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

Akagi's voice was deep.

It penetrated the noise and reached everyone's ears.

"They're exactly the same."

He slowly clenched his fist, his knuckles cracking, and the veins on the back of his hand bulged.

Did you see that?

Akagi suddenly turned his head, his sharp gaze sweeping over everyone.

"The entire stadium of fans..."

Akagi took a deep breath and tore open the cruelest reality.

"No one... wants Shohoku to win."

Dead silence.

Amidst the clamor, a suffocating silence fell over the Shohoku team.

This is a true away game; the whole world is against them.

Heavy pressure weighed on everyone's shoulders.

It was in this oppressive atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.

A soft laugh came from the back of the group.

Lin Bei rubbed his sleepy eyes and put his hands in his pockets.

He slowly emerged from the shadows and stood beside Akagi.

He tilted his head slightly, a playful smile curving his lips.

"None of them want us to win?"

Lin Bei twisted his neck, and his cervical spine made a crisp grinding sound.

His drowsy gaze vanished, replaced by an extremely violent and fierce glint, his aura fully unleashed.

That's wonderful.

He casually patted the stunned Sakuragi on the shoulder, his tone as relaxed as if they were discussing where to eat barbecue.

"Hey, Sakuragi, and you guys too."

Lin Bei glanced at his teammates, grinned, and revealed his gleaming white teeth.

"Being a villain is so much fun."

"Tread these hopeful faces under your feet, one by one."

"Press their idols, whom they worship like gods, and rub them into the floor..."

"Then I heard the desperate wails of tens of thousands of people in the stadium..."

Lin Bei narrowed his eyes, releasing his killing intent without reservation, causing the surrounding air to drop to freezing point.

"Just thinking about it makes me tremble with excitement."

……

There were no boos or insults.

Only a unified, deafening shout.

"The Mountain King! The Mountain King! The Mountain King!"

"Invincible! Sannoh Industrial!"

This was not ordinary cheering; it was a frenzied religious ritual.

The floor was shaking, and the air was burning.

It's halftime of the first match today.

The second match will be a do-or-die showdown between Sannoh Industrial High School and Shohoku High School.

They are making good use of these precious fifteen minutes to warm up at both ends of the field.

Ayako stood on the sidelines, her fingers gripping the edge of the tactical board tightly.

Cold sweat slid down her smooth forehead and landed directly on the floor.

"Listen..."

Ayako swallowed hard, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

"The cheers from the audience...it's terrifying..."

She looked around and saw banners and waving arms of support for Sannoh everywhere she looked.

"As expected..."

"They're all here to see Sannoh Industrial..."

Front row of the stands.

A middle-aged man in a short-sleeved shirt was excitedly waving his fist and loudly showing off to the people next to him, spitting as he spoke.

"Hey! See that?! Those kids are coming out!"

What kind of matches will Sannoh put on this year?

"I'm so excited I can't sleep!"

The middle-aged man shouted at the top of his lungs, as if afraid that others wouldn't hear him.

"I've been watching Sannoh's matches for thirty years!"

A young fan next to him immediately chimed in, "Uncle, what do you think of this year's tournament?"

"How is it?"

The middle-aged man suddenly slapped his thigh.

"This year's Sannoh is absolutely top-tier!"

"It could even be said to be the strongest class in the last thirty years!"

"Fakatsu, Kawata, Sawakita... they're all monstrous geniuses!"

"That team called Shohoku, they probably won't even last ten minutes before they get completely crushed!"

The basketball in Miyagi Ryota's hand bounced off his toes and went out of bounds.

The gum he usually chews so quickly got stuck in his mouth.

"Damn it..."

Miyagi cursed under his breath, turned around to pick up the ball, but his steps were unsteady.

Mitsui Hisashi receives the ball under the basket, jumps, and shoots.

The movement was as standard as ever, but his wrist trembled uncontrollably the moment he flicked the ball.

"Clang!"

The basketball hit the rim and bounced high into the air.

His prized three-point shot went completely airball during warm-up.

"cut……"

Mitsui wiped the sweat from his face in frustration, his eyes gloomy.

Takenori Akagi stood near the free-throw line, his rock-like face taut with tension.

He didn't take the ball, but stared intently at the white jerseys on the opposite half of the field.

Even Akagi, who had weathered many storms, felt his heart pounding like a drum at this moment.

This sense of oppression is a hundred times stronger than when I watched the massacre in Hainan from the audience last year.

Don't be affected...

Akagi roared at himself in his mind, his fists clenched tightly.

"We absolutely cannot let this atmosphere consume us!"

"We're here to dominate the entire nation!"

"If you're afraid to even warm up, if you're affected by this away game atmosphere..."

"We don't even have a sliver of a chance to win!"

"Slap, slap!"

Akagi clapped his hands hard twice, the loud noise briefly drowning out the surrounding noise.

"Concentrate, everyone!"

"Just shoot! Don't look at the other side!" Akagi roared, veins bulging on his forehead.

However, the commotion on the other side was not something that could be ignored simply by closing one's eyes.

In contrast, look at Sannoh Industrial's performance in the other half.

There were no fancy moves, no unnecessary communication.

They are currently practicing the most basic basketball layup.

Pass, cut in, jump, backboard, net.

"Whoosh—"

"Whoosh—"

The movements were as fluid as precisely meshing gears.

The force and angle of each pass.

Every player's timing and pace of movement were incredibly precise.

There were no unnecessary movements.

This kind of extreme efficiency, achieved through countless refinements of the fundamentals, exudes a breathtaking industrial aesthetic.

Even the simplest layup.

This also drew thunderous cheers from the audience in the stands.

"Great shot! That was beautiful!"

"Holy crap! Sawakita's moves are so fast!"

"Fokatsu's pass was simply a work of art!"

Hearing the frenzied screams, Rukawa Kaede gripped the basketball with one hand and glanced over coldly.

"It's just a basketball hoop... what's all the fuss about?"

Rukawa Kaede's voice wasn't loud.

Sakuragi Hanamichi, who was standing not far from him, surprisingly did not argue with Rukawa Kaede.

This delinquent teenager with a red buzz cut stands with his hands on his hips.

His chin was held high, and he let out a heavy sigh from his nose.

"Tch! A bunch of country bumpkins who've never seen the world!"

Sakuragi pursed his lips, his face full of disgust.

"I thought this was some kind of amazing feat, but isn't this just a basic layup?"

"What's there to yell about?!"

Lin Bei burst out laughing upon hearing this.

"This is interesting..."

Lin Bei rested his chin on his hand, his lazy gaze sweeping over Rukawa and Sakuragi.

Just then, the command came from the Sannoh half of the field.

Kazunari Fukatsu dribbled the ball expressionlessly, his voice calm and even.

"Alright! The last ball!"