"Eh? That kid is really something special!" Morishige Hiroshi's gaze was fixed on Aoi Kunisaku on the court below. His face showed a look of surprise, and his eyes sparkled with excitement and curiosity.
The coach of Meihou High furrowed his brow, his expression serious, as he watched Aoi Kunisaku closely. "Although I saw the reports before, I thought the journalists were exaggerating, but now..."
He thought to himself that he could no longer underestimate Shohoku's team.
From the strength Shohoku showed on the court, they were no less impressive than any team in the national tournament.
Of course, that included Sannoh.
On the other side.
The players of Kainan were equally stunned by Aoi Kunisaku's performance. Their faces were full of astonishment.
Kiyota Nobunaga widened his eyes, his mouth agape, pointing at Aoi Kunisaku below, stuttering, "This... this... what is this? His speed seems even faster."
Jin Soichiro slowly nodded, his face full of disbelief, saying, "He seems to have no limits, it's terrifying."
Maki Shinichi stared at Aoi Kunisaku after his successful shot, furrowing his brows. He thought to himself, "His strength seems infinite. The stronger the opponent is, the stronger he becomes."
Thinking back to when he played against Aoi Kunisaku, it felt the same.
Aoi Kunisaku was like a bottomless pit—no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't fathom his true strength.
...
Aoi Kunisaku's sudden outburst truly caught Sannoh off guard.
All the players of Sannoh widened their eyes, their faces filled with shock. They looked as though they had witnessed something unbelievable.
Especially Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji, who had just experienced Aoi Kunisaku's terrifying strength firsthand. The shock in their hearts was beyond words.
Fast, too fast, they couldn't react in time.
'Wild Instinct' can actually reach this level?
Fukatsu Kazunari couldn't calm down for a long time, thinking to himself, 'Is this his "Wild Instinct"? It's incredibly powerful.'
Sawakita Eiji's eyes flickered with disbelief, muttering to himself, "Could this be a higher level of 'Wild Instinct'?"
Both of them were lost in their thoughts.
Aoi Kunisaku's strength had once again exceeded their expectations.
The game continued.
After the earlier surprise, Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji became extra cautious, always on alert for Aoi Kunisaku's sudden attacks.
Before the ball even reached midcourt, they quickly passed it out.
Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji passed the ball back and forth, perfectly in sync, just to avoid Aoi Kunisaku's steal.
Nobe Masahiro acted as the intermediary for the passes. When the ball reached him, his primary task was to pass it to Kawata Masashi or Kawata Mikio inside Shohoku's paint.
Sannoh's players coordinated seamlessly, their offense flowing naturally.
Just as everyone thought Sannoh would score easily this time, Aoi Kunisaku, like a ghost, suddenly appeared again, cleanly snatching the ball from Kawata Mikio's hands.
Kawata Mikio was still in the catching position, his face full of surprise, unable to react in time.
By the time he realized the ball had been stolen, he was already sweating nervously and loudly shouted, "Brother, I lost the ball!"
Kawata Masashi's expression darkened as he spoke in a low voice, "I know."
Though he said that, he knew full well that as a center, there was no way he could catch up with the lightning-fast Aoi Kunisaku.
After stealing the ball, Aoi Kunisaku rushed toward Sannoh's basket like a gust of wind.
Fukatsu Kazunari chased after him with all his might, but both he and Sawakita Eiji, two white figures, couldn't shorten the distance to the red streak ahead.
"Damn it, what is going on?" Fukatsu Kazunari looked at the distant figure of Aoi Kunisaku, feeling both anxious and furious. He cursed under his breath, shocked and helpless at Aoi Kunisaku's unimaginable speed.
At that moment, Sawakita Eiji unexpectedly appeared in front of Aoi Kunisaku.
It turned out, he had anticipated that Aoi Kunisaku might steal the ball, so he had prepared in advance.
It proved to be the right decision, as he was now able to react just in time.
Aoi Kunisaku saw Sawakita Eiji in front of him, but without slowing down, he made a quick lateral move to try and pass by him.
Sawakita Eiji, keeping his eyes fixed on Aoi Kunisaku's every movement, reacted instinctively like a hungry wolf sensing blood.
In the instant Aoi Kunisaku prepared to move around, Sawakita Eiji also sidestepped quickly, closing the gap between him and Aoi Kunisaku.
Hmm?
Aoi Kunisaku narrowed his eyes, surprised to see Sawakita Eiji closing in.
This is...
"Is he just forgetting everything and acting purely on instinct?" Aoi Kunisaku thought as he sensed Sawakita Eiji's movements.
Fukatsu Kazunari, watching from behind, smiled in approval.
At his current position, Fukatsu Kazunari could easily cooperate with Sawakita Eiji to corner Aoi Kunisaku into the side corner of the court.
Unless Aoi Kunisaku can once again make an unpredictable three-point shot with his unorthodox form, it will be very hard for him to escape this predicament.
The two of them gradually started to compress Aoi Kunisaku's dribbling space, finally forcing him into the bottom corner of the boundary.
Success.
Fukatsu Kazunari wore a triumphant smile, as if victory was already in his hands.
"Aiya... you guys seem to be quite happy," Aoi Kunisaku's voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, suddenly rang out.
Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji's pupils instantly contracted, and an ominous premonition surged in their hearts.
The next moment, Aoi Kunisaku spoke again. "You guys don't really think you can force me into a deadlock like this, right? Have you forgotten something?"
Forgotten something?
Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji were filled with confusion.
As they were thinking, Aoi Kunisaku suddenly made a quick move. He dribbled the ball under Fukatsu Kazunari's legs, then quickly pivoted, bypassing Sawakita Eiji on the outside, and took the ball back into his hands with lightning speed.
What?
Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji felt as though their minds were struck by a heavy hammer.
They stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with shock and disbelief.
At this moment, they suddenly remembered that Aoi Kunisaku not only had his unpredictable unorthodox shots but also his near-impossible-to-defend ultra-fast dribbling.
Damn, how did we forget about that?
Both of them were deeply frustrated.
As Sannoh's captain and point guard, Fukatsu Kazunari's mind was sharper and more meticulous than the others.
He couldn't help but fall into deep thought. "Since the second half began, he hasn't used that dribble. Was it a coincidence?"
At this thought, his face suddenly turned pale, and an ominous premonition surged in his heart. "Could it be... he did it on purpose, just for now? How is that possible?"
He couldn't believe it, nor did he want to believe it.
If what he thought was true, didn't that mean they had been played with by Aoi Kunisaku from the start?
Bang...
A heavy, resounding dunk echoed through the court.
After shaking off both players, Aoi Kunisaku dunked the ball forcefully into Sannoh's basket.
The ball swished through the net.
Shohoku 63, Sannoh 68.
On Sannoh's bench, Domoto Goro stood up again.
His eyes were blank as he stared at Aoi Kunisaku, his face now devoid of the composure and calmness from before. Instead, it was filled with shock and a barely noticeable hint of panic.
That's right, he's starting to panic.
The way things were developing was completely beyond his expectations, and it was far from the script he had imagined.
He never thought that even though Fukatsu Kazunari and Sawakita Eiji had given their all, they still couldn't stop Aoi Kunisaku.
Aoi Kunisaku's strength had already exceeded his control.
Sannoh was now facing a serious problem. There wasn't a single player on their team who could stand up to Aoi Kunisaku.
Domoto Goro was at a loss, unsure of what to do.
If things continued like this, Aoi Kunisaku would surely drag Sannoh down.
He kept tapping his foot on the floor, trying to get his brain to think more clearly.
After a long while, a determined look flashed in his eyes, and he thought to himself, "There's no other way. The only solution now is this..."
...
On the spectator stands.
"You're saying Sannoh has fallen into a passive position?" Kiyota Nobunaga asked in confusion, unable to stop himself from asking Maki Shinichi.
Maki Shinichi's gaze remained fixed on the game below, his expression serious as he explained, "Because of Aoi Kunisaku, Sannoh doesn't have any players who can counter him. Sending two players to double-team is already the limit. Shohoku isn't just Aoi Kunisaku..."
He paused for a moment, organizing his thoughts, and continued, "Maybe even Sannoh didn't expect that Aoi Kunisaku's strength would be this formidable, able to overpower two players with 'Wild Instinct' and score."
Jin Soichiro then added with a hint of emotion, "We didn't expect it either!"
Kiyota Nobunaga, after hearing this, asked again, "Does Sannoh have no countermeasure? They can't just let Shohoku pull ahead, can they?"
Maki Shinichi thought for a moment before replying, "There is a solution, but it depends on what Sannoh's coach decides."
Eh?
Kiyota Nobunaga blinked in confusion, not quite understanding what his own team captain meant.
...
Whistle...
At that moment, a sharp whistle suddenly cut through the noise of the court.
Sannoh called for a timeout.