Day 5 – Neo Tokyo Dome
Block A Match: Fukuoka Wolves vs. Hakodate Blizzards
Match Type: Full Court – 4 Quarters – Knockout Stakes
The crowd in the Neo Tokyo Dome roared, but inside the court, a tense silence settled between the players. Both teams lined up at center court. Tomae adjusted his grip on his knees, eyes on the ball. Across from him, Ryo stood like a glacier—still, unshakable.
The referee tossed the ball.
Tip-Off.
Ryo rose calmly, tapping the ball cleanly back to Kaito, the Blizzards' point guard. As if rehearsed a hundred times, the Blizzards flowed into motion. No wasted steps. No wasted breath.
Kaito drove forward, silent as a whisper. He passed to Koji, the emotionless small forward. A jab step. The defense shifted. Koji took one dribble, rose up, and cleanly dropped a mid-range jumper through the net.
The Blizzards led 2–0.
The Wolves responded immediately. Makoto, the flashy point guard, pushed the pace. He used a slick behind-the-back move to slip past Kaito, kicked it to Yuji in the corner. Yuji caught, hesitated—then swung to Rikuya at the top. A quick release. His three-pointer danced off the rim.
Ryo claimed the rebound, unchallenged.
The Blizzards slowed the game. Their movement was robotic, efficient. Kaito scanned the defense, found Soma cutting backdoor, and passed with surgical precision. Layup. 4–0.
Jin Takeda, the Wolves' ace and shooting guard, demanded the ball. Silent until now, he caught a pass on the wing and fired immediately, but Soma was already there. A fingertip altered the shot—missed. Koji sprinted, caught the rebound mid-stride, and fed it to Kaito. Fast break. The ball soared above the rim—Ryo caught it in stride.
Dunk. 6–0.
Minutes passed. The Wolves found no rhythm. Their pace was disrupted, their cuts read in advance. Coach Reika stood calm, calculating. At the next dead ball, she signaled. The Wolves switched tactics.
Makoto began attacking early, using his speed. One crossover left Kaito behind. Drive—kick out to Jin. Quick jab step. He rose—three-pointer lands.
6–3.
Momentum tilted slightly. The Wolves trapped Kaito on the next possession. Rikuya stole the ball and immediately pushed. Makoto caught it in motion, tossed a lob—Tomae, the smallest center, soared. Alley-oop finish.
6–5.
But the Blizzards never panicked. Their pace never changed. Nobu, the power forward, boxed out Rikuya on the next play and tapped a rebound back to Koji, who reset. Shot clock ticking down. Koji passed to Kaito—immediate handoff back—Koji took the shot over Yuji's outstretched hand.
Nothing but net. 8–5.
Second Quarter
The Wolves' offense opened up. Makoto danced around screens. Rikuya pulled Nobu out of the paint, creating gaps. Yuji, often overlooked, hit a corner three.
10–10.
Koji answered. A single crossover, hesitation, then a drive through traffic—soft lay-in off the glass.
Tomae fought hard under the rim, grabbing rebounds over Ryo with surprising timing. Makoto weaved in again, using a misdirection to find Rikuya wide open.
Three. Tie game. 15–15.
Then, the Blizzards struck fast. Kaito passed, cut, got it back, then no-looked to Ryo. Another dunk. Then another. Kaito didn't speak, but his passes whispered intent.
Halftime: Blizzards 21 – Wolves 18
Third Quarter
The Wolves opened aggressively. Jin finally found his rhythm. First shot—a deep three. Then a steal and fast break layup. Makoto kept the ball moving, twisting around defenders, and fed Yuji for a reverse finish.
For the first time, the Wolves led. 25–21.
Koji, still expressionless, didn't flinch. He took over the next three possessions—scored in isolation, passed out of a double team to Soma, then drew a foul on a pump fake. All business. He scored five straight.
Rikuya hit a crucial corner shot to tie it. 30–30.
But then the cold returned.
Ryo blocked three straight shots—Makoto, Tomae, and Jin all denied at the rim.
Koji led a quiet charge. A steal. A pass. A three-pointer from Soma.
35–30.
Final Quarter
The final ten minutes were a war of control.
Fukuoka tried to run—Hakodate slowed them.
Fukuoka fired quick shots—Hakodate drained the clock, finishing each possession with robotic precision.
Still, Jin refused to quit. He hit two deep threes back-to-back. Makoto broke through twice for acrobatic layups.
With two minutes left—42–42.
Tension peaked.
Kaito held the ball. 10 seconds on the clock. He didn't move. Then he passed—fast and low—to Nobu. Unexpected. Nobu faked a pass back out—then pivoted into a short jumper.
Blizzards up. 44–42.
Wolves rushed. Makoto got it to Jin—contested three—missed. Tomae tapped the rebound to Rikuya.
Last chance. 12 seconds.
Makoto dribbled right. Screen. Switched to left. He saw Jin covered. He passed—Yuji open in the corner.
He hesitated. Shot the three—
Ryo blocked it.
The buzzer sounded.
Final Score:
Hakodate Blizzards – 44
Fukuoka Wolves – 42
The Blizzards didn't cheer. They walked off the court like shadows.
The Wolves stood stunned, sweat dripping, breaths short.
The cold had won.
Neo Tokyo Dome – Day 5, Evening Match
Block B Showdown: Nagoya Phoenix vs. Mystic Five
Winner advances to semifinals
Under the glowing lights of the Dome, two contrasting teams stood at half-court.
On one side, the Nagoya Phoenix—disciplined, experienced, and well-coached.
On the other, the Mystic Five—silent figures clad in all-black, masked faces concealing emotion and identity. Their presence was unsettling, like they'd stepped out of a forgotten myth.
The referee tossed the ball high.
Tip-Off.
The Phoenix's center, Genji, leapt strong—but the masked Mystic Center barely moved before swatting the ball softly back to their captain.
No words. Just motion.
?? (PG) took control. He moved like water—fluid, unreadable. A step inside the arc, a fake, a bounce pass to the wing.
?? (SG) caught and released—quick, smooth.
Three-pointer.
3–0.
Phoenix responded immediately.
Minato, the sharp-eyed point guard, ran a set play. He dribbled off a screen by Taku, baited the defense, then dished to Ayumu, the captain, curling from the baseline.
Swish.
3–2.
The masked PG didn't look at his teammates. He simply passed—right before they moved. The SF, the one with unmatched hops, cut from the corner and soared—dunked over Genji, whose eyes widened in disbelief.
5–2.
The Phoenix held their ground. They were used to powerhouses. Kazuki drove strong, hesitated, then pulled up for a mid-range jumper.
5–4.
Next possession—Mystic PF barely looked before slipping behind Kazuki. A pass flew to him before the cut even began. Layup.
7–4.
Minato tried slowing the pace, calling double curls for Ayumu and Kazuki. The pass went to Ayumu—he faked and hit a corner three.
7–7.
But from that point onward, the Mystic Five's silence became suffocating.
The masked Center set an inhumanly wide screen. The SG ran off it, caught, shot—three-pointer. Then another.
13–7.
The Phoenix started switching. Minato tried blitzing the masked PG—but every trap failed. The passes came early, always ahead of the play.
A fast break led to a lob. The SF, again, launched into the sky and windmilled over two defenders.
Gasps filled the Dome.
15–7.
Phoenix called timeout.
Second Quarter
Coach Inoue adjusted. The Phoenix switched to a 2–3 zone. Taku played high. Minato and Ayumu collapsed when the PG drove—but he never looked rattled. He passed—without looking—between Minato's legs.
Bounce pass. Layup.
17–7.
Then came the shift.
Genji set massive screens, freeing up Kazuki. Two quick buckets. Ayumu picked off a pass—fast break dunk.
17–13.
But just when Phoenix gained ground, Mystic Five turned off gravity.
The SF again drove baseline, then leapt—not up, but over.
Dunk.
19–13.
Next play—SG curled around the screen—fadeaway three.
22–13.
Ayumu and Minato tried to spark the comeback, hitting a few shots off clever rotations.
Halftime: Mystic Five – 24, Phoenix – 18.
Third Quarter
The game turned cold.
The Mystic PF, rumored to read minds, began disrupting every passing lane. Ayumu's backdoor cut was intercepted before it started.
Genji tried to post up—stripped before he turned.
Fast break—alley-oop dunk by the SF.
26–18.
Minato, refusing to give in, drove hard and scored through contact. Taku hit a short jumper. Kazuki drew a foul and hit both free throws.
28–24. Still close.
But Mystic PG responded.
He passed full-court without dribbling. The SG caught it in motion—step-back three from deep.
31–24.
Final Quarter
Phoenix pushed hard.
Ayumu hit a mid-range floater. Minato stole the ball, kicked to Kazuki—three-pointer.
31–29.
The Dome roared. Phoenix was one basket away.
But the Mystic Center had waited all game.
He got the ball on the next possession. No dribbles. One pivot.
He dunked through Genji.
33–29.
Phoenix tried to answer, but their legs were heavy. Every pass was challenged. Every screen denied.
SG hit another three.
36–29.
Ayumu's final shot—a desperation three—clanged off the rim.
The Mystic Five didn't celebrate. They simply walked off, like ghosts who had done this before.
Final Score:
Mystic Five – 38
Nagoya Phoenix – 29
The crowd stood stunned. Even Coach Inoue could only stare as the black-clad figures disappeared into the tunnel.
The Mystic Five advanced.
Their identities? Still unknown.
Their intent? Unclear.
Their dominance? Undeniable.