Sawakita Eiji's Stolen Ball (2)

In Episode 24, he knew that if he did not go all out, it would be nearly impossible to break through the opponent in front of him.

He had never felt such crushing pressure from anyone before.

Sawakita Eiji slowed his dribble, steadied his rhythm, and prepared to look for another chance to break through.

Though what had just happened lasted only an instant, quite a few people had seen it.

Especially the Bright Marsh players, whose eyes widened as their jaws nearly dropped.

What had they just seen?

Their ace had actually been stopped by that little brat!

And if they had not seen wrong, Sawakita Eiji had nearly been stripped of the ball too, hadn't he?

It was the first time they had seen their ace look so flustered.

The sound of basketballs bouncing continued to echo across the court. Sawakita Eiji and Chi Tong seemed frozen in place, silently facing each other from beginning to end, neither making the next move.

Second by second, the time left for Sawakita Eiji's offense was running out.

With only five seconds left on the shot clock, Sawakita Eiji and Chi Tong moved almost simultaneously. Sawakita Eiji took a probing step, but his guard was at its highest as he watched Chi Tong's every movement.

At the very moment Sawakita Eiji moved, Chi Tong slid laterally in the direction he had stepped. Everything looked so natural, yet so coincidental.

Sawakita Eiji immediately pulled his foot back, then moved to charge toward Chi Tong's other side. Yet that was only a feint, meant to fake Chi Tong out and make him think Sawakita Eiji was about to break through.

But when he completed the feint, he discovered that Chi Tong had not reacted at all, as if he did not care in the slightest about his drive.

Sawakita Eiji knew that his intentions might have already been seen through. He frowned.

He glanced at the time on the electronic scoreboard. There was no time left.

In that case, Sawakita Eiji's gaze sharpened. He tapped the ground with his toes, then pushed off hard, preparing to force his way through with brute strength.

At the sight of this, a satisfied smile finally curled across Chi Tong's lips. It seemed he had been waiting for this very moment.

Seeing the smile on Chi Tong's lips, Sawakita Eiji panicked, sensing that something bad was about to happen.

The next moment, before everyone's disbelieving eyes, Chi Tong and Sawakita Eiji crossed paths.

Chi Tong ended up behind Sawakita Eiji, while Sawakita Eiji ended up behind Chi Tong. Like strangers brushing past each other, who had won?

That was what everyone wanted to know.

As the crowd watched the two of them separately, the sound of a bouncing basketball suddenly drew everyone's attention.

The bouncing sound grew farther and farther away, gradually heading toward Bright Marsh's end.

Sawakita Eiji slowly came to a stop, an utterly stunned expression appearing on his face.

He had actually been stripped, and he had not noticed the instant it happened at all. It was as though the basketball had vanished from his hand out of thin air. By the time he realized it, the ball was already in his opponent's hands.

To pull off such an outrageous steal, his movements would have had to be predicted in advance. But how was that possible?

The other Bright Marsh players only realized what had happened afterward. Upon seeing Chi Tong steal the ball, they immediately turned to recover on defense. But Chi Tong dribbled fast enough to reach the Bright Marsh basket before they snapped out of it. He jumped straight into a layup and easily put the ball in.

A brief silence fell over the stands. What had just happened?

How had he stolen the ball just now?

It looked like the two had merely crossed paths, and then the ball was stolen. Last year's MVP had actually been stripped. That was ridiculous!

Something incredible seemed to have happened. That first-year Sacred Radiance player had actually stolen the ball from Bright Marsh's ace. The spectators' discussion gradually began to tilt toward Sacred Radiance. Sendoh was also shocked by the sight before him. He knew better than anyone how strong Sawakita Eiji was, yet Chi Tong had directly stolen the basketball from Sawakita Eiji's hands. Chi Tong now felt extremely unfamiliar to him. He did not know why, but he always felt that the Chi Tong playing now was not the Chi Tong he knew.

The offense and defense switched. Bright Marsh began its counterattack. There was just over a minute left in the game. Sacred Radiance had 78 points to Bright Marsh's 80, with only a two-point gap between them.

Bright Marsh's point guard charged forward with the ball. He knew that passing it to their ace was the safest option now.

Without any hesitation, he flicked his hand and threw the ball over.

The basketball streaked toward Sawakita Eiji with a yellow trail behind it, but a hand suddenly intercepted it, cleanly cutting off the pass midway.

What?

The one who intercepted the basketball was none other than Chi Tong!

His gaze was indifferent, his expression calm as he looked at Sawakita Eiji.

Without even looking in the direction the ball was coming from, Chi Tong intercepted it.

It was like a silent mockery of Bright Marsh's point guard, dealing him a crushing blow.

Bright Marsh's point guard nearly bit through his tongue. He stared in disbelief at Chi Tong, who had casually intercepted his pass.

Why was this guy—

Hadn't he just been guarding Sawakita Eiji?

He had not even turned his head. How could he intercept my pass so accurately?

Sawakita Eiji, who had been ready to receive the ball, was equally dumbfounded.

This guy... Sawakita Eiji was nearly blinded by how shamelessly Chi Tong had shown off.

Fuck, I know you're good at stealing the ball, but what the hell does it mean to keep staring right at me while intercepting the pass coming my way?

At the same time, Sawakita Eiji thought of the key point. If the other party could see through his movements, then that meant he could see through passes too!

But even so, wasn't this kind of court vision way too terrifying?

The instant Chi Tong stole the ball, he explosively took off. His steps were light yet fiercely powerful, and the basketball pounded rapidly against the floor in a crisp, lethal rhythm.

The moment he advanced with the ball, Sawakita Eiji came at him like a shadow, his eyes sharp and his muscles tensed. He clearly intended to shut down Chi Tong's driving lane immediately.

Don't think you're getting past me that easily!

Sawakita Eiji muttered inwardly, his footing steady and arms spread wide as he prepared to meet Chi Tong's charge.

However, Chi Tong gave him no chance to prepare.

The next moment, Ankle Breaker activated!

In the instant when less than two steps separated them, Chi Tong's right foot slammed into the floor. His ankle twisted like a spring as the basketball was pulled swiftly from his right hand, through his legs, into his left. At the same time, his center of gravity sharply tilted left, instantly changing his direction.

Sawakita Eiji's pupils contracted as he immediately shifted sideways to defend.

But Chi Tong's rhythm did not pause in the slightest. In the next second, his left wrist flicked, and the basketball struck the floor and bounced back once more!

As his right hand caught the ball, his left foot pushed off hard, and his body cut right like the wind.

The sound of the basketball bouncing was almost synchronized with Chi Tong's footsteps, forming a rhythm with an overwhelming sense of pressure.