Slam Dunk: Sakuragi learned from Kawamura Eiki's experience

Chapter 114 The City Where Two Suns Once Roared in the Sky

The four-hour Shinkansen journey left both teams with numb backs and waists.

From Kanagawa to Hiroshima, the view outside the window changed from buildings and streets to rice paddies on the Kanto Plain, then to tunnels and mountain shadows in Okayama, and finally came to rest in the salty wind of the Seto Inland Sea.

The players from Shohoku and Ryonan filed out of the train car, their sports bags bouncing on their shoulders. Some yawned, some rubbed their sleepy eyes, and some grimaced as they held their aching backs.

The outline of the Hiroshima Prefectural Gymnasium slowly became clear in the morning light. The voices of people in the square could be heard from several blocks away, and the colorful team uniforms mingled into a flowing sea in the sunlight, while banners and flags fluttered in the morning breeze.

Players from 59 top high school boys' and girls' basketball teams across the country entered the venue in single file under the guidance of staff.

Shohoku and Ryonan, both representing Kanagawa, naturally stood together, with the two teams forming two rows side by side.

Aida Hikoichi stood in the line, his head turning left and right, his mouth agape like a megaphone: "So many people, so many people! Almost all 59 of the nation's top high school boys' basketball teams are here!"

He muttered to himself, scanning the players around him like a human radar.

"That guy over there, Moroboshi Dai from Aiwa Academy! Last year's national top four ace!" Hikoichi pointed to a tall, slender player with the same hairstyle as Miyagi not far away.

"And next door, there's Morishige Hiroshi from Meihou Industrial! This year's top seed in Aichi Prefecture, a super rookie center!"

The enormous figure stood at the very back of the line next to Ai, with shoulders as broad as a door panel.

"That's Sannoh over there, and the one in the middle is Eiji Sawakita, the number one high school student in the nation—"

When Yan Yi mentioned Sannoh, countless players on the field were looking at Sannoh's position, with many more eyes focused on Sawakita Eiji.

Similarly, the lineups of Shohoku and Ryonan have also attracted the attention of other nearby teams.

Eyes gathered from all directions, and someone muttered to himself, staring at Sakuragi Hanamichi's red buzz cut: "Red hair, what a flamboyant hairstyle—"

Looking at Jun Uozumi's physique, some people whispered among themselves: "Wow, he's so tall! That guy who looks like a monkey must be the second tallest person here, right? The tallest is that fat guy from Sannoh."

Rukawa Kaede and Sendoh Akira's good looks acted like two magnets, drawing all the attention and whispers of the female team members.

Several girls wearing uniforms from other counties huddled together, secretly pointing their fingers in the direction of Rukawa before quickly withdrawing them, and then letting out a low but uncontrollable burst of laughter.

From the nearby queue, a bold short-haired girl walked over, waved at Rukawa and said, "You're so handsome, can we get to know each other?" Rukawa turned his head to look at her expressionlessly, then turned back away expressionlessly.

Seeing this, the short-haired girl covered her face in embarrassment and slipped away.

Miyagi Mitsui and the others standing nearby twitched at the corners of their mouths, feeling as if their hearts had been wounded in some inexplicable way.

Meanwhile, another girl with a ponytail set her sights on Sendoh, leaning over to ask him which school he went to. Sendoh, with that lazy smile on his lips, politely nodded and said, "Ryonan, Kanagawa," then subtly took half a step closer to Uozumi.

Sakuragi Hanamichi watched this scene from the side, his lips twitching as he was about to make a comment, when Yanai's hand, which was holding his arm, tightened slightly, and he swallowed back the words he was about to say.

In the Meihou Industrial team, the coach stood next to Morishige Hiroshi, his gaze sweeping over the crowd and landing on Uozumi Jun, and said in a low voice, "Hiroshi, I didn't expect there to be two people taller than you."

Morishige Hiroshi turned his head, his gaze piercing through the crowd to find Uozumi. Uozumi also felt that gaze and looked back down. The two tallest giants in their respective teams stared at each other for a second across the throng of heads, something in the air seemingly colliding silently.

Morishige Hiroshi turned his head back expressionlessly.

Sakuragi Hanamichi's gaze pierced through the crowd and landed on Sawakita Eiji from the Sannoh Industrial team. The unassuming monk-headed man was standing next to Kawata Masashi, listening expressionlessly to Fukatsu Kazunari saying something.

Sakuragi had only two things on his mind: winning the national championship and taking the title of "Number One High School Student in Japan" from that monk-headed guy and putting it on his own head.

Zebei seemed to sense something and turned to look at him. Their gazes met in the air, one arrogant as fire, the other calm as water.

Kawata Masashi followed Sawakita's gaze, his eyes beneath his thick eyebrows sweeping over Sakuragi before settling on Akagi and Uozumi. A slight grin spread across his face. "The centers on both Kanagawa teams this year are pretty tall. I heard Hainan was eliminated by a large margin from these two teams, so they must be quite strong."

His voice wasn't loud, but several members of the Sannoh team around him heard it, and their eyes all turned towards the direction of Shohoku and Ryonan.

After the elaborate opening ceremony and oath-taking, the teams filed out of the stadium from various exits. The sun was already high overhead, and the crowd in the square began to disperse in all directions.

The players from Shohoku and Ryonan had just stepped out of the side door of the gymnasium when they bumped right into the Sannoh Industrial team at the exit of the passageway.

Sendoh Akira raised his hand and gestured with his chin toward Sawakita Eiji, his relaxed smile appearing particularly carefree in the sunlight: "Yo, Sawakita, we meet again."

After exchanging a few words, Zebei's voice took on a serious tone: "Then good luck to you guys. I hope we can have a good match against Ryonan in the semifinals."

Masashi Kawata stood beside him, his thick arm around Uozumi's shoulder. He added, his tone less provocative and more like stating a fact: "If you can beat Hainan, you should be able to make it to the semifinals. Don't let us down."

Sakuragi Hanamichi took a half-step forward from Akagi and looked at Sawakita: "Hey, little monk—don't let Sannoh lose to Sendoh and the others in the semifinals! I'm still waiting to personally snatch the title of the best high school player in the country from your head!"

Silence — The members of Sannoh continued to look at the sky or adjust their backpack straps, while Zebei didn't even lift his eyelids.

Sakuragi's fingers froze in mid-air, veins bulging on his forehead; he was completely ignored.

Akagi Takenori's large hand reached out from behind and grabbed Sakuragi by the back of his collar, dragging him back.

He lowered his head and brought his mouth close to Sakuragi's ear, his voice squeezing out through clenched teeth: "You better behave yourself, there are so many people watching, don't embarrass yourself."

"Gorilla, I'm telling the truth—" Sakuragi was dragged back several steps, still muttering defiantly, before quieting down under Akagi's iron fist.

Yanai covered her mouth, her shoulders trembling slightly.

After leaving the stadium, the Hiroshima sun shone directly down from above, making the asphalt road surface slightly soft.

Taoka Shigeichi and Coach Anzai walked side by side at the front of the group, leading the two teams to their accommodation by car.

The final destination was a hot spring inn. A dark blue noren (traditional Japanese curtain) hung on the wooden lintel, and moss climbed on the stone lanterns at the entrance. When the wooden door was pushed open, a faint smell of sulfur and the fragrance of straw mats wafted into the air.

Under the arrangement of Taoka and Anzai, the two teams stayed at the same inn. The rooms were in a traditional Japanese style, with paper sliding doors leading to tatami-floored communal sleeping areas, an open-air hot spring at the end of the corridor, and a crooked old pine tree in the courtyard.

Uozumi and Akagi bumped into each other again when they were taking off their shoes at the door. The two big guys squeezed together in the entrance for a while before Uozumi finally stepped aside, muttering, "The door frame of this inn is too low."

Sendoh put his luggage in the corner, opened the paper window and looked at the old pine tree in the yard, which was shining brightly in the sunlight. He muttered to himself, "Hiroshima is not bad! I just wonder if it's convenient for fishing."

Sakuragi pulled Yanai's hand and peered towards the hot spring, only to be lightly pinched on the lower back by Yanai, causing him to grimace and pull back.

Yan Yi had already spread out his notebook and magazines on the low table, displaying an entire battle map, and began to organize the intelligence of each team while muttering to himself.

From Kanagawa to Hiroshima, two teams that fought their way up from the prefectural tournament to the national tournament are now crammed into the same Japanese-style hot spring inn, preparing to fight their own battles on the same battlefield.

>