Chapter 71: Awakening!

"I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I couldn't defend against him!"

Aoshi blamed himself intensely, while vigorously hitting his own head.

"It's not your fault, Aoshi."

Jyubei, standing beside him, flicked his bangs.

"I have to admit, Kira's sense of style surpasses yours."

Rin remained silent nearby, but the burning fury within him grew stronger.

When Kira scored the first goal, Rin wasn't fully serious yet.

But in the recent offensive and defensive exchange, Rin could say that he was in a highly serious state.

Yet he still couldn't stop Kira.

Not only was his puppetry strategy, which he believed was foolproof, broken by Kira's speed, but even the traps deliberately set on the defensive end were effortlessly overcome by Kira's brute strength.

This way, this way he would lose.

When he defeats this guy, he would be one step further from defeating Itoshi Sae.

He absolutely couldn't lose to someone like Kira!

Inside Rin's heart, an unknown emotion was rapidly spreading.

However, unlike Rin, on his side, Meguru's face showed a complex expression. It seemed to be a forced smile, but his body was trembling at the same time.

On one hand, this was the football he longed for, the opportunity to face Kira head-on on the field, against a true monster.

But on the other hand, Kira's display of formidable strength instilled fear in the monster within him. This made Meguru unconsciously become hesitant and unsure of himself on the field.

It was precisely because of that fear towards Kira that when he had the chance to take a shot earlier, he hesitated for half a second.

He knew that even without that half-second hesitation, his shot would undoubtedly be thwarted by Kira. But it was because of that terrifying feeling that he couldn't shoot without reservation afterwards.

In this way, he was even less likely to defeat Kira, and the gap between them would only widen!

Even in this match,Meguru felt like he was a step slower than everyone else, out of sync with the others on the field.

This couldn't go on, absolutely couldn't go on!

If it continued like this, the joy of football would cease to exist.

Regardless, he had to make the monster in his heart quiet down completely.

He had to eliminate the subconscious fear of Kira from his heart!

Once, the monster guided Meguru's actions on the field, but now it had become his shackles.

"Yes, it was because of the monster's presence that I never felt lonely when playing football alone before."

"Thank you, monster, for always being by my side. But now I can't rely on you anymore. If that's the case, I'll never be able to catch up to Kira's footsteps!"

"Please disappear, disappear! I don't need you anymore, monster!"

Meguru's expression changed. His gaze became unfathomable, as if it were a black hole ready to engulf everything, and the smile on his face vanished.

In his ears, the voice of the "monster" that guided his actions had completely disappeared. The next steps Meguru would take were already prepared to follow his own heart.

To act as he pleased, that was the football Meguru truly desired!

Red Team's attack!

Meguru dribbled the ball directly and charged into the White Team's half.

However, Ikki quickly blocked Meguru with the fastest speed.

"The attacking route is blocked, and Nagi and Rensuke can provide defensive support from behind. This guy should be aware of this, so passing is the best option the most suitable passing target for him is Rin."

Ikki used his excellent observation skills to assess the situation on the field. He believed that he had completely blocked Meguru's attacking route and that the opponent would choose to pass the ball back.

"Hey, pass it back."

Beside Meguru, Rin also commanded in a loud voice.

At this moment, Ikki sensed something.

He keenly felt that Meguru's aura seemed to have changed, and his expression became quite serious.

It was an expression that Meguru had never shown before, completely focusing his spirit on himself.

"Could it be?!"

Before Ikki could react, Meguru had already made a move.

He directly passed the ball through Ikki's legs and barely brushed past him. He almost lost his balance, but ultimately managed to maintain his center of gravity.

"What?!"

Ikki was dumbfounded. His defensive position was not bad at all, but Meguru managed to pass him.

This was simply brute force, and it was very irrational. Meguru should be aware of this, because even if he got past Ikki, there were still Rensuke and Nagi double-teaming him from behind.

"Is this guy crazy?"

"Dammit!"

Rin, who was on the side, was furious because Meguru went against his command and chose the most irrational one-on-one confrontation.

But Meguru's footsteps didn't pause for a moment. He continued to sprint at full speed towards the opponent.

"I'll stop him!"

Rensuke immediately moved forward to intercept--

But Meguru suddenly changed direction, causing a shift in his center of gravity, and in the instant his opponent took a step, he once again successfully dribbled the ball through his legs!

He got past both of them consecutively!

"Let's go side by side!"

Near Meguru, Jyubei and Meguru were positioned parallel to each other, intending to assist Meguru in passing and dribbling.

However, Meguru never glanced at Jyubei throughout the entire time.

"So annoying! I won't pass the ball!"

At this moment, Meguru's expression seemed to become somewhat fierce, as he was completely absorbed in his own football.

He refused to pass the ball to anyone and attacked on his own instinct!

"Damn it!"

Rensuke immediately stepped back, trying hard to defend, but Meguru had already created distance between them.

Nagi moved forward to provide defensive support, but Meguru directly executed a high-speed step-over, testing Nagi's balance, and then swiftly used a feint to get past him, successfully dribbling past Nagi.

Nagi instinctively reached out his hand to try to stop Meguru, but he couldn't stop him at all!

At this moment, although Meguru had been playing in a one-on-one state, he still displayed exceptional offensive abilities.

This attack posed a significant threat to the White Team.

"Triple-team him!"

Although Meguru successfully dodged Nagi, the time he spent on the change of direction allowed Ikki and Rensuke, who had previously been out of position, to catch up and provide defensive support.

However, even in the face of the triple-team, Meguru showed no signs of panic. On the contrary, his focus became even more concentrated.

The ball at his feet moved as if it had a life of its own, agilely shifting from side to side, occasionally leaping into the air, creating an illusion of opportunities for interceptions and leading the defenders astray.

"Hey, cut it out! Pass the ball to me!"

At this moment, Rin had arrived outside the encirclement and shouted angrily at Meguru.

Rin's frustration stemmed not only from Meguru's defiance of his command but also from the fact that everyone's attention was solely on Meguru, leaving him with a strong sense of dissatisfaction.

He had once believed that Blue lock was merely a stepping stone for him, and everyone else was just a stepping stone as well, unable to catch up with his pace.

Now, he not only felt that others were gradually catching up to him, but there was also the presence of Kira Ryosuke, who made him feel a sense of crisis.

How disgusting...

In the middle of the field, Meguru was like a performer in a magnificent waltz, using incredibly fancy moves to control the ball in front of him. These were techniques rarely seen in matches.

It was as if he had become the center of the world, preparing for a grand performance.

These moves were not just for show. First, he executed a Marseille turn to get past Rensuke, then suddenly performed a quick stop and back pass, causing Nagi, who was preparing to defend, to make a wrong judgment. He then swiftly used a Cruyff turn to bypass Ikki as well.

These three defenders were not weak, and they were also Triple-teaming him. It should have been an easy task to defend against him.

However, at this moment, Meguru completely transformed. Not only did his focus become highly concentrated, but his ball control skills seemed to have undergone a qualitative leap.

In this instant, Meguru seemed to be the most dazzling presence on the entire field.

Although it was a struggle, he successfully broke free from the encirclement and headed straight towards the White Team's goal.

In front of him, there was only one person left to defeat.

Kira Ryosuke!.

.....

"Meguru is being too reckless," Anri frowned and said to Ego, who was beside her.

Her mind was filled with confusion because in her impression, Meguru was not the type of player who hogged the ball. Whenever there was a suitable opportunity, he would selflessly pass the ball.

But now, Meguru was behaving completely differently. Even though Jyubei and Rin had created good chances through their positioning, Meguru still chose not to pass the ball, which was completely different from his previous style.

However, even so, Anri had to admit one thing: Meguru was displaying unparalleled skills, something that none of the others in Blue lock had shown before.

"I feel... Has his strength become stronger? Stronger than I expected..."

"This is a kind of awakening, or what they call 'FLOW'," Ego reached out and explained.

"FLOW?"

Anri was puzzled.

"Devoting oneself to the challenge leads to this state. FLOW is the enthusiastic state of the mind that humans reach by combining their 'most appropriate experiences.' Humans can become immersed in something to the point of forgetting the passage of time, enjoying this behavior. The brain is in an excited state, or 'flow of the mind.' In the eyes of others, a miraculous goal is born from various 'FLOW.'"

Ego explained with a very serious expression, while Anri just nodded lightly, not actually understanding what Ego was saying.

However, Anri also understood that Meguru had reached a level that himself couldn't reach in an instant.

"To be able to enter the FLOW state is the first step to becoming a top player. Although Meguru has successfully entered this state, he probably cannot control it freely yet," Ego said slowly.

"Because of his competitiveness, right? It's his desire to challenge Kira that has brought him to this level."

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"So, how will Kira respond?"

.....

Meguru dribbled the ball at the fastest speed and arrived in front of Kira.

He didn't hesitate nor could he hesitate. A momentary pause would allow the three defenders he had previously evaded to catch up.

Meguru now had only one choice: to get past Kira in the shortest amount of time.

The intense competitiveness burned like a blazing fire within Meguru, consuming all the fuel inside him. Regardless of the consequences, he had to reach his peak in this moment.

Meguru absolutely did not want the gap between Kira and himself to widen any further!

He lowered his center of gravity to the left, intending to shift Kira's center of gravity as well.

But in the next instant, Meguru abruptly tilted his body completely to the right, resembling a human pendulum.

Although the movement was not complex, it was executed with impressive speed and rhythm. Often, the simplest dribbling techniques were the most effective.

"Being able to come this far, you are indeed remarkable, Meguru. But now, as your opponent, I will go all out as well," Kira carefully observed Meguru's every move. With his ability, Rice Spirit, he was well aware of the possible actions Meguru might take.

As the last line of defense in the team, Kira would never allow Meguru to score easily!

In the instant Meguru changed his center of gravity, Kira followed at the fastest speed.

Meguru seemed even faster!

As Kira's center of gravity completely adjusted, Meguru brushed past his shoulder and charged forward.

In that moment, Meguru's gaze swept past Kira's side and directly focused on the goal.

Destined to score!

This time, Meguru didn't hesitate for a moment and immediately prepared to shoot!

"If this were a regular full-sized field, your attack would indeed be very threatening."

"But this is a scaled-down version of the field, and your playing space will be significantly reduced."

"Stop right here!"

Just as Meguru thought he had gotten past Kira, the latter swiftly turned around at an even faster speed and successfully disrupted his shot from behind!