Just as Shuzo Nijimura was drawn over by the crowd around Ken Kaneki whispering among themselves and went to investigate, a burst of astonished cries came from the speed-testing area nearby. "That kid's fast!"
Everyone's attention was drawn to the nearby area again. Daiki Aomine stood proudly at the sidelines, hands on his hips, and said to Ken Kaneki, "Haha, Kaneki, the upperclassman just told me I broke the freshman physical test record... Oh, Senpai Nijimura." Seeing Shuzo Nijimura standing nearby with his arms crossed, Daiki Aomine quickly straightened up and greeted him.
Shuzo Nijimura looked at Daiki Aomine and gave a noncommittal nod. Then he said to the two people in charge of recording the results, "Bring me their scores so far."
"Yes, Captain." The two he'd addressed brought over the results they had just recorded.
"Daiki Aomine, 175 cm, 60 kg, wingspan 190 cm, baseline shuttle run... 12 seconds? Three-quarter-court sprint, 3.95 seconds? Ken Kaneki... bench press... 140 kilograms?" Shuzo Nijimura's expression froze in an instant, as if time had stopped. His eyes widened, his pupils dilating sharply, as though he wanted to take in every one of these unbelievable numbers.
"Yeah, Captain. We're amazed too," one of the record keepers said with a sigh.
"Have they finished the other events?" Shuzo Nijimura asked urgently, his expression as though a huge treasure lay before him.
"Not yet," the record keeper answered honestly.
"Then have them finish first," Shuzo Nijimura ordered decisively. "I have a feeling these two have extraordinary potential."
"Yes, Captain." The staff conducting the physical tests nodded in reply.
Before long, Daiki Aomine and Ken Kaneki had completed all their physical tests. The staff recording the results had gone from shocked at first to completely numb.
"Captain, Daiki Aomine and Ken Kaneki's physical test results have all been recorded." The staff member compiling the results handed their sheets to Shuzo Nijimura with a sigh. "Captain, you were right. These two are in a league of their own. Especially Ken Kaneki—there must be a god living inside him!"
Shuzo Nijimura took the report with a serious expression. Their test results were laid out clearly on the sheets.
"Daiki Aomine: bench press, 90 kg; vertical jump, 85 cm; running vertical jump, 95 cm. Ken Kaneki: baseline shuttle run, 11.5 seconds; three-quarter-court sprint, 3.63 seconds; vertical jump, 92 cm; running vertical jump, 112 cm." Looking at the figures before him, Shuzo Nijimura felt as if he'd won the lottery. He was so happy he could burst.
Daiki Aomine looked at Ken Kaneki in surprise. "You're in great shape! You run faster than me and jump higher than me! Don't tell me you pretended to get hurt because you've got a thing for Satsuki?"
"A-Dai, what are you saying? That's so rude." Satsuki Momoi had passed the Basketball Club manager interview. Seeing the crowd gathered here, she'd come over to see what was going on, only to hear Daiki Aomine's complaint. Blushing, she smacked him on the arm and chided him.
"Haha, it's fine, Satsuki." Ken Kaneki rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "Actually, I was sick a while ago, and I wasn't feeling well to begin with. Then, by bad luck, I got bumped into and passed out. Aomine, don't get the wrong idea."
As the three of them laughed and bantered, Shuzo Nijimura came over and said gravely, "Daiki Aomine, Ken Kaneki, you two—come with me."
"Yes, Captain," the two replied solemnly. Shuzo Nijimura turned and led them to the basketball skills testing area. Behind him, Ken Kaneki and Daiki Aomine exchanged a glance, both looking utterly baffled.
Just as Shuzo Nijimura was about to call a halt to the basketball skills tests in progress, a recorder from the testing area hurried over and said, "Captain, we've got two promising guards here! Look at Seijuro Akashi. He's a little short, but his ball-handling is incredible. He completed the full-court dribbling obstacle course, passing, and layup test—a sort of skills challenge—in just 33.2 seconds. He didn't miss a single one of the four passing targets. In the two-minute shooting test, he went twice: 19 out of 20 from midrange and 15 out of 17 on three-pointers. And this one, Shintaro Midorima. His ball-handling test was a little slower, at 36.8 seconds, and he missed one passing target, but in his two two-minute shooting tests, he made all 35 three-pointers! That's never happened in the history of Teiko!"
As though Shuzo Nijimura hadn't received enough surprises all at once, a hulking purple-haired boy was brought over by a recorder from the physical testing area.
"Captain, Captain, this kid, Atsushi Murasakibara, is amazing too! He's 186 cm tall, weighs 80 kg, and has a 202-centimeter wingspan. He bench-pressed 120 kilograms! His shuttle run took 13 seconds, his sprint took 4 seconds, his standing vertical jump was 75 cm, and his running vertical jump was 87 cm! He may not match Ken Kaneki, but he's still broken Teiko's previous record!" The staff member from the physical testing area rattled off Atsushi Murasakibara's scores like a machine gun.
Looking at the five kids before him, their hair topped with red, green, gold, blue, and purple, a flush passed over Shuzo Nijimura's stern face. He clenched his fist and coughed twice, as if trying to calm his excitement. Once he'd steadied himself, Shuzo Nijimura waved over the staff member from the physical testing area, rested his left hand on the person's shoulder, and pointed at Seijuro Akashi and Shintaro Midorima with his right. "Take these two rookies over there and test them yourself. Put them first, and report the results to me as soon as they're ready."
Seeing Shuzo Nijimura's grave, serious expression, the person in charge of the physical testing area replied earnestly, "Yes, Captain!" Then he led Seijuro Akashi and Shintaro Midorima to the testing area.
After arranging for Akashi and Midorima, Shuzo Nijimura turned to the three boys before him and said, "Come on, show me your fundamentals."
"Huh? The captain really thinks that highly of us?" Under everyone's gaze, Ken Kaneki grew more and more excited. He rolled his shoulders, his eager anticipation practically shining in his eyes. "Then I'll go first!"
Standing at the starting line, Ken Kaneki took off with the ball like an arrow loosed from a bow the instant the timekeeper finished speaking. His calves flexed slightly, as if they were about to dig holes in the floor.
The first set of cones posed no obstacle at all. Ken Kaneki reached the row of mannequin defenders as easily as if he were walking on flat ground. Almost as if showing off, he crossed over past the first mannequin, spun past the second, then the third and fourth. In the blink of an eye, he was under the basket. He jumped from its right side, but instead of making the simple layup everyone expected, he hung in the air until he'd drifted to the left side of the hoop, then smoothly contorted his body and flicked the ball into the basket.
After landing, Ken Kaneki scooped up the ball as it came down from the hoop and headed back, retracing his route just as smoothly. Then he stood in front of the ball rack, looked at the passing targets, picked up a ball, and tossed it casually. The ball sailed through the opening. All four targets were hit on the first try. The timekeeper didn't press the stop button until Ken Kaneki had thrown the ball at the fourth target, as if only then had he snapped out of a daze.
"Two... 29.7 seconds!" The timekeeper stared at the result on the clock as if it were a miracle.
"Upperclassman, can we start the two-minute shooting test?" Ken Kaneki asked gently, raising a hand.
"Oh, sure!" Hearing Ken Kaneki's voice beside him, the timekeeper finally snapped out of it and hurriedly asked, "You have to do two rounds. Do you want to shoot midrange or three-pointers?"
"I'll do three-pointers, like Midorima," Ken Kaneki replied.
"Oh, okay. I'll pass you the ball, then."
"Sorry for the trouble, upperclassman."
Ken Kaneki went two steps beyond the three-point line and held out a hand to the timekeeper, signaling that he was ready. The timekeeper understood and passed him the ball. Ken Kaneki dribbled once after catching it, as if finding his rhythm. Then he gathered the ball, jumped, and raised his arms with ease. His body stretched out in midair like a scroll unfurling. With a gentle flick of both hands, the ball left his fingertips with an almost perfect backspin and traced a graceful arc straight toward the hoop.
"Swish!" The crisp sound of a clean shot rang out as the ball dropped neatly through the basket without so much as brushing the rim.
Ken Kaneki didn't stop there. He stayed beyond the three-point line and repeated the same catch-and-shoot motion. Every shot flew toward the hoop like a precision missile, never missing its mark. The speed of his shots, the height of their arc, and the accuracy of his aim were all astonishing.
When he finished both rounds of the shooting test, the entire skills testing area erupted. Ken Kaneki had gone a perfect 40 for 40 on three-pointers in the two-minute shooting tests—twice!
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