"Judging from the coach's face, that Miracle Generation guy must have insane stats, huh?"
"Well, obviously! Teiko dominated middle school basketball for four straight championships."
As the group whispered among themselves, Riko Aida wiped away the drool threatening to spill from her lips. She scanned the lineup with gleaming eyes — with Haizaki being the last one, this round of body evaluations would finally be over.
And indeed
Just as expected.
Aside from Kagami and Haizaki, everyone else was at an average level.
Then suddenly
"Hey, Kitchen Killer, you forgot someone, didn't you?" Haizaki frowned, glancing at Riko with an unimpressed look before nudging her lightly with his elbow.
"Haizaki…" Riko raised an eyebrow. "I know we're familiar with each other, but I'm still your coach at Seirin. Want me to call Captain Nijimura?"
Haizaki froze instantly at the mention of Nijimura the Berserker. "Alright, alright, Coach Aida, fair point… But seriously, did you just forget about Teiko's Phantom Sixth Man standing right there?!"
"Eh?"
"EHH?!"
Riko blinked, then suddenly smacked her forehead. "Wait, what?! How could I forget someone that important… Kuroko Tetsuya! Did you just use misdirection on me?!"
Even though Kuroko was standing right in front of her, Riko simply couldn't see him.
Until
"Um… Coach, I'm right here."
"And I didn't use misdirection…"
"..."
Riko stared blankly, then a bead of cold sweat slid down her cheek. Finally, she marched forward and grabbed Kuroko's cheeks, tugging them furiously.
"Liar! I was supposed to be immune to your presence already!"
"Wha—what?!"
"When did he even get here?!"
"His presence is that low?!"
The new recruits gawked at him, unable to believe how they'd completely missed the quiet blue-haired boy standing among them.
"Wait a sec… Did he just say Phantom Sixth Man?"
"Eh?! Isn't that also a member of the Generation of Miracles?!"
All the rookies turned toward Kuroko in shock.
The Phantom Sixth Man of the Generation of Miracles?!
This ordinary-looking guy?! No way!
Riko hesitated for a moment. She already knew about Kuroko's special characteristics, and honestly, she didn't expect much from his physical stats.
"Kuroko, go ahead and take off your shirt."
To her surprise, Kuroko's body wasn't as frail as she imagined. His stats were still low, but at least at average level. For someone like him, that must've taken a lot of effort.
Riko gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder.
"Not bad!"
Kagami and Haizaki were left speechless — Riko's only positive evaluation out of all the rookies went to this guy?!
"Heh, as expected from someone in the Generation of Miracles," said Kawahara. "He looks ordinary, but he must be crazy strong in ways we can't tell."
"…Maybe," Fukuda muttered. Though to him, Kuroko barely looked 170 cm tall — was he even that?
Meanwhile, Kagami kept sneaking glances at Kuroko. He remembered filling out the club application and being shocked by the name even then, but still forgot about him right after.
As he thought back to the street court last year — when he'd first run into these guys — Kuroko's performance that night was… unforgettable.
Even though Akihito had tried to explain, Kagami hadn't understood a word of it. All he knew was that Kuroko could make the ball disappear.
And that alone was terrifying.
He could still picture it clearly.
Of course, it wasn't just Kuroko.
That entire night — that game, that presence of Akihito and Nijimura — had pushed Kagami to fly back to the U.S. during vacation, to train under Alex with grueling focus.
…
After the new members finished their forms and physical assessments, the meeting ended. The official team practice would begin tomorrow.
Later that day
At a burger joint after school, Kagami sat down with a mountain of burgers, calm and composed, even as people around him stared in disbelief.
The Generation of Miracles, huh…
He'd heard there were seven of them. Add Akihito Shigure and Nijimura Shuzo — the so-called Twin Stars — and that made nine monsters total.
If it's them… maybe
"Uwahhh!!"
Kagami almost jumped out of his seat when Kuroko suddenly appeared beside him like a ghost.
"Hello… you eat a lot, huh…"
"Who are you calling a pig?!" Kagami spun around, glaring — only to see Haizaki dropping his tray next to Kuroko with a bored smirk.
Kuroko, sipping on his drink, calmly said, "Actually, I was sitting here first, Kagami. I'm observing humans."
"…"
Observing humans?!
What the hell does that mean?!
Kagami buried his irritation and looked toward Haizaki.
Moments later
At the nearby street court, the three stood beneath the lights.
"I was in America until my second year of middle school," Kagami began, scratching his head. "When I came back, I realized how far behind I was. What I wanted wasn't ordinary basketball — I wanted games that made my blood boil. That's when I met you guys — and Akihito, Nijimura. That's when I knew there were monsters like you out there."
"I can kinda tell how strong someone is by instinct. Strong guys have this unique aura. Except Kuroko… he's weird — no aura at all. It's like…" Kagami frowned. "Like strength without scent."
Haizaki chuckled, tossing the ball back. "Funny, 'cause I can only smell weakness from you."
Kuroko caught the ball, tossed his uniform jacket aside, and said coolly, "Kagami, I'd like to have a match with you too."
"One-on-one."
…
The match began.
Kuroko's vanishing dribble!
Drive — layup!
Kagami's raw power — counter dunk!
Kuroko vanished again — drive! layup!
Kagami — smash dunk!
After a few rounds…
Kagami's wild instinct kicked in. Haizaki raised an eyebrow, slightly intrigued, watching Kagami's movements begin to resemble that monster Akihito's — breaking through Kuroko's invisible dribble through sheer instinct.
Then
Kuroko's vanishing shot went in cleanly!
In the end…
It was a draw.
Kagami blinked in disbelief.
He was strong — but also weak. His offense was wild, his defense practically nonexistent.
It was bizarre.
He'd never seen a player like this.
Every time Kuroko defended, Kagami's mind screamed at the contradiction.
From that vanishing dribble, to the disappearing shot, to the way his entire presence distorted the flow of play — it all made Kagami feel like he was fighting a game boss with no visible stats, only strange mechanics.
By the end, he didn't even feel like continuing. He couldn't counter that weird "disappearing shot," yet Kuroko couldn't stop his dunks either.
It felt meaningless.
Just like back at that park a year ago, when he'd been a sparring partner.
"You messing with me?! You pull off these amazing fakes, but all you've got is that one move?!"
"Tch~ One move and you still can't win, split-brow," Haizaki sneered.
Kuroko shook his head. "In a one-on-one, of course Kagami is stronger. I just wanted to see how much he's grown."
Haizaki smirked faintly. "Even with that 'wild instinct,' he's still average."
But Kuroko's glowing eyes said otherwise.
"Haizaki, Kagami might not be there yet, but he's close… almost on the level of the Generation of Miracles."
"What?" Haizaki eyed Kagami skeptically.
"…Too weak," he muttered. "Barely good enough not to drag the team down."
"Damn it!" Kagami growled.
"Then fight me right now!"
But Haizaki just waved him off, turning away.
"Tch."
Kagami's frustration boiled inside. What hurt more than Haizaki's taunts was Kuroko's serious, almost gentle tone — as if acknowledging he still wasn't enough.
"Next time, I'll beat you!" Kagami shouted. "I'll break that vanishing shot and win for sure!"
Kuroko simply replied,
"I'm different from you, Kagami. I'm a shadow."
The next day, Kagami finally understood what that meant
And along with that understanding came the realization of what Haizaki meant when he called him "ordinary."
Seirin's Intra-Squad Match — First Years vs. Second Years.
Facing the upperclassmen who had carried Seirin to the national stage in their first year, the rookies felt a chill of pressure. Only Haizaki, Kuroko, and Kagami stood calm.
At first, Kagami dominated — dunks, drives, unstoppable power.
But soon
The one guarding him changed.
Kiyoshi Teppei.
Seirin's "Iron Heart."
"The two Miracles haven't even moved yet. First-years are trailing behind — only Kagami can score, but Kiyoshi-senpai's defense is incredible!"
As Kagami's shots grew harder and his breath shorter, he missed another jumper and quickly transitioned to defense. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Haizaki and Kuroko waiting.
"Tch! I can handle this myself!"
Kagami sprinted back, leaping for a chasedown block!
"Whoa—so high!"
"Kagami's amazing!"
The rookies' morale rose again.
But Hyūga smirked. "Alright… let's turn up the pressure, huh?"
"Eh?"
"Double team?!"
"They're double-teaming him even off-ball?! They're not even letting him touch the ball!"
Very soon, the first-years were crushed — Kagami couldn't even move under Kiyoshi and Hyūga's relentless defense.
Then
Haizaki finally moved.
"I've seen enough of Seirin's strength," he muttered.
The moment he called for the ball, Kōki Furihata hesitated, then passed.
And the instant Haizaki caught it
His aura changed.
"Monster Mode…"
"Aomine!"
BOOM!
The air thickened. A wild, confident grin curved Haizaki's lips.
Behind him
Everyone swore they saw a phantom figure mirroring his every move!
Pa! Pa!
Between-the-legs dribble — sudden mis-bounce — the ball rolled away.
"Ah—whoops."
But in the blink of an eye, Haizaki spun, regained control, and blew past his defender!
Izuki's eyes widened. "What?!"
Pa!
Quick stop, crossover behind the back, accelerate!
Izuki's footing broke — he stumbled and fell!
"That's— that's Aomine's dribble?!"
END OF CHAPTER
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