(That's it—the moment you stepped in to block me, you exposed everything behind you!)
A green gleam flickered in Yoichi Isagi's eyes as his footwork shifted sharply. His right foot lunged forward to trap the ball, then he pulled it back hard. In the same motion, he took a quick step back and used the inside of his left foot to pass it toward the center of Team White's midfield.
Catching the ball, Ryūma felt a flicker of surprise.
(As expected of you, Yoichi. Even under this insane pressure, you still manage to make something happen.)
(Thanks, Yoichi—whether it's your creativity or your precision, you've just turned this into a temporary three-on-three!)
(I can't waste this perfect chance. Cavasoz isn't much of a problem right now—Nagi's got him marked anyway.)
(The real threat is Luna. I've got to keep track of his movements. Adam's defense is still a nightmare, and once we take two shots at most, the other two will drop back to defend.)
(So this shot angle needs to be razor-sharp… seriously, could this get any harder for me?)
Ryūma steadied his breathing, trying to calm himself as he looked toward Team White's goal.
(No good… I can't settle down. I've been at full throttle for too long—it's impossible to calm down instantly.)
(Only one way left. Rin, don't disappoint me—and whatever you do, don't send that ball back to me again!)
He took a quick hop forward, swung his right leg up, and as the ball rolled perfectly into position, he channeled every ounce of strength into his leg and struck down with full force.
[BOOM!!]
It was the most powerful shot Ryūma could unleash without a running start.
If Adam Blake managed to stop it, Ryūma might as well head back to the dorms and call it a night.
But thankfully, the angle was unpredictable—it could just as easily soar over the goal as smash straight into it.
Adam didn't even hesitate. To him, angles didn't matter—whatever came his way, he'd block it.
He extended his left leg to intercept. Seeing that, Ryūma's heart leapt with anticipation.
(Nice! Damn, this guy really underestimated me!)
(You think you can stop my full-power shot with just your foot?)
(Hmph, pay the price for your arrogance!!)
Sure enough, the ball didn't stop—it ricocheted violently off Adam Blake's foot.
(Rin, it's all you now!)
(The space I've opened up for you—it's perfect!)
(As long as your shot's on target, even Adam can't stop it!)
Exactly as planned, Ryūma's shot had lured Adam toward the far right post.
By the time Adam deflected it, he'd already fallen right into Ryūma's trap.
Now that he was pulled to the right, there was no way he could reach Rin Itoshi's shot if it went to the far-left corner.
But as Ryūma turned to look at Rin, his face suddenly tightened.
(Luna!?)
(Damn it—did he read us again!?)
(He's already a full stride ahead of Rin, charging for the rebound. What now? Are we about to lose this perfect chance!?)
Rin Itoshi knew exactly how dire the situation was—and how perfectly Ryūma had set up this chance for him.
But now, his shot lane was completely blocked. A dozen ideas flashed through his mind, but only three remained:
gamble on a forced shot, pass it back, or foul Leonardo Luna before he reached the ball.
As Luna closed in, Rin didn't hesitate—or rather, hesitation wasn't in his nature.
For him, there was always only one choice: shoot.
He wasn't just a striker—he was Rin Itoshi. What else could he possibly choose?
His expression hardened, eyes sharp with determination. He braced his arm against Luna's body, using him for leverage.
It didn't stop Luna completely, but that wasn't Rin's goal—he wanted to use Luna's momentum to stabilize his own.
As they neared the ball, Rin's left arm tensed, muscles bursting with power as he balanced himself off Luna.
Then, twisting in midair, he swung his leg horizontally and struck the ball toward the far-left corner of the goal.
He lost his balance immediately and began to fall—but Luna caught him before he hit the ground.
If not, Rin would've taken a nasty hit—maybe even landed headfirst.
Luna chuckled softly, shaking his head.
"Ha… that was dangerous."
"You're even more reckless than your brother. But did you really think I was the only one who saw through that?"
"Speaking of which…"
Rin ignored whatever else he said, eyes fixed on the ball flying toward the goal.
"Whoa—whoa~"
"That was close! So close~"
Across the field, Ryūma watched Pablo Cavasoz looking jittery and nervous, and his thoughts ran wild.
(Wait, when did that freckled kid get here?)
(Hold on—don't tell me he came out of my blind spot!?)
Ryūma glanced over his shoulder toward Seishiro Nagi's position.
(Just as I thought—Nagi's surprised too. That kid must've slipped out of his view while he was watching Rin and me, then circled around through my blind spot and cut in from the other side to intercept Rin's shot.)
(Wait a sec… that means he read my play and predicted the rebound's landing point!?)
(Damn it, these guys are monsters! How are we supposed to play against this!?)
Cursing inwardly, Ryūma immediately broke into a sprint after the deflected ball.
But before he could reach it, Julian Loki suddenly exploded forward, cutting across the field and reaching within three meters of the ball in an instant.
Ryūma's heart clenched in shock, but he pushed harder, unleashing his full speed.
One charged laterally, the other head-on—they reached the ball almost simultaneously.
Ryūma instantly knew that fighting Loki for possession would be too risky. He had no guarantee of winning, and this wasn't his only move.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Dada Silva already retreating to defend.
Jyubei Aryu was marking him closely, but Ryūma knew Dada wasn't fully neutralized.
If he dared take a direct shot now—without Cavasoz or Adam Blake intercepting—
Dada Silva at the front line would just leap up and head the ball away in an instant.