Blue Lock : Second Selection. Match 2: 4 vs 4.
Team White (Isagi, Rin, Bachira, Reo) vs. Team Red (Nagi, Barou, Chigiri, Kunigami).
Score: 3 - 3 (Match Point).
The digital timer on the wall seemed to hold its breath. The score was tied. The next goal would decide the fate of eight monsters.
One team would advance to the final stage. The other would be stripped of a teammate and cast back down into the hell of the 3v3 or 2v2 stages.
Isagi Yoichi stood at the edge of the penalty area, his chest heaving. The sweat dripping from his chin felt cold against his heated skin.
He looked around the field.
To his left, Rin Itoshi, the Fallen King, radiating a murderous aura that distorted the air around him.
To his right, Bachira Meguru, the Awakened Monster, humming a tune only he could hear, staring at nothing and everything simultaneously.
Behind him, Reo Mikage, the Vengeful Copycat, eyes locked on Nagi with an obsessive intensity.
And across the line...
Team Red. The Rebellion.
Nagi, Barou, Chigiri, Kunigami. Four distinct egos that refused to mix, yet somehow created a storm of chaos that rivaled Team White's calculated destruction.
This is it, Isagi thought, his blue eyes narrowing into slits.
The field is filled with noise. Rin wants to destroy. Bachira wants to dance. Nagi wants to try. Barou wants to rule.
Too many variables.
A normal brain would crash trying to process this data.
Isagi closed his eyes for a fraction of a second, inhaling the stagnant air of the Blue Lock arena.
But I am not normal. I am the server that processes the chaos.
"Isagi," Rin's voice cut through the silence. It was low, guttural. "Don't get in my way. The final shot is mine."
Isagi didn't turn. "If you can reach it before me, be my guest, Number 2."
The Final Storm
Team Red Kickoff.
Nagi Seishiro stood over the ball. He looked at Isagi.
"This is the last play, Isagi," Nagi said. "I'm going to win. I'm going to prove that 'trying' beats 'calculating'."
Nagi passed the ball to Kunigami.
"Don't lose it, Hero!" Nagi commanded, sprinting forward immediately.
Kunigami trapped the ball. "I know!"
Bachira charged at Kunigami. The Monster was laughing. "Let's play, Hero!"
Kunigami shielded the ball with his massive frame. He knew he couldn't out-dribble Bachira.
"Chigiri!" Kunigami launched a long ball to the flank.
The Speed of Sound.
Chigiri Hyoma took off.
Reo Mikage was marking him. Reo had copied Chigiri's running style, but a copy is never as good as the original.
"You can't catch me, Reo!" Chigiri roared.
He shifted into Gear Third. The acceleration was violent. He left Reo in the dust.
"Dammit!" Reo gritted his teeth. "Rin! Cover!"
Rin Itoshi was already moving. He had predicted the pass to the wing.
"Annoying red mosquito," Rin muttered, sliding in to cut off Chigiri's angle.
Chigiri saw Rin coming.
Rin is blocking the cross. He expects me to cut inside.
But I have teammates now.
Chigiri didn't cross. He cut the ball back to the edge of the box.
The Villain Arrives.
Barou Shoei was thundering toward the ball.
"I AM THE KING!"
Barou prepared to shoot. A 28-meter cannon.
But as he wound up, a shadow stole the ball from his toes.
Nagi Seishiro.
Again.
"You're too loud, Barou," Nagi said, stealing the ball.
"NAGI! YOU BASTARD!" Barou screamed, grabbing Nagi's jersey.
Nagi ignored him. He spun with the ball.
He was 1-on-1 with Isagi Yoichi.
The final duel.
The Genius vs. The God.
The Singularity
Nagi stared at Isagi.
Isagi is blocking the path to the goal. He knows I want to shoot.
He expects a trap. He expects a fake.
Nagi's eyes widened.
Then I'll do nothing.
Nagi lifted the ball. He didn't trap it. He chipped it gently over Isagi's head.
Sombrero Flick.
Isagi watched the ball go over him.
He's bypassing me?
Nagi tried to run around Isagi.
But Isagi didn't turn to chase the ball. He stepped into Nagi's path.
Body Block.
"You think I'll let you pass?" Isagi said, bracing his shoulder.
Nagi slammed into Isagi.
"Move!" Nagi roared, shoving Isagi aside.
The collision threw both of them off balance.
The ball fell into the penalty box.
It was a loose ball.
Chaos.
The Collision of Egos
Everyone reacted instantly.
Rin sprinted from the left. "Mine!"
Barou sprinted from the right. "I'll kill you all!"
Bachira danced through the middle. "The ball is calling me!"
Kunigami charged from the back.
Four players converged on the dropping ball.
Rin arrived first. He stretched his leg to trap it.
But Barou slid in, disregarding the rules, disregarding safety. He tackled Rin and the ball.
"DIE!" Barou screamed.
"Get off, donkey!" Rin shouted, kicking Barou's leg.
The ball popped out from their collision.
It rolled to Bachira.
Bachira wound up to shoot.
But Kunigami threw his body in the way. Face Block.
The ball deflected off Kunigami's cheekbone.
It popped up into the air again.
High. Spinning.
Gravity took hold.
The ball began to fall toward the penalty spot.
The goalkeeper, Blue Lock Man, was confused. The AI couldn't calculate the outcome of four players colliding.
Who would reach it?
Rin was on the ground. Barou was on the ground. Kunigami was stunned. Bachira was off balance.
Nagi was recovering from his clash with Isagi.
Nagi looked up.
The ball... it's falling there.
Nagi pushed himself forward. I can reach it. If I stretch... I can reach it.
Nagi extended his long leg. He was inches away.
I win.
The God descends.
Suddenly, a figure blocked the light.
Nagi looked up.
Isagi Yoichi was in the air.
He hadn't run to the ball.
He hadn't run to the collision.
While everyone else was reacting to the loose ball, Isagi had run to the empty space.
He had predicted the collision. He had predicted the deflection.
He had bet everything on the fact that their egos would cancel each other out.
"I saw the future, Nagi," Isagi whispered.
Isagi was perfectly positioned under the falling ball.
He didn't need to stretch. He didn't need to trap.
He was free.
Rin, lying on the ground, looked up. His eyes widened in horror.
He read... even this?
He read the chaos?
Isagi twisted his body in the air.
He locked his eyes on the ball.
This isn't luck.
Luck is just a piece of the puzzle that falls to those who are positioned to catch it.
I am here because I am the God of this field.
Isagi swung his right leg.
Direct Volley.
BOOM.
The sound was crisp. Clean. Final.
The ball flew straight and true.
It tore through the air, past Nagi's outstretched foot, past the AI keeper's hologram hand.
It smashed into the net.
GOAL.
(Isagi Goal)
Team White: 4 - Team Red: 3
GAME OVER.
Isagi landed on his feet.
He stood still for a moment, the echo of the impact fading.
Then, he slowly raised one fist to the sky.
He didn't scream. He didn't smile.
He just breathed.
"Winner," the automated voice announced, "Team White."
The Aftermath of Destruction
The field dissolved.
The players of Team Red collapsed.
Kunigami fell to his knees, clutching his bruised face. "We... lost?"
Barou punched the ground, screaming inarticulate rage. "DAMMIT! DAMMIT!"
Chigiri lay on his back, staring at the ceiling, tears leaking from his eyes. "I ran... I ran so fast... and he still beat me."
Nagi Seishiro stood frozen.
He looked at Isagi.
For the first time in his life, Nagi felt a sensation so cold it burned.
Defeat.
True, absolute defeat.
He had tried. He had evolved. He had fought.
And Isagi had crushed him.
Isagi walked over to Nagi.
Nagi looked down. "Isagi..."
Isagi looked at the genius.
"You were good, Nagi," Isagi said.
It wasn't a compliment. It was a judgment.
"You finally learned how to play soccer. But you forgot one thing."
"What?" Nagi whispered.
"You played to beat me," Isagi said, pointing at his own chest. "I played to beat the game."
Isagi turned away from Nagi and walked toward his own team.
Rin was standing there, looking at Isagi with a complexity of emotions—hatred, respect, and fear.
Bachira was sitting on the ground, grinning. "That was amazing, Isagi! You were the monster at the end of the story!"
Reo was leaning against the wall, relieved but exhausted.
Isagi looked at the screen.
Team White Wins.
Proceed to Selection Phase.
"We have to pick one," Isagi said, looking at the defeated Team Red.
The four losers looked up.
Nagi Seishiro. (The Genius).
Barou Shoei. (The King).
Chigiri Hyoma. (The Speedster).
Kunigami Rensuke. (The Hero).
They were all monsters.
Rin walked up to Isagi. "Who do we take?" Rin asked. "We don't need garbage. Pick the one that is least useless."
Isagi scanned them.
Barou is chaos. He conflicts with Rin.
Kunigami is solid, but overlaps with Reo physically.
Chigiri adds speed we don't have.
Nagi...
Isagi looked at Nagi.
Nagi was staring back, his eyes burning with a desperate plea. Pick me. Don't leave me here.
Isagi smiled.
If I take Nagi... I have the Genius, the Monster, the Kingmaker, and the Puppet Master.
It's an unstable chemical mixture.
But...
Isagi walked forward.
He stopped in front of the player he had chosen.
"Get up," Isagi said.
The player looked up.
It wasn't Nagi.