Backboard Breakers' possession.
Jason dribbled across half-court alone. Seeing this, Nash lowered his stance and spread his arms, a provocative smile at the corners of his mouth.
"Come on. Show me what you've got," Nash whispered.
Jason only smiled slightly, moving the ball from hand to hand. Suddenly he asked, "Do you usually listen to music?"
Nash frowned, confused.
Then he realized something had changed.
Jason's dribbling suddenly became smooth and fluid, like a jazz musician improvising. His shoulders swayed with the rhythm, and the tempo of the ball shifted between fast and slow, impossible to predict.
Thud… thud… thud-thud-thud.
The rhythm accelerated. Jason performed a between-the-legs crossover, briefly shifting Nash's balance, but Nash recovered.
"I'm not done yet," Jason chuckled.
Jason's rhythm changed again, slower but dangerous. A sudden pause disrupted Nash's timing.
Thud… (pause)… thud.
Nash tensed. Just as he expected a drive, Jason exploded forward with a hard pound dribble and drove left like lightning. Nash slid to stop him, but Jason pulled the ball back, broke into the paint, and floated it high over Allen.
Swish.
Nash smirked. "Interesting… using music as basketball."
While running back, Jason whispered to himself, "There's still electronic and classical. I hope you last that long."
Nash's eyes flashed gold. He activated the Demon King's Eye.
Jason lunged for the ball, but Nash vanished from his sight. Spin, pass—Nick caught it outside and shot.
Swish.
Nash turned. "Didn't anyone tell you? Don't provoke me."
Jason laughed wildly. "Good. Now I'm excited."
Jason's dribbling became faster, sharper, glitching like electronic beats. Nash's prediction lagged for a split second. Jason broke through, spun, stopped, and passed to Tylon for a tip-in.
Even Nash's eyes flickered. "Interesting… he can interfere with my predictions."
Later, Nash crossed Kline hard, breaking his balance, drove into the paint, and slipped a no-look pass to Jason Cibor for a violent dunk.
14–10.
Final possession of the quarter.
Nash stole the ball and pushed forward. Eight seconds left. Shidou caught the ball in the backcourt… and stood still.
3.2… 3.1…
"What are you waiting for?!" Nash shouted.
Shidou grinned. He bent his knees and jumped from the opposite baseline.
The ball flew like a meteor across the arena. The buzzer sounded.
Swish.
Jabberwock 17 – Backboard Breakers 10.
The arena fell silent for a moment, then erupted with cheers.
"MVP! MVP! MVP!"
Jason laughed wildly and messed up Shidou's hair. "You were hiding that?!"
Nash threw an arm around Shidou's neck. "Next time, warn me before you scare me like that."
Shidou just smiled.
Across the court, Tylon narrowed his eyes. "That guy… is even more dangerous than I thought."