Kuroko’s Basketball: Before Generation Miracles, I Already Crowned

Chapter 383 383: I… Steel My Resolve—Teppei Kiyoshi Keeps His Word!

In a flash like lightning, Kotarō Hayama punched the ball through the hoop.

Having witnessed that play up close, Shōgo Haizaki was certain—his intuition hadn't been wrong.

From Akashi's pass onward, everything had been misdirection.

And more than that—

It was a reverse misdirection even more refined than Rakuzan's No. 5 had ever displayed.

Just moments ago, Haizaki's focus—

Had been unconsciously dragged toward Chihiro Mayuzumi.

Even when Hayama broke past him, Haizaki's attention was forcibly, intermittently diverted—

Creating the exact same "frame-skipping" phenomenon as Tetsuya Kuroko.

In the stands.

Shōichi Imayoshi's eyes widened instantly.

"So that's it… The reason Akashi didn't stop Seirin from neutralizing Rakuzan's No. 5—but instead accelerated the process."

"Right now, Rakuzan's No. 5—after being deliberately targeted by Kuroko from the opening—has flipped from low presence to its complete opposite…"

"Akashi is exploiting that. Using visual guidance to pull Seirin's defensive awareness onto No. 5."

"And to think…"

"If it were just ordinary visual misdirection, that'd be one thing—but even frame-skipping misdirection… a higher-tier technique of visual control… he's mastered it to this level."

"..."

Going even deeper

Kuroko Tetsuya's ultimate reverse misdirection is a buff-type technique capable of enhancing Seirin as a group.

But its flaws had already been laid bare during the preliminaries.

First

Time.

By fixing visual guidance onto a single target, the method becomes rigid.

That rigidity makes it easier for opponents to adapt.

Its duration is inherently short.

Second

The loss of the future.

Just like Kuroko during the match against Tōō Academy—

He was like a magician who had stripped away every layer of misdirection, performing tricks fully exposed.

Which meant—

After that match ended,

Facing Tōō again, he could never use that technique a second time.

The price was already heavy.

But in this game—it was worse.

Akashi had used it first.

Which meant that if Kuroko later tried to deploy the same method, he'd be the second magician performing the same trick without disguise.

And that future

Was already gone.

Seijūrō Akashi.

What Seirin thought was them dismantling Rakuzan's No. 5

Was, from the very beginning, Akashi's silent trap aimed at Kuroko Tetsuya.

A monster…?!

On the court.

Akashi's eyes held a calm, absolute command over the entire game state.

Meanwhile

Chihiro Mayuzumi, used unilaterally as a tool for Akashi's reverse misdirection

Showed not a trace of bitterness.

Instead, on defense, he actively committed himself to guarding Kuroko Tetsuya.

Watching this, Shintarō Midorima mentally placed himself in Kuroko's position

His mind spiraling through countless calculations, searching for a way to break through.

A storm

Raged within his thoughts.

Midorima saw even more than Imayoshi.

Akashi's opening gambit didn't just threaten Kuroko's strongest ability—it endangered the very maintenance of his presence control.

To counter Mayuzumi, Kuroko had smoothly forced him into a dead end

And, inevitably, transitioned perfectly into the phase where his presence could support frame insertion.

But frame insertion itself is merely a weakened form of reverse misdirection.

It requires inflating one's presence to a certain threshold.

Ideally, that stage should only be reached in the second half.

Right now—it was too early.

If Kuroko's presence exceeded what he could control

He'd end up exposed under the spotlight, just like Mayuzumi.

Originally, at that point, Kuroko could still follow up with his ultimate ability.

But now…

By the second half, Kuroko's visual misdirection might be rendered completely ineffective.

Unless

They subbed him out right now.

But for Seirin, losing Kuroko on the court was unthinkable.

Without him, Seirin—already down a blade—would be hopelessly outmatched by Rakuzan offensively.

And besides

No one could yet see how many weapons Akashi still had hidden.

Seirin's offensive possession.

Shōgo Haizaki stood at the top of the arc, reading Akashi's defense through the Emperor Eye.

The next instant—he drove.

Akashi stayed with him.

Haizaki kicked the ball

A perfect pass.

Smack!

Inside the paint, Teppei Kiyoshi caught it one-handed.

Facing Eikichi Nebuya, without even a hint of adjustment

He twisted, launched, and swung his arm in a wide arc

A single-arm hook shot!

High release.

Instant execution!

Nebuya's pupils shrank.

"Damn!"

Swish!

Kiyoshi fired inside the paint—the ball dropped cleanly through the net.

"Great pass, Haizaki!"

It truly was.

Without a pass of that caliber, Kiyoshi would never have been able to flow into that attack so smoothly.

Thump.

Thump.

In that moment

He felt it.

His heartbeat

On this electrifying stage, against a fellow Uncrowned King

He had to find that moment where he surpassed his limits.

Even if it meant borrowing Haizaki's strength.

But still

Kiyoshi looked toward Junpei Hyūga.

Toward the teammates who'd founded the club together.

Toward Kuroko, whose abilities were now constrained.

Toward Haizaki, fighting Akashi head-on to carve open a path.

Toward Kagami, struggling desperately against Hayama—the second-strongest force Rakuzan possessed.

Kiyoshi Teppei:

"..."

I…

Steel my resolve.

Teppei Kiyoshi—when I say it, I do it!

On the other end, Nebuya hadn't stopped him.

Watching Kiyoshi's purely technical play style as he retreated, excitement flickered in Nebuya's eyes.

At the same time

During Seirin's retreat, Kuroko Tetsuya spoke rapidly with Kagami and Hyūga.

Both nodded gravely.

Rakuzan's offense.

The moment Akashi drove

Kuroko's eyes sharpened.

He suddenly released Mayuzumi

Abandoning his cautious stance, he lunged straight at Akashi!

Haizaki watched—still unmoving.

Akashi:

"..."

Tetsuya.

With Haizaki anchoring the second defensive line

You dare to pressure me like this?

Leaving Mayuzumi open

Betting on his unstable shooting?

No…

I see it now.

That zone defense leaves only Mayuzumi deliberately exposed

Because the final focal point of my reverse misdirection…

Is Mayuzumi—whose presence is now at its peak.

Passing to him now would make the route no different from a normal pass

In fact, even more obvious.

Which means

Haizaki, positioned behind, could react instantly—

And chase him down with Aomine-level agility for the block.

A sharp, ruthless judgment…

Tetsuya.

Smack!

Under the Emperor Eye, Akashi used a simple between-the-legs dribble

Lowered his center of gravity

And accelerated cleanly past Kuroko.

Thud!

Kuroko hit the floor.

In the stands

Ryōta Kise gasped.

"Kurokocchi got blown by!"

Daiki Aomine shook his head.

"If Kuroko could stop that, that would be weird. Akashi's true Emperor Eye ankle break—"

"Except for Haizaki, no one on Seirin can handle that."

"And even then…"

But just as Aomine expected Akashi to break past Haizaki—

What actually happened made him freeze.

On the court

As Akashi cleared Kuroko, Haizaki moved simultaneously, stepping up with his Emperor Eye.

The steal missed—but it forced Akashi to slow.

In that instant, Kuroko scrambled up—

And Seirin formed a front-and-back double team!

"Double team?!"

"So that was the plan?!"

Midorima's eyes lit up.

"I see… At that position, Akashi's probability of successfully using ankle break drops to 80%…"

Kuroko's aggressive challenge wasn't just about stopping the shot—

It was preparation to be beaten.

To drag Akashi into a confrontation near the paint

An area where ankle break requires larger, repeated feints.

Against Haizaki—who had gained Emperor Eye through monster immersion

Akashi would need far more space.

And Seirin denied it.

Haizaki in front.

Kagami on the wing.

Kuroko behind.

The space collapsed.

With no room

Ankle break was sealed.

Combined with Kuroko's earlier communication

This was Kuroko's trap, designed to shut down both ankle break and misdirection.

Incredible.

Such a precise outcome

And Kuroko had devised it on the fly.

Akashi reacted instantly.

Recognizing the trap, he didn't force ankle break.

Instead

He passed to Mayuzumi.

Then immediately

He shouted:

"Mayuzumi-senpai—return it!"

Rakuzan—

As disciplined as ever.

Mayuzumi forcibly suppressed his urge to attack—

And caught sight of Haizaki already rotating toward him.

Zip!

Akashi slipped free of the collapse.

Top of the arc—ball back in his hands.

Kuroko:

"..."

Exhale.

Failed.

As expected of Captain Akashi.

But at least

Ankle break was sealed.

Which meant Akashi's drive threat dropped

And his passing options narrowed to Hayama, Mibuchi, or Nebuya.

Which one?

The answer came immediately.

Akashi fed the ball to

Eikichi Nebuya, the interior core of last year's Rakuzan under Kasayuki Hagioka.

With the opening created by reverse misdirection—

Nebuya seized the initiative!

Catch.

Turn.

Power through.

Simple. Practical.

Skill fused with muscle.

"Ora!"

"Ora!"

"Muscle! Muscle!!"

But in the next instant

Pressure crashed down.

Unlike canon

Free of knee injuries.

Hardened by a higher stage.

Pushed through relentless training

Teppei Kiyoshi, at his absolute peak, extended his arm from the side.

Length. Strength. Timing.

He contested Nebuya!

"Kiyoshi-senpai!"

"Take him down!"

Seirin's bench roared.

And amid the shouts

Nebuya leapt.

"...!"

Hmph.

As expected of you, Kiyoshi!

Technical style?!

Then witness mine

The muscle-technique school!

"HAHAHAHA!"

"MUSCLE!"

"MUSCLE!"

"MUSCLE HANG TIME!"

Core strength exploded.

Mid-air, Nebuya tucked, lifted—

For an instant, he seemed to freeze in the air.

Then

The hang.

The release!

Kiyoshi's eyes widened

But he knew this move well.

He resisted the block

Waiting for the second release point.

Scrape!

Fingertips grazed it!

Clang!

The ball bounced out!

But the battle wasn't over.

Boom!

Instant box-out.

Nebuya's body was like a stone wall.

That crushing power

Only Atsushi Murasakibara, Shigure Akihito, and Kasayuki Hagioka had ever matched it.

Too solid

He wouldn't budge!

"MUSCLE!!"

"MUSCLE REBOUND!!!"

END OF CHAPTER

(Some chapters in patreon are double chapters)

6 IN 1 - BE A MEMBER, GET 6 ONGOING STORIES!!

Starting Five - Kuroko's Basketball: Before Generation Miracles, I Already Crowned

👉 patreon.com/MrBehringer