Take Care of the Counter Attack! (逆襲よろしく！, Gyakushuu Yoroshiku!) is the fourth episode of the Kuroko no Basuke anime. It adapts Chapters 7, 8, and 9 of the manga, Payback is On You!, I'm Off, and I Promised.
Synopsis[]
The first quarter finishes with Kaijō High in the lead, but the flow of the game turns in Seirin High's favor once Taiga Kagami starts coordinating his plays with Tetsuya Kuroko. Things are going well for Seirin until Ryōta Kise accidentally hits Kuroko and forces him out of the game. By the fourth quarter, Seirin still hasn't caught up, and Kuroko re-enters the match despite his injury. The score is briefly tied before Kise abruptly starts playing with far more effort, though his efforts are ultimately proven futile once the first-year duo end the game with a buzzer beater.
Plot Summary[]
First Half[]
The first quarter ends with a score of 27-35 in Kaijō High's favor. Taiga Kagami remains confident that he's figured out Ryōta Kise's weakness, Tetsuya Kuroko, and asserts that Seirin High will put them to tears in the second quarter. While on the bench, Riko Aida reminds Kuroko and Kagami that their teamwork will be crucial and asks if they can handle it. Kagami is mildly doubtful and earns a jab in the side by Kuroko, who reminds him to keep his goal of defeating Kise in mind.
Passing around Kise
The second quarter begins with both teams steadily making points until the score is 29-39 within the first minute. Kaijō continues a man-to-man defense with Kise defending Kagami. He attempts to predict what Kagami will do next and is surprised when he makes a pass to Kuroko, who swiftly returns the ball and lets them score two points. While Kise is searching for the two first-years' next play, he is again caught off guard when the ball is passed to Junpei Hyūga instead. The score is closed to 34-39.
Passing to Hyūga
Kaijō grows wary of both Hyūga's three-pointers and Kuroko and Kagami's teamwork, even though the two have yet to be fully coordinated. Kuroko tells Kise that while he's powerless and Kagami stands no chance on his own, the two of them together are enough to stand a fighting chance. Kise only reasserts that he will be the winner and attempts a three-pointer before being blocked by Kagami. Seirin attempts a fast break, only for Kise to accidentally hit Kuroko while turning around and forcing him out of the game. Kuroko is replaced on the court by Shinji Koganei. Riko tells Kagami to focus on defense in his absence, since Kise will only copy his moves if he's on offense, and is additionally told by Hyūga to have more faith in his seniors to score.
Second Half[]
Kuroko rests on the bench until the fourth quarter. The score is 68-74. Riko sees that the team is out of energy after the pace of the first half and wishes that they had Kuroko, who answers her call with a "good morning" and sits up despite his injury, walking unevenly towards the court until she stops him. He asks to be let on the court if he is able to change anything, however small, and reminds her of his promise to be Kagami's shadow until she concedes. He swaps places with Koganei with the condition that he will be immediately swapped out if she sees any trouble.
Kuroko continues to pass the ball with his Misdirection as his unintentional break from the game reset how Kaijō had gotten used to him. As the game continues, Hyūga is able to make a shot that ties the score at 82. Kise is momentarily shocked at the score before laughing to himself and abruptly increasing his speed, easily passing Kuroko and evading his attempt at a steal to break the tie with a dunk. He is visibly more serious and reiterates that he won't lose to anyone, not even Kuroko.
Kagami's jump
The two teams continue to rapidly trade points until there are less than 10 seconds left of the game. Kuroko calmly tells Kagami that they still have one more thing that Kise can't copy, though it will only work once. Hyūga rushes to block Yukio Kasamatsu's attempt at scoring, only for his legs not to respond due to strain. Kagami is able to hit the ball out of the way and Hyūga catches it, throwing it across the court as Kagami and Kuroko run to the other basket. Kuroko throws the ball with two seconds left of the game and Kagami jumps to complete an alley-oop. Kise jumps to block it, only to start falling before Kagami despite jumping at the same time. The game ends in Seirin High's victory with a score of 100-98.
Characters in order of appearance[]
Characters in italic are only seen briefly and have yet to make a proper appearance.