His words snapped him out of his thoughts. Ryūma’s eyes widened as he swept his gaze across the three players other than Kudo Tōya, shock rising in his chest.
(Huh? Something’s definitely off!)
(Kudo Tōya being unstoppable is one thing—but why can’t Rin and I even stop the other three from making their passes?)
(Even if they’re all one-touch passes, Barō doing it makes sense. But how did those other two pull it off without a second’s hesitation?)
(Wait… the way those three are moving… it’s like—)
As Ryūma’s thoughtful expression slowly twisted into alarm, Kudo Tōya smiled at him.
“Yeah. Just like you’re thinking.”
“All three of them have entered the ‘Awakening Moment’.”
Even though Ryūma had his suspicions, hearing Tōya say it out loud still left him stunned and unwilling to believe it.
(Holy crap—this guy really is the ultimate support character!)
(Aside from Ryusei Shido, who already hit this state before… the other three are all in ‘Awakening Moment’ now?)
(Come on—cheating for yourself is one thing, but why are you buffing your teammates too?! T﹏T)
Ryūma kept mentally ranting to cope with the crushing pressure Tōya suddenly dropped on him.
He really didn’t want to lose his very first match after unlocking his “Slow-Motion World” at double strength.
(Fine then—don’t blame me for cheating too!)
(Even if that state feels super disorienting, I just won’t move.)
(All I need is a single instant—to identify the final shooter. The rest, I leave to fate!)
“Rin, didn’t you say you wanted a one-on-one with him? I almost forgot. I’ll leave you two to it!”
With that, Ryūma accelerated away from Rin Itoshi and Kudo Tōya, heading to a spot with better vision so he could observe how the four were passing.
Rin didn’t respond, but the bulging veins on his forehead made his volatile mood obvious.
Yoichi Isagi and Nijiro Nanase kept trying desperately to disrupt Team B’s passing rotation, but their efforts barely made a dent.
When Tōya and the others pushed into Team A’s defensive third, the ball coming back to him, Ryūma clenched his jaw and locked his gaze onto Tōya.
In the next instant, the pure gold in Ryūma’s eyes faded—replaced by a deep, smoky gray.
Ryūma entered the quadruple “Slow-Motion World” for the second time.
In his vision, everyone moved like elderly men… or turtles inching across the ground.
(Tōya’s looking at the goal. Is he going to shoot?)
(No… Barō’s movement is also aimed at the goal. Is he the shooter?)
(Wait. That passing motion—why is Tōya winding up so much?)
(A lofted pass? For Barō to header in? Wait—Ryusei?!)
(He’s moving! So Tōya wasn’t aiming for Barō at all—he’s been aiming for Ryusei Shido, who’s been waiting at the goal this whole time!)
(Damn… that’s terrifying. Did Tōya predict this whole sequence starting from Barō’s very first pass?)
(No—maybe even earlier. He might’ve seen this scenario coming from kickoff!)
(So Tōya letting the other three enter ‘Awakening Moment’… was all to prepare for Ryusei’s final shot?!)
Awestruck or not, Ryūma immediately shut down his quadruple Slow-Motion World and activated Limit-Breaking State, sprinting toward the goal.
He didn’t rush straight at Ryusei Shido—because in normal time, Ryusei had only just started accelerating.
If he moved too soon, Tōya would read his intention instantly.
He wanted Tōya to think he was simply racing toward the goal to block either his or Shōei Barō’s shot.
Just as Ryūma predicted, Tōya adjusted his angle and sent the ball toward Ryusei.
The moment Tōya kicked, Ryūma—who had been charging full speed—came to an instant stop, like someone had hit the pause button.
Then he immediately changed direction, launching himself toward Ryusei Shido.
Tōya’s usually calm eyes widened with shock.
He had no idea how Ryūma suddenly saw through his plan.
Tōya shouted urgently:
“Ryusei! Don’t shoot! Pass it ba—” ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NoveIＦire.net
Before he could finish, a soaring figure shot into the air, stopping him cold.
GOAL!! Team A 4 : 4 Team B
Ryūma turned, staring blankly at Shōei Barō—who had just crashed face-first into the ground from the force of his landing.
(Wait—did that idiot… just header Tōya’s pass to Ryusei straight into our net?)
(No way. Barō can’t jump that high. If it were another player, maybe—but Barō?)
(Hold on. Did ‘Awakening Moment’ unlock his aerial potential? Meaning he actually has room to grow in air battles?!)
(Tch… don’t tell me Tōya planned from the start to lure me toward Ryusei and have Barō finish instead?)
As he turned toward Tōya, seeing the man just as shocked brought Ryūma a hint of relief.
(Ah. So I was overthinking. My read was right—Tōya clearly didn’t anticipate this either.)
(Heh. A future hundred-million-a-year player really does produce the most ridiculous surprises.)
With that thought, he sighed and walked back toward his own side.
On the other end, Tōya quickly snapped out of it. He approached the still-seated Shōei Barō, offering a hand.
“Get up. It wasn’t what I anticipated, but… that goal was pretty nice.”
“Hmph! You think I need your praise? You never planned to pass to me in the first place—you wanted me to shoot?!”
Barō slapped Tōya’s hand away, pushed himself up, and jabbed a finger toward Ryusei Shido approaching from behind him.
“That whole sequence—you used us! All those passes were just to set him up for the final shot, right?!”
“Yeah. And? That’s how it should be.”
Veins bulged across Barō’s forehead. Like a bomb going off, he grabbed Tōya by the collar.
“‘Should be’? Fine. Let me knock some sense into you!”
“Hey—you stole my goal, and you’re still mad?”
“And I already told you—put a hand on Tōya, and I will kill you.”
Ryusei Shido, who had been strolling casually a second ago, suddenly sprang forward—driving a vicious flying kick straight at Barō’s head!