I want to reach 20 paid subscriptions on Patreon this week to complete this novel, as it has been over a month since the last subscription.
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"Looks like we'll win!"
Kugawa said after returning to the rest area.
Kamimono, though also believing the victory was assured, still cautioned,
"We can't be careless. Anything can happen before the game ends. I don't think their number 6 will give up so easily."
Kamimono's judgment was accurate.
Although he didn't know much about Haizaki Shogo, someone with such strength wouldn't give up so easily.
Hanafuji agreed.
"That's right. We're leading now entirely because Ryu is suppressing them. If they try to target us, we'll be utterly crushed."
No one refuted him.
Because what he said was true.
In terms of pure strength, Haizaki Shogo was indeed stronger than them.
Ryu then spoke up.
"In the second half, be extra careful, especially under the basket."
Ryu didn't remember some things from the original anime.
But he remembered the match between Kise and Haizaki Shogo.
Haizaki Shogo seemed to have sabotaged Kise, causing his ankle injury.
He didn't want his teammate to get hurt.
Besides, Fukuda Sogo now had Takahashi Kento in addition to Haizaki Shogo.
Both of them, frankly, weren't good people.
With no hope of winning the match, Ryu wasn't sure if these two would suddenly resort to some underhanded tactics.
Time passed.
Halftime had ended.
At the referee's signal, both teams returned to the field.
Everything seemed normal.
But Ryu narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on Haizaki Shogo.
Haizaki Shogo was completely calm, his face expressionless.
His previous resentment and anger had long since vanished.
No one knew where this guy had gone during halftime.
Ryu secretly became more vigilant, better safe than sorry.
It was Toho Kotei Gakuen's turn to inbound the ball.
Hanafuji led the charge.
Ryu and his teammates began their individual runs.
The Fukuda Sogo team, on the other hand, began to disrupt their opponents.
Hanafuji easily broke through Fukuda Sogo's point guard and headed straight for the basket.
The rest of Fukuda Sogo immediately began to retreat on defense.
However, Hanafuji's skill was ultimately beyond that of ordinary players.
With Hanafuji's exquisite ball-handling, a few crossovers and fakes left the Fukuda Sogo team behind.
However…
Just as Hanafuji charged into the paint, preparing to shoot, Haizaki Shogo, who had just been seriously guarding Ryu, suddenly flashed towards Hanafuji.
Ryu's pupils contracted; he knew something was wrong.
"Watch out..."
Ryu quickly warned.
Hanafuji naturally heard Ryu's shout.
His peripheral vision instinctively glanced in the direction the sound came from.
Then he saw a figure rapidly approaching him.
Hanafuji was startled; his shooting motion froze, and he immediately pulled back.
A large hand, accompanied by a gust of wind, swept past Hanafuji's head.
Hanafuji clearly heard a whooshing sound above his head.
It was easy to imagine the force of that swing.
Hanafuji's gaze swept across the field, locking onto Kugawa on the outside.
He swung his arm, passing the ball directly to Kugawa beyond the three-point line.
Tch…
Haizaki Shogo, seeing his block fail, was clearly annoyed.
"You bastard…"
Hanafuji looked at Haizaki Shogo, his face darkening.
If he hadn't caught the ball quickly, his hand would probably be injured.
Everyone from the Toho Kotei Gakuen witnessed this scene.
Ryu's eyes flashed with a cold light.
He really predicted it.
'That bastard Haizaki, he actually dared to do that.'
Ryu was furious.
Thankfully, Hanafuji wasn't injured.
Haizaki Shogo's block just now didn't appear to be illegal.
Of course, this was assuming the block wasn't successful.
The whole process seemed normal.
If Haizaki Shogo had blocked it, Hanafuji's hand would likely have been injured.
Kugawa received the ball and quickly shot from the three-point line.
The shooting guard from Fukuda Sogo jumped and raised his hand to block.
Just then.
Kugawa's movement suddenly changed.
He immediately withdrew his shooting motion and lowered his body.
While the opponent was airborne.
Kugawa held the ball with one hand, peered out from the opponent's side, and then tossed it towards the basket.
A one-handed three-pointer.
The basketball flew from Kugawa's hand.
Thud…
The basketball bounced off the backboard and landed precisely in the basket.
51 to 28.
However, the others from the Toho Kotei Gakuen weren't paying attention to the basketball.
Kamimono and the others focused their attention on Haizaki Shogo.
Kamimono roared at Haizaki Shogo.
"You bastard, what are you doing?"
Kamimono was known for his volatile temper among the Toho Kotei Gakuen members.
Seeing what Haizaki Shogo had tried to do to Hanafuji earlier, his short temper flared up immediately.
His voice was loud, immediately attracting everyone's attention.
Haizaki Shogo looked up, glancing sideways at Kamimono, then said innocently.
"Huh? What nonsense are you talking about? Did I do anything?"
"You clearly tried to hurt Hanafuji just now."
Hearing Kamimono's words, Haizaki Shogo shrugged, feigning ignorance.
However, he raised an eyebrow at Kamimono and said,
"Don't accuse someone without evidence. I was just doing a normal sealing."
"Bastard..."
Kamimono wanted to say something more, but Kamimono stopped him with a raised hand.
"Alright, Kamimono, that's enough."
He knew this matter wouldn't be resolved until anyone was truly harmed.
Besides, the opponent's block was perfectly reasonable.
Even though the opponent looked dangerous at the time, it didn't cause any serious consequences.
"But..."
Kamimono still wanted to say something, somewhat unwilling.
Kamimono shook his head at him.
"It's useless. Hanafuji wasn't injured, and we have no evidence."
Beep...
Just then.
The referee blew his whistle and spoke in their direction.
"It's still during the game, please be careful, otherwise it will be a technical foul."
Hearing this, Kamimono could only shut his mouth.
Seeing Hanafuji return, everyone asked with concern.
"Are you alright?"
Hanafuji smiled and shook his head at everyone.
"Don't worry, I'm fine, he didn't touch me."
As he spoke, his expression turned serious.
"But we need to be careful from now on."
Kamimono and the others nodded.
Fukuda Sogo consolidated possession.
Ryu once again blocked Haizaki Shogo's charge with the ball, coldly saying.
"Do you know what you're doing?"
Huh?
Haizaki Shogo dribbled the ball, feigning confusion as he replied.
"Of course I'm playing basketball, didn't you see?"
Ryu narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Haizaki... you'd better stop with your dirty tricks, you should know what the consequences are of angering me."
Hearing his words...
Haizaki Shogo's innocent expression instantly turned fierce.
He grinned, his eyes blazing with malice as he stared at Ryu, a crazed look on his face. He gritted his teeth and spoke in a chilling tone.
"Heh heh... Consequences? You think I care? You'd better watch out. Who knows, I might accidentally hurt you one day. Then the world will lose a genius."
Ryu's expression also gradually turned cold.
"So, you're determined to do this...?"
Haizaki Shogo didn't answer.
Instead, his gaze sharpened, his hand dribbling the basketball suddenly paused, then he grabbed the ball and aimed it at Ryu's knee, smashing it with all his might.
"You're hopeless."
Ryu's icy words fell, and he immediately took a step back, dodging Haizaki Shogo's attack.
The referee didn't call a foul.
Haizaki Shogo saw that Ryu had dodged his attack.
He swiftly changed direction, bypassing Ryu, and charged towards the basket of the Toho Kotei Gakuen.
He turned to look at Haizaki Shogo, who was rushing towards his own basket.
Ryu's silver eyes were as cold as ice.
In the stands.
Kise, watching Haizaki Shogo's actions, couldn't help but speak up.
"Haizaki, is that guy crazy? He actually tried to sabotage Ryu."
Rakuzan spectator area.
Reo Mibuchi exclaimed, his eyes wide.
"Was he serious just now? If he had hit him, it wouldn't have been a joke. Isn't he afraid of being expelled from the tournament?"
Kotaro Hayama also said.
"He's given up! He knows he can't win, so he's trying to cripple his opponent."
Saying this, he couldn't help but shudder.
"How terrifying."
Akashi's expression remained impassive, his crimson eyes calmly fixed on the scene below, completely unaffected by what was happening on the court.
...
Seirin's spectator area.
"That guy, resorting to such underhanded tactics when he can't win, how despicable."
Kagami growled in a low voice, clearly annoyed.
Hyuga Junpei also chimed in with a comment.
"How did someone like that even get into the basketball club?"
Izuki Shun chimed in.
"That was dangerous. Luckily, our opponent wasn't Fukuda Sogo."
Aida Riko remarked.
"He's playing violent basketball."
Her words drew the attention of the Seirin members.
"Violent Basketball?"
Kagami looked thoughtful.
Soon, he seemed to realize something.
"Ah, could it be..."
Aida Riko nodded, explaining.
"Violent Basketball, as the name suggests, uses techniques and more sophisticated methods to inflict damage on the opponent while minimizing the risk of being called for fouls by the referee."
Hearing this, Hyuga Junpei seemed to realize something unpleasant, his veins bulging as he said with a displeased expression.
"What?! Isn't that just like Kirisaki Daiichi?!"
Aida Riko rolled her eyes, explaining.
"Idiot, the two are completely different. Kirisaki Daiichi only exploits the referee's blind spots, secretly using underhanded tactics. Violent Basketball is real; whether on offense or defense, a moment's carelessness can cause damage to the opponent."
Alex also explained to the group.
"That's right. This kind of aggressive style of play is more common in professional leagues. It's designed to put psychological and physical pressure on the opponent. Players who aren't mentally or physically strong will usually instinctively avoid it."
She paused, then continued.
"While this kind of aggressive basketball isn't encouraged, as long as it's a reasonable offense and defense, even if it injures the opponent, the referee won't call a foul."
Hearing Alex's explanation, the Seirin players all looked like they'd learned something.
Koganei Shinji looked panicked and said,
"Oh my god…is the professional league that dangerous? Is it too late for me to give up basketball?"
"Koganei, you rascal."
Hyuga Junpei was exasperated.
Alex, however, said with a smile.
"Oh, if you don't go into professional basketball, there won't be any problems."
Koganei Shinji was slightly taken aback, then smiled sheepishly.
"Ha…yeah, ha…"
The rest of the Seirin players were speechless.
Just then.
Alex's expression turned even more serious. She said, :"But that number 6 down there went a bit too far. He was clearly aiming to injure Ryu. The reason the referee didn't call a foul is probably because Ryu wasn't injured. In this situation, the referee usually considers it a fluke."
…
On the court.
Haizaki Shogo had dribbled to the three-point line of the Toho Kotei Gakuen.
Kugawa abandoned his defensive target and quickly ran to help defend.
Haizaki Shogo shouted frantically.
"Get out of the way…"
He changed direction and thrust his body forward.
Haizaki Shogo broke through Kugawa's defense at an extremely tricky angle.
As he broke through, his shoulder also struck Kugawa's right abdomen.
A sharp pain shot through.
Although it wasn't excruciating pain, Kugawa still frowned, and his reactions slowed.
After breaking past Kugawa, Haizaki Shogo headed straight for the basket.
Kamimono stood under the basket.
Looking at Haizaki Shogo, who was charging towards him with a ferocious expression.
His unwavering resolve remained steadfast.
Haizaki Shogo reached the basket, leaped high into the air.
At the same time, Kamimono also sprang up like a cannonball.
His 2-meter frame completely blocked Haizaki Shogo's path.
A red light flashed in Haizaki Shogo's eyes, revealing his ferocious nature.
He gripped the basketball tightly with both hands, then bent his arm, his elbow aimed directly at Kamimono's face.
Seeing the elbow grow larger in his vision, Kamimono's pupils contracted, and he tilted his head, narrowly avoiding the impact.
'This guy…'
Kamimono breathed a slight sigh of relief.
That was close.
Looking at Haizaki Shogo now, he thought the guy was too crazy, completely without any scruples.
Although he dodged the elbow attack, Kamimono still managed to raise his hand in time to block the dunk.
He tilted his head, but his hand was firmly pressed against the basketball that was about to be dunked.
Huh?
Seeing this, Haizaki Shogo immediately raised his knee, shouting,
"Die..."
Thump...
A dull thud echoed throughout the arena.
Kamimono was sent flying backward by Haizaki Shogo's knee.
Seeing this, the atmosphere in the arena fell silent.
Everyone stared wide-eyed.
Kamimono's back slammed against the basket, then slid down.
Finally, he crashed to the ground with a thud.
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I want to reach 20 paid subscriptions on Patreon this week to complete this novel, as it has been over a month since the last subscription.
patreon.com/ayan41x