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The preliminary elimination rounds didn't stop despite the sudden rise of Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy.
The competition continued fiercely.
Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy advanced with unstoppable momentum.
The second match was against Shanghang high school.
Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy won 237-24.
The third match was against Wushan High School.
Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy won 214-36.
Following that, they won the next match 221-27.
In the following matches, Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy defeated their opponents by more than 200 points each time.
At this point, Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy was considered one of the strongest dark horses in this tournament.
Until the start of the sixth match.
Today, Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy's opponent was Kakuhana High School, a team that had consistently ranked among the top eight in the prefecture.
Kakuhana's rest area.
"Today's opponent seems to be that recently famous Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy!"
A player wearing jersey number 9 from the Kakuhana team spoke up. He was a key player on the team, playing shooting guard.
"Ah, yeah! They look like they're not to be trifled with!" a player sitting next to him replied.
Their exchange was very casual, their tone devoid of any emotion, just like a normal conversation.
Hearing their conversation, the Kakuhana team's captain interjected.
"Regardless of whether they're a dark horse or what, our goal is only one thing: to crush them and show everyone that not just any obscure team can challenge us. They've only encountered small fry before; now that they've met us, they can only blame their bad luck. Our roster this year is much stronger than last year, so there's nothing to worry about with that Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy."
Hearing their captain say this, everyone's spirits rose.
Seeing this, the Kakuhana coach nodded in satisfaction.
"Well said! The ones Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy encountered before were just cannon fodder, no match for us at all. Go teach those short-sighted fools what real basketball is!"
"Yes!" the members of Kakuhana replied.
Everyone felt as if they'd been injected with adrenaline, eager to rush up and defeat everyone from Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy.
...
Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy's rest area.
Ryu and the others were preparing for their game.
Kugawa, while tying his shoelaces, said, "Our opponents today seem quite strong."
"Is that so?" Ryu replied calmly, showing no concern for who his opponent was.
Seeing his expression, Kugawa grinned helplessly. "Come on, you're really underestimating them! If they knew, they'd be heartbroken!"
Hearing this, Ryu continued to reply calmly, "No matter who the opponent is, I will defeat them seriously, so there's no need to pay special attention to them."
Well... now that he mentioned it, it seemed true. Kugawa felt there was nothing wrong with what Ryu said.
At this moment, Hanafuji Souji spoke up. "The opponent is a team that consistently ranks in the top eight. Although they are stronger than our previous opponents, it's not by that much. With our current strength, defeating them should be quite easy."
Kamimono Kazuo sneered at the opposing team, Kakuhana. "The quarterfinals? That was in the past."
Kuroki Ryuichi nodded in agreement. "The captain's right. Look at those guys over there. Just by looking at their eyes, you can tell they don't take us seriously. That's fine, let's give them a surprise!"
The group chatted amongst themselves.
Not far away, Kazama Kouki sat quietly, seemingly oblivious to everything around him.
Ryu noticed something. The coach, who usually drank after just a few words, hadn't touched a drop of alcohol during the competition.
Time passed unnoticed.
The match began.
As the two teams lined up, the Kakuhana captain taunted, "I heard you're the biggest dark horse of this competition, even shutting out your opponent in the first match. You didn't pay for it, did you?"
Hearing his words, Ryu and the others remained unmoved, completely unfazed.
Seeing that their opponents were completely unaffected, the captain of Kakuhana frowned slightly.
Just then, Kamimono Kazuo responded, "Is this all the top eight teams from the prefecture can do? It's truly disappointing."
"What did you say?" the captain of Kakuhana narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Nothing, I just think you're too arrogant and need a good talking-to." Kamimono Kazuo's words completely enraged the Kakuhana team.
The Kakuhana team glared at him angrily.
The captain of Kakuhana said in a deep voice, "Just an unknown school, yet you dare to talk to us like that? I'll show you how terrifying the top eight teams from the prefecture are."
In an instant, the atmosphere between the two sides became extremely tense.
Whistle
The referee blew the whistle to start the game.
Kakuhana's center and Kamimono Kazuo leaped towards the basketball overhead.
Although Kakuhana's center was around 192cm tall, he still couldn't compare to the 203cm tall Kamimono Kazuo.
The difference in height was almost instantaneous, occurring the moment they jumped.
Kamimono Kazuo's long arms touched the basketball instantly. Without hesitation, he slapped the ball directly towards Ryu.
Ryu didn't hesitate either. The instant he received the ball, he darted towards Kakuhana's half of the court.
His speed wasn't particularly fast.
The Kakuhana players quickly retreated to their own basket. They looked at Ryu with disdain, as if they were mocking his overestimation of his abilities.
Ryu ignored their stares and dribbled directly into the opposing defense.
At this moment, there were three Kakuhana players under the basket.
Ryu's movements suddenly paused, simultaneously switching hands on the basketball. Taking advantage of the opponent's momentary hesitation, he broke through, easily getting past the first player.
As he prepared to enter the paint, two players from the Kakuhana team were already blocking his way.
Seeing this, Ryu didn't hesitate at all. He paused again, dribbling the basketball between his legs, switching hands, and then tossing the ball between the two players.
The basketball grazed between the two Kakuhana players. At the same time, Ryu flashed past the two players, appearing behind them and catching the ball again.
The fluidity of his movement stunned everyone around.
Ryu, basketball in hand, leaped directly to the basket.
"You're not going to score!" the captain of Kakuhana rushed over, ready to block Ryu's shot. Kakuhana's shooting guard also secretly moved behind Ryu to prevent any accidents.
However, Ryu, in mid-air, revealed a strange smile.
His intention to dunk instantly changed; with a flick of his wrist and a hook of his finger, the basketball was flicked by Ryu in the opposite direction from the basket.
Kugawa had just arrived at that position. Seeing the ball flying towards him, he caught it without hesitation.
The Kakuhana players were dumbfounded. Ryu's stance just now made it seem like he was going to dunk, but to everyone's surprise, the opponent changed his dunk attempt to a pass. Even in mid-air, he reacted with incredible speed.
It was too late for them to stop Kugawa. Kugawa had already jumped, aiming the basketball at Kakuhana's basket.
Whoosh…
The basketball shot out, tracing a beautiful arc. Under everyone's gaze, the basketball landed precisely in the basket.
Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy easily scored three points.
Ryu ignored the Kakuhana team and turned back to his own half of the court.
The Kakuhana team gritted their teeth, extremely displeased.
The Kakuhana captain took a deep breath and then spoke, "Don't be discouraged, it's only three points. We'll catch up immediately. Don't hold back, let them see the true strength of the top eight."
"Yes!" the Kakuhana team responded and began their attack on the Toho Kotei Gakuen team.
Ryu and the others each found their opponents.
The small forward from Kakuhana was dribbling the ball when he was blocked by Ryu just past half-court. Facing Ryu's defense, the small forward from Kakuhana tried to use his signature move to break through.
But Ryu, after reaching him, suddenly disappeared from his sight.
The small forward was initially stunned, then realized something was wrong, and his eyes widened.
To onlookers, it seemed as if Ryu had appeared in front of the small forward from Kakuhana almost without stopping, and then casually snatched the ball from his hands. Even the small forward's smug look and slightly upturned lips hadn't faded yet.
"Damn it, what are you doing?" the captain of Kakuhana scolded his small forward angrily, then turned and chased after Ryu.
At this moment, the small forward from Kakuhana also realized that the ball was gone from his hands. Hearing his captain's reprimand, his face stiffened. He hadn't even had a chance to process how the other player had stolen the ball from him.
Meanwhile, Ryu dribbled the ball into the three-point line of the Kakuhana team.
The rest of the Kakuhana team rushed back, following Ryu into the three-point line. However, before even reaching the free-throw line, Ryu had already leaped high into the air.
Watching Ryu's actions, everyone in the Kakuhana team was completely dumbfounded. What was he planning to do? Was he planning to dunk from here?
But they couldn't possibly predict Ryu's next move.
As Ryu reached the peak of his jump, he grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. He tossed the basketball behind him, passing it once again to Kugawa beyond the three-point line.
Seeing this, the Kakuhana team was stunned once more. They'd been tricked again? This was outrageous!
The Kakuhana captain was furious, glaring angrily at Ryu. As before, Ryu ignored him and walked directly towards his own half of the court.
The Kakuhana shooting guard gritted his teeth.
He should have focused on his own game and kept an eye on the opposing shooting guard.
But what he didn't know was that his relaxed defense was precisely because of Ryu's movement.
Ryu had deliberately moved closer to him while dribbling. This led him to instinctively defend Ryu, neglecting to defend Kugawa. When he was drawn inside the three-point line, it created Kugawa's best opportunity to shoot.
Less than a minute into the game, Toho Kotei Gakuen easily scored 6 points.
Cheers and applause erupted from the stands for Toho Kotei Gakuen.
The rest of the game followed a similar pattern. Ryu became a deceitful trickster, driving the Kakuhana team to despair. No one could predict his next move. He would always change his actions at the last second. Sometimes, impossible moves were commonplace for him.
The score gradually widened thanks to Ryu's deception.
The first quarter ended. The score between Toho Kotei Gakuen and Kakuhana High School was 55-6.
The second quarter ended. The score became 103-17.
The third quarter ended. The score was now 169-28.
At this point, the Kakuhana team had lost all their arrogance. Every attack from Toho Kotei Gakuen became a nightmare for them. Especially when Ryu had the ball, a fear of being tricked instinctively welled up within them.
But in the end, Ryu still managed to fool them successfully. This feeling of utter despair was something only someone who had been repeatedly outmaneuvered could truly understand.
Tears were welling up in the eyes of the Kakuhana captain. His heart had been struck by a ton of blows. He wanted to cry; it was just too unfair.
Ryu dribbled the ball towards him, then faked a breakthrough, successfully fooling him once again.
Seeing Ryu pass by him, the Kakuhana captain didn't turn around to chase after him; instead, he stood there and cried. He finally couldn't hold back and, in front of the entire audience, shed tears of heartbreak. Tears streamed down his face.
Everyone who witnessed this twitched their lips. Seeing this, the Kakuhana coach immediately substituted a player.
Looking at the Kakuhana captain wiping away his tears as he walked off the court, Kamimono Kazuo gave him a disdainful look. "Damn, is it really that serious? How old is he, still crying like that? He's a disgrace to men."
Kugawa, standing to the side, twitched his lips, thinking to himself, 'Brother, don't you see how many times they've been tricked by Ryu? They've been completely outmaneuvered from start to finish. The fact that they're only crying now is a testament to their strong mentality.'
Ryu merely glanced at the departing captain of the Kakuhana team, then his gaze shifted to Kakuhana's shooting guard. He was considering whether to find a different approach.
Feeling Ryu's malicious gaze, the arrogant Kakuhana shooting guard, who had been so confident before the game, immediately cowered. He gave Ryu an awkward smile, then waved to the referee.
"Um, referee, I'm feeling a bit unwell. I request a substitution."
Seeing this, the Kakuhana coach simply substituted all their starters. Since the game was already lost, they might as well send in the substitutes to give them some experience.
Without their starters, Kakuhana's strength plummeted. Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy breached the opponent's basket with almost no resistance.
When the final whistle blew, the scoreboard showed a score of 228 to 33.
This result also changed the attitudes of many high schools towards Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy. They had initially thought Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy would face some resistance against Kakuhana. But unexpectedly, Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy still managed to score over 200 points against them.
This demonstrated that Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy's strength was far greater than they had imagined.
Especially the powerhouse schools of the prefecture; they felt a deep sense of threat from Toho Kotei Gakuen Academy. Although Kakuhana wasn't a particularly strong team for them, scoring 200 points against them was still something quite difficult to achieve.
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