Shutoku struggled to win the jump ball, but before they could make their next move, Yuuto stole the possession back with lightning speed.
Kazunari Takao admitted he was startled.
His eyes had seen Yuuto approaching, but during his ball-protection phase, the opponent seemed to see right through him.
Yuuto's arm was like a bullet he couldn't dodge.
This wasn't the work of the Eye of the Sky, but a judgment honed by countless memories!
"Don't just stand there, get back on defense!"
Shutoku displayed extremely strong tactical discipline.
After the momentary shock, they immediately sprinted back to their own half.
Looking at Yuuto again, having completed his launch, he was like a black flash.
With a gust of wind rushing past his ears, Takao saw Yuuto already crossing the center circle.
A fast break after a center-court steal.
Even a team like Shutoku found it extremely difficult to get back on defense in time.
But Midorima was an exception.
He possessed the best perimeter frame and athletic ability second only to those few from the Generation of Miracles.
While others had just crossed half-court, Midorima had already retreated near the three-point line.
He said nothing, but his posture seemed to say to Yuuto, "Bring it on!"
Yuuto brought it on.
"You can't stop me, Midorima!"
Golden light erupted from Yuuto's body. Mingled with the black of his jersey, he faked right, then violently swung to the left.
Midorima shifted laterally, only to watch helplessly as Yuuto crossed him.
In for a penny, in for a pound.
Midorima turned to chase, only to see Yuuto already taking off from the free-throw line.
"Taking off from the free-throw line?"
"What is he trying to do from that spot?"
"Crazy!"
Seirin's members had also come to the venue today.
They wouldn't miss this head-to-head clash between kings.
Especially Taiga Kagami; he wanted to see clearly just how far he was from these geniuses.
The result? In the very first play, Yuuto made his eyes go wide.
From that spot, even with his awakened jumping ability, Kagami couldn't touch the rim.
Midorima seemed to have realized something, but he still gritted his teeth and jumped.
Both bodies soared into the sky simultaneously, engaging in a mid-air duel.
Midorima was taller than Yuuto, and his wingspan was top-tier.
But.
Yuuto's Eye of the Sky locked onto the basket, his muscles compressing and exploding just right.
Through countless simulations, he had long mastered his body completely.
When he climbed to the apex, reaching the limit of what he could challenge in the sky.
The next moment.
Before Midorima's arm could get close, his right hand suddenly chopped down.
The basketball glided like a meteor, spinning and tearing through the air, entering the net in an extremely violent arc before hitting the ground.
BOOM!
2:0!
"Meteor Jam."
Momoi and the others had long witnessed this extraordinarily luxurious dunk.
"To be honest, I don't know how Yu developed such a dunk."
It completely contradicted Yuuto's personality.
The Yuuto she knew was a pragmatic player.
"Who knows? Maybe he originally thought of it to break through that guy Murasakibara's defense," Aomine opined, thinking the dunk was prepared for Murasakibara.
After all, to defeat Teiko, Murasakibara's aerial defense line was an unavoidable hurdle.
In fact.
Yuuto had initially considered that, but the Weakness Revision talent saved him the trouble.
As an opener.
The Meteor Jam was absolutely flashy enough. The North stand was now completely boiling over.
"I won't give you opportunities slowly, Midorima."
Yuuto landed lightly. He turned to run back on defense, not planning any 2-1-2 zone, intending to give Midorima zero chances to score.
However.
As he walked to the center circle, Midorima received a pass from a teammate.
Still at that free-throw line position (on his own side?), he slowly crouched, adopting a shooting motion.
A cognitive bias caused by the simulation!
Yuuto realized it immediately, but it was too late.
He had always been used to playing matches using memories from the simulation.
But sometimes, reality would change due to minor details.
"Give me opportunities?"
"Don't joke around, Yuuto. I won't give you any opportunities!"
Midorima's voice was as cold as frost.
Once, his range was enough to cover half the court.
Now, the entire court was within his range.
"What is he trying to do from that spot?" Taiga Kagami watched, dumbfounded.
His eyes told him Midorima was going to shoot from there, but his reason kept telling him it was impossible.
No one could guarantee their shooting percentage from that distance.
On the third-floor balcony, Aomine's eyes also widened. "Just a few months of change, and he evolved to this extent?"
The entire arena's gaze converged on Midorima.
At this moment, under the dumbfounded stares of over twenty thousand spectators, Midorima fired!
Whoosh!
It was still that abnormally high arc, almost scraping the ceiling.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
From the backcourt to the frontcourt, the ball's hang time reached a full three seconds.
This long wait could make people forget to breathe.
Finally.
The basketball passed through the net hollow, splashing up a white wave.
"Full... A full-court three-pointer!!!"
The TV commentator screamed wildly.
As an opener, Yuuto's Meteor Jam was flashy enough, but Midorima's response was equally soul-shaking.
A full-court three-pointer, precise as satellite positioning, dropping right into the center of the hoop without grazing it.
2:3.
"This is... the duel between the Generation of Miracles and the Lion King!"
"Monsters..."
The expressions on the Seirin players' faces were indescribably terrified.
They thought this match might overturn their understanding of basketball.
But they never imagined the opening would be this explosive.
The visual impact those two brought was earth-shattering.
"I can say it as many times as needed: the three-point shot is basketball's sharpest weapon."
Midorima held his shooting arm high. Responding to him were the Shutoku fans in the East stand.
Yamashita Shio was in high spirits today, not preparing to meditate.
Seeing this three-pointer, he instantly understood that using Tsugawa Tomoki to guard Midorima Shintaro was impossible.
That was a true monster; Tsugawa wasn't at that level yet.
2-1-2?
He gave it up, signaling to the players to use the second formation they had prepared.
Yuuto exchanged a glance with Midorima across several meters.
Without unnecessary words, he turned and returned to Shutoku's territory.
Ryuhei Kasuga dribbled past half-court.
"The Generation of Miracles really are monsters. But Yuuto is a monster among monsters."
Without hesitation, he passed the ball to Yuuto.
"Hit them back, King of Seiho!"
...
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