─ 𝐂𝐔𝐏𝐈𝐃 ─

➤ u-20

        𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐘𝐔 𝐘𝐔𝐊𝐈𝐌𝐈𝐘𝐀 raised his hand when Ego had finished talking. "I have a question, Ego-san. Why is Shidou-kun not one of the members?"

(M/n) blinked in confusion. He was right. That perverted roach was one of Blue Lock's best players, so why wasn't he chosen?

"He scored plenty of goals, and he's No. 3, is he not?"

"Yes," Ego answered. "Excellent question. Shidou Ryusei had an average of two goals per match during the tryouts. Demonstrating the making of a striker. His behavior outside of matches cannot be overlooked. But it is true that his physical abilities are extremely high. However, all his goals were a product of his own skill. In other words, during the tryouts, Shidou Ryusei was unable to spark a chemical connection even once with Itoshi Rin."

"And given that flagrant display of violence at the end of the match, if he were to do such a thing during the U-20 match, he'd get a red card, putting our team at an overwhelming disadvantage."

"So, for those very reasons, I made the decision that Itoshi Rin and Shidou Ryusei should not stand on the same pitch. And above all, none of you will be able to handle the egoist Shidou Ryusei."

"As I said earlier, all of Shidou Ryusei's goals were scored on his merit alone. Someone who could understand his thoughts and raise the level of his play does not exist within Blue Lock."

"Sheesh," (M/n) pouted. "Then there's probably no one in Japan who could handle him. Although, it would be a waste of talent."

Ego grinned slightly at the (h/c) male. "Indeed. That's why, if this team were to find themselves in a pinch, he'd be a joker that would replace you (M/n). As a powerful drug that could completely reverse the flow of the game, his job would be to switch (M/n) Hinata in a time of need."

"I see." Kenyu placed a finger on his chin.

"At least that was the plan." Everyone looked confused, so Ego continued. "Right after I finalized the roster, I got a call. It was from Buratsuta, the President of the JFU. He said that Itoshi Sae was dissatisfied with the forwards in Japan's U-20."

"If we didn't accept Itoshi Sae's conditions, he would refuse to play, and the match would have to be canceled. In which event, Buratsuta threatened to simply go ahead and shut down Blue Lock. And the condition he had...was that Itoshi Sae got to pick one person from Blue Lock to add to the U-20 team."

「 3 HOURS AGO . . . 」

Shidou Ryusei was locked in a room by himself, wearing a straitjacket and a muzzle and locked securely on a hand dolly. Lights flickered eerily above Shidou as he sang out.

"Let me out, you fucking four-eyes. I swear I won't hit anyone anymore, 'kay~?" He was met with silence, which only angered him more than he already was. "I KNOW YOU'RE FUCKING LISTENING, YOU'RE DEAD MEAT!!! FUCKING FUCKITY FUCK!!!--"

The door opened, and a male walked in with Anri behind him.

"Hello, my little demon."

"Who the hell are you?" Shidou growled.

"Blue Lock is a cage much too small for you."

"What?"

"I will set you free...but I need you to be just as good as him. So go berserk for me."

「 PRESENT . . . 」

"Sae Itoshi did not choose any of you here; he chose Shidou Ryusei."

(M/n) hurriedly turned to Rin, who looked like he was having a heart attack. He placed his hand on Rin's back in a comforting manner and whispered sweet things in his ear. But it didn't help. Rin stopped listening to any and everything after Ego spoke.

"For real?" Igarashi gawked. "Then Shidou..."

"Will fight you as a Japanese U-20 representative." Ego finished. "Well, in any case, whether it was (M/n) Hinata's team, Rin Itoshi's team, or Shidou Ryusei's team, I only had those three choices for team Blue Lock."

"Compared to (M/n) Hinata's individual skills, which incorporate his surroundings to produce synergy...Ryusei Shidou has yet to attempt to coordinate with anyone. He's a self-sufficient player."

"Two players with similar individual skills but completely different varieties of egotism. I chose (M/n) Hinata, and Sae Itoshi chose Shidou Ryusei. Which of these was the correct choice? That answer will be revealed fifteen days from now in front of the entire country."

"And we're able to register twenty-three players on our roster. I've yet to decide on the twelve non-starters, so those who weren't chosen will make a case for yourselves to seize those spots."

"This concludes the lineup announcement. There were some surprises, but now the stage is set. Losing this match means the end of Blue Lock as well as the end of your soccer career. Only fifteen days remain. During that time, I will administer training to forge you into a battle group that can pulverize the U-20 team and seize victory."

"Put everything on the line, you lumps' of talent. Failure is not permitted in the days to come."

"Hmph," Rin interrupted. "That's so tepid, four-eyes. To me, this match is just a checkpoint on my way to becoming the best in the world."

"Oh?"

"Totally," Bachira grinned. "We've been gambling our lives ever since we first showed up here~"

"For real!" (M/n) exclaimed. "No time to wuss out now."

"I'm getting stoked."

"I suppose I'm excited."

"Yep. I wanna get to it."

Ego's grin grew wider and wider. "That's the Ego I want to see, Blue Lock Eleven. Your final training camp is about to begin."

𝐂𝐔𝐏𝐈𝐃 ; 𝐀𝐂𝐓 𝐒𝐈𝐗