NBA Skills: Dominating Kuroko no Basket

"Finally!" Kagami's eyes lit up with excitement, a faint smile playing on his lips.

He could feel the intense energy radiating from Kise, like a roaring fire.

This atmosphere made Kagami's blood boil, eager to go head-to-head with him.

"Once he's in the court, it's hard to believe this guy is also a model!" Hyuga remarked, a hint of teasing in his tone as he looked at Kise.

He knew Kise worked as a model, but seeing him exude such powerful energy on the court was a stark contrast that left him in awe.

"His strength is far more than just appearances" Kuroko cautioned the others. He was well aware of Kise's capabilities.

As a former teammate on Teiko, Kuroko understood Kise's talent deeply.

"Is it finally starting?" Shiro thought to himself, anticipation growing for this first showdown among the Generation of Miracles.

Suddenly, a loud cheer erupted from the stands.

It was a group of girls excitedly shouting Kise's name:

"Ryota! Ahh~!"

"We love you, we love you!"

The girls were clearly enthusiastic, seemingly Kise's devoted fans.

Hearing them, Kise smiled warmly and waved to the crowd in appreciation.

"Thank you for your support!" he said, a confident smile on his face.

Hyuga, startled by the girls' fervor, turned to Kasamatsu and asked, "What's going on here?"

Kasamatsu laughed and replied, "This happens every time this guy shows up."

He explained that Kise's appearances always triggered wild screams from his female fans.

As Kasamatsu spoke, he quickly approached Kise, scolding him as he went.

"How long are you going to keep waving like that? I'll smack you!" Kasamatsu barked before kicking Kise lightly.

Kise clutched his side and stood up, feigning injury. "Ow, Kasamatsu, you're kicking me now?"

Kasamatsu leaned in, his tone turning serious. "Kise, do you even realize the situation? Who on earth is that #10?"

"#10? Oh, he's called Kagami. Compared to the #11 who stole the ball from you earlier, that's Kuroko—my old teammate from Teiko. Amazing, right? Isn't it, isn't it?" Kise responded excitedly.

Kasamatsu promptly punched him in the stomach. "Why are you so happy, you idiot? They gave us quite the dramatic introduction, don't you think we should return the favor?"

Hearing this, Kise smiled faintly. That was exactly what he intended to do.

As the game resumed, Kasamatsu pushed the ball forward while Kise used a screen from his teammate to shake off Kagami.

Seeing the opening, Kasamatsu executed a between-the-legs bounce pass to Kise.

Kise leapt high into the air and slammed the ball into the hoop with authority.

The girls erupted into screams at the spectacular dunk.

Kise released the rim and landed gracefully, glancing at Kagami with a confident, almost taunting look. Kagami smirked in return — this was exactly the kind of battle he enjoyed.

Seirin launched their counterattack. With sharp teamwork and precision passes, the ball eventually found its way to Kagami through Kuroko's signature misdirection pass. Kagami rose powerfully and dunked the ball with force.

Both teams were running on high energy, pushing the game's tempo to the limit.

The score tightened rapidly, reaching 16:17 in just three minutes.

"The pace of this game is insane!" Momoi remarked in awe.

"Yeah, at this speed, Seirin might be in trouble" Shiro observed.

Momoi and Nijimura nodded in agreement with his assessment.

However, Kawamura looked at Shiro curiously, puzzled by his remark.

"It's because the faster Kagami gets, the more Kise's copying ability becomes dangerous. His adaptability will only grow sharper. At this rate, just keeping the score close will exhaust Seirin, and things will spiral from there" Shiro explained.

Smiling slightly, he added, "And the balance will soon be broken."

Sure enough, Seirin's coach, Riko, quickly called a timeout.

"Timeout, Seirin!"

As the team gathered, panting and hydrating, Riko expressed her concern. "It's only been five minutes, and you're all this worn out. No wonder — the speed of offense and defense transitions is just insane!"

Meanwhile, on Kaijo's side, Takeuchi was loudly scolding his players.

"What are you doing out there? How many points are you planning to give them? Is anyone even defending out there?"

Moriyama turned to Kasamatsu and groaned, "Man, they're really tough to deal with."

"Yeah, that first-year duo is tricky. Kagami's manageable since Kise is defending him, but that invisible kid — what's the deal with him?" Kasamatsu grumbled, clearly frustrated by Kuroko's presence.

Kise chuckled softly, wearing a confident expression. "Don't worry. The balance will tip soon."

"What do you mean by that?" Kasamatsu asked, intrigued.

"Because he has a weakness" Kise said with a knowing smile.

...

"A weakness?"

Riko looked at Kuroko, puzzled. She hadn't expected the Generation of Miracles to have any weaknesses.

"What do you mean, a weakness? Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Hyuga demanded.

"It's not exactly a weakness" Kuroko clarified with a wave of his hand. "But due to the game's unexpectedly fast pace, the misdirection is beginning to lose its effect."

Those words sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"Misdirection can't last a full 40 minutes" Shiro explained to Kawamura, adding:

"Kuroko's low presence isn't magic. It's just a technique that redirects the opponent's attention."

"Using his exceptional court vision, he repeatedly employs this tactic to fade into the background, creating the illusion of disappearing and acting as a passing hub" Shiro continued.

Momoi chimed in, "But his natural low presence is only a starting point. Overuse makes opponents adapt, and the effect weakens over time."

Kawamura nodded, finally understanding. "I knew there had to be a drawback to something like that!"