𝗔𝗜𝗠 𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗢𝗣

sixteen.

"Why do they make way for him? Wouldn't it be more effective if they worked together?" Otsubo asked Sumire.

Sumire smiled, "How do I say this... You see, this is deil eyes' first debut in high school. From what I've heard, to use deil eyes, the user needs to have great focus that they have a bad habit makes their focus solely on the ball and basket."

'In middle school, Wu xi once used it and injured his teammates. I'm sure he told them not to get in his way when he uses it to avoid injuring any of them."

Midorima turned his gaze towards Sumire. "If he started playing in middle school, shouldn't at least one person have known that he'd become popular because of the eyes?"

Sumire straightened her posture. "Well, that's because he spent his middle school years in China but then transferred back to Japan in his third year of middle school."

Midorima's gaze turned back to the game before widening. "The pace. It's faster than before." Sumire chuckled, "Ah, they're finally showing their true colors. Haha."

Ogiwara passed the ball to Hanzo, who quickly threw it closer to the basket. Wu xi then appeared and dunked the ball into the basket.

Iirina grimaced, "Thank goodness, all of them have good reflexes," she mumbled, earning nods from Noyuki.

As the third quarter ended, Ogiwara stared at Haizaki, who was now kicking the bench. "Sorry, in the last quarter, deil eyes won't be of any use anymore," Wu xi said. Shugo shook his head, "It's already enough. We've caught up with them," he said, handing Wu xi a water bottle.

Wu xi thanked Shugo. Shinki smiled, "Then, keep up the fast pace. Don't let any of them try to score." They all nodded.

↪˚꩜ .ᐟ˙

Haizaki grinned mischievously, "That eyes can be copied, right?" Ogiwara raised his eyebrow in response.

As Haizaki darted past Ogiwara, the boy turned abruptly to catch up, only to slip and curse under his breath. Damn! Sweat!, struggling to regain his footing.

"Hahah!" Haizaki's laughter echoed as he effortlessly weaved past his opponents. "Can he really copy those eyes?" Midorima asked.

Sumire shook her head knowingly, "That kid is playing with fire. If Wu xi, the true owner of the Deil Eyes, can't control them, how can he?"

Ogiwara quickly picked himself up and charged towards him as he attempted to bypass Yuzuru. "Yuzuru, hit the ball!!" Ogiwara shouted.

Gritting his teeth, Haizaki skillfully deflected the ball away from Yuzuru, but Wu xi intervened, propelling the ball towards Uehara who scored three crucial points.

With a glare, Haizaki locked eyes with Ogiwara. Ogiwara, in return, cast a resigned look towards the boy. "Human magnet," Wu xi muttered, eliciting a sigh from Ogiwara, "Not you too, Senpai."

Wu xi flashed a reassuring smile, "Leave him to me. His imitation of the Deil Eyes is far from perfect. I'll do my best to stop him. Just be prepared to receive the ball." Ogiwara nodded in agreement.

Two minutes left, they just needed two more scores to surpass Fukuda Sōgō. Uehara dribbled the ball fast, passing Fukuda Sōgō's guard, but Haizaki appeared beside him, making him grimace.

Uehara threw the ball to Yuzuru, but Fukuda Sōgō's captain, Ishida, stole the ball and passed it to Haizaki. "You guys think you can beat me easily?!" Yuzuru jumped as Haizaki tried to dunk.

Fake?! But as Ogiwara tried to intercept, a fierce collide occurred, leaving Ogiwara stunned on the floor.

"Shige!!"

"Referee, time out!!" Others ran to him. "Shige-kun, do you feel dizzy?" Ogiwara held his side and stood up. "I'm fine. That guy's weight is nothing like Yuzuru." Yuzuru grimaced, "Oi!"

Shinki examined him. Ogiwara's eyes sharpened. "Shinki-sensei, I'm really fine." Iirina stared at Ogiwara and looked at his leg. Gritting her teeth, she said, "You're out!"

The team looked at Iirina. "Your leg, Shige-kun. When you said you already got examined, I didn't trust you, so I researched all the hospitals in Miyagi to see if you had gone to any. You haven't been to any, right?" Ogiwara gritted his teeth. Izumi sighed, "I'll replace you. Even though we already know we're going to lose. Ack!"

Fujiwara pinched Izumi's cheek. "We'll win, you brat!" Ogiwara smiled and then turned to Shinki. "Sorry, Sensei. I haven't gone to the hospital as you said." Shinki smiled. "Then let's go after this. For now, let's leave it to others. Your teammates are capable, so trust them."

Ogiwara nodded. Shinki bowed to the referee, who nodded. "Black, player changing!" Izumi cracked his neck and entered the court. "Let's win this."

-𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲-