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

Sendoh Akira put away his usual nonchalant smile.

He looked at Uozumi with an unprecedented seriousness in his eyes, as if a fire was burning in them.

"Don't worry, Captain."

At that moment, Yan Yi saw something called "ambition" in Sendoh's eyes.

As long as the path of immortality exists.

The era of Ryonan has never ended!

……

"Hikoichi?"

"Hey! What are you spacing out for!"

A deep voice violently pulled Yan Yi back from his memories.

Outside the Osaka Prefecture preliminary competition venue.

Yan Yi looked up abruptly, and what came into view was not a person, but a wall.

A tall man wearing Toyotama High School's team uniform was looking down at him.

"Ah... Ah Hui?"

Yan was dumbfounded, her neck aching from looking up.

Is this thing on hormones?

Is this still the same kid who used to follow him around in junior high?

Teruo Okawa looked down at Hikoichi, a smug, superior smile playing on his lips.

"Long time no see, Hikoichi."

He gestured to show the height difference between the two and sighed dramatically.

His tone was full of Versailles flavor:

"Sigh, after I transferred schools in my second year of junior high, I suddenly started growing like crazy."

"It's grown 20 centimeters in one go, it's really annoying."

Huinan bent down, getting close to Yan Yi's shocked face, his tone teasing:

"But Yan Yi, you haven't changed at all!"

"Still the same... appearance."

Yan Yi's forehead veins bulged, the feeling of being "patted on the head" by his former underling instantly broke his defenses.

"Nonsense...nonsense!"

"Of course I'm growing!"

"His height was 2 millimeters higher during last month's physical exam! Do you understand what 2 millimeters means?!"

"I'm still developing!"

He stood on tiptoe, trying to make himself look more imposing, his face flushed red.

"and……"

Yan Yi gritted his teeth and pointed at Hui Nan's nose.

"Ahui, you've gotten taller, and you've gotten arrogant, haven't you?"

"Don't forget! You used to be a tagalong following me around like a shadow!"

"I even taught him how to dribble!"

Teruo Okawa straightened up, curled his lip in disdain, and looked at someone as indifferent as if he were just looking at a passerby.

"That must be the old Chinese calendar."

"Right now, I'm a regular starter for Toyotama High School, the champion team in Osaka."

"The past is the past, the present is the present."

He crossed his arms, striking a pose of a powerful figure.

Hui Nan stopped dwelling on the topic and casually asked, "By the way, did your Ryonan team qualify for the IH tournament?"

Yan Yi's momentum deflated instantly, like a punctured balloon.

He lowered his head, his fingers gripping the hem of his clothes tightly, and his voice was so soft it was barely audible: "...No."

"ha?"

Just then, a frivolous and arrogant voice cut in from the side.

"Ryonan? You mean that Ryonan High School in Kanagawa?"

Yan turned his head.

A long-haired man with a slicked-back hairstyle and a ponytail walked over.

The man had fierce eyes and exuded a thuggish aura that said, "I'm the villain, who am I afraid of?"

"Kishimoto-senpai!"

Teruo Okawa respectfully introduced, "This is our team's ace, senior Minori Kishimoto. He's the one who taught me how to play basketball."

Hui-nan emphasized, "It's real basketball, not some child's play game."

Yan's fist hardened.

Real basketball?

Did I teach marbles before?

Kishimoto spat out the toothpick in his mouth and looked Yanichi up and down, who looked like an elementary school student.

He then scoffed, his face full of disdain.

"Where you live... there's someone named Sendoh, right?"

Yan was taken aback: "You...you know Senior Xiandao?"

Even the strong teams in Osaka know the name of Sendoh-senpai?

The small flame of pride that had been extinguished in Yan Yi's heart reignited.

Look!

That's what you call prestige!

Kishimoto pulled a crumpled basketball magazine out of his sports bag and tossed it around with a rustling sound.

"There's a report about it here."

He pointed to the cover photo of Sendoh holding the ball with one hand and looking sharp.

The title is written in bold black font:

[Ryonan's genius player, the dazzling magician - Akira Sendoh].

Yan Yi's eyes lit up. It was written by his older sister, Aida Yayoi.

"A genius?"

Kishimoto looked at the photo, a highly sarcastic smile curving his lips.

His eyes revealed a naked jealousy and sourness:

"Few domestic athletes receive such praise."

"And he's just a high school student."

He closed the magazine as if he had touched something dirty:

"It really makes me feel sorry for that version of myself... who wanted to compete against him in the IH tournament..."

"I feel ashamed."

Yan Yi's smile froze on his face, as if he had been fed a fly.

……

Kanagawa, by the sea.

The sea breeze was slightly salty, and the water shimmered.

There is no hustle and bustle of Osaka here, only the white noise of waves crashing against the rocks.

Akira Sendoh sat on the embankment, holding a fishing rod, looking as leisurely as a retired senior official.

But his usually smiling, almond-shaped eyes were unfocused at this moment.

The float was shaking violently on the sea surface, clearly indicating that a big fish had taken the bait, but he seemed not to see it.

My mind is filled with images of that day's match.

That figure in control of the game, that gaze that even he couldn't fully see through.

"Zone, huh...?"

Sendoh muttered to himself, looking up at the boundless blue sea.

The feeling was like standing in front of a tightly closed door.

The light shining through the crack in the door made even this usually easygoing man feel an unprecedented hunger.

"That guy Lin Bei..."

"This is really a difficult problem for me."

Sendoh suddenly laughed.

That smile concealed a knife.

That is the sharp edge of a top predator.

……

Let's switch our focus back to Osaka.

Yan Yi was so angry that he trembled all over, and his face turned as red as a pig's liver.

Kishimoto didn't take this short guy seriously at all.

He rolled the magazine into a tube, clapped it lightly in his palm, and spoke with utter contempt, as if he were evaluating a piece of trash.

"Unable to even participate in the IH tournament, it turns out their level is nothing special."

"Everyone seems to be praising him way too much."

"What magician, what genius, and he can't even make it out of the county competition?"

"Oh right, there's also an MVP named Lin Bei?"

"Beating a weak team like Ryonan shouldn't be considered particularly impressive."

"The quality of Kanagawa is just so-so."

"It's infuriating that someone like this can be on a magazine cover. The media these days really has no taste."

Kishimoto shook his head, looking utterly disappointed.

"Who are you calling a weak team?! Who are you calling trash?!"

Yan Yi finally snapped!

Enough is enough! There's no need to endure it any longer!

He rushed forward suddenly.

Although his height only reaches Kishimoto's chest.

But its aura was like that of a little lion whose tail had been stepped on.

"Excuse me for interrupting!"

Hikoichi pointed at Kishimoto's nose, spitting everywhere.

He immediately launched into verbal sparring mode:

"Who do you think you are, with your ponytail and slicked-back hair?!"

"You dare to comment on Senior Sendoh?!"