Slam Dunk: Muguro

Chapter 388 I was born with divine strength!
At that moment, Naito was talking to Kogure and did not notice Morishige Hiroshi.

"Captain, what shortcomings do you think I still have?"

"Your footwork under the basket is a bit stiff; you should practice more. Also, be sure to make good use of your physical advantages."

Kogure offered timely advice.

After more than a year of training, Naito has earned the right to compete for the title of the nation's best center.

In terms of overall strength, Naito is no less than the previous 'Number One Center in the Nation', Suzuki Nohisuke.

His advantage lies in his physical attributes, while his skills are slightly weaker.

By next year, after two and a half years of training, Naito's skills will definitely be further improved.

Currently, Naito's main competitors are Akagi and Okawata, and perhaps also Morishige Hiroshi.

As if on cue, Morishige Hiroshi finally arrived before them.

At that moment, Morishige Hiroshi seemed to be possessed by Sakuragi, and he made physical contact with Naito as if it were an accident.

bang~
In an instant, Morishige Hiroshi and Naito collided at the shoulder.

Although unprepared, Naito swayed slightly but did not retreat a single step.

In contrast, Morishige Hiroshi's expression changed drastically. He felt an immense force strike him and was knocked to the ground by Naito.

"Ouch, what are you doing!"

Morishige looked up at Naito, his eyes filled with disbelief.

In all his life, he had never encountered anyone stronger than himself.

Naito: Now you've seen it!
Compared to Morishige Hiroshi, Naito was 3 centimeters shorter, but weighed a full 5 kilograms more.

In addition, Naito is a former rugby player and his hobby is weightlifting, so he has a very low body fat percentage.

As for Morishige Hiroshi, you can tell from the fact that he is called "Mori Fat" by many anime fans, especially since his model is Shaq.

However, it depends on which period of Shaq we're talking about, since Shaq also had his prime, especially when he first entered the NBA.

Are you trying to scam me?

Looking at Morishige Hiroshi rubbing his shoulder at his feet, Kogure couldn't help but tease him.

Senpang was completely bewildered. What on earth was this "extortion"?

At this moment, Naito finally spoke: "Are you alright?"

Morishige Hiroshi replied, still shaken, "No, it's nothing!"

His mindset was almost identical to Sakuragi's at that time.

Just then, Moroboshi Dai, along with Mikoshiba and Maki, ran towards them.

They were still not entirely at ease with Morishige Hiroshi, fearing that he might not find a toilet and end up soiling his pants.

Mori Shigehiro: Who do you think you are!
Upon seeing Morishige Hiroshi lying on the ground, Moroboshi Dai stood between Morishige Hiroshi and Naito, bracing himself, and asked, "Hiroshi, what happened?"

Beside them, Mikoshiba and Maki were also on high alert, watching the Shohoku team warily.

As soon as they arrived, they saw Morishige Hiroshi being knocked to the ground by Naito.

They instinctively assumed that Morishige Hiroshi had been bullied.

It was only then that Morishige Hiroshi finally realized what was happening and quickly stood up from the ground.

There was a slight misunderstanding just now.

Morishige Hiroshi felt embarrassed and naturally didn't want to explain the truth.

Moroboshi Dai noticed that Morishige Hiroshi was acting strangely, and assumed that Morishige Hiroshi was afraid that they would suffer a loss.

“Ah Kuan, you are a member of our Aihe family. If you have been wronged, just speak up and we will seek justice for you.”

“Ah Kuan, Zhu Xing is right. Tell us what's wronged you, and we'll stand up for you.”

While Amu seemed to be cheering on Morishige Hiroshi, he was actually subtly protecting everyone in front of him.

The opposing team has a large number of players and outstanding records. Apart from Mitsui, who is a complete idiot, the main players of Shohoku are all good fighters.

Mitsui: Who are you insulting? You probably haven't seen me kicking a trash can!

"Misunderstanding, this is all a misunderstanding!"

Seeing that the situation was escalating, Morishige Hiroshi quickly called for a halt and then recounted what had just happened.

After realizing it was a misunderstanding, Moroboshi Dai and the others all looked embarrassed.

Meanwhile, Amu quietly approached Morishige Hiroshi.

Seeing Maki's little actions, Kogure didn't know what to say.

Amu, you've changed. You weren't like this before!
"terribly sorry!"

As the captain, Moroboshi Dai was very responsible and immediately bowed to the Shohoku team to apologize.

Seeing that Morishige Hiroshi was still staring at Naito, Moroboshi Dai immediately kicked him.

"Senior, I'm so sorry, I bumped into you by accident!"

After realizing what had happened, Morishige Hiroshi quickly apologized to Naito.

Whether it was accidental or not, only he knows.

In Slam Dunk, Morishige Hiroshi is still very polite. Even after accidentally knocking down an opponent who was provoking him during a match, he remained polite and apologized.

When he bumped into Sakuragi, Morishige Hiroshi even apologized.

"It's alright, the misunderstanding is cleared up, and besides, I'm perfectly fine."

Naito accepted the apology without a second thought.

Upon hearing Naito's words, Morishige Hiroshi became even more depressed.

After a pause, Morishige Hiroshi couldn't wait to ask the question he wanted to ask.

"Senior, why are you so strong?"

Naito thought about it carefully, then casually said, "I have superhuman strength!"

Morishige Hiroshi didn't know what to say.

After this incident, the representatives of the two teams began to communicate.

Kogure spoke first: "Moroboshi, I haven't congratulated you on winning the prefectural tournament again!"

Moroboshi Dai forced a smile, which reminded him of the prefectural tournament MVP award that had been stolen from him.

With the strength of Aihe Academy, winning the county competition is absolutely a sure thing.

The only thing I didn't expect was that, as the team leader, I wouldn't win the county tournament MVP award.

Maki's ball-dominant style of play, which seems to distribute ball possession evenly and benefit every player, also resulted in similar stats for players like Moroboshi, Mikoshiba, and Morishige.

With their combined abilities, even when they're just catching a ball, they're quite confident, which is why Amu's assists are consistently high.

Secondly, Amu scored efficiently using the "easy ball" technique, leaving all the "difficult balls" to the three players.

Finally, Amu was very proactive in protecting the defensive rebounds; his teammates couldn't very well try to take them from him.

This is the main reason why Amu was able to put up excellent stats in a limited amount of time.

"I believe that Xiangbei will retain its county championship title tomorrow."

This wasn't just polite talk from Moroboshi Dai; he was stating the absolute truth.

Based on Shohoku's performance, unless Kogure is unable to play, Moroboshi doesn't believe Ryonan has a chance to defeat Shohoku.

"Thank you for your kind words! We have other matters to attend to, so we'll head back now."

Soon, Kogure left with his teammates.

Watching Kogure's departing figure, Moroboshi Dai's eyes held a complex expression.

Even though Ai had assembled a formidable four-man team, he still lacked confidence in defeating Shohoku.

There's no way around it, Kogure is just too strong.

His strength has completely transcended the scope of a high school player, but it's hard to say exactly how strong he is.

"Ah Kuan, what do you think?"

"I see with my eyes!"

Morishige Hiroshi scratched the back of his head, not understanding what Moroboshi Dai meant.

"never mind!"

Moroboshi waved his hand dismissively, too lazy to talk to Morishige Hiroshi anymore.

After getting to know him over this period of time, I've come to realize that Moroboshi Daisuke has a simple and straightforward personality.

To put it nicely, it's called being simple and genuine; to put it bluntly, it's just being a complete idiot.

"What do you think?"

Moroboshi Dai then looked at Mikoshiba and Maki.

Maki thought about it carefully for a moment and said, "Let's wait until we see tomorrow's game. Hopefully, Ryonan can force Shohoku to show their full strength." "Maki is right!"

Mikoshiba almost said, "Me too," but in reality, he wasn't sure himself.

Of the four giants of Aiwa, apart from Morishige Hiroshi, the other three were the targets of Shohoku's 'bullying' for many years.

To date, the three of them combined have never won a single game against Shohoku.

This has led to a severe lack of confidence among them, and even a sense of inferiority.

……

The next day, Sunday!

Today also marks the start of the third round of the joint finals!

Even though there was still more than half an hour before the game started, the stadium was already packed.

Moreover, the area outside the stadium was packed with people.

Countless fans eagerly awaited the victory, hoping their favorite team would win.

The morning session features the match between Shohoku and Ryonan, while the main event, between Shoyo and Takezato, takes place in the afternoon.

Hua Hua Hua~
The atmosphere in the stadium reached its peak as the two teams left the players' tunnel.

For a moment, shouts and cheers rose and fell.

"Xiangbei, Xiangbei!"

"Lingnan, Lingnan!"

……

Among them, Shohoku's momentum was particularly astonishing, and this place almost became Shohoku's home court!
Kogure Mikoto was particularly prominent, occupying at least a quarter of the audience seats.

They wore red Shohoku No. 4 jerseys, held up chibi-style portraits of Kogure and banners, and cheered for Kogure.

'Rukawa's life also expanded in scale, but it was far from 'Kogure's life.

Compared to the relatively reserved 'Kogure,' the 'Rukawa's' long legs were stretched out, attracting occasional glances from nearby male spectators.

Soon after, both teams finished warming up and began making their final preparations.

"Dad, I want to start! I want to start!"

Before Coach Anzai announced the starting lineup, Sakuragi was rubbing Coach Anzai's fat chin again.

"Stop, Sakuragi!"

Sakuragi's behavior greatly angered Mitsui.

Coach Anzai is the person he respects the most; even he has never done this before!

Judging from Sakuragi's enjoyable expression, the feel must have been quite good.

boom~
In the end, it was Akagi's iron fist that silenced Sakuragi.

"Akagi, Naito, Mumu, Rukawa Kaede..."

When he finished speaking, Coach Anzai paused noticeably before finally focusing on Sakuragi.

"Sakuragi!"

As soon as Coach Anzai finished speaking, the Shohoku players all stared at Sakuragi with surprised looks.

"Yay, I'm in the starting lineup!"

Sakuragi happily made a peace sign, his excitement beyond words.

This is his first time starting for the Shohoku team!

“Coach…” Mitsui hesitated.

"Mitsui, I guarantee your playing time will not be less than any of theirs."

"All right!"

With Coach Anzai's assurances, Mitsui finally accepted the fact.

This is the first time he's been a substitute in an important match!
On the other side, Ryonan sent out a lineup of Uozumi, Nango, Ikegami, Matsumoto Minoru, and Sendoh.

This is already Ryonan's strongest lineup!
When the main players from both sides took to the field, the fans' enthusiasm instantly reached a boiling point.

In the aisle, Tokuo Horita asked in confusion, "Huh, why isn't the mistress playing?"

"We don't know either!"

The other two looked at each other and shook their heads in unison.

At this point, the three members of the Horita Tokuo group could only listlessly start cheering for Shohoku.

On the field, Ikegami was also wondering, "Why isn't Mitsui playing?"

Coach Taoka sent him onto the court mainly to mark Mitsui.

Thinking of this, Chi looked at Coach Taoka unconsciously.

Coach Taoka stood on the sidelines and shouted, "Ikegami, ignore the red-haired kid, go and keep an eye on Rukawa!"

"Old man, don't look down on me!"

Sakuragi glared at Coach Taoka, feeling slighted.

"Damn it, who are you calling an old man!"

Coach Taoka was instantly taken aback. He was not even forty years old, how could he have acted like an old man?

Sakuragi ignored Coach Taoka and turned his gaze to Matsumoto Minoru.

"Senior, I heard you're the core of Ryonan's offense?"

Matsumoto Minoru tilted his head and asked, "Is there something you need?"

"I'm going to crush you in this match!"

"Just you?"

Sakuragi Ten shamelessly pointed to herself: "I'm Shohoku's secret weapon!"

"Then I'll wait and see!"

Matsumoto Minoru did not underestimate Sakuragi; on the contrary, he was very serious about him.

In the last match, Sakuragi performed very well and even suppressed Kishimoto at one point.

beep~
It was at this moment that the referee tossed the ball into the air.

As the basketball began to fall, Akagi and Uozumi jumped up together.

slap~
The two players slammed their hands onto the basketball almost simultaneously, engaging in a struggle in the air.

The basketball was eventually pushed away, and the two players landed on the ground, involuntarily taking a step back to reduce the impact.

Kogure grabbed the basketball first, and Sendoh immediately came to meet him.

Sendoh's expression was solemn, and he kept a step's distance from Kogure, guarding against both sudden attacks and throws.

Faced with such an opponent, he dared not be careless in the slightest.

He knew very well how skilled Kogure was at seizing opportunities.

If there is even the slightest lapse in concentration, Kogure will seize the opportunity.

Kogure dribbles past his opponent and uses his signature crossover step.

His ball control is fluid and rhythmic, his body sways gently with the rhythm, and every movement is deceptive.

Sendoh couldn't quite grasp Kogure's intentions, so he could only grit his teeth and follow Kogure's movements.

In an instant, the immortal's center of gravity shifted noticeably.

It was at this moment that Kogure seemed to anticipate Sendoh's defensive move and seized the opportunity to break through.

"So fast!"

Sendoh couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

The two passed each other, and Kogure quickly rushed towards the basket.

Sendoh turned to give chase, but was unable to catch up in a short time.

Seeing that Sendoh had been broken through by Kogure, Uozumi immediately realized the danger and rushed towards Kogure to try to stop his attack.

Kogure seemed to have anticipated all of this, and before Uozumi could help defend, he pulled up for a jump shot.

shuh~
The basketball traced a beautiful parabola and pierced the rim with perfect accuracy.

Hua Hua Hua~
As applause and cheers erupted from the audience, Kogure remained remarkably calm, as if it were all an easy task for him.

As his skills continue to improve, he now feels more and more at ease with his abilities.

He no longer wanted to stay in this small fishpond; he wanted to explore a wider world.

(End of this chapter)