As Tabito Karasu spoke, he suddenly ducked down swiftly.
The unexpected move threw Rin off balance—he stumbled mid-jump, nearly falling.
Up in the air, Ryūma Banjō saw it happen and instantly realized something was wrong.
(Damn it, this guy never planned to fight for the ball in the air!)
(He's exploiting the fact that both Rin and I want it. He predicted Rin wouldn't want to block him and would hesitate to challenge for possession.)
(Same goes for me—I can't just give up on the ball either.)
(Hah… this guy, Karasu, has actually spotted another of our weaknesses as the match goes on.)
(And he's using them perfectly.)
(First, he threw off Rin's balance so he couldn't interfere with the next move.)
(And for me—it's even worse! That damn Otoya passed the ball right toward Karasu's head!)
(No choice. If I can't get it, then you won't either!)
With a fierce header, Ryūma sent the ball flying toward the middle of his own backfield, trying to push it as far from the penalty area as possible.
But in the next instant, his expression tightened—Eita Otoya had appeared right at the ball's landing point.
[Thud!]
"Leave it to me!"
Yo Hiori reacted first, jumping up just in time to block Otoya's powerful shot.
But as soon as Hiori landed—before he could even look for the ball—he felt a sudden weight slam onto his shoulder. A ghostlike figure appeared before his eyes.
[Thud!]
GOAL!! Team V 2:2 Team X
There was no doubt about it—that figure was Eita Otoya.
He'd taken the first shot deliberately, drawing Team V's defenders' attention to the ball's flight,
then made an unpredictable off-the-ball run, striking again the moment the rebound came down, heading it clean into Team V's goal.
By the time Ryūma landed and steadied himself, and Rin regained his footing, it was too late to stop Otoya.
For that brief moment, the field belonged entirely to him.
...
"Ryūma, why didn't you make a run in the opponent's box just now?"
"Ah~ Ryūma, your position at that time… the angle was way too tricky."
"With my current ability, I can't make a pass that precise—unless it's a Remote Control Pass."
"But I haven't mastered that kind of pass yet. Sorry, Ryūma… I let you down again."
Yo Hiori's words left Ryūma momentarily speechless.
Then, placing a hand on Hiori's shoulder, he said,
"Wait, hold on a second, Hiori."
He rested his chin on his other hand, thought for a moment, and spoke slowly.
"Hiori, do you think when I passed to you, I wanted you to send it back to me for a shot?"
"Yeah, what's wrong with that?"
"So… last time I passed to you inside the box, you also thought I wanted you to set me up for a shot?"
"Yeah, Ryūma. Wait—did you want me to pass to someone else?"
Ryūma grabbed both of Hiori's shoulders and shook him lightly, disbelief in his eyes.
"What pass, Hiori? Shoot! I wanted you to shoot yourself!"
"Did you forget you're a striker? You've gone pass-crazy!"
"Huh? Me… shoot myself?"
Hiori suddenly understood Ryūma's strange movements from earlier.
But only he knew the truth—it wasn't that he was just used to passing. Every time he got the ball, his instincts made him look for Ryūma.
He wanted to support Ryūma no matter what, to make sure Ryūma always knew that when he was cornered,
as long as Yo Hiori was there, he'd always have a way out.
Ryūma looked at the dazed Hiori and sighed softly.
"Hiori, I'm really happy that you pass to me. I'm glad you're willing to coordinate with my attacks."
"Your passing and playmaking are incredible. Having you feed me the ball is amazing."
"But…"
Ryūma looked at him seriously, a faint smile forming on his lips.
"I've never once thought of making you only pass and never shoot."
"You're you, Hiori. Don't try to match other people's expectations."
"Put your own will first—we're forwards, after all!"
At that moment, Ryūma remembered what Tabito Karasu had once told Hiori:
"Don't expect from others. Don't live up to what others expect of you. You need to have expectations for yourself, Hiori."
Hiori stayed silent for a moment, then began softly,
"Ryūma, I'm not—"
Before he could finish, Ryūma shook his head, patting Hiori's shoulder to cut him off.
"Alright, Hiori. I've said enough. I'm not asking for an answer."
"Just take your time to think about it. I'll go take the kickoff."
Hiori watched Ryūma's back as he walked away, wanting to speak but unable to find the words. He could only think quietly to himself:
(For myself…)
(Have expectations for myself?)
...
Team V possession—Ryūma Banjō to kick off!
Ryūma looked ahead at Tabito Karasu, waiting for him in Team X's half, and thought:
(Hmm… did I make things too complicated just now?)
(Did Hiori misunderstand what I meant?)
(Never mind. I'll prove it with my actions!)
With that, Ryūma passed the ball to Hiori on the right side of the center circle and accelerated forward.
Hiori, receiving the pass, sprinted ahead too.
He reached the right flank of Team X's front line first, while Ryūma, two body lengths behind, charged down the center.
Two Team X players quickly closed in on Hiori.
But Hiori didn't give them a chance—he adjusted his posture and sent a sharp ground pass toward the center of Team X's midfield.
Tabito Karasu, positioned in his own midfield, turned and sprinted back toward the ball.
But just then, a gust of air rushed past his ears. Ryūma had already surged ahead of him, racing toward the ball that Hiori had passed.
"Don't even think about taking me head-on!"
Karasu couldn't catch up, though the gap was barely two body lengths.
As soon as Ryūma got the ball, he shouted loudly:
"Hiori!"
Hearing that, Karasu's heart sank.
(Damn, he's going to pass! Otoya should be near Hiori by now.)
(No—what if Otoya's marked by Rin? Even if he intercepts Ryūma's pass...)
(He'll just hand Rin the chance to score!)
While thinking that, Karasu saw Ryūma already winding up for a pass.
Without hesitation, he lunged toward Ryūma's right side to block it.
"Seems you're getting a little impatient, Karasu~"
...
(35 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser