"Hu… hu…"
The breathing was familiar.
The posture was familiar.
Even the rhythm of the chest rising and falling looked strangely familiar.
Sakuragi Hanamichi's eyebrows twitched.
A strange premonition rose in his heart.
He strode forward and yanked the towel away.
"Who the hell is sleeping here in broad daylight?!"
The towel was lifted.
Revealing a sleepy face wearing headphones.
Half-open dead-fish eyes blinked lazily, clearly annoyed at being disturbed.
"Too loud…"
"Who is it…"
Makino Juro rubbed his eyes. When he finally saw the enlarged red-haired face in front of him—
"Uh…"
"Sakuragi?"
Makino Juro froze for a moment, then noticed the girl standing beside him.
"Haruko?"
"What are you two doing here?"
"Master?!"
"Makino Juro-kun?!"
Sakuragi Hanamichi and Akagi Haruko shouted at the same time.
Their voices were so loud it almost felt like the ceiling might collapse.
"Why are YOU here?!" Sakuragi pointed at him, his finger trembling.
Makino Juro yawned, slowly sat up, and casually slipped on the other shoe.
"Oh. I came to buy shoes too."
"Buy shoes?"
Sakuragi glanced around the luxurious store, then looked at the manager who had been bowing respectfully to Makino Juro.
"But he said you're the owner…"
"Yeah."
Makino Juro picked up a bottle of iced cola from the table, took a sip, and replied matter-of-factly.
"I originally just wanted to buy a pair of shoes."
"But I got sleepy while trying them on and wanted to take a nap."
"The staff said sleeping here wasn't allowed."
"I thought changing locations would be troublesome."
"So I just bought the store."
Of course, he definitely wasn't going to say that he bought the place just so it would be more convenient to change shoes in the future…
Silence.
Dead silence.
The store manager wiped cold sweat from his forehead while screaming internally:
I will never understand the world of rich people!
Haruko's mouth hung open as she stared blankly at Makino Juro.
Sakuragi Hanamichi, meanwhile, had completely turned to stone.
Because he wanted to sleep…
So he bought the store?!
What kind of reason is that?!
Is that something a human being would do?!
"DAMN IT!!"
"Is this the ugly face of the rich?!"
"I want to be this reckless too!" Sakuragi cried while clutching his head.
Makino Juro felt a headache coming on from all the noise.
He stood up and stretched his ankle.
"Alright, stop wailing."
He glanced at the pair of Air Jordan 6 on Sakuragi's feet, then at the pitiful 30 yen sitting on the counter.
He more or less understood what had happened.
"You want those shoes?"
Makino Juro pointed at Sakuragi's feet.
Sakuragi instantly stopped crying and nodded like a madman.
"Yes! I want them! I dream about them!"
"But that four-eyes store manager won't sell them to me!"
The manager looked wronged.
"Boss… he's trying to buy them with 30 yen…"
Makino Juro waved his hand and cut him off.
He walked over and patted Sakuragi's shoulder.
"Sakuragi."
"How has your master treated you usually?"
"Uh…"
Sakuragi thought for a moment.
"Besides always stealing my lunch… not bad?"
"…."
Makino Juro's mouth twitched.
"Listen."
"I'll give you those shoes."
"Really?!"
Sakuragi's eyes instantly lit up like searchlights.
Makino Juro then gestured toward every pair of shoes in the store.
"Not just those."
"From now on, I'll handle all your basketball shoes."
"If you wear one pair out, I'll give you another."
"Wear out ten pairs, you get ten."
"Consider it… payment for your hard work."
Sakuragi froze.
Payment?
If Shohoku is going to win the national championship…
If I'm going to turn you into a rebounding monster and a defensive wall…
This investment is totally worth it.
Makino Juro silently added that part in his mind.
He had calculated this investment very clearly.
But Sakuragi obviously didn't think that far.
He only heard one sentence:
Take all the shoes you want!
"WAHAHAHAHA!"
"Master! You're amazing!"
"I knew you were conquered by this genius's charm!"
Sakuragi immediately grabbed Makino Juro in another suffocating bear hug.
"Let go… I'm going to die…"
Makino Juro rolled his eyes as he felt his ribs nearly crack.
Haruko stood nearby, watching the scene with a gentle smile.
"Makino Juro-kun may look lazy…"
"But he actually cares a lot about Sakuragi-kun."
"Is this how boys show their friendship?"
"It's really nice."
Ten Minutes Later
Sakuragi Hanamichi walked out of the shoe store wearing his brand-new Air Jordan 6.
Every step he took, he looked down at them, worried a speck of dust might land on the shoes.
"Haruko-san! Look!"
"These shoes really suit a genius!"
Sakuragi spun around proudly in front of her.
"Yes, they look great," Haruko said with a smile.
Just then, Makino Juro pushed the door open and walked out as well.
He was holding a bag of hamburgers he had just asked the staff to buy.
"Let's go. Time to head home."
He opened the door of a black sports car, the engine rumbling deeply.
"Get in. I'll give you two a ride."
"Whoa! A sports car!"
Sakuragi's eyes sparkled as he was about to rush over.
But suddenly he remembered something.
He stopped.
He glanced at Haruko.
Then at the sports car… which only had two seats.
If he got in the car…
Wouldn't that mean he couldn't walk home with Haruko?
Sure, the sports car was cool.
But…
"No thanks, Master!"
Sakuragi waved heroically.
"A genius must measure the earth with his own feet!"
"I'll train while running home in my new shoes!"
Makino Juro raised an eyebrow.
He glanced at Haruko beside him and immediately understood.
"Alright then."
"Take your time with that 'training.'"
"I'm going home to sleep."
VROOOOM!
The sports car sped away.
Leaving Sakuragi and Haruko standing by the roadside.
The sunset stretched their shadows long across the street.
"Um… Sakuragi-kun."
Haruko clasped her hands behind her back and leaned forward slightly.
"Since you got new shoes…"
"Would you like to do morning practice together tomorrow?"
"I'll come cheer for you."
Morning practice?
Together?
Cheer for him?
Those three words combined hit Sakuragi Hanamichi with ten thousand times the impact of those shoes earlier.
His soul trembled.
He took a deep breath and shouted toward the sunset with the most determined roar of his life.
"YESSS!!!"
"I'LL DEFINITELY COME!!!"
"Even if knives fall from the sky, I'll still come!!!"
Seeing Sakuragi burning with passion like that, Haruko smiled brightly.
"Then it's a promise."
"See you tomorrow, Sakuragi-kun."
"See you tomorrow, Haruko-san!"
As he watched Haruko's figure gradually disappear into the distance…
Sakuragi lowered his head and looked at his new shoes.
He clenched his fists tightly.
"Master…"
"Sometimes you're really annoying."
"But this time…"
"Thanks."
He said silently in his heart.
Then—
"WAHAHAHA! I'm a genius!"
"Conquering the nation starts with tomorrow's morning training!"
Sakuragi Hanamichi dashed wildly down the sunset-lit street like a madman.
At that moment…
That red-haired boy seemed to truly fall in love with basketball.
Or perhaps—
He had fallen in love with that youth filled with basketball, Haruko… and those strange teammates.