"It's over." Daiki Aomine stood up and said lazily, "From what I heard from the people around us, that team was last year's runner-up. Looks like our final opponent will still be Miyamoto."
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Shintaro Midorima pushed up his glasses and retorted bluntly. "I don't think anyone on that team could beat Miyamoto."
"Yeah." Ryota Kise stretched. "Little Miyamoto is just too strong."
Kōzō Shirogane smiled warmly as he watched Miyamoto Tokima leave the court, feeling both relieved and grateful.
Looks like I really am getting old.
Kōzō Shirogane stood up, straightened his clothes, and said, "Let's go. Our match is tomorrow."
"I heard our opponent is last year's champion."
"Huh? Really?" Daiki Aomine immediately perked up. "Then I'll have to see for myself just how good they are."
Shintaro Midorima gently raised his mascot, the Huluwa doll, and said calmly, "Do everything within your power and leave the rest to fate. Everything has already been decided."
Everyone's mouths twitched.
Ryota Kise muttered under his breath, "Still as superstitious as ever."
"Kise." Shintaro Midorima suddenly turned toward Ryota Kise and said coldly, "I heard that."
Ryota Kise flinched and quickly put on an apologetic smile.
Kōzō Shirogane chuckled, waved his hand, then turned and left.
The others followed him out of the gym.
...
News of Kirisaki Daiichi's crushing victory over Jingchuan High School quickly spread throughout the entire nation.
Basketball fans across the country were stunned.
They simply couldn't believe that last year's runner-up had been defeated by Kirisaki Daiichi by such an astonishing margin.
At the same time, anticipation for Kirisaki Daiichi's upcoming matches began to grow.
Naturally, people were also looking forward to the other team that had come from Japan alongside Kirisaki Daiichi.
Teikō Middle School!
The following day marked the match between Teikō Middle School and last year's champion, Anhua High School.
As the defending champion, Anhua High School had battled Jingchuan High School through overtime in the previous tournament, ultimately claiming the National Tournament championship by just two points.
Now that they were facing Teikō Middle School, everyone was curious to see how Anhua High School would perform.
At the venue, Miyamoto Tokima and the other members of Kirisaki Daiichi had arrived early and taken their seats in the stands, ready to watch Teikō Middle School's match.
On the court, the players from Teikō Middle School and Anhua High School had already begun warming up.
Anhua High School's coach was a stern-faced middle-aged man. He stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed, his expression serious.
He simply watched his players warm up without saying or doing anything.
Meanwhile, Kōzō Shirogane stood on Teikō Middle School's sideline with his usual warm smile, quietly watching Seijuro Akashi and the others warm up.
Once the warm-up was over, both teams prepared for the pre-game ceremony.
Before it began, the players returned to their respective sides to receive instructions from their coaches.
Kōzō Shirogane didn't say much.
"Do your best. Play freely."
Daiki Aomine slung an arm around Kōzō Shirogane's neck and grinned. "Don't worry, Coach Shirogane. Today, I'll show you what I can really do!"
Kōzō Shirogane wasn't angry at all. He simply smiled back at Daiki Aomine.
The atmosphere around them was relaxed and cheerful.
Anhua High School's coach, on the other hand, had plenty to say.
He kept talking to his players, his expression extremely serious.
The Anhua High School players merely nodded numbly without saying a word.
The atmosphere on their side was heavy and tense.
After the pre-game ceremony ended, the starters from both teams officially took the court.
Teikō Middle School's starting lineup was:
Center Teppei Kiyoshi, Power Forward Daiki Aomine, Small Forward Ryota Kise, Shooting Guard Shintaro Midorima, and Point Guard Seijuro Akashi.
As for Anhua High School... (I'm really too lazy to come up with names for them, guys.)
Once they stepped onto the court, Teppei Kiyoshi walked up to Anhua's center, extended his hand, and greeted him with a smile.
"Hello. I look forward to playing against you."
Anhua's center showed no expression. He simply shook Teppei Kiyoshi's hand mechanically.
Teppei Kiyoshi looked at him in surprise, clearly puzzled by his reaction.
"Get ready."
The referee stepped between them with the basketball in hand.
Teppei Kiyoshi stopped thinking about it and got into position for the jump ball.
The referee tossed the ball high into the air.
Teppei Kiyoshi and Anhua's center jumped at the same time, both reaching for it.
In the end, Teppei Kiyoshi tipped the ball toward the backcourt.
Standing on the sidelines, Anhua's coach frowned slightly when he saw his team lose the tip-off.
On the court, Seijuro Akashi slowly dribbled the ball into the frontcourt, then used two consecutive changes of direction to blow past Anhua's point guard.
Once he entered the paint, Seijuro Akashi immediately noticed Anhua's shooting guard rotating over to help.
His reaction was fast.
Without the slightest hesitation, Seijuro Akashi passed the ball to Shintaro Midorima nearby.
The moment Shintaro Midorima caught the ball, he rose into his shooting motion without hesitation.
Anhua's small forward managed to close out in time, but Shintaro Midorima still released the shot.
After letting the ball fly, Shintaro Midorima pushed up his glasses and turned away.
He didn't say anything this time.
After all, Cancer was only ranked ninth in today's horoscope...
Off the court, Anhua's coach frowned deeply and stared at Shintaro Midorima with displeasure.
"What terrible shot selection. How did someone who takes shots that reckless become a starter?"
"He even turned away before the ball went in. No patience at all. Hmph."
Swish!
A second later, the sound of the ball slicing through the net rang out.
Anhua's coach froze.
It went in?
He frowned but said nothing.
On the court, possession went to Anhua High School.
As soon as Anhua High School began its offense, Seijuro Akashi immediately sensed something unusual.
Too smooth.
Anhua High School's offense flowed almost perfectly, like a well-oiled machine.
In the stands, Liu Yu watched the play and smiled helplessly.
"That really is their style."
"Yeah." Wang Qing nodded. "They keep moving the ball and looking for opportunities to create plays together. They really are an almost perfect team-oriented squad, but..."
"But they have no individuality, right?" Ah Ming said. "Still, you can't really blame them. Their coach is just that kind of person. He wants teamwork and nothing else. Individual play doesn't matter to him at all."
...
On the court, Anhua High School's coordination was extremely smooth, but they were still struggling against Teikō Middle School's defense.
With only four seconds left on the shot clock, Anhua's shooting guard gritted his teeth and launched a three-pointer from two steps away from Shintaro Midorima.
The next second...
Smack!
...