Haizaki Joins the Team

"Who's that, Ken-chan?" Atsushi Murasakibara asked curiously, watching Tetsuya Kuroko walk away.

"His name's Tetsuya Kuroko. He might be Joe Yabuki, or he might be your Hose," Ken Kaneki said meaningfully.

"Huh? What are you even talking about?" Daiki Aomine looked utterly baffled by Ken Kaneki's cryptic words. "You just asked him if he was going to practice. Is he a member of the Basketball Club too?"

"Yeah, he's on the Third String." Ken Kaneki folded his arms and asked curiously, "When they assigned the teams, Kuroko's name was clearly called. You guys don't remember?"

"What do you mean, remember? To be precise, we'd never even heard that name before," Atsushi Murasakibara said with a yawn, sounding bored.

"I really don't remember him either, Kaneki." Daiki Aomine scratched his head helplessly.

"Kaneki, you really do know the members of the Basketball Club well," Satsuki Momoi said with a sweet smile.

"It's not that I know the members of the Basketball Club well. These two became idiots at such a young age that their memories are already failing them. What a disgrace to the family." Ken Kaneki knew full well how extraordinary Tetsuya Kuroko was, but that didn't stop him from running his mouth.

Daiki Aomine and Atsushi Murasakibara promptly gave Ken Kaneki's butt a taste of the vigor of youth. Under the evening sun, their four shadows stretched long across the ground.

"Good evening, everyone!" After being mercilessly roughed up along the way, Ken Kaneki pulled open the gym doors and greeted everyone with cheerful enthusiasm. Then he went with Daiki Aomine and Atsushi Murasakibara to the locker room to change into their sports gear and begin warming up.

By the time their clothes were damp with sweat, the rest of the Basketball Club members had finally arrived, and that evening's practice officially began.

"Hey, everyone's here. Good. I have an announcement." Kōzō Shirogane looked at the assembled players, then gestured to the gray-haired boy beside him. "This is Shogo Haizaki, from Class 1-E. He was just promoted from the Second String a couple of days ago, and he'll be your teammate from now on. Let's give him a round of applause."

A sparse smattering of applause followed, as perfunctory as it could get.

Kōzō Shirogane seemed not to notice their halfhearted response. He turned to Ken Kaneki and said, "Kaneki, I'm leaving Shogo Haizaki in your hands from now on. He'll be your substitute."

"Huh? Are you kidding me, old man? You expect me to let this blondie take my place?" Shogo Haizaki's usually carefree face turned arrogant. He gave Ken Kaneki a challenging once-over. "What's so special about him? My stats in the Second String games were just as good as his."

"Actually, I don't care whether I have a substitute or not," Ken Kaneki retorted. "But I'm not about to let just any stray dog become my backup."

"Hah? So you've got some personality after all." Shogo Haizaki's expression grew even more hostile. He licked his thumb and said smugly, "Well, that's fine by me. If they just handed me a starting position right away, I might not even be interested. It's more fun to take something from someone else."

"Coach, what do you think?" Ken Kaneki ignored the troublesome boy and turned to ask Kōzō Shirogane.

"Hahahaha. I've left him in your hands. How you train him is up to you," Kōzō Shirogane replied with an amused chuckle, neither confirming nor denying anything.

"Yes, Coach." Ken Kaneki understood. He turned to Shogo Haizaki. "Come on. First to five. Let's see what you've got. If you beat me today, I'll give you my starting spot."

"Old man, he said it himself. If I beat him today..." Shogo Haizaki glanced at Kōzō Shirogane, clearly hinting at something.

"If you can beat him, not only will the starting position be yours, but starting today I'll make a special exception: you can come to Basketball Club practice whenever you feel like it," Kōzō Shirogane replied, folding his arms as he calmly waited to see what would happen.

"Ao-chan, that guy's so arrogant. Just looking at him makes me dislike him," Atsushi Murasakibara said, staring at Shogo Haizaki as if he were trash.

"Honestly, letting someone like that into the First String is a disgrace to the team. He doesn't even know how to respect his elders," Daiki Aomine said, clearly disapproving of Shogo Haizaki's attitude toward Kōzō Shirogane.

"He won't be any match for Kaneki," Shintaro Midorima said without sparing Shogo Haizaki more than a glance. "Just the arrogance of a fool."

Seijuro Akashi said nothing, his eyes fixed on the two players about to go one-on-one. To be honest, Ken Kaneki was the first person he'd ever met who he couldn't see through.

"First to five, no breaks. You get the ball first. Don't say I didn't give you a chance." Ken Kaneki took the pass from Daiki Aomine and briefly explained the rules.

"Enough talking. I don't care how we do it. Let's get started." Shogo Haizaki impatiently cut Ken Kaneki off. Ken Kaneki wasn't bothered. With a scoff, he tossed the ball to Shogo Haizaki, then backed up to the free-throw line and adopted a stance that invited him to shoot.

"Hah? Are you looking down on me, blondie? I'm scoring this one, then." Shogo Haizaki gave a scornful smile and confidently shot the ball.

"He's got some skill. His mouth's foul, but his fundamentals are solid," Seijuro Akashi commented. "That's all, though."

As soon as Seijuro Akashi finished speaking, Ken Kaneki sprang in front of Shogo Haizaki like a bullet leaving the barrel. The instant the ball left Shogo Haizaki's hands, Ken Kaneki shot upward like a rocket and snatched it out of the air with ease.

"So much for scoring, huh? You piece of trash who looks like a little old man!" Ken Kaneki's tall frame loomed over Shogo Haizaki. Beneath the lights, Ken Kaneki's shadow completely swallowed him, like prey devoured by a dragon.

"Pfft—hahahaha!" Ken Kaneki's taunt hit Daiki Aomine's funny bone just right, and he doubled over laughing.

"What are you laughing at, Ao-chan? What's so funny?" Even Atsushi Murasakibara, who was usually oblivious, looked confused.

"Don't you think what Kaneki said fits? He's so young, but his hair's gray. He looks like a little old man. It's kind of pathetic," Daiki Aomine said, realizing he was the only one laughing. He awkwardly scratched his cheek as he explained.

"You shouldn't eat with me anymore, Ao-chan. I think stupidity is contagious," Atsushi Murasakibara said, seriously reconsidering his poor choice of friends.

"Pay attention to the game. I'm curious to see how Kaneki deals with that arrogant guy after being provoked like that." Shintaro Midorima adjusted his glasses, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.