The game continued. Once again, the ball found its way into Midorima Shintaro's hands. He lowered his center of gravity, preparing to break past Haizaki Shogo.
In an instant, the basketball shifted rapidly between his left and right hands, left, right, left again, like a blur of motion. Haizaki mirrored every movement perfectly, adjusting his stance step by step, not giving even the slightest opening. So this is his strongest state? Midorima's heart shook slightly as he faced Haizaki's pressure head-on.
SWOOSH! In that brief moment of hesitation, Haizaki seized the opportunity and stripped the ball cleanly from Midorima's hands. Haizaki burst forward in transition, but Midorima reacted instantly, chasing him down from behind.
Haizaki stepped inside the free-throw line and leapt. Midorima followed closely, his jump almost equal in height. He's right there. Haizaki saw a hand reaching toward the ball and smiled faintly. In mid-air, his right hand pulled the ball back, shifting it beneath his body in a smooth between-the-legs motion, and the ball transferred to his left hand before slamming into the rim.
BOOM! A powerful finish. But because of the mid-air adjustment, Haizaki's body lingered slightly longer in the air, and that small delay caused Midorima to collide into him.
Defensive foul. The whistle blew. The basket counted, two points, and he would get a free throw.
Haizaki landed and exhaled lightly. He had to admit it. Midorima's strength, speed, and explosiveness had all evolved to a terrifying level.
The free throw came next. SWOOSH. Another easy point.
Haizaki turned away, preparing to retreat on defense, but Midorima was already staring at him, eyes glowing with intensity. He held out his hand. He wanted the ball immediately.
Under the full attention of the arena, Midorima took the shot again. SWOOSH! The ball dropped cleanly through the net, and the entire arena froze.
Aomine Daiki, Kise Ryouta, Satsuki Momoi, Shimizu Rena, Ichiro Kudo, Murasakibara Atsushi. Everyone who understood even a fraction of Haizaki's ability stood in shock.
Haizaki, who had already turned to run back on defense, saw the arc of the shot fall perfectly into the basket. For a moment, he froze. Then a wave of excitement surged through him. Good, this is even better than before.
He turned back toward Midorima, voice low and cold. "Good, Shintaro. Let's keep going."
Haizaki returned to his half and immediately received the inbound pass. He drove straight in and scored, erasing the deficit again.
Midorima, meanwhile, muttered inwardly as he ran back on defense. Haizaki, you monster.
The game continued, and once again Midorima called for the ball. He intended to keep shooting, until his body collapsed if necessary.
But at that exact moment, something changed. Haizaki was already in front of him. Midorima's eyes widened slightly. So fast.
Haizaki stood there expressionless, like a beast locking onto prey. Midorima abandoned the three-point attempt. Too dangerous. Too slow to set up. Haizaki was already too close. A block was inevitable.
Instead, Midorima made a decision. He faked, a single movement, then drove forward. He broke past Haizaki.
Haizaki's pupils shrank. What? For the first time, he felt something unfamiliar. It wasn't just speed. It wasn't just timing. It was something else entirely. Man and ball, moving as one?
Haizaki was stunned. He had been chasing something like this since crossing into this world. "Unity between player and ball." And yet Midorima had just displayed it.
Haizaki turned immediately and chased. The two sprinted downcourt, Haizaki behind, Midorima ahead.
Midorima entered the paint, preparing to stop and shoot. Haizaki closed in and jumped to block. But Midorima did not stop. He did not hesitate. He did not even adjust.
He accelerated again, still fully synchronized with the ball. No separation, no delay. He broke through Haizaki's defense completely, ignored every Fukuda Sogo defender, and finished at the rim with a powerful dunk.
BOOM! There was nothing left to say. Only shock.
Even Aomine Daiki stood up. Kise Ryouta stood as well. Both stared at Midorima in disbelief, their eyes wide and unblinking.
"That straight-laced, arrogant guy," Aomine muttered.
"He's reached this level already," Kise added softly.
For the first time, even they were shaken. Midorima Shintaro was no longer just a three-point specialist. In the eyes of others, he had always been "the shooter," but now they were seeing something else entirely: a player who trained everything to perfection, a man who followed "effort dictates destiny" to its absolute extreme, a being who refined every detail to its limit. And today, he had revealed a side no one had expected.
At the sideline, Kise slumped slightly. "Hey Aomine, what just happened? How did he break Haizaki so easily?"
Aomine replied without hesitation. "Man-and-ball unity. That's the level both Haizaki and I have been chasing."
"Man-and-ball unity?"
"Yeah." Aomine's eyes narrowed. "At that level, you don't think anymore. Where you go, the ball goes. Simple as that. Breaking a defender becomes effortless."
"That's." Kise sat down slowly, his voice fading. He looked unusually deflated.
Around them, Kagami Taiga, Kuroko Tetsuya, Aida Riko, Kiyoshi Teppei, Imayoshi Shoichi, and others remained frozen. They had just witnessed something beyond their level of understanding, something that belonged to world-class players, and it was unfolding right before their eyes.
On the other side, Murasakibara Atsushi had stopped eating. He stared at Midorima's tall, slender figure in silence. For once, he was thinking seriously. I can't defend that. He realized it immediately. Not easily. Maybe not at all. Even his usual snacks had lost their taste.
Haizaki, after landing, felt a chill run through him. Part fear, part excitement, part admiration. But above all else, a burning desire. I want that level too.