#atsui

Name: The Red Leaves of Konoha

Asuma Sarutobi took over 3 years ago when the previous coach Genma resigned without warning. At first, he was a controversial choice because his father Hiruzen got arrested and demoted from his high-ranking position as a Minister of Finances of the country of Fire for fraud, mishandling of funds, and abuse of power. Asuma was met with a lot of resistance but overturned the public opinion in his favor as he “built the team back up” leading it to a new path of constant victories.

The team has been secured with being #2 behind Kumo. They’ve accepted being their natural enemy because Kumo is undefeatable, and it is what it is. Their position maintained itself for years until Kiri’s team's emergence. Konoha’s team then dropped to third position in the world rankings. There is no need to worry because they are still above average and are promised to maintain their position for years, but Konoha started putting their bet on other sports anyway.

Regardless, with Asuma’s efforts and the Hyuuga clan's generous donations, they formed a strong and determined basketball team made of diverse players:

Konohamaru Sarutobi:

the star of the team

highest stats

Fastest

Basketball has been a passion for him since high school

As suggested by his surname, he is not a nobody

 Comes from a family/background involved in politics. Asuma broke away from it by marrying a woman from a different clan, Kurenai, and ending the generational curse of corruption who ran in the Sarutobi’s bloodline for decades.

Kawaki:

Most recent recruit

Youngest member

He has an amateur basketball background

He was recruited after getting in a fight with Torune during a friendly match

Most red cards/accidents are linked to him

He is a fan favorite, especially with the girlies for his looks and edgy personality

Kiba Inuzuka:

All bark, No bite. Loves to run his mouth while being the least skilled

His specialty is the element of surprise

Friendly extroverted butterfly

Loves to drink

It is often awkward for him and his sense of humor because of the wide age range of the team

Torune Aburame:

Oldest, tallest and most muscular (Do your thing Wonho!)

Bestie with Kiba for their unhinged antics

He must be the one who spent the most time at Konoha’s basketball academy. Before getting drafted, either he never gave up or was killing time in a sport/hobby since he is a trust fund kid of the Aburame clan.

always finds himself with insta model grade groupies

His specialty is long-distance shots and he rarely misses

Unfortunately, he often acts like he is the only player on the court.

Iwabe Yuino

Shortest

Same age as Kawaki

One of the few people who will proudly defend the position of “defense”. He takes it seriously.

Was drafted the month he joined the basketball academy. Something about him spoke to Asuma without formally introducing himself

His playing style melts into Konohamaru’s hence why they get along so well.

Star Players: Knohamaru, Kawaki, and Torune. Konohamaru and Kawaki receive the most brand deals. The young Sarutobi benefits from the image of being “Mr. National Hero/Konoha’s Pride” which opened doors for him in all areas of life; documentaries, variety shows, and TV series cameos. Meanwhile, Kawaki is a teen magazine favorite. Torune is receiving as many opportunities but is busy participating in every athletic competition or sport -based tv show known to man. The Aburame has a secured spot in men’s magazines for his strong and defined physique.  

KUMO’S BASKETBALL TEAM:

Team’s name: The Lightnings of Kumo

The greatest & undefeatable. It has been the case forever and ever since the team has been under the management and coaching of Mabui.  She is a businesswoman by profession but took over as a coach after Killer Bee’s relentless begging (he is an investor).

The team is made of 5 players going along like ingredients of a cake recipe;

Omoi:

“Either you’re gonna crank that Soulja Boy or that Soulja Boy is going to crank you”

The star of the team

His devious game tactics became the trademark of Kumo’s team

Him, Atsui, and Darui are the same age and were drafted at the same time

He is a professional prankster and is heavily present on social media

In his free time, he likes to play video games (he plays 2k lol)

His studies in advanced mathematics allowed him to tweak the team’s tactics on the court, hence why Kumo has a million techniques and ways revolving around strategically passing the ball (THIS IS SCIENCE YALL!). Their training is way more calculated than it seems. It is so hard to intercept the ball after they put their hands on it

Like street fashion and has a PhD in dunking.

Atsui:

Dynamic duo with Omoi. They do everything together

He seamlessly integrated the team even if he stands out like a sore thumb. It doesn’t bother him since he easily adapts to different situations and environments.

He never thought he would play professionally and sent his application to Kumo’s basketball academy after losing a bet.

He mastered the art of crossovers

Darui:

Becoming a basketball player was not the direction he expected his life to take

Omoi got him drafted by referral saying “Hey, I know this dude and he’s not bad”

Darui is the introverted quiet type of guy living the extroverted life

Being so composed and quiet allows him to sneak on his opponents without warning

Thanks to his immunity to stress, he often chimes in and organizes his coach’s commands on the court ending in endless arguments with Omoi

Kakui:

He is not that old, please stop calling him Unc.

Marui:

Youngest member.

Designated photographer

Star players: Darui, Atsui & Omoi. The Raikage himself supports all team members financially. Atsui receives the most brand deals while Darui is backed by few major companies and is content with it (because they don’t go against his personal values). Omoi found a new avenue that fits his personality which is MC-ing. He became a permanent member of Killer Bee’s Showtime variety show cast and makes a good living out of it.

CHEERLEADERS AND THE TRADITION OF THE FINALE:

Cheerleaders and mascots are important parts of each team, especially during the finale of the IBL (International Basketball League). It has gained a reputation for putting on a show along with the hottest artists of each nation making the finale such an event every year. Each nation has a different way of operating (including the important celebrities/public figures attending the match.

KONOHA Their mascot is named Kurama and is a nine-tail Firefox. Its theme song is “Fire Burning”.

For the finale, it will perform along with the largest cheerleader team in the world of basketball and a marching band. They carry the performance and hype the crowd until introducing the team’s members into the arena.

In recent years only and imitating other nations, they invited top artists to perform. Unfortunately, last year Konoha did not participate to the finals since it was Kumo vs Kiri but the new pop singer Mirai performed her most popular single as an opening act since the finale took place in Konoha.

She is Asuma Sarutobi’s daughter and Mizuki blamed nepotism as a reason for her being included in the event which doesn’t matter since her song is an international success and had undeniable popularity with the public.

KUMO

It’s a show! Some think their pre-game introduction is a mess while others can’t wait to see it. Kumo never sleeps on the gas when it comes to their basketball team. Knowing they have been dominating the sport for the longest and haven’t yet met a “worthy opponent” in decades, the finale is just a big ole party for them. As follows their tradition, Killer Bee introduces the performance with one of his songs along with the team’s mascot Gyuki also known as The Anpanman. On last year's finale, he performed his most popular hit and the mascot’s theme song.

Due to the circumstance of going against a brand-new team instead of Konoha. They went all out with large street dance/breakdancing crews and as expected the basketball players joined them on the dancefloor to introduce themselves. It’s a tradition with them to always participate with the dancers. To add oil to the fire, the most popular singer Samui and the most awarded rapper Karui offered a special performance together.

KIRI: Being a new team and recently entered the world scene, it was THE opportunity to formally introduce themselves not only as a team, but as a nation. Saying “Kiri, we are here. Modernized and our dark past is behind us.” Hence why they decided to introduce the team along with a large group of musicians performing traditional percussion-based music belonging to each players' respective ethnicities.

Having a smaller cheerleader team and no mascot, they were represented by the country of water’s current gem, the singer Sera. Her background as a professional dancer allowed her to put on a show by herself as much as whole cheerleading teams from other nations.

Her production team came up with a catchy song for the basketball finale that she performed along with her most popular single. Zabuza performed another song with her meanwhile the rest of the team performed along Utakata, the new pop singer making waves in Kiri these days.

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