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Thump...thump...thump...
Ryu dribbled the basketball repeatedly.
All eyes were on him.
They all wanted to know what was different about Ryu now compared to before.
Ryu looked at Aomine's serious expression and smiled slightly.
"Don't be so serious! Have fun playing!"
With that, Ryu vanished before Aomine's eyes.
Before Aomine could react, the sound of a basketball hitting the ground echoed behind him.
Thump...thump...thump...
These sounds seemed to strike Aomine's heart, filling him with surprise, confusion, shock, and disbelief.
He turned his head somewhat blankly.
Ryu's figure came into view.
He jumped from the three-point line, aimed, and shot.
The basketball streaked through the air and struck the square on Too's backboard.
[Zero-Style Three-Pointer]
Gurgle...gurgle...gurgle...
The basketball rolled nine times around the rim before finally falling into it.
52 to 53.
The entire arena fell silent.
"What... what just happened?"
"It only took the blink of an eye; I didn't even see how he broke through the defense."
...
This is too unbelievable! Aomine in Zone mode didn't even react! How is that possible?
The players from the other schools were completely dumbfounded.
The most unsettled were Kise, Midorima, Murasakibara, and Akashi.
They were the ones who knew the Zone best.
For Aomine to be completely unresponsive, it could only mean that Ryu's [Pinnacle of Perfection] was at a level far stronger than the Zone.
Kise clenched his fists, his yellow pupils gleaming strangely.
"Damn it! Is the gap between me and those two really this big?"
Aomine stood motionless.
He stared at Ryu in disbelief.
He broke through my defense?
I didn't even react?
How is this possible?
He simply couldn't comprehend what had happened.
This was utterly unbelievable.
He was in Zone mode right now!
This was 100% of his power!
Moreover, his Zone could exceed 100% of its limit.
How could he be so easily crushed?
The other players from Too were also completely bewildered by this scene.
Imayoshi Shoichi's usually sharp mind was utterly blank.
Who am I? Where am I? What just happened?
Even the members of Toho Kotei Gakuen were filled with disbelief.
In Toho Kotei Gakuen's rest area:
Karupin looked up at Ryu on the court.
His sapphire-like eyes were lost in memories.
Once upon a time, the boy in his memory had also awakened the ultimate secret of the [Selfless State], the [Pinnacle of Perfection], under the spotlight.
Now, in this new world, he witnessed the birth of a legend once again.
A faint smile appeared on his cute cat face, looking strange and magical.
Clang…
Thump... thump... thump...
The basketball fell through Too's basket once more.
The scoreboard showed 54 to 53.
All eyes were on the boy hanging from Too's basket.
The gym was eerily quiet.
Aomine stood in a ball-receiving stance, as if frozen in time.
Only after hearing the slam dunk did he realize with horror that the ball had been stolen and scored.
The entire gym seemed to have forgotten how to speak.
No applause, no cheers, no screams.
Even the sound of breathing seemed to have vanished.
Aomine struggled to accept this reality.
He refused to believe what he was seeing.
Sometime during this period...
He had become lazy, skipping practice, all to slow down his skill development.
But now, he didn't even have the chance to fight back.
How could he accept this?
What... joke... is... this...?
He signaled to his teammates again, asking for the ball.
Imayoshi Shoichi had no choice but to pass the ball to his ace.
Snap...
This time, his pass was extremely cautious.
He passed the ball to Aomine almost without taking his eyes off Ryu.
This time, Ryu didn't intercept it, letting the ball fall into Aomine's hands.
After receiving the ball, Aomine glared fiercely at Ryu.
Azure lightning crackled wildly at the corners of his eyes.
A powerful aura spread outward, and the phantom of a black panther arched behind him, assuming a hunting stance.
"Aaaaaaah..."
"Ryu..."
Aomine roared. The basketball in his hands left afterimages, and his footwork was as unpredictable as a ghost's.
Aomine transformed into a black streak of light, accompanied by two streaks of azure lightning, preparing to break through Ryu's defense.
The rest of the Too team watched with hopeful anticipation as Aomine unleashed his power.
They hoped Aomine could break through Ryu's defense and regain the initiative for their team.
However, while the idea was appealing, reality often falls short of expectations.
Aomine's speed was indeed impressive.
In the instant he started moving, the audience only saw a blur of motion.
But in the next second, gasps erupted from the stands.
Because after Aomine swept past Ryu at incredible speed, the basketball in his hand had vanished.
In contrast, Ryu stood still, holding the bright orange basketball.
This scene unfolded far too abruptly.
Some spectators in the stands who were completely focused on Ryu only saw him magically conjure a basketball in his hands.
It was as if magic had appeared out of thin air—an unbelievable sight.
Aomine, realizing his hands were empty, stopped moving.
He turned to look at Ryu in disbelief.
Looking at the basketball in Ryu's hands, his eyes held a complex mix of emotions, including deep frustration.
"Why are you so strong?"
At that moment, the lightning flashing in Aomine's eyes looked utterly ridiculous.
Ryu held the ball in both hands, raising his head with a smile.
Seeing him, the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Everyone who saw the expression on his face was stunned.
What kind of expression was that?
Pure sunshine, pure happiness…
Satsuki Momoi, in the Too rest area, was completely mesmerized.
She was utterly captivated by Ryu at that moment.
That expression… it felt like she had seen it somewhere before.
It felt like a memory from a very, long time ago.
She couldn't recall where she had seen that expression before.
The members of both Too and Toho Kotei Gakuen seemed stunned by Ryu's face.
This wasn't because Ryu's aura was overwhelming, but because he was incredibly captivating.
Ryu smiled, glanced at the Too members, and shook his head.
"Too serious. This won't do."
These words seemed to be directed at himself, and also at everyone present.
Hearing his words, the players were all puzzled.
They didn't understand what Ryu meant.
Ryu didn't care whether they understood him or not.
His figure flashed—his movements were incredibly simple, yet no one could see them clearly.
Ryu appeared suddenly in mid-air next to Too's hoop, as if by teleportation.
Clang...
Ryu grinned, a joyful smile spreading across his face, as he slammed the basketball into Too's hoop.
56 to 53.
After landing, Ryu turned and smiled happily at everyone.
Seeing his smile, completely absorbed in the joy of the game, Aomine was momentarily drawn into it as well.
He slowly snapped back to reality.
"Hahahaha..."
He threw his head back and laughed loudly.
His laughter echoed throughout the entire arena.
Everyone's attention was drawn to his laughter.
"What's he doing? Has he gone mad?"
"He looks so happy."
"Didn't they just lose the ball? Why is he still laughing?"
...
"Aomine..."
Kuroko looked at Aomine, who was laughing heartily, his eyes shining brightly.
He seemed to see that familiar figure from the past.
...
"Dai-chan…"
At the Too rest area, Momoi noticed this too.
Her eyes suddenly welled up with tears.
...
After laughing heartily, Aomine looked at Ryu and said,
"Ryu, I have to admit, you really gave me a huge surprise. I never imagined you could be this strong."
He paused, then continued,
"It's been a long time since I've felt this way. Thank you so much! Now, let me see your true strength."
The game continued.
Too served.
The basketball was once again passed to Aomine.
He took a deep breath, then swiftly strode from his own half of the court, instantly moving to Toho Kotei Gakuen's half.
In the blink of an eye, someone appeared before him—Ryu.
Aomine's gaze locked onto Ryu, not daring to be careless for a moment.
His dribbling speed was dazzling.
Everyone who witnessed Aomine's movement gasped.
Such high-speed dribbling was simply unbelievable.
Even more unbelievable was that the basketball showed no sign of slipping out of his grasp.
Aomine, with his superhuman speed, bypassed Ryu's defense.
Then he swept past Kuroki, dodged Kugawa, and broke through Hanafuji Souji.
Facing the final defense of Kamimono, he leaped up with the force of a tiger pouncing on its prey, ready to slam the basketball down.
Feeling the overwhelming pressure of Aomine's aura, Kamimono suddenly felt incredibly small.
He lacked the confidence to stop the shot.
Aomine, now in the Zone, was simply unstoppable.
Just then, a silver streak, unstoppable, cleaved Aomine's mountain-like aura in two.
The silver streak severed the oppressive aura pressing down on Kamimono.
It also snatched the basketball from Aomine's hand just as he was about to dunk.
Clang…
Aomine slammed his hands on the rim, causing Toho Kotei Gakuen's hoop to groan.
But the basketball didn't go through the hoop.
Thump… thump… thump…
The sound of the basketball hitting the ground echoed across the court.
Ryu, dribbling the ball, had appeared behind Aomine without anyone noticing.
Once again, Ryu had stolen the ball from Aomine's hands.
This time, Aomine finally understood: he was utterly powerless against Ryu at this moment.
Recalling his actions over the past year, endless regret welled up within him.
If… if he hadn't been so arrogant as to skip practice...
If he hadn't become so lazy and undisciplined...
If he had persisted in practicing this past year...
Perhaps today he would have had the strength to rival Ryu.
But now it was too late.
The blue lightning at the corner of his eye gradually faded, disappearing completely.
His frustration was palpable.
No one cared about Aomine's inner thoughts anymore.
All eyes were now on Ryu.
"Stop him..." Imayoshi Shoichi shouted.
Hearing their captain's order, the other Too players rushed toward Ryu.
Faced with the encirclement of four opponents, Ryu showed no sign of panic.
He wore a gentle smile, watching the Too players closing in on him.
"I told you, this won't work."
With that, he vanished from the Too team's sight in an instant.
The eight eyes of the four Too players couldn't even catch Ryu's shadow.
Thump... thump... thump...
As the sounds of the basketball hitting the ground rang out, they were horrified to discover that Ryu was already standing near their basket.
The Too players gritted their teeth and turned to look.
Ryu stood near the free-throw line, leisurely raising the basketball and shooting it toward the hoop.
Swish…
The basketball went in.
The score on the scoreboard changed accordingly: 58 to 53.
In the time that followed…
Too was completely suppressed by Toho Kotei Gakuen.
Ryu frequently stole the ball from Aomine and scored, forcing Aomine out of his Zone state.
This, undoubtedly, made matters worse for Too.
While Aomine in his Zone state was no match for Ryu, he had still been a threat.
Now, Too—including Aomine—was completely overwhelmed by Ryu alone.
Who could have imagined this scene before?
By the time the final whistle blew at the end of the third quarter, the score had reached an astonishing 75 to 53.
Since Ryu entered the [Pinnacle of Perfection] of the [Selfless State], Too hadn't scored a single point.
Ryu had single-handedly widened the lead to 22 points.
This practically decided the final outcome of the match.
If it weren't for Too's ace, Aomine, many spectators would probably have already started leaving.
...
"I can't believe Too is down by 22 points. The game should be over by now!" Takao analyzed.
Hearing his words, Midorima retorted, "If Too Academy's opponent were any other team, the outcome might already be decided. But the problem is, their opponent is Toho Kotei Gakuen."
As he spoke, he looked toward Too's bench.
"There's still one quarter left. Aomine won't accept this result."
"Do you mean he intends to do something else?" Takao asked in surprise.
...
"Aomine isn't the type to give up. He'll definitely fight tooth and nail to catch up in the fourth quarter," Kise analyzed.
Kasamatsu Yukio chimed in, "A 22-point deficit? Most people would have given up long ago!"
"Perhaps! But Aomine isn't just anyone!" Kise said confidently.
He knew his former teammate all too well.
A 22-point deficit might be an insurmountable barrier for others, but for the Generation of Miracles, it wasn't impossible.
However, the problem was his opponent, Ryu.
"Although Aomine will fight desperately, his opponent is, after all, Ryu. I think this match ends here!"
Toho Kotei Gakuen's rest area:
Kamimono and the others surrounded Ryu.
"Ryu, you're really amazing! That move just now was so cool, I'm so envious!" Kugawa made no attempt to hide his envy and admiration for Ryu.
"Yeah! You actually managed to suppress Aomine. You know, when he entered the Zone, I thought we were going to lose," Kuroki recalled, remembering the feeling of powerlessness he felt when Aomine entered the Zone.
Ryu had now exited the [Pinnacle of Perfection].
He smiled slightly at his teammates.
"Don't get too excited yet. It's only the third quarter. There's still one quarter left. A 22-point lead isn't a guaranteed victory against Too."
Hearing Ryu's words, Kamimono and the others grew serious as well.
Considering Aomine's strength, it wasn't impossible for them to catch up by 22 points in one quarter.
Kamimono looked at Ryu and asked, "Ryu, with you containing Aomine, there shouldn't be any problems in the fourth quarter, right?"
"Of course," Ryu smiled confidently.
"Aomine doesn't have much stamina left. Although I've also used up a lot of energy, it's enough to contain him now."
Now, Ryu truly experienced the benefits of The Divine-Demon Physique in his physical condition.
This incredible stamina and resilience were beyond his wildest imagination.
He had initially thought that at his limit with the [Pinnacle of Perfection], he could only maintain it for about 3 to 5 minutes at most.
But he had actually lasted until the end of the third quarter.
This meant that while he could normally activate the technique at its limit for 5 minutes, with the Demon King's Body, he could extend it to at least 8 minutes.
In other words, assuming no one could withstand his [Pinnacle of Perfection] at its limit, he had 8 minutes of invincibility.
Just imagine how many points Ryu could score in 8 minutes!
Even at 2 baskets per minute, that would be 16 points—and that didn't even include three-pointers.
"That's good," Kamimono nodded and said. "You should rest! We'll handle the offense in the next quarter. Just keep Aomine in check."
Ryu nodded, accepting the plan.
Now that Toho Kotei Gakuen had the victory in hand, there was no need for him to waste energy scoring.
On the other side:
The Too rest area was shrouded in gloom.
Everyone's face was filled with despair.
Aomine still had a towel covering his face, his chest heaving violently.
Seeing everyone's listless state, Momoi wanted to offer some comfort.
"Everyone..."
She was stopped by Imayoshi Shoichi before she could finish speaking.
"The situation is really bad! I never expected their Ryu to be so strong; even Aomine couldn't stop him," Wakamatsu Kosuke said irritably.
"That big idiot Aomine! He always said the only one who could beat him was himself, but this time he got utterly thrashed."
Coach Harasawa clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.
He glanced around at the team and then spoke.
"You all know the situation now. We still have one quarter left. If we want to win, we must find a way to stop their offense. If necessary, it would be best to force them off the court."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Toho Kotei Gakuen's rest area.
Momoi said thoughtfully, "Coach, you don't mean..."
Harasawa nodded.
"While drawing fouls might seem shameful, this is our last chance. Toho Kotei Gakuen's overall strength surpasses ours, but their substitutes aren't strong. Ryu should be somewhat limited in his form, just like Aomine's Zone. Under normal circumstances, his strength is comparable to Aomine's. Therefore, the key to the final quarter lies with the four of you."
Harasawa looked at Imayoshi Shoichi, Wakamatsu Kosuke, Sakurai Ryo, and Susa Yoshinori.
Imayoshi Shoichi flashed his signature squinting smile.
"Since that's the case, I have no other choice. Let me handle it!"
The other members of Too shared his resolute expression, their gazes toward Toho Kotei Gakuen turning determined.
Whistle…
The whistle finally sounded to begin the final quarter of the match.
The players from both sides stood up and walked onto the court.
Aomine was woken up by Momoi.
The moment he stood up, Momoi clearly saw a shadow of his former self in him.
Aomine's eyes had lost their laziness and arrogance; instead, they held only the excitement and thrill of facing a strong opponent, alongside his passion for basketball.
"Aomine..."
Aomine grinned, revealing a row of pearly white teeth.
"Hehe... Momoi, I haven't been this happy in a long time."
"Huh?"
Momoi paused slightly, then smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, that's right! Dai-chan is really having a great time today!"
"Hahahaha..."
Aomine laughed heartily, then said somewhat awkwardly, "I feel like I can't win this match! But I still can't help but want to fight to the very end. Ryu is truly a worthy opponent!"
Hearing Aomine's words, Momoi's eyes welled up with tears.
She had waited for this day for so long.
She had always hoped that one day Aomine would be defeated so he could return to his former self.
Now, Aomine had finally returned.
Ryu, thank you.
She forced a smile, suppressing a sob.
"Well, Dai-chan, don't lose too badly..."
"Don't worry, I'm not that weak."
With that, Aomine followed the team onto the court.
Ryu and Aomine faced off once more.
Ryu also noticed Aomine's change.
That expression…
The corner of his mouth curled up slightly.
Neither Ryu nor Aomine said anything.
The referee blew the whistle to begin the final quarter of the game.
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