Fierce Opening Offense and Defense (1)

In his eyes, this kind of deliberate showboating was utterly meaningless.

He never cared how flashy his opponent's dribbling was, nor how refined their technique might be. The only thing he cared about was the final victory.

What was more, if he wanted to, he could not only replicate the dribbling Kiyota Nobunaga was showing off right now at any time, but do it more steadily, faster, and with greater aggression.

In his view, though, wasting energy on showing off before a game was far less worthwhile than refining tactical coordination one more time or familiarizing himself with his opponent's weaknesses once again.

At Chi Tong's call to continue warming up, everyone on Ryonan quickly withdrew their gazes and returned to their orderly pregame routines, as if Kiyota's performance had never happened.

Kiyota Nobunaga soon noticed Ryonan's reaction, and the smugness on his face gradually stiffened.

He had thought his dribbling would make everyone on Ryonan see him in a new light. Instead, they were completely unmoved. The anger in his heart flared up again, and in the end, he could only grit his teeth and return to Hainan's group in frustration, warming up with his teammates.

During the remaining warm-up time, an unusual silence fell over the court.

There were no verbal provocations, no deliberate displays of skill. Ryonan and Hainan's players each focused on their own warm-ups, while only the thumping of basketballs against the floor and the squeaking of sneakers echoed clearly through the empty arena.

Yet beneath that surface peace lay a suffocating tension.

Two invisible auras quietly rose from the teams, slowly colliding and intertwining at center court.

Ryonan's aura carried the sharpness of cutting down gods and demons alike, like an unsheathed sword with its edge fully exposed. Hainan's aura carried the weight of