Seiho's starting lineup:
Center – No. 4, Tsutomu Iwamura
Point Guard – No. 5, Kasuga Ryuhei
Power Forward – No. 8, Omuro Yoshikasu
Small Forward – No. 10, Tsugawa Tomoki
Swingman – No. 11, Akashi Asuka
Kirisaki Daiichi's starting lineup:
Point Guard – No. 4, Hanamiya Makoto
Center – No. 5, Seto Kentarou
Small Forward – No. 7, Furuhashi Koujirou
Shooting Guard – No. 8, Yamazaki Hiroshi
Power Forward – No. 10, Hara Kazuya
The players from both sides took to the court, bowed to one another,
And the match began.
As expected, the opening jump ball was easily won by Akashi Asuka. Kasuga Ryuhei caught the ball, dribbled past half court, and called out, "Alright, let's take this first one nice and steady!"
Without hesitation, he passed to Tsutomu Iwamura in the paint.
Kirisaki Daiichi's center, Seto Kentarou, standing at 190cm with slicked-back hair and a calculating look, moved in to defend. He was smart, yes, but his strength and skill were no match for Iwamura.
Iwamura backed him down, spun, and took a fadeaway jumper, clean and smooth.
2–0.
"YOSHHHH!!!"
Iwamura roared, energy bursting from him as Seiho's players quickly ran back on defense.
Seto Kentarou wiped sweat from his forehead, panting, "As expected of one of Tokyo's Three Kings… they're strong."
"Heh heh heh… Tokyo's Three Kings, huh? So what?"
Hanamiya Makoto's expression darkened, a twisted smile spreading across his face. "Geniuses, prodigies… it doesn't matter. Once they're broken, they're just trash."
Seto froze. "Wait, you're not seriously planning to start now, are you? You usually wait until the second half!"
Hanamiya licked his lips with a wicked grin. "Since they're 'kings,' it's only fair to give them special treatment."
============
The match went on.
Kirisaki Daiichi went on offense, but this time, their formation subtly shifted. As the ball was driven inside the three-point line, two of their players positioned themselves just right to block the referee's view.
At that moment,
Hanamiya casually tossed the ball toward the hoop. CLANG! It hit the rim and bounced high.
"Rebound!"
Someone from Seiho shouted. Both Akashi Asuka and Iwamura leapt, or tried to leap, for the ball.
But neither of them moved.
Because right beneath the basket…
One Kirisaki player had stepped on Asuka's toes, while another was blatantly tugging on Iwamura's jersey, preventing him from jumping.
"So that's how you win games, huh? What a bunch of scum who disgrace basketball."
Even though Akashi Asuka had warned his teammates countless times about Kirisaki's dirty tactics, experiencing it firsthand was still a shock.
It was human nature to hold on to a bit of faith in people's decency, especially for high schoolers.
But reality was far crueler.
Most people couldn't imagine just how far human malice could go, until they saw it with their own eyes.
The thought that a player as talented as Kiyoshi Teppei had been ruined by trash like this ignited something inside Iwamura.
With a burst of rage, he powered through the hold, forcing himself upward.
"I won't lose… to you bastards!"
THUD!
Despite being slowed by the foul play, Iwamura still managed to snatch the rebound through sheer strength and technique.
But before he could even celebrate,
"Captain, look out!"
It was Omuro Yoshikasu's voice. Iwamura knew that tone.
What does he mean, 'look out'? he thought,
Then realized.
As he came down from his jump, his foot landed, not on solid ground, but on something uneven.
In that instant, his balance wavered. His ankle twisted sharply, and pain shot up his leg. His vision tilted.
He was about to fall,
When a strong hand grabbed his arm, steadying him just in time.
"You okay, Iwamura-senpai?"
It was Akashi Asuka, catching him at the last moment. Hearing Asuka's calm voice, Iwamura finally snapped out of his daze, only to realize his back was drenched in cold sweat.
Then, a low, sinister voice reached their ears, one only the two of them could hear.
"Ara~ what a shame. But next time… you won't be so lucky."
The one who'd stuck his foot under Iwamura's landing spot was none other than Kirisaki's small forward, Furuhashi Koujirou. With dead-fish eyes and an unreadable face, he was infamous even among his own teammates for being a sadistic bastard.
As expected,
The moment he finished speaking, Iwamura's fury flared once more.
But before he could act, Kasuga Ryuhei stormed in first, charging straight toward Furuhashi with a furious glare.
"You piece of—!"
"Black No. 5, this is a match! First warning, no violent conduct!"
The referee's voice rang out sharply. The two Kirisaki players who had been blocking his view earlier conveniently stepped aside just in time for the official to see Kasuga's outburst.
"You blind son of!"
Kasuga nearly lost it, about to shout at the ref,
When Akashi Asuka suddenly grabbed him by the collar and hauled him backward.
"Calm down, Kasuga-senpai!"
"Calm down? How can I calm down? That bastard almost destroyed Iwamura's career!"
His anger wasn't without reason.
A malicious foot under someone's landing spot wasn't just a dirty play, it was potentially career-ending.
Even a fistfight wouldn't cause as much damage as a single mistimed landing. A twisted ankle meant at least weeks of rest… and worse injuries could end a player's career forever.
During training, Akashi Asuka had always avoided targeting the lower body, no matter how controlled his strikes were, because he knew. A single injury to the ankle or knee could ruin everything.
The Seiho players' faces darkened.
They had thought Kirisaki's team were just rough players, dirty, maybe, but still basketball players.
But now they saw it clearly.
These weren't athletes. They were destroyers, people who took pleasure in ending others' dreams.
When the Seiho team glared at them, the Kirisaki players only grinned in return, their smiles full of mockery and provocation.
Especially Hanamiya Makoto.
His shadowed eyes gleamed with malice as he stared directly at Akashi Asuka, his next target, with unmasked intent.
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