Compared to Seirin, Kirisaki Daiichi seemed far more relaxed.
They held a natural psychological advantage.
Last year, they were the ones who crushed Seirin's dream of reaching the national tournament.
Facing Seirin again this year, they felt no fear.
That kind of psychological edge made them more decisive on the court, braver, more confident.
1:00 p.m. sharp.
After witnessing the intense battle between Tōō Academy and Shinkyō that morning, the audience had once again filled the stadium to capacity. Over twenty thousand seats were taken, and even the uppermost rows were standing-room only.
Everyone was eagerly anticipating the first match of the school led by the Generation of Miracles' former captain.
They believed that now that the round-robin had begun, it was time for "that guy" to step onto the court.
Even if he didn't plan on playing, a Seirin team strong enough to defeat Shūtoku might just be able to force him into action.
In the stands, many familiar faces could be seen.
Midorima Shintarō, already eliminated.
Kaijō's top two players, Kise Ryōta and Kasamatsu Yukio, who had already secured their place in the next round.
Even Otsubo and Miyaji were present.
Even Akashi from Kyoto was sitting comfortably on a couch, watching the game unfold quietly on television.
They had all, without prior coordination, chosen to watch this particular match.
Even Murasakibara had been dragged in front of a screen by his Yōsen teammates.
"A Generation of Miracles civil war, huh? Sounds fun," he said with a smirk.
"You know, aside from you six, I didn't expect Teikō to have produced such an impressive player," said Yōsen's head coach, Araki Masako, with a hint of regret.
She was referring to Kuroko.
If they had someone like Kuroko in their lineup—paired with Yōsen's nation-leading average height—they could've completely overwhelmed the blue-haired phantom.
"Don't be too greedy, Coach," Himuro Tatsuya said with a smile. "Atsushi already said it, didn't he? The reason the Generation of Miracles split up this time... is to decide who's truly the strongest."
To be honest, the opponent Himuro cared most about today wasn't Tendou.
It was his "younger brother," Kagami Taiga.
In the last game, Kagami had awakened his explosive jumping ability and defeated Midorima. That performance had left Himuro deeply shaken.
It would've been easier if he didn't understand the Generation of Miracles' true capabilities—but unfortunately, he did.
"Taiga, you've come this far, huh..."
Next to him, Yōsen's former center and now power forward, Okamura Kenichi, asked curiously, "Atsushi, you know those two old teammates pretty well, right? Who do you think will win?"
"Tendou will," Murasakibara replied without hesitation.
"Huh? That fast?" Fukui Kensuke blinked. He'd thought Murasakibara would at least give it some thought, but the answer came in under a second.
"Last year, Seirin lost to Kirisaki Daiichi and missed out on nationals. Their core player Hanamiya Makoto was one of the Uncrowned Kings.
This year, they've added the former captain of the Generation of Miracles, Tendou Kageyoshi.
On paper, their lineup is stronger than Seirin's," Araki Masako agreed.
She didn't think this dark horse Seirin team could upset the status quo again.
"That's not why," Murasakibara said, tearing open a bag of chips. "Tendou just won't lose."
"Hah? What kind of reason is that?"
No analysis of lineups, tactics, or playstyles—just a blunt statement that the other side wouldn't lose?
But Himuro knew Murasakibara too well.
If Murasakibara said something like that, there had to be a reason behind it, whether he explained it or not.
"Atsushi… is Tendou that strong?"
"Tendou's the strongest."
The strongest?
Everyone fell silent.
Those two words, coming from Murasakibara, carried a heavy weight.
Right at that moment, the crowd's cheers erupted from the broadcast—players were entering the court.
At the game venue—
As Tendou led Kirisaki Daiichi out of the tunnel, they were met with thunderous cheers from a group of fanatical girls.
These cheerleaders had followed Tendou all the way from middle school to high school.
If he ever entered showbiz, they would be his first batch of diehard fans.
"Kyaa! Tendou-sama looks so handsome today!"
"Over here! Please look this way, I beg you—bless me with eye contact!"
"Tendou-kun, do your best today too!"
They screamed and shouted, leaving the Seirin players—who'd come out at almost the same time—so jealous their eyes nearly burst from their sockets.
That's huge—no, that's not it.
So cool—wait, no, not quite...
Anyway—they were insanely jealous.
"He's way too popular with the ladies!"
"When Tendou was at Teikō, he was voted the number one boy girls wanted to date."
Kuroko popped up to add, "That's true."
"No way!"
"It's true."
"Damn it, he's good at basketball, ridiculously handsome… what is he, God's secret love child?"
"In a way, he really could be called the main character of the story."
The same guy who'd introduced Kise before now flipped open another magazine and continued his rundown:
"Tendou Kageyoshi, an absolute genius."
"His first sport was soccer. In just over a month, he climbed from a total beginner to playing against sixth graders as a first-year."
"His coach believed he had the potential to become a professional player.
His talent was so overwhelming that even teammates avoided him out of fear."
"At age ten, he got interested in kendo after watching a tournament.
He began training at a local dojo, and within six months, the dojo master had nothing left to teach him.
Tendou challenged the Sword Saint himself—and only lost narrowly."
…What?
Lost narrowly?
Seriously?
The entire Seirin team was dumbfounded.
Even viewers from the real world watching the broadcast were exclaiming, "What kind of monster is this?!"
This résumé made Kise look like a casual talent in comparison.
Kagami Taiga was also shocked—but mostly, he was thrilled.
He had a bit of that Mamba Mentality: the stronger the opponent, the more fired up he got.
"Isn't that perfect?" Kagami grinned. "If we beat him, that proves we're strong enough to win the whole thing."
He hadn't forgotten—Kuroko had once personally told him that Tendou was the strongest.
Although back then, Kuroko also said he'd be destroyed in seconds.
But now?
Kise Ryōta and Midorima Shintarō had both already fallen before him.
And recently, Kagami had never felt more in the zone.
That duel with Midorima had pushed him to a whole new level.
Thinking this, he called for the ball from a teammate, sprinted to Kirisaki Daiichi's basket, and leapt from just past the free-throw line, slamming the ball into the hoop with a violent dunk.
"Yo, that's not our basket, Kagami!"
"Too reckless!"
"Let him go. Think of it as a declaration of war."
Hyūga Junpei and the others laughed—Kagami's personality really could pull a stunt like this.
"Yo, superstar—finally decided to show your face, huh?"
After finishing his dunk, Kagami headed straight for Tendou.
This guy—was absolutely the one player he'd wanted to face the most since arriving in Japan.
"I've heard a lot about you from Kuroko and the others…"
He didn't get to finish.
Tendou reached out, lightly placed a hand on Kagami's shoulder—
And in the next second—thump—Kagami's knees slammed into the court.
Just like that, he dropped to the ground.
"Kagami?!"
The entire Seirin team's faces changed drastically.
What kind of terrifying strength did that gesture hold?
Tendou simply looked at him calmly and said:
"Your basket is that way."
"And don't get cocky, rookie."