When he returned, Sakuragi surprisingly accepted it with a cheerful smile...
He even pointed at Kaede Rukawa and warned him.
"Don't embarrass the team, or you'll be the first one they deal with..."
I don't know what excuse Ichiro Katsumi used, but he probably used Kaede Rukawa as a pretext...
Fujima clapped his hands, bringing the topic back on track.
"Then it's settled. I'll schedule the first match later. Kaede Rukawa, you'll go first."
If Shirasawa, as the ace player, goes first, it will lower the anticipation for the subsequent matches.
Kaede Rukawa is a perfect fit; he's famous enough, but the pressure would be too much.
The first match is directly related to the success or failure of the tournament.
Kaede Rukawa has no way out; he must win!
This is also very much in line with his temperament.
Kaede Rukawa nodded expressionlessly.
"I'm fine with that, it's just that the team has a lot of training sessions, so it would be best to schedule them for the evening."
Fujima replied, "I'll coordinate with you on that; the specific timing depends on Ms. Sanae's arrangements."
Sanae's main job is external liaison, responsible for connecting with brands and sponsorships.
The other meaning behind this competition, of course, is to make money.
The better the results, the more you earn.
Sanae has already secured several sponsors, and its promotional efforts are progressing steadily.
It should all be done in the next couple of days.
The challengers also set high prize money and entry requirements.
If someone can actually beat the defending champion, they'll have gained both face and substance.
Of course, not just anyone can sign up. You either need to be a player in a junior or senior high school league, or you need to have some reputation on the streets. These are the strict requirements.
Otherwise, if it's just some random cat or dog, who would want to watch it?
Without some influence, the sponsors definitely won't agree.
Given the inherent competitiveness among players, I expect quite a few people to sign up.
The process involves first promoting the defending champion, announcing the competition time and prize money, and attracting challengers to register.
Once the challenger is decided, we'll generate more buzz and heat up the atmosphere.
Finally, the fight begins!
However, on the other hand, what if Kaede Rukawa had been up in the first match, and Shinichi Maki was among the challengers?
We definitely need to find a way to avoid that, so that Shinichi Maki can face Shirasawa instead.
We're not weak, but we're not stupid either.
Shohoku High School Basketball Gymnasium.
After a full day of rest, the team members were all back together.
For the next month, I have to work my butt off for the national competition.
"Starting today, we begin intensive training in preparation for the national competition!"
"The training this month will be much heavier than usual, so everyone better stay focused!"
Our goal is --
As soon as Akagi finished shouting, everyone roared back in unison.
"To dominate the entire nation!!"
No one came for extra practice yesterday; everyone had a good day off.
Today, everyone was full of energy; they finally looked like a championship team.
The county-level competition is a thing of the past; now, the only goal is the national competition!
Hehehe...
"Everyone seems to be in good shape."
Coach Anzai strolled in slowly.
Even Dad looks different today; he seems much more energetic.
"Hello, Coach!!"
The whole team suddenly shouted in unison, startling Coach Anzai so much that his jaw twitched.
"Alright, alright, stop shouting so loudly, my heart can't take it... Hehe, having ambition is a good thing, just channel it into training."
Coach Anzai walked to the front of the team, looking at their faces full of fighting spirit, and felt quite satisfied.
Even Shirasawa wasn't as carefree as usual, though he still had that lazy demeanor.
"Let me briefly explain the general schedule for this month."
"I've prepared the training plan. Akagi will lead everyone in carrying it out."
"Also, there's some good news."
" Kainan reached the semi-finals in last year's national competition, so they have a bye in the first round this year."
Now that I've said that, everyone understands.
This situation in Kainan is indeed rare. Last year they were among the top four in the country, but this year they didn't even make it out of the county-level competition.
So their bye was left vacant.
Coach Anzai's meaning couldn't be clearer.
"Coach, do you mean we can inherit this bye right?!"
Kogure's voice rose with excitement.
A total of 59 teams participated in the national competition.
The teams were divided into four groups (A, B, C, and D) for a group stage competition, which, like the county-level competition, was a single-elimination tournament. In the end, one team from each group advanced to the final four.
However, it differs from the round-robin format of the county-level competition.
The semifinals of the national tournament are also a fierce battle, with each match determining the winner.
In other words, the winners of Group A and Group C will play each other, and the winners of Group B and Group D will play each other.
The two winning teams will then compete for the championship!
Unseeded teams must play all six games to win the championship, while seeded teams have byes and only need to play five games.
and,
The schedule for the national tournament is absolutely insane!
There are too many participating teams, and they come from all over the country, so we can't even arrange accommodation and training for them all.
Therefore, the four group stage matches are back-to-back, back-to-back, back-to-back!
They play for four consecutive days, and only after the top four are determined can they rest for one day.
With such a grueling schedule, a first-round bye is incredibly valuable!
The energy expenditure from playing three games in a row is on a completely different level compared to playing four games in a row.
Especially for a team like Shohoku, whose bench depth is almost zero... they simply can't afford to waste time.
"That's right, I just received news that we can inherit Kainan's seed status and get a bye in the first round."
Upon Coach Anzai's words, Kogure almost jumped up.
"Very good!!"
"This is fantastic news! And it also gives us a chance to observe our opponents in the second round!"
Shirasawa frowned slightly.
The deviation continues.
Because Shohoku won the Kanagawa championship and inherited the seeded position, their group opponents in the national tournament will definitely be different from before.
I wonder if this deviation will result in us falling into the group of death again.
In any case, the hurdle of Sannoh Industrial High School is definitely still ahead, at most it won't be in the group stage.
"Everyone, please be quiet." Coach Anzai raised his hand to quiet everyone down.
"Having a bye in the first round is a double-edged sword, especially for a team like ours that lacks national experience."
"We didn't have a chance to adapt to the intensity of the game, while our opponents had just won a match and were riding high on their momentum."
"So this month, I plan to arrange two or three practice matches to let everyone experience national-level competition in advance."
"The practice match opponent is tentatively Jousei High School from Shizuoka Prefecture. I'm still communicating with them... Hehe..."
Coach Anzai finished explaining the arrangements with a cheerful smile, clearly quite satisfied with the decision.
Upon hearing this, Kogure had been closely following the national tournament, immediately panicked.
" Jousei High School?! My goodness, they were among the top eight in the country last year!"
When Kogure shouted, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets, startling the substitute players next to him.
Top eight in the country! That title sounds impressive.
But then I realized the atmosphere suddenly felt a bit off.
Wait a minute... didn't we beat up one of the top four teams in the country?
Upon realizing this, the fear on everyone's faces vanished instantly, replaced by a somewhat subtle expression; some even scratched their heads.
"Hehe... that's right." Coach Anzai adjusted his glasses. "We've even beaten teams that are among the top four in the country, so there's no need to be overly nervous. This practice match is mainly to help us maintain our competitive edge."
" Mikoshiba..."
Takenori Akagi murmured the name.
This time when they met again, the two were finally able to compete on equal footing.
"Alright!" Akagi suddenly raised his head, his voice booming, "Who cares if we're in the top eight last year or whatever, we can't lose! Everyone, get your spirits up, double the training from now on!"
Knowing that his opponent in the practice match would be his old acquaintance, Mikoshiba, Akagi suddenly became incredibly energetic, as if he had been injected with adrenaline.
People live to prove themselves, especially in front of former friends.
After all these years of feeling stifled, I finally have the chance to stand up straight.
"Hahaha, what's with all this talk about the quarterfinals!" Hanamichi Sakuragi thumped his chest loudly. "In the eyes of this genius, that's all child's play! My eyes are only on that goat!"
"You idiot! It's Sannoh! Sannoh Industrial High School!"
During a training break, Coach Anzai called Shirasawa aside.
" Xiao Bai, I'm planning to exclude both you and Sakuragi from the practice match against Jousei High School."
Shirasawa was a little surprised to hear this.
He understood why Sakuragi wasn't allowed to play; they were definitely using the time to give that kid extra training on his clumsy shooting.
But not letting me go... that's a bit puzzling.
Surely the coach isn't going to send him to practice with Sakuragi while he goes home to have tea...
Shirasawa muttered to himself, assuring himself that he didn't have the patience; he and Sakuragi would inevitably have to break down first.
"Coach, I'm really not good at teaching others how to train," Shirasawa scratched his face, speaking the truth, "I'm even too lazy to do extra training myself..."
Coach Anzai chuckled upon hearing this, thinking, "This kid is really honest."
"The reason you're not allowed to play isn't because of Sakuragi."
"But..." Coach Anzai's gaze behind his glasses sharpened slightly, "I want the rest of the team to taste defeat early."
Osaka.
A sports center.
"Haa~~~~"
Nobunaga Kiyota dragged his feet, yawning constantly, following closely behind Shinichi Maki.
On their first day in Osaka, they watched a Toyotama High School semi-final match.
Toyotama's main force didn't even have to exert much effort, yet they still beat their opponents so badly they were completely overwhelmed, winning by more than thirty points.
The scene was similar to when they dealt with Takezato High School in Kainan.
Toyotama is a goalkeeper who is among the top eight in the country, so it's not surprising that they have this kind of strength in Osaka.
After watching that match, Shinichi Maki led Kiyota straight to Fukuoka to watch a game at Hakata Shodai Affiliated School.
I had originally planned to go to Akita Prefecture to check out Sannoh Industrial High School, but unfortunately, I just didn't have the time.
Shinichi Maki himself didn't really want to go see Sannoh; seeing them would feel like reopening old wounds...
Kiyota, however, kept insisting that he wanted to see for himself what the "Number One High School Student in the Country" was really like.
Missing out actually suited Shinichi Maki's wishes.
Besides, Sannoh is practically invincible in Akita Prefecture. Even if they make it to the finals, Eiji Sawakita probably won't last more than a few minutes.
The 59 spots in the national competition were allocated based on the number of teams from each county.
Kanagawa, a major basketball prefecture, was allocated two spots.
Tokyo is a larger area and has more slots available, with three slots.
Despite Sannoh's dominance nationwide, Akita Prefecture only has one qualifying spot.
Because there aren't many teams in the county to begin with, and Sannoh is ridiculously strong, the qualifying tournament was hardly interesting and there was no suspense at all.