Chapter 308 The game begins

“The Dragon Slaying Sword Team, let’s just call it the Dragon Slaying Sword Team~”

When Aida Katsuyori asked about the name of the team, Kaneki Ken answered without hesitation.

“Hey~ The Dragon Slayer Team?” Huang Lai Ryouta frowned and thought, his palm kept touching his chin and muttered to himself, “Not bad, it sounds very domineering.”

“I have no objection.” Akashi Seijuro said with a smile while playing with the basketball in his hand.

“It’s okay for this kind of thing, but I think we still need some time to get used to each other.” Midorima Shintaro said, pushing the frame of his glasses on his nose.

“Haha, relax, Midorima~” Aomine Daiki laughed and jumped onto Kaneki Ken’s back, patted Kaneki Ken’s shoulder and said, “We have this guy, we won’t lose no matter how hard we think, right?”

“That’s not an excuse for you to be lazy, Aomine.” Midorima Shintaro rolled his eyes at Aomine Daiki and said, “Have you forgotten how you lost to Kaneki Ken?”

“Tsk, you’re the most talkative.” Aomine Daiki jumped off Kaneki Ken’s back somewhat unhappily and sat in the corner sulking.

“Alright, A-Da, Xiao-Lu~” Tao Jing Mayu looked helplessly at the old teammates who were quarreling again and persuaded them, “Don’t quarrel at this time, get rid of those annoying guys first~”

“By the way… is this how you guys used to play basketball?” Kagami Daiga stared at the Miracle Generation members who were making a scene in front of him with his mouth wide open. He turned to look at Kuroko Tetsuya and asked in disbelief, “I’m really afraid that they’ll start fighting on the court…”

“Don’t worry, Kagami-san, this kind of thing won’t happen.” Kuroko Tetsuya smiled and looked at the back of Kaneki Ken standing at the midfield line and said, “As long as Kaneki-san is still standing on the court, I always feel that this team still has a backbone.”

“Then what’s next…” After the players on the field finished playing, Kaneki Ken also clapped his hands with a smile and said seriously, “I will lead Rukawa, Sakuragi, Kabaji, and Kuroko as a team, and the rest of you will form pairs. During this period of time, we don’t need to play any tactics. As long as we can practice simple passing and cutting, there will be no problem.”

“Um…” Aida Katsuhiro looked at the unreliable players of the Generation of Miracles in front of him and timidly stretched out his hand and said, “Can you guys be more serious… I’m a little scared if you do this… I’ve put my entire fortune and life on the line…”

“Don’t worry, Uncle Aida.” Mitsui Shou patted Aida Katsuhiro’s shoulder with a smile and said with emotion, “When it comes to basketball, no one is more reliable than Kaneki Ken.”

In such a relaxed and happy atmosphere, the Dragon Slayer Team, which was temporarily formed based on the main lineups of Teiko Generation of Miracles and Shohoku High School, quickly developed a certain tacit understanding around Kaneki Ken, and time passed unknowingly. In the blink of an eye, a week had come to an end.

“Yo! We win again!” On the night before the game, after Sakuragi Hanami excitedly pushed over Kagami Taiga and dunked the ball into the basket, the last practice match of the Zhanlongjian team came to an end.

“Oh, I really envy little Sakuragi~” Kise Ryouta said with envy as he looked at Sakuragi Hanamichi’s lively figure, “Not only is his height growing rapidly, but his physical strength seems to be endless… It turns out that the ones who are favored by little Kaneki are not to be underestimated…”

“Hey, you dare to call him Kaneki-chan now, Kise?” Aomine Daiki lifted up his jersey and wiped the sweat from his temples with a playful expression, then looked at Kise Ryota in a teasing tone and said.

“I don’t mean to be disrespectful to Kaneki-chan, Aomine-chan~” Kise Ryota chuckled and said, “I just feel that after all these things, Kaneki-chan and I can be considered friends, right? Kaneki-chan seems a little too distant~”

“It’s just a name, it doesn’t matter.” Kaneki Ken smiled and looked at Huang Lai Ryota and said, “But if you want to be my friend, you have to show a performance worthy of my recognition in tomorrow’s game.”

“Don’t worry, Kaneki-chan, I’ll take care of it.” Kise Ryouta said with a smile, patting his chest.

“Dad, do you really think it’s reliable to put your hopes on these guys?” Reiko Aida looked at the teenagers in front of her with some concern. “Although I admit that they are all rare geniuses, the Jabberwocky team is already adults after all. I’m afraid they will be at a disadvantage physically…”

“If you had asked me this a few days ago, I might not have known how to answer…” Aida Kagetora looked at Kaneki Ken with emotion and said, “But Mitsui is right. As long as Kaneki Ken is on the court… then everything about basketball should be left to him.”

……

“Hello, audience friends! I am your old friend Heihachi Tashiro!”

The next day, with all Japanese fans eagerly waiting, the newly renovated Tokyo Gymnasium once again welcomed a match that was comparable to the Miracle Civil War level of traffic. In order to broadcast this match well, Tokyo Sports Daily, which should now be renamed Tokyo Sports News, also sent the newspaper’s most capable commentator to the scene.

“Kaneki! Kaneki! Kaneki!”

“Akaashi! Akaashi! Akaashi!”

“This scene… is just like the NBA Finals…” In the media work area on the sidelines, Nakamura looked at the fans cheering at the top of their lungs with a look of emotion and sighed, “Even with the help of a microphone, it’s hard to hear Tashiro-senpai’s commentary in such a passionate atmosphere…”

“It’s only natural…” Aida Miko said with a complicated look as she scanned the audience seats on the sidelines, “This game is not only a return match for the Generation of Miracles, but also a battle to prove Asian basketball… Whether it’s a revenge or self-humiliation… it all depends on the result of this game.”

“Oh, I’m so hungry…” Looking at the excited audience on the sidelines, Murasakibara Atsushi, who had come to the bench early, shook his legs a little irritably and muttered softly.

“Are you nervous, Murasakihara?” Kaneki Ken patted Murasakihara Atsushi’s shoulder with a smile and said, “It is said that the center on the opposite side is a player who can enter the NBA draft. If you are really nervous, I can let Kabaji start in your place~”

“What nonsense are you talking about, Yanzi…” Murasakihara Atsushi said insincerely, “I’m just really hungry… I shouldn’t have eaten so little last night…” “You ate 18 bags of potato chips last night, purple-haired monster…” Sakuragi Hanamichi looked at Murasakihara Atsushi in shock and sighed, “You eat more than the red-haired monkey~”

“Hey, you also ate six of my burgers last night. How dare you say that I can eat more?” Hearing Sakuragi Hanamichi using himself as a counterexample, Kagami Daiga looked at Sakuragi Hanamichi with an unhappy face and complained.

“Everyone seems to be in a bad state…” Aida Reiko said nervously while looking at the players in front of her, “Why don’t you stand up and say something? Try to ease the tense atmosphere in the team…”

“Haha, that’s not necessary, Aida-san.” Taoi Satsuki smiled as she looked at Kaneki Ken’s back as he warmed up on the sidelines. “Appropriate nervousness will help the players better display their strengths on the court, not to mention that Ken-kun is there to support everyone. Even if someone does not perform well due to nervousness, Ken-kun has enough strength to save the situation~”

“But…” Aida Reiko wanted to say something but was interrupted by Kuroko Tetsuya beside her.

“Momoi-san is right, coach.” Kuroko Tetsuya said calmly, “For Kaneki-san, this match is not even as strong as a training match… His strength is far beyond the level of the Generation of Miracles.”

“Dear audience members, believe your eyes, the next team to appear is the Exploding Neck Dragon Team!” Just as Reiko Aida and others were whispering on the sidelines, Heihachi Tashiro suddenly raised his voice and introduced the Exploding Neck Dragon Team that had just entered the arena.

“Hey, it seems that these monkeys have quite a few fans in Japan~” Jason Sibo said with a smile as he looked at the packed audience seats, “Great, it will be more fun to crush them this way…”

“Um…” Old K, who was standing by, had just put down his backpack when he rubbed his eyes in disbelief. After hesitating for a moment, he patted Jason Siber’s back and pointed his right hand at the Dragon Slaying Sword team’s bench and said, “Don’t talk about whether we can crush them or not, Jason. I think I saw an acquaintance over there…”

“What do you mean familiar or not…” Jason Siber looked in the direction of Old K’s finger with some impatience. His originally carefree and fearless voice suddenly became quiet like a duck with its neck pinched. He shuddered subconsciously and muttered to himself, “Is it that guy? But that guy…why would he come to a competition of this level?”

“Hey, isn’t this Jason Siber?” As if sensing the gaze coming from the Jabberwocky Team, Kaneki Ken smiled and moved his shoulders, then walked up to Jason Siber and teased, “Thank you for your care, my friends~”

“Why are you here?” Nash Goldo Jr. looked at Kaneki Ken with a gloomy face and asked, “With your ability, you should at least participate in the NBA team’s summer training now…”

“I can’t help it~” Kaneki Ken shrugged helplessly and said, “I wanted to refuse to play with trash like you guys… but I can’t help it, my old friend gave me too much…”

Kaneki Ken suddenly changed the subject and looked at Nash Goldo Jr. with a playful look and said, “Besides, I heard from my old friends that someone was talking nonsense in front of my fans, saying that Asian players are all monkeys… Then I will definitely come back to take a look~”

“I didn’t go looking for you, but you came looking for trouble with me instead…” Nash Goldo Jr. stared at Kaneki Ken’s golden pupils with a ferocious look and said, “You will regret it, Asian monkey.”

“I should be the one saying this to you, Nash…Gordo…JR!” Kaneki Ken’s eyes were stern, and the coldness in his tone was no longer as calm as before. He spoke word by word, “I will use this game to settle the feud between us… and teach you, a bastard, how to respect others!”

“boom!”

As Kaneki Ken finished his words, a huge firework suddenly exploded in the sky above the open-air stadium. The huge roar was like the sound of a starting gun, which suddenly accelerated the pace of the entire game.

“Beep beep~”

As the audience waited anxiously, the warm-up time before the game finally came to an end. When the countdown on the timer reached the last second, the referee on the sidelines finally blew his whistle.

“Players from both teams, line up and salute!” As the starting players of both teams stepped onto the court, the referee on the side also came to the center line of the court with a basketball in his hand. He glanced at the players from both sides and spoke loudly.

“Tsk, why should I salute these guys?” Jason Siber glared at the players of the Dragon Sword team with some dissatisfaction and snorted coldly.

“…Do as I say, Jason.” Nash Goldo Jr. stared at Kaneki Ken in silence for a long while, and finally bowed slightly, squeezing out words of reluctance from between his teeth.

“Please give me your guidance!” Kaneki Ken looked at Nash Goldo Jr. who finally bent down, a playful look appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he bowed slightly.

As the two sides finished the salute, Murasakibara Atsushi and Jason Thibo stood on both sides of the center line of the court at the same time, staring at the basketball in the referee’s hands and lowering their center of gravity.

“Okay, audience friends!” Tashiro Heihachi on the sidelines introduced in a high-spirited tone, “The exhibition match jointly sponsored by the Akashi Group and the Mitsui Group, the match between the Dragon Slayer Team and the Explosive Neck Dragon Team is about to begin. Now we see that the centers of both teams have stood on the midline. Who will win the ball for their respective teams? Let us wait and see!”

“Hey, kid, I see you are not yet 18 years old? How much money did the organizer give you, and you come here to fight like this?” Jason Sibo looked at Murasakibara Atsushi with a provocative look and smiled.

“Stop your fucking bullshit, nigger.” Kaneki Ken rolled his eyes at Jason Sibo with disdain and said, “Just play the game, why do you have so much to say?

“Damn it…” Jason Sibo looked at Kaneki Ken in front of him with an unhappy face. His originally relaxed palms couldn’t help but clench into fists. After muttering a few words in a low voice, he closed his mouth in a cowardly manner.

“Beep~” With a sharp whistle that spread from the center of the court to every corner of the court, the referee threw the basketball high into the air. Two tall figures standing at the center line jumped up at the same time, and their long arms pounced on the basketball in the air like two giant dragons. From this moment on, the game officially began.

(End of this chapter)