Kaizen High – First Day of National League Season
Coach Tanaka hangs a massive new schedule poster in the gym.
> "Welcome to the National League."
12 schools.
One round-robin season.
Top 4 make the playoffs.
Kaizen's first matchup?
VS. Kirisaki Elite High
(Ranked #2 in the country. Known for: Defense that chokes systems.)
---
🧢 Drift Makes His Presence Known
Kaito "Drift" Nakamura shows up late to morning practice.
Loose hoodie. Earbuds in.
Ball spinning on one finger.
Renji narrows his eyes.
> "You gonna warm up or just stand there looking like a mixtape?"
Drift smirks.
> "I am the warm-up."
---
🧠 First Practice – Clash
Coach calls a full-speed scrimmage.
Team A: Drift, Renji, Keigo, Daiki, Souta.
Team B: Bench players.
Drift takes control immediately.
No set plays.
Just flow.
No passes to Souta.
Renji gets iced out.
But Drift scores.
Fast. Flashy. Effective.
---
🔥 Renji Snaps
Midway through, he rips the ball out of Drift's hands.
> "You think this is a street court?! This is Kaizen!"
Drift doesn't back down.
> "Nah, I think Kaizen needed this."
They stare down.
Coach Tanaka calls it off.
> "Tomorrow, we see who really leads.
Riku's watching."
---
🩹 Riku's View – From the Bench
He's in the bleachers, notebook open.
Watching.
Studying.
Smiling.
> "This chaos... it might be exactly what we need."
---
🌃 Late Night – Renji vs. Masa
An abandoned court in the city.
Masa—Renji's old rival from the streets—waits.
> "No crowd. No refs. Just rhythm vs. rage."
They play.
No rules.
Masa's style is erratic—"Razor Bounce", footwork like broken glass.
Renji adapts mid-game.
Pulse Step fakes. Counter drags. Hesi-spin. Dunk.
Final shot—fadeaway corner three.
Splash.
Masa nods, panting.
> "Still got it.
But I'll be back with five. Not one."
---
📢 Game Day – Kaizen vs. Kirisaki Elite
Arena full.
Cameras rolling.
Kaizen walks in—no Riku.
Renji leads.
Drift walks beside him.
No headphones this time.
> "You call the plays."
"I'll break them when I need to."
Renji smirks.
> "Welcome to the fire."