On the road.
Looking at Ueno beside him, Kurumatani Sora's eyes still held a hint of excitement.
"Ueno, just now, was that your true strength?"
Ueno thought for a moment and nodded.
"I guess so!"
He had only used the ZONE, not Formless Shot or Animal Instinct, but the ZONE was already his strongest trump card.
Thinking about it, this should count as his true strength, right?
"Ueno, you're really amazing."
Looking at Ueno, Kurumatani Sora's eyes were full of excitement and admiration.
Seeing Kurumatani Sora's admiring gaze, Ueno felt a bit embarrassed, smiled slightly, and said, "You can do it too."
Hearing Ueno's words, Kurumatani Sora fell silent and lowered his head without replying.
Seeing Kurumatani Sora's silence, Ueno felt bad, but there was nothing he could do.
The other party had a persistent flaw: his height.
Normally, being 160-something cm wouldn't matter.
But in basketball, it was a major pain point.
Ueno had been wondering about one thing.
Could Kurumatani Sora enter the ZONE?
In Ueno's view, his talent was decent.
And his love for basketball was unquestionable.
He basically met the two conditions for entering the ZONE.
But whether he could enter depended on a turning point.
Or...
Not.
They walked in silence for a while.
Seeing a vending machine nearby, Ueno had an idea and said to Sora, "Sora, come on, pick whatever you want to drink, my treat."
"Then thank you, Ueno."
Drinking his soda and leaning against the lakeside railing, watching the calm water, Ueno felt his heart become very peaceful.
He really liked this feeling.
Just then, Sora, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up.
"Ueno, does your family support you playing basketball?"
Before Ueno could answer, Sora gave a bitter smile and continued talking to himself.
"They probably support you a lot. After all, your height gives you an absolute advantage in basketball. Your family must definitely support you!"
His hands subconsciously tightened around the drink, a flash of loneliness in his eyes. Sora continued softly, "In my family, only my mother supports me playing basketball; everyone else tells me to give up."
"They say my height isn't suitable for basketball. Sometimes I actually wonder if I'm really not suited for it?"
"What do you think, Ueno?"
Looking at Sora, whose eyes were full of expectation and loneliness, Ueno fell silent for a moment and asked, "Do you like basketball?"
Without hesitation, Sora nodded seriously and said, "I like it."
After saying that, Sora reminisced about his childhood.
He had few playmates as a child, so he often sat there in a daze by himself.
Seeing this, his mother bought him something called a basketball.
And from time to time, she would take him to the basketball court to play.
Every time he went to play basketball with his mother, it was Sora's happiest time.
From then on, Sora knew he had fallen in love with basketball.
Looking at the determined Sora, Ueno Juri turned to look at the calm lake and smiled lightly.
"Sora, let's make a bet!"
Sora was a bit confused. "What bet?"
"A bet on our future!"
Looking at Ueno Juri, Sora's eyes were full of doubt.
"The future?"
"In the future, we will definitely be top-tier basketball players!"
"Okay, I'll take that bet!"
...Tōdai High School.
A week had passed since Ueno and Sora went to Seirin High School.
During this week, Ueno and the others also began their basketball training.
They also got to know Coach Shinkawa again, rediscovering another side of him beneath his charitable smile.
As for the basketball team members, there were still only seven.
And Ueno naturally became the Ace of the Tōdai basketball team.
Tōdai Basketball Court.
"Kyoichi, what are you dazing off for? Hurry up and pass the ball!"
"Sora, what are you doing? Don't you know how to move into position?"
"Run, everyone run! Why are you standing there like idiots?"
Watching Kyoichi and the others in a three-on-three match on the court, Coach Shinkawa stood by the sideline with his arms crossed, roaring at them with a cold gaze.
His shouts made Kyoichi and Sora tremble in their hearts.
Meanwhile...
Taking a cautious glance at Coach Shinkawa, who was roaring at the court, Ueno, who was practicing shooting, sensibly switched his shooting practice to dribbling practice.
On the court.
Kyoichi was drenched in sweat, gasping for air while defending against Shin.
"What's wrong with the coach lately? Why is his temper so explosive?"
Shin raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead, and while jostling with Kyoichi, he said expressionlessly, "It seems the Summer Tournament is coming up soon."
"The Summer Tournament?"
Hearing this, Kyoichi was stunned. Just then, Shin found the right moment to block Kyoichi's position, caught the ball, and took a shot.
Swish!
The ball went in.
Seeing Kyoichi suddenly space out on the court, Coach Shinkawa's face darkened, and he roared at Kyoichi.
"Kyoichi, what are you doing?"
Hearing Coach Shinkawa's roar, Kyoichi snapped out of it, but not completely. He looked at Coach Shinkawa somewhat blankly and asked, "Coach, are we signing up for the Summer Tournament?"
As soon as Kyoichi's words fell, the entire basketball court went silent.
Especially Miyara Ichi and the other two third-years; their eyes were filled with expectation and nervousness as they looked at Coach Shinkawa.
Since the Basketball Club was founded, they hadn't participated in a single match.
First, they had no coach and no formal training.
Second, they didn't have enough people. In the first year, the basketball team only had four people, couldn't even scrape together five.
By the second year, they finally had five people, but two didn't want to participate in matches, so they eventually gave up.
And this year was their final year.
Although they claimed not to care, who truly didn't care?
Looking at Miyara Ichi and the others who were watching him nervously, Coach Shinkawa fell silent for a moment, clapped his hands, and spoke.
"Everyone, come and gather around."
After Ueno and the others finished gathering, Coach Shinkawa also composed himself, and his expression became calm.
"In seven days, it will be the preliminary round of the Summer Tournament."
As soon as Coach Shinkawa finished speaking, Ueno clearly felt the breathing of Captain Miyara Ichi and the others beside him hitch.
Glancing at the third-year seniors, he found they were all incredibly nervous.
Seeing the nervous Miyara Ichi and the others, Coach Shinkawa sighed slightly in his heart and then continued.
"We will definitely go to the tournament, but before that, we have a practice match against Tōō Academy!"
After saying that, Coach Shinkawa gave Ueno an extra look.
This practice match could be said to rely entirely on Ueno's name.
Hearing that they could participate in the Summer Tournament, Miyara Ichi and the others immediately became happy, their faces filled with excitement.
As for what practice match it was, that was no longer important.
"Tōō Academy?"
"Is there a problem?"
With a darkened gaze, looking at the shocked Kyoichi and the others, Coach Shinkawa's expression was somewhat displeased.
"No, no, no."
Seeing Coach Shinkawa's changing face, Kyoichi and the others quickly shook their heads.
Even if there was a problem, looking at Coach Shinkawa's dark face, they wouldn't dare have one.
And hearing that they were actually playing a practice match against Tōō Academy, Ueno was also a bit stunned.
One must know that Tōō Academy was one of the Four Major High Schools.
Especially this year.
Because the Ace of the Generation of Miracles—Aomine Daiki—had enrolled there.
They were known as—
"The New Tyrant."
Just Aomine alone was enough to raise Tōō Academy's overall strength by a terrifying margin.
And the fact that Coach Shinkawa could arrange a practice match with them made Ueno reevaluate him entirely.