His gaze met Kira Ryosuke's, and an inexplicable understanding blossomed between them.
"I see!"
Bachira Meguru grinned, a surge of excitement rising in his heart.
An ordinary person definitely couldn't have caught that ball—
But Kira Ryosuke could!
Chapter Thirty-Nine: Draw Your Blade! End the Game!
Bachira Meguru kicked hard, sending the ball flying with force.
"Who was that pass for? Was it a mistake?"
Niko Ikki had already returned to his team's half and was in position, but he was puzzled. From his perspective, there was no one who could catch that ball.
Wait. If it were an ordinary person, they definitely couldn't catch that pass...
But Kira Ryosuke could!
By the time he came to his senses, Kira Ryosuke had already received the pass and arrived right in front of him.
"Great pass!"
Kira Ryosuke broke into a run and charged rapidly toward the goal.
Kira Ryosuke, who had played as a defender throughout the first half, returned to the forward position once again.
Just as he had said before the match, he would completely end the game in the second half.
"That speed... Isn't that a little ridiculous? What kind of stamina does this guy have?!"
Niko Ikki's voice trembled slightly. Throughout the match, Kira Ryosuke had maintained an extremely fast pace, making Niko Ikki wonder whether he ever felt tired.
But now, there was no time for him to think. No matter what, Team Y had to stop this attack.
"Stop him!"
Reacting faster than anyone else, Niko Ikki shouted and immediately ordered his teammates providing cover to block Kira Ryosuke's path.
"Close in!"
Niko Ikki issued orders urgently. More players swarmed forward along the defensive line. He also adjusted his center of gravity, lowered his body, and prepared to completely shut down Kira Ryosuke.
Although they were short-handed, this was the best coordinated defense Team Y could organize in such a short time. The interlocking defensive line formed by several players stood directly in Kira Ryosuke's way.
"Kira Ryosuke, try breaking through our defense."
Niko Ikki shouted loudly.
"You've already bragged once. Are you going to do it a second time?"
The moment he finished speaking, Kira Ryosuke had already closed in completely.
He dribbled quickly, sending the ball between one defender's legs. Then his body suddenly accelerated again, and he received the ball from behind the defender.
He beat one man with ease.
"Cover him!"
The second defender immediately moved forward—
But Kira Ryosuke first shifted his center of gravity deliberately, then suddenly moved his body in the opposite direction. Using his heel to alter the ball's trajectory, he leaned against the defender and completed a turn. In the blink of an eye, he arrived behind him.
The second man beaten!
"I won't let you through! I'll lock you down completely!"
At that moment, Niko Ikki could no longer hold himself back. He accelerated forward himself, intending to stop Kira Ryosuke personally.
Kira Ryosuke saw every detail of his forward movement and center of gravity.
Kira Ryosuke accelerated into a sprint, but just before Niko Ikki, his body suddenly stopped. He planted one foot on the ball and used the momentum to turn. As he spun, he gently nudged the ball beneath his other foot, then carried it toward Niko Ikki's side.
Horse Racing Spin!
This was the powerful dribbling ability granted to Kira Ryosuke by Second Form: Rice Spirit! Even without relying on the speed of Thunderclap and Flash, it allowed him to beat his opponents!
"Beautiful!"
Bachira Meguru couldn't help praising him from a distance. As a dribbling master, he could use a technique like this in a match as well. But he had never expected that Kira Ryosuke, who excelled in speed, would also possess such delicate technique. In terms of both fluidity and execution, Kira Ryosuke had performed the move almost perfectly.
"What?!"
Niko Ikki was dumbfounded. He had never imagined that Kira Ryosuke possessed such skill.
In the recordings of the earlier match, Kira Ryosuke had basically relied on his physical abilities and speed to force his way to goals. He had never used such a flashy dribbling technique.
The ball moved like Kira Ryosuke's pet, obeying his commands.
"Did this guy... hide his strength in the first match?!"
A terrifying thought arose in Niko Ikki's heart.
These matches concerned the future of every football player. If Kira Ryosuke could truly hide his strength, just how terrifying was he...
After losing to Team V in the first match, Ego Jinpachi had mentioned over the broadcast that he wanted every team to find the weapon that belonged to them.
Niko Ikki's weapon was his vision and overall awareness. Oogawa Hibiki's weapon was his excellent attacking technique. Everyone on Team Y had assumed that Kira Ryosuke's weapon was speed. When he defended in the first half, he had also relied primarily on his speed.
Only now did they realize that Kira Ryosuke possessed dribbling skills no weaker than Bachira Meguru's or Oogawa Hibiki's—even superior to theirs.
After beating Niko Ikki, the remaining defenders posed no threat to Kira Ryosuke at all. The ball seemed glued to his foot, leaving the others with no chance to steal it.
In the blink of an eye, Kira Ryosuke reached the goal again. He raised his foot and shot!
Team Y's goalkeeper had no chance to react. He could only watch as Kira Ryosuke sent the ball into his team's goal.
"No!"
Niko Ikki let out an angry roar. Then his entire body collapsed to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
3:0. This goal completely crushed the last shred of Team Y's hope of advancing, leaving not even scraps behind.
"How could we possibly beat this guy..."
Only despair remained in his heart. Kira Ryosuke had displayed terrifying dominance throughout the match.
Speed, technique, football intelligence, and insight—Kira Ryosuke was top-tier in every aspect.
Whether on defense or offense, Team Y was completely insignificant before him.
It could be said that Kira Ryosuke had controlled the entire match by himself.
"As expected of Kira!"
"That Horse Racing Spin just now was so cool! I've never seen you use it before!"
"MVP! MVP!"
The players from Team Z surrounded Kira Ryosuke and began celebrating, while Team Y was in a completely different state.
Kira Ryosuke's transition between offense and defense had completely destroyed their confidence. All that remained in their hearts was despair...
"So this is the...fang Mr. Eikoku was talking about?"
Teieri Anri swallowed involuntarily.
"Kira Ryosuke is that monster."
She found it hard to believe that Kira Ryosuke could completely shut down Team Y with his defense while also using outstanding dribbling skills to break through their defense.
Did this guy have endless stamina?
"That's right."
Ego Jinpachi spoke with a solemn expression.
"He isn't merely a powerful forward. I'm afraid he can dominate the field from every position."
Chapter Forty: Match Over, Absolute Overwhelming Victory!
Several dozen minutes later, the final whistle finally blew.
The score between the two teams was fixed at 9:0, even more outrageous than Team Y's 8:0 victory in the previous match.
After Kira Ryosuke scored the first goal, the match had already lost all suspense and become garbage time.
Team Y's morale had collapsed, and they no longer had the stamina to organize any high-quality defense. Even their will to fight had been completely crushed.
Team Z had basically done whatever it wanted in the second half. Kira Ryosuke went all out on offense and created five more goals. After locking down Team Y with his defense in the first half, he had completely crushed them with suffocating attacks in the second.
After the match, the players from Team Y lay on the ground and wept bitterly. Losing two matches in a row basically meant they were eliminated.
But in Blue Lock, the law of the jungle was absolute.
Oogawa Hibiki and Niko Ikki, meanwhile, were utterly bewildered. Faced with such an overwhelming difference in strength, they couldn't even feel sadness.
To them, the entire match had been a nightmare.
On the other side, Kira Ryosuke returned to the locker room amid his teammates' cheers.
"You were incredible, Kira! That one-against-three was brutal!"
"I think the steals and clearances earlier were the real key!"
"Did you see Oogawa's expression change? He thought that shot was definitely going in, but Kira cleared it!"
Everyone was cheering excitedly, and Kira Ryosuke laughed along with them.
At the same time, the system's voice rang out as expected.
[Congratulations! Combat Points obtained: 130] [Host: Kira Ryosuke] [Current Combat Points: 130] [Combat: Thunder Breathing: Total Concentration LV2 Proficiency 94.07%] [Combat: Thunder Breathing: First Form: Thunderclap and Flash LV2 Proficiency 82.53%] [Combat: Thunder Breathing: Second Form: Rice Spirit LV1 Proficiency: 100% Upgrade: 50 Combat Points]
I received more points than last time. It should be because Team Y's overall strength is greater than Team X's. Besides, my performance in the second match was better than in the first.
Kira Ryosuke pondered this inwardly.
Although Team Y had conceded seventeen goals across two matches, they were actually not weak.
They had simply encountered opponents who were far too strong.
Kira Ryosuke had performed excellently in both matches. But in the second match, he had also displayed terrifying defensive ability—something he hadn't been able to do in the first.
Another factor was that the entire team's strength was gradually increasing.
Chigiri Hyoma had overcome his inner demons, Raichi Jingo had reined in his temper, and everyone else had improved considerably through their daily training with Kira Ryosuke.
Taking all these factors into account, Kira Ryosuke had been able to obtain more Combat Points.
And if things continued developing this way, he would obtain even more Combat Points in every match to come.
At the same time, the system's voice still hadn't stopped. A new screen appeared before Kira Ryosuke.
[Achievement obtained: 'Iron Blood Defender': Appeared as a defender in an official match for the first time and won the match. Combat Points obtained: 40] [Achievement obtained: 'King of Steals': Created at least five steals in an official match for the first time. Slightly reduces the physical stamina consumption caused by skills.] [Achievement obtained: 'Absolute Defense': Cleared a high-threat shot in an official match for the first time. When in your own half, skill proficiency growth speed is slightly increased.]
After completing the match, Kira Ryosuke unlocked three more achievements and received quite a few rewards.
All three rewards were highly practical and could provide Kira Ryosuke with a considerable boost.
He had now obtained 170 points in total. Rice Spirit's proficiency was already full, and it could be upgraded to LV2 soon. The techniques he could use would become more varied, while his ball control would also improve. The proficiency of the other two skills was also nearing one hundred percent, meaning they would soon be upgraded to LV3.
There was still some time before the next match, giving Kira Ryosuke plenty of time to upgrade these skills.
However, what concerned Kira Ryosuke slightly was the content of the achievements he had unlocked this time. Almost all of them were related to the defender position.
It was precisely because Kira Ryosuke had played as a defender in this match that he had been able to unlock these achievements.
Before you continue