The third quarter had ended. Despite Seirin's desperate chase, the point gap had only grown larger.
The neutral fans who had previously cheered for Seirin all fell silent.
They could see that Seirin had truly given their all, but it seemed... useless?
Kuroko's good friend Ogiwara Shigehiro's expression went completely rigid.
He remembered again the terror of being dominated by Teiko, by the Generation of Miracles.
When Tendou left the court, he glanced briefly in his direction, making Ogiwara feel as if he were being stared down by a lion, cold sweat pouring down.
"Unreasonable monster."
He gritted his teeth, feeling indignant for his friend.
They had all given their absolute best on the court, but in the end, they were all destroyed by Tendou's incomparable talent.
Not just the game, but their beliefs as well.
They were going to lose again!
When Kagami returned to the bench, he could no longer hold on, the crimson lightning finally dissipating from the corners of his eyes.
Every cell in his body was sending him signals of exhaustion. His brain received all the information and told him it was time to stop.
They couldn't win—there wasn't a shred of hope.
Even though at this moment, he no longer thought like during the national tournament that individual strength was more important than teamwork.
It was just that Tendou's strength surpassed the heavens.
Kuroko sat beside him without saying a word.
This was completely different from the basketball he had imagined.
The more team-oriented, more trusting Seirin had become the losers.
Could he really be wrong?
He couldn't help but doubt himself this way.
"Basketball is modern warfare. Kuroko's idealistic utopian world doesn't exist."
Shirogane Kōzō watched his disciple's performance without surprise.
Basketball could certainly be enjoyed, but that was the fans' privilege.
Real players should do whatever it takes to win.
Team or individual—it didn't matter what, as long as they won!
During those three years at Teiko, Shirogane Kōzō had never taught the Generation of Miracles about basketball's beauty.
He only continuously helped them excavate their potential and told them how to win games.
Just as he had instilled in Teiko the concept: "Victory in every battle!"
All competitive sports ultimately aimed for victory.
Kuroko could enjoy basketball because he would never be able to touch the professional stage in his lifetime.
The Generation of Miracles couldn't—their talent was so outstanding that they should bear the expectations of fans like Kuroko.
Kuroko was different from the Generation of Miracles, including Kagami Taiga.
He had no basketball talent. Shirogane Kōzō had known this from the beginning, even after Tendou had developed his potential.
Even so, Kuroko could never go far on the basketball path in the future.
...
The dozens of seconds of rest time passed in a flash.
The fourth quarter immediately began.
Kagami was kept on the bench by Aida Riko to rest.
He had consumed too much stamina in the first three quarters, nearly depleted. Continuing to let him play might result in an injury like during the national tournament.
After all, Seirin no longer had hope of winning. If they did, they could try playing desperately with Kirisaki Daiichi.
Tendou didn't leave the court. After finishing with Seirin, they wouldn't encounter strong opponents until the finals, giving them plenty of time to rest.
However, after the fourth quarter began, he deliberately reduced his personal offense, focusing more on disrupting Seirin's defensive attention.
Seirin consistently kept two people marking him.
Although the Teiko demon started coasting, no one knew when he might suddenly explode—he remained Seirin's greatest threat.
Benefiting from this, Haizaki began to dominate.
Without Kagami Taiga, Seirin was just a rabble in his eyes.
Especially Kuroko—without Kagami to cover for him, his defense was Seirin's biggest weakness.
When the fourth quarter reached the 5-minute mark, Seirin was already trailing by 49 points.
This was destined to be a massacre.
Seirin, one of Tokyo's Big Four, was being mercilessly crushed by Kirisaki Daiichi.
At Kagami's insistence, Aida Riko put him back in during the final moments, partly to avoid losing too disgracefully.
She was also starting to consider the future.
The current Seirin had almost reached their limit.
Next year, they probably couldn't make any breakthrough improvements.
Continuing with this roster, they couldn't reach the championship.
Better to use the team's outstanding Winter Cup performance this year to attract more talented players.
If they were lucky enough to get another "Kagami Taiga," Seirin might have a chance next year.
But Kirisaki Daiichi didn't plan to let Seirin off so easily.
Especially Hanamiya Makoto—he particularly hated this type of team, and Haizaki felt the same.
He most despised these hypocrites who liked to stand on moral high ground and criticize others.
Therefore, after Kagami Taiga returned to the game, not only did the score gap not close, but it was widened even further.
Kirisaki Daiichi's literary and martial champions showed no mercy, specifically targeting Kuroko, each hit more vicious than the last.
Aida Riko was torn with indecision again.
She wanted to substitute Kuroko out, afraid that continuing like this would damage his confidence, but at the same time feared that taking him out at this moment would hurt his motivation.
By the time she made up her mind to substitute him, less than 3 minutes remained in the game, and the gap had nearly reached 60 points.
60 points!
This was a number no one could have imagined before the game.
Kise remembered he had just cheered for Kuroko and the others, feeling somewhat awkward.
If he hadn't stimulated Seirin to burst into a stronger state, perhaps Tendou wouldn't have gone all out, and Seirin wouldn't have lost so miserably.
Simply translated: their cheering had backfired.
Then they suffered an even more ferocious attack from Kirisaki Daiichi...
Momoi looked smugly at her childhood friend, mockingly saying, "This is what traitors deserve."
"What traitor?" Aomine was confused, then realized and glared angrily at Momoi. "Don't you get confused about the situation—you're Tōō's manager, don't act like you've already married over there."
"Married over... what married over... Dai-chan, you're so annoying, talking nonsense." Momoi became coy.
That gesture made Aomine's teeth itch with frustration.
So you really do want to marry over there!
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