Milo drew in a deep breath, then burst forward, tearing into the open lane his team had carved out.
Jiho, Raya, and Izaya reacted instantly, eyes widening as they surged into motion.
The crowd rose in one motion, attention snapping toward Milo, the air tightening as voices died into silence.
Raya drove up the flank, throwing his arm up into the air. "Izayaaaa!" he roared.
Izaya took the signal and quickly adjusted his run, shifting, acceleration snapping into place as he went after Milo.
Already halfway through his run, Milo caught sight of Izaya chasing close, and without any second thought he struck the ball hard, sending it soaring toward the right wing.
On that flank, a relentless chase ignited instantly. It was Masaru and Jiho charging under the ball, side by side, shoulders colliding, each trying to throw the other off balance while keeping their eyes on the ball dropped into their path.
In middle of his his chare, Jiho's lips curled
into a sharp smirk.
"You're going down, little buddy."
He launched himself upward, body twisting midair, forcing through the contact, rising to et the ball with a header.
Masaru's jaw tightened, determination carving sharply across his face.
"Yaaaahhhhhhh!" he roared, then launched, rising above Jiho with a brutal, explosive leap.
Raya's jaw dropped in utter shock. Izaya froze, shock cutting through his focus. Nagisa's eyes widened, while Jiho's expression twisted into raw fury.
The crowd held its breath as the two clashed midair, bodies suspended in a mont stretched to its limit.
The ball dipped toward them, and Masaru t it clean, eyes blazing with raw determination.
"Even if it's just once…!"
He twisted midair, redirecting it behind him with a sharp flick of his head.
The ball began to drop toward the backline, from where Raya ca bursting in, closing the gap in a blur before launching himself, his leg whipping through to clear it before it could touch the ground. But in that sa instant, another leg snapped forward from nowhere.
It stretched to its absolute limit, cutting across Raya, desperately reaching for the ball first
Raya was frozen mid-motion. The leg sliced past him, disrupting his angle and reaching the ball at the sa ti, stealing the mont right out of his path.
Raya snapped his head back to find Shino, with his eyes flared wide, jaw locked tight, sothing fierce burning through his gaze.
"Even if it's just for once… we will!"
Shino roared, forcing his reach even further, his boot t the ball, and he tapped it upwards, guiding it forward with a desperate touch toward the box.
It sailed over everyone, who all could just watch it. And beneath its path, Toru was already moving.
His rush sliced through the space, silent, precise with his eyes wide, pale, stripped of emotion, fully locked in.
Rukia held her breath, eyes fixed, unblinking as Toru was taking the charge
The ball sailed over Toru's head and dropped perfectly into his path, just at the edge of the box.
Toru closed in, and just as he took the first touch, Kabuto ca rushing in, charging through the gap and jabbing his foot forward for the tackle.
However Toru's eyes remained wide and pale.
"Even if it's just for once, we will!"
At the last mont, Toru lifted his foot with a smooth, fluid spin, executing a roulette turn that slipped him past Kabuto's sliding tackle, leaving him frozen with wide eyes, caught in sheer disbelief.
In a sudden shift Toru's jaw tightened.
Using the montum of his turn, he loaded all his power into his single leg muscle.
And from just inside the box, Toru whipped his leg through and struck the ball hard, pouring every ounce of his strength into it.
The impact rang out with a heavy, rebounding thud.
Raya, Izaya, Jiho, and Nagisa stood frozen, eyes wide, stunned into silence.
Haruma Kusaka's jaw hung slightly open, gaze locked hard on the unfolding mont.
With his jaw clenched, Toru swung his foot through with full commitnt.
"Even if it's just for once… we will!"
"We will!"
"Scoreeeee!"
The ball detonated off his boot, a rocket unleashed from just inside the box.
The ball tore through the air, aiming straight for the top-left corner, until a hand flew across its path, just grazing it with the tips of his fingers, enough to shift its trajectory.
The shot lifted at the last instant and cleared the crossbar, sailing harmlessly over the goal.
Kurogami hit the ground first, landing cleanly on the grass. And without wasting a single beat, he pushed himself upright and eased into a composed seated position,legs folded neatly beneath him, hands resting calmly on his knees.
No rush in his breathing. No reaction on his face, as if nothing extraordinary had just happened.
Toru's breath caught. His confidence cracked for a mont, disbelief flashing through his expression as his jaw fell slightly open.
Rukia shut her eyes in visible pain, her hand instinctively tightening as the sinking feeling hit.
The crowd, the field, everything fell into a stunned silence.
No cheers. No reaction. Just disbelief hanging heavy in the air.
Nobody could process what they had just witnessed, struggling to comprehend what kind of inhuman reflexes and skill this man Kurogami possessed.
It wasn't just a save. It felt like the goal had been erased at the last possible instant.
"Woooooo!" Izaya broke the silence first, a wide, joyous grin cutting across his face as he punched the air.
"Co on!" Raya roared right after him, clapping loudly with a grin that refused to fade.
Then the silence shatters, as the crowd surged into applause in a rolling wave, until the entire stadium was clapping in unison.
The principal remained frozen for a mont longer, jaw still slightly dropped, before slowly, almost chanically, joining in with hesitant applause.
Haruma Kusaka stood smiling in place, clapping overhead.
Jiho let out a quiet sigh, the tension finally slipping from his shoulders, before raising his hands and joining the applause.
Nagisa then stepped toward Kurogami, offering a hand. Kurogami took it and rose smoothly to his feet.
Nagisa ruffled his hair, then gave a firm pat on his back, silent appreciation in the gesture, before turning and walking away.
As Kurogami made his way back to position, his gaze shifted, landing on Toru, who was crouched low, head down, shoulders hanging heavy.
Across the field, Masaru and Shino stood in the sa state, silent, overwheld, the weight of the mont pressing them into stillness.
Nagisa then began jogging toward Kabuto, who was clearly struggling to hide a smile.
Nagisa reached him and landed a sharp playful punch to his shoulder.
"Damn big boy, I didn't know I do your job better than you," he teased.
A faint smile finally broke through Kabuto's expression as he shook his head.
"Fuck you, Nagisa," he replied flatly.
Nagisa let out a small, teasing grin before turning on his heel and began walking back, casually raising his middle finger in Kabuto's direction in a mocking farewell.
Kabuto stayed where he was, still smiling faintly…
Kurogami stood set in front of the net, while eight players of Hanaka packed the box. In their contrast only Kabuto, Nagisa, Jiho, and Izaya were inside the box.
The taker then exhaled once, stepped forward, and struck the ball with force, sending it arcing toward the edge of the box.
From there, Toru stepped in, eyes locked unbroken on its descent.
Kabuto, Nagisa, and Izaya fought desperately to close the gap, but the Hanaka High defenders inside the box held them off, shoving and blocking their movent at every step.
Keeping his eyes firmly locked on the ball, Toru rose into the air and shifted his body mid-flight, forming the perfect setup for a clean, beautiful bicycle kick.
The fans leaned forward again, hope reigniting across the stands as every eye locked onto Toru.
Only Rukia remained still, a faint trace of pain tightening her expression as she watched the mont unfold.
Toru whipped his leg through the air and connected cleanly, sending the ball arcing beautifully toward the side of the net.
Kurogami reacted instantly, positioning himself before launching into a full stretch dive.
And with his outstretched arm, he t the ball in mid-air, just enough to graze it, redirecting its path up and over the crossbar as it sailed out of play, in a clean safe.
A collective sigh rippled through the crowd, disappointnt settling in heavy waves across the stands, their excitent cut short by the save.
Rukia remained composed, her expression steady, almost as if she had anticipated it all along.
Toru rose slowly, face pale, no reaction left in him. His gaze dropped, unable to look up at anyone.
Around him, players were already resetting, moving into position for another corner kick…
The setup reset once again.
The Hanaka player stepped up for the corner, while Kabuto, Izaya, Nagisa, and Jiho fought for position inside a packed sea of bodies.
The taker exhaled, then struck the ball, sending it soaring toward the edge of the box.
And this ti, it was Masaru who waited. His eyes burning with rage, jaw clenched so tightly it trembled. His thigh muscles stood out, veins tightening under the strain as he locked onto the dropping ball, waiting for his mont.
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