Kuroko: Mahoraga - Chapter 53: The Encounter (Patreon)

Kawari had barely settled into its seats when Teiko arrived.

Less than five minutes separated the two teams. They had practically entered one after the other.

Kawari's arrival had already caused a stir.

But compared with the reaction Teiko received, the two were not even on the same level.

That only made Teiko's special status stand out even more.

And honestly, they had earned it.

Their dominance over the last several years had been overwhelming.

Teiko had long since become the final boss of junior-high basketball.

...

The Teiko players were completely unfazed by the noise around them.

They had grown used to being treated this way wherever they went.

Seijuro Akashi and Shintaro Midorima walked at the front, leading the team toward Teiko's assigned section.

The organizers had placed Teiko right beside Kawari.

Whether that was coincidence or deliberate was impossible to say.

Either way, the two teams were about to meet for the first time at the National Tournament.

When Kawari saw Teiko approaching, every player except Masato tensed up.

A person's reputation cast a long shadow.

And Teiko's reputation was simply too enormous.

There had been a time when Kawari's players could only look up at a team like this from afar.

Kenji and several others turned their heads slightly.

They pretended not to care, but their eyes kept drifting toward Teiko from the corners of their vision.

None of them wanted to accidentally meet Akashi's cold gaze.

Maybe it was just his personality, but Ishida was a little less cautious.

Even he, however, did not dare keep staring at Akashi or Midorima for long.

The presence around those two was simply too cold. They almost felt like people from another world.

Masato noticed his teammates' state of mind and only smiled.

It was perfectly normal.

They were still teenagers who had not experienced much of the world yet.

It was easy for whatever stood directly in front of them to affect their mentality.

As their experience grew, there would come a day when the world lost some of its mystique.

Until then, however, Masato had a job to do.

As captain, he needed to set the example first.

...

Teiko's players had actually noticed Kawari well before reaching them.

A few of them began talking among themselves.

“That's Kawari from Kanagawa, right?”

“Yeah. That's where Kumoi-kun transferred.”

“Did you see Masato-senpai? Is he here?”

“Yeah, Masato-senpai's the person I wanted to see most today.”

“I found him!”

“Where? Where?”

“...”

For a moment, the Teiko players buzzed with conversation.

Midorima made no effort to silence them.

Truthfully, he was curious about Masato too.

Masato's transfer had happened so suddenly that, for a long time afterward, Midorima had almost felt as though it had not been real.

As the distance between the two teams shrank to less than five meters, everyone from Teiko finally got a clear look at Masato.

He had changed a great deal.

From his physique to his entire demeanor, he looked almost like a different person from the one they remembered at Teiko.

Back then, Masato had been steady and hardworking, but he had also been the type to keep his head down and train in silence.

Now he carried himself like a true pillar of a team.

There was something about him that resembled Akashi, but the feeling was not quite the same.

Masato did not have Akashi's icy sharpness.

Instead, there was a calmness to him that seemed capable of accepting everything around him.

For a few Teiko players who had once looked up to Masato as a goal, the change was almost disorienting.

They stared for a moment, amazed by how different he had become.

Then they quickly recovered and began greeting him excitedly.

“Masato-senpai! We finally get to see you again!”

“Yeah, Kumoi-kun. I never thought we'd end up as opponents.”

“Senpai, I'm still using the training plan you followed back then. I hope I can make the first team just like you did!”

“...”

One Teiko player after another spoke up, almost as though they had run into an idol.

That reaction alone showed how shocking Masato's rise had been when he stepped over Kise and made the first team.

Even after so much time had passed, the impact remained.

It seemed his reputation had taken on a life of its own.

He'd left Teiko, but his legend lived on.

With his former teammates greeting him so warmly, including several faces he knew extremely well, Masato could hardly remain seated.

He stood, gave them a faint smile, and nodded.

“Long time no see.”

Masato had just been about to continue when an already excited Kise jumped forward.

“Hey, hey, Kumoicchi! You're seriously heartless. You just transferred without saying anything.” Kise wore an exaggerated expression as he scratched at his blond hair.

“Why'd you transfer anyway? Were you scared I'd get my revenge and beat you?”

Looking at the cheerful blond in front of him, still as energetic and ridiculous as ever, Masato almost failed to keep a straight face.

Scared Kise would beat him?

If Kise could actually manage that, Masato would be delighted.

Then he could keep using him to feed [Adaptation].

Kise had simply gotten carried away after seeing an old acquaintance and spoken before thinking.

Every Teiko player knew the record between him and Masato.

Several people behind Kise immediately failed to hold in their laughter.

A string of muffled snorts rang out behind him.

Only then did Kise realize what he had said, and he rubbed his nose awkwardly.

“Actually, I want you to master every skill you can and then come beat me,” Masato told him.

Kise's face made it obvious he did not believe a word of it.

Masato nodded seriously. “I mean it.”

Rationally, Kise was convinced Masato had to be joking.

His instincts, however, told him the guy was completely sincere.

For once, Kise had no idea what to say.

Masato looked over the Teiko group again.

They had brought around twenty players, but two members of the Generation of Miracles were missing.

“Aomine didn't come?” Masato asked.

“Yeah. Aominecchi stayed back to train.” Kise's expression became exaggerated all over again.

“You have no idea. Ever since you left, Aominecchi's turned into a complete training maniac.”

Kise shook his head in disbelief as he spoke.

It was understandable. Aomine's change had been enormous.

Masato's expression turned slightly meaningful.

“What about Murasakibara?”

“Oh, him? He just didn't feel like coming.”

“...”

After a little more casual conversation, Masato noticed that Akashi had been watching him the entire time.

He turned and met Akashi's gaze.

Neither spoke.

Even back at Teiko, the two of them had rarely interacted directly.

Among the Generation of Miracles, Akashi was the person Masato knew least well.

Even so, there had been plenty of indirect contact between them.

If Akashi had not made the final call on the starting lineup back then, Masato probably would not have decided to transfer so quickly.

And Masato's transfer had forced Akashi to reevaluate him as well.

Akashi had originally assumed that Masato, however dissatisfied he might be, would continue accepting a reserve role.

At worst, he might leave the club the way Shogo Haizaki had.

Instead, Masato had chosen something Akashi had not expected at all.

It was one of the rare occasions when Akashi's judgment had been wrong.

Even now, he still remembered the moment news of Masato's transfer reached the team.

Everyone's surprise, and the brief flash of shock he himself had felt.

Akashi still believed choosing Kise over Masato had been the correct decision at the time.

But after that day, Masato inevitably began carrying more weight in his mind.

Akashi had elevated him to the same level as the members of the Generation of Miracles.

The two held each other's gaze for a moment before giving a small nod at almost the same time.

Akashi had no intention of lingering.

The moment their captain started moving again, the rest of Teiko stopped joking around and followed.

Midorima and Kise both nodded to Masato before leaving.

Satsuki Momoi was with the team as well, but she had been standing near the back.

With so many tall players blocking the view, Masato had not noticed her earlier.

As Satsuki passed last, she raised an eyebrow at him and gave him a playful smile.

“Masa, I'm going over with everyone first.”

It was obvious the crowd made her a little self-conscious.

Masato smiled and sat back down.

...

The moment he did, every teammate around him stared at him in disbelief.

They were amazed by how calmly Masato had handled facing Teiko.

Even more than that, they were shocked by the influence he clearly still had there.

They had all seen how enthusiastically the Teiko players greeted their captain.

“Masa, that was way too cool!” Ishida's eyes were practically shining.

The rest of the team nodded immediately.

“Captain, you're awesome!”

“When am I ever going to be that calm? You don't lose your head no matter what happens.”

“Seriously, that was so cool!”

“...”

Even Masato had trouble handling that much shameless flattery.

He shook his head helplessly and cut them off.

“All right, all right. Focus. The draw's about to start.”