Kuroko no Basket: Honored One

The national championship matchup was finally set.

Kirisaki Daiichi vs. Rakuzan—

Who would win this year's crown became the hottest debate across the basketball community.

Some believed Rakuzan would claim the title.

They had a deeper bench, the best high school coach in the country—Shirogane Eiji, and a roster boasting both Generation of Miracles and Uncrowned Kings.

This year's Rakuzan was arguably the strongest version in their history.

Their leader, Akashi Seijūrō, hadn't even gone all out from the preliminaries to the semifinals—yet Rakuzan consistently ranked top three in all national stats.

If Akashi went full power, many believed no one would be able to stop Rakuzan.

But others claimed Kirisaki Daiichi was destined to end Rakuzan's reign over high school basketball.

Because they had the strongest high school player in the country—Tendou Kageyoshi.

Kirisaki Daiichi had fought through one brutal match after another, and three times, Tendou had gone up against teams with Generation of Miracles players—

and won decisively every single time.

Fans believed that even Akashi would crumble before Tendou.

The debate raged online, with both sides presenting strong arguments—neither side could convince the other.

But on one thing, fans agreed:

Rakuzan had the most luxurious lineup in the nation: three Miracle-level players plus three Uncrowned Kings.

Kirisaki Daiichi didn't have the same depth, but they had the strongest first-option player—Tendou Kageyoshi.

Each team had their strengths.

The upcoming final was bound to be one of the most intense games in high school basketball history.

...

Yet no matter how heated the discussions got, they had no impact on the intense final preparations happening inside both camps.

That day, Momoi once again came to Kirisaki Daiichi.

She had come to "oversee" preparations—

to help her side win the national championship.

But she ended up discovering something unexpected:

"Unlimited Void."

Even so, she didn't understand it.

Like everyone else, her eyes were filled with curiosity and confusion.

So Tendou decided— he'd just let them all experience it.

Yes, even Momoi.

"Don't overthink it. Just focus on defending with everything you've got."

Tendou slowly dribbled the ball.

There was none of the aggressive pressure from techniques like "Dismantle" or "Cleave"— just calm, measured control.

Once everyone was in position, he took a step forward.

Wmmm…

In an instant, the domain expanded again.

And just like that—

Momoi and everyone else were plunged into the mental spiral of how to stop him.

Their minds spiraled further:

How do I counter this?

Why can't I find a solution?

Why does it feel like I'm stuck in an endless loop?

By the time they came to, Tendou had already strolled calmly behind them.

"…What was that?"

The Kirisaki Daiichi players stood frozen in disbelief.

"That was… Little Ten's final ability?"

Momoi's beautiful eyes widened, filled with astonishment.

"Looks like you all understand the effect of Unlimited Void now."

Tendou palmed the rebounding basketball with one hand and warned them:

"When I activate Unlimited Void, stay away from me."

The effect of Boundless Void was absolute.

Perhaps in the future, once he mastered domain fusion, he could refine or customize it—

but for now, it attacked anyone nearby, friend or foe.

...

Meanwhile, at Rakuzan High.

Akashi Seijūrō was doing his final mental prep.

He stood silently at the free-throw line, deep in thought.

It wasn't about how to freely enter the Zone.

Ever since watching Tendou and Aomine, he had already mastered how to enter that state.

In fact, he had briefly accessed it once by accident.

But he hadn't truly studied it until then.

Only after seeing how Tendou and Aomine could enter the Zone at will, did he begin to take it seriously.

He spent time analyzing it— and eventually found his own "key" to unlock Zone access.

So now, Akashi was pondering something else—

How could he control his body as perfectly as Tendou did?

"If we both can see the future, then there's no reason why Tendou can do it… and I can't."

Akashi refused to accept that he was inferior to Tendou.

He had to find a way to break his own limits.

But after racking his brain for some time—he still had no clue.

Even so, the effort wasn't fruitless.

During the process of observing and refining his physical movements, he learned how to adjust his physical state on the fly.

He had successfully pushed beyond the 80% limit of his physical capabilities.

"How's it going, Seiji? Found the answer yet?"

Reo Mibuchi came over to ask.

"No."

Akashi shook his head.

He had to admit—it was a matter of natural talent.

Only Tendou could do that.

But he still didn't believe Tendou's Six Eyes were superior to his Emperor Eye.

He believed Tendou's overwhelming focus was just a personal gift, similar to Kise's mimicking ability.

"Still, the one who will win… will be me."

Akashi's gaze shifted to Mayuzumi Chihiro.

He was certain—even Tendou wouldn't expect him to have found another "Kuroko Tetsuya."

And with Akashi's careful training, this new-style sixth man had already surpassed the original.

Fate had chosen Akashi Seijūrō—not Tendou.

...

As both teams scrambled in their final days of prep, time slipped by quietly.

And then… it was here.

The national championship match was held on schedule.

An hour before tip-off, fans had already swarmed the arena.

Teams that had made deep runs in the tournament but had since been eliminated all traveled to Tokyo to watch.

Everyone wanted to witness, with their own eyes, which side of the Generation of Miracles would triumph in their first true national clash.

The stadium was packed to the brim.

Kirisaki Daiichi arrived first, stepping off the bus into the underground parking area.

They walked through a private hallway to the lobby for check-in, then Tendou led the team into the locker room to get changed—

and afterward, out onto the court for some warm-up shots and court feel.

Rakuzan arrived almost simultaneously.

The two teams locked eyes for a brief moment.

No words were exchanged.

They both went straight into warmups.

Time passed.

As the spectators began filing into the arena,

both teams wrapped up their court adaptation and returned to their locker rooms.

…Just to come back out again.

Because—

The finals included an official player introduction ceremony.

Both starting lineups would be called onto the court by the arena's DJ, one by one.

The crowd roared, their cheers echoing through the entire stadium:

"Rakuzan!"

"Victory!"

"Kirisaki Daiichi!"

"Unstoppable!"

The war cries of the fans shook the very rafters of the arena.

...

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