Chapter Ninety-Two: Dirty
"Regional Qualifying Tournament Group A Finals! Ryonan High School versus Kirisaki Daiichi! The game officially begins!"
"Ryonan's starting lineup: point guard Yagami Sorato, shooting guard Koshino Hiroaki, small forward Sendoh Akira, power forward Ikegami Ryoji, center Uozumi Jun!"
"Kirisaki Daiichi's starting lineup: point guard Hanamiya Makoto, 179 centimeters, 67 kilograms! Shooting guard Yamazaki Hiroshi, 183 centimeters, 71 kilograms! Small forward Furuhashi Kojiro, 186 centimeters, 73 kilograms! Power forward Hara Kazuya, 188 centimeters, 75 kilograms! Center Matsumoto Itsuki, 191 centimeters, 86 kilograms!"
Aside from the obvious height gap at center, the teams were nearly identical at every other position. Overall, Ryonan held a slight edge in size.
"TWEEET!"
The whistle blew. The referee tossed the ball skyward.
Uozumi once again used his overwhelming advantage to tap the ball toward Ryonan's side.
Yagami caught it. His wrist flicked. The basketball became a straight orange lightning bolt, cutting directly through both teams' players and arriving precisely in the hands of the already-moving Sendoh Akira!
"So fast!"
Kirisaki's players couldn't react in time.
Sendoh accelerated hard into the paint and threw down a one-handed dunk!
Ryonan 2 - Kirisaki Daiichi 0
"What smooth offense!"
"Ryonan's genius duo came out firing!" the announcer shouted excitedly.
"They're really fired up, huh? Can't wait to break them." A twisted, shadowy smile crossed Hanamiya's face. "Doesn't matter if they're geniuses or whatever. Once they're broken, they're just trash..."
---
Change of possession. Kirisaki Daiichi's offense.
Hanamiya steadily brought the ball past halfcourt. Yagami immediately stepped up to defend. Hanamiya gave a signal with his eyes. Small forward Furuhashi immediately came up from the wing, seemingly setting up a standard pick-and-roll.
However, the instant Yagami tried to fight through the screen, Furuhashi subtly raised his elbow and drove it viciously toward Yagami's chest!
"That bastard!"
Yagami cursed internally. He hadn't expected them to pull dangerous moves this early in the game. Fortunately, he'd been warned about these guys before the match. He immediately slowed down while raising his forearm for protection.
THUMP!
Their bodies collided solidly. Yagami's pursuit was cut off.
Using the brief opening created by the screen, Hanamiya instantly broke free.
Sendoh rotated over to help. Hanamiya pump-faked to get him off his feet, then immediately bent low and drove past him. One step inside the free-throw line, he pulled up for a jumper.
"Swish!"
Two points good.
Ryonan 2 - Kirisaki Daiichi 2
"You okay?" Sendoh glanced at Yagami.
"I'm fine." Yagami rubbed his arm, his eyes locked on Kirisaki's retreating figures. "These guys are crafty. They time their moves for when the referee's attention follows the ball. They use their turning momentum to throw elbows. Even if the ref sees it, it'll usually just look like normal physical contact."
"Yeah. Don't rush. Protect yourself."
"Got it."
---
Change of possession. Ryonan's offense.
Yagami brought the ball to the left wing at a 45-degree angle. Facing Hanamiya's defense, he used a jab step before explosively driving.
The instant their bodies crossed, Hanamiya subtly extended his hand. What looked like a normal following motion actually involved his fingers digging precisely and painfully into Yagami's waist. At the same time, his foot quietly slid forward, trying to trip Yagami's pivot foot.
A sharp pain and loss of balance hit simultaneously. Yagami's driving rhythm stuttered for a moment. But he'd anticipated this. Using his powerful core strength, he forcibly maintained his balance, avoiding a fall. Instead, he smoothly kicked the ball out to Koshino in the left corner, then shot Hanamiya a cold glance.
The referee's whistle didn't sound.
Hanamiya returned an innocent fake smile, as if everything that just happened was simply intense normal contact.
"CLANG!"
Koshino's mid-range attempt missed. The basketball bounced high.
Matsumoto tried to use his defensive position to box out Uozumi, only to discover with horror that an irresistible force was pushing him inch by inch away from the basket.
"This monster..." Matsumoto clenched his teeth, veins bulging at his temples.
Just as the ball began its descent, Uozumi bent his knees and loaded his power, clearly about to explode upward.
Matsumoto saw his teammates blocking the referee's sightline. He immediately stepped on Uozumi's jumping foot while shifting his entire body weight onto him.
Uozumi felt his foot go heavy. He couldn't get off the ground. Matsumoto took advantage, pulling down the rebound securely.
After receiving the outlet, Hanamiya fired a full-court pass that found Yamazaki, already streaking toward the frontcourt.
Yamazaki caught it, used a crossover to shake off the pursuing Koshino, then lowered his shoulder and blew past him for an easy layup.
Ryonan 2 - Kirisaki Daiichi 4
"That bastard!" Uozumi was so angry he didn't even participate in the transition defense.
"Uozumi, calm down." Ikegami patted his back. "They want to get us angry like this."
---
Change of possession. Ryonan's offense.
Yagami lobbed the ball directly into the post. Uozumi backed down to create space, then spun and rose for a two-handed slam!
"BOOM!!"
"Nice dunk, Uozumi-senpai!"
"TWEEET!"
The referee's whistle blew.
"Ryonan number 4, charging foul! Basket doesn't count!"
"???"
Uozumi turned around. Matsumoto was curled up on the floor, hands covering his face. Seemingly sensing Uozumi's gaze, he lifted his hands slightly, revealing a smug smile.
"Uozumi!"
Before his teammates could warn him, Uozumi honestly raised his hand, acknowledging the foul.
"Soft punk. I thought nobody was behind me." Uozumi muttered just loud enough for Matsumoto to hear.
"Hmph!" Matsumoto's eyes glared viciously at Uozumi. "Looks like you really want to die..."
---
Kirisaki Daiichi's possession.
Hanamiya slowly dribbled past halfcourt. After his teammates got set, he flicked his wrist and passed to Furuhashi on the wing, then suddenly cut hard toward the paint.
Yagami followed closely.
Near the left side of the free-throw line, Hanamiya suddenly planted his feet, and using the motion of turning to call for the ball, whipped his left elbow viciously toward Yagami's midsection!
Yagami's expression didn't change. He sidestepped, barely avoiding the dirty move.
Hanamiya smoothly received the return pass from Furuhashi, rose calmly, and took an uncontested mid-range jumper.
"Swish!"
The sound of the ball going through the net was particularly grating.
Ryonan 2 - Kirisaki Daiichi 6
"Referee! Kirisaki's number 4 just made a move completely outside the scope of basketball! Extremely dangerous!" Coach Taoka shot up from the bench and intercepted the referee heading to the frontcourt.
"I'm sorry, there was no collision between players just now." The ref waved him back.
Coach Taoka didn't budge, suppressing his anger. "We need a fair competitive environment. Please keep your eyes open and pay close attention to Kirisaki's dangerous plays!"
"I will." The referee gestured for Taoka to leave again, clearly prepared to blow his whistle if necessary.
"Oh my, is this all Kanagawa's Rookie of the Year has to offer?" Hanamiya looked toward the sideline with a triumphant smile. "Even your coach can't stand watching. How are you gonna defend from that far away? Get closer."
"Got any other tricks?" Yagami looked at him coldly. "Honestly, you're even weaker than I imagined."
"If this is all you've got, no wonder you lost to Kiyoshi even with all your dirty tactics."
"You're just too weak."
patreon.com/Twilightsky588 - 40 advanced chapters