" Miyagi has an older brother?" "And that legendary player, Sota Miyagi, who caused a sensation back in the day?" "Really? That height..." "Sorry, bro, but they do look quite alike!"
Even Shirasawa, with his godlike perspective, was dumbfounded. When he joined this world, the National Tournament arc hadn't even been completed yet. This was truly another case of being caught in the crossfire, but there was no need to delve into it; it wasn't a bad thing anyway. He had long since adapted to the changes in this world. After all, since he arrived, Sanae and Yayoi had been practicing tennis together, Haruko had even started tasting delicious human food. This world was more interesting because of these changes.
However, what Sota Miyagi said next caused an uproar. He said he was going to officially return to Japan, apply to Shohoku High School, study for one year of high school and then go to university. He wanted to join the Shohoku Basketball Team that year and fight alongside his younger brother and everyone else! He even shamelessly used Moichi Taoka's method of joining Shohoku.
However, even if Moichi Taoka knew about this, there was no need for him to be conflicted. When Sota Miyagi rejected him, he had already anticipated this outcome. The only thing without suspense was which side Sota Miyagi would choose.
After Sota Miyagi and Ryota recognized each other, the two brothers stayed up all night, talking about everything from embarrassing childhood stories to their future lives. When they talked about the future, Sota Miyagi recounted Moichi Taoka's original plan for the future.
For him, now that his younger brother has been found, the remaining fragmented memories will slowly return with Ryota's help, and nothing else matters as much. He'll definitely stay in China from now on; that's settled for now. How could he not hope the two brothers could play on the same team for a year?
Ryota was overjoyed upon hearing this. With Takenori Akagi and Hisashi Mitsui retiring, several positions were vacant. If Sota could join, it would be an absolute godsend!
As for what to do next, Ryota confidently told his brother that Moichi Taoka could handle it, Coach Anzai would definitely be even better at it! It was that simple and straightforward. Back then, he rejected Taoka's offer to join Shohoku, but now, he'd managed to seduce his brother from Taoka to Shohoku. He couldn't help but think that Coach Taoka was actually quite reliable.
Just as Ryota had predicted, Coach Anzai not only possessed the ability, but he could also manage things even better than Moichi Taoka. When Coach Anzai met Sota Miyagi, his jaw practically dropped. That prodigy from seven years ago had actually reappeared and was even joining his team! This was beyond Coach Anzai's expectations back then.
He did admire Sota Miyagi back then, but for various reasons, he never even considered coaching him. Yet, seven years later, this situation had actually arisen! Coach Anzai was ecstatic. First, he recruited Shirasawa, then led Shohoku to the national championship, and now Sota Miyagi could join Shohoku —he was incredibly lucky!
Fortunately, he chose to tank for those few years! Tanking allowed him to take the reins at Shohoku High School, it helped him recover his health, and it gave him invaluable experience over those two years! Towards the end of his coaching career, Coach Anzai couldn't help but exclaim, "Taking it was really good..."
That very day, Coach Anzai swiftly got to work on Sota Miyagi's situation. He even confidently promised, "Just go home and wait to enroll. On behalf of the Shohoku Basketball Team, I welcome you to join us."
The next day, the highly anticipated final round of the Four Nations Invitational finally arrived. In the previous round, Shohoku defeated the Chariot, achieving two consecutive victories and accumulating 4 points; Cheetah also lived up to expectations, crushing Changwon and also achieving two consecutive victories and accumulating 4 points.
In this Alex and Robinson only played for about ten minutes at the start, but they already had a 30-point lead before calmly sitting off the court. For them, this game was just a warm-up to maintain their game form; nothing else mattered.
Changwon had anticipated the outcome; they didn't even field their ace player, Park Shuo-qi, essentially forfeiting the game. This was to save face for Park Shuo-qi Park Shuo-qi the team; otherwise, he would have been completely overwhelmed. That wouldn't be good for his future career or the development of Korean basketball. Losing is losing, but how you lose makes a difference.
With this result, both Changwon and Chariot have lost both games and accumulated 0 points, securing third and fourth place in advance. The final ranking will be determined in the last round. Conversely, Shohoku and Cheetah have already secured the championship and runner-up positions. Today's final round is a battle for the championship; whoever wins takes the Four Nations Invitational title.
This tournament has already caused a national sensation. Even if Shohoku loses, taking second place would be enough, even quite perfect, considering that the runner-up position includes the Chariot. But human nature is greedy. Who says Shohoku can't create another miracle? The word "miracle" has always been associated with Shohoku, hasn't it? Now it seems that the Cheetah aren't a monolithic team after all.
Today, the Kanagawa Prefecture Gymnasium witnessed another surge in attendance, following last season's Shohoku vs. Kainan match. Even with the second viewing area in use, it still couldn't accommodate the fans who had traveled from all over. The area outside the stadium was packed with people, their shouts echoing through the sky. Local police were deployed in large numbers, in case of any unforeseen incidents.
The basketball craze in China has reached its peak today. In comparison, the fans who were able to sit in the inner court today are so lucky. They are so lucky and they cherish it even more. They have to shout themselves hoarse for Shohoku today to do justice to their seats!
Forty minutes remained until the start of the game. Amidst the cheers of the entire stadium, the two teams entered the court through the player tunnel! Ryota Miyagi shouted " Shohoku!!", eliciting a frenzy of shouts from the crowd. The Cheetah, on the other hand, seemed to be watching the spectacle, glancing around without any sense of tension.
After entering the field, the two teams each occupied half of the field and began their pre-match warm-up.
Hikoichi Aida, clenching his fist in the stands, shouted, " Shohoku's fighting spirit is off the charts today!"
The person next to him chimed in, "They're not nervous at all, they're all excited!"
Hikoichi Aida nodded, his eyes wide. "They didn't have this much energy even against the Chariot last round. Looks like Shohoku has a chance today!"
Moichi Taoka stood on the sidelines and nodded in approval.
Moichi Taoka stood on the sidelines, staring at Shohoku's warm-up field, clicking his tongue and muttering, "Today is Shohoku's last game, and they're playing in such a big tournament. It's not easy for them to withstand all that off-court pressure."
He was about to continue talking about Shohoku's current state, but before he could finish speaking, Hikoichi Aida next to him suddenly jumped up and shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Coach! Look quickly at Coach Anzai's side!"
The shout was so sudden that several fans around turned around to look.
Generally speaking, what kind of head coach would squeeze into the tunnel with the players? It's the unspoken rule in this industry that the highlight moments are for the players, and the head coach has to wait until all the players have finished playing before leisurely coming out of the tunnel and sitting calmly on the sidelines as the team's anchor.
But this game was different. The players had already come onto the field to warm up when the two head coaches emerged from the tunnel one after the other, strolling leisurely.
Coach Anzai was wearing a faded Shohoku training uniform, his hands behind his back, a kind smile on his round face, just like usual. But there was one thing that stood out—he was accompanied by a teenager!
That's Sota Miyagi. He used to play point guard like Ryota Miyagi, but he's been missing for almost seven years. Many people have almost forgotten about him, and even if they saw his face, they wouldn't recognize him.
Hikoichi Aida wide-eyed, his mouth agape enough to fit an egg, Moichi Taoka's eyes widened in shock, and he nearly jumped up.
"What?! This guy is Sota Miyagi?!"
Taoka had been wondering a lot about where this guy had gone. Back then, when Taoka Goro Domoto tried to get him to go to Sannoh, he refused on the spot. But now, so much time had passed, and this guy's memory was all over. Maybe he just impulsively went to Sannoh?
And then there's that Meihou Industrial, who spent money like water during the offseason to recruit players, just to find a helper for Hiroshi Morishige. But Hiroshi Morishige can't do anything except dunk. If he goes there, he'll just be a passing tool. Whoever goes there will suffer.
And then there's Naha Fisheries, which is his hometown team. He talked to Sota Miyagi before and even gave him a clue to go back to his hometown to look for it; maybe it's still there.
But who would have thought! This guy actually came with Coach Anzai!
Naha Fisheries High School is holding onto this spot tighter than anyone else. They treat Sota Miyagi, who comes from the prefecture, like a precious gem, afraid of dropping him if they hold him in their hands or melting him if they keep him in their mouth.
To be fair, Moichi Taoka's mind works faster than anyone else's, and his analysis is incredibly insightful. He had already decided on Sota Miyagi's destination among these three teams.
But reality caught him completely off guard; Sota Miyagi actually chose Shohoku High School!
He could imagine Sota Miyagi going to Naha, Meihou, or even Ryonan, but he never thought of Shohoku. Shohoku had just won the national championship, and Shirasawa was the number one high school player in the country. They would definitely be a favorite to win the championship in the new season. They hadn't made any moves during the offseason, and there was no rush even Takenori Akagi and Hisashi Mitsui left.
Even so, why would Sota Miyagi choose Shohoku? With his abilities, why would he join a team that has already won the championship? And be relegated to a lower rank than Shirasawa? Is he going for Coach Anzai?
In short, Moichi Taoka was completely dumbfounded, as if he had been paralyzed by acupuncture.
Shohoku was not in Taoka's plans. In fact, he and Riki Takato were mortal enemies. He couldn't beat Takato's Takato Kainan. His second hope was that Sota Miyagi wouldn't go to Shohoku.
Why? First, Shohoku is strong enough. Although they've lost Akagi and Mitsui, Sakuragi can fill Akagi's position. At most, losing Mitsui will definitely lower their strength, but what about the other teams? Ryonan has lost Jun Uozumi, Kainan has lost Shinichi Maki, and Sannoh's starting lineup is down to Eiji Sawakita. This year's rookies aren't any strong players either. All teams' strength has dropped. Shohoku's losses are relatively minor; what if they lose Sota Miyagi?
Not only Taoka, but every team in the country is afraid of Shohoku rising again.
Secondly, Taoka was thinking from Sota Miyagi's perspective. This guy had been missing for seven years and had finally returned. He was going to stir up a storm. Taoka hoped that he would realize his talent and make all the prestigious universities keep an eye on him, giving him a bright future.