With the intra-squad scrimmage concluded and the freshman team claiming a 57–46 victory, the atmosphere inside the Shohoku Basketball Gym remained charged with lingering tension.
The players on the sidelines wore vastly different expressions—some were stunned, some deep in thought, some frustrated, and others quietly excited.
Takenori Akagi took a deep breath, walked slowly toward Shin Saionji, and looked at him with a steady gaze.
"This time... we lost." Akagi's tone was low, but any trace of initial condescension had vanished from his eyes, replaced by genuine recognition.
Shin Saionji didn't stand on ceremony, replying calmly, "Captain, you guys just underestimated us."
"Hmph." Akagi let out a soft grunt, the corners of his mouth curving into an imperceptible smile. "You may have won this match, but you're still a long way from holding your own in official games."
Shin Saionji smiled faintly without refuting him.
Kiminobu Kogure walked over, pushed up his glasses, and sighed with a trace of awe, "I have to admit... this year's batch of freshmen is simply too strong."
He glanced around at the core players of the freshman team, his gaze lingering on Shin Saionji and Kaede Rukawa for a moment, wonder shining in his eyes.
"Kaede Rukawa's scoring ability is flawless, and as for Shin Saionji..." Kogure paused, looking right at Shin Saionji, "your dominance on the court is impossible to ignore."
"Dominance?" Tetsushi Shiozaki couldn't help muttering, "Yeah... it's not just his individual skill; he gets the whole team running like clockwork."
Yasuharu Yasuda nodded in agreement. "The upperclassmen were led around by the nose. We barely managed to play at our normal rhythm."
Kentaro Ishii frowned. "Especially his passing. It's ridiculously precise..."
"Monsters..." Satoru Kakuta muttered under his breath.
The core of the freshman team had been established.
After a brief moment of silence, Akagi spoke in a solemn tone, "Even so, beating us doesn't mean you're strong enough to challenge the truly elite teams yet."
He raised his head, his deep gaze sweeping toward the upper rafters of the gym as if recalling something.
"If you really want to go far, you need to prepare for something much harsher. Our goal isn't just winning a practice match."
Shin Saionji naturally understood what Akagi meant. Shohoku's ultimate goal was to conquer the nation.
Instead of speaking, he gave a slow, gentle nod.
Just then, Coach Anzai strolled leisurely into the center of the court. Wearing his usual gentle smile, his eyes squinted shut, he looked as though the entire match had been nothing more than a routine drill.
"Ho ho ho~" He chuckled softly, his gaze sweeping across the players. "Good work, everyone."
"Today's game makes me very excited for the future of the Shohoku Basketball Team."
Everyone fell silent, waiting for Coach Anzai's critique.
"Akagi-kun," Coach Anzai said, looking toward Shohoku's captain. "Your performance was as steady as ever. As the pillar of the team, you bore your responsibilities well."
Akagi nodded, his face free of complacency, listening with utmost seriousness.
"Kogure-kun, your organizational skills remain excellent. As vice-captain, you kept the team running smoothly."
Kogure let out a soft sigh. "And yet, we still lost."
"Victory and defeat are secondary," Coach Anzai replied with his characteristic calm. "What matters is that you've all recognized your own shortcomings."
Next, his gaze shifted to the core players of the freshman team.
"Rukawa-kun."
Rukawa showed no excess reaction, merely raising his eyes to look calmly at the coach.
"Your individual scoring ability is already exceptional, but the coordination between you and your teammates still needs more polishing."
Rukawa still said nothing, but a slight frown crossed his brow—he had clearly taken the words to heart.
Finally, Coach Anzai's eyes landed on Shin Saionji.
For a second, the gym fell completely still.
"Shin Saionji-kun."
Shin Saionji maintained his calm expression, meeting Coach Anzai's gaze head-on.
Coach Anzai squinted slightly, his smile deepening as he spoke slowly, "Your court vision and control remind me of some top-tier point guards from the past."
A shockwave rippled through everyone present.
"However..." Coach Anzai paused, his tone growing even gentler, "Shohoku's offensive system hasn't fully adapted to your style yet."
Shin Saionji blinked slightly in surprise.
"If you can truly integrate into Shohoku and drive the team's rhythm, the future..." Coach Anzai smiled faintly, "might become quite interesting indeed~"
On the sidelines, Hanamichi Sakuragi clenched his fists, pouting fiercely with open defiance written all over his face.
"Damn it... I'm clearly the strongest one here! Why is everyone praising them?!"
Ayako watched his expression from nearby and couldn't help laughing. "Sakuragi, do you finally realize how terrible you are?"
"Who—who says I'm terrible?!" Sakuragi instantly bristled, roaring in anger.
"Where's your jump shot?"
"Uh..."
"Where's your dribbling?"
"Uh..."
"Where's your tactical understanding?"
"Uh..."
"Aside from your jumping ability, is there a single thing you do better than them?"
"Uh...!!"
Sakuragi's face flushed crimson, leaving him completely speechless.
Watching him, Ayako sighed. "Looks like you really need to start training seriously."
Sakuragi gritted his teeth, pondered to himself for a moment, and suddenly clenched his fist.
"Then starting today... I'm going to become the greatest basketball genius in history!!"
Everyone: "..."
"This guy..." Rukawa cast a side glance at him, let out a soft huff, and turned to walk away.
Watching Sakuragi, Shin Saionji let the corners of his mouth curve upward in a meaningful smile.
This guy might just be more interesting than he had imagined.
With the intra-squad scrimmage concluded, the Shohoku Basketball Team officially entered a new phase.
The freshmen had fully integrated into the squad, and the internal competition had officially begun.
Standing at the gymnasium doorway, Shin Saionji raised his head slightly to look at the high basketball hoop of Shohoku.
"This team..."
He let out a slow breath, the corner of his mouth curving upward.
"Can get even stronger."
For the Shohoku Basketball Team, a new era had just begun!
Shohoku High School, lunchtime.
Having survived a fierce intra-squad scrimmage, Shin Saionji finally stepped into a brief moment of peaceful campus life.
He walked alone down the hallway of Shohoku High's main building, holding a sports drink freshly bought from a vending machine, his calm gaze sweeping over the surrounding students.
Compared to the heated, burning atmosphere of the basketball gym, the campus routine felt far more tranquil and orderly.
"Hey, kid!"
A slightly bantering voice suddenly echoed from nearby. Shin Saionji turned his head to see a group of boys with a somewhat delinquent aura.
At the head of the group was a black-haired youth with his hands tucked into his pockets and a smile on his face, followed by several distinctly different-looking fellows—one of whom wore dark sunglasses, putting on a slick, swaggering display.
The Sakuragi Corps.
"You're a freshman on the basketball team, right?" the black-haired youth, Yohei Mito, asked with a smile.
Shin Saionji raised an eyebrow, too lazy to waste words, and simply gave a slight nod.
"Ha, knew it!" Mito slapped his own arm, then nudged his companion with his elbow. "Hey, hey! This kid looks even colder than that Rukawa guy!"
"Could it be another guy the girls are going to fall for?" Takamiya Nozomu glared at Shin Saionji with suspicion.
Yuji Okusu stroked his chin and said with a knowing expression, "No way... Is Shohoku about to get another basketball player who charms every girl in school?"
Watching them chatter away all at once, Shin Saionji finally spoke up: "Who... are you guys?"
"Hey, hey, hey! You don't even know who we are?!" Takamiya widened his eyes in an exaggerated display. "We're Shohoku's wildly famous Sakuragi Corps!"
"The Sakuragi Corps?" Shin Saionji repeated thoughtfully before connecting the dots—these were Hanamichi Sakuragi's friends.
"Since you're a rookie on the basketball team, you must be pretty close with Sakuragi, right?" Mito asked with genuine interest.
Shin Saionji pondered for a second and replied flatly, "You could say that."
"Haha, then you must have heard about his **glorious record**, right?" Mito asked with a wicked grin.
"Glorious record?" Shin Saionji asked, somewhat confused.
"It's..." Takamiya coughed, leaning in mysteriously, "Hanamichi Sakuragi's legendary feat of getting rejected by 50 girls in a row!"
"...50 times?" Shin Saionji blinked slightly, his gaze instinctively drifting toward the distant playground where Sakuragi was loitering. He already knew about Sakuragi getting dumped 50 times, but he couldn't let it show too clearly—after all, Yohei Mito was one of the few genuinely smart guys in the original story!
Sakuragi was humming a little tune, looking in high spirits and seemingly unbothered by his "50 crushing defeats."
"Yeah! Ever since junior high, he's confessed 50 times, and every single time he got turned down!" Mito said with exaggerated flair.
"And..." Takamiya lowered his voice mysteriously, "Almost all of those girls rejected him because they liked Oda from the basketball team! That's why Sakuragi used to completely blow his top the moment anyone mentioned basketball!"
"..." Shin Saionji fell silent for a second, suddenly finding himself wanting to laugh.
No wonder Sakuragi held such intense hostility toward Kaede Rukawa; there was a deep-seated grudge like that behind it...
"Lately, though, Sakuragi's target has changed." Mito grinned maliciously as he looked into the distance. "His 51st confession target is Haruko Akagi, the younger sister of basketball team captain Takenori Akagi."
"Haruko Akagi?" Shin Saionji raised an eyebrow.
Of course he knew Haruko; after all, she had gone out of her way to congratulate him right after he joined the team. Plus... she seemed to hold a deep passion for basketball.
"Ha, do you think he actually stands a chance this time?" Okusu asked with a laugh.
"Who knows?" Mito shrugged. "Though you should probably watch out."
"For what?"
"You're 189 cm tall and a freshman on the basketball team. What if Haruko-chan gets interested in you too?" Mito shot him a look that said *you know what I mean*.
"..." Shin Saionji didn't take the bait, simply lowering his head to take a sip of his drink and hide the slight upward curve of his lips.
"Hey, hey! You don't actually have a thing with Haruko-chan, do you?!" Takamiya widened his eyes, asking in an exaggerated tone.
"No," Shin Saionji said plainly.
Mito stared at Shin Saionji for a long moment before letting out a meaningful chuckle. "Still... I've got a hunch. Sakuragi's 'rivals in love' list is about to get a new addition."
Shin Saionji's mouth curved slightly upward without denying it.
After all, he had never cared much for explanations. If things genuinely headed in that direction, he would just let nature take its course.
In the distance, Hanamichi Sakuragi suddenly noticed the commotion over by them. He strode over quickly, slapping his chest and shouting loudly, "Hey! What are you guys talking about? You aren't praising me behind my back, are you?!"
"Ha! We were definitely talking about your 'glorious achievements'!" Mito couldn't help laughing.
"Oh? Then it must be my terrifying reputation striking fear into every girl in school!" Sakuragi looked immensely proud of himself.
"Uh... it's a reputation of a certain kind..." Takamiya added in a small voice.
"Hahaha!" Okusu and Mito couldn't hold back their laughter.
Watching the scene unfold before him, Shin Saionji suddenly realized that life outside the Shohoku Basketball Gym was actually quite interesting.
Inside the basketball court, he was a calm and composed floor general, but amidst the everyday life of Shohoku, he was beginning to truly blend into this passionate, youth-filled world.
Perhaps this was the true meaning of his journey into this world.