In case you didn't notice in the last two episodes, but in both cases I would start writing the chapter, stop and then not come back until a long time. Hence why there might be inconsistencies in my writing. Also, I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who is still enjoying my story despite the inconsistent updates and long hiatuses.

Also, I am now going to use italics for thoughts from now on. I think it will make the reading easier.

Episode 20

The episode starts with the opening.

"Didn't know you could sing metal, Himuro?" Coach Araraki said to Himuro. "I don't!" Himuro said. "I didn't even know I could sing until now!"

"I love Nigou!" Kise said with a smile. "His expression will always be hilarious."

"I'm sorry Nigou," Riko said patting the dog. "Arf!"

Recap of the last episode.

"How nice of them to provide a recap," Coach Nakatani said.

Title of the episode

"Don't want to be what?' Everyone asked. "Could it be?" Kuroko asked. "Probably," Kagami answered.

Shows Shutoku High School.

"And there is our school," Takao said. "You guys are practicing pretty late," Hyuga said. "But of course!" Shutoku replied.

"You have good students Nakatani," Coach Araraki said. "Thanks, but personally, I think they are a little too diligent," he replied.

Shows Otsubo catching a basketball and dunking it. "Otsubo-san?" Takao called out to his captain.

"Not senpai?" Kuroko asked. "Felt weird calling him senpai," Takao said sheepishly. "Why?" Otsubo said.

"You were emitting such an aura… it felt like if I didn't behave you would punch me," Takao said. "I'm not Kimura or Miyaji," Otsubo said defensively.

"Who's Seirin's No. 7?"

"Why are you looking up our team?" Izuki asked. "Because we will face each other during the Winter Cup preliminaries?" Takao said.

"No. 7?" Otsubo said.

"When I went to return some DVDs to our club room, I found an article on Seirin in last year's Monthly Basketball. There was one guy I didn't recognize."

"Must be him," Otsubo said.

"Him?"

"The guy who was Seirin's centre last year. Their team used to revolve around his and their No. 4 Hyuga's cooperative inside and outside play."

"We saw a glimpse of that during the Kaijo match," Kagami said with a tired expression. "Oh, you mean that scene," Kise said. "That was a cooperative play!?"

"For them, yes!" Izuki said.

"I can't wait until the day when I understand all the references you are making," Takao said with a moan.

"For some reason, he didn't show up at all during the championship league."

"Injury," Kiyoshi said while Hyuga muttered "Hanamiya Makoto."

"What does Hanamiya…?" Nebuya was about to ask but stopped himself. It's Hanamiya after all. A certain uncrowned general sneezed again.

"If he had been there, we probably wouldn't have been able to triple their score. No, we may have even lost."

"That's very kind of you to say, Otsubo-san," Kiyoshi said.

"Now, now Teppei-chan, there is truth in that statement," Mibuchi said. "After all, you are Iron Heart."

"Please don't call me that," Kiyoshi said.

"What?" Takao exclaimed. Last year they didn't have Kuroko or Kagami, and they had only just formed, Takao thought in his head.

"Aren't you giving them too much credit?" He asked with a laugh. "Right, Shin-chan?" He turned to look at Midorima. "Oh wait, you wouldn't know right?"

"I know him," Midorima told him.

"What?" Takao said.

"From middle school. We only played him once, but I remember him."

"I'm flattered," Kiyoshi said with a smile.

"Kuroko had not joined yet, so he likely does not know about him."

"Now that he mentions it, I don't recall any magic passes happening," Kiyoshi said.

"What kind of guy is he?" Takao asked with a serious expression.

"It takes a lot for Shin-chan to remember an opponent," Takao said.

"It was similar to the recent Touou game. In the face of overwhelming odds, just like Kuroko, he refused to give up until the very end."

"Hold on. That doesn't make any sense."

"Having a strong resilience doesn't make sense?" Izuki said. "That's not what I am referring to," Takao said.

"Huh?"

"You ended up going to see the Championship League!" Takao said with a laugh. ""I don't want to see it," my ass!"

Everyone laughed.

"I simply live nearby."

"You live far away! And in the opposite direction! I know that much!"

Now, they were laughing harder. "Midorima-kun is really bad at making excuses," Kuroko said.

"I could give you a few tips," Aomine said to Midorima with a smirk.

"I'm sure you could," Akashi said. "After all, how else did you still manage to stay part of the basketball club with all of your missed days?"

"Why are you making it sound like as if I'm the only one!?" Aomine exclaimed. "Aside from you and Tetsu, everyone had missed at least one day of school!"

"Aomine-kun, you missed around 100 out of the 200 days," Kuroko told him. "That's not the point!" Aomine said.

The screen changed back to Kiyoshi's and Kagami's 1-on-1 game. Kiyoshi had the ball. Using his quick movements, he bypassed Kagami. 'He's bigger than me, but he's pretty fast.'

"I'm faster," Murasakibara said.

"Murasakibara-kun really doesn't like Kiyoshi-senpai," Kuroko observed. "He annoys me," Murasakibara said. "Eh, why?" Kiyoshi asked.

Kiyoshi went for the lay-up, but Kagami used his jumping power to block the shot.

"I can see what Akashi-kun meant about the music," Riko said.

'So high!' Kiyoshi thought. 'His jumps really are unbelievable in person.'

"They are a pain," Wakamatsu said.

"Awesome," Kawada said from the sidelines.

"Neither one of them is budging," Furihata said.

"Kiyoshi really is amazing," Hyuga said. "He hasn't played in a while but he's doing this well against Kagami."

"So weak," Aomine said with a grimace. "How the hell did I lose to him?"

"Shut up, Ahomine!" Kagami yelled. "Losers have no right to criticize winners,"

"But Kagami's the one pressuring him," Izuki said.

This time Kagami had the ball. 'But what is this?' Hyuga thought. 'Kiyoshi's movement…'

Hyuga sighed and gave Kiyoshi a side glare. "What's with that look Hyuga?" Kiyoshi asked.

'This is harder than I thought it would be,' Kiyoshi thought. Kagami tried to get past him but Kiyoshi's guard was persistent. Finally, Kagami managed to break through Kiyoshi's defence.

'Crap, I responded too slowly!' Kiyoshi thought. Kagami jumped to make the shot while Kiyoshi also jumped to stop the shot.

"It's not over yet," Izuki said. At that moment, Kagami went behind Kiyoshi's defence mid-air and made the shot.

"Nice!" Some of the people said. "-Kagamicchi copied Aominecchi-," Kise said. "I adopted it!" Kagami said. "Don't put me in the same category as you."

"Oh please, Kagami only wishes he could be as good as me," Aomine said while cleaning his ear. "Dai-chan, stop instigating fights whenever you can!" Momoi said.

'What?' Kiyoshi thought.

"He dunked from behind!" Furihata said. "Kagami wins!"

Kiyoshi sighed. "You got me. I lost." He put his hand on Kagami's shoulder.

"Your hands are huge Kiyoshi!" Hayama said. "You think so?" Kiyoshi asked. "It is!" his teammates responded.

"Just like I promised, you can start."

"Okay," Kagami said.

"Wait…" Riko said.

"In that case, I'm going," Kagami said. "Good work."

"Did he just leave without his coach's permission?" Kimura asked.

"Guess even you have your hands full, huh?" Coach Araraki said to Riko. "Oh, it's not too bad," Riko said. "The only one who seems to cause trouble is a couple of unpredictable freshmen that's all." The aura around her got darker as she finished the last sentence.

"Sorry!" Kagami and Kuroko said. Everyone else sighed.

"What are you thinking, Kiyoshi?" Izuki asked.

"He really is strong," Kiyoshi said.

A paper fan hit Kiyoshi hard on the head. "And what are we going to do without you?" Riko asked him.

"I couldn't help it," Kiyoshi said. "Saying I haven't been playing isn't much of an excuse. This is the best I can do."

"That's not your best," Hyuga said. "You're acting too stupid. Look at your feet!" It showed Kiyoshi's feet. "Those are indoor shoes, you moron!"

The information sank into the audience. "Wh…whaaat!?" The other schools exclaimed.

"Well, I guess he wouldn't be a pain for his opponents if he weren't this good," Imayoshi said.

"So Bakagami's victory doesn't count!" Aomine said smugly. Kagami glared at him.

Everyone took a moment to absorb what Hyuga said. Riko even dropped her fan in shock.

"What?" The freshmen trio said. The second year just sighed at Kiyoshi while Kuroko was…Kuroko.

Everyone laughed. "You guys are such comic relief," Wakamatsu said.

"Sheesh…" Hyuga said. "Don't tell me you lost on purpose."

Kagami twitched.

"Oh, crap!" Kiyoshi said.

"It wasn't on purpose?" Hyuga yelled. While the second years gave Kiyoshi a defeated expression.

"Kiyoshi-san is an idiot," Takao said. Seirin sighed at the truth in Takao's statement.

"Sheesh!" Riko said.

Kiyoshi scratched his cheek sheepishly. Kuroko blinked at the scene unfolding in front of him and Nigou simply just said "Arf!"

"What a way to end the practice," Kasamatsu said.

At the coffee vending machine, Hyuga purchased a can of coffee. He pointed the can to Kiyoshi. "Hm?" Kiyoshi asked

"Congratulations on your discharge," Hyuga said.

"Thanks."

"That contest...could you have won with the proper shoes?" Hyuga asked. "Maybe," Kiyoshi answered.

"Oi!"

"He never gives a direct answer to anything," Hyuga said. "It's quite annoying."

"Leaving the ending aside, it's true that my skills are rusty," Kiyoshi said. "I wonder if I can get back into form until the summer."

He got back into shape alright, the other centres thought with a huff.

"But those two are pretty interesting," Kiyoshi said.

"Kuroko and Kagami?" Hyuga asked.

"Yeah," Kiyoshi clarified.

"Kuroko's fine, but Kagami…" Hyuga said. "His play is a lot like the Kiseki no Sedai. Something is wrong with him?"

"Really?" Kiyoshi said. "It seemed the opposite to me."

"Kiyoshi-senpai...is a lot like Kise-kun," Kuroko said.

"Where did that come from?" Kise asked.

"Both of you hide how crafty you are," Kuroko said.

Kise blinked before he smiled. "Is there anything wrong with that?"

"No, it's just how you are," Kuroko said. "Besides, I like Kise-kun just fine."

Kise's smile widened, only to have it disappear because something hit his head. He looked at the object...it was a black tea bag.

"Oha-asa lucky item," Midorima said. "I thought it would help ward off the weird atmosphere."

"What do you mean "weird atmosphere"?" Kise wailed. "And what does that have to do with hitting me!?"

"You mean Kuroko?"

"Could be," Kiyoshi said.

"Oi!"

"I'm not that sure with just looking," Kiyoshi said. "But… I kind of understand their worries. I also hit a wall."

"Walls are troublesome," Okamura said. "But the rewards of overcoming them are always worth it."

Hyuga just stared at Kiyoshi. "Well, they say fights solidify friendships," Kiyoshi said cheerfully.

"We're in trouble because their friendship hasn't solidified!"

"A championship team that depends on the friendship of two people," Mayuzumi said. "I wouldn't be surprised if this was all made for the sake of an anime."

"Mayuzumi speaks?" Coach Shirogane asked.

"Once in every full blue moon," Mibuchi replied.

"I think he is just as bitter with Kuroko, as Murasakibara is with Kiyoshi," Hayama whispered to Nebuya. Nebuya snorted.

"Then why don't we help solidify their friendship?" Kiyoshi suggested. "Isn't that a senpai's duty?"

That line ticked Hyuga off. "I changed my mind. Give it back."

"What? I thought it was a gift?"

"You are pissing me off!"

"EH!?"

Everyone laughed. "Typical," Izuki said.

"Well, it's a bit troubling…" Hyuga said. "But I'm not worried. They won't give up because of this. All they need to do is tear down the wall. If they do, they'll get even stronger."

...

The next day, it seems that Seirin is having a practice game.

"And here I thought you were only going to focus on training," Moriyama said.

"But that would be too easy!" Riko said. Seirin mentally groaned.

"You should toughen them up whenever you can!" Coach Araraki said agreeing with Riko. This time Yosen mentally groaned.

For some reason, the opponents looked really mad.

"What's with your opponents?" Takao asked. "You'll see," Seirin said.

"I don't care if you are one of Tokyo's top four teams." One of the opponents said.

"Unseeded to top 4...not bad," Koganei said.

"Anyone wants to tell him we are the champions?" Hyuga said with a blank look.

"Champion the champions," Izuki said.

"You guys must think we are a joke," another opponent said.

"Hey, Furihata…" Fukuda said "We want to play in games. We even got our uniforms."

"Eh? The trio's playing?" Mibuchi said. "Why?"

"You'll see," (Guess who)

"Why do we even bother you with questions!" Wakamatsu exclaimed.

"But isn't this too sudden?" Kawahara said.

"I can't believe all your starters are first years!"

Everyone blinked. "Ooh, that's got to sting," some of the people said. "I'm getting middle school flashbacks," Kimura muttered.

"I'm seriously pissed. Let's destroy them and send them home."

"Good luck with that," The GoM said.

"You sure are pretty confident with Seirin's victory," Takao said.

"As long as they do their part, a no-name school has no chance of beating Kuroko and the fool," Midorima said.

"But Kuroko is in a slum!" Takao exclaimed

At the bench, Izuki turned to Riko. "Coach, what are you thinking?"

"He insisted on watching the first-years play," Riko said looking at Kiyoshi.

"Oh, I see," Mibuchi said. "Teppei-chan is just being his usual crafty self."

"Why would you say it like that?" Kiyoshi said.

"Kiyoshi, what is this?" Hyuga demanded.

Flashback time

"Oh look!" Hayama said. "Flashback time!"

"They do flashbacks?" Riko asked.

"Yep," Hyuga said. "They've shown a few in the previous episodes."

"What were they about?" Riko asked.

"Mostly the Kiseki no Sedai during middle school," Hyuga said.

"Hmm."

"Starting tomorrow, we'll have three consecutive days of practice games," Riko said.

"Practice games?" Izuki said. "Right before summer vacation?"

"So I know exactly what you guys need to work on," Riko said.

"Smart," all the adults and knowledgeable people said.

"And then during summer vacation, you'll have fun practicing as hard as possible." Riko had a sparkling aura surrounding her-which Seirin absolutely dreaded.

Typical the other schools thought.

"Hey Riko," Kiyoshi said. "I have a favour to ask."

"What?"

...

"I think I know what Kiyoshi is thinking," Koganei said. Everyone turned to look at him. "We are probably going to lose this match, right?" Hyuga nodded in agreement.

"Jee, thanks for the vote of confidence," the freshmen-Kuroko and Kagami included- said.

So harsh, everyone else thought.

"Recently, Kagami's been playing selfishly."

"Why is it always me!?" Kagami exclaimed.

"Because 90% of the time it usually is you," Furi said casually. Kagami glared at him.

"Kuroko, you don't need to pass to me anymore," Kagami said to Kuroko.

"Sorry!" Kagami said to Kuroko before anyone could yell at him. He doesn't need people to tell him he was bad with words this time. "It's alright," Kuroko told him. "I simply misinterpreted Kagami-kun's word."

"But they can't win that way," Koganei said. "That's why you are making them lose on purpose, so that way he realizes he can't win on his own?"

"I see," Kiyoshi said.

"Huh?" Koganei said.

"That's amazing Koga…"

"Wait...but…"

"You're not wrong but…" Kiyoshi said. "Do you think he is so stupid that he wouldn't notice unless we tell him?"

"Yes!" Everyone immediately said. "Kuroko even had to punch him in the face!" Wakamatsu said. Kagami just scowled.

"He doesn't seem uncertain or worried to me. If there's anyone I want to notice something, it's him." The screen shifted to show Kuroko.

"Eh?" Some people said. "Something you want Kuroko to notice?" Himuro said uncertainty.

"You are talking about the drawback," Akashi said.

"What drawback?" Almost everyone asked. "You'll see," Akashi said.

"Damnit Akashi! Not you too!" His teammates raged.

Kagami scores a basket by himself. The score showed Seirin only behind by 2 points.

"And here I was expecting a 10 point difference," Hayama said with an impressive look.

You aren't any better with your words! The freshmen trio thought.

Furi made a pass to Kuroko who quickly passed to Kawahara who made a basket.

"Not bad," Nebuya said. "Maybe these three have a chance to go somewhere."

Why do you sound like you are much older when you aren't! The freshmen mentally screamed.

The first years are doing better than expected. Riko thought. Kuroko-kun's movement isn't bad either but our score is lower than expected.

"Huh?" Almost everyone thought. "Isn't the team expecting a loss?" Kasamatsu said. "So isn't this a better situation?"

The ball came to Kuroko and it slowed down to show Kuroko searching for someone to pass to. Due to Kagami not reacting to Kuroko, Kuroko passed to Furi.

"Although it's probably common knowledge now, I have to say his information processing is very impressive," Imayoshi said.

Is it because he isn't coordinating with Kagami-kun? No, this isn't just because of that. At the end of the match, it turns out Seirin did win the game after all.

"Wah, they actually won!" Hayama said. "Not bad for a first game!"

"That's some faith you have on a teammate you didn't get along with," Takao said with a smirk to Midorima. Midorima hit Takao with his tea bag.

All the freshmen stood together and celebrated except for Kuroko.

At Maji burger, Riko glared at Kiyoshi. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Huh?"

"Suddenly challenging Kagami-kun to 1-on-1, making only the first years play… In the end, Kagami ended up beating them all by himself. What are you planning?"

"Why do Riko and the others keep asking me that?" Kiyoshi said. "I only challenged him to one-on-one to see how our abilities compare."

"Then what about today's game?"

"Well, I guess I did have something in mind," Kiyoshi said.

Back at Seirin's gym, Hyuga was practicing by himself.

"~Just like Shin-chan~," Takao said. Midorima glared at him.

Since I didn't play, I got extra energy. Hyuga thought. Guess I'll practice twice as much shooting.

Just as Hyuga was about to make the shot, the camera zoomed out to show Kuroko.

"Ano," he said shocking Hyuga.

Everyone chuckled.

"I want Kuroko to know the current limits of his basketball," Kiyoshi said.

"Didn't Aomine-san say he was at his limit during the match?" Sakurai asked. Before Kiyoshi could answer, Riko said, "He wasn't there and Teppei wanted Kuroko-kun to know the reason for his limit."

"Huh?" Hyuga said. "What limits? More importantly, what did you say after that?"

"Going forward, I will only hold Seirin back," Kuroko told him. "So please make Kiyoshi-senpai a starter instead.

"That's one bad slump you were in," Takao said to Kuroko. "I think it's the result of his partner more than the slump," Imayoshi commented.

"Put positively, his style of basketball utilizes his teammates," Kiyoshi said. "Depending on the other four, he can be strong or weak."

Kiyoshi's words made the smart ones realize something, "Is that why you didn't want him to go to Seirin?" Kasamatsu asked the Kiseki no Sedai. Their lack of response confirmed Kasamatsu's answer.

"But putting it on negative aspect, he's relying on other people. In order to break through this wall, he needs to abandon his style..."

"That's a 180," Takao said. "One minute he says he likes the style, the next minute he says to abandon it."

"Abandon it?" Riko said unsurely

"...and create a new style of basketball for himself."

"Honestly, you don't often come talk to me, but…" Hyuga said.

"Ara, is Junpei-chan feeling lonely because his kouhais aren't paying attention to him?" Mibuchi said with a teasing smile. "You can always come to me for attention."

"I don't need it!" Hyuga howled. "And don't call me by my first name!"

He slapped Kuroko on the face. "Don't get ahead of yourself, moron!" He finished.

Everyone chuckled due to Kuroko's facial expression.

"Replace you as a starter?" he said incredulously. "Think of the guys on the bench!"

Everyone except the Teikou alumni nodded.

"It's not your place to say that! I'm the one who will say that!"

"But…" Kuroko protested.

"I said no!" Hyuga interrupted. Kuroko just stared at his captain. Hyuga sighed. "When the team first formed, Kiyoshi played a heavy-handed centre. He was taller than the rest of us, but he was also the only one of us who could do it. However, Kiyoshi was actually best at point-guard."

"REALLY!?" Those that didn't know exclaimed. "Point-guard to centre...that's a pretty big leap," Takao said. It's like saying he and Otsubo decided to switch roles one day.

"Sometimes, you gotta make sacrifices for the team," Kiyoshi said. "Besides, I was able to find a compromise."

"He thought it was for the best of the team, but he also felt he was limiting himself playing in a position he wasn't used to. But one day…"

Flashback time

"Two flashbacks in one episode," Himuro said. "Been a while."

"Yeah, now that I think about, the last one was during Seirin vs. Shutoku," Fukai said.

"Why don't you play both?" Koganei asked obliviously.

Everyone looked at the screen blankly. "Can you?" Kagami asked. "No!" Kasamatsu said. "At least, I don't think you can."

Everyone stared at him. "That's impossible, Koga!" Izuki told him. "The positions are too different.

"Huh? Really?" Koganei said.

"When did you start playing?" Fukai asked. "Very recently at the time," Koganei said.

"The centre is right at the front of the basket, a power position!" Hyuga told him. "The complete opposite to point guard, who is furthest away from the basket and a supervisory position."

"Then he can lead us under the basket," Koganei said.

"That explains the specialization in run-and-gun," Kasamatsu said. "To think the jack-of-all-trades was the one who instigated it," Imayoshi said.

"Could you please not call me that?" Koga said.

"What are you talking about?" Izuki said.

Kiyoshi laughed. "You're right. I don't have to choose one. I'll do both."

The scene changed into a game. It showed Kiyoshi with the ball. He charged towards the opponent's net. When it looked like he was about to be blocked, Kiyoshi used his flexible wrist to pass to Hyuga who made the shot.

All the opposing centres groaned. "The wrist of his is so annoying," Nebuya said. "There, there," Mibuchi said patting Nebuya. "Like Kise said, yesterday's enemy is today's friend."

...

"You and Kiyoshi are different, but is that all you can do?" Hyuga said to Kuroko. Kuroko looked down as he took in Hyuga's words. "Well, I can't force you to do anything, so I won't say anymore. But if you don't think you can do it, then at least tell Kagami." Hyuga went to pick up a basketball. "He believes in you."

Flashback to Hyuga talking to Kagami

"Another one!?" Everyone exclaimed. "We are at an all time high!" Izuki said.

"Izuki, please be quiet," Hyuga said. "I didn't even make a pun!" Izuki exclaimed.

"Kuroko's always saved me until now," Kagami told Hyuga.

"That's definitely true!" Everyone said.

"So I want to put some distance between us now."

"So he acted like that because he didn't want to rely on Kuroko?" Takao asked.

"Yeah," Hyuga said. "With that being said, Kuroko still ended up saving his-therefore our-ass." Seirin snorted while Kagami twitched.

"There's no way Kuroko is stopping now, so I need to make myself stronger, even if it's only a little bit."

...

"Just how awkward is he?" Hyuga said back in the present.

"A lot," Kuroko answered.

Kuroko blinked with realization. "Excuse me. Thank you." He quickly left Hyuga to practice.

"You sure you don't need anything?" Hyuga asked.

"Yes," Kuroko responded.

Outside, Nigou was sleeping.

"Aww!" Riko, Momoi and Mibuchi said out loud.

He woke up and looked towards the door. When he saw Kuroko, he gave a bark. But Kuroko quickly left without paying attention.

Nigou whined. "I'm sorry," Kuroko said patting the dog. "I'll make it up to you later."

"Arf!" Nigou said wagging its tail.

"Abandon it?" Riko asked for clarification. "But that's a style Kuroko-kun honed from trial and error."

"Yeah, that's why he has to abandon it without throwing away his direction..." Kiyoshi stopped himself from continuing. "No, he'll be fine."

Everyone was confused.

"What?" Riko said. At that moment, Kuroko ran past Maji burger.

"Wait...you saw him?" Fukai asked. "How?"

"We just could." Riko said.

"That's quite the musical shift," Kimura said.

"Boys sure are lucky," Riko said.

The boys were confused while Momoi nodded in agreement. "Women," Aomine said.

At the street basketball court, Kagami was practicing via mind simulation. From dribbling between the legs, he thought. Drive to the right and break past one guy. Help will come right away. I can see Furi under the basket. From there, I need to pass. But it's not enough. A simple play like that won't help beat the Kiseki no Sedai. If their teammates stop me for one second, they'll be ready again. In order to win, even if I can't beat them in a one-on-one, I need to throw them off their balance or create an opening.

"He certainly managed to do that," Wakamatsu muttered thinking back to the Winter Cup.

That's where I have to start.

"Kagami-kun," Kuroko called out. Kagami turned to see Kuroko catching his breath.

"Kuroko?" Kagami said with surprise.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" Kuroko said with a pant.

"What did you want to talk about?"

"I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"The truth is I haven't gotten all my thoughts organized yet."

"Ehh!?" Most people said while Kuroko former and current teammates laughed.

"Hey!"

"I don't know where to start. Please give a minute."

"From here? Sheesh!" Kagami said with irritation. He passed the ball to Kuroko. "I've got nothing to do while I wait. At least play against me."

"Are you punishing him?" Takao asked. "For making you wait?"

"No!" Kagami said.

"Seems like punishment to me," Himuro said.

Kagami easily managed to score a point. "Yes!" He said. "My 14th point."

"Definitely punishment," the others said.

"Ano, please go easy on me today," Kuroko told him. "I can't think like this."

"I am going easy on you!" Kagami responded. "You are just too weak!" After a pause, he said "The first time we played was a lot like this. When I found out what you can really do, I was blown away."

"It's the typical response," Akashi said.

"Hey, I've been wondering about something since then. Why did you choose me?"

The question intrigued everyone.

"Sorry," Kuroko said. "I have to apologize to you. I lied."

Everyone raised an eyebrow to that.

"In middle school, I received the uniform as the team's sixth man."

"I know. You were their trump card."

"That's not exactly right. They may have believed in me, but they didn't trust me."

The coaches sighed. A notion the Miracles kept until their loss at the Winter Cup.

"It may be more accurate to say they stopped being able to believe in me. Back in my first year, I was just an ordinary player. I became the sixth man during my second year. Back then, I believe everyone still trusted me."

"We did," Aomine said quietly. "At least I did." Kuroko just stared at his former partner.

"But as their talent began to bloom, they began to trust me less and relied more on themselves. If we were one point behind with a few seconds left, instead of passing, they would finish it themselves."

The other schools sighed. They can definitely recall that happening with their miracle.

"The truth is it didn't have to be you. I wanted the Kiseki no Sedai to recognize my basketball through you."

"I was wondering what you might say," Kagami said. "I had a feeling it would be this. I've always felt like I was like them. Even though you had supposedly quit the basketball club because you rejected their style."

Kuroko mentioned a while back that he quit the team because of an incident, Kasamatsu thought. Does that have anything to do with that style of play?

"I knew why you would work with me. Everyone plays basketball for their own reasons. I'm not any different-"

"No," Kuroko interrupted him. "Kagami-kun, you are different. In all our games so far, you trusted me. Those words back then..."

Flashback to Touou game

"They are going insane with these flashbacks," Mayuzumi said. "And Mayuzumi-san broke the record by speaking twice in one episode so far," Hayama commented. Mayuzumi glared at him for that comment.

"Those were not parting words, but words meant to make us stop relying on each other so we can become stronger, and then combine our strengths to win. Allow me to correct myself then. I'm glad I came to Seirin."

Kuroko's seniors smiled.

"The seniors are wonderful people, our classmates are wonderful as well."

The freshmen trio smiled.

"I am not Teikou's sixth man, Kuroko Tetsuya. I am Seirin High Kuroko Tetsuya. I don't want to make someone else the best player in Japan. I want to become the best in Japan with you and everyone else. That's why I'll become stronger and defeat the Kiseki no Sedai."

"So you can get fired up for a game, huh?" Takao said to Kuroko with a casual smile. "I'm always fired up when it comes to a game," Kuroko said. "Is that so?" Takao said.

"That's what I've been meaning to do all along," Kagami told him. "And you got it wrong again!" He passed the ball to Kuroko, who tossed it up to the net. Kagami dunk the ball. "You don't want to be the best," he said. "We will be the best."

"Yes!" Kuroko said with a smile.

...

Kuroko and Kagami are walking home.

"And I thought it would end their," Takao said. "Why?" Midorima asked. "Most animes do that," Takao said.

"So we are officially calling this an anime?" Kise asked.

"But how are you going to get strong?" Kagami asked.

"I don't know," Kuroko said.

Everyone snorted. Typical Kuroko.

"Hey!"

"But I will find a way before the Winter Cup."

"Idiot," Kagami said holding out his fist. "I'll become stronger too. If you take too long, I'll leave you behind. Then show me this winter, your new style of basketball."

Kuroko responded with a fist bump.

Ending time

"What a heart touching ending," Imayoshi said.

Doesn't sound natural from his mouth, his teammates thought.

"One more episode for today," Riko said.

The picture from before changed.

"The picture changes?" Riko said.

"Yeah," Hyuga said. "They are telling a story but the details are groggy."

The new picture had Riko and Momoi playing rock, paper and scissors with Momoi winning.

Momoi clapped in joy while Riko pouted.

Kiyoshi-probably- telling Aomine and Kagami to stop arguing in front of a nervous Sakurai.

Everyone sighed.

Kise arguing with Midorima about something with poor Takao being stuck in the middle.

Takao moaned while some people fought off a smile.

Imayoshi, Kasamatsu, Hyuga and Izuki are watching the chaos in the background.

And Kuroko...just being Kuroko.

"I swear they better give us the story behind these pictures or I'm going to flip!" Takao said.

...

Shows Hyuga looking over his notebook. This teacher doesn't pull punches when it comes to test, he thought with a tired expression.

"Oh Hyuga," Kiyoshi said as he entered the room. "Do you want a snack?"

"No," Hyuga said.

"Aww, but these are really good," Kiyoshi said.

"Don't want any!" Hyuga said.

"So cold," said Kiyoshi.

"Don't be like that," Kiyoshi said. "How about if I share with you?" He broke the snack in too. "Here you go." Kiyoshi pointed the other half to Hyuga.

Hyuga raised an eyebrow at Kiyoshi, before he sighed and reluctantly took the snack.

"Hyuga can't say no to Kiyoshi," Izuki snickered. Hyuga gave him a death glare.

...

Today's character: Murasakibara!

"Look Atsushi," Himuro said. "It's you!" Murasakibara hummed.

Alternative job: pastry chef

"No surprise," Everyone said blankly. "He would probably end up eating everything," Aomine said casually. "I probably would," Murasakibara said.

Type: Tall but not taller than him

"How tall exactly?" Kise asked. "This tall," Murasakibara showed with his hands. They were at eye level. Good luck with that, everyone thought.

Favorite food: Nerunerunerune candy

"What kind of candy is that!?" Kagami yelled. "It's not bad," Himuro said.

Hobbies: looking for cheap sweet stores, eating and sleeping

Everyone rolled their eyes

Speciality: shooting gallery and goldfish scooping

"He was really good!" Kise said.

Member of Healthy committee

"Why are you part of the health committee!?" His former teammates yelled.

"Because I need to be part of a committee," Murasakibara said casually.

"But why health?" Momoi asked.

"Because they don't do anything," He replied. Midorima twitched at the comment.

Player he has his eye on: Kiyoshi

"Figures," Himuro said.

Best subject: Physics

"Is he actually good?" Kagami said. "Yes," Kuroko said.

Hates crows because they make weird noises.

Has 3 older brothers and 1 older sister.

"Do they treat you with a bunch of sweets?" Midorima asked. Murasakibara happily nodded. Midorima sighed.

Hates carrots because he hates veggies.

"Then just say you hate vegetables!" Midorima yelled. "Murasakibara you should eat your veggies," Akashi told him. Mother-hen Akashi's back, his former teammates thought.

Favorite dishes: squid ink pasta, cream stew, dolsot bibimbap

"We are done with Mukkun," Momoi said. "On to the last episode for the day."

Done! This has got to be my quickest update yet. Forgive me for any lack of reactions and mistakes.