At that moment, an invisible, untouchable, but terrifying pressure weighed on every player from Sannoh.
Sawakita Eiji's body trembled slightly. He stared at Aoi Kunisaku, eyes full of confusion. "What… what is he really?"
"What's going on with him? What the hell did he just do?" Fukatsu Kazunari asked, totally lost.
"Is this what Saku-chan meant by the invincibility behind that door?" Shimizu Kanon whispered. Her eyes locked tightly on Aoi Kunisaku, filled with shock and curiosity. She didn't blink.
The game ticked on second by second, under a heavy and absurd atmosphere.
Clap—
A sharp sound echoed again.
Sannoh's pass was once again cleanly intercepted by Aoi Kunisaku.
Sawakita Eiji and Fukatsu Kazunari instantly chased after him with everything they had.
But Aoi Kunisaku's figure shot off like a beam of light, getting farther and farther from their sight.
They could only stand there in stunned silence, eyes wide, watching him casually lay the ball in.
Swish—
The ball sank straight through the net.
Shohoku 91, Sannoh Kogyo 92.
Sannoh tried to strike back.
Before Fukatsu Kazunari even crossed half-court, he lobbed the ball high above Shohoku's paint, trying to set up a beautiful alley-oop dunk for Kawata Masashi.
But just as Akagi Takenori and Kawata Masashi leapt up for the ball—
Aoi Kunisaku suddenly appeared, descending like a thunder god with crackling blue lightning.
With a vertical nearly half an arm's length higher than both, he snatched the ball cleanly out of the air.
"What?!"
Everyone watching was stunned. Eyes wide. Jaws dropped.
Only now did they realize that Aoi Kunisaku wasn't just fast—his jumping ability was beyond reason.
The moment he touched the ground, he turned into a flash of blue and vanished from view.
'Damn it!'
The Sannoh players cursed in their hearts, quickly scanning the court to find Aoi Kunisaku again.
They soon felt a strong gust rush past them.
When they turned around, Aoi Kunisaku was already deep in the paint, completely unchallenged. He had jumped and released the shot.
Sannoh's players were still stuck at Shohoku's end, mouths hanging open in disbelief.
Swish—
The ball dropped cleanly into Sannoh's basket once more.
Shohoku 93, Sannoh Kogyo 92.
Shohoku had finally taken the lead.
But the arena was silent. No cheers. No shouting.
It was like everyone had agreed beforehand to say nothing.
It wasn't that they didn't want to cheer.
They were just frozen—completely stunned by Aoi Kunisaku's terrifying strength.
They were scared.
They had never seen anything like this.
In all their years watching basketball, this was the first time they saw one man completely crush five opponents. And not just crush them—they didn't even get a chance to react.
What kind of monster was Aoi Kunisaku?
Everyone had the same question in their hearts.
Domoto Goro sat down heavily, blank-eyed.
The light in his eyes was gone. Only despair remained.
It's over. Everything's over.
Sannoh's era was done.
From the moment Shohoku took the lead, he knew—the once-glorious Sannoh dynasty was now history.
The rest of the game played out just as he feared.
Sannoh collapsed completely.
In the Zone, Aoi Kunisaku crushed Sannoh's five players single-handedly. And it wasn't even close. Sannoh couldn't react at all.
Any time they crossed into Shohoku's half with the ball, without fail, Aoi Kunisaku would silently take it away.
The players from Sannoh didn't even know how the ball was getting stolen.
Gradually, they became afraid to even pass, terrified that Aoi Kunisaku would suddenly dart out and steal it.
Sannoh launched yet another offense.
Haa... huu... haa... huu... haa... huu...
Sawakita Eiji panted hard, drenched in sweat, dribbling the ball forward. He hadn't even crossed half-court when—
Clap—
A crisp snap rang out.
Sawakita Eiji, caught off guard, suddenly felt his hands go empty. The ball had once again been stolen by Aoi Kunisaku.
Sawakita Eiji's eyes widened. He gritted his teeth, trying desperately to recover, but it was useless.
Aoi Kunisaku's gaze was calm and detached. His figure flickered like lightning as he left behind a cold remark.
"The light of mortals... is just too dim."
Whoosh—
As the words fell, he bolted again toward Sannoh's basket and slammed it in.
And just like that, as the game neared its end, Aoi Kunisaku kept stealing Sannoh's passes and scoring again and again.
Shohoku began pulling away from Sannoh on the scoreboard.
97 to 92.
99 to 92.
101 to 92.
…
Until the very last second of the match.
Aoi Kunisaku once again struck like lightning, appearing beneath Sannoh's basket.
His calm and powerful voice echoed clearly in every Sannoh player's ears.
"I'll give you credit for one thing—none of you gave up until the end."
Right as he finished speaking, he leapt high and slammed the ball hard into the hoop.
Clang—
The ball dropped cleanly into the net.
Bweeet—
At the same time, the referee's final whistle blew.
In that instant, the entire gym fell into silence. It was like time itself had stopped.
"AAAAHHHHH!"
After a moment of stillness, a deafening roar exploded, loud enough to shake the roof.
The Shohoku players' faces were filled with wild joy. Like maniacs, they rushed at Aoi Kunisaku and tackled him to the floor.
Completely unguarded, Aoi Kunisaku was buried under their sudden wave of excitement.
On Shohoku's bench, everyone was overwhelmed. Some were crying tears of joy. Others laughed out loud. They rushed the court, piling on each other like a giant stack of bodies.
"This is amazing—we did it!" Ayako laughed excitedly. Tears rolled from the corners of her eyes.
She knew better than anyone how hard this win had been for Shohoku. She also knew just how much effort and sweat they'd poured in for this day.
Shimizu Kanon watched as everyone released their joy with all they had. Then she looked at Aoi Kunisaku, stuck under the pile with a helpless look on his face. Her lips curled into a soft, sweet smile.
Hohohoho...
Anzai Mitsuyoshi slowly stood and let out his signature laugh.
"Kanon-san, we owe it all to you. Thank you for your hard work."
Shimizu Kanon smiled and replied softly,
"It wasn't hard. It's what I should do."
In today's game, Anzai Mitsuyoshi had seen the extent of Shimizu Kanon's incredible talent.
It was a power completely different from Aoi Kunisaku's, but just as strong and unique.
His heart was full of awe and emotion. He couldn't imagine what would come next, but he was full of hope.
An invincible Aoi Kunisaku on the court, and the invincible Shimizu Kanon off it—
Sigh...
Anzai Mitsuyoshi let out a faint sigh. His eyes sparkled with a light he had never shown before.
He had a feeling.
It wouldn't be long before the entire basketball scene in Japan would flip on its head.
Maybe… even the world.