[One-Star Four-Shooters. The tactic you came up with was simple—but for this era, it felt revolutionary.]
[It had only two main requirements.]
[First, the team needed a true ball-dominant core—and you figured you could fill that role perfectly.]
[Second, the team needed reliable 3&D Players—guys who could defend and shoot. The more, the better.]
[Of course, the term "3&D Player" didn't exist yet, so you explained it more tactfully to your coach. You said you needed teammates who could take advantage of the open looks you created—ideally sharpshooters.]
[And on top of that, someone who could clean up defensively when you went all-in on offense.]
[Coach found your approach remarkably advanced. It made sense—but the problem was, Hozumi Academy barely had anyone who fit that mold.]
[After all, it was a music-focused school, not a sports academy.]
[Luckily, you already had someone in mind—Sakurai Ryo, a player who'd barely been used until now.]
[Yes, that Sakurai Ryo—the future shooting guard of Touou Academy. A lightning-fast, deadly-accurate shooter with solid defense. A top-tier 3&D Player.]
[But because his release was so fast—borderline unnatural—Coach always thought his shooting was reckless and benched him.]
"Sakurai Ryo? He was on our team this whole time? How the hell did I not notice?"
Outside the Simulation, Kasugano Souta was stunned.
If Sakurai had been part of the Basketball Club from the start, there was no way he wouldn't have known.
The Simulation continued.
[The coach had never liked Sakurai's timid attitude. In his eyes, Sakurai was a soft, apologetic pushover who shot like a maniac and said sorry every time he got yelled at.]
[Compared to him, Coach preferred you—the reckless troublemaker who picked fights every other week. That, to him, was what a real man looked like.]
[Still, he decided to give you face and let Sakurai join your side for an intra-squad scrimmage. Together, you absolutely crushed the opposition.]
[Coach was dumbfounded. The timid kid turned into a beast under your command.]
[In a twenty-minute practice game, Sakurai hit five of six from deep—an absurd 83% shooting rate.]
[Coach slapped his thigh and shouted, "I knew it! I always knew you were a damn prodigy! Tomorrow, you're starting!"]
[After practice, you found Sakurai and asked what his deal was.]
[He was almost moved to tears, telling you everything.]
[Turns out, he had just transferred to Hozumi Academy that year because of his dad's job. His shy personality made him nearly invisible in the club, and today was the first time he'd ever been treated like part of the team. He thanked you and insisted on treating you to a bowl of ramen.]
"So that's how it is... Wait—doesn't that mean I stole Aomine's future teammate?"
"No, hang on—I came first!"
Souta couldn't help laughing at his own genius. Finding a gem like this in such a bottom-tier team was a total surprise.
In the world of Kuroko no Basuke, if the Generation of Miracles and the movie's Dragon Team captain Nash Gold Jr. represented the pinnacle of power...
Then right beneath them were players like Nijimura Shuzo and Himuro Tatsuya—the T1-level elites.
Just below that came the Uncrowned Kings—T1.5-level talents who were incredible but never quite crossed the threshold.
And then there were players like Sakurai Ryo—national-level competitors without any flashy "title" attached.
In short, a huge asset.
[The next day, Hozumi Academy faced a crucial group stage match that would determine who advanced.]
[Their opponents were another strong team that had also reached the round-robin tournament last year. Like Hozumi, they were newcomers—rising fast but still far from the Four Heavenly Kings, the established powerhouses of Tochigi Prefecture.]
[No one expected what came next—Hozumi ended the game's suspense within three quarters.]
[Coach boldly started Sakurai Ryo. Fed by your passes, Sakurai hit six of nine from beyond the arc and two of three free throws, finishing with twenty points in three quarters.]
[The opponents were caught completely off guard by the lineup change and got pummeled before they even knew what hit them.]
[Fans were stunned. "Who knew Hozumi Academy had a secret weapon like this?"]
["Six out of nine threes, sixty-six percent accuracy, team-high twenty points—that's crazy."]
[But oddly, in the fourth quarter, the opposing team didn't put much extra pressure on Sakurai.]
[Not that they ignored him—but their defensive focus wasn't on him.]
["He's hit seven out of ten and they're still letting him shoot?" one fan muttered.]
["Shoot? That mushroom-head isn't the monster," someone beside him replied, pointing at Souta. "That guy's the real core of Hozumi. With him, they're a different team."]
["Him? He doesn't look special," another said skeptically. Souta's playstyle was so clean, so minimalistic, it gave off the illusion that anyone could do what he did. It made people overlook him.]
[The first guy shook his head. "That's exactly why he's terrifying. He makes the impossible look effortless."]
[Buzzer!]
[Game over. Hozumi Academy crushed their opponents, 102–75.]
[Sakurai Ryo scored a career-high twenty-nine points with a sixty-percent success rate from deep—instantly becoming a breakout name across Tochigi Prefecture.]
[But more and more people started to notice you. Calm and steady as ever, you quietly recorded 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 13 assists—a triple-double.]
[Your performance caught the eye of Momoi Satsuki.]
"Momoi Satsuki?"
Souta rubbed his chin.
That Teiko super-spy really was everywhere.
No one in Tochigi had picked up on how insane he'd become—but somehow, the manager of Teiko's Basketball Club in Tokyo had.