Chapter 74: Teppei Kiyoshi
The warm-up ended quickly, and Kōzō Shirogane began assigning players to the court.
“Point guard Akashi, shooting guard Aomine, small forward Miyamoto, power forward Nijimura, center Murasakibara—go.”
“Yes!”
Miyamoto Tokima and the others answered in unison, turning and striding onto the court.
Both teams lined up face to face. After a brief, friendly exchange, they prepared for the opening tip.
Teppei Kiyoshi looked at Atsushi Murasakibara, who stood at the same height as him, and couldn’t help but marvel at his physique.
‘He’s only in his first year… that kind of talent is terrifying.’
The referee tossed the ball high into the air.
Atsushi Murasakibara and Teppei Kiyoshi jumped almost at the same time, but perhaps Murasakibara had been momentarily distracted—his timing was just a fraction late.
The jump ball went to Kiyoshi.
Murasakibara’s eyes narrowed slightly. This was the first time he had ever lost a tip-off.
Daiki Aomine blurted out in surprise, “Whoa, whoa—Murasakibara actually lost the jump ball?”
Seijuro Akashi’s gaze sharpened, equally taken aback.
Miyamoto Tokima, however, wasn’t particularly surprised. Murasakibara losing the tip was mainly because he’d been distracted.
Of course, there were other factors as well.
After all, Kiyoshi had trained for a full year longer, and his body had also developed for an extra year.
But that would change starting next year. From his second year onward, Atsushi Murasakibara would completely erupt. By his third year, even Kiyoshi would be overwhelmed by him at times.
Only now could Kiyoshi temporarily contend with Murasakibara. The gap in natural talent alone meant that Kiyoshi would never reach Murasakibara’s level.
Murasakibara’s physical gifts were simply monstrous—an athlete born to be fed by the heavens.
Shōei’s point guard received the ball and immediately passed it to their shooting guard.
The Shōei shooting guard charged straight toward Teikō’s paint.
Daiki Aomine suddenly burst forward, matching his speed.
“Don’t underestimate me!”
The Shōei shooting guard’s eyes sharpened as he tossed the ball high into the air.
Aomine watched the ball sail over his head.
‘Damn!’
Shōei’s small forward leapt high, catching the pass in midair and setting up for an alley-oop dunk.
Laughing loudly, he powered his right arm down toward the rim.
“This is a no-fly zone!”
Miyamoto Tokima appeared out of nowhere, reaching up and slamming the dunk straight down.
The Shōei small forward struggled against Miyamoto in midair, but something felt wrong—he could no longer grip the ball. His strength was being completely crushed by Miyamoto Tokima.
His pupils shrank.
‘His strength… it’s this insane?!’
His arm went limp, and the ball was cleanly stopped by Miyamoto.
Seijuro Akashi picked up the swatted ball and flicked it forward.
Shuzo Nijimura caught the pass.
“Great pass, Akashi!”
Laughing, Nijimura slammed the ball through the hoop.
Score: 2–0.
“Teikō! Teikō! Teikō!”
“Nijimura’s still as steady as ever—no wonder he’s the No. 1 power forward in middle school!”
“Yeah, but our Miyamoto god’s block was amazing too, alright!”
The crowd erupted with cheers.
On the court, Teppei Kiyoshi stared seriously at Miyamoto Tokima.
‘So this is Miyamoto Tokima, the one they call the “Magic Cube”… that strength is unreal.’
Possession switched to Shōei.
Shōei’s point guard brought the ball past half-court and scanned the floor.
Kiyoshi fought for position against Atsushi Murasakibara and raised his right hand, calling for the ball.
Seeing this, the point guard lobbed it in. Kiyoshi caught it securely.
Holding the ball with both hands, he turned his back to Murasakibara.
He tried backing him down twice—but couldn’t move him at all.
‘I can’t budge him? How is that possible?!’
With no other choice, Kiyoshi faked a spin to the right. Murasakibara immediately followed, staying perfectly in front.
Kiyoshi then put the ball on the floor, spun again to put his back to Murasakibara, gathered the ball, and gave a sharp shoulder fake to the right.
Murasakibara thought Kiyoshi was attacking that side and slid a step to the right.
But it was only a fake—one executed with extreme realism.
After shaking him, Kiyoshi spun left, lifted his right hand from the side, and sent the ball up with a hook shot.
Realizing he’d been fooled, Murasakibara rushed to recover and jumped to contest.
But the arc was too high.
Swish!
Kiyoshi’s hook shot dropped in, tying the score at 2–2.
After scoring, Kiyoshi turned and ran back on defense.
“Tch,” Murasakibara clicked his tongue as he inbounded the ball.
Seijuro Akashi brought it past half-court and passed to Murasakibara.
With his back to Kiyoshi, Murasakibara began to exert force.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Kiyoshi resisted with everything he had, making the post-up extremely uncomfortable.
Murasakibara forced a spin, trying to lay the ball in.
‘His strength is impressive, but his technique is way too rough…’
Kiyoshi hesitated for a split second, then jumped and swatted the ball away.
Murasakibara’s expression darkened as anger surged within him.
Miyamoto Tokima grabbed the deflected ball, jabbed forward once, then suddenly pulled back beyond the three-point line and released the shot at blinding speed.
Shōei’s small forward was completely shaken by the jab. By the time he reacted, the ball was already in the air.
His pupils trembled as he watched it drop through the net.
‘What kind of release speed is that?!’
He was stunned. Even if he had been standing right in front of Miyamoto Tokima, he probably still couldn’t have blocked it.
Possession changed.
Shōei ran a set play, freeing up their shooting guard for a wide-open look.
The pass hit its mark perfectly, and the shooting guard calmly knocked down the shot.
Possession changed again.
Seijuro Akashi once more fed the ball to Atsushi Murasakibara.
This time, Murasakibara stopped holding back. With heavy, crushing post-ups, he shoved Kiyoshi aside and slammed the ball into the hoop.
Kiyoshi rubbed his chest, his expression grim.
‘His post skills are terrible… but that strength is completely ridiculous.’
Possession changed.
Kiyoshi caught the ball at the free-throw line. Knowing he couldn’t win a power battle inside, he didn’t force position in the paint.
Instead, he drew Murasakibara out to the perimeter for a one-on-one.
Seeing that Murasakibara was a step and a half away, Kiyoshi dribbled, pulled back, and calmly sank the jumper.
Murasakibara’s brief lapse allowed Kiyoshi to score again.
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