A SOLID TEAM,NANAHO CHOOSES THE STARTING FIVE

After the ball was inbounded, Makoto was double-teamed by both Noboru and Hayato. He calmly looked around and saw that Yukio was heavily guarded by Liam, while Tetsuo was being marked by Takahiro. Shino, who was open, ran to the rim, and Makoto made a quick pass to him.

"Yes! I caught it! Now to score and secure our victory," said Shino as he went up for a layup. However, he was blocked by Liam.

"Crap! I didn't see him! How did he get back so fast?" Shino thought to himself as he fell onto his back.

Team Makoto was left in a four-versus-three situation, and eventually, Takahiro scored a layup, making it a two-point difference.

"Alright, let's stop them once more!" said Hayato as they applied pressure again, preventing Yukio from inbounding the ball.

Nanaho then blew the whistle.

"Five-second violation! Team Hayato's ball," she announced.

"Let's go!!" Hayato celebrated.

On the next possession, Hayato calmly dribbled the ball up the court and relaxed his muscles.

"What is he thinking? Will he pass the ball, or will he shoot a three-pointer?" Makoto questioned himself while guarding him.

Hayato then called for a screen from Takahiro, who executed it flawlessly.

"Crap! I knew he was going to shoot a three!" said Makoto as he tried to get back to him, but he wasn't going to make it in time.

As Hayato released his three-point shot, Tetsuo jumped into the air and swatted the ball to the ground.

"What the hell…? Tetsuo blocked me?" Hayato thought to himself, shocked.

As the ball rolled out of bounds, both Liam and Yukio battled for it on the ground, and Yukio managed to tip it to Makoto, who noticed Shino running. He quickly passed the ball to Shino, who dribbled up the court. Noboru, driven by pride, got back on defense and started guarding him.

"Oh no, he got back too fast! What do I do?" Shino asked himself, frightened.

"We both know you can't get past me, so just give it up and hand over the ball," said Noboru as he reached to steal it.

"No, I can't allow him to take it. What would Tetsuo do in a situation like this? I know! He would…" Shino thought to himself.

At that moment, he spun in the opposite direction, leaving everyone stunned as he shot a layup that swished through the net.

Nanaho checked her watch and realized that time was up. She blew her whistle.

"I did it! I scored the final basket!" said Shino, smiling brightly.

"Nice one, Shino!" said both Makoto and Tetsuo as all three of them fist-bumped.

"This is awesome! I'd never dreamed of being praised by the two of them at once," Shino thought to himself.

"Well, what do you know? That game was really something. I had fun," said Hayato with a smile.

"Me too. That's the most fun I've had in a long while," said Liam.

"They really lucked out on us, haven't they?" said Takahiro.

Noboru, still stunned by Shino's performance, walked over and gave him a thumbs-up.

"Nice work, Shino. You really did well today, and you've improved drastically. But I won't lose to you next time."

"Right! I look forward to our next scrimmage," said Shino.

"That's right, you jerk! You were schooled by our adorable little junior, Shino Katsuragi!" teased a girl.

"Serves him right! He's such a total loser," added another.

"Can you shut the hell up?! Utter one more word, and I'll come up there for all of you!" said Noboru angrily.

"I'm not afraid of you, short stack."

"Again with that insult? Let me remind you—I'm still taller than all of you!" said Noboru.

"Alright, alright, calm down, Noboru. Let's listen to what Nanaho has to say."

"Honestly, this guy is a real firecracker," Makoto thought to himself as he sighed.

After assessing the game and stats, Nanaho spoke.

"I've checked the scores, and the game ended at sixty-three to fifty-nine. That's an amazing result. Also, the main scorers for both teams were Tetsuo with twenty-five points and Liam with twenty. Congrats to both of you.

"Now then, about the starting lineup—I think it's time for us to start discussing the details."

"Oh shit, I'm definitely going to be a benchwarmer. This sucks," Noboru thought to himself.

"I have decided on four secured positions for the upcoming season. Firstly, we have Liam as our starting center. Secondly, Yukio as our power forward. Next, Tetsuo as our shooting guard—depending on the situation, he may also play small forward. Finally, our point guard will be Makoto," said Nanaho.

"What? But what about Hayato?" asked Noboru, concerned.

"Well, that's what I'll explain now. When it comes to both Takahiro and Hayato, it depends on the type of team we'll be playing.

"If we're up against shooters and quick players, Hayato will start as our second guard, and Tetsuo will play small forward.

"But if we're facing a team with taller and more physical players, Takahiro will start as small forward, and Tetsuo will remain at shooting guard," Nanaho explained.

"I'm not really following," said Shino.

"If only I could schedule another practice match for you guys, then you'd understand better. However, doing so would give our opposition too much data on our two new players, so we'll just have to train and keep things under wraps for now.

"And with that, the training session has ended. You guys can go home and rest up."

"Thank you for the session, Nanaho!" said everyone as they walked off to the locker room.

"I hope she forgot about me," Noboru thought as he tried to sneak away.

"Did you really think I forgot about you, Noboru?" said Nanaho with a menacing smile.

"Please, I'm so sorry!" Noboru begged.

"Sorry won't cut it. That's eighty suicides for you, and I want them completed by the end of the day."

"But Nanaho, that's unfair! I'm really exhausted!"

"Don't worry—you'll have company to pass the time. Right, Makoto? Mister 'I'm too tired, so I skipped training' will be here with you."

"What?! Oh, why me? This is such a pain. Why am I mixed up in this mess?" Makoto sighed.

"I'm leaving the two of you accountable for each other. Make sure it's done, or there will be consequences," said Nanaho as she walked off.

"That girl is really something else," said Makoto as he started doing the suicides.

Later that evening, Tomoe sat by the window of her club, reading a book. She then took off her glasses and sighed.

"When are you coming out, big brother? I hope it will be soon. I really miss you. This place is so lonely and impossible to exist in," said Tomoe to herself in a sad tone as she rested her head on the desk.