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

Chapter 385 385: I’ll Try to Stand Where Senior Shigure and Captain Nijimura Once Stood—The Position of the One Being Challenged!

Seirin—all members in the Zone

versus

Rakuzan—all members in the Zone + "Hard to Know Like Shadow".

Hiss!

Hiss!

Hiss!

Hiss!

The moment Rakuzan surged forward in unison, pressing down on Seirin, an inky aura seemed to spill across the court.

With every step the Rakuzan players took, that pitch-black presence coiled and spread, as though ink were being poured directly onto the floor, constructing a suffocating, shadow-drenched landscape.

Among them

Izuki Shun felt it most clearly as he faced Inoue Natsuki head-on.

It was like pushing through dense fog.

No matter what defensive movement he made, the opponent reacted simultaneously—as if Izuki's intentions were being read in advance.

Izuki Shun: "..."

This state is terrifying…

And if this is stacked with the Zone on top of that

The instant the thought crossed his mind, Inoue Natsuki took a smooth step forward, shielding the ball as he drove.

Hiss!

Wrapped in that pitch-black aura of Hard to Know Like Shadow, Inoue's momentum exploded forward.

A crushing presence and overwhelming pressure surged straight at Izuki.

Then

A sudden stop.

A step-back.

A shot.

Kiyoshi Teppei: "!?"

As expected… Rakuzan's first-year is insanely strong.

From the protected dribble, to the abrupt stop, to the step-back jumper

There wasn't a single hitch. Everything flowed together seamlessly.

This was textbook academy-style technique, refined through relentless training

And in practice, it was brutally effective.

For an instant, everyone in the arena—players and spectators alike—was captivated by the technique Inoue Natsuki displayed the moment he entered the second half.

But

Crack!

Crackle!

At the very moment Inoue rose for his jumper, Kagami Taiga exploded into motion.

With the speed granted by the Zone, he completed a help-defense rotation that would have been impossible under normal conditions.

From Seirin's perspective, with Kagami's jumping power—especially while in the Zone—blocking that shot should have been effortless.

And yet

"Wha—!?"

The ball

Before everyone's stunned eyes, it released at an absurdly fast, flicking rhythm.

Perfectly dodging Kagami's impeccably timed block, it slipped through amid the audience's gasps.

In the stands

Nijimura Shuzo murmured quietly,

"Inoue Natsuki…"

Indeed.

Within Hard to Know Like Shadow, as long as an opponent was inside that domain, their position could be sensed even without looking. Their movements could be mirrored and reacted to instantly.

But to exploit that ability to this degree

That was purely Inoue Natsuki's own strength.

At the very least…

He was already close to Uncrowned Kings level.

Once that fact was considered—combined with Akashi's ball distribution choices after returning to the court—the entirety of Akashi's game plan became crystal clear.

From the opening

He had used Mayuzumi Chihiro as bait, cutting off Kuroko's final trump card: reverse misdirection.

As a result, the matchup that should have appeared

Seirin: All-Zone + Team Misdirection

vs

Rakuzan: All-Zone + Hard to Know Like Shadow

never came to be.

With Rakuzan already holding the advantage of Hard to Know Like Shadow, Akashi then deployed Inoue Natsuki—an almost Uncrowned-level player—at the start of the second half.

Against Seirin's bench, no matter who matched up with him, Inoue had an overwhelming advantage.

And with Zone + Hard to Know Like Shadow, that advantage only multiplied.

In that instant

An utterly lopsided matchup was born.

As for the other matchups

Kiyoshi vs. Nebuya.

Kagami vs. Hayama.

Hyūga vs. Mibuchi.

Haizaki vs. Akashi.

Hayama didn't even need to enter a true Zone.

Mibuchi only needed to act as a catch-and-shoot specialist.

Akashi didn't need to score at all.

In fact, aside from Inoue Natsuki, the rest of Rakuzan could devote themselves entirely to defense

And victory would be theirs.

It could be said

The true turning point of the entire match happened in the first quarter.

From the moment Seirin fell into Akashi's trap

The match was already over.

On the court

Akashi faced Haizaki with a faint, confident smile.

"Seirin's lineup has an obvious structural flaw," he said calmly.

"And Rakuzan's victory today comes from the fact that we have no blind spots."

"And you…"

"At your current level, you still can't compensate for that flaw by yourself."

"Haizaki…"

"This match is my win."

Dribble.

Dribble.

Dribble.

Before Akashi's words had even fully settled, the sound of Haizaki Shōgo's dribbling rang out in succession.

Akashi clearly saw it

That feral grin still carved across Haizaki's face.

For a moment, Akashi lowered his gaze and chuckled softly.

"…I suppose saying that before completely defeating you was premature."

BOOM!

Haizaki faced Akashi head-on

Zone + Monster Immersion fully unleashed.

"So then"

"Why the hell are you still talking!?"

On Seirin's bench, Aida Riko fully grasped the situation on the court.

But there was nothing she could do.

Sending Kuroko back in while his presence was still unstable would only allow one option

Pairing him with Haizaki to use dual Emperor Eyes.

But

Akashi wasn't attacking.

He was handing the offense almost entirely to Inoue Natsuki.

On the sidelines

Riko's mind was spinning at full speed.

On the court

Seirin's offense stalled under Rakuzan's all-Zone pressure and the massive defensive amplification of Hard to Know Like Shadow.

In the end

It was Haizaki who stepped forward.

With Monster Immersion Black Hole + Emperor Eye layered together, the mental burden—compared to the Tōō match—was slightly lighter.

In that instant

The future he could see surpassed even the limits of Akashi's Emperor Eye under Monster Immersion.

Lightning

Flashed together with the halo of Emperor Eye in his pupils.

A dazzling gray burst forth once more.

Haizaki received Kiyoshi's kick-out pass, blew past Akashi's defense—

And in the very next heartbeat, ignited the sky with a soaring dunk.

BAAAM!

When everyone came back to their senses

Haizaki was already hanging from the rim, having split it open with one hand.

The arena

Stunned into silence.

"Incredible…!"

"That was way too fast…!"

"And Akashi—his defense got beaten…!?"

Not far away, Akashi stared at Haizaki hanging from the rim, momentarily lost in thought.

In his heart was genuine respect—for how far Haizaki's talent had reached.

But still

That wouldn't be enough to win.

It wasn't even enough to force out Akashi's other ability.

…

The rest of the match unfolded exactly as Akashi had predicted

No, exactly as he had foreseen before the game even began.

Throughout the entire third quarter, Rakuzan held absolute dominance.

On one hand, through Inoue Natsuki's focused offense targeting Izuki Shun.

On the other, through Rakuzan's overwhelming defensive suppression powered by their team-wide buffs.

Even with Seirin in full Zone

Only Haizaki could break through.

Kagami, even Kiyoshi—

All of them struggled heavily under the predictive defense of Hard to Know Like Shadow.

Which only highlighted how crucial Kuroko Tetsuya truly was.

Even if he couldn't grant full-team misdirection like during the Tōō match

As long as he could properly use visual misdirection, his support alone could allow Seirin to trade blow for blow.

Unfortunately

It wasn't until the latter half of the fourth quarter that Kuroko's presence finally stabilized.

By then

It was far too late.

Seirin vs. Rakuzan

Score: 90–113

A 23-point gap.

As the core of Seirin's Zone, Haizaki had to handle both offense and defense—unlike Akashi, who focused mainly on defense.

The exhaustion was inevitable.

At that moment

His Zone faded.

And with it

Rakuzan sealed the match.

"Captain Akashi, great work!"

"Damn… the Zone's gone…"

Joy erupted from Rakuzan's side.

Despair weighed down Seirin's.

Especially Kuroko—who had only regained control of his presence late in the fourth quarter—his eyes dulled as his head lowered.

This is… awful.

Falling into Akashi's trap from the very start…

I should've thought more rationally…

How could Akashi ever be that simple…?

"Everyone…"

"I'm sorry, I—"

Before Kuroko could finish, Haizaki spoke.

"Tetsuya—use your frame-drop to open a gap. The game isn't over yet."

"Have Kiyoshi-senpai and Kagami fight for rebounds. The paint's still too hard to attack—use threes."

"Pass to me and Hyūga-senpai!"

On the court

Kagami froze, then looked at Haizaki with a complicated expression.

There's… no chance left.

Haizaki.

Unless a miracle happens, the odds are practically zero.

But

The body moves faster than the mind.

…

BEEP!

Led by Haizaki, Seirin fought until the final second.

But the result didn't change.

The final buzzer sounded.

Final score

106–132

The instant the whistle blew, cheers exploded from Rakuzan's bench.

Victory engulfed them completely.

Without question, Seirin had been the toughest opponent Rakuzan faced all year.

But the players all understood

Once Kuroko was forced off at halftime, the outcome was inevitable.

The announcer's voice echoed through the arena.

"The match is decided…!"

"The winner of this intense battle, advancing to the IH upper-bracket semifinals"

"The Emperor of high school basketball!"

"Rakuzan!"

"And their opponent in the lower-bracket semifinal—"

"The strongest!"

"The blue elite!"

"From Kanagawa"

"Kaijō!"

"OOOOOOHHHH!!"

Though not yet the finals, facing Kaijō here was no different.

"This time, we'll repay last year's IH and Winter Cup losses!"

Rakuzan's bench erupted with fighting spirit as everyone rushed onto the court, surrounding Akashi and the others.

On the opposite side, Seirin's players were subdued.

Especially Haizaki Shōgo and Kuroko Tetsuya

Once again, they tasted defeat.

Strictly speaking

In this grand showdown of Teiko-era legacies, they hadn't won a single match.

They even lost one more than Yōsen

First to Aomine and Kise of Tōō,

Then to Akashi Seijūrō of Rakuzan.

Haizaki Shōgo: "..."

Hah…

Even though

I'm incomparably stronger than I used to be.

I still lost.

…What a pain.

As Haizaki caught his breath, drained of all stamina, he noticed Akashi Seijūrō walking toward him.

"Haizaki."

"It's unfortunate—but to secure victory, I had to use that strategy."

"Spare me…"

"You bastard who never even went all out!"

Clap.

Despite the stark contrast between victor and defeated, Haizaki still reached out and shook Akashi's hand.

"Tch."

"Congratulations."

"If it's you, maybe you'll do better—against those two monsters next."

Akashi smiled faintly.

"I'll try to win."

"Hah—say it with more confidence, Captain of the Generation of Miracles."

Haizaki turned away, his vision blurring at a sight he'd never seen before.

"Winter Cup…"

"I'll be back."

Applause spread across the arena.

Watching Haizaki walk away, Akashi turned and met Kuroko's gaze.

They shared a quiet smile.

But this time, Kuroko couldn't return it.

"Akashi."

For the first time, Kuroko dropped the honorifics.

"Thank you for the match."

From Akashi's calm smile, Kuroko saw only the composure of a victor.

And for the first time

A fierce desire surged within him

To shatter that smile.

In the end, Kuroko said only one thing more.

"Good luck… against Kaijō."

Akashi nodded, then looked toward the stands.

"I'll try to climb to the place where Senior Shigure and Captain Nijimura once stood"

"The position of the one being challenged."

END OF CHAPTER

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