“Hmph, cut the nonsense and end this match already.”
Even Rin Itoshi himself might not have noticed the slight lack of command in his tone.
Ryūma, who—like him—had broken through the tight defense of eleven players purely with his own talent, was now being treated as an equal.
And yet, they didn’t even use the same method. Rin relied on anticipation, control, and tactical vision to break through and score.
Ryūma, on the other hand, scored by raising the ball’s speed and power to an absurd level—so fast that even he couldn’t clearly see it himself!
Given equal talent, Rin Itoshi had already surpassed countless opponents, so players similar to him held no interest.
But Ryūma was the first monster beyond his comprehension—other than Sae Itoshi!
Rin might not realize it yet, but deep down, he was slowly starting to acknowledge Ryūma.
Team Z, after conceding two goals in a row, tried to rally and counterattack.
But in their blazing form, Rin and Ryūma broke through their defense again. The match ended with Rin scoring two more and Ryūma three more!
“Hahaha! Shatter, you scrubs!”
Ryūma laughed wildly after blasting the ball in. Right on cue, the mechanical voice sounded:
Beep! Beep! Match over!
Blue Lock, Building 5. Match 5: Team V wins 8–1!
“Partner, we did it again! Hahaha!”
“Nice work, Ryūma. Let’s change and grab food—you look starving.”
Ryūma grinned at everyone.
“Everyone come later! My treat today. No point hoarding points if you don’t spend them!”
“Hey! Rin, you’re coming too. Don’t be such a loner!”
As Rin walked silently toward the locker room, Ryūma hooked an arm around his neck with a grin.
“Get lost! Take a shower first before talking to me.”
Without looking back, Rin disappeared inside.
“Huh? That bad? So Rin’s a neat freak, huh?”
“Alright, everyone, go shower and change. See you later!”
Ryūma led the way into the locker room, the others following behind, all with relaxed smiles.
In stark contrast was Team Z. With their loss certain, only their top scorer had any chance of advancing.
Inside Team V’s room, everyone had gathered again after tidying up. Surprisingly, Rin sat with them, waiting for the last one to arrive—Ryūma.
“Oh? Guess the main character always makes the big entrance last!”
Ryūma walked in, silver hair flowing over his shoulders. His striking heterochromatic eyes and faint smile left the others stunned.
The same thought ran through their heads: Who the hell is this hottie?
“What are you staring at? Bring out the food! And Rin, hand over your points so we can eat better!”
“Whatever. Take them.”
Rin handed them over indifferently. Points meant nothing to him.
“Thanks, Rin! Thanks, Ryūma!”
“Huh? Rin, you’re way too generous!”
“Hm? So you’re saying I’m not generous, Hiori~?”
“Ah—no! Ryūma, you’re always generous!”
“Hahaha! Look at him stuttering, Ryūma. Hiori’s lying for sure!”
“Gotcha, Hiori! Eat my headlock!”
“You serious, Ryūma? Somebody help!” For more chapters visıt novel★fire.net
The room erupted in laughter as everyone joked and wrestled around. The awkwardness between them was gone—they were finally opening up.
Even Rin’s expression wasn’t as cold as usual.
Late at night on the training ground...
(Huh? Someone’s still practicing at this hour? Let’s see who’s so dedicated.)
Half-asleep, Ryūma had just come back from the restroom when he heard the sound of a ball being kicked.
Curious, he wondered who would be training while everyone else was asleep.
“Oh? It’s you, Rin~ Still at it? Don’t tell me it’s ‘cause you scored fewer goals than me?”
Ryūma grinned at the sweat-drenched Rin.
“I’ll sew that mouth shut someday.”
“Whoa, getting mad again?”
“Well~ practicing alone won’t get you far. How about a one-on-one instead?”
A flicker of purple flashed in Ryūma’s eyes as he smiled at Rin.
“Heh, bring it on, you brainless idiot.”
“Pretty cocky, huh? Then I’ll go first.”
Ryūma dribbled straight at Rin, who focused on him intently. Both wanted to see who was stronger.
“I’m going all out, Rin. Better stop me if you can!”
Ryūma’s eyes turned fully purple as he dropped his shoulder and charged to Rin’s right. Just as Rin moved to block, Ryūma instantly cut left.
Rin’s face stayed calm, shifting his block smoothly.
“If that’s all you’ve got, it’s not interesting. Next move’s to the right again, isn’t it?”
He cut off Ryūma’s next feint.
“The old me might’ve been stopped, but now...”
Ryūma nudged the ball forward to the right—then exploded with speed, leaving Rin behind as he tried to block.
The ball struck the net. Ryūma turned, smirking triumphantly.
“Getting past you’s as easy as crossing an empty street at dawn, Rin.”
“Facing Team Z made me realize—my best dribble isn’t fancy tricks. It’s pure, violent acceleration!”
“No matter how well you anticipate, you can’t keep up with my max speed! You’ll never see my future, Rin!”
“Tch. Enough talk. Your turn to defend me.”
As Ryūma set himself to block, Rin burst forward. His body feigned left, but his foot knocked the ball right.
(Really? Think a simple fake will fool me, Rin?)
Ryūma lunged right to block, but Rin pushed the ball straight through the gap between his legs—nutmegging him clean.
Rin dribbled past and buried the shot.
“Hah. First you lull me with a fake, then exploit my opening with a nutmeg.”
“How’d you know I’d stretch my leg there instead of sliding sideways?”
Rin’s cold gaze seemed to pierce straight through him.
“You rarely slide. You usually block head-on.”
“You subconsciously think it’s the fastest way to counter, so you always rely on leg movements without moving your body.”
“Don’t get it twisted—this isn’t anticipation. Anyone could notice with enough observation.”
“Oh? Acting cocky now, huh?”
“Again. Let’s go again!”
And with that, Ryūma and Rin dove back into their one-on-one.
p@treon com / GhostParser