Chapter 14

A shrill squeak of sneakers rubbing the floor echoed as Yukimiya Kazuma dug his feet hard into the ground; if he could spare a moment to glance away, he would see the 'Master of Possession' badge inside the system glowing brightly.

In previous training matches, the 'Pass' aspect of 'Master of Possession' had granted exceptional court vision, allowing him to execute a beautiful, predictive interception of a pass.

Now, the 'Control' aspect of 'Master of Possession' was also functioning on defense, providing dribble judgment that let him step in front of Qingfeng's breakthrough path a split second early, neutralizing Qingfeng's speed advantage.

After Yukimiya successfully completed a defensive stop, Qingfeng seemed utterly unsurprised.

With a flashy move, he turned his back to Yukimiya, seamlessly executing a Tracy McGrady-style behind-the-back dribble facing forward, then stopping and exploding forward again!

Too fast!

Slap~

Slap~

Qingfeng lowered his body, spun, and swept past Yukimiya's defense.

"As expected."

"Still far from enough."

Arriving near the free-throw line, Qingfeng immediately leaped for a jump shot.

Seeing this, Yukimiya froze; he hadn't expected that after completely shaking him off, Qingfeng wouldn't attack the rim directly but instead choose a mid-range shot.

However, the brief moment of reaction left no room for overthinking.

Chase down from behind Qingfeng, jump, and block!

Yukimiya Kazuma: "……!"

So high!

"Hah~"

Qingfeng, already airborne, revealed a slight smile at the corner of his mouth.

Then, amidst Yukimiya's stunned expression, he suddenly lifted his leg and retracted his abdomen, pulling the basketball back down from the air.

His body tilted sharply to the right in mid-air, his right hand reached out, and he swung the ball from low to high; the iconic 'Scooping the Moon from the Sea' move from anime was displayed right before Yukimiya Kazuma's eyes!

A casual scoop, obviously lacking any beautiful spin, but the arc was truly high; when the basketball swished cleanly through the net from great height, it was like a meteor crashing to earth.

Yukimiya Kazuma: "……"

This guy…

He waited here on purpose to show off his Formless Shot?!

Seeing it with my own eyes is a completely different matter from watching 2D animation!

Damn it!

That was way too cool!

Yukimiya Kazuma collided with Daiki Aomine's body, recalling the scene he had just witnessed, and couldn't help but blurt out a single word, "6!"

Sci-fi basketball and all that…

It's truly absurd.

Yukimiya Kazuma returned to the top of the three-point arc.

It was his offensive turn.

The Showdown Between Men had entered a state of a trapped beast fighting back.

Slap~!

Yukimiya's dribbling speed was fast, and the mix of feints and reality grew increasingly complex, but under Qingfeng's gradually accelerating speed that left only a shadow, every attempt felt like hitting a wall, forcing him back.

Slap~!

Slap~!

Slap~!

In a very short span of time.

Yukimiya Kazuma broke through!

Blocked!

Breakthrough!

Blocked!

Breakthrough again!

Blocked again!

Although the 'Master of Possession' badge was active, allowing Yukimiya Kazuma to maintain steady control of the ball under Qingfeng's intense pressure, that was all it allowed him to do.

In this possession, Qingfeng had elevated to a new level in both speed and physical contact.

With no other choice.

Yukimiya Kazuma opted for the simplest and most brutal tactic.

Post-up!

As an offensive technique, the post-up offers the advantage of initiating force; even with some disparity in physical ability, one can still engage in a hard collision.

Thud~!

Yukimiya Kazuma held the ball securely with his back to the basket, pushing forward inch by inch.

Upon reaching a sufficient scoring area.

He suddenly executed a fake-and-real spin!

A fake shot!

Qingfeng's gaze remained completely unfluctuating; he continued to stand firmly in front of Yukimiya Kazuma until the opponent spun again toward the other side and took a long stride toward the basket for a layup.

Thud~!

The instant the basketball left his hand!

Facing Qingfeng Daiki took off right from the spot!

With a sharp "Smack!", he slammed the ball straight against the backboard!

Watching the dark-skinned figure flash past overhead and hearing that crisp sound of the ball hitting the board, Yukimiya Kazuma couldn't help but draw in a sharp breath.

Only one thought filled his mind.

Damn it, is this training really this hard?!