The gym felt colder after Takeda's words.

Daniel stood in front of the projector, fists tight at his sides, watching the frozen frame of Ryu Kazen mid-drive — knee tucked, torso low, the blue grid flaring in his eyes as he shifted weight so subtly the defender had no idea he'd already lost.

Coach Hikari clicked her pen.

"Look carefully," she said. "What do you notice?"

Daniel stared, scanning every pixel.

Everyone else stayed quiet, sensing the seriousness in the air.

Daniel exhaled.

"…His shoulders. They lie."

Takeda smirked. "Good. Continue."

"He dips them like he's driving left, but… his hips never commit." Daniel leaned in. "His hips tell the truth. His chest and head fake. But his hips… they always point where he'll actually go."

Hikari nodded slowly.

"Exactly. Most defenders watch the eyes, the ball, the shoulders. But an elite defender…" She tapped her pen against the screen. "Watches the hips."

The video resumed.

Ryu jab-stepped.

The defender flinched right.

Bad choice.

In the next frame Ryu's already behind him.

The next one — Ryu gathering the ball with one hand.

The next — a clean finish over two collapsing bigs.

The gym fell silent.

Marcus swallowed hard.

Shunjin let out a shaky breath.

Yuuto clenched his fists.

Daniel… didn't move.

"Run it again," he said quietly.

Hikari replayed it.

Daniel watched again.

Again.

Again.

Seven times.

Takeda raised an eyebrow. "You memorizing his steps?"

"…I'm memorizing his lies," Daniel answered.

Takeda's lips curved slowly.

Good answer.

---

THE DEFENSE DRILL BEGINS

Takeda tossed the ball between his hands.

"Alright, Daniel. Your assignment is simple."

He dribbled once.

The sound hit like a gunshot.

"You're guarding me."

Daichi whispered to Yuuto: "Bro… that's not fair."

Yuuto whispered back: "Neither is guarding Ryu."

Takeda took position at the top of the key.

His posture changed instantly.

Shoulders loose.

Body heavy.

One hand low to the floor.

The air around him grew sharp.

"Coach is actually locking in…" Marcus muttered.

Daniel stepped up.

Feet shoulder-width apart.

Weight low.

Eyes calm.

Takeda smirked.

"Your job is to stay in front of me for five seconds."

"Just five?" Daniel asked.

Takeda's grin widened.

"Don't get cocky."

Then the whistle blew.

0.5 seconds.

Takeda exploded forward — the kind of first step that makes normal players trip over their own feet.

Daniel's left foot slid back instinctively, shadowing.

1 second.

Takeda dropped his center of gravity, body leaning right.

Daniel followed the hips.

"Good," Takeda said while dribbling. "You're not taking the bait."

2 seconds.

Takeda jabbed left.

Daniel stepped left.

Takeda instantly crossed right.

"Shit," Shunjin muttered.

But Daniel kept up, barely.

3 seconds.

Takeda's pace shifted — slow to fast to slow again, the same rhythm-breaking movement Ryu used.

Daniel stumbled.

His heel skidded.

But he didn't fall.

Takeda's eyes sharpened.

"Oh? You're still up?"

4 seconds.

Takeda leaned into him, using his shoulder to create space.

Daniel gritted his teeth, sliding back, resisting the force.

Yuuto felt his stomach twist — Daniel was hanging on by threads.

5 seconds.

The whistle blew.

FWEEEEEEEEET!

Daniel collapsed on one knee, sweat dripping from his hair.

Takeda stepped back, impressed.

"You lasted the whole five."

Daniel panted, chest burning.

"…I know."

Takeda tossed the ball to him.

"Good. Now do it nine more times."

Daniel froze.

Shunjin almost dropped his water bottle.

Marcus blinked. "Coach… he's gonna die."

Takeda cracked his neck.

"If he collapses after guarding me, what do you think will happen when Ryu Kazen comes at him for forty minutes straight?"

Daniel stood up.

Quiet.

Steady.

Determined.

"…Again."

---

ROUND 2

Takeda didn't go easy.

He attacked instantly — full speed, no warning.

Daniel matched the first move.

Takeda switched hands.

Daniel read the hips.

Takeda stepped back into a jumper.

Daniel contested.

Five seconds survived.

Barely.

---

ROUND 4

Daniel's legs burned.

His shirt stuck to his skin.

His breath came in ragged gasps.

Takeda didn't slow down.

The team watched, silent, knowing not to interrupt.

Yuuto whispered, "…he's really doing it."

Marcus nodded.

"That's Daniel. He doesn't talk big. He just… faces things."

---

ROUND 6

Takeda broke Daniel's ankles.

Straight up.

A brutal crossover.

Daniel slid too far.

His foot twisted.

He hit the floor.

Hard.

Daichi flinched.

Shunjin looked away.

Takeda paused.

"Quit?"

Daniel wiped blood from his elbow.

"…Continue."

Takeda's eyes gleamed.

---

THE LIGHTS GO OUT (SPECIAL DRILL)

Coach Hikari stood up.

"Now we begin the real assignment."

She walked to the wall and hit the switch.

The gym plunged into near darkness.

The only light came from the emergency exit signs and faint windows.

The team gasped.

"Hikari?" Takeda asked. "You sure?"

"If Ryu Kazen overwhelms defenders with speed," she said, "then Daniel must learn to defend without relying on sight alone."

Daniel's eyes widened.

"You want me to guard you… in the dark?"

"No," Hikari said.

"You will guard both of us."

Marcus choked.

Even Takeda blinked at her.

"…You're cruel," he said.

"It's useful cruelty," she replied.

They stepped onto the court.

The two coaches stood on opposite wings.

Hikari's voice echoed in the dim gym:

"Daniel.

Do not react to our eyes.

Not our shoulders.

Not our ball fakes."

Takeda dribbled once — the echo was sharper in the dark.

"You react…" he said—

Hikari finished:

"…to movement.

To rhythm.

To breath.

To weight shift."

Daniel swallowed.

Yuuto exhaled.

Marcus whispered, "Bro's gonna evolve tonight or die."

Hikari clapped once.

"Begin."

---

SHADOW DEFENSE BEGINS

Takeda attacked first.

Not with speed — with silence.

Daniel didn't see him move.

He felt pressure shift.

A faint shuffle.

The air parting.

He cut off the lane at the exact moment Takeda drove.

"Good," Takeda said.

Then Hikari struck from Daniel's blind side.

Her footwork was sharper — more compact than Takeda's.

She darted past him.

Daniel spun, nearly losing balance, but shadowed her hips.

Hikari smirked in the dark.

"You're learning."

Takeda switched.

Daniel caught the rhythm change.

Feet sliding.

Muscles shaking.

Breath quickening.

They attacked again.

And again.

And again.

In the dark, time lost meaning.

All he heard were shoes squeaking… breath shifting… weight pressing forward.

He blocked one drive.

He cut off one lane.

He anticipated a spin.

He reacted to the faintest movement.

But eventually—

Daniel collapsed.

His palms smacked the wood.

His lungs burned.

His vision blurred.

He felt more than heard the coaches stop.

Takeda crouched beside him.

"Daniel."

Daniel didn't respond.

Takeda's voice softened — rare.

"…Look at your hands."

Daniel lifted them weakly.

They were shaking violently.

"Good," Takeda said. "That means you pushed past what your body knows."

Hikari knelt on Daniel's other side.

She placed one hand on his shoulder — gentle, but firm.

"Do you understand your role now?"

Daniel swallowed.

"…Stop Ryu Kazen."

Takeda shook his head.

"No."

Daniel looked up, confused.

Takeda's voice lowered — deep, steady, unwavering.

"Your job isn't to stop him."

Everyone froze.

Takeda continued:

"Ryu Kazen is a storm. You don't stop storms."

Hikari stood, hands on her hips.

"You endure them."

Takeda looked Daniel dead in the eyes.

"Your job… is to make him work.

To slow him down.

To frustrate him.

To wear him out.

To keep him from breaking us."

Daniel's heartbeat pounded in his ears.

Takeda extended a hand.

"Be the wall he crashes into.

Be the weight he must carry.

Be the breath he can't catch."

Daniel stared at his trembling hands again.

Then he gripped Takeda's hand and pulled himself up.

His voice was hoarse, almost a whisper…

But filled with steel.

"…I'll be the wall he breaks against."

The gym fell silent.

Takeda smiled — truly smiled — for the first time in days.

"Then your assignment is complete."

Yuuto exhaled in relief.

Marcus smirked.

Shunjin nodded, fired up.

But Daniel…

Daniel didn't smile.

He just stared at the court, chest heaving, sweat dripping, mind locked in a single thought:

Ryu Kazen.

I'm ready for you.

The lights in the gym dimmed again—not fully dark, just enough to cast long shadows across the glossy wooden floor. The air felt colder. Quieter. Even Yuuto and Marcus had stopped their own drills, watching from the far side of the gym.

Coach Takeda stood at the baseline, one basketball in his hand, spinning it lazily on his fingertips.

Daniel stood at center court.

Feet shoulder-width apart.

Chest rising and falling like a drum.

His legs were shaking. He didn't even try to hide it anymore.

Hikari stood beside the projector, her voice calm but firm:

"Daniel. This is the final stage."

He swallowed hard.

"The Phantom drill," she continued. "If you can survive this… you're ready to stand in front of Ryu Kazen."

Takeda stopped spinning the ball.

He bounced it.

BOOM.

The echo traveled through the empty gym like a warning shot.

Daniel lifted his arms, low defensive stance, heart pounding.

Takeda stared at him with eyes that didn't blink.

"You won't be guarding me," he said.

Daniel's breath caught.

Takeda pointed toward the projector behind Daniel. "You'll be guarding him."

A single clip played on the screen—a slow-motion angle of Ryu Kazen performing a hesitation into a split-dribble before blowing past a defender. The frame froze just as Ryu's eyes glowed faintly—blue grid lines reflecting in his pupils, scanning the court.

Then the clip disappeared

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