Chapter 90: Matchups
After stealing the ball, Tetsuya Kuroko didn’t rush into an attack. Instead, wary of Rakuzan’s point guard going for a steal, he passed the ball to Shuzo Nijimura and let him take over as the primary ball-handler.
Nijimura caught the pass and gave a helpless smile, muttering under his breath, “Center one moment, point guard the next… Guess I really am the kind of all-rounder who can play from the one to the five.”
He slowly dribbled the ball across half court, deliberately burning down the remaining seconds on the shot clock, his eyes constantly sweeping the floor.
Rakuzan, however, had no intention of giving him that kind of leeway. Their point guard and power forward surged forward together, forming an aggressive double-team on Nijimura.
Nijimura quickened his dribble, barely keeping the ball safe as the two Rakuzan players relentlessly harassed him, clearly unwilling to let this opportunity slip away.
He continued dribbling at high speed, his gaze darting around as he searched for an opening.
But this time, the situation was grim. Aside from Tetsuya Kuroko, every single Teikō player was completely smothered by tight defense.
With no alternatives left, Nijimura could only pass the ball to Kuroko.
This time, Kuroko didn’t immediately redirect the ball. He caught it cleanly and paused, quietly observing the court.
The moment he saw Kuroko holding the ball, Reo Mibuchi shouted sharply, “Ignore him! He can’t shoot!”
The Rakuzan players who had been hesitating snapped back to attention at his words, immediately locking down their own assignments.
Seconds ticked by. While Kuroko held the ball, Teikō’s other four players kept cutting and repositioning, desperately trying to shake free.
Rakuzan refused to give them even the slightest chance. Their point guard and power forward stayed glued to Shuzo Nijimura, while the remaining players stared down their own marks without blinking.
Suddenly, a savage, beast-like aura swept across the entire court.
The Rakuzan players all froze for a brief instant, instinctively sensing danger.
Reo Mibuchi’s expression changed abruptly, as if something had just clicked in his mind.
‘This is bad!’
Out on the perimeter, Kuroko seemed to notice something as well. He suddenly hurled the basketball high into the air.
Reo Mibuchi stared in disbelief as the ball arced through the sky—then dropped straight into the hands of Daiki Aomine, whose body was wreathed in a faint blue glow. Aomine slammed it home with a powerful dunk.
As the ball went through the net, the first quarter came to an end. The score stood at 43–39, with Teikō leading by four.
After the dunk, Aomine took a deep breath. The pale blue light around him faded, and he withdrew from his animal instinct.
On the sidelines, Miyamoto Tokima felt a quiet surge of emotion.
‘I never thought Daiki would already be able to enter his animal instinct at will.’
And it was true. Daiki Aomine could now activate his animal instinct on his own—but only for a short time. That state consumed an enormous amount of stamina, and with his current physical condition, he simply couldn’t maintain it for long.
With the end of the first quarter, Aomine and the others headed back to the bench.
The moment Shintaro Midorima sat down, he began gulping for air. His fierce shooting duel with Reo Mibuchi had completely drained him.
Seeing this, Kōzō Shirogane turned to Miyamoto Tokima and said, “Second quarter—Miyamoto, you’re in for Midorima.”
Midorima nodded while panting heavily. He knew his stamina wouldn’t last another quarter.
Aside from Midorima, the rest of the lineup hadn’t expended too much energy, so no major substitutions were needed for the second quarter.
On Rakuzan’s side, Reo Mibuchi was in slightly better shape than Midorima—but only slightly. Going all-out against him in the first quarter had still taken a huge toll on the second-year.
Reo drank water in large gulps, carefully regulating his breathing to recover as quickly as possible.
A second-year substitute glanced toward Teikō’s bench, noticed Midorima’s condition, and turned back excitedly.
“Reo-senpai, that number 11 is completely done for. Next quarter, no one’s going to be able to stop you.”
Reo leaned back, continuing to steady his breathing. His face remained calm, but a faint sense of unease lingered deep inside.
‘This bad feeling… is it because of that “cube” Kiyoshi mentioned?’
He sat upright and looked toward Teikō’s side of the court. After his eyes landed briefly on Miyamoto Tokima, he spoke quietly.
“It’s not that simple. That guy… hasn’t really shown himself yet.”
The substitute looked at Miyamoto with confusion. “Isn’t he just a bench player?”
Reo didn’t answer, focusing instead on his breathing as he continued to recover.
“Beep!”
The referee’s whistle signaled the start of the second quarter.
Reo Mibuchi and the other four Rakuzan starters stood up together and headed back onto the court.
As he stepped onto the floor, Reo glanced toward Teikō once more.
Seeing that Shintaro Midorima hadn’t returned, and that Miyamoto Tokima had taken his place, the unease in his chest only grew stronger.
Rakuzan took possession to start the quarter.
Their point guard brought the ball past half court, his eyes constantly scanning the floor. Only after confirming Kuroko’s position did he finally relax.
He passed the ball to Reo Mibuchi, then immediately sprinted toward Daiki Aomine’s side to set something up.
Reo caught the ball and locked eyes with Miyamoto Tokima.
That faint smile on Miyamoto’s face made Reo’s sense of danger spike, as though something terrible was about to happen.
In the stands, the crowd erupted with excitement.
“He’s in! Miyamoto Tokima is finally on the court!”
“Tokima’s guarding Reo—this is bad news for him.”
“Yeah! I’ve never seen anyone break through Miyamoto’s defense!”
Watching the two face off, Teppei Kiyoshi suddenly recalled the previous game.
He, a center, had been completely shut down by a small forward—pinned in the paint and utterly overwhelmed.
The memory filled him with despair. Against Miyamoto Tokima’s defense, he hadn’t seen even a sliver of hope.
‘Reo… hang in there…’
Reo Mibuchi stared intently at Miyamoto, resisting the urge to force an attack. After all, that wasn’t their plan right now.
He waited—waiting for Rakuzan’s small forward to break free.
After passing the ball to Reo, Rakuzan’s point guard immediately moved to Aomine’s side to set a screen.
Using the pick, Rakuzan’s small forward quickly slipped free. Kuroko rushed over at once to help on defense.
The moment the small forward found daylight, Reo snapped the pass over.
The Rakuzan small forward caught it and drove straight into the paint without the slightest hesitation…
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