Chapter Text
“I don’t need a break! I’m fine!” yelled Kagami, placing his mouth closer than usual to the receiver.
“Yeah, and I’m a regular B cup,” Alex drawled, and Kagami felt that tick of irritation near his temple whenever he had to deal with her.
He had been recently selected as part of this year’s NBA draft, and he was beyond stoked at the golden opportunity. He hated going to his university classes, but it was thanks to him playing on the university basketball team that he was able to be selected for this amazing event.
Taiga (and that bastard Aomine, because of fucking course he would get in too) would participate in the draft at the end of June. It was the end of February right now, so he was under the pump to get in as much training, practice games, and real games to improve himself even further. Getting drafted by the NBA would be the biggest achievement of his life if he could do it. He had to be better at basketball than he ever had been for that to happen!
But Alex, his long-standing personal coach and mentor in all things basketball, was telling him that he’d been granted two months’ vacation and didn’t have to attend any of his university team’s games or classes. Honestly, what the hell was she thinking? Now was not the time for Taiga to relax!
“Things are just getting started! I’m just about to start this training camp with the guys at uni, and it’s all I need right now,” he protested heatedly, his temper rising at the idea he was being forced away from his basketball.
He could sense Alex’s glare even through the phone, “What you need is a good, hard reality check.”
Snapping his mouth shut, Kagami struggled for a comeback but gave up when nothing that wasn’t a straight up insult came to mind. Alex sighed, not loud and obnoxious as she usually did. It was quiet and out of breath, and Kagami felt a sliver of guilt that he may be the cause of it.
“You’ve been playing recklessly lately. I thought that I could overlook it since I know how much this means to you, but verbally abusing your teammates and hogging the ball is not acceptable,” Alex tells him, her tone admonishing and disappointed, “look, you’re not getting out of this. I’ve already cleared everything with your university, and you’ve got at least two months to get yourself together. And you’re lucky, I’ve given you one month before the draft begins where you can train as crazily as you like.”
“What am I supposed to do for two months with no basketball!? This is what I’ve been waiting for!” He ran a hand through his hair harshly, agitated.
Alex paused, and softened her tone as she continued, “I’m sorry, Taiga. Believe me when I say, it’s for your own good.”
Kagami was pissed. He was beyond pissed. And to make matters worse, his dad was apparently in agreeance with this bullshit. When he’d called his father in the hope of getting some support, all he’d received in return was a nicer version of Alex’s words.
“I don’t have time to waste here, dad. Two months is too long,” he complained, and yeah, he complained! He had the right to! God, he’s just trying to sort out his future – why were his dad and Alex getting so uptight about it? Maybe he was pushing his teammates too hard, maybe his temper was a little worse these days, but he’d figured it wasn’t that bad. Nothing to make him stop basketball for.
“I don’t know what you want me to do, Taiga. Alex is the one in charge of your schedule, and I think she’s made the right call,” his dad answers objectively, which causes Taiga to groan exceptionally loudly through the receiver and slam his cupboard doors closed as he started his preparations for dinner.
His dad softens his tone, tries to be more understanding when he speaks again, “You’re acting too rash, son. When you play, I can see you’re into it. You always are. But there’s something missing in your eye now. Like it’s more of a necessity for you, rather than the sport you love with all your heart.”
“I’m fine, it’s nothing,” Kagami dismisses, not liking the uncomfortable, niggling thought that maybe that was sort of true. The pressure had definitely heightened, but that was to be expected with the high stakes of getting accepted into the NBA draft.
“It’s not nothing, especially getting slammed as the player on your team with the most landed fouls and substitutions this past season. Come on, Taiga, this isn’t you,” his father argues, and Kagami felt angry embarrassment at remembering that fact. He was never, ever trying to hurt anyone when he played basketball – it was just lately he had gotten a little more aggressive, but he was working on it! Or at least he thought he was.
Kagami sighed harshly, dumping the vegetables he’d peeled earlier under cold water, “What am I supposed to do, then!?”
“You need to clear your head. Take a holiday.”
“Where? I’ve been to pretty much every beach there is in the US by now–”
“What about making a trip to Japan?” His dad suggested, and Taiga couldn’t suppress his groan.
Every time. This was why he didn’t call his dad when he was on break, because something like this would inevitably spill out of his mouth. It wasn’t as if Taiga hated his homeland, he just didn’t have a connection to it. Patchy memories from his childhood of him running around in the cherry blossoms, and stomping around in the crystal, white snow, was about all he could drum up. The faces of his grandparents drifted in and out of his mind, and he could vaguely recall a house only just bigger than his apartment in LA.
“Dad, please,” Taiga didn’t need to hear his dad give his usual spiel about how important it was to remember his roots – he basically had it memorised by now.
But his dad is just as stubborn as he is, and keeps trying to sell the idea to him, “Your grandparents would love to see you again. It’s been so many years, and they aren’t getting younger you know.”
Of course, his dad played the guilt card so well. Then again, he was fairly certain every parent was a master at using that card.
“If you have all this free time on your hands, then why not?”
There’s a pause in which Kagami ponders on the last time he went overseas. It was maybe what, 4, 5 years ago? He’d still been in high school at the time and had travelled with his graduating year over to Canada for a two-week trip. Since then, he’d kind of just stuck to travelling around America, visiting beaches during the summer and travelling all over for training camps with his university team.
But, Kagami doesn’t want to commit anything, so he gives a sigh of defeat and leaves his father with a non-committal, “I’ll think about it.”
*
Kagami did think about it. He could stay here in L.A., but with all the temptation surrounding him, would it only make him feel worse and cause the time to stretch on even longer? Not to mention he’d have Aomine bugging him to sneak out so they could play one-on-one, and he honestly wasn’t willing to risk Alex’s wrath and threat to extend his vacation by an extra month to satisfy that idiot.
And if he got drafted by the NBA, then he’d be full on with training and playing for who knows how long. Maybe taking one last trip overseas for himself would be a good way to spend these two months. Then, he could focus entirely on making it into the draft with nothing holding him back.
When he told his father about it, he couldn’t hide his delight. He’d emailed Taiga a bunch of links about where his grandparents lived, the cheapest flights available at the moment, and general information about the place. Even though his dad could get on his nerves sometimes, he was grateful how he was always there for him, even to find him cheap airfare.
His grandparents lived in a small village located in Tokushima Prefecture, apparently in the Katsuura District.
“Kamikatsu, huh?” Taiga said aloud, sitting in front of his laptop and scrolling through pages of information about the place.
And once he did all that, he immediately picked up the phone to start whining to the one person who could whine more than Taiga – Aomine Daiki.
“There’s only like a thousand people living there. And it’s covered in forest and mountains,” Kagami explained, groaning over the phone while staring at the very limited Wikipedia page. His hopes of a basketball court being there were growing slimmer the more he read on.
Laughter crackled over the phone, “Oh, man. This shit’s too funny,” Aomine probably wasn’t the best person he could have called, in hindsight.
But it was sort of an unspoken deal they had – they could bitch to each other as much as they like about anything if they were pissed enough about it and nobody else would listen to them. And it was given fact that Aomine bitched a hell of a lot more than Taiga did, so that bastard really had the better end of the deal.
“I’ll be lucky to find a hard surface at all, let alone a court. Fuck, why is this happening?” Kagami drags a hand down his face, scrolling through pictures of the mountainous, green village.
“I’m sure there’ll be a wooden floor you can dribble on,” Aomine chokes through his laughter, and Kagami growls but doesn’t rise to the bait.
“It’s also got a ‘zero waste’ reputation,” he reads aloud, and Aomine hums agreeably.
“Oh yeah, I remember hearing about that back in school. That place that divides up all their garbage and shit.”
“34 different categories for recycling!?” Kagami blurts in outrage, his eyes as round as saucers and Aomine is sent off laughing again.
At first, Aomine had been pissed that Taiga had been leaving – after all, they both got better when they played with or against each other. But, when he heard he’d be back for a month before the draft began, his care level had dropped to an all time, big fat zero. Now, he was openly taunting Taiga about it, and he was just about ready to hang up on the bastard.
“You’ve got a world of fun ahead of you, Bakagami!” Aomine guffaws obnoxiously, and Taiga swears at him before jabbing the red phone button with his finger, effectively ending the call.
So, he was clearly on his own for this. He’d certainly have his work cut out for him, but Kagami would still bring all his basketball gear with him anyway. If there was even a small chance he could get in some training while he was over there, then he’d be ready for it.
*
His father and Alex accompanied him to the airport a week later. He was just about to go line up and was saying his farewells to both of them.
“I’m gonna miss you lots! Make sure you stay in touch and don’t get all sulky, okay?” Alex says, hands on her hips like the mother hen that she was, and Kagami rolls his eyes, “Japan is such a beautiful country, so you should make the most of every second!”
“I get it, I get it! I’ll try and enjoy myself, alright? But, I’m not gonna forget about basketball either!” Kagami won’t budge on that, no matter how much she nags him. But she seems appeased by his response, nodding at him approvingly.
“Now that’s what I like to hear! Remember, relax! It’s a holiday after all!” Alex chides him, then presses firm kisses to both of his cheeks. Taiga stumbles backwards, his cheeks flushing bright red as he rubbed at the spots where her lips were. Man, he could never get used to her craziness! At least she didn’t kiss him on the lips this time, she was probably showing a bit of modesty because his dad was here.
“Look after yourself, son,” his dad steps in closer to him, one of his hands squeezing Taiga’s shoulder warmly, “say hello to your grandparents for me, and I hope you have a nice time staying with him. They’ll be there to pick you up after your second flight lands in . Let me know when you’re there as soon as you have service.”
“I will, dad. Thanks,” Kagami nods, then leans down to give him a hug. It was still kind of weird being taller than his father – but it wasn’t by much. He waved goodbye to them both, then turned and headed towards the terminal for boarding.
Flying was never really fun for Kagami, but not because he had a fear of flying or anything like that. It was mostly because he was too tall for the economy class seats, but they were the only seats he could afford. His dad offered to help pay to upgrade him to first class, but Kagami always declined. His dad spent enough on him as it was for all his basketball stuff, and he didn’t want to make him pay up just for Kagami’s own comfort. It was only for a few hours, anyway.
After he got off the plane and landed in Tokyo Narita Airport about 12 hours later, Kagami had to wait another three hours before his next flight to Takamatsu boarded. He spent the time eating his way through half the menu at the airport sushi bar and charging up his laptop and phone in the waiting area. He’d gotten himself a booth all to himself, which was always a plus.
Before he knew it, the three hours had passed, and he was on the plane to Takamatsu for another hour and a half. His grandparents would be waiting there to pick him up, and it would take another 2 hours to get back to Kamikatsu. A hell of a long trip, but there was no way Taiga was turning back now. He’d made it this far, right?
Kagami tried to do the time conversion so he could figure out what time he’d be in Kamikatsu by, but he’d always been kinda shit at that. He had a vague idea that it’d probably be encroaching just on evening by the time they got back to his grandparents’ place.
When the time came for him to get off the plane, Taiga grabbed all his luggage and made his way into the crowd of people waiting for their loved ones to arrive. Truthfully, he wasn’t really good at faces, even though he knew what his grandparents looked like it would be hard to pick them out in a crowd full of Japanese people. He stood above most of them like a giant, so he hoped his grandparents would be able to spot him first.
“Taiga-chan! Over here, Taiga-chan!” A voice called out to him in Japanese (his grandmother?) and Kagami zipped his head around until he matched the voice with the woman calling to him and waving. She was standing a bit away from the crowd, with a man next to her that could be none other than his grandfather. Their faces really hadn’t changed all that much, at least in Taiga’s memory they hadn’t.
With both hands occupied holding his heavy bags, Kagami couldn’t really wave so he made sure to keep eye contact with them and nod as he made his way through the crowd. When he finally reached them, he put his bags down on the ground for a moment so he could face them properly. It wasn’t until now that he felt the nervousness of reuniting with them here. Would they like the kind of person he had grown into? Would they be able to understand his wonky Japanese? Would they-
“Come here, let me hug you!”
Taiga didn’t get the chance to worry over anything else when he felt his grandmother tugging at his wrist to pull him down to her level. He automatically bended his knees to lower himself, and she immediately wrapped her arms around him tightly. Taiga put his hands on her back, not wanting to hug her too tightly in case he hurt her, but she didn’t seem to mind.
When she pulls back after a long minute, she’s beaming up at him and holding his biceps, looking him up and down, “You have grown so big, so strong!”
“I-It’s nice to see you, grandmother.” Kagami stuttered in Japanese. Despite being fluent in the language, he had fallen out of practice and it made his speech slightly stilted.
“You look just like your father, Taiga-chan,” and seriously? His grandfather was sticking with the Taiga-chan as well? It was so freakin’ embarrassing (an honorific that people used with kids), but he didn’t have it in him to tell them to stop. His grandfather then stepped forward, and Taiga repeated the same process, lowering himself down so his grandfather could hug him. Taiga noticed he carried a cane, so did his best not to lean too much on the old man and put more weight on his legs.
“Th-Thank you, grandfather,” Kagami stammered again when they parted, the formality of the Japanese language always boggling him. How formal was too formal? He didn’t know how familiar he could be with them yet, it was so hard to just know!
“How were both your flights? You must be terribly exhausted. I hope you ate well,” his grandmother says sympathetically, and Taiga nodded quickly.
“Yes, they were good. A little cramped, but I’m used to it,” he answers, and they chuckle heartily at that.
“Indeed. You must be taller than Yukihiko by now,” his grandfather mused fondly, referring to his father. These were, of course, his father’s parents. Taiga had never really gotten to know his mother’s parents – but that came hand in hand with never really knowing his mother, either. But, now wasn’t the time to dwell on that.
“The car is parked a little way away. Shall we get going now, Taiga-chan? Do you have to use the bathroom first? Or stretch your legs for a bit?” his grandmother asked him a flurry of questions, and it dawned on Taiga then that she was fussing over him. And if there was one thing Taiga was not used to, it was people treating him like he wasn’t some scary 6-foot monster of a basketball player.
His cheeks flushed at the unnecessary attention, and he bent down to pick up his bags again, “N-No, thank you. I’m okay to leave now. I had a decent break at Takamatsu, so I’m good to go.”
“Alright, let’s get going then. Traffic might be a little hectic for the first half hour, but it’ll calm down once we’re on the open road. The scenery is beautiful, so it’s not too boring a drive,” his grandfather informed him, fishing out his car keys from his jacket pocket as they all travelled over to the car. His grandparents were a little slow, naturally, but not as slow as Taiga had imagined they’d be. He felt relieved, since that indicated they lived a pretty active lifestyle.
“Will you be okay in the back seat?” his grandfather asks after Taiga secures his luggage in the boot, and his grandmother is looking at him in concern too. He feels his cheeks heat again at the attention and shakes his head in what he hopes is a polite rejection.
“That’s alright, r-really. Is it-Is it okay if I rest my leg across the other back seat for a bit?”
“Of course! As long as you’re comfortable, dear,” his grandmother smiles at him reassuringly, and they all hop in, “Oh, and I packed us a big hamper of food for the drive back, so just let me know when you are hungry. Okay, Taiga-chan?”
She looked over her shoulder at him while his grandfather started the car, and he felt embarrassed all over again, “O-Okay, I will. Thank you very much.”
The ride back To Kamikatsu was just as his grandfather described it: the scenery was breathtaking. The colour of green here was totally different to the colour green he saw in America. This was lush, and rich, and full of life.
And the air was so clear. Kagami was stunned. He was so used to having different smells invading his sinuses all at once, the thick undertone of pollution swelling within most American cities. This was different, it was weird. He vaguely missed having other scents in his nose, whereas this was very off-putting. As if he had nothing else to focus on except this clear air.
When they arrived at his grandparents’ house, he noted how it was a traditional style Japanese house. Alex would surely be fawning over it, snapping pictures left, right and centre. Oh, Kagami was reminded of his promise to text his father once he was within service. Shooting off a message letting him know he arrived safely and was with his grandparents now, Taiga assured his father he would call later on in the evening.
“Here is your room you will be staying in, Taiga-chan,” his grandfather opened the sliding door (yes, it was really Japanese all right) to a decent-sized room with a large futon that had been covered with sheets, pillows, and lots of blankets.
“It is normally our guest room, but please make yourself at home here.”
“Thanks, it’s great,” Taiga says, meaning it, and his grandfather smiles and squeezes a hand on his shoulder in the same way his dad did.
Kagami balked later on when he saw the sheer amount of bins in the basement was unbelievable. This village really wasn’t kidding about the strict recycling policy. He spent the rest of the evening unpacking his things into his room and went to sleep early. He was so tired that he didn’t even mind the difference from sleeping in the futon compared to his big double bed back in L.A.
*
The next day, Taiga decides to explore the village, dressing in his basketball shorts and a baggy t-shirt, with his basketball in hand as well. It takes him a while to get out of the housing district, and although he pondered taking some shortcuts, he stuck to the main road for now. He had two months here, he was pretty sure he’d get more familiar with the area soon enough.
Kagami makes it to the edge of the shopping district, and still hasn’t found any sign of a basketball court. No street courts to be seen – not even a half-court used by kids. The land was so bumpy, and it would be great work out on (especially concerning his leg strength), but as for his pure basketball skills it was looking pretty grim right now. He didn’t even think to ask his grandparents about it this morning, having been preoccupied showing them pictures on his phone of places in America, his father, Alex, and even that bastard Aomine. He turns off the path people walked up and down to look at the shops, standing under a tree and spinning his basketball on his finger. What should I do? Should I ask someone?
Then, a soft, monotone voice speaks up beside him, “What are you doing?”
“UWOOOOOOH!” Jumping out of his skin, Kagami fumbled with his ball and dropped it, almost dropping to the ground himself.
There, standing just a few feet from him, was the shortest, strangest looking guy he’d ever seen. Wide, cerulean eyes were locked on his, with hair that matched (although, his hair was a lighter shade of blue). Not only that, but he had super pale skin, with skinny-as-a-toothpick arms and legs. Just a tiny body overall, really. He looked like the next breeze might knock him over or something. They weren’t standing close enough for Taiga to be sure, but he reckoned that this guy’s head would only come up to his chest.
“OI! Don’t just sneak up on people! You scared the crap outta me!” Kagami rebukes him, even though he’s a literal stranger to Kagami. He’d always been like that, though – he never backed down and spoke what he really thought. Taiga didn’t really know how to hold back in life.
“I’m sorry. I was here for ten minutes, though. I thought I should say something to draw your attention,” the guy apologises, offering a repentant bow to Taiga whilst defending himself in the same breath.
He raised an eyebrow at him, “Huh, you were? Ugh, nevermind. What do you want?”
“Do you like basketball?” the guy asked after a beat, completely ignoring his question. He stared at Kagami for a bit, then stared down at the ball.
Scoffing, Taiga scooped up the ball and balanced it on his hip, “I don’t like basketball. It’s in my blood. Basketball makes me feel alive. There’s no me if there’s no basketball.”
Those blue eyes staring at him sparkled, and he asks Taiga another question, “Are you good?”
“Probably better than you.” Kagami said, not caring at all how arrogant he sounded. He was in the NBA draft for crying out loud, he was entitled to some pride.
The guy doesn’t seem like the ‘easily provoked’ type (not like himself or Aomine), and he nods at Kagami’s brash words. Then, he adds his own insight, “I love basketball. Even though I have not been in a team since elementary school and high school, my enjoyment of the game has not decreased in the slightest.”
“Who are you?” asked Kagami, still wary of the wispy boy.
Said boy tilted his head, and blinked at him, “I am Kuroko Tetsuya. Nice to meet you.”
“Uhh, okay,” Kagami settles on, because he honestly doesn’t know what he’s feeling looking at this guy. Kagami didn’t know if he could say it was nice to meet him, because he was more confused than anything else. He just appeared out of thin air!
Kuroko doesn’t take any offence from it, instead tilting his head to the side inquisitively, “Are you Kagami-kun?”
“…Yeah?” he replied, a little hesitant. Is this Kuroko kid a freaking psychic or something?
“The Kagami-sans’ grandson who was coming over to visit from America?”
Kagami blinks in confusion, nodding to confirm it, “Ah. Yeah, that’s me. Kagami Taiga.”
Understanding enters Kuroko’s eyes, and he nods along knowingly, “Ah, you have arrived.”
Taiga raised an eyebrow at that. What the heck? Who even spoke like that? This guy is way too formal, and what’s with that dead-eyed stare?
“Don’t you have homework or something to do, kid?” Kagami decided to try and shake Kuroko off him so he could get back to looking for some area he could play ball in.
However, he seems to have said the wrong thing, because Kuroko’s eyebrows narrow in an open show of irritation, “I am not a kid. I am 23 years old.”
“WHAT!?” Kagami screeched, nearly dropping his basketball again.
He was beyond surprised – he was fucking astonished. This guy was older than him!? The hell was up with that!? He looked like he still belonged in high school!
Not batting an eye at Taiga’s overreaction, Kuroko’s face returns to a neutral expression, “How old are you, Kagami-kun?”
“Y-You don’t need to know!” Kagami dismissed him, hoping he might be able to pull off looking at least one or two years older than Kuroko was.
“That’s alright. Your grandparents already told me you are 22 years old. I was just being polite,” Kuroko says, and Kagami should have known his grandparents would have talked about him to other people. But how the heck could he have known they had told this little oddball about him? They never mentioned Kuroko to him!
Great, that's just great. Everyone in this village knows about everyone’s business, I'll never be able to keep a low profile here.
“So, it seems I am older,” Kuroko muses aloud, looking up at Kagami with that damned blank face.
That makes Kagami’s temper snap, and he points rudely at Kuroko, growling at him, “Don’t get carried away! It’s only by a few months! My birthday is coming up real soon!”
The sound of a dog yapping made him jolt in place, especially since the sound of it was so close! Looking around frantically, Kagami screamed and almost fell flat on his ass when his eyes landed on the small dog sitting patiently by his feet.
“What’s with the dog?!” He demanded, edging away from the creature as slickly as he could. The dog misinterpreted however, in his small dog brain, that Kagami was playing a game with him. It pounced close and landed on his sneakers.
“Nigou! No!” Kuroko ordered, his clear and level voice causing the dog’s ears to prick up.
“Come here,” he called, and the dog – Nigou – pranced over to him happily. As if he hadn’t just personally attacked Kagami.
“Why don’t you have it on a leash?” Kagami asked, slowly edging away from the weird pair.
Kuroko blinks at him, as if he’s just said something utterly bizarre, “Nigou isn’t vicious, he is just very friendly,” and the dog yipped, jumping up into Kuroko’s arms and Kagami startled at the sudden, unpredictable movement.
“Keep it away from me!” squawked Kagami, jumping away quickly.
Kuroko shushes his dog, waiting until he’s settled down before he speaks to Kagami again, “Do you dislike dogs?”
“I just can’t handle ‘em,” Kagami stuttered, warily keeping an eye on the deceptively innocent mess of fur in Kuroko’s arms.
“But he’s cute,” Kuroko protested, and Kagami blanched at the disheartened tone.
“What’s with the name, anyway?” Kagami asked reluctantly, not sure if he’d like the answer but he had to admit he was kinda curious.
“It was my grandmother’s idea. Please, look closely,” then, Kuroko lifted Nigou up, so he was closer to his face, both of them looking directly at Kagami. It was then Kagami realised what it was: it was the damn eyes! Kuroko’s big, round blue as the sky eyes were mirrored exactly on the dog.
“Do you understand?” asked Kuroko, apparently waiting for a verbal response.
Kagami nods, not having ever seen such a weird resemblance between an owner and their pet, “Yeah, that’s freaky. It’s like he’s your spirit animal or somethin’.”
It was silent again for a while, and Kagami just stood there awkwardly. Should he leave first? But, where the hell would he go? He was itching to play and had extra energy to spare from sitting for the past two days he’d spent travelling and sitting.
As if he had just read Kagami’s mind, Kuroko’s eyes flit back down to the basketball again, and he asks: “Are you looking for a basketball court?”
“Why? Is there one around? Do you know where it is?” Kagami fired off one question after another, his discomfort brought on by the dog quickly forgotten in the hopes of hearing some good news.
Shaking his head, Kuroko actually looks disappointed and down-hearted when he answers Kagami, “No. Unfortunately, there isn’t a proper basketball court located anywhere in Kamikatsu.”
“Seriously!?” Kagami shrieks, having known it was a long shot from the start, but having his hopes dashed completely made him overreact a little.
Kuroko blinks at him again, then confirms, “I’m serious.”
“Damn it! Now what am I supposed to do?” Kagami curses, dropping his head back in defeat to stare up at the sky. How could this be happening? What had he been thinking, again, when he’d agreed to come out all the way out here? Just what had convinced him to come in the first place? There was nothing here!
“If Kagami-kun doesn’t mind not being able to shoot hoops,” Kuroko offers, and it sounds the slightest bit promising so Kagami’s gaze shifts from the sky back to Kuroko, “I know a place that is just like a makeshift court.”
“Really!? You do!? Great, take me there!” Though he was still annoyed there weren’t any hoops around, Kagami would take dribbling and practicing his drives on a hard, flat surface over nothing at all.
“Alright. Please, follow me. The walk there will take approximately half an hour, if you don’t mind,” Kuroko explains, bending down to place Nigou back on the ground. And although Kagami wasn’t thrilled the mutt would clearly be tagging along, he was more excited at the prospect of having something to work with basketball-wise to complain too much about it.
“Sure, sure, that’s fine. Just lead the way!”
And so, they walk on for half an hour, just as Kuroko said. They don’t really say much, Kuroko not seeming like that much of a talker to begin with and Kagami trying to keep a consistent distance between him and the dog while hurry along at the same time.
“We have arrived,” Kuroko announces, and he stops in front of the makeshift court. Kagami’s eyes widened, taking it in.
It was an old, wide stretch of gravelly road that. It was roughly the length and width of a full-size basketball court, the rest of it having eroded back to dirt due to time and extended use. It didn’t look as if people used this road anymore, which meant it would be a perfect spot to practice without getting interrupted (or, you know, hit by a car). Definitely nowhere near as smooth to run on though – he’d probably trip if he got too careless.
“Yeah, I can definitely make this work,” Kagami nods decisively, readily taking this average substitute over nothing.
“Would you like to play one-on-one?” Kuroko’s voice piped up again, and Kagami flinched. He’d kind of expected that Kuroko would leave after showing him this place, so he was more than a little shocked at his continual presence and request.
“Hey, don’t think I’ll go easy on you,” Taiga tells him, bouncing the ball against the road to test how well it could handle, “If you really wanna play, I’m gonna go all out,”
“What a relief. I won’t hold back, either,” Kuroko says, dropping his jacket over on the grass next to where Nigou was sitting.
Kagami smirks, eager to get his blood pumping the best way he knew how, “Heh, bring it!”
And without further ado, they play.