The second quarter began after the break ended.
Kaijō inbounded.
After Coach Takeuchi's lecture, Kaijō's offensive pace had visibly slowed.
Kasamatsu Yukio pushed the ball up court with steady composure.
Ryonan was a strong prefecture contender last year, narrowly missing nationals, and with Sendoh Akira earning Rookie of the Year, Kaijō had mentally prepared themselves from the start.
But they hadn't anticipated that alongside Sendoh, Ryonan would have another first-year with top-tier firepower.
"Who is this guy?"
As Kasamatsu crossed midcourt, Yagami Kūto quickly moved up to guard him.
Kaijō's standard strategy with Kise Ryota was to overwhelm opponents with extreme offense in the first quarter, then when opponents were forced into double-teams against Kise, their other players could find good scoring opportunities.
exhaling slowly "Looks like it won't be that easy today," Kasamatsu muttered.
"Give me the ball," Kise Ryota called out.
Coach Takeuchi had only instructed them to strengthen their defense—how to attack was still the players' decision.
Kasamatsu didn't respond to Kise. Instead, he made a hand signal—he wanted to run an isolation play.
with dismissive confidence "You're just a first-year punk. Don't get too cocky!"
Without responding, Yagami Kūto offered no reaction whatsoever. Cheap talk like that couldn't affect him in the slightest.
Seeing Yagami's composure, Kasamatsu wasted no words and immediately crouched into his dribble, accelerating to break through from Yagami's right side!
He couldn't shake him!
In just one step, Yagami Kūto was already in defensive position, staying attached to Kasamatsu and denying him entry to the paint.
Kasamatsu made a motion to slow down and collect the ball. Yagami Kūto mirrored his movement. But then—Kasamatsu's gathering motion shifted abruptly, and he slammed the ball hard off the floor, his body lowering as he accelerated once more!
He got through!
The Ryonan players were startled. They'd been so focused on Kise Ryota that they hadn't anticipated Kaijō's point guard would have such formidable ball-handling breakthrough ability.
Kasamatsu charged into the free-throw lane and rose for a floater.
Uozumi Jun was boxed out by Kaijō's center Kobori Hiroshi, unable to rotate over for help.
"He's got it!"
"Watch out!"
SMACK!
A massive hand from the side swept the ball away without mercy.
"What?! This guy?!"
Height advantage meant arm-span advantage. Kasamatsu had indeed broken free from Yagami for a moment, but was caught right behind in the very next second.
The ball tumbled out of bounds, rolling across the hardwood with an almost mocking sound.
with a polite but pointed smile "Senpai, you really shouldn't underestimate your opponent just because you're older," Yagami Kūto said, his face finally showing a smile.
Out of bounds. Kaijō's possession.
Kasamatsu's offensive failure dealt a significant blow to Kaijō's confidence.
Nakamura Shinya inbounded from the sideline. Kobori Hiroshi called for the ball near Uozumi Jun. Kaijō's other players understood their captain's intention—if they wanted to win, they couldn't rely on Kise Ryota alone.
"Is he going to post up against Uozumi-senpai?"
Ryonan's players looked surprised. Uozumi Jun was one of the few centers in Kanagawa standing over two meters tall, with intimidating defensive presence in the paint.
Kobori caught the ball and made a probing move backward—no budging.
with a furious roar "Come on! Bastard!" Uozumi Jun bellowed, and after sensing his opponent's weakness in power, decisively used his body to pressure up.
But at that moment, Kobori Hiroshi used Uozumi as a pivot point, executing a left spin move and cutting straight to the basket for a layup.
"You won't get away with it!"
Uozumi immediately spun and jumped for the block!
SMACK!
Uozumi's massive hand completely sent Kobori crashing to the floor.
WHISTLE!
The referee blew. Uozumi Jun—shooting foul.
Yelling at the referee in frustration "Hey! My hand was clearly only on the ball!" Uozumi protested to the official.
"Uozumi-senpai!"
Sendoh Akira pulled the indignant Uozumi aside while Kobori Hiroshi stepped to the free-throw line for two shots.
Two free throws. Two makes.
[Ryonan 27 VS 25 Kaijō]
with a cold huff Uozumi Jun let out a sharp snort, and Yagami Kūto could practically see the anger bar above his head rising rapidly.
Ryonan inbounded.
Yagami Kūto brought the ball up, and after crossing midcourt, he began observing his teammates.
Sendoh Akira was being tailed by Kise Ryota and couldn't break free at the moment. Though judging by his expression, he wasn't being particularly aggressive in his cuts either.
Ikegami Ryoji and Koshino Hiroaki were also both being marked, with Ikegami serving as Ryonan's defensive specialist—generally tasked with neutralizing the opponent's second scoring option. Though not particularly offensive-minded, he was reliable in crucial moments.
Koshino Hiroaki had stable mid-range shooting, though his outside shooting and ability to create opportunities through movement were generally unremarkable.
Yagami Kūto thought to himself, "So what will you do now?"
Sendoh Akira watched with a knowing smile. Passing wasn't as simple as just giving the ball to the team's ace. That was easy. True masterful passing meant connecting the team, activating the team's entire offensive flow.
"Give me the ball!"
Unlike Sendoh, Uozumi Jun didn't overthink it. Kobori Hiroshi had just scored 2 points on him, and now he simply wanted payback!
Without acknowledging the captain's demand, Yagami Kūto smiled at Kasamatsu Yukio across from him: "Senpai, that move you pulled off earlier was pretty cool."
"Now that you're praising me..." Kasamatsu began to respond.
But the moment he started speaking, Yagami Kūto suddenly accelerated and broke through from his right side!
"You conniving little bastard!!!!"
Kasamatsu was already out of position. He could only desperately extend his body, as if colliding with Yagami's frame.
No whistle!
Yagami's momentum stuttered, but his movement didn't stop. He slammed the ball hard into the floor and used the recoil to step back, creating distance from Kasamatsu.
"This guy?!!"
Kasamatsu hadn't anticipated that his opponent would replicate his own move and seamlessly chain it into a completely different action! This kind of horrifying learning ability—he'd only ever witnessed it from Kise Ryota!
"I'll stop him even if I have to foul!"
Kasamatsu gritted his teeth, pushed hard off his feet, and jumped in front of Yagami Kūto.
But Yagami Kūto's hands were empty. The basketball wasn't in his possession at all!
SWISH!
Koshino Hiroaki completed his shooting motion, the ball finding nothing but net.
[Ryonan 29 VS 25 Kaijō]
"When did he pass it?! Could it have been...?" Kasamatsu murmured in confusion, his expression dazed. He'd lost sight of the basketball for only an instant—during Yagami's step-back.
Equally bewildered, Ryonan's Koshino Hiroaki didn't know how, but suddenly the basketball was in his hands.
patting Yagami Kūto on the back "Beautiful pass, rookie!"
Koshino acted as if everything had gone according to his own prediction.
responding politely "Thank you for the praise, senpai," Yagami Kūto said respectfully.
"Yagami..." Kise Ryota watched his senpai being played with, and anger flared inside him.
"Your name is Yagami Kūto, right?" Kise picked up the basketball from the baseline, his expression intensifying. "Pulling off something like that—don't expect me to forgive you easily."
with burning intensity "From now on, I'm going to completely shut you down!"
"??" Yagami Kūto looked back at Kise with an innocent expression, muttering quietly under his breath: "No wonder he dyes his hair that color. He really is quite the edgelord."
Sendoh Akira happened to catch Yagami's quiet comment, and a strange feeling washed over him.
"This guy... could he actually be pretty devious underneath?" Sendoh thought to himself.
After Kaijō inbounded, Kise Ryota deliberately brought the ball up himself and intentionally used a screen to force a switch between Sendoh and Yagami.
He wanted to post up Yagami Kūto and teach this guy a proper lesson!
Except—
Yagami Kūto seemed completely unbothered. His mentality was relaxed and loose. If even Sendoh couldn't defend Kise, then he naturally—
Could!
He could defend Kise Ryota!
One of the reasons he loved basketball so much was the thrill of facing strong opponents!
At first, Kise thought Yagami lacked fighting spirit. But just as he was about to blow past him in one step, he suddenly detected danger.
"This guy really is just as devious as Kasamatsu-senpai said."
"I almost let my guard down."
Kise accelerated his dribble, lowering his center of gravity even further.
With one hand positioned in front of Kise's body and the other at his side, ready to contest any passing lane, Yagami Kūto mirrored every movement.
"No wonder he can defend against Kasamatsu-senpai. This guy's defense is a real headache."
The two were similar in height. When Kise attempted to break through twice, both times failed—Yagami's positioning effectively restricted his first-step speed.
Kise adjusted his dribble. As he contemplated his next move, Yagami suddenly stepped forward with a probing movement, nearly achieving the steal.
Kasamatsu Yukio and Nakamura Shinya tried to find cutting lanes for quick passes. Sendoh Akira and Ikegami Ryoji tightly marked their respective men.
with a resigned sigh, Kise's eyes sharpened with intensity "You really are amazing," Kise admitted. "But I'm not just all talk either."
"Mm?"
Sensing something, Yagami Kūto quickly pressed forward to stay tight against Kise.
But Kise took a large step backward. If that were all, Yagami's forward momentum and contest might have disrupted his sight line.
However, as Kise jumped back, his upper body tilted slightly backward—a shot!
SWISH!
The basketball cut nothing but net.
Three-pointer!
[Ryonan 29 VS 28 Kaijō]
The gap was down to just one point!
Yagami clicked his tongue in displeasure. "Tsk."
This caliber of shot was already beyond the scope of normal defensive coverage.
"Kise, beautiful shot!" Kasamatsu called out loudly.
Though in his mind, if they could force Kise to abandon his drive and resort to such a difficult shot to complete the offense, then Ryonan's newcomer was genuinely terrifying.
"You want to go or should I?" Sendoh Akira still maintained his relaxed demeanor, holding the ball as he asked Yagami.
"I'll take it!"
Yagami received the ball. If he'd predicted correctly, the one defending him next would also be—
"Come on!" Kise Ryota stood at Kaijō's half-court, calling out a challenge!