Slam Dunk: My physical abilities can be increased indefinitely.

Chapter 8 Rukawa Kaede, You Talk Too Little

On the day of the practice match, two buses were parked outside the Lingnan Gymnasium.

One of them was from Shohoku High School, white with the words "Shohoku High School Sports Department" on the side, and a lot of the paint had chipped off.

The other vehicle was a school bus, specifically used to bring the cheerleaders over from the other side of Kanagawa.

Sendoh stood at the second-floor window and looked down; the Shohoku players were getting off the bus.

Akagi was the first to jump down; at two meters tall, he blocked half the wind from the school gate. Mitsui followed behind, his hair shorter than last year, but his gait still had that "I'm the MVP of junior high" attitude.

Miyagi was a head shorter than him, but his eyes were like knives, and he didn't submit to anyone.

Sakuragi, with red hair, stepped on the heel of the person in front of him when he got off the bus and almost fell. Rukawa was the last one to get off.

He was wearing headphones, his eyelids were drooping, and he looked like he had just woken up.

The school uniform was zipped up all the way, the backpack was slung over one shoulder, and the pace of walking was different from others, as if walking on cotton, light and airy.

"What are you looking at?"

Off-road walked over and leaned on the windowsill next to Sendoh, looking down in the direction Sendoh was looking.

"That first-year student from Shohoku, Rukawa Kaede," Sendoh said.

"I heard that when he was in junior high school, he scored 51 points in a match against the South City of the county. 51 points! Is that a score that one person can get?"

Who do you think he'll be matched up against today?

Yueye paused for a second, then his face turned green. "It couldn't be me, could it?"

"It's most likely you. Uekusa plays point guard, so he'll be facing Miyagi. I'll be shooting guard, so I'll be facing Rukawa."

Yueye's face turned even greener. "You're not afraid to fight him. Me, defend against him? He can just change direction and I'm done for."

"You said the same thing last time, and Fukuda still didn't get to clean you up, did he?"

"How can Fukuda be the same? Fukuda ran me over with his body, while Rukawa devoured me with his speed. The feeling is completely different. One is like being hit by a truck, the other is like being shot by a bullet. Either way, you're going to die, but the way you die is different, you understand?"

Sendoh chuckled. "Try a different approach. If you can defend against even one of his shots, wow."

After thinking for a moment, Yueye said, "That's true. There aren't many people in Kanagawa who can stop Rukawa. If I can stop one, I might get a nomination when they select the best lineup for the next prefectural tournament."

"Whatever makes you happy."

Sendoh turned and went downstairs. Yueye chased after him, "What did you mean by 'whatever makes you happy' just now? Did you think I definitely couldn't defend against you?"

"I didn't say that."

That's what your expression meant!

The two walked into the gymnasium one after the other. The Ryonan team members were already in position, with Uozumi standing at the front, arms crossed over his chest, expressionless, like a gatekeeper. Coach Taoka was talking to a middle-aged man wearing glasses on the sidelines. Coach Anzai from Shohoku was plump and fair-skinned, with completely white hair, sitting in his chair like a Maitreya Buddha.

Coach Anzai's gaze swept over from behind his glasses, landing on Sendoh and lingering for two seconds.

"Is that Akira Sendoh?"

Taoka nodded. "Yes. Our ace in Ryonan."

"A very good young man." Anzai smiled, his chin puffing up.

Sendoh walked over, bowed, and said, "Hello, Coach Anzai."

"Hello, hello." Anzai's voice was slow, like syrup flowing from a bottle. "Nice to meet you today."

Please give me your guidance.

As Sendoh straightened up, he saw Rukawa enter. Rukawa had taken off his headphones, changed out of his school uniform into Shohoku's black training suit, and was standing on the sidelines stretching. That guy had incredibly long legs; when he bent over, his fingers could touch his toes—his ligaments were unbelievably flexible.

Rukawa seemed to sense someone watching him, so he looked up and met their gaze directly.

The two looked at each other for a second.

Rukawa looked away and continued stretching.

Sendoh also shifted his gaze and began warming up with three-point shots. The first one went in. The second bounced and went in. The third swish. The fourth missed; the ball hit the right side of the rim and bounced out.

Rukawa happened to be in that spot when he picked up the ball, caught it with one hand, glanced at Sendoh, and passed it back. The pass was just the right amount of force, and the accuracy was perfect; it flew directly to Sendoh's chest.

"Thanks," Sendoh said.

Rukawa hummed in agreement.

Gone.

Just say "hmm".

Sendoh paused for a moment, then shook his head with a smile. This kid's dialogue volume is probably less than fifty words in a single match.

Taoka blew his whistle, and the team members on both sides assembled.

"We'll play full-court today, four quarters, fifteen minutes each. Five starters against five starters, substitutes can be rotated in at any time." Taoka glanced at Anzai, who nodded.

Ryonan's starting lineup: Point guard Uekusa, shooting guard Sendoh, small forward Koshino, power forward Fukuda, center Uozumi.

Shohoku's starting lineup: Point guard Miyagi, shooting guard Mitsui, Rukawa, power forward Sakuragi, center Akagi.

jump ball.

Uozumi and Akagi stood in the center circle, two two-meter-tall giants facing each other, their eyes practically sparking with tension. The referee tossed the ball up, and Uozumi got to it first, passing it to Uekusa.

Uekusa dribbled past half-court, and Miyagi closed in. Miyagi's defense was very aggressive, his hand always outstretched in Uekusa's passing lane, his body very low. Uekusa didn't dare dribble for long and passed to Sendoh.

Sendoh receives the ball at a 45-degree angle on the left, with Rukawa in front of him.

Two steps away, Rukawa's defensive stance was impeccable: his weight low, right hand extended forward, left hand outstretched, and heels slightly off the ground. Sendoh dribbled with his right hand and took a step to the right. Rukawa followed with a quick, clean slide.

Sendoh changed direction, dribbling the ball with his left hand and driving to the left. Rukawa followed, his lateral movement almost matching Sendoh's first step.

That's fast.

The thought flashed through Sendoh's mind. Rukawa's speed rating was at least A-, similar to his current speed, but before he added points, he definitely couldn't keep up with that speed. If the system hadn't awakened, he would have been overtaken in that one move.

Immortal Dao abruptly stopped, took a step back, and pulled himself up.

Rukawa jumped up to block the shot, his fingertips brushing past Sendoh's eyes.

The ball's trajectory was a bit flat when he released it because Rukawa's block was too high, forcing Sendoh to raise his release point.

"Bang!"

Blacksmithing.

Akagi grabs the rebound and passes it to Miyagi. Shohoku launches a counterattack.

Sendoh ran back on defense to the three-point line and saw Rukawa already sprinting down the left flank to the free-throw line. Miyagi's pass slipped through the defense and landed precisely in Rukawa's hands. Rukawa caught the ball, jumped, and slammed it home with one hand.

The basketball hoop wobbled.

When he landed, Rukawa glanced at Sendoh. That glance wasn't a provocation, but more like a confirmation: "Have you caught up yet?"

Sendoh clapped his hands. "Good shot!"

Rukawa grunted in response and turned back to defend.

He ran over and whispered to Sendoh, "Does he only say 'hmm'?"

"They might say something else, but I haven't heard it."

"I was guarding him just now, and after he got past me, I wanted to foul him. He glanced at me. Just one glance, and didn't say anything. You know that look? It wasn't that he looked down on me, it was that he didn't even see me, like I wasn't even on the court, but a pillar."

Sendoh patted Off-Road on the shoulder, "You're better than Pillar. Pillar can't position himself."

Off-road vehicle was both amused and exasperated.

The first quarter lasted eight minutes, with the score very close. For Ryonan, Sendoh scored six points and had two assists, while Fukuda scored eight. Sakuragi, who was matched up against him, clearly lacked defensive experience and was repeatedly outmaneuvered by Fukuda's face-up offense. For Shohoku, Rukawa scored ten points, Mitsui had two three-pointers, and Miyagi's fast breaks were very aggressive.

Taoka called a timeout and summoned the players to the sidelines.

"Fukuda, keep attacking Sakuragi's spot. His defensive positioning is too far forward; you can easily get past him by just one step facing him. Uozumi, Akagi is fierce at rebounding; don't try to contest his position, use your height advantage for rebounds. Sendoh..."

Taoka paused for a moment.

"How did it feel to be matched up against Rukawa?"

Sendoh took a sip of water. "Very strong."

"Can you suppress him?"

"Not now."

Taoka frowned.

"But the fourth quarter is possible."

Taoka glanced at him twice, but didn't ask why it was the fourth quarter. He simply said, "Then you keep a steady hand in the first three quarters. Koshino, help Sendoh defend more. When Rukawa breaks through, come from the weak side to block his right flank."

Yueye nodded. "Understood."

The timeout ended, and the game resumed. Rukawa had the ball, and Sendoh was on defense. This time, Rukawa didn't dribble outside; he immediately turned his back to receive the ball, intending to use his strength against Sendoh. After dribbling twice, he pushed his way inside. Sendoh's strength was currently at B-level, so he wasn't at a disadvantage against Rukawa. The two were locked in a stalemate near the free-throw line. Suddenly, Rukawa turned and took a fadeaway jump shot.

Sendoh jumped up to block, but his fingertips missed just a little.

Goal!

After landing, Rukawa finally uttered an extra word.

"Too short."

Sendoh was taken aback for a moment.

Yueye almost burst out laughing. "He finally spoke, just two words, and they were swear words."

Sendoh laughed too, but not the kind of laugh that says "I'm angry," he genuinely found it amusing.

"If you talk so little, how will you make friends in the future?"

Rukawa glanced at him. "No need."

"You don't even need a girlfriend?"

"……unnecessary."

Sendoh turned to Koshino and said, "You see, he actually knows quite a lot of words, but he just doesn't like to use them."

Off-road was laughing so hard he was bent over.