Winter Cup Semifinal - First Match:Seirin vs. Rakuzan. Final score: 104-102. Seirin advances!
As the final buzzer echoed, Kota's eyes flickered with a trace of disbelief.
"So... it's the same outcome as in the original storyline, huh? Did these two teams just play the real final today?"
Kota glanced at the people beside him. They were all still frozen in shock, and he couldn't blame them—Seirin's performance just now was nothing short of historic.
Aomine wiped the tears off his face silently. Kota, for once, didn't tease him. Banter had its time and place—he wasn't the kind to kick someone while they were down.
On the court, Akashi exchanged a brief handshake with Seirin before settling his teammates and then walking alone into the players' tunnel, destination unknown.
Kota watched him disappear and shook his head.
"Gonna hit the restroom" he muttered, getting up from his seat.
...
"Yo. Not crying, huh?"
Kota pushed open the restroom door with a grin, surprised to see Akashi looking far less broken than he'd expected.
"I figured you'd at least cry a little."
Strolling in casually, Kota made his way to the sink, fixing his hair in the mirror.
Behind him, Akashi slumped down onto the floor, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
"How'd you know I'd be here?" Akashi asked, staring up at the ceiling.
Kota thought for a second, then chuckled.
"Point guard's court vision, maybe?"
"And why the hell are you sitting on the floor? This is still a bathroom, man."
Kota glanced back and chuckled.
"Guess I was wrong to think you were really unfazed."
Akashi didn't reply, eyes blankly fixed on the tiles. Kota tactfully stopped talking too, pretending to focus on washing his face.
Silence stretched between them. Kota scrubbed at his face so long he felt like he'd worn away his own skin before Akashi finally stirred.
Rising slowly, Akashi dusted off his pants and joined Kota at the sink to tidy up his appearance.
Once again, he looked every bit the heir of the Akashi family—poised, composed.
"I'll be there to watch the finals."
Leaving that light remark behind, Akashi turned and pushed open the door. As he walked out, Kota thought he heard a soft "thank you" but... it was so faint, maybe he imagined it.
"I'm back, Miss Masako... oh? They already left?"
Kota returned to the stands to find only Araki waiting; Aomine and Momoi were nowhere in sight.
Araki, already recovered from her earlier shock, nodded.
"They told me to tell you they left."
"Alrighty. Shall we head out too? I'm craving steak."
Kota waved it off—it wasn't like Aomine would be alone with Momoi around.
"You had your cheat meal three days ago. Next one's next week."
Kota: ...
"Damn this strict diet discipline..."
"C'mon, what's the harm? We've got a game tomorrow, I'll burn it off!"
Kota grumbled, but as Araki stood, he instinctively reached out and took her bag.
She brushed her hair behind her ear without a word, quietly following him.
An awkward silence settled in. Kota sighed.
"Why does it feel like everywhere I go today, it just gets quiet?"
Luckily, he was great at finding topics.
"Hey, if Yosen loses to Kaijo tomorrow, you're not gonna kill me, right?"
Araki didn't laugh. Instead, she threw the question back.
"How confident are you?"
Kota stroked his chin, then answered seriously.
"I'm ninety percent sure we'll win."
Ninety percent?
Araki raised an eyebrow, surprised.
"Only ninety? I thought you'd say a hundred. Where's Yosen's ten percent chance?"
Frankly, Araki herself didn't see how Yosen could beat Kaijo.
Kota shrugged, completely straight-faced.
"Well, if you pull your sword and slice me down right here, that'd bump their chances up."
He didn't expect that joke to backfire—
"Uh... Miss Masako, what are you looking for? Your bag's with me."
"Wait, where the hell did you pull out that katana from?! Hey! Do you have a pocket dimension or something?! Are you Doraemon?!"
"Calm down! I was just kidding! That's illegal!!"
...
The next day—Yosen vs. Kaijo.
The bump on Kise's head hadn't gone down, but Takeuchi still had him ready to play just in case. Facing a powerhouse was different from facing a pushover, after all.
In the first quarter, Kise didn't play — Kota led the team.
With Murasakibara on board, Yosen's defense had leveled up exponentially. Not only was the paint a no-fly zone, but even the perimeter defense extended far beyond the arc. Murasakibara alone was enough to anchor Yosen's entire defensive line.
Kota racked up points with deep threes and drawing fouls, but when it came to Murasakibara's offense, Kaijo simply couldn't stop him. The hack-a-Mura strategy worked somewhat, but they had to be careful with fouls. So by the end of the first quarter, Yosen led narrowly, 18-16.
Still, Kota without the Zone was pushing it trying to fight the Generation of Miracles solo.
So in the second quarter, Takeuchi sent Kise in. That was when Kaijo's offense truly clicked. With Kota as the engine and Kise the spearhead, their attacking play was a work of art.
They even broke a small Winter Cup record — "Highest-scoring team against Yosen!"
By halftime, the lead had flipped: 47-38, Kaijo ahead.
On top of that, Murasakibara had thrown a tantrum and stubbornly refused to re-enter the game, no matter how much Araki pleaded or threatened.
"If we're gonna lose anyway, why bother playing?"
That was Murasakibara's reasoning. Araki nearly committed a crime right then — her sword was already half-drawn, and she almost got ejected by the refs.
Thankfully, Himuro stepped up just in time. He pounced on Murasakibara, pulling the classic crying-begging-pouting triple combo, reigniting his competitive fire.
When Murasakibara finally rejoined in the latter half of the third quarter, it was like he was a different person—serious, even running up and down the court!
In the fourth quarter, borrowing one of Araki's hair ties, he accidentally triggered the Zone.
The sudden surge in aura shocked Kaijo, but they'd prepared well. With the hack-a-Mura strategy and Kise's Perfect Copy, they managed to close the game without danger.
As the final buzzer sounded, Kota turned to Yosen's bench where Araki sat, doffing an imaginary hat with a playful wink.
"Be sure to come watch the finals!"