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Teiko's rest area.
"Ryucchi, you're amazing! What was that shot that rolled into the basket? It was so cool!"
Kise was completely stunned by Ryu's skill.
Aomine was also staring intently at Ryu, eager to engage in a "life-or-death" duel with him immediately.
"yu-chin is so fierce today!" Murasakibara Atsushi said, taking a bite of his snack.
"Yeah, I was telling you, Ryu is different today!" Akashi also praised.
Midorima didn't speak; he just stared at Ryu in deep thought.
Nijimura Shuzo teased, "Ryu, did someone from Uesaki upset you?"
"No, I just suddenly felt a bit high today," Ryu replied with a smile.
Actually, he just didn't want to leave with any regrets before leaving the team.
The assistant coach nodded in satisfaction at Ryu. "Well done."
Kouzo Shirogane wore a beaming smile, his thoughts unknown.
Ryu said to the assistant coach, "Assistant coach, the score gap has widened. I won't play in the second half. Let Kise or Kuroko replace me!"
The assistant coach didn't refuse.
Continuing to play Ryu was pointless; it would only widen the score gap further.
Teiko and Uesaki didn't have any deep-seated hatred; offending the other team too much would be unnecessary.
"Okay, then Kuroko, you'll be playing next!"
Kuroko immediately responded, "Yes..."
Ryu patted his shoulder and smiled. "Good luck, Kuroko-chan."
Hearing this nickname, Kuroko was speechless. "Please don't call me Kuroko-chan."
Hahaha…
"What does it matter? Kise has always called you that."
Kuroko retorted upon hearing Ryu's words, "Kise calls me Kuroko-cchi, not Kuroko-chan."
"Um… Oh, they're pretty much the same!" Ryu waved his hand, looking nonchalant.
This scene made everyone chuckle.
Time passed silently.
The third quarter officially began.
Kuroko's entry brought more variety to the team.
The rhythm was completely controlled by Teiko.
Kuroko's unpredictable playing style and ability to change the ball's trajectory at will allowed Aomine to almost dunk on Uesaki.
Their teamwork was seamless.
This made Ryu think to himself, 'It feels like Kuroko was born to support Aomine.'
At the end of the third quarter, Teiko's score had exceeded 100 points.
In the fourth quarter, the assistant coach substituted Kuroko for Kise.
Kise was already impatient.
Upon entering the game, he unleashed a variety of skills, completely crushing Uesaki's last shred of hope alongside Aomine.
The final score was 161-41.
Uesaki's ace player, Inoue, stood silently with his head down.
Aomine was utterly disappointed in his former rival.
Thus, the final match of the group stage came to an end.
Teiko's rest area.
Everyone had already gotten up and started packing their things.
"Huh?"
Momoi Satsuki noticed Ryu sitting motionless on the bench and reminded him, "Ryu, the game is over, we should go."
"Oh, you guys go to the locker room first! I want to sit here for a while," Ryu waved his hand and said.
Momoi Satsuki was a little confused, but still said, "Ah? Okay! Then you have to hurry."
Ryu nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I know."
It wasn't that Ryu didn't want to leave; it was that he couldn't leave.
Karupin told Ryu that there was still some energy left to absorb.
Ryu had no choice but to wait a little longer.
Fortunately, today was the group stage final, and there were no more matches, so he could stay a little longer.
After an unknown amount of time, Karupin finally finished absorbing the energy in the stadium.
Ryu then got up and walked towards the locker room. Halfway there, Ryu hugged Karupin and complained, "Your absorption speed is terrible! You need to be faster next time."
Karupin rolled his eyes at Ryu. "This is already my fastest speed at this stage. If I want to go even faster, I'll have to go find the colorful light orbs."
Ryu pursed his lips but didn't say anything.
Soon, Ryu arrived at the door of the lounge.
Just as he was about to open the door, he heard a voice coming from inside.
"Stop talking nonsense, let me have some peace and quiet, okay?" It was Aomine's voice.
Ryu heard the door click open. Looking at Aomine, Ryu greeted him, "It's Aomine! What's wrong?"
Aomine was also taken aback when he saw Ryu. He shook his head and said, "Nothing, just feeling a bit stuffy, I wanted to go out for some fresh air."
Ryu stepped aside to let him pass, and Aomine walked straight past.
Ryu murmured, watching Aomine's departing figure, "This guy doesn't look good."
"Ryu," Momoi Satsuki quickly ran up to him and said, "Aomine…"
Ryu raised his hand, signaling Momoi Satsuki to calm down. "He's probably disappointed with the basketball he loves! Uesaki's performance today must have affected him, but that was to be expected before the game, wasn't it?"
Hearing this, Momoi Satsuki lowered her head dejectedly. "Ah… how could this happen?"
Ryu patted her shoulder. "It's alright! Everything will be alright."
Midorima adjusted his glasses, his green eyes fixed on Ryu. "I'm curious. I'm not surprised by Aomine's reaction, but Ryu, what's your reaction?"
Hearing Midorima's question, everyone in the locker room turned their attention to Ryu.
Ryu simply smiled and replied to Midorima, "Ah, well! Don't worry, I'm not Aomine. I wouldn't lose my mind just because the opponent was weak."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ryu noticed the atmosphere in the locker room become strange.
Momoi Satsuki muttered under her breath, a hint of resentment in her voice, 'Honestly, how could you say that about Aomine!'
'Has Aomine lost his mind?' Kuroko muttered to himself.
Kise also looked thoughtful, 'So, Aomine-cchi…'
Midorima couldn't stand it anymore. "That's enough, you guys."
Ryu looked around the lounge. 'Huh? That's strange, Akashi isn't here?'
Midorima replied, "Akashi and the coach left together. Did you need to see him?"
Ryu shook his head. "No, I was just asking."
He said this while changing his clothes. Soon, Ryu was wearing the same white T-shirt as Teiko.
"It's really stuffy in here! Karupin, let's go out for some fresh air!" With that, Ryu walked towards the door of the lounge.
"Sigh, Ryu-kun, you..." Kuroko looked at Ryu worriedly.
The others also turned their attention to Ryu.
Ryu stopped, turned around and glanced at everyone, then smiled. "Seriously, what are you thinking! I already said everything's fine."
With that, Ryu disappeared from everyone's sight.
Ryu was oblivious to what these people were thinking.
He wandered around the gymnasium. It had to be said, this gymnasium was really big.
Suddenly, he saw a room with a sign that read "Swimming Pool." He peered inside curiously and spotted a familiar figure sitting by the pool.
"Aomine..." Ryu walked straight over. "What are you doing here?"
Aomine instinctively turned to look. "Ryu?"
Ryu smiled and came to Aomine's side, sitting on the edge of the pool just like him. "You've been acting less and less like yourself lately. Is it because of the competition?"
Aomine remained silent. After a long while, he finally spoke, "Ryu, aren't you feeling incredibly bored?"
Ryu thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes."
Hearing this, Aomine was taken aback, looking at Ryu as if he wanted to say something, but couldn't find the words.
Ryu continued, "But it's just boredom."
Aomine frowned, completely not understanding Ryu's meaning.
Ryu continued to explain, "The opponents right now are all too weak. You can win easily, right?" He looked at Aomine Daiki meaningfully. "Actually, it's not just you who thinks that way; everyone thinks that way. But so what!"
"But..." Aomine wanted to say something, but Ryu interrupted him.
"There are no 'buts.' Middle school students are physically weaker; they haven't fully developed yet. So, our current stage is just the beginning. The future is where we truly fight."
Aomine was stunned, pondering Ryu's words. 'The future...'
Seeing Aomine lost in thought, Ryu didn't disturb him and got up to leave.
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