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....
After hanging up on Daiki Aomine, Miyamoto Tokima continued shopping with Satsuki Momoi.
Ring ring ring...
'Hm? Another call?'
Miyamoto Tokima pulled out his phone again and glanced at the caller ID.
Atsushi Murasakibara...
'Did his transfer paperwork finally go through?'
He answered.
The moment the call connected, Atsushi Murasakibara's excited voice came through.
"Miyamoto Tokima, my paperwork's done! I'm heading over right now."
Miyamoto Tokima was genuinely surprised. He hadn't expected Murasakibara's transfer to be processed this quickly.
He had assumed that by the time Murasakibara could transfer, it would already be the Summer Cup. He didn't think he'd be coming over this soon.
"Alright. When are you getting here?"
There was a brief silence on the other end before Atsushi Murasakibara replied,
"No idea."
Miyamoto Tokima: "..."
Just as Miyamoto Tokima fell silent, another voice suddenly cut in.
"He'll be there soon."
Hearing the unfamiliar voice, Miyamoto Tokima paused.
"Atsushi, is someone else with you?"
The other end went quiet again. The next second—
"Huh? Himuro, what are you doing here?"
...
On the train Atsushi Murasakibara was riding.
He turned his head in confusion and looked at Tatsuya Himuro sitting beside him.
Himuro's expression was slightly stiff, as if he was holding something back.
"I just wanted to see what kind of person could make you go through all this just to transfer."
After spending some time with Atsushi Murasakibara, Tatsuya Himuro had come to understand his personality fairly well.
In one word—lazy.
Anything troublesome, Murasakibara wanted nothing to do with. Even during games, he preferred not to move if he didn't have to.
And yet this same person had gone to such lengths for someone.
He'd taken the initiative to handle the transfer procedures—almost obsessively.
Whenever he had free time, Atsushi Murasakibara would run to the principal's office.
It went on for so long that the principal finally couldn't take it anymore and sped up the process just to get it done.
News of his transfer quickly spread through the Yōsen basketball club.
Even Yōsen's coach, Masako Araki, had grabbed a wooden sword and threatened to skin Atsushi Murasakibara alive.
But Murasakibara never wavered. He was determined to transfer.
That only infuriated the rest of the Yōsen basketball club even more. They kept calling him a traitor.
Tatsuya Himuro really wanted to see who this person was—who could make Murasakibara endure all that criticism and still insist on leaving.
"Atsushi, what's going on?"
Miyamoto Tokima's voice came through the phone again.
Murasakibara snapped back to his senses and quickly replied,
"Oh, Miyamoto Tokima. He's a teammate from my old school. I don't know why he's here either."
At that moment, Tatsuya Himuro leaned closer to the phone and let out a soft chuckle.
"Hello. I just wanted to see who managed to lure Atsushi away. I hope you don't mind."
...
On the other end of the line.
Miyamoto Tokima stared at his phone, slightly stunned.
Atsushi Murasakibara's teammate...
Tatsuya Himuro?
It had to be him. Only Himuro would have a reason to follow Murasakibara here just to meet him.
As for Murasakibara's other former teammates—they were either hot-blooded brutes or...
Still, despite Himuro's calm and polite tone, Miyamoto Tokima could hear something else underneath.
Resentment.
And a tightly restrained anger.
Miyamoto Tokima shook his head helplessly.
'Looks like I've made an enemy.'
He lifted the phone and said,
"Alright. I'll be waiting."
Then he hung up.
Satsuki Momoi, who had been standing beside him, asked,
"Tokima, was that someone from Atsushi Murasakibara's old team?"
Miyamoto Tokima smiled faintly.
"Probably. From the way he sounded, he might be looking for a little payback. Maybe he'll even challenge us to a one-on-one."
"Let's head back to school. Call everyone and go pick up Purps."
"After all, Purps is pretty adorable."
"And while we're at it, let that overly persistent teammate of his see who's truly capable of helping Purps grow."
...
Kirisaki Daiichi Basketball Club.
Dicky Anthony was still in the middle of a one-on-one with Shuzo Nijimura, while the rest of Kirisaki Daiichi stood on the sidelines watching.
The duel was nothing short of intense. Whether it was Nijimura's explosive drives or Dicky Anthony's shooting, everyone watching felt the gap in skill.
"This is insane. How are they both this strong?"
"No kidding. Their level is terrifying. I don't think I could score a single point on them."
"Be good. Drop the 'I don't think.' You definitely couldn't."
Just as they were engrossed in the match, two sets of footsteps approached.
Step. Step. Step...
One of the members turned around. When he saw Miyamoto Tokima, he immediately called out respectfully,
"Tokima-san!"
The others followed suit as they recognized him.
"Tokima-san!"
On the court, Dicky Anthony and Shuzo Nijimura also stopped their one-on-one and looked over.
Dicky Anthony nodded politely.
"Tokima-san."
Nijimura scratched his head.
"Miyamoto, what brings you here today?"
Miyamoto Tokima gave a slight smile and dropped a bombshell.
"Everyone, gather up. We're going to welcome our new center."
The moment those words left his mouth, everyone instinctively looked toward Kentaro Seto.
Seto's expression remained calm, without the slightest ripple.
To him, Miyamoto Tokima's words were absolute truth. If Miyamoto said a new center was coming, then stepping aside was only natural.
After all, even Makoto Hanamiya had stepped down. It was about time for him too.
Miyamoto Tokima wasn't worried about Seto harboring any resentment. Some things were simply a matter of fact.
After taking some time to gather both the starters and the reserves, Miyamoto Tokima led the team out toward the train station.
A large group boarded the Kirisaki Daiichi exclusive bus and set off.
...
On the train.
Atsushi Murasakibara looked at Tatsuya Himuro like he was staring at an idiot.
"Himuro, do you even know what you just said?"
Himuro's expression turned serious as he met Murasakibara's gaze.
"Of course I do. I… will defeat the person you keep talking about!"
Murasakibara's expression instantly shifted—he was trying to hold back laughter.
"Pfft!"
"Hahaha!"
Himuro's composure cracked immediately.
"Atsushi! What are you laughing at?!"
Murasakibara clapped a hand over his mouth, desperately trying to stop, but it was no use.
"Himuro… hahaha… you said you're going to beat Miyamoto Tokima… hahaha… sorry… I just can't…"
...
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