Night fell.
Aoi Kunisaku lay in bed, tossing and turning. He just couldn't fall asleep.
The words Coach Anzai had told him kept buzzing in his head like a swarm of flies. No matter how he tried, he couldn't shoo them away.
He felt like he kind of got what the coach meant… but also kind of didn't.
Roughly speaking, it was probably about trying to work as a team or something like that.
Huu...
Aoi Kunisaku let out a long breath and slowly closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind of all that noise.
Whether or not he could sleep tonight—he'd find out tomorrow.
…
The next day.
Shohoku High School · Gymnasium.
Inside the gym, the noise was gradually settling down. Practice had ended for the day, and the players were heading out one by one.
But Sakuragi Hanamichi hadn't left. Instead, he did something weird—he came looking for Aoi Kunisaku.
He stood in front of Aoi Kunisaku, turning his face slightly away, clearly not daring to meet his eyes. He fidgeted and hesitated, unable to get a word out for a long while.
Aoi Kunisaku stared at him with dead fish eyes for a while.
What's this idiot up to now?
Finally, Sakuragi Hanamichi spoke up. "Aoi Kunisaku… um… about yesterday, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have blamed you. I'm really sorry."
Hm?
Aoi Kunisaku raised an eyebrow, puzzled. He looked at Sakuragi with suspicion.
What's this guy up to?
Suddenly apologizing like this… there had to be a catch.
"It's fine." Aoi Kunisaku replied flatly, then turned to leave.
He hadn't taken it seriously to begin with.
Just as he was about to walk off, Sakuragi blurted out again, "Wait, I want… I want… um… I want…"
Aoi Kunisaku shivered all over.
I want… what…?
Which "that"…?
No way. Could this guy be… into that?
There's no way! The original didn't say he had that kind of preference!
Aoi Kunisaku was ready to bolt before he got dragged into something weird.
But then Sakuragi's next words made him stop in his tracks. "Can you teach me how to shoot?"
Aoi Kunisaku froze.
He turned to stare at Sakuragi for a long moment. "You want me to teach you how to shoot?"
"Yeah."
Sakuragi nodded. "Of everyone I know, you shoot the best. So I wanted to ask if you'd teach me."
Then he added, "Coach used to teach me, but…"
Aoi Kunisaku understood.
He looked at Sakuragi and considered whether to agree.
Then he remembered what Coach Anzai had told him yesterday.
Raise a rival, huh?
Sakuragi did have decent talent. It was just a matter of how far he could go.
In the end, Aoi Kunisaku agreed to Sakuragi's request.
Soon, the two of them stood at the free-throw line.
Aoi Kunisaku started by showing him how to shoot.
He picked up the ball, didn't do any prep, and casually flicked it.
Swish.
Then he looked at the stunned Sakuragi. "That's how you shoot."
A crow might as well have flown over Sakuragi's head.
He stared at Aoi Kunisaku, his face twitching. "Who the hell can learn from that? I meant the way Coach showed me!"
"That way? What way?" Aoi Kunisaku looked genuinely confused.
Sakuragi sighed, then demonstrated the shooting posture Coach Anzai had taught him.
Aoi Kunisaku watched and couldn't help thinking, "Isn't this just spot shooting?"
He said bluntly, "You already know how to shoot."
Sakuragi stomped his foot in frustration. "But I can't make it!"
"Well, that's your problem," Aoi Kunisaku said with a face full of disdain.
Sakuragi's face turned red. Veins bulged on his forehead as he shouted, "That's why I'm asking you to teach me!"
What they didn't know was that a few sets of eyes were secretly watching them from outside the gym windows.
Mitsui Hisashi looked surprised. "I didn't think that idiot Sakuragi would actually go ask that guy for help."
Miyagi Ryota jabbed back, "Well, can't help it. His shooting's better than yours."
Mitsui turned red and growled, "You bastard—who are you calling out? You wanna go?!"
"Alright, knock it off." Ayako stepped in. "I think this is great. At least Aoi Kunisaku is starting to change, isn't he?"
Tch…
Mitsui and Miyagi both clicked their tongues.
On the other side of the gym, another group was also sneaking a peek through a window.
Mito Yohei smiled warmly. "Sakuragi really is becoming more and more like a basketball player."
Takamiya Nozomi was his usual sarcastic self. "That guy… seriously, no pride at all. He even apologized so easily. No guts left."
Ohkusu Yuji countered, "That Aoi Kunisaku's terrifying. If you've got pride, why don't you go ask him yourself?"
Noma Chuichirou spoke up. "That guy Sakuragi probably just doesn't want to let Coach Anzai down."
The four of them all fell silent.
They thought back to Sakuragi Hanamichi's past.
…
Inside the gym.
Clang—
The basketball slammed hard against the rim and bounced off.
Aoi Kunisaku stared at Sakuragi Hanamichi, speechless.
He seriously suspected this guy was cursed or something. After more than twenty shots, he hadn't made a single basket.
Even with dumb luck, you'd expect at least one to go in.
Sakuragi Hanamichi felt like his mind was about to collapse. He grabbed his head and shouted, "Aah! What do I do? I just can't make it in!"
Huuu…
Aoi took a deep breath and forced himself to stay calm. He stepped forward, snatched the ball, and said, "I'll show you again. Watch closely this time. The main thing is the strength of your shot. If you're not confident you can swish it, use the backboard to bounce it in."
As he spoke, Aoi Kunisaku got into a textbook shooting stance. A flick of the wrist, and the ball was released.
Swish—
The ball went through the hoop cleanly.
He turned to look at Sakuragi Hanamichi. "Did you catch that?"
Sakuragi shook his head like a rattle drum. "Nope, didn't see it."
Aoi sighed. He grabbed the ball again. "Watch carefully this time."
He repeated the same form. Shot.
This time the ball hit the backboard, bounced, and dropped into the hoop.
Aoi looked at Sakuragi again. "How about now?"
Sakuragi rubbed his chin, looking like he was deep in thought.
After a while, he stepped forward and took the ball with confidence. "Alright, I think I got it now."
He stepped to the free-throw line, took a deep breath, and locked his eyes on the hoop like a hawk.
Then, he raised his arms and shot.
Whoosh—
The ball flew in a beautiful arc.
Clang—
It smacked off the backboard, hit the rim, and bounced away.
"Ahhh…" Sakuragi clutched his head and looked like he was about to lose it. "Why still can't I get it in?!"
Sigh…
Aoi let out a long sigh, full of exasperation.
He had taught him seriously, but this result...
It was just plain disappointing.
"What do I do? Aoi, why can't I get it in?!" Sakuragi was on the verge of snapping.
Aoi Kunisaku stared at him, then thought for a moment and said, "If the usual method doesn't work, then start with the basics."
"Huh? Basics?" Sakuragi looked totally confused.
Aoi picked up the ball and walked directly under the basket. "Start from here. Practice your shooting right under the rim. Once you can make ten in a row, take one step back. Make another ten, then step back again. That's the basic idea."
Sakuragi's eyes lit up.
This method sounded pretty easy.
He couldn't wait to try it out.
Aoi glanced up at the sky and said, "It's already late. If you want to practice, do it tomorrow."
"I've got nothing to do at home anyway. Might as well stay and practice," Sakuragi replied without thinking.
That made Aoi pause.
He looked at Sakuragi and finally understood something.
Yesterday, in the hospital, that outburst...
If he remembered right, Sakuragi Hanamichi's dad passed away from heart disease.
He must've just been looking for someone to take it out on.
Aoi Kunisaku squinted with dead fish eyes and muttered in his mind, "Why'd it have to be me, damn idiot."
Well, whatever.
Aoi said, "If you want to practice, then practice on your own. If you don't get something, ask me tomorrow."
With that, he turned and headed for the gym's exit.
"Okay!" Sakuragi responded, then went right back to practicing.
As soon as Aoi stepped outside the gym, a familiar figure was waiting with a bright smile.
"Kanon." He looked a little surprised.
Shimizu Kanon looked him over, frowning slightly at first, but quickly replaced it with a smile. She walked up and said, "Saku-chan, you're kind of different today."
"Hm? What's different?"
Shimizu Kanon grinned and grabbed his arm. "Just different, okay? And you were being really nice, helping Sakuragi-kun with his shooting."
"Huh? That idiot?" Aoi said proudly. "His shooting was so bad it hurt to watch. I just couldn't stand it."
"Sure, sure… whatever you say." Kanon nodded, though she was still puzzled inside. "Weird… was it just my imagination?"
…
As they chatted, the two of them walked off side by side. Their silhouettes slowly disappeared into the night.