Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

During the summer vacation, the Lingnan campus was deserted, without the noise of students or the hustle and bustle of club activities. Only the sound of cicadas poured down from the trees along the roadside, in waves.

Jun Uozumi and Kichijou Fukuda walked side by side on the road leading to the basketball court. Their shadows shrank into two short tufts at their feet in the sunlight, swaying back and forth with the rhythm of their steps.

Uozumi's two-meter height made him stand out in the empty campus, like a moving telephone pole.

Fukuda was a bit shorter than him, but he had broad shoulders and leaned slightly forward when he walked, like a cat ready to pounce at any moment.

"Next, I'll have to face Coach Taoka's grueling training again." Fukuda's voice carried a resigned calmness, like someone saying, "It's going to rain again tomorrow."

Uozumi didn't speak, but he slowed his pace.

"Devil training." In their basketball team, this isn't a metaphor; it's a factual description.

During last summer's training, Coach Taoka made them train until they vomited.

This year, they only reached the semi-finals in the prefectural tournament, failing to even qualify for the national tournament. Coach Taoka probably won't be too happy. Training will only be more intense than last year, not easier.

The two walked into Ryonan's basketball gym and saw Coach Taoka standing by the court, arms crossed, his expression as serious as ever.

But there was someone standing next to him. A tall man with red hair wearing a black vest was looking around with an expression of both eager anticipation and childlike curiosity.

Fukuda nudged Uozumi with his elbow, his voice low. "Boss Monkey, do you know this redhead?"

Uozumi stared at the red-haired man for two seconds, then shook his head.

He had been in Ryonan for two years and had never seen this person at the school. Red hair, a height of about 1.8 meters—he had never seen someone with these features before and could never forget them.

The Ryonan team members entered the stadium one after another. Everyone did the same thing as Uozumi Fukuda: first look at the red-haired guy, then at Coach Taoka, and then exchange a "who is this guy?" look.

The red-haired man stood next to Coach Taoka, completely unfazed, his gaze sweeping across everyone's faces as if recognizing them or scrutinizing them.

He looks at people very directly, staring straight at them without beating around the bush or being shy.

Coach Taoka raised his wrist and looked at his watch. His brows began to furrow, like two dark clouds slowly gathering together.

"Hasn't Sendoh arrived yet?"

The words had barely left his mouth when the gym door was pushed open. The door hinges creaked briefly, and a gust of hot summer air rushed in, stirring up a small patch of dust from the floor.

Akira Sendoh stood at the door, carrying a sports bag, his hair slightly disheveled by the wind, and a smile that said, "I know I'm late."

"Sorry I'm late." Sendoh's voice was lazy, with a natural and unpleasant casualness.

Coach Taoka's face went from "partly cloudy" to "overcast," and then from "overcast" to "downpour."

He took a deep breath, and then that breath turned into a string of words that pounded out so loudly that the roof of the stadium shook.

"Sendoh, you're late again! You're late for every training session! You were late last time, the time before that, and the time before that!"

Do you even have a sense of time? You only made it to the top four in this county competition, and you didn't even make it to the national competition. Don't you feel ashamed?!

Sendoh stood still, letting Coach Taoka's spittle fly everywhere, his expression unchanged.

Once Taoka's cursing subsided, he slowly walked in, his gaze sweeping around the gym before settling on the red-haired man.

His eyebrows twitched slightly, his face showing curiosity.

"Oh, is this a new person?"

Coach Taoka took a deep breath and swallowed the rest of his curses. He walked to the center of the court, clapped his hands, and the crisp sound echoed in the empty arena.

"gather."

The team members gathered around, their footsteps creaking on the wooden floor. Coach Taoka stood at the front of the group, with the red-haired man standing beside him.

Taoka's gaze swept over each face before he spoke.

"Let me introduce you. This is my nephew. He's in the third year of junior high school and has only been playing basketball for two months. He has a pretty good talent for basketball. He will be training with us this summer."

Sakuragi Hanamichi stood next to Coach Taoka, hands on his hips, chin slightly raised.

His gaze swept from the first person in the line to the last, and then from the last to the first.

He saw Jun Uozumi. Standing at two meters tall with broad shoulders and a thick back, he looked like a mountain in the line.

Sakuragi's eyes lingered on Uozumi for a moment. This was the first time he had seen someone taller than him, a full head taller.

He saw Sendoh Akira, the latecomer who was tilting his head and looking at him with a half-smile on his lips.

He saw Fukuda Kichijou, whose gaze was indifferent as he looked him up and down. He also saw several other team members, all of whom were quite tall.

This high school basketball team is really something else. Just standing here, there are three guys who are no shorter than him.

Coach Taoka clapped his hands. "Warm-up, run laps. Ten laps, begin."

The players filed out and began jogging along the sidelines of the court. The sound of their shoes hitting the wooden floor changed from a chaotic patter to a steady, rhythmic patter, like a train starting up.

Sakuragi ran at the front of the group, taking long strides and swinging his arms high. His vest billowed in the wind, revealing a section of his lower back.

Suddenly, a hand reached out from behind and pressed down on his shoulder.

Jun Uozumi's voice came from behind Sakuragi, deep and steady.

"Newcomer, stay at the back. That's where you belong."

Sakuragi slowed his pace. His neck stiffened, and his shoulders tensed.

The expression that looked like he was about to explode quickly took shape on his face, like an inflating balloon, growing bigger and bigger.

His mouth opened, and the words "What did you say?" were already on the tip of his tongue...

He suddenly remembered why he had come here: to use the court for playing ball.

He came to train and play basketball, not to fight. Coach Taoka kindly took him in and trained with him, and he couldn't cause trouble for him.

Sakuragi's mouth closed. His shoulders relaxed. That "about to explode" expression deflated slowly, like a punctured balloon.

He slowed down, moving from the front of the line to the back, running behind the last member.

Sakuragi stared at the tall figure leading the pack, muttering to himself, "That damned ape king, this genius will make you pay!"