The basketball complex near Shibuya Station spread across the park. There were five courts, each one having dozens of people watching. Kagao stood beside his father at the edge of Court One, watching a pickup game between adults.
"See how he reads the defense?" His father said, pointing at the point guard. "Watch his eyes before he moves."
He'd been thinking about this place since last week; he wanted to play here against people who were actually good.
"Kagao!"
He turned and saw Giju, jogging towards him through the crowd.
"You made it! Dude, you gotta come see this. There's this kid our age, he's been destroying everybody all afternoon!"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, he's unbeatable. He's played like twenty-three straight games and won every single one." Giju was already pulling on Kagao's sleeve. "Even beat some adults. You have to see him."
His father was watching him. "Go ahead. I'll be here, but stay where I can see you."
"Okay."
Kagao followed Giju through the park. Court three had around thirty people. They were around the court in a circle, all focused on the 1v1 finishing up at the court.
The first thing Kagoa noticed about the kid on the court was his blue hair; he was around the same height as Kagao. His opponent was an adult who was clearly an experienced streetballer, trying to back the kid down using size advantage.
"That's him," Giju said. "Aomine."
The adult dribbled, backing toward the basket. Aomine stayed low, reading the movement. The adult tried to spin baseline - Aomine's hands zipped out, stripping the ball before the move was completed.
Aomine took the ball back to the top of the key, but the adult caught up with him with his hands up. Aomine did a crossover to the right, the adult shifted to cut him off, but Aomine hit a behind-the-back to his left hand, now he was past and dribbling, scoring a layup. The crowd cheered, with people clapping.
"What's the score?" Kagao asked.
"Nineteen-sixteen, first to twenty win."
Aomine had the ball again, and the adult looked tired and was visibly frustrated. Aomine did a simple jab step - the adult moved up slightly, and Aomine did a pull-up jumper, greening it.
Swish.
"Twenty-three-sixteen!" someone in the crowd called. "Game!"
The adult bent over, hands on his knees, catching his breath. Then straightened and offered his hand. "You got me, kid. You're good."
Aomine shook it, grinning widely. "Good game! You almost had me like three times."
"Dai-chan is the best!" A girl from the crowd yelled ecstatically.
Kagao found the girl, and she had pink hair and was looking at Aomine like he'd just won a championship.
Aomine was standing on the court, catching his breath but not really tired. He looked around the crowd, then asked, "Who's next?"
The crowd murmured. A few people exchanged glances, but nobody stepped forward immediately.
"Nobody can beat him."
"He's too fast."
Kagao walked onto the court. The crowd quieted slightly - another challenger. Aomine turned toward him, sizing him up. "Alright! You wanna play?"
"Yes."
"Cool! I'm Aomine. What's your name?"
"Ori Kagao."
"First to twenty?"
"First to twenty."
They didn't shake hands and just went straight to determining first possession using rock, paper, scissors. Kagao won, getting the ball first.
"You got this, Dai-chan!"
Aomine got into a defensive stance. "Let's see what you got."
Kagao checked the ball, and Aomine checked it back.
'Let's see,' Kagao thought.
Kagao went right, and immediately he felt it - Aomine was really fast. Kagao tried to cross back left, but Aomine moved with him. Kagao elevated for a mid-range shot- Aomine's hand came up, contesting hard.
The ball hit the rim and bounced off. Aomine grabbed the rebound. "My ball."
Aomine took it to the top of the key and did a crossover - Kagao reached, but Aomine was already past him and hit a layup.
Two-zero.
Aomine kept the ball, and this time he did an in-and-out dribble, fake drive, Kagao bit, and Aomine pulled up and shot, scoring.
Four-zero.
"Nice!" Momoi called.
Aomine grinned, looking like he was having fun. "You're good! Better than the last few guys."
Aomine dribbled at the top, reading Kagao's defensive stance. Then, a burst of speed, a straight-line drive that Kagao barely kept in front of, Aomine scored another layup.
Six-zero.
'Those handles...' Kagoa thought, still not being able to process what was going on.
Kagao scored on the next possession. He used his weight to back Aomine down and backed him down into the post, hitting a layup.
Six-Two.
Aomine countered back with a behind-the-back dribble into a spin move - Kagao couldn't track it, the ball was already gone, Aomine was at the rim, easy finish.
Eight-Two.
"Don't let him get comfortable, Dai-chan!"
Kagao posted up again and did a drop step, this time going left, and scored.
Eight-Four.
Every time Kagao scored, Aomine came right back, so in response to that, Kagao decided to try something different. He dribbled the ball at the three-point line, and Aomine closed in, but Kagoa shot before he could fully close in, swishing it.
Eight-Seven.
"Okay, so you're a shooter too," Aomine said, grinning.
Next possession, Aomine picked up the pace and blew by Kagao's contest, hitting another easy layup.
Ten-Seven
Then Aomine did something Kagao would never forget: he did a series of crossovers that broke Kagao's ankles. Kagao stumbled, his feet tangled for a second, then Aomine pulled up and hit a three.
Thirteen-Seven.
The crowd cheered with some even laughing, Kagao clenched his jaw in anger, he got up and scored the next one with a fadeaway, the move he'd practiced for hours in the backyard.
Thirteen-Nine.
Aomine got three straight possessions: stepback mid-range (Fifteen-Nine), drive with contact finish (Seventeen-Nine), and another pull-up after hesitation (Nineteen-Nine).
'He's getting faster,or I'm getting tired.' Kagoa thought. He hit a deep tree that was contested. The ball hung on the rim, then dropped through.
Nineteen-Twelve.
Kagao stood at the top of the key, panting with sweat on his forehead, with the ball in his hand. Aomine was across from him, clearly enjoying himself.
"One more!" Momoi called. "You're almost there, Dai-chan!"
Giju was watching from the sideline, looking concerned. Kagao looked at all the people watching, waiting for this blue-haired kid to win again.
'This isn't right. I'm supposed to be the one winning. I'm special. I'm the one people watch.'
He felt something in his chest, a hunger for something he couldn't name. A feeling that had been building since Aomine had been speed blitzing him.
'He's just-'
Then it happened, Kagoa saw a sphere invisible to everyone else - he knew that instinctively. A domain, ten feet in diameter, surrounded him and Aomine.
'What-'
He stood still, looking confused. 'This is that feeling,' Kagao realized. 'From P.E. during the scrimmage.'
He drove, and Aomine moved to defend - hands coming up, but something was wrong. His movement felt sluggish somehow, like he was pushing through water.
Kagao adjusted mid-drive, the ball already in his left hand. The space opened up, and Kagao hit a perfect layup.
Nineteen-Fourteen.
The ease of it stunned Kagao.
"Nice one!" Aomine said, giving Kagao a thumbs up.
Kagao had the ball again, and the domain was still there; he could feel it move whenever he moved.
He drove again, and Aomine defended hard, but his feet were just slightly too slow. Kagao blitz passed Aomine and scored a layup.
Nineteen-Sixteen.
'Everything just... works,' Kagao thought.
Aomine stole the next possession, driving hard and using his speed - the same speed that had been unbeatable all day, but something was off; his first step wasn't quite as explosive.
The ball bounced just slightly away from his hand on one dribble, which was enough to slow him down, and when he went up for the layup, Kagao's hand was there. Kagao stripped the ball away from Aomine. Kagao took the ball back, drove, and scored.
"Too slow," Kagoa said, staring Aomine dead in the eye.
Aomine looked in shock, utterly speechless.
Nineteen-Eighteen.
The crowd got quieter; they felt it too. Something was different.
"Dai-chan!" Momoi said, sounding worried.
Aomine was breathing hard now; he was not only tired as hell but also confused. 'Why can't I keep up? What's wrong with me?'
His legs felt heavy; every movement required more effort than it should. The ball didn't bounce the way he wanted too and Kagao was everywhere, always in the right place at the right time.
The pattern was clear now. Inside the domain, Kagao won because probability itself bent towards him.
Kagao had the ball again and dribbled, then did a step back, and Aomine lunged, reaching, but he was off-balance because his weight distribution was just slightly off. Kagao pulled up and shot the three-pointer.
Time seemed to freeze as the crowd held its breath. The ball dropped through the net without touching the rim.
Swish.
Twenty one-Nineteen.
Game over.
---
The crowd erupted in cheers and disbelief, with people talking over each other.
"He won!"
"The streak is over!"
"Did you see that fucking comeback?"
"From Nineteen-Twelve!"
Kagao stood with the ball in his hands, with the domain fading. He felt satisfaction unlike anything he'd felt before.
'That's what it feels like,' he thought. 'To take someone's place.'
Aomine had been the center of attention; everyone had been watching him, cheering for him, believing in him. He'd been the main actor, and Kagao had just dragged him off that spot.
The pleasure he felt was better than the praises from his teammates and even winning. Taking someone's place and watching them realize they weren't special anymore.
'I want to feel this again.'
Aomine was staring at Kagao, still looking confused. "How did you win? You weren't that good at the start."
Momoi ran onto the court. "Dai-chan, it's okay! You did so well! You played amazingly!"
Aomine didn't even turn his attention to her. "What did you do?"
"I won. That's what I did."
"I want a rematch. Right now." Aomine said with some trace of anger in his voice.
"Sure," Kagao said, chuckling. "It's going to be the same result anyway."
Aomine clenched his fists. "You-"
"Kagao."
That was his father's voice. Kagao turned and saw Yoichiro standing at the edge of the court, having pushed through the crowd.
"Time to go."
Kagao looked back at Aomine. "See you around."
He walked off the court, and Giju caught up with them as they left, "Kagao! That was insane! You were down by so much, and then you just - how did you do that? What happened? You were like a different person!"
Kagao didn't reply; his mind was elsewhere. He was replaying the moment the domain appeared.
'Whatever that domain was, it belongs to me; I'm the one everyone watches. I'm the main actor, not them.'
---
100 ps- 1 bonus chapter
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