Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

Chapter 102 County Tournament Championship Trophy

Taoka Shigeichi stood on the sidelines and sighed deeply.

With Coach Anzai absent, he perfected the tactics and exploited Shohoku's weaknesses to the fullest extent.

He exploited Miyagi's defensive weaknesses, waited for Mitsui to reach his physical limit, and specifically targeted Sakuragi's defense, rebounding, and scoring ability by having Fukuda pull him away from the basket, making him invisible in the first half.

He also brought out a specially prepared ultimate move, a watered-down version of the triangle offense.

They took advantage of Coach Anzai's absence, knowing that the high school players couldn't find a way to break the tactical pattern.

I calculated every matchup, and I timed every pause perfectly, but I was still just a little bit off.

His gaze swept across the jubilant crowd on the field and landed on the figure with the red buzz cut.

Sakuragi Hanamichi. This first-year student used brute force to break through the tight double-team of the entire court, first crushing Hainan with a back-to-the-basket move, and now piercing Ryonan with a three-pointer.

The red-haired kid I had my eye on last year single-handedly carried Shohoku to the championship.

Taoka closed his eyes, a bittersweet feeling welling up inside him.

If the school board had approved Sakuragi's special recruitment plan and he had joined Ryonan, then Ryonan would be the ones celebrating the championship on the court right now.

Takenori Akagi stood alone at the edge of the crowd. His teammates were jumping and shouting in a group a few meters away from him, but he didn't go over.

He stood there, looking up at the score on the scoreboard.

Finally, I won the county championship.

All the hard work and perseverance I've put in since junior high school came rushing back at this moment.

Tears rolled down his face, streaming down his dark cheeks. There was no sound, only his shoulders trembling.

A hand reached out from the side and grabbed his neck, the force so strong that Akagi staggered forward half a step.

"Let's go, gorilla! Let's go line up!" Sakuragi Hanamichi grinned.

Akagi lowered his head so Sakuragi wouldn't see his tears, his voice hoarse and low: "Okay. You really know me."

The referee blew his whistle, signaling the players from both sides to line up at the center line and shake hands.

After bowing to each other, Akagi and Uozumi stood facing each other, their large hands clasped together.

Akagi looked at Uozumi's face, which was filled with resentment, and couldn't help but smirk. His eyes were still red, but his tone had already taken on the familiar smugness that only an old rival could have: "See you at the National Tournament, Uozumi."

Uozumi was taken aback. Right! His high school basketball career wasn't over yet; there was still the national tournament to play.

He lowered his thick eyebrows, gripping Akagi's hand even tighter, and habitually retorted, "Hmph! Our goal at Ryonan is to reach the top four in the national tournament. You Shohoku better not falter and get eliminated early."

On the other side, Sakuragi and Sendoh stood face to face. Sendoh held Sakuragi's hand, and a name suddenly flashed through his mind, a name that everyone had already remembered on the national stage, a guy called "the strongest high school student" by the media.

Kitazawa. Hmm—that's his name, right?

I wonder who's stronger, Kitazawa or this red-haired guy in front of me.

Sendoh suppressed the thought, and the lazy smile returned to his lips: "Keep up the good work in the National Tournament, Sakuragi!"

Sakuragi raised his chin: "Absolutely! This genius is going to win the national championship!"

The referee organized both teams to line up. The eight teams that made it to the finals of the county tournament took to the court one after another, their jerseys of different colors, standing in several rows under the lights.

First came the award ceremony for the runner-up, Ryonan High School, with their certificate of qualification for the national competition.

Jun Uozumi stepped forward and accepted the certificate, holding the thin piece of paper in both hands. His earlier resentment was overshadowed by his rekindled fighting spirit. He held the certificate high, and the drums in the Ryonan support area began to beat again.

Then came the champion. When the referee announced "Shohoku High School," the Shohoku supporters in the stands erupted in cheers.

Takenori Akagi stepped forward and accepted the championship trophy with both hands. The metal of the trophy gleamed silver-white under the lights, and it felt cool and heavy to the touch.

He turned to face his teammates, clutching the trophy, his eyes welling up with tears again. Miyagi was the first to rush forward and touch the trophy, and the others also playfully tried to touch it, but Akagi stopped them, telling them to be mindful of their behavior.

As Akagi raised the championship trophy high, the Shohoku cheerleaders in the stands erupted in cheers once again.

When the name of the MVP was announced, the entire arena fell silent for a moment. It was Sendoh Akira of Ryonan.

Even Sendoh himself was stunned for a moment, and hesitated for a second before taking a step forward.

The Ryonan ace who scored the highest stats in the finals received the MVP trophy from the presenter, glanced down at the trophy, and a signature lazy smile appeared on his lips.

Standing in the Hainan team, Mu Shenyi led the applause.

The announcement of the All-Star lineup followed immediately: Shinichi Maki, Akira Sendoh, Kaede Rukawa, Hanamichi Sakuragi, and Takenori Akagi. When the five names were read out, the stands erupted in the loudest applause of the day.

As Ryonan left the field, the players walked out along the player tunnel. Taoka Shigeichi, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped, turned around, looked at his players, remained silent for a moment, and then spoke.

His voice wasn't as roaring as usual, nor as tense as it had been on the sidelines earlier; it was unusually gentle: "We didn't win the championship, we were just a little bit short. I know everyone is a little disappointed. But the national tournament is just around the corner."

Therefore, to help everyone overcome the pain of defeat and to achieve better results in the upcoming national competition, starting tomorrow—we will have extra training.

The moment the words "extra training" were uttered, Uozumi and Koshino's cries of agony erupted simultaneously.

Even as he held the MVP trophy, Sendoh instantly donned a mask of pain.

As the awards ceremony concluded, the stadium lights began to dim one by one, and the crowd in the stands gradually dispersed.

When the Shohoku team walked out of the stadium with the trophy in their hands, it was already dark outside, and the streetlights cast long shadows on the square.

Sakuragi held the trophy high above his head with a smug look on his face, while Akagi carefully protected him from dropping it.

The group marched through the square outside the county stadium, turned two street corners, and entered the gate of Beicun General Hospital.

When the door to the ward was pushed open, Coach Anzai was leaning against the bed, his round body pushing up a large section of the blanket, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose as he read a newspaper.

Seeing the championship trophy in Sakuragi's hands, Mrs. Anzai, dressed in a kimono, was taken aback: "You won the championship?"

"Dad—!"

Sakuragi was the first to rush in, shoving the trophy at Coach Anzai. "See that?! The championship trophy! This genius led everyone to bring it back!"

Coach Anzai put down his newspaper, his eyes behind his glasses slowly sweeping over the trophy, then over the excited and happy Shohoku fans huddled together at the door.

"Hehehe." Coach Anzai's chin twitched twice: "Everyone—thank you for your hard work."

Joyful laughter erupted in the ward as the Shohoku team rushed forward and lifted Coach Anzai high into the air.

The nurse who had just entered cried out in alarm, "The patient hasn't recovered yet!"

>