The next day, Yo Aoki handed Coach Akai the supplementary materials for Shohoku's strength that he had written during class. Coach Akai nodded in satisfaction. " Aoki, well done, thank you for your hard work." Yo Aoki was a little embarrassed. "Coach, if there's nothing else, I'll head back?"
Coach Akai waved his hand. "No rush, Aoki. I'd like to hear your thoughts on the team's strength." Yo Aoki sat up straight. "If our team wants to go further, we need to make some changes." Coach Akai became interested. "Oh? Tell me about it."
Yo Aoki began, "I think our individual players are significantly weaker than the top teams in the prefecture, so we need to improve our teamwork, pass the ball more, share the ball more, everyone run more, and set more screens for their teammates. Only then can we close the gap with the stronger teams." Coach Akai nodded slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "Alright, Aoki, go to training." Yo Aoki replied, "Yes."
Yo Aoki had no idea Coach Akai was thinking. He felt that what he had just said might not be what Coach Akai wanted to hear. He had a gut feeling that there was a problem he hadn't considered that might affect the team's growth.
At the Shohoku basketball gym, Sakuragi was Takenori Akagi as soon as he entered. " Sakuragi, where were you yesterday? Didn't you say you'd be back for practice soon? Do you want to be kicked off the team?!"
Sakuragi picked at his ear and chuckled, " Gorilla, I had a secret training session yesterday..." Takenori Akagi, enraged, punched Sakuragi and roared, "If this happens again, I won't let you off! Let's begin training!"
On this day, the Shohoku men's basketball team arranged a five-on-five scrimmage, with Takenori Akagi leading the second and third-year students against the first-year students led by Hanamichi Sakuragi and Kaede Rukawa.
As soon as the game started, Kaede Rukawa withstood all the attacks from the first-year students with his hard-earned skills, but the second and third-year students also scored frequently thanks to Akagi's strong inside game. The two sides went back and forth, and Hanamichi Sakuragi was on the verge of exploding with frustration watching from the sidelines.
At that moment, Kentaro Ishii received the ball and raised his hand to shoot. Sakuragi glanced at his shooting posture and his heart sank – this shot was definitely not going in. "Rebound!" Sakuragi reacted extremely quickly. Akagi was guarding Kaede Rukawa, so he held off Shiozaki, firmly occupying a favorable position. Shiozaki's strength couldn't move him even an inch.
Sure enough, the moment the ball bounced off the rim, Sakuragi leaped up and grabbed the offensive rebound. Yasuda and the others knew Sakuragi's weaknesses best; they knew he couldn't shoot, so they immediately blocked his passing lanes.
But no one expected that Sakuragi wouldn't pass the ball at all. Instead, he jumped up, held the ball with his right hand, steadied it with his left hand, and flicked his wrist slightly, sending the ball crashing into the basket with a layup.
"What?" "Impossible!" "When did Sakuragi learn to shoot?"
Seeing his teammates' dumbfounded expressions, Sakuragi felt incredibly pleased. He patted his chest and laughed, "This genius Hanamichi Sakuragi only knows how to shoot, what's the big deal!" He then pointed at Kaede Rukawa, " Stinking Fox, just wait, I'll definitely surpass you!"
Kaede Rukawa rolled his eyes, sighed, and turned to move aside, too lazy to pay him any attention. Akagi walked over and poked his shoulder, "Don't get cocky, shooting is just the most basic thing, don't get carried away." Sakuragi ignored him, secretly amused. " The Gorilla is really jealous of my genius, hehe."
The match ended, with the first-year team defeating the second and third-year teams thanks to the outstanding performances of Kaede Rukawa and Sakuragi. Kogure sidled up to Akagi, watching the bouncing Sakuragi and laughing, " Akagi, I really didn't expect Sakuragi to improve so quickly. It seems his secret training yesterday was true. I just wonder who taught him."
Akagi nodded. " Haruko told me yesterday that Sakuragi was challenged by a player from Takezato, and it's probably related to this." Kogure's eyes lit up. "Now our team's strength has increased again, and with Miyagi soon returning from injury, we might actually have a chance this year!" Akagi hummed in agreement, staring at the group of first-year rookies, but his mind was on someone else.
In the basketball gym of Takezato High School, the players had no scheduled training that day. Coach Akai gathered everyone together and announced that Sunday's warm-up opponent would be the Shoyo team.
Coach Akai clenched his fist and shouted, "This Sunday, we're going to play a practice match against Shoyo. Shoyo was second in the prefecture last year and even made it to the top 16 in the national tournament. They're a tough opponent, so everyone needs to perform well and cherish this opportunity!" The players replied in unison, "Yes, sir!"
Coach Akai nodded and gestured to Shirota, " Shirota, tell everyone about Shoyo's situation." Shirota, holding his notebook, cleared his throat. "First, let me introduce Shoyo's players. Center, Toru Hanagata, is 1.97 meters tall, and his shooting and defense are both good;
Forward Kazushi Hasegawa, 1.9 meters tall, is known for his defense; Mitsuru Nagano and Shoichi Takano are both over 1.9 meters tall and excel at rebounding; finally, the ace, Kenji Fujima, 1.78 meters tall, plays point guard, and is considered one of the two strongest players in Kanagawa alongside Shinichi Maki of Kainan —his strength needs no further explanation!
Shirota continued, " Shoyo's four main players this year are all over 1.9 meters tall. Their tactic is for Fujima to break through and disrupt the defense, then pass to his teammates to score using their height. If his teammates are shut down, he can also score himself."
Coach Akai nodded. "Alright, Sunday's game will be tough for Imamura and Hojo. You two keep a close eye on Shoyo and Hanagata from Fujima, understand?" Imamura and Hojo exchanged a glance and replied in unison, "Understood!"
Coach Akai looked at Yo Aoki, " Aoki, relax on Sunday's game, don't be nervous, just play well!" Yo Aoki smiled and nodded, "No problem, Coach, don't worry." Coach Akai waved his hand, "Then everyone, let's start training based on Shoyo's strengths." The players replied, "Yes!"
At six o'clock on Sunday morning, Yo Aoki woke up with a headache. He had been sleepless until three in the morning the night before finally managing to fall asleep. This was his first official competition since his transmigration, and he was incredibly excited. "Calm down," he kept telling himself, but it was no use. After leaving home, Yo Aoki decided to jog to school, hoping it would both calm him down and get him some exercise.
When they arrived at the school, most of the players were already there. Shirota yawned and came over, "Good morning, Aoki." Yo Aoki asked with a smile, "Good morning, Shirota. Didn't you sleep well? Were you nervous?"
Shirota leaned closer to Aoki and winked.
"Hehe, Aoki, you don't look too well either. After all, it's our ace's debut."
Although Aoki said that, his hand gripping the hem of his jersey tightened.
"I'm excited, not nervous."
Just as it was eight o'clock, Coach Akai arrived, Takezato High School Basketball Team immediately assembled.
In a little while, they would be taking the bus to Shoyo High School for a warm-up match. Aoki stared at the bus sent by the school and couldn't help but mutter to himself.
"The treatment at this private school is really different; they even have a private car to pick you up and drop you off. It's much more reliable than Shohoku taking the train to Ryonan in the manga."
After more than an hour of travel, Takezato and his group finally arrived at the basketball gym of Shoyo High School.
Upon entering, one immediately sees a large banner with the slogan "Fighting Spirit" hanging on the wall. Mizuki is the first to shout this to the Shoyo players on the court.
Hello, sorry to bother you!
But the Shoyo team was so focused on practicing their game that they didn't even glance at them.
It seems that Takezato is simply not good enough for the top teams. This is the arrogance of the top teams, I guess. Shigeru Akiyama pursed his lips and muttered.
" Shoyo doesn't take us seriously at all."
Tatsu Shindo also sneered, "We're a top-four team, after all. Shoyo is really rude."
At that moment, an old man, as thin as a bamboo pole, wearing glasses and with a receding hairline, walked over and shook hands with Coach Akai in a friendly manner.
" Akai, welcome to Shoyo."
" Senior Ino, I apologize for the intrusion and disturb you," Coach Akai replied respectfully.
Mizuki also leaned over and extended his hand, "I'm Masanobu Mizuki, the captain of the Takezato Team. Nice to meet you."
Ino smiled and nodded. "Oh, Mizuki- san, nice to meet you."
Heisaburo Nakako from the Takezato Team tugged at Shirota's sleeve and whispered, "Who's this guy?"
Shirota replied, "He should be Shoyo's advisor."
Heisaburo Nakako wanted to ask more questions, but just as he was about to speak, his gaze was drawn to a figure— Kenji Fujima had arrived.
Although he is only 1.77 meters tall, he exudes an aura when he stands there. With his handsome features, he stands out in a group of people.
Fujima approached Akai respectfully, " Coach Akai, hello. I'm Kenji Fujima from Shoyo. Nice to meet you."
Akai praised, " Fujima -kun, you have such a magnanimous spirit. I hope we can exchange ideas more often in the future."
After exchanging pleasantries, Takezato and his group went to the locker room, where Coach Akai spoke.
"Now, let's announce the starting lineup and distribute the jerseys."
Everyone immediately held their breath and waited.
"Small forward, Mizuki, number 4."
"Yes!" Mizuki responded loudly. Akai patted him on the shoulder, "You have a heavy burden to bear, keep it up!"
"Yes!"
"Shooting guard, Shindo, number 5."
Shindo took the jersey, his voice trembling with excitement, "This is my last summer, and I'm determined not to have any regrets!"
"Yes!"
"Center, Imamura, number 6."
Imamura's face darkened. His opponent today was Toru Hanagata, Kanagawa's top center. "Yes, I will definitely defend against Hanagata and help the team advance to the national tournament!"
Point guard, Hojo, number 8.
Hojo held the jersey, his hands trembling slightly. "I'm matched up against Fujima, I can't defend him at all, what am I going to do..."
The four starters are set, and everyone knows who will get the last spot, but we can't help but hold onto a sliver of hope.
Akai paused for a few seconds before speaking, "Power forward, Aoki, number 10."
"Yes!" Aoki stepped forward and took the jersey.
Many people showed disappointment when they heard their names weren't mentioned, especially Yasunori Sanada, a third-year student, as this was his last year.
Akai glanced at them and immediately said loudly, "The other players, get ready too. Everyone has their own value, understand?"
"We understand!" everyone replied.
Akai nodded in satisfaction. "Next, let's talk about tactics. Mizuki has led everyone in targeted training these past few days; now it's time to put it to the test."
He pointed to the tactics board, " Shoyo's advantage is their height, but that's also their disadvantage. Although they are tall, their agility is definitely limited, and no one knows how to dribble. That's what we'll exploit."
"Make lots of off-ball movement to create space, then shoot threes. As long as your shooting percentage isn't too bad, you can compete with them! Shindo and Aoki should shoot threes whenever they have the chance. Nakamura, Mizuki, and Hojo should move around a lot to disrupt the rhythm, understand?"
"Understood!"