After the ball was slammed through the basket, Eikichi Nebuya couldn't hold back a curse.
"Damn it! That was cheap as hell!"
Then Eikichi Nebuya stomped hard on the floor twice, venting his frustration.
Reo Mibuchi walked over and comforted him. "Come on, Eikichi. Just get it back on the next play."
Eikichi Nebuya let out an angry breath, then nodded and ran off to inbound the ball.
On the other side.
Junpei Hyuga ran over to Taiga Kagami and smiled.
"Kagami, nice play."
Taiga Kagami grinned and said, "Haha, of course. There's no way I'd mess up when I'm that wide open!"
Junpei Hyuga laughed along with him.
"Yeah, of course. When you're wide open... wait. Wide open?!"
Junpei Hyuga's expression suddenly changed, as if he had just remembered something.
Rakuzan High School had someone like that too.
At that moment, Seijuro Akashi was slowly dribbling the ball in the backcourt, then passed it to his right.
Then...
Whoosh!
The basketball instantly turned into a streak of light, flying straight toward the frontcourt.
It shot right between Taiga Kagami and Junpei Hyuga's faces.
The powerful rush of air even lifted their hair.
Smack!
The sound of the catch rang out.
Kotaro Hayama caught the ball in Seirin's paint, then showed his fangs and said, "Nice pass, Chihiro."
With that, Kotaro Hayama took his steps and easily laid the ball into the basket.
After the shot went in, however, Seirin's attention was not on Kotaro Hayama. Their eyes were fixed on Chihiro Mayuzumi in the backcourt.
They stared at Chihiro Mayuzumi in shock.
At that moment, Chihiro Mayuzumi had already straightened up again. There was no expression on his face, and his eyes held no emotion at all.
He looked like an emotionless machine.
Tetsuya Kuroko watched Chihiro Mayuzumi, silently considering something.
The rest of Seirin also looked at Chihiro Mayuzumi with different expressions, each of them thinking their own thoughts.
Chihiro Mayuzumi swept his emotionless eyes over everyone, then slowly moved back behind Eikichi Nebuya.
By the time Seirin snapped back to their senses, Chihiro Mayuzumi had already vanished.
When they found him again, Chihiro Mayuzumi was already at the baseline.
Junpei Hyuga was instantly startled.
"How is that possible? His presence is actually..."
Riko Aida bit her finger, her expression turning uneasy.
'This is bad...'
It was no wonder Seirin was shocked.
In the past, Chihiro Mayuzumi had never had much presence either. But because of his personality, it should have been impossible for him to reach Tetsuya Kuroko's level.
And yet that play just now made one thing clear. Chihiro Mayuzumi had truly become a Shadow.
He had completely become Rakuzan's "Tetsuya Kuroko."
In the following plays.
Rakuzan's Shadow, Chihiro Mayuzumi, began to show his strength.
On defense, Chihiro Mayuzumi appeared and disappeared like a ghost, pushing his role as an invisible sixth man to the limit.
He alone was enough to make everyone from Seirin stay on full alert.
Because they were afraid that the moment they let their guard down, a hand would suddenly appear from behind them.
On offense, Chihiro Mayuzumi also became Rakuzan's relay point, sending the ball again and again to the most suitable position.
Seijuro Akashi did not even need to think too much about how to play.
He only had to pass the ball to Chihiro Mayuzumi.
Chihiro Mayuzumi would handle the rest himself.
Seeing this, even Seijuro Akashi could not help but nod.
"Beep! Seirin High School requests a timeout!"
The referee blew the whistle.
Both teams slowly left the court.
As Seijuro Akashi walked off, a voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
"Sigh."
Hearing that voice, Seijuro Akashi frowned and responded in his mind.
"Heh. What are you sighing for?"
"Nothing. I was just wondering whether it's really worth it for Mayuzumi-senpai to do this."
"Hm? Why are you pretending to be a good person now? Weren't you the one who developed Kuroko? I only did what you once did."
"No. You're wrong. The path you're walking and the path I walked are completely different."
"I never intended to use Kuroko. I only gave him some guidance. Everything after that was something he understood on his own."
"But you're different. You knew full well that Mayuzumi-senpai was not suited to being a Shadow, yet you still pushed him into becoming this through everything you did."
"Heh. Different? So what? Don't forget, he was the one who told me he wanted to become a Shadow."
"And besides, your path has already failed. I am the one choosing the path now. You coward, stay in the darkness and watch me reach the top."
"You... sigh..."
The voice in his mind wanted to say more, but in the end, it said nothing.
Because Seijuro Akashi was right.
He really was a failure.
He really was a coward.
He was afraid he could not live up to his father's expectations. Afraid he could not keep up with the progress of the other members of the [Generation of Miracles].
And he was afraid that, in the future, he would not even be able to see Miyamoto Tokima's back anymore.
At the same time, he also wished he could have strength like Miyamoto Tokima's.
Obsession and pressure wore him down.
So he chose to run away.
He handed control of his body over to his second personality.
...
On the court.
Rakuzan High School's coach did not say much.
Because there was nothing wrong with how they were playing now. They simply needed to keep it up.
Kotaro Hayama and Reo Mibuchi were chatting and laughing, while Eikichi Nebuya admired his own muscles.
Chihiro Mayuzumi sat silently on the bench, his eyes empty and his expression devoid of emotion.
Seijuro Akashi swept his gaze over everyone and said, "Reo."
Reo Mibuchi turned his head, nodded, and said, "I know."
Reo Mibuchi understood what Seijuro Akashi was thinking, so he agreed.
He knew it was about to be his turn.
To be precise, it was about to be his turn from three-point range.
On Seirin High School's side.
Riko Aida slowly lowered the tactical board and said, "In the second half, Kuroko will replace Izuki. Himuro, you'll take over as point guard."
Tatsuya Himuro paused for a moment, then showed a gentle smile.
"I didn't expect to match up with Akashi so soon."
Riko Aida nodded firmly to Tatsuya Himuro, then looked at everyone and said, "Everyone, give it everything you've got!"
The Seirin players nodded heavily, their expressions grim.
"Yes!"
...
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