Chapter 131: Leveling the Score
Author's Note: Playing "Big Bang Drive Goal Theme" in the background while reading this chapter will definitely elevate your experience!
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"Let's take a look at the revised Blue Lock formation."
"The newcomer, Yo Hiori, has slotted directly into the left wing. It looks like Kenyu Yukimiya has dropped back to fill the right back position, while Mikage Reo has taken over for Niko at center-back."
...
As soon as Reo stepped onto the pitch, he walked straight up to Nagi.
"You better start scoring, Nagi. Is this really all you've got?"
"Yeah, I know," Nagi replied with his usual lack of energy.
"If we don't win this, it's game over. Everything we've worked for ends here."
"I told you, I know," Nagi repeated, though a faint spark of focus finally touched his eyes. "It's not time for the credits to roll yet."
With the substitutions settled, the match resumed.
Blue Lock had possession. Isagi received the kick-off from Rin, his mind already racing through the new tactical possibilities.
'Our previous plays were all built around Kira's gravity. But now we have Hiori on the pitch.'
Hiori's strength was his surgical passing and his ability to remain cold under pressure. He was a playmaker who lived to orchestrate the attack from the flanks. Isagi didn't hesitate; he fired a sharp pass toward Hiori on the wing.
"Don't think you're getting past me, Blue-head!"
The bead-eyed Teppei Neru was on him instantly. Hiori's eyes scanned the pitch, his pupils darting as he processed the defensive shifting. Neru was used to speedsters like Yukimiya, but he hadn't figured out Hiori's rhythm yet.
Hiori wasn't looking to beat him with speed. He was looking for a lane.
Suddenly, Hiori whipped an outside-of-the-foot cross. The ball curved through a microscopic gap between two U-20 defenders, landing perfectly at the feet of a surging Tabito Karasu.
'An outside-spin pass through the eye of a needle? Seriously?' Neru's tiny eyes widened in shock.
"Still threading the needle just like the old days, huh?" Karasu muttered as he trapped the ball.
He used his arm to shield the ball from a defender, maintaining his "crow's reach" before flicking a return pass back to Hiori. The two of them executed a series of lightning-fast short passes, carving a path through the U-20 midfield.
Suddenly, Hiori launched a massive long ball into the center. The target was Nagi, who was ghosting into the box right behind Kira.
"Dinner's served," Nagi whispered.
"If you want to eat, you'll have to go through me first, you lazy brat!"
Kazuma Niou slammed into Nagi's space before the ball even arrived.
"Tch... what a persistent Doberman."
Nagi tracked the flight of the ball, realized the angle was too tight to keep. He'd tried to use Kira as a decoy, but Niou hadn't bitten.
'Ball's coming. What now? Whatever. Let's just jump.'
Nagi launched himself into the air. In mid-flight, he spotted a shadow moving behind Kira—it was Rin. Nagi redirected the ball with a cushioned aerial touch, dropping it into Rin's path.
Kira watched the ball sail over his head and sighed. 'Seriously? Everyone is using me as a human shield now. How about passing to the captain once in a while?'
Even so, Kira maintained his run, dragging two defenders with him. Rin didn't waste the space. He wound up for a first-time strike.
"I've got you, little genius!"
Oliver Aiku appeared from nowhere, his leg extending to block the shot at the source.
"Tch... you're a real pain in the ass," Rin hissed, his eyes cold.
Aiku grinned. "If I let you score after my offense finally showed some life, I'd have to hand in my captain's armband."
"Heads up! Counter-attack!" Kira roared, sprinting back.
The ball was already in the air, flying toward Itoshi Sae.
"Don't let him link up with Shidou!" Isagi screamed.
"I'll end him here!" Aryu shouted, his long limbs tensed. He turned to the man beside him. "Go, Reo!"
Reo didn't need to be told twice. He had spent the entire first half on the bench, dissecting Aiku's movements, learning the geometry of the U-20's defense. He knew exactly what he had to do.
Sae was still dribbling, looking for the opening. Suddenly, Shidou ignited.
Reo's instincts screamed. 'There. That's the trigger.'
Sae lofted a high, arching ball into the box. Shidou exploded forward, laughing as he outpaced the rest of the defense to reach the drop point. But just as the ball descended, Reo launched himself into the air, his hands tucked behind his back in a perfect imitation of Aiku's defensive posture.
He met the ball with a powerful header, clearing it out of the danger zone.
"Nice stop," Nagi called out from the distance.
Shidou scowled, his momentum halted. "Tch."
"What a play by Mikage Reo!" Tereasa shouted. "The ball is out for a throw-in, but that was a goal-saving intervention!"
This was Reo's "Chameleon" ability. A 99% imitation of the elite. He was becoming the very wall Blue Lock had struggled to break.
Kira, arriving back to help the defense, gave Reo a nod. 'If he keeps evolving like this, he's going to be a problem for the system.'
"Hey, Sae. That was a beautiful ball," Shidou said, hands on his hips as he walked toward the midfielder.
"What about it?" Sae asked.
"Playing with you is a rush. It feels like my brain is exploding. The last time I felt this focused was when I was playing alongside Kira."
"You and Kira are the only two people on this planet who truly understand my biological rhythm. And since Kira is on the other side today..."
Shidou looked up at the sky, his grin turning predatory. "I have a feeling I'm about to blow my load."
Sae gave a small nod. "You're vibrating with energy. Good. Now go score."
The U-20 took the throw-in. After a few tactical passes, the ball inevitably found its way back to Sae. Shidou didn't wait—he sprinted directly into the box.
'Come on, Genius. Feed me.'
Sae's pass arrived instantly. As Shidou trapped it, he felt a body slam into his back. It was Reo.
"You aren't turning," Reo growled, pinning him.
Shidou gritted his teeth and forced a 180-degree turn, managing to snap off a shot despite the pressure. Reo's eyes widened. The guy was a freak.
But the interference was enough. The shot lacked its usual venom, and Gagamaru snatched it out of the air with one hand.
"Ugh... not enough power," Shidou muttered, scratching his head.
"What a turn! But the keeper makes it look easy!"
The stands were buzzing. Shidou's raw, physical style was captivating the crowd.
Shidou cracked his neck, his mind shifting into a higher gear.
'Biologically speaking, we exist for one reason: to leave a mark. To pass on our genetic legacy. Art, kids, violence… it's all the same. Proof you existed.'
'My legacy? It's written in goals. In screams. In the net.'
Gagamaru launched the ball high toward midfield. Itoshi Sae soared into the air, controlling the ball with his chest before it could even reach the grass. He landed, pivoted, and launched a massive ball back toward the box.
Shidou moved on pure reflex. Isagi watched in horror as Shidou vanished between Reo and Aryu.
Gagamaru saw the danger and charged out of his goal, launching into the air for a headed clearance. He got there first, booming the ball away.
Shidou spun around, looking annoyed. 'What a pain. This goalie thinks he's a center-back.'
But as the ball flew through the air, Shidou felt a chill. The air in the field tasted like a goal. His cells were screaming at him to move.
'Genes have been programmed into all living beings... A goal is fertilization, the shot is the seed, the net is the egg... And that pleasure from that birth is what I call an orgasm...'
'I'll take my genes right in the womb...'
No thought.
No calculation.
Just pure, primal reflex.
He leaped.
'With my goal... with my genes...'
"I'LL KNOCK YOU UP!"
Shidou unleashed an earth-shattering overhead kick from the edge of the area. It was a "Big Bang Drive"—a bicycle kick with so much power and downward dip that it looked like a meteor hitting the turf.
The ball skipped off the grass and buried itself in the top corner.
2-2.
The game was tied.
"Incredible..."
Kira watched from the halfway line, his eyes narrow. 'Shidou finally hit the Flow.'
The demon had arrived. Kira realized he had to step up his own game now—otherwise, this was going to turn into the Ryusei Shidou show.
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I think I've just entered the flow...
Anyway, WHERE ARE MY POWER STONES?!?! Give me some!
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