Kiyota Nobunaga's body froze stiff.
His brain screamed at him to run.
But his body was still moving forward on instinct, practically delivering himself to death.
"Skreeech!"
The sound of sneakers scraping across the floor pierced everyone's ears.
Kiyota's legs suddenly tangled together.
His left foot tripped over his right, and with a loud thud, he crashed face-first onto the hardwood.
A perfect full-body prostration.
It looked like he had run over specifically to kneel and pay New Year respects.
The entire arena fell silent for a second before erupting into hysterical laughter.
"Hahahaha! What's this monkey doing?!"
"I'm dying—did he just kowtow to Juro?!"
"He collapsed from a single glare?!"
"Kainan's rookie here to do comedy or what?!"
Kiyota lay sprawled on the floor, his face red like pig liver, humiliation burning through him.
But the terror from that brief instant had turned his limbs ice-cold.
He didn't even have the strength to crawl back up and argue.
"An eyesore."
Makino Juro coldly spat out two words.
With a flick of his toe, the basketball bounced obediently into his palm.
"If you're all this eager to die… then I'll grant your wish."
Before the words even finished—
he vanished.
This time, it wasn't a defensive counterattack.
It was a deliberate massacre.
Makino Juro dribbled straight into Kainan's half court.
"Stop him!! Everyone on him!!"
Coach Takato shouted from the sidelines like an ant on a hot pan.
Jin Soichiro and power forward Muto Tadashi immediately closed in from both sides, forming a trap at midcourt.
A double-team?
Golden light flashed brighter in Makino Juro's eyes.
"Naive."
Not only did he not slow down—
he accelerated.
Right before the collision—
Bang! Bang!
A lightning-fast crossover exploded forth.
The basketball seemed alive in his hands, transforming into a streak of orange lightning.
A left feint shook past Jin.
An instant pullback sent Muto flying the other way.
But that still wasn't enough.
Within the impossibly narrow gap between the two defenders, Makino Juro performed a stop-and-go move that completely defied human biomechanics.
The group-version of an ankle breaker.
Jin Soichiro only felt his vision blur.
It was as if an invisible hand had twisted his legs into knots.
His center of gravity completely collapsed, and his body uncontrollably tilted backward before crashing to the floor.
Muto had it even worse.
In his desperation to cut off the lane, Makino Juro's fake sent him directly into a split before he fell in utter disgrace.
Two players.
At the exact same moment.
Both broken to the ground.
Makino Juro tore through the gap between their fallen bodies like a black hurricane.
Getting past them was easier than crossing an empty street at dawn.
The audience in the stands completely lost their minds.
"Holy shit! Double kill!!"
"Is this basketball or bowling?!"
"This is brutal! They're not even playing in the same dimension!"
Makino Juro charged inside the three-point line.
Only one final line of defense remained for Kainan.
Center Takasago Kazuma.
Watching that demon-like figure rush toward him—
Takasago swallowed hard.
But the pride of being a starting player wouldn't let him retreat.
"You're not getting through!!"
Takasago roared as he spread his arms wide.
A faint smile curled onto Makino Juro's lips.
"You want to kneel too?"
One step inside the free-throw line—
he took off.
His body soared through the air like a great roc spreading its wings.
Takasago jumped at the same time, both hands raised high for the block.
The two collided midair.
Makino Juro held the ball aloft in one hand, looking as if he intended to force a brutal poster dunk head-on.
Takasago's heart filled with joy.
Too arrogant!
In a pure contest of strength, how could a guard possibly beat him?!
But right before contact...
Makino Juro made a movement so absurd even Newton would want to crawl out of his grave.
He tucked his abdomen and curled his body.
The right hand that had been raised high suddenly pulled the ball back, drawing an elegant arc through the air before switching it to his left hand.
A midair hand switch!
And not only that...
using terrifying core strength, he forcibly altered his body mid-flight.
Like a swimming fish, he slipped directly beneath Takasago's armpit.
Takasago blocked nothing but air.
Meanwhile, Makino Juro had already glided to the opposite side of the rim.
Back facing the basket.
Left-handed reverse slam!
BOOOOM!!!
A deafening explosion rang out.
A reverse back dunk!
The entire hoop support shook violently, groaning in pain.
Makino Juro released the rim and landed lightly.
As graceful as a drifting feather.
Yet the destruction he caused felt like a meteor crashing into Earth.
Elegant.
And savage.
The entire arena short-circuited for a brief moment.
Then....
the crowd erupted hard enough to blow the roof off.
"Makino Juro!! Makino Juro!! Makino Juro!!"
"That dunk exploded the arena!!"
"A midair switch into a reverse slam?!"
"Is this the NBA All-Star Game?!"
"My mom asked me why I'm watching basketball on my knees!!"
Makino Juro ignored the surrounding madness.
Slowly, he turned around.
His gaze swept across the Kainan players, whose faces had already gone deathly pale.
Finally....
his eyes stopped on the bright red scoreboard.
23:20.
Shohoku led by three.
Makino Juro slowly raised his right hand, pointing one finger toward the scoreboard.
Then he flipped his wrist downward.
A death sentence.
"Hear that?"
His voice pierced through the cheers, carrying an irresistible aura of dominance.
"That's the sound of the old era collapsing."
"The countdown has begun, Kainan."
"This quarter…"
"I will personally bury your so-called undefeated legend."
Boom!!
The crowd was completely conquered by his overwhelming arrogance.
The cheers became thunderous, drowning out even the referee's whistle.
And amidst that deafening roar—
Maki Shinichi stood frozen in place, staring at Makino Juro's domineering back.
His nails dug into his palms until blood seeped out, yet he couldn't feel the pain.
Because the agony in his heart was ten thousand times worse.
He knew.
The era that once belonged to him—
was truly beginning to crumble.
…
"So terrifying…"
Up in the stands, Aida Yayoi didn't even realize the pen in her hand had fallen to the floor.
Staring at the boy radiating the aura of an emperor, she muttered blankly:
"How is this a first-year rookie…?"
"This is clearly… the descent of a demon king."
A sharp glint flashed across Coach Anzai's glasses—the excitement of discovering a flawless gem.
"Hohoho…"
"It seems his future won't stop at the national tournament alone."
"That child belongs to a much wider world."
…
The game still had to continue.
But for Kainan—
the remaining time would become the longest and darkest nightmare of their basketball careers.
Because the man named Makino Juro—
the man who had entered "Tyrant Mode" ....
had absolutely no intention of stopping.
His butcher's blade…
had only just been raised.
On the court, Rukawa Kaede stared at Makino Juro's back as fighting spirit blazed in his eyes.
"I won't lose to you either."
He muttered silently in his heart.
Meanwhile, Sakuragi Hanamichi was hopping around furiously.
"You sneaky master! You stole all the spotlight again!"
"This genius wants to score too!"
"I'm gonna dunk!!"
Makino Juro ignored the noise from his teammates.
Standing there alone, he resembled an insurmountable mountain.
"Come."
Makino Juro crooked a finger toward Maki Shinichi, his eyes filled with mockery.
"Let me see how much longer this so-called Emperor can struggle."
Maki Shinichi took a deep breath.
The madness in his eyes hadn't faded.
If anything, it had grown even darker and more resolute.
The ferocity of a man cornered with nowhere left to retreat.
"It's not over yet!"
Maki growled and demanded the ball once more.
This war between old and new kings—
was destined to continue until the very last drop of blood had been spilled.
END OF CHAPTER
The King Of Slacking Off - MrBehringer's Secret
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