The Aiwa Academy players channeled their anger toward Meihou Industrial into their offense. As usual, Moroboshi held the ball, ready to attack. Just then, Amamiya Hideyoshi ran out, setting a screen for him at the three-point line.
Out of the corner of his eye, Rukawa Kaede noticed the movement and turned to react—but Moroboshi used it to his advantage, bursting past him in an instant.
Having gotten past Rukawa, Akagi spread his arms wide to block his path. Moroboshi slowed down, shifted directions, switched hands, and then accelerated again, cutting straight into the paint.
Sakuragi, Shohoku's last line of defense, rushed over from the baseline.
Moroboshi glanced at him, gathered the ball, and leapt—his shot arcing perfectly past Sakuragi before kissing the backboard and dropping into the net.
It was exactly the same move Nango had used earlier.
After scoring, Moroboshi immediately retreated, rejoining his teammates on defense. Their momentum had completely shifted upward.
Captain Akagi remained silent, his brows furrowed. He was deep in thought, searching for a way to stop Aiwa Academy's relentless offense.
Mitsui and Rukawa locked eyes with their defenders, ready to go blow for blow.
Sakuragi, with less game experience, couldn't quite grasp the situation—but he sensed something was off. Looking at Nango and seeing his calm expression, he relaxed a little. If Nango wasn't panicking, then things weren't dire yet.
Nango received Sakuragi's pass and calmly dribbled the ball past half-court. Fukuoka Yuji immediately pressed him, determined to slow his momentum and buy time for a double-team.
Both sides had maintained an astonishing shooting percentage since the start. It was a stalemate—one missed shot could completely turn the tide.
Coach Kouzu folded his fan, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Nango Koichiro… can you seize this opportunity?
Nango leaned into Fukuoka and shot a glance at Sakuragi. The latter understood instantly and ran over to set a screen.
Getting past Fukuoka wasn't a problem for Nango, but once inside, he would be facing two players over 1.9 meters tall. Driving recklessly now would only hurt their efficiency—this wasn't the time for blind aggression. He needed to play smart.
Bypassing the screen, Nango widened his dribble rhythm, making Aoba Yoshi unsure of which way he was heading. That was exactly what Nango wanted. With a sudden crossover, he forced his way toward the middle.
Aoba reacted too slowly, and Nango gained position. All Aoba could do was turn sideways and stick close to him.
In the stands, Maki narrowed his eyes.
Nango could've accelerated just now, but he didn't… Wait—could he be…?
His eyes widened as he watched closely.
As they reached the paint, Nango gathered the ball, held it to his chest, and jumped. Aoba leapt as well, extending his arm for the block.
Smack! Aoba's palm struck hard against Nango's hand—but the ball didn't come loose.
What—?!
In mid-air, Aoba couldn't believe it. Not only had his hit failed to stop Nango, he could feel the younger player overpowering him.
The next second, Nango broke free, released the shot, and their bodies separated.
Nango landed smoothly and turned toward the basket. Aoba stumbled slightly but managed to stay upright, quickly looking up again.
The ball spun on the rim. The referee's whistle blew—then the ball dropped through the net.
"Shooting foul! One free throw!"
Is this guy… a monster?
Aoba was stunned. He had fouled hard, certain he could at least stop the And-1. Yet, Nango forced the ball in anyway.
"Heh, this kid…" Maki chuckled. His guess was right—this was his signature move.
Kiyota shook his head beside him, muttering, "Normal people can't pull that off…"
Nango rubbed his forearm, then walked to the line and calmly sank the free throw.
11–14. Shohoku still trailed by three.
Ayako finished recording the stats, glanced at her notebook, and said, "Aside from Akagi-senpai's two points, all the rest came from Nango. He's on fire today."
The bench nodded. This version of Nango felt almost unfamiliar—but thanks to him, Shohoku hadn't fallen into an early hole.
Coach Sakaguchi gritted his teeth. "That first-year brat is ruining everything…"
Aiwa's players also realized it—they needed to deal with Nango soon, or the game would never tilt their way.
On the next possession, Moroboshi used a screen to cut in from the wing. After drawing a double-team, he kicked the ball out to Amamiya for a clean mid-range jumper.
"Damn it!" Akagi slammed the ball, visibly frustrated. He hadn't contributed much on offense or defense so far.
The same could be said for the others—they hadn't yet adjusted to Aiwa Academy's fierce rhythm.
Nango noticed, but he didn't have time to comfort anyone. Right now, he needed to stay locked in. If his plan worked, everyone's confidence would return soon enough.
This time, Egawa Tatsuhoshi switched to guard Nango, while Fukuoka Yuji took Rukawa.
Passing to Rukawa would've been the obvious play—but Nango wasn't planning to do that. He wanted to attack again.
He lured Egawa toward the right wing where Rukawa stood. Egawa assumed he'd pass and relaxed for a split second.
That was all Nango needed.
He suddenly accelerated, cutting sharply toward the middle. After blowing past Egawa, he faced Aoba Yoshi's help defense again.
At the edge of the paint, Nango stomped hard, raising the ball as if to shoot.
Aoba jumped to block—but Nango didn't.
Aoba's eyes widened. No…!
Nango smiled faintly, leaned into him, and released a soft toss. Whether it went in didn't matter—the point was made.
Aoba Yoshi now had two fouls.
No matter how dominant Moroboshi was or how precise Aiwa's perimeter shooting looked, if their twin towers broke down, their strength would crumble.
And once Aoba sat, Akagi would finally awaken, bringing Shohoku back into rhythm.
It was a simple equation—one side's loss was the other's gain.
This was Nango's plan: turn Aiwa Academy's twin towers into a single tower.
With thirteen minutes left in the first half, Coach Sakaguchi had no choice but to substitute Aoba to protect him.
Aoba walked to the bench with a reluctant expression. Halfway there, he turned to look at Nango, thinking,
This guy's playstyle… it's just like Maki from Kainan.
Moroboshi Dai had the same thought, silently muttering,
Does Kanagawa Prefecture only produce monsters like these?
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