Practice Match (4)

Makoto Hanamiya, lying on the hospital bed, felt nothing but regret, deep regret. If he could turn back time to the afternoon, he would remind himself of two things: First, don't get your hands dirty, and second, don't run your mouth.

"Well, well, look at you two," Shoichi Imagawa said, carrying a lunchbox as he pushed open the hospital room door. He adjusted his glasses and chuckled with an unreadable smile. "One with a broken jaw, the other with broken ribs. If I'd known, you might as well have just gone up and fought them directly."

"Shut up, why didn't you go up and confront him?" Makoto Hanamiya glared at Shoichi Imagawa with cold eyes, extremely displeased with his performance that afternoon.

"I'm just not likable, I'm not stupid. Never mind that blond kid, that purple-haired kid alone is not someone you can predict with common sense!" Shoichi Imagawa shivered, a flicker of fear flashing in his narrowed eyes, as if he had returned to the training grounds that afternoon...

"Hey, senpai, Atsushi and I are rookies, and we don't know how to play yet. Why don't you teach us what 'solving problems on the basketball court' means?" Ken Kaneki's voice was gentle, but his aura continued to rise on the court. Beside him, Atsushi Murasakibara couldn't hide his emotions, his face clearly showing annoyance, wishing he could get on the court immediately and beat someone up.

"Hey, hey, hey, what exactly do you guys want?" The center for Kirigi First Affiliated Junior High School bravely stepped forward and questioned.

"Atsushi and I just want to have a friendly exchange and learn basketball experience. Why are you seniors so nervous?" Ken Kaneki spread his arms and smiled kindly.

"Hahahaha, interesting, so interesting." Makoto Hanamiya, feeling provoked, sneered and walked up to Ken Kaneki, extending his right hand. "Since you juniors sincerely want to learn, why would we hold back?"

Just as Ken Kaneki was about to shake Makoto Hanamiya's hand, Makoto Hanamiya slapped Ken Kaneki's hand away, stuck out his tongue, and said maniacally, "Of course, I was lying! Who wants to teach you? Just wait to die, you bastard!"

Ken Kaneki looked at his slapped right hand, let out a cold laugh, and said to Makoto Hanamiya, "Are you crazy at such a young age, senpai? Sigh, I'm the kindest person, I'll show you our family's traditional medical techniques later."

After speaking, Ken Kaneki didn't even glance at Makoto Hanamiya, pushed him aside, and walked straight onto the court.

"Let's go together, Atsushi," Ken Kaneki turned his head to look at Atsushi Murasakibara. "Atsushi, don't slack off today. If you can crush your matchup, I'll treat you to chips for a month. But if you dare to slack off, I'll give your manga to the teacher."

"Ah, got it." Atsushi Murasakibara, with his hair tied up, stretched his shoulders and grumbled, "Ken-chan, you're really as nagging as an old lady. Even if you don't treat me to chips, I'm going to crush them today."

"Oh, so spirited?"

"...At least for a week, Ken-chan."

Watching the two chat as if no one else was around, Makoto Hanamiya's expression contorted to the extreme. Shoichi Imagawa quickly stepped forward to comfort him, "Calm down, Makoto. Those two are not easy to deal with. From the pre-game warm-up, I could tell that at least the purple-haired one has some strength. Rushing them might get you hurt..."

Makoto Hanamiya gave Shoichi Imagawa a strange look and didn't say anything, just signaled the referee to continue the game.

Atsushi Murasakibara taking the center position was a given. With the two point guards of the Second String out for the season, Ken Kaneki, the point guard, had to play whether he wanted to or not.

Watching Makoto Hanamiya slowly dribble the ball, Ken Kaneki smiled slightly and met him.

"You brat, you're so annoying," Makoto Hanamiya gritted his teeth. "I'm definitely going to destroy you today."

Ken Kaneki picked at his ear, looking at Makoto Hanamiya expressionlessly, as if he were looking at an idiot.

"Bastard, what's with that expression!" Like the last straw that broke the camel's back, Makoto Hanamiya's last shred of rationality snapped. He no longer cared about winning or losing the game; he just wanted to cripple the kid in front of him.

After a brief assessment, Makoto Hanamiya repeated his previous move, feigning a drive, preparing to execute the same dirty play he did against the Second String point guard in the first quarter. Seeing Ken Kaneki, whose movements were identical to other defensive players, Makoto Hanamiya's lips curved into a triumphant smile.

But this time, he miscalculated. Ken Kaneki in front of him seemed to have his feet rooted to the ground. He only offered slight resistance, clearing a path for Makoto Hanamiya to drive.

"Looks like he's only good at shooting... a softie, nothing to fear," Makoto Hanamiya thought disdainfully, instinctively preparing to gather the ball for a layup.

"Senpai, you're truly terrifyingly naive," Ken Kaneki's voice came from behind him. "You dare to drive when someone lets you? Aren't you afraid of getting taken down from behind?"

Makoto Hanamiya's heart sank, but he had already jumped, and the shot was released. He couldn't adjust his posture or retrieve the ball. Makoto Hanamiya could only pray that the shot would go in.

As expected, who would listen to the prayers of someone like Makoto Hanamiya, who had done so much evil? The basketball he had just shot was swatted off the backboard by Ken Kaneki. The players from Kirigi First Affiliated Junior High School prepared to scramble for the rebound. Ken Kaneki, under the basket, yelled, "Ahhh, don't fight over it, don't fight over it~ This is my rebound, mine." He propped up his thick elbows, feigning fear of being stolen from, and flailed his arms.

Coincidentally, Makoto Hanamiya, who had just been knocked down by Ken Kaneki's block, got up and was considering how to get back into the game when he was directly hit in the abdomen by Ken Kaneki's elbow. Makoto Hanamiya instantly felt as if he had been struck by a giant impact drill, and his whole body went limp.

Seeing Makoto Hanamiya fall, Ken Kaneki stopped fooling around and threw a long pass to Atsushi Murasakibara, who had already sprinted to the frontcourt. After Atsushi Murasakibara caught the ball, with a loud bang, the basketball was slammed into the hoop.

"Seriously, you really believed me? If I couldn't get it from them, you would have run for nothing," Ken Kaneki teased with a smile.

"Ah~ Are you serious, Ken-chan? If you can't get it from these guys, Old Man Platinum will train you to death when we get back," Atsushi Murasakibara yawned, dismissing Ken Kaneki's words as nonsense.

"Why don't we just play properly, Makoto? Those two don't look like ordinary people. They look like trouble from the start..." Shoichi Imagawa advised, looking at Makoto Hanamiya, who had just been thoroughly beaten.

"Tch, shut up. If you're scared, I'll find someone else to play," Makoto Hanamiya, clearly enraged, could no longer listen to any advice. His eyes were bloodshot, and he roared in a low voice, "I'm taking these two down today, not even Amaterasu Omikami can stop me, I swear!"

Makoto Hanamiya's reddened eyes turned to his team's two inside players: "Kojiro, Kentaro, I'll leave the purple-haired one to you two. I want him unable to walk out of Kirigi First Affiliated Junior High School!"