Shohoku's Predicament (Chapter Integrating 4000 Words of Abuse)

Swish...

The basketball went through the net cleanly. Hanagata Toru's free throw was steady and true.

Shohoku 0, Shoyo 3.

"Well done, Hanagata," Fujima Kenji said with a gratified smile, gently patting Hanagata Toru's shoulder in encouragement.

Hanagata Toru had successfully drawn a "2+1" foul on Akagi Takenori. The impact of this achievement was no less significant than an inspiring slam dunk.

Moreover, Akagi Takenori was Shohoku's captain and the very soul of the team.

On the surface, it was just an ordinary foul to score, but in reality, it put immense psychological pressure on Shohoku.

And indeed, the expressions on the faces of the Shohoku players grew even more solemn and serious than before.

Akagi Takenori's two fouls caused the momentum Shohoku had painstakingly built up before the game to instantly plummet.

As play switched to offense and defense, possession shifted to Shohoku.

To retaliate, Shohoku quickly launched a fast break.

Akagi Takenori rapidly charged into Shoyo's interior.

Miyagi Ryota decisively passed the ball to Mitsui Hisashi on the other side from just beyond the three-point line.

Just as Mitsui Hisashi was preparing to shoot, Hasegawa Kazushi of the opposing team closed in quickly, his tight defense leaving him no opportunity to take a shot.

Helpless, Mitsui Hisashi could only protect the ball, his eyes rapidly scanning his surroundings for a passing lane.

Soon, he saw Rukawa Kaede suddenly appear in his field of vision, waving to him for the ball.

Without the slightest hesitation, Mitsui Hisashi took a step forward, creating a brief distance from Hasegawa Kazushi, and then unhesitatingly flicked the ball towards Rukawa Kaede.

After Rukawa Kaede successfully received the ball, he was quickly met with tight defense from Nagano Mitsuru.

Rukawa Kaede's eyes narrowed. He keenly spotted Akagi Takenori in the paint through a gap in Nagano Mitsuru's defense.

Making a swift decision, he quickly maneuvered the ball and passed it through the defensive gap to Akagi Takenori.

The ball arced through the air, flying towards Akagi Takenori under Shoyo's basket.

However, just as Akagi Takenori was about to receive the ball, a large hand suddenly shot out, intercepting it before he could.

What?

Akagi Takenori's heart leaped, and he quickly looked to see who it was.

The one who intercepted the pass was Shoyo's power forward, Takano Shoichi.

Rukawa Kaede hadn't expected his carefully planned pass to be intercepted.

"Fast break," Fujima Kenji reacted quickly, immediately issuing the command.

The next moment, all of Shoyo moved swiftly, launching their fast break.

The Shohoku players also quickly retreated to defend, but unfortunately, they couldn't stop Shoyo's attack.

Shoyo's offense was incredibly fast, and their teamwork was seamless. Coupled with Miyagi Ryota's severe height disadvantage on the Shohoku side, this allowed Shoyo to find a passing route with the least threat and highest success rate.

Inside the Shohoku paint.

Hanagata Toru, spotting the opening as Akagi Takenori hadn't yet managed to get back on defense, pushed off his legs and leaped high. Holding the ball with both hands, he was about to score with a powerful slam dunk.

Akagi Takenori was anxious behind him, wishing he could sprout wings and fly over to block, but he was helpless for the moment.

At this critical juncture, Sakuragi Hanamichi suddenly burst out from who-knows-where like lightning.

He stretched out his arm, like an impenetrable wall, blocking Hanagata Toru, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "With me, the genius Sakuragi Hanamichi here, you won't be able to shoot."

Hanagata Toru looked up at Sakuragi Hanamichi before him, a flicker of disdain in his eyes.

Without a word, he immediately adopted a shooting posture.

Sakuragi Hanamichi reacted swiftly, his eyes wide, his feet pushing off the ground forcefully. He leaped into the air like a cannonball, attempting to block the shot.

However, as he jumped, he was shocked to discover that Hanagata Toru's feet had never left the ground.

A fake.

Damn it.

Sakuragi Hanamichi realized his mistake belatedly, filled with regret, but his body was already in the air, beyond saving.

A sly smile played on Hanagata Toru's lips. He stared intently at Sakuragi Hanamichi, then suddenly exerted force and jumped.

What is this guy trying to do? Sakuragi Hanamichi instinctively sensed that something bad was about to happen.

The next moment, Hanagata Toru's body collided directly with Sakuragi Hanamichi's. Using the momentum from the impact, he flicked his wrist, and the basketball shot out like an arrow from a bowstring.

Beep...

A sharp whistle instantly echoed throughout the court.

Simultaneously.

Swish, the basketball steadily fell into Shohoku's basket.

Immediately after, the referee's voice rang out, "Shohoku number 10, defensive foul. Basket counts, and-one."

"Ah..." Sakuragi Hanamichi felt his heart clench. He yelled out, feeling both frustrated and wronged. "He ran into me himself! I didn't even mean to foul!"

He was filled with unwillingness and resentment, mixed with a touch of hurt.

He wanted to argue with the referee because he was telling the truth.

But the referee completely ignored Sakuragi Hanamichi's defense.

The referee had seen it clearly: Hanagata Toru had intentionally drawn the foul. This was a common technique in basketball games, and there was no room for dispute.

If anyone was to blame, it was Sakuragi Hanamichi's lack of experience and skill.

At that moment, Akagi Takenori quickly walked up to Sakuragi Hanamichi and whispered, "Sakuragi... raise your hand."

Seeing Akagi Takenori's unquestionable gaze, Sakuragi Hanamichi, despite his reluctance, grumbled and finally raised his hand.

Off the court, the Shohoku substitutes were already on edge.

First, Akagi Takenori committed two consecutive fouls, and now Sakuragi Hanamichi had been fouled.

If this trend continued, Shohoku would likely have someone fouled out before halftime.

The game had only been going on for less than two minutes, and Shohoku had already committed three fouls. This was simply unacceptable to everyone.

Despite this, Anzai Mitsuyoshi remained seated quietly, showing no intention of calling a timeout.

Qing Junce also maintained a calm expression, watching the game unfold with an air of unruffled composure, his emotions showing no fluctuation whatsoever.

Only Shimizu Kanon's expression was a bit complicated.

She wasn't worried about Shohoku's current passive situation. Instead, it was because the players on the court weren't playing according to the opponent's weaknesses she had provided. They were playing completely haphazardly.

In her opinion, the Shohoku players on the court at this moment could be summed up in one word: "chaos."

Everyone was playing on instinct, and the coordination between the players was a complete mess, lacking any semblance of strategy.

Time ticked by, second by second.

On the court at this moment, the game continued.

Shohoku's situation grew increasingly dire.

It was now Shoyo's turn for another offensive possession.

Takano Shoichi skillfully coordinated with Hanagata Toru, successfully shaking off Akagi Takenori's tight defense. Hanagata Toru seized the opportunity and went straight for a beautiful layup.

The ball went into the net.

Shoyo scored another 2 points.

"Shoyo... Shoyo... Shoyo..."

The overwhelming cheers from the Shoyo cheerleaders instantly drowned out the entire gymnasium.

In contrast, the spectators who had been cheering for Shohoku moments before were now silent.

They had expected to witness a thrilling, evenly matched contest, but it had turned into a one-sided annihilation of Shohoku by Shoyo.

The ball possession returned to Shohoku.

Rukawa Kaede, with quick reflexes, took advantage of Shoyo's players not yet having time to get back on defense. He transformed into a red lightning bolt, sprinting rapidly towards Shoyo's basket.

Akagi Takenori was not to be outdone. Standing at the baseline, he swung his arm with all his might, unleashing an ultra-long pass. The basketball flew like a cannonball towards Rukawa Kaede.

However, halfway through its flight, a large hand suddenly appeared, forcefully blocking its path.

Not good.

Akagi Takenori and Rukawa Kaede's hearts sank. They simultaneously looked towards the owner of the hand.

Upon closer inspection, they saw that the person who intercepted the basketball was Nagano Mitsuru, wearing Shoyo's number 7 jersey.

Nagano Mitsuru's mission was to guard Rukawa Kaede.

The moment Rukawa Kaede made his move, Nagano Mitsuru had already noticed.

But he didn't blindly chase. He knew very well that his speed couldn't match Rukawa Kaede's. Rather than waste energy eating dust behind him, it was better to directly cut off the connection between Rukawa Kaede and the rest of Shohoku.

The outcome proved his choice was correct.

After receiving the ball, Nagano Mitsuru immediately passed it to Fujima Kenji.

Fujima Kenji dribbled the ball, rapidly driving towards the three-point line. He bent his knees slightly and leaped high, striking a pose as if he were about to shoot a three-pointer.

Miyagi Ryota naturally wouldn't let him succeed. He immediately jumped high, stretching out his arm, attempting to disrupt the shot.

However, his height remained a significant disadvantage, only managing to block half of Fujima Kenji's line of sight.

Damn it.

Miyagi Ryota gritted his teeth inwardly, feeling frustrated but helpless.

As Fujima Kenji was about to shoot, at this critical juncture, from behind Miyagi Ryota, a figure soared into the air like a rocket. His arm stretched out straight, completely blocking Fujima Kenji's line of sight.

Fujima Kenji's pupils contracted sharply.

The person who had suddenly appeared from behind Miyagi Ryota was Mitsui Hisashi.

With Mitsui Hisashi's height and arm span, it was more than enough to obscure Fujima Kenji's shooting path.

However, Fujima Kenji showed no signs of panic at all. He looked up at Mitsui Hisashi, who was blocking him, and instantly changed his shooting motion. With a flick of his wrist, he threw the basketball to the side.

A pass?

Both Mitsui Hisashi and Miyagi Ryota felt a sinking feeling in their hearts at the sight.

No one had expected Fujima Kenji to switch from shooting to passing at such a crucial moment. He did so without any hesitation, as if he had planned to pass from the beginning.

Everything happened too suddenly. By the time Miyagi Ryota reacted and tried to intercept, it was already too late.

Mitsui Hisashi, who was behind Miyagi Ryota, was even more powerless due to the person in between them. He couldn't stop the pass at all and could only watch helplessly as Fujima Kenji sent the basketball away.

The basketball landed precisely in Nagano Mitsuru's hands, who happened to be wide open.

Nagano Mitsuru stood in front of the three-point line and smoothly shot.

The basketball drew a beautiful parabola in the air, heading straight for Shohoku's basket.

The faces of the Shohoku players changed drastically, their eyes fixed on the flying basketball.

Swish...

A crisp swishing sound echoed.

The basketball went through the net without touching the rim.

But to the Shohoku players, this sound was like the whisper of a demon.

Shohoku 0 to Shoyo 11.

In the following game, Shohoku seemed to be plagued by bad luck, as if trapped in a quagmire they couldn't escape.

Every time they launched an offense, whether it was Rukawa Kaede's sharp breakthrough, Akagi Takenori's powerful inside play, or Miyagi Ryota's clever passing and organization, it was all blocked by Shoyo's players like an impenetrable wall.

On the other hand, Shoyo's offense was like a sharp scalpel, precise and deadly.

Hanagata Toru's feints under the basket left Shohoku's interior players dizzy.

Fujima Kenji's passes always found open teammates at the perfect moment.

Nagano Mitsuru's three-point shots from the perimeter were consistently successful.

Under their fierce offensive onslaught, Shohoku could only retreat step by step, completely overwhelmed.

Time ticked by, and a few minutes felt like an eternity for Shohoku.

On the electronic scoreboard, Shoyo's numbers kept climbing, soaring upwards.

But on Shohoku's side, the number representing their score seemed to be nailed down, remaining a glaring zero, unmoving.

0 to 13.

0 to 15.

0 to 17.

0 to 19.

Looking at the electronic scoreboard above, everyone on Shohoku's team felt their hearts sink to the bottom.

Akagi Takenori and the others gasped for air, their chests heaving violently, and large beads of sweat rolled down their cheeks.

With every step they took, their legs felt as if they were filled with lead, so heavy it was like wading through thick mud.

Off the court.

The substitute players of Shohoku were extremely anxious, their eyes wide with worry and impatience.

Kogure Kiminobu anxiously scratched his head, his voice trembling slightly. "What do we do? What do we do? We're already so far behind. If this keeps up, we're definitely going to lose."

Shiosaki Satoshi clasped his hands tightly, his eyes closed, muttering, "Oh God, please show us a miracle and help Shohoku!"

Yasuda Yasuharu wailed in agreement, "Hurry up and think of a solution!"

Ayako couldn't bear to watch, her voice filled with anxiety. "This is terrible. Their movements are too stiff, completely different from usual. They're not even playing at half their strength. Even if the opponent is Shoyo, it shouldn't be like this!"

Shimizu Kanon, however, remained calm. Her eyes were fixed on the game as she calmly analyzed, "I think everyone is too nervous, which is why they're performing below par."

Ayako immediately said, "In that case, let's call a timeout so they can relax off the court. If we keep losing points like this, it won't be good."

Shimizu Kanon shook her head and explained, "It's no use. Even calling a timeout now won't help. Their pressure comes from facing Shoyo, so they have to overcome this hurdle themselves."

As she spoke, Shimizu Kanon secretly thought, "I hope it's not too late!"

Anzai Mitsuyoshi was like a steady statue, his gaze firmly locked on the court. He held a cup of steaming hot tea, his expression remarkably calm, showing no signs of his team being so far behind. His composure was unfathomable.

Qing Junce was much the same. He paid no attention to the score at all, his entire focus on the Shoyo players.

The corners of his mouth curved slightly, his expression tinged with amusement. "Not bad! They're quite strong, much stronger than the teams we've faced before."

Although those few idiots on the court were having issues with their form, the fact that they could be suppressed to this extent showed that Shoyo had considerable strength.

Thinking this, Qing Junce couldn't help but feel his fingers itching.