This Guy Isn't Human at All!

"Uh..."

Kanji was sweating profusely. That was no way to invite someone.

Yamauchi was hiding behind Sudo, not even daring to breathe too loudly.

He was the very definition of a bully who picked on the weak and feared the strong.

"Hmph."

Sudo picked up the basketball and turned to leave. "I'm not interested. I'm going to get expelled in the end anyway, so I don't care."

At that, Kanji and Yamauchi hurriedly grabbed Sudo, their faces full of fear.

"Don't go, Ken! He's terrifying!"

"Yeah, we'd better just do what he says. Let's not provoke him!"

Sudo, however, was blazing with anger. "So what if you're good at fighting? If you've got the guts, beat me at basketball!"

His voice was loud enough for all the students watching nearby to hear.

They immediately gathered around, eager to see what would happen.

"Fine, let's play basketball, then."

Xia Mu yawned. "We'll compete in the sport you're best at. If you lose, you'll come to the study group without any more fuss."

Even if he beat the three of them into submission today, they'd probably only show up for the study group today. Who knew what would happen after that?

Sudo was a ticking time bomb.

With people like him, the only way to make them useful was to beat them into complete submission.

"Are you kidding me?"

Sudo turned around, chin held high. "You want to challenge me at basketball?"

Even the basketball club's captain might not be able to beat him one-on-one. What was Xia Mu supposed to be?

"Ooh, this should be good."

The students around them watched with gleeful anticipation.

Given Sudo's personality, this wasn't the first time someone had challenged him, but almost no one could beat him at basketball.

So even though he was quick to anger and built like a gorilla, they had to admit he was good at basketball.

"I'm not kidding." Xia Mu took out his phone and searched for basketball tutorial videos, then said calmly, "What, are you afraid you'll lose?"

"What the hell are you talking about?!"

Provoked, Sudo's temper flared. He raised his fist, but seemed to remember something and lowered it again. "Fine, let's play basketball!"

"If I lose, I'll go to your stupid study group."

"If I win, you'll get on your knees and apologize to me!"

Sudo pointed his thumb down, acting every bit the bully.

"Fine."

Xia Mu watched the tutorial and nodded. "If you lose, all three of you will get on your knees, acknowledge me as your big brother, and do what I say."

Seeing how calm Xia Mu was, Kanji and Yamauchi immediately grew uneasy.

They clung to Sudo and tried to stop him. "Sudo, that guy's weird. Don't play him!"

"Yeah, Sudo, don't fall for it!" Yamauchi looked terrified, too.

Just thinking about facing Xia Mu made his legs tremble uncontrollably.

"What?"

Sudo raised his eyebrows, his voice thick with anger. "Are you two saying I'll lose to him?"

"No way! Let's do it!"

Ever since he'd started at the school, he'd never seen Xia Mu touch a basketball.

Seeing Sudo worked up, Yamauchi and Kanji fell silent.

But in their hearts, they cursed him.

Come on, if you want to play, then play—but why drag us into it? That's not fair!

But they didn't dare say a word.

After all, Sudo's fists weighed a pound and seven ounces.

Just then, a group of spectators came over to Xia Mu.

When they saw him watching a tutorial video right there on the spot, they couldn't help laughing.

"This guy's only starting to learn now..."

"I thought he had some kind of confidence, but now it looks like he's lost his mind. Hahaha..."

"Place your bets, place your bets! Sudo's not my favorite, but I'm betting on him."

By then, Xia Mu had already closed his eyes, carefully feeling the changes brought about by his new skill.

[Twenty Skill Points consumed. Basketball skill has reached its maximum level.]

[Ten Skill Points consumed. Further upgrade successful. Basketball skill has been renamed Basketball Fire.]

[You can now use any basketball skill, whether it exists in reality or not.]

He put down his phone and walked over to Sudo. "Let's begin."

"But so no one can say I'm picking on you, all three of you can play at once."

Xia Mu didn't look like he was joking.

Even a clay figurine had a temper.

His words set Kanji and Yamauchi off, too.

"You think you can look down on us?" Sudo was as belligerent as ever.

"Enough, enough. Let's get on with it."

Xia Mu walked onto the half-court the spectators had cleared for the game.

"Damn it. If he thinks so little of us, then all three of us will take him on!" Kanji said.

"Yeah, it's his own fault!" Yamauchi agreed with a nod.

Sudo thought it was beneath him, but since Xia Mu was asking for trouble and had provoked him again and again, he let it happen.

All four of them took the court.

Yamauchi was the first to attack.

The rules were simple: the first side to score ten baskets won.

With three of them against one, Yamauchi felt confident, too.

Although he and Kanji didn't play much basketball, they'd picked up a thing or two from spending so much time with Sudo.

"Kanji, catch!"

After glancing at Xia Mu's position, Yamauchi passed the ball to Kanji. The ball had barely bounced off the court when—

Before Kanji could make a move, a figure swept past him like the wind.

The dancing figure blurred past like a fluttering butterfly, moving at incredible speed.

"Clang."

Before any of the three could react, the ball was already in the basket.

The spectators were just as stunned as the three of them.

Who am I? Where am I? What just happened? Is the universe about to explode?

"Peep!" After a long moment, the bystander who'd been roped into refereeing blew the whistle, and everyone came back to reality.

"Xia Mu scores one!"

Sudo was dumbfounded. He could follow Xia Mu's movements, but he couldn't stop him in time.

Xia Mu moved up and down like a butterfly, his path impossible to predict. How could anyone guard against that?

"Let's keep going." Xia Mu returned the ball to Yamauchi and the others.

It was Blue Butterfly Cloud-Striding Step from Basketball Fire.

It was pretty fantastical.

When the skill activated, he even felt as though time had briefly stopped.

"Tsk! Yamauchi, Kanji! Get it together! There's something off about this guy!" Sudo roared at them, snapping them out of their shock.

This time, they no longer dared underestimate Xia Mu. They got serious.

But Xia Mu still slipped past them at will, stole the ball for a three-pointer, and faked them out, making all three dance to his tune.

Yamauchi even had to leap at Xia Mu in an attempt to block him, but Xia Mu's steps were so light that he spun around and sent Yamauchi sprawling before casually taking a shot.

"Thump."

Another basket.

"X-Xia Mu has scored eight!"

Even the referee was dumbfounded.

Was that even possible in real life?

But it had happened right before his eyes. He couldn't deny it.

The spectators dropped the snacks in their hands. Damn, were they witnessing the rise of a world champion?

"You two, get lost! You're just getting in my way!" Sudo roared at Yamauchi and Kanji, then took the ball himself and started attacking Xia Mu.

Next, he used the Blue Ribbon Dribble he was so proud of, hoping to fool Xia Mu.

But even after he'd gotten past Xia Mu, he looked up—and the ball had vanished from his hands.

"Bang!"

As a girl in the stands stared in shock, her bubble gum popping in her mouth, Xia Mu soared into the air from the half-court line. He pulled the ball between his legs midair, then slammed it into the basket.

"Clang, clang!"

The basketball hoop swung violently, each sway hammering at everyone's hearts.

That was Dragon's Regretless Strike.

"I'll try Basketball Fire later," Xia Mu muttered to himself.

It really was amazing, though it was a shame the skill only worked when used for basketball.

The system had a strict requirement: he had to be holding a basketball. Was he supposed to carry one around everywhere from now on?

No need.

Unless he ran into a tough monster like Ayanokoji, there was no need to transform into a basketball prodigy.

Seeing Xia Mu score nine baskets while his own side hadn't scored a single one, Sudo gradually lost his fighting spirit.

"No. I have to score at least once. Otherwise, what have I been practicing basketball all these years for?"

Sudo gritted his teeth, swearing he'd block this last shot no matter what.

Whether he had to body-check Xia Mu or jump up to stop the ball, he wouldn't let him score again!

With that in mind, he focused intently on Xia Mu, who was dribbling the ball.

But then Xia Mu did something that left the entire crowd utterly stunned.

He shot from the three-point line.

"Hmph, perfect!"

Sudo's eyes lit up. He leaped high and reached out to block the shot.

But then he noticed that the basketball Xia Mu had thrown was...

It was on fire. It was on fire! What?!?!

"Bang!"

The moment his hand touched it, he felt an enormous force. There was no way he could stop it.

His body was sent flying and crashed to the floor, while the ball went cleanly through the hoop.

As the referee blew the final whistle, Sudo and his team of three were completely defeated.

They slumped to the ground, questioning everything they knew. Their fear of Xia Mu had grown even deeper.

This guy wasn't human at all!