Zantetsu Tsurugi pushed up his glasses, his face full of defiance.
“Just you wait, Nagi. After all this time training, I haven’t been standing still either.”
After saying that, he muttered to himself,
“That’s how the saying goes, right?”
“You idiot, Zantetsu~”
Meanwhile, Yoichi Isagi scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed.
“No, it’s not like that! How should I say this... um...”
“I’m just really happy! I’m so glad to see you all again!”
“Oh, of course we’ll meet again, Isagi! I’m going to beat you next time—I still can’t stand that loss!”
Meguru Bachira’s joy was genuine. To him, no matter what, Yoichi Isagi would always be his very first friend in Blue Lock.
Hyōma Chigiri and Shōei Barō joined in.
“I’m taking you down too! And I still haven’t beaten the TOP3 yet!!”
“Anyway! This reunion was destiny!”
Yoichi Isagi smiled, the corners of his mouth curving up. For more chapters visıt novel※fire.net
“Yeah! Let’s fight again someday!”
(They really are the best!)
“Now, please welcome the third team—entering!”
As the mechanical voice echoed, the third gate opened. When the five figures of the next team appeared, Ryūma Banjō’s eyes lit up, and he shouted excitedly,
“Hiori! You made it through too!”
Indeed, the third team consisted of:
3rd CLEAR TEAM 『Tabito Karasu』·『Eita Otoya』·『Kenyu Yukimiya』·『Yo Hiori』·『Aiki Himizu』
Hearing that familiar voice, Yo Hiori ran over, smiling brightly.
“Ryūma! It’s been so long! You—”
Before he could finish, Ryūma pulled him into a bear hug, laughing loudly.
“Haha! Forget about me! I was most worried about whether you’d make it through!”
“Not that I doubted your skills—I just worried that your old habit of passing too much might make no one pick you.”
“After all, this round’s all about showing off your individuality.”
Yo Hiori smirked confidently.
“Hmph, I’m not the same as before, Ryūma. If I get the chance, I’ll make sure to shock you.”
“Oh? I’ll be looking forward to that.”
Then Ryūma glanced at another member of the third team and whispered,
“Hey, Hiori, is your teammate a snake or something? His tongue’s kinda... unique.”
“Uh, yeah, I didn’t have the guts to ask, but he’s really strong.”
Ryūma paused, then turned toward Rin Itoshi, who was silently standing still, and said with irritation,
“Hey, Rin! Say something! Our old teammate’s here, are you just going to ignore him?”
“Hmph. Isn’t it obvious he’d advance? What’s there to celebrate?”
Before Ryūma could finish, Tabito Karasu stepped forward.
“Ryūma Banjō! Rin Itoshi! That match isn’t over yet. Next time, I’ll be the one who wins!”
Eita Otoya followed, his eyes burning with fighting spirit, even without words.
Ryūma scratched his head, looking puzzled.
“Uh... who are you guys again?”
That single line made both Karasu and Otoya freeze up completely.
“Hahaha! Just kidding, just kidding~”
Nearby, Yoichi Isagi leaned toward Seishiro Nagi and whispered,
“Ryūma sure knows a lot of people.”
“Yeah, probably others who advanced from their block.”
“Now entering—the fourth advancing team!”
4th CLEAR TEAM 『Nijiro Nanase』·『Teppei Sendo』·『Akira Endoji』·『Shizuka Haiji』·『Reiji Hiiragi』
The instant Ryūma saw Akira Endoji, he couldn’t help but sigh in disbelief.
(Seriously, what’s with your eyes, man? T﹏T)
(How does someone play soccer looking like they’re in Sage Mode? T﹏T)
“Ryūma, that guy’s eyes look weird.”
“Heh, you wouldn’t get it, Hiori. That’s Sage Mode.”
On the other side, Jyubei Aryu stroked his chin as he observed the five.
“There are seven teams in total, so that leaves three more.”
(Some of them look pretty stylish, though.)
“Now entering—the fifth advancing team!”
5th CLEAR TEAM 『Ikki Niko』·『Haruhiko Yuzu』·『Kairu Saramadara』·『Yukio Ishikari』·『Hajime Nishioka』
Yoichi Isagi was the first to shout,
Hyōma Chigiri frowned in confusion.
“Huh? Isn’t that team missing someone?”
The mechanical female voice on the big screen explained,
“From the fifth team, Hajime Nishioka was injured during the third-round ‘Team World Five Match’ and is currently receiving treatment.”
“As expected... everyone here has faced the Team World Five team.”
Jyubei Aryu, still deep in thought, nodded slightly.
Yoichi Isagi glanced at the last two unopened gates, unease creeping in.
(There are still two teams left... they’ll come, right?)
“Now entering—the sixth advancing team!”
Even before the team appeared, their voices could be heard arguing from behind the gate.
“I told you not to shove me!”
“I’m making my entrance in the middle!”
“No, move! I’m taking center!”
“Damn it, out of my way!”
“You two, stop it! You’ll fall in!”
As the door opened, three figures tumbled out and hit the floor with a loud thud.
6th CLEAR TEAM 『Jingo Raichi』·『Gin Gagamaru』·『Junichi Okuyama』·『Kyohei Shiguma』·『Aoshi Tokimitsu』
Seeing them, Yoichi Isagi shouted happily,
Jingo Raichi, pinned under Gagamaru, roared,
Gin Gagamaru, still holding him down, said flatly,
“Ah~ What an embarrassing entrance.”
“I told you guys this was embarrassing! Ah—wait, everyone else looks so strong...”
Aoshi Tokimitsu looked around the room, already sinking back into his spiral of self-doubt.
Gagamaru didn’t even move. Instead, he looked toward Yoichi and shouted,
“So many familiar faces I haven’t seen in ages!”
Raichi and Okuyama, still trapped beneath him, yelled in protest,
“I meant get off us!”
Meanwhile, Hyōma Chigiri and Seishiro Nagi glanced at the final unopened gate.
“Just one more team left.”
“Reo’s still not here.”
Ryūma walked over to Nagi, patting his shoulder.
“Relax. Reo’s definitely going to advance.”
Although he said that to comfort Nagi, Ryūma himself wasn’t entirely sure.
Because of the butterfly effect, the lineup of those who advanced had already shifted far from what it once was.