Only one week remained before the regional preliminaries began. The atmosphere inside Teikō Basketball Gym was more solemn than usual, and the intensity of training had risen to an entirely new level. The thud of sweat hitting the floor, the whoosh of the basketball zipping rapidly from hand to hand, the muffled impacts of colliding muscles, and Captain Nijimura Shūzō's deep, powerful commands came together to form a symphony called "preparation for battle."
After that stirring one-on-one match, the relationship between Aomine Daiki and Bai Ze You had undergone a subtle change. Their hostility had not disappeared; instead, it had transformed into an even fiercer competitive spirit. However, that competition was now strictly confined within the framework of "teammates." Aomine no longer casually provoked Bai Ze You with words like "slippery" or "sissy." Instead, he responded with even more savage defense and more cunning offensive probes during training, as if saying, Don't think winning one defensive possession makes you hot stuff. Try again! Bai Ze You answered with more focused anticipation, increasingly refined force-dissipating footwork, and sliding techniques, silent fighting spirit burning in his eyes.
Under Nijimura Shūzō's deliberate guidance, this healthy competitive atmosphere was gradually integrating itself into the operation of Teikō's precision machine.
"Stop!" Nijimura's voice cracked like thunder, instantly bringing the intense half-court offensive and defensive drill to a halt. His brows knitted tightly as he pointed at the attack that had just ended. "Midōrima! Your positioning is too rigid! You predicted that the opponent would follow you to defend your three-point route, so why didn't you use Murasaki-bara's screen to cut in the opposite direction? Can't you shoot from midrange?"
Midōrima Shintarō pushed up his glasses, his expression blank. "According to my calculations, the success rate of forcing a cut from that position is only 43.2%, while the opponent's defensive intensity against my three-point shots reaches 78.5%. Waiting for an open spot on the perimeter or drawing the defense before passing is the more optimal solution."
"Calculations?" Nijimura's voice carried a hint of pressure. "The situation on a basketball court changes in an instant. The opponent isn't a robot! Your rigid movement gives the defense a chance to catch its breath and compresses the team's overall offensive space! I need you to move! Move like a living person! Use your movement to tear at the defense and create opportunities for everyone else! This is a team, not your personal shooting exhibition!"
Midōrima fell silent for a moment. His eyes flickered behind his lenses, and he finally gave a slight nod. "Understood, Captain." He wasn't incapable of understanding the reasoning. He had simply become too reliant on calculations, and breaking that habit required an outside force.
Nijimura's gaze shifted to the inside. "Murasaki-bara! Box out! Box out aggressively! Use your body to tell the opponent that this paint belongs to you! Don't let them get around in front of you so easily! And when you grab the rebound, immediately look for Aomine running the break or Akashi in good position. Yū, don't dribble around aimlessly! Your job is to dominate under the basket, not play point guard!"
"Ah~ What a pain..." Murasaki-bara Atsushi answered lazily, but he still gave the practice player defending him a perfunctory shove with his back. His massive body occupied the position like a wall.
Next, Nijimura looked at Bai Ze You and Aomine. "You two! Speed up the transition! Aomine, when Yū grabs a rebound or completes a steal, your eyes need to be on the frontcourt! Don't wait until the ball reaches your hands before you start running! Yū, when you get the ball, your vision needs to open up immediately. Find the fastest, most threatening point of advance! When Aomine gets moving, you have to put the ball in front of him! Don't let him slow down!"
Aomine curled his lip and said nothing, but his eyes showed that he understood. Bai Ze You nodded seriously. "Yes, Captain." He quickly replayed the fast breaks from earlier in his mind. There had indeed been two occasions when he had reacted a little too slowly and missed the best passing window after Aomine had already started moving.
"Akashi!" Nijimura finally turned to the calmest commander on the court. "Pace! You control the pace of the offense! When it needs to be fast, make it thunderous; when it needs to slow down, be as steady as a rock! Observe everyone's condition and position, and send the ball where it needs to go most! You're our brain!"
Akashi Seijūrō nodded calmly, his red eyes sweeping across the court like an emperor surveying a chessboard. "Understood."
Training resumed. This time, Teikō's offense was noticeably smoother.
The gears began to mesh.
* Midōrima Shintarō was no longer fixated on staying outside the three-point line. He began using Murasaki-bara Atsushi's massive body to set off-ball screens, sometimes cutting back in and completing midrange jumpers off Akashi's exquisite bounce passes; at other times, he drew away defenders with his cuts, creating open opportunities for Bai Ze You or Akashi on the perimeter. His movement still carried a sense of precise calculation, but it was no longer rigid. It had become an important part of pulling the defense apart.
* Murasaki-bara Atsushi's presence in the paint became even more terrifying. He remembered Nijimura's reprimand. He boxed out like a beast wrestling another beast, firmly occupying the area where the rebounds fell. After grabbing a rebound, he no longer hesitated. His eyes swiftly swept across the court, and like a lighthouse, he accurately hurled the ball to Aomine, who had already started running, or found Akashi or Midōrima in excellent position. Every now and then, he even passed to Bai Ze You cutting into the lane. A massive, efficient rebound and first-pass hub was taking shape.
* The fast-break connection between Aomine Daiki and Bai Ze You began to show its power. The moment they made a defensive stop or grabbed a rebound, Aomine charged toward the opposing half at full speed like a cheetah that had caught the scent of blood. Meanwhile, guided by Nijimura's reminder and the notes in Momoi's notebook about "vision and passing timing," Bai Ze You's passing awareness and accuracy improved rapidly. He could always catch that streaking black bolt amid the chaos and send a perfectly weighted lead pass, allowing Aomine to catch the ball and slam it down without slowing! This combination of "Wild Sprint" and "Phantom Guidance" became one of Teikō's most lethal fast-break weapons.
* Akashi Seijūrō's orchestration grew increasingly masterful. Like the most precise computer, he calmly analyzed every subtle change on the court. When the opponent tried to double-team Murasaki-bara inside, he immediately passed to Midōrima, poised on the perimeter; when Aomine was tightly guarded, he cleverly used Bai Ze You's cuts and fake moves to draw the defense, creating a passing gap for Kuroko Tetsuya that lasted only an instant; and when repeated movement left the opposing defense in disarray, he could keenly seize the opportunity and strike himself. Every pass was like a scalpel, precisely cutting apart the opponent's defensive formation.
Yet within the operation of these dazzling offensive gears, there was another component that was almost invisible but absolutely crucial—Kuroko Tetsuya.
His presence remained faint, but his role was becoming increasingly impossible to ignore. He had grown much more proficient in using his "misdirection." A simple movement would often make the defender assigned to him briefly "forget" that he existed, creating precious openings for his teammates. His passes remained as elusive as ever, appearing from unexpected angles and at tricky timings, always arriving at the most comfortable receiving point the defense least expected.
During one half-court possession, Akashi drew a double-team with the ball, Murasaki-bara was fronted in the low post, Midōrima was tightly marked, and Aomine was being closely watched by two defenders on the weak side. The offense seemed to have stalled.
At that moment, Kuroko Tetsuya slipped silently like a ghost to an apparently harmless position near the free-throw line. The defender assigned to him had his attention completely drawn by Akashi with the ball and Aomine on the strong side, and his gaze shifted for a brief instant.
Akashi caught the fleeting opportunity out of the corner of his eye! He flicked his wrist, sending an extremely subtle bounce pass. The basketball seemed to come alive as it skimmed across the floor and shot through the gap between the two defenders' feet!
Kuroko caught it cleanly! Only then did the defender who had been guarding him realize he had lost position and hurriedly rush over!
Kuroko did not pause for even a moment. He didn't even look at the basket. The instant he caught the ball, he gave it a deft magician's flick, sending it with faster speed and a stranger spin from an incredible angle beside him, threading a pass toward the baseline!
There, Bai Ze You had just shaken off his trailing defender with a solid screen from Murasaki-bara and was cutting full-speed toward the basket! The ball flew like a precisely guided missile, arriving exactly in front of his running path!
Bai Ze You caught the ball, took a gather step, and leaped! The entire motion flowed together seamlessly! The defender desperately chased him down to block the shot, but in midair, Bai Ze You displayed his trademark flexibility and balance. With a nimble switch-hand layup, he avoided the block and gently placed the ball into the hoop!
"Nice pass, Kuroko!" Bai Ze You landed and gave Kuroko a thumbs-up.
Kuroko Tetsuya still wore that calm, expressionless look. He merely nodded slightly, but deep in his eyes, a faint, almost imperceptible glimmer seemed to flash. His value, his passing, had been seen—and had been used at the most crucial moment.
"Beautiful, Tetsu!" Nijimura praised loudly from the sideline, his eyes filled with satisfaction. He could see it: the machine called "Teikō" was being polished under his guidance, its components beginning to mesh tightly and run smoothly. Aomine's wildness, Bai Ze You's agility, Midōrima's precision, Murasaki-bara's dominance, Akashi's control, Kuroko's mystery... These "gears," each with a distinct style and some seemingly incompatible with the others, were now spinning rapidly toward the same goal—victory.
During a break in training, Momoi Satsuki held her clipboard and quickly updated the data. Watching the players run, coordinate, and call out to one another on the court—especially the white-haired boy who had taken to the team like a fish to water and perfectly integrated his individual talents into the team system—she couldn't help but smile. Under the "teamwork" section of Bai Ze You's profile, she firmly wrote a new evaluation:
> "Integration Level: Significantly improved.
> · Fast break connection awareness enhanced (coordination efficiency with Aomine-kun ↑35%)
> · More active off-ball movement, effectively pulling the defense apart
> · Willing to share possession and trusts teammates in crucial moments (such as Kuroko-kun)
> · Beginning to understand his role in the team's tactics—'lubricant' and 'speed shifter.'"
On the team tactical analysis page, she drew a complex gear diagram. Each gear was labeled with a name: Nijimura (core axis), Akashi (command center), Aomine (Assault gear), Midōrima (Long-range gear), Murasaki-bara (Inside gear), Kuroko (Invisible gear)... The gear representing Bai Ze You had been outlined with a soft halo in pencil, with a note beside it:
"Code name: Phantom Gear"
"Functions: Lubrication, speed shifting, connection, decisive strike"
Looking at the diagram, Momoi Satsuki nodded in satisfaction. Teikō's war machine was fully assembled, its gears meshing seamlessly. This precision machine made up of geniuses was about to display its unparalleled, crushing power in the upcoming regional preliminaries! And the gear known as "Phantom" had already become an indispensable link in the operation of this machine.
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