Basketball miracles

Chapter 198 [National Tournament, Ace Assassin]

After Shohoku's resounding victory over Hainan, the biggest butterfly effect caused by Xiao Tu was not that Shohoku made it into the sports news, but that Sakuragi Hanamichi kept his pompadour hairstyle.

Unless someone suggests Sakuragi get a haircut, people will see a star player with a spiky, hooded hairstyle who looks like a thug at the national tournament. Sakuragi is far stronger than his manga counterpart at that time; all his techniques are very practical, and he's bound to become famous.

Coach Anzai went to the hospital for a medical check-up, not at Xiao Tu's suggestion, but because he felt unwell after being criticized by the fans. The doctor discussed his condition with Anzai and prescribed some medication. He went home to rest and didn't go to Shohoku to watch their training; his heart condition should be fine.

On June 26th, Shohoku played against Takezato, a complete stomp on a weak opponent.

In the manga, Akagi's foot injury hadn't fully healed, and he only played 9 minutes against Takezato. Sakuragi Hanamichi didn't play because he was asleep, and Shohoku's center was Kakuta Satoru for most of the game.

Despite such a difficult situation, Shohoku, who lacks an inside player, still won 120-81.

Shohoku is now fielding its strongest lineup, with multiple players contributing to the victory. They ultimately crushed Takezato 152-41 by 111 points, securing their second consecutive win and advancing to the national tournament ahead of schedule.

Buri suffered two consecutive defeats, and the audience was very curious as to how such a weak team managed to reach the semi-finals.

The reason is simple: good luck. They were a seeded team, and only needed to win one game to advance to the semifinals, and their opponents in the division weren't strong.

This seeded spot in the quarterfinals was earned by their top-four finish in the Kanto Regional Tournament during the winter. Several players left the team after the last tournament.

The key match of this round was Ryonan vs. Hainan. Ryonan maintained a firm lead in the first half thanks to the performances of Akira Sendoh and Kichou Fukuda, but then they were let down by center Jun Uozumi.

Captain Yu Zhu fouled out after committing two fouls for questioning the referee, allowing the Hainan team to complete a comeback in overtime.

The final battle was a foregone conclusion; even with Ryonan's addition of power forward Fukuda, they still couldn't stop Shohoku's offense.

Yu Zhu was too slow to defend pick-and-rolls and got completely outplayed, fouling out again in the second half. After being eliminated, he decided to give up his basketball dream and settle down to inherit the family business as a chef.

Moreover, Uozumi has completely turned to the dark side, and he intends to succeed in the restaurant industry by any means necessary.

I want to add poppy shells or something similar to the food to make it irresistible, and then open a chain of stores to grow it into a large and successful business.

Within ten years, everyone in Japan, from 70-year-old seniors to 7-year-old children, will be required to eat at my restaurant.

I'm going to launch kids' meals so that children can't live without my food, and they'll run to the store, hug my legs, and cry. I want everyone to know that my products, Uozumi Jun's, are the purest, hehehe.

Xiangbei won the county championship and made a strong run into the national tournament.

Unlike in the manga, Takenori Akagi didn't cry. His goal truly became national domination. This time, he wasn't just talking big; he won effortlessly.

Hainan team easily defeated Wuli to win the runner-up title in the county tournament and advanced to the summer national tournament along with Xiangbei.

Xiao Tu was selected as MVP, which was no surprise.

Sakuragi Hanamichi, Rukawa Kaede, and Akagi Takenori were also selected for the All-Star Team. The only other player from another team to be selected for the All-Star Team was Maki Shinichi from Hainan.

After the celebration, Coach Anzai brought bad news to the players. Despite Shohoku's resounding victory over Hainan in the prefectural tournament, they would not be seeded for the national tournament according to the rules.

Japan's high school basketball tournament system is very well-established, with team rankings and seedings based on the results of the regional tournaments that year. Shohoku High School played in one winter selection tournament but was eliminated in the first round.

The seeding for the national tournament is determined by the combined results of two matches, and Shohoku is no match for Hainan, who have won one championship and one runner-up title.

Moreover, only one team from the same region can be a seeded team, and the other team, no matter how strong, can only swallow its pride and be at a disadvantage when grouping for the national tournament.

Shohoku will play one more game than Hainan in their first appearance in the national tournament; their opponent will be determined by a draw.

Each team has had a long time to prepare for the national competition, which will take place in a little over a month.

Xiao Tu took a two-week leave and traveled to Japan with Yuki Uchida, visiting many cities.

Besides sightseeing, they mainly enjoyed sampling local delicacies. In the 90s, Japan was the most economically developed country in Asia, and there were many things to do.

Xiao Tu, relying on his culinary genius, automatically recorded many menus, most of which were excellent, and those with flaws could be improved. Except for natto, which was slippery, thick, and smelly. Xiao Tu only took one bite and was immediately convinced; it was like durian and stinky tofu—some loved it, some hated it. Yuki Uchida liked it, but Xiao Tu said he couldn't accept it at all.

It is undeniable that it is indeed a very healthy food.

After returning to Kanagawa, Xiao Tu went to Shohoku High School for a few more days to attend the final exams. He was just going through the motions; his grades didn't matter, and the school wouldn't prevent him from participating in the national tournament.

According to school regulations, students who fail four subjects are ineligible to participate in the national competition. The four underachieving students from Shohoku High School passed their make-up exams after a night of intensive tutoring.

Xiao Tu heard that they were doing the same test paper, and all they had to do was memorize the correct answers. Actually, none of the four of them were stupid; they just didn't like studying.

With school on summer vacation, the Shohoku players are undergoing a week-long training camp in preparation for the national tournament, which is ten days away. Their friendly match opponent is Josei High School, the representative team from Shizuoka Prefecture, arranged by Coach Anzai.

Sakuragi Hanamichi has mastered his mid-range shot and went to practice matches. Without Xiao Tu, Shohoku easily defeated Changcheng, a team that reached the quarterfinals of the previous season, twice.

Xiao Tu stayed at home, and even when he practiced basketball, he would just practice casually with Yuki Uchida, mainly shooting.

He took the time to sign a contract with a Hollywood record label and plans to release an EP album in Japan.

On August 1st, the Shohoku team took the Shinkansen to Hiroshima to participate in the national tournament, which was the most prestigious tournament in the summer.

Shohoku's matchups are exactly the same as in the manga; winning the prefectural tournament didn't improve their schedule. It's supposed to be a draw, but nobody from Shohoku even bothered to draw; it's clearly a matchup deliberately arranged by the organizers.

Akagi and the others weren't surprised to see their team facing Sannoh Industrial in the second round; their confidence was soaring. Just like Xiao Tu said, they were very strong, and even without Xiao Tu, they could easily defeat a team at the national top eight level.

However, Xiao Tu caused a butterfly effect: the coach of Shenze Sports University did not approach Akagi and had no intention of giving him a recommendation for university admission.

In the manga, the coach of Fukada University believed that Shohoku was Akagi's team, and their success was largely due to his strong leadership. Currently, Xiao Tu is clearly leading the team; Akagi's average points per game aren't even as high as Mitsui's, making him less prominent.

Xiao Tu didn't intend to sabotage Akagi; it was simply that Akagi's individual abilities weren't strong enough. In the manga, he also failed to get into Shenzhen University of Physical Education; the coach realized he was more of a blue-collar worker. After the National Tournament, Akagi left the Shohoku basketball team to seriously study and prepare for the college entrance exam.

On the train, a minor unpleasant incident occurred. Toyotama High School's power forward, Minori Kishimoto, came from afar to cause trouble.

Kishimoto put his arm around Kogure Kiminobu's neck from behind and said unhappily, "You only mention Sannoh and Aiwa, do you think Toyotama is a third-rate team?"

Xiao Tu watched the whole thing without saying a word. This ponytail guy was an arrogant and incompetent nobody, and he had no interest in talking to him.

Xiao Tu felt even more disgusted with Feng Yu's "ace assassin," Nan Lie. This guy resorted to malicious violence when he couldn't win; it was utterly disgusting. His little bit of sudden realization couldn't whitewash him at all.

Wait, now I'm Shohoku's ace, so Nanlie should be the one to guard me, right?
Would he be so stupid as to elbow me too? If I get hurt, this could become an international incident.

Okay, this guy will probably make a move. If Nan Lie doesn't resort to dirty tricks, Feng Yu simply can't win against him based on skill alone.

Teams arrived in Hiroshima and checked into their hotels. In the afternoon, the players gathered at the designated arena to take an oath. As they left the arena, the Hainan players, led by Maki Shinichi, greeted the Shohoku players and agreed to meet again in the semifinals.

At this point, Toyotama's players came to cause trouble again, saying that "one corner of the semi-finals has collapsed."

The people from Hainan were too lazy to argue with them, and even looked at them with a hint of pity. Mu Shenyi chuckled, "How pathetic, facing Shohoku in the very first game. Doesn't your coach ever show you game tapes?"

Xiao Tu stood by as a spectator, but someone approached him to speak. "Ace Killer" Nan Lie told him, "I've seen your news reports. I'll be watching you. We'll see who's stronger tomorrow. We basketball players, win or lose, must play without regrets."

Xiao Tu smiled in response, "So there really are people who want to die."

Your basketball career will be filled with regret.

I guarantee that after this game, you'll never want to play basketball again.

In terms of team style, Toyotama's run-and-gun offense was very entertaining and ahead of its time. However, Xiao Tu also led his team in a run-and-gun style, and Shohoku's players were clearly more athletic.

If a team were to run a game against Shohoku, there would be plenty of open spaces, at most requiring one-on-one defense. Wouldn't that just be Shohoku's dunking show? Shohoku wouldn't have this much fun against other teams.

(End of this chapter)