"Stop right there!"
Yukio Kasamatsu sprinted at full speed after Kasuga Ryuhei, finally catching up just before Kasuga could break into the restricted area.
But at the same time, Kasuga raised his left arm in defense, leaned back slightly, and with his right hand, flicked the ball toward the basket.
SWISH!
The ball landed cleanly.
28:20.
"Damn it!"
Watching the ball drop into the basket behind him, Kasamatsu growled in frustration.
A mid-range shot, this was Kasuga Ryuhei's specialty.
He had perfected this move even before Akashi Asuka joined Seiho.
Kasamatsu wasn't surprised by the shot itself, but the way Kasuga had anticipated his steal earlier left him puzzled.
The second quarter had barely begun, and Kaijo's offense was already stifled, while Seiho had executed a perfect counterattack.
A shadow of doubt hung over the Kaijo players' minds.
But soon, Kaijo regrouped and launched their second round of offense.
Kasamatsu positioned himself outside the three-point line against Kasuga again. This time, he was on full alert. Facing Kasuga's defense, he first faked a right turn to lure Kasuga to shift, then abruptly stopped and drove left.
Fake move… then sudden stop.
This was Kasamatsu's signature breakthrough style.
Previously, he had used it once to shake Kasuga, but this time, before Kasamatsu could complete the move, Kasuga struck, stealing the ball.
Two consecutive steals, both sudden and decisive. Even with Kasamatsu at maximum alert, he was taken aback at the exact moment of Kasuga's action.
"This guy… can really anticipate my moves."
Learning from his earlier mistake, Kasamatsu had exaggerated his ball protection this time, yet the ball still nearly got snatched.
This time, Kasamatsu could clearly see that Kasuga's hands hadn't gone directly for the ball. He had predicted where Kasamatsu would shield it and seized the advantage in advance.
"Tch… failed!"
Kasuga realized that his secret had been seen through. He pouted in annoyance, but only annoyance. His mind remained calm.
The move he attempted was inherently risky.
50% Steal
This was the name Kasuga gave to his technique.
True to its name, the move was inspired by Akashi Seijuro's predictive steals. While it could anticipate an opponent's next step, its success rate was only fifty percent.
After all, Kasuga didn't have a "True Eye" like Akashi.
Although the steal failed, Kasamatsu also couldn't break past Kasuga's defense. Seiho's specialty was man-to-man defense, not aggressive offensive maneuvers.
The ball was passed to Kise Ryouta, who didn't immediately attack either. His opponent posed an even greater challenge than Kasamatsu's.
BOOM~
Kise dribbled with a thunderous force.
Using his Lighting Dribble to accelerate explosively, Kise wasn't trying to break through himself. Instead, he aimed to stretch Akashi's defense and create more passing space.
Akashi seemed to read Kise's intentions and smiled.
"No need to waste so much energy. I'm not the star of this quarter."
Kise clearly didn't buy it. Expanding the passing space, he lofted a high pass to the center near the basket.
Kobori Koji had already positioned himself in open space.
As the ball reached him, he turned to shoot.
But in the next instant, his face changed, he couldn't turn.
Behind him was like a solid boulder. No matter how he moved, the "boulder" didn't budge.
"Don't underestimate us! Kaijo isn't just Akashi."
On the surface, the player who had changed most over the summer was Tsutomu Iwamura.
As a power-type center, Iwamura had always been strong, but now he was even bulkier than the previous semester.
The championship clash during the summer tournament, especially against Rakuzan, had profoundly affected Seiho's players.
Kasuga Ryuhei, inspired by Akashi Seijuro, had developed the 50% Steal.
Tsugawa Tomoki, motivated by Hayama Kotaro, had awakened the defensive technique Afterimage Pivot.
Tsutomu Iwamura, learning from Nebuya Eikichi, refined his move for the post.
Moreover, Iwamura grasped the importance of extreme strength.
For him, height was a disadvantage he could not change.
But he could compensate in other ways, just like Nebuya Eikichi of the Uncrowned Kings.
Since his defeat by Kiyoshi Teppei, he had abandoned finesse, focusing entirely on muscle training. Though slightly misguided, he undeniably grew stronger.
Inspired by that battle, Iwamura's training plan gradually evolved.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Kaijo's center, Kobori Koji, realized Iwamura intended to limit his power, but as a center, he couldn't yield easily.
After seven or eight clashes, Kobori's shoulders were nearly numb, yet Iwamura remained unmoved.
"Damn… is this guy on steroids?"
Kasuga and Kasamatsu had a long-standing rivalry; Kobori and Iwamura were no strangers, yet Iwamura now felt completely unfamiliar.
With limited time for post plays, Kobori knew finding a good position was almost impossible. Helpless, he turned for a forced jump shot.
CLANG!
Unsurprisingly, it missed.
"Ohhh~ the rebound's mine!"
Kaijo's power forward, Hayakawa Mitsuhiro, hot-headed but skilled at offensive rebounds, rushed in.
But just as he jumped, a massive hand descended from above, covering him entirely, and snatched the rebound effortlessly.
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria