"Hey, hey~~ no way! That guy's going for extra practice again?"
"Unbelievable… is he a robot or something? Doesn't he ever get tired?"
"Forget it. Since the coach agreed, let's just leave him be. It's our rare day off, so let's go relax while we can!"
============
It had been over two weeks since Akashi Asuka entered Seiho High School.
In that time, he had gradually gotten used to the school's pace of study and life.
But the rest of the basketball club still hadn't adjusted to his pace.
They simply couldn't.
The guy was way too much of a workaholic.
The first couple of days after he joined, things were still harmonious. But once everyone got familiar with each other, Asuka's true nature came out in full force.
He was always the first to arrive for both morning and evening practice, and the last to leave.
That alone was already intimidating enough. But there was more.
Every Wednesday afternoon, the Seiho basketball team paused training to let members rest and recover, even the third-years looked forward to it as their happiest time of the week.
Since Asuka joined, however, Wednesdays had turned into the most agonizing time for everyone.
Because somehow, that guy had managed to charm the coach into coming in just for him on Wednesday afternoons to give him one-on-one special training.
And if that wasn't bad enough…
The coach even made a rule: only Asuka was allowed to come to the club on Wednesdays. Everyone else was strictly forbidden from practicing.
For the first-year students who only wanted regular training, this was a blessing.
But for those aiming to improve, watching someone else grind hard while they were barred from doing anything was pure torture.
"At this rate, we third-years aren't going to have any senior authority left!"
Sakamoto Kenjiro stood outside the gym, scratching his head as he watched Matsumoto Yukinori coaching Asuka one-on-one.
The truth was, Sakamoto didn't like training either. Seiho's regimen was exhausting, and even third-years weren't exempt.
But not liking training and being forced to watch someone else train while you can't were two entirely different things.
Kasuga Ryuhei hesitated before saying, "I mean… is it possible that we already lost all our senior authority the moment we finished that selection game on the first day of school?"
No way. Absolutely no way.
"Iwa, let's go," Tsutomu Iwamura said, walking up to them.
"Iwamura, can't you ask the coach to let us train on Wednesday afternoons too?" Kasuga tried anyway. This was their last year of high school, and unlike the underclassmen, they had no more chances after this.
"Don't be stupid," Iwamura refused flatly. "Rest is also part of training. We don't have Asuka's ridiculous recovery ability. Without proper rest, we'll only hurt ourselves."
He added, "Don't forget, we have a practice game this Friday. And our opponent this time isn't the usual level. Do you really want to injure yourselves forcing extra practice, and end up being replaced by bench players?"
That shut them up instantly.
============
Normal practice matches were one thing.
But this Friday's match was special. As third-year starters, there was no way they'd risk missing it. Opportunities to face an opponent of this caliber were rare.
============
Kanagawa Prefecture.
A game had just ended, just like in the original events, Kaijo lost to Seirin.
It was the first defeat for a member of the "Generation of Miracles" since they entered high school. From that day onward, Kise Ryouta began his journey as the "general who always loses."¹
"Even though Gemini's horoscope is terrible today, I still didn't expect you to lose to Seirin."
Outside Kaijo High's basketball gym, Kise Ryouta splashed his face with tap water, hiding the tears at the corners of his eyes.
As someone who had never lost a game throughout middle school, this was the first time in his life he'd tasted defeat.
A voice suddenly came from beside him.
Kise turned to see a boy holding a frog toy, wearing black-rimmed glasses, and with short green hair.
It was none other than another "Generation of Miracles" member, Midorima Shintaro.
"Oh, it's you, Midorimacchi! You came to watch my match with Kurokocchi?"
"I was just passing by."
Passing by? From Tokyo to Kanagawa?
He grumbled inwardly, but knowing Midorima's personality from their days as teammates, he didn't push it.
"To do your best and leave the rest to fate… first, you must give it your all. Only then will you have the right to be chosen by destiny…"
"I did give it my all."
"And you must never forget your lucky item from the morning's horoscope…"
"How is that even related to basketball anymore?"
Kise couldn't hold back his retort. At that moment, Midorima didn't seem like the "Generation of Miracles'" top shooter at all, more like a wandering fortune teller.
"I came because our teams might meet early in the Interhigh qualifiers," Midorima continued. "But honestly, Seirin isn't impressive right now. Give up on trying to get revenge against them in the Nationals."
"Is that so?" Kise thought back to Seirin's performance in the game and didn't buy it.
"By the way, didn't you say you were just passing by?"
"Hmph! Believe what you want. Soon, Shutoku will have its own practice game. I'll use my three-pointers in that match to show you what it means to be chosen by fate."
"Only relying on dunks, something even a monkey can do, will never win you games. The further away from the basket, the greater the value of the shot."
==========
You can find much more on my Patreon: Patreon.com/Veltoria
There are currently 5 active fanfictions on Patreon, with over 794+ advanced chapters available across them!
From Naruto Onwards, I Control Time — Up to Chapter 337
Haikyuu!!: Rise of Sengoku — Up to Chapter 279
Danmachi: Is It Wrong To Aspire to Be An Adventurer? — Up to Chapter 97
Legend of Hogwarts (Harry Potter x League of Legends) — Up to Chapter 270
I Am Luffy: Partner System Online (One Piece) — Up to Chapter 252
Playing Genshin Impact in Danmachi (Danmachi x Genshin Impact) — Up to Chapter 182
Kuroko no Basket: The Phantom Ace — Up to Chapter 130
Yukigaoka: Project Ace — Up to Chapter 105
Naruto: Starting from the Duel — Up to Chapter 95