Beep~
The piercing whistle tore through the air.
Fans felt time passed quickly; it seemed like it just started, but the second quarter was already over.
Both sides left the arena and returned to the locker rooms.
At this time, the score on the field was 65:49; Seiho led Tōō by 16 points.
Not much.
But the situation was quite favorable for Seiho.
In the duel between Yuuto and Aomine, Yuuto currently held the initiative.
When the advantage is player individual ability, if individual ability isn't as good as the opponent's, this is a fatal point for Tōō.
Katsunori Harasawa obviously understood the seriousness of the problem.
In the locker room, he held the tactical board for urgent deployment.
Wakamatsu and the others were listening seriously, but found one person missing around them.
Turning their heads, they saw Aomine sitting blankly in the corner, a towel covering his head, silent, seemingly asleep.
This made Wakamatsu angry.
"Bastard Aomine, at a time like this you..."
"Don't disturb him."
Imayoshi Shoichi didn't feel anything at first, until his eyes swept over Aomine's position, and his narrowed eyes opened wide again.
He realized what was going to happen next.
"Senior?"
"Listen to me. Something scary is about to appear."
Imayoshi pulled Wakamatsu to continue listening.
Momoi also noticed Aomine's change; the aggressive aura suddenly disappeared.
The aura of his whole body seemed to be restrained, his state calm to an unbelievable degree.
The current Aomine.
Had already stepped into the gate of the Zone.
Then.
His body sank abruptly, as if placed in a bottomless lake.
The world became silent; external information was automatically filtered by his brain.
At this moment, his brain was constantly replaying Yuuto's posture in the first half of the match.
"Zone..."
Momoi silently moved aside; she foresaw that the flames of war in the second half would spread further.
...
On the other side.
Seiho's bench.
Yuuto put on a jacket to keep his body heat from dissipating too fast.
He didn't use methods like eating junk food to ensure his calories because it wasn't needed.
Yamashita Shio also emphasized defense. Although other players didn't have much screen time in this match, he still required everyone to be ready at all times.
The 2-1-2 zone couldn't be played; Aomine Daiki's existence required Yuuto to handle it personally.
Then switch to a 3-2 zone, combined with dynamic man-to-man defense.
He also asked Tsugawa to keep an eye on Sakurai, because the defensive loopholes of the 3-2 zone were the two corner threes—openings that the zone would inevitably expose.
But fortunately, Tōō's three-point shooting wasn't as unreasonable as Midorima's.
Aomine could shoot too, but Yuuto would take care of him.
"Yuuto, do you have anything to add?"
"No."
Yamashita Shio's attainment on the defensive end was very high; Yuuto had nothing to supplement.
"I'm going out for a walk."
Yuuto walked out of the locker room after speaking and came outside the arena.
A year ago.
During the halftime break against Teiko, he also came outside the arena like today. At that time, he was nervous, his body stiff.
Now he wasn't.
His hands didn't tremble anymore, and there was no unease in his heart.
This was the most powerful evidence of his becoming stronger.
"Shouldn't you be listening to the coach's arrangements in the locker room at a time like this?"
"How did you know I was here?"
Sora came.
She walked to his side, hugged her knees, and sat down leaning against him.
"Because I've always been watching you, Yu," Sora said matter-of-factly, handing him a bottle of energy drink. "Are you tired?"
"Not at all."
Yuuto's mouth corners raised as he took it and drank a few mouthfuls.
Hearing this, Sora actively put her hand into Yuuto's palm. Feeling that this big hand was calm, not trembling like the first time, Sora also laughed.
"What are you giggling at?"
"Nothing, just..." Sora organized her language before saying, "Just feel that this Yu is better."
In junior high, he always frowned, got nervous, and tormented himself until he had no strength left after losing games.
It's good like this now.
"Was I that bad before? Actually making you worry about me."
"I know I'm willful, but don't talk like I only know how to throw tantrums and won't grow up."
Yuuto stared at her blankly, as if knowing her for the first time today.
Sora didn't speak again, but her eyes seemed able to speak, staring straight at him.
So among the three of them, the one most prone to making people worry wasn't Sora, but him.
"Is that so? I won't let you worry anymore."
Because I won't lose again.
Yuuto looked into the distance again, as if there really were beautiful poems there.
Finally, time was almost up. Yuuto stood up.
"Let's go, I should go back."
"Mm, I'll cheer for you. Blow up that piece of charcoal!"
Sora waved her small fist at the air, the black rabbit doll dangling around.
...
Beep~
The whistle for the start of the second half sounded again.
Players from both sides returned to the court.
Aomine's face was half hazy as he stepped onto the court step by step.
He couldn't hear the fans' cheers; his world now contained only the sound of his own footsteps and heartbeat.
"Zone, huh?"
"Continue, Yuuto."
Zzzzt!
Aomine raised his head. Cyan lightning flashed through his eyes, shining like sparks before disappearing.
But it didn't really disappear; it was just temporarily hidden.
"Continue."
These three words were spoken by Yuuto in the second quarter; now Aomine returned them intact.
"As you wish."
Fwoosh~
While speaking, a large amount of white steam erupted from his body, like wearing a white gauze garment, hazy and indistinct.
Only the flash of red fierce light in the steam made Imayoshi Shoichi's heart tremble.
But this fierceness was quickly corrected...
"Be prepared to welcome the second defeat in your life, Aomine." Yuuto's voice was cold, like his snow-white short hair.
"Demon Mode!" Taiga Kagami saw Yuuto's change.
Yuuto in this state was definitely the strongest he had ever seen.
King Shutoku and Midorima were suppressed so hard they couldn't lift their heads by this form.
"But what is that feeling (from Aomine)?"
"Zone!"
Kuroko, Riko Aida, and the others spat out four letters.
Still Tōō's possession.
After inbounding, Imayoshi Shoichi habitually looked for Aomine after dribbling past half-court.
But just as he raised his hand, he saw Yuuto rushing out from the white mist, pointing straight at the basketball.
"Not just Aomine, even we were corrected?" Imayoshi's heart trembled.
He was too naive.
Actually thinking that because Yuuto had been singling out Aomine, Yuuto's correction only targeted Aomine.
Little did he know, this Lion of Okushirazome silently corrected the entire Tōō team.
He was simply an anti-Tōō Noble Phantasm now!
"Didn't even need to face us personally, just watching from the side completed the correction... What an utter monster."
Smack!
The ball was stolen by Yuuto. The Left Eye of God might have low effectiveness against Aomine, whose style and instinct countered the prediction.
But predicting other players was the Emperor Eye's specialty!
"Stolen!"
"Tōō's passing error!"
"Can't call it a passing error. Imayoshi Shoichi is one of the best point guards in the country; he wouldn't make such a mistake. It's Seiho's Number 10, Yuuto—his state has advanced further."
The guest commentator from TV Tokyo also had goosebumps.
Never expected that at this stage, Yuuto's state could still improve further.
...
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