As he went onto the court, Tetsuya Kuroko adjusted his wristband, then stepped onto the floor.
Chihiro Mayuzumi of Rakuzan High School glanced at Tetsuya Kuroko with emotionless eyes, then turned and walked onto the court as well.
The match resumed with Seirin High School in possession.
Tatsuya Himuro received the pass and brought the ball up the court.
Meanwhile, Taiga Kagami's defender had changed. Kotaro Hayama was now guarding him.
That meant Chihiro Mayuzumi would be the one guarding Tetsuya Kuroko.
When Tatsuya Himuro reached the three-point line, the first person he focused on was Seijuro Akashi.
Although Seijuro Akashi was giving off a terrifying pressure, Tatsuya Himuro did not pay it much attention.
After all, back at Kirisaki Daiichi, Tatsuya Himuro had faced pressure far stronger than this.
So Tatsuya Himuro immediately shifted his focus and began observing his teammates.
While Tatsuya Himuro was still watching the court, Tetsuya Kuroko suddenly appeared from behind Seijuro Akashi's right side.
Seeing this, Tatsuya Himuro immediately passed the ball.
He intended to let Tetsuya Kuroko act as the relay point and send the ball to another teammate.
Tetsuya Kuroko saw the ball flying toward him and moved to redirect it.
But in the next second.
Smack!
The sharp sound of a steal rang out.
Tatsuya Himuro's pupils widened as he stared at Chihiro Mayuzumi in shock.
Chihiro Mayuzumi had suddenly rushed out from in front of Tetsuya Kuroko and stolen the ball.
His appearance had been so sudden that even Tatsuya Himuro failed to react.
After the ball was stolen, Seijuro Akashi picked it up and flicked it to the right.
It landed in Kotaro Hayama's hands.
Kotaro Hayama smiled.
"Thanks!"
Then Kotaro Hayama rushed toward the frontcourt at full speed.
Taiga Kagami stuck tightly beside Kotaro Hayama, running parallel with him.
"Damn it, I'm not letting you get an easy fast break!"
In the middle of the fast break, Kotaro Hayama suddenly smiled.
"Oh yeah?"
Then...
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Kotaro Hayama suddenly put more force into it, making the ball pound loudly against the floor.
Anyone who knew him would recognize it immediately. This was the sign that Kotaro Hayama was about to use [Lightning Dribble].
But the problem was...
This was a fast break!
Kotaro Hayama did not slow down at all. His right hand kept dribbling with heavy force, and when he reached the frontcourt three-point line, he shouted, "Four fingers!"
In the next second.
Kotaro Hayama turned into a streak of yellow light, breaking past Taiga Kagami from the other side in an instant.
Taiga Kagami was still sprinting at full speed. He had no time to react, much less stop.
Kotaro Hayama seemed to have no brakes at all. Without slowing down, he changed direction and drove straight into the paint.
Then he leaped and placed the ball into the basket.
After landing, Kotaro Hayama hopped twice before slowly jogging back toward his own backcourt.
Watching from the sidelines, Miyamoto Tokima could not help clicking his tongue twice.
"Changing direction without slowing down. Those really are iron knees."
"The last guy who played like that was Rose, but... what a shame."
Miyamoto Tokima shook his head and focused on the court again.
On the court.
Taiga Kagami stood in place, his gaze fixed on Rakuzan's side.
Teppei Kiyoshi walked over to Taiga Kagami, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Don't worry, Kagami. Judging from Kotaro's current physical condition, he won't be able to use a move like that many times. Not unless he wants to ruin his knees."
Taiga Kagami nodded and said, "I know, Kiyoshi-senpai. But I'm not worried about Kotaro."
Teppei Kiyoshi paused and asked, "Then you're worried about...?"
Taiga Kagami slowly focused his gaze on one person, and Teppei Kiyoshi followed his line of sight.
That person was Chihiro Mayuzumi.
Taiga Kagami looked at Chihiro Mayuzumi and said, "I'm worried about him. Rakuzan's shadow."
"He's completely different from when they played Midorima. Right now, he really does seem like a shadow."
Teppei Kiyoshi frowned and said, "Yeah. When he played against Midorima, he still wanted to become the light. But now, forget about wanting to become the light. I can't see even a trace of emotion in him."
"But let's trust Kuroko."
Taiga Kagami nodded and said nothing more.
On the other side.
Reo Mibuchi smiled and said, "Kotaro, that was pretty cool just now."
Kotaro Hayama smiled bitterly.
"Cool? I paid for that with my knees."
"Just using Four Fingers like that once already made my knees start aching."
Reo Mibuchi paused for a moment, then said, "Then you'd better be careful. Leave the rest to me."
Kotaro Hayama nodded.
"Got it. I'll leave it to you next, Reo."
Possession changed.
Seirin's ball.
Tatsuya Himuro had just crossed half-court when Taiga Kagami called for the ball.
Faced with his younger brother asking for the ball, Tatsuya Himuro naturally gave it to him.
Taiga Kagami caught the ball and faced Kotaro Hayama.
The rest of Seirin also deliberately spread out to the side, opening up space for the two of them to go one-on-one.
Kotaro Hayama spread his arms, showed his fangs, and said, "Come on. I can't wait."
Taiga Kagami took a deep breath, then suddenly made his move.
Taiga Kagami jumped up and made a shooting motion from beyond the three-point line.
Kotaro Hayama was stunned.
"Huh? A three?"
This guy could shoot threes?
Kotaro Hayama was doubtful, but nothing was ever completely certain.
What if Taiga Kagami really had developed a three-point shot?
So Kotaro Hayama immediately jumped to contest it.
Seeing this, the corners of Taiga Kagami's mouth lifted.
Then, under Kotaro Hayama's shocked gaze, Taiga Kagami flung the ball out.
Kotaro Hayama was completely dumbfounded.
'F-Formless?'
After casually throwing the ball, Taiga Kagami immediately landed and charged toward the paint.
Kotaro Hayama landed and turned his head, ready to chase after him.
But Taiga Kagami had already jumped.
At that moment, the ball struck the backboard and bounced back into Taiga Kagami's hands.
Taiga Kagami caught it and, before Eikichi Nebuya could even react, slammed the ball into the basket.
Boom!
After the basket, the arena fell silent for a few seconds before bursting into loud applause.
Reo Mibuchi walked over in confusion and asked, "Kotaro, what happened just now? You didn't even react to chase him."
Kotaro Hayama scratched his head awkwardly and said, "I... I thought he was using a [Formless Shot], so I froze. Who knew he was just throwing it off the backboard for a self alley-oop..."
...
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