Chapter 48: Temporary Lead
KICKOFF!
The whistle pierced the air.
Yūshin Seiichi gently tapped the ball backward, and Yūshin Zeya was already surging forward like a predator loosed from a cage.
"Let's go, Zeya! Kill them!" Seiichi roared.
Zeya carried the ball upfield with explosive pace. The first opponent in his path—Pablo Cabassos, the pockmarked Spanish defender—stepped up to block his advance.
But Zeya didn't slow down. With a short pass to the left, he found Seiichi, and the two brothers exchanged a lightning-quick one-two, slicing through the defense like razors.
"¡Mierda…!" Cabassos muttered under his breath.
He hadn't expected such tight coordination—not from a pair of teenagers bred in Japan's most chaotic egoist experiment.
Seiichi took the final touch, his sharp eyes already locked onto the goal.
Just as he reared back to shoot—
Whoosh!
A ghost slid across his vision—Loki, the elegant genius of France, closed the gap in seconds and blocked Seiichi's path like a shadow pulled from thin air.
So fast! Like a supercar.
But—
This shot's still mine.
Seiichi twisted his ankle, faking a right-footed blast. Instead, he rolled the ball to his left with the inside of his boot.
Tap… Tap…
Zeya was already there.
His supporting leg planted at the perfect angle. He raised his right foot and struck cleanly with full force.
BOOM!
The ball rocketed upward—at first, it looked too high. Even Cabassos smirked.
"Overhit it? Anti-aircraft gun."
But then…
The ball dipped violently. A sudden, sharp curve—as if defying gravity—sent it plummeting down toward the top-right corner.
Swish!
The net shook.
DING!
Blue Lock scores!
1 – 0
"Perfect, Zeya!" Seiichi shouted.
"We'll crush them in one go."
Zeya didn't smile. He simply nodded. "I'll do it without you telling me."
From the sidelines, Bachira Meguru felt goosebumps.
These two… even against a world-class team, they still move like they're the main characters.
"Not bad. A real goal," said Leonardo Luna, the blonde prodigy from Reyal Club de Toros, unfazed.
"Better coordination than I expected," Cabassos admitted.
"They're good," murmured Silva, the Brazilian Defender.
DROP!
The match resumed.
Cabassos fed the ball to Loki.
The French ace surveyed the field calmly before launching into motion.
Zeya stepped forward immediately—his stance low, eyes sharp. "You're fast, but let's see what world-class really means."
Loki didn't respond.
Instead, he took a soft touch with his toe and exploded.
Shift—Flash—Gone.
He slipped past Zeya in a blink.
"Tch!"
Zeya spun on his heel and chased.
To his credit, he closed the gap—he was only a meter behind.
Loki noticed.
"You're fast," he murmured mid-sprint. "But I'm faster."
He shifted again.
Another gear.
Zeya's pupils contracted—he couldn't match it. In seconds, Loki left him behind, slicing past Itoshi Rin and dancing around Bachira.
Then—bang!
DING!
World Five scores!
1 – 1
Zeya clenched his jaw.
That was the first time… someone beat him in a pure speed duel.
Damn it.
"This guy's terrifying," Seiichi muttered, wiping sweat from his brow. But there was no fear in his voice.
Only excitement.
…
Next play.
Zeya passed to Seiichi. They began building again, but this time, Loki stuck to Zeya's hip, and Luna closed down Seiichi fast.
"You two work well together," Luna said softly. "But this isn't high school anymore."
No opening.
Zeya was smothered. There was no passing lane.
Luna lunged—
But Seiichi spun.
Quick ball pull. Turn. He shielded Luna with one arm and held his ground like a boulder.
"Hmm. Not bad," Luna said. "Strong core."
Seiichi didn't answer.
He slid a pass to the right.
Bachira.
Caught off guard, Bachira fumbled his first touch—but just as Cabassos lunged to steal, he heard Seiichi shout:
"Bachira! Believe in your ego!"
The words hit like a lightning bolt.
Bachira snapped back into motion, lifting the ball gently with the outside of his foot—Marseille Turn!
He twirled past Cabassos and burst down the right flank, flames burning behind his eyes.
"I… I'm free…"
He reached the edge of the box.
With a deep breath, he whipped the ball across the goal with a left-footed spin.
It bent sharply—
And landed at the perfect height—
Itoshi Rin was already there.
BOOM!
Volley. Far corner.
DING!
Blue Lock scores again!
2 – 1
…
Observation Room
"Oh my god…" gasped Anri Teieri, watching from behind the glass.
"They're winning? Against the World Five?!"
"If this footage leaks, the football world's gonna melt."
Next to her, Jinpachi Ego remained calm, fingers steepled beneath his chin.
"Winning?" he scoffed. "Look at the World Five."
Anri looked.
They weren't sweating.
They weren't shouting.
They weren't even trying yet.
"That wasn't even a warm-up," Ego said, eyes gleaming.
"But…"
He paused.
"…even so… they've already surpassed my expectations."
He grinned, lips curling into a cold, feral smile.
"Let's see how far their ego can take them."
To be continued…