A Fated Battle, Ryonan's Invitation!

Shirakawa's words, brimming with absolute confidence, along with the casual way he tossed aside the newspaper, left the indignant Kiminobu Kogure standing beside him completely stunned.

Flies? A lion?

This guy... was way too arrogant!

Yet for some reason, after hearing him say that, the frustration and anger bottled up inside Kogure miraculously faded by more than half, replaced by an inexplicable sense of anticipation.

Yeah, why bother arguing with a bunch of ignorant reporters?

When the game came, they should use overwhelming strength to slap their faces swollen and make them swallow every word they had written. That would be the most satisfying thing!

"Ho ho ho..." Coach Anzai let out his trademark laugh as he watched the scene.

He looked at Shirakawa approvingly. This boy not only possessed extraordinary strength, but also an incomparably strong heart that would not be swayed by the outside world.

Unruffled by honor or disgrace, confident and composed.

That was the heart of a true king.

"All right, Kogure, Shirakawa is right." Coach Anzai patted Kogure on the shoulder. "What we need to do now is not get angry, but make thorough preparations for this weekend's game."

"Yes, Coach!" Kogure nodded heavily, his gaze turning firm once more.

The next day, at Shohoku's basketball gym.

When Takenori Akagi announced that their practice game against Ryonan had been scheduled for the weekend, along with the newspaper that had "ignored" the entire team, the atmosphere of the whole squad was instantly ignited.

"What?! Ryonan?! Great!"

The first to get excited was Ryota Miyagi.

Shohoku had narrowly lost the last time they faced Ryonan. He had been hospitalized and missed that game, a regret he had carried ever since. Now, the chance for revenge had finally arrived!

"Hmph, Uozumi..." Takenori Akagi stared at Sendoh's large photo in the paper, his fists cracking as he clenched them.

Though the article focused on Sendoh and Kaede Rukawa, in Akagi's heart, there was only one true opponent: Ryonan's captain, the over-two-meter-tall "beast"—Jun Uozumi!

In their last confrontation, he had not gained much of an advantage against Uozumi. This time, he swore to wash away that humiliation!

"Sendoh..."

Kaede Rukawa's reaction was the most direct. He simply stared at the opponent in the newspaper, smiling with calm composure, as fierce fighting spirit blazed in his cold eyes.

The loss to Sendoh in middle school was one of the few defeats in his basketball career.

That name had long been etched into his heart, becoming a target he had to surpass.

"Hey, hey, hey! Who's this guy who looks like a clump of seaweed?" Hanamichi Sakuragi pointed at Sendoh's photo and asked disdainfully. "He looks so dull. Is he better than this genius?"

"Idiot! That's Ryonan's ace, Akira Sendoh! He's incredibly strong!" Miyagi explained irritably.

"An ace? Hmph!" Sakuragi planted his hands on his hips and laughed toward the sky. "With Lord Shirakawa here, every ace is just a paper tiger! Just wait and see how this genius uses the Genius Ankle Breaker to shake him down!"

He was clearly still obsessed with his "new special move."

The entire team, aside from Shirakawa, was fired up over the coming game, rubbing their hands in anticipation.

Shirakawa, meanwhile, merely leaned against the wall and yawned as though it had nothing to do with him.

"Hey, Shirakawa, why aren't you reacting at all?" Miyagi came over and nudged him with an elbow. "It's Ryonan! It's Sendoh! Aren't you even a little nervous?"

"Nervous?" Shirakawa glanced at him and asked, "Why would I be nervous?"

He paused, then said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Who's Sendoh? Is he famous? Never heard of him."

"..."

Miyagi nearly choked on his breath at that.

Never... heard of him?

Were you kidding?!

That was Akira Sendoh! One of Kanagawa's top genius players! And you said you had never heard of him?!

The surrounding players all looked at him as if he were an alien.

"Does this guy really not know, or is he just showing off?"

"Isn't that too arrogant? He doesn't even take Sendoh seriously?"

"Why do I get the feeling... he really doesn't know?"

Even Akagi could not help frowning. He knew Shirakawa was strong and arrogant, but wasn't this taking his arrogance a little too far? Was he really looking down on his opponent that much?

Only Kaede Rukawa gave Shirakawa a deep look.

He recalled what Shirakawa had said to him before, then remembered the control Shirakawa had displayed during their intrasquad game.

Perhaps... he was not being arrogant.

Rather, he truly had the confidence to back it up.

"Enough! Quiet!"

Akagi loudly cut off the team's discussion.

He walked up to Shirakawa and said sternly, "Shirakawa, I don't care whether you truly don't know or are pretending not to. I'll only tell you this: Akira Sendoh is an extremely powerful opponent. You must not underestimate him!"

"Oh." Shirakawa answered blandly.

Seeing his impervious attitude, Akagi felt his fists harden again.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the urge to punch him, and continued, "To prepare for this game, starting today, we'll conduct targeted tactical drills! Coach Anzai has already designed a new tactical system for us, and its core is you!"

"Now, we'll immediately begin a 5-on-5 scrimmage to build chemistry with the new tactics!"

Akagi's gaze swept across the team before finally settling on Shirakawa.

"Shirakawa, this battle concerns Shohoku's honor, and whether you, our new ace, can truly earn everyone's conviction!"

"You must prove to everyone that you are Kanagawa's future number one!"

Akagi's words rang out powerfully and forcefully.

He was putting pressure on Shirakawa, but he was also trying to ignite his fighting spirit.

However, Shirakawa merely picked at his ear and said lazily, "Got it, got it. Captain, you really talk too much."

"You bastard!" Veins bulged on Akagi's forehead.

"Let's start. I can't wait to finish early and go home to sleep." With that, Shirakawa strode straight onto the court.

Watching his arrogant back, Akagi ground his teeth in frustration, but in the end, he could only shake his head helplessly.

"Everyone! Take the court! The game begins!"

At Akagi's command, the entire Shohoku team began its most critical and intense preparation training for the upcoming match against Ryonan.

And at the heart of that training was Shohoku's new ace—the one who looked the least reliable of all: Shirakawa!