Chapter 108 : Before the Game

It was finally a day before the game against Yosen, when Furihata found himself back in Seirn's court, yet still with the same treatment. No one dares to initiate contact with him, whether it is unconsciously or not. Fortunately, though, he is allowed to join the training session, so he doesn't have enough time to get depressed like yesterday.

"Furihata-kun!"

The voice of someone called him snapped his thought. He was a bit surprised, as he thought he was still in isolation. When he turned around to see the source of the voice, it was Alex, the newest coach here, who gave him a small smile while waving her hand to invite him to get closer.

"What's up, Alex-san?"

"Just want to ask, are you okay?"

Furihata pondered for a second, thinking about what to say. At first, he wanted to make sarcastic remarks toward the blonde woman. However, he held back his tongue, as the older woman had been nothing but nice toward him since the beginning.

After a few seconds, he cringed inwardly, answering her question, "Not bad, Alex-san. It could have been better, yet I am glad it is not as bad as I think it would be."

"And why do you think you would receive worse treatment than what they did to you right now?"

"I don't know." Furihata shrugged. "Maybe because the golden boy himself didn't receive the same harsh treatment as me? With only a slap on his wrist, everything is back to normal for him. I just thought if he demands I got worse punishment, everyone would deliver it in a silver plate happily."

Alex grimaced a little. Even though Furihata didn't say the name, she knew who he meant as the golden boy.

"Speaking of that….." Alex hesitated a little. "I am very sorry about Tiger-chan! I don't know what happened that day. Usually, he would be on fire when I compared him to Tatsuya. But I didn't expect him to get aggressive and throw a punch first at you."

Alex's anxiety grows when she didn't hear anything from Furihata for about a few seconds. But it didn't last long, as Furihata finally opened his mouth, speaking slowly.

"And you apologized to me, why?"

"Because Tiger-chan is my responsibility," Alex replied almost automatically. "His parents are busy people, and they asked me to take care of him since he was little. If he did something wrong, it would be my responsibility to straighten him up."

Furihata's mouth twitched a little. "I appreciate your apologies, Alex-san. But it wouldn't matter if Red didn't think he was wrong in the first place."

Alex's shoulder slumped as she knew about that too. The root of this problem is Kagami. If he didn't approach first and clear the air, no matter how harsh punishment the team issued, it wouldn't matter. The air around the team would always be this tense.

"I…" Alex seemed to want to say something but hesitated a little. "I will also talk to Riko-chan. This unfair treatment…. You don't deserve it."

Furihata looked a bit surprised for a second before he gave his coach a soft smile, bowing his head respectfully.

"Thank you, Coach. I really appreciate it."

And with that, he left the woman alone, going back to join the training silently.

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Coaching a young team like Seirin is not a foreign thing for Alex Garcia. After she retired from the WNBA due to her gruesome injury, she trained several young teams in America, and some even won a tournament or two. So, it is not her first time facing such a teenage drama like this.

However, this time, she is a bit helpless, because the instigator of the conflict is…. Well, she could say Kagami is her apprentice. She taught him everything about basketball since he was a child. But sometimes, she forgot that Kagami's temperament was honed in America, where he faced a lot of racism treatments because of his race.

Honestly, this was not Kagami's first time solving his problem with his fist. The first time it happened, some high schoolers teased him mercilessly, calling him an Asian monkey who couldn't jump. That is why until today, Kagami would insist on training his explosive jump to be the best, just to prove those boys wrong.

However, unlike that time, right now, it was completely Kagami's fault. He let his emotions control his actions, and now, it creates a rift between one of the best players here with the entire team.

Looking at the lonely back of Furihata who, instead of making a fuss about his unfair treatment, chose to endure it silently just for the sake of the team, she couldn't help but want to pat his shoulder, telling him that everything would be okay. But she is sure that false comfort is not something that Furihata wanted to hear.

After pondering for a few seconds, Alex sighed tiredly as she murmured,

'I think, it is time to take over this team….'

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A day later, they are back in Tokyo Gymnasium once again, ready for another game.  They were gathering around as Riko is about to start speaking.

"Okay, everyone! Listen here!" She began to speak. "This might be your first time in the national, but it might also be your last. Just remember how hard you fight to get into this position, do more than your best, and leave with no regret!"

"Yes, Coach!"

"Good!" Riko nodded. "Izuki-kun, Junpei, Kuroko-kun, Kagami-kun, and Teppei, you will be our main roster today.  Don't show any hesitation, and show them you deserve to be here!"

"Yes, Coach!"

Unknown to everyone, Hyuga frowned disapprovingly toward Riko, remembering the talk after Furihata and Kagami's fight.

'Did she forget how she talked about being fair and punishing them both? Why is Kagami-kun playing then?'

Hyuga glanced a little from the corner of his eyes at Furihata, afraid of his reaction. However, what he saw is just a blank face, not giving any hint about what the first-year point guard felt right now. In the end, he shook his head, trying to focus back on his coach.

'Let's not think about it right now. If I raised the issue right now, it would create a bigger ruckus, and I am not sure we can hold back Kagami-kun from another outburst.'

"Just to remind you all, avoid going to the paint area! They have two best interior defenders there, so, try to exploit the space between them. And don't provoke your opponent unnecessarily. Do you understand?" She turned around at the red-haired power forward for the last part, knowing that he is probably the only one who want to do that.

"Tch."

Feeling everyone's eyes directed at him, Kagami clicked his tongue in annoyance, yet didn't say anything to refute the issue. Seeing that reaction, Riko showed her displeasure, glaring at the red-haired boy for a few seconds until he gave up.

"Okay, okay!" Kagami twitched his eyebrows in irritation. "I won't provoke anyone, and I will also try to avoid the paint. Happy?"

"Very," Riko answered flatly before she changed the topic. Furihata just rolled his eyes while having a dark thought about this situation.

'He always disrespected her on every occasion, and nothing has been done toward his attitude. Yet if that was done by the other players, there would be no hesitation to punish them hard. What a blatant favoritism.'

"Back to the business, remember who you need to watch other than Murasakibara and Tatsuya! First, their small forward, number #11, Wei Liu. He is a transfer student from China."

Now, it got Furihata's attention.

"He is the bridge between their offense and defense. A very tough guy who wouldn't stop running until the ball went outside of the court. Not a player who will score a lot or show in a highlight, but he is probably the most important part of the team. He is the one who did all the invisible work; such as running, creating space, screening, or even attracting your reactions. Be careful not to get fooled by his every movement, because his teammates would be able to exploit it if you are careless."

Furihata nodded his head, sending a glance toward the other side of the court where all the Yosen players gathered.

"Then we have Kensuke Fukui, their point guard. He is smart, fast, and likes to poke the ball from the opponent's hand. Izuki, you have to be careful about him. His steal per game is 3.1, higher than everyone on our team."

"Yes, Coach." The second-year point guard nodded solemnly.

"And finally, their captain, Kenichi Okamura." There, they all stole a glance toward Yosen's number #4, the second tallest person on the court besides Midorima. "He is the best combination of Otsubo-san from Shutoku and Iwamura-san from Seiho, a beast on the offense, yet unbreakable in the defense. Honestly, if not for the Generation of Miracles, he would be the best defensive player of the tournament right now."

Several players gulped nervously as they found one thing that always appeared on all the Yosen players' assessments.

"So…." Hyuga speaks cautiously. "To sum it up, they are a bunch of tough bastards who wouldn't give us a chance to score easily, right?

"Yeah." Riko nodded solemnly, which caused a sudden wave of depression to hit the team. "But don't worry too much about it! Just remember, we are also one of the strongest offensive teams in this tournament. Just believe in yourself, and remember all the sweat and hard work in the past wouldn't betray you. So, show me your strongest performance out here!"

"Yes, Coach!"

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Five minutes before the game began, Furihata took this moment to go outside, and took a deep breath as he went to the restroom. While he didn't say anything other than 'Yes Coach' on the team, he still couldn't hide his displeasure at the silent treatment he received right now.

'Tch.. One of the best offensive teams my ass.. They wouldn't be able to do it without me.'

Yeah.. Right now, Furihata is thinking of all of his achievements since he joined Seirin, just to make himself feel better. However, he didn't expect he would bump into someone as he left the restroom.

*Brugh!*

"I am sorry!"

"I am sorry!"

Even though it was a small bump, Furihata bowed his head immediately. Unexpectedly, it was mirrored by the person he bumped into. When Furihata raised his head, he could see a handsome guy with a bang covering his right eye and a radiant smile that showed his warm temperament bowed down at him. But when he saw the words 'Yosen High' on the purple jacket the guy wears, he finally realized who is this guy.

"Tatsuya Himuro?"

Hearing his name, the guy in front of him also raised his head immediately, and surprisingly, he also recognized Furihata.

"Kouki Furihata? What are you doing here?"

They both were startled for a few seconds before chuckling simultaneously.

"Hoho… I didn't expect I would meet up with the star of the opponent team this early." Tatsuya threw a joke. "Are you playing today?"

Furihata's expression turned sour at his question.

"Not really. I am just a bench member."

Tatsuya raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Really? You, who are the core of Seirin's offense, are just a bench member? Is Seirin really that strong?"

Furihata fell into silence, not knowing how to answer. After a few seconds, he finally found the best way to answer that question to Tatsuya.

"Well, our coach seems to believe Kagami more than me…."

At that, Tatsuya sneered disdainfully, surprising Furihata a bit. Tatsuya seems to be a polite guy, so he didn't expect he would receive that kind of expression from Yosen's shooting guard.

"You mean Alex-san still playing favorite?"

Even though Furihata didn't know what Tatsuya meant, he could guess that he had a bad history with Alex and Kagami. However, Furihata feels obliged to defend his coach right now.

"No, not really." He shook his head. "Alex-san hasn't even taken over the team yet. I think she would do it after the tournament is over."

"So, it was your coach, the second-year girl, who favored him this time, huh?" Tatsuya came to a conclusion immediately. He didn't need to wait for any verbal answer from Furihata, as Furihata's expression showed everything he needed. "As expected of him, still being coach's pet whenever he goes."

Yeah, there is definitely animosity between those two players.

"Well, it doesn't matter." Tatsuya shook his head. "I am sorry, Furihata-san. Whether it is you or him, I will not hesitate to defeat all of you. So, I apologize, because today, your journey will end in our hands." And with that, he patted Furihata's shoulder, walking away, back to the court.

However, he was stopped once again by Furihata's voice.

"Himura-san…" Seirin's point guard spoke slowly. "If you want to beat us, do me a favor and beat him hard enough to knock him down to earth."

Furihata didn't need to say who is he talking about, as Tatsuya also knew about it. In the end, Tatsuya just gave him a word,

"Sure.."

And he walked away, leaving Furihata alone with his thoughts.

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Author note :

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You can also read this fanfiction up to chapter 128 on that page. Thank you! :)

-Zeta Faes-