Kise's triple-threat position was no bluff—his offensive arsenal was just that rich.
Across from him, Tendou's eyes sparkled like starlight, waves of light rippling within, mesmerizing to look at.
This was Kise's first time facing Tendou's Six Eyes directly.
And to be honest, the pressure was… unreal.
"Now's not the time to be afraid."
Kise slammed the ball into the court and ignited instantly—no rhythm shift, no buildup.
Just pure explosive motion, surging straight at Tendou.
The ball thundered off the hardwood.
That was unmistakably Raimei Dribble—Hayama's signature.
And Kise came out the gate using it at full power, a five-finger fingertip-control dribble at maximum intensity.
"Wait… isn't that my move?!"
Even Hayama Kotarō was stunned.
First, Tendou had watched it once and created an even faster version.
Now Kise had straight-up copied it into his own arsenal.
These two were Generation of Miracles in every sense—
Freakishly gifted and relentless.
"So even the Uncrowned Kings… only amount to this?" Reo Mibuchi muttered, exasperated.
They might've looked impressive—players only a step behind the Generation of Miracles.
But the truth was… they were just exceptional humans.
They hadn't stepped into the realm of true genius.
"Can dribbling really make that kind of noise?" muttered Hyūga Junpei, startled.
Every time the ball hit the floor, it felt like his heartbeat synced with the rhythm.
"That's Hayama's move," explained Kiyoshi Teppei calmly.
"It's that lightning-quick fingertip control that earned him the nickname 'Thunder Beast.'"
"But Kise's opponent today… is Tendou."
Exactly—that's the problem.
Alex Garcia was listening from the side, but now she felt a little lost in the conversation.
Was that kind of insane fingertip control just… a toy to these people?
Well, Tendou answered her confusion immediately.
Kise burst forward like a beam of golden light, moving at lightning speed down the right.
But to Tendou's Six Eyes, his movements were slowed to a crawl.
He calmly reached out a hand.
The golden light around Kise shattered.
In the animation-style presentation, it looked like Kise had flown right past Tendou—but the ball stayed behind.
The "light" surrounding him evaporated completely.
Alex Garcia couldn't process what Tendou had done.
But somehow, he'd already stolen the ball.
She mentally combed through basketball legends in her mind—and realized:
"Not a single one… had an ability ."
"Tendou's offensive skills get a lot of attention, but what caught the coach's eye at the beginning… was his defense."
The system spectators were reminded of a past moment:
How Tendou had blown away the regulars during his Teikō tryout, making them question their entire basketball lives.
Now—just like that—offense turned into defense.
And the moment the steal happened, Kaijō immediately turned to race back.
That was the first rule when facing Kirisaki Daiichi.
Tendou had brought Teikō's deadliest fast break to his new team.
"Instead of saying Tendou brought the Teikō fast break with him… maybe it was Tendou who made Teikō's fast break so deadly to begin with."
This was the kind of fast break born from a live-ball steal.
It was the most difficult to defend against—by the time players reacted, the opportunity was already gone.
Tendou bolted forward with a whoosh—
Picking up the loose ball and bursting past the midline at a speed comparable to Aomine.
Only one person could even think about chasing him.
Kise shouted as he chased him down.
"Don't be like Aomine, always yelling like that. Makes you sound insecure."
Tendou's expression didn't change as he rocketed forward.
It was like a swordsman drawing his blade, executing the cleanest slash possible.
One step—and he'd already passed Kise by half a body's length.
They were both blurs of motion, but the difference in efficiency was clear as day.
『Kise doesn't stand a chance!』
『Come on, Blondie! Beat that Demon King Tendou!』
『Stupid Tendou! Stop stealing my man!』
Even the on-screen live chat exploded.
Whether they loved him or hated him, everyone called Tendou "the Demon King."
Kise's and Kasamatsu's emotional moment had moved a lot of people.
Two men who had lost before, still holding on to that fire—refusing to let it end in failure. Follow current novᴇls on NovelHub(.)net
Tendou's job was to destroy them with overwhelming force,
To make his own numbers even more beautiful.
After all, what was the point of watching plotlines unfold, if not to adjust his actions and raise his popularity?
He shot forward like a flash of white light, leaving Kise in the dust.
Kise scrambled to turn around and chase.
But Tendou didn't go for the dunk right away.
He stayed airborne, hanging in the air with perfect control.
Kise caught on quickly and withdrew his arms, raising them to show he wouldn't contest.
The referee, who had the whistle in his mouth, released it in relief.
Tendou then slammed the ball through the rim with full force.
"Getting smarter, huh?"
"Learning's kind of my specialty."
Kise kept his cool on the outside—but inside, he was hyper-alert.
Just a second slower and he would've committed a foul, sending Tendou to the free-throw line on an and-one.
If he hadn't watched the Seirin vs. Kirisaki Daiichi match beforehand,
he probably would've fouled there.
"If this keeps up, there's no way we're beating Tendou."
He watched Tendou stroll back on defense, like he was taking a casual walk in the park.
"Seriously... even your footsteps look smug."
He wasn't Haizaki, sulking in someone else's shadow.
Kise didn't get jealous.
He just worked harder.
Harder, until he became that kind of person—and then surpassed them.
"Still not enough… if this keeps up, Kaijō doesn't have much hope."
Riko Aida shook her head, disappointed.
"Huh? The game just started though," someone said.
"When players of the same type go head-to-head, it's easy to tell who's better."
When styles are similar, the one who's stronger will always gain the upper hand—
It might as well be forever.
"Kise's strength is how well-rounded he is—but that's also his weakness."
He could learn skills at a glance.
Master techniques it took others years to develop.
And often, he could do them even better.
But the one thing he couldn't imitate… was the skill set of a Generation of Miracles member.
And that was his biggest weakness.
When the Miracles faced normal players, it was a dimensional difference—a crushing superiority.
"Put simply, Kise can shoot, drive, pass—he's a jack-of-all-trades."
"But he doesn't have a signature weapon of his own."
As long as he couldn't break through to the level of the Miracles,
nothing he copied would matter.
And that first offensive play?
Even with the second-fastest dribble in the nation—Hayama's Raimei Dribble—
he still couldn't get past Tendou's wall.
Because first and second place?
They're separated by a single fingertip.