Chapter 37

Seeing them nodding their heads, Coach Nakatani turned towards me and asked if I was okay with the decision. He noticed my smiling face and assumed that I agreed.

"I assume you're happy with this, right?" Coach Nakatani inquired, acknowledging my smile.

"No problem, coach!" I exclaimed with excitement. "If you want, you can even add Midorima and Takao to the lineup to make it more thrilling," I suggested, still beaming with enthusiasm.

My words surprised everyone around me, especially my teammates who were on the verge of collapsing upon hearing my proposal. The senior players from the main lineup appeared irritated, as they perceived my suggestion as arrogance. The two Miyajis even seemed furious, with visible signs of anger on their faces. Midorima and Takao, however, appeared intrigued, eager to see if the coach would allow them to play. They found the previous game a bit lackluster and were still yearning for more action.

Coach Nakatani smirked and cautioned, "Don't regret your words later, huh?"

He turned to his players and announced, "Alright, did you all hear that? Someone just challenged you. Show them what you're made of." he provoked his players.

Upon hearing this, the senior players didn't respond directly but their fiery gaze indicated their intentions. They wanted to teach me a lesson. Despite their intimidating looks, I wasn't bothered and confidently smirked back at them. Miyaji Kiyoshi-senpai became irritated, ready to rush towards me, but was restrained by Kimura-senpai.

Observing Miyaji Kiyoshi-senpai's threatening expression, my teammates trembled behind me, terrified by his temper. Having been on the team for a year, they were well aware of Miyaji-senpai's temper, causing some of them to even call for their mothers and consider quitting.

Seeing their fears, I turned to them with a reassuring smile and thumbs up, saying, "Don't worry, senpais, I've got your backs."

Although I wasn't sure if it comforted them, their terror-filled faces instantly transformed into determination upon hearing my words. They looked at me with intensity, ready to face any challenge. Pleased with their response, I nodded to myself in approval and thought, "Ichigo, Ichigo, you're so inspirational!" I muttered as I turned around and shook my head.

Hearing my self-motivating words, I sensed an increase in my teammates' drive. 'Wow, they're really motivated,' I thought to myself, and even thought I could hear their focused breathing behind me. I can even feel the heat behind me, clearly they were burning with determination.

(3rd person POV)

Hearing Ichigo proclaim that he had their backs only enraged his teammates. They were furious because of his nonchalant attitude, as if he wasn't the one responsible for putting them in this situation in the first place.

His mumblings only further fueled their anger, with murderous looks directed towards him. If looks could kill, Ichigo would have been completely obliterated by now. Determined to get back at him, they swore to themselves that they would seek revenge on Ichigo if Miyaji Kiyoshi-senpai beats them after this game.

While they plotted their vengeance, Ichigo was patting himself on the back, thinking he had successfully motivated his teammates. However, unbeknownst to him, his actions had motivated his teammates, but not in the way he had intended.

Meanwhile, while all of that was happening on Ichigo's team, Coach Nakatani called his players over, urging them not to hold back and to give it their all. He wanted to truly see what the "King of Miracles" was capable of and if he truly deserved that title or if it was all just hype.

This game would serve as his ultimate test for Ichigo. While Coach Nakatani had witnessed Ichigo's skills in middle school, he understood that high school basketball was a whole different ball game.

After addressing the players, Coach Nakatani instructed them to begin their pregame warmups. He then approached Takao and Midorima, warning them, "Be ready. If I spot anything I don't like, I'll have you two in the game."

"Really, Coach? Are we going up against Ichigo?" Takao asked excitedly.

"It depends. Just be prepared," Coach Nakatani replied. Takao and Midorima nodded, mentally preparing themselves for the start of the game.

(MC's POV)

With my teammates sufficiently motivated, all I could do now was wait for Coach Nakatani to signal the start of the game. While waiting, I went through my warm-up routine until Coach interrupted. I also took some time to meditate and prepare my mind.

After a few minutes, the whistle blew, beckoning me and my teammates to take our positions in the middle of the court. With Miyaji Kiyoshi-senpai playing, Coach Nakatani assigned two players from the previous teams to officiate the game, while he stood on the sidelines, closely observing the upcoming match.

As the tallest player on my team, I volunteered for the jump ball. Seeing no objections from my teammates, I positioned myself in the middle of the court, facing Otsubo-senpai who was jumping for his team. I greeted him with a slight nod, but he didn't respond or nod back. Instead, he stared at me intensely, making the atmosphere quite awkward as we waited for the acting referee to toss the ball.

With everyone in position, Coach Nakatani gave the signal for the game to begin. Standing next to Otsubo-senpai, I couldn't help but notice the stark contrast in our heights. Don't get me wrong, I was already considered tall for my age at almost 195cm. However, Otsubo-senpai was even taller and bigger than me, estimated to be around 200cm.

He may not be as towering as giants like Murasakibara, but what set him apart from other big men was his well-developed physique. Being a high school student, his body was quite impressive and, coupled with his serious expression, he gave off an intimidating vibe at first glance.

But I'm not intimidated by him, as I have confidence in my physical abilities. With Hanamichi Sakuragi's template, I may not look like it, but I'm stronger than anyone my size.

As we all get into position, the referee positions himself between us, ready to toss the ball for a jump ball. Otsubo-senpai and I raise our hands, getting prepared to jump. The referee throws the ball, but he tosses it too high, perhaps due to nerves. We wait as the ball reaches its peak.

Since the ball was thrown too high, Otsubo-senpai hesitates to jump even when the ball reaches its highest point. However, I didn't hesitate. I've already leaped for the ball before it reaches its peak. Initially surprised, Otsubo-senpai shakes his head disapprovingly, thinking I won't be able to reach the ball because I jumped too early.

But they are in for a shock when they see my hangtime. I continue to soar after the ball, leaving them amazed and speechless as I tap the ball towards my equally shocked teammates.

The ball lands in the hands of my teammate, and as I touch down, I notice my opponent still in disbelief. I sprint towards their side of the court, raising my hand and shouting to my teammate for the ball. However, my teammate, still recovering from the shock, throws the ball too far, sailing over me and towards the baseline.

As I watched the ball sail over my head, I eagerly stretched out my arm in an attempt to catch it. Unfortunately, it was just too high for me to reach. Helplessly, I could only observe as the ball sailed out of bounds, while the referee was late to blow the whistle, presumably still surprised by my athleticism. Coach Nakatani, growing impatient, shouted at the referee, urging him to continue the game.

With our team's turnover, the seniors gain possession and inbound the ball. They lack a proper point guard in their main lineup, so it's the younger Miyaji who brings the ball up.

As the tallest player on my team, I was positioned in the center to defend against Otsubo-senpai. When he tried to post me up, I made sure he couldn't get into a comfortable position and pushed him away from the key. The other senpais were surprised to see me overpower Otsubo-senpai.

However, even with me pushing him out the paint, Otsubo-senpai was still in front of me, so he could still receive a pass from Miyaji Yuya-senpai. Yuya-senpai noticed that Otsubo-senpai was out of the key but in a good position to catch the ball, so he threw a lob pass to him.

As Otsubo-senpai caught the pass from Yuya-senpai, he immediately attempted to back me down aggressively. Despite his size and strength, I was able to hold my ground against him.

Noticing that I wasn't budging, Otsubo-senpai tried to spin around me towards the baseline, but I managed to stay in front of him as he moved towards the rim. With nowhere to go, Otsubo-senpai forced a shot with me in his face. I raised my hands to contest the shot without committing a foul.

Bothered by my strong defense, Otsubo-senpai missed his shot and immediately went for the offensive rebound. However, I prevented him from getting it by boxing him out effectively. I secured the rebound without much difficulty.