Old Teammates or New Opponents

The first half of Fukuyama Flying Waves versus the Tokyo Great White Sharks had turned into a team basketball clinic for the Flying Waves! The Great White Sharks had no room to resist, and the Jaguars players in the stands began leaving one after another.

"What a terrifying team!" Coach Omoki had not left. He wanted to watch a little longer. Even if it was already garbage time, he needed to learn more about his opponents.

The second half went just as predicted. The Flying Waves continued to firmly control the pace of the game, while the Great White Sharks remained powerless to fight back. The final score was 18:89, a crushing Flying Waves victory!

"Congratulations on winning this game! How would you evaluate your team's performance?" Right after the game, reporters came onto the court to interview Flying Waves head coach Moriyama Hiroo.

"The team performed well overall today. They carried out our tactics, defended well, and took excellent care of the opponent's key players!"

"We know your next game will be against the Kobe Jaguars. This team has undergone major personnel changes this season, and in their last game, they nearly dragged the Deer Horns into overtime. So, Coach Moriyama, what is your opinion of this team?"

"Hmm..." Coach Moriyama considered the reporter's question without rushing to answer.

"They have indeed brought in some good rookies. I know their new head coach, Omoki Ishimoto, fairly well. He should be quite suited to the Jaguars!"

"So, does the team have any plans for the Jaguars?" Seeing that Coach Moriyama's answer seemed somewhat perfunctory, the reporter pressed on.

"You'll find out then!" Coach Moriyama clearly did not want to answer any further. After saying that, he headed for the locker room.

After watching the game, the Jaguars returned to the hotel where they were staying. Coach Omoki went back to his room, lay on the bed, and thought over the match that had just ended.

Knock, knock, knock! "Is Coach back? It's Akagi!" The sudden knocking interrupted Omoki's thoughts. Akagi had come to find him.

"What is it?" After opening the door, Omoki saw that Akagi seemed to have something on his mind.

"Well, I wanted to ask for half a day off..."

Just as I expected.

"Let me think..."

"Ah, does someone want to play host?" Omoki asked after thinking for a moment.

"Uh..." Akagi's flushed cheeks made it clear that Coach Omoki had guessed right!

"Haha, go on, go on. Take Sakuragi and the others with you. But don't leak our tactics!"

Hearing that, Akagi breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Coach. I'll be going now!"

After getting leave from the coach, Akagi called Sakuragi, Mitsui, Miyagi, and Rukawa Kaede to visit Kogure Kiminobu—an old teammate and now a new opponent!

"Tch, Four-Eyes is playing at home, yet he's late." Akagi and the others arrived at the restaurant they had agreed on, but Sakuragi did not seem to spot Kogure anywhere.

"If I'm not mistaken, you're Sakuragi, right? Without that red hair, you really are hard to recognize." At a table beside Sakuragi's group, a gentlemanly-looking man stood up.

"Huh? You are...?" Sakuragi found him familiar, but did not dare identify him.

"I'm Kogure, Sakuragi!"

"What? The Kogure I know is Four-Eyes! You aren't wearing glasses at all!!" Kogure's image was deeply ingrained in Sakuragi's mind. Without glasses, Sakuragi simply could not recognize him!

"Come on, Sakuragi. This is Kogure," Akagi said with absolute certainty.

"Haha, Sakuragi, it seems you really can't recognize me without my glasses!" As he spoke, the self-proclaimed Kogure pulled out a pair of glasses and put them on. Only then did everyone realize who he was!

"Ah!!! Kogure!! It really is you, Kogure! Hahahaha, you're so hard to recognize without your glasses! Four-Eyes, I've missed you so much!!" The instant Kogure put on his glasses, Sakuragi finally recognized him and immediately threw his arms around him.

"Sakuragi, it looks like you've grown taller again!!"

"And Rukawa Kaede, you seem to have gotten much more muscular!"

"Kogure, so you mean Rukawa Kaede hasn't grown taller, right? Hahahahaha! That damn fox stopped growing!" Sakuragi might have been slow to react to other things, but when it concerned Rukawa Kaede, his reactions were astonishingly fast.

"Idiot. You can't even recognize an old teammate." Rukawa Kaede once again gave him a disdainful look.

"You bastard!! What did you say!!"

"These two are still the same as before, bickering the moment they meet!" The sight was far too familiar to Kogure, and his eyes filled with tears.

And so, the six from Shohoku gathered once more. Just like old times, they laughed and chatted, sharing what had happened to them over the years. Right now, they were the friendliest of old teammates and brothers bound by the most sincere feelings. But in a few days, they would have to set aside that brotherhood and fight for their respective teams on the court in pursuit of victory.

"Kogure, we won't hold back in the game three days from now. You'd better be ready!" Before they parted, Akagi reminded Kogure once more.

"Of course! But our team is quite strong too! Fujima Kenji didn't even fully show his strength in the last game. You should prepare well too. When the time comes, I won't hold back either!" Kogure's determined gaze was full of confidence.

"See you on the court, Kogure!"

"See you, Four-Eyes!"

Akagi and the others bid Kogure farewell one after another. From that moment on, the two sides had become opponents.

Three days passed quickly, and the game between the Jaguars and the Flying Waves was about to begin.

"You've prepared enough these past two days. The key now is patience—on offense and on defense. You must be patient. Make them feel the intensity of our Jaguars defense! Rukawa Kaede, you'll need to put in more work against Fujima Kenji. If you can contain him, the Flying Waves' threat will be cut in half!" Omoki gave his final instructions in the locker room.

"What about me!!! Coach!! Do you have any special tactics for me!!" Hearing that Rukawa Kaede had been assigned to guard the opposing key player, Sakuragi wanted a special assignment too.

"You... just try not to foul too much!!"

"Hahahahahaha!!!" The moment Coach Omoki finished speaking, Miyagi and Mitsui doubled over with laughter, tears already streaming from their eyes!

"Hmph, just wait and see what this genius can do. I'll make you all stare in disbelief!" Sakuragi was truly holding in a breath of anger this time.

There were no changes to either team's lineup. Both sides' players had already taken the court.

"Whoa!! This really is the original Shohoku team! It's been a long time, Akagi, Mitsui, Miyagi, top overall pick Rukawa Kaede, and this is...?" Fujima recognized four of them, but he alone failed to recognize Sakuragi.

"You bastard!!! You're absolutely unforgivable!!!" Sakuragi's eyes seemed to blaze with raging flames!

"This is Sakuragi, Sakuragi Hanamichi—the redhead from back then!" Kogure came over to explain.

"Oh!!!! Sakuragi! I remember Sakuragi was on this team too. Why didn't I see him? After changing his hairstyle, he really is hard to recognize!!" Fujima smiled sincerely as he spoke, so Sakuragi did not pursue the matter any further.

"Hmph, it's not just the hairstyle. You'll find out soon enough!" Sakuragi said before walking back to prepare for the opening tip.

"That guy still has the same fire, huh!! Haha, interesting." Fujima looked quite eager for the game.

Akagi and Kubofuji stepped up for the jump ball. The Kobe Jaguars' road game against the Fukuyama Flying Waves was about to begin.

"Takenori Akagi... Never heard that name..."

Akagi did not respond to the provocation from the opposing center, Kubofuji. He waited for the jump ball with complete focus.

Sure enough, Kubofuji seemed to have been waiting for Akagi's response, leaving him less than fully focused. Akagi got a touch on the ball, and the Jaguars began their first possession of the game.

"Settle down. First possession—let's try to score!" Miyagi organized the offense as he dribbled.

Right from the start, Akagi and Miyagi ran a pick-and-roll. Miyagi saw that Fujima, who had been guarding him, had been screened behind Akagi, while the opposing center had not stepped up. He decisively pulled up for a jumper from the free-throw line.

The ball bounced around the rim a few times, but his touch was soft enough, and it finally dropped through.

On their first possession of the game, the Jaguars scored first.

"Get back, get back!!" After scoring, Miyagi shouted loudly. Right from the opening, his fighting spirit was soaring.

Once Fujima had the ball, Rukawa Kaede indeed switched onto him, while Miyagi went to guard Kogure.

Just as I expected, Omoki is counting on Rukawa Kaede's nearly one-centimeter height advantage over Fujima, hoping to use that size to smother him. It's not a bad idea, but against Fujima, it's far too childish! Moriyama had tremendous confidence in Fujima's abilities.

Fujima kept dribbling at the top of the three-point arc without driving, and no one came over to set a screen. Was Fujima planning to take Rukawa Kaede one-on-one??

"Kogure!" Fujima said as he passed the ball to Kogure, who had run free. It was still the most familiar spot—the three-point line at the forty-five-degree angle.

That's right, Fujima! Omoki only considered Rukawa Kaede's height advantage when guarding Fujima, but he forgot that Miyagi also gives up height when guarding Kogure. And Kogure is actually tall enough to play forward! How could a point guard possibly stop a forward's shot!! Moriyama's confidence in Fujima was indeed well-founded.

Fujima had indeed noticed the mismatch in this defensive assignment and passed to Kogure without hesitation. Although Miyagi had fought around and caught up to Kogure, Kogure's 199-centimeter frame made his three-point shot utterly beyond the reach of the 185-centimeter Miyagi.