Nijimura Shuzo's words earned no visible reaction from Fukaya Reiji.
But Kurokami Shinji, glancing toward Murasakibara, couldn't help thinking—
He definitely didn't have that kind of confidence.
However
When Reiji, bangs falling over his eyes, swept his gaze across him, that little doubt in Kurokami's chest vanished instantly.
Even the way he looked at Murasakibara suddenly gained… strange confidence.
At that moment
A wave of excited voices rose as a group of female fans gathered around, their eyes almost all locked onto Kaijō's side.
Hmm…
Most were focused on Nijimura.
A smaller portion… on Shigure.
After all, compared to Nijimura's 190 cm height, Kurokami Shinji's 202 cm frame was simply too intimidating up close. As for Fukaya Reiji—his gloomy, shadowed appearance alone was enough to keep people away.
Shigure Akihito, meanwhile, had both looks and ability. Even at 197 cm, his height came with the perfect filter.
Watching Nijimura and Shigure get swarmed
Yōsen's captain, Okamura Kenichi, closed his eyes dramatically and slumped aside in despair, his face collapsing in exaggerated frustration:
"Damn it…! Not even one chance to get approached…!"
"As expected…"
"That whole 'high school basketball players are super popular' thing is totally a lie!"
Beside him
Fukui Kensuke patted Okamura's shoulder, then glanced at Nijimura and Shigure.
"Don't mind it. Basketball players are popular…"
"In your case…"
"It's just that you have zero luck with women."
Okamura felt that stab deep in his heart—only to receive a finishing blow from international student Liu Wei:
"If you shave off beard and fix that big chin, maybe situation will finally turn around~"
Okamura: "!?"
Beard… fine.
But the chin?!
"How is that even fixable?! Too much! Uuugh~~~!"
Not far away
Even Murasakibara didn't feel like roasting Okamura's chin today.
He stared at his empty snack pouch … and remembered he was supposed to go to the convenience store earlier.
"By the way~"
"Can I go to the store now~?"
Okamura's expression darkened.
He didn't like being teased by a first-year brat, but being ignored like this was even more infuriating. He was Yōsen's captain!
But the next moment, Midorima Shintarō spoke:
"Enough fooling around. Coach Araki is back. Prepare to enter—we still need to warm up."
Okamura: "…"
Damn it!
Why did this guy feel even more like the captain than he did?!
—
Soon.
Just like Okamura's failure with women, Takeuchi Genta—Kaijō's captain—led the team toward the player tunnel.
"Alright!"
"Everyone ready?!"
"It's time!"
"OUUU!!"
Nijimura's calm yet powerful voice echoed from the tunnel.
Then Kaijō, last year's reigning champions who had defeated Rakuzan, stepped onto the court under the familiar white arena lights.
The Kaijō crowd erupted:
"YES! They're here!"
"Kaijō—the champions home to the Teikō Twin Stars, the Blue Elites!"
"Let's go Kaijō!!"
On the other side, Yōsen entered next—triggering a wave of gasps across the stands thanks to their absurd average height.
"They're here… three straight rounds of zero points allowed! Iron Wall—Yōsen!"
"So tall—this is crazy!"
"For real…"
"Yōsen's interior trio is the tallest combination of this year's Interhigh! All over two meters! Even their backcourt has the 195 cm prodigy of the Generation of Miracles—Midorima Shintarō!"
"And their center, also from the Miracles—Murasakibara Atsushi—stands at 208 cm! Last year's champion center from Hagioka was only 203 in his third year! Murasakibara is a first-year!"
Amid the buzz, both teams began warming up.
Meanwhile
Kasamatsu Yukio eyed today's matchup: Fukui Kensuke.
176 cm.
Kasamatsu himself was 178 cm.
That was the only opponent on the court close to him in height.
Everyone else—
Kasamatsu scanned the court once more.
Yep. Still ridiculous.
Every single one of them looked like a walking mountain.
In contrast, Kaijō…
Honestly
Even though they were a tier shorter, for high school basketball they were still above average.
Kasamatsu felt like he'd skipped high school entirely and walked straight into the pros.
But
Fukui, looking at Kaijō, felt the same oppressive weight from their unity.
A team with roots that grew deep and unshakable—like a massive underground tree.
Soon
Warmups ended.
Coach Araki Masako gathered Yōsen for the final mental prep:
"You all know very well what level today's opponent is!"
"If we don't go all-out from the start, it won't work!"
"From the opening moment—we fight with everything we have!"
"However…"
"Our playstyle doesn't change! Defense first! Shut everything down! Show them the true Iron Wall of Yōsen!"
"Offense—leave the control to Midorima!"
"OUU!!"
"OUU!"
On Kaijō's side
Takeuchi simply let Nijimura take command.
Their starting lineup was Kaijō's most explosive five.
Both teams entered the court.
"The first match of the quarterfinals—Kaijō High vs. Yōsen High!"
BEEP!
The whistle blew.
Players stepped to center court.
"Please guide us!"
"Please guide us!"
Jump ball.
Kaijō sent out Shigure Akihito.
Yōsen sent Murasakibara Atsushi, eyes sharply locked onto Shigure.
BEEP.
"Jump ready!"
The ref tossed the ball up
Shigure, who had crouched deeper than usual, launched like a released bowstring.
Clearly
He'd crouched lower than before.
The two rose—the difference in their static power and raw leg strength clear.
Kaijō noticed immediately
Shigure's jump was higher than usual today.
But even so, Murasakibara's reach remained terrifyingly long.
Not because Shigure lacked bounce
But because Murasakibara's arm length was a freak of nature.
Just how long were those arms…?
A gibbon's?!
On Yōsen's bench—everyone was just as shocked.
Even though they had anticipated this in pre-analysis, seeing someone contest Murasakibara in a jump ball was still jaw-dropping.
Fukui's eyes tightened.
Murasakibara was fully focused today—waiting for the ball to reach its apex before making contact.
Shigure Akihito's limbs were long for a human—but Murasakibara's were longer still.
When he bent slightly, his fingers almost brushed his knees.
Jumping high was nothing compared to being tall and having that reach.
Which meant
The opening tip-off would surely be Yōsen's
Except
The next instant, Fukui's expression changed drastically.
[Legendary Sakuragi…
Skill Activated
Stored Power Rebound!]
[Glory Moment: Genius State!]
[Aerial Tip Conversion: When disadvantaged in a jump ball, forcibly convert to a high-tip maneuver, increasing range and control to redirect the ball higher and toward your side.]
Then
PAP!
Shigure's fingertip touched the ball a split-second before Murasakibara.
A forced high tip!
Okamura and Liu Wei reacted instantly, rushing in to trap the ball's landing point.
In the air, Shigure—surrounded
tipped once,
then again,
then again—
Three consecutive mid-air jumps within an impossibly short time.
PAP!
And finally
The ball dropped cleanly into Nijimura Shuzo's hands!
The entire arena froze in shock.
Especially teams who had previously jumped against Murasakibara—their jaws dropped.
"Murasakibara… actually lost the tip?"
"Shigure Akihito…"
"What was that bounce speed?!"
"Yeah! He jumped higher and did it more times?!"
"No way…"
"Even if you jump fast, you can't beat someone who just reaches up— but now…"
Yōsen's bench
Coach Araki shot to her feet, eyes bulging like copper bells. Her tactic board—substituting for her usual bamboo sword—had fallen to the floor without her noticing.
But
She had no time to be shocked.
Kaijō had possession and immediately launched their attack.
Just as Nijimura predicted, Kaijō opened strong inside—testing Yōsen's supposed impenetrable Iron Wall.
Yōsen's interior defense tightened, forming a triangle around the paint:
Murasakibara at the free-throw line, Okamura and Liu Wei on the sides.
Kurokami Shinji caught the ball at the right edge of the paint—blocked in by Yōsen's wall.
THUD!
He backed down Okamura hard.
Okamura's body clearly shuddered under impact
and he instantly felt something unreasonable.
"…Huh?"
Wasn't this guy supposed to be a finesse-type center?!
With such a slender frame
how did he have this kind of power?!
The contact hurt—like getting slammed by a much heavier, much denser body.
And
He was aggressive!
THUD!
THUD!
THUD!
With brutal physicality matched with smooth footwork, shielding with shoulder and elbow control, Kurokami drove Okamura back into the paint.
Seeing that Reiji still hadn't moved, Liu Wei spun off and lunged in for a surprise double-team.
At that instant
Shigure Akihito thought Kurokami's eyes looked unbelievably similar to Nijimura Shuzo's.
Maybe Fujimaki Tadatoshi reused the character model—those narrow eyes were nearly identical.
And paired with this playstyle
Even more alike.
Even though this was Nijimura in his first year form—he already played with this foundation.
Ridiculously gifted.
Kurokami Shinji, facing two two-meter giants
Suddenly executed two consecutive between-the-legs retreat dribbles
as a center.
Then
SHWIP
He spun, driving toward the baseline, pressing forward—
his movements far too agile for someone his size.
Even for many perimeter players, Kurokami's speed was fast.
Compared to Okamura and Liu Wei—his movement made them look a step behind.
He stretched out for a layup
But
BOOM
A shadow exploded toward him.
Araki's clenched fists loosened slightly.
Before Shigure and Nijimura even made their moves, Kaijō had already forced Yōsen into desperation rotations
not a good sign.
But still
She stared firmly at Kurokami Shinji.
Among high school players near or above two meters
aside from rare geniuses like Shigure Akihito or Hagioka's former center
most had some deficiency in speed or sensitivity.
Even though Okamura trained diligently to compensate
Against a Teikō-level genius center
As expected