As Miyagi started to show his strength,
Kuwata and the others saw this and their faces turned pale, unable to hide their amazement.
"His dribbling is so fast!"
"Is this really the Miyagi-senpai who's been absent all this time?"
Although they hadn't met Miyagi in person, they had heard of his name. He was one of the top point guards in Kanagawa, known for his incredible speed with the ball.
Seeing his smooth and fast dribbling now, they immediately knew it was him.
With Akagi in the paint and Miyagi outside, it was a perfect combination, creating immense pressure.
Now, they could only hope that Ryu could stop Miyagi.
Kogure, watching Miyagi's skilled dribbling, couldn't help but feel emotional.
"The familiar Miyagi is back. Ryu, do you think you can stop him?"
On the sidelines,
Sakuragi Hanamichi, watching Miyagi's smooth dribbling, stood next to Ayako, who was also watching Miyagi. The basketball slowly dropped from his hands, a look of jealousy on his face.
"Damn it! That guy, he stole my chance to show off my genius skills. Ryu, teach him a lesson for me!"
Jealousy really twisted Sakuragi's mood.
Ryu, seeing Miyagi increase his dribbling speed, was surprised.
"As expected, lightning speed. This is certainly faster than Kogure could manage."
"But if you think you can break through me with just that, you're underestimating me."
[Beep!]
[Mission triggered: Stop Miyagi's dribbling.]
[Reward: 'C'-shaped dribbling move.]
Ryu felt excited seeing the sudden mission pop up.
'C'-shaped dribbling was a common trick to break through, though it was difficult to train. Even now, Ryu could do it, but it wasn't exactly pretty.
As Miyagi kept dribbling,
Ryu's Phantom Steal skill was triggered.
Ryu's eyes locked onto Miyagi's ball like an eagle, making all his dribbling movements seem like they were happening in slow motion.
He began to prepare for the steal, gathering power in his right foot.
"Be careful, junior. I'm about to break through."
Miyagi, feeling proud, warned Ryu.
In his mind, Ryu hadn't moved a single step because of his dribbling.
Getting past Ryu was as easy as crossing a road on a calm morning.
"Miyagi, don't play one-on-one, pass the ball!!"
Akagi, seeing Miyagi getting carried away, immediately shouted at him.
"It's okay, captain, I've got this..."
Miyagi was quick to explain. Ryu was just a beginner—there was no way he could touch the ball.
But before Miyagi could finish speaking,
In the next moment...
Smack!
As Miyagi's right hand slapped the ball to the ground,
Ryu's left hand suddenly swiped the ball away, sending it flying.
Then he immediately sprinted to grab the ball.
"What? How did that happen?"
Miyagi couldn't believe it. He was actually stolen from?
It must have been a fluke.
"Damn it!!"
He quickly turned around and rushed after the ball that Ryu had knocked away.
Kogure, watching this from the sidelines, was completely stunned.
"What? Miyagi got his ball stolen? No way, that can't be true."
The image of Ryu stealing Miyagi's ball flashed through his mind.
Akagi was also shocked.
He really got stolen from again? Miyagi must have gotten too confident.
Meanwhile, the first-year freshmen, including Kuwata, were excited.
"Ryu! Ryu stole the ball from Miyagi-senpai!"
"Fast break, fast break!!"
Rukawa, slightly surprised, couldn't help but admire Ryu.
If it had been him defending, he wasn't sure he could have stolen the ball. But Ryu? After training, he'd have to challenge him to a match.
At the same time,
Ayako couldn't help but take a deep breath to calm her excited heart.
"Is this Ryu really playing the part of a hidden talent?"
"He stole the ball from Miyagi."
"I have to ask him about this later, for sure."
She glanced at Ryu with a sharp gaze.
Just as Ryu grabbed the ball,
A figure appeared like lightning, blocking his way.
It was Miyagi, rushing to stop him.
"You little brat, not bad. You managed to steal my ball."
Miyagi licked his lips and stared at Ryu. The previous dribbling had been a mistake on his part. He hadn't expected Ryu's speed and agility to be on par with his own.
"Be careful, senpai. I'm about to break through."
Ryu grinned back, repeating Miyagi's earlier words.
Inside, he was still surprised. Miyagi's speed and reaction time were far beyond Kogure's.
If Kogure had been the one defending, he probably would have had another fast break, but now Miyagi had successfully blocked his way.
"Good!"
"That's how you defend him!"
Akagi, ready to defend, shouted loudly as he saw Miyagi block Ryu's way.
Earlier, Ryu had been able to break through, but his technique was rough. Against Kogure, it worked, but against Miyagi? That was a different story.
Now, it was up to Ryu to figure out how to get past him.