Hanamichi Sakuragi had somehow slipped away to Ryota Miyagi's side again. This was a good question; if anyone in Shohoku had the best hearing, it would definitely be Miyagi —yesterday, after Sakuragi and Yoko parted ways in the corridor, Miyagi immediately jumped out and gave them a good laugh, leaving Sakuragi with a deep impression of his hearing.
At this moment, Miyagi also strained his ears to listen intently for a while, and finally shook his head regretfully. "I didn't hear anything."
Sakuragi looked at him suspiciously. "Liar! How could you have heard me talking to Yoko?"
Miyagi shrugged. "Because you, you idiot, were talking too loudly."
On the field, Shirasawa has achieved his goal of probing, and now he just needs to finish the match.
In that case, we can slightly increase the speed and give Kaede Rukawa a bit more power.
Shirasawa dribbled the ball at the top of the arc, his shoulders swaying slightly from side to side with the ball. His continuous crossovers made Kaede Rukawa's feet a little unable to keep up. It has to be said that compared to his own offensive skills, his defense is indeed a weakness. He basically relies on his physical condition to hold on to his defense, and his sense of pressure is really not enough. Compared with players like Mitsui or Ikegami who specialize in defense, he is indeed much inferior.
Shirasawa was confident he could easily defeat him.
Shirasawa moved his feet and brushed past Kaede Rukawa as he turned. Kaede Rukawa's heart tightened, and he quickly turned to defend. But after only two steps, Shirasawa suddenly stopped by touching the ground with his left foot, Kaede Rukawa rushed over to block the shooting route.
Immediately afterwards, he saw Shirasawa pull his foot back and twist his body.
Kaede Rukawa's pupils suddenly contracted—Oh no, his center of gravity isn't on this foot!
But it was too late.
Shirasawa's turn immediately created two steps of distance between him, allowing him to easily make a jump shot.
The atmosphere at Shohoku heated up once again.
Shirasawa had delivered many impressive offensive plays in previous games, including some memorable moments where he faced double teams or even took on five opponents at once. But! This was the first time his Shohoku Team had ever seen him in a one-on-one situation like today. He had never played a one-on-one game within the team before, and of course, no one had ever challenged him.
Especially for the starting players of Shohoku, this was the first time they had ever watched Shirasawa play from the sidelines. This viewing experience was more direct than being on the court, and it undoubtedly gave them a new understanding of Shirasawa's one-on-one ability.
Now it's Kaede Rukawa's turn to attack.
Kaede Rukawa tried to dribble past Bai Ze several times, but Shirasawa blocked his attempts each time.
Kogure, watching from the sidelines, was a little stunned. " Akagi, is it just my imagination...? Why does Xiao Bai's defense seem to be getting tighter and tighter?"
Akagi nodded, arms crossed. "It's not an illusion, Rukawa hasn't changed, it's Xiao Bai has."
"In that last defensive play, it seemed like they were holding back, testing the waters."
"Now we're getting serious."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Shirasawa had already swarmed in, seizing the opportunity to reach out and steal the ball—it was snatched away!
Kaede Rukawa reacted quickly, leaping forward and managing to retrieve the ball.
Taking advantage of this, he finally managed to create some space.
Speed up and charge forward immediately!
Shirasawa started almost simultaneously, relentlessly pursuing.
Kaede Rukawa glanced at them out of the corner of his eye and saw that the two were about a step apart. Without hesitation, he took two big steps and leaped into the air!
Shirasawa was a beat slower, but he jumped up too.
Kaede Rukawa jumped incredibly high for that ball; he clearly put in a lot of effort.
He swung the ball around with one hand and was about to smash it into the basket.
Shirasawa attacked from the side, his momentum undiminished!
Everyone on the sidelines held their breath, watching this aerial duel intently.
With the basket right in front of him and Shirasawa's hand almost touching his face, Kaede Rukawa gritted his teeth and slammed the ball down with all his might.
Dunks aren't so easy to block.
Not only do you need to seize the right opportunity, but you also need strength and courage.
After all, the attacking side is driven by momentum, while the defending side is often on the defensive.
Many who tried to block shots ended up as mere background figures.
Kaede Rukawa wanted to use this dunk to completely suppress Shirasawa's arrogance!
But just before the ball was about to go into the basket,
Shirasawa, like an eagle eyeing its prey, suddenly soared into the sky!
The hand swung out with precision, both powerful and accurate!
A tremendous force held the basketball in place.
Shirasawa forcefully slammed the ball against the backboard with both hands!
The two were frozen in mid-air for a moment, then Kaede Rukawa's strength gave way, and he was defeated.
He stared at Shirasawa in disbelief before falling to the ground.
He plopped down on the ground.
Shirasawa then scooped the ball up with both hands and landed steadily.
There was a moment of silence on the sidelines, then it exploded!
This seal is terrifying!
It's rare enough to see someone just take off their hat, but to take off their dunk is unusual!
The referee, Hisashi Mitsui, who was closest to the referee, even exaggeratedly covered his eyes.
The meaning was clear—it was too horrible to watch.
Takenori Akagi's lips twitched slightly.
He himself had delivered hot pot quite a few times, but compared to Shirasawa's, it was nothing.
Kogure swallowed hard and shook his head repeatedly.
"I'm so glad Shirasawa is on our team..."
"If I were to face him..."
Before he could finish speaking, he shivered.
But no matter how surprised others were, they couldn't compare to how Kaede Rukawa felt at that moment.
He sat on the ground, staring intently at Shirasawa, his mind still a little dazed.
It's not that I forgot, it's that I don't want to think about it.
The sense of oppression I felt in that instant was indescribable.
Shirasawa looked down at him and smiled gently.
"I don't really like it when people dunk on me."
The game continued, with the roles of attacker and defender reversed.
Kaede Rukawa was clearly affected by that big block.
The initial aggressive momentum has weakened considerably.
On the contrary, Shirasawa became more and more excited as the fight went on!
He faced Kaede Rukawa and dribbled between his legs several times in a row.
Suddenly his shoulder slumped to the right, as if he was about to turn around.
Kaede Rukawa quickly moved to the side to block the attack, but upon closer inspection— Shirasawa's right hand was empty!
At this critical juncture,
Shirasawa suddenly turned around.
That half-turn was just a feint; the ball bounced up and was quickly caught back with his left hand.
He darted past Kaede Rukawa in a flash!
"I'm doing well!"
"Pretty!"
His teammates on the sidelines couldn't help but shout out.
Shirasawa took two steps, then jumped and slammed the ball into the basket with one hand.
Just by looking at the power of that dunk, you can tell how hot he is right now.
In the following rounds, Kaede Rukawa struggled more and more, making fewer drives and opting for jump shots instead.
But with Shirasawa's interference, all that was heard was the clanging of metal being struck.
Actually, if he had persisted in making breakthroughs, the results might have been better.
But that block really stunned him.
On the defensive end, they had absolutely no way to deal with Shirasawa.
After each round, Kaede Rukawa would lean on his knees and gasp for breath.
Both mental and physical strength are being rapidly depleted.
He had never experienced this feeling of powerlessness before.
Kaede Rukawa's turnaround fadeaway jump shot missed.
The score remained at 10-2.
Shirasawa has secured match point and is launching an attack.
The outcome was already decided.
It remains to be seen whether Shirasawa can end the match with this attack.
Shirasawa dribbled the ball on the outside, while his teammates on the sidelines kept calling his name.
Kaede Rukawa took two steps back, spreading his arms to defend against a breakthrough.
But Shirasawa suddenly gathered the ball, one step outside the three-point line—
Just throw it away...
Shirasawa, who had been focused on breaking through defenses, surprisingly opted for a long-range shot for his final attack.
This was indeed unexpected for Kaede Rukawa.
Kaede Rukawa's defensive positioning was actually flawless. He could defend against both drives and three-pointers, but who could have predicted that Shirasawa would shoot directly from just outside the three-point line? However, Kaede Rukawa secretly hoped that the ball would go in, because if it did, this ordeal would be over.
Shirasawa's strength completely exceeded his expectations. This was hardly a defeat, but a complete and utter conquest. Throughout the entire one-on-one fight, he was almost powerless to fight back. Kaede Rukawa believed that even if they fought for another ten rounds, the outcome would not change.
Interestingly, Kaede Rukawa is a bit special; he didn't lose confidence because of this, but instead felt a sense of relief. This match proved one thing— Shirasawa's words, "You've already lost before I even attacked," weren't sarcasm, but a stark truth. He really couldn't win.
But that doesn't mean he'll give up. From now on, Shirasawa will be his biggest rival. The goal of becoming the "strongest high school student" has quietly become "defeating Shirasawa." After all, no matter who he beats, he'll eventually have to get past Shirasawa.
The basketball went through the net cleanly.
The Shohoku bench erupted in cheers. Hisashi Mitsui, the temporary referee, blew his whistle, ending the game.
13 to 2.
Shirasawa smiled calmly, "As a gesture of hospitality, I'll give you an extra 2 points."
Kaede Rukawa's face remained expressionless, and no one could guess what he was thinking. He silently walked to the sidelines and changed his shoes.
Kiminobu Kogure walked over with a bottle of water.
" Kaede Rukawa," he said calmly, "We won't publicize today's match. I believe your presence here is a personal matter and has nothing to do with Ryonan." He paused, then continued, "I look forward to a fair match between our two teams in the semifinals."
Kogure is ultimately a good-natured person. Although he was initially somewhat dissatisfied with Kaede Rukawa's uninvited arrival, now that Shirasawa has won, he let it go. Shohoku has gained a psychological advantage for free, so there's no need to kick them while they're down; let's just treat it as a technical exchange.
Kaede Rukawa nodded. He didn't care about the matter anyway, and his nod was just a response to the bottle of water.
Finally, Shirasawa, in a victorious manner, escorted Kaede Rukawa to the entrance of the stadium. Kaede Rukawa, who had been silent all along, finally spoke.
"What do you want me to promise?" His tone was calm, but since he brought it up himself, it meant he admitted it. He was someone who could accept defeat.
Shirasawa smiled and said, "You should have heard that I signed with a player agent, right?"
This was no secret in Kanagawa's basketball circles. Ever since a commercial activity approached Shirasawa, the news had spread. Kaede Rukawa naturally knew about it too, but most players didn't take it too seriously. At most, it was a novelty for a couple of days, and after a few words of discussion, it was over. After all, many people felt that if they could make the decision themselves, why bother with a middleman?
Kaede Rukawa nodded, seemingly puzzled.
Shirasawa continued, "The things an agent can do are far more complex than you imagine. We can discuss these in detail later." He looked at Kaede Rukawa, "But I believe you'll be interested in the arrangements that follow."