Chapter 123: Fangs of the snake
After the introductions, both teams began arranging their starting lineups.
As captain, Miyamoto Tokima set the players who would take the court.
Point guard Nash Gold, shooting guard Nick, small forward Miyamoto Tokima, power forward Zack, and center Jason Silver.
Miyamoto Tokima knew that Shuzo Nijimura’s father had come to watch the game.
Even so, he didn’t put Shuzo Nijimura in the starting lineup.
That was because Miyamoto Tokima wanted Shuzo to observe the opponents’ style of play from the bench first. Only by doing so would he know how to respond once he entered the game.
The goal was simple: to let Shuzo perform well in front of his father, so his father wouldn’t worry as much.
The referee stepped between Jason Silver and Kit Barry, holding the basketball before tossing it high into the air.
Jason Silver and Kit Barry jumped at the same time. Without any surprise, Jason Silver tipped the ball cleanly back to his own half.
After landing, Kit Barry couldn’t help but marvel.
‘That jump is insanely high!’
The commentator immediately launched into professional commentary.
“Alright, the game is officially underway! The Black Emperor Dragon Team secures the opening possession. The ball goes to Nash—let’s see how Nash runs the offense!”
On the court.
Nash Gold caught the ball and accelerated without hesitation, clearly looking to push a fast break.
Titus Monroe didn’t dare relax for even a moment. The instant the game began, he activated [Hawk Eyes].
After Jason Silver won the tip, Titus Monroe, with [Hawk Eyes] active, immediately caught Nash Gold’s movement and shouted at the top of his lungs:
“DEFENSE!!!”
The Venomous Snakes players didn’t dare be careless. On the court, Titus Monroe was effectively their eyes.
Seeing the defense already set, Nash Gold gave up on the fast break.
The corners of his mouth curled upward slightly as interest flickered in his eyes.
‘So this is [Hawk Eyes]? Interesting. Let me see how far you can really go.’
With a faintly sinister grin, Nash Gold dribbled straight toward Titus Monroe.
Titus Monroe’s expression was grave, his focus fully sharpened as he stayed in front of Nash Gold.
Suddenly, Nash Gold’s dribble sped up dramatically, so fast that most people could barely follow it with their eyes.
After roughly two and a half seconds, Nash Gold abruptly spread his hands wide. In that instant, the basketball seemed to vanish.
But Titus Monroe appeared to know exactly where it had gone and shouted:
“Hausberg!”
Hausberg immediately snapped to attention.
Boom!
The basketball appeared in Miyamoto Tokima’s hands in the next instant, exactly as Titus Monroe had predicted.
Nash Gold looked slightly surprised, his interest in Titus Monroe’s eyes growing even stronger.
‘Interesting… truly interesting. You saw that, didn’t you?’
The smile on Nash Gold’s face became increasingly unrestrained as he stared intensely at Titus Monroe.
It wasn’t strange at all. This was the first time Nash Gold had ever encountered someone with special eyes—even if those eyes weren’t particularly powerful.
Miyamoto Tokima caught the ball and looked calmly at Hausberg, his expression unreadable.
“Ready?”
Hausberg’s gaze sharpened, his defensive stance tightening immediately.
At the same time, a heavy pressure washed over him. Cold sweat began to pour down his back, soaking into his jersey.
‘Just his presence alone is this oppressive…?’
Sweat beaded on Hausberg’s forehead as the pressure radiating from Miyamoto Tokima made it hard to breathe.
Then, in the blink of an eye, Miyamoto Tokima disappeared from right in front of him.
‘Where did he—?! This is bad!’
Hausberg spun around in shock, only to see Miyamoto Tokima already blowing past him toward the paint.
‘So fast!’
Before anyone else on the court could react, Miyamoto Tokima casually flicked the ball up toward the rim.
Swish.
The ball dropped cleanly through the net.
“Oh! Miyamoto Tokima scores the opening basket! The Black Emperor Dragon Team strikes first!”
The commentator reacted instantly, keeping up with the pace of the play.
After a brief moment of stunned silence, the crowd erupted into cheers. Applause and shouts filled the arena without restraint.
Kit Barry stood frozen in place, stunned.
He hadn’t even reacted yet—and it was already in.
Hausberg swallowed hard and said in disbelief,
“So… so fast.”
Dicky Anthony took a deep breath and said,
“Be more careful next time. Let’s keep going.”
The game continued, with possession switching to the Venomous Snakes.
Titus Monroe brought the ball up the court at a steady pace, [Hawk Eyes] constantly scanning the entire floor.
Nash Gold watched with a crooked smile.
‘Let’s see just how far you can take this.’
Nash Gold suddenly stepped forward to apply tight pressure, relentlessly disrupting Titus Monroe’s dribbling rhythm.
Titus Monroe immediately sensed the pressure and adjusted his dribble to avoid Nash Gold’s steal.
However, Nash Gold didn’t back off. He kept reaching in, trying to force a turnover.
Titus Monroe’s rhythm was gradually thrown off by the constant interference.
At a critical moment, Dicky Anthony shook free from Zack’s defense and sprinted out toward the perimeter.
Titus Monroe spotted him instantly and, under pressure, forced the pass to Dicky Anthony.
After that defensive exchange, Nash Gold finally understood the true function of Titus Monroe’s [Hawk Eyes].
They were purely for observing the overall situation on the court.
Beyond that, there was nothing particularly special about them.
Once he realized this, Nash Gold immediately lost interest.
‘Tch. Boring.’
Dicky Anthony caught the pass at the three-point arc, facing Zack head-on.
He feinted to the right, then suddenly drove to the left.
Zack’s center of gravity shifted slightly from the fake, though he quickly adjusted and stayed with Dicky Anthony.
Dicky Anthony showed no sign of panic. After creating just a bit of separation, he immediately rose straight up for a pull-up jumper.
Zack was still moving when he suddenly saw Dicky Anthony jump, his heart jolting.
‘That height… damn it!!!’
Zack’s weight was still shifting backward. By the time he adjusted and jumped, Dicky Anthony had already released the ball.
“Here it comes! Dicky’s [Venomous Fang]!”
A spectator at the sidelines couldn’t help but shout.
Swish!
The basketball dropped cleanly through the hoop.
Only then did Zack finally understand.
Dicky Anthony’s [Venomous Fang] was essentially a pull-up jump shot—the only difference was its terrifying elevation.
Dicky Anthony stood close to two meters three tall, with a wingspan approaching two meters fifteen.
With that height and reach, he could have easily played center. Instead, he chose to play power forward.
A center’s physical build, combined with smooth pull-up jumpers and accurate shooting both inside and outside the paint, made Dicky Anthony’s shot incredibly difficult to defend.
That was exactly why it was called [Venomous Fang].
Like the fangs of a poisonous snake, his shot carried lethal venom, driving his opponents into despair.
Author's Note
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.