Automated chapter. Hopefully, there won't be any problems, and it will be published later.
But maybe surprise me with the power stones, so when I finally get to fingers my laptop again, I can smile?
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"That annoying shot was stopped?"
Seirin was also quite disbelieving at what Tsuna had done. The crowd's cheers woke them up, and they realized the game was about to continue, watching intently.
"Sakurai!"
When the ball was passed back in, Too's players seemed a bit disoriented from what had happened, providing an opening for Totsuki to exploit.
Sakurai was slow to realize that Marui had sharply spread his claw toward the ball coming to him.
He widened his eyes, his face paling, as he apologized, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
"...Could you stop apologizing for fuck sake!"
Marui couldn't help but feel annoyed as he dribbled the ball, with Sakurai desperately following behind as he shook his head.
The momentum shifted once again as Totsuki's players moved in sync and attacked, while Too's players scrambled to defend.
"Marui!"
Sakamoto shouted, and Marui immediately dribbled to the side before swinging his arm and passing it to his captain. Imayoshi immediately pressured Sakamoto, showing he wasn't willing to let them score.
"My apologies, but could you please give me the ball?" Imayoshi sarcastically taunted, sharply moving to follow Sakamoto.
Sakamoto felt the pressure stronger than when he was marked by Wakamatsu. He scoffed, "Apology accepted. Here's the ball..."
"...Where?"
"As if I would give it to you, you bastard!"
Sakamoto burst out in anger, and with Tsuna's snack still in effect, he stepped back before passing the ball to an empty corner. Imayoshi's eyes widened.
Tsuna's figure suddenly appeared like a ghost in the path of the ball.
Aomine was also present, but Imayoshi noticed their ace's widened eyes in surprise. He then understood the timing was a bit off for Aomine to stop Tsuna, who grabbed the ball before sprinting forward.
Tsuna leaped up and slammed the ball down toward the basket with a resounding slam.
The slam reverberated across the court along with the crowd's cheers.
"Oh? He still has another trick?"
Sakamoto didn't know what Tsuna had done to react faster than Aomine, but it was still a good thing for them since they were maintaining their lead strongly in the second quarter with this.
"...How did he suddenly disappear?"
Aomine muttered, feeling goosebumps rise on his skin as he looked at Tsuna, who landed on the ground before repositioning.
He had been marking Tsuna closely with his instincts in full motion.
However, the moment he looked away, he felt a cut-off from Tsuna's presence. "His presence suddenly disappears, and before I realize it, he's already in front of me..."
If Aomine hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have been able to chase after Tsuna, as he completely lost the sense of Tsuna's presence.
"Is that..."
Kagami stood up, feeling a sharp pain shoot through his feet. Ignoring the pain, he continued to mumble in disbelief, "...misdirection?"
"What?"
"Misdirection? But his presence was... Uh?"
Seirin players were shocked as they realized Tsuna's overwhelming presence was nowhere to be felt.
"Hmm? What the hell?"
They blinked in confusion. They could see Tsuna, but the pressure emanating from him was absent.
It was as if he had disappeared while still being visible somehow!
"What?"
"Kuroko, is that really misdirection, then?"
They all turned to Kuroko, who shook his head and said, "No, it was not misdirection..."
Different from him, who had a low presence and relied on using others with noticeable presence as a cover for his passes, making it misdirection.
"...I don't know what that is, but..."
However, with Tsuna, Kuroko could see that the guy didn't have a low presence like him...
"He somehow managed to completely cut off his presence..."
...like an Assassin!
"...!"
Seirin players were completely dumbfounded at the revelation as Aida turned to look at the court. The game continued as she muttered, "So that's why Aomine's reaction was a bit slow?"
Aomine could see Tsuna, but couldn't feel his presence at the same time!
For a player like Aomine, who relied completely on his instinct which was akin to someone with a sixth sense, being unable to sense Tsuna's presence was unbelievable.
"...What's going on?"
Harasawa furrowed his eyebrows as he looked warily at Tsuna's figure on the court. He couldn't help but mumble, "How is that even possible?"
"..."
Gripping the ball tightly, Aomine looked at Tsuna with a serious expression.
He didn't understand how Tsuna could completely cut off his presence on the court while still being clearly visible, but all he could do now was focus.
Taking a deep breath, Aomine dived deeper into his concentration, almost completely immersing himself in the game.
The crowd's cheers slowly faded from his perception.
"Seems like you do give me what I want, Tsunayoshi Ito!"
He shouted as he began his move, with Tsuna closely following. Their movements were so fast that players from both teams were surprised to see it.
However...
Aomine faced a completely different challenge now, unable to break through. As he dived deeper into his focus, he felt an invisible barrier blocking him.
"Seems like you don't give me what I want, Aomine..."
He snapped back to reality as he heard Tsuna's cold words.
Aomine felt the ball being snatched from his hands by Tsuna, who immediately burst forward.
"Bastard!"
Aomine turned on his heel and charged after Tsuna, who dribbled quickly toward the basket.
As Tsuna got close, he jumped up.
"Watch your fucking mouth, Tsunayoshi Ito!"
Aomine shouted, jumping to block Tsuna from behind.
"Hmm!?"
His eyes widened as he saw Tsuna's cold smirk. Realizing what was happening, he collided with Tsuna in midair.
Tsuna swiftly put the ball behind his back and shot it as the referee called a foul.
"...!"
Aomine fell to the ground, watching the ball fly through the air. It made a perfect swish, resulting in a three-pointer play by foul, a move Aomine was famous for.
He was still in a bit of shock as Tsuna effortlessly executed the free throw perfectly, and the crowd went crazy for what happened.
"Whoaa! Totsuki!"
"Let's fucking go!"
There was nothing that could excite them more than a dark horse completely overwhelming the favorite pick of the tournament!
Too Academy was also in shock at Aomine's complete overwhelm, which was unexpected for them. A timeout was called from Too to disrupt the momentum that Totsuki had almost completely taken over.
However, it was completely unnecessary as the game continued, Tsuna continued to dominate with his playstyle, perfectly combining Kuroko's passes and Aomine's formless shots.
By the end of the second quarter, Too's players looked on in disbelief at the scoreboard, realizing they were completely behind in scores.
"...52 - 30, huh?"
"Just what the fuck?"
They looked at each other before sighing, preparing to head back to their locker room during the long interval between each half.
However...
"Huh? Yo, Aomine, what the hell are you doing?"
"..."
They found Aomine in silence, his head covered by a towel, seemingly unaware of his surroundings.
"Hmm?"
Momoi turned her head around as she noticed what was happening.
"...!"
Her eyes widened her eyes in realization as tears welled up as she remembered Kuroko's words about Aomine losing his sense of surroundings when facing a strong opponent, completely in focus.
She watched as Aomine was dragged away by his teammates, muttering, "...Aomine-kun..."
Aomine was finally back!
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