The new week arrived in the blink of an eye. The sunlight was just right, spilling gently into the classroom like scattered gold dust.
Haizaki Shogo lay lazily on his desk, waiting for the final bell to ring.
Because of their height, both Haizaki and Shimizu Rena were seated at the very back of the classroom. As a result, the teachers more or less turned a blind eye to them.
The main reason behind this special treatment was simple—both of them consistently ranked first and second in the class.
This monster-like "couple" duo left both the boys and girls in the class green with envy.
Feeling bored, Haizaki was just about to reach out and toy with the rose-red hair in front of him when a sheet of paper was passed back onto his desk.
Shimizu Rena said nothing. Haizaki said nothing either. He simply took the paper and began reading it seriously.
The title read: "Yosen High School Basketball Team Player Basic Data."
Haizaki's eyes lit up with interest as he scanned it.
The first name that appeared was not Murasakibara Atsushi, as he had expected, but a woman's profile instead.
Araki Masako—former member of Japan's women's national basketball team, now the coach of Yosen High School's boys' basketball team. Her specialty was analyzing data to predict the flow of matches, a skill somewhat similar to that of the "beautiful strategist" Satsuki Momoi.
Next came Murasakibara Atsushi. Seeing his profile made Haizaki smile faintly. That towering 208 cm height and 99 kg weight were enough to shock anyone.
Compared to his middle school impression, Murasakibara had clearly continued to grow. He was still developing—truly a monster in the making.
The report also listed his refined skills, preferred positions, and even incidents and accidents during training sessions. The details were frighteningly thorough.
Moving past Murasakibara's section, another striking entry caught Haizaki's attention.
Liu Wei (Chinese exchange student), 203 cm tall.
That familiar surname and name gave him a strange sense of closeness. His lips curled into a smile he rarely showed—pride mixed with a faint, inexplicable loneliness.
So… what exactly is China like in this world…?
I'm actually looking forward to it.
Next was Kenichi Okamura—200 cm tall, captain of Yosen High's boys' basketball team, a power-type forward built on sheer strength.
Finally, there was Kensuke Fukui, a "short" player under 176 cm, followed by a few other ordinary players—either tall but lacking skill, or skilled but lacking height.
With Murasakibara Atsushi, Kenichi Okamura, and Liu Wei all standing in the paint, Haizaki could already imagine the scene inside the restricted area.
As for Fukuda Sogo's 3-1-1 formation trio—Suzuran Karasu, Okawa Sawano, and Kimura Tosho—each averaging around 190 cm, Haizaki found the comparison amusing.
Would they be completely crushed psychologically?
He didn't intend to worry about that. Let Coach Ichiro Kudo handle it.
Clearly, Kudo's 3-1-1 system would not be useless against Yosen, but it would definitely be suppressed.
A 10 cm average height gap might not sound like much on paper, but on a basketball court—where physical gifts decide everything—it could crush countless tactics and techniques.
Sometimes, skill is simply too weak in the face of raw talent.
The school bell rang. The girl in front of him, Shimizu Rena, turned around and looked at him with her bright eyes.
"Shogo-kun, did you read Yosen's data? What do you think?"
"No opinion." Haizaki replied casually. "Rena-chan, if I'm on the court, I'll destroy them."
Shimizu Rena didn't question his arrogance. Instead, she continued calmly, "This Saturday is our quarterfinal match against them. Shogo-kun, you really don't have any thoughts about it?"
"Let's see."
Truthfully, Haizaki didn't know whether Murasakibara would play.
If he didn't, then Yosen would be nothing more than an excellent sharpening stone.
But if he did… then it would be a brutal fight.
At the very least, Fukuda Sogo's inside scorers would be completely shut down and forced to stay quiet in the paint.
He slung his bag over his shoulder and followed the girl in the pleated skirt down the hallway, admiring her pale, long legs along the way, before heading toward the indoor basketball court.
Soon after, Yosen High's player data spread throughout the team. One by one, sharp intakes of breath filled the gym.
"My God… three giants over two meters? Is this even a high school league?!"
"That's terrifying… Hey, Karasu… we're really counting on you to jump like crazy now!"
"Yosen is seriously insane…"
"Three players over 200 cm… even in professional leagues, there aren't many like that, right?"
Coach Ichiro Kudo also saw the report. He said nothing, only silently organized warm-ups and individualized training sessions for each player.
Then came an internal scrimmage match. Even after seeing Yosen's data, the atmosphere remained stable—everyone performed normally.
But reading numbers on paper and facing those monsters in reality were two completely different things. Haizaki didn't want to demoralize his teammates prematurely. They would understand the truth when they met them face to face.
And only then would true growth come.
During halftime of the scrimmage, Haizaki was substituted out.
He walked over to Coach Kudo, and the two began discussing tactics.
"Shogo-kun, what kind of player is Murasakibara Atsushi of the Generation of Miracles?"
Haizaki lowered his head slightly, thinking carefully before answering.
"An absurd interior defender. Massive defensive range. Excellent physical ability. He's the most physically gifted player among the Generation of Miracles."
"What happens if we face him?"
That question was harder to answer. Still, he spoke honestly.
"If Murasakibara plays and I don't, we will lose. The score difference might be beyond imagination."
"But if I play—we will win."
Coach Kudo fell into deep thought, analyzing the implications.
"Shogo-kun… what do you mean by 'if Murasakibara plays'?"
As expected of a sharp coach—he immediately caught the key detail.
"Maybe… there's a chance he won't play this time. If that happens, then I don't need to play either. It would be the best opportunity to temper the rest of the team."
"I see… I understand. I'll respect your decision."
With that, the conversation ended. Kudo returned to his thoughts, already reconsidering his tactical system.
After all, aside from Murasakibara Atsushi, Yosen also had two other towering inside players—real, uncompromising physical threats.
And that alone changed everything.