Beep!
A metal hook sliced through the water and sank to the bottom of the lake.
By a small river in Tokyo, Kota was having a fishing contest with Akashi.
Splash!
Akashi leaned back sharply and whipped his fishing rod. The lake, peaceful just moments ago, instantly rippled with noise.
A sizable grass carp burst up and landed in Akashi's hands.
Expression calm as always, Akashi removed the fish from the hook and casually tossed it into the bucket beside him. The bottom of his bucket was already packed with wriggling fish of all kinds.
Next to it sat another bucket—this one practically brand-new and sparkling. That one belonged to Kota.
Currently, Kota was lying back with his hands behind his head like a pillow. His fishing rod, which had been planted in front of him for over an hour, hadn't shown a single sign of life… other than getting tangled in lake weeds.
Kota stared enviously at Akashi's bucket, watching the small fish pile up to the brim. Then, a brilliant idea struck him.
Taking advantage of the fact that Akashi was focused on his rod, Kota sneakily plucked one little fish from Akashi's bucket… and dropped it into his own.
The Fishing King is never going home empty-handed!
Seeing the tiny fish flop around inside his bucket, Kota grinned from ear to ear and happily turned his attention back to his motionless fishing rod.
"I saw that."
Akashi's face didn't change. His eyes stayed glued to the water.But those words made Kota's heart tighten.
"You're not… taking it back, right?"
Kota eyed him warily while picking up his bucket and scooting several meters away to increase the distance between it and Akashi.
Akashi: "…"
"You're a child, aren't you? Playing this kind of trick."
Akashi glanced at him helplessly. What surprised him, though, was Kota's reaction—not only did he feel no shame, he actually nodded proudly.
"Of course I'm a child. I just turned eighteen. What else would I be, an old man?"
Saying that, Kota casually picked up a stone and tossed it into the lake, as if trying to "wake up" his uninterested fishing rod.
Akashi watched him with a meaningful tone.
"Children usually don't have the guts to fly overseas all by themselves just to play basketball."
"That just proves I'm a child with ambition."
Kota glanced again at Akashi's overly successful fish bucket and muttered,
"Seriously, you're good at everything. Even fishing? Is there anything you can't do?"
Akashi thought for a moment.
"…Childbirth."
Kota: "…"
"H—haha. Not bad, Akashi. You do have humor."
Kota changed positions on the grass and teased, "As expected from the future heir of the Akashi Group. You really aim for excellence in every category—academics, athletics, arts… and apparently even fishing?"
"'Every category'? What does that mean?"
Akashi frowned slightly.
"A lot of big-shot executives love fishing. They say it calms the mind. I find it boring, but I mastered it back in fifth grade."
As he spoke, Akashi's rod shook again. He stood up smoothly, went through the motions with practiced ease, and in the blink of an eye, added yet another fish to his bucket.
Kota smacked his tongue, impressed.
"Sounds exhausting. Even as a top-tier rich kid, living like that must be rough."
"Hahaha, I'm probably being arrogant here. Maybe the joys of the wealthy are beyond my comprehension."
Akashi shook his head silently—whether in agreement or disagreement, Kota couldn't tell.
Since Akashi didn't answer, Kota didn't push. His attention drifted to the far side of the lake, where a duck had wandered in from who-knows-where and was waddling along the shore.
"Tomorrow's the Winter Cup finals, huh."
Kota closed his eyes peacefully.
"It's been over a year… When I first played against you, I never imagined the two of us would end up sitting here fishing together."
"The world really is full of surprises."
Akashi chuckled.
"I didn't expect it either. Getting beaten by you three times in a row… That had never happened before."
"Don't say it like that. Losing is just part of life!"
"But honestly? I'd rather skip that kind of life experience if I can."
Kota stood up, brushing the grass off his pants. He turned to Akashi with a grin.
"So. Ready for tomorrow? After that game, you'll be adding another 'life lesson' to your list."
Akashi's eyelid twitched. Golden light flickered in his pupils—Kota's words had definitely poked his "Emperor Mode".
Suppressing the sudden urge to "stab Kota once and call it a day", Akashi lifted his head and asked:
"Tell me something. Tomorrow, in the finals… what chance does Rakuzan have of winning?"
Kota blinked.
"That's… not the kind of question I expect from you."
"But fine. I'll answer."
"For this game, Kaijō's odds are… ninety percent."
…
…
"Welcome, everyone! Today is a special broadcast—thanks to our on-site reporters, we'll be streaming the entire Winter Cup finals live! Stay tuned—the match is about to begin!"
On camera, the host rambled enthusiastically as the advertisement break ended and both teams entered the court.
Kaijō's starting lineup remained the same as the Interhigh championship roster:
PG – Kota SG – Yuko SF – Kise PF – Takumi C – Hayakawa
Rakuzan's starters were also the familiar five:
PG – Akashi SG – Mibuchi SF – Hayama PF – Takeshi C – Nebuya
These ten players formed the exact same matchup as during the Interhigh finals—except this time, Kota's mindset was completely different.
"From the opening tip—don't give them hope. Hit them hard…"
"End it in three quarters!"
Kaijō roared around Kota, their momentum surging before the game had even begun.
The commentator didn't miss a beat, smiling as he narrated,
"Wow! Kaijō still has that championship aura! No wonder they're the three-peat dynasty. I'm sure today's match will be another thrilling showdown!"
"Looking at the starters, Kise made First Team All-Japan, and Kota nearly overtook Akashi for First Team point guard — barely missed it and landed in the Second Team instead."
"Yuki earned Rookie of the Year, with a great Winter Cup performance as well! And Hayakawa made the All-Defense Second Team — just a few votes short of First Team!"
"Now for Rakuzan: Akashi topped the entire ballot as the First Team point guard, Hayama and Nebuya both made the Second Team, and their rookie PF Takeshi had a strong Rookie of the Year race too — though Yuki edged him out!"
The commentator shook his head dramatically, spit flying as he continued:
"On paper, it's a close matchup. Kaijō and Rakuzan are long-time rivals. Year after year, they clash in the finals and bring us one spectacle after another!"
"I believe this year will be no exception."
…
"Hey, Kota—how come you're not running off to the bathroom today?"
During warm-ups, Kise stared wide-eyed at Kota dribbling calmly on the sideline.
In his mind, Kota always ran to the restroom once before every finals match. It was practically tradition.
Kota rolled his eyes and ignored him.
Just then, Hayakawa suddenly popped up out of nowhere and grabbed Kota in a bear hug.
"Kota!"
The surprise tackle almost made Kota jump out of his skin.
"What—what are you doing?!"
Hayakawa rubbed his hands together, excitement overflowing from his face.
"Nothing! I just feel like I'm overflowing with energy!"
Probably because this was his last high-school game, Hayakawa's passion was boiling over more than ever.
Kota smacked him in the face and shoved him aside.
"Why are you sweating already?! The game hasn't even started—get away from me!"
"Listen—if you grab me again like you did in the first round and make me turn the ball over, I swear I'm beating you up after the game!"
He kicked Hayakawa in the backside, but neither the threat nor the kick dampened Hayakawa's enthusiasm.
Even up to the jump ball, he looked like he was about to explode.
"OOOOOOHHHH!!"
Standing in the center circle, Hayakawa slapped his own cheeks so hard the referee flinched.
Kota watched him with a twitching eyelid. A single word formed in his mind:
Show-off.
Fortunately, the match hadn't started yet, so even the referee couldn't say much. After confirming that Hayakawa's body was fine — though his sanity was questionable — the ref finally blew the whistle for tip-off.
The ball was tossed high into the air. Hayakawa's eyes followed it intensely, and just as it reached its highest point, he exploded upward with shocking force!
His jump was so fast that Nebuya momentarily froze before awkwardly trying to jump after him—but it was too late. Hayakawa had already snatched the ball.
"YOSSHAAA!!"
Hayakawa roared mid-air, ready to swing and pass the ball to Kota—
—but before he could, the referee's whistle cut him off.
"Kaijō, jump-ball violation!"