A Creepy Feeling

Before he could even think of his next action, Akira found himself face to face with Karasu. 

It was as if Karasu appeared out of thin air. 

Whether this was a curse or a blessing, it was still unsure. 

For Akira, it was definitely a blessing, he finally received his opportunity to get his revenge on the source of the anger he had been holding for the past week.

However, for Jude and Miyata this was the worst outcome possible. Letting Karasu get inside Akira's head could cost them the game.

"Tch." Jude let out an annoyed grunt as he rushed towards the two players who were about to clash. 

He knew that if Karasu were to steal this ball then it would signal the end of Team X's first offensive, which might in turn affect everyone's morale. 

Akira didn't care about any of those thoughts. Letting his instincts take over once again, he brushed aside any worry he might've had and attempted to dribble past Karasu. He pushed the ball to his left and was hoping to fool him with a last second roulette.

Yet just as he believed he had got him, he came crashing into a stone wall. That stone wall was none other than Karasu, his feet were solidly anchored to the ground. He took a step forward and positioned himself between the ball and Akira.

His whole body was leaning against Akira, as if he was trying to stop a train — and he succeeded. 

Akira came to a stop, unable to keep advancing without fouling Karasu. Meanwhile the loose ball was aimlessly rolling on the ground past both of them. 

At the same time, two of team V's defenders slowly jogged to get the ball.

They were both convinced that there was no way for Akira to get past Karasu's stubborn marking. 

With the biggest threat out of the way, the ball would surely be Team V's. Karasu unconsciously shared the same thought. 

"Karasu! Get the ball yourself!" 

Unexpectedly, the usually silent Hiori yelled out from the other side of the pitch. 

This sudden outburst took Karasu by surprise, but by the time he looked back at the ball, he knew that it was already too late. He could only watch as Jude sprinted past the two defenders and secured the loose ball. 

"Where the hell did you come from?" Karasu cursed. 

He immediately realized the danger of the situation. Two of the defenders were out of position and Team X's ace had the ball less than 30 meters away from the goal. 

"How does it feel to get played at your own game?" Jude flashed him a teasing smile, before turning around and facing two of Team V's players on his own. 

"Stall him. Just focus on gaining as much time as you can." Karasu instructed before hurrying to join them.

He already imposed himself as the uncontested leader of Team V. Whether it was in brawl or brains, he was the most outstanding by far. They all knew that if they listened to him, they'd get to the second selection without much difficulty. 

Prior to the match, Karasu already warned each of the players about Jude. He told them everything he knew about him and the many recordings he analyzed. 

Jude was surprisingly similar to him. His way of prioritizing the mental of his team, his mind games, his analytical abilities, and even his playstyle. 

Karasu was almost creeped out by how similar he found Jude to be, but this was also an advantage. He knew that Jude was exactly like him — a jack of all trades, master of none. 

All of his individual stats were way above average, but none of them stood out. What made him so monstrous was his ability to adapt to different situations, but his abilities were already known by Team V's players. 

Karasu knew that they wouldn't be able to stop him, but they could at least hold him back long enough for Karasu to join them. 

Both of the defenders had the same belief.

However, after seeing Jude advance towards them so calmly, they couldn't help but feel a creepy tingling run down their backs. 

The two players positioned themselves in his way, barely 1 meter away from one another, each of them blocking a side and leaving a false small opening down the middle. If Jude chose to go through the middle then they would both gang up on him, and might even be able to steal the ball from him — or so they thought. 

Karasu's footsteps urged Jude to start his run, but he was able to remain calm, this was the moment he trained for. 

Both defenders were confused, they saw Jude running in a straight line, seemingly aiming for the gap between them, with no intentions of changing directions. 

They unconsciously got closer together as Jude approached.

Right as they began to think about attempting a steal, Jude's eyes finally moved to the left. It was a very subtle and quick eye movement, both of the players didn't notice, but Karasu caught up on it.

As soon as he saw Jude slightly lessen his speed, he immediately understood Jude's plan. Jude aiming for a last second change of direction to turn it into a one-on-one, or perhaps even get past both of them.

In a split second, Karasu moved his arm and silently pointed to the left with his finger. 

The defender's body moved almost instinctively, he had a blind trust in Karasu and had been waiting for his signal since the start. 

"Being so similar can be a blessing, indeed." Jude smiled as he noticed the defender looking past him. 

Thanks to his peripheral vision he could tell that Karasu had all his attention on him, and he was willing to bet on that intuition. The defender's movement simply confirmed that guess. 

In a split second, Jude's slow run morphed into a full sprint. Without leaving them any time to think he exploded past them, barely squeezing through the small gap between the two defenders.

"Damnit!"

One of them tried holding him back by grabbing his shirt, but even that was useless. They were unable to stop Jude. 

Finding himself face to face with another defender, Jude easily dribbled past him. He threw one last glance at Karasu who had already caught up to him, before releasing the strongest shot he could muster. 

"How did you know...?"

For the first time, Karasu was left speechless. In that instant, time was flowing slower for him as he watched the ball lodge itself in the net. 

"You knew I would notice, and you used it against me...You used my own weapon against me..." Karasu's eyes widened in realization. 

"It's creepy, so damn creepy." He muttered to himself

"Meeting someone who can see right through you is frustrating. I finally understand how my opponents felt."

An uncontrollable, absurd laughter overtook him.