When the timeout whistle blew, the Koikawa players were pulled to the sideline by Coach Sato. The tactical board was covered with offensive routes, but Itakura Yuta hung his head, sweat dripping from his chin onto the floor, almost out of strength to even lift his eyes.
Watanabe Kenji was gasping for breath, holding his knees; the calf he pulled while chasing Gu Jin was still throbbing—Ryonan’s offense was like an airtight net, having already drained all their stamina and confidence.
The referee signaled the game to restart. Kawaguchi Shota gritted his teeth and dribbled past half-court. Just as he was about to pass a lob to Itakura, Sakuragi Hanamichi suddenly darted out from behind and to his side. His red head flashed, and he forcefully stole the ball.
The current Sakuragi was terrifyingly strong, already a national-level powerhouse in the high school scene.
He turned and rushed towards Ryonan's half, shouting as he ran, “Sendoh! Catch!” Sendoh Akira smiled and went to meet him, raising his hand to catch, but then saw Sakuragi suddenly toss the ball into the air—Fukuda Kiccho cut in from the left, jumped, grabbed the ball with one hand, and slammed it into the hoop with a “Kuang!” The scoreboard jumped to 83:42.
Sendoh chuckled and teased, “Sakuragi, your feint was brilliant, but you even tricked me.”
“Hahaha, how was it? This is the genius’s strategy!” Sakuragi beamed with pride.
In the stands, Koikawa’s cheering section fell completely silent, with only Ryonan’s cheers shaking the very roof of the arena.
In the next few minutes, Koikawa only managed to score 4 points despite their best efforts, while Ryonan, on the other hand, saw Gu Jin sink two more three-pointers, Sendoh successfully drive for a layup, and Sakuragi grab a rebound and complete a put-back dunk. The score soared to 95:49.
As the timer ticked down to the final 10 seconds, all the spectators stood up, their eyes fixed on the court—
Ryonan had possession, Gu Jin stood outside the three-point line, dribbling quickly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sakuragi Hanamichi bouncing under the basket, making a “dunk” gesture with his hands.
The Koikawa players were out of energy to defend, only symbolically spreading their arms.
Gu Jin smiled, flicked his wrist, and the ball didn't fly towards the hoop; instead, it soared straight into the air!
Sakuragi Hanamichi’s eyes lit up. He shot from the free-throw line like a cannonball, his body arching in the air as he jumped, firmly grasping the ball with his right hand, and slamming it hard into the hoop— “Kuang!”
The moment the dunk landed, the final buzzer blared! The scoreboard was fixed at 97:49!
“They won! Ryonan High School won! They defeated Koikawa High School and claimed the National Tournament championship!” The commentator’s voice was filled with excitement, his microphone trembling in his hand.
The entire arena erupted instantly!
Ribbons floated down from the arena ceiling, and Ryonan's substitute players all rushed onto the court, jumping and cheering with Sendoh, Gu Jin, Sakuragi, and the others.
Sakuragi Hanamichi, tugging at the “Ryonan” on his jersey, ran around the court shouting, “We are champions! Champions!”
Fukuda Kiccho’s eyes were red as he clapped Uozumi Jun firmly on the shoulder. Uozumi, usually a serious tall guy, was also grinning, showing two rows of white teeth.
Taoka Moichi stood on the sideline, watching his cheering players on the court, and suddenly covered his face—tears seeped through his fingers, streaming down his cheeks.
He thought of Ryonan’s struggles over the past few years, of the players staying up late to practice tactics before the game, of Ryonan’s fierce full-throttle offense in the second half. All the grievances and perseverance now turned into hot tears.
Just then, the host's voice came over the arena broadcast: “All participating teams, please proceed immediately to Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium Hall C! The awards ceremony is about to begin! All participating teams, please proceed immediately to Hall C!”
The Ryonan players walked arm in arm with the staff towards Hall C.
Sakuragi Hanamichi was still excitedly bouncing around, occasionally patting the heads of his teammates beside him;
Gu Jin walked in the middle with a faint smile on his face;
Sendoh Akira followed behind, occasionally nodding to players from other teams they passed.
Hall C was already packed with people. A banner reading “National High School Basketball Tournament Awards Ceremony” hung in the center of the stage, and the lights were dazzlingly bright.
When the Ryonan players walked onto the stage, another round of cheers erupted from below.
The host walked forward with a microphone, his voice booming: “First, we will present the ‘Best Five Players’ awards for this National Tournament! They are— ”
“Kainan High School, Maki Shinichi!” Maki Shinichi walked onto the stage, accepted the trophy, and bowed to the audience;
“Sannoh Industrial, Sawakita Eiji!” Sawakita Eiji accepted the trophy expressionlessly, but a hint of pride was hidden in his eyes;
“Aikawa Academy, Morohoshi Dai!” Morohoshi Dai smiled and waved, and the audience burst into thunderous applause;
“Meihou Industrial, Morishige Hiroshi!” Morishige Hiroshi strode onto the stage, gently shaking the trophy as he accepted it, his strength almost deforming it;
“Ryonan High School, Gu Jin!”
Gu Jin walked onto the stage, and the moment he accepted the trophy, the cheers from the audience reached their peak.
The host continued: “This National Tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) also belongs to Ryonan High School’s Gu Jin! In this tournament, he averaged 38.5 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 9.2 assists, serving as the core strength behind Ryonan’s championship victory!”
A staff member handed him the MVP trophy, which Gu Jin accepted with both hands, then turned and bowed deeply to the audience... The host, holding the microphone, his voice echoing through the speakers across Hall C, spoke with uncontainable excitement: “Ladies and gentlemen, players! Now, we are about to enter the most significant part of this National High School Basketball Tournament—the presentation of the championship trophy!”
The hall instantly fell silent, all eyes focused on the championship trophy in the center of the stage, its gilded surface gleaming under the lights.
The host smiled and raised his hand, pointing towards the Ryonan players: “Let’s give our warmest applause to welcome the champions of this tournament—the representatives of Ryonan High School—to the stage to receive their award and deliver their acceptance speech!”
Applause and cheers immediately shook the roof of the arena.
The Ryonan players jostled each other, Sakuragi Hanamichi was the first to push Gu Jin forward: “Gu Jin! You go! You’re the MVP, it’s your turn!”
Fukuda Kiccho also nodded, reaching out to pat Gu Jin’s back: “Yes, you go up and speak, we’ll all listen to you!” Even the usually composed Sendoh Akira smiled and raised his hand, gesturing for Gu Jin to go forward.
But Gu Jin didn’t move. He turned and looked down at the audience, his gaze falling on Taoka Moichi—Taoka was still standing in the front row of the spectator seats, his eyes red, still clutching the tissue he had used to wipe his tears.
Gu Jin stepped off the stage, and under everyone’s surprised gaze, reached out and pulled Taoka Moichi onto the stage: “Coach, you go up. You should be the first to receive this trophy.”
Taoka Moichi was stunned, instinctively wanting to step back, but his hand was held tightly by Gu Jin.
He looked at Gu Jin’s serious eyes, then at his teammates on stage who were equally expectant. His eyes grew redder, but he still gently pulled his hand free from Gu Jin’s and pushed him onto the stage: “You brat, I’m crying like this, do you want to see me make a fool of myself!” Then he said with a serious expression: “Gu Jin, you are the ones who fought on the court. This moment of glory belongs to you, it’s your youth.”
He patted Gu Jin’s shoulder, his voice slightly choked but exceptionally firm: “You are the core of the team, the MVP recognized by everyone. Go up there, on behalf of Ryonan, on behalf of everyone who contributed to this championship, say a few words from your heart.”
Gu Jin wanted to say something more, but Taoka stepped back half a pace and nodded firmly at him.
Sakuragi and the others on stage also shouted: “Gu Jin! Come up quickly! Coach has spoken!” Gu Jin looked at the expectation in Taoka’s eyes, then at the encouraging gazes of his teammates, finally took a deep breath, turned, and walked onto the podium.
When the microphone was handed to him, he looked at Taoka Moichi in the audience, then at his teammates beside him, his voice calm yet powerful: “Winning this championship is not my achievement alone.”
“Every morning at five, we would train in the gym until the sun rose;
After every game, Coach Taoka would stay with us to review until late at night, telling us that to keep winning, we had to ‘just push a little harder’;
Sakuragi would grab every possible rebound, Sendoh would make the most precise passes, Fukuda would break through every defense, and Uozumi would guard our restricted area.”
He paused, his excited eyes slightly red: “Ryonan’s championship is built on sweat, fought for with the coach’s guidance, and won through the perseverance of every single player. Thank you, Ryonan, thank you, Coach Taoka, thank you to everyone who supported us.”
As his words fell, applause and cheers erupted again. Taoka Moichi wiped his tears and waved vigorously: “Good! Well said!”
The host stepped forward and handed the championship trophy to Gu Jin—Gu Jin accepted the trophy and, along with Sendoh, Sakuragi, Uozumi, Fukuda, and all the Ryonan players, raised it high! Ribbons once again filled the arena, and the audience below shouted “Ryonan” in unison, their voices shaking everyone’s hearts.
Sakuragi Hanamichi leaned towards the trophy, gave it a fierce kiss, and then shouted to the audience: “We’ll be back next year! And we’ll win the championship again!”
Gu Jin looked at his cheering teammates beside him, and at the excited Coach Taoka in the audience, a satisfied smile gracing his lips—this summer, Ryonan finally did it. They proved with their strength that they are the strongest team in the country.