Kuroko's Basketball template: the king of slacking off, Shohoku's strongest sixth man.

But what happened next was even more outrageous.

The basketball that was slammed onto the floor traced a strange parabola in the air and fell straight toward the basket.

"Clang, swish!"

They're in.

It bounced off the ground and went into the net hollow.

Kiyota Nobunaga landed, still in that dunking pose.

He froze on the spot, his toes so embarrassed he felt like he could dig a three-bedroom apartment out of the floor.

"Damn it!!"

"What a mistake! They completely botched their performance!"

Kiyota's face flushed red, his level of embarrassment reaching its peak.

In the stands, Sakuragi Hanamichi burst into a wild, goose-like laugh.

Slapping his thigh and bursting into tears, he yelled, "Hahahaha!"

"What's that wild monkey doing?"

"Didn't even touch the ball! This is hilarious!"

Kiyota Nobunaga's forehead veins throbbed as he listened to Sakuragi's taunts, and he was about to unleash a verbal attack.

Suddenly, a gasp came from the other end of the field.

"That is..."

In Ryonan's half of the court, Sendoh Akira stood outside the three-point line with his signature lazy smile on his face.

He didn't even look at the basket, and casually tossed it into the air.

At the same time, a figure darted into the baseline like a ghost.

Fukuda is auspicious!

That man with perpetually hungry eyes caught the ball in mid-air, his body arching back into a taut, full moon.

"boom!!"

A one-handed alley-oop dunk!

Decisive, efficient, and brutal.

There were no superfluous movements, only pure tacit understanding and violent aesthetics.

"Whoosh—!!"

The entire venue erupted in cheers.

"So cool!!"

"Sendoh! Sendoh!"

"Ah Fu! Ah Fu!"

This perfect alley-oop completely humiliated Kiyota's previous "abstract art."

Kiyota Nobunaga gritted his teeth: "Damn Ryonan... are they here specifically to humiliate us?"

Lin Bei whistled loudly from the stands: "Beautiful! Sendoh and Fukuda, this combination is really something!"

"Beep—!"

"Time's up! Both sides assemble!"

On the sidelines, the two teams faced off.

Taoka Shigeichi stood with his hands behind his back, his expression solemn like a general about to go into battle.

On the other side, Gao Touli gently waved his folding fan, his face inscrutable.

The two walked to the center line and shook hands.

It sounded as if there were crackling electric currents in the air.

Please give me your guidance.

Gao Touli smiled slightly, the reflection in his glasses flashing, concealing the shrewdness in his eyes.

Taoka Shigeichi gave a forced smile: "Takato, you're still such a good actor."

"They can still put on airs even after losing to Shohoku; their mental fortitude is truly impressive."

Gao Touli paused in his folding fan, his smile freezing for half a second, before retorting sarcastically:

"Same to you."

"I heard you guys got completely thrashed by Shohoku?"

"It seems that Ryonan is just so-so this year."

The two held hands tightly, their knuckles turning white from the effort.

Behind the Ryonan bench, Hikoichi, holding a small notebook, looked on with a gossipy expression:

"Sis, the coach and Coach Takato..."

"Is there some kind of hidden past?"

"Something's not right here."

Aida Yayoi's lips curled into a smug smile: "This is quite a 'ill-fated' affair in Kanagawa."

He returned to the bench.

Looking at the curious eyes of his teammates, Taoka Shigeichi suddenly let out a long sigh.

He crossed his arms over his chest.

His gaze became deep and melancholy, as if he had traversed the long river of time.

"Since you have asked so sincerely, I will mercifully tell you."

Taoka's voice was deep and magnetic, carrying a sense of pretentious shrewdness born of experience:

"Gao Tou and I have been sworn enemies since high school."

The members of Lingnan immediately perked up their ears, ready to watch the drama unfold.

Taoka gazes up at the stadium dome at a 45-degree angle, his eyes unfocused.

"When I was a junior in high school, Gao Tou was known as the 'terrifying strongest freshman,' and he was incredibly popular."

The team members nodded in agreement; Gao Tou certainly had the right vibe.

Taoka abruptly changed the subject, raising his chin slightly:

"But I was in no way inferior back then."

"In that era of many heroes, I also had a resounding title."

He paused, then said, enunciating each word clearly:

He is known as "Taoka Ari of Kanagawa".

Upon hearing this, everyone looked on with suspicion.

Taoka Shigeichi was completely immersed in his own world, feeling extremely good about himself.

He pointed to the current immortal path:

"If I had to make an analogy... I'm like Sendoh right now."

He then pointed to the tall building in the distance: "And he is like Rukawa Kaede, or that arrogant Lin Bei."

"We are a pair of genius rivals who compete with and complement each other."

The words fell.

The Ryonan rest area fell into a deathly silence.

Even the air seemed to freeze.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at their coach's old face, which seemed to say, "Praise me for being handsome."

Uozumi's lips twitched, Sendoh's smile froze, and Kogyo and Uekusa looked at each other in bewilderment.

next second.

The entire Ryonan team moved in perfect unison, as if they had rehearsed countless times.

Everyone pointed their fingers straight at Taoka Shigeichi, shouting in unison:

"You're kidding me!!!"

The roar was deafening, even startling the opposing Hainan team.

A large bead of cold sweat dripped down Taoka Shigeichi's forehead, and he roared back in a fit of rage and embarrassment:

"Damn it! What kind of reaction is that?!"

"I was really amazing when I was young!"

"Besides being handsome, how can Lin Bei compare to my charm back in the day?!"

The noise in the Ryonan rest area stopped abruptly, as if cut off by a knife.

The referee team signaled that we could enter the field.

Taoka Shigeichi's smug "I'm the best in the world" expression vanished instantly.

Instead, he had that signature stern, expressionless face.

The old-school coach's oppressive atmosphere instantly enveloped the entire team.

"Just a little bit of time left."

Taoka simply sat cross-legged on the floor and waved his hand like he was herding ducks:

"Come here, everyone, form a circle, and take a deep breath."

Uozumi, Sendo, Fukuda, Off-road...

A group of tall, burly men obediently sat down, like a group of kindergarten students waiting to be disciplined.

The surrounding area was filled with the cacophony of thousands of people, but within this small circle, the air was so thick it was suffocating.

"Close your eyes."

Taoka lowered his voice, trying to create a hypnotic atmosphere befitting a master:

"Think back to how we got through these past few months."

"Think of the sand getting into your shoes on the beach, think of the back-and-forth runs that make your lungs feel like they're going to explode, think of the sound of sweat hitting the floor like a river..."

"Think about those... excruciating pains."

Everyone closed their eyes.

Everyone fell silent.

One second, two seconds.

Jun Uozumi's face, supported by his over two-meter-tall frame, began to contort, his brow furrowed so tightly it could trap a fly, and his muscles twitched uncontrollably.

Yueye's face turned visibly pale, and his Adam's apple bobbed wildly, as if he had swallowed a piece of burning coal.

Fukuda Kichijo was even more extreme; cold sweat streamed down his temples, a natural rejection of the word "pain" from his body.

Taoka Shigeichi nodded in satisfaction as he watched his disciples become completely absorbed in their work.

now it's right.

Pain is fuel, and hardship is the steel fire!

"Okay! Open your eyes!"

Taoka slammed his hand on the tactical board, his eyes blazing:

Tell me, what did you see?

"Is it the desire for victory?"