[ZONE]
A special realm that only the chosen ones can enter.
Even for those chosen ones, it's something that can only be reached after grueling training, and even then, only on the rarest of occasions can they open that door.
But in this world, there will always be those who defy common sense.
Aomine Daiki—is one of them.
"He's coming!"
From the stands, Akashi Asuka suddenly spoke those two words.
Beside him, Tsutomu Iwamura and Kasuga Ryuhei turned to him in surprise.
Coming?
What's coming?
Before they could even voice their confusion, they understood what Asuka meant.
On the court, the balance that had just been maintained suddenly shattered.
And the cause of that imbalance came from only one person.
Crackle!
Two streaks of blue lightning flashed across Aomine Daiki's eyes. His figure moved like a gust of wind, a bolt of lightning that no one could stop. No one could break through his defense, nor block his offense.
Takao Kazunari and Midorima Shintarou attempted to repeat their previous trick, an alley-oop three-pointer.
But before the ball could even reach Midorima's hands, Aomine appeared between them, intercepting the pass midair with a flick of his wrist.
And then, without pause, he launched a solo fast break.
"Damn it! Stop him!"
After entering the [ZONE], the sheer momentum behind Aomine's attack felt like an entire army charging forward.
Since Shutoku had just finished a fast break in the previous play, only Takao and Midorima had managed to cross half-court, the other three were still behind.
In terms of numbers, Shutoku actually held the advantage.
Yet at that very moment,
Otsubo Taisuke, Miyaji Kiyoshi, and Kimura Shinsuke, all three defenders felt cold sweat dripping down their foreheads.
Whoosh!
A blur flashed past them.
They froze like statues, unable to even react before Aomine had already vanished from their sight.
It wasn't that their reflexes were too slow.
Aomine's burst of speed had simply surpassed the limits of human reaction. Their bodies couldn't even keep up with the signal to move, leaving them momentarily paralyzed.
"What the hell… is that even something a human can do?"
The thought raced through Miyaji's mind as his eyes followed Aomine's back, but his body refused to move.
Then,
Swish!
The ball slid cleanly through the hoop.
92–90.
In less than a minute, Aomine Daiki, upon entering the [ZONE], had single-handedly erased an eight-point gap, bringing his team within just two points.
"Huff… huff…"
Time, which had seemed frozen, began to flow again. Otsubo and the others could hear their own heavy breathing echoing around them.
At the same time,
From the sidelines, Shutoku's coach, Nakaya Jinryo, called for a timeout.
BEEP~~~!
The atmosphere in the stands grew eerily quiet.
Normally, an intense game would draw cheers and shouts. But when the scene was too overwhelming, sometimes people couldn't even find the voice to react.
At that moment,
Even from dozens of meters away, everyone in the arena could feel Shutoku's despair.
"[ZONE]… just what kind of state is that?"
Kasuga Ryuhei's eyes flickered with confusion. It was understandable, any basketball player watching this would find it hard to stay calm.
It wasn't about Shutoku versus Tōō anymore.
It was about the terrifying talent Aomine Daiki possessed, the kind that left others feeling helpless and hopeless.
Even as one of the Generation of Miracles, Midorima Shintarou couldn't put up a fight against Aomine once he entered the [ZONE].
And that wasn't even the most frightening part.
What was truly terrifying was that Aomine could not only enter the [ZONE], but do so at will.
"[ZONE], huh…"
Akashi Asuka pondered for a moment before finding a fitting word.
"If I had to describe it, I'd say it's something like invincible."
Theoretically, [ZONE] merely unlocks the remaining 20% of a player's potential.
But in reality, once a player steps into that realm, their overall strength more than doubles.
Because [ZONE] isn't a boost to just one attribute, it enhances everything.
Speed, power, reflexes, those are just the foundation.
The real difference lies in the expansion of vision, the sharpening of focus, the stability of mentality, and the ability to read every piece of information on the court.
"Unless the difference in ability between the two players is overwhelming, once one side enters the [ZONE], they can completely crush the other."
Asuka paused for a second, then added, "Only [ZONE] can defeat [ZONE]. If Shutoku can't find a way to stop Aomine's offense, this match will be over soon."
Kasuga Ryuhei blinked in surprise. "You mean even if Shutoku copies our previous strategy, it still won't work?"
"It's useless…"
This time, it was Tsutomu Iwamura who answered, shaking his head.
"Shutoku's team isn't built like ours. Seiho is a defensive powerhouse. Last semester, we had both Akashi and Tsugawa, two players who could be considered on the same level as the Generation of Miracles in defense."
"So even when Aomine entered the [ZONE], we could still hold him back somewhat with a triple defense."
"But Shutoku doesn't have that kind of defensive strength."
"Besides, "
"They don't have the kind of lead we had back then."
Kasuga raised an eyebrow. "So, you're saying… the only way Shutoku can stop Aomine now is, ?"
Akashi nodded. "Exactly. Only [ZONE] can counter [ZONE]. Unless Midorima enters that state as well, there's no way for Shutoku to turn the tables."
Kasuga frowned. "Do you think Midorima has a chance to enter the [ZONE]?"
"I don't know," Akashi admitted honestly. "In terms of talent, he definitely has what it takes. But talent alone isn't enough to open that door."
"Opportunity, luck, faith, and a little bit of a secret insight, these are all essential factors for entering the [ZONE]."
"But above all, the key lies in this paradox: the more you want to enter the [ZONE], the further away that door drifts."
"So before one can enter the [ZONE], they must first learn not to desire it."