𝐀 𝐋𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝟸𝟹

"He watched."

The low whisper of shock hung over the four spectators.

"What are you talking about? His shot didn't change. That number ten probably just caught him off guard."

"No, Kasamatsu-san, you must understand – Midorima-kun does not simply watch his shots. He designed the high-arch shot after he discovered his perfect accuracy ability. He has not watched his shots since the beginning of our third year of middle school entirely because it increases the mental drain on opponents to see his absolute confidence in himself.

This... this is not something I thought we would see him do again."

Kise and Momoi nodded numbly while Kasamatsu raised an eyebrow at the three.

"And? It's not like the world is ending."

Kuroko shook his head, turning to meet Kasamatsu's eyes.

"Midorima-kun's nature is unyielding. For Midorima to go against what is now an ingrained habit, which already combated the natural desire to follow the trajectory of the ball, means that he is threatened."

Kasamatsu's thoughts turned contemplative as he studied the three Teiko graduates. Kuroko's face was as impassive as ever and even his explanations sounded monotone and unrushed despite how bad the assessment sounded in the context of his bet.

Momoi's stare was narrowed, but neither excited nor disappointed – Kasamatsu would have said that the manager wasn't as concerned about the action as her male counterparts, but her analytical gaze unnerved him. It looked like she was picking the reaction apart as she opened one of her folders and quickly jotted down numbers and calculations.

Kise had been shocked into silence, but his slow-growing grin looked like it might threaten to split his face in half. None of them were going to hear the end of it if this ended in his favor.

In a low voice, hopefully, unheard by their two companions, Kasamatsu decided to be straightforward with his calm kohai.

"Are you nervous?"

"The game is not over yet. Kagami may be fast and he may have talent, but he will still need to overcome Midorima's will. The only ones who rival his stubbornness are the other Miracles.

Besides, they are functioning at an 18-point gap. I have seen larger gaps overcome in a single quarter, but it is not an easy feat."

After all, the Phantom Sixth Man specialized in such comebacks. But the Phantom himself had never seen anyone besides the Miracles score so many points by themselves and the Seirin team, while skilled, was only hanging on by holding Shuutoku at bay and praying Kagami could do the impossible.

The teams returned to the court at the call of the referee, and both sides equally focused on the game more than their cheering audience. Kagami, especially, seemed ignorant of the heavy stares that followed him.

Shuutoku changed nothing – neither unnerved by Midorima's last lingering shot nor Seirin's offensive tactics. Seirin shifted back to what looked like the same formation from the first quarter, with Kagami at the core of their offense instead of on defense.

They were going to rely on Kagami's newly warmed-up speed to fully throw Midorima off of his feet.

"It's a gutsy move, huh, Kurokocchi? They liked to try this one on me a lot. He'll remind you a lot of a certain someone once he gets his rhythm."

The edges of Momoi's lips twitched; she wasn't so sure that it would be good for Kagami to remind Tetsu of Aomine so quickly. If anything, it was her sincerest hope that the loud and cheerful basketball idiot would manage to keep his cool and focus – all his tunnel vision on strong opponents was well enough for him, but it was going to break what little trust Kuroko could build with this team if all he saw was a poor copy of the Miracle Ace.