Turn the Tide in Desperate Situation: Yū's Crucial Steal

The air inside the Tokyo Gymnasium felt as if it had solidified into a heavy block of lead, each breath burning the lungs with a painful sensation. The deafening roar of the crowd tumbled beneath the vast dome, yet it couldn't dispel the suffocating low pressure that permeated the Teikō bench. The crimson numbers on the scoreboard, like cold mockery, stung everyone's nerves:

Teikō 87 : Kitano 85

Remaining Time: 2:11

The lead, once in double digits, had been chipped away to a mere 2 points! And Kitano Academy's offensive surge was like a blizzard from Hokkaido, sweeping in with biting cold and destructive power! The core of this storm was their ace—Fujita Osamu!

Under coach Sakuma Ryūji's tactical command to "Lock down Bai Ze, attack Fujita," Fujita Osamu had completely taken over the game! He had entered a state of selfless "Zone"!

* Once, facing Midōrima Shintarō's tight marking, he used a realistic step-back feint to shift Midori's balance, then executed a swift straight-line drive. Before Murasaki-bara Atsushi's giant hands could swat the shot, he sent the ball through the hoop with an extreme fadeaway jump shot!

* Immediately after, on a fast break, he faced Aomine Daiki's chase-down block. In mid-air, he displayed astonishing core strength, contorting his body for a layup with a fold, evading the block and flicking the ball in with his off-hand! The move was a perfect blend of power and skill!

* The most fatal shot came from a step beyond the three-point line. Under Midori's defense, which was almost at his fingertips, he pulled up for a jumper! The basketball drew a sharp, menacing arc, "Swish!" It went in clean!

6 consecutive points! Fujita Osamu, single-handedly, ignited Kitano Academy's desperate comeback! His roars after each score were like hammers striking the hearts of the Teikō players! Kitano's supporters went wild, their cheers almost strong enough to overturn the dome!

Teikō's offense, however, struggled against Kitano's near-desperate defense. Aomine Daiki was double-teamed, even triple-teamed, and his forced shots repeatedly missed. His agitated emotions even led to an offensive foul! Midorima Shintarō, under Fujita Osamu's personal tight marking and quick rotations, had few open opportunities, and his rushed shots lost their accuracy. Akashi Seijūrō's passes remained precise, but his teammates' shooting touch felt frozen.

During a crucial offensive possession. Murasaki-bara Atsushi finally got position in the low post and received a pass from Akashi. Facing fronting and a double-team, he forcefully turned for a hook shot! The basketball hit the front rim and bounced high!

"Rebound!" Akashi's sharp command rang out!

Murasaki-bara Atsushi, with his absolute power and height, snatched the offensive rebound over two Kitano players! But as he landed, the Kitano players' double-team wrapped around him like iron hoops! Murasbara roared, attempting to force a shot and draw a foul!

"Beep—!" The referee's whistle shrieked!

Jump ball!

Possession to Kitano! With only 1 minute and 47 seconds left! Kitano held the ball, trailing by just 2 points! Their momentum was unstoppable!

The Teikō bench was in dead silence. The shadow of Nijimura Shūzō's absence, the pressure of the rapidly closing gap, Fujita Osamu's unstoppable outburst, and now the loss of a crucial possession… Multiple blows pierced everyone's will like ice picks. Aomine angrily punched his seat, Midori tightly pursed his lips, Murasaki-bara showed rare signs of frustration, Kise Ryōta's face was pale, and even Kuroko Tetsuya's calm blue eyes showed a ripple of disturbance.

Momoi Satsuki clutched her stat board tightly, her fingers turning white from the force. She saw Akashi Seijūrō standing on the sidelines, his crimson eyes lowered, arms crossed, exuding an aura of extreme cold. He seemed to be calculating something, or perhaps suppressing a power about to erupt—the will of the "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor," to control everything absolutely! Momoi had no doubt that if the situation continued to worsen, Akashi would not hesitate to take over the game himself, ending everything with his almost ruthless individual skill!

Teikō had been pushed into a true desperate situation!

Kitano Academy inbounded the ball. Fujita Osamu received it himself in the backcourt. He dribbled forward, his movements steady and confident, his eyes sharp as knives, scanning Teikō's half of the court. He was like a general controlling the battlefield, ready to steer the final two minutes entirely into Kitano's victory path!

Teikō's entire team retreated to defend, ready for anything. Akashi Seijūrō personally guarded Fujita Osamu, his crimson eyes locked onto the opponent, attempting to see through his every intention with the "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor." Aomine, Midori, Murasbara, and Bai Ze You took their positions, their expressions solemn, like soldiers building the final defense line.

Fujita Osamu controlled the ball at the top of the arc, time ticking away second by second. He didn't rush his attack, patiently controlling the tempo and consuming precious offensive time. Akashi's defense was like a leech, giving Fujita no space to easily start his move.

Suddenly, Fujita Osamu moved! A bounce dribble! His center of gravity dropped sharply! He feinted a strong drive to the right! Akashi reacted with lightning speed, shuffling his feet to block!

Feint!

Fujita Osamu's core strength exploded, forcefully pulling back his forward momentum! Simultaneously, with an incredibly swift crossover pull-back, he switched the ball to his left hand! His center of gravity instantly shifted to the left! With a lightning-fast crossover dribble, he attempted to break through from the left!

Akashi's "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor" predicted the change of direction! He twisted his feet, blocking again!

A hint of madness flashed in Fujita Osamu's eyes! He didn't stop! In the instant Akashi blocked, he forcefully lowered his center of gravity, using his shoulder to shove aside a sliver of space! At the same time, his left-hand dribble rhythm suddenly accelerated! An extremely small but incredibly swift double change of direction! Like a viper's flicking tongue!

Thump!

A dull thud of body contact!

Akashi was pushed back half a step by these continuous, rapid, and powerful changes of direction! A slight gap appeared in his defense!

Opportunity!

A fierce glint appeared in Fujita Osamu's eyes! Like a beast locking onto its prey! He seized this fleeting half-step of space, his right foot pushing off the ground with all his might! His body shot forward like an arrow, aiming for the tiny gap beside Akashi, charging with all his might! His target was Teikō's paint zone! He intended to end the game himself!

Akashi, pushed back half a step, hadn't fully adjusted his balance! Aomine was completely blocked by Kitano's screen! Midori was too far away on the weak side! Murasbara was pinned by the opposing center in the paint!

Just as Fujita Osamu was about to pierce Teikō's final defense like a sharp knife and deliver the fatal blow!

At this critical juncture! A white figure, like a prophetically aware phantom, moved silently but incredibly swiftly from the weak side! The timing was perfect! He positioned himself exactly in Fujita Osamu's breakthrough path!

Bai Ze You!

His eyes were terrifyingly calm, devoid of any panic, only a focused and resolute clarity that saw through everything! The moment Fujita Osamu started his drive, his power fully unleashed, his center of gravity leaning forward, and the ball slightly exposed on the side of his body with weaker protection, Bai Ze You moved!

He didn't choose to confront Fujita Osamu's powerful impact head-on! Instead, utilizing his extraordinary flexibility and sense of balance, his body like a bamboo swaying in a strong wind, he flowed with Fujita Osamu's momentum, skillfully sidestepping, absorbing the force, and sliding! At the same time, his left hand, like a lurking viper, with precision honed to the extreme and lightning speed, accurately reached for the basketball exposed on Fujita Osamu's side!

Slap!

A crisp, loud sound of a steal, like a thunderclap echoing in the silent stadium!

The basketball was solidly and cleanly hit by Bai Ze You's fingertips! Its direction changed, flying towards Teikō's backcourt!

Steal!

Bai Ze You's crucial steal!

"What?!" The elation on Fujita Osamu's face froze instantly, replaced by extreme shock and disbelief! He felt as if an invisible force had snatched the ball from his hands! The immense momentum sent him stumbling several steps before he could regain his balance!

Akashi Seijūrō's crimson eyes clearly reflected Bai Ze You completing the steal, a hint of almost imperceptible sharpness flashing within them!

Aomine Daiki let out a roar of wild joy!

The Teikō bench erupted instantly!

Bai Ze You didn't hesitate for a moment! The instant he completed the steal, he pounced on the batted ball like a swift leopard! Before Fujita Osamu could turn to counter-steal, he firmly controlled the ball in his hands!

The offense and defense instantly reversed!

"Fast break!" Akashi's cold voice rang out, with a hint of barely concealed urgency!

Bai Ze You looked up, his gaze like lightning sweeping across the frontcourt! Aomine Daiki, like a lit black rocket, had already started, charging at full speed towards the opponent's basket! But Kitano's defense speed was equally astonishing! Two players were like leeches, desperately chasing Aomine!

With pursuers ahead and Fujita Osamu frantically scrambling back, Bai Ze You didn't opt for a risky long pass! He dribbled and accelerated, like a white lightning bolt, piercing straight into Kitano's half!

He drew all of Kitano's defensive attention! Fujita Osamu, and one of the players who was originally chasing Aomine, both lunged ferociously towards Bai Ze You, who had the ball!

Just as the two were about to trap him! Bai Ze You's eyes sharpened! He didn't slow down; instead, while sprinting at high speed, his body's center of gravity shifted strangely and continuously! He feigned a breakthrough with an exaggerated crossover dribble!

The two defenders' centers of gravity were instantly tricked!

Now!

Bai Ze You's core strength exploded! He forcefully stabilized his breakthrough posture! At the same time, his wrist flicked nimbly like a magician's! The basketball turned into an orange-red phantom, passing from behind him at an extremely concealed angle, with intense spin, bouncing through the gap between the two defenders whose centers of gravity had been tricked!

A no-look behind-the-back bounce pass!

The basketball, like a precision-guided missile, landed flawlessly in the hands of Kuroko Tetsuya, who had completely shaken off his defender by using the opponent's attention being drawn to Bai Ze You and had quietly cut into the basket!

Kuroko received the ball! The area in front of him was wide open! Without hesitation, he made a standard push shot!

"Swish!"

The basketball went through the net cleanly!

89:85!

The score widened to 4 points!

"Great play!!!" Teikō's bench erupted completely! The players jumped up excitedly!

"Bai Ze! Kuroko! Awesome!"

"Crucial steal! Game-winning assist!"

The entire Tokyo Dome was drowned out by the roars of Teikō supporters! Chants of "Phantom! Phantom! Phantom!" soared to the heavens!

Bai Ze You stood in place, his chest heaving, sweat dripping down his cheeks. That lightning-fast steal, drive, drawing of defense, and behind-the-back pass... it was a huge physical and mental drain. But his eyes shone as brightly as cold stars! He looked at the scoreboard, at his excitedly cheering teammates on the sidelines, and finally, his gaze met Kuroko Tetsuya's calm blue eyes as he jogged back. Kuroko nodded at him gently.

In a desperate situation, he stepped up!

With a steal worth a thousand gold pieces, he thwarted Kitano's trump card's fatal blow!

With a phantom-like pass, he assisted Kuroko in completing the decisive play!

He pulled Teikō back from the brink of the cliff in one go!

Momoi Satsuki was so moved that tears welled up in her eyes. She forcefully wrote on the record board:

"Observation Record: Savior in Desperate Situation!"

"Key Actions: Predictive steal (Fujita's breakthrough path) + Behind-the-back bounce pass (Kuroko's cut)"

"Effect: Crushed Kitano's comeback momentum, expanded the lead, stabilized morale!"

"Mental Rating: S++ (Big heart! Leadership awakened!)"

"Codename: Phantom – Turning the tide from the brink of the abyss!"

Akashi Seijūrō walked to Bai Ze You's side, his crimson eyes looking deeply at him, his voice low and clear:

"Well done, You." These simple three words, coming from Akashi, carried a weight heavier than a thousand pounds!

Fujita Osamu looked at the scoreboard, then at the calm white figure who had returned to defense after completing the steal and pass, his eyes filled with unwillingness and a shock that was hard to describe. His proud breakthrough had been stolen so cleanly! Kitano's meticulously planned comeback was completely shattered by this steal and pass!

With only 1 minute and 28 seconds left. The 4-point difference was like an insurmountable chasm. Teikō's morale, boosted by Bai Ze You's crucial steal and pass, reignited with blazing flames! Meanwhile, Kitano Academy, as if doused with a basin of ice water, had most of its newly ignited flames instantly extinguished.

Turning the tide in a desperate situation! Bai Ze You, with his calm mind, extraordinary prediction, ultimate flexibility skills, and absolute trust in his teammates at critical moments, laid the most solid foundation for the Teikō Dynasty's third National Tournament (IH) championship crown! The name White Phantom, at this moment, accompanied by this priceless steal, echoed throughout the Japanese basketball world! Beneath the dome of the stadium, that white figure had already become the most dazzling new legend in Teikō's undefeated myth!