Chapter 64: However… I Refuse!
The giant screen immediately went dark, and the crowd broke into loud discussions. At this moment, one person was the first to move.
His expression was stern, his figure tall and slender, yet his muscle lines were sharply defined.
He placed a soccer ball beside him under his foot, then kicked it. A perfect high-trajectory curved shot swept across the air above the hall.
"What a beautiful strike."
Beside him, Isagi Yoichi couldn't help but voice his admiration.
But right then, the same person kicked again—this time, it was a low-trajectory curved shot.
The two balls, shot one after the other, met at an unbelievably precise point mid-air.
"What?!"
"No way…"
"Incredible technique."
This one action left nearly everyone present stunned, though Kira Ryosuke only calmly shifted his gaze toward that person. He knew exactly who he was.
Itoshi Rin—the younger brother of the genius midfielder Itoshi Sae, and in the original story, the most well-rounded and powerful talent within Blue Lock.
However, in Kira Ryosuke's eyes, he was also completely deranged.
In the original, he came to Blue Lock solely to surpass his older brother Itoshi Sae, and he possessed an arrogance that normal people couldn't even comprehend—looking down on everyone else.
Of course, he had the ability to justify his arrogance.
"Open the door. Warm-ups are over."
Itoshi Rin said coldly, before walking through the door with an expression that looked like he couldn't care less.
...
"Interesting."
At the same time, Itoshi Sae was at home, replaying several recordings.
They were the matches Kira Ryosuke had played inside Blue Lock.
Earlier, Itoshi Sae had unintentionally seen footage of Kira's match against Team X, became interested, and asked his agent to obtain full footage of Kira's matches from the first selection from the football association chairman.
He had been watching repeatedly for a long time—something he had never done before.
"Forward, defender, midfielder… this guy is nearly omnipotent on the field. He completely dominated the pitch. Fascinating. I've never seen a player with abilities like this."
Itoshi Sae murmured to himself, eyes glued to the screen,
"If I could play a match with this guy, it might be very interesting. Maybe he's the only one who could perfectly receive my passes."
...
Back inside Blue Lock, after saying goodbye to his teammates, Kira Ryosuke stepped through the door as well.
Following the guidance, he soon arrived at a large, open, square-shaped area.
Suddenly, a humanoid holographic projection appeared in front of him, and on the wall behind it, an image of a goal was projected as well.
This was Blue Lock's latest piece of technology—BLUELOCK MAN.
It was an AI hologram system that recorded data from world-class goalkeepers and could replicate their exact save motions. And it wasn't just a projection—microchips implanted inside the soccer balls allowed for simulated physical collisions when the hologram's motion aligned with the ball.
This was the first challenge of the second selection: a solo mission—score 100 goals in 90 minutes, with the difficulty increasing with every goal.
But for Kira Ryosuke, this wasn't difficult. On the contrary, it was an opportunity to train.
Fusion skill—kick—shoot—score!
Kira fired shots into the net like a machine.
"Kira's speed is insane!"
In the monitoring room, Anri Teieri couldn't hold back her gasp. Even though she had already witnessed Kira's overwhelming strength, his speed still exceeded her expectations.
"He's completely at ease."
Ego Jinpachi shifted his gaze to the screens of the other players. Most of them were struggling—after all, BLUELOCK MAN was equivalent to an elite goalkeeper, and the difficulty would continue to rise.
Only Kira looked utterly relaxed, as if this wasn't even a test but just practice.
"Even though he goes against my philosophy, I really am curious about what he'll show next."
Without realizing it, Kira Ryosuke had already finished the test. The holograms disappeared, and the tightly closed door opened again—the next stage was ahead.
He stepped through the passage and entered another hall. On a screen embedded in the wall, a line of text appeared.
"Form teams of 3 to advance."
This was the true content of the second selection.
"But…"
Kira glanced around.
At that moment, he was the only one there.
"Looks like… I was a bit too fast."
With a sigh, Kira casually found a place to sit.
A few minutes later, the entrance opened again, and a familiar figure walked in.
Itoshi Rin.
"What a pointless test."
Rin muttered to himself as he walked into the hall.
"Three-man teams? What a waste of my time. I still have to wait for those insects…"
While Rin was talking to himself, he suddenly noticed Kira's presence. His brow twitched slightly.
He instinctively assumed he would be first. He never imagined Kira could be here before him.
Rin glanced at the name on Kira's badge but didn't care. In his eyes, everyone else was trash.
At that moment, a third person entered.
He was tall, long-haired, and muttering to himself:
"Artificial intelligence… I suppose that's fashionable."
Kira looked at him—Aryu Jyubei, a player with extraordinary physical strength.
"Hey, it's the three of us. Let's go. Don't waste my time."
Seeing Kira and Aryu Jyubei, Itoshi Rin issued the command in a tone that made it clear he didn't care who his teammates were—there were three people, so he planned to form a team immediately.
"Such fashionable phrasing."
Aryu Jyubei nodded, unfazed, and didn't mind teaming with Rin.
At that moment, Kira lightly smiled and said:
"When did I ever agree to team with you?"
"What did you say?"
Rin's brows twitched again. This time he finally looked Kira directly in the eye. His expression didn't change, but irritation clearly flickered underneath.
"You heard me the first time. No need to repeat myself."
Kira rose to his feet, meeting Rin's gaze head-on.
Normally, Kira was easy-going and got along well with others—
But facing someone who was arrogant beyond reason and utterly ignorant of respect like Itoshi Rin, Kira had zero intention of being polite.
"Such a fashionable conversation. And this pretty boy's face is fashionable too."
Aryu Jyubei added, unable to stop using the word "fashionable."
"Just an insect. Watch who you're talking to."
Rin took a step forward, looking like he might devour Kira alive.
"What's wrong? And who exactly are you? Someone who doesn't even know basic manners—I suggest you leave Blue Lock to relearn proper behavior. Maybe elementary school football suits you better."
Kira smiled as he countered.
Veins bulged on Rin's forehead, wriggling as though about to burst—
But before things escalated, a fourth player, Tokimitsu Aoshi, walked in.
"We're leaving."
Rin didn't want to waste time on Kira. He dragged Aryu Jyubei and the confused Tokimitsu toward the next area.
Before leaving, Rin turned his head, his gaze razor-sharp as it stabbed into Kira:
"If I meet you on the field, I'll kill you. Remember that."
"Oh? You can try."
Kira only smiled.
Soon, Rin and the others left. One after another, more players entered the hall. Since most were from other teams and didn't know Kira, they didn't approach him.
After a while, two familiar faces appeared.
Nagi Seishiro and Mikage Reo.
"Kira Ryosuke?"
Seeing Kira, Reo's mouth twitched. His eyes carried hostility—he planned to ignore Kira completely. He already saw Kira as his nemesis, the one who ended his and Nagi's undefeated streak.
But Nagi was completely different. He walked up to Kira and greeted him:
"Hey, Kira. You're fast."
"Just lucky, I suppose."
Kira returned the greeting politely.
"Are you waiting for teammates to form a group?"
Nagi asked, and Kira nodded.
"Then maybe we can team up."
Nagi suggested. After playing against Team Z, he had become curious about Kira.
"Hey, Nagi—are you seriously going to team with him?"
Reo stared at him, confused.
"Yeah."
Nagi replied, dead serious.
"Ugh… fine. If that's what you want."
Reo shrugged. Even though he disliked Kira, if Nagi wanted it, he wouldn't object.
"But I'll say this first—I know you're skilled, but don't mess up the chemistry between me and Nagi—"
But at that moment, Kira said:
"Sorry, I'm saving at least one spot for my original teammates. If it's only you, Nagi, then it's fine."
Truthfully, Kira didn't want someone like Reo as a teammate. Not only was Reo one of the biggest eccentrics in Blue Lock, but he also maintained an arrogant attitude despite losing, believing he was superior.
"Ha? Those guys are just dead weight anyway. If you—"
But before Reo could finish, Nagi had already nodded:
"Okay, then I'll join your team."
"Huh?! Nagi—you're supposed to team with me!"
Reo froze, needed several seconds to process, then panicked.
Nagi calmly answered:
"In the last match, Kira was the best player on the field—better than everyone else combined. So I want to try playing with him."
"But—but teaming up was supposed to be absolute!"
Sweat formed on Reo's forehead; he visibly panicked.
"Reo, you taught me football. Becoming the world's best with you is absolute.
But we lost. We're not the strongest anymore.
So I want to improve. I want to play with Kira."
Nagi's voice was calm, but his decision firm.
After losing that match, his worldview was shaken. He had followed Reo, thinking teammates without talent were meaningless—but after fighting Kira and hearing his words, that belief cracked.
Kira was not only strong—
He could make "non-talented" teammates bloom beyond expectations.
And his philosophy differed from Blue Lock's.
Nagi wanted to know which one was right.
"Fine… do whatever you want…"
Reo's voice trembled with frustration as he glared at Kira.
In his eyes burned the flames of hatred.
Kira didn't particularly like Reo, but he didn't mind accepting the unspoken challenge.
Soon, more familiar faces arrived—Isagi, Bachira, Kunigami, and Chigiri.
"You guys are slow—I've been waiting for half an hour!"
Kira greeted them with a smile.
"You were too fast, Kira! How long did it take you to score a hundred goals?!"
"So we form teams of three here?"
"Huh? Nagi? You're here too—where's Reo?"
<><><><>
〔TL〕
The chameleon gets c*cked yet again. TT_TT