Kanagawa Prefectural Shohei High School.
Class 6, Grade 3.
Basketball team captain Takenori Akagi had just finished his homework and was calmly packing his things.
Meanwhile, the basketball team's vice-captain, Kiminobu Kogure, seemed very excited.
"Akagi! I heard that Rukawa Kaede, the basketball star from Tomioka Middle School, has come to study at our Shohoku High School."
"Yes, I've heard about it."
Akagi Takenori remained remarkably calm.
Kogure Kiminobu's mouth was practically agape as he joked, "Hey, you're going a bit overboard with your act! I know you're actually really happy too! You should at least show some appreciation! This is such a fantastic thing!"
Takenori Akagi smiled calmly and said, "Of course it's a good thing, but I'm worried about whether he can integrate into the team. After all, basketball is a team sport that requires the cooperation of teammates."
Kogure Kiminobu nodded and said, "What you said makes sense. If he's too arrogant, his teammates might not be willing to cooperate with him."
Akagi Takenori sighed and said, "Yeah, what good is it if his teammates don't pass him the ball? He can't rely on himself the whole time to shoot, rebound, steal, dribble, and score. That's impossible."
Kogure Kiminobu also agreed: "Yes, even if he could really do that, the physical exertion would be enormous, and he wouldn't be able to last long."
However, Kogure Kiminobu immediately smiled again, waved his hand, and said, "But worrying about these things now is a bit unnecessary. After all, we haven't even met him yet, and it's still unknown whether he can integrate into the team. Maybe he can integrate into this big family right away?"
Akagi Takenori nodded and said, "Okay, let's go check out the basketball team first."
The two left the classroom and headed to the basketball court.
But not long after they left the classroom, they saw a very conspicuous person at the door of Class 3, Grade 3!
This person has long, flowing hair, is 184cm tall, and has a very well-proportioned figure.
However, this person exuded a sinister aura.
Right now, this person is beating someone up.
The ones who got beaten up were Horita Tokuo and his group who had challenged Sakuragi Hanamichi to a fight.
Horita Tokuo, Takashima, Tokuda, and the others all stood obediently against the wall, like children who had done something wrong, accepting their parents' punishment.
Seeing this, Takenori Akagi frowned.
Seeing that things were not going well, Kogure Kiminobu quickly pushed Akagi Takenori forward, saying as they walked, "Akagi, let's hurry up and get to the basketball team. Everyone is waiting for you, the captain."
A complex emotion flashed through Akagi Takenori's mind for a moment, but when he saw Kogure Kiminobu's anxious look, he nodded and continued walking towards the basketball team's location. He did not stop there, nor did he go up to the conspicuous person and do anything.
Although the conspicuous person had his back to Akagi Takenori and Kogure Kiminobu, he seemed to hear Kogure Kiminobu's voice.
As soon as Kogure Kiminobu finished speaking, the force of his attack became noticeably stronger!
"ah!!!"
Horita Tokuo, who had been trying his best to hold back his voice after being beaten, let out a pig-like scream.
Akagi Takenori and Kogure Kiminobu, who were about to leave, were obviously drawn back by the scream.
The long-haired, sinister-looking man shouted, "Useless! So many of you were defeated by first-year students? What are you if not useless? You're Sakuragi Hanamichi, the red-haired guy from Wako Middle School, right? And who's that person on the rooftop?"
Kogure Kiminobu clearly didn't want to stay a second longer, and he hurriedly pushed Akagi Takenori away from there.
However, Akagi Takenori heard the words "Sakuragi Hanamichi" very clearly.
This made Takenori Akagi's brows furrow even more, and a hint of murderous intent flashed in his eyes!
Because his sister, Haruko Akagi, had mentioned Sakuragi Hanamichi, the red-haired boy, to him before. Haruko Akagi excitedly said that Sakuragi Hanamichi was definitely the kind of talent the basketball team needed, and that the guy was very passionate about basketball, very tall, had excellent physical qualities, and had an incredible jumping ability; he could even headbutt the backboard when he jumped.
As the captain of the basketball team, Takenori Akagi naturally hopes that an outstanding talent like Hanamichi Sakuragi will join the team.
But now, I'm actually hearing Sakuragi Hanamichi's name from that person's mouth.
This directly caused Sakuragi Hanamichi's beautiful image in Akagi Takenori's heart to vanish in an instant!
Akagi Takenori will absolutely not allow any more delinquents to appear on the basketball team!
Absolutely not!
...
Meanwhile, Haruko Akagi had already led Hanamichi Sakuragi out of the classroom and headed to the basketball court.
On the way, Haruko Akagi asked timidly, "Sakuragi, what were you guys doing just now? It felt like you guys were plotting something."
There was something Akagi Haruko didn't say aloud: for some reason, the moment she entered Class 1-7, she felt that the way Mito Yohei and the others looked at her was a little strange.
Sakuragi Hanamichi chuckled and scratched the back of his head, saying, "No, they were congratulating me on joining the basketball team through Haruko's recommendation. You know what? When I told them I aspired to become an excellent basketball player, they were all quite shocked! They think I'm a very ambitious and motivated young man! Haruko, do you think so?"
It has to be said that there aren't many people who dare to praise themselves like that.
Haruko Akagi was also amused by the interesting Sakuragi Hanamichi in front of her. She smiled brightly and said, "Yes, Sakuragi-kun is indeed a very ambitious and promising young man!"
At the same time, Haruko Akagi clenched her little fist and gave Hanamichi Sakuragi a cheering emoji.
How could we let such a good opportunity slip by?
Sakuragi Hanamichi quickly reached out!
He grabbed Haruko Akagi's little fist!
To be precise, the large hand enveloped the small fist!
Haruko Akagi stared at Hanako Sakuragi in surprise, "Sakuragi-kun, you..."
With a determined look in his eyes, Sakuragi Hanamichi said, "Haruko, don't worry, I will definitely help the Shohoku basketball team make it to the national tournament!"
Haruko Akagi, who had initially wanted to quickly break free from his grasp, felt embarrassed upon hearing this.
He actually wants to help the Shohoku basketball team reach the national tournament! That's wonderful! This is exactly the kind of person my brother needs! He can definitely help him!
Sakuragi Hanamichi was extremely pleased with himself. He felt great to be able to take advantage of others openly and legitimately under a high-sounding reason!
Hmm, those smooth little hands feel nice.
The key was her shy demeanor; she clearly wanted to break free, but hesitated when she heard those words.
It gave me several more seconds of pleasure.
However, it only took a few seconds before Haruko Akagi quickly broke free from Hanamichi Sakuragi's large hand.
The only difference is that Haruko Akagi has no reason to suspect that Hanamichi Sakuragi is taking advantage of the situation.
The two continued walking toward the basketball court in a pleasant atmosphere.
What the two of them didn't know was that someone was hiding in the bushes not far away. The moment Sakuragi Hanamichi grabbed Akagi Haruko's hand, the person in the bushes almost exploded on the spot!
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