"Amazing..."
A young Aomine Daiki couldn't even count how many times he'd let that word slip today. And it wasn't just for the ever-dominant Shigure-senpai, whose strength he already knew well, it was also for Fukaya-senpai, who had completely overturned his impression.
Beside him,
Haizaki, who'd been beaten limp by Nijimura for who knows what reason, had his eyes wide in shock as well.
On the court,
Fukaya Reiji saw that look of excitement appear on Shigure Akihito's face after scoring, a look he was all too familiar with. Back when they were first-years, he'd seen it many times. Coach Hakugin and Nijimura had both described it before, Shigure, when going all out, found an almost twisted joy in crushing his opponent.
Huff...
If there was one thing that could truly drive him to despair, it would be standing in front of Shigure and never once getting to witness the full extent of his power...
But this was fine.
Let's go all out.
The strong gather in environments that make them stronger. And once they grow, they'll get to fight all kinds of opponents, strong ones, unknown ones, and in turn, those battles will forge them even further.
So now, maybe,
Maybe he really had grown stronger?
Fukaya Reiji: "..."
No matter how many times he faced him, this guy Shigure...
He was always,
So overwhelmingly strong, it demanded respect.
But still,
Don't lower your head, 930 Fukaya Reiji. Face him head-on.
Like Nijimura does,
Observe him closely. Think.
Even if you can't fulfill your wish, at the very least, create a chance.
Off-court,
Unlike the simple-minded Aomine and Haizaki, or Murasakibara who only cared about snacks, Midorima and Akashi were chilled to the bone by Shigure Akihito's overwhelming strength. But they also noticed something else, something just as oppressive emanating from the other side of the court.
Fukaya Reiji's aura, intense, raw, and difficult to define.
Until Nijimura finally spoke.
"First-years, remember that feeling, 'hunger.'"
"Compared to vague things like talent or potential, what we're truly blessed with is this hunger. Even if the opponent feels like a mountain..."
"Under that hunger..."
"It just feels so damn good."
On the court,
Fukaya's eyes gleamed. On his usually unreadable face, a strange expression broke through, a smile. The kind of smile Shigure Akihito had never seen from him before.
The guy who always looked like a block of ice… smiling like that out of nowhere was honestly kind of creepy.
Shigure gave him a look, then shuddered.
Tossing the ball over, he couldn't help but mutter, "Reiji, I can tell you're pumped..."
"But don't get too excited."
"Control that face of yours..."
"Otherwise the first-years are going to think all second-years are terrifying maniacs."
Fukaya: "..."
"...Is it that weird?"
"But if we're talking about terrifying, Shigure, when you look down on your opponent, that's way scarier."
With that, Fukaya took the ball and started walking toward the three-point line. As he spoke, he suddenly tossed the ball to none other than Kuroko Tetsuya!
Seeing this,
Nijimura Shuzo frowned slightly.
Before this, because of Fukaya's low-post style in his 1v1 with Shigure, he usually needed someone to feed him the ball. Normally, that someone was Nijimura himself.
But this time, he unexpectedly chose a third-stringer, Kuroko Tetsuya.
"Kuroko Tetsuya."
"You'll be the one feeding Reiji the ball."
Kuroko, a bit flustered after catching the pass, tensed slightly upon hearing the captain call his name.
Until Nijimura continued.
"Just do your best."
"Reiji..."
"Will handle the rest."
Kuroko looked toward the court, where Fukaya had already started jostling for position, and nodded.
"I understand, Captain Nijimura."
Shigure Akihito had a wealth of experience defending Fukaya's inside offense. The first rule was simple: use speed to front the post and cut off the pass entirely.
Activate, Wild Instinct + Godai Tomokazu: Full Acceleration!
With the explosive power granted by Wild Instinct, Shigure could easily crash through Fukaya's positioning. And Full Acceleration allowed him to slip around from behind, directly cutting off the passing lane.
The moment Shigure sprang into action,
Fukaya's eyes flashed!
To beat Shigure's defense, the first step was always handling that front cut.
Boom, !
Sensing the contact from behind and Shigure's positioning from his peripheral vision, Fukaya exploded with power!
Even if he still wasn't as fast or strong as Shigure, having offensive positioning gave him plenty of room to work with.
So,
To everyone's surprise,
Fukaya followed Shigure's front cut, like a boat being carried forward by a tidal wave. He let Shigure's momentum push him forward, shifting one full body-length, and still held his spot!
And as he landed,
Just like in the previous possession, he unleashed his signature move: Second Burst!
"Ball!"
Kuroko's pass was slightly off, from nerves.
But Fukaya, using the push from Shigure's movement, leapt sideways, one hand reaching out to scoop the ball, and with his back to Shigure...
Slap!
Caught it!
Through the legs!
Behind-the-back crossover!
Lateral drag!
Step-back!
Shot!
Despite the awkward catch and pressure from behind, Fukaya never missed a beat.
His hand, right after bursting forward, clung to the ball like a magnet.
And in the blink of an eye,
He chained a full offensive sequence together to create space!
A contradiction, both messy and fluid.
In that instant, his ball control danced between chaos and clarity.
But then,
Buzz...
Far away,
In Aomine Daiki's shocked gaze, he saw what he longed for in Nijimura's "lion," in Shigure's "mammoth," in that so-called "wild instinct"!
And now, for a moment, he felt the earth-shaking stomp of that mammoth himself!
That fog-like shadow of the mammoth,
Roared into reality!
Godai Tomokazu: Full Acceleration!
Makushita Shinichi: Body-Close Block!
Talent, Close-Range Seal!
Whoosh, !
In an instant!
Shigure Akihito closed the distance. With absolute elevation, he saw Fukaya's unwavering eyes, the fearless way he took his shot,
To think he could perform to this level...
Fukaya's ball sense,
The seamless execution right after the catch, it was like a firework.
"So beautiful…"
"But like all fireworks,"
"It's about to be snuffed out."
Smack!
His fingertips tapped the ball cleanly away.
Off-court,
Aomine, Akashi, and the others were stunned by the sheer range of Shigure's defensive coverage when going all out.
And off in the shadows, Kurokami Shinji stared intently at Fukaya Reiji.
"Reiji..."
"You were just half a finger away."
To reach this level, to hunger this much, how could someone like you ever think you were just an ordinary player?
Shine in the moment your talent blooms,
Then rise even higher from there.
End of chapter...
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