Chapter 142: Football and the Paycheck
"It's my dream, obviously!"
Shuto Sendo shouted the answer without a second thought.
"It is the only path for me..." Aryu added, his voice uncharacteristically solemn.
"It is the one thing worth betting my entire life on," Aiku said, his expression focused and intense.
Kira thought about it for a long moment. Honestly, he wanted to say it was just a damn good career path, but he kept that to himself for now.
Snuffy nodded slowly. "Right. Those are exactly the kinds of answers I expect from teenagers."
"But let me follow that up with another question. What happens if that dream fails? What if it never comes true?"
"Huh?"
The group looked at him, stunned. That wasn't the kind of question they expected from a world-class Master Striker.
Snuffy saw their confusion and pressed on. "If you lose football tomorrow, what do you have left? Burning with passion for the game is fine. It is great, even. But what if a career-ending injury hits you? What if you just aren't good enough to make the cut?"
"What do you do then?"
Silence fell over the room. Everyone there had come to Blue Lock fueled by nothing but raw ambition and obsession. None of them had bothered to think about a 'Plan B.' Life without the pitch was a concept they refused to entertain.
Kira thought back to his previous life. If the dream died, you just clawed your way through a miserable existence until the clock ran out. It wasn't a pretty thought.
"If you can't answer that question," Snuffy said, breaking the silence, "then you are nothing more than amateurs living in a fantasy world."
"Winning is the duty of a professional. We get paid to produce results. We eat because we win. You cannot run away from that reality."
"Football is a job."
The statement hit the room like a physical blow. A job? That sounded so clinical. So corporate. Was he really comparing the beautiful game to a nine-to-five in some office?
"Try looking at Ubers as a corporation. The matches are the business operations. And you? You are the employees hired to execute the plan."
As Snuffy spoke, holographic tactical charts began to bloom in the air around them. Detailed data points on every player's physical specs, habits, and optimal positioning flickered into view.
"I have designed every play, every offensive rotation, and every defensive lock-down based on the data of every person in this room," Snuffy explained.
Sendo stared at his own profile, his eyes widening. "This is insane... it's got my entire style broken down to the millimeter."
Kira swiped through his own tactical report.
'Dribbling, speed, and finishing are all elite... capable of filling any role on the pitch... optimal position: Striker. A kaleidoscope-style offense that allows for a goal from any scenario...'
The evaluation: All-around Center Forward.
'You really know your stuff, Snuffy,' Kira thought, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. Based on this report alone, he decided Snuffy was officially the best mentor in the facility.
Aiku's heterochromatic eyes scanned his own data, a spark of genuine interest lighting up his face. "Did you put all of this together yourself?"
It was clear the captain was impressed by the sheer depth of the analysis.
"If you memorize these patterns and execute them without hesitation, you win. It is that simple," Snuffy said. "And if we lose because a variable appeared that was not in my library? Then the responsibility falls on me. I am the CEO. I take the hit, not the employees."
'Oh my god,' Kira thought, feeling almost moved. This guy was a dream boss. In his past life, the higher-ups took all the credit for success and shoved all the blame onto the employees. Snuffy was a world-class leader who actually stood by his team.
"Be workaholics. Become machines dedicated to the tactic."
The second Snuffy finished his sentence, a line of players in Ubers tracksuits stepped forward, standing with military precision.
"Yes, sir!" they shouted in unison.
Kira studied the newcomers—the Ubers youth prospects. They were all built like tanks, looking far more physically imposing than the average high schooler. One of them, a guy with a mouth full of gold teeth, noticed Kira looking and flashed a jagged, predatory grin.
'Ugh. That's a lot of gold. And he looks like a zombie,' Kira thought, quickly looking away. He was used to the "pretty boy" aesthetics of Blue Lock; this guy was a whole different kind of ugly.
Shuto Sendo, usually so cocky, looked pale. He was starting to realize that life under Snuffy was going to be a grueling, high-pressure grind.
"Glamorous," Aryu whispered, looking energized. "It's like an elite military unit."
"Hah. Looks like we landed in a serious place, Captain Kira," Aiku said, leaning over to share his thoughts.
Kira nodded. He was busy scrolling through Snuffy's tactical library. The man had developed a system that maximized every individual's talent while keeping them within a rigid, winning structure. If they could pull this off, they would be unstoppable.
Niko was reading just as intently. 'If I can master this system, the level of my evolution will be astronomical,' he thought, his eyes sharp behind his bangs.
"I'm in," Aryu said. He was already a Snuffy fanboy; he didn't need much convincing.
"Fine. Let's do it," Sendo added, looking like he was bracing for a storm.
"When in Rome," Aiku noted with a shrug.
Kira nodded in agreement, but his gaze drifted to Barou. The King was vibrating with a visible, dangerous irritation. This wasn't the kind of football Barou wanted.
"You're telling me football is just a job?" Barou's voice was a low growl. He stepped out from the group, hands stuffed deep in his pockets. "I don't play for a paycheck. I don't play to be a damn cog in your machine."
"Hey, Barou, wait!" Aiku called out.
But Barou didn't listen. He turned his back on the group and walked straight out of the room.
Snuffy watched him go, a small, intrigued smile on his face. "What an interesting kid."
"Don't worry about him for now. The rest of you, follow me to the training center. We start with the fundamentals."
Snuffy led the way, the Ubers youth players falling in line. Kira was about to follow when the gold-toothed player suddenly intercepted him.
"This guy really is a zombie," Aiku muttered under his breath.
The player stopped in front of Kira and flashed that golden grin again. "Nice to finally meet you, Ryosuke Kira. I'm Don Lorenzo from the Ubers academy."
"It's an honor to stand before our new King."
'New King? What is he talking about?'
Kira was totally lost. He looked toward Snuffy for an explanation, but the Master had already turned the corner with a cryptic smile.
"Good for you, Kira. You already picked up a new fan," Aiku said, slapping Kira on the shoulder.
Kira sighed. "I'm not a king. The guy who just walked out is the one with the crown obsession."
Lorenzo gave a strange, rattling laugh. "You'll see. Soon enough."
"Let's get to work. Catch you on the pitch."
Lorenzo drifted away with a weird, disjointed gait. Kira and Aiku shared a look of pure confusion.
"That guy is a freak," Kira muttered.
"Yeah, but in this place, that probably means he's dangerous," Aiku replied.