Everyone's Shock

Time passed.

Soon, it was time for the second half of the game.

Qing Junce immediately stood up, took off his jacket, and walked onto the court.

His eyes were half-open, still looking as if he hadn't woken up.

But the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, and his gaze swept over Akagi Takenori and the others before finally settling on the scoreboard.

29 to 35.

The seniors were leading.

These 29 points were basically all scored by Rukawa Kaede alone; the others were like statues.

Just then, Sakuragi Hanamichi spoke with a smug and confident expression, "You guys just wait! Watch this genius defeat you."

Qing Junce completely ignored the clown.

He stretched his body and waited for the game to begin.

Beep...

With a whistle, the second half of the game officially started.

The seniors' team served first.

Led by Akagi Takenori and Kogure Kiminobu, the opposing team attacked very quickly, and in the blink of an eye, they were in front of Qing Junce's team's three-point line.

Akagi Takenori didn't stop his steps. Seeing Rukawa Kaede preparing to defend him, he waved his hand and passed the ball to Kogure Kiminobu on the side.

"Watch this..." Sakuragi Hanamichi suddenly pushed off the ground, like an arrow released from a bow. In an instant, he was in front of Kogure Kiminobu.

This sudden turn of events startled Kogure Kiminobu, forcing him to abruptly stop his intended drive.

The others were also very surprised to see this.

No one had expected Sakuragi Hanamichi to have such explosive power.

However, since Sakuragi Hanamichi had only recently started playing basketball, Kogure Kiminobu used a fake move to distract him, then tossed the ball towards the hoop.

At the same time, Akagi Takenori used his strong body to push Rukawa Kaede aside, forcefully drove into the paint, caught the flying ball in mid-air, and was about to slam it into the hoop.

The first-year students' expressions changed drastically, and they exclaimed, "It's an alley-oop."

Rukawa Kaede's eyes narrowed.

Sakuragi Hanamichi's eyes were almost popping out, as if he had already imagined the outcome of this shot.

Just as everyone thought Akagi Takenori would slam the ball into the hoop.

A hand suddenly appeared and directly swatted the basketball out of Akagi Takenori's hands.

Akagi Takenori's pupils contracted, and he looked incredulous.

The others were also stunned.

They stared in astonishment at Qing Junce, who had blocked Akagi Takenori, wondering if they were seeing things.

Bang... bang bang... bang bang bang...

The basketball rolled out of bounds.

For a moment, the entire court fell into an eerie silence.

All eyes turned to Qing Junce.

"Captain Akagi was blocked!" Ayako, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but exclaim.

Coach Anzai held a steaming cup of tea, his gaze fixed on Qing Junce on the court, the white light reflecting off his glasses flickering a few times.

Kogure Kiminobu's mouth was wide open, and his heart was churning with shock. "This guy actually managed to block Akagi head-on."

The game continued.

Since the ball went out of bounds, possession remained with the seniors' team.

The seniors' team inbounded the ball.

The pass went to Akagi Takenori.

But before the ball could reach Akagi Takenori's hands, a large hand intercepted it.

Qing Junce suddenly appeared in the middle and cut off the pass.

Akagi Takenori felt a gust of wind blow past him, his vision blurred, and the basketball disappeared.

What?

Akagi Takenori was greatly alarmed.

The others were also dumbfounded.

By the time they reacted and looked, Qing Junce was already dribbling the ball past half-court.

This guy.

Akagi Takenori's heart was filled with shock. He took a step, wanting to give chase, but seeing Qing Junce already in his team's paint, he ultimately stopped.

There was no point in chasing now.

The next moment, Qing Junce directly executed a three-step layup, smoothly sinking the basketball into the hoop.

The gymnasium was dead silent.

The players on the court were positioned in a very strange way.

One half of the court had nine people standing on it.

The other half had only one person.

That person was, naturally, Qing Junce.

At this moment, everyone looked at Qing Junce as if he were a monster.

A single question flashed through their minds simultaneously.

Who am I? Where am I? What just happened?

Ayako, who was recording information off the court, had her mouth wide open, her eyes nearly bulging out. She covered her mouth and exclaimed again, "My… my goodness! Am I seeing things? How can he be so fast? He scored in the blink of an eye."

Shimizu Kanon merely curved her lips upwards, not showing much surprise, as if Qing Junce's performance was nothing new to her.

But Anzai Mitsuyoshi, sitting nearby, had already stood up at some point. His eyes, gleaming under his white-rimmed glasses, were fixed intently on Qing Junce on the court.

His usually nonchalant face now showed an expression of shock.

His heart was greatly unsettled. He marveled inwardly, What astonishing talent. He's probably better than Yazawa. No, even Yazawa probably can't compare to this kid. Truly a rare gift in this world!

He sat back down on the bench, his gaze now filled with a mix of contemplation and anticipation.

On the court.

Everyone was stunned by Qing Junce's sudden score.

Rukawa Kaede, in particular, locked his eyes onto Qing Junce, a restless fighting spirit surging within him.

Just now, even he had only vaguely caught a trace of movement. By the time he found Qing Junce's figure, the opponent had already jumped for the layup.

He felt a unique aura of a strong individual emanating from Qing Junce.

Kogure Kiminobu swallowed hard and stammered, "When did he get over there? I didn't notice at all."

Akagi Takenori stood rooted to the spot, also staring blankly at Qing Junce.

His heart was extremely unsettled.

From the moment Qing Junce stole the ball to him scoring, it was only the time it took for him to turn his head.

In such a short period, the opponent had already run to the paint for a layup.

Is this humanly possible?

Qing Junce then turned around, calmly looking at the staring crowd, and said, "Is this all you've got?!"

Hearing this, Akagi Takenori's expression immediately darkened. He said sternly, "What an arrogant kid."

The senior team restarted the play.

This time, Akagi Takenori personally brought the ball up the court.

He deliberately glanced in Qing Junce's direction.

For some reason, after being stolen from earlier, he unconsciously became wary of Qing Junce.

As he dribbled past the half-court line, Akagi Takenori was intercepted by Rukawa Kaede.

After their exchanges throughout the first half, the two had developed a certain understanding of each other, and their offense and defense had become much more cautious.

Akagi Takenori didn't try to drive in. Instead, he looked for an opportunity to pass the ball.

He knew he couldn't match Rukawa Kaede in speed or skill, so he wouldn't give him a chance to get close.

He directly executed a spin move and a post-up, using his body to block Rukawa Kaede's line of sight.

Taking advantage of this moment, he directly raised his hand and passed the ball over Rukawa Kaede's head.

The basketball flew directly towards Kogure Kiminobu, who was standing beyond the three-point line.

But just as the ball was about to land in Kogure Kiminobu's hands, a figure suddenly appeared and caught the airborne basketball a step ahead.

Seeing this figure, everyone was greatly surprised.

The one who caught the ball a step ahead was none other than Sakuragi Hanamichi.

This sudden turn of events was completely unexpected by anyone.

Shimizu Kanon, watching from the sidelines, was also somewhat surprised. She murmured, "This student's talent is quite good. His explosive power and jumping ability are very strong. If properly trained, he would definitely be a reliable player."

Hearing her analysis, Anzai Mitsuyoshi, sitting beside her, became interested and asked, "Oh! Shimizu-san thinks highly of Sakuragi! You can accurately analyze Sakuragi's characteristics just by looking at him. It seems you understand basketball very well."

Shimizu Kanon just chuckled and replied, "It's okay! It's because I used to watch A-ce play often, so over time, I learned a few things about basketball."

Ayako asked curiously, "You said you often watched Qing Junce play? But why have I never heard his name? With the strength he just displayed, he shouldn't be unknown."

"Oh, you mean this!" Shimizu Kanon paused, then said, "It's because Akatsuki and I both lived in Hokkaido before and only recently came back. Also, during elementary and middle school, for some reason, Akatsuki didn't join the school basketball team. I just went with him to play at some local streetball courts."

"So that's how it is," Ayako nodded thoughtfully.

Just as they were discussing Qing Junce, a sudden turn of events unfolded on the court.

Sakuragi Hanamichi, who had just stolen the ball and passed it, was rapidly dribbling the ball towards the opponent's basket.

Everyone was astonished by his swift speed and skillful dribbling.

They hadn't expected Sakuragi Hanamichi, who had only recently started playing basketball, to dribble with such fluidity.

Akagi Takenori and Kogure Kiminobu also looked surprised, and at the same time, a sense of joy filled their hearts.

With Sakuragi Hanamichi's current rate of improvement, they believed he would soon be ready to play in a game.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Sakuragi Hanamichi directly entered the paint, then leaped into the air, holding the basketball as he drove it towards the hoop.