuga is their mental core." Kasamatsu explained. "He leaves making plays up to the point guard. He most likely has another eye."

"An eye?" Kise questioned, feeling shivers run down his spine as his mind briefly flashed back to one red eye and one gold eye practically glowing red. No, no, he can't mean the Emperor Eye...which means Izuki must have a different kind of eye than Akashicchi.

And as Kuroko sat on the bench, he watched in a quiet kind of awe as Izuki passed the ball only to pull off a play that reminded him of Akashi's playing style, especially in the earlier days of Teiko. It was so fast, so smooth and so easy to use the opposing team as a screen, that Seiho hadn't even noticed it until it was too late.

"Izuki-kun can see it." Riko explained then. "He's got an Eagle Eye."

"Eagle Eye?" Kagami repeated.

Ah, so I was right...he has the simplest form of Akashi-kun's Emperor Eye. Kuroko thought. He could feel Kise's sunburst of surprise, as he too noted the similarities between the forms.

"He's not particularly athletic, but he can change his point of view instantaneously inside his head." Riko elaborated. "Because he sees everything from all angles, he always sees the entire court."

"Seriously?" Kagami gaped as he looked back at the court to watch Izuki happily skipping, probably telling a horrible pun.

If this is how you react to Eagle Eye...then Emperor Eye will probably terrify you. Kuroko mused. Not that it was a bad thing, Emperor Eye had terrified all of them when Akashi awoke to it.

"Hyuuga-kun and the others aren't good at everything, but they each have one special skill." The coach continued, pride in her voice. "They've been polishing them for a whole year."

"They really are amazing!" Furihata grinned, jumping to his feet.

"Do Koganei-senpai and Tsuchida-senpai have special skills too?" Kawahara asked eagerly, leaning under Furihata to ask.

"Huh? Uh, yeah." Riko agreed after a minute of blinking in shock. "Koganei-kun can shoot from all ranges!" The first years all gasped 'ooooh' as Koganei shot the ball...only for it to not go in. "But his accuracy's only so-so!"

"Doesn't that make him pretty normal?" Kagami questioned.

Koganei cried out in pain as if he heard Kagami.

"What are you doing?" Tsuchida yelled, loud enough that Kuroko heard him from the bench as he jumped up and caught the rebounded ball.

"And Tsuchida-kun is good at rebounding!" Riko added.

As soon as Tsuchida landed on the ground, he threw the ball at Koganei with a yell of his fellow second year's name. Koganei yelled out as he caught the ball and threw it again...only for it to bounce off the rim again.

"Enough already!" Tsuchida yelled as he caught the ball as it rebounded again. "How did you miss two free shots?" Koganei sank to the floor in despair as the first years watched now in mild embarrassment. Mild.

The game continued on from there and before Kuroko knew it, it was the fourth quarter and all of a sudden, Koganei was charging at their bench, trying to keep the ball heading towards them in play. He kept it in play, but he tripped over his feet and was suddenly laying on his back having fallen over the bench.

"Koganei-kun, are you okay?!" Riko shouted as she ran around the bench to check on him. "Or not!"

"His eyes are spinning!"

The ref blew the whistle, thankfully, as Riko knelt beside Koganei.

"Koganei-kun?! Koganei-kun?!" The coach shouted.

"Senpai, are you okay?" Kagami asked, worried.

"I think it's a light concussion." Riko sighed as she looked up at the first years. "We might have to sub him out."

"Let me play!" Kagami begged. "Please!"

"What are you talking about?" Hyuuga asked as the rest of the team reached the bench. "You can't play. Have you forgotten why we're conserving your energy? We'll settle this. You just wait!"

"I can't just sit still!" Kagami protested. "I want to help-"

Kuroko slapped his hand right across Kagami's mouth and pushed him back, focusing all his strength earned from stunning Aomine for three years on it.

"I agree, so the guy with four fouls should stay on the bench." He stated flatly, no sign of strain in his voice.

The next thing Kuroko knew, Kagami turned the tables by squeezing Kuroko's head and covering his eyes with his hand.

"What'd you say, Kuroko?" Kagami growled dangerously. Or rather, dangerous for anyone who hadn't gone to Teiko and learned that the true terrifying voice was a perfectly calm, perfectly angry Akashi.

"If you foul Tsugawa-kun again, you'll just be thrown off the court." Kuroko argued, no hint of fear in his voice. His words caused Kagami to pause and remove his hand.

"I won't!" He swore, clenching his free hand tightly. "I've got to pay Tsugawa back for what he did!"

"Fine. I will beat Tsugawa-kun for you." Kuroko agreed.

"What?" Kagami cried in disbelief. "What good will that do? There's no point if you beat him!" The Light then proceeded to start squeezing the phantom's head all over again. "What are you talking about?"

But Kuroko knew it was their only way forward, only way to win. There were five minutes left, with the score at 64-58 in Seiho's favor. If they didn't bring Kuroko out now, the tide would never change.

"Fine. As another first year, take down Tsugawa, Kuroko." Hyuuga declared.

"What?" Kagami gaped as he released Kuroko and turned to the captain. Kuroko simply nodded in agreement.

"Seirin, member change." The ref yelled out before Kuroko stepped onto the court.

"It's just you?" Tsugawa asked as Kuroko stopped in front of him. The Seiho first year then proceeded to pout like a child. "I wanted to play against Kagami."

And that just proves how effective mine and Kagami-kun's Light and Shadow is, as new as it is. You don't even realize that the true threat of that combination, the Shadow, is right before you, do you, Tsugawa-kun?

"Sorry. I may not be very strong, but he apparently has a grudge, so I'm here to pay it back. By proxy." Kuroko declared as Tsugawa blinked at him.

The real Miracle begins now.

And there we are!

Phew, I'm so glad I could post this chapter, it was a chore finding the inspiration to write episode 12, considering it took almost a year. But it's done and we get to move on!

Did you all spot what I was referencing with Hyuuga and Riko? I think I mentioned there would be other implied pairings. Well, here's the implication of the first, if you catch what I was saying, haha.

Not much else I need to say here...once this is posted, I'm going to go watch episode 13 and start planning out that chapter. No idea when it'll be posted, but hopefully it'll be soon!

Please let me know what you think! Bye!