"What?!"
Kira Ryosuke's forward feint had been incredibly convincing. The sudden change of tempo completely threw Mikage Reo's balance off. Even though he desperately tried to recover, his body had already lost its balance, and he fell straight to the ground.
"So the genius you claim to be is nothing special after all."
This was the true kaleidoscope of attack.
"What incredible dribbling!"
Bachira Meguru couldn't help praising him. Dribbling was one of the weapons he took pride in, but he had to admit that Kira Ryosuke's dribbling skills might already have surpassed his own.
"Is this guy playing street football?"
Tsurugi Zantetsu widened his eyes and exclaimed. He had never expected Kira Ryosuke to pull off a move like that.
Being able to make such a move during a match required more than delicate technique. It also required an exceptionally strong heart.
Mikage Reo was an incredibly well-rounded player with no obvious weaknesses, and his defensive ability was outstanding as well.
Yet even he was being toyed with by Kira Ryosuke on the defensive end.
This was an absolute gap in ability!
Kira Ryosuke had effortlessly dribbled past Mikage Reo, but another figure suddenly appeared in front of him.
Nagi Seishiro.
At that moment, Nagi Seishiro had completely shed his usual listless demeanor. In its place was a gaze of absolute focus. Like a lion, he fixed his eyes on Kira Ryosuke.
Just now, he had raced back at a terrifying speed. The instant Kira Ryosuke got past Mikage Reo, Nagi Seishiro had already arrived to cover him.
"You're strong. Stronger than anyone else I've faced before."
Nagi Seishiro spoke slowly as he faced Kira Ryosuke.
A trace of sweat had finally appeared on his forehead.
"So you're finally going to get serious?"
Kira Ryosuke smiled at him.
"Yeah. If I keep slacking off, I'll lose."
Nagi Seishiro replied,
"Kira, do you like soccer? You've probably never lost before either, just like me."
"To be honest, I only felt so-so about it before. But now, I quite like it. I've learned a lot from it, and experienced a speed I never had before."
Kira Ryosuke answered.
"Is that so? Then I guess we're quite alike—"
"No. The two of us are still very different."
Kira Ryosuke narrowed his eyes slightly,
"I give every match my all. As long as I set a goal, I'll do everything I can to accomplish it. That's respect for both my teammates and my opponents."
"Opponents and teammates?"
A puzzled expression appeared on Nagi Seishiro's face.
"But isn't that too much trouble? They're people without talent, after all. There's no way they'll make it to the end. It would be better to let them give up as soon as possible. Even my teammates are the same. They might advance to the next round, but in the end, they'll definitely be eliminated."
His expression looked completely innocent. In truth, there was no malice in Nagi Seishiro's words. This was simply what he thought.
If you had no talent, you shouldn't keep persisting.
Teammates were irrelevant. After all, the others couldn't contribute much during the match anyway.
"That's why the two of us are different. This isn't a one-man game."
"But what does that have to do with what Ego Jinpachi said..."
"I'm going to get past you."
Kira Ryosuke had no intention of wasting words with Nagi Seishiro. He suddenly accelerated, preparing to get around him from the side.
However, Nagi Seishiro was not someone who could be dribbled past easily. His physical abilities were exceptional, and he also possessed outstanding balance. He immediately adjusted his center of gravity and moved to cover Kira Ryosuke, refusing to give him any room to break through.
The other players from the defensive line also surrounded them from behind Nagi Seishiro, blocking Kira Ryosuke's path.
But that level of defense posed no threat to Kira Ryosuke.
He suddenly stopped the ball, then turned around, preparing to get past Nagi Seishiro from the other direction. He moved so quickly that the others didn't even have time to react.
But Nagi Seishiro, a peerless genius, reacted!
He turned in the opposite direction at the same time and once again positioned himself in front of Kira Ryosuke.
He stopped him!
He stopped him?
Only then did Nagi Seishiro suddenly realize that the ball was no longer at Kira Ryosuke's feet.
The moment Kira Ryosuke turned, he had passed the ball with his heel. His perfect feint had fooled almost everyone present—even his teammates.
Only one person realized where Kira Ryosuke's pass was going.
Isagi Yoichi!
He was the target of Kira Ryosuke's pass.
After receiving Kira Ryosuke's pass, Isagi Yoichi immediately sprinted toward the opponent's penalty area at full speed!
"Damn it! Isagi Yoichi is the target?"
"Why is this guy so fast?!"
"Wasn't he supposed to be the weakest player on Team Z?"
Isagi Yoichi's speed surprised the players of Team V. In their minds, Isagi Yoichi's technique was crude, and his physical abilities were merely average.
But Isagi Yoichi was now moving faster than they had imagined.
"The physical training I did with Kira really worked!"
Isagi Yoichi thought as he observed the situation across the field.
Kira Ryosuke had told him to find his own weapon and make an impact on the field.
And now was the perfect opportunity.
In this match, Isagi Yoichi was playing the role of a shadow striker!
A shadow striker operated between the forward and attacking midfielder positions. His position was not fixed, and he frequently switched between the left, center, and right. This was the position Kira Ryosuke had assigned to Isagi Yoichi!
When the ace striker drew enough defensive attention, the shadow striker would seize the opportunity to act!
"Stop him!"
Team V's defenders rushed forward as one, trying to completely shut Isagi Yoichi down.
At that moment, Isagi Yoichi had already sensed that he would score.
The instant the opposing defenders changed targets, the defense facing Kira Ryosuke became noticeably weaker. As Isagi Yoichi broke through, Kira Ryosuke also cut in at once!
That premonition of a goal had come from Kira Ryosuke.
"It's yours, Kira!"
After drawing enough defenders toward himself, Isagi Yoichi struck the ball firmly and sent it with pinpoint accuracy to Kira Ryosuke.
After arriving at Blue Lock, Isagi Yoichi had genuinely wondered whether his style of play was not selfish enough, and whether he needed to become the absolute egoist genius Ego Jinpachi spoke of.
But Kira Ryosuke and Ego Jinpachi's words had awakened Isagi Yoichi.
Being able to score did not necessarily make someone an excellent forward.
The truly excellent forward was the one who could bring victory to the match!
Whether passing or shooting, as long as it was Isagi Yoichi's own choice and helped them win the match, it was the correct decision!
"What a pass!"
Kira Ryosuke had already received the ball, and now he had plenty of space to shoot.
"I'll stop you!"
Nagi Seishiro was the only one who had not been misled by the tactics. He rushed to Kira Ryosuke's side along the shortest path at the highest possible speed—that was the direct route of Kira Ryosuke's shot!
I'm sorry, but I'll be the one who wins in the end.
At that instant, Nagi Seishiro made the correct choice. Although he never paid much attention whenever he watched recordings, he had actually memorized Kira Ryosuke's technical characteristics without anyone noticing.
Blinding speed—and explosive straight-line shots!
Such shots possessed tremendous power and a long range, but they also had a weakness: they lacked curve. They were straight shots, like cannonballs.
As long as he intercepted the ball along that straight line, he could stop the shot.
But Nagi Seishiro had still underestimated Kira Ryosuke's abilities!
Total Concentration Breathing!
Gathering Mosquitoes into Thunder!
Kira Ryosuke suddenly swung his leg, but this time, it was not a straight shot!
He struck the side of the ball, making it spin rapidly!
The ball seemed to come alive as it traced an exaggerated curve through the air, narrowly sweeping past Nagi Seishiro!
That curve was also aimed at the far corner of Team V's goal!
The goalkeeper dived to block it, but failed!
The ball struck the extreme upper-right corner of the net with pinpoint accuracy!
"Banana Shot!"
Kunigami Rensuke shouted excitedly.
3–1!
Their advantage continued to grow!
"No..."
Mikage Reo stared at the scoreboard, his entire being close to breaking down.
He had never been behind at halftime. Never before had an opponent scored three goals against him in a single half.
He had never felt failure this close.
That Kira Ryosuke guy was simply toying with him.
The halftime whistle sounded, and both teams returned to the locker rooms to rest.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!"
Mikage Reo sat in his chair and shouted furiously.
At the beginning, he had not taken Kira Ryosuke or Team Z seriously at all. Yet now, he had been forced into such a desperate situation.
The feeling that defeat was about to arrive drove Mikage Reo nearly insane.
"Reo... Even if we lose, it's fine, right? After all, both our teams have already secured advancement..."
A teammate beside him asked.
"Fine? Fine! Do you know how humiliating defeat is? I've never experienced this kind of disgrace! Unlike useless people like you, who don't care about any of this!"
At that moment, Mikage Reo was nearly out of control, pointing at his teammates and cursing them out.
"That's enough, Reo. Let's think of a way to deal with the rest of the match first."
Unlike Mikage Reo, Nagi Seishiro remained calm, and it was obvious that he had begun to take the match seriously.
Everyone's eyes turned toward Nagi Seishiro.
In this match, Nagi Seishiro had unusually taken the initiative to move.
Before you continue