Once Seijuro Akashi reached the frontcourt, he stopped holding back.
"I'm activating the [Emperor Eye]," Seijuro Akashi warned Makoto Hanamiya, keeping his promise.
Makoto Hanamiya's expression changed as his entire body tensed.
The next instant, golden rings lit up inside Seijuro Akashi's crimson eyes.
He stepped in front of Makoto Hanamiya, dribbled the ball from his left hand to his right, then immediately crossed it back to his left.
Two consecutive changes of direction completely threw Makoto Hanamiya off balance, sending him down onto the floor.
The [Emperor Eye] was devastating against an ordinary player.
After dropping Makoto Hanamiya, Seijuro Akashi quickly stepped beyond the three-point line and rose for a shot.
Atsushi Murasakibara's eyes instantly locked onto Seijuro Akashi, and he prepared to rush over for the block.
Teppei Kiyoshi noticed and immediately stepped in front of Atsushi Murasakibara, preventing him from rotating over in time.
Feeling Teppei Kiyoshi hold him back, Atsushi Murasakibara let out a puzzled hum.
Teppei Kiyoshi gritted his teeth. Just trying to stop Atsushi Murasakibara from moving was already draining nearly all his strength.
That alone showed just how overwhelming Atsushi Murasakibara's power was.
Even so, Teppei Kiyoshi refused to give an inch.
"I can't let you stop my teammate!"
Elsewhere, Seijuro Akashi's [Emperor Eye] remained active even after he jumped.
The moment he saw Shogo Haizaki charging toward him, Seijuro Akashi smiled.
Then, just as Shogo Haizaki jumped, Seijuro Akashi whipped the ball toward Shintaro Midorima.
Shogo Haizaki's eyes widened.
Damn!
Shintaro Midorima caught the ball with both hands, bent his knees, and launched himself upward.
The entire motion flowed seamlessly as he rose into a textbook-perfect shooting form.
Thud, thud, thud...
Atsushi Murasakibara suddenly burst toward him, planted hard with his right foot, and leaped high into the air, stretching his arm as far as possible to contest Shintaro Midorima's shot.
Seeing this, Daiki Aomine glanced toward the paint.
There, Teppei Kiyoshi was down on one knee, breathing heavily as he looked at Atsushi Murasakibara with a bitter smile.
He had done everything he could.
Atsushi Murasakibara was simply too strong.
There was no way he could hold him back.
Seeing Atsushi Murasakibara rotate over, Shintaro Midorima had no intention of showing mercy.
In midair, Shintaro Midorima resembled an eagle calmly waiting for its prey to fall.
And for Atsushi Murasakibara, falling meant defeat.
Because once he started descending, he could no longer threaten Shintaro Midorima's shot.
Shintaro Midorima seemed almost suspended in the air, calmly waiting for Atsushi Murasakibara to come down.
By the time Atsushi Murasakibara began descending, Shintaro Midorima was still airborne.
Atsushi Murasakibara's eyes widened in disbelief.
He had jumped later, yet he was the one falling first.
Midorimacchi... did you get even better again?
As Atsushi Murasakibara descended, Shintaro Midorima's shooting lane opened completely.
With a flick of his wrist, the basketball soared high into the air, tracing a beautiful arc.
Once it reached near the ceiling of the arena, it began to descend.
Shintaro Midorima didn't hesitate in the slightest.
He turned and headed back on defense.
He had done this countless times in previous games.
The spectators had even jokingly started calling it the "Midorima Moment."
Because it was just that flashy.
And somehow, he pulled it off so perfectly that it never looked awkward.
As long as the shot went in, it became a perfect highlight.
No one could argue with it.
After watching him through so many games, the spectators had also noticed something.
Whenever Shintaro Midorima got a clean release, his shooting percentage was one hundred percent.
And it wasn't just the spectators who believed that.
The Kirisaki Daiichi players on the court believed it too.
Atsushi Murasakibara had already moved under the basket, waiting for the ball to fall through the net so he could grab it and inbound immediately.
Unfortunately, Shintaro Midorima's shot made a fast break almost impossible.
Teikō Middle School trusted him too completely now.
Unlike back at Shutoku High School, there was no longer any need for two players to stay behind and prepare for a rebound whenever Shintaro Midorima took a shot.
Now, the moment he released the ball, every player on Teikō Middle School turned and headed back on defense without a second thought.
Pure, unquestioning trust.
Swish!
A moment later, the basketball dropped cleanly through the net.
Atsushi Murasakibara caught the ball as it fell, stepped out of bounds, and passed it to Miyamoto Tokima.
Miyamoto Tokima received the ball and began jogging up the court.
The moment he reached the frontcourt, before Daiki Aomine could even get set, Miyamoto Tokima launched a shot from one step beyond the three-point line.
His release was so fast that Daiki Aomine didn't even have time to react.
The basketball flew like a perfectly guided missile and drilled straight through the hoop.
Atsushi Murasakibara, who had only just jogged across half court, froze.
I just crossed midcourt...
...
Possession changed.
Teikō Middle School's ball.
Seijuro Akashi had launched the first real offensive push moments earlier, but Miyamoto Tokima had immediately answered.
So now, Seijuro Akashi wanted to answer Miyamoto Tokima in return.
And naturally, the one chosen to answer a three-pointer with another three-pointer was Shintaro Midorima.
A three for a three.
Only fair.
A flash of white light appeared in Seijuro Akashi's hand, and the basketball vanished.
Shintaro Midorima caught the ball, raised it, and shifted his center of gravity upward.
Shogo Haizaki immediately bit on the fake.
There was no helping it.
Shintaro Midorima's shooting threat was simply too dangerous.
Shogo Haizaki couldn't afford to be careless, which was exactly why he was so easily drawn into the air.
After getting Shogo Haizaki to jump, Shintaro Midorima took a simple dribble and sidestep, gathered the ball again, and rose for another shot.
His form was as textbook-perfect as ever.
"Midorima!!!"
Shogo Haizaki suddenly roared.
He launched himself into the air like a madman, reaching toward the basketball in Shintaro Midorima's hands.
For some reason, Shogo Haizaki jumped higher than usual this time.
It even looked like he might actually reach the ball.
Seeing that, Shintaro Midorima decided to eliminate the threat completely.
He raised his release point even higher.
Shogo Haizaki's last hope vanished.
His release point...
It can go even higher?!
Shogo Haizaki stared in shock.
"Cancer ranks first in today's fortune, and the lucky item is glasses. Aries, meanwhile, ranks last," Shintaro Midorima said calmly. "So my shot... is foolproof."
Whoosh!
The basketball left Shintaro Midorima's hands and soared high into the air.
A moment later...
Swish!
...
...
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