Blue Lock. Second Selection. Waiting Room.
The atmosphere in the waiting room was a pressurized vacuum of silence, broken only by the hum of the air conditioning and the rhythmic tapping of Bachira Meguru's foot.
Isagi Yoichi stood at the intersection of destinies.
In front of him stood Bachira Meguru, the Monster who danced with chaos, and Nagi Seishiro, the Genius who had just awakened to the thrill of football.
Behind them, watching with the eyes of a dead fish, sat Rin Itoshi, the Number 1.
"So," Nagi broke the silence, his voice regaining some of its usual laziness, though his eyes remained sharp. "Let's team up, Isagi. With me, you, and Bachira... we're the strongest team in Blue Lock. It's simple math."
Bachira nodded enthusiastically, bouncing on his heels. "Yeah! The Monster, the Genius, and the Egoist! It sounds like a fun band!"
Isagi looked at Nagi.
He replayed the data from the First Selection. Nagi's Revolving Volley. His sudden creativity. His unpredictable movement.
Nagi Seishiro is a weapon of mass destruction, Isagi analyzed, his mind colder than liquid nitrogen. But he is a weapon with a faulty trigger. He moves on instinct. He moves on whim. He is a 'Chaos Variable.'
Isagi's "God's Eye" didn't want chaos. It wanted order. It wanted reproducibility. It wanted absolute control.
To defeat Rin Itoshi... I don't need a wildcard that might explode in my face. I need a precision instrument.
Isagi's gaze shifted past Nagi, toward the far corner of the room.
Sitting on a bench, head buried in his hands, was a figure radiating pure misery.
Reo Mikage.
Reo had entered the room moments before Isagi, having cleared the 100-goal challenge alone. But unlike the others, he wasn't celebrating. He was mourning. He had been psychologically abandoned by Nagi in the previous match. He looked like a king who had lost his kingdom.
Isagi smiled. A dark, twisted curl of the lips.
Broken tools are the easiest to reprogram.
"Bachira," Isagi said, his voice cutting through the anticipation. "You're in."
Bachira cheered, pumping his fist. "Yay!"
"Nagi," Isagi continued, his eyes locking onto the white-haired genius.
Nagi took a step forward. "Finally. Let's go."
"You're out," Isagi stated flatly.
The room froze.
Nagi blinked, his brain failing to process the input. "Huh? What did you say?"
"I said you're out," Isagi repeated, stepping closer to Nagi until they were chest to chest. "I don't need a cat that does whatever it wants. I don't need a player who just 'learned' soccer yesterday. You're too unstable."
"Unstable?" Nagi frowned, a flash of irritation crossing his face. "I'm better than anyone here except maybe you."
"Talent isn't everything," Isagi brushed past him, dismissing him like a speck of dust. "I need a dog that listens. I need a tool that functions exactly as I program it."
Isagi walked across the room, leaving Nagi standing there, stunned and rejected.
Isagi stopped in front of Reo Mikage.
"Stand up, Reo."
Reo slowly lifted his head. His eyes were red-rimmed, hollow, and void of light.
"Isagi..." Reo's voice was hoarse. "What do you want? Here to mock me? Nagi already left me behind. I'm just the 'extra' now."
"Stop pitying yourself, it's pathetic," Isagi said, extending a hand. "I'm offering you a lifeline. Nagi dumped you because you were boring. You were just his shadow, a convenient passer."
Reo flinched. The truth hit him like a physical blow. "Shut up..."
"Do you want to prove him wrong?" Isagi asked, his voice dropping to a seductive whisper. "Do you want to show that genius that he can't survive without you?"
Reo gritted his teeth. The sorrow in his eyes began to curdle into something hotter. Something darker.
"I want to make him regret it," Reo hissed. "I want to crush him."
"Good," Isagi smiled. "Then become my limb."
"Your... limb?"
"You're the 'Chameleon,' right?" Isagi analyzed. "Your stats are 99% in everything. You can copy moves. You can play any position. I don't need a specialist like Nagi. I need a copycat who can execute exactly what I visualize."
Isagi leaned down, looking deep into Reo's soul.
"Join me. I'll provide the brain. You provide the body. Be the perfect machine, and we'll devour everyone here."
Reo looked at Isagi's hand. Then he looked across the room at Nagi, who was watching with a mix of shock and betrayal.
Nagi chose his own path, Reo thought. Fine. Then I'll choose mine.
Reo slapped Isagi's hand away and stood up on his own.
"Don't get cocky, Isagi," Reo spat, wiping his face. "I'm not your dog. I'll use you. I'll use you to become the best, and then I'll discard you just like Nagi did."
"Deal," Isagi smirked. "Try it if you can."
The Formation of Team White
Isagi turned back to the room.
"It's decided. Me. Bachira. Reo."
Bachira ran over, looking at Reo curiously. "Ooh, the Copycat! This is gonna be tricky! I like it!"
Nagi stood alone. For the first time, he was the one left behind.
"Isagi..." Nagi murmured. "You picked Reo over me?"
"Get over it," Isagi didn't even look back. "Go find someone else to carry."
Isagi turned his attention to the true target.
He walked toward the meditation bench where the aura of death was strongest.
Rin Itoshi.
The Number 1 player sat with his eyes closed, legs crossed. He hadn't moved an inch during the drama.
"Hey, Number 1," Isagi called out. "I'm ready to eat."
Rin Itoshi opened his eyes. They were teal, sharp, and utterly unimpressed. He scanned Isagi's team: a monster, a broken heir, and an arrogant strategist.
Rin stood up slowly, unfolding his lanky frame.
"You picked the loser?" Rin asked, his voice monotone. "You rejected the genius for the garbage? Interesting."
"Reo is a tool," Isagi corrected. "Nagi is a variable. I prefer tools."
"Whatever," Rin turned to his own teammates, who had just emerged from the gate.
Aryu Jyubei (The Glam) struck a pose. "Rin! I have arrived stylishly!"
Tokimitsu Aoshi (The Nervous Muscle) was trembling. "W-w-wait, we have to fight Isagi already? He looks scary!"
Rin looked at Isagi.
"Come on, lukewarm trash. I'll teach you that your little 'calculations' mean nothing in the face of absolute destruction."
MATCH START: 3 vs 3
Team White (Isagi, Bachira, Reo)
vs.
Team Red (Rin, Aryu, Tokimitsu)
The holographic field materialized. The stakes were set. The losing team would have one player stolen.
Isagi stood at the center circle.
Rin Itoshi. Let's see your data. Let's see the world through the eyes of Sae Itoshi's brother.
The Chameleon Opening
KICKOFF.
Team White started with the ball.
Isagi passed to Bachira.
"Bachira, go wild. Draw them in."
Bachira giggled. "Roger!"
He dribbled straight at Tokimitsu.
"Ah! Don't come at me!" Tokimitsu panicked, using his massive muscle mass to block the path.
Isagi saw the grid. Aryu was moving to cover the passing lane.
Rin is hanging back. He's analyzing.
I need to show him something he doesn't expect.
"Reo!" Isagi commanded. "Nagi's Range!"
Reo Mikage, fueled by pure spite, surged forward.
He received a lateral pass from Bachira.
He was 25 meters out.
He didn't trap it. He jumped, twisting his body mid-air.
I watched Nagi for years, Reo thought viciously. I know his mechanics better than he does.
Copy: Revolving Volley.
Reo caught the ball on the spin and fired a dipping shot.
The Blue Lock Man (GK) reacted late. The ball dipped under the crossbar.
GOAL.
Team White: 1 - Team Red: 0
"Heh," Reo landed, smirking at Nagi who was watching from the viewing deck. "See that? I don't need you."
"Nice copy," Isagi noted. "As expected of a 99% tool."
The Puppet Master Strikes
Rin picked up the ball from the net. He looked bored.
"A cheap copy of a second-rate talent," Rin muttered. "It makes me want to vomit."
Restart.
Rin placed the ball on the center spot.
He didn't pass to Aryu. He didn't pass to Tokimitsu.
He stood over the ball.
"Watch closely, Isagi Yoichi," Rin said. "This is the difference between your logic and my reality."
Rin kicked the ball straight up into the air.
Isagi frowned. What? A high ball?
Rin pivoted. He waited for the ball to drop.
As it fell, he swung his leg in a vertical arc, slicing across the ball with wicked spin.
Vertical Spin Kick.
The ball flew high, looking like it would go over the bar.
But then, it dropped violently, like a stone.
It slammed into the top corner before the keeper could even move.
GOAL.
Team White: 1 - Team Red: 1
"He scored... from kickoff?" Bachira's eyes widened.
"That spin..." Reo gasped. "It defied physics."
Isagi clenched his fist. He didn't even need teammates. He just brute-forced the logic of the game.
The Web of Control
Team Red attacked again.
Rin had the ball. Isagi moved to intercept.
Metavision: Active.
Isagi scanned Rin's body language.
He's looking right. His hips are open to Aryu. He's going to pass.
Isagi shifted his weight to intercept the pass.
"Wrong," Rin whispered.
The moment Isagi shifted, Rin cancelled the pass.
He didn't feint. He didn't dribble.
He drove his shoulder into Isagi's chest, using Isagi's own momentum to knock him off balance.
"You're reacting to the future I let you see."
Rin breezed past Isagi.
Bachira tried to tackle. Rin didn't even look at him. He used a subtle body feint to make Tokimitsu run into Bachira's path.
He used his own teammate as a moving wall? Isagi realized.
Rin was free.
He was 20 meters out.
He shot. A beautiful, curved arc.
GOAL.
Team White: 1 - Team Red: 2
Isagi stood frozen.
It wasn't just skill. It was manipulation.
Rin wasn't just playing soccer; he was moving everyone on the field—friends and foes alike—like puppets on strings.
The Battlefield
"Is that it?" Rin asked, walking past Isagi.
Rin's eyes were cold, terrifyingly void of emotion.
"You think you have vision? Don't make me laugh."
Rin pointed at the field.
"I see a battlefield. I see the blood, the mud, the desperation. I control who lives and who dies."
Rin leaned into Isagi's ear.
"You're just a spectator watching a screen. I'm the one holding the controller. You are dancing in my palm, Isagi."
Team White attacked.
Isagi tried to pass to Reo.
Rin intercepted it.
"Predictable."
Isagi tried to combine with Bachira.
Rin cut the lane.
"Too slow."
Rin stole the ball again. He passed to Tokimitsu, manipulating the panicked muscle-man into a scoring position.
GOAL.
Team White: 1 - Team Red: 3
Isagi fell to his knees. The gap was immense.
Rin Itoshi was perfect. His vision was superior. His technique was superior.
He controls the field, Isagi thought, sweat stinging his eyes. He makes me move where he wants me to move. I am a puppet.
"Give up," Rin said, looking down at Isagi. "You're just a glitch in my system. A lukewarm error."
Isagi stared at the ground. The grid lines in his mind were tangling, breaking under Rin's pressure.
Is this the limit?
Is the Number 1 really untouchable?
No.
Isagi's hand gripped the turf.
He sees a battlefield?
He sees blood and mud?
Isagi closed his eyes. He took a deep breath, purging the panic.
That's his weakness.
He is grounded. He is a General fighting amongst the soldiers.
Isagi opened his eyes. The blue light exploded, turning white-hot.
I don't need to be a General.
I need to be a God.
A General looks at the horizon. A God looks from the sky.
Isagi stood up. A terrifying calm settled over him.
"Rin," Isagi said.
Rin stopped walking away. "What?"
"You think you're holding the controller?" Isagi smiled, and it was the smile of a deity looking at a mortal.
"You're just playing a game I haven't started yet."