The ball hit the back of the net, and the sound echoed like a gavel striking a sounding block.
Team V: 1 - Team W: 0
Nagi stood in the penalty box, his leg still raised from the volley that had opened the scoring. He slowly lowered it, looking at his foot with mild curiosity, as if wondering how something so simple could feel so good.
Back at the center circle, Renzo was smiling. It wasn't a celebration; it was an invitation.
"Come on," Renzo's voice drifted across the pitch, reaching the ears of the shell-shocked Team W players. "The game has just started. Don't tell me you're already broken."
The Wanima twins, Junichi and Keisuke, glared at him. Their crocodile-like faces were twisted in a mixture of humiliation and rage. They had been bypassed. Ignored. Treated like traffic cones on a training ground.
"Don't get cocky!" Keisuke screamed, his voice cracking. "It was just one lucky long ball!"
"Yeah!" Junichi roared. "We'll crush you! We'll tear your legs off!"
Renzo chuckled. "Then come and try."
Kickoff.
The game resumed, but the dynamic had shifted irrevocably. The first goal had shattered the tension, unleashing the monster that was Team V.
Whatever confidence Team W had possessed moments ago began to evaporate under the heat of pure, overwhelming talent.
Reo Mikage took control of the midfield. He was the conductor who could do anything at a high level. He received a pass from Sota, turned effortlessly away from a tackle by Koki Mera, and scanned the field.
"Zantetsu!" Reo barked.
On the right flank, Zantetsu adjusted his glasses.
ZOOM.
It wasn't a run; it was an explosion. Zantetsu accelerated from zero to top speed in an instant. The Team W left-back, Raito Fuwa, didn't even have time to turn his hips. One second Zantetsu was in front of him, the next he was five yards behind him.
"So fast!" Fuwa gasped, stumbling as he tried to chase.
Reo's pass was perfect, weighted to land exactly in Zantetsu's path. Zantetsu collected the ball without breaking stride. He cut inside, his movement sharp and angular.
"I will cut through you like a hot knife through... tofu," Zantetsu announced, to which even Team V cringed.
"Really?" Rikiya asked.
Back with Zantetsu.
He drew two defenders toward him, creating a vacuum in the center.
"Reo!" Zantetsu squared the ball back to the edge of the box.
Reo was already there. He stepped onto the ball, looking like he was going to shoot. The defense froze.
It was a feint.
Reo flicked the ball to his left.
Renzo was waiting.
He didn't trap it. He let the ball run across his body, confusing the defender Kai Tokita, before snapping a shot with the outside of his right boot.
The ball curved wickedly, finding the bottom corner.
GOAL.Team V: 2 - Team W: 0Scorer: Renzo Takamine (Assisted by Reo Mikage)
"Two," Renzo whispered, holding up two fingers. "Eight to go."
The massacre continued.
Team W tried to regroup. They tried to use their numbers to swarm the midfield. But they were fighting a hydra — cut off one head, and two more would bite you.
20th Minute.
Nagi was drifting again. To the untrained eye, he looked like he was sleepwalking. He wandered into the box, unnoticed by the panicked defenders who were too busy trying to stop Renzo and Reo.
Renzo had the ball deep in the midfield. He was surrounded by three players — the twins and a defensive midfielder.
"Kill him!" Junichi yelled. "Break his ankles!"
Renzo didn't panic. He used his arms to hold them off, his balance immovable. He shielded the ball, waiting.
Now.
He scooped the ball up, juggling it over Keisuke's sliding tackle, and volleyed a pass toward the far post.
It looked like a bad pass. It was too high. Too floaty.
But Nagi was there.
The white-haired genius jumped. He extended his leg high into the air, trapping the ball with the side of his foot while suspended in gravity-defying silence. He landed, turned, and slotted the ball past the keeper before anyone else had even landed from their jumps.
GOAL.Team V: 3 - Team W: 0Scorer: Nagi Seishiro (Assisted by Renzo Takamine)
"Nice pass, Renzo," Nagi mumbled, high-fiving Renzo as they jogged back. "That was easy."
"You make it look easy," Renzo grinned.
Team W was crumbling. Their formation was gone. Their communication was reduced to screaming matches. Noboru Jigen was arguing with the keeper. Yusei Amazora looked like he wanted to cry.
Only the Wanima twins were still burning with fury.
"Shut up!" Junichi punched his own teammate, Jigen, in the shoulder.
"Stop whining! Get the ball to us! We're the only ones who can score!"
28th Minute.
The turning point — or rather, the slight hiccup — occurred.
Reo Mikage was feeling good. Too good.
He had the ball in the center circle. He looked at the scoreboard. 3-0. It was a blowout. He looked at Team W. They were a mess.
This is boring, Reo thought. I can do whatever I want.
He saw Zantetsu making a run on the wing again.
"Go long!" Reo shouted.
He attempted a flashy, no-look trivela pass. It was arrogant and complettly unnecessary.
And it was readable.
The Wanima twins, despite their anger, were locked in. Their "telepathy" wasn't magic; it was years of playing together, breathing the same air, hating the same enemies.
Junichi saw Reo's eyes shift. Keisuke saw Reo's hips turn.
They moved instantly.
"Gotcha!" Keisuke intercepted the pass, chesting it down.
"Counter!" Junichi screamed, sprinting forward.
Reo's eyes widened. "Shit!"
The twins exploded down the field. They bypassed the midfield in seconds.
Retsu Nerima and Rikiya Hohai, Team V's defenders, stepped up to stop them.
"One-two!" Keisuke yelled.
He passed to Junichi. Junichi drew Nerima in, then back-heeled it into space. Keisuke ran onto it.
It was seamless. It was primal.
They reached the edge of the box. Sota was the last line of defense.
"Cross!" Junichi signaled with a grunt.
Keisuke crossed the ball low and hard. Junichi threw himself at it, sliding on the turf, his cleats scraping the artificial grass.
He connected.
The ball flew past the Team V keeper, smashing into the roof of the net.
GOAL.Team V: 3 - Team W: 1Scorer: Junichi Wanima (Assisted by Keisuke Wanima)
The stadium was silent for a split second before the twins erupted.
"YEAAAAH!" "IN YOUR FACE!"
They hugged each other violently, screaming insults at Team V.
Reo stood frozen in the midfield, his face pale. He had messed up. He had given them hope.
"My bad," Reo muttered, clenching his fists. "I got careless."
Renzo walked up to him. He wasn't angry. He looked... amused.
"You dropped your crown, King," Renzo teased him. "Don't let the peasants touch it."
Reo grit his teeth. "Shut up. I'll make it up."
"Good," Renzo's eyes narrowed, shifting to the celebrating twins.
"Let's end it."
Then it began.
If the first thirty minutes were a beating, the rest of the game was an execution.
Renzo decided that Team W had had their fun.
35th Minute.
Renzo received the ball from the kickoff. He didn't pass. He didn't look for Nagi.
He ran straight at the twins.
"You think one goal changes anything?" Renzo said as he approached them.
Keisuke lunged. Renzo chopped the ball to the left — an Elasticos that snapped so fast it blurred. Keisuke fell over his own feet.
Junichi came next. Renzo didn't even use a skill move. He just accelerated. His change of pace left Junichi grasping at air.
Renzo drove into the box. The defenders backed away, terrified.
He smashed the ball into the bottom corner. Pure power.
GOAL.Team V: 4 - Team W: 1Scorer: Renzo Takamine
42nd Minute.
Zantetsu was feeling left out.
"I need to participate in the carnage," Zantetsu declared.
'Always so dramatic,' Renzo thought.
Renzo had the ball on the wing. He drew three defenders — the twins and a midfielder. They were obsessed with stopping him.
Renzo smirked. He chipped a delicate ball over their heads.
Zantetsu ran onto it. "Acceleration mode: Maximum."
He caught the ball and blasted a shot across the keeper's face.
GOAL.Team V: 5 - Team W: 1Scorer: Zantetsu Tsurugi (Assisted by Renzo Takamine)
Halftime.
Team W trudged off the field, heads down. Their teammates were arguing. Hiromu Munakata was shoving Takuma Isezaki. They were broken.
Only the twins sat together, drinking water aggressively, staring at Renzo with hate-filled eyes. They weren't giving up. But they were alone.
Second Half.
The second half was a blur of misery for Team W.
Renzo was everywhere. He was tackling in defense, dribbling in midfield, and finishing in the attack. He was racking up stats like he was playing a video game on beginner difficulty.
55th Minute.
Reo, desperate to redeem himself for the earlier error, went on a solo run. He dribbled past two players, cut inside, and unleashed a curling shot.
The keeper parried it.
But Renzo was there. He anticipated the rebound. He didn't shoot. He saw Nagi standing at the far post, looking bored.
Renzo headed the ball across the face of the goal.
Nagi tapped it in.
GOAL.Team V: 6 - Team W: 1Scorer: Nagi Seishiro (Assisted by Renzo Takamine)
68th Minute.
Renzo decided it was time for his hat-trick.
He received a pass from Zantetsu. He was thirty yards out.
"Shoot!" Reo yelled.
Renzo wound up. The defense flinched.
He didn't shoot. He passed it through the legs of Kai Tokita.
Reo ran onto it, one-on-one with the keeper. He slotted it home.
GOAL.Team V: 7 - Team W: 1Scorer: Reo Mikage (Assisted by Renzo Takamine)
"That's for the mistake," Renzo winked at Reo. "We're even."
Reo sighed, smiling despite himself. "You're annoying."
85th Minute.
The twins were exhausted. They were panting, their jerseys soaked. They had run more than anyone else on their team. They had tried to tackle Renzo, tried to stop Nagi, tried to block Zantetsu.
But it was useless.
Renzo had the ball one last time. He was at the edge of the box.
Junichi Wanima stood in front of him. His legs were shaking.
"Damn you..." Junichi wheezed.
Renzo looked at him. He saw the fire dying out.
Renzo shifted the ball to his right foot. He looked at the top corner.
Ten points.
He whipped his leg. The ball flew like a comet, bypassing Junichi, bypassing the keeper, and nestling into the top bin with a satisfying thwack.
GOAL.Team V: 8 - Team W: 1Scorer: Renzo Takamine (Hat-trick)
The final whistle blew seconds later.
Full Time.
Team V: 8 - Team W: 1
The Team W players collapsed. Some were crying. Some were staring at the ceiling, wondering why they had ever signed up for this hell.
The stats flashed on the screen:
Renzo Takamine: 3 Goals, 3 Assists.
Nagi Seishiro: 2 Goals.
Reo Mikage: 2 Goals, 2 Assists.
Zantetsu Tsurugi: 1 Goal, 2 Assists.
Renzo stood in the center circle, stretching his back. He felt good. Six goal involvements. That was three goals plus three assists... wait, assists counted as points? He'd have to check with Ego. If not, he had 3 points.
He needed 7 more.
He began to walk off the field with Reo and Nagi.
As he passed the Wanima twins, he stopped.
Junichi and Keisuke were on their knees, staring at the turf. They looked broken. The humiliation of losing to their former teammate.
Renzo looked down at them.
"Hey," Renzo said.
The twins flinched, looking up. They expected mockery. They expected him to laugh.
Renzo wasn't smiling. His expression was serious.
"Stand tall," Renzo said, his voice cutting through the noise of the stadium.
The twins blinked.
"Your team gave up," Renzo continued, gesturing to the weeping pile of Team W players. "They broke after the second goal. They stopped running. They stopped trying."
Renzo looked Junichi in the eye.
"But you two didn't. You scored against us. You forced Reo to make a mistake. That goal wasn't luck. It was tenacity."
He offered a small, respectful nod.
"You're not trash like the rest of them. So get up. If you want to beat me, you'll have to survive this building first."
Renzo turned his back on them and walked away.
"Let's go, Team V," Renzo called out. "I'm hungry."
Reo and Nagi fell into step beside him.
"You're soft," Reo muttered, though he looked pleased with the win. "Encouraging the enemy?"
"They scored," Renzo shrugged. "Credit where credit is due. Besides..."
Renzo grinned, the 'Crazy Smile' flickering back for a second.
"It's more fun if they come back for seconds, isn't it?"
Behind them, on the pitch, Junichi Wanima wiped the sweat and tears from his face. He grabbed Keisuke's hand and pulled his brother up. They watched the back of the Number 10 disappear into the tunnel.
They didn't say anything. But the fire in their eyes hadn't gone out.