The real question is
Have you ever experienced that moment where you stake everything?
Before stepping out of the players' tunnel and back into the roaring arena, Haizaki Shōgo smoothed back his hair, absentmindedly licking his fingers as he wandered deep inside his own thoughts.
"..."
All those clashes with Aomine over the years…
Had he ever truly gambled everything and fought to the very end?
Everything…
What did that even mean?
PAK!
Suddenly
Haizaki's knees buckled—literally buckled—nearly dropping him to the ground. Furious, he spun around, coming face-to-face with Kuroko Tetsuya's expressionless stare.
"Tetsuya…"
"What the hell was that?!"
Kuroko, as calmly dark-bellied as ever, answered seriously,
"Haizaki, your headband—at the end of the first half, you threw it at the sideline."
Haizaki: "..."
This guy.
Impossible to deal with.
He has a strange talent for killing people's mood.
Damn it.
The two walked forward side by side as the bright arena lights slowly came into view.
Just before stepping into the court, with the white floodlights slicing diagonally through the tunnel, Kuroko suddenly turned toward him.
"Haizaki."
"Huh?"
"You won't lose to Aomine."
"That's obvious, I alrea—"
"Because I'm your shadow. I'll help you become a light more brilliant than anything out there."
"..."
Interrupted so abruptly, Haizaki scratched his head awkwardly.
"You don't have to say stuff like that… I already know…"
He looked away toward the wall,
but stretched his fist toward the opposite side.
PAK!
Their fists met with quiet synchronization.
"No," Kuroko said softly.
"You don't know."
"Because from here on… I'm staking everything I have."
From their first year of middle school up until now
Without Haizaki's help, even with Shigure-senpai,
Kuroko knew he never would have reached this point.
Every step they climbed toward the summit was for the sake of a perfect résumé
so that when they looked back someday,
they could feel genuinely proud of their own history.
These were Shigure Akihito's words
words that helped the Generation of Miracles remember that no matter the opponent, even one too weak to excite them, they should always go all-out.
Back then…
Kuroko never had the qualifications to understand that.
But now, standing here—he felt something different.
A desire not to let those memories become tarnished by defeat.
So
Let's walk this path to the very end.
The light born from conviction will always remain within them,
and illuminate the long road ahead
showing them the way to victory.
Faced with Kuroko's sincerity, Haizaki's thoughts tangled with the emotions already swirling inside him.
But
After a brief silence,
he realized there was only one thing he could confirm,
one thing he could do:
Play to win.
Give everything.
Haizaki lowered his gaze, meeting Kuroko's with rare seriousness.
"I'll win, Tetsuya…"
"Go get them, Haizaki."
…
"Oh! Both teams are entering!"
"The second half is finally starting!"
Seirin 64 – 66 Tōō Academy.
Aomine Daiki stepped into the gym with his usual wild, fearless grin
but his eyes gleamed with something different.
The players of Tōō all glanced at him in surprise.
Especially Wakamatsu Kōsuke, who sneaked a look
This guy…
He couldn't pinpoint it,
but after just one halftime break,
Aomine felt different.
Not his aura…
Something else.
Wakamatsu: "..."
Weird.
Why am I thinking about weird things…
"Halftime is over!"
The players took the court.
And the moment he stepped on
Aomine's ability to come and go in the Zone at will awakened.
When his eyes opened fully, lightning-like sparks of Zone power erupted from his gaze.
With each step, a streak of blue cut through the air.
In the stands, many spectators immediately sensed the change.
Their pupils shrank—astonishment spreading across their faces.
"Aomine Daiki…?!"
"What's wrong?"
"He can enter the Zone this casually? Doesn't that mean… he's on the same level as Akihito Shigure, Nijimura Shuzo, and Hagioka Kasayuki?!"
Seirin wasn't surprised—they had expected this.
They still stiffened instinctively, but it was manageable.
Only Kagami was truly shaken.
He'd never seen the Zone in person
only in recorded footage.
And then
While Kagami froze in awe,
Aomine was already in motion.
From the moment he closed his eyes,
to the moment he crossed half court,
only eight seconds remained on the shot clock.
Calmly, he held out his hand for a pass from Imayoshi Shōichi
but his eyes never once left Haizaki.
Haizaki frowned at Aomine's arrogant posture.
"Same old tricks, you damn idiot."
Aomine caught the ball
and immediately attacked straight on.
"But strong enough, aren't they~?"
"Haizaki!"
Watching Aomine's ridiculous speed,
Haizaki instantly sank into Monster Immersion,
activating the Emperor Eye, focusing entirely on predicting his movement.
Zone or not
he'd stop him.
By any means necessary.
Aomine's half-lidded eyes were filled with a coldness that disregarded everything.
PAK!
A between-the-legs dribble
END OF CHAPTER
(Some chapters in patreon are double chapters)
4 IN 1 - BE A MEMBER, GET 4 ONGOING STORIES!!
35 CHAPTERS AHEAD!!
Starting Five - Kuroko's Basketball: Before Generation Miracles, I Already Crowned
👉 patreon.com/MrBehringer