When Kato Yusuke arrived here, the basketball club's training had already begun, and the members were running around the edge of the court in varying speeds.
After briefly explaining her purpose, the girl who seemed to be the club manager quickly found the person in charge.
"Senior Mizusawa, can you come over here for a moment?"
Looking in the direction of her shouting, I saw a tall boy standing in the middle of the court. After hearing the girl's shouts, the man named Mizusawa said a few words to the members, and then came to the two of them.
around.
"What's the matter, Songzi?" he asked with dignity.
"This first-year boy wants to apply to join the club. Can I trouble you?"
"Oh." Mizusawa suddenly lost interest, glanced at Kato Yusuke and said: "Then submit the application to join the club, and then go directly to follow the training..."
"Wait a minute." Kato Yusuke interrupted him, "Before that, I want to take part in your assessment first."
Mizusawa frowned, "Have you ever played basketball before?"
Kato Yusuke shook his head.
"Then what do you mean?" Mizusawa's tone became unkind, "One moment you say you want to apply to join the club, and the next you say you want to take the assessment. Can I think you are provoking?"
"To be precise, it should be a consideration." Kato Yusuke thought for a while and said: "If the situation is as expected, I will consider joining the club, but it is not possible yet."
After hearing what he said, Mizusawa was silent for a while, then took a deep breath and looked at the basketball manager who was at a loss and said.
"Pine nuts."
"……yes!"
"Can you please bring us a ball?"
"Ah, okay." The girl immediately ran to the side and took a basketball back, "Here, Mizusawa-senpai."
"Thank you." Mizusawa took the ball, slapped it on the ground twice casually, and raised his chin towards Yusuke Kato, "Follow me."
The two walked into the stadium together, and their actions did not escape the attention of those around them.
"Hey, look over there, something seems to have happened."
"What happened?"
Everyone gathered their eyes one after another.
"Hey, that senior Mizusawa actually ended up in person. Who was he?"
"I don't know, but Songzi seems to be taking notes there. Could it be that he is evaluating newbies?"
"Then there's no need for Mizusawa-senpai to take action, right? After all, in terms of high school basketball, Mizusawa-senpai is already infinitely close to being a professional."
"Well...that's true."
Amid the discussion of the crowd, Mizusawa threw the basketball to Yusuke Kato outside the three-point line, "Try to shoot."
"good."
The basketball flew out of the hand, drew a parabola in the air, and then fell to the ground.
Boom...boom...boom...boom...boom
Three non-sticks
The corners of Mizuze's mouth raised a slight arc.
‘Sure enough, whether it’s the posture of the shot or the jerky feeling when dribbling, he is a complete novice, and he also knows where the courage and arrogance come from.’
Let's teach him a lesson - this idea came to Mizusawa's mind. He picked up the basketball and looked at Kato Yusuke.
"It's limited to three goals. I'll defend it. As long as you can score one goal without fouling, you're qualified. From now on, it's up to you whether you want to join the team or not."
"On the other hand, if you fail to do it..." Mizusawa narrowed his eyes and said: "As a price for offending others, you need to apologize to everyone here, okay?"
"A reasonable request." Yusuke Kato nodded and said, "I have no problem."
"Okay." Mizusawa nodded and looked at the manager aside, "Then I'll trouble you to take notes, Songzi."
"Yes!" the girl known as Matsuko clenched her fist and said, "I will work hard, senior!"
◇
Kato Yusuke walked into the penalty circle with the ball, looked at Mizusawa who moved his body aside, and asked doubtfully: "Didn't you say it would interfere?"
Mizusawa shrugged, put his hands on his waist and responded: "I will make my own judgment."
Kato Yusuke didn't say anything more, recalling the shooting postures of the players in a handful of NBA games he had seen in the past, aiming at the basket and throwing the ball.
Bang——
The basketball hit the backboard and was caught by Mizusawa.
"once."
Mizusawa stretched out a finger and passed the ball back.
This time, Kato Yusuke did not hesitate. The moment he caught the ball, he immediately jumped on the spot, his tall body rising from the ground. From Mizusawa's perspective, the sneakers on the opponent's feet were even at eye level with his own.
the height of.
The shocked expression is still frozen on his face
Bang——
The basket trembled twice and the ball bounced back.
Kato Yusuke picked up the ball and couldn't help frowning, as if thinking about the feeling just now.
"Liar..." the female manager on the side muttered, covering her mouth.
'Mizusawa-senpai is 180cm tall, and this first-year student just now -'
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
"I see." Mizusawa took a deep breath and said to Kato Yusuke, who was frowning and thinking, "Are you a talented player? I underestimated you."
His expression became serious, "You have one last chance, but I won't let you off the hook this time. Just come over here!"
After hearing his words, Kato Yusuke nodded and took the ball to the three-point line again.
Another three-pointer? This can't be scored, right? Just when he was thinking this, he saw the opponent suddenly dribbling the ball and running.
"Not a shot, but a layup?"
Looking at Kato Yusuke running straight towards him, Mizusawa had an expression of excitement and confidence on his face at the same time, and shouted: "Don't underestimate me! I'm a first grader!"
'Naive, the offensive line and intention are too obvious, such a ball can definitely be defended!'
The smile spread from the corner of his mouth——
That happened in a moment
The sky suddenly darkened, and the rustle of clothes whizzed past my ears.
Boom——!
A loud noise, far exceeding the combined decibels of the previous two sounds, suddenly sounded in the gymnasium.
The backboard made a "squeaking" sound, and the basketball fell to the ground from the net, and then the black figure hanging on the basket also jumped down.
The venue suddenly became audible.
The pen in the manager's hand fell to the ground, and the girl named Songzi stared at the slowly approaching figure with wide eyes, as if a restraining spell had been cast on her.
As she passed by, the boy's calm voice reached her ears.
"Sorry, thank you, for disturbing me."
Then he walked out and quickly disappeared behind the door.
An indescribable atmosphere surged in the gymnasium, and I don't know who started it first.
"No, it's impossible, right?" One of the onlookers said firmly, "That kind of monster-like jumping ability... is it really possible for humans to do it?"
Like a stone thrown into the lake, the calm atmosphere was instantly broken.
The crowd couldn't help but get excited.
"That Mizusawa senior... actually lost!"
“Unbelievable!”
"Compared to that, who is that boy?!"
"I don't know...should I ask Mizusawa-senpai?"
The crowd suddenly froze, and all kinds of eyes were directed at the figure under the basket. Because his head was lowered, his expression could not be seen clearly.
"Senior?" Songzi ran over worriedly, "Are you okay?"
"...Ah." A trembling voice came from Shuizawa's mouth. He slowly raised his head, shock and excitement caught in his eyes, and then said word by word.
"Pine nuts."
"Yes Yes?!"
"Please be sure to find that boy!"
"Eh, eh, eh——?!"
"Please!" Mizusawa put his hands on her shoulders, "As long as we can do this, this year's national championship will definitely be ours!"