Kuroko's Basketball: I'm not the boss?

"Moshi Moshi? Coach Takeuchi sent me. Oh, okay, I'll wait for you at the door, right? Alright."

In the early morning, Xiangyang did not go to the Kaijo Gym for training as usual, but followed Takeuchi's arrangement and came to this place - Shark Gym.

The person who answered the phone was actually a woman? And her voice was quite pleasant.

Standing at the entrance of the gym, Xiangyang was bored and his mind was wandering.

Since winning the Summer Championship, the system has shown that the task has been completed, and then nothing more... Apart from still being able to see his talent panel, Xiangyang even suspected that this heartless system had crashed.

Will there be no rewards for defeating the Generation of Miracles in the future...?

Just as Xiangyang was lost in thought, the gym door opened.

Seeing this, Xiang Yang was about to be polite and bow to greet them, but when he saw who it was, he froze on the spot.

Masako Araki? What's she doing here? It can't be such a coincidence, can it?

"You must be the one Takeuchi introduced. We met briefly during the competition. Let me reintroduce myself. My name is Masako Araki."

Today, Masako Araki changed her usual style of dress. Perhaps because she was at the gym, she wore tight yoga pants on her lower body and a jacket on her upper body, but it was not zipped up. Underneath, she wore a yoga vest. Combined with her cool temperament, she looked very capable and refreshing.

"Hello, my name is Xiangyang, nice to meet you."

He gave a perfunctory greeting, but Xiangyang was still confused, never expecting that it would be Yako who would help him with training.

"It's windy outside, let's come inside and talk."

Masako waved to Xiangyang and went into the gym first, with Xiangyang following behind.

Because it was early, there weren't many people in the gym, only a few scattered people doing cardio on the treadmills.

(Fitness tip: Aerobic exercise is a type of exercise that requires prolonged exertion, with running and swimming being prime examples.)

Anaerobic exercise is a short-duration, high-intensity activity. Dumbbells and other exercise equipment in the gym generally fall under the category of anaerobic exercise.

Yako led Xiangyang to a sofa, gestured for him to sit down, and then went to the water dispenser to pour two glasses of water.

Xiang Yang curiously looked around at his surroundings. He really hadn't expected that the person Takeuchi had asked him to meet was Masako Araki.

Masako returned quickly. She placed a disposable cup filled with water in front of Xiangyang, sat down, took a sip of water, and asked, "Takeuchi said you want to join the national youth team?"

After seeing Xiangyang nod, Masako nodded slightly and continued, "Although I promised Takeuchi I would help you, your static talent is very poor. If you want to catch up with others, you can only do so through hard work. In other words, my training requirements will be very strict. You need to be mentally prepared."

(Basketball trivia: Static talent refers to innate data such as height and wingspan that cannot be increased through effort, while dynamic talent refers to abilities such as speed and jumping ability that can be improved through training.)

Xiang Yang nodded again, indicating that he had no objections, as he had already made preparations in advance.

Masako was also impressed by his cooperative attitude.

He nodded subtly, stood up, and continued, "Then let's get ready to start training. That's the locker room over there; go change your clothes. Oh, by the way... one more question: why do you want to join the national youth team? Are you passionate about basketball?"

Xiangyang was slightly taken aback when faced with Masako's question.

Does he love basketball? Undoubtedly, he does. But that's not his reason for wanting to join the national youth team. Maintaining his current position and continuing to play in Haichang would be just as enjoyable. He could keep basketball as a good hobby after starting work, and even brag about it, saying, "I used to be a national basketball champion!" All of that sounds good, but…

Having transmigrated to a world I love with a system, it would be a real waste not to do something big.

"Of course I have a passion for it, but there's also a bit of youthful arrogance in it."

Xiang Yang's lips curled up slightly, and his eyes revealed a hint of reminiscence.

We beat Rakuzan in the finals and the national youth team in the practice match, yet the result is that I'm inferior to others? Why choose Akashi instead of him?

Why? Just because Kise was there, Kaijo won, but Hikaru didn't? What kind of logic is that!

Upon hearing Xiangyang's answer, Yako paused slightly, gave him a deep look, turned and left, leaving behind only a light, casual remark.

"Come find me in the strength section after you change your clothes."

……

Fortunately, Xiangyang in his previous life sometimes liked to go to the gym to work out, so he wouldn't encounter embarrassing situations like not being able to find the strength training area.

When they met again, Masako Araki had taken off her coat, revealing her beautiful figure, but the words she spoke were not so "beautiful".

"Squat, 60 seconds, ready to begin."

Concise and to the point, before Xiangyang could even react, Yako had already blew the whistle.

After a brief hesitation, Xiangyang immediately adjusted his posture and began to do squats.

With another whistle, Yako pulled out a notebook from somewhere and recorded Xiangyang's squat data.

60 seconds, 35 reps.

He might be considered excellent among ordinary people, but for a basketball player, he's just average... mediocre... or even terrible.

Before Xiangyang could even catch his breath, Yazi pointed to the bench press machine next to her, indicating that Xiangyang should lie down on it.

"Um... could I rest for a bit?"

Faced with Xiangyang's request, Yako shook her head and refused without the slightest hesitation.

"Squats and bench presses use different muscle groups, so you don't need to rest. Just lie down."

Masako's tone left no room for negotiation, so Xiangyang had no choice but to lie down on her.

Have you ever done bench press before? What's your maximum weight?

Xiangyang recalled the data from his previous life and decided to retest it in this life.

"I haven't done it."

"Hmm, how much do you weigh?"

"70kg"

"Too light, remember to gain weight. Let's start with 85kg for now."

?

Hey! Shouldn't we start with a weight that's the same as mine?

Before Xiangyang could even refute, Yazi had already adjusted the weight of the barbell and whistled to signal Xiangyang to begin.

There was no other way but to go for it!

Xiangyang took a deep breath, gripped the barbell handles tightly with both hands, and pushed hard. The barbell came off the rack, and a huge pressure came down on Xiangyang.

He slowly bent his arms, lowered the barbell to his chest, then held his breath and pushed the barbell upward with all his might.

……

"Um... Ms. Masako, could you please help me?"

With Masako's help, Hikaru was finally able to escape from the bench press machine.

Masako continued to take out the notebook and record Xiangyang's bench press data. She couldn't help but shake her head.

Xiangyang's squats and bench presses are below average even among professional basketball players. No wonder he wasn't selected for the national youth team despite winning a training match; his physical condition is just too poor.

Next, Masako did not have Xiangyang undergo any further testing. Instead, after a short rest, she had him begin weighted squats and light bench press training.

After more than an hour of strength training, Xiangyang collapsed to the ground, too exhausted to move a single finger.

Masako was still holding the notebook, recording Xiangyang's various data. She kicked Xiangyang's leg and said, "Let's go do some final stretching."

Stretching?

Xiangyang's heart skipped a beat: a yoga pose?

Looks like the easy part is finally here!

An excited Xiangyang quickly got up; he couldn't wait to finish stretching and end today's training.

however…

"Ms. Masako, can you explain this to me? Putting aside why we need to stretch on a basketball court, why the hell is there a basketball court in the gym?!"

Chapter 82 Professional Basketball Starts with a Meal

"Dribbling drills can help relax muscles to some extent."

Masako took out the basketball she had prepared beforehand and tossed it to Xiangyang with one hand.

“This gym belongs to my family. Sometimes players from Yangquan come here to train. Building a basketball court would make things much more convenient.”

Masako's answer dispelled Xiangyang's doubts. A rich woman? Then it's alright.

"Dribble back and forth 5 times".

As always, he kept it brief and to the point. With the sound of a whistle, Xiangyang began training again.

However, after completing weighted squats and bench presses, Xiangyang's muscles were very stiff, and he no longer felt comfortable handling the basketball.

Xiang Yang gritted his teeth and tried his best to find the feeling of controlling the basketball. In the end, he managed not to drop the ball and completed this unique "stretching" exercise.

Masako finally stopped shaking her head. The fact that she could dribble back and dribble with such stiff muscles was enough to show that Hikaru's basic skills were indeed quite good.

"That's all for today. Come over here and let me stretch you a bit. You can go back after lunch. Remember to come back for dinner tonight. You need to strictly adjust your diet. There are still four months until the Winter Cup starts. You need to gain weight to 75-80kg during this time."

Huh? So fast?

Xiang Yang looked up at the time. From the moment he entered the room until now, it had only been two hours. Although the training pace was very tight, for a professional basketball player, this training time was far too short.

Seemingly sensing Xiangyang's thoughts, Yazi explained in a clear voice, "Today is mainly to give you a test and let you get familiar with the training. Formal training will start tomorrow. Strength training shouldn't be done for too long, and you won't have the energy to do basketball-related training afterward."

Xiang Yang nodded as if he understood, but not quite. In his previous life, he was just a basketball enthusiast, and he was completely clueless about this kind of professional knowledge.

"Lie down."

Masako pointed to a yoga mat and gestured for Xiangyang to lie down on it.

"It might hurt a little, you can yell out loud."

It hurts a little? Want to cry out?

"What a joke!" Xiang Yang scoffed. They underestimated him. It was just a massage. Even if Ya Zi had sat on him today, he wouldn't have even flinched!

"Wait a minute, Ms. Masako, what is that thing you're holding in your hand?"

"Fascia knife".

"I see... The design is quite interesting."

"It's not just the shape that's interesting."