Naruhaya: Th-There's no way that just happened right? How can someone just make a crazy goal from out there immediately after shaking a defender with a dribble move!!

Ryu: Now you all see. That's one of Japan's best Strikers right now.

The shot replayed in Ryu's mind.

Ryu: 'Except that was a meter more than his usual range. Azure's somehow improved even more since coming to Blue Lock.'

Team Z were at the kickoff, as Ryu was passed the ball.

Ryu: 'It's whatever. This gives me a chance to test that second skill out.'

Ryu ran forward, as members of Team V prepared to Double Team him.

Ryu: 'I'm not going for a solo run on this one.'

He stopped, passing the ball to Bachira.

Bachira: 'Oooh, this pass feels like it has something extra too it! It feels great!'

Bachira began to dribble in front of a player, before getting a nutmeg through.

Azure: 'Meguru Bachira. He's the best Dribbler on Team Z, and that's saying something considering Ryu's involved.'

Zantetsu ran forward to Bachira, nearly catching the boy off guard.

Bachira: Man, if Ryu didn't exist I might've actually been fazed by you specs!

Zantetsu: What are you-?

Bachira passed the ball behind Zantetsu, with Ryu there to get it.

Zantetsu: You really are faster than me!!

Ryu was focused, looking around.

Ryu: 'Shook off the defenders with speed, so next is the big play.'

Ryu dribbled up the field, as soon enough, once he was at the Penalty Arc, Azure was there to defend.

Azure: 'No goals for you buddy.'

Ryu: 'Thanks for making it easy for me Azure. With you here, that means no one's marking the real attacker.'

Ryu passed again, with the intention of someone else scoring.

Ryu: 'Here you go, Isagi.'

Isagi had entered the penalty box, with Azure smirking.

Azure: 'Not gonna happen Ryu. If you didn't notice, Reo's close enough to block the shot when the ball hits the ground.'

Ryu smirked, seeing Reo going forward.

Ryu: 'I'm insulted Azure. You know as well as I do that I pass for people to score more often than not.'

Isagi: 'Now, it's time for you all to see exactly what I can do!!'

A green aura surrounded Isagi, as he prepared to shoot.

Ryu: 'Purple hair isn't gonna have the time to catch up to the future both Isagi and I have seen. Not with this.'

Isagi kicked the ball while it was in mid air, as it went straight towards the goal.

Ryu: 'Isagi's Direct Shot.'

Score: 1-1

Reo: W-What the hell?!!

Nagi: They've got someone who can pull off ridiculous stuff like that?

Azure looked at the smirking Ryu.

Azure: 'Ryu...'

Azure looked back at the first pass he made to Bachira.

Azure: 'You passed the ball to Bachira, who ended up being able to cut through our defenders. You got behind Zantetsu for the pass, and drew me in, making me think you were gonna take it. Then in the end, you passed to Isagi, who could shoot before anyone could catch up to block him. With your amazing passes, you made some kind of "Chemical Reaction" happen between you three. Not quite like the plays we made together, but still deadly.'

Isagi: Sick pass man.

The two fist bumped.

Ryu: Not gonna lie, the pass was just a little shaky. I thought I might've messed up that shot.

Isagi: 'HE CALLS THAT SHAKY?!!'

Reo: Man, what a pass! Bet I can do him one better though! Hey Nagi, let's give it a try!

Nagi: Huh? Sounds like such a hassle.

Once Reo got the ball, he did a month pass, which shocked Ryu and Bachira.

Ryu: 'What is he stupid? That pass is gonna be way overshot.'

As Nagi ran, he jumped, stretching his leg out to trap the ball. It spun, before completely stopping.

Isagi: 'He controlled it?! Who is the guy?!!'

As the ball fell, Nagi kicked it, sending it flying into the goal past Iemon.

Nagi: That was easy. I'm kinda surprised you didn't just shoot right away.

Ryu: -_- Great, so we've got two whole monsters to deal with.

Score 2-1 Team V

Ryu shook is head, while looking at Raichi.

Ryu: Didn't you have a job to do?

Raichi: OH SCREW OFF!!! I'M A STRIKER, THE LAST PLACE I WANT TO BE ON IS DEFENSE!!!

Ryu: Look, do you want to shut down these guys or not? Believe it or not, this would be the one thing you could actually prove that you're better than me at.

Raichi immediately went silent at these words.

Ryu: But if you just wanna prove that I actually am better in every category, then I guess I could squeeze a pass in for you to mess-

Raichi: ARGH!!!! Fine, but if you let us lose then there's not a doctor alive who can fix what I'll do to you!!!

Ryu turned around as Team Z got ready to go back on offense.

Ryu: He makes it way too easy :P

The game progressed, as this time Ryu brought the ball up the field on his own.

Reo: That guy is a genuine threat whenever he gets the ball!

Zantetsu ran forward, ready to defend against Ryu.

Zantetsu: You caught me on guard last time, but I've got my eye on you now!

Ryu: It's OFF guard. It still doesn't matter though.

Ryu kicked the ball past Zantetsu beginning to run.

Ryu: In a way we're similar.

Zantetsu ran as well, but found that he wasn't able to catch up to Ryu.

Zantetsu: 'He's faster than I am?!!'

Ryu: However the difference between us is not only am I faster the first 10 meters, I can go even faster afterwards.

Ryu left Zantetsu in the dust, getting to the ball. Ryu saw Azure running nearby.

Ryu: 'Azure's probably gonna try and cut me off. At this range I won't be able to shoot, and he can definitely tell who I'd pass to.'

He immediately passed the ball over to Naruhaya, who was nearby. Right after, Azure cut off Ryu.

Ryu: 'As much as you wanna lock me down Azure, I know you'll instinctively look at the ball to see if there's a chance to steal it. That's my cue.'

Azure turned his head, looking at Naruhaya.

Ryu: 'That's when this last minute call can pay off!!'

Ryu moved behind Azure, as when he turned, he realized that Ryu was completely gone.

Azure: 'What?'

Ryu: 'Off the Ball Movements! Naruhaya may not be good for much, but he showed me a needed skill!!'

Having been caught off guard, Azure was unable to catch up to the speed Ryu went at, as he was at the top of the Penalty Arc when Naruhaya passed to him.

Ryu: 'Even though I can score from a little further, this is always a comfortable shot to take.'

Ryu shot the ball, as it flew into goal.

Score: 2-2

Ryu: 'You lit this fire, and now you're about to get burnt.'

Azure: 'Good. Make it challenging for me.'

Team V got the ball once again, however Raichi sprinted towards Reo angrily.

Raichi: If we ended up losing, mark my words, I'm gonna haunt your descendants TIL THE END OF TIME!!!!

Reo: Holding grudges isn't popular with the ladies, Shark Teeth.

Raichi: Push me, see what happens!!

Being forced onto defense, Raichi began to mark Reo closely.

Raichi: I'm stuck on defense, the last place a Striker wants to be! No way I'm letting us lose this game playing this position!!

Reo being tightly marked immediately passed to Azure.

Azure: There we go, now-

Reacting fast, Azure dribbled the ball behind him to keep it from being taken by Isagi.

Azure: So, you want some of this Mr Direct?

Isagi: Yeah, just try it!

Azure: Oh this'll be fun.

Azure began to dribble the fall forward, as Isagi tried to mark him as tightly as possible.

Gagamaru: That's not going to work!

Chigiri: There's no way Isagi can stand up to Azure in a one on one!

Azure did a two touch, as he used this to nutmeg Isagi, getting past him.

Naruhaya: Crap, he's gonna be in range!!

Azure was ready to shoot, however seeing this coming Ryu was there.

Ryu: 'Nice try Azure. I'm not leaving someone like Isagi to defend against you.'

Azure: Not gonna lie Ryu, that was smart.

Azure's eyes glowed.

Azure: But I'm not limited to 32 meters.

He kicked the ball, much to everyone's shock.

Isagi: 'There's no way!'

Azure: Even though it's not as comfortable, 33 meters is also within my range.

The ball got past Iemon, and into the goal.

Score: 3-2 Team V

Isagi: 'Is there any limit to how terrifying this monster gets?!'

Ryu: Damn, I thought I had him.

The first half then ended, with the teams going to their separate locker rooms.

Kuon: One more goal and we're tied guys, we can win this!

Imamura: Yeah, but how the heck can we stop Kaito from scoring those unreal goals?!

Chigiri: It's better than when we started. We now know he has a range of 33 meters.

Ryu: You're missing the point.

They looked at Ryu, who was deep in thought.

Ryu: It's the fact that Azure can create an opportunity for himself to score from that range is the problem. He's got the skill to get past us if we're too close, or just shoot it flat out.

He put his hand over this mouth.

Ryu: The question is what the hell am I gonna do to respond?

Isagi: Just you? There's no way any of us alone could-

Ryu looked up, glaring at Isagi.

Ryu: Watch it Isagi.

Isagi: O_O *Gulp*

Ryu: Listen, right now I don't just wanna win. I want to be able to completely defeat Azure. And I mean by my own damn self.

He stood up wiping his face with a towel.

Ryu: If you all wanna try and but in, fine. But regardless, If Azure goes down, it's me that's gonna be the cause.

He turned around, walking outside.

Bachira: Man, when it's outside of the game, Ryu's beyond chill. When he gets fired up in a match though...

Bachira simply smiled, while Isagi and Chigiri did so as well.

Bachira: Watching him play is super fun!

Isagi: I'm gonna be honest, it's always a relief to know that at least for now he's on our side.

After the time for the break had concluded, both teams got back on the field.

Ryu: 'Azure can't match my speed, but he can predict where I would wanna shoot. I've also gotta worry on how I won't get stopped.'

Ryu was passed the ball the players ran up.

Reo: 'He's not speeding ahead?'

Zantetsu: 'It's more than that. He's letting a lot of players past him.'

Kunigami, Isagi, Bachira, Chigiri, and Gagamaru all went past Ryu.

Azure: 'Are these the main strikers? Who's he gonna pass to?'

Ryu: 'That's right fuckers. Scratch your heads in confusion. I'm the only one who knows who I'll pass to. There rest just know to get open.'

While being marked, Ryu began to pick up pace, getting a nutmeg off on a Team V player.

Ryu: 'That's not happening. I thought they would beef up their defenses and switch Azure to the back for a while, so this is my response.'

Azure looked at the 5 players coming up, trying to think of who Ryu would make use of the best.

Azure: 'I'm betting Chigiri, or Kunigami. He already knows we're wary of Isagi's Direct Shot, and those two have the best options of scoring. Kunigami has some of the best range on the team, and Chigiri can cut to the goal in an instant.'

Ryu pulled back a leg, before kicking the ball.

Azure: 'Right now, he's closing in on 40 meters. Which means the one I need to mark either way is the speedster!!'

Azure sprung into action, running off to block Chigiri's course.

Chigiri: 'Shit, he's good! He's taken a position to where he can react to me doing something!'

The pass flew into the air, and surprisingly Kunigami got it.'

Kunigami: 'He passed it to me here?!'

Players marked him, as Ryu stopped running.

Ryu: If you think I'm gonna take it easy on you in a game like this, you're dead wrong.

Kunigami: 'What's he thinking?! There's no way that I can-'

Kunigami's eyes widened, as only then he realized.

Kunigami: 'Is this a challenge?'

Isagi: COME ON KUNIGAMI!!! TAKE THE SHOT!!! YOU'RE GONNA BE A SUPER HERO AREN'T YOU?!!!

Kunigami: 'That's right! If I wanna evolve, I shouldn't settle on what I know I can do, and I can't back away from a challenge perfect to make me push past my limits!'

Kunigami broke free, ready to shoot.

Kunigami: 'A shot outside my 28 Meter Range! Zeroing in on the sweet spot for a full power Technical Shot!! If I was a Super Hero-'

From 40 meters out, Kunigami kicked the ball, as it had no spin at all.

Ryu: That's what I like to see.

As the goalie tried to punch the ball, it swerved out of the way, and into the goal.

Kunigami: YEAAAAAAAH!!!!

Score: 3-3

Ryu: Nice shot!

The players ran back on defense, as Kunigami went to Ryu.

Kunigami: You're an Egoist even when you're not trying to score. You specifically got a pass through that would make me try harder.

Ryu: Glad you're starting to understand me Ginger Hero.

Azure: Man, didn't think that would come out.

Reo: He's such a headache!

Azure: That part will never die. This is Ryu the General.

CHAPTER END!!