BOOM!
In front of a silent crowd, Tendou and Murasakibara collided head-on with their full weight. The shock reverberated through the arena, instantly silencing thousands of spectators.
It was, without a doubt, one of the most jaw-dropping moments of this year's national tournament.
Two prodigies—like immovable mountains—crashed into each other with such force that it felt like the entire court was trembling.
"Impossible!?"
Araki Masako, who had just sat down, shot back to her feet with her mouth agape.
Even though Tendou looked strained—his legs braced against the floor, body leaning forward into Murasakibara—he actually stopped him.
What the hell?!
"Too much… this isn't just mimicry anymore. Tendou's a flawless replica!"
Kise Ryota muttered in disbelief.
Kise could copy techniques—but Tendou was copying raw talent.
『YYSY (You're absolutely right): Aomine's speed, Murasakibara's power, Midorima's shooting, Akashi's passing…
This guy was basically a walking "full set."』
『Goddamn it, this Six Eyes skill is totally broken! How is anyone supposed to win against that?』
『Let's go ban Tendou from the game, for real!』
Even the real-world viewers were stunned.
A height gap of nearly 10cm.
A weight difference of over 10kg.
In the world of basketball, those are decisive margins.
Yet Tendou had completely neutralized Murasakibara's charge.
This was way more shocking than any of his flashy steals.
Murasakibara was equally stunned, eyes wide with disbelief as he doubled down with more force.
Tendou braced himself again.
It felt like he was trying to stop a tank with his bare hands.
Murasakibara's power was absurd—it was like going up against a 2cm-taller version of LeBron James.
LeBron didn't use fancy footwork in his early years.
He just grabbed the ball and bulldozed to the rim. Pure, raw athleticism. No logic needed.
And that alone made him the NBA's all-time leading scorer.
But Murasakibara?
He might be even crazier.
Not because he was taller than LeBron or stronger, but because at the high school level, there simply wasn't anyone who could stop him.
Even in the NBA, few could slow down peak LeBron. But you could still challenge him.
Murasakibara?
You'd be hard-pressed to find a single player in Japan that could stand up to him.
Just look at that one game in middle school—he bulldozed his way to a single-game national record, scoring more than 60 points.
Neither Araki Masako nor anyone from Yōsen ever imagined that someone could match Murasakibara's strength.
And yet, here it was.
Tendou had Murasakibara pinned at the top of the key, unable to take even a single step forward.
...
"Pass it, Atsushi!"
Okamura Kenichi rushed over for support, hand outstretched.
Murasakibara noticed and shifted his gaze.
He feinted a pass, only to suddenly accelerate, trying to break free from Tendou's defense.
But it was no use.
Tendou's eyes flashed—stars spinning in their depths.
He saw Murasakibara's next move before it even happened.
He murmured softly, cutting off the future:
"Dismantle."
Smack—!
The ball was stripped away.
Murasakibara surged forward, only to find the ball still sitting motionless in Tendou's hands.
"You really gave it your all—almost managed to break through."
Tendou said with a grin before lowering his body in an instant and darting away like a beam of light.
"Don't even think about it!"
Himuro and Fukui converged, flanking Tendou from left and right to cut off his escape.
But Tendou didn't even consider slowing down.
From his shadow, a black monster rose—it smirked, looking down on the two as if they were merely background characters.
Tap, tap!
Tendou dribbled twice, stepped left, then right—tracing a lightning-fast Z-pattern through the narrow gap between them.
So fluid. So crisp. It looked like he'd rehearsed it a thousand times.
Every motion flowed like water—flawless.
Himuro and Fukui could do nothing but watch as Tendou passed through them like air.
They turned to give chase—
But Murasakibara was already in motion.
His powerful strides made him look like a sprinter.
He sprinted back on defense and caught up just as Tendou crossed the three-point line.
Tendou stopped abruptly.
Murasakibara matched him step for step.
His massive body came to a screeching halt, skidding half a meter across the court, looking like a feral beast ready to pounce.
But what happened next was even more absurd.
As Tendou rose into his shooting motion, Murasakibara leapt after him—
a half-meter away, hand fully outstretched to cover every possible trajectory between the ball and the rim.
A block seemed guaranteed.
And yet—
Swish!
The ball passed through Murasakibara's palm and sank cleanly into the net.
The furious look on Murasakibara's face instantly froze in shock.
"…A Mirage Shot?!"
"A Mirage Shot?!"
The words erupted from the Yōsen bench and from Alexandra Garcia at the same time.
It wasn't that the shot itself was inconceivable.
It was that the shot belonged to Himuro Tatsuya.
"Y-you… you…"
Himuro stammered, completely speechless.
He suspected Tendou might have some connection to his mentor.
But he quickly rejected that idea—he and his teacher had lived in the U.S. until this year.
Tendou had been in Japan the whole time. There was no overlap.
Then there was only one explanation:
He had watched Himuro's matches and copied the shot. Just like Kise Ryota.
"Momoi, wasn't that my Mirage Shot?"
Himuro asked hoarsely.
Before the national tournament began, Momoi Satsuki had warned them about several players to keep an eye on.
The Generation of Miracles, obviously.
The Uncrowned Kings too—everyone knew those names.
But aside from them…
There was one more player they were told to prepare for.
That player was Himuro Tatsuya.
"Yes~!"
Momoi smiled playfully, recalling a night from not long ago.
She remembered Tendou soaring through the air like an eagle, recreating Himuro's shot to near perfection.
The very first time Tendou attempted it, he had replicated the essence of the Mirage Shot.
That memory made her throat go dry.
Back when Himuro parted ways with Kagami, it was because he realized Kagami possessed the natural gifts he had always dreamed of.
That kind of fear and frustration… was hard to put into words.
"He didn't use it against us… not against Kaijō either…"
"Then that must mean…" someone whispered.
"Yes," Momoi nodded. "Just like you're guessing—Tendou learned the Mirage Shot after the Kaijō match."
She gave a brief summary of how Tendou had copied the shot.
Some people are just born different…
Himuro's heart trembled.
Once again, he had been dealt a heavy blow—by someone destined for greatness.
...
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