Bang! Bang! Bang!
A few quick crossovers. Nothing flashy — just standard moves. But somehow, Kagami's center of gravity shifted. Almost imperceptibly.
Even with Zone-enhanced vision, which let him see Akashi's every movement clearly… His body couldn't react.
It was like being frozen in place.
Bang!
Another dribble — Akashi dipped low, snapped into a lightning-fast crossover.
Kagami's body loosened for just a second — then crumpled.
He hit the ground.
Akashi had broken his ankles.
With no one left between him and the basket, Akashi calmly laid the ball in.
After a stunned silence — the arena erupted.
"He broke his ankles!!"
"That little guy's got skills!"
"Wait—isn't he the runner-up from last year?"
Some in the crowd recognized Akashi… but with hesitation.
That's how it was—Second place never gets remembered.
"Man… what a terrifying rhythm."
Kota couldn't help but admire it—even as he silently breathed a sigh of relief.
Yeah, best way to guard Akashi? Don't guard him at all.
Didn't you see the Interhigh? He tried every trick on me and couldn't break my ankles once.
Sure, he dropped nearly 50 on me after that — but hey, I stayed upright the whole time.
"Kagami's in trouble now."
Aomine's eyes narrowed. As a Zone veteran, he could tell right away—
Kagami hadn't just lost the ball. He'd lost his momentum.
The Zone was gone.
"Man, came fast and left even faster."
Kota clicked his tongue and turned to Aomine.
"Why can you activate the Zone anytime? Kagami can't? Isn't it something you can just turn on?"
After all, Kota had used Overthinker as his trigger — specifically, pulling up his shorts on defense. Worked every time. He could enter Zone whenever he wanted.
Aomine gave a smug shrug.
"Entering the Zone takes crazy focus. Most guys just can't do it. It's hard enough to keep your head in the game, let alone laser-focused every second."
"I see..."
Kota nodded, finally understanding.
Even being able to enter Zone at will…was a talent in itself.
If Aomine ever finds out I can just pull up my shorts and switch it on...I'd pay to see the look on his face.
Kota licked his lips slightly. Now he was really looking forward to the Finals.
Beside him, Araki overheard Aomine's explanation and thought quietly to herself:
"I wonder… could Murasakibara enter the Zone?"
Meanwhile, on the court — without the Zone, Kagami was grounded. He could no longer fly through Rakuzan's defense.
Rakuzan, on the other hand, kept pressing — pushing wave after wave of attacks. Within a few possessions, they had closed the gap.
Timeout: Seirin.
Score: 18–18.
3 minutes left in the first quarter.
"Kagami, can you not get back into the Zone?"
Riko looked worried.
Without the Zone, Seirin had no reliable way to score on Rakuzan.
"Sorry… I'm trying to find the rhythm again."
Kagami gave a helpless look.
His trigger — Meteor Jam over an opponent's head — wasn't easy to replicate. And Akashi wasn't about to let him dunk that easily again.
Just as the team fell into silence—
"Leave it to me."
Everyone turned. It was Kuroko.
Before they could ask, he added:
"I'll create a chance for Kagami-kun. Please, pass me the ball."
After the meeting, Akashi had shared everything he knew about Kuroko's misdirection — its strengths, but also its limits. The more flashy Kuroko got, the more visible he became.
That's why, despite learning the Vanishing Drive and Phantom Shot, Kuroko kept holding back. But not anymore.
"If we can't beat Akashi, hiding won't help anyway"
Riko finally nodded. She and Kuroko were thinking the same thing:
Win first. Deal with consequences later.
Timeout over.
Seirin's next possession began. But something was off.
Kuroko stood at the 45° wing, one arm raised, asking for the ball.
That alone made the crowd do a double take.
"Wait a sec. Is Kuroko… going one-on-one?"
Kota raised an eyebrow.
He knew exactly what was coming.
Izuki hesitated for a moment — Then threw the pass.
Across from Kuroko,Mayuzumi materialized from the shadows.
"What's this guy doing?"
Mayuzumi squinted at Kuroko. Even Akashi, up top, couldn't read his intent.
Kuroko stared back at Mayuzumi with his usual deadpan face. Neither moved. No offense. No pressure. Just an awkward stare-down.
The hell is this guy trying to pull?
Mayuzumi finally considered stepping up for a steal — When suddenly —
Kuroko disappeared.
"WHAT??"
Mayuzumi spun. The sound of a bouncing ball hit behind him.
Kuroko had only moved a few steps — Now at the free-throw line.
He raised the ball to shoot.
"Again, huh…"
From the stands, Aomine's brows furrowed.
He used the same move on us at Too.
This version of Kuroko had started training earlier. He hadn't even needed Aomine's help for shooting — He figured it out himself, with help from Kota.
"You've gotta be kidding"
Mayuzumi reacted instantly. He jumped to block—his height giving him an edge even on a delayed jump.
But Kuroko's face didn't change. His shot motion looked bizarre — like a human catapult. The ball launched at a ridiculous arc — just over Mayuzumi's hand — and dropped cleanly through the net.
"Even from that close?!"
Mayuzumi stared at his hand in disbelief.
"He'd jumped late but high. And still couldn't stop it?"
The ref finally blew his whistle.
Kuroko had snapped the dry spell — Seirin had gone three full possessions without scoring since Kagami lost the Zone. Now the Phantom Sixth Man had broken through.
Akashi's eyes narrowed.
"So he's developed an actual scoring move…One perfectly tailored to his own style."
The crowd buzzed.
Even with the ball in his hands, Kuroko had managed to vanish.
He was supposed to be more noticeable while holding the ball — But even then, he'd pulled off the impossible.
From the stands, Kota grinned, licking his lips.
"Yeah… this game's far from over."