In the silent gym, it started with scattered claps.
Then more and more applause rose up, followed by waves of cheers and shouts.
In an instant, the whole gym exploded like hot oil meeting cold water.
"That was awesome! Aoi Kunisaku is way too cool!"
"Great defense, great offense—and that speed!"
"Watching him play feels like watching art. There's no friction at all."
"Is he even human? How can someone be that fast? He's like a sprinter!"
…
The crowd was filled with praise. Everyone was in awe of Aoi Kunisaku's brilliant counter.
Morishige Hiroshi stared at Aoi Kunisaku. His expression turned much more serious than before, and a thoughtful look flashed in his eyes.
He seemed to realize what went wrong. When Aoi Kunisaku broke past him, he was completely helpless. In agility and speed, he couldn't match him at all.
Time ticked by.
Both sides kept switching between offense and defense. Neither team backed down.
Morishige got smarter. He no longer rushed out to guard Aoi Kunisaku one-on-one. He held his position under the basket.
He understood clearly—his greatest strength was down low. Whether on offense or defense, he had to use his size in the paint if he wanted to take on Aoi Kunisaku.
Soon, the ball came back to Meihou's side.
It ended up in Akagi Takenori's hands.
Akagi shouted and pushed forward, eyes set, trying to muscle past Morishige for a powerful dunk.
But when his body hit Morishige, it was like slamming into a brick wall. The man didn't budge.
Akagi's heart jumped. Before he could react, Morishige's hand shot in and poked at the ball.
Pa—
Akagi couldn't hold on. The ball slipped right out of his grasp. His face twisted with frustration.
Next possession.
The ball once again found its way to Akagi.
This time, thanks to a perfect screen by Sakuragi Hanamichi, Akagi got a clean scoring opportunity.
He didn't hesitate. He jumped high with the ball clutched in both hands and went for a forceful dunk.
But just as he was about to score, everything went black.
A huge figure loomed in front of him like a mountain. It was Morishige.
Without a word, Morishige swung his thick arm. His palm slammed into the ball in Akagi's hands.
Pa—
A heavy, sharp sound rang through the court.
Akagi felt a surge of force crash into his arms like a tidal wave. His dunking arm was jolted back by the block.
The ball flew out of his hands and smacked the floor behind him.
After that, Akagi fell into a rough stretch.
He couldn't get anything going on offense and was completely shut down on defense.
Every dunk from Morishige was like a hammer, pounding away at Akagi's confidence.
Akagi Takenori was drenched in sweat. His face looked exhausted, but his eyes still burned with unyielding will.
Sakuragi Hanamichi saw how worn out Akagi looked. He couldn't help but feel uneasy and quickly stepped over.
"Hey, Gorilla, you okay?" he asked with concern.
Akagi wiped the sweat off his forehead. His tired eyes gradually regained focus. He shook his head and said firmly, "I'm fine. That guy's just got some brute strength. I'm not losing to someone like that."
"Really?" Sakuragi still seemed unsure. "You don't look fine to me. Want me to help out?"
Akagi didn't answer right away.
He knew clearly that handling Morishige Hiroshi alone was a bit too much. If Sakuragi came to help, it could ease some of the pressure.
But he also understood—if Sakuragi came over to double-team, one of the opponents would end up wide open. That risk was too high.
In the end, Akagi shook his head and said seriously, "I've got this. Don't help. Just focus on your own plays. Don't get baited into fouling out."
Hearing that, Sakuragi instantly protested, "No way I'm fouling out! Just watch! I, the genius Sakuragi Hanamichi, will crush them!"
At that point, around 8 minutes had passed since the game began.
The digital scoreboard read 26 to 21.
Shohoku led Meihou by 5 points.
At first glance, nothing seemed unusual about the score.
But over in the stands, the players from Kainan noticed something odd.
Kiyota Nobunaga looked at Shohoku on the court and muttered a little bitterly, "Only a 5-point lead, huh? Not bad."
Maki Shinichi furrowed his brow slightly and said, "Strange… something feels off. But I can't quite place it."
Kiyota glanced over at Maki. "Huh? Maki-senpai, what do you mean something's off?"
Maki shook his head, thoughtful.
Maki Shinichi spoke up after a moment of silence. "It's the score. It looks normal on the surface, but it's not—because of that guy."
"That guy? You mean Aoi Kunisaku?" Kiyota asked.
Maki nodded. "Almost all of Shohoku's points came from Aoi Kunisaku. With his defense, he should be shutting down Meihou's shots. But Meihou's score is keeping up. That's not right."
Maki Shinichi's eyes lit up like something had just clicked. He suddenly said, "That's it! All of Meihou's points are from number 15. Aoi Kunisaku hasn't guarded him at all."
"So what does that mean?" Kiyota still didn't get it.
Maki explained patiently, "It could mean Aoi Kunisaku doesn't want to guard number 15, or maybe he can't. The size difference between them is just too big. Down in the paint, Morishige Hiroshi's advantage is huge. It won't be easy for Aoi Kunisaku to stop him."
Kiyota nodded slowly, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
Just then, as they were still talking about Aoi Kunisaku and Morishige Hiroshi—
Pa—
A soft but crisp sound reached their ears.
Everyone from Kainan immediately looked up toward the court.
And all of them wore the exact same expression—total disbelief.