[Although this has nothing to do with the novel, I saw a video that truly shocked me. Imagine, I saw a video of a girl wearing makeup. If her beauty were rated out of 100, she'd get around 60 or less. Not to mention that her skin isn't fair at all. But after the makeup, she transformed into an extraordinary beauty, her beauty rating exceeding 90, even becoming white. Seriously, are you kidding me? If it weren't for the short video, which showed the same girl, I would have suspected they had replaced her. The problem is, the makeup doesn't look heavy; it's just light. So, if someone doesn't know the truth, they'd think it was real beauty, Has makeup become so magical now? It's almost like sorcery.]
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"Alright, Murasakibara. That person is different from the others; he's very strong, you know," Ryu offered as a word of dissuasion.
Upon hearing this, Murasakibara took a deep breath and spoke, "I won't let him score again."
Ryu simply smiled slightly. Whether Hayama would score again was still uncertain. Given his performance just now, if Murasakibara wasn't serious, he would likely have a hard time defending against him.
Akashi passed the ball to Ryu. He easily broke through Fukuyama's defense with a crossover dribble. Seeing Aomine asking for the ball, Ryu considered it for a moment and then passed it to him anyway.
Aomine Daiki, receiving the ball, once again faced off against Hayama Kotaro. Aomine attacked left and right with exaggerated speed, forcing Hayama to move in sync with him. For a moment, the two were locked in a stalemate.
"He can actually keep up with Aomine's speed," Midorima Shintaro remarked, somewhat surprised.
Ryu explained, "That's Hayama Kotaro, nicknamed the 'Thunder Beast.' While his raw talent might not be quite at Aomine's level, it's very talented. Besides, he's had a year more of development than Aomine, so his current strength is normal."
Hearing Ryu's explanation, Midorima and the others finally realized that Hayama Kotaro was a player whose talent was very high. Ryu sighed internally: 'It's just a pity. Although he very talented, there is still an insurmountable chasm.'
On the court, Aomine and Hayama were locked in a fierce battle. Suddenly, Aomine abruptly stopped. Hayama, losing his balance, had no time to react and was easily beaten.
Seeing their ace broken through, Fukuyama's teammates rushed forward to stop Aomine.
Unfortunately, the gap was too vast. Aomine Daiki didn't take them seriously; their defense was like paper, easily torn apart. Unfazed by the closing space, Aomine unleashed a powerful one-handed dunk that left the rim groaning.
6-2. Teiko took the lead.
"Pass the ball," Hayama Kotaro demanded.
His teammate didn't hesitate.
Hayama's eyes sharpened, his aura rising. His hand suddenly tensed, veins bulging on his arm. A flash of yellow light streaked past Aomine once more as the Thunder Dribble broke through the defense.
Aomine had learned his lesson and turned to block, but he was too slow. Hayama's speed was incredible; in the blink of an eye, he had created two steps of distance.
"Damn it!" Aomine was frustrated, but he could only watch helplessly as Hayama penetrated the paint.
Murasakibara Atsushi glared, his muscles tense. Seeing this, Hayama Kotaro grinned and made a shooting motion. Without hesitation, Murasakibara took a long stride toward him, his large hand ready to swat the ball away.
However, Hayama quickly pulled the ball back under his abdomen and flicked his wrist, passing it to a teammate beyond the three-point line.
Murasakibara hadn't expected the pass; he wasn't yet at the level where he could defend the entire three-point area.
Fukuyama's teammate jumped and calmly sank the shot. The score reached 6-5.
In the Fukuyama rest area, the coach praised loudly, "Beautiful pass, Hayama!"
The substitutes also shouted, "Well done! Keep using your Thunder Dribble to crush them!"
They saw hope. If their ace could keep the score close, they might have a chance to turn the game around.
Despite the score closing in, Ryu and his team showed no emotion.
Hayama Kotaro was indeed a problem, but his four teammates seemed lackluster.
The Teiko players were confident that if they went all out, Fukuyama simply couldn't withstand the onslaught.
This was a display of superior strength—one genius was ultimately no match for a team of five monsters.
The game between Teiko and Fukuyama continued.
Aomine Daiki, having been outmaneuvered and scored on, grew increasingly excited.
He enjoyed games like this—evenly matched.
Akashi made a long bounce pass, placing the ball perfectly in Aomine's hands.
Aomine took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. His blue eyes subtly radiated a menacing aura.
Hayama Kotaro felt a faint, chilling unease. The feeling wasn't intense, but it made him wary as he stared intently at Aomine.
Aomine's entire body gradually relaxed. Suddenly, his frame slumped as he executed a lightning-fast crossover.
At the same time, his speed increased dramatically, attempting to burst past Hayama Kotaro. Hayama sidestepped to block, reaching out to steal the ball, but Aomine spun around with the ball, creating a half-body distance between them.
"So fast!" Hayama was shocked. He could feel that Aomine's speed had shifted to another level. He quickly turned to chase, but to his surprise, he could barely catch up even at full speed.
They reached the Fukuyama restricted area. Aomine jumped to shoot right in front of the defenders. Hayama arrived just in time, leaping high and blocking Aomine's view with his hands.
Seeing this, Aomine didn't panic. Instead, he began to lean back mid-air, holding the ball in both hands.
Hayama stared wide-eyed, unable to believe the posture Aomine had adopted.
10 degrees… 20 degrees… 30 degrees… 40 degrees…
Aomine continued to tilt. When his body reached a 45-degree angle with the ground, he finally released the ball. The basketball arced through the air, grazing past Hayama's fingers.
Then, under everyone's gaze, it swished into the basket.
Aomine's impossible fadeaway jump shot drew gasps from the entire arena.
"Wow, that's amazing! He can actually pull off such a difficult move. Is he really a middle school student?"
"Incredible! Did you see his dribbling just now? That was so cool!"
"I've decided—Teiko's number 6 is my idol!"
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