Data, something that every being on this world can be turned into. From the moment I've first remember, I've been turning everything and everyone I've seen into data. It's something that I automatically do. As a child I would collapse due to information overload and my parents who were worried sent me to the hospital and had brain scans done on me. The doctors found out that my baseline was comparable to professional athletes during some of their best moments. They called this state "Flow", but for me its my everyday state. You cannot imagine the trouble this has caused me my entire life. Try interacting with kids your age when you can predict what they're going to say, I found it easiest just to respond in the most efficient manner, meaning I've never developed any meaningful connections but I don't feel a strong need for them. As a child I couldn't relax I needed something to do mentally so my parents decided to enrol me into different sports to physically tire my mind out. Karate was fun but my instructor was clearly teaching us with half effort, Tennis was boring, I always knew where the ball would land and just wait to break my opponents ankles. Football was enough for me, during matches I would simulate thousands of possibilities when I didn't have the ball while calculating everyone's positions and once I got the ball it was now a game of pulling off those simulations by picking the hardest route.
My coach after seeing how much better I was at the game than the rest of the team now lets me do whatever I want both in training and in game. I'll normally sit on the bench and try to simulate the hardest opponent I can imagine and figure out ways to beat it. Although the task seems impossible each day my body catches up to my brain and skills and I'm able to last another 0.1 second against my mental image.
"Pass to the left", One of my random teammates says to me irritatingly. Today I'm trying to see how far I can push my teammates emotionally by ignoring them then giving them a pass that they normally wouldn't be able to receive to figure out how these emotions can cause players to go beyond 100%.
"Okay", I say as I curl the ball just out of his normal jump height and with more spin than he should be able to control. I stay grounded as I watch the ball slowly head towards my teammate watching intently if he can receive it.
"What kind of pass was that? You're meant to be our teams ace but today you cant send a single normal pass?", My teammate angrily says to me after the ball get flung out of bounds because he failed to trap the ball but interestingly he did reach the ball in the first place, I wonder now that he's more angry if he'd be able to reach and trap the ball.
"Oh? Cant always maintain 100%, everyone has an off day sorry", I say to get him to shut up giving him a white lie. I'm always stuck in that 100% state, never improving or getting worse, a consistent player you could say.
More and more we play I start to spend more time thinking about the game then playing. I've even recently been put on the bench only being played when we're losing by three or more and trying not to get mercy ruled. Not that I care, my mental simulations are much more interesting than these games. Now that my body is 17 I'm able to last a couple attacking exchanges against the mental monster I've created. Its ambidextrous, tall, strong, flexible and has all the techniques of all the top 30 best footballers I've studied. When it comes to defending against it I've only ever stepped in the correct direction its gone but I'm able to last 1-3 exchanges when I start with the ball.
"Sora, wake up we need you", my coach says as he taps me out of my simulation. I look at the scoreboard seeing 0-4.
"Troublesome... I thought my team was better than this", I take a sip of water and swap out with our CM. As I walk onto the pitch I look at my opponents and find the heart and sword of the enemy team.
"hmmm... the purple haired guy is the heart and the white one seems to be the sword". I mutter to myself as my CF passes back to me.
Nagi POV:
'Reo said that this team was undefeated and to watch out for that Sora guy, He spent the first seventy minutes sitting on the bench with his eyes closed, I wish Reo let me do that", I watch Sora as he starts to slowly move up while reo barks orders to our team
"Double press him! Don't let him build any space or tempo", Playing with Reo is so fun, I can't imagine having to give these kind of orders to my team seems like a pain.
BANG
"Really?", I say confused as I watched him basically walk past the two defenders and blast it into the top corner. He doesn't even seem excited after scoring a goal like that, is he a high level player doing low level dungeons just out of boredom?
"Nagi, Don't worry it was just one goal. Just watch me work my magic we're already ahead so we'll try to keep a +4 lead at all times"
"Okay Reo, I'll just wait at the enemy goal", I say to him as he nodded at me. Walking up to the field after kick off I watch Reo slowly make his way past 1 defender with a 1-2 from our teammate then he meets Sora in the midfield. Reo does a quick turn with the ball and kicks the ball with a curve that was heading straight to me but my eyes widen as I see Sora trap the ball point blank from Reo's high power pass.
"Wow, I didn't know that was possible, I wouldn't be able to react that fast. No it wasn't reaction, it was prediction, this guy is seriously pub stomping", I say in a daze and I only snap out of it after Reo yells some more commands at the defence but its too late, another goal.
SCORE: 4-4
Everything Reo has tried doesn't work. Its frustrating seeing Reo get so worked up because we cant score.
"I'm sorry Nagi, whatever I do he just predicts my every action. I didn't know someone could be this good at football."
"Reo. Pass me the ball", He is good? I will show you good Reo and you'll remember that I'm your treasure.
Sora POV:
The purple hair isn't too bad, very over reliant on his team considering he keeps trying to pass to the white hair boy like its gonna solve all his problems. The white haired boy just keep sitting up field like a lost puppy without its owner. As I see the purple haired one walk away from the white haired one I feel a sudden feeling, almost like someone opening your window from outside and the wind blows on you, Someone has invaded my realm.