[National Tournament Top 32 Battle: You faced Hayama Kotarō's team again.]
[This game attracted the attention of many fans and even high school basketball personnel.]
[They believe this will be the ranking battle for the second strongest small forward of this middle school generation.]
[Who is the strongest? It is Kise Ryōta, who became the absolute main small forward of the team shortly after joining Teiko.]
[Rumor has it that he has been in contact with basketball for less than a year, but relying on chilling learning ability, he leaped to become a household basketball star in the island nation in a short time.]
[Some believe that given enough time, he might even surpass Teiko's ace Aomine Daiki.]
[The game started.]
[Facing Hayama Kotarō again, you were fully alert. You remembered clearly that you lost to him in the last simulation.]
[You lost the jump ball. Hayama Kotarō quickly advanced after receiving the pass amidst the cheers of the whole audience.]
[He actively sought you out, revealing a small canine tooth, and claimed, "I don't plan to give up the position of the country's second small forward to you yet."]
[You responded with a roast, "You should tell that to Kise Ryōta. I'm not interested in which of you is second."]
[Hayama Kotarō was stunned. He didn't expect you to be so proud.]
[Because as the National Tournament has been played until today, fans and most participating teams have actually defaulted that Teiko will successfully defend their title.]
[Their strength is inconceivable, opening up a huge rank gap with other participating teams.]
[Tokyo is the largest division, yet Teiko is like a fierce tiger entering a flock of sheep. From the group stage, they pushed horizontally all the way. Doubling the opponent's score is a basic operation; tripling and quadrupling are also not a problem.]
[Even shutting out the opponent isn't impossible if they get slightly serious.]
[Although Kise Ryōta is currently the weakest among Teiko's starting five, he is still monster-level. Hayama Kotarō has no confidence in defeating him.]
[But listening to your meaning, you seem to place yourself above Kise Ryōta.]
[He shook his head and said to you, "You overestimate yourself too much. It's precisely because you haven't personally faced Teiko that you can say such words not knowing the height of the sky and the depth of the earth."]
[You didn't respond to him. You have no common language with this kind of guy who admits defeat before even playing.]
[You forgot again that you had done such a thing too.]
[Hayama Kotarō used the Lightning Dribble. For a time, the court seemed to be thundering; the basketball hitting the floor made a violent roaring sound.]
[He said, "Taste my Lightning Dribble. To deal with you, 4 fingers should be enough."]
[You said, "What Lightning Dribble? Just call it Fingertip Dribble. Don't think that adding some sound effects with gongs and drums makes it your original creation."]
[You opened your arms and coiled around him. Hayama Kotarō immediately felt your difficulty.]
[Since facing Nijimura Shūzō back then in the battle against Teiko last year, this was the first time he felt such huge defensive pressure in a one-on-one.]
[He only felt your defense was airtight, not revealing a single crack to him.]
[He quietly used five fingers to dribble, activating the Lightning Dribble to full power.]
[You waited in full battle array. Verbally despising the opponent, mentally valuing the opponent—this is your way of conduct.]
[Hayama Kotarō turned it over!]
[You took the opportunity to counterattack. After penetrating into the enemy's heartland, you threw the ball to Sakurai Ryō at the three-point line. The latter hit the three-pointer.]
[Your performance attracted the attention of the Generation of Miracles in the audience.]
["Eh, is that person the Yuuto that Momo-cchi mentioned before?" Kise Ryōta's eyes lit up.]
[He observed your plain playing style, which was unexpectedly effective and had a magical charm. After his brain spun for a while, he found that he seemed able to imitate it, but also seemed unable to imitate that charm.]
[Momoi Satsuki nodded and said, "Mhm, he is Yuuto, a second-year student from Homi Academy. His playing style is plain, but his fundamentals have been achieved to the extreme. It is utilitarian basketball pursuing low consumption and high efficiency."]
[After speaking, she deliberately looked at the silent Aomine Daiki. "In this aspect, he and A-Dai are complete opposite extremes."]
[Everyone nodded upon hearing this. Aomine Daiki's playing style is completely opposite to Yuuto's. It is the streetball style pursuing luxury and fun. As long as he is on the court, he thinks about showing off operations all the time. Compared to winning, he seems to care more about the fun brought by basketball!]
[Aomine Daiki said with his husky voice, "In the end, he is just the best 'beginner'. Don't waste time anymore, Satsuki. Someone who can beat me doesn't exist."]
[The atmosphere suddenly stagnated. Momoi Satsuki hurriedly covered his mouth and complained, "Here you go again, always saying things like that." She secretly observed the other teammates' expressions and breathed a sigh of relief finding that everyone didn't plan to bicker with Aomine.]
[The lack-of-presence Kuroko on the side kept staring at you. He thought of the conversation with Aomine under the bridge on that rainy day, and a trace of expectation for you rose in him...]
"Expect what? Acting like I know you well."
Yuuto in the outside world had no interest in correcting these maniacs.
He just wanted to beat these maniacs to death, not leaving a single one.
Simulation continued.
[Your toughness exceeded Hayama Kotarō's expectations. At the end of the single quarter, you gained a 5-point advantage.]
[You got 7 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists in the single quarter, while Hayama Kotarō was defended by you to only get a pitiful 2 points.]
[But you didn't relax your vigilance because you knew this wasn't all of Hayama Kotarō.]
[Wildness (Animal Instinct), one of the specialties of the Kuroko world, a talent that can maximize a player's instincts.]
[This is a one-in-a-million talent, extremely rare, hidden in the deepest part of human DNA. Only a very few people can awaken it.]
[The second quarter began.]
[Hayama Kotarō wasn't depressed by the single-quarter loss; instead, his fighting spirit was even more vigorous.]
[You felt an unusual aura emanating from him. Biological instinct made your hair stand on end.]
["Is this Wildness?" You asked yourself. It was the first time experiencing this feeling personally, as if really being stared at by a beast.]
[Hayama Kotarō's actions became more agile. Your physical attributes are actually inferior to Hayama Kotarō's. It was relying on experience, the most extreme fundamentals, and the Death Coil talent that you froze Hayama Kotarō for a quarter.]
[You clearly felt that the difficulty of defending him increased. Your high-pressure defense was no longer unfavorable; your anticipation could always be detected by him.]
"Looking at it this way, Wildness is at least a Purple talent."
Yuuto outside the simulation analyzed.
Although there is no absolute suppression relationship between talent grades, since it is a high-tier talent, there must be some advantage.
If Death Coil couldn't gain an advantage, it meant the talent grade of Wildness was at least on the same level.
[You changed your defensive method, adopting a close-body defense strategy, dead-guarding Hayama Kotarō's breakthrough.]
[In the main series, Hayama Kotarō's scoring methods were always driving layups and the like. You haven't seen him use mid-range shots to finish.]
[Hayama Kotarō hit a mid-range shot...]
...
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