Blue Lock, I Kira Ryosuke Obtain Thunder Breathing at the Start

"Don't even think about scoring!"

The goalkeeper rushed out quickly. Once a one-on-one chance formed, the keeper had to charge out without hesitation—he couldn't afford to give the striker a comfortable environment to adjust his shooting stance.

"At this angle, he shouldn't be able to shoot directly. He'll need to take a few more steps forward!"

Just as the goalkeeper made that judgment, Kira Ryosuke lifted his right foot high behind him—

At the same time, his breathing changed.

In that instant, Kira Ryosuke greedily gulped down air, as if he couldn't wait to drain every last bit of oxygen from it.

His blood seemed to boil, and an unending surge of power flowed through his body, finally gathering in his right leg.

Total Concentration Breathing.

"Shooting directly from this angle? You're underestimating me!"

The goalkeeper immediately lowered his center of gravity. Kira Ryosuke was positioned at a very sharp angle to the goal, limiting his shooting options, and the distance was far enough that the keeper had a better chance of stopping it.

From this position, curving the ball was extremely difficult. And with Kira Ryosuke shooting at such high speed, precisely controlling where his foot struck the ball to create a good curve was nearly impossible.

The goalkeeper judged that Kira Ryosuke would shoot straight, so he stepped forward and spread his arms wide, trying to block the path of the shot.

Kira Ryosuke knew that too.

But he didn't care.

Thunderclap and Flash!

The power accumulated in his right leg exploded in an instant, slamming into the ball. The moment his toe touched the leather, a deafening roar erupted.

It was like a bolt of lightning flashing across the pitch!

The ball shot toward the goal like a cannonball, its extreme speed seeming to compress its shape slightly, and a sound like tearing air followed.

Even though the goalkeeper had prepared in advance, he couldn't react to Kira Ryosuke's shot at all.

The speed—too fast!

The ball grazed past him. The goalkeeper didn't even make a single reactive movement. Only when the ball scraped against the net with a harsh screech did he snap out of it, turning his head in disbelief to look behind him.

At that moment, the ball slowly dropped to the ground, while the goalkeeper collapsed onto his seat, feeling his legs go weak.

Just now, when the ball had brushed past him, it felt like a cannonball had whizzed by, and he had only narrowly dodged it.

The gust of air the ball left behind stirred a sense of fear in his heart—even if he had reacted in time and stood in front of it, he probably would have been blasted into the net along with it.

This shot, in both speed and power, had reached a terrifying level.

"There's definitely some soreness, but it doesn't affect basic positioning and dribbling. I'll only be able to use this ability again in the second half with my right leg."

Kira Ryosuke assessed his right leg. After all, practicing alone earlier was different from a real match.

"But for the first half, I can still use a full-power Thunderclap and Flash once with my left foot. I need to find the right opportunity."

At the same time, Kira Ryosuke opened the System Interface. The proficiency of both Total Concentration Breathing and Thunderclap and Flash had increased, especially the latter, which had jumped by 5%—something he'd never seen before.

A new prompt also appeared on the interface—

[Using skills in official matches and successfully completing steals, breakthroughs, direct goals, or assists will increase proficiency growth at varying rates.]

"Using skills in real matches makes proficiency grow faster. Looks like I need to give it my all in the game."

Kira Ryosuke closed the System Interface and headed back to the rear to regroup with his teammates.

Just after Kira Ryosuke scored, the entire field fell into a few seconds of silence. A few seconds later, Team Z's players suddenly snapped back to reality—their team had already drawn first blood!

In less than a minute.

"That was amazing, Ryosuke!"

"That was way too fast!"

"What the hell was that shot?!"

Everyone buzzed with chatter. Even Raichi Jingo, who had always acted defiant toward Kira Ryosuke, couldn't help clenching his fist—though he quickly lowered it once he realized.

The nearest players immediately surrounded Kira Ryosuke, celebrating the goal.

"It's back again, that lightning-like shot."

Bachira Meguru's face lit up with a joyful, excited smile.

This goal from Kira Ryosuke ignited Team Z's morale. Scoring within just a minute was rare even in ordinary matches.

Everyone knew that any player who made it to Blue Lock was no pushover, and every match would be grueling.

But Kira Ryosuke had given them hope for victory. Advancing to the next round wasn't just a fantasy.

Completely opposite to the high-spirited Team Z, Team X was as silent as death.

"What the hell was that... Could that sound really come from a shot?"

"Hey, it's your fault for losing your position! What were you doing? You got fooled by a feint like that?"

"What are you talking about? Like you could've stopped that guy. Three people double-teamed him and he still got through!"

"Who the hell is this guy?"

"Kira Ryosuke, known as the Treasure of the Football World, that genius! Only... I knew he was strong, but I didn't expect him to be this strong..."

Almost everyone on Team X had a layer of gloom covering their faces. Having their goal broken so quickly at the start was undoubtedly a huge blow to morale.

But among them, one person's face showed almost no change in expression.

Barou Shoei.

Soon, it was Team X's turn to counterattack. However, the moment they kicked off, they fell into chaos again. The forward had just received the ball and was preparing to attack when a defender from behind suddenly rushed forward to steal it.

"What are you doing!"

"The team's top scorer is definitely getting through! Getting past so easily just now—looks like your skills aren't all that!"

"What about the tactics? How are we supposed to keep playing with this mess?"

Right from the start, Team X had fallen into complete disarray, with everyone fighting for possession of the ball.

Chapter 20: Ace vs. Ace, A Direct Clash Between the Strongest Players!

Isagi Yoichi watched the chaos within Team X and couldn't help but swallow hard. He turned his head to look at Kira Ryosuke beside him.

'If Kira hadn't anticipated this situation and made a countermeasure, Team Z would probably be in the same mess... As expected of Kira...'

Just as Team X was on the verge of full-blown infighting, a tall figure directly stole the ball from a teammate's feet and charged toward Team Z's half at an equally astonishing speed.

Barou Shoei!

His teammates chased after him desperately, but they couldn't keep up with Barou Shoei's pace.

"So fast! We have to stop him!"

Isagi Yoichi reacted immediately and stepped in front of Barou Shoei.

Barou Shoei charged straight at Isagi Yoichi with a blank expression—but his gaze carried a contempt as if looking at an ant. The terrifying pressure radiating from him made Isagi Yoichi almost unable to move.

"Don't appear before me."

"Trash."

"I'll kill you."

Isagi Yoichi could feel the intense pressure emanating from Barou Shoei, making it hard for him to breathe.

"Where's he going to attack? Left or right?"

The moment Isagi Yoichi hesitated, Barou Shoei made his move.

He quickly lifted his foot, placed it in front of the ball, then stomped down hard, using his heel to flick the ball up.

The ball sailed directly over Isagi Yoichi's head. As Isagi Yoichi stood stunned for a moment, Barou Shoei suddenly accelerated, easily blowing past him. Behind Isagi Yoichi, he arched his chest, skillfully stopped the ball, and continued charging toward the goal.

With just one move, Barou Shoei demonstrated football skills far beyond Isagi Yoichi's.

"Quick, stop him!" Isagi Yoichi shouted loudly.

"Shut up!"

Raichi Jingo bellowed and immediately rushed at Barou Shoei. On the other side, Kunigami Rensuke also closed in to provide backup defense.

But Barou Shoei easily nutmegged them both, reaching the goal in the blink of an eye.

Shot!

The ball flew past the goalkeeper in a perfect arc at incredible speed. Iemon, guarding the goal, couldn't even react—he could only watch as the ball slammed into the net.

"So... so amazing..."

Team Z's members stood dumbfounded. Barou Shoei had displayed unparalleled offensive ability, leveling the score in no time.

The joy that had been on their faces moments ago was now completely gone.

"Listen up, and remember this well, you idiots. Football to me isn't about friends or anything else—"

"It's just a spherical servant that lets me shine."

"Standing on the pitch, I am the King."

He stood expressionless in front of Team Z's goal, spreading his hands slightly. Both his movements and demeanor exuded an arrogance that looked down on others, as if everyone else were mere ants to be crushed.

But Barou Shoei's gaze fixed on Kira Ryosuke, as if declaring the insurmountable gap between their abilities.

Kira Ryosuke frowned, staring seriously at Barou Shoei. Everyone else thought he might have been provoked by Barou Shoei's taunting words. After a few seconds, he finally opened his mouth.

"Uh, I don't think anyone asked you a question, did they? Blurting out such chuunibyou stuff on your own—aren't you embarrassed?"

"..."

Barou Shoei froze for a moment, a flicker of confusion in his eyes. But then the veins bulged on his forehead, and he ended up being the one somewhat provoked instead.

"You bastard..."

Still, Barou Shoei didn't say much more—or perhaps he didn't know what to say. He left the opponent's penalty area, muttering under his breath, "So annoying."

"Hey hey hey, Iemon, what are you doing?! Can't even do your job as a goalkeeper?"

"I never was a goalkeeper in the first place..."

Seeing his teammates on the verge of arguing behind him, Kira Ryosuke walked over and raised a finger to his lips:

"Shh, don't argue. We're all on the same team now—this is absolutely not the time for infighting."

Kira Ryosuke then pointed toward the opposing half.

"Look, after that guy named Barou scored, their formation isn't chaotic anymore—they've realized what their problem is."

Just as Kira Ryosuke said, Barou Shoei's outstanding performance just now had acted like a dose of tranquilizer for his teammates, making them clearly understand one fact: only by making Barou Shoei the absolute core did they have a chance to win.

The previously chaotic team gradually regained their spirit, and the equalizing goal had boosted their morale considerably.

Hearing Kira Ryosuke's words, the others quieted down as well.

"What do we do next? Double-team Barou?"

Isagi Yoichi asked from the side.

"We do need more people to defend against Barou, but not after he gets the ball—the key is to stop him from receiving it in the first place."

A composed smile appeared on Kira Ryosuke's face as he turned to look at the opposing half.

"I'll handle the next attack. I'll crush Barou head-on."

Although Barou Shoei had successfully scored and tied the game, for Kira Ryosuke, this wasn't a bad thing.

This goal would make Team Z feel threatened, and if he could lead the team to victory, then the others on Team Z would trust him even more after this match, believing he could guide them to success.

This way, he could also avoid Kuon Shosei's betrayal from the original story—it was precisely because he didn't believe Team Z could win that he leaked the team's tactics to others.

Moreover, the more goals Kira Ryosuke scored, the more his teammates would realize they could only advance by relying on the team's victory, and they'd put in more effort on the field.

On the other hand, Barou Shoei was also seen as a lifeline by Team X. They treated him as their ace and would try their best to feed him the ball—which actually made their offense one-dimensional and easier to counter.

Team X was now brimming with confidence, all because of Barou Shoei's brilliant performance just now.