Chapter 40: Match Over — Absolute Domination!
Several dozen minutes later, the final whistle finally blew.
The score between the two teams froze at 9–0, an even more outrageous result than Team Y's previous 8–0 loss.
After Kira scored the first goal, the match had already lost all suspense and devolved into pure garbage time.
Team Y's morale had completely collapsed. They no longer had the stamina to form any meaningful defense, and even their will to fight had been shattered.
Team Z did whatever they wanted through the second half. Kira Ryosuke, firing on all cylinders, produced five more goals. In the first half he locked Team Y down defensively; in the second, he crushed them with a suffocating offensive onslaught.
After the match, Team Y's players lay on the ground crying. Losing two matches in a row essentially meant they were eliminated.
But in Blue Lock, the law of the strong devouring the weak is absolute.
Okawa and Niko, however, simply stared blankly. The disparity in strength was so overwhelming they couldn't even muster the emotion of sadness.
For them, this entire match had been a nightmare.
On the other side, Kira returned to the locker room amid the cheers of his teammates.
"You were insane out there, Kira! That one-vs-three was brutal!"
"I think your interception and that clearance were the real turning points!"
"Did you see Okawa's face? He thought he had a guaranteed goal, and then you cleared it!"
The team burst into celebration, and Kira laughed along with them.
At the same time, the system's voice echoed as expected.
[Congratulations! Points Gained: 130]
[Host: Ryosuke Kira]
[Current Points: 130]
[Football Skill: Thunder Breathing — Total Concentration LV2 | Proficiency 94.07%]
[Football Skill: Thunder Breathing — First Form: Thunderclap and Flash LV2 | Proficiency 82.53%]
[Football Skill: Thunder Breathing — Second Form: Rice Spirit LV1 | Proficiency 100% | Upgrade Cost: 50 Points]
'More points than last time… probably because Team Y is stronger overall than Team X, and I also performed better in this match.'
Kira thought to himself.
Though Team Y had conceded 17 goals in two matches, they actually weren't weak.
They had simply faced opponents far too strong.
And in both matches, Kira had played exceptionally well—but in the second match, he showcased a terrifying level of defensive ability, something he didn't do in the first.
Another key factor was that the whole team had been improving.
Chigiri outran his inner demons; Raichi reined in his temper; and the others had made noticeable progress through Kira's daily training.
Considering all this, it was natural for Kira to earn more points.
And at this pace, he would earn even more in every match to come.
Meanwhile, the system continued speaking, and new panels appeared before him.
[Achievement Unlocked: "Iron-Blooded Defender" — First time appearing as a defender in an official match and winning. Reward: +40 Points]
[Achievement Unlocked: "Tackle King" — First time recording at least five tackles in an official match. Slightly reduces stamina consumption when using skills.]
[Achievement Unlocked: "Absolute Defense" — First time clearing a high-threat shot in an official match. When positioned in own half, skill proficiency increases slightly faster.]
After the match, Kira had unlocked three new achievements, earning substantial rewards.
All three were extremely practical, giving him significant boosts.
He now had 170 points, and Rice Spirit's proficiency was maxed out—ready to be upgraded to LV2, which would give him richer techniques and improved ball control. The other two skills were also approaching full proficiency and would soon reach LV3.
With some time until the next match, Kira had plenty of room to level up these skills.
However, something tugged at his attention—the nature of these achievements.
Almost all of them were tied to playing as a defender.
Because he played defense in this match, these were the achievements that unlocked.
Blue Lock was designed to create the world's greatest striker, but Kira didn't feel constrained by that.
Whatever the position—so long as he kept winning, that was enough.
"If playing defender unlocks a whole series of achievements… maybe other positions do as well.
Goalkeeper, midfielder… perhaps every role has its own rewards."
New ideas surfaced in Kira's mind. Maybe he could experiment more with other positions in future matches.
Just like his skills, he could continue developing them and applying them in even broader ways on the pitch.
…..
Team V locker room.
They had just effortlessly defeated Team W.
Everyone on V Team was drenched in sweat—except Seishiro Nagi, who sat calmly in his chair, not a drop of sweat on him, already absorbed in a mobile game.
To him, the match had no substance. He only needed to score a few goals to widen the lead, then he could slack off for the rest of the game.
Victory was something that would always happen. Unlike his excited teammates, Nagi felt nothing.
"Attention, all you unpolished gems. The fourth match—Team Z versus Team Y—has just concluded."
The big display lit up, projecting Jinpachi Ego's face.
"Reo… Team Y was the one we beat 8–0, right?"
Nagi asked lazily, glancing at Reo Mikage.
"That's right. Still, Nagi, your memory is awful… but I guess they weren't worth remembering."
Reo shrugged. To him, Team Y was nothing more than a weak opponent.
In fact, no one in the remaining four teams mattered.
Reo truly believed the other squads could never beat them.
Not only because he possessed excellent overall ability, or because they had the explosive power of Zantetsu Tsurugi.
The real reason was the presence of Seishiro Nagi—the prodigy.
Reo turned his head to look at Nagi, who was already fully absorbed in his phone game again, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
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〔TL〕
Every 100 powerstones = 2 bonus ch.
Every 2 review after 100 ps = 1 bonus ch.