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The arena was silent, eerily quiet.
A strange expression crossed everyone's face; they were all incredulous at the shot.
The ball had rolled on the rim for so long.
From the moment Ryu released the ball to the moment it scored, a full ten seconds had passed.
This made everyone wonder if it was just a fluke.
Midorima looked at the basketball, then at Ryu.
He felt something was off about the shot, as if luck had played a part.
Still, he didn't doubt Ryu's three-point shooting percentage.
Although Ryu didn't shoot threes often, that didn't mean his three-point shooting percentage was low.
The game transitioned.
Midorima was like a deadly viper, his eyes gleaming with a chilling light, every move he made seeming ready to devour his prey.
Thump…
The sound of the basketball hitting the ground rang out.
Before the Toho Kotei Gakuen team had even returned to their own half of the court, a shadow flashed overhead.
Before they could even look up in confusion, they heard the sound of a basketball swishing through the net.
Swish…
The basketball, without warning, fell from the sky and passed through the Toho Kotei Gakuen's basket.
11 to 12.
Kamimono and the others' hearts skipped a beat, and they all turned to look.
Then they saw Midorima's posture, having just finished a shot.
"That guy."
Ryu was caught off guard by Midorima's quick shot from the baseline.
The game changed hands. Toho Kotei Gakuen inbounded the ball, and Ryu faced Midorima again.
Facing the cold, venomous snake before him, Ryu was like a bloodthirsty beast.
Both sides glared at each other, waiting for an opportunity to strike and searching for the other's weakness, neither willing to give an inch.
The surrounding temperature had dropped to freezing.
Without warning, Ryu activated [Lightning] immediately.
Zzzzt…
A flash of electricity streaked past Midorima's eyes. Ryu appeared three meters away from Midorima as if by teleportation.
Midorima's heart tightened. Without thinking, he leaped off the ground and chased after Ryu.
After shaking off Midorima, Ryu once again appeared at the opponent's three-point line. Before Midorima could catch up, Ryu raised the basketball and shot it again.
Midorima stopped and looked at the basketball in the air.
Clang…
The basketball struck the center of the backboard again, then bounced back onto the rim and began to roll.
Seeing this familiar scene, everyone was stunned. It was the same familiar formula, the same familiar taste.
One lap, two laps, three laps… eight laps, nine laps.
Everyone waited silently.
After nine laps, the basketball finally lost momentum and fell into the hoop.
14 to 12.
Seeing this, the audience erupted in cheers. A deafening roar swept towards Ryu.
"He actually made another three-pointer like that!"
"So that shot wasn't a fluke."
"How did he do that? That's incredible."
The students from other schools were also dumbfounded, their minds racing with a thousand thoughts.
Everyone was in a state of confusion, unable to comprehend the mystery.
"Dai-chan… do you know how Ryu did that?"
Hearing Momoi's question, Aomine frowned and pondered.
"I have some guesses, but I can't be sure."
"How so…?" Momoi pressed.
Aomine replied, "The reason the basketball spins on the rim is probably related to its own rotational force! Otherwise, this wouldn't happen. But…"
"However, this move can't be achieved simply by applying rotational force to the basketball; it requires precise and subtle control," Aida Riko explained to everyone.
The Seirin students had complex expressions, their hearts filled with apprehension. Especially Kagami Taiga. Ryu repeatedly shattered his understanding, leaving him almost numb to it all. But seeing that shot just now, he was still utterly shocked.
"Hey, Kuroko! Was he this strong back in middle school?"
Kuroko shook his head. "This is the first time I've seen Ryu use this move either. I think it's a technique he developed after leaving Teiko! But even back in middle school, Ryu gave off an invincible vibe, and that hasn't changed."
On the court, the Shutoku team began to lose their composure.
Three-pointers were their strength. If they could maintain a steady rhythm and let Midorima shoot threes, they had a high chance of widening the score gap.
But now, Ryu was also hitting threes—and such unbelievable threes at that—making the outcome unpredictable.
Shutoku's coach, Nakatani Hitoshi, frowned.
His previous tactics were all designed to prevent the opponent from frequently shooting threes.
Now that Ryu had demonstrated his three-point shooting ability, this was bad!
Midorima looked at Ryu.
His initial shock gradually faded, replaced by calm.
Behind him, a massive, serpentine phantom was clearly visible.
Green flames coiled around its body, its sinister eyes flashed with cold light, and its forked tongue swayed up and down, as if it wanted to devour everyone from Toho Kotei Gakuen.
Ryu was not to be outdone.
Crimson flames swirled around him, and the ethereal figure behind him flickered, blurring the lines between reality and illusion, its true form indistinct.
The two faced each other from afar, a fierce battle seemingly about to begin.
Their imposing presence had already affected those around them.
Whether it was the players from Toho Kotei Gakuen or Shutoku Academy, everyone instinctively made room for them, retreating to the other side of the court.
From above, it was clearly visible: eight people were gathered on one side of the court, while only two stood alone on the other.
No, now they were more like two ferocious beasts. The scene looked extremely eerie.
Thud…
The basketball returned to Midorima's hands.
Without a word, accompanied by the swirling serpentine phantom behind him, he once again quickly launched the ball.
Swish…
The crisp, melodious sound of the ball piercing the net rang out again.
Thud…
The basketball came into Ryu's hands.
The enormous red phantom behind him seemed to transform into a ferocious beast with sharp teeth and claws, its roar shaking the heavens and the earth.
As Ryu moved, the phantom moved with him.
A gigantic, clawing maw lunged at the snake's body. The venomous snake, coiled in green flames, swiftly swayed, dodging the attack. The snake's body spread out, encircling the bloodthirsty beast, then contracted tightly.
Drips of green venom fell from its two sharp fangs. A cold glint flashed in its vertical pupils, and the venomous fangs snapped at the beast.
Suddenly, the beast's body exploded, transforming into red gas that broke free from the snake's coils. The red gas then condensed into a sharp arrow.
The sharp point grazed the giant snake's face and shot towards Shutoku's basketball hoop.
Clang…
Glug glug glug…
The basketball rolled nine times on the rim before finally falling through.
In the time that followed, Ryu and Midorima attacked their respective baskets time and again.
Three-pointers rained down from both sides.
The score fluctuated wildly throughout the game.
The clash between red and green was like two beasts tearing at each other.
It thrilled the spectators and terrified the players from other schools.
Until the referee blew the final whistle for the first quarter, the two sides finally quieted down, ceasing their fierce battle.
44 to 43. Toho Kotei Gakuen led Shutoku by one point.
Seeing this result, the most surprised were the Seirin players, because they had played against Shutoku before. But the Midorima of that time was completely different from the Midorima of today. If the Midorima of that time had possessed this kind of strength, Seirin would have had no chance of winning!
Kagami Taiga clenched his fists. "Midorima…"
"Midorima is amazing today! He actually managed to fight Ryu to such a standstill." Momoi was still quite surprised by the result of the match.
Aomine, watching Midorima in the Shutoku rest area, remarked, "Judging from how he's activated his Wildness, it must have been active for quite a while, yet he still lost to Seirin back then."
His words caught Momoi's attention. "Right! If Midorima is this strong, how could he have lost to Seirin?" For a moment, neither of them could figure it out.
Off the court, in Toho Kotei Gakuen's rest area.
Ryu took a sip of water, his gaze drifting into the distance.
He hadn't gained an advantage in the clash of Wildness.
Wildness greatly increased Midorima's shooting speed; with normal defense, it would be impossible to stop him.
Unless he gave up shooting three-pointers and focused on marking his opponent the entire time, but that was impossible.
Full-court man-to-man defense is incredibly energy-consuming. It's much more efficient to attack than defend!
"The opponent's shots can go across the entire court, while my shots only reach the opponent's three-point line. This will definitely be disadvantageous in the long run. Right now, my advantage is that the opponent can't guard me. Of course, I can't guard the opponent either. The opponent is completely unreasonable, shooting directly from the baseline while other players set screens for him."
However, there were ways to stop them.
[Thunder] could quickly reach the opponent and block their shot.
However, this put a lot of strain on his leg muscles.
Using it too often would become increasingly disadvantageous, especially in the later stages of the game.
Therefore, this move should only be used in crucial moments.
Even scoring 2 points while coordinating with teammates was meaningless. The opponent was shooting three-pointers; the score gap would widen over time. Once the score widened, it would be difficult to catch up.
That left only the [Selfless Realm].
[Selfless Realm] First Level: The Limit of Thousand Refinements, Duration: 10 minutes.
[Selfless Realm] Second Level: The Limit of Initial Change, Duration: 10 minutes.
[Selfless Realm] Third Level: The Limit of Seamlessness, Duration: 5 minutes.
Given the current situation, he only needed to use the first level.
There were still three quarters left, which meant 30 minutes.
"We need to at least drag this out until after two quarters."
"What are you thinking about?" The sudden voice pulled Ryu back from his thoughts. Looking up, he smiled slightly. " Kamimono-senpai!"
Kamimono sat down beside him and said, "Well, if you need our help, just say so. Don't be shy." Kamimono was worried that Ryu was under too much pressure and wanted to share some of the burden.
Ryu shook his head. "Kamimono-senpai, you know that until we have a reliable solution, we can only maintain the status quo."
Kamimono naturally understood this.
Right now, only Ryu could compete with Midorima on the team.
If an outsider entered their matchup, mistakes were likely to occur, and one mistake would have irreversible consequences.
"Kamimono-senpai, don't worry! I have a plan!"
Kamimono nodded. "Yeah, just keep it to yourself."
Over at Shutoku's rest area, Midorima gulped down water.
Takao spoke up beside him, "That's terrifying! Honestly, I didn't expect we could hold the score together."
Kimura Shinsuke nodded. "Yeah, I didn't expect it either."
Otsubo Taisuke and Miyaji Kiyoshi also nodded. Not just them; probably everyone in Shutoku hadn't expected it!
Takao looked at Midorima, his gaze complex. "Speaking of which, Shin-chan! How did you suddenly become so fierce?"
Everyone looked at Midorima, wanting to know the reason.
They had never seen Midorima use his Wildness before, and the level of his Wildness seemed quite high.
Midorima adjusted his glasses and then said, "Everyone has hidden trump cards; there's nothing to be curious about. But I can only maintain this level for now; that guy won't let us have it easy."
Upon hearing this, the Shutoku players froze, all looking towards the direction of Toho Kotei Gakuen, their eyes filled with undisguised solemnity.
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