Kawamoto Kazuki met Akagi's gaze without another word.
He simply gave a slight but utterly firm nod.
"Good!"
Akagi swept his arm fiercely, as though cutting away all their dejection and doubt.
"Get moving, all of you! Warm up! Extra practice! Every drop of sweat you shed in frustration today means one less tear of humiliation in tomorrow's game!"
"Shohoku's goal has never been to sit here wallowing in self-pity!"
"Yes, Captain!"
Their shouts were uneven, but fierce.
Sakuragi was the first to charge out, howling.
Kaede Rukawa silently picked up the ball at his feet and walked toward the nearest basket.
Kogure took a deep breath, pushed up his glasses, and followed.
Though Satoru Kakuta had not opened his eyes, he returned to the court along with the other substitutes.
Watching the team get moving again, Takenori Akagi felt the fire in his chest burn more fiercely than before.
He glanced at Kawamoto Kazuki, who had already begun running monotonous shuttle runs.
Then he glanced at Hanamichi Sakuragi, who was practicing shots as though competing with Kaede Rukawa.
The strongest lineup...
Limitless possibilities...
The dream of conquering the nation...
These thoughts swelled wildly in his heart.
The road would never be smooth. It might even be covered in thorns.
But this time, those standing behind him were no longer teammates who needed to rely on him.
They were kindred spirits to whom even he could entrust his dream.
Train. Train to death...
Sweat until there was nothing left...
They had to grow stronger!
Strong enough to reclaim what they had lost tenfold, a hundredfold!
Strong enough to make Shohoku's name ring through the skies of Kanagawa and across the courts of the national tournament!
Shohoku's ambition was fully ignited amid the embers of this crushing defeat.
Takenori Akagi's thunderous shouts kept echoing through the spacious gym.
"One more set! Squats! Legs giving out? Think about today's defeat! Kakuta, watch your form! Yasuda, run! Sakuragi! Another hundred shots!"
Hanamichi Sakuragi held up the basketball with aching wrists, sweat pattering onto the floor like rain.
He muttered things like "damn Gorilla" and "trying to work this genius to death."
But he did not dare let his body slacken in the slightest.
Meanwhile, Kawamoto Kazuki quietly performed stretches and core exercises nearby.
His movements were precise and focused, highly efficient, forming a subtle contrast to the atmosphere of gritted teeth and desperate endurance around him.
The extra practice finally ended before sunset.
When Takenori Akagi dismissed them, almost all the players collapsed onto the floor.
Even Kaede Rukawa was bent over with his hands on his knees, panting, a rare sight.
Akagi himself was breathing heavily too.
But the fire in his eyes had not diminished at all.
He knew this was only the beginning.
Kawamoto Kazuki packed his things, glanced at the timer, and prepared to leave.
This was his unshakable time for work.
"Kawamoto!"
Hanamichi Sakuragi scrambled to his feet, hastily wiped his face with his hand, and chased after him. "Wait for me!"
Kawamoto kept walking, considerably slowing his steps toward the basketball gym.
Sakuragi hurried to catch up, chattering nonstop. "Which place today? The fish market or the convenience store? This genius is really strong now. Moving goods won't be a problem! It's just that Gorilla worked my legs a little weak today..."
The two walked out through the school gates, the setting sun stretching their shadows long.
Kawamoto suddenly stopped and turned to look at Sakuragi's eager face.
"Sakuragi, starting today, you don't need to come to work with me anymore."
Kawamoto's voice left no room for argument.
"Huh?!"
The excitement froze on Sakuragi's face. "W-why? Didn't we agree on an equivalent exchange? I help you work, and you teach me basketball! This genius keeps his word!"
"The equivalent exchange is already complete."
Kawamoto looked at Sakuragi and stated calmly, "The work you've helped me finish these past few days is already enough to pay for the basic skills I taught you, so we're even."
"But..."
Sakuragi grew anxious, scratching his red hair. "But this genius still has loads to learn! That behind-the-back dribble, and the pull-up jumper, and..."
"Sakuragi."
Kawamoto interrupted him, a rare trace of seriousness in his eyes. "Listen. The prefectural tournament is about to begin."
Sakuragi froze.
"The most important thing for you right now isn't helping me move goods or wiping shelves at a convenience store."
Kawamoto spoke clearly, one word at a time. "It's training. Make the most of every moment, keep up with Captain Akagi's schedule, fill in all the fundamentals you're missing, and understand the team's tactics."
"All your free time, every minute, every second, has to go toward basketball."
Sakuragi opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but heard Kawamoto continue:
"I don't know whether I'm a good judge of people."
Sakuragi held his breath. His instincts told him that what Kawamoto was about to say mattered.
"But I think," Kawamoto's gaze settled on Sakuragi's face, full of refusal to admit defeat, and he said slowly, "you have the potential to become a professional basketball player."
"A p-professional basketball player?!"
Sakuragi's eyes went perfectly round, and even his voice changed pitch.
He had never imagined those words could have anything to do with him.
A professional?
Wasn't that something only guys like Kaede Rukawa thought about?
Kawamoto nodded, neither explaining nor encouraging, merely stating a possibility he had observed. "Your physique, your athletic talent, certain qualities of yours-those are things many people could never obtain even through a lifetime of hard training. I hope you don't waste them."
He paused and looked up at the distant sky, stained red by the sunset, his voice dropping a little:
"The most important thing in a person's life is finding a world of their own."
"A world worth pouring all your passion, your sweat, even your life into fighting for."
He withdrew his gaze and looked at Sakuragi again.
Deep within those always tranquil eyes, a fleeting gleam seemed to flash.
It held a depth Sakuragi could not understand.
"Hanamichi Sakuragi..."
"I hope your world is the same as mine..."
"Basketball."
With that, Kawamoto did not linger or look at Sakuragi's reaction. He walked alone into the sunset-soaked street.
Hanamichi Sakuragi stood rooted to the spot, watching Kawamoto's back disappear around the corner, those words echoing over and over in his ears.
The most important thing in a person's life is finding a world of their own.
Your world is the same as mine-basketball.
A professional basketball player?
A world of my own?
Basketball?
He lowered his head and looked at his large hands, which had developed thin calluses from days of work and training.
For the first time, he began seriously considering what basketball truly meant to him.
This had nothing to do with liking it. It was something deeper.
Was basketball Kawamoto Kazuki's world?
Was that why he never gave up, even though he had to work so many jobs?
A determination unlike anything he had ever felt slowly welled up in Sakuragi's heart.
He clenched his fists, then slowly relaxed them.
The sun sank completely below the horizon, leaving only a final trace of crimson in the sky.
Hanamichi Sakuragi abruptly turned and sprinted toward Shohoku's basketball gym.
"Basketball... this genius's world..."
His murmur drifted through the wind, indistinct yet firm.