Rin Itoshi had already learned to block out whatever I, Ryūma, was saying.
He turned and walked straight toward the locker room, not giving me another chance to speak.
"Hey? Rin! Hey, where are you going, Rin?"
"Seriously, guys, why is Rin still so shy? Can't he just hang out with us more?"
"A recluse like him—only we would bother dragging him along. Sigh… such a pitiful kid."
My words left Team Y completely speechless.
They all wanted to snap back, "Do you even know what the word 'understanding' means?"
But Yo Hiori quickly changed the subject.
"Ryūma, let's hurry and get changed so we can eat. That match drained me—I'm starving."
"Now that you mention it, I'm starving too! Let's go!"
With that, I headed for the locker room first, the others following behind me.
Team Y remained silent the whole time. Only after we had left did Kudo Tōya snap out of it.
Dropping to his knees, he pounded the ground with his fists and roared:
"Damn it!!!!"
"Why? Why, after forty minutes, can that monster Ryūma still unleash such speed?!"
"And Rin Itoshi too—it wasn't right to send three players to block him!"
"If I'd sent someone else to head the ball while I stayed in the box, none of that would've happened!"
"No… none of it worked! Nothing worked!"
Kudo Tōya vented everything out before finally calming down.
"What right do I have to blame anyone else? They executed my plan perfectly."
"In the end, it was my fault we lost. If only I had anticipated Ryūma's change…"
"No! It's not about Anticipation. Maybe I'm just unfit to be a striker."
"Yeah… I've grown too used to passing. Maybe I really don't deserve to be a forward."
Remembering Ryūma's words from that final play, Kudo gave a bitter smile and turned toward his team's locker room.
"Sorry, Kudo!"
Suddenly, the voices of his teammates rang out in unison behind him.
He turned, stunned, staring blankly at them.
"What are you—"
Before he could finish, they all cut him off, speaking over one another.
"Sorry, Kudo. If our final runs had been just a little faster, Ryūma wouldn't have gotten the ball."
"Yeah, I need to work on my speed. Though… come to think of it, we're probably all getting cut."
"We're really sorry, Kudo. We held you back. With your talent, you should've been able to advance."
These were the two who had tried to block Ryūma's final shot. They were convinced his goal was partly their fault.
"We three too. If two of us had pinned Rin down, we could've freed one player and made your setup so much easier."
"Yeah, Kudo. Sorry we were useless. It took three of us just to barely contain Rin."
"Yeah, really sorry. Haha, we thought we were doing okay, but in the end, we dragged you down."
These were the three who had held Rin off until the final moments. They also believed his goal had been on them.
"You guys are lucky. I feel like the two of us were completely useless."
"Yeah, before the formation change, we just sat in the box and couldn't stop a single shot."
"If we're talking useless, weren't we even worse?"
The left and right backs of Team Y spoke bitterly.
"Hahaha, then we're all useless!"
"Hey, don't say that. Our front three were still pretty strong."
"Yeah, every single goal we scored came from them!"
Mii Hisakawa, Shima Kobayashi, and Kageaki Matsutani fell silent for a moment before speaking with guilt.
"No… even if we scored the goals, we made plenty of mistakes too."
"Yeah, I lost almost every physical duel, and my positioning was off multiple times."
"Exactly. If we'd executed Kudo's plan perfectly, I believe we really could've won."
"We're sorry, Kudo. We dragged you down with us."
"Yeah, Kudo. Even if I'm the top scorer now, I'd give you the advancement spot instead."
"Every goal I scored was because you directed it!"
"You idiots!!"
Kudo clenched his fists, lowered his head, and roared. His teammates froze in shock.
Why had Kudo suddenly lost control again?
Slowly, he raised his head. Tear streaks ran down his cheeks, but a smile tugged at his lips.
"Who in their right mind would thank their manipulator? You really are idiots."
"And besides, what mistake did you even make? As the one directing, I should take all the blame for losing."
"Why are you all scrambling to shoulder responsibility?"
Mii Hisakawa ran to Kudo first, throwing an arm around his neck with a grin.
"You're calling us idiots? And what do you mean it's all your fault?"
"Yeah, Kudo! We're a team—we celebrate wins together and we bear losses together!"
"Exactly. I only scored because of you, Kudo. If I blamed you, I wouldn't be human."
"It's just a shame we won't get to play together again."
"Hahaha! But playing with you, Kudo, made me feel invincible!"
Looking at his laughing teammates, Kudo smiled helplessly, memories rushing back.
Yes—almost none of his past teammates had ever been willing to follow his tactics. Because following them required total trust.
If he told you to do something, you couldn't do anything else. Even if the ball was right in front of you, even if you were about to score, if Kudo told you to pass, you had to trust him completely and pass without hesitation.
There had been one or two who trusted him once, who followed his plans. But after losing, they never trusted him again.
They even blamed him, saying, "We did exactly what you said. So if we lost, it's your fault."
But what they never realized was that if you doubted the plan from the very start, thinking it might fail, then you had never trusted him in the first place.
That doubt made every action hesitant—always wondering, "Is what Kudo told me really the right move?"
But now, Team Y was completely different. No one blamed him. No one questioned his orders.
They trusted him unconditionally—every command, every tactic.
And each of them reflected on their own shortcomings, believing they hadn't fulfilled their roles properly within his strategy.
Kudo looked at them all again and spoke.
"You idiots really are weak—your positioning is sloppy, your interceptions predictable, your shots lack power, and you've got no improvisation."
"But… you trusted me. You followed my orders."
"Thank you—for cooperating with my ruthless tactics."
"Being your teammate was my honor."
Mii Hisakawa quietly wiped his eyes, then slung an arm over Kudo's shoulder, leading him toward the locker room.
"Since when did you get so sentimental, you jerk! Come on, let's trade today's goals for steak!"
"Haha! Steak it is!"
The rest of Team Y linked arms, heading to the locker room together.
Unlike Teams Z and W, they weren't lifeless after losing.
They hadn't even bothered listening to Jinpachi Ego's speech.
In that moment, they had truly become teammates—ones who could rely on each other, even in defeat.
...
(35 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser