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

"Coach, I feel like I've forgotten how to play a match since I've been away for so long. How about we have a practice match? What do you guys think?"

Upon hearing Xiang Yang's words, the people from Haichang trembled, looked up, and whistled. They didn't respond to Xiang Yang's words. Anyone with eyes could see that Xiang Yang was angry and wanted to take his anger out on them.

Only Kise nodded repeatedly; he hadn't received a pass from Xiangyang in a long time and was eager to do so.

Takeuchi stroked his broad chin, pondered for a moment, and finally agreed to Xiangyang's suggestion.

"Let's put Kise and Kasamatsu on one team, and Hikaru, Kohori, and Hayakawa on another, plus the substitutes for rotation..."

Takeuchi called out several names, who were then added to the teams of Hikaru and Kise respectively. To balance the strength, Hikaru's team had three starters, while Kise's team only had him and Kasamatsu as starters.

Xiangyang naturally had no objection. He made this suggestion not to teach the upperclassmen a lesson; he wasn't that bored. His real reason was to spar with Kise and see just how big the gap was between him and the current Generation of Miracles.

Kise was somewhat disappointed. He muttered to himself, "Huh? I wanted to be on the same team as Koyo. I wanted to receive his passes."

Upon hearing this, Kasamatsu delivered a sharp chop to his lower back and said irritably, "You're from his family, so what's the point of training? Besides, is it beneath you to receive my pass, huh?"

Kise clutched his back and begged for mercy, while Xiangyang, who was standing to the side, gave a knowing smile.

It feels both familiar and strange.

Looking at Kasamatsu's hand blade, Hikaru couldn't help but think of Masako's tachi.

What is that guy doing right now?

……

"Beep—"

With Xiangyang back on the team, Takeuchi, full of enthusiasm, once again took the referee's whistle. As a loud whistle blew, both sides, having changed their clothes, took their positions, got into stance, and prepared for the jump ball.

Since it wasn't a formal match, but just an intra-team training game, Takeuchi didn't bother with any fancy gestures like bowing. He stood in the center circle, tossed the ball up, then stepped off the court and blew the whistle to start the game!

With a roar, Kobo secured the first attack for the Xiangyang team thanks to his outstanding jumping ability.

Xiangyang received the ball in the backcourt and slowly advanced forward, raising his finger and shouting, "Take it slow, let's get the first ball in first place."

Kise clapped his hands on the ground and excitedly stuck out his tongue. How much progress would Xiangyang have made in three months?

He took the initiative to walk up to Xiang Yang and came in front of him, taunting him in the same way: "Hey, after all this special training, you're not going to be playing a pick-and-roll for the first ball? That'll be so boring, little Xiang Yang!"

Kise's words made Xiangyang pause in his actions. He was just about to beckon Hori to come over and set a screen.

"Alright, since you're so eager to play with me, I'll grant your wish, you genius."

Xiangyang smiled and made a gesture, signaling his teammates to separate them. The other eight people on the field also cooperated perfectly, giving the two of them room to fight one-on-one.

"Hopefully, these three months will not only be..."

"You've gotten quite the sharp tongue."

Xiangyang spoke softly, and before Kise could respond, he immediately put down the ball to adjust his rhythm.

Talent: The textbook of "Big vs. Small" has been activated.

The host's height was detected to be insufficient, so the bonus was reduced.

(Kise's height:

Weight: 77kg)

After three months of intensive training, Xiangyang, whose weight has increased dramatically, finally has an advantage when facing lightweight opponents. His textbook-like ability to beat smaller opponents is no longer just a talent specifically designed to counter Akashi.

While dribbling, Xiangyang read Kise's defense, found the right moment, pushed the ball and changed direction, getting past Kise by half a body length. However, Kise's reaction speed was very fast, not to mention that Xiangyang's increased weight had slowed down his jumping speed. Kise turned and moved sideways, immediately following up.

Knowing Kise's strengths and weaknesses, Xiangyang didn't expect to succeed with a simple breakthrough. He used his assist hand to sense Kise's position, and when he felt it was about right, he pulled the ball back, turning his back to Kise. His big butt slammed against Kise's body with a "thud," and Kise, caught off guard, was knocked out of position by the impact.

Xiang Yang noticed the pressure behind him had suddenly decreased, and without hesitation, he turned around and jumped to score two points.

After scoring, Xiangyang retreated to defend while pouting and shaking his head at Kise, the meaning of which was self-evident.

Little cabbage, how does your big butt taste?

That bastard…

Kise's lips twitched. Even after spending so much time with Xiangyang, he still couldn't help but get worked up when faced with mockery.

Kise took the initiative to get possession of the ball and mimicked Xiangyang's gesture of spreading out. The eight players on the court dispersed again, and the internal one-on-one duel between the Kaijo Twins continued!

Xiangyang bit his jersey, lowered his center of gravity, and waited for Kise to approach, naturally pulling up his trouser legs with both hands.

Come on, let me see if this miraculous impact can break through my Death Coil!

Chapter 86 How to Enter the Zone

Imitating Qingfeng's style!

He didn't hold back, but simply to conserve his energy. Kise didn't use a flawless imitation; he merely mimicked Aomine's playing style. A crossover, aimed directly at Hikaru's front foot.

Talent: Bullying the weak and avoiding the strong has been activated.

Talent: Death Coil (Harassment Version) is activated.

Since the game had just started, everyone except Xiangyang who scored the first point had 0 points. The strategy of "bullying the weak and avoiding the strong" was based on points, not on the players. This strategy still worked even when facing Kise, who was the No. 1 player in the game.

The combination of the two defensive talents significantly boosted Xiangyang's defensive capabilities.

Kise, halfway through his breakthrough and about to charge into the penalty area, suddenly felt an immense pressure coming from in front of him, as if he had hit a wall. Higashi moved laterally to block Kise's path, and the weight disadvantage caused Kise to lose his balance, sending the ball flying.

Hayakawa picked up the loose ball and threw it to Xiangyang. Without much hesitation, Xiangyang gave a signal, and the five players immediately launched a fast break. Because Kise had just lost his balance and almost fell, he was unable to get back on defense in time. The 5-on-4 situation in the frontcourt allowed Xiangyang's team to score another three points.

beep—

The Sun team's three-pointer is valid.

Takeuchi blew his whistle, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes. He hadn't expected Xiangyang's defense to have improved so much.

Not only Takeuchi, but Kasamatsu also saw the key to this round of offense and defense.

"Xiangyang's defense has become much stronger, and he's also gotten bigger. He's getting more and more freakish."

Kise rubbed his face, readjusted himself, and said to Kasamatsu, "Kasamatsu-senpai, I'll take over ball control from now on!"

"You? Could it be..."

Kasamatsu understood Kise's meaning and nodded in agreement.

"You've really improved a lot, Xiangyang. It seems that if I don't take things more seriously, I might lose my ace position."

Kise walked across the frontcourt, dribbling the ball as he smiled at Xiangyang.

What does this guy mean?

Xiang Yang was slightly taken aback. Before he could react, a golden light flashed in Kise's eyes.

A flawless imitation!

A golden light flashed past Xiang Yang in an instant. Xiang Yang's pupils shrank slightly. With his greatly enhanced defensive capabilities, he was not completely unable to react!

A daring steal from behind!

Kise's pupils shifted slightly, mimicking the Eye of the Emperor. In that instant, Hiyori's movements appeared crystal clear in Kise's eyes, as if in slow motion. He dribbled past them with a switch-hand dribble, then executed a "horseback archery" move, easily scoring against Kobori and Hayakawa.

Damn, perfect imitations are so hard to guard against!

Xiang Yang spat inwardly. His defensive ability used to be almost zero, so he had never experienced a miraculous level of offensive firepower in a one-on-one confrontation. He only knew that it was very strong and beyond his capabilities, but he didn't have a clear concept of it.

Becoming stronger actually makes you more aware of the gap?

It's really frustrating...

Once Kise activated his Eye of the Emperor to take control of the ball, the rhythm of the game immediately shifted to his hands. Facing the flawless Kise was just like facing all the Generation of Miracles at the same time, leaving one both shocked and desperate.

Since it was just an intra-team practice match and not a full four quarters, Takeuchi announced in advance that he would only play two quarters.

Kise slapped me in the first quarter.

After taking control of the game, the Xiangyang team was constantly suppressed until the beginning of the second quarter. Kise's stamina failed him, and he lost his perfect form. Xiangyang seized the opportunity and led his teammates to score 10 consecutive points, taking the lead. Unfortunately, at the end of the second quarter, Kise once again had a burst of energy. In the final moments, he imitated Midorima and hit two super long-range three-pointers to win the game.

The final whistle blew

59:

A 7-point difference may not seem like much, but it represents a significant gap in absolute strength.

After the game, Xiang Yang looked at the score and felt a headache coming on.

The three-plus months of special training did improve his skills considerably, but when facing the Generation of Miracles one-on-one, he could only be a background character.

Even if he has a talent advantage over Akashi, what if Akashi activates his Zone? Of course, if Kise activates his Zone as well, winning shouldn't be a problem.

But Xiangyang wants to outperform Akashi in terms of individual skill. Otherwise, why would the national youth team choose him over Akashi? They're just trying to ride his coattails...

"After all this time, I'm still destined to be the second child."

Xiangyang let out a sigh. Seeing that Kise, who hadn't activated his zone, was able to suppress him, his determination to join the national youth team diminished considerably in an instant.

"Little Xiangyang, what are you muttering about? It's okay, it's not shameful to lose to a genius like me!"

Kise wiped the sweat from his face, walked over and put his arm around Xiangyang's shoulder. It had been a long time since he had been so close to Xiangyang.

"Nothing, nothing. I'm just considering the possibility of Pippen surpassing Magic Johnson."

Xiangyang touched his nose, his voice tinged with helplessness.

"A magician? The street performer?"

Kise thought about it for a moment, then gave up. He then said to Xiangyang, "You know what? I went to play with Aomine while you were away!"

"Hey hey~ Did you two have fun?"

While giving Kise a perfunctory reply, Xiangyang was secretly thinking: Should I go out for a late-night snack tonight...? It's been so long since I've had fried chicken...

"I'm so happy! We talked about so many things, like how to join the zone, and the national youth team invitation. I got an invitation, but he didn't! I'm so envious of him now..."

"What?!"

Just as Xiangyang was about to make a sound to appease Kise, he suddenly perked up, ignoring the second half of Kise's sentence. He abruptly turned to look at Kise and asked, "How do we enter the Zone?"

"Yeah, that's right. But what Xiao Qingfeng said was really abstract. He said something about needing to concentrate your mind completely and then pulling something called a 'trigger'! Just like firing a gun."

Kise frowned and said to Xiangyang, actually he couldn't understand what Aomine meant either, he just relayed Aomine's original words.

The original work seems to have mentioned that the "zone" is a realm that only geniuses can reach, and it requires a complete and utter love for basketball...

Xiangyang found a stool and sat down, resting his chin on his hand as he fell into deep thought.