The sun was setting in the west.
A young man, standing about 1.80 meters tall, walked alone down the school hallway.
It was dismissal time. The moment the bell rang, most students rushed out of their classrooms like awakened beasts released from their cages.
It was as if the classrooms were a damn prison.
Some were clamoring about where to hang out after school, while others excitedly dashed toward their respective clubs for activities.
It's an island nation thing, after all.
They have always placed heavy emphasis on social interaction, and these club activities greatly enriched their interpersonal networks.
Especially in sports. Poisoned by anime and manga, they shouted slogans like "Dreams!", "Bonds!", and "Youth!", transforming into the most hot-blooded youths as they charged headfirst into the abyss.
Then there was Yuuto.
He liked sports too.
Basketball, soccer, ping pong, badminton, volleyball—he loved watching all kinds of matches.
But it was limited to just watching.
There was no other reason; any sport relies on talent.
Without exceptional talent, no matter how hard you work, you cannot become a master, let alone a sports star.
Influenced by Yao Ming becoming the top draft pick in '02, he particularly loved playing basketball.
After graduating, he even represented his village in the "CBA".
The result?
They achieved a respectable third place that year.
But that was it—just third place. He was fine playing amateur basketball, but once he touched the professional level, the gap was despairingly wide.
Oh, right.
I forgot to mention, Yuuto is a transmigrator, coming from the real world of 2025.
Where was this place?
He didn't know at first. But as the "Rainbow Squad" of Teiko dominated the nationals, winning the championship with five first-year players as their core, he realized which world this was.
Kuroko's Basketball!
Yuuto suddenly lost all interest in basketball.
In the real world, the gap between mortals and geniuses is already huge, but in this world, there exists an insurmountable chasm.
Teiko Junior High.
The Generation of Miracles.
Many players who understood their strength chose to quit basketball in the end.
Their strength was simply despair-inducing.
The overwhelming disparity in power finally forced those hot-blooded youths to cool down.
Yuuto was even more decisive than them.
The moment he learned of the existence of those absolute monsters, he chose to retire on the spot.
What's the point of playing? I don't have superpowers!
He originally thought that with his experience, he could scrape by as a pro in this island nation where the basketball level was relatively weak.
After all, in this life, he jumped reasonably high and ran reasonably fast.
Added to twenty years of accumulated basketball experience from childhood, there was a sliver of hope to become a pro.
After all, there are plenty of blind scouts in this world.
That way.
He could earn a salary of millions a year, marry a gravure idol, and live a dull, boring life with a wife and kids on a warm bed.
But Teiko is here.
There are several basketball maniacs here.
This isn't his original world, and the threshold for pros is much higher.
He is still just an ordinary person, no different from the majority of dream-filled youths whose stories end in tragedy.
So, he decisively chose to "let it rot."
"How long are you going to wear that 'my life is over' expression?!"
Smack.
Yuuto, walking in the hallway, felt his head get slapped.
He turned around.
It was a black-haired beauty who was a solid 9 out of 10.
Nagisa Kazuha.
One of Yuuto's classmates and friends, the daughter of a local wealthy merchant.
She was holding a black clipboard in one hand, the other hand on her hip, staring at him with dissatisfaction.
"These 2D characters are simply unreasonable. Is everyone Doraemon? Why can you pull a board out of thin air?"
Yuuto held his head, repeating a complaint he had made many times before.
He just couldn't figure it out—how could Nagisa Kazuha hide such a black clipboard in her school uniform?
Yuuto rolled his eyes and said, "It's called character design. Just like the 'elegant' and 'rich young miss' labels permanently stuck to you! People recognize you at a glance and then proceed to simp for you!"
"You..."
Nagisa Kazuha choked on his words but didn't refute them.
After all.
She first noticed Yuuto precisely because he wasn't like the other boys.
He had no admiration for her whatsoever.
It wasn't narcissism.
She really was popular. Rich, beautiful, elegant, and poised.
What teenage boy could resist a woman like that?
She was simply the dream girl of the entire school.
Yuuto was an exception.
It wasn't that he couldn't, but that Nagisa Kazuha was too "criminal."
She was just a kid; if you wrote a novel about romance with her, you'd get locked in a dark room and never let out.
"Didn't you go to the basketball club every day before? Why did you stop?" Nagisa Kazuha, seeing his nonchalant attitude, got angry just for the sake of being angry.
"Can't win, so I quit."
He played before because he thought he could make a living out of it and fulfill a childhood dream.
Now?
He wouldn't even get to eat dirt!
"You quit just because you can't win? What kind of logic is that?"
"Poor people business, you wouldn't understand."
Yuuto appeared completely unbothered.
Play basketball?
There's no financial future in it.
Better to use his future foresight to start some business.
Although the world is different and many things have changed beyond recognition, making a living...
Should be a sure thing!
As for dreams?
That stuff only makes idiots even bigger idiots.
If you don't have the capital, don't talk about dreams.
You can only think about them in your dreams!
Ding~
"Otherworldly soul detected. Dream Simulator binding successful! Binding project: Basketball. First simulation is free. Subsequent simulations will require spending 1 Victory Point."
A voice devoid of emotion sounded in Yuuto's mind.
Very abrupt.
Without any warning, without a trace of...
Cough!
A virtual screen appeared before Yuuto's eyes.
[Dream Simulator]
[Simulation Level: Lv 1]
[Host: Yuuto]
[Age: 14 Years, 066 Days]
[Special Skills: None]
[Special Talents: None]
[Simulation Count: 1]
Thump~ Thump~ Thump~
Yuuto stopped in his tracks, his face suddenly flushing red.
Oh no, it's the feeling of falling in love!
Seeing his state, Nagisa Kazuha couldn't help but take a step back.
"W-What do you want to do?!" She had unknowingly pulled out the black clipboard again.
"Damn it, I knew it! With my configuration, with this template, I couldn't possibly be ordinary!"
"The Golden Finger might be late, but it will never be absent!"
What configuration template?
The orphan template!
A born loser!
Good for nothing except being handsome...
It's hard!
My fist is hard!
Thud thud thud~
Yuuto turned and ran off quickly.
Nagisa Kazuha was completely baffled by him and hurriedly shouted, "Where are you going?!"
"I'm going to retrieve the dream I threw into the trash can! My original intention, my life, my journey to the stars and the sea!"
Find his dream?
Where was he going to find it?
"At least tell me where you're going to find it! My family has a car, I can drive you!"
Nagisa Kazuha shouted, but Yuuto had already run far away, as if he had oiled the soles of his feet.