"Hey, you over there! Who are you? Who gave you permission to film here?" The captain of Shibuya First Junior High only noticed Ken Kaneki and his group after Ken had openly set up a camera, and came over to chase them away.
"Senpai, I'm with our school newspaper. Last year, our school made it to the top four thanks to all your hard work." Ken Kaneki shamelessly lied without missing a beat. "We won our last game by a huge margin, and Senpai Nakamori from the school paper thinks we have a great chance of going further in this year's Prefectural Tournament. So she sent us to film the Basketball Club's daily practice. She wants to put together a special edition on the team if you do even better this year."
"Nakamori?" The captain of Shibuya First Junior High looked incredulous, his face flushing and his eyes reddening. "You mean Akina? Has she finally started paying attention to our Basketball Club?"
"Of course I mean Senpai Akina~" Ken Kaneki doubled down. "Actually, Senpai Akina's been following the Basketball Club for a long time, so please look after us, Captain!"
"Haha, I'll look after you, definitely." The captain of Shibuya First Junior High cheerfully patted Ken's shoulder. "Um, make sure you get my good side when you film me later."
"You got it, senpai." Ken Kaneki thumped his chest and sent him on his way.
"Ken-kun, how did you know that Nakamori Akina was the head of their school paper?" Satsuki Momoi asked curiously.
"Her photo's on the school bulletin board." Ken Kaneki found a stool, sat down, and began taking notes.
"But if you do this, won't it cause problems later?" Satsuki Momoi asked, a little worried.
"Aside from the possibility that this senpai might successfully become Gotham Villain Leader, I don't think anything bad will happen." Ken Kaneki patted the stool beside him, inviting Satsuki Momoi to sit. "Forget about him. We've got work to do."
"Okay~" Satsuki Momoi remembered why Ken had come to Shibuya First Junior High and obediently sat down beside him.
"Take a look first. If anything puzzles you, you can ask me." Ken Kaneki opened his notebook and focused on the practice underway, occasionally lowering his head to jot down notes.
"Where's Ken Kaneki?" Kōzō Shirogane was surprised to see that Ken had missed practice—a rare occurrence.
"He went to Shibuya First Junior High with Peach." Daiki Aomine toyed with the basketball in his hands, looking utterly bored. "He said he was gathering information on them. But I bet he sneaked off on a date with Peach."
"What are you saying, A-Dai!" Satsuki Momoi had just pushed open the gym doors and overheard Daiki Aomine teasing her and Ken Kaneki. She scolded him in embarrassment.
"Don't be so naive, Aomine." Ken Kaneki followed right behind her and joined in. "I brought back firsthand information for you all."
"Oh?" Kōzō Shirogane was curious too. "What did you find out?"
"A lot." Ken Kaneki pulled a stack of papers from his backpack. "This afternoon, Momoi and I collected all this information on the trio from Shibuya First Junior High."
"First, their Ace, Kotaro Hayama." Ken Kaneki pulled Hayama's profile from the stack and handed it around to the First String. "He's a speed-type player, right-handed, and not great at mid- or long-range shots. One thing in particular to watch out for is that he's got some serious ball-handling skills."
Ken Kaneki pulled a tablet from his pocket and brought up a video of Kotaro Hayama practicing. Onscreen, Hayama weaved through a crowd, scoring again and again.
"He doesn't look like much," Daiki Aomine said with a dismissive shrug. "I could do that too."
"Well said, Aomine. Now don't say it again." Ken Kaneki pointed his pen at Daiki Aomine. "Did any of you notice his ball handling?"
"You mean the unusual sound when he dribbles?" Seijuro Akashi was the first to spot what was unusual about Kotaro Hayama. He studied the footage thoughtfully. "He does dribble with great force, and the ball moves very fast, making it difficult for defenders to steal."
"Exactly, but that's all there is to it." Ken Kaneki folded his arms across his chest. "His handling is impressive, but if you can keep up with his speed, he's no different from an ordinary layup. Also, his left hand is still weak. Push him left and force him to take jump shots from the high post."
"I'll take him on." Daiki Aomine eagerly volunteered.
"That's what I had in mind." Ken Kaneki looked at Daiki Aomine. "But remember, don't go for a steal and lose your position."
"Don't worry, Ken."
"Next is Keisuke Kobayashi." Ken Kaneki pulled out another stack of papers and handed them around. "There's not much to say. He's a rare big guard, 180 centimeters tall, and fairly agile for his height. He's equally good with both hands and excels at playmaking and three-point shots."
"A big guard who specializes in shooting?" Shintaro Midorima mused.
"He's no match for you." Ken Kaneki noticed the fighting spirit in Shintaro Midorima's eyes and spoke bluntly. "Just remember to make contact as soon as he receives the ball. Don't give him room to dribble."
"Okay." Shintaro Midorima remained as laconic as ever. After replying, he picked up today's lucky item: a Sparkling Rod model.
"If you can't guard him, I'll use that Sparkling Rod to give you a Sparkling Skull Shattering Kill." Ken Kaneki looked at the strange and wildly varied lucky items Shintaro Midorima carried every day, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
"What about the center, Ken-chan?" Atsushi Murasakibara briefly flipped through the papers in his hands. Finding no information on Daisuke Narumi, he asked curiously.
"He's not worth mentioning. His footwork and ball handling are both awful. He relies entirely on brute force, and his court awareness is even worse than Aomine's." Ken Kaneki didn't consider Daisuke Narumi a threat at all.
"Haha, well done, Ken." Kōzō Shirogane smiled as he finished looking through all the information Ken had gathered. "It seems you really did notice a few things, and your write-up is quite thorough."
"I can't take all the credit, Coach." Ken Kaneki smiled and pulled Satsuki Momoi over. "Little Peach was responsible for most of the written material."
"Not at all. I only expanded on Ken Kaneki's ideas a little. He did most of the work." Satsuki Momoi smiled at Ken Kaneki. "You really stole the show today, Ken."
"What? You're saying the school paper didn't send anyone to film us?" The captain of Shibuya First Junior High stared in despair at the teammate he'd sent to investigate, as if he'd just heard his heart shatter.
"So this afternoon, some guy from who-knows-where showed up to secretly film us practicing, then beat the crap out of Hayama and the others just because he had nothing better to do?" The coach of Shibuya First Junior High eyed the captain suspiciously. "It's normal to have a crush at your age, but you harassed Akina and made up this ridiculous story, Yamanaka. Are you even thinking straight?"
"He wasn't lying, Coach." Kotaro Hayama stepped forward with a grim expression. "We asked him who he was, too."
"What did he say?" The coach of Shibuya First Junior High asked coldly.
"He said..." Kotaro Hayama recalled that arrogant figure from that afternoon. "He said he was just a basketball genius passing through."
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