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Sunshine Beach Amusement Park.
Upon arriving, Ryu discovered that this place was quite different from what he had imagined.
It was called an amusement park, but it was completely open to the public.
Various facilities covered almost the entire beach.
If it weren't for its location by the sea, it would practically be a giant water park.
Most of the facilities were water-related.
Ryu sighed inwardly. "If this were in my previous life, those unscrupulous merchants would have fenced it off and sold tickets."
Ryu found a changing room and changed into a set of floral shorts.
The faint outline of his muscles attracted many sidelong glances.
The men's eyes were filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred.
The women's eyes were filled with stars and hearts, wishing they could immediately take Ryu on the spot and then conquer him day and night with every trick in the book.
Unable to bear these stares, Ryu quickly fled with Karupin.
Along the way, Ryu stopped frequently to see many amusement park rides.
Water slides, water roller coasters, water swings, wave pools… Ryu completely let loose and had a blast.
Before he knew it, Ryu arrived at a basketball court by the sea.
The court was made of sand. Basically, it was a wire fence around the beach with two basketball hoops inside.
Beach basketball. Ryu walked to the fence and watched with interest as the players ran back and forth.
A fierce game was underway on the court. Five players on each side.
However, because of the sand, dribbling was impossible.
They were running with the ball in their hands.
Ryu stepped on the sand, thinking to himself: "Maintaining balance while running on this sand isn't easy; one slip and you're likely to fall. Plus, the stamina required for sand is significantly greater than on flat ground. It's a good training method. I can have Karupin create a place like this in the dream space later."
Just as Ryu was lost in thought, one of the players suddenly fell.
He clutched his ankle, wincing in pain; he had clearly sprained it.
The match was temporarily suspended.
Fortunately, there was a medical clinic nearby, specially set up by the park for emergencies.
After the man was taken away, only nine people remained on the field.
Seeing no one else was going up, Ryu became intrigued. "I wonder if my current skills will be useful here." Thinking to himself, he walked onto the field and said to the others, "Um, if you're short-handed, could you count me in?"
Ryu's words drew the attention of everyone present. They all scrutinized him.
Ryu, however, remained unfazed, smiling broadly, looking every bit the sunny, cheerful young man.
He was currently 179 centimeters tall. However, seeing his youthful face, it was clear that this young man was definitely not very old.
A young man, probably in his early twenties, standing closest to Ryu, spoke up. "Young man, you must be quite young! We're all adults here; it's easy to get injured playing basketball." As he spoke, he sized up Ryu's physique.
To his surprise, Ryu's muscles already showed noticeable definition.
This indicated that he regularly engaged in some kind of training. "Nice height. Judging from your appearance, you must exercise frequently!"
Ryu nodded. "Yes, I'm on the basketball team at school, and I often train under the coach's guidance."
Hearing this, the young man nodded in understanding. "I see." He thought for a moment, then turned to the others on the court and asked, "I think this kid is pretty good. Since we're short one person, let him fill in for now!"
Hearing his words, the others exchanged glances and nodded.
Seeing everyone's agreement, the young man said to Ryu, "Alright, then you can go on! Be on my team."
"Okay."
Ryu slowly walked onto the court.
At this moment, he was still somewhat surprised.
He came here to relieve stress and relax, but why was he playing basketball again? Ryu couldn't help but smile wryly. "Looks like I've become different from before!"
Soon, the game began.
Ryu's team inbounded the ball first.
After the team inbounded, their center, holding the ball with one hand, charged towards the opposite basket.
Ryu had observed that his center was about the same height as him. Although his muscles weren't prominent, he looked exceptionally strong.
Sure enough, after charging into the opponent's half of the court, the center forcefully drove through the gap between two defenders.
This was much more violent than in a regular official game. Ryu's eyelids twitched as he watched.
He hadn't felt it from the sidelines before, but now, he truly felt an inexplicable pressure.
His own center was being blocked by the opposing center.
Both were quite strong.
The thuds from their collisions sent chills down Ryu's spine.
Good heavens. His previous opponents were like ants.
At this moment, Ryu clearly realized that he was still just an immature middle school basketball player.
To paraphrase an old saying from his past life, "A genius who hasn't matured is just an ordinary person."
The slight arrogance Ryu had cultivated over the past year vanished completely.
He moved swiftly, creating an open space.
He raised his hand and called out, "Pass the ball!"
Hearing Ryu's voice, the center thought for a moment, then finally passed the ball.
The moment Ryu received the ball, he heard a gust of wind whistling past his ear.
His heart skipped a beat. Without thinking, he turned and executed a C-shaped run, arriving at the three-point line.
Ryu instinctively wanted to shoot a three-pointer, but suddenly, his vision went dark.
A figure was already blocking his way. Ryu's pupils contracted, and his heart skipped a beat.
Just before the opponent's hand was about to intercept the ball, he switched it from behind his back to his other hand.
Ryu's eyes scanned the area, locating his own player's position.
He gritted his teeth and tossed the basketball, which he had just switched hands with, to his teammate.
Ryu's action surprised even his defender.
He hadn't expected Ryu to pass the ball like that.
Logically, someone Ryu's age was usually young and impetuous, fond of showing off.
But he saw no reluctance in Ryu's eyes; he passed the ball almost without hesitation.
This earned him some admiration, but also increased his wariness. "Young man, you play well."
Hearing this, Ryu smiled and said, "Senior is also very skilled."
Though he said this, a bitter feeling welled up inside Ryu.
He truly hadn't expected his opponent's defense to be so strong.
Even before he had exerted any effort, his opponent had still startled him.
Under normal circumstances, forcing him to pass the ball was already quite an achievement.
However, considering the age difference between them, Ryu felt relieved. "I'm still a middle school student, while they're adults. The difference in our physical abilities is enormous."
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