Kuroko’s Basketball: Before Generation Miracles, I Already Crowned

Shigure Akihito's Wild Instinct focused primarily on boosting power, and secondarily on reaction speed. That was why, once it awakened, he didn't just dominate on offense, his defense suddenly turned Hagioka Kasayuki's world upside down.

His previous lack of defensive experience was forcibly compensated for, his enhanced reaction time pushed him to a whole new level.

On the court.

Coming off a screen, Hagioka Kasayuki received the ball.

Fake shot!

Shigure Akihito didn't budge.

He even took a step back.

The next moment,

Just as Hagioka gave a signal, one of Okayama's players rushed over to set a pick. But before he could even get into position, Shigure Akihito reacted with shocking speed and spun around, already back in front of Hagioka.

In that instant, Hagioka stepped back.

Then,

A fadeaway jumper!

A lightning-fast one. So fast it seemed like he barely had time to gather the ball or set his feet, before anyone realized it, he was already leaning back in mid-air!

But as fast as Hagioka was, Shigure Akihito was faster, not in raw speed, but thanks to the instantaneous reaction granted by his Wild Instinct.

And,

This time, his block had even more power behind it!

Kiyota Nobunaga–style Aerial Block!

But,

Shigure Akihito: "!?"

Wait… was that… a pass?

Hagioka had no intention of making the shot. In midair, he twisted his body and launched a long-distance pass. He had only one thought in mind:

Even if I can't draw defenders anymore… I can still pull Shigure out of the fight!

The sudden pass stunned many, except for the Okayama players. Raimiya Tose, who had failed to set the earlier screen, immediately broke into a sprint.

Near the baseline, he caught Hagioka's pass.

Facing Utsumi Masahiko's defense…

He thought of Hagioka, how he'd carried the team from beginning to end, how he'd taught them their moves…

I can do this…

This pass… from Hagioka…!

I have to make this shot!

If I miss, all of Hagioka's effort will be in vain!

Then,

Raimiya caught the ball and flowed smoothly into a crossover off the pass's momentum, followed by a sudden jump stop!

Pull-up jumper!

Swish~!

2 points!

Raimiya Tose: "Ha…"

Damn it…

He wanted to say something cooler.

Something like,

There's nothing to worry about. Just pass it to me, I'll finish the job.

But,

He still didn't have that kind of confidence.

Even so,

Holding his follow-through, Raimiya raised his fist and pointed toward Hagioka across the court.

"Great pass, Hagioka!"

On Okayama's bench.

Every substitute, seeing that scene, snapped out of their stunned silence and roared as one,

"Raimiya-senpai!"

"Nice one!"

"Aaaaaahhhhhh!!!"

"Awesome pass, Captain!!"

Back on the court.

Shigure Akihito hadn't reacted to Raimiya's pull-up. He glanced at Hagioka and said quietly:

"There it is again…"

Hagioka, hearing the praise, even though the pass hadn't been that great, froze for a moment in embarrassment. Shigure's voice brought him back to his senses.

Then,

He smiled faintly.

"Ah… actually, I'm a point guard, you know~"

"My specialty is connecting the ball to the next teammate~"

Hagioka turned to run back on defense. But as he did, just for a brief moment, as he turned and slipped from Shigure's line of sight, his gaze fell, and a faint trace of sorrow flickered in his eyes.

In his heart,

His never-yielding resolve wavered, for just a second, in the face of cold reality.

"Hagioka…"

From the sidelines, Okayama's coach gave him a thumbs-up, then looked up and pointed at the ceiling.

Following his gaze, Hagioka saw the brilliant white light of the stadium's floodlights.

The coach had always known,

Hagioka possessed extraordinary skill, court sense, and an unwavering passion for basketball.

Maybe it was precisely that passion that had kept him quietly supporting the team, never shining as brightly as those blinding lights above.

"Hagioka…"

The coach called his name again.

As a coach who was little more than a figurehead, he couldn't fully understand how far this game had strayed from Hagioka's expectations. But he could read everything in his player's eyes.

"This is the end, Hagioka."

"If the dream can't be realized, "

"Then at least…"

"Be yourself one last time."

"Shine so brightly that the whole world sees you."

Everyone on the bench sensed what the coach meant.

But,

Though their hearts sank, their eyes never wavered as they looked at Hagioka Kasayuki.

He looked back at them. "…"

Thank you all.

Thank you for letting me experience this sport, basketball.

But deep down, he knew it.

Compared to Teiko's Shigure Akihito, he was painfully aware: in the past, today, and probably tomorrow too…

The ability to carry your teammates' trust and pride… and dominate the court with unwavering resolve,

That…

That's what made him fall in love with this game in the first place.

It's simple, really.

But even someone as ordinary as me,

I want to show my opponent what I've got!

As for being brilliant?

Heh,

Hagioka turned his gaze to the advancing Shigure Akihito.

Let a monster like him handle that.

Teiko's possession.

Shigure's ultra-deep shooting range forced Hagioka to pick him up from beyond the center circle. At this point, he had no stamina left to conserve.

His defensive style, once focused on sudden bursts to disrupt rhythm, was discarded.

He went with brute force.

Bang!

Shigure leaned into Hagioka, and the phantom of the mammoth, the symbol of his Wild Instinct, swung its tusks.

Hagioka had hoped to slow Shigure down with sustained pressure, but his plan was shattered, Shigure had flipped the script, using Hagioka's own tactic against him.

A sudden explosion of force broke the pressure.

Then,

Breakthrough!

Jump stop!

Kamimune Ichirō's Side-Swipe Quick Shot!

Hagioka chased with everything he had. His focused reading of the play let him anticipate the next move.

He'd made up for the moment he lost to raw strength earlier, but Shigure's speed rendered that perfect read completely useless.

Swish~!

Nothing but net!

Okayama's possession.

In the paint, Hagioka tried to leverage his height to force Shigure into vertical contests, to bait out his jumping instincts.

His smooth technique and seamless sequences, he used them all for this one purpose.

And it worked. He managed to strip Shigure from defensive coverage.

Pass!

Tachika Makoto caught it!

Facing Teiko's Izawa Shō,

Turnaround jumper!

Off the rim!

Teiko's ball.

Shigure Akihito's Wild Instinct had stabilized. He attacked from beyond the arc.

Hagioka: "…"

Focus!

Focus harder!

He'd seen Shigure's moves, at least once. Now he had to read ahead.

At this point, everything was off-script. He knew the game was lost.

But even in defeat,

He wanted to make this match matter.

To forfeit without a fight would be disgraceful.

And,

This loss,

Would not be proof that Okayama was weak.

On the other side.

Shigure Akihito,

Fully immersed in his Wild Instinct, he had no thoughts of the score.

There was only one thing on his mind:

No matter what the gap is…

I want to win by more!

Until he could force that look out of Hagioka, that vulnerable, collapsing gaze.

It wasn't just about winning.

He wanted to defeat the very idea of a "worthy rival."

Boom!

The sound of muscle-on-muscle collision.

In his hyper-focused state, Hagioka found power from somewhere and stood his ground against the mammoth's charge!

But under 'Green Light,' Shigure's Light-Speed Dribble was insane.

With a sudden pullback, then a Shadow Shift Breakthrough, he crashed into Okayama's paint!

The defenders swarmed!

Ultimate Move: Shadow of Sendō!

Flying Battleaxe Dunk!

His speed, already terrifying, combined with Sendō's illusion, made the fake unstoppable.

The Okayama defense? Sent sprawling!

Takeoff,

Dunk!

Kiyota Nobunaga–style Poster Slam!

But their effort wasn't in vain, they'd bought Hagioka time to recover!

Whoosh, !

A leap, 193 cm!

With maximum pressure and tension, Hagioka rose behind Shigure Akihito. His timing, his jump point, everything was perfect.

Smack!

He got a hand on it!

"Hagioka!!"

"You finally stopped him!!"

The Okayama bench lit up.

But the next moment,

A roar burst from the mammoth,

And an explosive surge of one-armed power shattered Hagioka's defense.

It wasn't just a block.

It tore apart his posture mid-air!

That brief confrontation in the air collapsed in an instant. Shigure's single-arm slam blasted Hagioka aside!

At the same moment,

BOOM, !

The rim shuddered with the slam.

Shigure Akihito, still hanging from the rim.

Below him, crouched under the backboard, Hagioka Kasayuki.

His burning eyes glared down.

"Hagioka Kasayuki…"

"This time, I'm returning the favor!"

Victory.

Hagioka looked up at him.

Even now, backed into a corner like this, there was no panic in his heart.

Only one thought remained,

I have to get him back, one more time.

That was all he had left.

Okayama's offense.

Hino Shinya took a pass from Hagioka, only to fall into a trap set by Himuro Tatsuya's guiding defense.

Swarmed at the edge of Teiko's paint!

Swipe, !

Izawa Shō stole it!

And fired it straight to the blazing figure of Shigure Akihito.

The moment he caught the ball, his eyes sharpened, he pivoted.

Sendō Akira's Low-Altitude Drive, Breakthrough!

But this time,

At the moment of contact, he clearly felt it:

Hagioka flinched!

Then,

Smack!

Shigure nearly lost the ball, his technique made him vulnerable mid-transition.

If not for his reflexes recovering it in time…

It would've been a clean steal!

The play stopped.

Teiko's players, already setting up downcourt, turned in surprise.

Hagioka clenched his jaw.

"Damn…"

"I'd already seen through it."

But it still wasn't enough?

This level of talent,

He couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy.

End of chapter...

To be continued...

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