[20] Mock Battle (3)

Whistle!

The whistle resounded, signaling the end of the first half.

With dejected looks, the freshies' players gloomily headed to their benches side and shortly sat down, looking down in frustration and shame.

They could see from the corner of their eyes the scoreboard and it was a sight they didn't want to see.

0 - 2

Some players had already given up and shook their heads, realizing the big gap between their skills and their opponents.

"Pathetic"

Kousuke strolled toward the players and stood in front of them with annoyance while staring at the ones who had given up with a disgusted look.

The players couldn't even argue or rebut his words as their plays were indeed pathetic and disappointing.

Frankly, the only reason the lead between the score wasn't so wide was due to Izumo.

He, the forward of the team had no choice but to step back and support the defense.

It was shameful, especially for the center-backs since their forward was actually much better at defending than them.

He had even given several shooting opportunities for them but they still failed to score a goal.

It was truly shameful...

And speaking about Izumo, the team secretly glances at him from the corner of their eyes and sees him just leisurely sitting there, looking as if he was pondering something.

They didn't even have the face to talk to him as they shortly went back to brooding in lament.

And for the following minute or so, the bench was quiet before the whistles resounded again, signifying the start of the second half.

"Stop being such a Batman and move already"

Kousuke had to remind the team before they reluctantly did so and had to stroll toward the field.

Just as Izumo stood up and was about to follow behind them, a cane stretched out in front of him, blocking his way.

"When are you going to stop playing around?"

Looking to his right, Izumo could see Kousuke standing there, staring at him with a blank expression.

"Don't think I haven't noticed what you've been doing"

"..."

"I even took the liberty to employ a formation to suit you best and you're just here wasting it"

"..."

Izumo simply stayed quiet, listening to Kousuke with a calm expression.

"If you're done examining your future teammates then start playing seriously now"

"..."

"My face is on the line for this match"

"... you're a dick, you know that, right?"

Hearing his words, Kousuke merely shrugged his shoulders and put his cane down, unbothered by his comment.

Without anything blocking the way now, Izumo stepped inside the field.

However, his eyes had unknowingly changed and became sharp like an eagle.

"Hoh..."

Izumo breathed out a mouthful of air as he stepped on the ball and looked in front of him.

With a slight kick to the ball, it flew forward before Izumo burst out in speed and caught up with it.

Seeing him rushed ahead, the freshies' midfielders followed behind while the right and left wing started flanking the sides.

Although they were moving smoothly, a sense of listlessness could still be felt from their movements.

It seems the loss of the two goals took a toll on them, making them somewhat slow and sluggish.

But Izumo was unbothered by everything and kept juking out players like a slippery fish.

"???"

Seeing Izumo's plays, the seniors started getting baffled and wondered how this young man got so good suddenly.

It was an expected reaction considering Izumo was playing as a support in the first half that they forgot...

He was originally a forward.

Even his teammates were dumbfounded and paused for a moment before they were scolded by Kousuke on the sidelines and resumed playing.

"Let's see..."

Izumo muttered, staring at a senior player in front of him with a contemplated look.

'If I recall from my observation, this guy has a habit of leaning to his right'

Thinking of this, Izumo abruptly sidestepped to his right thereby making the senior lean to his left to defend in response.

However, due to the senior having leaned to the right in the first place, there was a millisecond too late in his actions, giving Izumo the time to break past him.

Suddenly, another senior appeared just right as he passed the other guy and immediately rushed toward him with the intent to press.

'This guy isn't good at halting his movements'

Izumo thought as his eyes sharpened for a moment, thinking of all sorts of plays he could perform right now inside his mind.

And the moment the senior was a few meters in front of him, Izumo sped up and closed the distance in an instant before abruptly stopping and taking a quick step back afterward.

"...!?"

Clearly taken by surprise, the senior had no choice but to halt his steps and almost tripped which Izumo exactly predicted as he immediately sped up again and spun himself forward.

And yet again, he passed another senior player with ease, making the other players who couldn't play stand up in their seats.

"Who is this guy?!"

Meanwhile, Kousuke just nodded in satisfaction before he proceeded to pick his nose.

"Stop him!"

With no other choice, three senior players left their marks to rush toward Izumo, intending to thwart him.

And the moment they closed in on him, Izumo decisively performed a long pass to Akai who happened to be one of the players who was unmarked.

"...!"

Seeing the ball fly toward him, Akai subconsciously received and trapped it with his feet while feeling astonished on the inside.

It was because of Izumo that his marker left him, leaving him unguarded.

He could practically run toward the goal with ease at how few opposing players there were in front of him since almost all of them were attracted by Izumo.

'Did he plan all of this?'

Akai felt a chill at the thought as he gulped his saliva before a determined look appeared in his eyes.

Dribbling the ball, Akai rushed toward the penalty area with no resistance.

On the other hand, the seniors who were on Izumo's side moved too late as they could only watch the young man kick the ball with such intensity.

And as expected, the ball whizzed in the air, heading toward the goal at an astonishing speed.

"..."

Seeing the ball, the senior goalkeeper merely stayed quiet and kept his eyes locked on it, shutting off the surrounding noise as the only thing on his mind was stopping it.

And the moment the ball closed in, the goalkeeper instantly reacted and lunged himself, extending his arms wide as his hands appeared right in front of its trajectory.

"Sorry bud, but not today"

"...?!"

The goalkeeper was about to block the ball when Izumo emerged out of nowhere and kicked it in mid-air, changing its course.

And with no suspense whatsoever, the ball thrust itself into the net, giving the first point to the freshies in the second half.

"You..."

The goalkeeper was in disbelief and stunned at the same time as he recognized what the young forward had just done.

Indeed, it was the exact replica of what had transpired during the first half when his teammate scored the very first goal.

And with this in mind, he couldn't help but wonder whether this goal was deliberate or not.