Inside the gymnasium.
The duel between Akashi and Sendo had yet to end.
Judging from their condition, they had clearly been battling for a long time.
Sweat streamed down their foreheads, soaking through their training jerseys. Their breathing was heavy, uneven—proof of how fierce the confrontation had been.
"I never thought you'd be this strong," Sendo said, panting as he looked at Akashi across from him.
Before today, he had only sensed Akashi's extraordinariness in fragments—his passing, his court vision, the pressure he exerted during practice games.
But only now, standing directly opposite him, did Sendo truly understand.
Akashi was not just a passer.
Many times during their duel, Sendo felt as if his thoughts were being read—his intentions exposed before they even formed.
There was also Akashi's terrifying ability to steal.
If Sendo hadn't kept his guard at maximum, eyes locked firmly on Akashi at all times, he would have lost the ball countless times already.
That kind of constant pressure…
It was suffocating.
Akashi dribbled the ball steadily, also slightly out of breath.
"You're strong as well," he replied calmly.
He hadn't expected Sendo to be this formidable at the junior-high level either.
Aside from refraining from using the Emperor Eye until now, Akashi had already pushed himself close to his current limits.
Even at only twenty to thirty percent of Seijuro Akashi's full template, it wasn't just anyone who could force him this far.
Sendo's talent was undeniable.
Measured by the standards of Kuroko's Basketball, Sendo might not reach the level of the Uncrowned Kings—but below the Five Generals, he would stand at the absolute peak.
Akashi exhaled slowly, stabilizing his breathing.
"For the final shot," he said evenly, "there's something I want to test. I haven't fully mastered it yet."
"Hm?" Sendo frowned slightly.
Before he could think further—
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The rhythm of the dribble suddenly changed.
The basketball struck the floor faster, heavier—each bounce resonating through the gym.
At the same time, Akashi's heterochromatic pupils flickered.
Light and shadow alternated within his eyes, faint rings of brilliance pulsing as if something had awakened.
Emperor Eye.
Akashi's entire presence shifted.
The approachable calm vanished, replaced by an icy, oppressive pressure. It felt as though the air itself had grown heavier, colder.
Sendo's expression changed instantly.
"What…?"
He stared in disbelief.
A person's demeanor could change—but not like this.
Demeanor was something cultivated over years, shaped by experience and habit.
Yet Akashi felt as if he had become an entirely different person.
Not someone who played basketball—
But someone who ruled it.
Off the court, Kamishiro Ruri noticed the change as well.
Her expression flickered with surprise and confusion, but she restrained herself. Whatever this was, she would ask Akashi later.
On the court—
Akashi bent his knees slightly, lowering his center of gravity.
His gaze locked onto Sendo, sharp and merciless.
He held the ball at his side, patting it lightly with his right hand. The rhythm was calm—but absolute.
Then—
His right foot stepped sharply to the left.
Sendo reacted instantly, shifting to cut him off—
But Akashi stopped.
In the same breath, the ball slipped between his legs, transferred to his left hand, and his left foot exploded off the ground.
A ghostlike change of direction.
Too fast.
Before Sendo could react, Akashi had already slipped past him, his movements fluid and precise, like a predator gliding through the shadows.
Sendo forcibly shifted his weight sideways—
And his footing collapsed.
His center of gravity shattered.
For an instant, his body refused to obey him. His balance wavered, feet scrambling as he barely managed to avoid falling.
That single moment was enough.
Akashi was already inside the paint.
No tricks.
No excess movement.
A clean three-step layup.
Swish.
The basketball slid smoothly through the net.
Akashi turned slowly.
"Five to five," he said softly. "A tie."
Sendo snapped out of his daze and laughed bitterly.
"Looks like beating you won't be easy," he said, shaking his head. "Let's stop here."
Akashi glanced toward the window. The sky had already darkened.
"It's late," he agreed.
Sendo stared at him with curiosity. "What did you just do to me?"
Akashi didn't evade the question.
"I disrupted your center of gravity."
"…That's all?"
Sendo repeated the words silently.
It sounded simple.
But he knew better.
Disrupting an opponent's balance—especially someone like him—was no easy task.
Yet Akashi had done it effortlessly.
Sendo looked at him with a complicated expression.
"You really are a monster."
Akashi only smiled faintly.
Not yet, he thought.
When I fully unlock Seijuro Akashi's abilities… then I will be.
"Kamishiro," Akashi said, noticing her.
Kamishiro Ruri walked over with a smile. "I waited for you at the school gate, but couldn't find you. I thought you might still be here."
She glanced at Sendo. "I didn't expect to see you two dueling."
Akashi wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Sorry. It was last-minute."
"It's fine," she replied lightly. "Go wash up first."
Akashi nodded and headed toward the locker room with Sendo.
Later, at the school gate—
"See you tomorrow, Sendo-senpai," Akashi and Kamishiro Ruri said together.
Sendo waved. "Yeah. See you."
He watched as the two were picked up by luxury cars and driven away.
"…That's unfair," he muttered.
After learning more about their family backgrounds over the past few days, the truth had shocked him.
The Kamishiro Family—one of Japan's top conglomerates.
The Akashi Family—one of the three great zaibatsu.
Sendo stared into the distance for a long time.
"So rich," he sighed. "And so strong."
A grin slowly crept onto his face.
"If I run into that guy again this year… with Akashi on my side…"
"I wonder what kind of face he'll make."
With that thought, Sendo turned and headed home, his steps light, anticipation burning quietly in his chest.