Kuroko's Basketball template: the king of slacking off, Shohoku's strongest sixth man.

The videotape spun with a slight electrical hum.

The image gradually became clear.

Last year in the national competition semi-finals, Hainan University Affiliated High School faced off against Shanwang Industrial High School.

"Is this the final four showdown in the nation last year...?"

Kiminobu Kogure pushed up his glasses, barely daring to breathe.

"Keep your eyes on the screen."

Coach Anzai sat on a single sofa, his hands folded over his cane.

The score on the field was alarming.

By the tenth minute of the second half, Hainan was already down by a full ten points.

"That's... the middle-aged man from last year!"

Sakuragi Hanamichi sat cross-legged on the sofa, pointing at the strong guard wearing the number 8 jersey on the screen and shouting.

At this time, Maki Shinichi was only a second-year student, but his physique was already extremely terrifying.

He lowered his center of gravity and dribbled the ball continuously between his legs.

"Amu is about to break through!"

Ryota Miyagi straightened his back and stared intently at Shinichi Maki's steps.

In the video, Amu's right shoulder sank, and the sole of his shoe scraped against the wooden floor, producing a piercing shriek.

He made an extremely aggressive gear shift, like a heavy tank forcefully squeezing past his opponent.

"So fast!"

"Were all middle-aged people this fierce last year?!" Sakuragi's eyes widened.

However, just 0.1 seconds after Amu dribbled past his opponent and was about to enter the penalty area.

A dark figure suddenly appeared from the side like a ghost!

It's Kazunari Fukatsu, the captain of Sannoh!

He seemed to have anticipated all of Amu's movements, calculating even the breakthrough route and the dribbling landing point with perfect accuracy.

"Snapped!"

The crisp sound of the ball hitting the shuttlecock echoed in the empty room.

Amu's pupils shrank on the screen, and a look of astonishment flashed across his face.

His pride and joy—his strength and speed—collided with an invisible giant net at this moment.

The basketball in his hand was precisely sliced ​​away by Kazunari Fukatsu.

"What?!"

Akagi Takenori felt a chill run down his spine, and a layer of cold sweat seeped out of his back.

Maki Shinichi's breakthrough was so cleanly and decisively cut off?

The intercepted basketball didn't bounce a second time on the ground, and the opponent used the momentum to push it backward.

Masashi Wada, who had the ball, didn't even need to adjust his posture.

Raise the ball high above your head with both hands, using your waist and abdomen to generate power.

Like throwing a javelin, he launched an incredibly long pass that spanned half the field.

"Back up!!"

The video showed the Hainan players shouting themselves hoarse.

Eiji Sawakita leaped high in the attacking third and caught the cannonball-like pass with ease.

The then-captain of Hainan, number 4, fought back with all his might, firmly blocking the inside line and spreading his arms to try to stop the fast break.

But when facing the defense, Zebei didn't even attempt to slow down.

He was like a gust of wind, swaying slightly left and right the instant he made contact with the Hainan captain.

It defied the laws of physics and swiftly swerved past the Hainan captain.

Take off, glide, flick your fingertips.

The basketball arced gracefully through the air and swished through the net.

The entire counterattack, from the steal to the long pass and then the layup, took less than five seconds.

It moved so smoothly and quickly that there wasn't even time to despair.

"Beep—"

Coach Anzai pressed the pause button.

The image freezes on Eiji Sawakita's expressionless face.

The room was deathly silent.

All I could hear was the humming of the air conditioner unit.

The Shohoku team, who had been making a ruckus just moments before, seemed to have been frozen in place.

Mitsui Hisashi's lips were tightly pressed together, while cold sweat slid down Miyagi Ryota's forehead.

Takenori Akagi's brows were furrowed.

This breathtaking speed of offensive and defensive transitions completely overturned their understanding of high school basketball.

Even Hainan, one of last year's top four teams, was so powerless against Sannoh.

"Hahaha!"

An exaggerated burst of laughter broke the oppressive atmosphere.

Sakuragi Hanamichi pointed at the screen, laughing so hard he almost fell over, and didn't forget to slap Rukawa Kaede's thigh.

"The difference was a full ten points!"

"Middle-aged people were really abused last year! It's hilarious!"

"With this level of skill, how dare they call themselves the best in Kanagawa?"

"You big idiot."

Rukawa Kaede slapped Sakuragi's hand away in disgust.

His gaze, however, was fixed on Eiji Sawakita on the screen like a knife.

He could feel his blood boiling, a sense of dread rising up his spine as he encountered a top-quality prey.

That's a real monster.

An absolute genius, even stronger than Sendoh and Maki Shinichi.

"Hahaha! What is this?!"

"Last year's middle-aged people were utterly vulnerable!"

Sakuragi laughed so hard that tears almost came out.

He laughed for a full half minute, then suddenly his laughter stopped abruptly, as if someone had grabbed his neck.

The surroundings were eerily quiet.

There was none of Miyagi's usual banter, nor Mitsui's sarcastic remarks.

Rukawa Kaede, who usually looks down on him with disdain.

At this moment, he was staring intently at the frozen TV screen, not even having time to roll his eyes.

The air conditioner unit on the wall was blowing out cold air.

Sakuragi finally realized something was wrong.

He blinked and looked around suspiciously.

The air in this not-so-spacious hotel room was frighteningly stuffy.

Everyone's breathing was unusually heavy, and you could even hear Akagi Takenori cracking his knuckles.

Of course, this excludes Lin Bei, who was leaning against the wall with his hands in his pockets, looking relaxed.

"Feed..."

Sakuragi swallowed hard and moved closer to Miyagi Ryota.

He stretched out two thick fingers and unceremoniously pinched Gongcheng's cheeks and pulled them to both sides.

"Ryota, did you eat something bad?"

"His face was as white as if it had been painted on a wall!"

Miyagi snapped back to reality, a sharp pain shooting through his cheek.

He angrily slapped Sakuragi's hand away.

The screen's pale blue light shone on Miyagi's face, making the cold sweat on his forehead clearly visible.

"Don't touch me!"

"You...you're a complete novice..."

Miyagi gritted his teeth, utterly speechless.

"Huh? Who are you calling an amateur?!" Sakuragi immediately bristled.

"Isn't that right?"

Miyagi rubbed his face in frustration, his finger trembling as he pointed at the TV screen.

"You watched this match and couldn't see how terrifying Sannoh is?"

"That's Hainan! That's Maki Shinichi!"

Mitsui Hisashi, sitting on the other side, sighed deeply.

He covered his face with his hands, his voice muffled as it escaped through his fingers.

"I should have known..."

"You idiot, the word 'fear' doesn't even exist in your head."

"Fear?"

"Why should we be afraid of dealing with these guys?"

Sakuragi, unconvinced, raised his chin defiantly. "With this genius on my side, I'll leave them traumatized in no time!"

"idiot."

Rukawa Kaede coldly uttered two words, his gaze still fixed on Sawakita Eiji's face.

"You damn fox, who are you calling names!" Sakuragi rolled up his sleeves and was about to rush over.

"Alright, sit down first."

Lin Bei, who had been leaning against the corner of the wall, finally spoke.

He straightened up and casually walked to the television.

Lin Bei picked up the remote control and pressed the rewind button.

The screen rapidly rewinds with a hissing sound, stopping at the very moment Maki Shinichi is about to break through.

"Since there's a conspicuous guy on the team who doesn't understand the game."

"I'll give you a post-match analysis in front of the coach."

Lin Bei pressed the slow motion button, and the action on the screen started playing frame by frame.

Lin Bei's slender fingers tapped on the screen.

"Look closely at number 4."

"The captain of Sannoh, Kazunari Fukatsu."