"Pass it to me, Daiki!"
It was Saturday afternoon, and I was currently playing a three versus three basketball match with my friends. I was teamed up with Aomine and Takeo, while my sister, Ayane, was with Masachika and Tomoya on the opposing team.
"Yeah, pass it to him, Dai-chan," Ayane gave Aomine a provocative smirk. "Guess you can't even get past a girl, huh?"
"Huh? Is that a challenge?" Daiki smiled at my twin but failed to conceal the popping veins in his forehead "I'll make you eat your words"
Daiki attempted to break through Ayane with a crossover, but the slight blunder didn't escape my sister's annoying instinct. She swiftly stole the ball from his grasp and immediately passed it to Aki. My dense best friend still hadn't learned his lesson, letting my piece of sh— I mean, lovely twin sister easily get under his skin as usual.
"Better luck next time, Dai-chan~~"
Ayane hummed at Daiki, while he simply clicked his tongue in response.
Meanwhile, Tomoya adjusted his glasses while dribbling the ball in front of Takeo.
"Takeo, you might be strong, but you're still not worthy enough to stop one of my ultimate moves!" Tomoya declared while assuming a shooting form. "Eat this!! VANISHING SOARING THREE!!"
"Yeah, I'm not getting bamboozled by that anymore MUAHAHHAHA"
Takeo laughed at his obvious feint pass and took the ball from Tomoya before he could even throw it towards Masachika. He then managed to find an opening and passed it to me without hesitation.
"Impossible?!! You've seen through one of Tomoya Aki's premium moveset?!!"
"Moron! I already told you to stop shouting your upcoming moves!" Masachika scolded Tomoya but still managed to block my path.
"But it won't be as impactful if I don't shout my move names!!" Tomoya proudly declared with a straight face. "That's the sacred rule I follow as a shounen consumer!"
"As a chosen one who has joined me on the path of culture, don't you agree, my comrade?"
"Ye—No!!"
This hardcore otaku is really doing whatever he wants. Also, am I tripping, or did I just see Tomoya's glasses emit a strange glow? Eh, must be a special ability that glasses people acquire.
I swiftly passed through Masachika with a feint and rushed to jumped outside the court before Ayane had a chance to reach me. Without any hesitation, I took the shot from behind the backboard before my foot could touch the ground, not even entertaining a single doubt that it would miss the hoop.
The game continued with each team scoring back-to-back, neither side allowing the other to widen the gap. But there could only be one winner and one loser. Daiki took the final shot of the game with a three pointer that were solely powered on praying for a miracle to Amaterasu, securing a 67-70 win in our favor.
"Victory baby!!!"
I shouted while giving Daiki a high five after he secured the bucket. Ayane clicked her tongue in annoyance, but it didn't escape my ear, no matter how low she thought it was.
"You suck at this, my dear sister" I smirked at her while spinning the ball on my finger.
Ayane simply gave me a refreshing smile, but the middle finger she was proudly showing me said otherwise.
"Don't get cocky from that lucky win, my brother~~~"
She said, and I simply replied with my very own lovely f*ck you finger, sending back the sibling love she is giving me.
After cooling down a bit, we all walked to the edge of the court and sat on the bench. Daiki removed the towel from his head and lightly nudged me on the shoulder.
"You think we're going to be in the same class again?"
I paused for a moment after Daiki asked me the question. Now that he mentioned it, the first day of school will be this monday
Time sure flies, huh? We're already entering 6th grade, but I still vividly remember meeting these nitwits back in preschool—Daiki shouting his dream of joining the NBA in the near future while laughing, and Aki sharing his goal to spread his culture in front of the whole class.
Our classmates simply laughed at him, but I was intrigued by Tomoya's shameless attitude and started hanging out with him along with Daiki and Satsuki. I didn't realize how our circle grew so quickly with Takeo, Rintaro, and Masachika joining in, but I'm not complaining. I can't even imagine how my childhood would have been without these quirky nutcases.
"Well, I certainly hope so. Hell, I think it's almost guaranteed," I replied with a shrug. "We've coincidentally been classmates every year, so it feels like the norm."
"Except for Ayane though. I'm already tired of seeing her stupid face every day at our house."
Ayane simply looked in my direction and gave me a stinky look. "Likewise, why am I even sharing my flawless face with you?!"
Meanwhile, Tomoya and Masachika ignored our usual banter, making faces that resembled those suspicious fat uncles who knock on our door while offering rejected products to my parents every once in a while.
"You got what I asked for?"
"Who do you think you're talking to, my dear comrade?"
Masachika inquired while rubbing his hands. However, Tomoya simply laughed like a third-rate comicbook villain while checking his bag. He slowly pulled out a wrapped object from it.
Masachika quickly took the suspicious object from Tomoya and held it like a precious memento
"It was quite difficult to find online on Temuzon, but that stack of yen you gave me as your budget helped a lot" Tomoya nodded to himself.
"But I digress! It's my duty to share my culture with you, my fellow otaku. May I present: the uncensored version of DXD!"
"Heheheh, my Blu-ray~~"
Tomoya's glasses shone mysteriously after handing over the item, while Masachika eagerly rubbed his face against the object in question. But did he just mention uncensored?!!! I'll definitely borrow that from Masachika, those flying bats blocking the melons were annoying to watch, second only to Issei and his horndog friends of course.
"Now that you mention school, which Junior high will you guys be going to after graduating?"
My thoughts came into a halt when Takeo suddenly joined in our ongoing conversation to ask. Ayane simply tapped the big guy on the back while drying herself
"We're just entering 6th grade, and you're already thinking about middle school?" Ayane giggled
"But to answer your question, I'll probably go to Seiren Academy, just like my parents."
"My plan? I'll probably try entering Teiko"
Ayane replied to Takeo's question, and Daiki followed up after her.
"Teiko? Are you sure my guy? Your grades are barely keeping up with that one brain cell of yours, even if the basketball club will accept you with open arms"
"You don't have to worry! Satsuki will be there to rescue me if I'm ever on the verge of failing again!"
I deadpanned at Daiki, who shamelessly boasted that Momoi would be his messiah. I'm now starting to get worried about Satsuki after we graduate, but I'm really glad our reliable friend will be there to aid this idiot if needed.
Him entering Teiko is already expected, as their basketball team is probably the strongest among all existing middle schools in Japan.
But middle school, huh? I'll probably enter Seiren Academy like Ayane and get separated from the rest of my friends, except maybe Masachika, who I'm 99.9 percent sure will join us at Seiren.
Well, I'm acting like one of those cheap movie drama characters my mom and dad watch in their free time. But our group doesn't even have to worry about not seeing each other to hang out. Hell, our houses are still close, and Daiki's house is literally right next door. Satsuki too.
Speaking of Masachika, I'm glad he is now free from the clutches of his KFC-ass-looking scary grandpa. That frightening man really got under our skin along with unexplained uneasiness whenever we saw him. Poor Yuki though—her health was already fragile, but I'm curious about what's happening to her now that Masachika has left the Suou household.
After resting for a while and started going on our way back home, we stopped at Maji Burger for a quick bite before going our separate ways. We entered the establishment and took a table by the window. Ayane and Masachika then got in line after taking our order, while the rest of us started chatting as we waited.
"Too bad Satsuki and Rintaro couldn't join us today."
"Well, it can't be helped. Rintaro had something to do at their cake shop, and Satsuki is out shopping for new shoes with her mom."
I shook my head, smiling after hearing Daiki's nonchalant reply, who was sitting beside Takeo.
"Forget that, Yu, I have a more important matter to ask you"
"Mhm? What is it?"
"Did you notice a magazine in your room? Specifically with issue number 167 on the front page?" Daiki asked, trying to act like some interrogation officer.
"It also had a pretty black-haired woman on the cover as the feature. Please get it back to me as soon as possible if you ever saw it."
Magazine? Well, I haven't seen—wait a goddamn second, this asshole was the one who put that under my bed?! Mom found that swimsuit collection of some woman named Mai, Ayane, that little sh*t teased the hell out of me after my parent discovered it.
My mom's understanding smile was so freaking embarrassing to witness!!! So this prick was the culprit for that incident!!
"So it was you?!!" I shouted, but quickly lowered my voice as I felt the gaze of the people eating nearby fall on me.
"Yah~~ my bad if you got busted because of me" Daiki cheekily laughed at me
"Who said I was angry?" I gave him a reassuring smirk
I might have been pissed when my family saw that unknown holy book, even though I insisted it wasn't mine. But reading that sacred treasure was surprisingly entertaining—it even made my Yukio Jr. have its own moment. Big honker lady for the win.
"Horikita Mai—what a dangerous woman for someone making her debut." I muttered
"I know, right? I definitely know you're my best friend. You understand the art of beautiful big br—" Daiki gave me a agreeing nod
While Yukio and Daiki were having a serious discussion about how climate change affects mountain ecosystems, Tomoya was convincing Takeo on reading his recommendation.
Takeo had only started oddly liking shoujo and sports series for quite a while now due to this four eyed preacher.
"But I haven't finished watching Eureka Seven yet" Takeo scratched his head.
"Eureka Seven is a great series, I'll admit that, BUT..." Tomoya raised his index finger. "You're missing out on this masterful piece of art that Murata-sensei has blessed us!"
"Well... I might give Eyeshield 21 a try, if I'm in the mood after finishing Eureka"
Takeo sighed while being overwhelmed by Tomoya's over enthusiasm. He kept yapping about how great the visuals were and how the manga artist beautifully portrayed the characters' awesome move names.
He instantly pulled out the first volume of Eyeshield 21 out of thin air and pushed it toward Takeo.
"I guarantee you won't regret it" Tomoya smirked while pushing up his glasses
Well, truth to be told, Tomoya might be the most passionate guy I've ever met in my entire life. I only started loving anime and everything related to it because of this four-eyed guy with his stupid yet incredibly convincing way of explaining how manga and anime would change my outlook on life. I admit, I was utterly defeated. Now look at me, my pc is full of hidden folder with hen—ahem, sorry by that slip but I mean art.
After we continued sharing some nonsensical talk, our food arrived. Masachika took the seat beside me, while Ayane sat on the other side with Takeo and Daiki.
I unwrapped my burger and took a bite. Damn, this place still makes some fine burgers. They're not even a fraction as good as what my dad can whip up when he's in full throttle cooking oni mode, but they're still acceptable for my spoiled taste buds.
"Oi Aki, when will you return my game?" Akane pointed a fries towards Tomoya before eating it.
"Patience, I'm still learning how to get THAT ending." Tomoya sipped his soda with a furrowed eyebrow. "But seriously, Akane, I've played through all the possible choices—WHY AM I STILL NOT GETTING IT? WHY IS URATRICE'S TRUE ENDING SO HARD TO GET?!"
"Uratrice? Oh, you mean Rose: Eternity? Yeah, the true end of that mad sciencetist is insanely hard to unlock without reading some forums or guide online" Masachika joined our topic while taking a sip of his melon shake.
"I want to say skill issue, but even Akane and I only got it by a pure stroke of luck" I sighed while getting a piece of Ayane's fries.
"I'm not kidding when I say this, but—" Akane bit her burger and then continued, "We accidentally unlocked the route after we went down to grab some chocolate milk while we were playing it."
—Flashback—
"And that concludes the final combination of choices. We already tried everything, but my dear sister—"
"Yeah, my dear brother."
I wrote in our Private Gaming Notebook, where we record all the dialogue choices we make every time we play a new game and want to explore all possibilities.
But no matter how many hours we sank into the game or how carefully we chose the character lines—
"WHY THE HELL IS THE TRUE END NOT SHOWING UP YET?!!!!" We shouted simultaneously in my room but quickly silenced ourselves after remembering the presence of the Asura in the house—aka our kind and beautiful mama. We must remember to emphasize her kindness and beauty folks, for the sake of our survival.
"Dad bought some chocolate milk from the grocery earlier. Let's grab some before we destroy your PC" Ayane got up from her chair and scratched her hair while putting on her slippers.
"Yeah, sounds good to me" I replied, also slipping on my slippers.
However, as we were heading downstairs, the PC screen began moving five minutes after we left it. A new CG scene appeared, unbeknownst to us, while we opened the fridge in the dark kitchen and drank the milk. The clock ticked softly as its hands aligned perfectly at 12:00 A.M.
I straightened my back while drinking my milk, giving a confident smirk as I faced the dark, eerie atmosphere of the kitchen.
The darkness seemed to stretch endlessly, but I was ready to challenge any espírito, bogeyman, or whatever chupacabra might be lurking there. I wasn't going to let them get better of the me! The grandson of the Oni of Tokyo!
Suck on that black monsters! You don't scare a big boy like me alright?!! However, is my brain playing tricks on me or am I hearing a buzzing sound? It clearly resembled a flying cock—
"Got it!" My thoughts were interrupted when Ayane captured something with a pair of tissues. The thing she was holding started wriggling in her hand before I heard a crunching sound as she tightened her fist.
"Mmm, I love that sound~~" Ayane hummed as she threw the dead cockroach into the bin. She alternately gazed at her hand and me, grinning as she slowly walked toward me like a zombie.
"Put some alcohol on or wash your hands already moron!" I gave her a disgusted look as she approached me with the dirty hand she used to kill the annoying bug.
"But it wouldn't be fair if I didn't share the cockroach's love, you know?!" Ayane jested before stopping her teasing and used the faucet nearby to clean herself.
After finishing our glass of delicious milk, we returned to my room, only to find that my monitor was displaying a CG scene we didn't recognize. What the heck happened while we were gone?!
But ignoring that for a moment—could this be the finale of what we were looking for? Is this the answer to the true end both of us have been seeking?
"Use quick load now!" Ayane declared as she immediately took her seat.
"Aye aye, Captain!" I responded, not wasting a second and did as she ordered.
Of course, I didn't forget to save the current scene in case our suspicion turned out to be wrong. That would be a shitfest, but we were pretty sure we had already found the answer. Thank you Dad! Coming back with that milk helped pave the way for us lost souls!!
"We won't sleep until we get to the end, my brother!" Ayane clicked the mouse like a lunatic.
"You're damn right! We've already dumped countless hours into this. We will finish it now or never!" My sanity snapped as I put my water bottle beside my desk.
"SLEEP IS FOR THE WEA—" We didn't finish what we were about to say because someone's presence loomed behind us. Gently placing its hand on our heads. We slowly turned around like a broken clock to see who it was.
Luxurious black hair cascades over her shoulders, flowing down her back in silky waves until it reaches her calves. A distinctive hime cut frames her beautiful face perfectly, accentuating her striking silver eyes that shine with a unique brilliance. She looked at us with a gentle smile that could scare the devil itself. Yup, we're screwed alright.
"Ara~~ What are you doing, Yukio and Ayane? May I join in?" Mom was smiling, but her atmosphere was anything but pleasant.
"It's already past midnight but both of you are still lively, huh~~"
Damn it!! We always completely ignore the fact that there's no soundproofing here in our place whenever we get excited. Which came back to bite us in the ass multiple times already.
"Mom, we can expl—" Ayane started to make excuses but her attempt was futile as the shout of two unfortunate idiots enveloped the house.
Meanwhile, Dad who was lying at the bed just shook his head, sighed, and scratched his silver hair, ignoring our pleas as he flipped his pillow and continued his beauty sleep.
—Flashback end—
"That's it?!! You just have to stay put on a specific scene?!" Tomoya blurted out in surprise.
"I have to applaud the creativity of the devs on this one though" Masachika chuckled. Having faced it before, he could understand Tomoya's shock.
"Auntie Masami looks so kind and lovely; it's still hard to imagine your mom's angry face till this dag" Takeo commented.
"Well, the kindest bunch are the scariest when pissed off they say" Daiki added
"Getting a sermon from Mom was sh*tty but it was worth the trouble! Discovering that on our own, without the help of online weebs was quite an achievement" Ayane boasted while puffing out her nonexistent chest.
"But with that out of the way, will you morons still fulfill our oath to serve the basketball club after we enter Junior high?" I asked while resting my head on top of my hand.
"You already know the answer!"
"I haven't reached the zone yet like they do in sports manga, so of course I'll keep going until I get there!!!"
Daiki answered my question like the basketball guy he is, while Tomoya still plans to use his ability as a playmaker to reach the so-called zone. Does the zone even exist in real life? logic aside, it might be fun to test it out in real games.
Hell, it might be cool if my eyes spark and let the other team know they're screwed if I ever enter the zone—Pfft, I'm watching too much anime. Yeah, right. Like that's ever going to happen.
"You're still not giving up on that? But I would still love to become a starter if possible MUAHAHAHA"
"Me? I won't join the girls basketball team. I'd probably be a manager for the boys. My true motive though? To take down cocky players in 1v1 matches if they underestimate me just because I'm a girl."
Takeo tsukomied Tomoya before answering my question with a laugh, while my stupid sister maniacally laughed and revealed her dark desire to wreak havoc on anyone who looks down on her as a player.
Rest in pieces to my future teammates—not even kidding. This gremlin's agility is top-notch, almost on par with Aomine's and has dribbling skills comparable to him and me. Even though her sense are slightly inferior to mine and Daiki's, they are still superior compared to the average player. I might hate to admit it, but my twin is a pure menace in sports.
Frankly speaking, we know we're far ahead of our current age level. Hell, most of our playmates are either street ballers or high school players.
Takeo's increasing abnormal strength, Tomoya's perfect passes and court vision when serious(and the hidden abilities in his eyes—still unbelievable that a has such talent for sports), Aomine's extraordinary formless shooting and developing speed, Rintaro's quick release, Masachika's Ctrl C+V, and lastly, my powerful jumping ability combined with speed that, while slightly weaker than Ayane's and Daiki's, remains impressive.
We gradually honed our skills and developing talent by playing together and challenging people when the opportunity arose. Daiki, in particular, was thrilled to find people around him who could measure up to him.
"Don't worry, Dai-chan~~ my perfect team will show you a tiny bit of mercy if we ever play against each other so you will not cry in my embrace" Ayane coyly smiled at Daiki.
"In your dreams, maybe. I bet you'll be the one groveling instead when I beat your team" Daiki snorted in response.
Ahh, my dear sweet, lovely sister, still resorting to teasing Daiki to show your hidden affecti—OUCH OUCH, who stepped on my foot?!!
"I know you're complimenting me in your head right now my brother~~~"
=Open your stupid mouth and you're dead meat
"Of course, that's what a sibling should do my dear sister"
=What? Your tsundere ass can't say it?
We exchanged smiles but continued to step on each other's feet playfully(violently), while our friends shook their heads at our silent banter. Daiki on the other hand simply tilted his head.
All of us know already, except for this dense best friend of mine, that Ayane has been in love with Daiki for many years now. It's way too obvious, except to the guy in question.
Ah, the flavors of our youth~~~ having fistfights left and right to prevent me from snitching on her sneaky ass to Daiki. Now that I think about it, Ayane has always been both hostile and friendly toward me since we were little. Well, I guess that's sibling bonding for you—sharing our food now and feeding knuckle sandwiches later.
After we finished our food. The sun had fully set, we exited Maji Burger, said our farewells, and went our separate ways. As Ayane, Daiki, and I chatted while walking through the streets of Tokyo, we did not even realize that we had arrived at our house.
"See you later" Ayane said, giving Daiki a fist bump.
"Likewise" Daiki replied with a cheeky laugh and returned the fist bump to her
After saying goodbye to Daiki, Ayane and I were suddenly ambushed by a ball of pure fluffiness as we opened the gate.
"Woof! Woof!" Our dog, Kamina, barked excitedly while jumping at my feet. Ah~, why are you so adorable?!! I just want to squish my face against this little creature!!!
"Easy there, buddy" I muttered, picking him up, but my face was immediately showered with his enthusiastic licks.
"No fair!!! It's my turn now!" Ayane complained, swiftly taking Kamina from me. She hugged him tightly while smiling like she was on cloud nine.
After a short time playing with our dog, we entered the house, took off our shoes, placed them on the rack, and slipped on our slippers
"We're home!" We shouted at the same time
While walking to the living room, I saw my mom on the sofa watching the news and my dad in the kitchen cooking something. Damn, this smells so good that I'm already hungry even though I just ate.
"Welcome back~~"
My mom, Kuboshi Masami, lazily lay down on the couch while greeting us, clearly not interested in the showbiz news on the screen right now.
Right, what time is it? I'll just— Wait a minute, I completely forgot!! The first episode of season 2 will air tonight!! I'll just probably quickly borrow the TV from Mom—
"Mom, can I borrow the TV?! Please, please!" Ayane started pleading with puppy eyes To mom before I could even ask.
Fate/Zero ended with a ridiculously annoying cliffhanger last Christmas Eve, but I still prevailed and managed to stop myself from reading the LN!! Now it's time to torture ourselves every week again while waiting for new episodes. I still hope they use the same ED or even have LISA sing the opening theme for this season.
"I mean, sure?" Mom was puzzled by our reaction but she handed us the remote without any fuss.
We quickly changed the channel to Tokyo MX and settled down on the floor. Thankfully, we managed to tune in before the action started—the opening was still playing onscreen, but no LISA?! What is this?! Give me— oh wait, it's actually pretty fire?.
"When will they add a skip button? Show us the tentacle abomination already!" Ayane clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"I didn't know you were a fake fan, skipping openings?! That's a big no-no" I shook my head in disappointment at her complaint.
"Yeah, if they had Oath Sign as the song, I'd watch the full opening, but this?!!"
Ayane pointed at the TV like a caveman discovering fire for the first time. While the opening does not have Lisa's name plastered all over it, it's quite fire to be honest, and a skip button? Never going to happen, so you'll just have to endure it for the rest of your life.
Damn, why did Nasu make King Arthur such an adorable cutie? Schwing blast blast!! Protect the white haired terminal patient from the tentacle guy! Also, never call my waifu Arturia as Altria, alright? You're out of your mind if you do that and should be sent to a mental institute as soon as possible.
—Few moments later—
"Dinner is almost ready—"
"SLICE TOHSAKA'S BODY INTO PIECES, GOLDIE!!!!"
"F*CK HIM UP!!!"
"WOOF!!!!!!!"
My dad announced joyfully, hopping in excitement. But he stopped in his tracks at the scene before him; his twin spawn were jumping and shouting, while Kamina stood nearby, cheering them on. Clearly clueless about what was actually happening, he had simply joined in with the lively atmosphere like a good boy he is.
"Language kids or else I will lock up your consoles and ban your internet access for a week!!"
Masami attempted to scold the twins before resorting to summoning the almighty artifact that had scarred most of the family for generations: the all-powerful slipper, premium adidas edition.
"GIAHAHHAHHA ZASSHU"
Afterword:
Inside a room outside of time and space itself, a girl is tied up in a sack while two virtuos and certainly not suspicious individuals are negotiating what to do with her.
Serious Senpai: [Where am I? I can't see anything! Where did that sh*tty romance noob brought me now?!]
Transcendent Beauty: [Are you sure you want to take this useless goddess? I mean, I'm not complaining if you take this annoying girl off our hands.]
A.S: [I want a gag character for my afterword, so having a mascot to entertain the readers each chapter will be delightful.]
Transcendent Beauty: [Well, if you say so BUT I also want to give you a piece of advice, my friend.]
A.S: [What is it?]
Transcendent Beauty: [Lock this girl up in EVERY serious chapter for the full premium experience of testing her sanity.]
A.S: [I'll keep that in mind~~]
Serious Senpai: [Can you please let me go already? You motherf*ckers!!!!]
The self proclaimed average guy then removed the seal from the sack, allowing her head to emerge. However, Transcendent Beauty was not on her sight as she already bid farewell earlier before opening a portal back to her world.
Serious Senpai: [Finally! I can breathe!]
A.S: [Does a goddess like you even need oxygen?]
Serious Senpai: [Ah, you're right, I don't— Geh, wait a minute!! Don't act friendly with me!! Who are you and where is that abusive woman?]
A.S: [You mean Alic— ahem, sorry for the slip. Do you mean Transcendent Beauty? Yeah, she sold you out on me and got home already. Don't you worry bout a thing though! I WILL give you the best living conditions you can ask for!]
Serious Senpai (Doubt): [I won't be easily fooled! You're an acquaintance of that woman, so there's definitely a catch!!! Also, you still haven't answered my question, who are you?!]
A.S: [Ah, sorry for that unworthy act of a gentleman *Bow* you can call me any name you want but my fellow creators call me Author-san, my dear slav— I mean friend]
Serious Senpai: [You were definitely gonna say slave!!!!!!]
Author-san: [You're just imagining it~~~]