3+1! Shohoku Takes the Lead!

"Got it!"

"Shohoku's counterattack!"

The cheers from the stands erupted like a tsunami.

Lin Bei clutched the scorching basketball, his lungs burning as if they were on fire.

Tired.

Really tired.

If he could, he just wanted to lie down on the floor and play dead.

But the countdown in front of him pulsed like a death warrant.

28 seconds remained.

The score was 89:86.

They were down by three.

"There's still time!"

"Don't rush, take it slow!"

Takenori Akagi roared from the backcourt, his voice hoarse.

Meanwhile, Kaede Rukawa and Hanamichi Sakuragi charged forward like two beasts unleashed from their cages, one on each side.

Ryonan's retreating defense was astonishingly fast as well.

Although Akira Sendoh had been stripped of the ball, he reacted instantly and stuck tightly to Lin Bei's side, refusing to give him an inch.

"Don't think you'll get past me so easily."

Sendoh panted heavily, but his eyes gleamed with a frightening brightness.

It was the excitement of someone pushed to the brink.

Lin Bei dribbled forward, not particularly fast.

He was doing the math.

A two-pointer?

No.

Even if they made a two now, they would still be down by one.

Once possession switched to Ryonan, Shohoku would definitely lose if they ran out the clock or drew a foul.

It had to be a three.

Only a three-pointer could keep them alive.

Damn, this is such a pain.

Lin Bei still had the presence of mind to complain inwardly.

Why does this have to be so passionate?

Wouldn't it be better to just coast through this peacefully?

By then, he had already dribbled past half court.

Ryonan's defensive formation rapidly contracted.

Tomoyuki Uekusa and Hiroaki Koshino were like a pair of pincers, ready to trap him at any moment.

And Sendoh was like a piece of gum he could not shake off.

"Give me the ball!!"

Hanamichi Sakuragi rushed near the free-throw line and shouted with his arms spread wide.

"This genius is open already!"

"As long as I dunk it, we'll win!"

This single-celled organism clearly had not figured out the math.

All he knew was that scoring meant victory.

Lin Bei glanced at Sakuragi.

Then he looked at Kaede Rukawa, lying in wait in the left corner.

The muscles in his arm suddenly tensed.

His palm slammed hard against the ball.

[Tetsuya Kuroko · Accelerated Pass]

"Thump!"

A dull boom rang out, as though the air itself had been pierced.

The basketball turned into an orange laser and shot straight toward Sakuragi... behind him!

The ecstatic expression on Hanamichi Sakuragi's face instantly froze.

He stretched out his hands, wanting to embrace the basketball meant for a genius.

"Whoosh—!"

A fierce gust swept across his face, blowing his red hair backward.

The ball had gone right past him.

"Nani?!"

Sakuragi's eyes widened as he watched the ball streak toward the corner.

Kaede Rukawa stood there.

Rukawa received the pass, steady as a rock.

The ball's spin was perfectly neutralized the instant it touched his palms.

Good pass.

Rukawa murmured inwardly.

"You bastard, Kaede Rukawa!"

"You stole this genius's ball!"

"My master passed that to me!"

Sakuragi jumped about in rage. If they had not been in a game, he would have rushed over and headbutted Rukawa.

"Idiot."

Rukawa did not even spare him a glance, his gaze fixed on Uekusa as he lunged at him.

At that moment, the entire arena held its breath.

Everyone could see it.

Shohoku did not want two points.

They wanted three!

A three-pointer was their only chance!

"Defense! Don't let him shoot a three!"

Taoka Moichi shouted himself hoarse from the sideline.

"We can give up two, but not three!"

Ryonan's players rushed at the perimeter like madmen.

Uekusa closed down Rukawa.

Koshino charged toward Kogure, who was cutting into position.

And Sendoh still kept a tight watch on Lin Bei.

Rukawa did not shoot.

He knew that forcing a shot from there would give him too low a chance of scoring.

Besides, that laziest guy had already reached his spot.

Everyone knew Lin Bei was going to shoot a three.

Rukawa knew.

Akagi knew.

Even Sendoh on the other side knew.

It was an open scheme.

Lin Bei dragged his heavy legs toward the top of the arc.

Every step felt as though his legs were filled with lead.

"Sakuragi!"

Lin Bei suddenly shouted.

"Get your butt over here!"

"Huh?!"

Though Sakuragi looked utterly displeased, his body was more honest than his brain.

"This genius will generously help you one more time, Master!"

Sakuragi slid sideways and planted himself in Sendoh's path like an iron tower.

"An impenetrable wall!"

"Thud!"

Sendoh slammed solidly into Sakuragi.

So hard!

Was this guy made of iron?

Taking advantage of that brief opening, Lin Bei curled around to the top of the arc.

Rukawa's pass arrived right on cue.

Man and ball arrived together.

Catch.

Turn.

Face the basket.

Lin Bei took a deep breath, trying to calm his pounding heart.

"Don't even think about it!"

A furious roar rang out.

Ryonan had gone mad.

Hiroaki Koshino abandoned Kogure and flew at him.

Sendoh, who had been screened off, forced his way around Sakuragi and stretched out his long arm.

Even Ikegami from the paint charged out.

A three-man trap!

This was the treatment reserved for a game-winner!

Looking at the dense forest of arms before him, Lin Bei did not panic. Instead, he found it somewhat amusing.

What a huge fuss...

I just want to get home early.

[Shintaro Midorima · Full-Range Shooting]

The skill activated.

As long as his shooting form was not disrupted, the hit rate was 100%.

Lin Bei jumped.

His body leaned drastically backward in midair, nearly forming a forty-five-degree angle with the floor.

It was to avoid the block.

And also... to draw a foul.

"Smack!"

Koshino's hand struck Lin Bei's wrist.

"Tweet—!"

The referee's whistle sounded.

A foul!

But at the same instant the whistle blew, the ball had already left Lin Bei's hand.

It followed an outrageously high arc.

The basketball sailed over the fingertips of all three defenders, flying toward the blinding lights.

Time seemed to stretch infinitely in that instant.

Hundreds of eyes throughout the arena focused on that spinning orange planet.

Taoka Moichi dropped to his knees at the sideline, clasping his hands together as his lips moved in prayer.

Takenori Akagi clenched his fists, his nails digging into his flesh.

Kaede Rukawa held his breath.

Hanamichi Sakuragi's mouth fell open.

The ball stayed in the air for a long time.

Long enough for Lin Bei to have fallen onto the floor.

It has to go in...

He rubbed his aching backside from the fall.

"Swish!"

Crisp.

Pleasant.

It was the sound of the basketball passing cleanly through the net.

It was as though God had pressed the mute button, and the entire arena fell silent for one second.

Then the scoreboard changed.

89:89.

Tie!

"It wasn't over!"

The referee raised one finger and pointed at the free-throw line.

"The basket counts! One additional free throw!"

3+1!

A four-point play!

"ROAR—!!!"

The roar of the crowd nearly blew the roof off the gymnasium.

"It went in! It went in!"

Hanamichi Sakuragi was the first to rush over. He hooked an arm around Lin Bei's neck and shook him hard.

"Master! You're incredible!"

"That ball flew up to the ceiling and then came back down!"

"Cough, cough... Let go... I'm going to die..."

Lin Bei rolled his eyes. He felt like he hadn't died of exhaustion on the court, only to be strangled to death by this idiot disciple.

Kaede Rukawa walked over and looked down at Lin Bei on the floor.

The corner of his mouth curled into an extremely rare, almost imperceptible smile.

"Not bad luck."

"That was skill." Lin Bei irritably shoved Hanamichi aside.

He stepped up to the free-throw line.

There were only five seconds left in the game.

The score was tied.

As long as he made this free throw, Shohoku would take a one-point lead.

The entire arena fell silent.

Everyone held their breath, afraid of disrupting this free throw that would decide the game.

Lin Bei bounced the ball.

It felt heavy.

His arms were sore.

Yet he still maintained that lazy posture.

"Let's get this over with."

"I want a Coke."

He raised his hand and flicked his wrist.

The basketball traced an utterly ordinary arc through the air.

"Swish."

It went in cleanly.

89:90!

Shohoku took the lead!