The Way of King and Hegemon

"Seriously, that way Ken Kaneki scores by just tossing the ball while floating in the air is really hard to learn," Daiki Aomine said, looking at Kotaro Hayama with a mix of relief and provocation. "Looks like I got lucky, Hayama Little Blondie. If this is all you've got, you shouldn't rush to challenge Ken Kaneki yet."

"You, Blackie, my name is Kotaro Hayama," Kotaro Hayama said irritably. "No, you should call me Senior!"

"Who cares about you," Daiki Aomine retorted, rolling his eyes dismissively. He completely ignored the blushing Kotaro Hayama and walked straight to the free-throw line.

"Keisuke, what do we do?" Kazuhiko Yamanaka asked, coming up to Keisuke Kobayashi during Daiki Aomine's free throw. The nominal vice-captain had become his pillar of support. "Do you think you can score a couple of baskets?"

"I'll try," Keisuke Kobayashi said with a grave expression. "The guy guarding me looks tough to deal with. He's got quick feet and stays right on me."

"Should I set a screen for you?" Daisuke Narumi suggested.

"No, you and Wei Liu protect the boards inside," Keisuke Kobayashi shook his head and turned to Kazuhiko Yamanaka. "Captain, you set a screen for me."

"Yes." Everyone nodded, accepting Keisuke Kobayashi's plan.

"Swish~" Ignoring the Shibuya First Junior High students whispering beside them, Daiki Aomine easily sank the free throw. Shibuya First Junior High's ball.

"Don't panic! Let's play steadily and try to score one basket!" Keisuke Kobayashi calmly brought the ball past half-court, looking at his teammates who were getting anxious due to the inability to break through the deadlock, and said in a deep voice to comfort them.

"Is he a leader-type player who's stingy with words?" Shintaro Midorima's eyes flickered under his glasses as he watched Keisuke Kobayashi speak for the first time since the game started. He immediately moved to guard him.

"This guy, such a strong sense of oppression!" Feeling the pressure from Shintaro Midorima, Keisuke Kobayashi's expression became even more serious.

"Keisuke!" Kazuhiko Yamanaka saw Keisuke Kobayashi being completely shut down by Shintaro Midorima and quickly moved forward to set a screen as planned. Keisuke Kobayashi seized the opportunity to break free from Shintaro Midorima's defense, but before he could relax, Shuzo Nijimura smiled and stepped forward to meet him.

"Honestly, these newcomers are too capable," Shuzo Nijimura said with a smile. "Are you afraid I'll bring those newcomers along? Underestimating me like this will cause me trouble."

As soon as he finished speaking, Shuzo Nijimura's long arm shot out, knocking the ball from Keisuke Kobayashi's hands. Seizing the moment when Keisuke Kobayashi lost his balance, he firmly gained possession of the ball. After consecutive misses and being hit by a few fast breaks, Shibuya First Junior High had learned their lesson and retreated quickly, giving Teiko Junior High no chance for a fast break.

"That kid, he's playing the tyrannical way!" Kagetora Aida commented from the sidelines with deep emotion.

"Huh? What are you talking about, Dad? What's this 'king's way' and 'tyrannical way'?" Reiko asked Kagetora Aida doubtfully, not understanding why her father was saying such nonsensical things again.

"After observing for so long, Teiko is undoubtedly Ken Kaneki's team now," Kagetora Aida explained. "But this kid's way of leading the team is completely different from Shuzo Nijimura's."

"How is it different? Aren't they both strong and the best in the prefecture?" Reiko pouted, sounding a bit dismissive.

"Shuzo Nijimura's style is to lead by example, using himself as a model to unite everyone on the team and gather everyone's strength to defeat the opponent," Kagetora Aida commented with emotion. "But that kid Ken Kaneki first uses his own immense strength to subdue everyone, and then harnesses their power for his own use."

Kagetora Aida thought for a moment and added, "A player like Shuzo Nijimura can adapt to the team for victory, but Ken Kaneki. He's more inclined to believe that he himself is victory, and waits for others to adapt to him."

"...So?" Reiko asked, confused. "Don't they achieve the same goal in the end?"

"That's a huge difference," Kagetora Aida chuckled. "When facing an enemy that resists stubbornly, a king might be willing to spend more time and use gentler methods to resolve the opponent, but a hegemon prefers to break through directly with force. People will revere the king's way, but they will fear the hegemon's way. Look, here it comes."

"Ken Kaneki! Receive the pass!" As if to better illustrate Kagetora Aida's point, Shuzo Nijimura directly passed the ball to Ken Kaneki, who had established position in the paint.

"Relax, Old Liu," Ken Kaneki said, turning his head with a relaxed smile as he felt Liu Wei tense up behind him the moment he received the ball. "I'm not a villain or anything, after all."

"You say that so easily..." Liu Wei's throat bobbed. The lights above the court were blocked by Ken Kaneki, making him feel as if he were under the shadow of a prehistoric giant beast. "You're far more terrifying than any villain..."

Ken Kaneki chuckled lightly at this, saying nothing. He simply lowered his stance and pushed. Liu Wei behind him was sent flying back like a leaf caught in the wind. Daisuke Narumi quickly came up to help defend.

"Two people?" Ken Kaneki gathered the ball and jumped the moment he pushed Liu Wei away. He spun 180 degrees in the air, his body arching into a C-shape. His jersey fluttered in the wind under such a ferocious aura. Ignoring Daisuke Narumi and Liu Wei, who were trying to block him, he slammed the ball into the hoop with a bang.

"Crack~" Just as the players on the court were still shocked by Ken Kaneki's immense strength in overpowering the defenders while facing two opponents, a sound from the tempered glass backboard caught everyone's attention. A previously almost imperceptible crack spread rapidly until it finally shattered. The entire stadium fell silent.

"Daisuke Narumi, do you want to dance too?" Ken Kaneki looked down at the two from above, like a high and mighty emperor judging ants. "Haha, an interesting attempt."

The referee on the court reacted immediately, blowing his whistle: "BEEP BEEP~ Replace equipment, game suspended!"

The referee's whistle, like lightning splitting the sky, broke the silence of the entire stadium, causing an uproar.

"What the heck?! You're telling me this is a 13-year-old junior high student?"

"No way?! He actually broke the backboard! Was he raised on explosives?"

Gasps of amazement rose from the audience, and the players on the court were equally stunned. Although the referee's whistle for a suspension had long since blown, both teams' players still stood by the basket, staring at the shattered backboard, reluctant to leave.

"Hey, hey, Ken Kaneki, you've really done something incredible this time!" Even Daiki Aomine, with his thick nerves, couldn't stop his voice from trembling.

"Alright, stop standing there causing trouble for the staff, come back," Kōzō Shirogane, an experienced old coach, calmed his excitement in no time and calmly directed the players off the court.

"Hey, Ken-chan," Purple-haired Atsushi suddenly called out to Ken Kaneki as he walked away. "I want to learn this. I absolutely have to."

"You want to learn? Call me Brother Ken, and I'll teach you," Ken Kaneki said jokingly, looking at Atsushi Murasakibara.

"Brother Ken!" Atsushi Murasakibara shouted without hesitation. "If you teach me this, I won't want half of my potato chips... emmmm!"

"You don't need to learn this, Atsushi. You'll be able to do it sooner or later," Ken Kaneki said, gently patting Atsushi Murasakibara's shoulder as he looked at the unprecedentedly serious Atsushi Murasakibara. "What you need to do now is not be picky about food, eat more, don't stay up late, get enough sleep, and practice your fundamental skills well."

"Although what Ken-chan said makes a lot of sense, it still feels like something's not quite right," Atsushi Murasakibara didn't dwell on it after hearing Ken Kaneki's words.

"Hey, hey, hey, Brother Ken when you need something, but just Ken-chan when you don't, huh?!" Ken Kaneki ruffled Atsushi Murasakibara's hair with a mix of amusement and exasperation. "You realist!"

At this moment, a reporter sitting by the sidelines watched Ken Kaneki's retreating figure and murmured, "This is the Mighty Lion of Teiko. The Absolute Hegemon Lion!"