Interlude-ish? We get to hear some exclusive stories from the three first-years on the second string - because they don't get enough love sometimes! Happy holidays everyone! :)
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"You know, I've always wondered," Fukuda started, making Furihata and Kawahara look at him with quizzical gazes. They were heading back home in the same direction after the meeting at Kagami's place.
"About what?" Furihata asked.
"About Okuma-chan and who she will end up with."
"What's there to wonder about?" Kawahara furrowed his brows. "I thought it was kind of obvious. Kuroko's amazing, man. He probably already won her heart. I'm jealous of him... Remember that manager from Touou? The one who's practically obsessed with him? Somehow he gets all the cute girls."
"No kidding..." Furihata chuckled. He was jealous of the male, but not in the same way. He has someone he likes in a different class but he was too scared to even talk to her. He was even more scared now, since if they don't win the Winter Cup they'll have to confess to the girl they like naked at the top of the school roof. "But I get what Fukuda is saying. It's pretty apparent with Kuroko but it's harder to tell with Okuma-chan. I mean, remember the time we played street ball? Murasakibara came out of nowhere and he practically had a fight with Kagami over Okuma-chan. She's a magnet for scary basketball prodigies somehow and she genuinely likes them."
"Agh, don't remind me. I can't believe I was sick that day!" Kawahara whined with regret. He had only heard about that later on and he was upset that he couldn't join his friends to play street ball, but the encounter with the Yosen players sounded pretty intense and he was okay with missing that part. "And seriously, Yosen's center is like a menacing giant... But he's also like a spoiled kid who's overly possessive over Okuma-chan! And when he knocked the entire basketball net over during our game I felt my heart give out just a little."
The other two chuckled nervously at the memory. Teppei and Kagami had been up against the giant's Thor's Hammer and they felt that if they were switched in instead, they would probably not be alive to tell the tale today. They continued on their path towards their homes as Fukuda remembered another instance that involved their clueless manager and the monsters known as the Generation of Miracles.
"Okuma-chan and I are in the same class so we study together sometimes," he revealed, making the other two males widened their eyes in surprise. They never knew! "We go to the public library to study but got kicked out halfway through the semester."
"What? Why? What did you two do?!"
"It's not what we did..." Fukuda scratched the side of his cheek as he recalled what happened.
.
fifty
days of the past
.
Spring term, one Sunday.
"Fukuda-kun!"
Fukuda was standing outside of the public library and was about to wave back at the caramel haired girl when he spotted someone behind her. It was Kise Ryouta, looking completely charming and out of place. He was wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses and he garnered some stares from people walking by.
"Sorry, is it okay if Kise-kun joins us?" she asked with a sheepish grin. "I need some help on the English homework and Kise-kun said he was around the area."
He was around the area? Fukuda wondered and suddenly the model's attire made sense. If he had a modeling job around Tokyo, then he would be around the area. Kise did go to school in Kanagawa, after all. "S-Sure," he responded while blinking at the two. "I didn't know you two were that close since Kuroko..." He stopped himself when he realized that he voiced his thoughts out loud. Tomoko blinked but Kise merely grinned and wrapped his arms around the girl, seemingly to emphasize their closeness.
"Kuma-cchi and I are super close!" he declared and winked. "It's to the point where we call each other all the time and have late night conversations~!"
Seriously?! Fukuda was flabbergasted. He always thought that the girl and their shadow player were a thing, but it seems like she was already having a relationship with the small forward from Kaijo.
"Kise-kun's a good English tutor," Tomoko nodded, not refuting their phone calls but also revealing the nature of their conversations for the most part. "I always do our English homework last because it's so hard, but it works out because Kise-kun is usually out of practice or his modeling jobs later in the night. Fukuda-kun, if you need help on English today, you can ask Kise-kun!"
Kise whined after being so bluntly revealed. He gave the hopeful brown haired male a childish pout, "I don't give out my tutoring services for free. Kuma-cchi's the only exception!"
"But Fukuda-kun's super good at physics and math! Isn't it better to have friends that can help each other on different subjects?"
The blonde paled at the mention of those subjects and he sighed while giving the girl a helpless look. "I'll only help because you asked, Kuma-cchi~"
So basically, they help each other study sometimes, Fukuda cleared up the muddled relationship between the two. They walked inside the public library and he mentally cheered for his teammate, Kuroko, you're still in the running!
The library was silent when the three walked in and Tomoko went to the table near the window with a grin and set down all of her textbooks. The two males followed, but since Kise just came out from a job, he didn't bring anything with him. Fukuda wondered what the male was going to be doing for the majority of the time that he and Tomoko were going to study here and doing other subjects aside from English...
...He quickly found out.
"Kuma-cchi~" Kise called out again, counting this time it would be about the fifth time since they started to study about an hour ago. The male was very talkative and since he had nothing to do, he was keeping himself occupied by talking to the girl—who didn't seem to mind. "So Kana-neecchi asked me to invite you to her next shoot. It's not her fashion line but a friend of hers. We can model together again!"
"Eh, I think I'm good on modeling for now!" Tomoko laughed and waved his pout off. "Besides, I'm a total amateur."
"What? You're a natural. A total a goddess in front of the camera!"
"I'm not that good! But thank you for thinking so!"
Fukuda couldn't help but wonder about the two once more. The blonde was completely and obviously flirting with the girl, yet she was cluelessly taking it as a mere compliment. Besides, they were suppose to be studying and doing homework, but it somehow felt like he was the one left out of the couple's animate conversation when Kise was technically the add-on.
Did he just get demoted into a side character? There was no way he could compete with the model's radiance, after all. Kuroko, this guy totally outshines you in presence!
"Okuma-chan..." he called out to the girl and pointed at her unfinished math problem. "W-We're here to work, remember? Didn't you get a low score on the last math quiz?"
Tomoko's face twisted into a pained expression and she nodded feverently. "You're right, Fukuda-kun! I won't slack off!" she vowed and dove back into her math problems. The blonde next to her pouted and threw a small glare at Fukuda from behind his sunglasses.
He's totally angry at me for taking away her attention!
"So you're Kuma-cchi's classmate?" Kise asked as he rested his chin on his palms and stared into Fukuda's soul with furrowed brows. "Are you on the basketball team?"
Right, he probably doesn't remember since I was only on the sidelines when we played Kaijo in the practice match, Fukuda gulped under scrutiny and nodded. "I'm on the second-string. I-I play center."
"Huh," the model replied with boredom lacing his tone but he smiled. "Maybe we'll play against each other during the Winter Cup. I'm excited, you know. I still have to pay Seirin back for the loss during our practice game."
"Y-Yeah..." Fukuda nodded weakly. For some reason, he didn't feel that the blonde was very genuine when he was talking to anyone except Tomoko, who was too engrossed in her work to pay attention to their short conversation. "We... We won't back down!"
"It's somewhat unconvincing coming from a second-string~ but I trust Kuroko-cchi and Kagami-cchi have something up their sleeves!"
Even if he said it with a joking smile, Fukuda could tell that there was a certain bite to his words by the tone of his voice. Kise Ryouta was quite a dark character, it seems.
"Fukuda-kun," Tomoko suddenly piped up and showed the brunette a particularly hard question with a frustrated pout, breaking him out of the awkward conversation. "What is this? I'm positive this was never mentioned in class!"
"Eh, it was..." he assured the girl and started to explain. While he was doing that, he couldn't help but notice how Kise was extremely close to Tomoko, setting his head on her shoulders and practically hugging the girl. T-Thats a lot of skinship! They looked so natural together that it was hard to tell if they weren't. Nonetheless, Fukuda paid attention and did his best to explain in detail, and after several minutes of the girl scribbling down her answer, he checked over it.
"That's right, Okuma-chan!"
"Yes!" she cried with her hands thrown up in the air. The blonde next to her shared her happiness and slapped the outstretched hands in a loud high-five.
"I still didn't get it but you did! You're so smart, Kuma-cchi!"
"Thank you!"
"Be quiet, this a library!" the lady by the front desk hushed the two loud teens with a glare, and around them a few students have also turned to them with a look of disapproval at their loud shouts. They immediately apologized but their happiness could not be contained.
"This calls for a well-deserved break!" Kise declared in a whisper. "Let's do something fun!"
"In a library...?" Fukuda wondered skeptically as the blonde looked around the library as if he's never been to one on the regular. Well, he wasn't sure that the male did since he always seemed busy with basketball and his modeling career.
"Wait, they have magazines in the library? Look, I see Zunon Boy issues!" Kise took off his sunglasses for a better look and then ran up to the magazine rack. He picked one up and waved it around excitedly to show Tomoko. "I'm on the cover of this one—see, this was last week's issue! Have you seen it, Kuma-cchi?!"
During his excitement, he didn't fail to garner a few gazes his way. There were a few girls who started to whisper after seeing the blonde model more clearly and realized who he was. It was especially hard to miss since he was practically showing the world by waving a magazine with his face on the cover around.
"Is that Kise Ryouta...?"
"No way, seriously?"
"Yes, that's definitely him! Kise-kun!"
"Oh no," Tomoko seemed to realize what was happening and Fukuda widened his eyes just as a group of girls ran up to surround the model. Forget about studying, seeing a famous model and teenage heartthrob was so much better in those girls' eyes. The once quiet library was now filled with zealous fans and Tomoko leaned towards Fukuda, "This happens a lot. It's chaos."
"I underestimated how popular he is..." he furrowed his brows. This is a library... We can't be loud and we already got scolded once... "You sound like you're used to this though, Okuma-chan..."
"Yeah, but it's fine! It's part of Kise-kun's charms. He calms them down pretty quick—!" she reassured, but a loud throat-clearing noise was heard behind her and she turned to see the irritated library worker. The look on the older woman's face told her that it wasn't fine at all. "H-Hi...?"
"All three of you," she declared with a glare from behind thick lens. "Are banned from this library starting today. Pack your things!"
-----
"T-That's harsh!" Kawahara blinked and felt bad for his friend after he finished the story. "So are you still banned from that library?"
"I never went back to check," Fukuda confessed with a sigh. "I mean, it's way too embarrassing to go back there after being kicked out, even if I wasn't the one at fault. Okuma-chan wasn't upset with Kise so I couldn't really say anything. I'm telling you, they're super close!"
"The fact that both you and Okuma-chan also got kicked out was a bit extreme..." Furihata mumbled. "Since Kise was the one who crashed the study session and made all that commotion... But it is surprising on how close he is to Okuma-chan. I mean, there was always this vibe, but I definitely felt that one of the other Generation of Miracles had a stronger presence."
"Who?" the two asked together. They decided to stop inside a convenience store to keep warm from the chilly air for a few minutes. Furihata looked thoughtful as he grabbed a drink from the shelf.
"At first I thought it was Aomine Daiki..." he admitted with a shiver. Out of the three of them, he was the easiest to intimidate and the tanned miracle was pretty terrifying in his opinion. "During our game with Touou, I went to find Okuma-chan during half-time, remember? When I found her she was wearing Aomine's Touou jacket... I was sure of it! I thought they had a secret relationship or something, but that change after meeting Rakuzan's captain, Akashi."
The other two halted completely and dropped their bottles on the ground.
"Ehh?!"
-----
Winter Cup, after Kaijo vs. Fukuda Sogo.
When the final buzzer rang for Kaijo's victory, Furihata and his teammates stood from their seats to clap for the intense performance. Haizaki was arrogant, ruthless, and he played dirty. However, Kise was able to defend both his and his team's pride and won.
After the cheers died down and the teams below left to the locker rooms, their caramel haired manager had declared that she needed to use the restroom. She was so excited for the match that she forgot to go during half-time. Chuckling, Furihata suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pants pocket. He fumbled and looked at the display screen to see a call from his mom.
"I-I'll be back too!" he announced to the team before quickly weaving through the throng of fans so that he can go to the hallways where it was quieter. The conversation was incredibly short and he bid his mom goodbye before clicking the end button on his phone. Looking around, he realized that in his haste he ended up by one of the locker rooms.
Specifically, Fukuda Sogo's locker room.
I better return before—
He jolted and felt his legs nearly give out when the door of the locker room slammed open to reveal a pissed off Haizaki. The tall basketball player looked even more terrifying up close! He did his best to appear inconspicuous by pretending to be dialing a number on his phone and prayed that Haizaki wasn't in a mood to punch random people after his loss.
Thankfully, the male only stomped past and Furihata let out a shaky breath. However, he still couldn't move because the male was headed in the direction where he was going to go. I-I'll just wait a bit... he thought with a gulp.
It really wouldn't be a good idea to somehow get on the volatile and dangerous man's bad side. His legs only started moving after what he felt like was an appropriate amount of seconds had passed and walking the same direction wouldn't make Haizaki think he was following behind and causing problems.
However, Furihata still walked tentatively until he was within sight of the staircase that led back up to the audience section. His ears picked up some muffled sounds that sounded like a struggle was going on. His eyes widened with fear when he made out Haizaki's figure towering over someone and was pushing her against the wall.
O-Okuma-chan!? Why is Haizaki targeting her?!
Haizaki was leering at the girl with his large hand squeezing her throat to prevent her from making any further noises as he spoke to her. "Let's test out that theory and see just how much you mean to our dear Ryouta. Will it crush him to know that he couldn't do anything to stop me?"
Move! Help her! Furihata's mind screamed, but his found that his legs refused to move once again. He wanted to help Tomoko, but he was terrified to the bone. He berated himself and clenched his teeth, he'll kill her if you don't do something. Damn it, do something—!
Just as he mustered enough courage to take a step, the Fukuda Sogo player was ordered to release Tomoko by a new voice. It was filled with such absolute authority and confidence that Haizaki actually took a step back in surprise.
A-Akashi Seijuuro...?!
As the girl slid to the ground and coughed, Akashi walked down the stairs and Furihata ran behind a wall to not be seen while he strained his ears to listen into the confrontation between two former teammates. He had acted so cowardly, and he was still acting as such so if he showed his face now it would really be over for him. Besides, if Haizaki was scary, then the glimpse of the aura he caught around the seemingly calm Rakuzan captain can only be described as a chill that made even the hottest blood run cold. It was surprising that Akashi even helped Tomoko, and it seemed almost too perfectly timed as if he knew that Haizaki was up to no good and left early to investigate. The later exchange between the confused and grateful girl and captain was even more alarming.
"Thank you, Akashi-kun..."
"There's no need to thank me. I was merely ensuring what he won't continue to damage what I have eyes on."
...Okuma-chan, how did you catch Akashi's attention...?
He shut his eyes as the conversation died down and he heard the sound of Akashi's footsteps walking away from the girl... And slowly coming closer to him.
N-No! Don't notice me don't notice me don't notice me—
Furihata's breath caught in his throat as his eyes shot open when the clicking of the captain's shoes paused. The terrifying red haired captain of Rakuzan was standing right next to his hiding position. He had been aware of his presence the whole time.
"W-What you said to Okuma-chan... What are you p-planning...?" Furihata gulped down the lump in his throat and decided that if he couldn't stand up to danger then, he had to do it now.
"That's none of your concern now, is it?"
"I-It is! She's Seirin's manager—"
"A coward like you do not have the right to even speak to me," Akashi didn't allow him to finish as he leaned dangerously close to the trembling male. "And so what? I made sure your manager was safe because you couldn't."
Tears weld up in Furihata eyes because he understood why the captain was pointing out his cowardly nature. "I-I know..." he gritted with frustration. "O-Okuma-chan is ours to protect, yet I...!"
"Yours? You're mistaken. I won't let filth touch what's mine, even if it's her teammate."
It was terrifying how someone can have the authority to lay claim on someone else. But Akashi can; because he was interested in Tomoko, she had become his possession. With glowing mismatched eyes regarding him so fiercely, Furihata felt as if his soul was taken out of his body and he immediately felt his legs buckle.
With a satisfied look, the captain left him there as he continued his path once again.
"If you are unfortunate enough to face me during the finals, I will show a coward like you why you don't deserve to step a foot onto the court or be on the same level as the ones I've acknowledged."
Furihata squeezed his eyes shut as the threat registered completely in his mind.
I-I'm a dead man...
-----
"No way...!"
"Furihata... Why didn't you tell the team?"
The story had took such an unexpected dark and dangerous turn that Fukuda and Kawahara could feel their own souls tremble at their friend's experience.
"What could I have said?" Furihata sighed with a shakey breath and a sheepish frown. "I was too much of a coward to even stand up to Haizaki for Okuma-chan, so I felt like it was probably karma on my part. Akashi's terrifying... But I know can't keep hiding behind people like Kuroko and Kagami and our seniors. I don't think I'll be put in the game with Rakuzan, but if I am... I will do my best! I won't let him threaten the team!"
It was a strong and solid resolve even from a cowardly boy, and silence followed by a sense of determination fell among the three.
"We're in this together, Furihata!" Kawahara finally said while Fukuda agreed wholeheartedly.
"We're not as strong or as reliable as Kuroko and Kagami, but we won't give up, right?"
But could they do it? The thought of going against anyone on Rakuzan, especially the notorious red haired captain of the Generation of Miracles, was enough to make their hearts pound and legs shake. However, Furihata was done being so cowardly. He nodded gratefully at the two.
"T-That's right...! We'll fight for Seirin!"
"For Seirin!" they repeated. Fukuda blinked afterwards with a wary expression. They had their resolve, but there was still a sticky situation ahead.
"Do you think Okuma-chan will be okay though...? Gaining the attention of someone so dangerous?"
"That's what I was worried about," Furihata said somberly. "But I don't think we can go up against how he feels for Okuma-chan. This whole situation with Akashi and the other miracles... I think the complexity is beyond our capabilities to intervene."
Akashi was out of the question. Murasakibara and Aomine were scary in their own right, and it was clear that Kise was a strong rival and perhaps the closest to Tomoko's heart right now. Midorima was the most mild-mannered out of the miracles—the mutual respect that the green haired miracle and Tomoko held was enough to put them at ease, but it still didn't take away their complete caution because of how weird the male was.
"You guys are forgetting about Kuroko!" Kawahara suddenly piped up. He had held a small crush towards Tomoko during the beginning of the year but quickly gave up because he knew he didn't have a chance against Kuroko, who was a natural at getting the girl to gravitate towards him. As much as he felt envy towards the male, he was now a firm believer of the shadow player and his capabilities to get through to his former teammates. "Like I said before, Kuroko's amazing. If anyone can stand up to Akashi and the others, it's him."
Of course, they were all thinking the same thing. They had felt Kuroko's resolve earlier and there was no doubt in their minds that if anything, Kuroko would not let anything happen to their precious manager. Not that Akashi would neccessary do anything bad to her, but the shadow was so protective over the girl that they didn't think he would allow even Akashi to sweep her off her feet without a proper fight.
They all remembered how if Kuroko genuinely got mad at anyone, it was usually related to the caramel haired manager and the opponent never got away unscathed—especially not with their pride.
-----
Summer, day three of training camp.
During Seirin's summer training camp at the beach, the spent the mornings practicing footwork and passing at the beach, while in the afternoon they practiced with Shutoku near their inn. Today wasn't supposed to be any different, however Kawahara and the others blinked incredulously at the sight of their manager and coach bright and early in the morning.
They weren't sure if they got the memo... The girls were dressed in swimsuits and even brought beach stuff. Riko had on a cute purple two-piece and covered up by a somewhat see-through pullover. Tomoko had on a blue swimsuit skirt with white polka dots and a white bikini top that showed quite a bit of cleavage.
"Riko, what's the meaning of this?" Hyuuga asked.
"What is this? What is this?" Koganei blinked as his lips stretched into a cat-like grin. "Could it be that we're taking a day off to enjoy ourselves at the beach?!"
"An actual beach day!" Kawahara and the other first-years cried.
"Don't get any ideas!" Riko shouted over the excitement and the boys felt like a bucket of cold water was poured on them. "You guys can't afford to slack off! Since Okuma-chan and I are always out here in the hot sun accompanying you guys, we decided that we deserved a small break in between."
What about us?! We're doing all the hard work! they cried internally.
"Of course, we'll still be helping around," Tomoko grinned brightly, allowing the others to feel a little better. "As always, I'll get your drink orders for all your hard work!"
So pure... they murmured.
"All right, now get running!"
At the coach's order, the guys begrudgingly started running down the length of the beach. Riko's dad was able to pull some strings and "rented" out a portion of the beach for Seirin to exclusively practice on in the mornings, so there was no one else around. Setting down their beach supplies, the girls set up an umbrella station to put on sunscreen.
"Okuma-chan, let's play beach volleyball!"
"Okay!"
Kawahara huffed out labored breaths as he trailed behind the second-years and Kagami. When it came to physical endurance and strength, he had a long way to go, but at least he was not alone since Furihata, Fukuda, and Kuroko were at the end of the pack as well. He was envious of the girls for being able to have a good time under the sun, but he supposed he couldn't complain if he wanted to get stronger and plus it was a nice sight to see Tomoko in a swimsuit. Their caramel haired manager was cute as ever!
"Kawahara-kun, you keep looking back," Kuroko commented from behind with his deadpan voice. "Is there something interesting going on back there?"
"A-Ah!" he was embarrassed to be caught by Kuroko of all people—they both had a crush on Tomoko, after all, but he knew he had less of a chance than the shadow. "It's nothing!"
"Oh."
He totally doesn't believe me! Kawahara thought before sneaking another small peek behind him. His eyes immediately widened.
"Hey... There's a group of guys surrounding Coach and Okuma-chan..."
Back in the distance, the girls' game of volleyball was halted due to being interrupted by a few trespassers. It wouldn't have been a big deal, but they were supposed to have the beach to themselves and the guys looked like they were bothering the girls. One of them even grabbed Tomoko's arm.
"T-This is bad!" Furihata stuttered. Because they were in the back of the pack, the second-years and Kagami were far up ahead and wasn't aware of what was happening. Kuroko told him to get the others before he started running back to the girls.
"Please get Kagami-kun and the others. I will head over first."
"K-Kuroko?!"
The three first-years were shocked because the weakest guy of the group was trying to take on that group of tall and built-looking guys. Kawahara was terrified, but he realized then how he couldn't hold a torch to the shadow's fearlessness to protect Tomoko.
"We should do what he says!" he concluded and ran as fast he could while shouting at group up ahead to gain their attention. "The faster the better!"
Meanwhile, Riko was pissed off beyond belief that there were guys stupid enough and bold enough to come harass them when the beach was supposed to be closed off to the others.
"You guys shouldn't be here!" she said. "This place is closed off for the Seirin basketball club for the time being. Come back later if you want to use this beach!"
"Ha? Shut up, Iron Board," the ringleader drawled with a smirk before he grabbed onto Tomokos arm. "We can do what we want."
Iron Board...?! Riko blushed angrily at the pervert when she realized what he meant. She gripped onto the volleyball hard before aiming it at the male's face. "Let Okuma-chan go and get lost!"
The ball hit the guy's face with a resounding smack, and once the ball fell to the sand to reveal to reveal a red mark and the completely furious expression on his face, his two friends stationed themselves on either sides of Riko and locked her arms in place so that she couldn't escape.
"You bitch—!"
"Stop it!" Tomoko tried to yank her wrist out of the ringleader's grip, but it only tightened and she winced in pain. "Leave her alone, she was just trying to protect me! If you're angry, direct it at me!"
"Okuma-chan!"
"You sure about that?" he smirked and licked his lips when he drank in her figure. "That bitch caused an injury to my handsome face. I'll only accept one form of payback, and that's with your body. It's like an eye for an eye, right?"
"You're disgusting!" Riko was pissed that she couldn't lunge at the male since she was being restrained, so she resorted to kicking sand, but he only moved out of the way while pulling Tomoko closer. "Okuma-chan!"
"What do you say? Come have some fun with me and I'll make sure your friend is unharmed."
"Let Riko-san go first," Tomoko was more angry than afraid. "You guys are acting like a bunch of thugs!"
"Thugs? Heh, then you should know that I get what I want," he sneered and leaned towards the girl. Just then, Kuroko appeared.
"Okuma-san, please shut your eyes tight!"
The girl did as she was told just before the blue haired male threw a handful of sand into the ringleader's face, catching him by surprise and he cried out in pain from the little particles stinging his eyes. In the struggle, Tomoko was able to break off from his grip and ran behind Kuroko. The other two thugs were shocked as well and ran to the male to make sure he was okay, thus letting Riko go in the process.
"Did he hurt you, Okuma-san?" Kuroko looked over the girl with extreme worry in his eyes, but it was also laced with intense anger. The girl shook her head before the three thugs stalked over towards them to pay the male back.
"I'm going to drown a small fry like you in the ocean!"
"Think again," Kagami's intimidating stature and voice said from behind. But it wasn't just the redhead, Teppei and the other second-years looked positively murderous at the three trespassers. Kawahara and the others panted in the background, thankful that they got here on time before the three could gang up on Kuroko.
Hyuuga propped up his glasses as a deadly glint passed through his eyes, "Leave now before you regret it. I can't guarantee what will happen."
While the three thugs were less than impressed by the low-presence shorter male, the basketball team he had behind him was intimidating. There was no way they could win three against eleven. They would be asking for a death wish!
"Apologize first," Kuroko's voice was ominous and there was no mistake in his dark aura. "To Okuma-san and Riko-san."
"H-Ha?!"
"You've caused a lot of trouble for them and we're letting you off easy. Apologize."
Did he think that the blue haired male wasn't intimidating before? Well he realized how wrong he was just now. What more, Kuroko had a whole team backing him up and it only added to his sudden fear. Gritting his teeth, he spat out a quick apology before running off with his boys.
"And don't you dare come back!" Riko shouted behind them with a huff. Kawahara and the others let out a large sigh of relief while the second-years patted Kuroko on the back for his bravery and fast thinking to save Riko and Tomoko.
"Good going, Kuroko!" Izuki praised. "You sent them running!"
"That was still dangerous," Kagami grunted instead with a frown. "If we hadn't got here on time you would've been taken down in an instant! You gotta think a little more!"
"Okuma-san and Riko-san were in trouble," Kuroko said. "I didn't have time to think."
"Well, it was a good thing Kuroko got here first. Who knows what would've happened if he had been a second late," Teppei defended. He was just glad that both of the girls and Kuroko was unharmed. "I say we take a small break... Considering all that's happened," he suggested, to which Riko couldn't disagree and nodded.
"I'll go buy some drinks!" Tomoko immediately offered. The others gave her a look and wondered how she could be completely fine after what just transpired. She was fearless, all right. Kuroko stepped up next to her.
"I'm coming with," he said without a chance for the girl to refuse. Out of all of them, he probably had the biggest scare in knowing a bunch of thugs were harassing the girl he likes, after all. He couldn't let her out of his sight for the time being. Before they left, he also pulled out a light jacket he brought with and offered it to the girl to wear over her revealing bikini. Even if it was a beach area and there were plenty of people wearing bikinis into the convenience stores nearby, he didn't want the girl to gain attention like what happened earlier.
"But it's kind of hot," the girl pouted obliviously.
"The store will be cold," he reasoned instead. "Please wear it."
"Ah, I guess so. Thanks!"
The others could only shake their heads knowingly as the two left. They knew Kuroko was just being extra cautious. He was a kind soul, but when he got angry and jealous, his gaze was enough to send people running.
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"Kuroko's terrifying in his own way..." Furihata mumbled.
"...Yeah, now that I think about it, it's probably better that you never mentioned the Haizaki incident to the team," Fukuda realized with a nervous chuckle. Kawahara grinned slightly.
"That's why I never questioned their relationship," he concluded.
"Ah..."
"I see..."
It was well-timed that their little story-telling session ended at the exact moment they reached the intersection where all three will be parting ways to make their final stretch home. They bid each other farewell while keeping one thought in mind.
If the Generation of Miracles are obstacles, then Kuroko will be facing the hardest one yet at the finals.
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"I feel like the real game has only just started."
-Kawahara Koichi
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Our three cinnamon rolls are major shippers of Kuroko and Tomoko... Muahahah. Please leave a comment/upvote!