Taiga Kagami let out a fierce roar and leaped high into the air from the right side.
In midair, he firmly caught the basketball whose trajectory Tetsuya Kuroko had changed.
Then Taiga Kagami's eyes sharpened, locking hard onto the basket.
His eyes burned like flames.
Boom!!!
In the next instant, Taiga Kagami slammed the basketball into the hoop with overwhelming force.
After landing, Taiga Kagami took a deep breath, then slowly turned and headed back on defense.
At that moment, Taiga Kagami seemed to have entered some kind of state.
He was completely immersed in basketball.
As he brushed past Ryota Kise, Ryota Kise felt something familiar.
Ryota Kise unconsciously turned slightly, looked back at Taiga Kagami's retreating figure, and murmured, "Before the [Gate]?"
Ryota Kise sensed it carefully and realized Taiga Kagami's current state was very similar to the way he had felt when he stood before the [Gate].
But there was also a slight difference.
It seemed a little like another state too.
Ryota Kise frowned and murmured thoughtfully, "Is it the [Gate]... or Animal Instinct?"
Off the court, Shuzo Nijimura's brows also furrowed. He asked, "The aura of Animal Instinct, but..."
Shogo Haizaki nodded solemnly and replied, "There's also the aura of the Zone."
Makoto Hanamiya seemed to remember something, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his face. It was a smile tinged with disbelief.
"Hey, hey, hey. Don't tell me this guy activates Animal Instinct along with the Zone when he enters it?"
At that moment, the air...
fell silent.
Shuzo Nijimura and Shogo Haizaki looked at Makoto Hanamiya in disbelief, and Makoto Hanamiya met their eyes.
Because the aura Taiga Kagami was giving off right now...
made that actually possible!
Shuzo Nijimura leaned back helplessly in his chair and sighed.
"They're all monsters."
...
On the court, the game was still going on, and Seirin's offense was becoming smoother and smoother.
Tetsuya Kuroko truly seemed to have become a shadow.
He appeared again and again in places none of the Kaijō players expected.
Then, from all kinds of strange angles, he passed the basketball into the hands of the other Seirin players.
At first, Kaijō had thought that the shadow would disappear.
But the light would not.
So all they had to do was lock down Taiga Kagami.
But very soon, Tetsuya Kuroko showed them that this method would not work.
Because right now, Seirin did not have only Taiga Kagami as its light.
Tatsuya Himuro and Teppei Kiyoshi could also be considered Seirin's other lights.
And so, with Tetsuya Kuroko's support, Seirin began scoring from multiple points.
Tatsuya Himuro and Teppei Kiyoshi both gained excellent offensive space and kept adding to the score.
By the time the second quarter ended, Kaijō High School, a team with a member of the [Generation of Miracles], was actually trailing Seirin High School.
The score was 54 to 49.
With two quarters finished, both sides entered halftime.
The players from Kaijō High School and Seirin High School headed toward their respective locker rooms.
Meanwhile, the spectators began using the break to discuss the match.
"My god, Kaijō High School is actually at a disadvantage."
"I didn't expect this either. Kaijō High School is already a powerhouse, and this year they even have a member of the [Generation of Miracles]."
"But even so, Kaijō High School is being suppressed by a new school that's only been around for a year."
"That's terrifying!"
...
Seirin locker room.
After everyone returned to the locker room, they each took out lemon slices they had prepared themselves or bought elsewhere and started eating them to replenish their energy.
Riko Aida watched them all pull out lemon slices and was instantly speechless.
"You guys! And here I went out of my way to prepare lemon slices for you!"
The moment they heard that, everyone's expressions changed drastically. Junpei Hyuga even shouted, "No! We have our own! Don't trouble yourself!"
Taiga Kagami reacted the same way, waving her off repeatedly.
"I have enough, I have enough."
Everyone from Seirin High School looked completely resistant.
There was no helping it.
It was dark cuisine!
Who put in whole lemon chunks without even peeling them first?!
Riko Aida looked around and saw that everyone was resisting. Her expression turned a little dejected.
Her hands also shifted slightly behind her back.
"Then... fine."
Junpei Hyuga keenly noticed the movement. He looked at Riko Aida's hands and saw Band-Aids wrapped around them.
Junpei Hyuga hesitated before asking, "Riko, you..."
Riko Aida smiled and said as if it did not matter, "It's fine. I know I'm not good at cooking. It's normal that you guys don't like it."
But to Junpei Hyuga, that smile looked painfully bitter.
In the end, Junpei Hyuga made a decision. He gritted his teeth, reached out his hand, and said with the resolve of a man marching to his death, "Riko! I finished mine. Give me the ones you prepared!"
Riko Aida's face lit up with surprise and joy.
"Really?"
Junpei Hyuga nodded.
The others had also noticed Riko Aida's mood, and they had noticed the injuries on her hands too.
Clearly, she had hurt herself while preparing food for them.
So everyone reached out their hands.
"Coach, I finished mine too."
"Me too!"
Seeing this, Riko Aida smiled, and tears began streaming down uncontrollably.
"Everyone..."
Junpei Hyuga stepped forward and said, "Why are you crying? The game is about to start. Hurry up, Riko."
Riko Aida wiped her tears and nodded again and again.
"Okay."
But just as Riko Aida was about to take them out, Taiga Kagami shouted, "Wait, what's wrong with you guys?! Didn't we agree..."
Before Taiga Kagami could finish speaking, everyone turned to look at him with eyes that seemed ready to eat him alive.
Taiga Kagami immediately felt his scalp go numb, and his voice grew quieter.
"Did I... say something wrong?"
Tetsuya Kuroko suddenly appeared beside Taiga Kagami, his face completely expressionless.
"Kagami-kun really is an idiot."
Taiga Kagami awkwardly scratched his head and said nothing more.
He was afraid that if he said a few more words, the whole team would beat him up.
...
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