Kuroko no Basket: Honored One

What everyone knew, Kise Ryota naturally understood as well.

He appeared to be capable of anything—any skill set, he could learn just by watching it once.

But the fact that he couldn't copy the Generation of Miracles meant that, in a way, he couldn't do anything at all.

Kaijō's goal was to win the championship.

To achieve that, they had to defeat the Generation of Miracles.

You could say that ever since their loss to Seirin, Kise had been pondering this issue.

But what truly pushed him to make up his mind and follow through with this crazy idea…

Was that duel between Tendou and Aomine.

Watching it, he realized that compared to Tendou and the others, his evolution was still too slow.

He had to find a weapon of his own.

Then, he analyzed it—his former teammates all had their own signature abilities, almost like they were born with them.

Tendou's Six Eyes.

Akashi's Emperor Eye.

Murasakibara's physical dominance.

Midorima's touch.

Aomine's instinctive feel for the game.

All of those were the sharpest weapons of his former teammates.

And he—Kise Ryota—his greatest weapon was learning.

So he would take that strength to the extreme: he would copy the skillsets of all his former teammates!

That was the plan… but putting it into action was a whole different beast.

At the moment, Kise felt like his head was about to explode.

The complex movements of the Generation of Miracles were like a massive influx of data—his brain was reaching full capacity.

Tendou's single-motion jump shot, Aomine's chaotic shooting rhythm—these were all unconventional attack techniques.

No player from this era played that way.

Yet he had to train his body to adapt to these wildly different offensive styles, all at the same time.

The short intermission passed in the blink of an eye.

Possession: Kirisaki Daiichi.

Right from the start of the play, Tendou made a decisive move.

Kaijō sent out their ace duo—Kise and Yukio Kasamatsu—for the double-team.

They had no choice. If they didn't double him, he'd just shoot the moment he lifted his hand.

Tendou's three-point threat was now second only to Midorima among all current players.

"But if we double-team him, someone on Kaijō's side will be left unguarded."

"And Tendou will definitely find that open man!"

Nakatani Masaaki looked over at Genta Takeuchi and sighed at the predicament.

There was no good solution here. Choosing between these two poisons was like being forced to drink one of two vials of deadly venom.

"But… would it really be that simple?"

From Kaijō's posture, it didn't look like they were backed into a corner.

If anything, it looked like they were preparing something.

Could it be they still had a trump card hidden up their sleeves?

"How far along are you in preparing?" On the court, Tendou dribbled slowly, facing the two defenders as he suddenly asked, "Your plan to mimic us."

!!!

Both defenders froze in shock.

How did he know what their team was planning?

Simple—Tendou could see.

And he had read the original story.

He knew the only way Kaijō could hope to contend with him was to copy the Generation of Miracles.

Kise and Kasamatsu didn't know that.

They just stared into Tendou's starlit eyes and couldn't help thinking how terrifying he was.

Spectators in the real world felt the same way.

They were all stunned by Tendou's insight.

In front of his Six Eyes, it was as if no one could keep a secret.

"About… 50%," Kise admitted with a wry smile.

"So more like 60 or 70," Tendou saw through his attempt to downplay it. Then he said, "In that case, let's widen the gap first."

Smack!

The basketball bounced off the floor and returned to Tendou's hands.

But a split second later, it vanished from them.

In the blink of an eye, a blur streaked past the defenders and slammed the ball into Seto Kentaro's waiting hands under the basket.

"There it is again."

People didn't know what to call this technique.

They only knew it was born from his swordsmanship.

If they had to name it, they'd say it involved passing, breaking through, stealing, and shooting—with "severance" added somewhere before or after.

At that moment, many were thinking hard about how to counter his passes.

But they were too fast. Too clean.

There was no time to react.

"If it were you… could you stop that, Aomine?"

Also from Tokyo, Tōō Academy paid close attention to Kirisaki Daiichi.

And within their lineup, the only one who might be able to stop Tendou's passes… was probably Aomine Daiki.

"How would I know without playing against it?" Aomine replied honestly.

He played on instinct. He could analyze, but more often, he relied on how he felt in the moment.

If he were in his wild state, relying on his innate feel for the game, he might be able to sense the trajectory of those passes.

But to completely shut it down…

He'd probably have to enter the Zone, clear his mind entirely, and let his body sense the vibrations in the air to intercept it.

Clang!

Seto Kentaro banked it in again.

Kise didn't even move.

He couldn't read the pass at all—not the intent, not the motion.

"You knew I wasn't ready, and you didn't even wait… Little Tendou, you're so heartless."

"If you're serious, you're cruel."

Tendou turned around and jogged off.

"I don't care how many times I have to say it—

the court is a battlefield."

"If you keep dragging your feet, you'll never catch up to me.

You'll only ever see my back."

And he was right.

Kise wanted to win.

But only if Tendou gave it his all—that was the respect he wanted.

The gap was now 14 points.

Kaijō had only one thought:

They absolutely couldn't let it stretch to 20.

That was the tipping point.

Even in history, there were very few games where a team down by 20 came back to win.

Out of all the professional leagues around the world each year, there were fewer than 100 such comebacks.

In amateur games, it was even rarer.

A 20-point gap was practically a signal for garbage time.

Twenty points—that was their life-or-death line.

But Kirisaki Daiichi's pressure hadn't let up.

The intel Momoi provided was incredibly accurate.

Every point Kaijō scored took both luck and guts.

Today, they had some luck.

Yukio Kasamatsu hit a contested three-pointer that bounced around the rim twice before dropping in.

It was a lucky shot.

But for Kaijō, it was worth more than gold.

No time to celebrate.

Before they could even turn around, Tendou sent another bullet pass flying into the paint.

The ball shot through the air like a laser and landed right in the hands of Kazuya Hara.

The string of scoring plays had drawn Kaijō's attention to Seto Kentaro—

And they'd completely overlooked Kazuya Hara.

"Not a single opening to adjust."

Many people just shook their heads.

No matter how Kaijō adjusted their defense, Tendou would always find the best way to dismantle it.

It was a crushing feeling.

That Kaijō hadn't collapsed yet showed incredible resolve.

Because they still had hope—even if it was fading fast.

"Please, just stop… Tendou… please…"

"Have mercy, will you? The kids are scared!"

Can't defend.

Can't score.

How are they supposed to win like this?

『Easy! Take it easy, you monster Tendou!』

『Come on, can't we talk this out?』

Kise's fans were in despair.

Tendou's style was suffocating.

He gave them no room to breathe.

If there was hope, he would crush it.

If there wasn't, he'd triple-tap them into hell.

Even the spectators could feel the overwhelming pressure he radiated.

And Tendou's fans?

They scrolled through the live comments, laughing at the ones trying to cheer for Kise.

"How dare you challenge the King of B," they jeered.

"Like lighting a candle in a toilet—useless and just plain stinky."

...

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