"Whoa! He scored again!"
"It's not even a full minute yet! What's with this Shohoku team? They're insane."
"I heard Shohoku beat Kainan High."
"No way. That's the number four team in the country! So does that mean Shohoku is already top four level?"
"That No. 9 is crazy fast! I could barely even see him dribble!"
…
Right now, the whole crowd felt frozen.
Everyone was stunned by Aoi Kunisaku's performance.
Especially the ones who had never seen him play before.
Their eyes were wide. Mouths slightly open. Faces full of disbelief.
Even though Aoi hadn't shown off his Super High-Speed Dribble or Formless Shot yet, just his insane speed alone had already shattered their expectations.
Meanwhile, players from other schools in the stands had their expressions darken. Faces tense. Brows furrowed. A heavy gloom hung over their eyes.
They all understood—if Aoi Kunisaku was this strong, he'd be a nightmare to face later in the tournament.
At that moment, a group of more than ten people stepped out from the second-floor walkway.
"Looks like the game's already started," Maki Shinichi said calmly, his gaze focused on the court.
Kiyota Nobunaga followed his eyes to the scoreboard and said, surprised, "Shohoku's in the lead!"
Jin Soichiro remained calm and unsurprised. "That was probably expected. I doubt Toyotama has anyone who can match that guy."
Miyamasu Yoshinori furrowed his brows slightly. "Toyotama's full of dirty tricks. Wonder how Aoi Kunisaku will handle them."
…
Back on the court.
Every player on Toyotama was now staring at Aoi Kunisaku.
After that last play, they understood his strength on a deeper level.
He was fast. Really fast.
Minami Tsuchiya looked at Aoi. The shock on his face had already faded, replaced by his usual calm.
But in his eyes, there was a flicker of something dark. Like he was calculating something.
Toyotama ball.
Itakura Daijiro started dribbling up the court.
Miyagi Ryota didn't flinch. He stepped up again to block him, full focus.
Itakura looked at Miyagi with a sneer. His lips curled into a sly grin.
Then he made his move—shifted his stance, used the right side of his body to shield the ball, then did a Between-the-Legs Dribble and spun to the right.
As he spun, his left arm swung outward.
He raised his elbow slightly—just enough to jam it into Miyagi's stomach.
Thud…
A low impact rang out.
Miyagi's face twisted in pain. He staggered back a step.
Itakura seized the chance, slipped past him, and charged forward.
"That bastard," Miyagi growled, clutching his stomach and glaring at Itakura's back.
Near Shohoku's three-point line, Itakura was met by Mitsui Hisashi.
Itakura didn't hesitate. He swung the ball to the side—straight to Kishimoto Minori.
Kishimoto caught the pass and immediately drove into Shohoku's paint.
Akagi Takenori stood tall, arms wide, like an unshakable mountain, cutting off his path.
Seeing the block, Kishimoto hesitated. His eyes darted around, then he snapped a behind-the-back pass to the other side—straight to Iwata Mitsuaki.
Iwata took the ball and jumped high, ready to dunk while Akagi's attention was still on Kishimoto.
But just then—a shadow suddenly appeared.
Smack!
A sharp slap echoed. The ball was swatted away.
Iwata's eyes flew open. He turned toward the figure in shock.
It was Rukawa Kaede.
Iwata remembered him—someone the coach had briefly mentioned back in the locker room.
They didn't take it seriously at the time.
The ball bounced hard off Rukawa's block. It flew back to just outside the three-point line, and kept bouncing toward the sideline.
Everyone thought it was going out of bounds.
Then—a flash of red streaked past like lightning. It moved so fast no one could clearly follow it.
In the blink of an eye, both the red blur and the ball vanished from sight.
What?
Gasps erupted across the court.
Every single face showed the same look of stunned disbelief.
Even Toyotama's players looked dazed. The crowd and the other teams were also stunned.
They stared wide-eyed, full of confusion.
Everyone focused hard on the court. Finally, they saw a figure charging at full speed toward Toyotama's basket.
A closer look confirmed it—it was Aoi Kunisaku.
"It's that guy again," Kishimoto Minori blurted out.
But even if they realized it now, it was already too late.
All of Toyotama's players were still on Shohoku's side of the court. Their own half was completely wide open.
They could only watch as Aoi Kunisaku stormed the paint like he owned it, then soared up gracefully and threw down an effortless Slam Dunk.
Clang…
The ball dropped cleanly through the net.
Shohoku 6 to 0 Toyotama.
"Well done…" Akagi Takenori shouted out, voice booming with approval.
He had thought it was already impressive that Rukawa Kaede managed to Block that last shot. But Aoi Kunisaku not only recovered the ball, he scored too.
It was a pleasant surprise.
As this was their first national tournament game, Akagi had felt a little nervous.
Now, after seeing that play, he finally began to relax.
The game continued.
"Give me the ball," Minami Tsuchiya said coldly, his eyes flashing with intensity.
He now fully understood—Aoi Kunisaku was a threat. He had to take him out of the game.
Itakura Daijiro didn't hesitate and passed the ball right away.
Minami Tsuchiya caught it. A sharp glint flickered in his eyes.
Thud…
Thud…
Thud…
He dribbled hard and charged toward Shohoku's half.
But as soon as he crossed half-court, Aoi Kunisaku stepped in front of him.
Minami Tsuchiya shielded the ball behind him, eyes scanning Aoi's stance like a hawk, looking for a crack.
But the more he looked, the more flaws he saw. Aoi looked completely full of openings.
That actually threw Minami Tsuchiya off. He didn't know where to start.
But Aoi Kunisaku had no patience to wait around.
In a flash, like lightning, he moved to Minami Tsuchiya's side and cleanly swiped the ball.
Slap…
The crisp sound of a steal echoed out.
To Minami Tsuchiya, it was like thunder roaring through his brain.
He got picked.
Aoi didn't even pause. He went from zero to max speed instantly and rocketed toward Toyotama's basket.
The Toyotama players finally realized what was happening and scrambled to chase him down.
But their speed compared to Aoi's was a joke.
They barely moved a few steps when Aoi had already reached the basket like a ghost.
He leaped high, raised the ball in both hands, and slammed it down hard.
Clang…
Ball through the hoop.
Shohoku 8 to 0 Toyotama.
The entire gym went dead silent.
Everyone stared at Aoi Kunisaku like he wasn't human.
"This is unreal!"
"Why does it feel like Shohoku is running fast break drills?"
"That No. 9's speed is insane. Can a human even move that fast?"
"So he's the one they called the fastest player in high school?"
…
On the other side—
Tch tch tch…
Kiyota Nobunaga watched and muttered, "That guy's still a monster."
Maki Shinichi kept his eyes locked on Minami Tsuchiya. Seeing his face darken, he analyzed calmly, "If the score keeps widening like this, that guy might try something reckless."
Hm?
Jin Soichiro glanced at Maki and asked, "You mean Minami Tsuchiya? Think that'll work on Aoi Kunisaku?"
Maki didn't reply right away. He fell silent in thought.
He put himself in the game.
If it were him, and Minami Tsuchiya used those dirty tricks on him—could he handle it?
His answer: "Not a big problem."
After thinking it over, Maki gave a quiet nod and said slowly, "Minami Tsuchiya isn't a match for Aoi Kunisaku."