Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 197 NBA Superstar
Time passed by unknowingly and soon it was the end of December.

Tokyo, Kasumigaoka National Athletic Stadium!
This stadium is located in Kasumigaoka-cho, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, and is also known as the Tokyo National Stadium. It is the most important sports venue in Tokyo.

At the same time, this is also the home ground of the island country's national football team. Whenever the national team plays here, the attention of the entire country will be focused here.

It also carries an important chapter in the island nation’s sports history, as it was the main venue for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

It wasn't until 2014 that the historic arena was demolished and rebuilt and renamed the New National Stadium.

That’s right, the venue for this winter competition is Tokyo!

This means that, like Kanagawa and Fukuoka, Tokyo also has two teams participating in the competition.

The Winter Games is a major event in the island nation's sports world, with a total of 47 teams participating, including 50 regional representative teams, the champions and runners-up of the national competition, and the host team.

Every team has gone through fierce selection and competition before being able to stand on this field.

Some national-level strong teams may not be able to break through, such as Kainan High School and Shoyo in Kanagawa, Daiei Gakuin in Osaka, and Meiho Industries in Aichi Prefecture.

Unlike the national competition, the winter competition is divided into two groups, each consisting of 25 teams.

Among them, the seeded teams have the privilege of a bye in the first two rounds.

These two seeded teams are naturally the champions and runners-up of the national competition, namely Buri and Hakata University of Commerce Affiliated School.

Hua Hua Hua~
As soon as Murasakibara and others entered the gymnasium, they heard a noisy sound.

The sound was like waves, hitting everyone's eardrums wave after wave, making people feel excited and nervous involuntarily.

Everywhere you look, there are audiences, accounting for at least 80% to 90%.

Before long, 50 teams gathered in the stadium.

The lights were focused on the makeshift podium where the pre-match swearing-in ceremony would be held.

A few days ago, the winter tournament match schedule was released.

I don’t know what the organizing committee was thinking, but the two highly-anticipated teams, Shohoku and Sanno Industrial, were placed in the fiercely competitive first group.

If we include the seeded team Buri, it will be a death group.

If Xiangbei wants to stand out in such a group, it must work harder.

Fortunately, judging from the match table, if Sanno Industrial wants to face Shohoku directly, it must first overcome Buri.

Three of the top four teams in the country are gathered in the first group. I wonder what Coach Domoto thinks.

In this way, Xiangbei only needs to face the winner of the two teams, and the former Xiangbei will also advance to the semi-finals.

Because Murasakibara was suspended for two games, the first two games of Xiangbei were relatively dangerous.

The opponent in the first game was okay, as it was a weak team.

The second game is the highlight, and the opponent is the national powerhouse Changcheng University.

It will undoubtedly be a big challenge for the Shohoku team, which has temporarily lost Murasakibara, to defeat Changcheng High School.

In addition, the first group also includes the strong team Toyoda.

The addition of these two teams will undoubtedly make the competition in Group 1 more intense.

The competition in the second group is obviously smaller. In addition to the affiliated school of Hakata University of Commerce, there are also the affiliated schools of Aiwa College, Luoan College and Jimbo University.

As for the two teams in the quarterfinals, Darei College and Meiho Industry, they were eliminated in the winter qualifiers.

I have to say, the second place is the biggest loser!

You said so, Hainan High School!
Before the oath-taking ceremony began, all 50 teams finally gathered, which was a spectacular sight.

Although this is Xiangbei's first time participating in the winter competition, as one of the top four teams in the national competition, their location close to the center area is undoubtedly a recognition of their strength.

To the left of Shohoku is Buri, further to the left is Hakata University of Commerce Affiliated School, and to the right is Sanno Industry.

All three teams were ranked AA by Basketball Weekly.

Due to the lack of depth in the lineup, Xiangbei was rated as an A+ team.

Compared with the national competition, Xiangbei's evaluation can be said to have gone a step further, which is mainly related to Xiangbei's performance in the national competition.

Not only did they show tenacious fighting spirit in the competition, but they also had outstanding performances at critical moments, which won them wide attention from the organizing committee.

If Xiangbei's lineup improves further, it may also be rated as an AA-level team.

After all, a basketball game is not only a competition of individual skills, but also a competition of teamwork and tactical application.

There's no way, Yayoi Aida is a fan of Murasakibara.

Her admiration for Murasakibara is beyond words, and she will support him without hesitation no matter when and where.

Other A+ level teams include Toouuma and Aiwa Academy, while Changcheng, Luoan and Jimbo University Affiliated School are all A level teams.

Although these teams may be slightly inferior in strength, the ball is round and they can also cause considerable trouble to their opponents, and may even be able to defeat the strong with the weak.

As usual, Yuho Ikeda held a wooden sign and stood at the front with basketball managers of other teams, forming a beautiful landscape.

Yuho Ikeda said he was used to it and thought he was a green spot among thousands of flowers.

The rest of the Xiangbei players lined up according to their team status, with the Xiangbei Big Three standing at the front.

Because he couldn't beat Akagi, Mitsui could only be the third in command.

In the tense atmosphere, Murasakibara's gaze turned to the right.

At this time, Kashima Fengshimo was also staring at him, and there was a strong desire to win in each other's eyes.

"Kumure, I'm looking forward to competing with you again!"

Kashima Kaedeshimo's voice was full of anticipation.

Mu Mu smiled slightly and responded: "Kashima, you guys at Sanwang Industries should get through Buri first."

"Buri is indeed a team that cannot be underestimated, but we are confident that we can beat them."

There was a gleam of confidence in Kashima Kaede's eyes.

Mu Mu shook his head slightly and said, "Don't forget, Sakurai Kentaro can't play in your match with Takeshi."

Without Kentaro Sakurai, Buri has a great advantage in the interior, and I don’t know how Sanno Industrial will deal with Buri’s twin towers in the interior.

"Damn bastard!"

At this time, Kentaro Sakurai couldn't help but curse, and looked at Murasakibara with eyes full of anger and unwillingness.

He could not forget the humiliation of being beaten up in public by Murasakibara last time.

At the same time, he was also afraid of Murasakibara.

This can be seen from the fact that he is not at all manic.

As long as he sees Murasakibara, his mania will be cured without any medicine.

On the side, Mitsui folded his hands, sneered and said to Sakurai Kentaro: "Tsk tsk, you were beaten by Murasakibara!"

Kentaro Sakurai was furious, but he couldn't refute.

For a moment, Kentaro Sakurai was speechless and could only grit his teeth and endure it.

"Kumure, I'm not shorter than you now, I must defeat you this time!" At this time, Masashi Kawata began to shout loudly.

Compared to two months ago, Masashi Kawata has grown significantly taller.

Judging from visual observation, even if his current height has not reached 185 cm, it is almost there. With his weight, he can even play power forward.

If nothing unexpected happens, by the time of next year's freshman season, Masashi Kawata's height will reach 190 cm.

This is the power of growing 25 centimeters taller in a year, it's so terrifying!
In order to defeat Murasakibara, Masashi Kawata has been training hard during this period and believes that he has made great progress.

"Little Fatty, it's useless no matter how much you yell, because you were beaten by Mu Mu too!"

Mitsui showed his sharp tongue and taunted again without mercy.

Kawata Masashi's fist hardened instantly. He glared at Mitsui and retorted loudly: "Asshole, what qualifications do you have to criticize me? You are only fit to kick trash cans!"

Mitsui didn't care at all and continued to repeat the sentence: "You were beaten by Mumu!"

Masashi Kawata fell silent, not wanting to argue with Mitsui anymore.

In addition to Sanno Industry, Hakata University of Commerce and Buri, there is another team that caught Murasakibara's attention.

Because there are only six people in the team, including a two-meter-tall Nico.

Surprisingly, the one standing in the front was not Nico, but a player who was just over 170 cm tall.

Nanling High School!

This team is from Wakayama Prefecture, a remote area, and the competition is far less fierce than in Kanagawa.

Even so, it is still shocking that a team with only six players appears here.

This means that Nanling High School has won the Wakayama Prefecture Winter Selection Championship, which feels like a comic book coming true.

While Murasakibara was deep in thought, the oath-taking ceremony for the winter competition finally began.

The chairman of the organizing committee began to speak on the stage. He first reviewed the results of last year's winter competition, and then expressed his good wishes and expectations for the upcoming competition.

After a brief and inspiring speech, the chairman of the organizing committee quickly ended his speech.

This move won cheers from everyone present, as they liked this 'pragmatic' style.

After the oath-taking ceremony, everyone's attention turned to the first round of competition which was about to begin, and a tense and exciting atmosphere began to fill the air.

Except for the two seeded teams that have a bye, the remaining 48 teams will be assigned to different venues and compete in a knockout format.

It is worth mentioning that the Xiangbei team did not leave, and their first game was scheduled to be held at the National Kasumigaoka Athletic Stadium.

This has to do with their influence and also has a lot to do with their opponents.

Their opponent is the host Akizuki Gakuen, who won the precious qualifying spot, the host spot, by finishing second in the Tokyo region.

However, their strength is not strong.

The strength of Akizuki Gakuen is roughly equivalent to the middle level of the Kanagawa top eight, and is likely to be even worse than Tsukutake. It is a team that will be eliminated in the first or second round in the country.

At nine o'clock in the morning, the two teams started to play.

Both teams received a warm welcome from the fans.

Ever since the Xiangbei team made it to the national semi-finals as a dark horse, they have gained a certain degree of fame across the country.

Of course, all of this achievement would have been impossible without the coverage and analysis of the media, especially sports journalist Yayoi Aida.

Thanks to Yayoi Aida's relationship, the Shohoku team gained widespread attention.

Compared with the Shohoku team, Akizuki Gakuen made full use of its advantage as the host country.

They made careful preparations before the game and specially organized a group of students to cheer them on, and their momentum was slightly higher than that of Xiangbei.

Due to suspension, Murasakibara, Mitsui and Yuho Ikeda were unable to play and could only sit in the stands to cheer for the team.

Despite this, the three are still full of confidence in the team.

Even without them, with the strength of the Xiangbei team, they have a good chance of defeating Akizuki Academy.

His focus is still on the next game. If the Xiangbei team advances successfully, according to the schedule, the next opponent will be Changcheng High School.

At that time, facing Shohoku without Murasakibara, they will naturally become a big challenge for the Shohoku team.

He can only hope that his teammates can give him more strength.

Beep~
With the whistle blowing, the game officially began.

In this game, Xiangbei sent out a lineup of Akagi, Yamamoto Kuma, Sato Ichiro, Takahashi Itachi and Okamoto Nobuhiko.

After the game started, the Xiangbei team lived up to expectations and took the initiative on the court.

Although Akizuki Academy tried their best, their strength was there. Even though Shohoku was missing Murasakibara and Mitsui, they still seemed overwhelmed.

The biggest weakness of Akizuki Academy is that it does not have a strong center who can stand on his own, which allows the Xiangbei team to use their best one-star four-shooting tactics.

Under the leadership of Akagi, Xiangbei launched a fierce offensive on the court.

Thanks to Akagi's dominance under the basket, the players of Akizuki Gakuen had a big headache.

In addition, Xiangbei's role players have also made many achievements.

In the past two months, Xiangbei players have made some progress again.

During this period, Akizuki Academy tried to fight back, but was easily defeated by the Xiangbei team.

As time went by, the score gap between the two sides continued to widen. The morale of Akizuki Academy was obviously affected and their performance became worse and worse.

When the whistle sounded at the end of the game, the difference between the two sides had reached 15 points.

After the game, the players of Akizuki Academy were visibly relieved, and some even sat down on the ground.

Their eyes were full of fatigue and frustration. They thought they had a chance to defeat Shohoku without Murasakibara, but in the end the opponent suppressed them from beginning to end.

After the game, Mu Mumu did not leave like other team members, but stayed in the basketball hall specially used for training.

He decided to use these two days to focus on honing his fadeaway jump shot, as this skill was about to be promoted.

Murasakibara concentrated on training, practicing the turnaround and fadeaway jump shot over and over again.

This can increase the proficiency of the fadeaway jump shot and the turnaround jump shot, further improving efficiency.

Sweat slid down Mu Mu's cheeks, but he didn't care and repeated the actions mechanically.

Just as Murasakibara devoted himself to training, time passed quietly.

Soon, the time came to noon.

Just when Murasakibara finished his training, he suddenly noticed a tall figure standing at the door.

This is the second Nico he has met today!
The difference is that this Nigo is obviously an adult, about thirty years old, and most importantly, he looks quite familiar to Murasakibara.

"No, why is he here?"

Murasakibara never expected that he would meet an NBA superstar here.

Normally, the NBA is in the regular season during this period.

(End of this chapter)