First Battle (5)

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"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't just say whatever you want, trash." Seeing that Shogo Haizaki was once again unsure of his place, Ken Kaneki decisively poured cold water on him. "We just feel a bit off, but we'll still score when we need to. Whether you play or not is up to you."

"...I understand. I'll work hard." Seeing Ken Kaneki's expression suddenly turn cold, Shogo Haizaki was reminded of the fear he felt when Ken Kaneki dominated him that day, and he immediately became obedient.

"Alright, you've all heard what Ken Kaneki said. Get some good rest and prepare for the second half. I don't need to tell you what to do, right?" Kōzō Shirogane said, looking around at everyone.

"Yes!" everyone shouted in unison.

It had to be said that Ken Kaneki's idea was devious, but it did hit Seihō Junior High School where it hurt. During halftime, their plan to deal with being behind in the first half was to pressure the other players, forcing Teiko Junior High School to pass the ball to Atsushi Murasakibara or Shintaro Midorima.

At this moment, in the Seihō Junior High School's locker room.

"So, did everyone hear clearly? Tomoki Tsugawa and Tsutomu Iwamura will defend the core players. In the first half, although we were behind, it was clear that the number 7 shooter and the number 8 center were uncomfortable playing. So, in the second half, all we need to do is force Teiko Junior High School to pass the ball to those two as much as possible, reducing Teiko Junior High School's success rate. Did you hear me?" the Seihō Junior High School coach shouted loudly.

"We heard you loud and clear!" everyone from Seihō Junior High School responded in unison, with Tomoki Tsugawa being the most excited.

"Nee, nee, Iwamura-senpai! The coach just said that we two are the core!" Tomoki Tsugawa's excited voice trembled.

"Yeah. So, let's do our best in the second half and make sure we defend them." Tsutomu Iwamura said calmly. After all, as a third-year junior high student, he had played this role on the team countless times.

"Yes! Senpai!" Tomoki Tsugawa stood at attention excitedly and promised Tsutomu Iwamura, "I'll defend them even if it kills me!"

"Mm, let's do our best." Tsutomu Iwamura ruffled Tomoki Tsugawa's short hair and said thoughtfully.

As the broadcast announced the end of halftime, the players from both teams returned to the court. Seihō had possession.

"Hey, is your name Tomoki Tsugawa?" Shogo Haizaki, who had switched matchups with Shintaro Midorima, asked the number 12 player from Seihō in front of him.

"You know me?" Tomoki Tsugawa looked at Shogo Haizaki with some surprise, then grinned and said, "I don't know your name, but remember this: I'm the core of Seihō Junior High School!"

"Huh? Who wants to remember something like that? I just want to remind you to get off the court and rest as soon as possible, or you'll soon be nothing." Shogo Haizaki said with a sinister smile.

"Nonsense." The hot-headed young Tomoki Tsugawa, with a cold face, took the ball and broke through Shogo Haizaki's defense with an extremely strange rhythm, but ultimately missed his layup due to Shintaro Midorima's interference.

"I advise you to act quickly, Haizaki. I won't always be cleaning up your mess." Shintaro Midorima said coldly, looking at Haizaki.

"Give me the ball. One more possession." Shogo Haizaki said to Shintaro Midorima with a roguish grin.

"Hmph, let's hope so." Shintaro Midorima snorted coldly and passed the ball to Shogo Haizaki.

"Hey, bald guy, aren't you the core? Come defend me!" Shogo Haizaki sneered and beckoned Tomoki Tsugawa to provoke him. Tomoki Tsugawa indeed took the bait, signaling Kazuma Tagawa to switch with Shintaro Midorima, and he himself would defend Shogo Haizaki.

"Very good, very good. This is what a core player should look like." Shogo Haizaki dribbled back and forth outside the three-point line on the right, observing Tomoki Tsugawa for a moment before suddenly bursting forward. With the same strange rhythm as Tomoki Tsugawa, he broke through Tomoki Tsugawa and scored on a layup.

"Damn it, how could I be one step too late!" Tomoki Tsugawa said with unwilling self-reproach, looking at Shogo Haizaki's retreating back.

"Hey, core, and you, number four." Shogo Haizaki said, "Get off the court. Stop struggling. Your things are mine now." He then provocatively licked his fingers.

"Don't mind him, we'll play our game." Tsutomu Iwamura, thinking Shogo Haizaki was just talking tough, calmly reassured everyone.

"What a pain." Shogo Haizaki chuckled, shook his head, and turned back to defend, saying no more.

"Captain, receive the pass!" Koichi Sakamoto, who had steadily brought the ball past half-court, chose to pass to Tsutomu Iwamura in the paint after observing for a moment.

After receiving the ball, Tsutomu Iwamura felt the immense force coming from behind him and prepared to use his signature hook shot to complete the offense. But just as he habitually bounced the ball, a strange sense of disharmony filled his entire body. Without any contact, he, who had practiced the bounce shot thousands of times, actually threw the ball onto his foot, resulting in a simple turnover.

"Sorry, my mistake." Tsutomu Iwamura gritted his teeth in annoyance and extended his hand in apology.

"It's okay, Captain." Takakatsu Kasuga, who was retreating on defense, seemed to notice that something was not quite right with Tsutomu Iwamura and stepped forward to encourage him softly.

"Mm." Tsutomu Iwamura grunted, remaining silent.

"You bastard, I'm definitely going to defend you this time!" Tomoki Tsugawa was so enraged by Shogo Haizaki that his blood was boiling. Disregarding tactical matchups, he spread his arms and challenged Shogo Haizaki.

"Interesting, little bald guy." Shogo Haizaki looked at Tomoki Tsugawa in front of him with a playful smile, waved his hand to signal everyone to spread out, and leaned against Tomoki Tsugawa to drive into the paint. Behind him, Tomoki Tsugawa was on high alert.

"Hey, little bald guy, and you, number four." Shogo Haizaki said with a triumphant smile, "Watch carefully, this is how you do a hook shot!"

In the disbelieving eyes of Tomoki Tsugawa and Tsutomu Iwamura, Shogo Haizaki ended the offense with a bounce hook shot identical to Tsutomu Iwamura's.

"This... could it be that Haizaki... possesses the same talent as Ken?" Satsuki Momoi said in shock, watching Haizaki on the court continuously score using the opponent's moves.

"No, although they look similar on the outside, they are completely different on the inside." Seijuro Akashi said with certainty from the bench. "While I'm not entirely sure of the difference, one thing is certain: compared to Ken's talent, which is like the blazing sun, Shogo Haizaki's level is still too low. Of course, it's enough to handle the current situation."

As Seijuro Akashi had predicted, as time went by, Tomoki Tsugawa and Tsutomu Iwamura's performance on the court became increasingly strained. They constantly made simple mistakes on offense and inexplicably missed their defensive assignments.

"Hahaha, you damn bald guy, a loser should know his place! I told you long ago, your things are already mine!" After another easy score, Shogo Haizaki said arrogantly to Tomoki Tsugawa, who had been shaken to the ground by him.

"Haizaki, get off the court." Seeing Shogo Haizaki shamelessly humiliating his opponent, Ken Kaneki's eyes sharpened, and he said coldly.

"What? But I just..." Hearing Ken Kaneki's suppressed angry voice, Shogo Haizaki trembled all over, looking at Ken Kaneki with surprise and unwillingness.

"What did you just say? I wanted you to use your talent because I hoped we could win more easily, not to give you the capital to humiliate weak... opponents!" Ken Kaneki looked directly into Shogo Haizaki's eyes and said, "Teiko Junior High School is a Mighty Lion that always wins, not a hyena that kicks someone when they're down!"