Sakuragi retorted, "You guys are the weirdos!"
Kiyota: "You are!"
The two were arguing fiercely.
Aoki lay on the bed and sighed, watching Rukawa fall asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, feeling incredibly envious. He wondered how long those two would keep arguing.
Having no other option, Aoki changed the subject. " Kiyota, which team did you face in the national tournament finals?"
Kiyota said resentfully, "It's Hakata Shodai Affiliated!"
It was them after all! Aoki thought to himself. When he was browsing the internet before, many people guessed that Hakata Shodai would win the championship in the end, and now it seems that they were right.
"Can you tell us what's going on with this team?" Aoki asked.
Kiyota pondered for a moment and said, "Well, how should I put it, that Hakata Shodai team is really weird!"
"They actually have two centers in their starting lineup!" Kiyota recalled. One of them was about the same Takasago, around 1.9 meters, and he was incredibly good at scoring, and could also shoot three-pointers. He was a bit like the center from your Takezato.
"You've got something! The national tournament is truly full of hidden talents!" Aoki smiled.
The other center is the opposite, also around 1.9 meters tall, but his offense is weak while his interior defense is incredibly tough.
Aoki turned to Sakuragi and said, "This trait is quite similar to yours."
Sakuragi patted his chest and declared, "From now on, you'll call me the invincible Hanamichi Sakuragi, haha!"
Kiyota scoffed, "You're nowhere near that guy's level."
"You guys don't know, this center is incredibly strong, he's not inferior to Hiroshi Morishige," Kiyota said with lingering fear.
Hiroshi Morishige? Upon hearing this name, Sakuragi sat bolt upright; he knew the name all too well.
He had previously gone to Aichi Prefecture with Shinichi Maki and Kiyota to watch a game, and at that time Hiroshi Morishige had really impressed Sakuragi.
So, Meihou Industrial has been defeated by Hakata Shodai? Yo Aoki asked.
"That's right! It was those two centers who kept Hiroshi Morishige that made it possible to take him down," Kiyota chimed in.
Meihou Industrial is a team that relies on one person to carry it. When you encounter them, as long as you can limit Hiroshi Morishige, you can basically win.
Take Aiwa Academy for example. If Dai Moroboshi hadn't been injured, Meihou wouldn't have even gotten tenth place in Aichi Prefecture.
Kiyota continued, "And their power forward, who's 1.98 meters tall, is even taller than their center."
What's most amazing about this guy is his long arms; he doesn't even need to jump under the basket, he can almost touch the rim with just a raised hand.
Kiyota suddenly felt a tickle in his teeth; Hakata Shodai guard was ADHD.
This guy goes crazy as soon as he steps onto the court, catching the ball and shooting immediately, with an incredibly high shooting percentage, like a bouncy rabbit. Yo Aoki secretly rejoices; it seems Kiyota has suffered quite a few defeats at the hands of this kid.
Finally, there's the point guard. Kiyota suddenly became serious. That guy is exactly like Sannoh's Kazunari Fukatsu. No matter what the team's situation is, his performance is always incredibly stable, and he can explode in the most crucial moments.
This guy has a big heart and can score in crucial moments; he's definitely a top player.
Kiyota, it's rare to see someone who can compliment others? Yo Aoki was a little surprised. "Tch, do you think I'm that kind of arrogant fool?"
Yo Aoki pondered for a moment, then spoke, "So, Hakata Shodai is a team with a very strong defense?"
Not really. Maki broke through their defenses several times, but I always felt awkward fighting them; I couldn't muster any strength. Kiyota scratched his head.
Yo Aoki stroked his chin thoughtfully. It seemed that Hakata Shodai Affiliated was particularly good at controlling the pace. He needed to find an opportunity to watch their recordings and prepare in advance.
Over the next few days, Takato Coach Taoka pushed the training intensity to the limit, making it a veritable hellish experience.
Apart from Yo Aoki and a few others, everyone else was almost at their breaking point. Even so, Yo Aoki would still voluntarily do extra training after finishing his regular practice.
This made everyone look at him with new respect; it turns out that ability and hard work really are proportional.
Actually, when Yo Aoki first started practicing, there were some people who were unwilling to admit defeat who followed him, but after a few days, only Shinichi Maki was left to practice with him.
Sakuragi could have practiced extra, but he and Kiyota ate too much and got stomach aches, so the two of them had to "practice" in the toilet.
These past few days, Coach Takato has been hesitantly mentioning to Yo Aoki that Kainan wants to poach him.
Yo Aoki smiled and politely declined Takato's invitation.
Just when Yo Aoki thought Kainan wouldn't contact him again, a skinny guy wearing glasses blocked his way outside the classroom right after class that day.
"Aoki -kun, I'm Arimori, the principal of Kainan University Affiliated High School. Do you have time to chat for a bit?" "Sure. "Yo Aoki nodded.
Arimori smiled warmly, " Aoki, are you settling in well here? What are your impressions of Kainan?" "I'm settling in well, it's quite nice here."
Arimori didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "On behalf of Kainan University Affiliated High School, I sincerely invite you to join us."
Kainan is home to top-tier basketball schools nationwide, with comprehensive facilities and scientific training programs. If you come here, you're sure to become a top-tier basketball star in the country.
Yo Aoki had heard this kind of talk many times, so he didn't agree directly. Instead, he asked Arimori in return.
Principal Arimori, I also have a question. If we meet in the summer qualifiers next year, are you confident you can beat Takezato?
Principal Arimori paused, about to speak, when Yo Aoki immediately waved his hand, "You don't need to answer. The answer is obvious. If you were confident of beating Takezato, why would you be poaching me?"
Arimori wasn't annoyed and still smiled, saying, "If you join Kainan, we'll give you a monthly living allowance." Yo Aoki chuckled, "My family isn't short of money; we don't need that."
Arimori, still not giving up, played his last card. "Aoki -kun, I can guarantee that if you come to Kainan, you'll be directly admitted to Kainan University."
There's a saying about the college entrance exam in this area, "Four hours of sleep a month guarantees success, five hours a day guarantees failure." It's an exaggeration, but it illustrates just how difficult the exam is here.
That's why Akagi gave up the Winter Selection Tournament and focused on preparing for the exam.
Principal Arimori's conditions are extremely generous for most people, but Yo Aoki is clearly not an ordinary person.
He smiled and said, "Principal Arimori, forgive my arrogance, but with my abilities, getting into university is no problem. I won't join Kainan because of this."
Everyone has things they want, you said, and we'll try our best to fulfill them. Yo Aoki chuckled, "A sense of belonging! Can you give me that?"
Of course! As long as you join us! Yo Aoki shook his head. "Principal Arimori, you're just a businessman!" Then, in a firm tone, "I won't leave Takezato. You can find someone else!"
As soon as the staff member from Kainan finished speaking, Yo Aoki turned and walked towards the classroom. At the same time, on the other side of the teaching building, Yuki was pulling Kaede Rukawa along, doing the same thing as the person who had just spoken.
" Rukawa, we met before, and you declined our invitation then. We're back today to ask you to consider joining the Kainan Team. Shohoku hasn't even made it to the top eight in the national tournament yet, but Kainan just finished second in Kanagawa. Our goal next year is the national championship!"
Yuki talked non-stop for almost five minutes, but Kaede Rukawa stared blankly at the ground for a long time before finally speaking.
"Why did I refuse you last time? I've forgotten."
"Because it's too far from home!" Yuki's face twitched instantly, and he managed to squeeze out this sentence.
"Oh," Rukawa responded, repeating, "Because it's too far from home!"
Yuki was stunned on the spot, his expression as if he had seen a ghost.
With a loud "bang," Kurosawa slammed his hand on the desk, cursing angrily, "Those two arrogant idiots!"
He had just learned from Arimori and Yuki the whole process of recruiting Yo Aoki and Rukawa. The Kainan Team went to great lengths to poach these two, and even made a special effort to contact Kainan University to reserve admission spots for them.
This sincerity is more than enough, but these two actually threw away the benefits that were offered to them! Yo Aoki's reason for refusing was somewhat understandable, but Rukawa, that guy, actually refused just because it's far from home? This is simply humiliating us!
Principal Arimori, however, didn't show his anger on his face, and still smiled as he advised, " Kurosawa, don't get agitated. We expected to be rejected."
Kurosawa sneered, "But I didn't expect them to be so ungrateful!"
"It's normal for young people to have high aspirations," Principal Arimori chuckled twice.
" Arimori- senpai, what should we do next?" Yuki took a drag of his cigarette and slowly exhaled.
Principal Arimori pulled a piece of paper from the file box on the table. "Since the first plan has fallen through, let's activate the second plan." He handed the paper to Kurosawa: "Take a look at this list of alternative recruits."
Kurosawa took the list, glanced at it, and frowned, saying, "Only Miyagi and Fukuda are worth mentioning on this list; the rest are even worse than that kid Kiyota!"
Yuki leaned over, snatched the list, glanced at it, and smirked. "Does the principal mean to poach the core players from the other teams?"
Principal Arimori tapped the table with his knuckles. "Basketball is a team sport. Even a top player like Aoki didn't make it to the national tournament, did he?"
Kurosawa pursed his lips, clearly disagreeing with this approach; it was too roundabout. His idea was to focus on recruiting top-tier players, and if there weren't enough within the prefecture, to look in neighboring prefectures!
"So when do we make our move?" Yuki asked.
"No rush, let's wait until the Autumn National Sports Festival are over before making a move."
The list prominently displayed several names: Ryota Miyagi from Shohoku, Kiccho Fukuda, Hiroaki Koshino, Tomoyuki Uekusa from Ryonan, and Tomoya Imamura and Shunya Hojo from Takezato...
In the coaches' office at Kainan High School, Coach Takato Coach Taoka sat facing each other, drinking tea.
" Takato, why do you look so preoccupied?" Taoka asked, noticing Takato's absent-minded appearance.
"It's a little worrying, but nothing serious," Takato smiled.
"That's good." Taoka didn't think much of it, took a sip of tea, and said, "There's something I need to tell you. Our opponents for the warm-up matches have been decided."
"Which team did you choose, senior?" Takato asked.
Taoka has always been in charge of selecting opponents for the warm-up matches. In the past few years, Taoka has traveled all over the country to strengthen the team, and no one knows the details of the teams in each region better than him.
"It's the Chiba Prefecture Representative Team, which isn't far from Kanagawa!"
" Chiba?" Takato pondered for a moment, " Urayasu Commercial made it to the quarterfinals of this year's Summer League, so their strength should be decent."
" Chiba Team is a mixed team like us, mainly composed of players from Urayasu Commercial and Tomifusa. They also want to hone their skills through matches. Other teams are either too weak or too far away, so Chiba is the most suitable choice right now. Moreover, they were the first school to proactively call us to arrange a warm-up match," Taoka added.
When is the match scheduled?
They want it to happen as soon as possible!
Takato glanced at the calendar on the wall. "Then just tell them we'll arrive in Kanagawa the day after tomorrow morning."
"Okay, I'll arrange it as soon as possible."
Taoka suddenly looked at Takato seriously. "Now can you tell me your starting lineup?"
"Of course." Takato chuckled. "However, I won't be using this lineup in the starting lineup for this warm-up match."
With only a little over ten days left until the opening of the Autumn National Sports Festival, the fifteen players on the Kanagawa Representative Team are gradually developing a rapport, but everyone is still wondering which five will make the starting lineup.