"No… they can't score against Miyamoto and the others. I'll have to do it myself!"
Daiki Aomine ultimately decided to take full control of the offense.
The game resumed.
Kirisaki Daiichi had the first possession.
This time, Miyamoto played small forward, while Shuzo Nijimura took the power forward position.
Makoto Hanamiya remained the point guard.
After receiving the inbound, Hanamiya dribbled the ball across half court and immediately began scanning his teammates' positions.
This was a point guard's fundamental skill.
Court vision.
When he spotted Shogo Haizaki slipping into open space, Hanamiya casually flicked his wrist, sending the ball straight into Haizaki's hands.
The moment the pass left his hands, Shoichi Imayoshi spoke up, sounding like he was getting revenge for the previous quarter.
"What's this, Hanamiya? You actually passed? Don't tell me you're just a decorative piece on this team too."
Hanamiya gave him a look as if he were staring at an idiot and replied matter-of-factly,
"I am a decorative piece."
Now it was Imayoshi's turn to be stunned.
Makoto Hanamiya, the guy with such a huge ego, actually admitted it?!
Hanamiya continued looking at him with that same "concern for an idiot" expression and sneered,
"You really think you'd get the ball among this group?"
Imayoshi froze.
Damn. That actually made sense.
Among this group of monsters, the ones who got the ball were geniuses, and the ones who truly controlled possession were the strongest players.
In a group like this, if you weren't a decorative piece, what else could you be?
Noticing the change in Imayoshi's expression, Hanamiya continued mocking him.
"There's nothing shameful about being a decorative piece. But you? Your team only has one genius, and you hog all the ball possession."
"How exactly did you become captain…?"
"If the captain's this pathetic, I can't imagine what you were like as a teammate."
Imayoshi's face darkened even further.
Hanamiya might not be using dirty tricks anymore, but his trash talk was absolutely disgusting.
And in Imayoshi's opinion, the trash talk was even worse than the dirty tricks.
Dirty tricks at least meant Hanamiya had to be careful—one mistake and he'd get ejected.
But trash talk?
Trash talk meant he could only stand there getting disgusted while not daring to retaliate. The moment he did something, he'd be the one getting sent off.
So what could he do?
Endure.
Meanwhile.
Shogo Haizaki held the ball, facing Yoshinori Susa's defense without the slightest concern. Instead, a different idea surfaced in his mind.
A mysterious smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"[Formless]… and streetball?"
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Haizaki began dribbling, the ball striking the floor with crisp echoes.
Suddenly, Susa felt something strangely familiar about Haizaki's movements.
It looked like…
Streetball.
Wait.
Streetball?!
Susa stared blankly as Haizaki blew past him using streetball-style moves and drove straight toward the paint.
After beating Susa, Haizaki suddenly pulled up for a jump shot.
Kosuke Wakamatsu immediately rotated over to help, cutting off Haizaki's scoring lane.
Haizaki's lips curled upward.
In his mind, the movements of that person appeared.
Then—
In midair, Haizaki suddenly changed his posture, supporting the ball sideways with his right hand before violently flicking it out.
The basketball shot toward the hoop and slammed off the rim before dropping in.
Wakamatsu's mouth fell open as he stared in disbelief.
"Fo… Formless!"
Daiki Aomine's eyes sharpened as well, though no one knew what he was thinking.
Off the court.
Kaijō High.
Ryota Kise unconsciously stood up, completely stunned.
"H-He actually… he actually used [Formless]!"
For a moment, Kise felt like his entire worldview was collapsing.
Wasn't Haizaki supposed to have less talent than him?
Then how could Haizaki now use the same [Formless] that Kise could only achieve through [Copy]?
And the Animal Instinct that Kise himself didn't possess—
Haizaki had that too!
On Shūtoku's side.
After seeing Haizaki use [Formless], Shintaro Midorima closed his eyes and murmured inwardly,
"Akashi… your decision was truly wrong."
On Seirin's side.
Every member of Seirin High was stunned.
Aomine's [Formless] had already been overwhelming enough for them to deal with.
And now someone from Kirisaki Daiichi could use it too.
This Kirisaki Daiichi was terrifying.
Amid the shock, a hesitant voice spoke up.
Shinji Koganei said weakly,
"Um… if I remember correctly… Haizaki's ability is [Pillage], right?"
The moment those words came out, everyone became even more shocked.
Junpei Hyuga blurted out,
"That's right! Haizaki's skill is [Pillage]! And now he used [Formless], which means… Aomine…!"
"Gulp."
The sound of people swallowing nervously echoed one after another.
They couldn't believe it.
Someone had actually managed to [Pillage] Daiki Aomine's [Formless]!
Just as everyone was beginning to accept that possibility, Tetsuya Kuroko spoke.
"Not necessarily."
"Haizaki-kun's [Pillage] works by applying pressure to the opponent, making it difficult for them to score under that pressure."
"But Aomine-kun isn't afraid of pressure."
"In fact, he tends to grow stronger because of it."
On the court.
Tōō High had possession.
As the ball was about to be inbounded, Aomine immediately stretched out his hand, asking for it.
After a brief hesitation, Wakamatsu eventually passed the ball to him.
Aomine didn't charge forward like before.
Instead, he slowly dribbled past half court.
The reason was simple.
He was recovering stamina.
Just as Nijimura was about to step up to defend, Haizaki suddenly blocked him.
"Nijimura-senpai, let me take this."
Haizaki wanted to see it.
He wanted to see what Aomine looked like after losing [Formless].
Nijimura naturally understood what he was thinking and stepped aside.
"…Sigh, Haizaki. Looks like you're about to be disappointed."
Nijimura couldn't help shaking his head.
He didn't believe Haizaki's pressure could stop Aomine from scoring.
If anything, Haizaki's actions would only make Aomine even more fired up.
Aomine dribbled the ball until he stood directly in front of Haizaki.
A cold smile hung on Haizaki's face as he looked at him with undisguised glee.
"Aomine, let me see… can you still use [Formless]?"
Aomine replied calmly,
"Haizaki… you're still too arrogant."
As soon as the words fell, Aomine exploded forward in an instant, launching a sudden drive.
Haizaki reacted half a beat too late.
Even though he tried to chase him down, he was still half a step behind.
Aomine seized that tiny gap and jumped.
Haizaki leapt as well, attempting the block.
But in midair, Aomine twisted his body, releasing the basketball in a completely irregular motion.
[Formless Shot]!
......