Chapter 001
"Hurry up, Atsushi! You're going to be late—you need to register at school today."
Atsushi Murasakibara cracked open his eyes and peered at his purple-haired sister through heavy lids. The morning sunlight streaming through his bedroom window felt way too bright for this ungodly hour. "Ugh... Sister... I'm still so tired... This is such a pain..." His voice carried that familiar whining drawl she knew all too well, like a giant child who absolutely did not want to face the day ahead.
Even though he complained, Atsushi knew he couldn't avoid registering at Teiko Middle School today. He dragged himself out of bed with obvious reluctance, his joints popping as he stretched. When he finally stood upright, his impressive 186-cm frame made him tower over his sister by a good half-head—and he was only in middle school.
Murasakibara Yue crossed her arms and sighed in that long-suffering way older sisters had perfected. "Yes, you really have to go. Now stop whining and eat your breakfast before it gets cold!"
After wolfing down his meal with typical teenage efficiency, Atsushi shuffled toward the front door. "Okay, I'm heading out now~" he called back in that childlike sing-song voice that made him sound years younger than he actually was.
"Take care of yourself," his sister replied, already knowing he'd probably get lost at least twice before making it to school.
As Atsushi walked down the familiar neighborhood streets, his gaze wandered aimlessly from storefront to storefront. The Murasakibara family was pretty standard as families went—two parents working regular jobs, three older brothers who'd all moved away for various reasons, and his high school sister who basically ran his life for him. His eldest brother had gotten married a few years back and relocated to America for work, while the second and third brothers were off studying abroad somewhere in Europe. These days, the house felt almost empty with just him, his parents, and Yue rattling around in all that space.
His sister handled pretty much everything in his daily routine, from making sure he ate proper meals to reminding him about important school stuff like today. Staring up at the scattered clouds drifting across the blue sky, Atsushi thought with his usual lazy detachment: 'Teiko Middle School, huh? What a total pain... At least it's not some crazy long commute from home. That would really suck.'
After completing the tedious registration paperwork at Teiko's main office, Murasakibara found himself completely turned around in the school's sprawling layout. He'd never been good with directions under the best circumstances, and this place was like a maze designed by someone who hated students. But Teiko definitely lived up to its reputation as Tokyo's most prestigious private middle school—the buildings were practically gleaming, and the facilities looked like they cost more than most people's houses.
The moment he stepped out of the administrative building and onto the main campus grounds, Atsushi was immediately swarmed by enthusiastic upperclassmen from what seemed like every club in existence. They prowled the area like friendly predators, scanning the incoming first-years for fresh recruiting opportunities.
Since Murasakibara stood at an absolutely ridiculous 186 centimeters despite being only a first-year, he might as well have been wearing a neon sign that screamed "ATHLETIC POTENTIAL HERE!" Everywhere he turned, his height drew stares and whispers from other students.
Within seconds, a pack of volleyball team seniors had zeroed in on him like heat-seeking missiles. "Holy crap, look how tall this kid is!" one of them exclaimed, practically bouncing with excitement. "Hey there, first-year! You've got to join our volleyball team—with that height, you'd be absolutely unstoppable at the net!"
"Seriously, you're like a walking cheat code for volleyball!" another senior chimed in, his eyes gleaming with the fanatical light of someone who'd found the perfect recruit. "You could probably spike right over anyone's block!"
More voices joined the chorus, creating a cacophony of sales pitches that made Atsushi's head spin. "The volleyball team has an amazing record!" "We've got the best facilities!" "You'd definitely make varsity by second year!"
Murasakibara felt increasingly overwhelmed by all the aggressive attention and enthusiastic shouting. His social battery was already running on fumes, and being the center of this much focus made him want to crawl back into bed. "Uh... this is... what should I even do about this...?" he muttered, looking around desperately for an escape route.
"Sorry, excuse me, but I'm actually planning to join the basketball club instead. Really sorry about that..." He managed to slip away from the volleyball recruitment squad before they could mount a counter-argument, but navigating through the dense crowd of students and club representatives made his head start to pound with a dull ache.
'Great, just great...' he thought miserably as he wandered aimlessly through campus. "Now where the heck am I supposed to find the basketball club? This place is way too big..."
Just as frustration was really starting to set in, someone moving at high speed crashed straight into his chest with a solid thump. When Murasakibara looked down, he saw a dark-skinned boy sprawled on the polished concrete, clutching his shoulder and groaning dramatically.
"Ow, ow, ow! That really hurt!" the fallen student complained, though he didn't seem seriously injured.
"Dai-chan, are you okay?!" A girl with short pink hair and worried brown eyes rushed over to help the boy up, shooting concerned glances between him and Murasakibara. When she got a good look at Atsushi's towering frame, her thoughts were practically written across her face: 'Sweet mercy, this guy is absolutely massive! There's no way he's really just a first-year like us, right?'
"Oh no! I'm so, so sorry! Are you hurt anywhere?" Murasakibara immediately looked stricken, his expression shifting into that of a kid who'd accidentally broken something precious. His shoulders hunched apologetically even though the collision had clearly been the other person's fault—the dark-skinned boy had been running full-tilt without watching where he was going.
"No, no, I should be the one apologizing here! I totally wasn't paying attention to what was in front of me..." Aomine Daiki looked up as he spoke, and the sight of Murasakibara's imposing height and naturally intimidating build hit him like a physical wall. The size difference was almost comical—this purple-haired giant looked like he belonged in high school, not middle school. 'Is this guy actually the same age as me? He's like a completely different species...'
Aomine slowly climbed back to his feet, dusting off his uniform, but when he noticed Murasakibara's genuinely apologetic and slightly panicked expression, his initial intimidation melted away completely. Despite his scary-looking exterior, the tall guy seemed about as threatening as a worried puppy. "Don't sweat it, man—I wasn't watching where I was running either. But wow, you really are incredibly tall! Are you planning to join the basketball team by any chance?"
"Huh? You're trying to join too?" Murasakibara's face immediately brightened with interest, though his expression still carried that perpetually troubled look he seemed to wear as a default. "But I have absolutely no idea where I'm supposed to go... I've been wandering around this place forever and I still can't find where the basketball club even meets. It's really annoying..."
As Aomine listened to Murasakibara talk, he realized that despite the guy's naturally intimidating physical presence, his actual personality seemed completely harmless—maybe even a little childish. The worried, almost whiny tone in his voice was nothing like what you'd expect from someone who looked like he could bench press a car. 'Yeah, I was right—anyone who wants to play basketball has got to be a decent person!' (At least, that's what junior high Aomine firmly believed about the world.)
"Well, you're in luck then!" Aomine said with a cheerful grin, his natural friendliness taking over. "Teiko's campus is pretty huge since it's such a well-funded school, but I'm headed to the basketball club myself right now. We can definitely go together and figure it out! I'm Daiki Aomine, by the way, and this is my childhood friend Satsuki Momoi. What's your name?"
"I'm Atsushi Murasakibara! It's really nice to meet you both, Mine-chin." True to form, Murasakibara seemed to warm up to people at lightning speed, casually bestowing a nickname on Aomine within literal seconds of their introduction.
Aomine's left eye developed a slight twitch at being dubbed 'Mine-chin' by someone he'd known for all of thirty seconds. "We just met and you're already giving me cute nicknames... Well, whatever works, I guess. Let's go track down that basketball club together, Murasakibara."
"You can call me Murasaki-chin if it's easier," Atsushi offered helpfully, completely missing the irony.
After finally locating the basketball club's meeting room and completing their registration paperwork, both boys were informed they'd need to report for comprehensive physical testing the following day. One of the older team managers explained that Teiko's basketball program was divided into three distinct tiers based on skill level: the first-string team for elite players who'd compete in tournaments, the second-string for solid players who might move up with improvement, and the third-string for beginners and students who weren't quite ready for serious competition yet.
The next morning, all the first-year basketball hopefuls gathered in Teiko's main gymnasium, which was easily the most impressive sports facility Atsushi had ever seen. The polished hardwood floors gleamed under bright overhead lights, and the electronic scoreboards looked like they belonged in a professional arena. Facing the nervous crowd of new recruits were several upperclassmen from the basketball team, wearing matching practice jerseys and expressions of casual authority.
Only then did Murasakibara realize just how many students had signed up for basketball—there had to be at least forty or fifty first-years packed into the gym. But even in this sizable crowd, he stood out like a redwood among saplings, easily a full head taller than every other hopeful recruit.
"Hmm... wonder which team they'll stick me on..." Murasakibara mused to himself, absently watching the upperclassmen organize their clipboards and evaluation sheets.
Aomine, standing nearby with his characteristic confident posture, flashed his new friend an encouraging grin. "Hey, don't stress about it too much! If everything goes the way it should, we'll both definitely make first-string without any problems." Since he was still new to Teiko and Momoi had some student council orientation thing to attend, Murasakibara was basically the only person he'd managed to befriend so far.
"Maybe you're right... but I heard the basketball program here has some pretty intense standards..." Murasakibara replied in his characteristic drawn-out, slightly worried tone. "It might not be as easy as we think..."
One of the senior team members stepped forward with an official-looking clipboard in his hands and raised his voice to address the entire group. "Alright, everyone, listen up! We're about to announce the results from yesterday's physical testing. First, we'll start with the third-string team assignments. When I call your name, please move over to stand with Coach Yamamoto."
The gymnasium fell silent except for the nervous shuffling of sneakers against the polished floor as dozens of first-year students held their breath, waiting to learn their basketball fate.
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