The already lively arena became even more chaotic as the fourth quarter finally began with the ball in Totsuki's possession.
The crowd looked forward to what Tsuna would do, as things had been unfavorable for Totsuki with Aomine entering the Zone.
"..."
Everyone in Too Academy smiled despite the sudden tension.
They looked at Aomine, who positioned himself against Tsuna, as Imayoshi thought, "This game..."
"It's ours!"
They silently thought at the same time.
As the ball found its way to Sakamoto, he slowly dribbled it forward. He looked at the players from Too Academy who immediately took up their positions, as Imayoshi came closing in on him.
Sakamoto also noticed Aomine marking Tsuna closely at the center.
"What happened to him all of a sudden?"
He muttered as he glanced at Tsuna in bewilderment.
Sakamoto might not be the best player out there, but he was confident in his own skillset and instincts. And this time around, his instincts told him Tsuna had subtly changed once again.
"Contrary to Aomine's strong presence, Tsuna seemed to have lost his completely..."
Yet, even against such intense pressure, Tsuna didn't flinch, as if the pressure didn't touch him at all.
There was a mysterious air surrounding him as Sakamoto took a deep breath, refocusing on the game while Imayoshi accelerated toward him.
"But why do I feel this strange sense of confidence in him..."
This time, he didn't get distracted. He sharply sidestepped to avoid Imayoshi, then swung his arm, projecting the ball toward Tsuna.
Sakamoto grinned widely as he looked at Tsuna, stating, "...I guess the MVP in the court has yet to be decided!"
As the ball made its way to Tsuna, Aomine narrowed his eyes, sparks dancing across his pupils, sending a strong wave of pressure that gave Totsuki players chills.
He opened his stance, ready to act if Tsuna showed even the slightest mistake.
"I see you're all quite excited..."
Tsuna's voice echoed across the court, but Aomine's expression remained unchanged.
However...
"...but why do you think the game is already over?"
His cold voice sliced through the atmosphere, leaving the players from Too Academy dumbfounded.
"...!"
Aomine's eyes widened as he watched Tsuna casually straighten his back.
It was as if he wasn't even trying.
Yet, the moment the ball touched Tsuna's arm, it moved in a smooth, almost lazy motion, sending the ball flying toward the basket.
"...What?"
Aomine mumbled in surprise. He didn't understand why he hadn't even attempted to block the shot.
He watched the ball hover in the air before slowly arcing down, making a perfect swish through the basket.
"What just..."
Players from both teams were too slow to respond, "...happened?"
Despite scoring the first shot of the fourth quarter, the court was silent as everyone tried to process what had just happened.
"Hahaha, you're right, Ito!"
A loud laughter echoed as Aoki and Sato walked up beside Tsuna, patting him on the shoulder.
They turned to look at the Too Academy players as Sato declared, "How dare you think it's already over..."
"You bastards think we've given up yet?"
Aoki followed with another remark.
Sakamoto adjusted his glasses, seeing his team suddenly regain their motivation.
He turned to Imayoshi, who looked on in disbelief, and said, "It feels like the game has just begun, don't you think?"
"..."
Imayoshi remained silent, adjusting his glasses as well. His casual expression was gone, replaced by a serious look as he studied Tsuna.
The crowd suddenly woke up and cheered for him.
A simple, almost lazy shot, one that even Aomine hadn't anticipated considering the pacing of the game over the last three quarters.
"...He can make three-pointers from that distance?"
Imayoshi shook his head, realizing their starting momentum had nearly crumbled. He gestured to his teammates to get the ball back in play.
Grabbing the ball, Imayoshi didn't waste any time, sharply passing it to Aomine. His eyes narrowed as he looked at Sakamoto, who was watching him. "The MVP... is obviously Aomine!"
"You know why? The only one who can beat someone in the zone is someone else in the zone!"
Imayoshi refused to believe Tsuna could stop Aomine in his current state.
"That shot was unexpected, but it won't fool me twice..."
As Aomine grabbed the ball, the crowd held their breath, and the atmosphere turned heavy.
"I know..."
Tsuna spoke as he closed in.
Aomine observed Tsuna's relaxed form, reminiscent of his own animal instinct, yet he knew it was entirely different.
"If my form is a relaxed state that moves based on instinct..."
A state that seemed to have many openings yet had none because he would react to anything instinctively and very quickly.
Meanwhile...
Tsuna's form seemed to be in a relaxed state based on calculation.
There were simply no openings at all!
"But..."
Aomine took a deep breath as he started dribbling the ball slowly, gradually increasing the pace until it became a blur.
"...that won't be enough, Ito!"
He silently remarked as he sharply crossed over, breaking past Tsuna's defense.
Still, Tsuna followed closely as both weaved through the court with incredible speed. The others had a hard time keeping up, making their repositioning useless.
At the same time...
Everyone in the court was shocked to see Tsuna keeping up with Aomine's pace this time.
"How the hell did that guy get so much faster now?"
Wakamatsu cursed, as everyone looked on in disbelief at the two aces dancing on their own in the court, making the rest of the players seem like mere decorations.
"...This game is literally just one-on-one!"
Imayoshi thought, sweat rolling down his forehead.
As the game continued, Tsuna also managed to hold his own on the attack.
Both players kept destroying each other's defenses with their relentless offense.
With the scores piling up from both teams without any signs of stopping, the crowd went absolutely ecstatic, thrilled by the electrifying gameplay from the aces of both teams.
However...
They knew a crucial moment was approaching as their excited cheers slowly died down, and they focused intently on the court.
Aomine's expression had morphed into one of crazed excitement as he followed every move to stop Tsuna from scoring.
"..."
Tsuna looked calmly at Aomine's state before shaking his head. He sharply broke through Aomine's defense, shocking Aomine himself as his eyes widened in disbelief, "What? Is he getting even faster?"
Despite not understanding what was happening, Aomine pushed through and managed to keep up with Tsuna.
"I'm not getting faster..."
As if reading Aomine's thoughts, Tsuna answered as he accelerated toward the basket and leaped up.
"...!"
Aomine, taken aback, jumped up to block him.
Looking at Aomine, Tsuna continued coldly, "But you're getting slower..."
To everyone's shock, Tsuna twisted midair like what Aomine had done in the third quarter and slammed the ball into the basket.
The resounding sound snapped everyone back to reality as they looked on in shock.
"Aomine's losing...?"
Imayoshi's eyes widened in disbelief.
Despite still in shock, Too Academy had no choice but to pull themselves together as the game continued.
They then quickly passed the ball to their ace.
"I'm getting slower, you said?"
Aomine mumbled softly, his emotions swirling as he dribbled the ball.
Seeing the apathetic look in Tsuna's eyes, Aomine's expression twisted with a mix of disbelief and anger. He shouted, "Fucking nonsense! I'm Aomine Daiki, the only one who can beat me is me!"
"Ha... What a fool!"
Tsuna shook his head.
Aomine weaved through the court, looking for an opening with Tsuna closely following his every move.
He dribbled the ball between his legs, made a sharp feint to the left, and then crossed over to the right.
Aomine smiled victoriously as he moved past Tsuna.
"...?"
However, his smile faltered as he realized something was off. He looked down at his hands and mumbled, "The ball?"
The ball was gone!
He widened his eyes in shock before turning around to see Tsuna bursting forward, effortlessly breaking through Too Academy's defense.
The defenders scrambled to stop him, but Aomine was too far back in enemy territory.
BAM!
A resounding slam echoed across the court.
Aomine stood there frozen, a distance away, as everything seemed surreal to him.
Unfortunately for him, the reality was harsh. The game had completely slipped past his control.
"Whoaaa!"
"Ito! Ito! Ito!"
"Totsuki's winning this for sure!"
The crowd's loud cheers snapped him back to the harsh reality as he mumbled in disbelief, "...Am I actually losing to someone?"
---
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