Before long
Shigure Akihito and Shuzo Nijimura were standing face-to-face on the court.
From Shigure's perspective, the way Nijimura was looking at him, sharp as a hunting beast, carried not excitement, but the calm confidence of someone long accustomed to victory.
"Nijimura Shuzo."
Suddenly, Nijimura spoke up.
Shigure blinked in surprise. Realizing the other was introducing himself, he replied instinctively:
"Shigure Akihito."
On the sideline, Coach Hakugin Kozo couldn't help the faint smile curling at the corners of his lips.
He remembered very clearly: when Nijimura crushed that second-string player earlier, there hadn't been even a hint of this kind of politeness.
Meanwhile,
The rookies and second-string players were quietly gathering near the court where the two monsters stood.
The murmurs grew louder:
"It's really happening. The clash between these two freaks."
"Talk about speaking something into existence…"
"Uhh… is it weird that I'm kind of nervous?"
"Same here. And we're just watching from the sidelines. But you all saw it, they're on a completely different level."
To avoid disrupting the rest of the tryouts, this match was set to 11 points, instead of the usual 21.
And honestly, looking at how even the other players and assistant coaches were sneaking glances this way, it was obvious,
This showdown had everyone's full attention.
On the sideline,
Coach Sanada Naoto handed the ball to Shigure and blew the starting whistle himself.
On the court,
Nijimura stared directly at Shigure, eyes burning.
"I hope you can put up more of a fight than that worthless guy earlier."
Shigure: "…"
This guy…
You really couldn't think of him as the "Captain Nijimura" of later days.
He wasn't as malicious as Haizaki, but his aggression was far more intense.
No wonder Nijimura would take such a strong interest in Haizaki later on,
Probably saw a version of his younger self in him.
Shigure took the ball in both hands.
With his newly updated stats, he felt like a completely different player.
Every inch of his body brimmed with elasticity, energy coiling and ready to spring.
He glanced at the rim.
Spun the ball between his fingers, then caught it in his palm.
"I feel the same. I'm looking forward to the rush of a real battle. Just don't be as flimsy as that second-string defense just now."
"Nijimura Shuzo."
Nijimura's expression stiffened for a brief moment.
Then, for the first time that day, his glacier-like face cracked into the smallest trace of a smile.
Flimsy, huh…
That was… pretty accurate.
This guy…
Shigure squared up in a triple-threat stance.
From his earlier observation, he knew Nijimura's defense was going to be elite.
He'd expected nothing less.
But now,
Equipped with the combined stats and abilities of two players, Shigure felt ready.
Most importantly,
Even though the system hadn't popped up a mission notification like earlier, he figured that was just because he'd already claimed all his "newbie rewards."
Still, defeating a key narrative figure like Nijimura had to drop some loot, right? Maybe coins? A bonus?
Either way,
Getting new skills, new attributes, then testing them on the court like this…
It was addictive.
Right now,
Shigure Akihito was fully immersed.
In the match.
In the world of basketball.
And his opponent,
Was the future Captain of the Rainbow Generation,
Shuzo Nijimura!
Thump~!
Thump~!
Thump~!
Shigure could literally hear the excited thumping of his own heart.
On court,
Nijimura's defense mirrored the way he opened against Ichiji Koichi earlier: giving Shigure a full step of space.
If it had been Ichiji, Shigure wouldn't have hesitated to launch a jumper and punish the gap.
But,
This wasn't Ichiji.
This was Nijimura Shuzo.
Even with that cushion, the pressure on Shigure's shot was on a whole different level.
Because Nijimura's footwork wasn't just fast,
It was ridiculous.
This was the same guy who'd lured players into the paint, only to chase them down from behind and block their shots with ease.
On the flip side,
The fact that Nijimura maintained that safety buffer while still ready to defend both the shot and drive,
Only proved one thing:
He was taking this match seriously.
After watching Nijimura's previous game, Shigure had already ruled out using "Stationary Smooth Three" or even the more advanced combo of "Moonstep Retreat + Smooth Three."
With Nijimura's insane speed and vertical, those preset moves were too easy to read. Even if he couldn't block it outright, he'd almost certainly interfere.
So instead,
Pa!
Pa!
Pa!
Out of the triple-threat stance, Shigure launched a probing step,
Then burst forward into a drive!
His opening move,
A deceptive Moonstep Retreat…
Disguising a Sudden Pullback Burst!
[Godai Tomokazu – Moonstep Retreat]
Feint a forward drive, then suddenly step back using a crossover maneuver.
[Kiyota Nobunaga – Sudden Pullback Burst]
Step back to build power, then explode forward with a second, lightning-fast drive.