"Calm down, Kuroko. The game just started."
Yuuto held one hand in the air, having cut off the ball's flight path.
He was perfectly composed, even having the presence of mind to remind Kuroko to settle down.
This ease put pressure on every Seirin player while simultaneously stoking their fighting spirit.
"Wanting to win is correct. But true winners always control their emotions."
As Yuuto finished speaking, he bounced the ball and took a single step forward.
Just one step.
Yet in the next instant, he was already at Kuroko's side, sweeping past like a gust of wind.
"Remember that."
Kuroko's light blue hair was blown upward. Unable to stop him, he could only watch Yuuto's retreating figure.
"This time, I definitely won't lose to you!"
Yuuto was incredibly fast, reaching the three-point line in the blink of an eye.
And Kagami Taiga had already rushed back on defense, positioning himself perfectly.
The person before him was the opponent he dreamed of defeating.
He'd trained all summer, completed Riko's triple training regimen, all for this day.
Yuuto's eyes glowed as he took everything in.
At this rate, he might actually enter the Zone.
The Demon Eyes told him that Kagami's cells were extraordinarily active right now.
Whether from mental excitement or other reasons—the bottom line was his fighting spirit today was exceptionally high.
But let him enter if he wants.
Yuuto didn't slow down, charging forward with large strides.
In an instant, he was right in front of Kagami.
An extremely streamlined basketball style, as efficient as a veteran who'd spent years in the pros.
He split into two, seemingly attacking from both sides simultaneously.
A convincing fake, compressing the defender's reaction time to the extreme.
In just one exchange, Kagami was left behind.
"He got past him in one move!"
"Not even Kagami could stop him!"
Seirin's bench cried out in alarm.
This was their team's ace, their strongest player—and he was beaten this easily?
But Kagami was actually the calmest one.
His mind was unexpectedly clear today, and he knew exactly what he was doing.
"He really is strong. Even after completing Coach's and Alex's special training, I still can't see a path to victory."
"But..."
"I want to win so badly—with Kuroko, with everyone!"
He roared internally.
The intense emotions and fighting spirit caused the Zone's door, hidden in his mental world, to swing wide open.
Crackle!
Deep crimson lightning bloomed from the corners of his eyes, blindingly bright.
With one spin, the Zone's red lightning traced a line through the air, straight into the paint.
"I'm going to beat you, Yuuto!"
So fast!
He crashed into the paint and leaped high, swinging his hand to viciously swat away Yuuto's layup attempt.
"That's!"
"The Zone!"
The Yōsen and Tōō spectator groups were all shocked.
The game had just started, and Kagami had already entered his peak state.
"He learns fast." Aomine had some feelings about this.
Kagami had once asked him about the Zone, since Aomine was currently the most knowledgeable about it—even more than Akashi or Kise.
As for Yuuto, he didn't count. He was an anomaly—the only one who had voluntarily abandoned the Zone.
And Kagami.
He learned quickly. He'd already found his "key" to entry. Given time, he would definitely master the Zone completely.
"Kagami!"
Though somewhat expected—given Kagami's condition today, similar to when they'd faced Tōō—Seirin had guessed he might enter again. They just hadn't expected it so soon.
"Fast break!" Aida Riko shouted from the sideline, urging them to capitalize on this moment and establish a lead.
She didn't need to remind them.
Once in the Zone, Kagami's mind became even clearer, stripped of all useless information.
The moment he landed, he was already running, scooping up the basketball and sprinting, wild energy radiating intensely as he rapidly entered his optimal state.
Deep crimson lightning illuminated the entire court. Kagami had become the sole focus.
His speed was incredible—crossing half-court and the three-point line in the blink of an eye.
Finally.
He reached the free-throw line, about to take off, when he saw Yuuto had already positioned himself one step ahead.
Kagami instinctively sidestepped to avoid him, then rocketed upward as if wings had sprouted from his back, challenging the limits of gravitational pull.
"Meteor Jam!" Himuro Tatsuya blurted out.
His teacher had two signature moves: Mirage Shot and Meteor Jam.
The reason he'd only learned one wasn't because he didn't want to learn both, or because it didn't suit him.
It was because Meteor Jam demanded even higher talent—a truly heaven-defying dunk.
"The time was short, but Taiga's talent is exceptional."
"He's different from you, Tatsuya. Though he's dense in some ways, when it comes to basketball, Taiga is a true genius."
...
Alexandra Garcia was proud to have these two as students.
But the next second, a thunderous sound reached her ears.
CLANG!
Kagami's Meteor Jam slammed into the rim and bounced out.
"He missed the dunk? What happened?!"
Alexandra's face was full of bewilderment.
The training time had been short, so he couldn't execute it from every position. But Kagami's takeoff point just now was his sweet spot.
What happened?!
"It's the positioning!"
Others couldn't see it clearly, but Akashi saw everything.
At the moment Kagami took off, Yuuto had positioned himself one step ahead, forcing Kagami to take a longer first step.
Therefore, Kagami hadn't jumped from his optimal spot.
"Kagami's Meteor Jam probably isn't complete yet."
...
Compared to Yuuto's full-court coverage, the gap was too obvious.
But even so, having Yuuto find the weakness on the first attempt was quite surprising to Akashi.
"Moreover, to use Meteor Jam, you need to maintain some distance from the defender. Yuuto never gave him that chance."
Absolutely airtight.
Alexandra realized belatedly what had happened.
"Those eyes really are terrifying."
"Eyes? You're misunderstanding something."
Imayoshi Shoichi corrected them.
He said, "Yuuto isn't invincible because of those eyes. Rather, it's because those eyes belong to Yuuto that they're so invincible."
Aomine and Murasakibara both fell silent, tacitly agreeing.
Unlike Akashi, Yuuto had completely mastered the Demon Eyes.
"But next time, I'll win even without the Meteor Jam."
Kagami turned to pursue. His state hadn't peaked yet—he could still improve.
"You've gotten much stronger compared to the Inter-High. But I don't have the patience to play around with you anymore." Yuuto wasn't planning to correct step by step.
Kagami pursued at full speed, actually catching up to Yuuto's side.
The next second.
An ancient, violent aura swept across the entire court—like an awakening tyrannosaurus, shaking everyone's spirit.
Then they watched as Yuuto matched Kagami in this state, not falling behind in the slightest!
...
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