Kuroko's Basketball: I'm not the boss?

Akashi stood inside the three-point line, watching Nagatsu gradually dribble closer, his footwork unchanged, remaining firmly in place.

Even so, Nagatsu couldn't muster any offensive thoughts when facing Akashi.

"Hi-muro!"

For Nagatsu, the tactical deployment by Masako before the start of the second quarter was not just an order, but also a relief.

Like throwing away a hot potato, Nagatsu quickly passed the ball to Himuro. However, this time, Akashi did not stand idly by.

Akashi's pupils dilated slightly, and the moment Nagatsu's hand left the ball, Akashi immediately moved towards Himuro. His speed and accuracy of prediction were so great that Akashi's double-team was completed the instant Himuro received the ball.

If it were a player with average mental fortitude, facing Akashi's rapid double-teaming with such intense pressure, they would probably have already lost the ball. Fortunately, this player is Himuro.

As his expression changed slightly, he immediately turned around to protect the ball. Just as Himuro was about to pass it back to Nagatsu, he discovered that Rakuzan had already switched positions and Reo was standing in front of Nagatsu. Akashi, on the other hand, lowered his center of gravity and observed Himuro's movements.

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to hit me with a ball?"

Akashi tilted his head slightly, challenging Himuro.

Himuro, who had just been hesitant, immediately calmed down upon hearing this.

He looked at Akashi in front of him. Akashi's defense seemed loose, and his height and weight were below average, but for some reason...

In a one-on-one situation... the ball will be intercepted.

Himuro breathed a sigh of relief, convinced of his judgment. Faced with Akashi's provocation, he didn't react rashly, but instead waved to Murasakibara in the paint, signaling for a screen.

Having discerned Himuro's intentions,

Akashi was somewhat surprised, but when he caught a glimpse of Hikaru sitting in the audience, he understood everything.

[This is such a safe yet disgusting playing style; I don't even need to watch to know it's your doing.]

Akashi's expression remained unchanged as he felt Murasakibara's screen from the side, and he obediently let Himuro move into an open space.

Takeshi Nebu, who was in front of the defense, came out to help defend again, and Himuro, just like the first play at the beginning of the first quarter, bounced the ball to Murasakibara.

Just then, something unexpected happened.

Akashi, who had been standing still as if blocked by Murasakibara, suddenly appeared behind Murasakibara and caught the ball that Himuro had passed to him.

Meanwhile, Kotaro Hayama, who had been waiting at the top of the box, immediately rushed towards the front. Having finally encountered a "miracle" team with only average attacking strength, "Raiju" could no longer contain his desire to score. At this moment, Hayama made the most of his speed!

The expressions of everyone in Yangquan changed, and they hurriedly returned to the field to defend. While speeding back, Himuro looked at Akashi, who was still standing still, with a strange look in his heart and wondered: What's wrong with this guy? Is he going to give up such a good opportunity to counterattack?

However, the next second, Akashi perfectly answered Himuro's doubts.

He stood with both feet on his own half of the field, holding the ball in one hand, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes.

"Even with the same fighting style, it's impossible to recreate the scene of defeating Rakuzan."

Before he finished speaking, Akashi threw the basketball with his right hand, sending it flying like an orange streak towards the basket in Yangquan's half of the court.

Under the incredulous gaze of everyone in the arena, Hayama, who arrived there first, leaped into the air and completed this alley-oop dunk that spanned the entire court!

In an instant, thunderous applause erupted in the stadium.

Despite the cheers from the audience, Akashi remained unfazed, staring intently at Hikaru, a golden light flashing in his eyes.

Xiangyang touched his nose and gave Akashi a big smile.

At this moment, Akashi, standing on the court, and Hikaru, sitting on the bench, looked at each other, and it felt as if time had turned back to last summer.

"Even though they lost to us, they're always so arrogant."

Seeing Akashi look away first, Xiangyang pouted.

Beside him, Masako wasn't in the mood to respond to his words; instead, she frowned, worried about her own player.

"Don't worry, it's just that the other side scored a brilliant goal. If we call a timeout now, their mentality will be affected."

Xiangyang leaned close to Yako's ear and whispered something. The latter turned her head to look at him and silently nodded in response.

As Xiang Yang predicted, although they suffered a big loss at the start of the second quarter, Yangquan, as a veteran powerhouse, had players with good mental fortitude. With the efforts of Himuro and Murasakibara, the game's rhythm returned to normal.

Midway through the second quarter

The score is 36-36, a draw.

Looking at the score on the scoreboard, Akashi frowned slightly. He did not intend to maintain this pace until the end of the first half.

"Lingyang, switch positions."

With a casual remark, Akashi said he didn't want to wait any longer.

In another attack by Yosen, Akashi took the initiative to approach Himuro.

"I'm curious, what exactly did Xiangyang teach you? If it's convenient, could you tell me?"

? ”

At the top of the arc, Himuro, who was constantly dribbling and looking for an opportunity, was taken aback when Akashi suddenly spoke to him.

"If what I said makes you feel strange, then I'm really sorry. What I actually wanted to say is that you are a bit like Xiangyang, Himuro Tatsuya."

Akashi looked at Himuro, but instead of rushing forward to intercept, he acted as if he had suddenly met an old friend and was catching up with him.

[I'm a bit like Xiangyang... no, we're completely different styles, aren't we?]

Himuro was somewhat speechless, but out of politeness, he still responded to Akashi: "Smith, I don't understand what you mean. Could you explain it more clearly?"

Don't get me wrong, Himuro didn't really intend to chat with Akashi. How could he calmly chat with an opposing player when his team was in crisis? Himuro isn't that carefree.

He pretended to be drawn to the topic of Akashi, but in reality, he was secretly observing Akashi's defensive weaknesses.

Akashi, seemingly oblivious, continued speaking to himself: "Last year's summer tournament, my Emperor's Eye predicted Xiangyang and found that he was just an ordinary person, without the talent of 'us'. However, in the end, I lost."

“Just now, I used the Eye of the Heavenly Emperor to predict your future again, Mr. Himuro. You and Xiangyang are the same kind of people... ordinary people.”

"Oh? Is that so? I'm really sorry."

Himuro gave Akashi a perfunctory response, but his eyes were secretly gesturing to Murasakibara in the paint to come up and set a screen for him. Just as Murasakibara was about to get into position, Himuro immediately started moving, dribbling the ball with his right hand and driving to the basket. He wanted to use Murasakibara's screen to create space for a shot.

"Pick and roll?"

A voice came, and before Himuro could think, he had already taken half a step past Murasakibara. Ahead, for some reason, Rakuzan's Genbu did not come up to reinforce the defense.

Himuro was secretly delighted. Just one more step and he would have a wide-open shot and a three-point opportunity!

However, this final step is not so easy to achieve.

Bang!

The sound of the basketball being slapped rang out, and at the same time, Himuro's ball handler felt a sudden release. Looking down, he saw that the basketball had disappeared!

Turning around abruptly, I saw that Akashi had somehow run to the three-point line in Yosen's half of the court, holding the ball he had just stolen from Himuro.

"You're kidding..."

Himuro's pupils dilated slightly as he watched Akashi effortlessly score three points with an elbow shot.

Los Angeles three-pointer effective

Yangquan applies for suspension

On the sidelines, Xiangyang watched Akashi complete a counter-attack and score so cleanly and efficiently, and couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement.

[I have a feeling that this guy seems to have an even stronger presence than last year?]

On the other hand, Yako didn't think so much. She watched the Yangquan players leave the field one by one, their morale clearly low. She felt anxious, but more than that, she felt helpless.

If even Himuro can't break through Akashi's defense, then there's only one way to break the deadlock... no, that's not even a solution.

That means giving all the balls to Murasakibara for singles play.

Just as Masako hesitated about whether to change tactics, Hikaru suddenly stood up and leaped over Himuro.

"I'm telling you, you always look so gloomy, like Xi Shi."

A melancholic beauty, is that it?

Xiang Yang's sudden action startled everyone in Yangquan, even Bing Shi, who was being hugged by Xiang Yang, was completely dumbfounded.

Who is Xi Shi?

"Oh, I forgot, the regional cultures are different."

Xiang Yang slapped his forehead in realization, then looked at the Yangquan team members who were all staring at him, grinned, and said loudly, "Look at yourselves now! With this kind of performance, you think you can get into the top four of last year's competition? If you're going to continue playing like this, you might as well pack your things and go home to sleep, you bunch of rookies."

At the end, Xiangyang spat on the ground, looking utterly disappointed.

Everyone was stunned, including Yako. She secretly winked at Xiangyang. If they angered the people of Yangquan, even though she would prevent a fight from breaking out on the spot, there was no guarantee that someone wouldn't hold a grudge against Xiangyang and try to sabotage him after the competition.

After all, they were just 17 or 8-year-old boys. It was perfectly normal for them to have a bit of a temper and impulsiveness. It would be impossible for them not to be angry after being scolded by Xiangyang.

As expected, the way everyone in Yangquan looked at Xiang Yang changed immediately. Ziyuan even stood up and walked directly in front of Xiang Yang, his face contorted with bulging veins.

However, before he could even utter the words "Watch out or I'll crush you," Xiang Yang interrupted him.

"Why are you glaring at me, big guy? Did they say they weren't talking about you? You played like a softie. Even the haters are tougher than you. At least a normal person wouldn't just give up as soon as they see Akashi on the other side."

"What did you say, you bastard!"

Murasakibara was furious. He was about to step forward when Himuro, who had rushed up from behind, grabbed him. Despite the huge difference in weight, Murasakibara carried Himuro and continued to move forward steadily.

At this moment, the others from Yangquan also realized that the situation was not right and rushed forward to pull Murasakibara away. Although they were not happy with what Xiangyang had just said, if Murasakibara and Xiangyang were to fight on the spot, the situation would be completely different!

Masako frowned, standing to the side behind Hikaru, her left hand secretly reaching for the katana she had always kept hidden on her person. Even though Murasakibara was her player, if Hikaru clashed with him, she would not hesitate to side with Hikaru.

At this moment, even the audience noticed the unusual situation on Yangquan's bench and peeked out, looking like they were watching a spectacle unfold.

The Kaijo members looked tense, with Kise and Hiroshi Ohara already standing by the railing, ready to jump off the field to help Hikaru if things went wrong.

Fortunately, Murasakibara was not completely deranged. Perhaps it was because too many people were trying to pull him away, but in the end, he just stood there, looking at Xiangyang with a livid face.

In just over ten seconds, a lot happened, but Xiangyang, who had already activated "super thinking," was now frighteningly calm! His brain was constantly working at high speed, and he had already come up with a way to motivate the current Yangquan.

"Look up and look around."

Xiang Yang pointed to the surrounding audience seats, and following his direction, everyone in Yangquan subconsciously looked over, including Ziyuan.

"I don't know how many people are in this stadium, but I imagine there are definitely quite a few. However, among all these people sitting here, very few... no, I'm being modest, there might not be a single one."

"I don't know if you guys go online, but as high school students, this should be instinctive, right? Recently, there's been a lot of discussion about your match, with all sorts of experts and football gurus watching. It's the most worthwhile match to watch in the first round. Unfortunately... no one thinks you can win."

Xiangyang rubbed his eyes and looked at Murasakibara, whose complexion had returned to normal. He slowly walked over and stood in front of Murasakibara.

The two are quite different in height, 183 cm and 208 cm respectively. Xiangyang has to look up to see Murasakibara's eyes.