Inoue suddenly realized that something was missing from his hands.
The ball!!
He snapped his head around, only to see Miyamoto Tokima already dribbling the ball into Uesaki's half.
How could he be that fast?!
The Uesaki players hadn't even reacted yet. By the time they came to their senses, Miyamoto Tokima had already taken three long strides and gently laid the ball into the hoop.
"Did you see that? Number seven was insanely fast—he was under the opposite basket in an instant!"
"Yeah! Is he really a freshman?"
"That's terrifying. How is Uesaki even supposed to play like this?"
Gulp.
Inoue swallowed hard.
An iron wall. A massive hand. Unmatched speed.
Both on offense and defense, he was being completely crushed. Could he really beat an opponent like this?
His mood began to sink, and the Uesaki point guard noticed immediately. Although the point guard himself wasn't feeling great either, the score gap hadn't grown too large yet.
He stepped forward to encourage Inoue and signaled the coach to call a timeout.
Coach Uesaki sensed the drop in morale and immediately called for a timeout.
After Inoue returned to the bench, the coach delivered a lengthy motivational speech, barely managing to pull him back together.
...
After the timeout.
Daiki Aomine subbed in for Miyamoto Tokima, taking over his position on the court.
The assistant coach felt that Miyamoto Tokima no longer needed tempering—he was simply too suited for basketball.
He was practically born for it.
Miyamoto Tokima showed no disappointment after coming off the court. If anything, he felt relieved. The opponent was just too weak.
He sat down beside Satsuki Momoi, who asked cheerfully,
"Tokima, will you come with me tomorrow to collect intel on our future opponents?"
Miyamoto Tokima tilted his head back and drank the water she handed him. He looked momentarily surprised, then nodded in agreement.
Satsuki Momoi's face immediately lit up with joy.
...
On the court.
Inoue wasn't weak—he could barely keep up with Daiki Aomine, who hadn't fully blossomed yet.
But instead of closing the gap, the score only continued to widen.
Because Teikō Middle School didn't rely on Daiki Aomine alone.
At this stage, Atsushi Murasakibara no longer stood around absentmindedly under his own basket. He actively joined the offense, repeatedly assaulting the rim. The overwhelming gap in strength left Uesaki's center utterly helpless, and the paint fell completely under Murasakibara's control.
On the perimeter, Shintaro Midorima performed flawlessly, sinking all seven of his three-point attempts for a total of 21 points, completely blowing apart Uesaki's outside defense.
All of this, however, stemmed from Akashi Seijuro's command of the game. His vision and passing tied the entire team together.
Earlier, Uesaki had relied on teamwork to trade blows with Teikō, but as Teikō's coordination grew sharper—and with Akashi Seijuro directing everything—
By the fourth quarter, Miyamoto Tokima returned to the court.
From that moment on, Teikō completely dominated the game, extinguishing the last remaining spark of Uesaki's resistance.
The final score was locked in at 108–74.
Teikō Middle School defeated Uesaki by a full 34 points, declaring loud and clear that they were not here to mess around.
Miyamoto Tokima and the others entered everyone's field of vision, and many people began to realize that Teikō possessed five terrifying first-years.
...
After the game, Daiki Aomine walked up to Inoue with a grin.
"Good game."
On the court, they were opponents. Off the court, there was no hostility.
"You played well too," Inoue replied. "But next time, I'll definitely win."
Daiki Aomine laughed loudly.
"Hahaha! Next time, I'm still winning."
After this game, the two had essentially become friends. After all, they had matched up against each other for the entire game.
Miyamoto Tokima, however, remained curious. Had Inoue ever appeared in the original story? Why did he have no memory of him?
Although Inoue wasn't overwhelmingly strong, being able to hold his own against a still-developing Daiki Aomine at roughly a 60–40 split was already impressive—Aomine at six, Inoue at four.
After thinking it over for a long time with no answers, Miyamoto Tokima gave up.
Why think so much? Slacking off was far more worthwhile.
Inoue, on the other hand, still felt some lingering fear toward Miyamoto Tokima. That iron wall and that massive hand were things he would never forget.
Coach Uesaki clenched his teeth as he shook hands with the assistant coach.
"You guys are really lucky—to have so many talented kids show up at once."
The assistant coach sensed his frustration but didn't take it to heart.
"Of course. You weren't bad either."
"Hmph."
Coach Uesaki released his hand and led his team away.
Miyamoto Tokima and the others followed the assistant coach back to school.
...
Later, Miyamoto Tokima treated everyone to a meal. Seijuro Akashi hadn't wanted to go at first, since his family's butler had come to pick him up.
In the end, though, Miyamoto Tokima and Daiki Aomine hooked him under the arms and dragged him along anyway.
Atsushi Murasakibara was the most excited of all, using both hands to sweep the table clean.
That night, Kuroko practiced alone in the gym. He didn't see Miyamoto Tokima or Daiki Aomine anywhere.
Figures. I should've known.
His mood dipped slightly, but he continued practicing by himself.
"Huff… huff… huff…"
"Tetsu, sorry I'm late."
Daiki Aomine panted heavily, one hand braced against the doorframe as he bent forward apologetically.
Tetsuya Kuroko turned around in disbelief. The excitement in his eyes was impossible to hide.
He nodded firmly, and the two began practicing together.
Over the past few days, Daiki Aomine had been training with Kuroko regularly. Miyamoto Tokima rarely joined in, only occasionally stopping by to watch.
Kuroko had long since grown used to Miyamoto Tokima's habit of slacking off.
He'd noticed that no matter the situation—class or training—if there was an opportunity to slack, Miyamoto Tokima would never miss it.
While Tetsuya Kuroko practiced with Daiki Aomine—
Miyamoto Tokima was already walking home shoulder to shoulder with Satsuki Momoi.
"Tokima, don't forget our promise for tomorrow," she reminded him.
Miyamoto Tokima nodded, signaling that he wouldn't forget.
The next day, Miyamoto Tokima got up early and arrived at the designated location, only to find Satsuki Momoi already waiting there.
After meeting up, the two entered the gym together to scout information on other teams.
Soon enough, the day of the second-round match arrived.
...
While the Teikō Middle School players were changing in the locker room, Daiki Aomine suddenly slung an arm around Miyamoto Tokima's shoulder and asked with a grin,
"Hey, Tokima, how did the scouting with Satsuki go?"
Miyamoto Tokima ignored him, gently pushing Aomine away as he changed clothes.
"It was fine. Today's opponent isn't strong—doesn't even compare to Inoue from last game."
Aomine's expression fell immediately.
"Ah, really? I was hoping for a super intense battle today."
Miyamoto Tokima shot back,
"I think you mean an intense fantasy battle."
Daiki Aomine chuckled awkwardly and didn't reply. He turned his head—and suddenly froze.
"Hey, hey, hey! Who brought a chainsaw in here?!"