Chapter 57: Scouting
The Kansai Regional Tournament opened on a crisp Sunday morning, the air charged with anticipation. Sixteen of the region’s top basketball teams had gathered, their banners fluttering outside the vast expanse of Kyo Arena. The venue was colossal—steel and glass stretched into the sky, reflecting the sun like a monument to the sport. Inside, the roar of excitement echoed off high ceilings. Two full-sized courts gleamed under floodlights, polished to perfection, each ready to host four back-to-back battles. It wasn’t just another tournament. It was a warzone dressed in hardwood and paint.
The opening act? None other than Heian Gakuen.
From the moment the whistle blew, all attention in Kyo Arena snapped to Court One. The stands leaned forward, breath held. This wasn’t just a game—it was a statement.
Heian Gakuen, the pride of Kyoto, stepped onto the floor like they owned it. Their jerseys shimmered under the lights, their movements sharp and synchronized. Across from them stood another Kyoto team—technically a home matchup, but the crowd knew where the power truly lay.
The focus, the whispers, the cameras—all of it locked onto one name.
"The Bermuda Triangle."
A nickname that struck fear across the region.
Their offense was a seamless triangle: Power Forward anchoring the post, Small Forward cutting like a knife through space, and the heart of it all—Center Riku Mamoru. Towering. Quiet. Efficient. He didn’t just block shots—he erased them. And when he got the ball inside that triangle?
You didn’t get it back.
They didn’t rush. They didn’t panic. Their spacing was surgical, every pass delivered with the cool certainty of players who had rehearsed this a thousand times behind closed gym doors.
Like falling into the sea and realizing the current is stronger than you thought—and now you’re too deep to swim back.