Kagami Taiga stared at Haizaki Shogo with a mix of shock and frustration. No matter how high he jumped, scoring cleanly in front of him felt impossible. Right now, Haizaki stood before Kagami like an unscalable wall, a sheer cliff he simply couldn't cross.
On the other side of the court, Takao Kazunari widened his sharp, hawk-like eyes as he locked onto the thin figure that had just slipped past him again: Kuroko Tetsuya. This was the first time Takao had ever felt that someone physically weaker than him could appear so overwhelmingly powerful.
After Midorima Shintaro scored, possession shifted and Kuroko took the ball. But the situation was far from ideal. With Haizaki locking down Aomine Daiki through positioning alone, even Aomine became difficult to utilize, let alone rely on for misdirection. On the other side, Kagami was completely sealed off by Midorima, unable to receive a pass. Which meant the only scoring option left was Kuroko himself.
Then something unbelievable happened again. Kuroko vanished. He slipped past Takao in an instant, completely unguarded, and without hesitation he shot. The ball spun along the rim and rolled out.
In the next instant, four figures surged toward the basket: Haizaki, Aomine, Midorima, and Kagami. They all jumped, but the one who came out on top was Haizaki. A perfectly timed late reaction let him secure the rebound, and he immediately passed it out. Takao received the ball beyond the arc, pivoted, and effortlessly got past Kuroko. He rose and shot. Swish. A clean jumper.
Takao exhaled slightly, a trace of confidence returning to him. But deep inside, that Vanishing Drive still lingered like a shadow.
On the sidelines, Shimizu Rena watched Kuroko's poor shooting with growing curiosity. "Rena-chan, don't you think Kuroko-kun's ability is fascinating?" Satsuki Momoi smiled. "It's incredibly charming."
"...Yes," Rena nodded softly. "He's hard to comprehend. So weak, yet somehow so strong."
"That's what makes him special," Momoi said. "Every time I see his play, I can't help but get drawn in."
"Then why is his shooting so bad?"
"Well, he barely practices it, and his form isn't standard either. I don't really know the details, but I think Kuroko-kun has his own reasons."
Back on the court, Midorima narrowed his eyes. He had noticed that Kagami was changing. His focus had sharpened, his jumps had grown higher, his intensity had risen. The clearest sign was that last rebound, where Kagami had been the most aggressive, the highest jumper of them all. Midorima couldn't deny it anymore. Kagami has the presence of the Generation of Miracles.
Kuroko attacked again. Takao's eyes were bloodshot, straining to track him. A quick breakthrough, a high toss, and Kagami surged forward, forcing past Midorima's outstretched arm. Boom. A thunderous dunk.
Midorima landed and stared at Kagami in surprise. "So why are you this fired up?"
"I just don't want to lose."
"I see."
At that moment, Kagami's aura flared. A wild, untamed energy spread from him, a presence like a beast. Aomine and Haizaki instantly recognized it: Animal Instinct, and not much weaker than Aomine's own.
Interesting. Haizaki was genuinely surprised. After an entire season of growth, Kagami and Kuroko were exploding. Kuroko's Vanishing Drive was dismantling Takao's defense, leaving him lost and disoriented, and Kagami had awakened his Animal Instinct, boosting both his speed and his reactions. Now he could actually contend with Midorima even in his normal state. That alone changed everything. Kuroko now had another viable target, and as a result, Takao was getting crushed.
"Hey, hey," Haizaki muttered. "It's just a casual three on three. Do they really need to be this serious?" Their intensity had gone too far for what wasn't even an official match.
"Maybe," Aomine said lazily, "to them, this is a real game."
"What do you mean?" Haizaki raised a brow.
Aomine paused, thinking, before he answered. "You know what kind of person Tetsu is. He looks weak, but his pride and stubbornness are no less than ours."
"So?"
"So he's desperate to become stronger. And for that, he chose the path Akashi laid out for him."
"A strange, obsessive path, huh? You've noticed something?" Haizaki smirked, feigning ignorance.
Aomine sighed. "Think about it. Even a bad high school player can at least make a few random shots, right?"
"Yeah. That's normal."
"But Kuroko? Ten shots, and maybe not one goes in. That's not normal."
"True."
"And yet he still chose this path. Why?" Aomine looked ahead. "To look stronger."
Haizaki laughed. "To look stronger? That's an interesting way to put it, Aomine."
"Hah." Aomine's expression dimmed slightly, as if he had seen something, or feared something. Haizaki didn't press further. I already know. But he was curious whether the butterfly effect he had created would allow someone like Kuroko, a so-called ordinary player, to evolve beyond expectations. Now that is something worth watching.
Back on the court, Kuroko struck again. Using Kagami, he broke through Takao once more, and the ball soared high on an alley-oop attempt. Slap. Intercepted. This time Midorima was ready.
He secured the ball and passed it out to Haizaki. Haizaki dribbled, switching hands fluidly, then drove past Aomine's left side. In that instant, he dragged Aomine's position off balance and slipped the ball behind his back to Takao. Takao rose, calmly and confidently, and swish, a clean shot landed right in front of Kuroko.
Was this fate, or compensation? A small redemption for the one who had been overwhelmed again and again?
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