46 Five Aces

Rina, humming a song, suddenly remembered something and took out a form from her gray notebook, handing it to Shōgo.

Taking the form that Rina handed over, Shōgo was a bit puzzled after looking at it closely.

However, after examining the form in detail, Shōgo smiled, finding it interesting!

The form provided by Rina contained the names of well-known players from the past three years of the All-Japan Junior High School Basketball League, along with detailed information about some key players.

The abilities and background reflected in the form were evident. Shōgo couldn't accurately guess, but he could imagine. This was why nobles were nobles, rich in resources.

In the form, three lines of names were highlighted in bold and red.

Miracle Generation: Seijūrō Akashi, Daiki Aomine, Shintarō Midorima, Atsushi Murasakibara, Ryōta Kise (Shōgo Haisaki, Tetsuya Kuroko).

Five Uncrowned Kings: Teppei Kiyoshi, Makoto Hanamiya, Eikichi Nebuya, Reo Mibuchi, Kotarō Hayama.

Five Aces: Suzuran Karasu, Tensho Kimura, Ryō Sakurai, Kazunari Takao, Tomonori Tsugawa.

Looking at this clear form, it was obvious that it had been created by professionals from the education department, and it revealed quite a bit.

Miracle Generation and Five Uncrowned Kings, Shōgo had no words; he was familiar with all of these.

But the last line, Five Aces, who were these five individuals? Reading through each name one by one, Shōgo's mind raced.

Suzuran Karasu, no impression, not familiar. Could it be someone from that school? This name should be a nickname, not a real name, but it had already been taken as such, indicating its significance.

Tensho Kimura, no impression, not familiar. Shōgo didn't recognize this person at all. Did they appear in the original work? He was quite perplexed.

Kazunari Takao, this name rang a bell; he was one of the future Shūtoku High players. Also a point guard with a keen eye, he was indeed a notable figure.

Ryō Sakurai, where did he see this name before? Right, he was a teammate of Daiki from the future. Surprisingly, they were in the same grade as Shōgo. Why hadn't he participated in the junior high league? Even though he was still in his first year of junior high, he had secured a spot in the powerful Teikōu Academy through sheer strength, proving his exceptional skills.

Tomonori Tsugawa, this guy needed no introduction; Shōgo had recently tormented and abused him. He deserved to be an emerging talent; Shōgo had no objections. He had managed to defend against Ryōta back in junior high, and even against Taiga Kagami in high school.

Continuing to look through the list of other players, many only had names and positions listed. The most common thing was a familiar skill.

After going through it all, Shōgo returned the form to Rina, sincerely expressing his admiration.

"Rina-chan, your strength leaves me awestruck!"

"Hehe!!"

Shōgo thought for a moment and then said to Rina:

"Rina-chan, summer vacation is coming soon. I'm planning to go on a trip abroad for a wilderness survival activity. I won't be able to hang out with you during the vacation."

Rina, who had been humming a song softly, immediately turned around upon hearing this and stared at Shōgo with her large rose-red eyes.

Seeing her reaction, Shōgo felt as if he had done something wrong, as though he had disappointed the girl in front of him in some way.

So, with a gentle smile, Shōgo tried to show his innocence.

"Rina, what I said is true."

"Yeah! I've already signed up, and the registration is closed."

Shōgo quickly extinguished any thoughts of excitement that might have arisen in Rina's eyes. He then reached out and gently touched her rose-red hair, his voice a bit low.

"Be good! I'll be back soon. When I return, we'll start high school together, join the basketball club, and participate in the Inter-High tournament."

"Yeah! I'll wait for you to come back, Shōgo-kun."

Her simple answer almost made Shōgo's eyes well up.

What a wonderful girl!

At this point, Shōgo thought he might not need to envy Daiki's charisma anymore or feel jealous of the inscrutable Satsuki.

Nodding decisively at Rina, Shōgo started organizing his books, preparing for the third class.

As time flew by, afternoon arrived, and summer vacation was just around the corner.

Under Rina's reluctant gaze, Shōgo picked up the girl and took a few rounds on the playground. Rose-red strands of hair fluttered in the air as they tightly embraced each other, feeling each other's warmth.

Shōgo had never reacted so intensely before, not even with the alluring Coach Rei or his beloved Satsuki. While holding the blushing girl's closed eyes, Shōgo didn't hesitate and leaned in for a kiss, feeling the warmth of her soft lips.

Skipping over approximately 1 million words.

After sending Rina onto the train, Shōgo hoisted his basketball and backpack, walking step by step on the road, heading home.

At this moment, Shōgo understood that a lot of foreshadowing events were happening right now.

For example, the Teikō Junior High basketball gymnasium is now vacant.

Five individuals with different hair colors and attires stood together, forming a circle. There was a subtle hostility visible among them, and their words were both declarations and farewells.

Seijūrō: "From now on, we are enemies to each other. Let's meet again on the national stage in high school...!"

Ryōta: "True, but do we have to be so tense about it now?"

Shintarō: "It's just a coincidence that we're parting ways."

Seijūrō: "This isn't a coincidence. Looking across the country, there aren't many strong basketball schools, but none of us ever thought about attending the same one. Speaking of which, we all dislike being collectively referred to as the Generation of Miracles. Whenever we face each other, we'll have to prove who's superior. None of us think we're inferior. To prove this, we'll fight hard to defeat the others. There's no logical reason for it; it's just our instinct."

Ryōta: "Well, that's true."

Daiki: "Of course!"

Shintarō: "I have no objections!"

Seijūrō: "Tetsuya-kun probably doesn't think that way."

Ryōta: "No, even though our goals are completely different, Tetsuya will also get involved in this competition. Even though the answer hasn't been revealed yet, it seems he's already determined to adhere to his basketball style."

And also, for instance, Tetsuya was now on his way to Seirin High School.