"Stay sharp—they're coming."
After a few words of encouragement to Miyagi, Akagi gave a stern warning to the team.
With everyone's eyes on him, Shoichi dribbled to just outside the three-point line, initiating his next offensive setup.
Perhaps because of the earlier embarrassment, Miyagi's concentration now was razor-sharp—like a tightly coiled spring.
With Miyagi's airtight defense cutting off all angles, Shoichi felt the pressure building. Every move was challenged, every breath hard-won.
Now, without the advantage of "Eye of Deception", and with his stamina nearly tapped out, it was almost impossible to get past Miyagi relying on skill alone.
"If this keeps up, I'll just burn energy for nothing. Better to conserve strength and wait for a chance to intercept."
Weighing the odds quickly, Shoichi made his decision. Rather than forcing a play, he pivoted—then passed the ball cleanly to Rukawa.
The moment Rukawa caught it, he moved like a shadow, breezing past Kogure's defense and slipping into open space.
With no one guarding him, Rukawa sank the basket effortlessly—two more points on the board.
That brought the score to 2:17. The gap widened yet again.
As the ball swished through the net, Rukawa jogged back to Shoichi and asked in a low voice, "You alright? Think you can hold on a little longer?"
With his sharp intuition, Rukawa could tell—Shoichi was running on fumes.
"I'll do my best," Shoichi replied simply, nodding.
Rukawa didn't push. With nothing more to say, the two returned to the paint together.
"Akagi, looks like Shoichi's wearing down. Should we sub Sakuragi in?" Kogure asked, glancing at Shoichi's back with a trace of concern.
Akagi followed his gaze for a moment, then replied, "Shoichi's got a mind of his own. If he's truly at his limit, he'll make the switch himself."
Kogure nodded, trusting the captain's judgment.
Turning his focus back to the game, Kogure inbounded the ball to Miyagi, letting him set up the offense.
As Miyagi advanced, Shoichi's expression tightened.
"I'm almost at my limit. I need to make every move count now."
Unlike Shoichi, Miyagi noticed his opponent's fatigue—and a trace of overconfidence crept in.
"Looks like Miyagi-senpai is letting his guard down."
Seeing this, a faint smirk tugged at the corner of Shoichi's lips. It was a small opening, but one with big implications.
Shoichi knew better than to act hastily. In his condition, a reckless steal would likely fail. Instead, he waited—calm and patient—for Miyagi's moment of vulnerability.
"Don't hold the ball too long—pass it!" Akagi barked from beneath the rim, having secured a solid post position.
Urged by Akagi, Miyagi frowned slightly and glanced toward Kogure.
Passing directly to Akagi would be too obvious. His plan was to use Kogure as a pivot—feed the ball to him, then swing it to Akagi.
"He's going to pass to Kogure-senpai!"
Reading Miyagi's subtle cues, Shoichi shifted instinctively in Kogure's direction.
Sure enough, the ball flew toward Kogure just as Shoichi had anticipated.
"No way… He read my play?!"
Shoichi leapt in front of Kogure, intercepting the pass with ease. Miyagi's eyes widened in disbelief.
He never saw it coming.
"Fall back!" Akagi bellowed, instantly turning to sprint toward their basket.
The rest of the seniors snapped into motion behind him, scrambling to defend.
Just then, two mechanical notifications rang out in Shoichi's mind.
[Ding! Mission complete: 5 successful steals — Reward unlocked: 'V-Cross Behind-the-Back Dribble']
[Ding! Mission complete: 10 minutes of intrasquad scrimmage — Reward unlocked: 'One-Handed Dunk']
'V-Cross Behind-the-Back Dribble': While dribbling behind the back, ball speed is increased by 50% via enhanced inertia. Cannot be intercepted.
'One-Handed Dunk': While dunking with one hand, jumping power +20, strength +20. Guaranteed success unless fouled.
"These are both insane upgrades!"
Reading the skill descriptions, Shoichi's heart surged with excitement.
"The dunk skill alone gives +20 jump height? Even a regular person could dunk in that state."
"Since I'm close to subbing out anyway… might as well experience the thrill of a dunk."
Still running the fast break, Shoichi dribbled past half-court and reached the three-point arc, with Miyagi stepping up to defend.
Rukawa raised his hand subtly, signaling for a pass.
But Miyagi spotted the cue, immediately adjusting his body toward Rukawa's side to block a potential feed.
"Now's my chance!"
Seizing the moment, Shoichi drove hard from Miyagi's right side.
Startled, Miyagi rushed to cut him off—only for Shoichi to spin in a tight C-motion, pivoting past him on the left.
"I won't let you get through that easy!"
Despite being off-balance, Miyagi fought to recover. He redirected himself left—but just as he did, Shoichi flicked the ball behind his back.
With lightning speed, he executed a 'V-Cross Behind-the-Back Dribble', darting to the right again with perfect fluidity.
"That movement… it's so fast! So clean!" Miyagi's heart pounded in awe.
But by then, the inertia had already betrayed him—his body leaned too far left to recover in time. All he could do was watch as Shoichi blew past him.
Now clear of the defense, Shoichi charged into the key.
Akagi loomed in front of him.
"Is he going for a layup? Or is it another assist to Rukawa?"
Akagi's brow furrowed, trying to decipher Shoichi's next move. Up until now, Shoichi and Rukawa had faked this play several times already.
"You're not scoring on me!"
Akagi didn't hesitate any longer. He leapt upward, extending his arm for the block.
But to his shock, Shoichi was still rising.
"What?! His jump height—it's almost as high as mine?!"
A jolt of alarm shot through Akagi's chest. Shoichi, barely 177 centimeters tall, was practically eye-level in the air.
At the peak of his jump, Shoichi flicked his right wrist, switching the ball into his left hand as his body spun past Akagi's left side.
With a surge of power, he slammed the ball down into the hoop.
A switch-handed dunk!
For a moment, the entire court went still.
Every eye was wide. Every jaw dropped.
By all logic, someone of Shoichi's height should barely be able to touch the rim—let alone dunk.
But he hadn't just dunked—he pulled off a high-difficulty, switch-handed slam.
It was unbelievable.
Shoichi's dunk had stunned the entire gym.