Riko Aida fell into thought as she listened to Tetsuya Kuroko.
She knew that if Tetsuya Kuroko chose to attack and become the light, it would mean those skills could only be used once.
It was a gamble.
Once he used those moves, he would not be able to use them again against Rakuzan High School in the future.
And after he used them, the other schools would inevitably start paying more attention to Tetsuya Kuroko to some degree.
That would also make Tetsuya Kuroko's [Misdirection] far less effective in future matches.
The only way for Tetsuya Kuroko to fully recover his low presence would be to sit out several games and wait for the light he gave off to fade.
If this were any other game, there would not be so many concerns. But this was the semifinals.
Using them now meant that if they won, Tetsuya Kuroko would be weakened in the finals. If they lost, then the next time they faced Rakuzan, they would already have lost half the battle.
Riko Aida hesitated before speaking.
"Kuroko, are you really going to..."
Tetsuya Kuroko looked determined.
"At this point, this is the only way. We have no other choice!"
Riko Aida froze for a moment.
That was right. At this point, this really was the only way.
So Riko Aida sighed and said,
"Then we'll play it your way, Kuroko."
Tetsuya Kuroko nodded firmly, then turned to Taiga Kagami and said,
"Kagami, I'll need your help."
Taiga Kagami nodded in agreement.
Then Tetsuya Kuroko began explaining his strategy.
...
"Beep! Timeout over. Both teams, back on the court!"
The referee blew the whistle, and both teams returned to the court.
Seijuro Akashi rose expressionlessly and slowly walked onto the court.
He did not encourage his teammates or do anything to raise their morale.
In his mind, none of that was necessary.
The rest of Rakuzan also stood up and followed Seijuro Akashi onto the court.
On Seirin's side, everyone gathered together, placed their hands in the middle, raised them high, and shouted,
"Let's go!"
The fourth quarter continued.
Seirin High School had possession.
After receiving the ball, Shun Izuki dribbled to the three-point line.
Because Seijuro Akashi and Kotaro Hayama had switched defensive assignments, the one guarding Shun Izuki was Kotaro Hayama.
Kotaro Hayama pouted and muttered,
"Going against this guy is way too boring. I still wanna play Kagami."
Shun Izuki heard Kotaro Hayama muttering to himself, but he ignored him.
He activated [Eagle Eye] and began searching for Tetsuya Kuroko's position.
Once he found Tetsuya Kuroko, Shun Izuki immediately passed the basketball over.
This pass was not meant for Tetsuya Kuroko to tap the ball away. It was for him to take possession.
Since Tetsuya Kuroko caught the ball himself, he was not limited by position.
Naturally, Chihiro Mayuzumi could not stop him.
After catching the ball, Tetsuya Kuroko faced Chihiro Mayuzumi head-on.
The sight made everyone present pause.
Chihiro Mayuzumi remained expressionless, thinking calmly,
'Is it that shot again?'
Seijuro Akashi frowned, completely unsure of what Tetsuya Kuroko was trying to do.
Off the court.
On Kaijō's side, Ryota Kise looked puzzled.
"Is Kuroko-cchi trying to use that same shot again?"
Yukio Kasamatsu rubbed his chin and murmured,
"I'm not sure. It does kind of look like it."
On Shūtoku's side, Shintaro Midorima pushed up his glasses and muttered,
"Offense? Light? Is he planning to abandon his role as the shadow and risk everything on one last gamble?"
On Tōō's side, Daiki Aomine looked at the determined Tetsuya Kuroko on the court, sighed, and said,
"Tetsuya..."
...
Chihiro Mayuzumi spread his arms and focused completely on defense.
Do not forget, although Chihiro Mayuzumi had now become a shadow, his own abilities were still nothing to underestimate.
Tetsuya Kuroko held the ball with both hands and made the motion of pushing it into a shot.
Seeing this, Chihiro Mayuzumi did not jump. Instead, he let Tetsuya Kuroko shoot and simply observed.
With no one really defending him, Tetsuya Kuroko's pushed shot naturally went into the basket.
Swish!
The basket counted.
As a fellow shadow, Chihiro Mayuzumi had watched the entire shot, and now he fully understood the principle behind Tetsuya Kuroko's shooting.
At the same time, he was confident he could block Tetsuya Kuroko's next shot.
On the next possession, Seijuro Akashi once again took control of the ball.
After a series of dribbles, he shook Taiga Kagami to the floor, then shot and scored.
But this attack made Seijuro Akashi sense something unusual.
Seijuro Akashi focused on Taiga Kagami and found that he was very calm.
The lightning in his eyes was gradually settling as well, like a docile lamb.
If the lightning of his previous Zone had been wild and uncontrolled, then the lightning in Taiga Kagami's current Zone was a calmness under firm control.
Seijuro Akashi frowned, because he sensed a familiar aura from Taiga Kagami.
Possession changed.
Seirin High School had the ball.
Shun Izuki passed to Tetsuya Kuroko as usual.
After catching the ball, Tetsuya Kuroko once again faced Chihiro Mayuzumi.
Chihiro Mayuzumi spread his arms to defend Tetsuya Kuroko, but this time, he could not help speaking.
"I've seen through your shot."
At that moment, Tetsuya Kuroko smiled and said,
"It's painful being a shadow, isn't it?"
Chihiro Mayuzumi froze. His calm, unmoving eyes trembled faintly.
Tetsuya Kuroko continued,
"To be honest, you're not suited to being a shadow. Both your heart and your body make it clear that you aren't someone meant to be a shadow."
"So why did you choose to suppress yourself and become one?"
"Why... don't you just be yourself?"
Chihiro Mayuzumi's eyes visibly trembled. In that moment, he truly seemed lost.
Why had he wanted to become a shadow?
Was it really because he did not want to lose anymore?
Tetsuya Kuroko looked at Chihiro Mayuzumi and spoke again.
"As you surely know, I am a shadow. But now, I will become the light!"
Chihiro Mayuzumi suddenly looked at Tetsuya Kuroko and realized he had already started dribbling.
Seeing this, Chihiro Mayuzumi shook his head, spread his arms, and focused completely on defense.
In the next second...
Tetsuya Kuroko...
In his eyes...
Disappeared...
...
...
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