Duuuu...
A loud whistle echoed.
The match between Shohoku and Takamizawa officially began.
Before the match, Shimizu Kanon had already gone over Takamizawa's player profiles. So from the very start, Shohoku targeted their weaknesses, pressing them hard and forcing mistake after mistake.
That included Himono Taira, of course.
Himono Taira had planned to make a strong impression from the start.
But he never expected to get completely shut down by Rukawa Kaede after just one face-off.
Even when he used the moves he had learned from Aoi Kunisaku, they didn't do anything.
Himono Taira mimicked the Super High-Speed Dribble.
At first, the crowd was shocked by the sight.
But as he kept repeating the "Super High-Speed Dribble," people started to feel something was off.
What Himono Taira was doing didn't quite match what they remembered. Whether it was the speed, rhythm, or impact, it all felt like it was in slow motion. No threat at all.
Rukawa Kaede stole the ball from him effortlessly.
He had gone one-on-one with Aoi Kunisaku before.
In his eyes, Himono Taira was nothing more than a snail.
Even if the movements looked kind of similar, that's all they were—similar. They weren't even close to what Aoi Kunisaku could pull off.
And to think he had actually looked forward to this...
'This is it?'
In the stands—
Some of those who had researched Takamizawa were left dumbfounded by this pathetic scene.
This was supposed to be the guy whose playstyle resembled Aoi Kunisaku's?
It was like expecting to see a king, only to realize you'd been staring at a bronze-tier rookie all along.
The gap was so ridiculous it left the crowd stunned.
Kiyota Nobunaga stared at the court, bewildered. "Takamizawa? I thought they were supposed to be strong. Why are they this bad? His moves look like that Aoi Kunisaku guy's. Why is he so weak?"
Jin Soichiro tilted his head, eyes full of confusion. "No clue. Maybe he's just trying to show off?"
Maki Shinichi thought it over, then said meaningfully, "Maybe that's exactly why Aoi Kunisaku didn't bother playing in this match."
Elsewhere—
Morisige Hiroshi watched the totally one-sided match and said, bored out of his mind, "This is so lame. Totally different from what I expected. Just trash. Coach, let's go."
Nampei's coach also looked helpless.
He hadn't expected Takamizawa to be this garbage either.
All the other teams watching were thinking the same thing.
Right now the score was 27 to 6.
Shohoku was ahead by 21 points.
And the game had only just passed the halfway mark.
Shimizu Kanon calmly watched the massacre unfold and said, "There's no way this match turns around. We should consider subbing in the bench for the second half."
Ayako, jotting down player stats in her notebook, agreed. "Can't believe it's going this smoothly. I thought they'd give us some trouble at least."
...
On the court—
The one breaking down the most was definitely Himono Taira himself.
Today was a total disaster.
He had lost completely.
Every move he'd learned was useless against Rukawa Kaede.
It hit him hard.
He suddenly remembered something Aoi Kunisaku said when they played one-on-one:
"You're so weak I can't even watch."
Now, he was finally starting to get it.
'So I wasn't even worth a glance in his eyes?' Himono Taira stared blankly at his hands. 'Am I really this weak?'
The realization hit him—he hadn't gotten stronger. His past opponents were just too weak. That's what gave him the illusion of strength.
He had been living in a well, thinking it was the sky.
Nothing unexpected happened in the rest of the game.
Shohoku crushed Takamizawa from start to finish, leaving them no chance.
And this completely changed how the crowd and other teams saw things.
No one expected one of the quarterfinal teams to be this weak.
"Man, that was like a dull blade slicing a butt—totally eye-opening."
Stuff like this probably doesn't happen even once in several decades.
By the end of the first half, the score was already 67 to 22.
Shohoku was ahead of Takamizawa by a full 45 points.
In the second half, Shohoku subbed out their main lineup and put in their first- and second-year bench players.
With a 45-point lead, even if the subs weren't as strong as Takamizawa, there was no way they'd lose the lead.
When the final whistle blew, Takamizawa never made a comeback.
In the end, Shohoku won 94 to 66 over Takamizawa.
After the match ended, there wasn't a single cheer from the stands—only plenty of boos and curses.
The crowd was clearly disappointed by the game.
And all that frustration was directed at Takamizawa.
No one expected such a trash team to make it to the top eight.
The match had zero excitement, practically hypnotic. Some fans even nodded off—it was that boring.
But no matter what went down on the court...
Elsewhere—
In a grassy patch near the park by Chidori-sou Inn.
Aoi Kunisaku was lying there, face turned up toward the bright sun, looking completely at peace.
His eyes slowly opened just a crack. "Those guys have probably finished winning the game by now."
Yaaawn...
He let out a big yawn and sat up.
People passing by were startled to see someone suddenly rise up from the grass.
"You scared the hell out of me! I thought I was seeing a ghost in broad daylight!"
"What's with this guy? Sleeping here? Weird as hell."
"Is he drunk or something? He looks totally lifeless."
...
The passersby all started whispering and pointing.
Aoi Kunisaku ignored them, glanced lazily toward the baseball field, and muttered, "So boring. Might as well stretch my legs a bit."
Just then, a bleached blonde punk with a cocky look walked over.
He stared down at Aoi Kunisaku, scowling. "Hey punk, you scared my girlfriend."
Aoi Kunisaku didn't even lift his head. He flat-out ignored the guy.
The blonde's eyes narrowed. He was clearly pissed at being snubbed.
He stepped forward, reaching out to grab Aoi Kunisaku by the collar. "You looking for trouble, kid? Do you even know who I—"
But before he could finish, his hand froze mid-air.
Aoi Kunisaku had already lifted his head at some point. His piercing blue eyes stared coldly into the punk's.
The moment they locked eyes, the blonde felt a chill run down his spine.
It was like being targeted by a hungry, bloodthirsty beast. Death itself felt close.
The guy froze in place and gulped.
Aoi Kunisaku said just one word, flat and cold: "Leave."
At the same time, a wild, intimidating pressure burst out of Aoi Kunisaku and engulfed the punk.
The guy immediately felt the hairs on his neck stand up. A shiver shot up from his feet to his skull.
He staggered back, then tripped and landed flat on his ass.
Aoi Kunisaku pulled back the pressure without another glance. He stood and walked toward the baseball field.
The blonde just sat there, staring at Aoi Kunisaku's back, mumbling, "S-So scary... I thought I was gonna die just now."
His girlfriend looked confused and concerned.
She walked over and asked, annoyed, "Babe, what happened? Why'd you let that guy go?"
The blonde's face was still pale.
He forced himself to stand and told her, "I-It's nothing. Just forget it. Let's go."
He grabbed her arm and hurried off.
The people nearby, realizing the show was over, all went on their way.
Meanwhile—
When Aoi Kunisaku reached the baseball field, he saw two people playing one-on-one.
And when he saw who they were, he looked surprised.
He hadn't expected to run into those two here.