Chapter 12

"Ha~"

"It's not that easy~"

Facing Qingfeng's face broke into a smile of excitement.

After frowning, Yukimiya Kazuma returned it with a sharp, mocking sneer.

Immediately following, the dribbling motion in his hand changed again!

Sudden stop!

Pull back and retreat!

He adjusted his rhythm with a behind-the-back dribble, then executed a series of large, gambling-style crossovers in front of his body, successfully slipping past Facing Qingfeng's fingertips to drive through once more.

The entire sequence was incredibly smooth, completing the breakthrough in the blink of an eye!

However, Facing Qingfeng's speed was simply too fast; with Yukimiya's current speed stat of 67, he was nowhere near the opponent's level, and he was quickly entangled by Facing Qingfeng at his side again.

But the weapon in Yukimiya's hand was clearly not speed!

The badge 'Shoudeji Society' granted him a ball-handling stat of 96, along with master-level ball-handling experience.

Boom~!

While dribbling, he suddenly moved closer to Facing Qingfeng by a fraction; while executing an between-the-legs dribble to send the ball to the side away from Facing Qingfeng's defense, he seized the opportunity to initiate a physical confrontation!

Although he couldn't knock Facing Qingfeng Daiki off balance, he did delay him for an instant!

At this moment, he was already very close to the basket; Yukimiya's goal was clear. Under Facing Qingfeng's high-intensity defense, it was difficult for him to find an opportunity to shoot, so rather than gambling on a shot, he chose to drive to a position closer to the hoop to take his shot, and his ball-handling ability was the confidence that allowed him to believe he could achieve this goal.

Driving toward the basket!

Facing Qingfeng moved his body like a black panther, sticking to him like glue without ceasing; the seriousness in his eyes was absolutely not something the Facing Qingfeng of reality, who had gradually begun to slack off at this stage, should possess.

Yukimiya Kazuma had no time to hesitate; stepping into the paint, he immediately leaped high into the air!

"What kind of joke is this?"

"Jump higher for me!"

Facing Qingfeng's movements were swift, and his mouth didn't stay idle either; that arrogant tone was exactly the same as Facing Qingfeng's after the Black Basketball plotline began.

And on the other side.

Takeno Takeki, sitting on the bench by the court, was completely dumbfounded, staring with his mouth agape as Yukimiya Kazuma fought wits and strength with thin air all by himself.

But...

It's being played so intensely?

This guy Kazuma is acting as if he's really in an intense battle with someone.

Takeno Takeki: "!"

'Recently, I discovered a training method that suits me perfectly.'

Is this what Kazuma was talking about?

Training by imagining an opponent out of thin air? How is that even possible?

The more Takeno Takeki thought about it, the more unreasonable it seemed, but seeing Yukimiya Kazuma wear a grave expression from the moment he started seeking an enemy in the void, he didn't dare to speak out, watching with a strange look on his face until now.

Until this moment.

When he saw Yukimiya leap high into the air, his hand clearly holding no ball, yet reaching forward with one hand, the layup motion carrying a palpable sense of weight, and then...

It seemed the opponent's pressure was severe; Yukimiya's layup motion became distorted, and the hand shape for the layup was forced to change from a layup motion into a forward flick, flicking the ball toward the 'imagined' backboard.

He almost couldn't control himself from making a sound.

And in the meditation training, the data-stream Facing Qingfeng Daiki watched as Yukimiya Kazuma 'slapped' the ball against the backboard; by the time he realized something was wrong, it was already too late.

Because...

He jumped far too high.

After Yukimiya Kazuma's layup motion changed into slamming the ball against the backboard and he had already landed, Facing Qingfeng Daiki was still floating in the air.

Immediately after landing, the former leaped again, daring not to touch the ball for too long; catching the rebounding basketball in mid-air, he merely tapped it lightly toward the hoop!

Swish~!

The basketball went through the net with a sound!

Yukimiya Kazuma made a binocular gesture with his fingers at his brow: "Where's the defense? Why can't I see it?!"

Facing Qingfeng Daiki smiled slightly: "You guy..."

Gazing at Yukimiya Kazuma's wide-open eyes directed at him, and the opponent's high-spirited expression on his face, Facing Qingfeng's gaze flickered slightly, and he too couldn't help but reveal an excited smile as if he wanted to swallow someone whole.

Yukimiya Kazuma: "..."

Oh no!

Streetball habits; I got too carried away.

This guy Facing Qingfeng Daiki is smiling so pervertedly; don't tell me he's been provoked into getting blood-boiling? If he gets too excited and opens a Zone directly, I can't handle it.

Come to think of it...

Does this meditation training actually want me to beat this dark-skinned guy?

That move just now could only steal one point; apart from ball-handling, I am far behind him in every other aspect right now.

Yukimiya Kazuma glanced at Facing Qingfeng; the opponent voluntarily picked up the ball and walked to the top of the key.

"Uh..."

"Can we play without switching possession?"

Facing Qingfeng raised an eyebrow at Yukimiya; his state of hyper-focused immersion was somewhat terrifying, his gaze fixed tightly as he pushed the ball forward, but he himself didn't move.

Obviously.

No switching possession, just telling him to quickly reset the ball.

Looking exactly like someone who couldn't wait to completely break through his opponent.

Yukimiya Kazuma stepped forward holding the ball.

Snap!

His right hand passed the ball to Facing Qingfeng.

While passing the ball, Yukimiya had already pressed tightly against him; full-body contact and disruption were the best ways to force the opponent into a hasty shot.

A little trick from the street courts: as the defender, when passing the ball back to the opponent during a steal, immediately press close to apply physical contact, breaking their triple-threat stance and reducing offensive pressure.

Especially against an opponent like Facing Qingfeng Dahui, who holds a clear advantage in speed and all other aspects, one must do this; otherwise, if the opponent starts with a triple-threat stance combining drive and shot threats, a single burst of speed would likely leave him completely beaten.