In the second half.
Shio Yamashita began to deploy the 2-1-2 defensive formation.
The old man intended to let Yuuto see Seiho's new defensive tactics for next year in advance.
But the effect wasn't great.
Aside from the double-teaming on Teppei Kiyoshi remaining effective as always, Seirin's perimeter player, Junpei Hyuga, got quite a few scoring opportunities in the third quarter.
A tactical board is, after all, not actual combat; opponents won't act entirely according to your ideas.
They still lacked a perimeter lockdown defender, as well as players with strong help-defense and athletic abilities to serve as the hub.
"Seiho was defending just fine, why change the formation? And they sold such a huge opening on the perimeter?" Momoi couldn't understand Seiho's thinking.
"He's showing it to me on purpose."
To know the power of a tactic, one must practice it.
From the looks of it, Seiho's current lineup wasn't strong enough to master this defensive tactic.
Yuuto naturally inserted himself into the simulation of the match. Assuming Tomoki Tsugawa could lock down Junpei Hyuga...
After a burst of thought in his brain... all of Seirin's movement routes were blocked off.
"I see." Momoi giggled. "I'm going to write this down."
...
Soon.
The match ended.
Seiho defeated Seirin by 29 points with a score of 82:53.
A very Seiho-style victory.
They didn't score much themselves, but the opponent could never score more than them.
"I'm heading back, Satsuki."
"So soon? It's rare for you to come to Tokyo, let's walk around outside?"
"Next time. If it gets any later, the subway station will be crowded."
Yuuto walked out of the arena with Momoi and parted ways.
Finally, he couldn't help but ask about Aomine's current situation.
"Dai-chan? He's been working really hard lately. He says he's going to crush you next year."
"Is that so? I understand."
Because a rival appeared, it was only natural to throw himself back into training.
Next year's Daiki Aomine would be even stronger.
"Then, I'll keep working hard too."
Yuuto returned to Okukozome and immediately threw himself into training.
He didn't go to watch any of Seiho's subsequent matches.
According to his plan, after entering summer vacation, he continued to bulk up.
His goal was to raise his Strength attribute to 90 points first.
Besides this, he also practiced a large volume of shooting and other technical skills every day.
Now that Kuroko and Haizaki had both left Okukozome, Yuuto was once again back to how it was before—practicing alone.
The surroundings were much quieter, appearing slightly lonely.
Fortunately, he was long used to it.
Vacation ended, followed by the second of Japan's three major tournaments, the Autumn National Sports Festival.
This didn't concern the Homi Academy basketball club much, as it focused mainly on winter sports.
Although Yuuto had "retired" from the basketball club, he still came to the gym every day to train.
Then.
The Winter Cup also began. This still had nothing to do with them.
This tournament was for high schoolers.
Seiho High School, however, had bad luck. For two consecutive years, they met Touou in the group stage.
In the critical battle for qualification from the group stage, two nationally perfected teams fought all the way to the last minute without determining a winner.
Until the last 30 seconds of the game, Shoichi Imayoshi hit a buzzer-beating 2-pointer to pull the gap to 4 points, helping Touou eliminate Seiho for the second year in a row.
On TV.
Shio Yamashita sighed heavily.
This was the current Seiho. Defensively, they could limit the "Tyrant of the New Era," Touou, to under 90 points.
But Seiho desperately needed a player who could hammer the final nail in the coffin.
If there was a Yuuto in the lineup, the others only needed to withstand the opponent's offensive, and leave the rest to Yuuto. The game would become simple.
But unfortunately, that Lion King would only descend upon Seiho next year. They had to swallow the bitter fruit of insufficient offensive firepower for two consecutive years.
And Yuuto.
At this moment, he was already packing things at home with Sora.
They were about to leave Okukozome and go to Tokyo.
Shortly after.
The results of the Winter Cup came out. Rakuzan High from Kyoto, following the Inter-High, pocketed the Winter Cup once again.
Under the leadership of Eiji Shirogane, the three Uncrowned Kings under his command were simply invincible.
Speaking of which.
The achievements of this team were simply appalling.
Since the inception of the Inter-High and Winter Cup, Rakuzan had never missed a single tournament.
Every year they qualified for the main tournament of the Inter-High and Winter Cup, and they possessed the most championship trophies and the most wins.
And next year, Rakuzan would welcome a huge upgrade.
Akashi, whose personality had been "corrected" by Yuuto, would become the most outstanding captain in Rakuzan's history.
...
Winter left, spring came.
Another April, the start of the school season.
On this day.
Yuuto appeared at the gate of Seiho High School with the Kasugano siblings.
The combination of the three attracted the gaze of many people.
The Kasugano siblings were both of the type with domineering good looks.
Their appearance attracted the eyes of countless men and women.
And Yuuto?
What the girls focused on wasn't just that face, but the hormones he radiated all the time.
Perhaps due to the Wildness talent, he always gave people a feeling full of untamed energy, a bad-boy handsomeness.
"It's so big."
Sora opened her cute big eyes to look around, using an exclamation usually reserved for the night to describe Seiho.
"After all, it is a famous school with a thousand years of heritage."
Haruka Kasugano on the side had obviously done his homework.
Besides the basketball club, Seiho's Kendo club was also their signature.
It was rumored that one of the Kendo dojos had been passed down for hundreds of years and had even produced a Sword Saint.
Subsequently.
The three walked into the campus.
It could be seen that club recruitment was in full swing everywhere.
There were all kinds of clubs.
The Occult Club for those who liked studying supernatural phenomena, the Astronomy Club for star gazing, the Poetry Club for ancient poems, and the Dance Club.
The scale of these clubs varied.
Don't ask how big Japanese schools actually are to provide activity space for so many clubs.
Actually, they aren't that big. Setting aside major sports like basketball, soccer, and baseball, the activity space for most clubs wasn't even as big as a classroom.
"Hello, student. Are you a freshman this year? Your body is so nice, do you like swimming?"
Yuuto was blocked by a girl halfway.
Years of experience told her that hidden under Yuuto's clothes were mouth-watering muscles.
Clearly just a teenager, yet the hormones were overflowing.
She puffed out her chest and pulled her collar lower.
"In the swimming club, there are many..."
"Enough, Mai. Don't waste your breath, he belongs to our basketball club."
Sora was about to explode on the side, ready to push this shameless woman away, but Tsutomu Iwamura walked over from the other side.
"Tsutomu, this isn't how you steal people. We found him first." The third-year senior named Mai wouldn't back down.
Yuuto was obviously a good seedling at a glance. Pulling him into the club...
Once the shirt came off, who knew how many girls would be attracted to join?
Besides.
Yuuto was her ideal type; she wouldn't mind developing a friendship-plus relationship with a junior.
"He is the person Coach Yamashita personally invited last year. Can you really not recognize this face?" Tsutomu Iwamura was 1.87 meters tall, but standing next to Yuuto, he was still shorter.
It was a friend beside her who pulled her sleeve, reminding her, "Mai-chan, he... he seems to be Yuuto. The Lion King of Okukozome."
That face?
Aside from hitting my strike zone perfectly, what's special about it?
"What?!"
...
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