Black Basketball: A false start

Chapter 264 Danger after Danger
"Let's go for a big fight, Koichiro." Akashi Seijuro took the ball from the baseline and said while looking towards Seirin High School's half.

"The atmosphere is gradually becoming depressing..." Aomine Daiki was the first to feel the change in the atmosphere, and said with a serious look at the field.

"Everyone, pay attention to defense and keep an eye on your people!"

Watching Akashi Seijuro slowly advancing with the ball, Hyuga Junpei felt as if a mountain was pressing down on his head. In order to relieve the feeling of suffocation in his chest, Hyuga Junpei turned his head and shouted loudly to his teammates behind him.

"Yes, captain!" The players of Seirin High School stared intently at the Luoshan players who were walking towards their half, and responded loudly with fighting spirit in their eyes.

"Kuroko, you've found a group of good teammates!" Akashi Seijuro sighed with a complicated expression as he looked at Kuroko Tetsuya, who was protected in the center by everyone from Seirin High School, "But fortunately, my teammates are not bad either!"

"Come on, Akashi Seijuro!" Ebina Ka stared at Akashi Seijuro's scarlet pupils, slammed the floor with both hands and roared.

"Why is it you?" Akashi Seijuro frowned and said, "Why doesn't Kagami come?"

"I'm enough to deal with you." Ebina Yoshi, whose scalp was tingling after being stared at by Akashi Seijuro, said bravely.

"Interesting, let's give it a try." Akashi Seijuro showed a meaningful smile at the corner of his mouth, and his hands moved faster.

"Calm down, Ebinaka!" Ebinaka looked at Akashi Seijuro who was gradually gathering momentum, and silently cheered himself up, "Even if he is the captain of the Generation of Miracles, he is not without weaknesses!"

"Maybe I do have weaknesses, but they are not something you can catch."

In just a moment, Akashi Seijuro's voice floated past Ebina Ka, and accompanied by the sound of a basketball colliding violently with the ground, Akashi Seijuro's figure completely disappeared in front of Ebina Ka.

“Disappeared…?” Ebina Ka’s pupils shrank suddenly, and he looked at Akashi Seijuro in disbelief, “This guy’s speed…is obviously not that fast!”

"Idiot, what are you thinking about..." Aomine Daiki looked at Akashi Seijuro who had successfully entered the three-point line, and said with a barely perceptible sarcasm in his tone, "How dare you be distracted in front of Akashi's Eye of the Emperor..."

"Kagami, pay attention to the backup defense!" While being broken through, Ebina Yoshi was desperately chasing after Akashi Seijuro's back, and at the same time, he shouted a reminder to Kagami Taiga who was at the free throw line.

"Leave it to me, captain!" Kagami Taiga stared at Akashi Seijuro with his eyes flashing with lightning, took a step forward, and pounced in front of Akashi Seijuro with invisible wind pressure.

“Hula hula~~”

As the large jersey rustled in the wind, Akashi Seijuro quietly looked at Kagami Taiga in front of him, who was dribbling the basketball in his hands leisurely, his eyes seeming to scan the entire court aimlessly.

"It's a bit too arrogant to be dazed at this time, Akashi!" Kagami Daigo looked at Akashi Seijuro's indifferent expression and rushed forward with a roar. His long arms stabbed at the basketball in Akashi Seijuro's hand like a sword out of its sheath.

"I'm not arrogant, nor am I distracted." Akashi Seijuro said expressionlessly as he looked at Kagami Taiga who was rushing towards him, "I'm just doing something that will be more helpful to the team."

"Boom!"

As Akashi Seijuro finished speaking, two rapid ball-bouncing sounds were heard in succession. Kagami Taiga felt a flash before his eyes, and then a tingling pain in his ankle.

"What's going on..." The electric light in Kagami Daigo's eyes weakened a little, "Akagi hasn't entered the zone yet..."

"Idiot, Zone has always been the icing on the cake..." Midorima Shintaro frowned, looking at the shaky Kagami Taiga in the field and muttered, "The shortcomings of one's own strength can never be made up by a zone!"

"thump!"

The already shaky Kagami Taiga seemed to have finally reached his limit at this moment. After Akashi Seijuro used another drastic transformation, Kagami Taiga finally fell to the ground with an unwilling look on his face.

"Well done, Akashi!" Kotaro Hayama clenched his fists excitedly and shouted, "Just charge in like this!"

"Yeah!"

As soon as Hayama Kotaro finished speaking, Akashi Seijuro's figure turned into a crimson electric light and rushed straight into the inside.

"Don't even think about scoring a goal!" Teppei Kiyoshi and Ichiro Katsume decisively double-teamed the opponent, and facing Seijuro Akashi who was jumping with the ball, they jumped up from both sides.

"Of course I won't shoot this ball..." Akashi Seijuro said with a meaningful smile, "I just said that I'm a point guard."

"What..." Teppei Kiyoshi looked at Akashi Seijuro in surprise, only to see that the basketball that was originally in his hand was slowly passed behind him by Akashi Seijuro.

"You are indeed very good, Akashi-san, but there is more to Seirei High School than just Kagami-san and the seniors. I also work very hard." At this moment, Kuroko Tetsu suddenly jumped out from the crowd and slapped the basketball in Akashi Seijuro's hand.

"Of course I know you've tried hard, Tetsuya." Akashi Seijuro said with a meaningful smile, "Do you think I'll make the same mistake as Aomine Kise?"

"brush!"

As Akashi Seijuro's voice fell, Kuroko Tetsuya felt a flash before his eyes, and the basketball that was originally in his field of vision had disappeared from his sight at some point.

"Is this... a pass?" Kuroko Tetsuya looked up at the basketball flying diagonally upwards, and suddenly a bad premonition arose in his heart.

"Haha, that's a good pass, Akashi!"

Just when the basketball reached its highest point, a tall figure suddenly cut in from the baseline, stepped on the paint area with both feet, exerted a little force, jumped up, caught the basketball in the air, and smashed it hard towards the basket.

"Nice behind-the-back pass, nice alley-oop!" Tashiro Heihachi's passionate voice echoed throughout the stadium, "Nango-san cuts in from the baseline, Akashi-san makes a wonderful pass to assist Nango-san with an alley-oop dunk!"

"Crunch~Crunch~"

Nango Kouichirō grabbed the basket and swung it twice, then nimbly landed on the floor. He came to Akashi Seijuro and patted him on the back, shouting excitedly, "Just pass the ball to Akashi, I'll dunk every ball like this!"

"Then you must seize the opportunity to cut inside." Akashi Seijuro said with a smile as he slashed at Nango Koichirō.

"Yeah!" Nango Koichirō nodded vigorously and ran towards the backcourt side by side with Akashi Seijuro.

"I'm sorry, captain. I didn't defend that ball just now." Kagami Daiga climbed up somewhat depressed, came in front of Hinata Junpei and said with a guilty look on his face.

"It's okay, Kagami. At least we're not at a disadvantage yet, right?" Hinata Junpei smiled and patted Kagami Daigo on the shoulder and said, "While you still have the strength, use it quickly. Then it will be my turn to show off!"

"I understand, captain." Kagami Daigo nodded heavily, turned around and ran towards the front court.

"Hey, serve!" After Kagami Taiga left, Hyuga Junpei's face changed, and he looked at Kiyoshi Teppei with an unpleasant expression and said, "You are still in a daze at this time, you really deserve to be called Tiexin!"

"Okay, stop calling me by my nickname..." Teppei Kiyoshi smiled wryly and passed the ball to Ebina Ka, then waved his hand at Junpei Hinata.

"Why can't I call you by your nickname, Tiexin?" Hinata Junpei said sarcastically, "You didn't change your expression at all when you were dunked just now. Isn't that enough to be Tiexin? Tie!xin!" "That's enough!" Kiyoshi Teppei said angrily, "Even if it's Hinata, I'll still be angry if you always tease me like this!"

"Oh, I'm so scared, Tiexin!" Hinata Junpei made a face, turned around and ran to the front court, saying before leaving, "If you play dead and slack off in the paint again, I will call you Tiexin every time I see you next time!"

"Really... Is it really okay if the captain and Senior Muji continue like this?" Koganei said helplessly while sitting on the bench, looking at the field.

"Don't worry, it's okay." Yi Yuejun said with a smile, "Don't be fooled by the two of them being at loggerheads on the court. In fact, as teammates, they are both very reliable guys... Last year, we were able to successfully enter the round-robin tournament in the Tokyo region, thanks to the dual core of Hinata and Muji!"

"Vulcan! Catch the ball!"

As the players of Seirin High School entered Rakuzan High School's half, Ebina Ka passed the ball to Kagami Taiga as soon as possible.

"It's you?" Kagami Daiga looked at Nango Kouichiro in front of him with some surprise and said, "You are no different from Hayama, let Akashi guard me!"

"How do you know if you don't try?" Nanxiang Kouichiro stretched out his right hand and hooked his index finger and said, "Come here!"

"Hmph!" Kagami Daiga's face turned cold, and before Nango Koichiro could react, he decisively kicked the ball. The terrifying power that erupted from the muscles in his calves pushed Kagami Daiga out like a catapult.

"Is this true..." Nango Koichiro turned his head with difficulty to look at Kagami Taiga who had come to his side and muttered to himself, "Is this the power of zone?"

"Stop, Kagami!" Akashi Seijuro looked at Kagami Daiga with a burning gaze and said, "I've completely seen through your shooting star dunk!"

"Playing tricks!" Kagami Daiga snorted coldly, and suddenly exerted force with his feet, and stopped abruptly in front of Akashi Seijuro. Then, he changed drastically and came to the side of Akashi Seijuro. The basketball brushed past Akashi Seijuro's fingertips who were about to complete a steal and flew back into Kagami Daiga's hands.

"What!" Hayama Kotaro looked at Akashi Seijuro who had missed his target with a surprised look on his face and muttered, "Could it be that the Kagami's zone has become deeper? He can actually break through the observation of the Eye of the Emperor of Heaven!"

"Just like that... you lose, Akashi Seijuro!" After changing direction and dribbling past Akashi Seijuro, Kagami Taiga clasped the ball with both hands, stepped on the free throw line and jumped up, flying towards the basket like a roc spreading its wings.

"The rest of the game depends on this one goal!" Aomine Daiki frowned as he stared at the basketball that flew out of Kagami Taiga's hands and said, "If this ball goes in, Kagami's condition will be taken to a higher level!"

"What if he didn't get in?" Wakamatsu Kosuke asked in confusion.

"Needless to say?" Aomine Daiki pouted speechlessly and said, "Even at his strongest, he can't defeat his opponent. This kind of distraction is simply fatal to a basketball player!"

"Go in!!!" The substitute players on the sidelines of Seirin High School also realized the importance of this goal. They stood up and shouted loudly, as if the louder the voice, the easier it would be for the basketball to go in.

"Useless Vulcan, you can't score this goal."

As soon as Akashi Seijuro finished speaking, the basketball hit the back of the basket heavily, bounced high on the edge, and then flew out of the court.

"This... how is it possible?" Lord Kagami, I muttered to myself, looking at the basketball that bounced out of the basket with an expression of disbelief.

"Volcano, I understand your desire to defeat me." Akashi Seijuro smiled as he walked past Kagami Taiga. When he came to Kagami Taiga's side, Akashi Seijuro turned his head and looked at Kagami Taiga's profile and said, "But if you want to defeat me here, I'm afraid it's too early."

"Why didn't it go in..." Shinji Koganei muttered with regret as he looked at the basketball that bounced out of the basket.

"It's the stride..." Aida Reiko seemed to have figured out the trick, and murmured to herself with a serious face, "If Kagami wants to complete a shooting star dunk, he must jump from the free throw line. But just now, in order to get rid of Akashi's interference, Kagami's stride was a little larger, causing the jumping position to change unconsciously... Although the degree is so small that even Kagami himself didn't notice it, but this tiny change is enough to ruin Kagami's proud shooting star dunk..."

"Ah, this is so annoying!!!" Shinji Koganei said, scratching his head in annoyance, "Wouldn't it be bad if this continues?"

"It's more than bad!" Aomine Daiki seemed to have heard the complaints of Shinji Kogane, and sighed in a complicated tone, "Akagi may not have even used half of his strength, but he was able to successfully restrict the special skills used by Kagami in the zone state. This sharp contrast... can hit people's self-confidence the most!"

"It's just a position..." Kagami Taiga looked at Akashi Seijuro's back with a grim expression and muttered to himself, "Can I really beat a player like this?"

"It's okay, Kagami-san." Kuroko Tetsuya came to Kagami Daigo's side and said, "After all, we have already made a plan for you to be restrained, right?"

"Uh..." Kagami Daiga looked at Kuroko Tetsuya speechlessly and said, "Are you here to mock me or to comfort me?"

"Don't worry, Kagami!" Hinata Junpei patted Kagami Taiga on the shoulder and said, "Anyway, we have already prepared ourselves mentally for the fact that you can't beat Akashi, so just leave the rest of the game to us!"

"Oh, yes..." Kagami Taiga looked at Hinata Junpei's relaxed expression, the electric light in his eyes gradually dissipated, and then he looked at Akashi Seijuro's back with a serious face and said, "Then I'll leave it to you, Hinata-senpai. I will do my best to stop Akashi Seijuro."

"Hey, everyone, did you hear that?" Hinata Junpei twisted his neck, his expression suddenly changed, and he looked at his teammates and said, "For the next game, pass the ball to me!"

"Yes, captain!" the Seirin players present shouted loudly.

"When I first met him, he was just an ordinary shooter..." Kasamatsu Yukio on the sidelines looked at the serious-looking Hinata Junpei and exclaimed, "I didn't expect that he has evolved into a qualified captain now..."

While Kasamatsu Yukio was still sighing, the players of Seirin High School had already started their next attack. Kagami Daigo blocked Mibuchi Reo who was entangled with Hinata Junpei with an off-ball pick-and-roll, and pointed to the three-point line in the bottom corner and shouted, "Captain, this way!"

"Good block, Kagami!" Hinata Junpei praised inwardly and took a big step to the three-point line. Ebina Ka lightly shook his right hand, and the basketball flew into his hands when Hinata Junpei just stood still.

"brush!"

As Hinata Junpei gently pushed the ball out, the basketball drew a perfect arc in the air and fell accurately into the basket.

"Good throw, captain!" Kagami Daigo excitedly came to Hinata Junpei and stretched out his hand.

"You blocked it well just now." Hinata Junpei adjusted the frame of his glasses and said, "Keep doing this! Defeat Rakusan High School and advance to the finals!"

"It seems that we still underestimated him, Akashi." Mibuchi Reio looked at Hinata Junpei's back with a playful expression and said, "I didn't expect that the little Hinata brother who followed me to learn shooting has now become a big threat to us."

"He's not a serious threat, is he?" Akashi Seijuro said with a casual smile on his face, "I believe you can handle him, right, Rei?"

"Leave it to me, Akashi." Mibuchi Reo licked her index finger and said, "The teacher's quiz hasn't been finished yet."

"It's really impressive that the game is so intense right at the beginning..." Kaneki Ken said with interest as he looked at Akashi Seijuro who was advancing with the ball on the court, "However, the ace players of both sides should be more restrained from now on. Now it's time for the second scoring points of both sides to compete..."

"Xiao Zheng, the ball!" As soon as Reo Mibuchi reached outside the three-point line, she reached out to Akashi Seijuro for the ball.

"Don't underestimate me, sissy!" Seeing this, Hinata Junpei stepped forward and pressed the attack.

"You are really rude, little Hinata brother~" Mibuchi Reio said in a playful tone, "To punish you... I will take four points for this goal!"

(End of this chapter)