"Andoa! You… you came late, and you deliberately kicked me with a football? I'm telling Coach Marquesa!" Ronaldo got up from the ground, his face full of annoyance, his words sharp and unhesitating.
But what he didn't realize was… as he spoke, he subconsciously took half a step back.
It was clear that this wasn't the first time someone like Andoa had caused him trouble.
He had probably suffered a bit from this before.
"Very well, African boy worth fifteen hundred dollars, tell the coach all you want. Maybe he'll make us run five or ten laps. But first… you'll get a fistfight," Andoa said arrogantly.
Andoa was no shorter than Chris; he carried himself with authority. Off the pitch, he even had more influence than Ronaldo.
But Ronaldo lowered his head at these words.
The words "African countryside" struck his biggest weakness.
He had come to Lisbon from Madeira—from a remote place to the capital, from a small town to a big city.
For more than a month, he had witnessed the prosperity of Lisbon and the fashionable haircuts and clothes of the children here.
Many things made him feel ashamed.
Besides working hard, what else could he do?
And the harder he worked, the more he couldn't fit in with his peers.
Because everyone thought he was showing off.
Why should Cristiano Ronaldo practice shooting during breaks? Doesn't that make the rest of us lazy?
Kai was stunned.
He had never seen such a "cowardly" side of Ronaldo.
The Ronaldo he knew never admitted defeat and was always determined!
Kai understood that sooner or later, Ronaldo would find a way to fight back against those who hurt him out of jealousy.
But Kai couldn't wait.
He would teach Ronaldo how to deal with it—right now.
"Andoa?" Kai stepped forward, placing himself between Ronaldo and Andoa. He rubbed his ear. "I don't know what conflicts you've had with Chris before, but you should handle your relationships differently."
"Before doing anything… do you want to apologize to me first?"
Andoa frowned, a question mark on his face.
Kai pointed to his ear. "Didn't you notice your damn football almost hit me?"
"It flew past my ear, rubbed it, and hurt my spirit, you know?"
"I think your parents and Coach Maxa should have told you not to play football next to a road with cars. Let alone use the ball to kick people, right?"
Andoa? Other people?? Cristiano Ronaldo??
"You… are you standing up for him? Have you become friends? Haha, this is rare!" Andoa froze for a moment, then laughed with his friends around him:
"You want me to apologize to you? Are you sure, little man?"
"Brothers, did you hear this? This little guy, barely 1.4 meters tall, wants me to apologize! Hahaha!"
"It's so funny!"
"Are all yellow people this humorous?"
"Do you really think you're a midfield genius?"
"You had a chance to play yesterday, but I came off the field. I could freeze you every minute on the pitch! There are no Asians who can play football, especially Chinese."
Laughter erupted.
Only Ronaldo and Kai did not laugh.
Ronaldo looked at Kai with emotion and sympathy.
He hadn't expected Kai to stand up for him. He knew the feeling of being laughed at by a crowd—it took real courage to face it.
But Kai's reaction was unlike anything Ronaldo expected.
Kai didn't lower his head in shame or feel uncomfortable. He pursed his lips and nodded.
"Very good. Now I can announce… you successfully angered me."
"I hate the name 'shorty!'"
"Very, very, very annoying!"
Then Kai turned to Ronaldo. "Cristiano Ronaldo… have you noticed that when you face people weaker than you, you get stronger, but when you face people stronger than you, you feel weak and scared?"
"This is not the mentality of a real man. You are far less brave, determined, and proud than you pretend to be."
"I know why. Because you are from Madeira, because of your African ancestry, and so on."
"But today, I'll show you what I do in these situations."
"I, Kai, am 1.4 meters tall and Chinese. But I've never felt inferior because of this!"
"And what's more troublesome than you? I am a Chinese. My hometown… may seem worse to you, but I've always been proud. At eighteen, no one can stop me from becoming a true Chinese!"
"If my skin color and blood can't bring me glory, I'll prove that my skin and blood can. China can have great players. Yellow people can produce football champions!"
"Now… you have a chance to prove that you're not inferior, not cowardly, and that you don't look down on others. Do you dare fight them with me?"
Kai's vow left everyone around frozen, including Ronaldo.
Loud plotting? This…
Andoa felt like he had met two strange people.
Bullshit next Quaresma, bullshit football prodigy Caesar.
One from the African countryside, one from the Chinese countryside. Perfect match.
"So… you want to fight us?" Andoa clenched his fists and walked toward Kai.
Kai bent down, picked up the football that had knocked Ronaldo down, took a deep breath, and kicked it with precision.
Boom!
A perfect instep shot!
The distance was too close. Andoa had no time to dodge. The ball hit his face hard.
Exploding pain!
"I'm going to fight in the jungle! I'm not apologizing! I'm bullying the arrogant! I'm making you see that China is not weak!" Kai shouted, rushing forward and kicking Andoa's head.
He dominated the fight.
Andoa fell to the ground, clutching his balls in pain.
But Kai didn't stop. Using a flying dragon move, he pressed Andoa down, suppressing his flailing.
Soon, Andoa's companions reacted, trying to pull Kai off and hit him.
But Kai still held Andoa, who was wailing and pleading, refusing to let go.
"Chris! Why are you standing there scared… why don't you come help me… fuck them… fuck them!" Kai punched Andoa's face repeatedly.
"The most annoying thing? When people call me short, I hate it the most!"
The scene made Ronaldo's heart burn.
An unprecedented surge of adrenaline boiled through him.
Kai's audacious play, shooting Andoa with a football and dominating the fight, was engraved in Ronaldo's mind.
He swore this was the most impressive display he had ever witnessed.
At that moment, the suppressed beast inside Ronaldo—caged by the tall buildings of Lisbon—was finally unleashed.
Beast! Get out of the cage!
"Fake! Don't hit him! Hit me if you have the guts! I said don't hit him!"
Ronaldo's eyes were red as he charged into the crowd, knocking back the boys attacking Kai like a god descending to Earth.
He shouted:
"I hate it when people call me a country boy!"
"I hate it when people doubt Ronaldo!"
"I hate it when people make me pass the ball!"
Under the sunset glow, two teenagers stood back-to-back, pumping their fists, a uniquely beautiful silhouette.
From that moment, they became close comrades-in-arms.
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