Michael cast a contemptuous sidelong glance at Ryōsuke and the others, his demeanor radiating arrogance.
In his eyes, these nobodies were beneath him — he was a rising star of the new generation. Only Genzō, fresh from his first Bundesliga season, was worth even mentioning.
Yet even Genzō wasn't worthy of his attention. Everyone was merely a stepping stone for Michael; emerging stars and fading legends alike had already fallen beneath his feet.
He had no qualms about crushing their dreams and leaving them behind.
3, 2, 1!
READY!
As the projected countdown hit zero, everyone burst into a sprint toward the finish line.
Ryōsuke led the pack, with Michael close behind and the Bastard München members following — but remarkably, the rest of Blue Lock's members kept pace, staying close and even threatening to overtake.
While in the original story their physical abilities had been inferior to this team, Ryōsuke's hellish training had transformed the Blue Lock members.
Their physical capabilities now matched these opponents perfectly!
"So fast... can't keep up!"
Ashito trailed at the very back. Despite a week of training with Ryōsuke and significant improvement, an enormous gap still separated him from the others.
Unwilling to disappoint Ryōsuke and Tatsuya, he was determined to give everything he had to narrow that gap.
Ryōsuke maintained his lead with Michael in hot pursuit. But he planned to leave his opponent far more than just slightly behind.
❖ Thunderclap and Flash ➠ Eightfold! ❖
In an instant, he accelerated, executing Thunderclap and Flash eight times in succession! One foot in the air, the other touching ground, then exploding with power.
"This guy?!" Behind him, Michael's eyes widened.
He hadn't expected Ryōsuke to be this fast.
He had watched footage of Ryōsuke's matches before — his speed on the field was impressive, but Michael had dismissed it as merely looking good compared to inferior players.
This speed, however, far exceeded his expectations!
"Damn it!"
Michael's physical abilities were exceptional, ranking first in every test at his club. Being surpassed by this newcomer Ryōsuke was an absolute humiliation!
By now, Ryōsuke had left Michael far behind and moved on to the second phase.
Numerous platforms floated in the air, testing jumping ability. Yet this posed no challenge for him.
Jumping, dribbling, shooting!
After completing the series of tests, Ryōsuke quickly reached the finish line. Michael arrived much later, finally completing the course.
"Damn it." Michael cursed bitterly.
He had planned to take first place and mock his opponent, but he never imagined Ryōsuke would be this skilled.
Though they hadn't even spoken yet, Michael was already seething with irritation.
Soon, the others arrived one after another. Unlike in the original story where Bastard München had greatly outpaced Blue Lock, this time they were neck and neck.
"Michael, first place again?" As the others were finishing up, a smiling man approached Michael.
Alexis Ness, his follower and one of Blue Lock's Second Phase zealots.
"No, that damn guy took it from me." Michael gritted his teeth, glaring furiously at Ryōsuke.
"If you want to curse some more, I can wait before giving them the translators..." Alexis quickly offered.
"No, give them now."
Hearing Michael's response, Alexis quickly stepped forward with a box containing small earpiece-like devices and handed them to Ryōsuke.
These were ultra-high-performance simultaneous translation earpieces, developed by the Mikage Group for Blue Lock — each one worth a fortune.
Ryōsuke immediately put on the earpiece, and their German speech instantly became comprehensible to him.
"I apologize for the late introduction, Blue Lock members. I'm Alexis Ness." Alexis bowed very politely to everyone, his tone exceedingly courteous.
But this was just his facade.
"Hey hey hey, Alexis, no need to be so polite to this trash!" Just then, another man stepped forward — one with squinting eyes and spiky hair with a single falling forelock.
Erik Gesner, one of Bastard München's youth team forwards.
"I came because the club owner said Blue Lock was impressive, but honestly, I don't have high expectations for these Asians." Erik shrugged, speaking with obvious disdain.
"Oh really? Then how did I finish first?" Ryōsuke walked up to him with a smile, "If we're trash, then what does that make you? A piece of shit?"
"You..." Erik, infuriated by his words, stepped forward and thrust his chest against him.
But when their bodies made contact, he felt like he'd hit a massive boulder, losing his balance and falling to the ground.
"What's wrong, shitty boy? Having trouble even standing? Oh right, you're just a little crap after all — it's already a miracle you developed limbs." Ryōsuke looked down at young man before him, the smile never leaving his face.
Though he was usually quite easy to get along with, when someone deliberately came looking for trouble, he naturally wouldn't hesitate to teach them a lesson.
Erik lay on the ground as everyone burst into laughter.
"You bastard..." Humiliated and furious, he got up and moved to confront Ryōsuke.
But as he stepped forward, Michael grabbed him.
"He—" Erik started to speak, but fell silent upon meeting Michael's razor-sharp gaze. He instantly sensed Michael's anger.
In the youth training squad, Michael was the absolute core and leader — no one dared defy him.
"Nice to meet you, Ryōsuke Kira. I'm Michael Kaiser, and I came specifically to meet you." Michael stepped forward until he was just centimeters from Ryōsuke, his gaze unwavering, "Blue Lock's ace striker, don't disappoint me."
Though Ryōsuke had just stolen first place from him, Michael suppressed his displeasure and narrowed his eyes, speaking with pure arrogance.
"Become an obstacle in my life that I cannot ignore."
"Oh? I rather think your life might completely fall apart right here." Ryōsuke's eyes narrowed as he faced Michael, his presence seeming to overshadow the other's.
His expression remained unchanged, as if Michael were merely insignificant.
"Oh? Interesting." Michael noticed Ryōsuke's dismissive attitude and laughed, "In any case, on my path to becoming world number one, you Blue Lock folks are just an amusing sideshow. The rest are circus animals for decoration while I stand center stage. And you, Ryōsuke, are just a pitiful clown who mistook himself for the protagonist — bloom and wither for my sake."
"I suggest you get that brain illness checked out. Don't you feel embarrassed saying stuff like that? Did you skip school entirely, or did you just copy those lines from some book?"
Ryōsuke completely ignored what Michael thought was a perfect self-introduction, yawning impatiently and mocking him with an indifferent tone.
"You..." Veins bulged on Michael's forehead.
He had imagined many possible reactions from Ryōsuke, but he never expected this. It was as if Ryōsuke didn't even consider him — one of the New Generation World XI — worth acknowledging.
This infuriated Michael even more.
Meanwhile, the other Blue Lock members were silently cheering.
"That's enough, Michael. You need to work on this annoying habit of yours."
At that moment, Noel emerged from the other side of the finish line, interrupting the confrontation.
"Sorry Noel, I was just trying to heat things up~" Michael said with an immediate smile.
"Don't talk back. I'm in charge of discipline here." Noel spoke sternly, showing no regard for Michael's excuse. He turned to address everyone, "Now, the initial training is complete. As you've noticed, this room tests physical abilities. At Bastard München, we believe in ultra-rationality. I won't use subjective criteria like impressions or emotions. I'll select those with winning numbers — based on this standard, the top eleven will form the starting lineup for the next match."
As he spoke, a projection appeared on the wall behind him, displaying the team rankings.
[ Rankings ]
[ Nº 1 Ryōsuke Kira ]
[ Nº 2 Michael Kaiser ]
[ Nº 3 Alexis Ness ]
…
[ Nº 23 Aoi Ashito ]
In the rankings, all the players were mixed together, with no significant gaps between them.
"Michael isn't first?"
"Is this Ryōsuke guy really that good?"
"Unbelievable..."
The Bastard München members whispered among themselves. Having arrived at the finish line later, they hadn't witnessed what happened at the front.
"Stop wasting time. Find your dormitories and prepare for the next training session." Noel said this and turned to leave.
Before walking away, Noel glanced back at Ryōsuke.
He had heard rumors about this young man's formidable abilities. Though he'd dismissed them before, he now realized they weren't mere hearsay.
Despite Michael's awful personality, Noel acknowledged his exceptional physical abilities and technical skills — qualities that put him at the top of his peers. He had fully expected Michael to dominate this evaluation.
Yet Ryōsuke had proven extraordinary, claiming the №1 spot from Michael with ease.
He was truly exceptional. Blue Lock had indeed produced someone remarkable.
❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖
The dormitories exceeded their previous Blue Lock accommodations in luxury, with four people per room and every modern comfort provided.
Their rest was brief, however. After quickly depositing their luggage, they headed straight to their next round of evaluations and training.
Dynamic vision tests, off-ball movement training, small-group attack drills...
Every program utilized cutting-edge technology. The BLUELOCK MAN, once a simple goalkeeper, now demonstrated enhanced intelligence and versatility.
To Ashito, these facilities seemed like something from science fiction.
After a week of intensive training, the final data was released.
"Incredible, Kira! Just incredible!"
In the dormitory, Ranze Kurona — a Blue Lock member with a slight build, red hair in three braids, and delicate, almost feminine features — stared at his tablet in amazement.
On the screen were Ryōsuke's statistics.
"Speed S, Defense S, Passing A, Dribbling S, Shooting S, Attack Power S, Overall Rating 100! He's a true S-Class Hero!"
Everyone crowded around, marveling at the data displayed before them.
Ryōsuke had achieved S rank not only in these six main categories but in nearly all their sub-categories as well. No one else's stats came even close to matching his.
Such monstrous ability left everyone stunned. Even Kenyū, one of Blue Lock's original six core members, couldn't help but acknowledge his own inferiority.
"Kira... you're absolutely terrifying."
Just then, the room's broadcast system crackled to life. Noel's voice boomed through the speakers with commanding authority:
[Everyone, gather in the main hall. We will now conduct practical training: Bastard München U-20 Team versus Blue Lock U-20 Team.]
❖❖❖
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