"Yosh, which one of you idiots doesn't know the meaning of 'pass'?" demanded Sora.
"Oi... Ryouta," interrupted Aomine.
"What is it?" said Kise.
"I'm thirsty. Fetch me water."
"Why should I?" demanded Kise.
"You're the captain. Captains fetch stuff."
"That's a big, fat lie!" said Kise indignantly.
"No, it's not!"
"You never asked Akashicchi to fetch stuff, so why are you asking me?"
"Just do it!"
"No!"
Mayu picked up a bottle and lobbed it at Aomine but he simply caught it out of the air easily. "Thanks," he said, taking a swig from the bottle.
"Hey, hey shouldn't we be taking this a bit more seriously?" said Mayu.
"Jeez, trust me. I'm the ace. I'm going to win this match for sure that's 'coz the only one who can beat me is me."
"You know, Aomine-kun, for all your talk of three on two, we've just managed to score one basket," reminded Sora.
"Well, watch me this quarter. How many points do you want me to score?"
"I don't know, Mr. Ace but the fact is neither Seijuro nor Murasakibara-kun like to lose. And if you are going to underestimate my team-mates who are on their side, then you might end up in a spot," said Sora. Aomine just made an irritated sound and bent down as if adjusting his shoes.
"I don't see why you are so worried, Soracchi," said Kise with a smile, "I'll pass to you, if that makes you feel any better. But the fact is; we're ahead. It's just as Aominecchi said. We've just got to maintain the lead."
"What do you think, Midorima-kun," demanded Sora.
"Forseen in forewarned, nanodayo," said Midorima delicately adjusting his glasses.
"Oh, great. What does that translate to in human again?" said Mayu.
"Cancer is not in an overly advantageous position today, nanodayo. I think it would be wise to be weary. But as long as my three pointers go in, I can rest assured, nanodayo."
Sora looked at all of them incredulously. "So you three are positive about our victory?"
"Of course," chorused Kise, Aomine and Midorima.
"So be it..." mused Sora.
"Are you still insecure, Soracchi?" said Kise, "Then what is your prediction?"
"They're going to pull ahead," said Sora confidently.
"Have a little faith you know," chided Kise.
Sora shook her head. "I don't know about the end result, but at least for the second quarter, they're going to get ahead."
Meanwhile, chaos reigned on the other bench. Akashi was pacing back and forth repeatedly. Akira was trying to distract Murasakibara from the granola bar he was currently chewing so that they could discuss strategies. "Hey guys, will you all just calm down?" exclaimed Akira.
"They've gotten ahead of us," muttered Akashi loud enough for the rest of them to hear.
"It's just one basket!" said Akira.
"One basket can be the difference between a loss and a victory," snarled Akashi.
"I have no idea why you're so worked up anyway," said Akira, "Either way, they're just our friends."
"I am absolute. I cannot afford to lose," said Akashi shortly.
"It's such a pain in the neck, Aki-chin. Should we really go back in?" moaned Murasakibara, "Kise-chin and Mine-chin run around a lot. It's tiring."
"We're going to get creamed," sang Yukiji happily.
Akira face-palmed. "You're right. Maybe we should probably go forfeit."
Akashi snarled. "What did you say, woman? I... The emperor... Get beaten by these mortals? Are you insane?"
"We're not functioning properly as a team neither can we go far with individual play when the others are equally strong. Why don't we just give up?" said Akira.
"Akira's a loser," said Yukiji in a sing-song voice.
"Thank you for the input," said Akira sarcastically.
"Seriously though, why don't we just pull it together?" said Yukiji.
"How?" demanded Akira.
"I don't know really," confessed Yukiji, "But we could go with coordinating as a team."
"Both of us don't do team-play," said Murasakibara.
"Especially when you guys are going to slow us down," added Akashi.
"You two have the nerve—" began Akira.
"—That's fine," interrupted Yukiji, "You two do stuff on your own. Akira, Aoba and I will coordinate together."
"That's actually a good idea!" said Akira.
"Done," said Akashi with a nod.
"Still a pain..." muttered Murasakibara.
"So? Time's up. Shall we go in?" said Akira.
"Yeah!"
The two teams lined up for the second quarter. Sora was distracted by a small crunching sound and whipped her head around. She saw that Murasakibara had more than half his granola bar in his mouth and was crunching down on it. Sora groaned and nudged Kise who was standing next to her.
"Great. Now I'm hungry," she hissed.
"Nae, Soracchi... Is this the time?" whispered Kise anxiously.
"You know what... I'm now in a bad mood."
"Uh huh..."
"All three of you better behave."
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A/N: Hello, minna-san! I know I'm usually not big on author's notes but this is a special occasion. For the next couple of months, my updates might be quite sporadic, after which I can assure you that I will take up this story again with all my concentration. Just let me put my finals behind... I have NO intention of leaving you guys hanging and presenting an incomplete story. Wish me luck!
Teiko's basketball will be taken up again with full force in April 2016. :)
Arigatou!