"Smack!"
Jason Silver's fadeaway jumper was absolutely spectacular and stylish. Completing such a high-difficulty shot with that body type wasn't easy. At least Murasakibara would have great difficulty doing it.
He had the athletic ability, but his body balance and coordination were questionable.
Akashi was first to judge the landing spot and picked up the ball. The next moment, Dragon Slayer Sword's fast break followed.
"Akashi!" Kagami Taiga was running at the front of the team. Double-eyebrows hadn't had a chance to properly showcase himself since coming on court. Although he could do all the dirty work and grunt labor to save his coach's father's life, basketball was still more satisfying when you scored yourself.
Akashi looked over following his voice. Seeing this, the Evil Dragons immediately started running to catch up. Their speed was no joke - their athletic abilities were all on par with Kagami Taiga's.
However, Akashi's pass didn't fly toward Kagami's hands as people expected, but instead traced a beautiful arc through the air.
"Midorima!" "Shin-chan!" This spectacular pass fooled over 90% of the arena, whether teammates or spectators.
When Midorima received the pass, he faced an undefended basket.
"Cancer's fortune today ranks first among the thirteen constellations. There are no obstacles preventing a successful shot."
"I trimmed my nails properly when I woke up. My shot won't miss!"
With Midorima's monologue, the scene quickly flashed through everything this obsessive-compulsive had done from last night until today to ensure his shooting.
The camera even gave a big close-up of the remote control on the bench. A remote control was actually occupying a seat, making the audience immediately joke, "This is definitely the most prestigious remote control!"
However, just as Midorima confidently released the ball from his hands, a hand seemed to emerge from thin air and, like Tendou, heavily swatted the basketball.
"Smack!"
"What?!"
The entire audience couldn't help but gasp in shock, including the Dragon Slayer Sword team members.
Akashi's spectacular pass had fooled almost everyone, but it couldn't fool Nash's eyes.
"You bunch of..."
"Monkeys!"
No one knew what Nash meant by this - Midorima only heard him say that much.
After completing the block, he instantly rushed out to retrieve the ball, charging toward Dragon Slayer Sword's defense like a wild horse.
Naturally, Akashi wouldn't let him pass easily, flashing in front of Nash.
"Get lost, kid!" Nash didn't reduce his speed, as if he didn't consider Akashi worth his attention at all. Like Tendou, he charged forward without the slightest hesitation.
When two players who could both see the future faced off, it came down to pure player stats. In technique, court vision, and basketball IQ, Akashi was top-tier in multiple aspects. His only weakness was his player model - at only 173cm tall and 64kg, Akashi had the biggest gap with Nash in this area.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
The basketball continuously hit the floor then quickly bounced back into Nash's hands. The varied and complex streetball style - even if you could see it, getting your body to react was still a major challenge.
Akashi soon unconsciously began retreating - Nash's pressure was too intense. Then with a "thud," under the dumbfounded gaze of the entire audience, Akashi sat down hard on the floor.
He had actually been crossed up and fallen.
"Akashi!"
"Sei-chan!"
"This is impossible!" The Rakuzan people couldn't believe their eyes.
This was the perfected version of Akashi - dual personalities merged, with no weaknesses. Yet Akashi had been crossed up by Nash just like that.
"Think having eyes that match mine means you can be mentioned in the same breath as me?"
"Don't make me laugh!" Nash coldly swept his gaze over Akashi, then stepped back to the three-point line and pulled up for a shot.
Tendou took a few running steps and threw his body out, but the ball's distance and angle were beyond his reach.
"Swish!"
The ball went in. Nash hadn't sent the ball into the paint as people expected. He had already seen that if this continued, that purple-haired kid would keep up with their center's high-intensity confrontation.
Jason Silver being forced to choose a difficult jumper earlier was the best evidence. That purple-haired kid had both the physical capability and athletic ability to continue contending with Jason Silver.
In other words, their Evil Dragons team had no retreat left. To win, he needed to step up.
...
Beep~ The second quarter ended, and both sides headed to the locker rooms. The score was 49-48, with Dragon Slayer Sword still leading by 1 point.
Akashi and Midorima, who had played the full half, were both breathing heavily. They rarely played such high-intensity games. Everyone on the Evil Dragons possessed athletic ability comparable to theirs, putting tremendous pressure on both ends of the court.
However, the biggest consumers were still Akashi and Murasakibara. They had respectively faced off against the Evil Dragons' first and second options. Especially Akashi - ever since Nash began taking control of the game in the latter half of the second quarter, he had to expend massive amounts of stamina to force himself to keep up with Nash's pace.
Even so, he still couldn't prevent Nash from scoring. Nash had even hit 2 consecutive three-pointers at the end, nearly reversing the point differential.
Aida Kagetora looked at his players and quickly made adjustments to the lineup.
"Akashi, rest for the second half."
"Ah."
Although Akashi was unwilling, he couldn't argue with the facts. This was his strength - always maintaining rationality, even on the world's most heated basketball court.
"Tendou, you'll move to point guard for the second half. All ball-handling will be under your control."
Aida Kagetora had also seen it clearly. On this team right now, only Tendou could keep up with Nash's competitive pace. And to defeat the Evil Dragons, this was necessary.
This decision was undoubtedly putting his own life in Tendou's hands. Tendou nodded to show he understood.
If not for considering his rich teammate's dignity, he would have taken over ball-handling duties in the second quarter.
"Kise, you'll take Tendou's position for the second half."
"OK! Although I'm not as strong as little Tendou, I'll definitely give my all!" Kise showed his signature refreshing smile.
After making these two arrangements, Aida Kagetora ran into difficulty again. Mainly, no one could replace Murasakibara's position.
Wakamatsu Kosuke? Sending him up would be no different from throwing away a life.
---
[Get 20 chapters ahead on - P.a.t.r.e.o.n "RoseWhisky"]