They went back and forth for a while. Honestly, Kimiko was finding it hard to believe they were still in the first half. Just as she was about to get back to her own position after a struggle, she spotted the helper― Rodan, was it?― smirking deviously.

That's a bad sign.

Suddenly, he stole the ball from his own teammate. He then charged ahead, getting through all those in his way, friend and foe alike. In front of the goal, he put his hands together before letting go, causing a spark. Behind him, a volcano rose. "Kazanrai!" He let himself and the ball get thrusted upwards by the eruption, spinning while surrounded by lightning, and kicked the ball towards the goal, turning it into a volcanic storm.

Tetsukado ran in to stop it, and for a second, light began to engulf him, but the shot was too strong, and it sent both him and Shinsuke into the goal.

Everyone from the front came to check on the two. That was where they noticed Shinsuke was hurt for the first time.

"N-No, I'm..."

"Shinsuke-san, you mustn't push yourself." Ichikawa spoke up, walking forward. "You probably kept quiet about it so that none of us would worry about you, right?" He then turned to Tenma. "I think Tetsukado-san has been covering for him with everything he has because he knew that."

The two looked down and apologized.

Kimiko clicked her tongue. If I had been on the sidelines, I would've noticed sooner and told Tenma about it... She shook her head. No, no, no. Don't think that. You've got your own reasons. Just do better next time... She took a deep breath. God, I wish Kyou was here to hit me right now.

"I see. Okay!" Tenma's yell snapped her out of it. "From here on, we're all covering for you! Don't let them make a single pass! We'll work together to protect the goal!"

The defense all nodded before getting back into position. She was about to head back to the front too when she noticed Ichikawa was lagging behind.

"Tetsukado-san."

"Huh?"

"None of you may need my advice anymore at this stage, but let me say just one thing." He had his ever-polite smile as he spoke. "While I was troubled over my performance in kabuki as the 'lion king', I felt a roar emerging from deep within my heart. That was what awakened the wild lion within me. Why not try facing inwards, towards your own heart?"

That seemed to strike Tetsukado somewhere, so he left him to it. As they got back, Kimiko couldn't help but stare at Ichikawa's profile. Just how exactly is this soft and sweet kitten a lion?

The next struggle began and soon, Rodan received the ball again. Tetsukado ran to reach him. Face my own heart...

Kimiko kept her gaze on him, curious on what'll happen. However...

Soccer is a living thing.

?!

It's a wild beast that will attack you if you look away from it. If you don't want to be swallowed up, don't look away. Keep your eyes on everything around you.

The next few seconds were a blur for her. She wasn't― couldn't― pay attention to anything. All she could think about was... That's his voice!

"Yay! Tetsukado's Soul awakens to save Earth Eleven from danger!" Only when Ducksgun yelled into his mic did she come back to her senses.

Then, her head immediately cleared. Right. This is why I'm here in the first place! "Tetsukado!"

"Here!"

The ball landed perfectly by her feet, and she charged ahead. Some midfielders came to stop her, but she was able to evade them easily. "Don't underestimate me just because you've never seen me in a match!"

Compared to the training she went through in Fifth Sector, compared to the match against Zan, compared to the three months she spent travelling through time with Zanark Domain, this was absolutely nothing.

I'm a Gouenji, the first Seed to unleash a keshin, and a Second Stage Child. Not a lot of people, not even those in Raimon, would know what that means.

She spun to avoid a defender charging at her before leaping over another trying to slide tackle her. She plunged deeper and deeper into enemy territory without a care for where the rest of her team was. Unlike Matatagi in the last match, she didn't need them.

I've been playing soccer alone for a long, long time. Whether I liked it or not never mattered. Results were everything, otherwise...

When one bird man managed to kick the ball away to a teammate, she was fast enough to retake it and escape them both. When another tried to fling the ball up from under her nose, she jumped after it faster than anyone else could.

The only one who could make me enjoy it, just by a little bit, was him. But he isn't here right now... That's why I'll fight with everything I have to bring him back!

She kept going further and further, until finally, she was one-on-one with Arbega.

Even if it'll make me a monster. "Bow before the power of Zanark Domain!"

In a blink, she was high in the air, the ball by her feet and surrounded by a dark red energy. Her left leg hooked on the ball as she brought it far back, charging it up. "Disaster Break!" She kicked the ball of chaos towards the goal, the rock beneath it shredding to bits.

Arbega seemed bewildered, reacting slowly. His hands were able to touch the ball for only a second before it flew past him and into the goal.

"S-So cool! The newcomer Gouenji has made the tying goal with a terrifying shot!" Two long whistles came. "Hey, yo! There's the whistle! The first half ends with a tie!"

~~~~~

"I knew that she had to be good if she could keep up with Tsurugi at training, but..." Tetsukado shivered. "What was with that shot? Hey, Shinsuke― ... Shinsuke?"

The smaller boy jumped slightly. "H-Huh? Oh, yeah... It was incredible..."

"Something wrong?"

"N-No, I just... I didn't know Kimiko could do that move..."

"You know it?"

"All of Raimon does. It's a move that a... an old teammate used." His tiny hand shook as he pressed the ice pack onto his shoulder. "He used to be our enemy, and seeing it earlier reminded me of how terrified I was the first time I saw it."

"The training to master it was crazy too."

"Ah, Kimiko!" The two jumped. Shinsuke was the first to apologize. "Sorry! We didn't mean to talk behind your back or anything!"

She gave him a wry smile as she took her bottle from Aoi's hands. "It's fine. I was there when we fought him too, remember? On all three occasions. Besides, I've been travelling with him before coming back, so I know better than most how much of an ass he is."

"Eh...? Then..."

"That means... the other brother you mentioned before..."

"... used to be your enemy...?"

"Like I said, my life is weird." She shrugged. "Z's not all bad though. He's just different... in the most extreme sense."

"What was that about the training to master that move?" Kusaka asked.

She shrugged again. "I told you, he really enjoys getting into natural disasters with his teammates. A volcano, a hurricane... He made me swim in a whirlpool and surf in a tsunami... We also did speed and agility training in an area prone to sinkholes and earthquakes... Climbed a snowy mountain and fought off the wild animals there... Pretty sure we went through more in those three months, but that's all I can list off the top of my head right now." Her eyes wandered over to the other side of the pitch, where the mark her move left was getting tidied by the tournament's staff. "That move is the result of having gone through all of that. A manifestation of chaos beyond that of a disaster."

"No wonder it's so strong..." Tetsukado sweatdropped. He could barely believe it, but seeing the move with his own eyes was enough to convince him.

"What about what you yelled out before?" Sakura suddenly asked.

"Yelled out?"

"You know, the 'Bow down to the power of... something... domains!' or something."

She blinked. Once. Twice. Then, she fell on her back with a groan. "Ugh... The downside of spending so much time with him is that his bad personality started to rub off on me."

Tenma chuckled. "But it sounds like you're getting along perfectly well with Zanark Domain."

"Zanark...?" Konoha's eyes wandered over to Ichikawa, who had a confused look on his face.

"His name is Zanakurou, but yeah, that's close enough." Kimiko reminded. "His― That is, my brother's― name is Zanark Avalonic. His team's name is Zanark Domain, literally because everything they do goes by his rules and no one has a problem with it."

"Oh?" Minaho's ear twitched. "It's funny how you were taught to play by someone named Zanark, and then afterwards, you have to teach Ichikawa-san here, who's name is Zanakurou."

"One might even call it destiny." Ichikawa gave a soft chuckle. "I jest, but it is quite interesting."

Destiny, huh? No matter what the context of the conversation is, she couldn't help but think of that word bitterly.

"Halftime is almost over. What sort of fight will we see in the second half?"

Ducksgun's voice brought them all back to reality. And that was when they realized that Shindou and Ibuki still hadn't returned. With Shinsuke injured, the defense had to be more careful, though as Tetsukado had just unlocked his Soul, Buffalo, they've also gained a plus.

"Welcome back, everybody! The second half will begin with Earth Eleven's kick off!"

Kimiko passed the ball to Ichikawa, who gave it to Tenma. As they charged ahead, the Gardonians blocked the strikers, leading Tenma's pass to be intercepted. Konoha managed to block them using Konoha Roll, but the ball rolled out of bounds. It was clear that the heat was getting to her more than all the others.

Makes sense since they've been running in through the left wing all this time. Kimiko clicked her tongue in annoyance. She couldn't do anything when the defense was so far back. And it seems Gardon's players had no intention of letting her out of their sight either, which made sense considering what she pulled earlier.

Shinsuke managed to stop another shot, but it was worrying how weak his punch was compared to when they started off.

"Switch players." Kuroiwa suddenly said.

They all turned to find Shindou and Ibuki already in uniform. And so, they got put in to replace Konoha and Shinsuke. Tenma briefly explained the situation to them both, and they nodded before getting into position.

Soon, the match resumed.

Sakura took back the ball and passed to Shindou, who then gave it to Ichikawa. However, the actor lost it to a slide tackle, falling over in the process.

"Ichikawa-san, are you okay? You fell on your face pretty hard." Kimiko asked, lending him a hand.

"It's just a pity that we lost the ball." Then, he gave a smile Shindou's way, who had just ran up to ask him the same thing. "But we've only just started."

They nodded at that.

In the next round, they were able to move more freely than before as they didn't need to worry about covering the back. Kimiko was the only one constantly being stopped, but she was fine playing decoy for the rest of the match. After all, she finished what she had set out to do on this field.

With her doing her part, Matatagi was able to move much more freely. He used his Hayabusa to score the next goal, putting them in the lead.

Rodan and Arbega broke out into an argument right after that, but in the end, it looked like Arbega was the one to give in. Just like the previous planets...

In the next round, all of Gardon seemed to have moved up their line. Shindou stole the ball with Einsatz, following it up with Kami no Takuto Fire Illusion to order her, Tenma, and Matatagi to advance. Suddenly, Arbega whistled, and all of Gardon, defenders included, just continued going to Earth's side of the field.

"Shindou! Stay back!" Ibuki yelled.

Shindou stopped running at that and kicked the ball out of the field. "Guys, fall back!"

"Huh?!"

"Why?! It's the perfect chance!"

"Just do it!"

They couldn't say no when they saw just how serious he was being. So they all headed back to their side of the pitch...

Just as a meteor broke into pieces above them and began showering onto Gardon's side.

"If we had advanced..."

"Yeah... We would've been blown to smithereens."

All those present in the stadium were either having chills, breaking out into cold sweat, frozen in fear, or all three at once.

The elder told me this, even though I'm his enemy... Even though the future of his planet is at stake...

Kimiko saw Shindou's fist curled up and shaking. Ibuki had a similar look on him too.

Then, another argument broke out between Arbega and Rodan. So this trap was Rodan's idea, huh? Before she could make any more mental comments, the opposing team's coach said they're switching players.

"Hey, that's uncalled for!"

Arbega, who had been lifting him up to his eye level, threw him back to the ground. "It's the right decision!"

The coach pointed towards the exit. "Rodan, get off the field right now."

"Are you sure you want to take me off? You won't be hearing the last of it from Faram Orbius if you―"

"I don't care. You only follow orders from Faram Orbius' consul Donolzen and do whatever it takes to earn her favor. This team has no need for you."

"... Don't come begging to me later when you regret your decision." And with that, he left.

Kimiko could only suppress a sigh. Is everyone from that goddamn planet insane?!

With the field getting fixed again, they could have another short break. Once the game continued, the competition was fierce. Arbega knew to prevent those who have Souls from getting the ball, and when Shindou got the ball to shoot with Fortissimo, he could stop it as usual.

He proceeded to take command for the offense, getting through their midfielders using the exhaust systems. The striker used Kazangan, but that was when Ibuki got down with his hands. A bright light engulfed him, and by the time he got up again, a large animal was in his place, stomping on the ball to stop it.

"Ibuki has a Soul!"

Kimiko peeked into his head as it happened. Mammoth, huh? So ancient animals also count...

Suddenly,

"Everyone, get off the field!" Shindou's call wasn't just for those of Earth Eleven. The Gardonians obeyed him too.

Another meteor was heading their way.

"Arbega! Hurry and get out of―" Gardon's striker was cut off.

"Stop... STOP GETTING IN MY WAY!!!" Arbega himself was also engulfed by a bright light, and in his place was a giant, scaly creature. He then used his tail to block the equally gigantic rock, the force of impact disintegrating it.

And with that, the match continued.

Shindou got past with his moves and skills as Arbega seemed to be distracted. But once he arrived in front of the goal, Arbega charged ahead. Shindou then kicked the ball up before jumping after it. A bright light surrounded him, and appearing in his place was a peacock, its tail feathers shining in a rainbow color.

Arbega called out his own soul and used his tail once again to block him.

The clash ended with Shindou winning and scoring with a regular shot putting them at 4-2, their lead.

In the next round, all of Gardon moved to attack, Arbega included. They advanced far enough to let the goalkeeper make his own shot, but Ibuki managed to catch it just as three whistles resounded.