Chapter 272

"This is divination."

Miyaji Kiyoshi's forehead bulged with veins. Although he didn't really believe in such ghostly things as divination, since Midorima joined the team, divination had always predicted good news. Facing a strong enemy today and suddenly getting a second-place prediction made him very annoyed. "Is it this kind of question?!"

Takao Kazunari, standing nearby, also couldn't handle this usually strict and terrifying senior, and was now trembling beside him.

Coach Nakatani Masaaki sighed.

But...

This atmosphere, in a way, could be considered a good thing.

"Good!"

"Time's up!"

"Let's go!"

Ootsubo Taishu's voice rang out with full energy, then he led the Shuutoku team out of the locker room, striding fiercely through the player tunnel.

As soon as Shuutoku appeared, it immediately drew cheers from the entire arena.

Of course, it wasn't just for them; there was also the reason that today's match held different significance from usual, and even because of this reason, a group stage match was given an opening introduction on-site.

"They've appeared...! ` ‖!"

"One of the three kings of the Tokyo district, the Eastern King, Shuutoku High!"

"The three kings who have represented the Tokyo district in the nationals for ten consecutive years in the past; among them, the Northern King Seihou, has already fallen in Group A."

"Today, in Group D, either Shuutoku or Izumikan must fall."

"The structure of the Tokyo district will be completely shattered!"

"Here they come...!"

"The Western King Izumikan, whose strength is unlike before!"

"In the first three matches of this year's preliminaries, the point differences were all crushing, over one hundred points!"

Both teams entered the court and prepared to warm up.

Just then.

Midorima Shintarou suddenly came to the center line near the Izumikan side; of course, he wasn't here to show off his three-pointers, but simply to greet Yukimiya Kazuma.

Or rather, a declaration of victory before the match.

Ootsubo Taishu noticed Midorima's action, but after thinking for a moment, he did not stop him.

In his view, Midorima Shintarou would absolutely not be shaken in mindset on the court due to any pre-match conversation.

However...

He was wrong about that.

The 'output ability' cultivated by shuttling back and forth through 'monster immersion' and its resulting inertia was no joke; if he wanted to, he would absolutely not lose verbally.

"Yukimiya Kazuma."

Midorima Shintarou, holding his 'sunny-day doll', approached Yukimiya Kazuma with a serious expression.

Before he could speak, Yukimiya Kazuma said first:

"Yo."

"Sho-chan."

"Midorima-chan."

"Midorima-kun."

The exclusive nicknames from Takao, Momoi, and Kise landed one after another on Midorima's ears.

"Yukimiya Kazuma."

Midorima's face stiffened, but he quickly set his expression again.

"I will win."

Yukimiya Kazuma raised an eyebrow and became serious too. "I thought it was made very clear last time at Izumikan; there is no need to emphasize it again..."

"You can listen to it again if you want."

"Just because of you..."

"I am impossible to lose."

"Your three-pointers, in my view..."

"That ridiculous obsession is actually no different in essence from the passing of a first-year who just started playing basketball at Bai Shui Hall, passing just for the sake of passing on the court..."

"You, who are stuck in your ways, cannot defeat me."

Yukimiya Kazuma's lofty attitude made Midorima frown deeply. "Although you are an opponent worthy of attention, but..."

"Save such preaching until after you win."

Yukimiya Kazuma nodded. "That's right. If you win, I will listen to everything you say with both ears. See you on the court."

"Now proceeding to the Group D final."

"The match between Izumikan High and Shuutoku High begins now."

"Salute!"

"Please give us your guidance!!"

The opening tip-off.

Facing Ootsubo Taishu, Yukimiya Kazuma easily secured possession.

With his current height, attributes, and overall abilities, in the tip-off, no one could compete with him except for Mibuchi Atsushi, provided he doesn't act foolishly.

He Xiuyang held the ball, looking at Takao Kazunari, a first-year like himself, recalling the intelligence in his mind. As a point guard, his style is very mature; because he possesses the vision ability called 'Eagle Eye', he is very skilled at passing and stealing.

A very strong first-year.

But...

Though I lack such ability, stability is enough.

He Xiuyang, executing continuous feints and shifts not aimed at breaking through, created passing space and delivered a remarkably steady pass to Yukimiya Kazuma at the free-throw line.

Defending him was Tsuchiya Dahe, the pillar of Shutoku's interior and a national-level top center.

However...

'Devil's Footwork'.

The badge ability flickered for barely a second; with his back to Tsuchiya Dahe, Yukimiya Kazuma spun with an extremely quick shoulder fake, appearing almost ghostly in Tsuchiya Dahe's eyes.

Then, when Tsuchiya Dahe turned to chase (Zhao De's) position, he discovered...

The ball was gone.

Tsuchiya Dahe: "¨｀ ……!?"

Swish~!

At the same time.

came the sound of the basketball passing through the net.

Guided by the 'Passing Control Master · Linkage', the quick shot was executed by Tsuchiya Dahe, facing Shutoku's power forward Kimura Shinji as his defender.

The 'Passing Control Master' boosted guidance speed and shooting accuracy, plus Kimura Shinji stood only 187 cm tall while Tsuchiya was a full 196 cm.

This was an absolutely dominant matchup on the court.

Takao Kazunari: "……!"

Amazing.

The player receiving his pass, guided by the pass, clearly accelerated his next move.

Inferring from this, not just shooting, but driving and passing might also be executed with such cold precision.

As the point guard, Takao Kazunari felt the terror of this pass most acutely; stripping away all of Yukimiya Kazuma's external physical displays, judging purely by passing technique, he too was an unqualified monster.