The Final tip-off!
I want to win... with Kuroko and all the other guys!
Interesting.
ZONE, huh?
68Q. ISN'T IT THE BEST?
What? He can't be doing it again!
Kagami-kun...
Amazing. When he's in the ZONE, Kagami's attack powers are at a different level.
But...
Isn't this a bad thing? ZONE uses up stamina like nothing else, right?
- Is he going to last till the end? - There's no way he'd last.
Let's say you filled a bathtub full with water.
Huh? A bathtub?
When you enter ZONE, it's like pulling the plug on the drain.
The hot water drains out in no time.
That's an easy to understand analogy, but does he think I'm an idiot?
No, doesn't he like you or something?
If they don't do anything about this, he won't last the first half, let alone the whole game.
Even his defense is unstoppable!
RAKUZAN - SEIRIN
Amazing. He's holding Rakuzan completely scoreless.
This is Kagami's one-man show...
Mitobe-kun, get ready to swap in!
Coach?
Rather than half-assedly putting on the brakes, I'll go with this! But...
...so he doesn't run out of stamina, I'm going to have Kagami-kun concentrate on offense.
Kuroko-kun, swap out!
Mitobe for Kuroko?
I see. If it's just defense, Mitobe is still better overall.
I went out thinking I'd pretty much go all-out...
Don't get so depressed.
What, he's being swapped out already?
I wanted to see him play a bit more.
The crowd has good expectations of you, so you'll be back in no time.
...Okay.
And so, Kagami, you're going to concentrate on offense.
Leave the back side to us, and go in at full force!
Sure!
RAKUZAN - SEIRIN
Head Coach... I think it would be better to take a time out.
No need.
Damn Kagami... When he's in the ZONE, he's probably better than Midorima...
We can't even touch him like this.
I will keep the offense as is.
For defense, Kotaro, I am going to change your matchup.
Wha?
Akashi...
It seems you are getting a bit carried away, Taiga Kagami.
So he came as expected...
Kagami-kun...
The absolute ace players for both teams going head-to-head.
This outcome will be directly linked to the flow of the game.
What to do... Are we still going to go with Kagami, or will we go in on our own?
There is less risk with the latter, but...
Gimme! If we can instead crush Akashi down right here, we can grab the momentum for us!
Kagami!
My spine still gets a chill as always.
But once you got the ball, it's now or never.
ZONE versus Emperor Eye.
Kagami's speed surpassed Emperor Eye!
Go, Kagami!
I can do this! I'm going to seal the deal right here!
Go, Meteor Jam!
You surpassed Emperor Eye, you say?
I do not like being underestimated so much.
I let you pass me on purpose.
What kind of a player is he?
To dodge Akashi-kun's cut-in, the stride of Kagami-kun's first step in was slightly bigger.
As a result, his drive veered outward, and the distance to the goal grew ever so slightly.
And Meteor Jam can only be used when you have some distance between you and the defense.
The perfect situation where #5 and #8 were slow to come help, and even that was a trap!
I was wondering how elaborate a trap he'd set to stop Kagami in his ZONE...
But stopping him on the very first move? That's no human feat...
That made me realize from the bottom of my heart...
Akashi isn't invincible because he has Emperor Eye.
It's because someone like Akashi is the one with Emperor Eye.
We'll stop this next one!
Dammit, that was my mistake. There were other things I could have chosen to do there...
Idiot. Heâ€™s starting to get distracted...
Oh no, a screen...
Switch!
Man. This is unusual for Aka-chin. He came to settle the score all at once.
If he loses here, he will lose his ZONE. And it will be good if that's all that happens.
If you use 100% of your powers and that doesn't work...
It could bounce back at you and put you in a slump.
But Kagami-kun has withstood Kise-kun's Emperor Eye once already!
Right now, while he's in the ZONE, perhaps...
Do not irritate me so much.
The fact that a fake and its original are being compared is unpleasant enough already.
Your head is too high.
Akashi penetrates!
Eagle Spear!
Even with this timing...
Drats!
Not letting you!
If they don't stop it here, they're in big trouble.
They lost the ace battle, which creates momentum to give points away. That's the worst.
It's not a problem for Kagami alone. It will be engrained into the heads of everyone on Seirin.
"No matter what we do, we can't win against Akashi."
Dammit!
Wha...
Mitobe!
Nice, Mitobe!
All right, Big Brother Rin!
- Geez, he got one on me! - Don't worry, Big Sis Reo.
I guess I was slightly too lax.
It was not like he was completely free, but more so...
It just means Mitobe-kun is pumped up as well!
On that end, we're all fully charged without fail!
All right, time to strike back!
I have to be aggressive on offense... but how?
Can I win against Akashi?
Mitobe... senpai...
- He says, "Don't worry. Don't let it get to you." - Even I can figure that out from how he's looking!
All right!
He's getting out of ZONE?
Yeah, to just like he usually is. He still has stamina left too.
As for how he gets out of it, isn't it the best way for now?
You have great teammates, Taiga...
Offense! Let's get one back!
Yeah!
Our momentum isn't gone yet.
Even without Kagami-kun's ZONE, we're doing plenty fine. That means...
Here he is! Seirin's super sixth man!
Let's go!
Whoa.
Why is he coming in at a time like this?
Oh, I'm sorry.
No problem.
He dodged Kuroko?
Let's go, #11!
The crowd too... Isn't it strange?
I mean, nobody noticing him is what normally happens...
Yeah, this is great! You haven't given up even if Akashi got one on you!
Of course! What are you talking about?
Well, I mean... It's not fun to get back at someone who's lost his gusto and is all sulking.
You already passed me twice, so I'll pass you back at least five times!
What? Five? Shouldn't he double up and do it four times?
I don't get how he calculates...
Doesn't matter. I'll pass so many times he can't retaliate enough!
Kagami!
So there was someone other than Taiga... This aura of the Wild!
Bastard...
There it is! #11's miracle pass!
So you had touched it...
Well, yeah. But that's not the actual problem you have, Junpei-chan.
Junpei-chan?
- Not letting you through! - Here goes... with four!
It seriously looks like he disappeared!
It's in! Hayama is as fast as lightning!
Let's go, Kuroko, offense!
In order to get points from Rakuzan, we all have to pool our powers!
Make sure to get the passes going!
Something really is strange. Kuroko hasn't been able to shake his defenders...
Can it be that Kuroko's lack of presence is fading?
Coach, um...
Loose ball! Grab it!
Tetsu-kun's pass was figured out?
Not that...
That off-feeling when I was teaching Tetsu how to shoot... In the end, this is what it was.
Dammit, how did they do that?
It's nothing. I saw it, so I took it. That's all.
He saw it?
Then, how he was able to catch up to the three earlier...
Wait, that means... impossible!
Such a foolish act I cannot bear to watch.
Letting your one and only advantage slip from your fingers.
Back in middle school, after you arrived at your current style...
I made you increase the variation of passes, but never let you acquire shooting and dribbling skills.
Do you know why I did not?
Because I knew that if I did, you would lose your lack of presence someday.
Vanishing Drive, Phantom Shot...
There is no way a player using such flashy moves would not be noticed.
And the nail in the coffin was the buzzer-beater in the semifinals.
By learning how to shine halfheartedly, you can no longer become the shadow.
Now that you are no longer the phantom sixth man...
...you are already not even worth as much as a typical player.
To think you'd not notice until now it'd end up like this...
You have disillusioned me, Tetsuya.
Dammit, it's nothing more than the usual feint.
Iduki!
It was a bit weak.
Kuroko-kun.
Well, of course they'd pull him down.
There is no reason to keep a trump card deemed unusable.
He probably won't have any more appearances today.
Kuroko-kun! Not over there. Over here, over here.
Don't give up! I'm going to have you go out there again right away.
What? He's coming out again?
I'm sorry, Kuroko-kun... to put you back into the court like this.
No, it's the reverse.
I'll be going now.
What the hell is she thinking?
There's a bit more than 3 minutes left in the 1st quarter. I'll give it all to you.
So I want you to get fully beaten up on the court.
So that we can fight one more time... and win!
Vanishing Drive!
Did he get by?
No!
He's visible!
If we merely pull Kuroko out, that truly will be unrecoverable.
So we're going to risk it and he'll play, so we can find a way together for Kuroko to resurge.
Kuroko...
They see this too!
Not letting you!
RAKUZAN - SEIRIN Rakuzan finally took the lead!
I don't know what's the meaning of this, but aren't you being optimistic with him still on the court?
Rebound!
Drats...
All right!
All right! Vice Claw!
Kiyoshi!
What you said earlier...
It's not that we're being optimistic. Aren't you guys underestimating us?
RAKUZAN - SEIRIN
To finish the 1st quarter in a tie was good for us.
But... It's time to sit you out, Kuroko-kun.
It was impossible to find an answer in less than three minutes, but we got some information.
To find a clue for you to resurge, we'll have you sit out for the 2nd quarter to see how things go.
Okay.
Cheer up, Kuroko!
We'll need your passes again to win. Before we hang our heads, let's give them a struggle.
Kagami-kun...
Even with a useless version of you, we made something of the 1st quarter.
Don't worry about us!
I know, but can you try to not be so blunt in saying so, if possible?
However, you're right.
I will make sure to come back onto the court... to win.
Yeah!
We're counting on you, Kuroko.
We still have a shot in the 2nd quarter. Even Rakuzan can't possibly have monsters for all five positions.
Especially #5... that guy named Mayuzumi. He should be someone Mitobe can deal with aplenty.
We now fully know what Seirin is capable of.
There are no issues with going according to plan for the 2nd quarter. Got that, Akashi?
Yes. From here, it will only be a trampling...
Kotaro, Eikichi, Reo...
I am going to have you guys score.
We will get the ball moving.
We did not use it against Shutoku because there was a player with Hawk Eye...
...but if we're against Eagle Eye that doesn't have as much visibility, there is a route we can use.
Satsuki. What kind of a guy is Rakuzan's #5?
Hold on a sec...
Let's see...
Chihiro Mayuzumi. Third year, power forward...
Speed, power, technique... Almost all of them are rank C.
CHIHIRO MAYUZUMI 3RD YR DF HEIGHT 182CM WEIGHT 69KG No real specialities, no real faults.
He became a regular member for the first time this year, a bit after Akashi-kun joined.
Before that, he wasn't even a benchwarmer since he wasn't on first string.
What's up with that? Sounds exactly like someone we know from somewhere.
Akashi missed a pass?
I can get it!
What?
That just now...
Misdirection?
You're kidding me...
Can it be... the same as Kuroko?
It is slightly different.
He has the same traits as Tetsuya, but the basic specs are all one notch higher.
In other words, Tetsuya is the previous model.
Chihiro Mayuzumi is the new model for the phantom sixth man.
WE WILL BE THE BEST IN JAPAN.
NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW
It's finally your turn, Mayuzumi-san!
He was on the court the whole time though.
I don't care as long as I get great passes.
Ei-chan, not fair! I'm gonna land a bunch too!
69Q. A MIRACLE WILL NOT HAPPEN All you buys, hush!