"Hello, I'm Hikoichi Aida, the team manager at Ryonan High School. Would it be all right if I watched you train for a while?"
Hikoichi Aida was extremely dedicated to gathering information. He neither hid his purpose nor chose to observe in secret, openly explaining why he had come.
Only when he heard Hikoichi Aida's name did Ryota Kudo realize that this was another famous figure from the world of Slam Dunk.
Ryota Kudo had nothing about his training that needed to be kept secret. He smiled and agreed. "No problem, Manager Aida. We'll get back to training, then."
Without letting Hikoichi Aida's arrival interfere with their training, Ryota Kudo resumed Hanamichi Sakuragi's special training.
Ryota Kudo had his own plan for the basketball novice Hanamichi Sakuragi.
Getting Hanamichi Sakuragi to learn skills like dribbling and shooting quickly was impossible. Ryota Kudo wasn't a miracle worker, either.
However, Ryota Kudo could get Hanamichi Sakuragi to focus on rebounding, defense, and dunking once he took the court, rather than dribbling and shooting.
To make sure Hanamichi Sakuragi could play in tomorrow's friendly, Ryota Kudo began explaining basketball techniques to him, one after another.
Hearing that he could play and even show off with dunks, Hanamichi Sakuragi was very obedient, strictly following Ryota Kudo's instructions.
An hour later, Ryota Kudo felt that was about enough. Hanamichi Sakuragi could just about manage to play now, as long as he didn't act like an idiot when the time came.
While Ryota Kudo trained Hanamichi Sakuragi, Hikoichi Aida did not disturb them. He quietly took photos off to the side and recorded something in his notebook.
Once training ended, Ryota Kudo walked over to Hikoichi Aida. "We're going to grab a late-night bite. Would you like to join us, Manager Aida?"
"Can I really come?" Hikoichi Aida pointed at his own nose in disbelief.
This wasn't Hikoichi Aida's first time visiting another school to gather information, and the other teams hadn't been nearly this friendly.
Getting thrown out of basketball gyms was perfectly normal for Hikoichi Aida. Having someone like Ryota Kudo invite him out for a late-night meal was a first.
"Of course. Actually, none of us has had dinner yet. I know a place that serves great pork cutlet rice. Come with us."
Ryota Kudo enthusiastically pulled Hikoichi Aida to his feet, and the three of them left the basketball gym and headed out through the gates of Shohoku High School.
As they walked, Hikoichi Aida studied the two tall, powerfully built boys and couldn't help asking a question.
"Are you Ryota Kudo and Kaede Rukawa, by any chance? I heard two super rookies joined Shohoku High School this year. That must be you two, right?"
"What! How could that stinking fox be anywhere near as good as a genius like me..."
Ryota Kudo cut Hanamichi Sakuragi off halfway through. Giving Sakuragi a look, Ryota Kudo explained quietly.
"Shohoku High School doesn't just have two super rookies this year, but three!
I'm Ryota Kudo, and this red-haired guy beside me is also an incredible basketball genius. His name is Hanamichi Sakuragi. You'll find out how good he is soon enough."
Only after hearing Ryota Kudo praise him like that did Hanamichi Sakuragi break into a broad grin. Even Kudo, who easily beat Kaede Rukawa, praises me like that. I really am a genius.
Hikoichi Aida was even more shocked by this news. He was a little worried about whether Ryonan could actually beat a Shohoku team like this.
Not far from Shohoku High School was a pork cutlet restaurant that served very good food. Ryota Kudo and the other two went inside and sat down.
There was a menu on the table. A basic pork cutlet rice bowl cost 800 yen (this was a long time ago, so converting it into Chinese yuan is meaningless-roughly 1 yuan).
Ryota Kudo and Hikoichi Aida were fine, but Hanamichi Sakuragi's expression turned grim. He had searched all his pockets and found only 100 yen, not even enough to order a single pork cutlet rice bowl.
"Why don't you two eat? I'm not that hungry."
No sooner had he said that than the aroma of pork cutlets made Hanamichi Sakuragi's stomach betray him with a growl.
How could Hanamichi Sakuragi not be hungry right now? Having just finished an intense training session, he was hungry enough to eat an elephant.
Seeing Hanamichi Sakuragi's embarrassment, Ryota Kudo waved to the owner and called out, "Three deluxe pork cutlet rice bowls over here, please!"
"Sure, coming right up!" the owner replied warmly.
Only after ordering did Ryota Kudo say quietly, "I'm the one who invited you here today, so of course it's my treat. Just eat as much as you like."
"You're treating me too? I couldn't possibly!" Hikoichi Aida blushed with embarrassment. He hadn't expected Ryota Kudo's offer to include him.
"It's fine. We're friends, aren't we? You can treat us when we're at Ryonan. We won't hold back then."
Unlike the generous Chinese, people in Japan weren't in the habit of treating others. Friends generally split the bill when they went out for a meal.
But Ryota Kudo didn't care about such details. Money mattered little to him. Basketball was his everything.
Soon, the deluxe rice bowls arrived, piled with extra pork cutlets. After offering his thanks, Hanamichi Sakuragi began wolfing down his food, saying between bites how delicious the pork cutlet rice was.
Though Ryota Kudo ate much more elegantly, he ate quickly too.
Only Hikoichi Aida looked a little troubled by the small mountain of pork cutlet rice in front of him. He probably... couldn't finish this much.
Half an hour later, the three of them left the pork cutlet restaurant with full stomachs.
Ryota Kudo and Hanamichi Sakuragi were fine, with the portions having been just enough to fill them up. Hikoichi Aida, however, had forced himself to finish his bowl and was now unbearably stuffed.
Standing at the intersection where they would part ways, Hikoichi Aida bowed earnestly. "Goodbye, Kudo, Sakuragi. Thank you for the pork cutlet rice tonight."
"Goodbye, Manager Aida. See you tomorrow." Ryota Kudo waved goodbye to Hikoichi Aida, and Hanamichi Sakuragi laughed heartily as he said his farewells too.
Hikoichi Aida remained at the intersection until Ryota Kudo and Hanamichi Sakuragi disappeared from view. Only then did he turn and walk toward Ryonan.
As he walked, Hikoichi Aida took out his notebook and wrote that the members of the Shohoku Basketball Team were all very friendly.
Soon, it was the following afternoon. As Coach Anzai had arranged, all the members of the Shohoku Basketball Team made their own way to Ryonan High School.
The game was scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Half an hour beforehand, the entire Shohoku Basketball Team had assembled at the gates of Ryonan High School.
Unlike Shohoku High School, which was a public school, Ryonan High School was a private school.
Private high school tuition was considerably higher than public high school tuition, and naturally, the surroundings inside were much more attractive too.
Not long after they entered the campus, Ryonan High School's basketball gym came into view. This gym was also much better than Shohoku High School's.
None of that mattered, though. No one from Shohoku paid any attention to it. In the end, basketball still came down to a team's strength.
Before you continue