"203, 204, 205..."
"Wow, he's so cool!"
"Kise-kun! Kise-kun! Ah, he looked at me!"
"What's going on?"
People passing by the field heard the commotion and couldn't help but ask.
"It's the juggling test. Kise-kun is totally on par with Tanaka from the soccer club!"
At that moment, Tanaka was drenched in sweat, concentrating hard on juggling the ball, thinking to himself:
"What is this guy? I've never seen him play soccer, yet he's this good? If this keeps up, I won't last. No way, the dignity of the soccer club can't be tarnished by an outsider!"
Kise glanced at Tanaka.
"This kind of thing is easy to pick up. It's strange not to be able to do it, right?"
Initially, it was fun, and the cheers from the girls were motivating, but after juggling for so long, he got bored.
"The max score is 100, right? I'm over 200 now... Let's stop."
Thinking that, Kise kicked the ball high and then performed a stylish volley shot, causing another wave of screams from the spectators.
"Good looks, athletic, decent grades. But it's all so boring."
"I do like sports, but once I learn them, no one wants to play with me anymore."
"Someone, anyone, come challenge me! Isn't there anyone out there who can truly push me? There must be. Come on out!"
Kise sighed,
"Just kidding. There's no such person."
Suddenly, an orange blur flew by, and a basketball smacked Kise on the back of the head.
"Oops, sorry, sorry! Hey, aren't you that famous model, Kise?"
(Back in middle school, Kise was quite the looker and did some modeling on the side. He was very popular at Teiko Middle School.)
Rubbing the back of his head in pain, Kise turned around to see who it was.
A slightly taller boy with dark skin stood there, smiling apologetically.
Kise tossed the ball back to him, muttering,
"What's your deal?"
Aomine didn't mind. It was his fault, after all. He waved at Kise with a grin, "Thanks!" and turned to leave.
Watching Aomine walk away, Kise touched the back of his head, thinking,
"Basketball, huh? Never tried it. But I heard our school's team is pretty strong."
With that thought, Kise found himself wandering to the basketball club's entrance, peeking inside curiously.
At that moment, Aomine was executing a fast break, stopping abruptly, changing direction, and scoring mid-air. His flashy playstyle instantly captivated Kise.
"No way? He can do that at such speed? Impossible... Wait, maybe with effort. Oh no, there really is someone this good."
Impressed by Aomine's skills, Kise thought to himself.
"Maybe no matter how hard I try, I won't catch up to him. But that's exactly why I want to play basketball with him. And one day, just one day..."
"I won't just admire your basketball anymore, Aomine. Admiration is the furthest thing from understanding."
....
"Now's the time! I'm going to beat you!"
Kise held his breath, recalling Aomine's playing style, breaking down each move in his mind, and integrating them into his own play.
Aomine's expression changed instantly. To him, Kise seemed to have transformed into someone else — himself!
In a brief moment of distraction, Kise cleanly passed Aomine. Aomine quickly turned to chase, and despite being a step behind, his exceptional speed allowed him to catch up.
Kise glanced at Aomine behind him and jumped off one foot.
Aomine immediately jumped after him, his athleticism keeping pace with Kise.
"Don't get cocky, Kise!"
Kise looked back at Aomine, grinned, then retracted his right hand holding the ball and swung it from the side, turning it into a layup. In mid-air, unable to change direction, Aomine crashed straight into Kise's back.
Aomine's pupils contracted. "This move... seems familiar."
"Yeah, it's the same one you used earlier to score a 2+1 on me."
Kise landed, and the ball bounced into the hoop as the referee's whistle blew.
"Kaijo's No. 7, 2+1, basket counts."
"Awesome, Kise! Totally awesome!"
The ever-enthusiastic Kota saw Kise's basket and went wild, rushing over to celebrate with him.
Kasamatsu quickly stepped in to separate them, but even he looked at Kise with approval.
Kota was straightforward. He ran up to Aomine and waved his hand,
"Mr. Aomine, not to brag, but Kise's going to return all your moves to you, just as they are. Get ready!"
The spectators were also buzzing. Kise's move just now was like a carbon copy of Aomine's, almost as if Aomine himself had made the play.
Hearing Kota's words, Aomine's face darkened, his fists clenched, and his eyes sparkled with electricity. He entered the zone!
"I was saving this for the final moments, but you really surprised me, Kise."
Kise was dumbfounded.
"Come on, I wasn't the one trash-talking you! Why take it out on me? And now you're in the zone? That's just unfair!"
"I'll make you understand. The only one who can beat me is me. Not even my copy."
"Well, you might be disappointed. After today, you won't be the only one who can beat you."
Kota walked up to Aomine, smirking,
"You've been suppressed for two quarters already, the ace of the Generation of Miracles..."
Beep—End of the third quarter
Kise walked off the court, exhausted. He felt like crying. After struggling with Aomine for so long and finally mimicking his playstyle, Kota provoked Aomine, who got angry and entered the zone.
After being beaten down, Kise had just regained some confidence, only to have it crushed by Aomine again. He was truly tired, both mentally and physically.
Kota took a sip of water, saw Kise's despondent look, patted his shoulder, and comforted him,
"It's okay. It's just a few baskets. Don't be discouraged. Here, have some water."
Kise took the water bottle from Kota and took a big gulp, then glared at him,
"Easy for you to say! You're not the one getting pummeled! Why is it that every time you talk big, I'm the one who gets beaten up??"
Kota responded nonchalantly, then put his arm around Kise's shoulder and pointed at the scoreboard,
"Look, it's 82:81 now. Even with Aomine going all out, Too is still one point behind us. What does that tell you? Everything's under control~ Relax!"
"Besides, didn't you hear what Aomine said earlier? He was planning to save the zone for the final moments. Now he's exposed it. He's really running on fumes now."
Too's bench
Still, no one spoke. The atmosphere remained tense and suffocating.
Momoi bit her nails, thinking hard about what to say. She felt that if she didn't speak up soon, Too would be finished today.
Just as Momoi was racking her brain for a topic, Aomine broke the silence,
"In the fourth quarter, pass all the balls to me."
After saying that, Aomine closed his eyes. The rest of Too's team didn't react. Without Aomine, they'd be done for. Even Wakamatsu, who usually clashed with Aomine, didn't question his decision. Giving the ball to Aomine and watching from the sidelines was Touou's best option now.