Chapter 120: The Plan Fails
As Shuzo Nijimura reflected on the exchange, he realized his previous attack really had been far too obvious.
Facing a towering center like Jason Silver, he should have worked to shift his opponent’s center of gravity first.
Instead, he had gone straight into a lateral step and jumper. No matter how he thought about it, it was a foolish choice.
“I get it. Thank you, both of you.”
Shuzo Nijimura accepted their advice humbly, then stepped inside the three-point line to get ready on defense.
Possession switched.
Jason Silver held the ball with both hands, assuming a triple-threat stance.
Shuzo Nijimura focused completely, guarding Jason with full concentration.
Jason Silver showed no hesitation. His left foot drove hard into the floor, and the ball slammed down from his right hand.
In an instant, he blew past Shuzo Nijimura.
By the time Shuzo reacted, Jason Silver was already soaring into the air, preparing to dunk.
‘So fast!’
Shuzo turned his head in shock, watching as Jason hammered the ball through the hoop.
Bang!
Thud!
Jason Silver landed heavily, scooped up the ball, and tossed it back to Shuzo Nijimura.
“Keep going. Don’t zone out.”
Shuzo Nijimura caught the ball, took a deep breath, and quickly adjusted his mindset.
This time, he didn’t rush into a shot. Instead, he kept dribbling, trying to move Jason Silver’s balance.
But as he continued, Shuzo was startled to discover that Jason Silver hadn’t lost his position at all.
Jason looked at the suddenly frozen Shuzo and calmly reminded him,
“Nijimura, if I wanted to, your ball would already be gone.”
Zack clapped his hands loudly from the sideline.
“Don’t space out during a game, Nijimura!”
Shuzo snapped back to his senses and attacked again.
This time, he tried everything—drives, sudden stops, pull-backs, every move he had.
Yet none of it worked. He couldn’t break through Jason Silver’s defense, and he couldn’t even force Jason to shift his center of gravity.
‘As expected… Silver’s defense is ridiculous.’
Shuzo forced a bitter smile as the remaining time ticked away.
With no other choice, he drove straight in, then suddenly executed a hard jab step.
Jason Silver’s balance shifted for just a moment. Shuzo seized the opening, lowered his body, and burst toward the paint.
“He got past him!”
Satsuki Momoi called out instinctively.
Miyamoto Tokima shook his head.
“No. With Shuzo Nijimura’s level, he can’t break through Jason.”
Sure enough, after being shaken for an instant, Jason Silver immediately recovered and cut back, stopping Shuzo right as he prepared to lay the ball up.
‘Damn it—he adjusted that fast?!’
Shuzo gritted his teeth and tried to force the shot.
Jason Silver leapt up and swatted the ball away.
Bang!
Thud!
As the ball flew off, Shuzo Nijimura crashed heavily to the floor.
Jason Silver reached out and pulled him back up.
“Let’s keep going.”
Shuzo clenched his teeth, nodded, and continued the match.
...
As the game went on, the score climbed to 17–0. Shuzo Nijimura still hadn’t managed to score a single point against Jason Silver.
Watching Shuzo get completely overwhelmed on the court, Allen couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for him.
“Man, Nijimura’s got it rough. Getting absolutely crushed by Jason.”
Nick, standing nearby, spoke calmly.
“It can’t be helped. Tokima asked Jason to defend seriously—seriously enough that Nijimura wouldn’t score even once.
At least it’s not the worst-case scenario. Jason hasn’t even activated his Animal Instinct.”
Zack replied,
“It’s all to push Nijimura back into the Zone.”
Nash Gold stood beside Miyamoto Tokima, his Belial Eye constantly observing the changes in Shuzo Nijimura’s body.
Miyamoto Tokima spoke quietly.
“Any changes?”
Nash Gold shook his head.
“No. His physical performance is steadily declining. There’s no sign of it rising.”
Miyamoto Tokima frowned deeply.
Logically speaking, after being dominated so thoroughly by Jason Silver, Shuzo Nijimura’s desire to score should have far surpassed what it was during the game against the Jackets.
But judging from the current situation, there were still no signs of him entering the Zone again.
Under these circumstances, there was only one possible explanation.
Shuzo Nijimura had developed another thought in his mind—he was consciously trying to enter the Zone.
Just as Miyamoto Tokima had anticipated.
Back when the score reached 7–0, Shuzo Nijimura had already started wanting to enter the Zone.
He still possessed the will to score, but at the same time, the thought of entering the Zone had taken root in his mind.
That was precisely why he showed no signs of entering it at all.
The more desperately one tries to enter the Zone, the harder it becomes—especially for someone like Shuzo Nijimura, who relied on sheer belief to push that door open.
...
“It’s over. Twenty-one to zero.”
After Jason Silver sank the final shot, Zack spoke up.
Shuzo Nijimura collapsed to his knees, head lowered, breathing heavily.
He weakly struck the floor. The taste of such a crushing defeat was unbearable.
‘In the end… not even a single point… and not even the Zone…’
“Get up.”
Jason Silver’s voice rang out.
Shuzo lifted his head and looked silently at the hand Jason extended toward him.
Jason kept his hand out and said,
“Losing to me isn’t embarrassing. After all, I’m pretty damn strong.”
A faint smile appeared on Shuzo Nijimura’s face. He accepted the reality.
He simply wasn’t strong enough to beat Jason Silver. There was no point dwelling on it.
Shuzo reached out, clasped Jason’s hand, and stood up.
“Man… I really have to hand it to you. You seriously didn’t hold back at all.”
Zack walked over and said irritably,
“You think everyone’s like me? That I’d let you score a few for free?”
Shuzo scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.
Miyamoto Tokima let out a soft sigh. It seemed that the plan to get Shuzo Nijimura into the Zone through a one-on-one had completely failed.
Now, even Tokima himself didn’t know how to help Nijimura enter the Zone.
But there was no helping it. This was something that could only happen naturally. The more you rushed it, the more impossible it became.
“Jason, Senior Nijimura, take a short break. The rest of you, continue training.”
Zack and the others immediately responded, “Yes!”
After calling out, Allen punched Shuzo lightly in the chest.
“Work harder, kid!”
With that, Allen turned and went back to training with Victor.
Shuzo touched the spot on his chest where he’d been hit, a faint smile forming as he made a firm decision in his heart.
‘I will… definitely enter the Zone!’
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.