At this moment, under the combined pressure of Jason Silver and Hazaki Shogo, Jack's No Fly Zone was finally broken open. Just a small crack, but in a match at this level, that was enough to shake everything.
Jabberwock immediately felt a surge of momentum. At the same time, Serbian Eagles felt their confidence waver for the first time. Their strongest defensive foundation, Jack's No Fly Zone, had been breached. Now both teams were fully inside each other's attack range.
Jack narrowed his eyes as he watched Shogo and Sibbs retreat on defense. A rare, heavy seriousness settled over his face. It had been a long time since someone broke through his domain. And now, for the first time, doubt crept in. This feels like the calm before a storm.
"Jason, that pass was insane. You completely stunned Jack."
"Ha! Your dunk was even better, Shogo."
Sibbs laughed loudly, his confidence visibly rising. Every successful break of the No Fly Zone meant one thing: it could be broken again. And again. Jabberwock was starting to believe.
Serbia's possession resumed. Velia advanced cautiously across half court, then immediately passed the ball before Nash could close in. The target was clear, Loren. A set play. But the pass was slightly off. And in that instant, Shogo moved.
BOOM! A clean interception. Too predictable.
Shogo exploded forward at full speed. Behind him, Levic, eyes glowing with electric green Zone energy, chased at equal speed. But Shogo didn't slow down. He didn't even look back. At the free-throw line, he leapt. Two-handed windmill dunk.
BOOM! CRASH! The ball hammered through the rim. Even Levic, mid-Zone, widened his eyes. His mental rhythm nearly shattered. Impossible, that timing.
Meanwhile, Jason Silver froze for a moment. That dunk was his signature move. That guy, he stole my technique mid-game?!
"Nice one, Shogo!"
"Insane power!"
"Wait, when did you learn my move?!"
The teammates erupted in shock and excitement. Shogo simply shook his head. The game wasn't over yet. The lead expanded to 14 points.
=======
On the opposing bench, tension spread. "That No.6, Hazaki Shogo, he's absurd."
"Even Levic in Zone can barely keep up."
"What do we do?"
"Score more." Jack's answer was simple. No panic. No hesitation. Only adaptation.
"Loren. Got your read on him?"
"Yeah. He's just an average defender."
"Then you're in the offensive rotation."
"Understood."
They attacked again. Velia slowed his tempo, now visibly cautious after multiple interceptions. Eventually, he passed to Loren. This time, clean. Loren rose immediately. A textbook long-range three-pointer. SWISH. Clean. The deficit dropped again, 11 points.
Jabberwock's court immediately tightened. Nick frowned. "Sorry, I lost him for a second."
"Stay on him tighter," Nash replied calmly. "Don't give him space." But even Nash's tone carried weight now. This wasn't a comfortable lead anymore. This was a fight for control.
Shogo, however, remained calm. That shot was easy to steal, but I didn't get the ball in time. The real problem wasn't ability. It was positioning. Levic was constantly shadowing him, limiting any clean opportunity for his copy-and-steal ability. So Shogo made a decision. He would run Levic into the ground. He increased his tempo deliberately. Cuts. Screens. Rotations. Every movement was pressure. Every step was exhaustion.
Jason Silver once again broke through Jack's zone coverage and dunked powerfully. The gap returned to double digits. But Serbia answered again. Another three-pointer from Loren. Now the gap was 10.
Nash finally frowned. For the first time, pressure showed in his eyes. Then Shogo tapped his shoulder. "I'll handle that guy."
"You can?"
"But I need Jason to help collapse their coverage."
Nash looked at him for a moment. Then nodded. "Understood." Complete trust.
Nash walked to Jason and whispered a few words. Jason paused. Then slowly grinned. A mix of excitement, and faint unease, appeared in his eyes. That dunk earlier, that wasn't normal. And now? Things were about to get even worse.
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