Cold.
Bone-chillingly cold.
Kenji Fujima felt as though he had fallen into a bottomless abyss, endless coldness wrapping around every limb and bone.
He raised his head and met Shirakawa's eyes, filled with mockery and pity.
That gaze was like a god looking down upon an ant.
"Y-You... who exactly are you?"
Fujima forced the words out of his throat, his voice dry and hoarse.
He was not asking for a name or an identity.
He was asking whether the creature before him was truly human, just like them.
"Me?" Shirakawa chuckled, his smile full of matter-of-fact arrogance. "I'm the one who came to change this era."
He slowly walked up to Fujima, crouched down, and met his gaze.
"Kenji Fujima, player-coach of Shoyo High School, one of Kanagawa Prefecture's twin aces. Am I right?"
Shirakawa's voice was soft, yet it was like a sharp blade, carving into Fujima's heart again and again.
Fujima gritted his teeth and said nothing.
"You're proud, aren't you? You think your skills and tactics are among the best in Kanagawa. You think Shoyo has a real chance this year to overthrow Kainan's rule and become the new king."
Shirakawa's words struck precisely at the deepest ambition in Fujima's heart.
"So when you saw that article, you were disdainful. You thought I was just some loudmouthed brat. That's why you sneaked over here, wanting to see what I was really capable of."
"And what was the result?"
A cruel curve formed at Shirakawa's lips.
"You saw it. You saw something that drove you to despair, didn't you?"
Fujima's body trembled violently once more.
Yes, despair.
No other word could better describe how he felt at that moment.
Those two unreasonable half-court shots were like two insurmountable mountains, weighing heavily on his heart until he could