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

Just now during the pause.

Coach Anzai's words echoed in Mitsui's ears once again.

"Sakuragi is also Shohoku's ace."

"An ace, huh...?"

Mitsui Hisashi grinned, his smile defiant and arrogant.

"Then let me see just how good you really are, you self-proclaimed genius ace!"

Mitsui's eyes suddenly sharpened.

He swayed his shoulder and made an extremely realistic feint to break through to the right!

Satoshi Ichinokura's nerves were on edge. He reflexively took half a step back, trying to block the route.

It's just this half-step distance!

It's just this fleeting sliver of space!

Mitsui Hisashi had no intention of breaking through!

He didn't even glance at the basketball hoop.

He slammed both hands down hard, his wrists unleashing astonishing power!

"Whoosh!"

The basketball, spinning intensely, slammed into the floor like a cannonball.

Bounce pass!

"Snapped!"

A crisp, deep thud of the ball being caught rang out in the Sannoh penalty area.

Sakuragi Hanamichi spread his large, fan-like hands and caught the ball steadily in front of his chest.

Hold the ball with both hands!

At that moment, the entire Hiroshima Stadium seemed to have been silenced.

All the noise came to an abrupt halt.

Tens of thousands of eyes were fixed on the red-haired boy who was leaning against Kawada Mikio.

"Gulp."

Someone swallowed hard in the deathly silence.

This then triggered a chain reaction.

"Gulp."

"Gulp."

On the field are Akagi, Miyagi, and Mitsui.

Off the court, there were Rukawa, Kogure, the Sakuragi Army, and even Ayako and Akagi Haruko...

Except for one person, everyone's Adam's apples were bobbing up and down; they were so nervous they almost forgot to breathe.

That one and only exception.

It was Lin Bei who stood at the top of the arc outside the three-point line, facing off against Ze Bei Rongzhi.

Lin Bei remained as carefree as ever, as if he hadn't woken up properly.

Her hands hung casually at her sides, and she rhythmically chewed pink bubble gum.

"Pop".

He even casually blew a bubble and then sucked it back into his mouth.

Those deep, ancient eyes showed no sign of tension, but rather a strong sense of morbid curiosity.

The atmosphere on the Shohoku bench was equally heavy.

Coach Anzai leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed intently on Sakuragi.

"Everyone, watch carefully."

"This is what's called... localized warfare."

"Localized warfare?"

Ayako froze for a moment, gripping the tactical board tightly until her knuckles turned white.

Coach Anzai nodded.

"That's right."

"Often, the overall situation may reach a stalemate or be at a disadvantage."

"Just like now, Sakuragi-kun and that Kawata Miki are definitely at a disadvantage in terms of physique and experience."

"but……"

Coach Anzai paused, his tone becoming unusually confident.

"If, in this localized confrontation, you firmly believe in your heart that you 'will definitely win'..."

"That would create an opportunity to break the balance and turn the impossible into the possible!"

Ayako was stunned.

She instinctively turned her gaze to the most unfathomable man on the field.

"coach……"

Ayako swallowed hard. "You mean...Lin Bei?"

In her opinion, the only one on the team with that abnormal ability to "ignore all opponents and be certain of victory" was Lin Bei!

That demon king who could easily outmaneuver even Maki Shinichi and made Toyotama's ace question his existence!

However, Coach Anzai shook his head.

The chubby finger pointed into the restricted area.

"Lin Bei's task now is not to engage in physical battles inside the paint."

"He is responsible for restraining the opponent's absolute ace—Eiji Sawakita."

"Huh?!"

Ayako stared in shock.

"Could it be...?"

She turned her head sharply and looked at Sakuragi Hanamichi, who was sticking his butt out and pressing hard against Mikio.

"Could it be... Sakuragi Hanamichi?!"

Ayako's voice rose an octave.

These words immediately caused an uproar on the Shohoku bench.

"What the heck?!"

Kogure pushed up his slipped glasses, his face filled with shock.

The others were so frightened that their faces turned pale, as if they were listening to a fairy tale.

Coach Anzai ignored their shock, his gaze sharp and insightful.

"Look at the other side."

"Someone who can go toe-to-toe with that terrifyingly strong Kawata Miki..."

There are only two people in our team.

"One is Lin Bei, and the other is Sakuragi Hanamichi."

"If we send Lin Bei to the inside to fight Miki Osamu head-on..."

Coach Anzai's tone was extremely solemn.

"Once Eiji Sawakita goes all out, the outer defense will be riddled with holes, and no one will be able to stop that number one high school student!"

The voice just fell.

The scene on the stadium seemed to freeze in time.

Lin Bei, positioned at the top of the arc, had a lazy yet radar-like gaze fixed on Ze Bei.

Zebei's body slumped slightly, like a fully drawn bow, ready to pounce at any moment.

But he dared not make any rash moves.

The subtle yet palpable pressure emanating from Lin Bei felt like a knife hanging over his neck!

The two did not even have physical contact.

But the clash of auras between those top-tier experts had already distorted the surrounding air.

Lin Bei chewed his gum, his eyes filled with arrogance.

As if telepathically connected with Coach Anzai, he sneered inwardly:

"Dad's prediction was pretty accurate."

"If I get stuck in the paint with that fat guy, this rabbit named Sawakita will definitely tear Shohoku's defense to shreds."

"so……"

Lin Bei's eyes sharpened.

"Now, those who can step up, withstand that mountain of flesh, and tear a bloody path through the paint..."

"Only that idiot Sakuragi is left!"

Off the field, Coach Anzai stared intently at the timer.

"so……"

"The key to widening the score gap and determining the outcome of the game..."

"It was during the last five minutes of the first half that Lin Bei unleashed his full potential."

"What we need to do now is to prevent the score from widening too much."

At this moment, time seemed to stretch out.

Everyone fell silent.

The world is filled only with the roar of heartbeats.

Their eyes were fixed intently on Sakuragi Hanamichi!

Sakuragi gripped the basketball tightly with both hands.

The oppressive feeling behind me was as heavy as a mountain.

Mikio Kawata's massive body, like a wall of sighs, tried to crush him with its sheer weight!

"Huffing and puffing—"

Sakuragi was breathing heavily, and sweat dripped onto the floor.

In that instant, countless images flashed through Sakuragi's mind like a movie.

"Sakuragi-kun..."

Coach Anzai's kind face appeared.

"Your strengths are speed and abnormal agility."

"Don't try to out-weight your opponent; use your talent to beat him."

Speed... Agility...

The scene changes.

Outside a hot spring inn in Shizuoka Prefecture, on that sweltering night of special training.

Lin Bei's lazy yet irritating face popped out.

"Sakuragi, you better listen up!"

"What is stance training?"

Lin Bei's voice rang out like a thunderclap.

"If you encounter something you can't push, just shift your weight!"

"Rooted in the lower body!"

Imagine your legs are tree roots, firmly planted in the ground!

"Use the power of the earth! Do you understand?!"