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

A mechanical voice echoed in his mind, and Xiangyang's two moves against Akashi's Noble Phantasm proved effective once again. He forcefully flung the ball forward, dodging Akashi's attempt to steal it. The Rakuzan team's first defensive line was not yet fully formed, and they could only watch as Xiangyang dribbled past Akashi, rose up on the spot, and made a mid-range shot.

Two points are valid for Haichang!

It wasn't over yet. Seeing that he had succeeded, Xiang Yang stepped back and replayed the shot while making a celebratory gesture.

As he backed away, he slit Akashi's throat with a mocking smile.

Talent: The cheers after the goal have begun.

After all, the opponent is Rakuzan and Akashi, so Xiangyang naturally has to do a good job on the details, and he can't let go of any small improvement.

When facing an opponent of this caliber, you can never be too careful.

"Kaijo successfully jumped for the ball in the first attack. Let's see how Xiangyang will handle it. He strolled past Akashi at half-court, then suddenly accelerated and got past him! He took a mid-range shot, and the ball went in! Kaijo took the lead right from the start!"

Inside the live stream, Bobo watched the game with one eye while keeping an eye on the chat with the other.

After Xiang Yang made the "throat-slitting" celebration gesture, Popovich chuckled and praised him again: "Xiang Yang is a very confident player. He not only made a contribution at the beginning of the game, but also did not forget to provoke the opponent. You must have a very strong heart to do that!"

It has to be said that Popovich is exaggerating, but Haichang has a large number of fans, so as long as he doesn't go too far with his nonsense, there will naturally be fans who will buy it!

While bringing up player comparisons between Kaijo and Rakuzan might boost his fan base, sincerely praising every outstanding player is the foundation of Popovich's success!

As the camera showed Akashi using Nebu's screen to complete a playmaking cut, successfully tearing through Kaijo's defense and scoring two points, Popo clicked his tongue and gave Akashi another round of high praise!

"We usually say that basketball is a sport for giants, right? But Seijuro Akashi is a player who perfectly slapped that prejudice in the face!"

"Even after all these years in the basketball world, there has never been a player under 170cm tall who can exert such a sense of pressure as Akashi! Not only does he have a strong leadership presence that commands respect from his teammates, but his presence on the court is enough to make the opposing team feel suffocated!"

"I, Bobo, would call it the strongest 170 on Earth!"

After showering Akashi with flowery praise, Bobo, without batting an eye, bestowed upon him the title of "the strongest 170cm on Earth." Although it sounded somewhat far-fetched, in a sense, he wasn't wrong.

As the match between Haichang and Luoshan began, not only did the reactions of the fans at the stadium intensify, but the number of viewers in the live broadcast room also skyrocketed.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the neon lights, inside the basketball association...

"President Li Guo, I've sent you all the information, and I've marked the promising point guards among them..."

"I understand, that's all for now."

Basketball Association President's Office

Li Guo hung up the phone, looked at the information sent by his subordinate, adjusted his glasses, and began to examine it carefully.

The list includes almost all the outstanding point guards in recent years, including Igarashi Yuhide, the point guard from Touou who just achieved success this year, and his name was specially marked.

Li Guo frowned deeply. Due to his age, the nasolabial folds and wrinkles on his face were all piled up. He looked at the list in the document and flipped down one by one.

"Hey…"

"None of them are as good as Akashi..."

Li Guo sighed and leaned back, the office chair beneath him creaking.

Just then, a sudden inspiration struck Kuriku.

"Huh? Today seems to be the finals in Los Angeles... They're playing against Kaichang... Kaichang's point guard... is his name Xiang Yang?"

Li Guo quickly realized that Luoshan had a lot of talent, and most of the starting players were on the national youth team's trial list, which was why he had some impression of Luoshan's matches.

"Tsk... Let's watch the game, I'm bored anyway."

Chapter 170 Heavy Artillery Defender Hirakawa Takeshi

"Haa!"

With a roar, Takeru received Akashi's pass and successfully used his physical advantage to push past Hori, then slammed the ball down with both hands to score!

"hateful…"

Before Kobori could even feel guilty, Xiangyang immediately picked up the basketball and stood out of bounds, making a long pass to Kise, who was running towards the frontcourt. Kise faced Hayama's defense as if he were facing thin air, executing a smooth behind-the-back dribble and easily scoring a layup.

In just a few seconds, both sides seized on the weaknesses in their respective players and scored a goal for each other.

After the first quarter, the score was tied at 28-28.

"It's definitely going to be a fierce battle today..."

Kise took the water bottle from his teammate, lay back on the bench, and spoke with a hint of exhaustion in his voice.

Unlike any opponent they've faced before, this Rakuzan team is a real threat to Haechang.

Xiang Yang glanced at the scoreboard and said leisurely, "It's still a tie. The first quarter was a waste. Both sides are back to square one."

"Smith Marseille!"

Steam billowed from Kohori's nostrils, his face filled with remorse.

"If I hadn't been constantly shut down by the opposing center in the first quarter... we would have widened the gap much earlier..."

Snapped!

Before Xiaojue could finish speaking, Xiangyang delivered a swift chop to his hand.

Looking at Hori covering his head with a guilty expression, he said irritably, "Senior Hori, you're too naive. Even if you're stronger than that big guy over there, Rakuzan can still score."

Xiangyang's words caught Xiaojue's attention. The muscular man, who was nearly 190 cm tall, pretended to sob and looked at Xiangyang with questioning eyes, which made the latter feel a chill.

"Hey... don't look at me, Kobo-senpai, like that."

Xiangyang clicked his tongue, smoothed out the goosebumps on his arm, and then pointed his right finger at Xiaogui, explaining, "Rakuzan is choosing to use Genbu's physical advantages to score because the two teams are still testing each other. Just like Ryota can easily score against Hayama, we can still score even if we don't play like that, it's the same principle."

Xiangyang's words left everyone at Kaijo bewildered. Kise was the first to raise his hand and ask, "Xiangyang, what are you saying? I don't understand."

Not only Kise, but everyone else at Kaijo was also full of question marks. Yuki had already quietly taken out her notebook from her pocket, intending to copy down what Hikaru said, regardless of whether she understood it or not.

"Seriously...you guys should just focus on playing the game, why are you so curious?"

Xiang Yang shook his head and made a comment, but since his teammate had asked, there was no problem with him answering.

"Listen carefully, Akashi is probably observing us right now, using his abnormally powerful Heavenly Eye to break down our every move and engrave it into his brain."

Xiang Yang looked up and glanced at Akashi on the bench next to Luoshan. Coincidentally, Akashi was also looking at him. The two stared at each other for a second, and then looked away at the same time in perfect unison.

"Rakuzan's real strength will likely come in the second half, just like against Touou, in the third..."

"The real test is when they'll show their fangs. Scoring with Genbu now is just a transition; don't worry about it too much, Kobo-senpai. It's best if you can defend against it, but it's okay if you can't."

Xiangyang licked his lips. Although he could roughly guess Akashi's current plans, to be honest, he wasn't entirely confident about winning the match.

Just as Akashi is observing Kaijo, Mukayo is also observing Rakuzan. The battle between the two teams... has only just begun!

"Xiao Xiangyang, if you put it that way, wouldn't it be safer if we widened the score gap in the first half?"

Kise slapped his forehead, understanding what Xiangyang meant, then confidently patted his chest: "Leave it to me! I'll widen the gap!"

If Kise uses his "perfect imitation" to attack Rakuzan's defense, then the balance between the two teams will undoubtedly be broken. With Akashi holding back for now, Kaijo will take the lead in the second quarter, but…

"I refuse."

Xiangyang decisively shook his head and rejected Kise's suggestion. If they couldn't ensure the stamina of their ace player, then Kaijo would easily lack a key figure to make the final decision in the endgame.

However, Kise's understanding was actually correct. Before Rakuzan launched their attack, widening the score gap would definitely not be a disadvantage, so...

"Leave the second quarter to me."

Xiang Yang snapped his fingers, highlighting the offensive focus for the second quarter. Under the spotlight, his confidence was evident on his face.

As everyone knows, Hikaru likes to fight Akashi one-on-one!

……

……

The second quarter begins

The Rakuzan family's starting serve

Just as Xiangyang had predicted, Akashi continued to organize the attack in the same methodical way as in the first quarter.

However, even with some simple positioning tactics, Rakuzan's offensive performance remained stable thanks to Akashi's superb passing skills.

Using Takeshi's screen, Akashi passed the ball to Reo, who was open, and the three-pointer went in, giving Akashi the first basket of the second quarter.

28:31, Los Angeles takes the lead.

"It's okay, keep up the good work."

Xiangyang shouted to reassure his teammates, took the serve, and dribbled it to Rakuzan's half of the court. Looking at Akashi, who was standing motionless with his body slightly lowered in front of him, Xiangyang revealed a roguish smile.

"Akashi, your big brother is about to start his back attack!"

With practiced trash talk flowing, Xiang Yang once again made that tactical gesture he rarely used – to create space for one-on-one attacks!

The Hai Chang team jogged to the bottom corner, leaving a gap on the high ground for Xiang Yang to make his move.

Sensing the sudden decrease in the number of people around him, Akashi frowned slightly. He looked at Xiangyang in front of him with annoyance on his face.

【Are you really that confident you can beat me? Where did you get that confidence, Xiangyang?!】

"You're too arrogant."

Akashi's pupils dilated slightly, and a golden light flashed in his eyes.

The Eye of the Heavenly Emperor!!!

……

Ten seconds later

Two points valid for Haichang

Akashi walked to the service point with a blank expression and began to organize the next round of attack.

With his talent for preventing steals and his physical advantages, Xiangyang is Akashi's eternal nemesis in solo matches.

"At the start of the second quarter, Los Angeles had a brilliant passing sequence..."

The ball finally fell to Reio, who had an open three-point opportunity and took it! It went in!

"Back to Kaijo's possession, oh my, is Xiangyang going for a one-on-one this time? But Akashi averages 12 steals per game, nobody dares to dribble in front of him, can Xiangyang win this one-on-one?"

"A series of back-to-the-basket moves... a spin! Another back-to-the-basket move! Another spin! Another back-to-the-basket move?? The ball goes in..."

"...Haha, Xiang Yang is a player who really knows how to make the most of his strengths."