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

"call…"

Hearing the referee's ruling, Yuki breathed a sigh of relief and turned to apologize to her teammates, but was kicked in the butt by Xiangyang.

Yuki turned his head and covered his buttocks, thinking that Xiangyang was blaming him for his failed attack. He was about to say something when Xiangyang stopped him with a "shh" gesture.

"Listen, kid, don't apologize for your mistakes on the court. Taking notes is what you do after the game."

Xiangyang put his arm around Yuki's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "At times like this, just say what I say."

Yuki paused for a moment, then nodded firmly and said, "I understand, Senior Xiangyang, thank you!"

"Hmm, good girl."

Xiangyang smiled and patted Yuki on the shoulder, then pointed to the edge of the court, signaling Yuki to serve. Yuki understood immediately and went over to serve the ball to Xiangyang.

At this point in the game, Yuuki realized that with his current star status, he was not good enough to fight against an opponent of Rakuzan's caliber. Fortunately, Kaijo did not need a freshman like him to step up and carry the team.

After all, even if the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up. As long as Hikaru and Kise don't leave the field, they won't put the team's pressure on Yuuki.

Humming a little tune, Xiangyang swayed step by step toward Akashi. Feeling the aura emanating from the other, Xiangyang smiled and said, "My junior, thank you for taking care of me."

"But let's get the audience's attention back to us..."

After speaking, Xiang Yang narrowed his eyes slightly and subtly pulled up his trouser leg with his right hand. At the same time, a flash of white lightning appeared in his pupils.

Talent: Zone activated!

The next moment, as if to verify the mechanical voice in Xiangyang's mind, an invisible wave of energy emanated from Xiangyang's body. He stomped his right foot on the ground and broke through on the right side, while his left arm was already ready to fight Akashi!

Akashi frowned, knowing he couldn't stop Xiangyang at this moment. Instead of trying to steal the ball, he leaped back, intending to use Rakuzan's defensive support to stop Xiangyang.

Despite noticing Akashi's intentions, Xiangyang's expression remained unchanged, and he maintained his ready-to-confrontation stance until Hirakawa stepped forward to double-team Akashi. Instead of retreating, Xiangyang advanced and crashed headfirst into Hirakawa's arms, while simultaneously throwing the ball towards the basket with both hands.

The basketball, unsurprisingly, veered off course and missed completely, yet Xiangyang...

He seemed completely unconcerned, and even high-fived his teammates one by one to celebrate.

Beep—beep—

Just as everyone was a little confused, the referee suddenly stepped forward and blew his whistle.

Luoshan committed a defensive foul, and Haichang's number 2 player got two free throws!

“Nani???”

Pingchuan, who had been called for a foul, looked completely bewildered. He jogged over to the referee, spread his hands, and expressed his dissatisfaction.

"That was a great defense! A clean and excellent defense! Can't you see? That guy jumped right on me!"

Pingchuan was extremely agitated. In his view, the ruling was a complete misjudgment. He had no intention of fouling Xiangyang at all, and he hadn't even moved while standing on the ground. How could this be a foul?

However... although this first-year student from Los Angeles plays basketball well, it's clear that he still needs to learn more about interpersonal skills and social etiquette on the court!

Before the others in Luoshan could stop it, whether it was the referee's bad temper or Pingchuan's overly excited actions, the referee crossed one palm with the other, making a "T" shape. Any basketball enthusiast could recognize the meaning of this gesture at a glance!

Los Angeles No. 13 technical foul

Hai Changyi (one penalty and one throw-in)!

Pingchuan froze for a moment, then the next second, his expression instantly turned furious: "You!..."

"Shut up, Hirankawa!"

Fortunately, Akashi stepped in and stopped his hot-tempered junior. He turned around and bowed slightly to the referee to apologize, and the referee naturally had to give face to the sponsor of the event.

No argument took place between the players and the referee.

Even Akashi couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as he watched the referee's retreating figure.

"Fortunately... it's not the worst outcome."

Akashi muttered something, then his eyes sharpened as he looked at Hirakawa beside him and said, word by word, "Do you know... you almost ruined this match, Hirakawa!"

(Basketball trivia: A technical foul is a foul committed by a player without physical contact, such as overly sarcastic gestures and verbal abuse, as well as questioning the referee's calls.)

The penalty is one free throw and possession for the opposing team, plus one free throw and one point.

PS: Two technical fouls result in immediate ejection from the game, disqualifying the player from continuing.

"Private Marseille... But Akashi, I really didn't foul! Believe me, that kid came up to me on his own, the referee was just making a bluff!"

A hint of guilt flashed across Pingchuan's face, but it quickly turned into anger. He pointed at Xiangyang not far away and said through gritted teeth.

"Shut up!"

With another sharp shout, Akashi stopped Hirakawa's complaints. He glanced at Hikaru, who was peeking at the commotion, and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.

"Listen, Hirakawa, I'm not criticizing you for committing the foul, but for your behavior afterward. Complaining to the referee? Is your brain all muscle?!"

Akashi's tone was harsh, but he was right. If Hirakawa continued to argue with the referee and ended up being ejected, then Rakuzan would truly be facing a major crisis!

When the game is only halfway through, the team's starting lineup is the first to falter and leave the team. What could be more damaging to the team's morale than this?

Moreover, Hirakawa was handpicked by Akashi and put in the starting lineup as a special weapon to counter Hikaru! His strong physique combined with his guard-like playing style makes him very effective against Hikaru and can cause him a lot of trouble!

Strangely, even though Akashi is only 170cm tall, almost 20cm shorter than Hirakawa, the big guy was as obedient as a child when Akashi was giving a lecture, showing no signs of being rebellious.

Seeing that Akashi's reprimand was not going to end anytime soon, Coach Shirogane Eiji of Rakuzan simply called a timeout for Akashi to use for a meeting.

Los Angeles applies for suspension

Hirakawa Yi:......

(I'm feeling unwell, guys... I might have to take the next few days off...)

Chapter 173 The Golden-Eyed Akashi Reappears

"Hello everyone, welcome to the program 'Basketball Rendezvous,' exclusively sponsored by Akashi Group!"

"This episode is another special column from Basketball Talk – live broadcast! I'm your host, Sasha."

"I'm your host, Nini."

"Yes, I'm Bobo."

In front of the camera, the director kept giving the three people coded signals.

Since the game went into a pause, there was a gap in the screen. In order to prevent the audience from feeling that the screen was too empty, the hosts naturally had to do something.

After a brief moment of thought, Sasha decided to pass the buck to Bobo and just focus on being a good straight man.

She raised her hand to brush a strand of hair behind her ear and asked Bobo, "Mr. Bobo, which team do you think has the upper hand in this match so far? And which team do you think will win the championship? Could you share your thoughts with us?"

The director subtly gave Sasha a thumbs-up, and then had the cameraman point the camera at Bobo's face.

This master of balancing acts maintained his consistent performance and did not disappoint.

"Hmm... The score is currently 77-73, with Haichang leading. There are still three minutes left in the third quarter, and it seems like Haichang is ahead. But we have to say, in high-level games, a difference of less than ten points is practically negligible. Why? Because everyone's skill level is very high! A single three-pointer on offense can bring the score back significantly, like that Winter Cup semi-final a few years ago..."

Bobo launched into a long-winded speech, failing to clarify the relative strengths and weaknesses of Luoshan and Haichang, and instead rambling on about a bunch of classic matches that had occurred in the past.

Sasha could only smile and nod in response to her partner, who considered impartiality an industry benchmark, not daring to say anything more, for fear that she might accidentally offend him and say something she couldn't understand.

However, although Sasha harbored deep resentment towards her partner, the show's director actually liked Bobo very much.

Perhaps it's because... this kind of talkative person who doesn't offend anyone can easily drag out the show's runtime!

The director glanced at the time and, noticing that the timeout was about to end, quickly gestured to Bobo, who was still rambling on.

Director: The pause is over. Let's get back to the topic.

Bobo: Received.

Bobo understood immediately and gave him a reassuring look.

"Okay, let's shift our focus back to the game itself; we're currently at the end of the third quarter..."

……

……

Hai Chang took the first three free throws!

Because Xiangyang drew a foul from Pingchuan, and with the addition of a free throw and possession from a technical foul, Luoshan had just returned from a timeout when they faced Haichang's offensive onslaught.

Akashi watched expressionlessly as Xiangyang stood at the free-throw line in Rakuzan's half of the court. It was too late to regret it now. Rakuzan's most important task was to narrow the gap as much as possible before the fourth quarter began!

Swish swish!

Three swishes through the net; Haichang's three free throws were all taken by Xiangyang. This kind of test of composure and mental fortitude was precisely what...

His strength.

After all, the calm and elevated thinking brought about by "excessive thinking" is not something to be taken for granted.

"In this summer season, Xiang Yang ranked second in free throw percentage among all players with a 94.6% success rate! It has to be said that he has always been a frighteningly calm player!"

Incidentally, on that list that considers free throw percentage, the only person with a higher free throw percentage than Hikaru is Midorima, with a 100% free throw percentage! Unbelievable…

After the three free throws, it's not over yet. Given Hirakawa's technical foul, Kaijo will also have the ability to inbound the ball first!

This time, with Pingchuan as a precedent, the Luoshan team was more restrained in their defensive actions against Xiangyang's attack, and did not give him a chance to draw a foul.

Xiang Yang wasn't in a hurry. For him, free throws were just icing on the cake. He wasn't a player who would be helpless against his opponents once the referee's protection was gone.

After several rounds of ball movement, Kise finally had a chance to score a mid-range shot from the 45-degree angle on the wing.

Swish!

As expected, the wire entered the net hollow.

At this moment, the score is 82-73!

The difference of just four points turned into a nine-point difference after Xiangyang made three free throws and Kise scored another basket!

Even if Los Angeles hits consecutive three-pointers, it still takes them four possessions to take the lead.

Xiangyang clapped his hands and loudly encouraged his teammates, "Hold on, the advantage is ours!"

A nine-point lead is enough for Xiangyang to make many moves. By maximizing the offensive time in every round, unless Akashi finds an opportunity to unleash a scoring surge, this nine-point advantage will persist until the end of the game!

"So... what would you do in this situation?"

Xiangyang licked his lips, his gaze gradually turning serious as he watched Akashi approach.

If Kaijo plays well and can enter the fourth quarter with a double-digit lead, then unless Akashi pulls off a miracle, the outcome of this game is almost certainly decided.