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Three days later.
The Tokyo Gymnasium was packed with people. High school students flocked to the stadium, and reporters swarmed around, creating a truly bustling scene.
Today's main event was the match between Toho Kotei Gakuen and Too Academy.
Both schools enjoyed considerable popularity.
Especially Ryu and Aomine Daiki.
It was unclear who had reported this, but word had spread that Ryu and Aomine Daiki were both former ace players for Teiko Junior High.
Today's match between Toho Kotei Gakuen and Too Academy was a clash of ace players.
It had captured everyone's attention, whether they were industry professionals, basketball enthusiasts, or just casual observers.
They all wanted to see the duel between Ryu and Aomine Daiki.
Major sports newspapers and media outlets had set up all sorts of equipment, recording every corner of the stadium without any blind spots—the scale of the operation was considerable.
The stands were already packed, and some people even had to stand.
But everyone was incredibly excited, their eyes filled with anticipation.
The teams from various universities had found their seats and were waiting for the game to begin.
Even the coaches from their respective schools were paying close attention to the match.
The Toho Kotei Gakuen and Too Academy teams had not yet entered the stadium.
In the locker room of Toho Kotei Gakuen:
"Today's opponent seems quite strong," Kuroki said.
Kugawa interjected, "It's that ace of the Generation of Miracles, Aomine Daiki, right? I heard he's insanely strong!"
Kamimono looked at Ryu, who was sitting to the side petting a cat.
"Ryu, do you need our help with this match?"
Ryu's lips curled slightly as he petted the cat and replied, "You can't interfere in this match. Aomine is very strong; you can't defeat him just by having more people."
"Is he stronger than you?" a substitute suddenly asked.
Kuroki retorted irritably, "Hey! Can't you speak properly? What do you mean by 'stronger than Ryu'? Ryu is the strongest!"
The substitute shrank back, realizing he'd said the wrong thing, and didn't dare argue.
"Hehehehe…" Ryu suddenly laughed. He said nonchalantly, "It's nothing. Back in middle school, many people often compared us like that."
Upon hearing this, the substitute breathed a sigh of relief.
Ryu paused, then smiled mysteriously. "However, the Generation of Miracles doesn't only have one ace!"
"Huh?" Ryu's words left everyone puzzled.
Hanafuji was the smartest besides Ryu. Looking at Ryu's enigmatic smile, he made a bold guess. "Could it be... you also..."
...
On the other side, in the Too Academy locker room:
"That Aomine guy is late again!" Wakamatsu Kosuke roared angrily, veins bulging.
Imayoshi Shoichi picked at his ear and said, "Can't you keep your voice down?"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I'm trash, I'm a garbage can, I'm scum."
Uh...
Imayoshi Shoichi's lips twitched, and he said calmly, "This has nothing to do with you, Sakurai."
"But I'm still sorry! Aomine and I are in the same class, I'm really sorry."
Imayoshi Shoichi covered his face, feeling utterly exhausted.
Sakurai, full name Sakurai Ryo, was one of the starting players for Too Academy, playing the shooting guard position. He possessed a dual personality, with an indomitable spirit and a tendency to rise to the challenge against stronger opponents. His other personality was cowardice and weakness; no matter what happened, he would always take the blame upon himself.
Squeak…
The locker room door opened. A tall, handsome, and maturely aloof man walked in. This was none other than Harazawa, the coach of the Too Academy basketball team.
He looked around and, noticing Aomine's absence, asked, "Has Aomine not arrived yet?"
At the mention of Aomine, Wakamatsu Kosuke immediately bristled. "That guy has absolutely no sense of time. He's always late for practice, and even when he does show up, he just plays casually. He's definitely going to be late today too!"
Coach Harazawa said, tugging at his bangs with a headache, "But today is different from usual. If Aomine isn't here, it'll be a real headache. Our opponent is tough; without Aomine, we'll probably lose badly."
Imayoshi Shoichi suddenly realized something and asked, "By the way, where did Momoi go?"
Susa Yoshinori answered, "I saw her go out with her phone earlier; she probably went to call Aomine!"
Imayoshi Shoichi scratched his head. "Hopefully, that guy will come soon!"
Squeak…
Just then, the door to the lounge opened again. Momoi pulled Aomine in.
"I brought Aomine!" Momoi said to everyone.
Aomine smiled at everyone. "Hey everyone! You guys seem to be talking about me!"
"Aomine, you idiot, you actually showed up!" Wakamatsu Kosuke said irritably.
Coach Harazawa looked at Aomine, who was drenched in sweat, and said, "Looks like you've finished warming up!"
Aomine replied, "Ah! Because if it weren't for me today, you guys would probably be completely crushed!"
Imayoshi Shoichi said, "Good that you know, but seeing you like this makes me feel relieved."
"Please, the opponent is Ryu! How could I possibly be late!"
Hahahaha...
Aomine suddenly grinned. "I've been waiting for this day for a long time. Since middle school, I've been waiting, and only Ryu—only him—is the opponent I've dreamed of defeating!"
Aomine's aura suddenly emanated from his body, instantly spreading throughout the entire locker room. Everyone was stunned by Aomine's terrifying aura.
Ten minutes later.
The players from both teams emerged from their respective exits. A deafening roar of cheers erupted throughout the arena.
All eyes were fixed on Ryu and Aomine.
Toho Kotei Gakuen VS. Too Academy.
Ryu VS. Aomine Daiki.
Ace VS Ace.
This highly anticipated match was about to begin.
Whistle…
The whistle blew. Both teams lined up.
A strange thing happened. The arena became eerily quiet. Despite being packed with spectators, it was as if no sound could be heard.
On the court, Toho Kotei Gakuen and Too Academy stood facing each other. The two sides stared at each other, their faces serious, the atmosphere tense.
The entire stadium seemed to be filled with a sense of oppression and heaviness.
Ryu and Aomine locked eyes. Their auras swirled around them. Dark clouds seemed to gather in the air above the stadium, accompanied by imaginary flashes of lightning and thunder.
This astonishing aura even reached the stands. This left all the players from the various schools who had come to watch the match utterly incredulous, their hearts churning with shock and disbelief.
They never expected that a mere aura could instill fear in most of the players, rendering them unable to move.
"This is incredible. It's the first time I've ever seen Ryu and Aomine like this," Kise exclaimed, his eyes blazing as he looked down at the two.
Midorima adjusted his glasses. His expression remained calm and indifferent, just as before. However, his slightly trembling right hand betrayed the turmoil within him.
Murasakibara Atsushi's gaze was piercing; his snacks were gone, and he stood like a frozen giant.
Akashi remained icy, unaffected by the aura. He simply sat silently in his seat, detachedly surveying the crowd below.
The Seirin group was now trembling. They felt their muscles stiffen. This was the subconscious reaction to being influenced by the aura.
Kagami Taiga forcefully resisted the corrosive influence, gritting his teeth, his heart churning with turmoil.
'What a joke! Weren't these two using their full strength before? This aura is too exaggerated!' He couldn't fathom how a human could achieve such a level. But he quickly thought of Aomine and Ryu; both of them possessed superhuman abilities.
...
On the court, Aomine looked at Ryu before him, his face contorted with excitement.
"Ryu, we're finally facing off! Do you know how long I've waited for this day?"
Ryu stared back at Aomine, smiling with emotion. "Yeah! We're finally facing off! I've been waiting for this day for a long time too."
"Hehe... then let's finish the match we haven't completed yet!"
Hearing Aomine's words, Ryu immediately thought of the match that had been stopped by Shirogane Kozo back in middle school.
He replied, "An unfinished match, huh? So you're still hung up on it!"
Aomine scoffed. "How could I forget? That time, I clearly had a chance to win."
"You're that confident?" Ryu asked, looking at the confident Aomine.
Aomine replied nonchalantly, "That kind of thing doesn't matter anymore. I care more about the present."
Seeing Aomine's current expression, Ryu smiled.
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