The moment Ryōsuke's foot made contact with the ball, a thunderous explosion echoed across the field.
His long-range shot — launched from over forty meters away — carried such devastating power that Bastard München's goalkeeper Bachman had no chance to react before the ball pierced the goal.
[ Scoreboard ]
[ 2:0 ]
"No way..." Sweat trickled down Bachman's forehead as he tried to process what had just happened.
The team had seen video clips of Ryōsuke's long-range shots before, complete with their thunderous booms. At the time, they'd dismissed the sound as post-production effects, believing such power impossible.
Now they knew the truth — that sound was real, created right there on the field.
This guy Ryōsuke is a monster!
Gin Gagamaru looked down at his hands, remembering the lingering numbness from that U-20 match.
Genzō could only marvel at Ryōsuke's ability — this shot was truly world-class, surpassing even what they'd witnessed in the videos.
Even as the strongest goalkeeper, he wasn't certain he could have stopped it.
"As... as expected of Kira..." Ashito stammered, stunned by the thunder shot.
Though he had trained with Ryōsuke many times before, his teammate's abilities never ceased to amaze him.
Noel watched Ryōsuke intently, deep in thought.
Michael stood frozen, as if his soul had departed his body. He had planned to enter his Flow state and overwhelm the opponent with his technical skills, proving his worth and status.
Instead, he — the ace player — had been stripped of the ball with devastating efficiency by Ryōsuke.
Interception, counterattack, world-class shot... At this moment, Michael felt like nothing more than a prop in Ryōsuke's masterful display.
What a humiliation — an absolute humiliation!
Alexis quickly approached him with words of consolation, "It's okay, Michael, we'll equalize next—"
"Shut up, Alexis!" Michael cut him off sharply.
He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, veins bulging on his forehead as rage consumed him.
Alexis had never seen Michael like this before. Previously, he had maintained his composure against any opponent. Now, his usual calm had completely vanished.
Without another word, he signaled to his teammates to restart play and prepare to attack.
"That's enough." Noel strode to the center of the field, halting the match, "The outcome is already clear."
"But Noel, we've barely begun — and it's just a training match!" Alexis protested, bewildered by the decision.
"I've said before, I'm in charge here. Are you questioning me, Alexis?"
Noel turned his piercing, lion-like eyes on Alexis, who immediately apologized and stepped back.
His authority here was absolute — no player, regardless of status, could challenge it.
"This match is decided. Continuing would only widen the score gap — that much is certain." Noel addressed the others, dismissing the tension, "Blue Lock is the winner. Any objections? Michael?"
His gaze settled on Michael's downcast face, awaiting a response.
"No objections..." Michael bit his lip, forced to accept the bitter reality.
The reality that even his best effort against Ryōsuke had fallen short.
"Ryōsuke, exceptional work. Your abilities in both attack and defense far exceed the others. You'll have greater authority in future matches." Noel turned to Ryōsuke, his eyes filled with clear admiration, "Your skill surpasses everyone else's. From now on, you're the team's ace."
Michael's expression darkened at these words, but he remained silent.
"Thank you very much." Ryōsuke responded with a modest nod and smile.
"No, Michael is this team's core! That's indisputable, isn't it?" Alexis spoke up again, unable to contain himself.
"Shut up, Alexis. My patience has reached its limit. Your training for today ends here — go back to your room, and don't make me repeat myself."
"But..." Alexis opened his mouth to protest but swallowed his words.
He shot Ryōsuke a venomous glare before sullenly leaving the field.
"Ryōsuke... you made Michael show such an expression..." After leaving the field, Alexis's eyes blazed with fury.
He bit his lip until it nearly bled, fingernails digging into his palms. He wanted to tear Ryōsuke apart but knew he was powerless against him.
This was also the first time he had witnessed such terrifying ability on the field — even more frightening than what they had seen in the videos.
"Blue Lock's performance is clearly superior to Bastard München's. The difference in ability is absolute. Consider yourselves fortunate this match wasn't livestreamed and likely won't be edited for release. Otherwise, all your market values would plummet.
Today's practical training ends here. Let's begin individual training. You have your first match in three days — be prepared."
After speaking, Noel's gaze lingered on Ryōsuke before he departed.
The others gradually left the field.
"Kira was incredible! And against a world-class club's youth team!"
"Did you see Kaiser and Gesner's faces?"
"That felt amazing! Watching those arrogant wolves look so pathetic was so satisfying!"
While the Blue Lock members' faces beamed with excitement, the other side wore very different expressions.
"That guy must be a monster..."
"Even Michael couldn't beat him..."
"Michael's charge was not only defended, but he got stripped in a one-on-one. Looks like the No. 1 position is really changing hands..."
The Bastard München players whispered among themselves.
Erik walked alone to the side, defeated and humbled. Ryōsuke had completely dominated him on the field, making his earlier boasting seem foolish.
Meanwhile, Michael stood frozen in the middle of the field, lost in a daze. Today's events had utterly shattered his pride.
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Meanwhile, at the FC Barcha's building.
Meguru sat on the ground, panting heavily, sweat dripping from his forehead. "Man, how are these two guys so strong?"
Before him stood Sae and Tsubasa, who had both joined the Spain team.
"They really are incredibly strong." Eita Otoya said with admiration.
As one of the six core members of Blue Lock, he had always been confident in his abilities. But after the U-20 matches, Eita had discovered just how formidable elite players could be.
Sae and Tsubasa were perfect examples.
"One's an outstanding midfielder in the New Generation World XI, and the other's a prodigy who led his team to victory in the Youth World Cup." Meguru said with a smile.
Meanwhile, Tsubasa, in the middle of his physical training, glanced at Sae beside him.
"Sae, what kind of player is Ryōsuke?"
"Strong." Sae replied simply.
When he spoke normally with someone, it meant their abilities had earned his acknowledgment. Now, he had acknowledged Tsubasa's abilities.
"In that case, I can't wait! I want to see what it's like to face off against Ryōsuke!" Tsubasa's face lit up with anticipation.
❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖
"Looks like I won, so I'll be taking the striker position."
In the Ubers, Kojiro Hyuga spoke slowly, looking at his opponent lying on the ground.
"Damn it... who's going to just hand it over to you?"
The defeated player was Shoei Baro.
Though teammates, they had clashed over who would claim the striker position. Since Shoei refused to yield to anyone, and Kojiro was just as competitive, they settled it with a one-on-one match.
"Your skills are pretty good."
Kojiro offered his hand to help Shoei up, but Shoei swatted it away and stood by himself, clearly bitter.
He silently vowed to get revenge against Ryōsuke and never lose another match.
Yet here he was, defeated again — and in a one-on-one battle no less.
"A loss is a loss, you have to accept it, Baro." Oliver watched from the sidelines with an amused smile.
Still, he had to acknowledge how fearsome Kojiro was. That last shot had packed such devastating power that a direct hit to the head could have caused a concussion.
Oliver had never encountered such a player before. With this kind of power, defeating Ryōsuke might actually be possible.
"What a stylish shot!" Jūbē Aryū exclaimed in admiration.
"To think there are such interesting players outside of Blue Lock." Ikki muttered.
Shoei stood up without a word, his face twisted with anger, and stalked away.
"Hey, Aiku." Kojiro barely noticed Shoei's exit, turning to Oliver instead, "Between that Ryōsuke Kira you mentioned and me, who's stronger?"
"Who knows? We'll have to see how the matches play out." Oliver said with a shrug.
"Is that so?" Kojiro narrowed his eyes slightly.
If Oliver was still hesitant to declare a winner even after witnessing his abilities, this Ryōsuke must possess extraordinary strength indeed.
"I can't wait to see which one of us is truly the number one striker!"
❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖
At the Manshine City building.
"Amazing... absolutely amazing..." Reo exclaimed, staring at Haruhisa in awe.
They had just finished an internal practice match, and Haruhisa's performance had left everyone stunned.
Though he didn't look physically imposing, his technique was nearly flawless — reaching a level that even Reo couldn't dream of matching.
"As expected of a top club's ace player... there's a reason they call you the masterpiece." Hyōma remarked, acknowledging the other's prowess, "But why come here when you're already famous back home?"
"I simply wanted to compete against top-class players." Haruhisa replied coolly, his expression blank, "To prove that I'm the strongest."
❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖❖
Three days passed quickly.
Ten days had elapsed since the Second Phase of Blue Lock began, and the first match was set to start today.
Video websites and TV channels had scrambled to purchase broadcasting rights for this match. Even before it began, viewer traffic had overwhelmed most servers.
The anticipation was especially high for today's opening match:
Bastard München Vs FC Barcha.
Ryōsuke Kira and Sae Itoshi would clash as opponents on the same field.
"Who'll come out on top between Ryōsuke Kira and Sae Itoshi? Ryōsuke seemed to have the edge last time!"
"Don't forget about Tsubasa Ōzora and Genzō Wakabayashi — they're both powerhouses too!"
"What a blockbuster opening match! I can hardly wait!"
❖❖❖
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