In Shadows

Chapter Thirteen

The Next Stage

It was half-time. The buzzer sounded, alerting the teams and the spectators to the ten-minute break that marked the halfway point of the match. 

And Gina was fuming.

Her blood boiled as she recalled the first half of the game. She hadn't thought Kirisaki Dai Ichi would be a pleasant team to go against the moment she'd heard Hyuga's story. And she'd been right. They weren't pleasant.

But she'd also been wrong. They weren't just unpleasant; they were downright horrible.

From the get-go, the team had been using dirty tactics to gain possession of the ball. Gina had seethed every time they had used an elbow to push someone out of the way, every time they'd stepped on Kagami's foot to prevent him from jumping. 

The worst part of it had been that the referee hadn't seen any of it. Kasamatsu had remarked that the players were deliberately blocking the umpire's sight so they could get away with anything. It was downright dirty, and Gina had practically exploded. It had taken some work from Kise, who was next to her, to calm her down.

And if they were frustrated watching it, it would be nothing compared to how the players were feeling. Gina had seen all of the expressions on Seirin's faces - even Kuroko, always such a calm figure, had anger shining in his eyes. Kagami, hothead he was, had lost himself to his rage and had gone to punch Hanamiya - something the referee would have definitely seen and pulled him off the court for. Seirin would've been done for if it had happened, but fortunately Kuroko had grabbed Kagami's leg which had caused him to trip and fall. After a few words, Kagami had calmed down.

Kiyoshi had then taken it upon himself to defend the inside alone, which had put him at the brunt of Kirisaki Dai Ichi's brutality. Everyone else got off reasonably okay, since they didn't have to fight for the rebound like Kiyoshi. Gina winced every time Kiyoshi got hit, as though she were the one being hit herself. Even from the stands, she could spot a few dark bruises on his skin. She had wanted to yell, and it came down once again to Kise to calm the bespeckled girl down.

On top of that, Hyuga was not hitting the mark. So far, all of his shots had missed. Despite all of this, Seirin was still in front, but the anger and frustration they all felt was clear for anyone to see. All members had fire in their eyes. And Gina had an angry fire in her blood.

When the teams headed off for the change rooms, Gina shot up from her seat. Her fists were clenched by her sides and she started to follow suit.

"Ginacchi? Where are you going?" Kise exclaimed. He reached out to grab the girl's hand, but Gina was too quick.

"I can't just sit here," she growled. "I need to make sure they're all okay. Kiyoshi-senpai especially."

And with that, she darted through the stands, and made a beeline for the locker rooms.

Red tinted her vision as she ran, her thoughts consumed with that dirty team. She ran so fast and her mind was so filled with anger that she almost ran right past Seirin's locker room. She thundered to a halt, turned around and grabbed the door handle. The door opened with a resonating bang as it hit the wall. Everyone inside jumped as Gina dashed in.

"Is everybody okay?" she exclaimed frantically. She scanned the room with wild, angry and concerned eyes.

Now she paused to look around, Gina noticed that one of the benches was on its side; that no was doubt the result of someone having kicked it. Everyone that sat in the room had narrowed, angered features: Kagami was basically radiating rage. Gina would have bet anything that Kagami had been the one to knock the bench on it's side.

"We're fine, Gina," Izuki tried to sooth, but it wasn't working - Gina's eyes instantly picked up a few odd bruises on his skin.

"No, you're not," she snapped, infuriated all over again. Her eyes landed on Kiyoshi, and she had to stifle a cry. He looked terrible, for lack of a better word. Awful, dark bruises dotted the exposed skin of his arms and legs, and Gina knew there were bruises on his stomach from where he'd been elbowed in the side. Ice packs were held to the worst of the bruises. 

Gina's blood boiled all over again. "Kiyoshi-senpai..." she whispered, distraught for what to say.

Kiyoshi smiled at her, but she could instantly detect that it was fake. "It looks worse than it is, Gina," he tried to reassure her, but couldn't hide the slight wince as he moved.

That wince was the final straw. The red that had previously been tinted her vision now clouded over it, the fire in her blood raged and she snapped. 

"I can't believe you have to put up with a team like that!" she all but screeched. Hot, angry and frustrated tears entered her eyes. "Why - why are they even doing this? What makes them think it's okay for them to do this to you? I - I hate them! I can't stand them, I really can't! They're making me sick!" She moaned and buried her face in her hands. She kicked out at open air. "And I just feel so helpless, watching you all having to go though that and knowing there's nothing I can do and -"

"Gina."

The voice that spoke was cool and calm, and differentiated from the tense, angry atmosphere in the room that Gina halted mid-rant. She paused and looked up to see the speaker, and found Kuroko standing in front of her.

Kuroko's face would've been his usual expression of calm, if it hadn't been for the fire burning in the depths of his eyes. Gina hesitated. "Kuroko?" she murmured.

Kuroko placed both his hands on her shoulders. "Calm down. Take Deep breaths," he instructed, in as gentle a voice he could manage in the present circumstances. "Don't worry - there's no chance we'll let them win. We will defeat them, I assure you."

Gina but her lip and glanced at the number of injuries in the room. Her mind instantly started to play the worst case scenario: all of the current players injured and unable to proceed to the Winter Cup because of those injuries. Her breath caught in her throat. "B-but, what if -"

"We know what we're up against, Gina," Hyuga interrupted her gruffly. "It's just dirty tricks. Even Kagami can deal with them."

"Hey!" Kagami protested, but Gina's attention was still fixated on Hyuga.

"But, Kiyoshi-senpai..." she mumbled weakly in protest. 

"Please, Gina, don't worry," Kiyoshi said. "I'll be fine, and so will the rest of the team."

"Yeah." Kagami strolled over, determination glowing in his eyes. He managed to grin at her. "The ones who make it to the Winter Cup will be us, for sure."

Everyone looked so sure, so absolutely sure that they'd win. Even Riko and those on the bench looked determined. Knowing that her friends had faith in the outcome of the match made Gina feel much more at ease and she smiled faintly. "If you say so."

"We know so," Izuki corrected. He winked at her, and Gina couldn't help but laugh. The laughter sent tension rolling off her body. 

Kuroko squeezed her shoulders. "Remember, there's no way we'll let them win," he said, gently but firmly. "Keep calm, Gina. We've got this under control."

Gina wanted to protest, but she knew that everyone had faith. Instead, she breathed in deeply and nodded. "Okay. I wish you all luck for the second half."

Riko chuckled and pushed her lightly in the direction of the door. "Now, hurry back to the stands. The break will be ending shortly."

Gina nodded and, after wishing everyone good luck once more, she headed back into the stands. She made her way back to where everyone in Kaijou was sitting. Kise looked across at her once she reappeared.

"How are they, Ginacchi?"  Kise asked, once Gina retook her seat.

"They say they're going to be fine. I was so angry before, though."

"I can understand where you're coming from," Kasamatsu muttered. "This isn't a pleasant match to watch."

The teams had just come back on court. Gina inhaled deeply and settled back in her seat. Her friends had calmed her down during the break, but she couldn't be sure what would happen once the game started again and Kirisaki Dai Ichi returned to their dirty tactics. She guessed she'd have to rely on Kise to keep her calm.

After one of Kuroko's passes, Seirin made the first basket. Shortly after that, Riko switched Kuroko out for Mitobe. At the same time, Kirisaki Dai Ichi made a switch: they changed their centres. Gina bit her lip. She hoped that guy wasn't any worse than any of the players already on the court.

As soon as the changes were made, things went downhill for Seirin.

The first sign that something had gone wrong was when Kirisaki Dai Ichi managed to steal the ball from a fast break - something that should've been impossible. Then, Hanamiya just continued to steal the ball. Gina watched in horror as ball after ball was stolen from Seirin, Izuki being the main victim.

"What's going on?" she breathed. As far as she could tell, Seirin hadn't dropped their play. So why was the ball being stolen from them all the time? Was it something Kirisaki Dai Ichi were doing?

Something clicked in her head. Things started going downhill after the changes had all been made... on both sides. The new player being introduced just as Seirin just having the ball stolen from them couldn't just be a coincidence.

But how? Gina's eyes drifted briefly up to where Momoi was sitting with the rest of Touou. I'm sure that Momoi knows, with all the data and research she has up her sleeves. Maybe I'll ask her later.

The end of the third quarter couldn't have come quick enough. Gina had grown sick of seeing Kirisaki Dai Ichi snatch up every ball, and the frustration of her teammates. As the team's gathered by the benches, Gina saw Izuki slam his fists down on the wooden surface. Everyone on the team moved at once to calm him. She bit her lip, nerves twisting in her stomach. After that run, Kirisaki Dai Ichi was now well ahead.

"The only points Seirin scored in the third quarter were from that first dunk," Kise muttered in disbelief.

Gina checked the scores, eyes widening as she too realised this. Come on, Seirin, she thought desperately, looking down at her friends. They'd said they would never let the other team win - they needed to make it to the Winter Cup!

They needed to find a solution, and soon. Kirisaki Dai Ichi had such a huge lead already, and Seirin needed to close the gap soon.

"Do you think they can come back, Kise?" she whispered.

Kise frowned. "It's hard to say at this point. But they might just be able to give Kirisaki Dai Ichi a shock in the next quarter. They've still got Kurokocchi."

Gina glanced down, and saw Kuroko remove his jumper. She smiled. Kuroko always has an idea up his sleeve. She felt more confident. He's saved the team before. I'm sure he can do it again.

When the break ended, the teams headed back out to court. Kuroko walked out with Seirin.

"Do this, Kuroko," Gina whispered, watching her friend walk out on to court.

And, as though he had heard her, Kuroko glanced up in Gina's direction. She nodded at him, and he back at her.

Their exchange was brief, but Gina knew at once what Kuroko meant.

It was time to make Kirisaki Dai Ichi cry.

* * *

And sure enough, Kirisaki Dai Ichi went home in tears.

Kuroko was phenomenal. From the get-go, he started stealing the ball away from Hanamiya, batting it away to any Seirin member who was free. The surprise of Kuroko coming to steal the ball away at the last second caught Hanamiya completely off guard, and soon Seirin was scoring again. Gina grinned as she watched Kuroko play.

Kiyoshi was subbed out for Mitobe halfway through the quarter. Upon closer inspection, Gina realised it had been because Kiyoshi was at his limits, since he'd had to deal with the brunt of Kirisaki Dai Ichi's attacks. For a moment, she'd been worried one of Seirin's best players was off the court, but she soon relaxed herself. No one else on the team looked overly concerned, only determined. Besides, they'd want to win for Kiyoshi now, too.

Things only went up. Hyuga landed his first three. Kuroko continued to cause Hanamiya headaches. And, when there was only a few seconds left, Kuroko shot his Ignite Pass down the court to Kagami, who scored. Hyuga finished the game with an impressive three. When the siren went to signify the end of the game, Seirin had won 76-70.

Gina all but screamed and leapt out of her seat, punching the air. "Yes!" she exclaimed. She felt giddy, like an excited child, and there were tears in her eyes. She couldn't care less. Seirin had won their ticket to the Winter Cup. She couldn't be more proud.

Down on the court, Seirin was celebrating. Wide smiles were on everyone's faces. Gina wanted to run down and join in with the celebrations - she wanted to laugh and cry at once out of happiness and hug everyone.

But that would have to wait. Gina shivered. She'd see them real soon, and she'd tell them her decision. She'd tell them she wanted to become the manager.

She hoped they accepted her.

"Ginacchi, come on! Everyone's leaving and you're getting left behind!"

"Huh?" Gina whipped around to see the members of Kaijou ascending the stairs. Kise lingered behind, waiting for her. Gina quickly recovered herself and made a dash for the others, and fell into step beside the blonde.

The two of them fell into a discussion about the match. They trailed after the others, caught up in their own world. Gina found herself talking about Kuroko a lot, and Kise seemed only too happy to talk about his former teammate.

They'd been so deep in conversation that Gina hadn't realised they were nearing the doors that led outside until she felt the nippy wind on her exposed skin. Gina yipped and pulled her jumper tighter around her body. She almost didn't notice that Kise had fallen behind.

Kise stood still, looking back at the stadium. A grin was on his face. Gina tipped her head to the ride slightly. What's that all about?

"Kise?" she murmured, approaching him. "Is something on your mind?"

Kise looked sideways at her. There was a sparkle to his eyes. "Ginacchi, you know how there's a special bracket for this year's Winter Cup?"

Gina thought back quickly and recalled it; Imayoshi had mentioned it to her back when she'd been watching Seirin and Josei's match. "I've heard of it. To commemorate some sort of anniversary, Touou and Rakuzan got automatic entrance into the Winter Cup without having to go through all of this pre-tournament stuff, right?"

"Yup." Kise's grin widened, if that was even possible. He seemed to be very excited for do,etching. "And this means, for this year's Winter Cup, every one of us who was at Teiko, including Kurokocchi, will be participating."

"Really?"

"It's an all-out war with the Generation of Miracles."

All of the Generation of Miracles... Kuroko, Aomine, Kise, Murasakibara, Midorima and Akashi all competing in the same tournament. Gina shivered. Any matches with those players clashing... they were bound to be good ones.

Excitement spread through Gina's body. "That's definitely exciting," she agreed.

"Hey, Kise!" It was Kasamatsu; the other members of Kaijou were quite far ahead by now. "Hurry up!"

"One second!" Kise called back. The blonde quickly looked back at the black-haired girl. "You coming with us, Ginacchi?"

Gina shook her head. "No, I'm going to find Kuroko and the rest of Seirin. There's something I need to tell them."

"Oh? What is it?"

"Hey! It's none of your business!" Gina exclaimed, but she was laughing. "Though, I'll say this... if we meet at the Winter Cup, I'll be on the opposite bench." She grinned at Kise's expression and started to walk off. "I'll see you at the Winter Cup, if not beforehand!" she called, waving.

Kise grinned. "I look forward to it."

Gina waved once more before she turned around, buried her already-cold hands in her pockets and started to search for Seirin.

It took a few minutes, but she eventually found them all. All of them were outside, gathered around a small court. Gina grinned when she saw them, and before she knew it she was running, running toward them with the stupidest grin on her face and her heart racing. 

"Guys! Congratulations on making it to the Winter Cup!" she exclaimed, jumping down a few stairs to reach them. They turned around to see her, and Gina beamed. Her eyes sought out Kuroko, and when she found him, she winked. "Nice job confusing Hanamiya."

Kuroko smiled appreciatively. "Thanks, Gina."

"What did we tell you, baka?" Gina yelped as Kagami pushed her lightly in the side, causing her to briefly lose balance. She turned around and glared, but she couldn't keep the glare on her face after she saw the bright smile on Kagami's face. "We made it through with no problems."

Gina flushed. "I know that now. I'm sorry, I should've had more faith from the start."

"Gina, don't worry," Kiyoshi said. Gina knew his skin must be rather bruised under his jumper, but he was smiling. That was enough to put Gina's mind at ease. "You were merely worried about us."

"Well, you are my friends," Gina murmured.

"Speaking of that." Kuroko looked intently at the bespeckled girl. "Gina?"

Gina looked at him, and was momentarily distracted by the blue of his eyes. But then she shook herself and saw the message he was trying to communicate. Tell them, he was saying. Tell them now that you want to be manager.

Gina's heart skipped a beat. True, she'd love to be the manager for this team, but asking was making her nervous. What if they didn't want her?

But Kuroko was so calm as always, so sure that she'd be accepted, that Gina decided to have faith in him.

Gina swallowed and then cleared her throat, straighening herself up slightly. "Um... I have a request to make," she said, as loudly as she could.

This caught the team's attention. Everyone was looking at her, as though some spotlight was shining on her. Gina felt her cheeks turn red. She had never been good with dealing with attention.

"What is it?" Riko asked.

Gina wrung her hands in front of her, having briefly paused to summon a bit of confidence. "Well, as you might know, I'm giving up the track team," she said. "I'm not enjoying it. And instead of doing the track team... I want to join you guys, as Seirin's manager."

There. I've said it. Gina squeezed her eyes shut, terrified of what everyone's reactions might be.

There was a pause, a horrible pause, but then Gina felt a light pressure on her shoulder. Slowly, she opened her eyes, and found herself looking at Hyuga, the captain.

"Gina." He smiled warmly at her. "We'd be honoured to have you join us as our manager."

For a moment, Gina was stunned as she processed the words. We'd be honoured to have you join us as our manager. Slowly, the words started to sink in. And as they did, she started to smile slightly, a smile that spread slowly until a large grin was plastered across her face.

"Really?" she squeaked. Her eyes travelled over everyone in the team, and they were nodding, smiling at her.

Something funny and warm was spreading throughout her body, and it took all of Gina's self restraint to not jump up and down on the spot, she was so excited. "Thank you all so much!" she cried, hoping she conveyed in her words just how grateful she really was.

"Hey, it's no problem," Riko said. "It'll certainly make life easier for me. And it'll be great to see you more often."

Gina laughed, and soon everyone was joining in. After a few more exclamations of welcome, everyone started to walk off and head home. Gina grinned. I'm a part of this team now.

Without her noticing it, she'd fallen into step with Kuroko and Kagami. She was squeezed between her two good friends, who were both smiling widely at her.

"Welcome to Seirin Basketball Club, Gina," Kuroko said.

Kagami "We're going to win. Together."

Together. I'm going to be part of Seirin's victory. The realisation hit her. Whenever Seirin won their matches, she'd be there, joining in their celebration.

Gina's grin widened.

"Hell yeah we are."

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hi all! i'm sorry for the delay in updating. i had my exams so i was studying like crazy for those, and then i experienced a brief drop of inspiration. but that inspiration has returned and i'm getting really excited by the seirin/rakuzan match (i've read the manga and i'm so excited to see the rest of the match animated!) so expect a number of updates to come soon!! hopefully that'll make up for my hiatus :D