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Thump... thump... thump...
Ryu dribbled the basketball repeatedly.
With each bounce, Kuroki Ryuichi's heart sank deeper. Cold sweat drenched his back.
'So strong, stronger than ever before.'
Kuroki Ryuichi was utterly shocked. With his strength, he wouldn't dare say he could defeat everyone, but he was certainly not someone ordinary people could compare to. But against Ryu, he was almost completely crushed.
Was the gap really that big?
Kuroki Ryuichi's eyes were fixed on Ryu. Ryu smiled slightly at Kuroki Ryuichi.
'Let's go.'
Sizzle...
As soon as Ryu finished speaking, he transformed into a bolt of lightning and disappeared from Kuroki Ryuichi's sight.
When he reappeared, he was already behind Kuroki Ryuichi.
So fast?
Kuroki Ryuichi was shocked.
When he turned around, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
He felt that Ryu was like a raging fire, full of violence and power, with an extremely dangerous aura surrounding him, condensed and unyielding.
Bang…
A deafening buzz echoed throughout the entire arena.
Kuroki Ryuichi froze, standing there dumbfounded, staring at Ryu hanging on the rim.
As for Kamimono Kazuo and Hanafuji Souji on the sidelines, they were already completely dumbfounded.
When Ryu appeared behind Kuroki Ryuichi like a bolt of lightning, they were utterly stunned.
Ryu had just used the [Fire] and [Lightning] elements from the [Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain, Yin, Thunder] element style.
How much time passed…
It took Kuroki Ryuichi, Kamimono Kazuo, and Hanafuji Souji a while to recover their senses.
Kuroki Ryuichi exclaimed in admiration, "You're really amazing! Now I truly believe you can defeat Captain Kamimono."
"Captain Kamimono?" Ryu was somewhat puzzled.
"Don't you know? Didn't Kamimono tell you?" Kuroki Ryuichi tilted his head.
Ryu shook his head. "I don't know, he didn't say."
"I see!" Kuroki Ryuichi smiled slightly and said, "Kamimono is our captain!"
Ryu wasn't surprised. With Kamimono's strength, being captain was perfectly normal.
Just as they were chatting, a figure walked in through the gym's main entrance.
When Ryu saw this figure, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
Because it was none other than the scruffy old man who had recommended him to this school, Kazama Kouki.
"It's you..."
Glug... glug... glug
Kazama Kouki raised his gourd and took several large gulps of sake before looking at Ryu.
"I didn't expect you to actually come."
Ryu's forehead was covered in black lines.
"Didn't you recommend me to come here? But you, why are you here? Wait a minute..." As he spoke, he suddenly thought of something and raised an eyebrow. "You wouldn't happen to be the coach, would you?"
Glug... glug... glug...
Kazama Kouki gulped down several mouthfuls of sake and then said to Ryu, "Then let me reintroduce myself, I'm Kazama Kouki, the coach of the basketball team at Toho Kotei Gakuen."
Everyone was curious about the conversation between Ryu and the coach.
Kamimono Kazuo stepped forward and asked, "Ryu, do you know our coach?"
Ryu's eyelids twitched, then he replied, "Ah, I guess you could say I know him! We've met a few times before."
Kamimono Kazuo said knowingly, "I see! Then I won't need to introduce you further."
As soon as he finished speaking, Kazama Kouki looked at everyone and said loudly, "Since you're all here, I have something to tell you."
Hearing this, Ryu and the others waited quietly for the coach's instructions.
"There are three things. First, with Ryu joining this year, the team can participate in the National Tournament."
Kamimono Kazuo and the others beamed with joy.
"Really, Coach? We can really participate in the National Tournament?" Kugawa Yuuki asked excitedly.
Kazama Kouki said calmly, "Yes, that's good!"
"Great!" Kuroki Ryuichi and Hanafuji Souji clenched their fists, overjoyed.
Kamimono Kazuo, a towering two-meter-tall figure, had tears welling in his eyes, on the verge of crying.
Ryu, however, seemed unfazed. "Coach, what's the second thing?"
Kazama Kouki took another swig from his sake gourd and answered, "Secondly, the five of you aren't enough. Just in case, the team needs substitutes." As he spoke, Kazama Kouki looked at Kamimono Kazuo. "I'll leave this to you!"
"Yes..." Kamimono Kazuo answered respectfully.
Kazama Kouki spoke again. "Now, the third thing is..." Kazama Kouki glanced around at everyone. "To prepare for the Summer League, our training needs some adjustments. I'll tell you the details later."
After speaking, Kazama Kouki looked at Ryu. "Ryu, I need to assess your strength. We'll have an intra-team match later; you'll be playing against all four of them."
Upon hearing this, everyone except Ryu was stunned.
What?! One against four? Who does this coach think he is?
Kamimono Kazuo asked, "Coach, isn't it a bit unfair that Ryu is playing against all four of us?"
Kuroki Ryuichi chimed in, "Yeah, Coach, while Ryu is strong, it's still a bit too much for one person to take on all four of us!"
"Exactly, Coach, I think we should have one of us team up with Ryu. Two against three would even out the gap between us."
Glug... glug... glug...
Kazama Kouki didn't explain anything, but simply said, "His strength is much greater than you imagine. It's settled then. Get ready." After thinking for a moment, he added, "You're not allowed to hold back. Go all out against Ryu, and let me see how much you've improved over the past year."
Hearing their coach say this, Kamimono Kazuo and the others could only nod in agreement.
Their gazes towards Ryu were complex, a mixture of pity and scrutiny.
They knew their coach's personality well. Since the coach had said this, it meant Ryu's true strength was definitely more than what he had just shown.
Ryu didn't seem to have much of an opinion on this.
He remained remarkably calm, showing no sign of tension, as if taking on four opponents was nothing to him.
Ten minutes later, both teams had changed into their jerseys and were on the court.
Kazama Kouki casually sat on the bench outside the court, watching.
"You go first!" Kamimono Kazuo tossed the basketball to Ryu.
Ryu didn't refuse.
Sitting on the bench, Kazama Kouki took a sip of his drink and blew his whistle.
This unequal intra-team match officially began.
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