The Eagle

[3rd POV]

"What an annoying way of playing. Is that even football anymore?" 

Himizu frowned in confusion as Jude ran in between players, both teammates and opponents. He swiftly slipped in between them, with Karasu clearly struggling to follow behind him. 

"Are they playing catch?" 

Jude didn't have the ball and yet he ran twice as much as anyone else on the field.

'He's just trying to tire us out and play as bait.' That's the only conclusion he could come to. 

Hoping that his guess was right, Himizu turned around and faced Yanagi. 

"That's quite the smart tactic. You're thinking of using Jude as bait. He'll keep most of the attention on himself, while clearing a path for you. Too bad that I already saw through it all." Himizu nudged, trying to get the psychological advantage as he always loved doing.

"While it's true that I would love for that to be true, I don't think our striker would appreciate being used as bait. That sounds too dreamy." Yanagi replied with a sneaky smirk. 

He ignored Himizu and passed the ball to his left. 

Miyata was there to trap it, and without taking a single moment to think, he sent the ball forward with as much precision as he could. 

While team X's defensive tactics to counter Team V were very meticulously crafted, the same couldn't be said for their offense.

The plan was quite simple. 

'Pass the ball to Jude.' 

This was the only instruction Miyata gave them. 

Setting aside their personal pride, everyone complied. The only one who came close to scoring more than once was Jude.

If anyone was capable of doing it again, it would be him. 

Now that he used his special weapon, Jude's acceleration reached 59. Coupled with his enhanced thought speed, he was able to change directions in an instant and head to where he guessed the ball would land. 

"As usual, you're one step too late." 

Hiori stood 5 meters in front of him, he was in the ideal spot to receive the ball.

He placed himself so perfectly that for onlookers it would seem as if the pass was meant for him from the start. 

"As if that matters to me." Jude grunted — pushing his body to the limit — he took advantage of the last few couple of seconds of his special weapon to rush in front of Hiori. 

Karasu was trailing right behind him, but he was already getting out of breath from having to prolong his sprint over such a long period.

If Jude surpassed Karasu somewhere. It would certainly be his endurance.

Karasu was powerless as he watched Jude leap in front of Hiori. His large body casting a shadow over Hiori as he trapped the ball with his chest. 

"If you're unable to get the ball, being even ten steps ahead won't save you." Jude mocked as the ball gently bounced off his chest.

He trapped it without a single concern about Hiori standing right behind him.

"And if you're cornered, getting the ball won't make any difference." Karasu added. he finally reached Jude thanks to the time he wasted in the air. 

With Hiori standing a few centimeters behind him, and Karasu at his right, Jude had very little time to think.

If he lost the ball here, he would've wasted his special weapon for nothing. 

Casting those thoughts aside, Jude let his instincts take over. He knew that he didn't have any time to play around. His peripheral vision didn't offer him any safe passing options either. 

Dribbling past both Hiori and Karasu, as well as the nearby defenders, was far from feasible. 

With his back against the wall, Jude didn't have any reason to overthink it.

He turned his body to the left, effectively keeping Karasu behind his back. Hiori jumped on the opportunity and was about to launch a tackle, but before it could reach him, Jude struck the ball midair, sending a powerful volley shot in between Hiori and a defender. 

The ball flew towards the net from 18 meters away before lodging itself in the net.

The goalkeeper's shocked face with his mouth agape was a sight everyone will remember for a long time.

With his own teammates blocking his view of the action, all he saw was a random missile flying to the left corner of the goal and finding its way to the net. 

He tried jumping once he realized what was happening, but it was already way too late. It looked more like bad acting to cover up his shame rather than a true attempt to stop the ball.

2-2.

Jude scored his second goal of the day, effectively scoring the equalizer for his team. 

..

..

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"You fucking did it!!" Yanagi was the first to jump on Jude, failing to hide his excitement. Their teammates soon followed. 

Not far from them, Karasu stood quietly. 

'Is that a goal I could've scored?' That single thought haunted him.

Karasu was unable to move.

His mind was still processing the previous scene. Jude scored while encircled by so many players? He even scored on him and Hiori?

He wasn't able to accept that fact.

"In that moment, did that shitty copycat surpass me?" Karasu murmured to himself. 

Was it anger? Shame? Or perhaps he was simply impressed. He himself didn't know.

"We can still score." Hiori's calm voice attempted to cheer him up, but to no avail. Karasu was still stuck on the vision of the previous goal.

He kept looking for an answer, digging deeper and deeper in his mind.

Until he finally found it. 

"What a headache." Karasu spoke with a small smile while looking at Jude.

'If I'm a crow, then he would be an eagle. While I pick on weaker prey and feast on the carcasses Hiori offers me, he's able to rely on himself to hunt and isn't scared to go against a prey bigger than himself.' This realization brought a bitter smile to his face as his eyes landed on Jude's figure. 

"A baby eagle is still an eagle." 

Karasu was clearly the better player, and yet for the first time, he began to doubt his own playstyle. 

'Would I really be able to become the world's best striker while playing this way?'

Those thoughts haunted him. 

"I understand it now, it's all your fault Hiori. I've been too reliant on you." His sharp gaze landed on Hiori. 

Hiori was oblivious to Karasu's thoughts, but seeing the flame burning in his eyes once again made him feel some kind of relief. Karasu was back to normal — or so he thought. 

"I'll let you have the kickoff, pass it to me and stay back." Karasu ordered, his voice slightly colder than usual. 

Hiori didn't understand why he would suddenly ask him to stay back, but he ultimately chose to believe in him and readied himself for the kickoff. 

"It's time for me to evolve as well!" 

.. 

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[IMAGE] 

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Author: Tomorrow there's a high chance of a double chapter release!