The Intensifying Showdown

Midorima started with a pump fake, slightly raising his arms as the ball spun lightly on his fingertips, but he didn't actually take the shot.

Seeing that Shiro didn't bite on the fake, he immediately went up for a real shot.

Shiro reacted instantly, his body launching into the air, his long arms stretching out like a defensive net, aiming to send Midorima's shot into the stands.

But Midorima wasn't going to let Shiro block him that easily. At the last second, he adjusted into an even more difficult fadeaway jumper.

Shiro had already committed to his jump, reaching his peak height in midair, only to realize—Midorima had just released the ball.

His mind raced — he had miscalculated. He had jumped using the same force as if defending a normal shot, but against Midorima, he needed to go all out.

The ball traced a perfect arc in the air, spinning beautifully before dropping cleanly through the net.

Swish!

The sound echoed through the court as the crowd erupted. The deficit was cut back to six.

Without hesitation, Shiro called for the ball from Kawamura. Kawamura didn't hesitate — he knew Shiro's skill and understood that, in critical moments like this, the ball had to be in the hands of their ace.

The moment Shiro received the pass, his eyes sharpened, locking onto his prey like a shark about to pounce. Then, in a split second, he pulled up for a high-difficulty, fast-break fadeaway three—right in Midorima's face.

Midorima tensed. He jumped immediately to contest the shot, but Shiro's fadeaway had so much space and elevation that his outstretched hand barely came close.

The ball arced through the air and dropped smoothly through the net.

Another "swish!" The gym exploded with excitement as Fukui High's morale soared.

...

"Animal instinct!" Kise called out, his eyes locked onto Midorima with surprise. "Didn't expect him to activate it this early, and in the second quarter no less."

Aomine, however, remained unfazed, as if he had predicted it all along. "Shiro is pushing him to the limit."

Midorima's movements had suddenly reached another level—his speed and reflexes sharpened as if he had entered another dimension. In an instant, he closed the distance on Shiro's fast break, setting up an impenetrable wall on defense.

Shiro paused slightly, feeling Midorima's intense aura. This only made him more focused.

Without hesitation, he pulled out Iverson's signature crossover, his sharp change of direction instantly creating a sliver of space. The moment he found an opening, Shiro drove straight to the basket.

Midorima reacted immediately, recovering fast and adjusting his stance to block Shiro's path.

Shiro didn't slow down. Instead, he planted his foot and exploded left with a powerful first step, forcing Midorima to shift laterally to cut him off.

But then — a perfect Euro step.

Shiro effortlessly switched directions mid-drive, completely shaking off Midorima's defense.

A smirk formed on Shiro's lips. Wade's Euro step — no way Midorima was stopping that.

Still, Midorima didn't give up. He twisted his body, forcing himself back into position for one final attempt at stopping Shiro.

But Shiro wasn't finished. As Midorima reached for the block, Shiro adjusted midair with a smooth single-handed switch, pulling off a reverse layup from the opposite side of the rim.

His insane body control and hang time allowed him to dodge the block completely.

Swish!

The ball kissed the net as the scoreboard changed to 40-32.

Midorima clenched his fists. Even after unleash the animal instinct, he still couldn't stop Shiro. A wave of frustration surged inside him.

"Damn it… Even in with animal instinct, I still can't stop him?!" Midorima thought to himself, realizing just how difficult this match was going to be.

Shiro exhaled slightly.

He knew that breaking through Midorima's defense wasn't easy. After all, Midorima wasn't exactly known for his defense back in Teiko.

But even if Midorima couldn't stop Shiro on defense, Shiro knew that in this state, there was no way he could stop Midorima's three-pointers either.

Midorima quickly brought the ball up the court. Facing Shiro, his movements became faster, sharper, and more decisive.

He stepped back and immediately launched into another fadeaway three, the motion quicker and smoother than ever before. His release point was higher, his shooting form even more flawless.

The ball soared through the air and drilled through the hoop — a cold-blooded shot, right in Shiro's face.

The scoreboard ticked up — 40-35.

Watching from the sidelines, Kiyoshi's expression grew serious.

The Generation of Miracles had leveled up significantly since middle school—not just in terms of athleticism, but in pure skill as well.

As he watched Midorima and Shiro go at it, a doubt crept into his mind.

Would his team even survive the Winter Cup qualifiers?

Seirin had worked hard, but Shutoku was simply too strong.