The match between Shohoku and Meihou was still going.
Smack—
Another sharp Block rang out.
No one even knew how many times Sakuragi Hanamichi had been blocked by now.
Even though he'd activated his Wild Instinct and boosted his strength a bit—
Against Morishige Hiroshi's insane physicality, he still struggled.
At least he wasn't falling flat on his face like before.
But scoring over Morishige's head was still almost impossible.
Before anyone noticed, the first half was nearing its end.
Even though Morishige Hiroshi had been dominant, Meihou hadn't managed to close the gap. In fact, Shohoku was slowly pulling away.
Right now the score was Shohoku 52, Meihou 38.
A 14-point difference.
All credit went to Aoi Kunisaku.
Shohoku couldn't stop Morishige's Slam Dunks.
But it worked both ways. Meihou had no answer for Aoi Kunisaku's Shots either.
More than once, he nailed a clean 2+1 on them.
At this point, everyone on Meihou—except Morishige—was scared of facing Aoi Kunisaku head-on.
There was only one play left before the first half ended.
Meihou had possession.
Nakayama Tenri carefully dribbled the ball forward.
Even though Sakuragi Hanamichi was messing with Morishige, Nakayama didn't dare let his guard down.
Sakuragi's entire presence was giving off serious pressure.
Next moment, Nakayama glanced toward Morishige's spot and shouted, "Mori—!"
Then he faked a Pass.
Sakuragi's eyes narrowed. He immediately reached out to intercept.
But then—Nakayama snapped back the pass and did a behind-the-back hand switch, slipping past Sakuragi's side.
Their shoulders brushed. Nakayama grinned wide as he blew by.
'Looks like your Wild Instinct isn't that great after all.'
But the next second, a chill surged through his chest.
It hit him like ice water. Before he could react—
He felt the ball leave his hands.
Smack—
A crisp slap echoed.
Nakayama's eyes flew wide. Shock froze on his face.
Behind him, Sakuragi Hanamichi smirked viciously. "Big idiot. Your fake was way too obvious."
After stealing the ball from Nakayama, Sakuragi spun and bolted straight toward Meihou's basket.
He was like a wild beast who'd caught prey and couldn't wait to tear into it.
Meihou's players scrambled to get back on Defense.
"Hehe... This time you're not stopping me!" Sakuragi shouted with a smug grin as he charged into the Paint.
The moment he stepped into the key, he bent his knees and jumped without hesitation.
Cradling the ball with both hands, he lifted it high above his head.
His face turned savage, like he was about to crush the rim—as if it were Morishige Hiroshi himself.
"Ahhh… behold my Sakuragi Hanamichi Slam Dunk!" Sakuragi shouted at the top of his lungs. His hands swung down, aiming to smash the ball through.
But just then, a shadow suddenly blocked the light behind his head.
A giant hand shot out from behind him—straight for the ball right as it was about to hit the rim.
Smack—
Bang—
The ball flew out of Sakuragi's hands, slammed into the backboard, and bounced away.
Sakuragi's eyes went wide. He couldn't believe what had just happened.
"My dunk!" he screamed inside his head.
Then came a voice behind him. One he absolutely hated.
"That was close! You almost made it."
"You again, you damn oversized gorilla!" Sakuragi cursed, full of rage. But there was nothing he could do.
On Meihou's bench—
Nomoto Reizou nodded in satisfaction after watching Morishige Hiroshi pull off the Block.
As long as they kept defending like this and didn't let Shohoku pull too far ahead…
There might still be a chance to turn the game around in the second half.
Just when everyone thought the first half was about to end uneventfully—
Suddenly, the ball that had bounced off the backboard got caught—by a hand from midair.
Morishige sensed something behind him. But he was still in the air and couldn't turn to see.
Everyone else saw it clearly.
The Meihou players' faces turned pale the moment they recognized the figure behind Morishige.
They knew that silhouette too well—it was Aoi Kunisaku.
He'd launched himself sideways, gliding just behind Morishige Hiroshi, and casually snatched the ball out of midair.
Without even turning his head, before he landed, Aoi Kunisaku flung the ball behind him.
Whoosh—
The basketball soared over Morishige and Sakuragi's heads. It hit the backboard and bounced—
Swish—
Clean into the basket.
Step…
Step…
Sakuragi and Morishige both landed at the same time.
Sakuragi stared blankly at the net, watching the ball drop through.
Morishige turned his head toward Aoi Kunisaku's back.
He hadn't seen what happened, but he saw the ball fall through his own hoop.
It had to be Aoi's doing.
He was not happy. Not happy at all.
The whole gym was stunned by that play.
Nomoto Reizou stood with his mouth hanging open, staring at Aoi Kunisaku like he was some kind of monster.
The Meihou players stood frozen in place. Their brains stopped working.
All they could think about was that no-look Shot Aoi had just pulled off.
Tweet—
The referee, dazed for a moment, finally blew the whistle to signal the end of the first half.
Shohoku 54, Meihou 38.
Shohoku led Meihou by 16 points for now.