Chapter Ten: "Did you just say I was your scapegoat?" / Chapter Eleven: Kira Ryosuke, a Neglected Beast

A red-haired person with delicate, feminine features sat nearby. That was Chigiri Hyoma, who possessed unparalleled speed. However, because he had once suffered an injury severe enough to threaten his career, he had never been able to fully display his abilities.

Kira Ryosuke knew that his journey through Blue Lock had officially begun.

Soon, he would face the first selection.

"Hey, Kira! It's great to see a familiar face here!"

Inside the room, Isagi Yoichi, who had also been assigned to Team Z, greeted Kira Ryosuke with a smile.

"Yeah, it's great."

Kira Ryosuke responded politely as well.

In the original story, although the protagonist Isagi Yoichi did not seem to possess any particularly outstanding abilities, he had eyes that could see through the entire field and served to connect the whole team.

Moreover, in the original story, he had directly caused the original Kira Ryosuke's elimination.

But ultimately, it had been a combination of luck and the original Kira Ryosuke's lack of preparation for participating in the Blue Lock project that had led to his elimination.

The current Kira Ryosuke would not make the same mistake.

"Are you all changed, you football-star gems?"

On the steel wall, a gigantic screen projected the somewhat eerie face of Ego Jinpachi. Beneath his thick lenses, a pair of pitch-black eyes cast a sly gaze.

"Listen up. The people in the same room are both roommates and rivals competing to improve together. I've quantified your abilities according to my own arbitrary judgments and ranked you. The number on your uniforms is your name..."

As they listened to Ego Jinpachi, everyone checked their own number before turning to confirm one another's numbers. In the end, their gazes all converged on the same person.

Kira Ryosuke.

In Team Z, the rankings ran consecutively from 289 to 300, a total of twelve numbers. This meant Kira Ryosuke was the strongest among them.

The strongest person would also be the one everyone focused on.

"...All right. It's time for tag. You have 136 seconds. Whoever touches the ball is 'it.' When the countdown ends, whoever is 'it' can pack up and get out! Also, no handling the ball!"

With practically no preamble, Ego Jinpachi announced the rules of the first selection.

In short, whoever was touched by the ball last when time ran out would be eliminated. This tested a forward's mobility and reaction speed.

The original Kira Ryosuke had failed to notice this point and had not realized the cruelty of Blue Lock, which was why he had been eliminated.

The moment Ego Jinpachi finished speaking, a small opening appeared in the ceiling, which consisted of dozens of metal blocks. A soccer ball dropped through it, while the large screen displayed a countdown along with a name.

Igarashi Gumon.

While the others were still confused, a short boy with a hairstyle resembling a monk's walked over to the soccer ball. He was the owner of the name Igarashi Gumon.

Kira Ryosuke carefully observed Igarashi Gumon. In the original story, he could be described as a thoroughly useless freeloader.

Although all his abilities were at the absolute bottom, he managed to cling to strong teammates every time. Without making any contribution, he successfully coasted to victory and even made it to the very end.

In a sense, Blue Lock also contained an unfair element of luck.

Chapter Ten: "Did you just say I was your scapegoat?"

"I'm the lowest-ranked one, so I'll be 'it' first... Fine, bring it on. Whoever loses, don't hold a grudge!"

Igarashi Gumon placed his foot on the soccer ball and looked around, searching for a suitable target.

The game had not even begun, yet he was already sweating profusely.

After hesitating for nearly ten seconds, Igarashi Gumon finally moved. Like a headless fly, he dribbled toward the crowd—but whether in physical ability or soccer skill, he was dead last. There was no way he could hit anyone.

Kira Ryosuke knew what he would do next. Everything here was proceeding almost exactly as it had in the original story.

After wasting nearly a minute, Igarashi Gumon finally found a suitable target.

Bachira Meguru, who was still sleeping on the floor.

Just as he was about to kick the ball, Bachira Meguru, who had been lying down, suddenly sprang up and kicked Igarashi Gumon in the face in an exaggerated pose.

"Hey, hey, hey! That's a foul, isn't it? You'd definitely get a red card for that!"

"Only handling the ball is prohibited."

Bachira Meguru looked bleary-eyed.

"Hey, don't use sneaky tricks like that. Face me fair and square!"

Kunigami Rensuke reached out and placed a hand on Bachira Meguru's shoulder. Straightforward by nature, he disliked Bachira Meguru's methods that had nothing to do with soccer.

But before he could finish speaking, the soccer ball had already struck him.

"Namusan!"

Igarashi Gumon excitedly stuck out his tongue, thrilled that his sneak attack had succeeded. The name on the screen also changed from Igarashi Gumon to Kunigami Rensuke.

"You bastard, Igarashi! I'm going to kill you!"

Kunigami Rensuke was enraged by Igarashi Gumon's despicable method. Veins bulged on his face as he raised his foot, preparing to kick the ball forcefully toward Igarashi Gumon.

Igarashi Gumon immediately looked around, trying to find a human shield to block Kunigami Rensuke's furious strike.

The person closest to him was Kira Ryosuke.

"I found my scapegoat!"

Like a monkey, Igarashi Gumon clung directly to Kira Ryosuke, hiding behind him while gripping his arm tightly to restrict his movement.

"Kira!"

From the other side, Isagi Yoichi called out worriedly. After all, Kira Ryosuke was the only person in the room he was relatively familiar with.

At that moment, the expression on Igarashi Gumon's face changed. The smug smile he had worn after showing off his clever trick gradually vanished.

He felt as though he were clinging to a solid stone. He could not even pull Kira Ryosuke's arm.

This person named Kira Ryosuke possessed a terrifying physique no weaker than Kunigami Rensuke's.

He did not know that this physique was the product of devilish training combined with breathing techniques.

At the same time, Igarashi Gumon's gaze met Kira Ryosuke's sidelong glance as Kira slightly turned his head. He was completely different from the refined, scholarly person he had appeared to be when he first entered.

Just who is this guy?

Almost instinctively, Igarashi Gumon released his grip on Kira Ryosuke and ran in another direction.

Everything was witnessed by Bachira Meguru.

"He actually ran away in fear? Just like a monkey seeing a lion... Interesting."

Bachira Meguru stared at Kira Ryosuke without blinking, an eager smile appearing on his face.

"Gah!"

Kunigami Rensuke unleashed an enraged kick. The direction could no longer be changed, and the ball flew straight toward Kira Ryosuke. Its terrifying speed showed the tremendous force behind it. If someone with a frail build were hit by this shot, they might have trouble standing again.

But Kira Ryosuke had no intention of dodging. He took the ball head-on with his sturdy chest, slightly tilting his body to disperse the force. Then he stopped the ball in front of himself and planted his foot on it.

"Did you just say I was your scapegoat?"

Kira Ryosuke's gaze, as fierce as a lion's, landed on Igarashi Gumon.

It was as though he were declaring his hunting target.

In the original story, Igarashi Gumon was essentially someone who relied on petty tricks, luck, and clinging to strong teammates to make it further. His personality was also extremely irritating, and Kira Ryosuke had no fondness for him.

Just now, Igarashi Gumon had used him as a human shield. That action had already provoked Kira Ryosuke and could be described as seeking his own destruction.

At the same time, Kira Ryosuke knew that one person had to be eliminated from the team during this round. The rest would form a temporary team and compete with the other teams for a chance to advance.

Since he had already chosen his target, Kira Ryosuke would do everything he could to continue onward. Therefore, he had to choose the path with the highest chance of victory.

Sufficient strength combined with the route offering the highest odds of victory was the method most likely to achieve his goal.

And Igarashi Gumon, who served practically no purpose, was the obvious candidate for elimination.

From the moment Kira Ryosuke entered this selection, Igarashi Gumon had been destined to stop here.

Kira Ryosuke had not dodged Kunigami Rensuke's kick for two reasons. One was to further confirm how far his physical abilities had developed with the help of breathing techniques.

The other was to keep possession of the ball under his own feet and decide who would be eliminated.

In Blue Lock, where everyone was a forward, Kira Ryosuke understood that he did not need to seize control of the team in order to pass the next, even more brutal selection with ease.

Although only one person would ultimately emerge from Blue Lock, at this stage, the strength of teamwork was still necessary.

Moreover, this would prevent unexpected situations, especially from someone as capricious as Bachira Meguru.

If Bachira Meguru gained possession of the ball, he would definitely come straight after Kira Ryosuke for a one-on-one match. That was needless trouble.

"What kind of physical strength is that...?"

Everyone present was stunned, especially Isagi Yoichi.

As the only person there who had played against Kira Ryosuke, he knew that Kira Ryosuke was strong...

But he had never imagined that Kira Ryosuke could be this strong.

In the match the previous week, although Isagi Yoichi's team had ultimately lost, they had simply failed to seize their chance to turn the game around.

Isagi Yoichi had thought Kira Ryosuke was strong, far stronger than him. The gap between them had seemed to span ten thousand miles.

But at that moment, Isagi Yoichi instinctively felt that the gap between himself and Kira Ryosuke was probably several times greater than that.

The name on the screen also changed to Kira Ryosuke.

"Looks like I can't take possession of the ball! Kira, this is way too boring!"

Bachira Meguru rubbed his head, somewhat dejected.

Time passed bit by bit, yet Kira Ryosuke showed no intention of attacking. However, his goal was already obvious: Igarashi Gumon was his target. The others also stopped moving and dodging for the time being.

Chapter Eleven: Kira Ryosuke, a Neglected Beast

"That was just an accident. Don't target me like this!"

Igarashi Gumon forced a smile. He realized that his actions had caused a huge disaster. Everyone now knew about his petty tricks and had moved far away, giving him no chance to use them as human shields.

Damn it...

Igarashi Gumon complained inwardly as his heartbeat accelerated until it nearly burst from his chest. From the corner of his eye, he watched the countdown on the screen.

Ten seconds left.

It looks like Kira Ryosuke plans to attack in the final second so I won't have a chance to counterattack—but if I dodge, then he'll be the one eliminated. There's a chance! And not a small one! The less time there is, the easier it'll be for me to judge the moment he kicks. The distance between us isn't short, so I should be able to react in time!

At the thought, a little confidence flared up in Igarashi Gumon's heart.

Time continued to pass.

At that moment, Kira Ryosuke spoke:

"I know what you're thinking. You think I'm planning to attack in the final second so you won't have a chance to counterattack."

"But really, I'm just telling you that hitting you is effortless. You may think you can react in time from this distance, but you're wrong."

Kira Ryosuke's tone was completely calm, without the slightest trace of anger.

Kira Ryosuke stepped forward and once again entered a state of Total Concentration Breathing.

His heartbeat and breathing accelerated, and the blood in his body began to flow faster, as though it were about to boil.

Everyone else could feel the powerful aura radiating from Kira Ryosuke. For a moment, they forgot how to breathe. No one dared blink and miss this crucial moment.

Even Igarashi Gumon's legs began to weaken.

In the final second, Kira Ryosuke's right foot traced an elegant arc and sent the soccer ball flying with tremendous force.