Warning: mild language
It was finally time for the fourth and final quarter to start.
Hyuuga had a determined look on his face, but before he went into the court after the others, he looked back at Riko.
Both the coach and the manager looked at Hyuuga, weirded out by his expression. Just a second ago he looked ready to go, but now he was looking sort of scared and was shaking.
"Riko, how do I stop my hands from shaking?" he asked his friend.
Riko looked at his shaking form with surprise.
"What? How did that happen, you were ready just a moment ago?" she asked incredulously.
"I was!" Hyuuga said comically, making (Y/N) snort at their conversation as she watched them. "But I still have four fouls! Of course I'm nervous, the pressure is killing me!" he complained and Riko sighed.
"Ok, turn around." Riko instructed and Hyuuga did as she told him to.
When his back was facing her, Riko slapped it with all her strength. That was the way players got back to business, after all.
Hyuuga shouted in pain, but it worked. The pain helped ground him and the captain was once again ready to go play. He quickly thanked her and ran to the court.
(Y/N) smiled at their interaction, they were so cute.
The game started and Seirin had possession of the ball. It didn't take long for Hyuuga to have the ball in his hands and try to score a three-pointer. Reo didn't hesitate to mark him and try to stop his shot.
Hyuuga was focused and thanks to Riko's help, he stayed calm. Hyuuga released the ball quickly and scored. Reo's eyes widened, he didn't even had time to try to block it.
Reo was surprised and annoyed with Hyuuga's feat. He had been expecting Hyuuga to be too cautious with his moves in order to not make another foul. But he was seeing now that Hyuuga wasn't worrying about that. Reo had to step up his game.
Hyuuga's presence on the court really made a difference in everyone's morale. His confidence was giving his teammates more strength.
Finally, the moment came where Reo had the ball and Hyuuga was marking him. Hyuuga not only believed he knew the trick to the Void shot, he also had figured out how to stop the other shots.
Reo positioned himself and made the movement to shoot the Heaven shot. Hyuuga had predicted that and reacted. When Reo saw that Hyuuga knew what shot he was going to make, instead of letting the ball go, he came back down again and he changed his shot to the Earth shot.
If he succeeded, Hyuuga would receive his fifth foul.
To Reo's surprise, though, Hyuuga didn't fall for his trick. Hyuuga had also predicted Reo would make this change. So, Hyuuga had only pretended he was going to jump, thus making him able to react to the Earth one.
When Reo jumped for real to shoot the ball, Hyuuga jumped with him and managed to touch the ball with the tip of his finger.
Hyuuga knew how to predict Reo's shots because he realized that Reo's form before he shot any of the three was practically the same before he shot them. Only his center of gravity was slightly different. Reo's center of gravity shifted towards the direction he was going to jump. Knowing this, Hyuuga only had to observe and he would know what shot Reo was going to make.
Reo couldn't believe he had made it.
The ball hit the side of the hoop and bounced back.
Kiyoshi and Nebuya were under the basket waiting for the rebound. Kiyoshi had been losing almost every battle against Nebuya until now. Not only was his rival stronger, but Kiyoshi's knee was hurting terribly.
But Kiyoshi would be damned if he continued to be bested by Nebuya. Not when his teammates were fighting so hard. Not when Hyuuga came back to the game and was defeating Reo. Not when his team was counting on him and supported him 100%!
With an explosion of energy, Kiyoshi pushed hard against Nebuya and managed to grab the ball before him. He passed it immediately to his team and Kagami scored.
Rakuzan was getting frustrated. The Uncrowned Kings were having trouble.
The game continued and Reo had the ball once again. Hyuuga may be able to predict what shot he was going to use, but he was certain Hyuuga wouldn't be able to counter his Void shot even if he knew it was coming.
That being said, Reo smirked smugly and got ready to make the Void shot.
To his complete shock, and everyone watching, when Reo jumped to shoot, Hyuuga jumped after him and slapped the ball off its course.
The trick to Reo's Void shot was how deep he crouched before he jumped. Because Reo crouched so low, when he made the move to stand up again, his opponent would start jumping. Then, when his opponent reached the point where he had his legs completely extended, Reo finished his jump. Because his opponent already had his legs completely stretched, he couldn't jump when he saw Reo jump for real. That's why it gave them the idea their legs were paralyzed and weren't able to jump. It was simply a trick.
A trick Hyuuga had figured out thanks to his friends and his observing skills.
(Y/N) smiled proudly as did everyone else when Hyuuga took the ball from Reo.
The Uncrowned King was so shocked he even let out a squeaky gasp.
Seirin gained possession of the ball thanks to Hyuuga, and Izuki grabbed it. He passed to Kuroko, who then passed to Kiyoshi.
Kiyoshi ran towards Rakuzan's basket and jumped to dunk the ball, but Nebuya got to him before he could. Kiyoshi didn't let that stop him, though. He used his Right of Postponement and changed his move to pass the ball to Hyuuga again.
Hyuuga caught it and scored a three-pointer.
It had been a beautiful performance from Seirin and the entire team cheered.
Two minutes of the final quarter had already passed and the scores were 76-88.
The tension was growing in the court. Seirin was doing really well, they were passing around and scoring.
The Uncrowned Kings had been bested by them and Rakuzan was in danger.
Not only that, Kagami was even more focused now.
Akashi's eyes narrowed dangerously. Not only was he tremendously displeased with his team's poor performance, but Kagami seemed to still have a lot of power.
Mayuzumi and the Uncrowned Kings noticed how Akashi had been silent through everything that was going on. His aura was growing more menacing by the second and that made them sweat nervously. They feared what was coming.
The Uncrowned Kings couldn't help but be reminded of what Akashi had done and said some time ago when the four of them were at practice.
-----Flashback to Rakuzan High-school, after Seirin's victory against Touou-----
Akashi was standing alone inside the gym, it was already dark outside and Rakuzan had been preparing for a match they would have the next day.
Akashi had been thinking. He had seen what happened at the match between Seirin and Touou. He had seen the battle between Kagami and Aomine while they were both in the Zone.
Akashi was familiar with the Zone. And he knew that Aomine had the ability to enter that domain as he pleased.
Akashi didn't have to rely on such power. He didn't have the need for that power boost. In normal conditions, his normal power was more than enough to achieve victory. However, he knew he had to have a plan for the eventuality of needing to use the additional strength the Zone provided.
So, Akashi closed his eyes and focused. He experimented and realized that if he focused enough, if he used the right trigger, he could also enter the Zone forcefully. All he needed was the opportunity to test it out.
As he thought about that, the three Uncrowned Kings entered the gym. They had decided to do a light extra workout before their game the next day.
Akashi was pleased that they were there. Besides him, those three were the strongest on the team. He could use them right now to see if his plan would work.
Akashi challenged all three of them to play against him at the same time. The three boys thought Akashi was being too arrogant and were confident they would win.
But they were wrong.
Akashi turned on the switch and forcefully opened the door to the Zone and entered. Once he reached that domain, his three opponents had no chance.
They would never forget what Akashi said after that and the coldness in his eyes when he said it.
"Good. This should work in an actual game." Akashi said coldly as they looked up at him from their positions on the ground. They were exhausted. Akashi was really a monster. "But we should only consider this my trump card. I having to use this would mean Rakuzan is in a dangerous situation." He said as he turned to look at them, his eyes icy. "But let me warn you. The trigger for me to enter this condition is the intent to achieve victory, not by using others, but by taking it for myself. In other words, when I fight with my strength alone, is when I lose hope in you and abandon you." He told them and the three boys couldn't believe he would do such a thing.
-----Back to present-----
Reo had the ball, but he was having trouble to pass it because Seirin's defense was so tight.
Reo tried to pass it to Kotaro, but Kuroko quickly intercepted it and gave it to Kiyoshi.
Kiyoshi ran towards the basket and Nebuya tried to stop him, but Kiyoshi bested him again and he scored.
The crowd and Seirin cheered. The scores were 78-88 now.
That had been it for a certain red haired captain. There was still time until the end of the match and Seirin was only ten points behind. You could say Rakuzan was in danger.
His teammates once again saw how Akashi was behaving. Had he reached the point he warned them about?
Akashi went towards them to give them instructions.
"You four will go to the front during our next attack." He simply said with a stern tone.
He was dispatching them to the other side of the court so they would keep out of his way.
Reo gasped and quickly turned to him.
"What? Sei-chan, what do you-" he tried to argue, but the stony look Akashi sent him shut him up immediately.
What they feared had come true. What Akashi threatened them with, was happening.
Seirin still hadn't figured out what was happening in Rakuzan, but they would soon enough.
(Y/N) looked at Akashi, nervousness growing inside her. She didn't like the look on his face at all. He looked scary.
She knew Akashi would never be pleased with Seirin doing so well against his team, but this was beyond that.
By the way the Uncrowned Kings were failing and by the way Akashi had turned against them, she had a pretty good idea of what was happening.
Just like he did to Mayuzumi, Akashi was abandoning the other three.
(Y/N) gulped. How were they going to play then, if Akashi abandoned them all?
The answer was coming.
When the game continued, all of Rakuzan's players besides Akashi ran to the front. Akashi had the ball and without taking a step from where he stood under the hoop, passed it to the others for them to attack. He decided to stay back at the defense. He wasn't moving. Only looking forward with a stone cold expression.
Seirin was curious about what he was doing, but got back on track and went after the others to defend.
(Y/N) kept looking at Akashi as she bit her lip.
"What's happening, Sei?" she mumbled to herself.
She couldn't help but conclude that the red haired was deep in thought.
Rakuzan failed to score and Seirin took the ball from them again. Kagami had the ball and ran towards Rakuzan's basket, where Akashi was standing.
Kagami prepared to do his Meteor Jam again and score over Akashi's head. He was sure he could do it.
But he failed.
As soon as Kagami's feet left the ground, Akashi's hand took the ball from him. The steal had put his jump off so abruptly, that Kagami fell and slid across the ground.
Everyone looked at Akashi in shock. That had been such an incredibly fast steal. How did he do that?
The answer was given when Akashi looked forward again. From the look in his eyes it was obvious.
Rakuzan's captain had entered the Zone.
(Y/N)'s mouth opened in shock as she watched him. That was what he had been doing, switching on the Zone!
At the audience, even the Miracles couldn't believe their eyes. Akashi's Zone was surely going to be incredible to see.
"I will demonstrate my superiority to everyone here." Akashi said as he prepared to move.
In a swift move, Akashi dribbled the ball across the court. Kagami ran after him and both moved quickly as they went past all the others.
Akashi circled around everyone, even his teammates. He was completely ignoring their existence in the court. They had no purpose for him anymore.
With his speed, Akashi escaped Kagami and went on to face the rest of Seirin.
Hyuuga and Izuki stepped in front of him and, just as quickly, they fell on their knees, such was the efficacy of Akashi's Ankle-breaks.
Then up ahead came Kuroko and Kiyoshi. The pair jumped to block Akashi's shot, but the red haired swiftly circled around them and dunked the ball.
After he scored, everyone looked at him in shock and silence.
Akashi Seijuro had just taken the ball all the way from the other side, defeated every opponent, including one in the Zone, and scored. All by himself and with unbelievable speed and power.
He truly was a monster.
All the players were gasping for air as they looked at him. Rakuzan's players even had a sort of saddened but also frustrated look on their faces. Akashi accomplished that all by himself. Without them. Even worse than that, it looked like he was stronger without them.
They couldn't help but think: What the hell were they even doing there?
But there was nothing they could do about it.
All there was for them was to keep playing and be there for when Akashi needed to use one of them for his plays.
It was sad, but that was how it was.
After that, Seirin called for a time-out. They had to regroup and decide what they would do now that Akashi was in the Zone.
(Y/N) kept looking at her boyfriend. His current power really was intimidating. She herself hadn't even known just how strong he could be.
Not only that, but the way he was behaving, the way he discarded his teammates to play all by himself, the way he abandoned them because they were of no use to him anymore, made her heart ache.
She was having that terrible feeling again. The one she had when they won the Nationals on their last year in Teiko.
He was using and misusing his team. Treating everyone coldly after they became useless. All of them were sad and frustrated because of him. The only thing that made them keep following him was their duty to the team and the knowledge that they couldn't go against him. But other than that . . . Akashi was more alone than ever.
If he didn't change for the better, Akashi was doomed to a dark life. And the worst part was that he didn't even mind it.
(Y/N) exhaled shakily at her thoughts and flinched in surprise when a hand grabbed her shoulder.
She looked at the person and saw that it was Kuroko. The team had already decided what to do for the rest of the game and the girl had heard nothing they had said. She had been completely distracted.
The team decided that Kagami would be the one to go against Akashi. This was what they normally did anyway. When they faced a Miracle and had trouble with him, Kagami was the one assigned to fight against him.
Kagami was still in the Zone and determined to face Akashi, so nothing was lost.
(Y/N) didn't have anything against their plan so she simply nodded in agreement, Kuroko still looking at her.
"Are you ok?" the blue haired boy asked gently as Kagami joined their side.
(Y/N) gave them a weak smile. She was trying to keep a strong front, but her two friends knew she was in pain. She had been and still was determined to win, but there was no way Akashi's doings weren't going to affect her, no matter how strong she wanted to be.
"It's ok. We just have to keep going." She said softly and the boys kept looking at her before she spoke again. "He can't get any worse than this, right? So maybe things will get better now." She said, trying to sound confident.
The boys nodded at her, there wasn't much they could tell her, really.
When the game was about to start again, Kuroko went to the others, but Kagami stayed close to (Y/N).
The girl turned to look at him and smiled more genuinely at him.
"Hey." She called and Kagami looked at her. "You're amazing, ok? I'm sure you'll do well against Sei. So give it your all." She encouraged him and Kagami smiled at her.
Even when her own heart was in pain, she still worried about him and made sure to keep his spirit up.
"You are amazing, too, you know?" he told her and her (E/C) eyes widened slightly.
She hadn't been expecting that.
She smiled at her friend and he patted her head before he walked towards the court.
"Am I?" she mumbled to herself. Then she looked to the side and saw Rakuzan walk towards the court as well. Akashi was passing close to her and the girl couldn't help, but call his name. "Sei." She said gently, but what happened next only served to worry her and sadden her even more.
"I don't need any more distractions from you, (Y/N)." Akashi told her coldly without even looking at her.
The girl gasped quietly before biting her lip. She couldn't control the way her eyes got watery, so she blinked rapidly to help dry them. She expected a lot on this game, but never that he would treat her like that.
"It's ok." She told herself. "It's ok. It will be ok." She repeated.
But (Y/N) couldn't help but feel ashamed of herself. After all she said to Kuroko at the school's gym right before the game, after all that confidence, here she was, reduced to teary eyes.
Not letting this game break her down . . . really easier said than done.
How could it not? When he just turned hostile against her as well?
The girl then exhaled heavily before looking back to the court again. There was no time for this, they still had a game to win and her team needed her in top shape. She had to focus.
Kuroko and Kagami had seen what happened.
Kuroko frowned at the way Akashi made (Y/N) feel and Kagami was full on glaring at him.
In their eyes, Akashi had no right to do that.
At the audience, Imayoshi turned curiously to Aomine.
"Hey, Aomine." He called for the younger boy, who looked at him.
"What?" Aomine asked.
"What does it mean 'to go deeper into the Zone'?" Imayoshi questioned and Aomine furrowed his eyebrows as he thought about his answer.
"It's a metaphor." He started explaining, grabbing the attention of the others sitting beside them. "When you enter the Zone, you open a massive door. Inside it is water. The more you focus, the deeper you sink into it. If you sink far enough, you reach the bottom. That's when you're fully immersed in the Zone, and you can perform at your true best. But then appears a second and bigger door. A faceless figure stands in front of it like a gatekeeper." Aomine explained and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment of what he was saying.
"What happens when you open that second door?" Wakamatsu asked next.
"Who knows? I've never opened it." Aomine admitted. "But I'm certain that beyond that door lies a Zone greater than the normal Zone. If Kagami has any chance of winning, it is by opening that second door." Aomine finished and they all turned to look back at the court.
The match between Seirin and Rakuzan was about to continue.
Everyone was ready to see the battle between Kagami and Akashi.
Zone vs Zone plus Emperor Eye.
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Thank you for reading!