The air inside Tokyo Gymnasium seemed to have solidified into a heavy block of lead, every breath carrying a searing pain that scorched the lungs. The deafening roar rolled beneath the vast dome, yet could not dispel the suffocating pressure hanging over Teikō's bench. The crimson numbers on the scoreboard stabbed at everyone's nerves like a cold taunt:
Teikō 87 : Kitano 85
Time remaining: 2 minutes 11 seconds
Their lead had been devoured from double digits until only two points remained! And Kitano Academy's offensive tide was sweeping in like a Hokkaido blizzard, carrying bone-chilling cold and devastating force! At the heart of the storm was their ace—Fujita Osamu!
Under coach Sakuma Ryūji's tactical order to "lock down Bai Ze and attack through Fujita," Fujita Osamu had completely taken over the game! He seemed to have entered a selfless "Zone" state!
* Once, facing Midōrima Shintarō's tight defense, he used a convincing step-back fake move to throw Midōrima's balance off, then exploded forward with a swift straight-line drive. Before Murasaki-bara Atsushi's giant hand could come down to help, he sent the ball into the hoop with an extreme fadeaway jumper!
* Next, on a fast break, he faced Aomine Daiki's chasing block. In midair, he displayed astonishing core strength, twisting into a Layup Fold to evade the block before flipping the ball in with his opposite hand! The move was a perfect combination of power and skill!
* On the most lethal shot, he rose for a pull-up one step beyond the three-point line, shooting over Midōrima's defense as it nearly reached his fingertips! The basketball traced an almost flat, murderous arc—swish!—and dropped cleanly through the net!
Six straight points! With his own strength, Fujita Osamu had ignited Kitano Academy's desperate counterattack! Every roar after he scored struck Teikō's players like a heavy hammer! Kitano's supporters went completely wild, their cheers nearly tearing the dome off Tokyo Dome!
Teikō's offense struggled under Kitano's near-suicidal defense. Aomine Daiki was double- and even triple-teamed, and his forced shots repeatedly clanged off the rim. His impatience even earned him an offensive foul! With Fujita Osamu guarding him personally and Kitano rotating quickly, Midōrima Shintarō had few chances to get open, and his hurried shots had lost their accuracy. Akashi Seijūrō's passes remained precise, but his teammates' touch seemed frozen in ice.
On one crucial possession, Murasaki-bara Atsushi finally secured position in the low post. He received Akashi's pass and, facing fronting defense and a double-team, forced up a turning hook shot! The ball struck the front rim and bounced high into the air!
"Rebound!" Akashi shouted sharply!
With overwhelming strength and height, Murasaki-bara Atsushi grabbed the offensive rebound above two Kitano players' heads! But the instant he landed, Kitano's double-team wrapped around him like an iron band! Murasaki-bara roared, trying to power up and draw a foul!
"Pheeep!" The referee's whistle shrilled!
Jump ball!
Possession went to Kitano! Only 1 minute 47 seconds remained! Kitano had the ball and trailed by just two points! Their momentum was surging!
Teikō's bench fell utterly silent. The shadow of Nijimura Shūzō's collapse, the pressure of Kitano furiously closing the gap, Fujita Osamu's unstoppable eruption, and the loss of this crucial possession... Multiple blows stabbed into everyone's resolve like icicles. Aomine angrily smashed his fist into the seat, Midōrima pressed his lips tightly together, Murasaki-bara Atsushi wore a rare look of frustration, and Kise Ryōta's face was pale. Even a ripple appeared in Kuroko Tetsuya's calm blue eyes.
Momoi Satsuki hugged the record board tightly, her fingers whitening from the force. She saw Akashi Seijūrō standing at the sideline, his red eyes lowered and his arms folded, an icy pressure radiating from him. He seemed to be calculating something, or perhaps suppressing a power about to erupt—the will of the "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor," determined to control everything absolutely! Momoi had no doubt that if the situation continued to deteriorate, Akashi would take over the game without hesitation and end everything with his nearly merciless individual ability!
Teikō had been driven into a true desperate situation!
Kitano Academy inbounded the ball. Fujita Osamu received it in the backcourt himself. He dribbled forward with steady confidence, his eyes sharp as blades as they swept across Teikō's half. He was like a general commanding the battlefield, determined to place these final two minutes completely on Kitano's path to victory!
All of Teikō fell back on defense, ready and vigilant. Akashi Seijūrō personally guarded Fujita Osamu, his red eyes fixed firmly on his opponent as he tried to see through every intention with the "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor." Aomine, Midōrima, Murasaki-bara, and Bai Ze Yū each took their positions, their expressions grave like soldiers building the final line of defense.
Fujita Osamu dribbled to the top of the arc as the seconds ticked away. He did not attack immediately, patiently controlling the tempo and consuming precious offensive time. Akashi's defense clung to him like a parasite, giving Fujita no room to start comfortably.
Suddenly, Fujita Osamu moved! He pounded the ball! His center of gravity dropped sharply, taking the stance of a hard drive to the right! Akashi reacted instantly, sliding across to block him!
Fake Move!
Fujita Osamu's core strength exploded, forcibly pulling his driving posture back! At the same time, he made an incomparably swift Crossover pull-back! The ball shifted to his left hand, and his center of gravity instantly transferred leftward! With a lightning-fast crossover, he tried to break through on the left!
Akashi's "Eyes of the Heavenly Emperor" predicted the change of direction! He twisted his feet around and blocked the path again!
A trace of madness flashed through Fujita Osamu's eyes! He did not stop! The instant Akashi blocked him, he forcibly lowered his center of gravity and used his shoulder to shove open a sliver of space! At the same time, the rhythm of his left-hand dribble suddenly accelerated! A double crossover, tiny in motion yet unbelievably swift, like a striking snake!
Bang!
The muffled sound of bodily contact rang out!
Akashi was pushed half a step aside by the rapid, powerful chain of crossovers! A tiny gap opened in the defense!
An opening!
A vicious light gleamed in Fujita Osamu's eyes, like a beast that had locked onto its prey! He seized that fleeting half-step of space, drove hard off his right foot, and shot forward like an arrow loosed from its string, sprinting at full speed toward the tiny gap beside Akashi! His target was Teikō's paint! He would end the game himself!
Akashi had been forced half a step aside, his balance not yet fully recovered! Aomine was completely held up by Kitano's screen! Midōrima was too far away on the weak side to help! Under the basket, Murasaki-bara was pinned out by the opposing center!
Fujita Osamu was about to pierce through Teikō's final defense like a dagger and deliver the fatal blow!
At that critical instant, a white figure crossed over from the weak side like a ghost that had foreseen everything, silent yet unbelievably swift! His timing was exquisite, arriving exactly in front of Fujita Osamu's breakthrough path!
Bai Ze Yū!
His gaze was terrifyingly calm, without a trace of panic—only absolute focus and resolve, as though he had seen through everything! The instant Fujita Osamu launched his drive, fully unleashed his strength, leaned forward, and left the ball slightly exposed at his side, Bai Ze Yū moved!
He did not choose to confront Fujita Osamu's powerful momentum head-on! Instead, using his extraordinary flexibility and balance, he moved like resilient bamboo bending in a gale, following the direction of Fujita's force as he deftly turned sideways, absorbed the force, and slid! At the same time, his left hand, like a venomous snake lying in wait, shot out with pinpoint anticipation and lightning speed, reaching precisely for the ball exposed at Fujita Osamu's side!
Smack!
A crisp, resounding sound exploded through the silent arena like thunder—the sound of the steal!
The ball was struck solidly and cleanly by Bai Ze Yū's fingertips! Its direction changed, and it flew toward Teikō's backcourt!
Steal!
Bai Ze Yū's key steal!
"What?!" The wild joy on Fujita Osamu's face instantly froze, replaced by extreme shock and disbelief! It felt as though an invisible force had ripped the ball from his hands! His tremendous momentum sent him stumbling several steps before he managed to regain his balance!
Akashi Seijūrō's red eyes clearly reflected Bai Ze Yū completing the steal. A barely perceptible sharp glint flashed through them!
Aomine Daiki let out a roar of ecstatic delight!
Teikō's bench erupted in an instant!
Bai Ze Yū did not pause at all! The moment he completed the steal, he pounced toward the deflected ball like a nimble cheetah! Before Fujita Osamu could turn and steal it back, he firmly secured it in his hands!
The offense and defense reversed in an instant!
"Fast break!" Akashi called, his cold voice carrying a trace of urgency that was difficult to detect!
Bai Ze Yū raised his head, his gaze sweeping toward the frontcourt like lightning! Aomine Daiki had already launched like an ignited black rocket, racing toward the opposing basket at full speed! But Kitano's transition defense was equally astonishing! Two players chased Aomine relentlessly like parasites clinging to bone!
With pursuers ahead and Fujita Osamu frantically chasing from behind, Bai Ze Yū did not risk a long pass! He accelerated his dribble like a white bolt of lightning, driving straight into Kitano's half!
He drew the attention of Kitano's entire defense! Fujita Osamu and one of the players originally chasing Aomine both lunged madly at Bai Ze Yū, who had the ball!
Just as the two were about to surround him, Bai Ze Yū's eyes sharpened! He did not slow down. Instead, while sprinting at high speed, his center of gravity shifted strangely again and again! A dramatically wide double crossover feinted a drive!
The two defenders' balance was instantly drawn out of position!
Now!
Bai Ze Yū's core strength exploded! He forcibly stabilized his driving posture while his wrist flicked with a magician's dexterity! The basketball became an orange-red phantom, passing through the gap between the two defenders whose balance had been drawn away, coming from an extremely concealed angle behind his back and bouncing off the floor with fierce spin!
A no-look behind-the-back bounce pass!
Like a precision-guided missile, the ball arrived exactly in the hands of Kuroko Tetsuya, who had used the defenders' attention being drawn to Bai Ze Yū to completely shake free and quietly cut into the paint!
Kuroko caught the ball! The path ahead was wide open! Without the slightest hesitation, he made a standard push shot!
"Swish!"
The ball dropped cleanly through the net!
89:85!
The lead had widened to four points!
"What a play!!!" Teikō's bench erupted completely. The players jumped up in excitement!
"Bai Ze! Kuroko! Amazing!"
"Key steal! Lethal assist!"
The entire Tokyo Dome was drowned beneath the roaring cheers of Teikō's supporters! "Phantom! Phantom! Phantom!" Their cries shot straight into the sky!
Bai Ze Yū stood where he was, chest heaving violently as sweat slid down his cheeks. That lightning-fast steal, advance, defensive pull, and behind-the-back pass had consumed an enormous amount of both body and mind. Yet his eyes shone like dazzling cold stars! He looked at the scoreboard, then at his excited teammates on the sideline, and finally met Kuroko Tetsuya's calm blue eyes as Kuroko returned on defense. Kuroko gave him a light nod.
In the desperate moment, he had stepped forward!
With a priceless steal, he had snuffed out Kitano's ace's lethal strike!
With a ghostlike pass, he had assisted Kuroko in delivering the fatal blow!
In one stroke, he had pulled Teikō back from the edge of the cliff!
Momoi Satsuki's eyes brimmed with tears of excitement as she forcefully wrote on the record board:
"Observation Record: Savior in Desperate Situation!"
"Key Action: Anticipatory steal (Fujita's breakthrough path) + behind-the-back bounce pass (Kuroko's cut)"
"Effect: Shattered Kitano's counterattack momentum, widened the lead, and stabilized team morale!"
"Mental Rating: S++ (Big heart! Leader's qualities awakened!)"
"Codename: Phantom—turning the tide at the edge of the abyss!"
Akashi Seijūrō walked over to Bai Ze Yū's side. His red eyes studied him deeply before he spoke in a low, clear voice:
"Well done, Yū." Those three simple words, coming from Akashi, carried weight heavier than a thousand pounds!
Fujita Osamu looked at the scoreboard, then at the white figure calmly returning on defense after completing the steal and brilliant pass. His eyes were filled with unwillingness and an indescribable shock. The breakthrough he had always been proud of had been stolen so cleanly! Kitano's carefully planned counterattack had been completely shattered by that steal and pass!
Only 1 minute 28 seconds remained. The four-point gap was like an impassable chasm. Teikō's morale had been reignited by Bai Ze Yū's key steal and pass, blazing once more. Kitano Academy, meanwhile, was like a bucket of ice water poured over its head, most of the flames it had just kindled extinguished in an instant.
Turn the tide in desperate situation! With his calm mind, extraordinary anticipation, supreme flexibility, and absolute trust in his teammates at the crucial moment, Bai Ze Yū had laid the firmest foundation for the third National Tournament (IH) crown of the Teikō Dynasty! At this moment, the name White Phantom rang throughout the Japanese basketball world alongside that priceless steal! Beneath the dome of Tokyo Dome, that white figure had already become the brightest New Legend in Teikō's undefeated myth!
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