"Kuroko…"
That full-court pass definitely caught Midorima off guard.
"Sorry, but if you thought it'd be that easy to wrap up the first quarter, you're in for a rough time."
Kuroko's calm voice echoed through the court.
Takao frowned, thinking to himself,
"Wait… you can pass like that?!"
Hyuga cracked a small smile. It was the first time he'd ever seen Kuroko pass like that. What a pleasant surprise. But thanks to that surprise… this game had only just begun!
Midorima received the ball from a teammate once more. Kagami rushed in to guard him immediately. Unfortunately, Midorima's shooting range was absurd. Even with a defender closing in, it was still a bit too far—he had more than enough space to shoot.
Midorima raised his hand, feigning a shot, but then noticed Kuroko's position. Kuroko was already waiting right under Seirin's basket. Clicking his tongue, Midorima passed the ball back to Takao.
In the stands, Kise gasped.
"Wait—Midorima gave it up? He could've taken that shot!"
Momoi explained,
"Probably because he's afraid Kuroko might use that full-court pass again for a counterattack."
Kota squinted suspiciously.
"Even if Kuroko and Kagami can pull off a counter, three points are always more than two. If it keeps going like this, Seirin's collapse is just a matter of time."
Momoi chuckled knowingly.
"Who knows? Maybe Midorima's got something else on his mind."
Seeing her mysterious grin, Kota sighed.
"Yeah, she totally knows what's going on…"
"…Miss Momoi, you know, people who talk in riddles usually don't end well in movies."
Momoi just tilted her head and smiled without answering.
Kota sighed dramatically, raising his hands in defeat.
"Fine, I'll buy you dinner. Just spill it already, I'm dying to know."
With a mischievous grin, Momoi finally replied,
"It's probably just… you know… that cursed thing called male pride."
Kota was speechless.
"I'm literally bribing you with food and you're still speaking in code… unbelievable."
Before Kota could respond, Kise suddenly clapped his hands in realization.
"Ohhh! I get it now! I totally get what Midorima's thinking!"
Turning to Kota, Kise saw his utterly clueless expression and couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"It's probably the same as when I faced Kagami back then. I just really wanted to go head-to-head with him. So Midorima doesn't wanna rely on that kind of win."
"…What kind of weird logic is that? A win's a win. What, are there different flavors now? Chocolate win? Vanilla win?"
Kota was completely baffled. Kise's explanation made absolutely zero sense to him.
But funny enough… Kise was spot on.
"I acknowledge your strength, Kuroko… but I don't acknowledge your teammate. Especially... that new light of yours."
Midorima stared at Kagami, a trace of disdain in his eyes.
"What a joke. You picked someone like him as your partner? Annoying. Guess I'll crush him myself. But first… you can sit this one out."
"Takao, go guard Kuroko."
"Roger."
Takao, seeing Midorima's expression, instantly understood what his ace wanted.
"Yo."
Takao casually walked up next to Kuroko and greeted him.
Kuroko glanced at him and replied politely, "Hello."
Over on Seirin's bench, Riko frowned as she watched.
"Why switch defenders? Shouldn't it not matter who guards Kuroko? What is Shuutoku plotting?"
"You know," Takao started, "the first time I saw you, I had this feeling. We're both first-years, both pass-first players… it was only a matter of time before we faced each other."
"How do I put this…? Guess it's like... natural rivalry! That's why I really wanna beat you, Sixth Man of the Generation of Miracles."
Takao said this with complete seriousness.
Kuroko tilted his head slightly, confused.
"Sorry… it's the first time anyone's said something like that to me. I don't really know how to respond."
Takao chuckled at Kuroko's honest reply. He opened his mouth to say something else—but before he could, Kuroko vanished right in front of him.
"Oi, oi! Seriously?! Who just disappears mid-conversation?! Rude!"
Ignoring Takao's protests, Kuroko made a quick fake and sprinted toward the frontcourt.
Hyuga, who had just been double-teamed by Shuutoku, spotted his savior and immediately passed the ball to Kuroko.
Kuroko scanned the court. Kagami was already in the paint. Just as he was about to flick a one-handed pass toward him…
A figure suddenly cut in—smacking the ball out of the air.
Kuroko's eyes widened slightly. Even back in the practice game against Kaijo, Kota had only managed to spot his passes. This… this was the first time anyone had ever outright intercepted one.
The entire Seirin bench looked like their jaws were about to hit the floor. Hyuga muttered,
"The misdirection failed? Already? It's just the first quarter..."
Izuki, squinting at Takao, stepped in.
"No... it didn't fail. That guy... he's got eyes like mine. No—actually, his are even better."
Izuki, who possessed the "Eagle Eye," could spot Kuroko's movement patterns— but that was it. He couldn't predict where the pass was going. But Takao could.
"That guy… he's got Hawk Eye."
After knocking the ball out of bounds, Takao grinned and turned to Kuroko.
"Sorry, buddy. You won't be able to run wild on the court like before. 'Cause I've got my eyes on you. And my skill... completely counters yours."
Kuroko frowned slightly but didn't say anything.
"Crap…"
On the bench, Riko was starting to panic.
"Kuroko's disappearing passes… actually got shut down?!"
"What do I do…? Should I call a timeout?"
She bit her finger, glancing at the scoreboard.
13 to 8. Shuutoku was in the lead.
Looking at the score, it didn't seem urgent enough to call a timeout yet. But if Kuroko couldn't contribute, the game would only get harder and harder for Seirin.
Just as Riko was weighing her options, she saw Kuroko glance over and shake his head slightly.
In the end, Riko chose not to call the timeout. She decided to trust Kuroko.
The flow of the game gradually shifted in Shuutoku's favor.
With Kuroko locked down, Seirin's offense started to falter. Without his free-flowing passing and playmaking, every attack felt clumsy and forced.
On the other hand, Shuutoku was thriving. Midorima, with Kuroko neutralized, began bombing threes from two steps behind the arc. His ridiculous range and nearly perfect accuracy put immense pressure on Seirin.
Takao wasn't just locking down Kuroko—he also had the bandwidth to assist his teammates. Before long, Seirin's defense was in total disarray.
At this point, Hyuga felt a creeping sense of despair. Every time Midorima caught the ball… it meant another three points gone.
Kagami kept leaping to block him, over and over again. But no matter how freakishly high he could jump, it still wasn't enough against someone shooting from half-court range.
"We might lose…"
That thought weighed on every single Seirin player.
Midorima launched yet another shot. Kagami jumped—and missed again.
"Damn it… how far can this guy shoot?!"
Panting, hands on his knees, Kagami felt a wave of frustration. He was this close every time… yet never close enough.
Midorima adjusted his glasses, glanced at the gasping Kagami in front of him, and sneered,
"So this is all you've got? Without Kuroko… you're nothing."
25 to 13. Shuutoku leads. Two minutes left in the first quarter.