Silence...
The entire venue was eerily quiet, as if time itself had frozen at this moment.
This scene could be said to have completely stunned everyone.
They never expected basketball could be played like this.
Boom...
After a brief moment of silence, the venue erupted with deafening screams and cheers, the sound waves seemingly ready to break through the sky.
This overwhelming scene completely ignited the blood of the audience.
All the spectators were excited, shouting at the top of their lungs, waving their arms, and freely releasing their emotions.
"Ah... so amazing, so amazing."
"I never thought basketball could be played like this, I've really learned something new."
"That dunk was just too cool."
"Is this a self-alley-oop? How did he even do that?"
"He even chased down the ball from his own baseline, that's insane."
...
The people from Toyotama were all dumbfounded at this moment, their eyes filled with shock and confusion.
Their gaze towards Aoi Kunisaku had completely changed.
From the disdain and indifference before the game started.
To the later vigilance, cautiousness, and recognition.
To now, fear, numbness, and extreme shock.
It could be said that, even before the first half ended, Aoi Kunisaku had already become a nightmare in the hearts of the Toyotama players.
If the people of Toyotama had weaker hearts, they might have already collapsed completely.
25-0.
Such a lopsided score was enough to make any team feel desperate.
The people from Kainan, witnessing this, fell into silence as well.
Although they had a general idea that Shohoku would win the match, they never expected Shohoku to dominate Toyotama this much right from the start.
It was beyond their imagination.
"This is too ridiculous! That guy really is all over the place. But to completely shut out Toyotama, that's terrifying," Kiyota Nobunaga said, incredulously staring at the game, his body trembling slightly in awe.
Shinzou Ichirou nodded seriously and said, "Yeah! Shohoku is stronger than when we played them before."
Maki Shinichi's gaze became heavy as he stared at Shohoku's players and slowly said, "If Shohoku can beat us, it shows they have the strength to be in the top four nationwide, but the key is the match against Sannoh."
Upon hearing this, the faces of the Kainan team changed.
They all knew that Maki Shinichi was talking about Sannoh Kogyo.
This was a team widely recognized as the strongest in the country, without question. Their strength was undeniable.
Especially with their player, Sawakita Eiji, who was regarded as "the strongest high school player in the country," far surpassing players from other schools, even said to be on a different level entirely.
Maki Shinichi's gaze shifted to Aoi Kunisaku, his thoughts deep. "Perhaps... the title of the strongest in the country might be changing hands soon. I really look forward to their showdown."
He thought this, but the game continued.
On the court, it was as if one half was bathed in sunlight, while the other half was covered in dark clouds.
The clear skies represented Shohoku.
The dark clouds represented Toyotama.
The people from Toyotama were already drenched in sweat, gasping for air.
They felt completely exhausted, every one of them with their spirits stretched to the limit, like a string ready to snap at any moment.
At this point, there were about 12 minutes left in the first half.
Aoi Kunisaku once again approached Minami Tsuyoshi with extreme speed and superb skill, easily stealing the ball from his hands.
The players from Toyotama quickly reacted, two coming to help Minami Tsuyoshi, attempting to double-team Aoi Kunisaku.
After playing for so long, they had gradually figured out Shohoku's tactics.
That was, Aoi Kunisaku never passed the ball; once he had the ball, it was all about one-on-one play.
Such an opponent was the easiest to deal with.
Of course, if someone was as strong as Aoi Kunisaku, things would be entirely different.
No matter what, considering the current situation, double-teaming seemed to be the most reliable strategy with the highest success rate.
Minami Tsuyoshi closely pursued from behind, while Kashimoto and Yajima Kyohei rushed to assist from the front, trying to close in on Aoi Kunisaku.
"This time, you're dead," Kashimoto murmured fiercely, his eyes filled with savage determination.
Aoi Kunisaku slightly raised the corner of his mouth, showing a faint smile, his eyes calm without a hint of change, as if the double-team in front of him meant nothing.
Just as the three were about to successfully trap him, Aoi Kunisaku suddenly altered his dribble.
He slammed the ball forcefully onto the ground, sending it bouncing straight to Minami Tsuyoshi's feet, causing the ball to rebound back up.
Caught off guard, Minami Tsuyoshi hesitated, his steps slowing involuntarily.
At this moment, Aoi Kunisaku swiftly made a large turn to his left and backward, skillfully slipping through the gap forming in the double-team between Minami Tsuyoshi and Yajima Kyohei.
Everything happened so quickly that the three defenders couldn't react in time.
By the time they realized what was happening, Aoi Kunisaku had already circled around to Minami Tsuyoshi's back and regained control of the ball that had bounced back.
At the same time, he smoothly shifted to Minami Tsuyoshi's right side.
Because these actions were so fast, and with their attention divided between the left and right, neither Minami Tsuyoshi nor Yajima Kyohei noticed Aoi Kunisaku's movement.
However, Kashimoto was different.
He was already on the right side, so when Aoi Kunisaku appeared behind Minami Tsuyoshi, he was shocked, but still reacted faster than the other two.
Although he didn't understand exactly what was happening, or why Aoi Kunisaku appeared from that position, his body instinctively responded.
Kishimoto Minori took a step forward, arms outstretched, trying to block Aoi Kunisaku's path with his body and Minami Tsuyoshi's.
However, as Kishimoto Minori moved, the previously tight three-man double-team instantly opened up a gap.
Aoi Kunisaku didn't hesitate. He quickly executed a behind-the-back hand swap, shifting the ball from his right hand to his left.
Next, he turned his body to the left, moving swiftly like a nimble leopard, slipping right into the gap between the three-man double-team that had formed.
Kishimoto Minori's eyes widened in shock, his expression one of disbelief.
He never imagined Aoi Kunisaku would choose to break through between him and Minami Tsuyoshi.
Even though he had stepped out to create a small gap in the defense, in his mind, that gap was far from easy to pass through.
But he overlooked one thing—using conventional thinking to estimate Aoi Kunisaku was a complete mistake.
Aoi Kunisaku had extraordinary speed, so before the gap could close, he used his incredible speed to easily and calmly slip through.
And sure enough, as expected, Aoi Kunisaku successfully entered the three-man double-team.
Then, he quickly executed another behind-the-back hand swap, shifting the ball from his left hand back to his right.
The movement caught Minami Tsuyoshi and Yajima Kyohei's attention.
Both quickly turned their heads.
However, Aoi Kunisaku's movements showed no sign of stopping. He controlled his body, turned, and dashed out of the gap with no decrease in speed, heading straight for Toyotama's basket.
The series of movements was fluid and continuous, with no hesitation, resembling an unprecedented artistic dance. It was a joy to watch, overwhelming to keep up with.
Earlier, Iwata Mitsuaki and Itakura Daijiro, stationed under the basket for Toyotama, were so shocked by what they saw that cold sweat started pouring from them.
What exactly did they just see?
What was that move?
They had never seen a dribbling technique like that before.
They couldn't make sense of it, couldn't understand, couldn't grasp it.
As they watched, Aoi Kunisaku was almost at them.
Both players tensed their bodies immediately.
Facing the two defenders under the basket, Aoi Kunisaku's speed remained unrelenting.
He moved like a streak of light speeding through the universe, almost reaching them in the blink of an eye.
Iwata Mitsuaki and Itakura Daijiro dared not be careless. Sweat was streaming down their faces, but their bodies still made defensive moves.
They closed in on each other, one hand raised to block the shooting lane and the other hand stretched to cover the driving lane.
At that moment, the two of them seemed to merge into a broad, majestic mountain, attempting to block Aoi Kunisaku at its base.
Screech...
A high-pitched sound of sneakers scraping against the court echoed throughout the gym.
Aoi Kunisaku seemed to have collided with an invisible wall in front of Iwata Mitsuaki and Itakura Daijiro. His forward momentum came to a sudden halt.
Sudden stop...
The thought flashed simultaneously through Iwata Mitsuaki and Itakura Daijiro's minds.
They were not unfamiliar with this scene, having seen it once before.
A sense of foreboding surged in both of them.
Could it be that Aoi Kunisaku was about to force a shot right in front of them?
Sure enough, the next second, Aoi Kunisaku leaped into the air, ball held high, and made a textbook shooting motion.
Both players' pupils contracted sharply, and they simultaneously shouted, pushing off the ground, leaping up, arms stretched high to block every possible shot from Aoi Kunisaku.
However, when they saw Aoi Kunisaku's movement, they were stunned.
Iwata Mitsuaki: "What the hell?"
Itakura Daijiro: "This can't be real."
It wasn't just the two of them. Everyone in the gym, except for Shohoku's players, was left speechless, eyes wide in shock.
The crowd couldn't believe their eyes, doubting if they were seeing an illusion.
Minami Tsuyoshi and his teammates, who had been previously broken through by Aoi Kunisaku, were completely frozen, expressions filled with shock, confusion, and disbelief.
Under the gaze of the entire arena, Aoi Kunisaku's body started to lean backward in the air, leaning back further and further.
Finally, his body was almost parallel to the ground.
A fadeaway jumper.
The thought appeared in everyone's mind.
They all knew the fadeaway jumper.
But what the hell was this?
There must be a limit to a fadeaway jumper, right?
This could only be described as a "lying down" jumper!
Next, with all eyes on him, Aoi Kunisaku shot the basketball while nearly horizontal in midair.
The ball shot out, soaring over the hands of Iwata Mitsuaki and Itakura Daijiro, heading straight for the Toyotama basket.
Swish...
A crisp, sweet sound of the net was heard.
The basketball fell cleanly into the hoop.
Shohoku 27-0 Toyotama.
Beep...
Almost simultaneously, the referee blew the whistle.
Toyotama called a timeout.
Kanehira, Toyotama's coach, even without any say, had to call a timeout.
He still held onto his coaching ethics.
Under these circumstances, the players would certainly suffer a psychological blow, potentially affecting their basketball careers in the future.
Though he felt calling a timeout now might already be too late.