"Bastards! Get them!"
"Cripple these brats who don't know their place!"
Mitsui Hisashi roared as he swung the iron rod in his hand downward.
Behind him, Hotta Norio and the others felt the fight had started rather inexplicably.
But an order from their boss was still an order.
The group charged forward with loud shouts.
Iron rods, fists, and flying kicks—
Everything came crashing toward Makino Juro and Sakuragi Hanamichi all at once.
"Watch out!" Ayako cried, her face turning pale with fear.
Sakuragi was just about to roll up his sleeves and jump into the brawl—
When suddenly his vision blurred.
Makino Juro, who had been leaning against a utility pole sipping coffee, moved.
[Karate (Beginner) Successfully Exchanged]
"Spend Slacking Points. Upgrade to (Proficient)."
A flash of golden light appeared in his mind.
Countless memories about redirecting force and using minimal strength to move great weight instantly fused into his muscle memory.
Makino Juro sighed, casually placing his half-finished coffee on a nearby windowsill.
"Honestly… I didn't even get to warm up."
Facing the iron rod swinging toward him, Makino Juro didn't retreat.
He simply turned his body slightly, drawing a circle beneath his feet.
The iron rod whistled through the air, grazing past the tip of his nose.
Hotta Norio only felt that the dead-fish-eyed guy in front of him was as slippery as an eel.
Before he could recover his momentum, a hand lightly rested on his wrist.
"Off you go."
Makino Juro gently flicked his wrist, guiding Hotta's own forward momentum.
"Huh? Hey—HEY?!"
Hotta suddenly felt like a wild boar that had lost control, his entire body spinning helplessly through the air.
BANG!
He crashed directly into two lackeys charging behind him.
Next, Makino Juro stepped with fluid precision, moving through the crowd like a ghost.
Left hand: Grasp the Sparrow's Tail.
Right hand: Part the Wild Horse's Mane.
His movements were slow—almost like an elderly man doing morning exercises in a park.
Yet every person who tried to attack him mysteriously lost their balance.
"WAAAH!"
"Ow! My arm!"
"My leg!"
In less than ten seconds—
The narrow alley was filled with fallen delinquents groaning in pain, clutching their arms and legs.
Mitsui Hisashi froze, his iron rod still suspended midair.
"W-What… what kind of sorcery is this?"
He stared at the boy standing calmly among the pile of bodies, now casually dusting off his sleeves.
His throat bobbed nervously.
"This?"
Makino Juro picked up the coffee from the windowsill and gave it a light shake.
Seeing that not a drop had spilled, he nodded in satisfaction.
"This is the Lightning Five-Whip."
"Specially designed to treat stubborn fools."
"So… so amazing!"
Just arriving at that moment, Akagi Haruko covered her mouth in shock, her wide eyes sparkling with amazement.
She had followed them because she was worried something might happen to Sakuragi.
Instead, she had witnessed a scene that looked almost miraculous.
"MASTER!!"
Sakuragi immediately lunged forward and hugged Makino Juro's leg.
"Teach me! I want to learn that!"
"That move where you went whoosh and threw people flying was awesome!"
"If I learn that, then when I fight—"
"Wait, no! When I grab rebounds in the future, nobody will be able to stop this genius!"
Makino Juro pulled his leg away with visible disgust.
"You want to learn?"
"Yes!"
Makino Juro spoke with a completely serious expression—while blatantly making things up.
"I originally planned to teach you Kung Fu. It's a powerful, aggressive style. Much more suitable for someone like you."
"But the training is exhausting. You'd have to practice horse stance for three years first."
"So… forget it. Just focus on practicing rebounds for now."
The moment Sakuragi heard "three years of horse stance," his face collapsed instantly.
"Tch. Stingy master."
On the other side.
Miyagi Ryota stared blankly at the scene.
As someone experienced in street fights, he understood better than anyone how terrifying Makino Juro's moves had been.
No wasted motion.
Pure technique.
"This guy…"
Miyagi clenched his fists.
The hostility in his eyes remained—but now there was also a trace of caution.
"He may be strong in a fight…"
"But Ayako… I will never give her up to you!"
Meanwhile, Mitsui looked at his fallen gang members, then at Makino Juro—completely unharmed—and Sakuragi, who stood like a human tower.
He knew there was no recovering his reputation today.
"Damn it…"
"You just wait!"
"This isn't over!"
After leaving that threat behind, Mitsui retreated awkwardly with his gang.
Shohoku Basketball Gym
"Yo! Morning, everyone!"
Miyagi Ryota pushed open the gym doors.
The earring on his ear glinted under the lights as he spun a basketball on his finger, wearing his usual carefree grin.
"Miyagi!"
"You're finally back!"
"Are you fully recovered?"
Kogure Kiminobu hurried over in surprise.
"Yeah, completely fine."
Miyagi greeted everyone with a smile, but his eyes were searching the gym for someone.
When he saw Ayako standing nearby recording stats with her paper fan, his gaze immediately softened.
"Ayako! I'm back!"
"Was that a call of love?!"
Before he could rush over—
A massive shadow blocked his path.
Akagi Takenori stared down at him with a dark expression.
"Idiot. Since you're back, hurry up and start warming up."
"Yes, Captain!"
Miyagi snapped into a salute.
Just then, Sakuragi and Makino Juro wandered into the gym.
Sakuragi immediately spotted the short guy who had tried to kick Makino Juro yesterday.
"Well well, isn't that the crying little shorty?"
Sakuragi shoved his hands into his pockets, wearing a deliberately punchable grin.
"Who are you calling short?!"
"Red-haired monkey, this is the basketball club—not a zoo."
"You want to fight?!"
A vein popped on Miyagi's forehead as the basketball spun rapidly on his fingertip.
The two pressed their foreheads together, sparks almost flying.
"Alright, alright!"
Yasuda Yasuharu quickly ran over to mediate.
"Miyagi, you just came back. How about warming up with me first?"
Miyagi glanced at Sakuragi and snorted.
"Fine. I could use some warm-up exercise."
On the court, Miyagi faced Yasuda.
One-on-one.
Yasuda held the ball and tried to dribble forward.
SLAP!
A crisp sound echoed.
The ball was gone.
Miyagi's hand moved like lightning, instantly stealing it.
Then he accelerated—
Like a gust of wind, he swept past Yasuda.
Layup.
Score.
The entire sequence flowed as smoothly as water.
"So fast!"
"That's Miyagi for you!"
"He's definitely the strongest candidate for next captain!"
The teammates around them burst into admiration.
Miyagi proudly flicked his hair, looking toward Ayako, hoping to receive praise from his goddess.
But Ayako was currently leaning toward Makino Juro, talking about something.
She hadn't even looked his way.
Miyagi's heart shattered into pieces.
"Hey! Shorty!"
Sakuragi suddenly spoke up, clearly annoyed.
"What's so impressive about that?"
"This genius can do it too!"
Sakuragi marched onto the court and pointed at Miyagi.
"Come on! This genius challenges you to a duel!"
Miyagi raised an eyebrow as he looked at the red-haired amateur.
"You?"
"Fine. Let's go."
It was supposed to be a basketball one-on-one.
But the atmosphere suddenly changed.
Sakuragi didn't understand the rules at all.
His defense relied entirely on body collisions, and his offense was pure brute force.
Miyagi was fast, but facing such unreasonable gameplay was giving him a headache.
The two tangled together on the court.
"Foul! That's a charge!"
"Stop whining! This is genius defense!"
"Let go! Why are you grabbing my jersey?!"
"What's wrong, shorty? Afraid?!"
END OF CHAPTER
You can access now the advanced chapters of this game!
The King Of Slacking Off - MrBehringer's Secret
👉 patreon.com/MrBehringer