"After the timeout, it's still Rakuzan's ball. Three minutes left in the second quarter, and Kaijō leads 47–39 by eight points."
Bobo glanced at the stream chat, paused for two seconds, then continued,
"To be honest, judging from how things look right now… Rakuzan's getting suppressed."
"From the start, Yuki has been playing great. Midway through the second quarter he really stood out. So far he's 6-for-9 with 16 points already. Ending this game with 30-plus shouldn't be a problem."
"Kise is 5-for-6 at the moment. Not a lot of attempts, but super efficient. He's second on Kaijō's scoring list with 12 points. Kota, meanwhile, has been focusing on running the offense, though he's still got eight points of his own."
"Kaijō's three perimeter aces have combined for 36 points. At this rate, they might just break the official tournament record!"
The all-time three-man scoring record in a Interhigh official match was 87 points, set more than twenty years ago. It had gone unbroken ever since.
"As everyone knows, Kaijō's trademark power spike is the third quarter. The infamous 'clock out after three quarters' is practically part of their identity. So the question is — can Rakuzan withstand the pressure and drag this game's suspense into the final quarter?"
"Well… let's wait and see."
On the court, both teams returned to their positions.
Kota looked at the burning determination in Rakuzan's five players and couldn't help but smile.
"That's more like it."
If Akashi went down this easily, that would've surprised Kota.
"Man, the intensity you guys are giving off is downright scary. For a second there, I couldn't even tell which one of us is leading."
Kota walked up beside Akashi and clicked his tongue. Akashi shot him a glance and replied,
"If you're trying to taunt me, save your breath. Things like that won't shake me. They'll only make me angry."
Kota waved his hands rapidly with a goofy grin.
"No way, no way, I'm honestly impressed with you guys."
"If it were any other team, Yuuki in this state would've already scared them senseless."
Kota raised his eyes, looking Akashi straight on.
"So? My trump card… pretty solid, right? Even you must be running out of options now, aren't you?"
Akashi turned away, showing Kota the back of his head—a clear sign he didn't want to talk.
Kota didn't mind. He lifted a finger and signaled his team into their defensive formation.
During the final three minutes of the second quarter, Rakuzan and Kaijō exchanged several more possessions, trading blows until the game transitioned into halftime.
Halftime — Kaijō Locker Room
"OOOOOOOOOH!"
Hayakawa was standing on a bench, arms curled in a weird "crab pose," two streams of steam shooting from his nostrils.
It was obvious he was way too fired up.
Swoosh!
A flying slipper suddenly appeared in midair and smacked Hayakawa square on the head, knocking him off the bench.
Kota picked up the slipper with an annoyed face and glared at Hayakawa, who was crouched on the ground clutching his head.
"Hayakawa-senpai! Standing on the bench with your shoes on—of course you're getting smacked!"
Keeping Japan's strict senior–junior etiquette in mind, Kota managed to phrase his complaint as politely as possible.
"Sorry! But I'm feeling great today!"
Hayakawa pumped his fist excitedly. Typical hot-blooded idiot—he even apologized like he was hyping himself up.
Kota rolled his eyes.
"You're acting all fired up, but you got bullied by their big oaf the whole half! If not for that, we'd already be popping champagne!"
Throughout the first half, Nebuya hadn't dominated completely, but he'd won enough battles inside to cause Kaijō trouble.
"Sorry!!"
Another loud, dramatic apology. This time Kota didn't humor him and chopped him on the head—telling him to quiet down.
On the other side, Kise was running his hands all over Yuki, muttering,
"This doesn't make sense… How did you suddenly enter Zone mode? Huh? Weird. Let me check again!"
Yuki, painfully shy by nature, had never experienced this kind of harassment. The poor prodigy kept backing away as Kise's "wandering hands" chased him, but soon Kise had him cornered against the wall.
"K-Kise-senpai! Please don't do that!"
Yuki hugged his chest, trembling. His reaction seemed to trigger some kind of strange hobby inside Kise.
"Hehehe, Yuki~ Even if you scream for help, no one's gonna—"
Swoosh!
Another slipper cut through the air and nailed Kise in the back of the head, mercifully ending his creep routine.
Kota stormed over, grabbed Kise by the collar, and dragged him away with a face that screamed I'm so done with this.
"Good lord… what kind of circus am I the captain of?"
He tilted his head back and groaned, when the corner of his eye caught sight of Takumi.
Since returning to the locker room, Takumi had sat quietly on the bench, drinking water in silence—practically the picture of well-behaved innocence.
Kota lit up.
"Thank goodness you're here, Takumi. At least I'm not the only sane person on this team!"
Takumi turned, nodded slightly, still silent.
But where Kota couldn't see, Takumi's eyes gleamed with an indescribable emotion.
"Kota-senpai today is soooo cool! Oh no… that side profile… I could stare at it all day!!!"
Of course, Kota had zero idea about Takumi's inner monologue. He was busy lecturing Kise.
"It's not that I want to scold you, Kise, but don't you know how shy Yuki is? What if you mess up his rhythm for the second half?!"
Hands on hips, Kota looked exactly like Kasamatsu for a moment.
Knowing he was in the wrong, Kise didn't dare talk back and quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, Kota, I think I'm in really good form today! My shots feel super smooth. If this keeps up, I might even enter the Zone in the second half!"
Kota blinked. Thinking back to Kise's first-half performance — yeah, it was above his usual level.
"Oh? In that case, won't Akashi cry when we steamroll them?"
He imagined Kise + Yuki + himself all entering the Zone at the same time.
Just the thought made him suck in a breath. That sight… unimaginable!
"I'll hold you to that, Kise. If you don't explode next half, I'm coming for you."
Kota teased, but to his surprise, Kise nodded seriously.
Kise looked at Yuki, who was drinking water on the bench, and fire lit in his eyes.
"The Ace of Kaijō… isn't a title I plan to hand over that easily."
BEEP—BEEP—BEEP!
The sharp whistles echoed through the gym. Sleepy spectators jolted awake and focused on the court.
Both teams stepped out from the tunnel.
Because Hayakawa had committed a jump-ball foul earlier, Nebuya had automatically earned possession.
So Kaijō started with the ball in the third quarter, and Rakuzan would start the fourth.
Kota glanced at the scoreboard:
54–44. Kaijō up by ten.
Those ten points were their hard-earned first-half advantage, and with first possession, Kota whistled and shouted:
"Alright boys, let's clock out after three! Your captain's got a date after this!"
His tone was light—as if Rakuzan wasn't even worth worrying about.His words traveled clearly into Rakuzan's ears.
Nebuya and Takeshi immediately got angry, rolling up their sleeves like they wanted to charge at Kota — though if they tried, they'd probably be the ones carried out on stretchers.
Even Mibuchi, normally composed, was glaring at Kota.
They were losing, sure, but that didn't mean they'd swallow insults quietly.
Akashi stared expressionlessly at Kota.
"Don't let him get to you. It's just another little trick to rattle us."
He then led Rakuzan back to their half to prepare for Kaijō's attack.
But Kota clicked his tongue twice, waving his finger.
"No no no, Akashi—wrong guess this time. I wasn't trying to provoke you."
"I was letting you know… this game's not making it to the fourth quarter."
"Learn a bit about Kaijō tradition. We always clock out after three. Doesn't matter who the opponent is—even if it's you."
Kota grinned arrogantly.
Behind him, Kise and Yuki stood on either side, eyes sharp and fearless.
Feeling the shift in Kota's tone, Akashi froze mid-step.
He turned back, golden light flashing in his eyes.
His voice dropped—darker, heavier.
"Kota…"
"If you think you can do it… then come try."
"Rakuzan's dignity will not be trampled by anyone."