This situation wasn't unfamiliar. Seirin High had faced something similar—their first official match against Kaijo High.
In that first quarter, Taiga Kagami had tried to speed up the pace, trying to compete with Kise Ryouta in scoring—but Kise suppressed him easily. Kagami himself was fine.
The rest of Seirin, however, couldn't keep up with his tempo. The entire team's stamina drained quickly. Even Kuroko Tetsuya had to rest after the first quarter, exhausted.
Now, Fukuda Sogo's situation was even worse than Seirin's back then. It wasn't just stamina—there were barely any available players left. The rest of the game would be handled entirely by rookie players.
This… Haizaki Shogo couldn't even imagine it.
It wasn't anyone else's fault. It wasn't the opponents' fault. It was just that he wasn't strong enough yet, not yet capable of carrying the entire team alone.
There's a saying: weakness is the original sin. Nothing more, nothing less.
"BANG!"
Kise Ryouta slammed the ball into the hoop, triggering waves of cheers and screams again.
Compared to Teiko Junior High's effortless points, every score Fukuda Sogo managed was earned through Haizaki Shogo's repeated, grueling breakthroughs.
For Shogo, it was a kind of oppressive, relentless rhythm—a draining grind.
Watching all this, Coach Ichiro Kudo in the rest area clenched his fists, feeling regret and a twinge of despair.
When he had built the team around Shogo, he knew Shogo's talent was exceptional. But he had never imagined facing a team like Teiko, one that would force Shogo to bear such a heavy burden.
He felt uneasy. He couldn't bear to watch the game.
The team's hopes and expectations rested on a single young player's shoulders. Kudo now regretted that decision.
But now it was too late. All he could do was trust Shogo on the court—and his other players.
With that thought, Coach Kudo suddenly stood and shouted toward the court:
"Go! Defense! Go! Defense! Go! Defense!"
In the rest area, all the players and the two team managers froze, staring at the coach who had risen to cheer.
Then, as if struck by inspiration, they all shouted together:
"Go! Defense! Go! Defense! Go! Defense!"
…
For a moment, the voices of Fukuda's players almost drowned out the cheers and squeals from the stands.
But on the court, the players didn't hear a thing.
Focused entirely on defending their opponents, their minds couldn't process anything happening off the court.
The scores crept up and down, inch by inch:
45–42… 48–45… 50–48… 53–50… 55–53…
The third-quarter buzzer sounded. 68–66. Fukuda Sogo still led by two points.
But every player in Fukuda's rest area was exhausted.
At Teiko, everyone was relaxed—even trailing, they remained calm.
"Murasakibara Atsushi, Usui (Teiko second team, player A), Tetsunobu (Teiko second team, player B), fourth quarter, go all out."
"Kise, work with Midorima to guard Haizaki."
Hearing this, Kise and Midorima paused, surprised, each trying to speak:
"Coach, I—"
"Coach!"
Coach Shirogane Kozo's voice was serious:
"Victory is everything. The Haizaki in front of you is not someone any of you can stop alone. You must cooperate to suppress his scoring."
"Understood, Coach!"
"Understood!"
The fourth-quarter buzzer sounded. Haizaki Shogo, Fukuda Sasaki, and three rookies stepped onto the court.
This was the final quarter. The outcome depended on it. Shogo spoke to his teammates rare words of encouragement:
"Let's go. This is the last quarter."
When Shogo received the ball, he looked up at Midorima and Kise closing in, his pupils contracting slightly.
Heh heh! Coach Shirogane really respects me, huh!
I must admit, right now, I deserve this.
It was Midorima speaking, while Kise stared at Shogo with laser focus.
Feeling their escalating aura, Shogo felt competitive: Come on, let's test the power of this Kise–Midori duo!
With terrifying acceleration, Shogo weaved left and right under their double defense before suddenly breaking free.
He leaped high, aiming to slam the ball into the basket.
"BANG! BANG!"
Two simultaneous sounds. Midorima and Murasakibara jumped together, combining their strength to block Shogo's dunk.
The ball flew up, intercepted by a Teiko second-team player, who sent a long pass.
Kise, already far down the court, received it. Under the shocked gazes of two Fukuda defenders, he dribbled through his legs and scored.
Shogo landed, staggered two steps, staring at Midorima, then suddenly relaxed.
Interesting. Really interesting!
During that dunk, the force from the ball, Midorima's rapid jump and height—it revealed a glimpse of something hidden within him, like fog lifting slightly.
Kise's score reversed the lead. Teiko erupted in cheers once again.
Shogo received the ball at halfcourt, facing the two defenders, grinning:
"You can guard me, but can you guard Kagami?"
"What do you mean?"
"Hm?"
He answered by leaping and smashing the ball into the hoop with wild force.
Midori's pupils shrank to pinpoints. Kise's expression screamed Impossible! And under the board, Murasakibara's face said, What did I just see?
In Teiko's rest area, Coach Shirogane stood abruptly, his expression trembling as he watched Shogo on the court.
Beside him, Satsuki Momoi, notebook in hand, looked completely relaxed.
She'd seen this scene countless times. Though it always amazed her, repeated exposure made it feel natural.
"This can't be… How is this possible? How is he doing it?"
Watching the coach rise, Momoi wanted to tell him that Shogo could already perform moves like this during winter break—he hadn't even gone all out yet.
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