BEEP—
The loud whistle echoed across the court.
At the tip-off, Kimura and Yuya both leapt high, but Kimura managed to win it, securing the first possession for his team!
Yuki brought the ball up carefully, scanning the court. Playing with unfamiliar teammates made him a bit uncomfortable.
Kota had already told everyone before the game: don't go all out, save it for later.
So even when Yuki read the defense and realized he had a high chance of scoring one-on-one against Igarashi, he still chose to pass the ball.
On the sideline, Kota nodded approvingly.
If Yuki showed his full strength now, even in just one play, all those guys on the bench would realize how dangerous he was and would be fully prepared for him in real games later.
Nah… that kind of surprise is better saved for the Summer Tournament.
While Kota was busy plotting, the game went on.
Kimura received the ball inside and tried to go up strong against Yuya—only for Hirakawa to suddenly swoop in from nowhere and steal it clean!
Without even glancing at Igarashi calling for the ball, Hirakawa charged down the court solo, going for a fast break all on his own!
Takumi reacted quickly, pulling him down with a foul to stop the easy basket.
"Man, this big guy really handles the ball well for a point guard" Kagami muttered in the stands, clearly impressed.
Physically, Kagami and Hirakawa were pretty similar — tall, athletic builds — but ball-handling? Yeah, Kagami had to admit this rookie had him beat there.
Everyone's eyes turned toward this unusual "power forward". Even Kota gave him a quick glance. Another forward like Kiyoshi? If Rakuzan got another one like him, they might end up with two Uncrowned Kings.
But not everyone was impressed.
"Hey genius, ever heard of passing to the guard after a steal? Even my five-year-old nephew knows that much!" Igarashi snapped during the inbound break.
Hirakawa just picked his ear, completely ignoring him.
In his mind, besides Akashi and Kota, no one on the court had any right to question his point guard skills. Honestly, if not for Akashi, he wouldn't even be playing forward today.
Seeing himself ignored, Igarashi scowled, grabbed the ball, and prepared to go one-on-one against Yuki to prove a point.
Except… one dribble in, and he realized something was wrong. Yuki's defense was tight. Too tight.
"Wait… this guy's defense is legit?!"
Igarashi backed up quickly, called Yuya over for a screen, and used it to shake off Yuki.
Finally, some space! One quick crossover, a euro-step — he was going straight to the rim!
Or so he thought.
A massive hand smacked the ball against the backboard.
Chasedown block!
If this were an official game, the crowd would've gone wild. But the people here? Aside from Momoi, they were all top-tier players. They weren't impressed that easily.
"Nice block" Kota said casually, watching his junior, Takumi, return to defense.
Aomine glanced at Kise.
"He's yours, right? Not bad on defense… and that skinny guard too. Are all your first-years defensive players this year?"
Kise laughed. "Haha, yeah, they're solid."
No way was he going to tell Aomine that Yuki was actually an offensive monster. Let them find out the hard way in the Interhigh.
Everyone nodded, agreeing with Aomine's guess. From what they'd seen so far, Kaijo's rookies looked like defensive specialists. Balanced team, offense with Kise and Kota, defense with the rookies—made sense.
Kise smirked.
"Just wait until you see the real Yuki. Can't wait for your jaws to drop."
Only Akashi kept staring at Yuki, sensing there was more to him than he let on.
Another possession.
Nagano from Yosen called for the ball beyond the arc. Yuki, being the nice guy he was—and following Kota's orders to hide his strength—passed without hesitation.
Perfect timing. Perfect spacing. Nagano caught it in rhythm, pulled up for three—splash!
"Nice pass, Yuki!" Nagano shouted, pumped up.
Yuki scratched his head shyly.
Hirakawa, meanwhile, was fuming. His team's offense had turned into a power struggle between him and Igarashi, two brains trying to run one body.
The score gap kept widening: 16–6, Yuki's team leading.
Finally, things boiled over.
Both Igarashi and Hirakawa called for the ball at the same time, leaving poor Yuya frozen.
"Who the heck do I pass to?!"
Takumi and Kimura took advantage, double-teamed him, and stole the ball.
Igarashi and Hirakawa immediately started yelling at each other.
"You idiot! What are you doing calling for the ball at the three-point line? You're a power forward!"
"I'm a point guard today, genius! Maybe if you weren't useless, I wouldn't have to!"
"Oh yeah? Maybe if you didn't hog the ball, we wouldn't be losing!"
"You wanna go, huh?!"
They were about to throw hands when everyone rushed in to separate them.
Kota, the "ref" just stood there munching imaginary popcorn.
"Uh, Kota, maybe call a timeout?" Kise finally yelled.
"Oh, right, I'm the ref." Kota quickly blew the whistle.
Akashi benched Hirakawa to calm things down. Kota also subbed Yuki out — no need to show more than necessary.
Before leaving, Akashi gave Yuki one last look, like he was trying to read his soul. Yuki nearly froze under that glare until Kota stepped in with a smirk.
"Careful, Akashi. Staring at my junior like that, he might think you've got a crush on him."
Akashi chuckled softly. "Relax. Just curious about him, that's all."
Kota patted Yuki's shoulder. "See? The captain himself says you've got potential. Work hard and maybe one day you'll catch up to me… maybe."
Yuki nodded quickly.
The game went on with the subs. Igarashi's team finally found some rhythm, closing the gap.
But in the end—
BEEP—
Final whistle. 51–49, Yuki's team wins.
No one celebrated too much. Just a practice game. The real battle would be in the Interhigh
Afterward, Kota grinned at Takumi. "Nice game. But… you forgot what I told you, didn't you?"
Takumi froze. "Uh-oh… yeah, I forgot. Just hit me, Senpai. I deserve it."
"Whoa, relax! I was kidding." Kota laughed. "But there is a punishment… you get to decide dinner tonight. Our treat."