Bang!
Eri Fujisawa, manager of Ryokufu High's basketball club, slammed her palm on the desk so hard the wood rattled.
Heads turned instantly, classmates staring. She ignored every one of them and glared straight at Kano.
"Kano! Are you dating Nango from Shohoku? Tell me the truth!"
Kano froze, her cheeks burning. The sudden ambush left her speechless.
The class buzzed immediately. Kano—dating? And with someone from another school?
Seeing the crowd gather, Eri snapped, "Move aside! Don't block the way!"
"Tch, so bossy."
"Well, she is the chairman's daughter, what do you expect…"
Eri didn't care about their whispers. She only had one thing on her mind.
She had been at Shohoku's game against Shoyo, and she hadn't missed Kano's little interactions with that boy—Nango. She had endured an entire day, just to confront her now.
"Kano! You've changed! You didn't even tell me you were dating! Before, you were never like this!" Eri's voice wavered with hurt.
They had once sworn to stay single together—that whoever fell in love first was a traitor. To Eri, Kano's silence stung like betrayal.
"Eri, don't be like that. It only just started. I didn't have time to tell you yet…" Kano sighed. Her best friend could be so willful sometimes, it gave her a headache.
"Hmph! Don't try to calm me down! How did you even end up with Nango from another school's basketball team?!"
The words were harsh, but Kano didn't mind. She pulled out the chair beside her and made Eri sit down.
"Listen, okay?" she said softly.
"Hmph. What is this, some cliché romance? You fell for him because he saved you like some knight in shining armor?" Eri scoffed.
"Knight in shining armor?" Kano blinked.
"I was sitting near the Ryonan section. That Sendo guy called him a brute." Eri crossed her arms, refusing to even say Nango's name.
Kano didn't know who Sendo was, nor did she think Nango was a brute. She smiled shyly. "Cliché or not… when it really happens, it's different. I was terrified that day." Her hands clasped together, eyes closing as she recalled the memory. "And then… he and that red-haired Sakuragi stepped forward. Afterwards, he even walked me home like a gentleman. A few days later, we met again, by chance, on the street. Don't you think that's fate?"
By the end, Kano's expression was dreamy, her eyes full of tender warmth.
Eri shivered, goosebumps rising. "Ugh, disgusting. Wake up! Don't start daydreaming in the middle of class."
Kano grasped her friend's hand. "Eri, believe me. I wasn't hiding it from you. I just… wasn't ready to say it yet."
"Fine, fine. I'll believe you." Eri pulled her hand away but jabbed her finger out. "But promise me one thing!"
Kano tensed. With Eri, this could mean anything. "What is it?"
"Have him arrange a match—Shohoku against our basketball club!"
Kano's eyes went wide. "Eri, that's impossible! Nango isn't their captain. Don't make it hard for him. How about this—I know a dessert shop with amazing cakes. Nango can treat us instead."
"Ohh, listen to you, already protecting him." Eri's voice carried a jealous edge.
"It's not like that…"
But Eri's anger only grew at Kano's flustered look. "Hmph! No! I only have one request—he must do it!" With that, she stormed out of the room.
Kano sighed, rubbing her forehead. What a mess… How is Nango supposed to pull that off?
Meanwhile, at the office of Nango Chikum, Koichiro's father…
He had just brewed himself a cup of tea when he noticed Mr. Kobayashi, his colleague, sneaking glances his way.
"Ahem. Mr. Kobayashi, what's with that look?"
Mr. Kobayashi rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Mr. Chikum, is your son named Koichiro?"
"Uh… yes? Why?"
"Please, look at this newspaper. Is this your son?"
Nango Chikum took the paper. The headline screamed in bold:
"Super Rookie King?!"
"A 'Monster' Beyond High School Level!"
Next to it was a photo—Nango dunking clean over Hanagata.
Chikum scratched his chin, chuckling. "Heh. Didn't think that brat would make the paper."
"It really is your son?!" Mr. Kobayashi gaped.
"What's the big deal?" More colleagues came over, curious.
"Mr. Chikum's son is in the newspaper!" Kobayashi announced, waving the page.
"Really? Show us!" The paper passed from hand to hand.
"Oh my, your son's amazing at basketball!"
"Not fair, hiding something like this from us, Mr. Chikum!"
Chikum flustered, waving them off. "No, no. That rascal just got lucky…"
Inside, though, he muttered to himself: How was I supposed to know he was this good? As long as he studies and gets into a good university, that's enough…
Yet as the praise piled up, a stray thought crept in: Could my son… really become an athlete?
Escaping the fuss, he grabbed his jacket. "Mr. Kobayashi, I'm stepping out for a smoke. Keep an eye on things."
Finding a quiet corner, he lit up. The first puff curled into a ring, drifting in the air. He squinted at it, then playfully traced a shot with his finger, as though flicking a ball through a hoop. The smoke ring broke apart.
"Childish…" he murmured, shaking his head with a laugh. "This path won't be easy."
At the same time, Shohoku was buzzing.
The teachers had seen the article too, and soon the entire school knew about Nango's photo in the newspaper.
"Nango, sign my backpack! It'll be worth a fortune one day!"
"Idiot! What's a backpack? Nango, sign my shirt!"
"Me too, me too!"
Even the teacher who entered the room chuckled. "Looks like our class has a celebrity now."
Nango could only cover his head and laugh weakly. The cheers and requests were overwhelming, and the power of the press was beyond anything he expected.
At just sixteen, Nango Koichiro, Shohoku's rising star, was already beginning to feel the weight of fame.
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