045 Blue Lock: System Ten Years Early

"Ahem, that bastard..." Reo Mikage kept rubbing his neck where red marks had been left by being strangled. "I'm definitely going to kill them."

"Yeah, as long as we score five goals, that's enough. Right, Reo?" Nagi Seishiro rarely complained about it being troublesome. He picked up the ball and looked at that lazy guy opposite him, his eyes more serious than ever.

"Then I'll try a little harder."

"Ah, right, we're going to collapse in total defeat... did I say that right?"

"It's 'press the attack in one go,' you idiot Zantetsu. Don't say such unlucky things!"

...

"Those are our opponents?" Hiori Yo and Ranze Kurona arrived late. "It kind of feels like..."

"The atmosphere's off?" Ranze Kurona added briefly. Hiori Yo immediately nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, yeah, it feels like there's some deep-seated grudge. What did you do, Shinichi?"

"ε=(′ο｀*))) Sigh~ Why is it assumed I did it? Clearly Rin's kind of deadpan face looks more like the type who'd piss people off."

I just think Rin isn't that bored, to actively provoke others just for fun. Hiori Yo didn't say that out loud, but his silence was enough to express his attitude.

Shinichi shrugged helplessly.

"Reporting to the judge, Your Honor: I only told a bit of the truth. The guy on the other side couldn't hold back and attacked me first. What came after was just self-defense. I request a plea of not guilty."

"Mm, request approved. Not guilty."

Singing in perfect sync, Shinichi and Ranze Kurona high-fived. Hiori Yo could only helplessly look toward Itoshi Rin, but the other completely ignored him.

"None of that matters. There's only one thing to do anyway—"

"Crush them!"

Beep!

The whistle sounded. Shinichi directly sat down beside the goal, watching the situation on the field with great interest.

'First provoke them a bit. After we take them out, I'll swagger over and grab Nagi. Then I'll savor Reo's twisted expression in glorious 3D.'

'And if the white-haired guy goes superhuman and actually scores one, I can mock Rin along with him.'

'Stir trouble once and get fun from both sides. I really am a Genius.'

Just as Shinichi was intoxicated by his own brilliant idea, Itoshi Rin had already kicked off and charged forward.

"First I'll take you down, then I'll smash that smug bastard!" Reo Mikage, full of resentment, blocked Itoshi Rin's path, staring hard at the ball at his feet.

"Come on, little lackey!"

"You... who are you calling a lackey, mediocrity!" Itoshi Rin's calm expression instantly cracked, veins bulging on his forehead.

"That bastard is sometimes right—toward trash like you who think too highly of themselves—"

"You need to be crushed once to recognize your place!"

Under Itoshi Rin's deliberate control, the ball was lightly flicked up. The landing point was right between the two of them. Reo Mikage subconsciously stepped forward—yet after touching the ground, the ball suddenly changed direction, rebounding back toward Itoshi Rin. Only then did Reo Mikage realize he'd been tricked, but having rashly committed and lost his defensive position, he was easily beaten by Itoshi Rin with a burst of speed.

"Garbage like you should face reality and get off the field already." Itoshi Rin broke through one-on-one with an expressionless face. Suddenly, his eye twitched. He lifted his foot, flicked the ball, and leapt. Nagi Seishiro, sliding in to save the play, couldn't help his pupils shrinking.

"Oh? Spotted?"

"It's fine. Delaying his attack is enough!" Reo Mikage, who had been chasing and defending behind Itoshi Rin the whole time, seized this brief opening and caught up. But when he passed Itoshi Rin, he realized the ball was no longer at Rin's feet.

Although Itoshi Rin hadn't anticipated Nagi Seishiro suddenly abandoning his mark to come cover for Reo Mikage, he had already planned the follow-up during Nagi's approach.

Itoshi Rin's leap wasn't simply to avoid Nagi Seishiro's slide tackle. He deliberately made that move to draw all of the trailing Reo Mikage's attention onto himself. While Nagi Seishiro slid to the ground and Reo Mikage's gaze was fixed on Rin, the ball—shielded by his body—escaped their sight and could be passed to the guy who had been freed on the field.

Hiori Yo caught this pass—one that completely toyed with the opponents in the palm of Rin's hand—with sincere admiration. Tsurugi Zantetsu, whose advantage was speed, abandoned his matchup with Ranze Kurona and sprinted over, while Ishikari Yukio, guarding the last line of defense, also focused his attention on him.

"Amazing, Itoshi Rin. Instantly taking in the changes on the field and setting up the follow-up plan. Only when I received this pass did I fully understand your thinking. I really am one step slower than monsters like you." Gritting his teeth, Hiori Yo sent the ball onward.

"Damn it, this is really frustrating."

Ranze Kurona received this driven cross on the flank and lifted his right foot high.

"Sorry, this is my territory." Tsurugi Zantetsu, who had clearly rushed toward Hiori Yo, actually relied on stronger burst to start again. While he couldn't completely block Ranze Kurona, it was enough to seal off half the shooting lane. Ishikari Yukio, using his tall frame, guarded the other side, enough to block most of the shooting angles. The only sliver of space left was firmly controlled by the Blue Lock goalkeeper.

The escape routes were locked. If it were three versus three, this attack probably would have succeeded. But not this time! If you want to blame someone, blame your ace for being so arrogant that he insisted on making it three versus four!

"Everyone's looking at me? Just what I wanted." However, in this deadlock, there wasn't a trace of panic in Ranze Kurona's eyes. His gaze sharpened. Suddenly, he turned a shot into a pass. Itoshi Rin burst out from nowhere, received it, and without the slightest pause, fired a shot. The ball traced a beautiful arc and plunged straight into the net.

Beep——!

0:0 → 1:0

"No wonder that bastard didn't want to make a move. Looks like just as Shinichi said..."

"Your level is trash to the extreme. You're a bunch of fodder not worth wasting time on." Itoshi Rin glanced back at Nagi Seishiro, who noticed his movement midway but couldn't act in time, and at Reo Mikage, whose vision he had completely deceived.

"What a waste of time. Let's hurry up and end this meaningless farce."

"This guy... completely saw through each of our traits and possible actions, then used off-the-ball movement to toy with both Nagi and me..."

Compared to Tsurugi Zantetsu, who was merely impressed that the opponent's passing circulation was good, the more talented Reo Mikage could somewhat grasp the logic behind Itoshi Rin's actions just now. But precisely because he could understand it, the despair only grew deeper.

We were completely being controlled like marionettes!

"Seriously amazing."

Nagi Seishiro's voice snapped Reo Mikage out of his shock. The always-lazy him now had an excitement shining in his eyes that Reo Mikage had never seen before.

"Football... seems more interesting than I imagined, Reo."

"Let's pay them back quickly."