Chapter 2: The Beggining of Blue Lock!

3rd Person POV:

Akira sat in the back of one of the buses, Bachira's sleeping figure beside him. He gazed out the window and saw a large building with the words "Blue Lock" emblazoned on it. The sight of the massive structure, designed to accommodate 300 players, caught his attention.

Akira thought to himself, "The JFU is spending an enormous amount of money on this. The whole place must cost billions of yen." As the bus arrived at their destination a few minutes later, a sense of anticipation filled him. "At long last," he muttered under his breath.

Exiting the bus, they were instructed to form a line and wait for their names to be called. Personal items such as phones and wallets were confiscated from them. Akira watched as each name was announced, until finally, it was his turn. "Next... Akio Akira," declared a beautiful woman named Anri Teieri, as indicated by her nametag. She handed him a uniform and directed him to enter the building, find the room with the letter corresponding to the emblem on his sleeve.

On the sleeve of his uniform was a pentagon with the label 'W-252.' Akira momentarily disregarded the number and focused on locating the room with the letter 'W.' After some searching, he found it. Stepping inside, he discovered the room to be empty, except for a screen displaying instructions. It prompted them to change into their uniforms and wait for further guidance.

In about 10 minutes, all the participants had gathered. Suddenly, the screen flickered to life, displaying Ego's face. "Have you finished changing, diamonds in the rough?" he asked, capturing everyone's attention. They turned to face the screen as he continued, "Hello there. The guys you'll be rooming with are not only your roommates but also your rivals who will assist you in improving. I have quantified and ranked your abilities based on my arbitrary and biased decision-making. The numbers on your uniforms represent your rankings, indicating where you stand among the 300 participants."

With eager anticipation, everyone swiftly looked down at their uniforms to discover their rankings. "Your ranks can change based on the results of your training and matches. The top five players will secure a spot to compete in the tournament taking place six months from now. They will be registered as forwards for the U20 World Cup."

Akira's excitement grew as he realized the opportunity before him. "This is exactly what I need. If I can make it into the top five, my name will gain recognition. That could open doors for me to play soccer in European leagues," he thought to himself.

Ego continued, "Furthermore, anyone who fails at Blue Lock will never have the chance to represent Japan." Akira shrugged off the statement, thinking, "Well, it doesn't matter to me. If things don't work out here, I can always go to college in Europe and get scouted from there."

Ego shifted the focus of his announcement. "What you need to acquire here is ego. I will now test you to measure that. It's time to play tag." Suddenly, a panel in the ceiling opened, revealing a ball. "You have 136 seconds (about 2 and a half minutes). Whoever is struck by the ball becomes 'it.' The person tagged as 'it' when time runs out will be eliminated. Oh, and no using your hands."

Ego's face disappeared, and a cartoonish image of a player named Kai Tokita appeared on the screen, accompanied by a countdown timer set for 2 minutes and 15 seconds. Kai was taken aback by the unexpected display of his name and looked around, witnessing the frenzy as everyone scrambled to find a corner, perceiving it as a better position. Shaking off his surprise, Kai began scanning the area, searching for someone to target.

As the timer ticked down, Kai attempted eight shots, missing every single one. Each missed shot fueled his frustration, intensifying his anger. By the time the timer reached zero, Kai found himself still tagged as "it."

"00:00 GAME OVER" flashed on the screen, accompanied by Ego's face reappearing. Ego explained that only results mattered in this place, emphasizing how the room they were in replicated the dimensions of a penalty area and how players typically only had 2 minutes and 16 seconds to prove themselves.

Unfortunately for Kai, his soccer career at Blue Lock ended. He walked out of the room, his expression downcast, his anger palpable. However, there was nothing anyone could do. After all, this was Blue Lock—a place willing to sacrifice the dreams of 299 players who may not achieve their desired results.

Once Kai had left, Ego explained that although all of them had passed the first test, it was not over yet. The eleven of them would now play as a team against four other teams in their stratum. The top two teams would advance, and the top scorer from the remaining team would also pass.

TIMESKIP: DAY 3

In third-person perspective, multiple players from Team W were observed engaging in physical conditioning exercises. They ran on treadmills, lifted weights, and pushed themselves to their limits. Unbeknownst to the players, these tests served the purpose of helping them realize their current capabilities and allowing Ego to analyze everyone's performance.

Akira's POV:

I have not been able to connect with anyone here, not that I am interested in doing so. None of them seem intriguing to me. Especially now, during the physical tests, I can see that none of these guys specialize in a particular style of play. It is as if they never truly took their football dreams seriously. The difference between their physical abilities and mine is night and day. The only ones who stand out, though not by much, are the twins.

Our rankings have been updated, and I find myself at the top of Team W, which is where I rightfully belong. Ego explained that Blue Lock consists of five buildings, with teams B to Z. Team B occupies ranks 1 to 11, Team C takes positions 12 to 22, and so on. He made it clear that we are at the bottom of the ladder and must climb our way to the top to prove our worth.

Furthermore, Ego informed us that the eleven of us would form a team and compete against Teams Z, Y, X, and V. He outlined the scoring system, where a win would earn us 3 points, a draw would give us 1 point, and a loss would result in zero points. In a tie, the goal difference would be considered. Ego added one final rule: the top striker from each team would pass, regardless of their team's position in the table.

We were given only two days to prepare for our upcoming match against Team X, so we had to make the most of our limited time.

1:23:59:57 TEAM W VS TEAM X

Two days later...

3rd Person POV:

Team W could be seen stretching on the field, lacking proper formation as they had yet to play together. Team X entered the field, with their number 10 leading the way. As the teams lined up, the formations appeared as follows:

Team X: 5-4-1 with Barou Shoei as their central forward.

Team W intended to line up in a 4-3-3 formation, but no one was positioned correctly.

The game commenced with Team X in possession of the ball. Barou passed it to their central attacking midfielder, and the two midfielders played a quick passing game between themselves. Observing closely, Akira noticed Barou positioning himself with a 23-meter distance from the goal. The midfielders skillfully maneuvered past the Wanima brothers with their pass-and-go style, eventually crossing the ball to Barou. He controlled it with his chest and prepared for a shot, but Akira swiftly blocked his attempt. Akira was not only defending against Barou but also analyzing his playing style. However, he was taken by surprise when Barou managed to execute a curved shot, precisely aiming for the top right corner of the goal, resulting in a goal for Team X.

"I am the King of the field, you damned peasant. Don't even try to block me, got it?" Barou taunted Akira as he walked away, unaffected by his opponent's efforts. Akira remained silent, realizing that he had underestimated Barou. If he wanted to progress to the next selection phase, he needed to score the most goals for himself.

Restart:

Akira's POV:

This time, the ball was in my possession, and I knew that if I passed it to my teammates, there was a chance I would not get it back. I had a plan in mind, a smirk forming on my face as I locked eyes with Barou. He appeared confident, expecting me to pass the ball to someone else. "Fool," I whispered under my breath, utilizing my explosive acceleration to leave Barou stunned. The shock on his face was evident, as he never anticipated such speed from anyone on Team W. In one swift motion, I dribbled past the midfielders without losing momentum. Approaching the defensive line, I noticed the three defenders guarding the goal, but I could not help but smirk. I lofted the ball into the air, waiting for it to reach its maximum height, and then executed a bicycle kick, sending the ball soaring into the top left corner of the goal.

Silence enveloped the field, everyone taken aback by my unexpected play. From the explosive speed to the bicycle kick, no one had anticipated such skill from me, not even my own teammates who were unaware of my true abilities.

Restart:

The game began with Team X in possession of the ball, attempting to execute their usual strategy of passing to Barou. However, this time, Junichi Wanima intercepted the pass along with his brother. They utilized their quick one-two passes to swiftly maneuver past Team X's defense, resulting in an easy goal. With Team X realizing that Barou was their primary threat, they assigned three players to constantly guard him, effectively shutting him down for the remainder of the match. Without Barou's influence, Team X crumbled.

The game concluded with a final score of 7-1, with me scoring four goals, Keisuke scoring one, and Junichi scoring two.

With this impressive victory, Team W secured second place, boasting a goal difference of six compared to Team V's eight. The match solidified our team dynamic, with the Wanima twins and me leading the offensive line and serving as the primary goal scorers. The rest of Team W had no issues, hoping for a smooth ride into the second selection phase.

In the locker room, Team W celebrated their remarkable win. Despite the smile on my face, I could not shake off Ego's words. He had spoken about how although we were currently on the same team, it would not last forever.

My thoughts were interrupted by Ego, who appeared on the locker room screen. He emphasized the importance of strikers in turning soccer from zero to one, while the rest of the team had the responsibility to turn that one into a hundred. Ego stressed the need to hone our individual skills and stand out, using our strengths to disrupt the structure of opposing teams. He proceeded to display Team V's overwhelming 8-0 victory against Team Y in their previous match, emphasizing that we would soon face them in our next game.