The Vanishing Dribble

Silence.

Deathly silence.

A huge vein bulged on Taoka Moichi's forehead.

His blood pressure instantly shot up to 180.

"Y-You're that red-haired monkey from Shohoku?!"

"What are you doing?!"

"This is Ryonan's strategy meeting!"

"Are you a spy?!"

Taoka Moichi's roar was deafening.

"What spy?! That sounds awful!"

"This is called gathering military intelligence!"

"It's military strategy! Do you even understand military strategy?!" Hanamichi stood up indignantly, hands on his hips.

"You little bastard!"

Before Taoka could explode, a huge fist descended from above.

"Thud!"

A dull impact rang out.

A huge steaming bump instantly swelled on Hanamichi Sakuragi's head.

Takenori Akagi's face darkened as he grabbed Hanamichi by the collar and dragged him back like a dead dog.

"My apologies, Coach Taoka."

"My discipline at home has been lacking. Please forgive the spectacle."

"Let me go! Gorilla!"

"I heard their secrets!"

Hanamichi flailed wildly in midair.

Watching the farce unfold, Lin Bei yawned and drained the last mouthful of his sports drink.

"They sure are lively..."

He rubbed his slightly sore shoulder.

"But the first half lasted a little too long."

"If this drags on, I'll miss tonight's JOJO rerun."

Lin Bei stood up and rolled his wrist.

Looks like old man Taoka would have to suffer a little.

The second half began.

The two sides switched ends and resumed play.

Ryonan had possession.

Akira Sendoh truly stopped holding back.

He brought the ball upcourt.

Facing Kaede Rukawa's defense, he used an extremely deceptive Buddha fake, throwing Rukawa off balance before accelerating straight into the paint.

"Help!" Akagi roared.

But Sendoh double-clutched in midair, dodged Akagi's block, and slipped the ball into the hoop with his reverse hand.

52:45.

The movement flowed like water, graceful to the extreme.

"Waaaah! Sendoh! Sendoh!"

Ryonan's cheers shook the arena.

Shohoku attacked.

The ball went to Lin Bei.

Still guarding him was Sendoh.

"Looks like you still haven't woken up." Sendoh smiled teasingly at Lin Bei's half-lidded eyes.

"Yeah, I'm dead tired."

Lin Bei sighed, standing loosely with the ball lazily bouncing in his hand.

Suddenly.

Without any warning.

Lin Bei's eyes changed.

That laziness vanished in an instant, replaced by a beastlike wildness.

[Daiki Aomine · Hyper-Speed Dribbling]

"Bang!"

The basketball slammed heavily into the floor, loud enough to sound like it was smashing the court itself.

Lin Bei's body tilted at an incredibly strange angle, his speed instantly soaring from zero to one hundred.

"What?!"

Sendoh's vision blurred.

This was no ordinary drive.

That shift in speed, that change of direction that completely defied human biomechanics...

Too fast!

Like a black bolt of lightning, Lin Bei instantly tore through Sendoh's defense.

He charged into the paint, facing Uozumi's help defense.

Lin Bei did not slow down. Instead, he leaned backward.

While losing his balance in midair, he casually tossed the ball toward the backboard.

[Daiki Aomine · Formless Shot]

The ball banked off the glass and dropped through the hoop.

52:47.

At the sidelines, Taoka Moichi's tactics board slipped from his hand with a clatter.

His mouth hung open, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

That move just now...

Was that something a human could do?

That kind of body control, maintaining such a soft touch at that speed...

"H-How is that possible?!"

Taoka Moichi was stunned.

[Mission Progress: 1/3]

"Great shot!"

Shohoku's bench erupted.

Lin Bei landed and rubbed his wrist.

Without even glancing at Taoka, he turned and ran back on defense.

"The first."

Over the next several possessions, the game fell into a fierce tug-of-war.

Sendoh displayed the strength of an ace, scoring repeatedly.

On Shohoku's side, Akagi and Rukawa held on just as fiercely.

The score rose back and forth.

58:56.

Shohoku attacked again.

Lin Bei had the ball.

This time, Ryonan had learned its lesson.

Ikegami and Koshino came over as well, trying to trap Lin Bei and seal off his driving lanes.

"A three-man trap?"

The corner of Lin Bei's mouth lifted slightly.

"Then let's try this."

He held the ball in both hands and assumed a passing stance.

But the posture was strange.

It was neither a push nor a throw.

Instead, like clapping his hands together, he savagely slapped the ball with his palm.

[Seijuro Kuroko · Accelerated Pass]

"Boom!"

A muffled blast rang out.

The basketball seemed to transform into a cannonball leaving its barrel, carving a straight afterimage through the air.

Koshino only felt a fierce gust brush past his face and had not even seen the ball's path clearly.

The ball had already passed through the gap between them and shot straight toward Akagi at the baseline.

The instant Akagi caught it, his palms went numb.

"What power!"

But he reacted instantly, turning with the momentum, leaping up, and slamming it home!

"Boom!"

58:58.

The score was tied!

"What was that just now?!"

Taoka Moichi sprang out of his chair, clutching his head with both hands.

"That passing speed..."

"Was that even a pass? That was practically attempted murder!"

"That kind of force, that kind of precision..."

Taoka Moichi was stunned once more.

His heart began pounding wildly as an emotion called fear spread through him.

Just how many trump cards did Lin Bei have left?!

[Mission Progress: 2/3]

The match entered its fiercest stage.

Ryonan's resilience exceeded all expectations.

Akira Sendoh seemed tireless, tearing apart Shohoku's defense time and again.

Ryonan took the lead again.

64:62.

66:64.

Ten minutes remained.

Shohoku led by two points.

Ryonan attacked.

Sendoh drove and dished the ball out. Uozumi powered up beneath the basket and drew a foul from Akagi.

He made one of two free throws.

67:64.

Only a three-point gap!

The atmosphere was tense to the extreme.

The air seemed frozen, every breath carrying a scorching heat.

Shohoku attacked.

This time, every Ryonan player retreated on defense.

Sendoh stared Lin Bei down, his eyes more focused than ever before.

"I won't let you get past me again."

Sendoh spread his arms, sealing every route.

Lin Bei looked at the wall before him and sighed softly.

"What a pain..."

"I can only use that move."

Lin Bei dribbled, and his rhythm suddenly slowed.

He looked at Rukawa, then at Akagi, then at Hanamichi.

Everyone's attention was drawn along by his gaze.

At the instant Sendoh was slightly distracted, watching the passing lanes.

Lin Bei moved.

But he did not drive, nor did he pass.

He simply... vanished.

[Visual Misdirection · General Type—Vanishing Dribble]

In Sendoh's field of vision, Lin Bei's figure seemed to blend into the background, becoming blurred and indistinct.

By the time he reacted, Lin Bei had already appeared behind him.

"Wha..."

Sendoh whirled around, his face full of disbelief.

Where was he?

How did he get past him?

There had been no warning at all!

Lin Bei easily drove in for a layup.

67:66.

Taoka Moichi, standing at the sidelines, went weak in the legs and collapsed into his chair.

With trembling fingers, he pointed at Lin Bei on the court, his lips quivering as he failed to speak.

"Magic... This is magic..."