The referee's whistle rang out.
Hanamichi Sakuragi shook off his jacket, revealing the No. 10 jersey underneath.
With his chin raised high, he strode onto the court with a swagger that looked like he recognized no relatives or authorities.
"Pfft…"
"What's that red-haired guy doing out there?"
"Is he Shohoku's mascot?"
"He looks like a complete amateur."
Laughter once again rippled through the stands.
Sakuragi's steps stiffened for a moment.
Nervous.
Unprecedentedly nervous.
When he reached the court, his limbs moved awkwardly, like a rusty robot.
"Sakuragi! Stop spacing out!"
roared Takenori Akagi.
"Y-Yes, Captain Gorilla!"
Sakuragi snapped into a salute in fright.
The players from Ryonan High School Basketball Team burst into laughter, some of them nearly doubling over.
Just as Sakuragi stood there completely at a loss, a hand landed on his shoulder.
"Sakuragi."
Makino Juro's voice sounded beside him.
Sakuragi turned his head and saw Makino Juro looking at him with a serious expression.
"M-Master…"
"Relax."
Makino Juro pointed toward the opposing side, at Akira Sendoh.
"See that broom-haired guy over there?"
"I see him! That arrogant bastard!"
"I just told him something," Makino Juro said with a straight face. "I told him you're my secret weapon. You're here specifically to deal with him."
"Really?!"
Sakuragi's eyes widened.
"Of course."
Makino Juro continued the blatant nonsense without blinking.
"Now I'm going to teach you a combination technique."
"A combination technique?!"
In Sakuragi's mind, images of Ultraman fusion attacks instantly appeared.
"This move is called 'Bronze Wall, Iron Fortress.'"
Makino Juro lowered his voice and pointed to the side behind Sendoh.
"In a moment, I'll dribble over. You stand right there and block him like a wall."
"As long as you hold him for one second, I can score with my finishing move."
"This is a move only master and disciple can execute together."
Sakuragi's blood instantly boiled with excitement. Two streams of white breath practically shot out of his nostrils.
"Leave it to me, Master!"
"This genius is the Bronze Wall and Iron Fortress!"
The game resumed.
Shohoku on offense.
Makino Juro held the ball, facing Sendoh.
Sendoh still looked relaxed and carefree, his gaze locked on Makino Juro's center of gravity.
"Another tactic?"
He glanced at Sakuragi, who was standing nearby like a wooden stake, completely confused.
Just then—
Makino Juro moved.
No fancy crossover.
He simply accelerated to the right.
Sendoh immediately slid laterally to cut him off.
"Too slow."
Just as Sendoh was about to steal the ball—
His body suddenly slammed into something solid.
Bang!
It was a real wall.
Sakuragi Hanamichi stood there with both hands guarding his groin and his feet planted like roots.
Blocking Sendoh's path completely.
The posture was ugly.
The expression was ferocious.
But he truly stood there like a mountain, stopping Sendoh dead.
"What?!"
Sendoh was startled.
This amateur… has insane strength!
Using that brief opening, Makino Juro had already broken free from the defense.
The lane ahead was wide open.
But instead of driving to the basket—
He stopped abruptly.
His feet pushed off the floor as he leaped high into the air.
The same posture again.
[Unstructured Shot]
Jun Uozumi tried to rotate over for help defense, but he was too far away.
Makino Juro hung in the air slightly, then flicked his wrist.
The basketball traced an absurdly high arc, soaring over everyone's heads.
Everyone lifted their eyes, following that orange planet in the sky.
"Swish!"
The crisp sound of the net brushing echoed like heavenly music.
The ball went in.
27 : 14
"YEAH!!!"
Sakuragi jumped excitedly and rushed over, trying to high-five Makino Juro.
"Master! It went in! It went in!"
"Bronze Wall Iron Fortress is amazing!"
Makino Juro sidestepped the incoming high-five that could have shattered his shoulder blade and simply bumped fists with him instead.
"Nice job."
"Keep it up."
"As long as you block them, I can score."
Makino Juro turned his head and looked toward the slightly stunned Sendoh.
A genuine smile finally appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Scoring without working too hard… slacking off like this feels amazing.
"Sendoh."
"Two-on-one isn't a foul, right?"
Sendoh froze for a moment—then laughed.
He looked at the red-haired boy grinning foolishly, then at Makino Juro whose eyes had suddenly sharpened.
The fighting spirit in his eyes finally ignited completely.
"Interesting."
"Then let's see how it goes."
On the sidelines,
Moichi Taoka had unknowingly crushed his tactics board out of shape in his hand.
Looking at the perfectly coordinated freshman duo, a strong sense of unease rose in his heart.
Shohoku…
had really changed.
"BEEP!"
The referee's whistle announced the end of the first half.
The scoreboard froze at:
50 : 45
Shohoku trailed by only five points.
The entire Ryonan High School Basketball Team gymnasium fell into a strange silence.
The Ryonan students who had originally come to laugh at Shohoku…
now looked like ducks with their throats squeezed shut—mouths open but unable to make a sound.
That perennial bottom-feeder Shohoku…
That team that supposedly only had Akagi…
had almost caught up?
"Ha… ha…"
Akagi bent over with his hands on his knees, sweat dripping from his chin onto the floor.
Though exhausted, his eyes shone brightly.
"Everyone did great!"
"Keep this pace up—we can win!"
His voice trembled slightly.
It was excitement that had been suppressed for far too long.
On the other side, in the Ryonan bench area.
Coach Taoka's tactics board was nearly crushed to pieces.
The confident coach who always wore a composed smile now had a face darker than the bottom of a pot.
Laugh?
Even if someone told him a hundred jokes now, he wouldn't laugh.
"Is this your defense?!"
"You let Kaede Rukawa score 20 points!"
"You let Akagi dominate the paint!"
"And that…"
His gaze swept toward Shohoku's bench.
Toward the No. 16 who was currently sprawled on a chair drinking water with zero elegance.
"That No.16! Why does he keep losing his man?!"
"He disappears right under your nose!"
Tomoyuki Uekusa lowered his head in shame, unable to defend himself.
Because I really can't see him…
"Second half—we change strategy!"
Taoka took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
He turned to look at Sendoh, who was wiping sweat.
"Sendoh."
"Yes, Coach."
Sendoh raised his head. His signature spiky hair still stood proudly.
But the lazy look in his eyes had been replaced with seriousness.
"Stop playing around."
"Show your real ability."
"If you keep slacking off, I'll snap all your fishing rods and throw them into the sea to feed the fish."
Sendoh's smile froze.
"Coach… that threat is way too vicious…"
"Then win it back!"
"Listen carefully. In the second half, we attack the inside!"
"Uozumi—be more aggressive!"
"And Sendoh, you…"
Taoka grabbed the tactics board and began drawing frantically.
While Coach Taoka was passionately explaining tactics—
Outside the circle of Ryonan players…
A red head suddenly appeared.
That head had a white towel draped over it.
It was sneaking closer and closer, nodding along with Taoka's explanation.
"Mm-hm, makes sense."
"I see… focus on the inside attack."
"You old man actually know your stuff."
Taoka was mid-lecture when something suddenly felt wrong.
That voice… why is it unfamiliar?
And that red hair…
Does Ryonan even have someone like that?
He suddenly stopped drawing and turned around.
Their eyes met.
Sakuragi Hanamichi blinked and gave an awkward but polite smile.
"Hi, old man."
"Go on."
"This genius was listening very carefully."