The Start To An Intense Match

Without any delays, the referee blew the whistle and signaled the Blue Lock players to kick off the game.

Murano immediately kicked the ball back into his midfield to kick-start the game between the two teams, with a simplistic pass to Hiori, who dribbled forward with the ball.

Just when Hiori thought he had a clear path to move the ball forward, Itoshi Sae was already closing in on him, blocking all possible angles.

But Hiori didn't panic; instead, he calmly crossed the ball to Aryu Jyubei, who was sprinting up from the left flank. With a skilled touch, Aryu easily evaded Sou, Japan's defensive midfielder.

"Stylish!" Aryu said as he smoothly exchanged a one-two pass, with Kurona cutting in from the flank.

Kurona immediately went into action, skillfully dribbling his way forward on the field. He scanned the field to see if any of his teammates were open and ready to receive the ball. 

However, none of them were open, as they were being tightly marked by the U-20 Japan's defenders.

In particular, Darai, the U-20's left-back, and Wakatsuki, the U-20's defensive midfielder, were impressive in their efforts to tightly mark Murano and track his every move. In doing so, they were denying Murano any openings to make any meaningful plays or even score a goal.

'But is that enough to stop Murano?' Kurona smiled.

They were treating Murano as the great player he was, making sure he didn't get any service. This also left vast amounts of space in the defensive area. 

'Alright, fuck it!' Wanting to try his luck, Kurona decided to go for a goal as he raced towards the opposing team's goalkeeper.

In a one-on-one situation, he executed a clever no-look shot that went between the legs of the U-20's goalkeeper, Fukaku.

...

..

.

The crowd erupted into cheers and applause as they watched the young forward practically nutmeg the goalkeeper.

As the ball inched closer to the net, it appeared that Blue Lock's first goal was within reach.

But fate is well known for its cruel twists, as Oliver Aiku, the captain and defender for Japan's U-20 team, was there to make a last-ditch goal-line clearance to deny the goal, sending the ball out of bounds.

Pi!

The referee blew the whistle, signaling for a corner.

As close as it was, Aiku somehow managed to kick the ball out just before it crossed the goal line.

"Did you know number 11?" Aiku said, gesturing to Kurona.

"People often associate strikers as robbers and defenders as cops. But I ain't letting any robbers steal any goals on my watch," Aiku added confidently.

"Alright, we'll...we'll see about that, officer," Kurona replied, looking out of place.

"Heh, don't mind if I do," Aiku concluded their exchange.

The crowd, like a chorus, continued to chant Aiku's name.

Pi!

The referee finally blew the whistle after a few more seconds when all the players had settled into their positions in the box. The set-piece taker was Murano.

Murano swiftly sent a tempting cross towards Nagi, who was waiting eagerly for his chance to score.

Despite being closely guarded by defenders, Nagi wasted no time. Aiku was tightly guarding him, he noticed that he couldn't go in for the header. With a quick shift, Nagi controlled the ball and sent a perfectly timed lob over his marker, Wakatsuki, to the other side of the box.

With that well-timed, instantaneous movement, he managed to throw off Wakatsuki, his marker, and a few others.

As a result, they all turned toward the direction of the descending ball.

At that moment, time seemed to slow down as the ball descended, landing at Chigiri's feet.

"Spot on! Princess," Nagi hit a finger gun toward the goal box.

'This is it. The moment to make my name known. Because the best striker in the world... is me!' Chigiri thought as he had the opportunity to put his name on the scoreboard.

Then, before the opponents could react, Chigiri angled his body slightly before launching a volley towards the goal.

He desperately wanted the ball to find its way into the back of the net as he started to pump a fist.

He desperately wanted to be the first to score, but just as he started to feel hope, it quickly turned to despair once again.

It seems like luck wasn't really on the side of the Blue Lock players that evening.

That was because Fukaku, U-20's goalkeeper, had stretched himself and snatched the ball out of mid-air with a diving save to deny Team Blue Lock a chance to score.

The scoreboard remained at nil-nil during the 7th minute, with neither team able to break the deadlock.

U-20 Japan Nation Team vs. Blue Lock Eleven

Minute 7'

U-20 Japan 0-0 Blue Lock