2.7. Dangerous

Isagi received the ball well. His mind was working in overtime, drawing in information from the entire pitch. Only the four defenders were in formation, and one of the midfielders. Everyone else was in the goal box or near it. He ran forwards, carrying the ball with him as Bluelock formed up behind him.

He didn't know what he needed to crack their defence. His attempt before had been easily shut down by Aiku. Using his teammates' weapons had only resulted in the other team stealing the ball. And sure, there were only a few enemies defending, but the majority of Bluelock was still getting back to the front line.

"Isagi!" Rin shot past him on one side. He was breathing heavily, not at all concerned that it was practically just them two against five enemies. Both eyes locked onto his own. "Remember."

Of course, Isagi remembered. Just focus on Rin. That's all I need to do. It wasn't an impossible challenge, nor was it trivially easy. It was right in the middle, a task that would challenge him to the best of his ability.

Suddenly, those words sounded familiar. Ego had repeated those, before the game started. Focusing on Rin wouldn't be boring, nor overly stressful. A perfect challenge that would... unlock flow. Isagi passed across to Rin, immediately running to the taller boy's other side as they ran straight for the defence. The rest of their team was fast catching up.

It's clear what I need to do. Isagi narrowed his eyes at Rin's back. Discard any unnecessary thoughts. Just concentrate on what I can do, right now! Use everything I have on building my plays with Rin!

They locked eyes a second time, but a few light footsteps ahead of them drew both of their attention. The single midfielder left in their way cut them off, huge bags under his eyes and hair tied up into a bun. His voice was quiet, dull. Sort of like Nagi's, if Isagi was being honest. "Yep."

They didn't slow down. Both Isagi and Rin sped up, perfectly matching their pace without even meaning to. The man didn't seem bothered. "Trading passes in the middle isn't gonna cut it. Yep, you're lost."

"Kiss my ass, eyebags." Rin growled. He sent a speedy pass right across to Isagi, who was shadowing him. Rin went left, Isagi went right, and the defender was stuck in the middle with no idea which player to target.

As soon as they got past the midfielder, Isagi slowed a bit. Two of the U-20 defenders were near enough to him, watching both him and Rin. The midfielder they'd just got past was already on their heels. He sent the ball back to Rin, speeding up immediately forwards. Rin received it easily.

Before the enemy could try to steal the ball away, Rin stopped suddenly. It was a move that reminded Isagi of a certain small boy, his momentum completely stopping within a few steps. The eyebags guy overshot by a mile, struggling to stop in time, and Rin used the back of his heel to hit a frighteningly accurate pass backwards.

Bachira was there to receive. In fact, their entire team was there, having pushed up from their box. The enemy players were just starting to return, but they were uncoordinated, and unprepared. This is our chance!

There were two defenders directly in front of them. Nagi was being marked by both, but as Isagi peeled to the right, one of them came at him. He craned his head, moving sideways in an attempt to shake off the defender. Shit... I just need to get this guy away! It's a free goal!

As Isagi ran further to the right, and Nagi stayed put, a gap opened up between the two defenders. Into that gap, Rin ran.

He stopped the ball with one foot, still moving forwards. It was him, against the goalkeeper. One breath in... and as he shot, he exhaled fast. The ball could almost have been laser-guided, with the sheer accuracy that it was fired for the top corner. The crowd screamed as one, their roar of excitement filling the entire stadium.

It somehow didn't score?

From the far right of the field, Aiku threw himself into the ball's path. His head barely blocked the ball, grunting as he slammed the shot off to the side. Isagi and Rin's eyes widened simultaneously. He managed to stop that?!

"Second ball!"

The cry rang out across the field. The space in front of the goal was flooded, defenders and attackers alike pressed against each other.

The ball bounced straight to Yukimiya. The boy had just ran all the way from his own half, and fortune had favoured him. Isagi was already running for his own teammate. I remember this! We practised this!

Yukimiya's going one against one with that speedy defender. All I need to do... While Yukimiya dribbled forwards, Isagi dashed around him. He appeared to his left, the defender suddenly facing a two-against-one.

Just like that, Yukimiya was through. The defender's hesitation left a gap, and he took it, firing a powerful shot for the exact same spot Rin had tried.

This time, the goalkeeper saved it, punching it to the side. The crowd was on their feet, as for a second time, the U-20 team managed to stop the goal. Isagi's entire body was alight with adrenaline. In that spot...

Otoya was there, running onto it faster than Isagi had ever seen him. The tattooed defender was right next to him, but Otoya was so much faster in that one moment. "Took your eyes off me, didn't 'cha?" He surged forwards, managing to receive the ball and shoot in the same motion.

Now that their formation is broken from their attack, this is the best chance we have! And all of this... Otoya's quick response, Yukimiya's dribbling, it's all what we've practised! It's paying off...

The ninja-like boy fired the ball forwards. Aiku was nowhere near the goal's mouth, marking Rin right in front of the goal. The goalkeeper was in the middle of getting up. It was an open goal, until another one of the defenders leapt right into the path of the shot with a yell. The resulting crack of ball hitting face made Isagi wince, but the man didn't seem bothered at all.

Still another chance! Isagi shot forwards. The ball launched high into the air. He watched it, eyes wide. The enemy team scrambled to retrieve it. The spectators screamed again, their gazes completely captured by the soccer that was taking place right in front of them.

"Nagi!"

The white haired boy was right below the ball. Two enemies right in front of him. As it got closer to the ground, he extended a foot, preparing for a single, 'direct shot', that would score a goal. Both of the U-20 players extended their legs, jumping into the path of the would-be shot in an attempt to block it.

"You can't score!"

"We've blocked him!"

"Get ready! Loose ball incoming!"

He didn't shoot, though.

Instead, he caught the ball. The enemies' eyes went wide. They slipped on the field, attempting to get upright and defend. The ball bounced perfectly off Nagi's foot. It went up just a metre or so. A small grin formed on Nagi's lips. Nice to meet you, Japan...

In a fluid motion, he jumped, spun, and shot. I'm Nagi Seishiro!

Shot, and scored.

The entire building was silent as the ball slammed into the back of the net. It hit the floor, bouncing a bit on the grass before settling. Nagi hit the floor hard, scrambling to prop himself up on his arms to watch the goal.

Did I mess up my introductio-

Everyone was on their feet. The resulting cheer was the loudest so far, completely deafening Nagi as people yelled, whistles were blown, and feet stomped on the floor of the stadium. Thousands of people scrambled to look his name up on the information sheet they'd been given, not bothering to have done that before.

Not expecting such a close, intense game.

Japan was finally getting what it needed. No more chilled out, boring domestic games. No more riskless matches. Bluelock was here, and it was dangerous. Nobody could dispute that anymore.

He raised a fist into the air.

🥕🥕🥕

"Nagi Seishiro with a super goal!"

"See that, Japan! Bluelock takes the lead against the Japanese U-20 team, 1-0! It's too early to tell... but did the Bluelock project succeed?!"

"I'm not sure, Natsuki, but one thing I do know is that it was an insane goal! I've never heard of this Nagi Seishiro before, but he's come out of nowhere for a huge debut!"

"The crowd in the stadium is looking confused, and I gotta say, so am I! With that goal, it's difficult to tell who are supposed to be the protagonists of this game!"

Rin scowled at the commentators. Glaring up at their box, he sighed breathily, trying to regain some energy before the next play. Nagi this... Nagi that... Shut the fuck up. I'm going to score. Nagi was being swarmed by Chigiri, Isagi and Bachira, the three cheering as a group.

He began to walk back to his own half, clenching one fist so hard his entire arm shook. I'll score the next. I'll show the- Someone behind him called his name. "Hey, Rin."

Pausing, he turned around. Isagi was standing there. "Too bad you didn't score, but it was a great play anyways. Next time it'll go better, I'm sure!" He smiled, like he was trying to be nice, but Rin felt nothing but a surge of annoyance.

"Are you making fun of me?" He turned, itching to throw a punch. Everyone and everything was pissing him off today, probably because of that magenta haired bastard on the other team. "There's no point unless I score."

"Still... it was your play that gave us that."

"Who cares? You wanted a goal too."

"Is that supposed to be bad?"

"No." Giving Isagi his full attention, Rin stared him down. This guy is so fucking annoying. "I use you for my own gain, and you use me. Not caring about each other... manipulating each other for our own wants... this is how we should be. This distorted relationship is perfect."

"Yeah."

They were broken apart by the announcers, both of them glancing skywards at the speakers. "Only 15 minutes left in the first half, and tensions are higher than ever as Bluelock holds the lead!"

"The game restarts at 1-0!"

Isagi and Rin took their places as one of the U-20 forwards planted the ball in the centre of the field. Eyes scanning the pitch, Rin's gaze immediately fell on one of the enemies.

His brother.

His shitty big brother. The one that had given up on his dream. The one that had crushed Rin's life. The one that had left him alone, damaged, and clinging to a dream that they no longer shared. Sae stood there, and was the first man to receive the ball.

The U-20 team launched their attack in a heartbeat. Sae's dull eyes didn't change as he began his run forwards. He could pass at any time, but he didn't. He simply ran straight forwards for Rin, and Rin charged towards him.

No words were exchanged. Sae's dribbling grew faster as he approached Rin, feet gliding over the ball and making it practically impossible for him to know which way Sae was going to go. But Rin knew him. He knew what he loved to do. So it wasn't a surprise when Sae dashed to the right.

Rin leant to his side, attempting to block off Sae's path, but the older brother took another touch. One foot crossed behind the other, and he suddenly switched directions.

The next few steps were a complete blur of movement and adrenaline. Rin spun, barely managing to track the ball as his brother passed him on one side. He lunged forwards, both of them pushing at each other's bodies as they fought for control. They slowly were working down the pitch towards Bluelock's goal, though. Rin was losing ground.

"Sae! I'm open for a pass!"

"Rin! I'll back you up!"

Two calls, one from one of Sae's teammates, one from Isagi. It only served to further infuriate Rin, as he barked out a harsh command. "Don't you dare get in the way! This is between me and him!"

He tried to shove harder against Sae, but the man changed his position. Stopping his dribble forwards, he shifted below Rin, body pushing up against Rin's torso and ruining his balance. Simultaneously, Sae spun, breaking away from Rin's grapple and continuing his run forwards.

Rin chased.

"As long as you're still hung up on being my brother..." They were the first words Rin had heard from Sae in years. While it should've made him happier, every single word he said tore open a fresh hole in Rin's heart. "You'll never beat me."

Sae swapped the ball from one foot to the other. He feinted going to Rin's right. Not taking the bait, the younger brother stayed put. When Sae feinted a second time, though, his legs opened to move sideways. Sae sent the ball straight through the gap in the middle. He dashed around Rin, leaving him far behind as the U-20 attack grew ever stronger.

The crowd's yells got louder, alongside the commentator's voice.

"And Sae Itoshi has broken through!"