Break Him Out Of His Shell

Chapter 17: Unexpected Half

-Third's PoV.-

Endou put a hand on Fubuki's shoulder.
"They are our next opponent: Hakuren Junior High." Tenma analyzed the white-haired-man's posture, he seemed depressed, he knew that look all too well.
Takuto yelled excitedly: "We could play freely, he is a mate of Endou, surely we will have a free match!" Though that smile faded to a frown, Tenma shook his head.

"They are under Fifth Sector's control, am I right? Otherwise you wouldn't be here pleading for help, is that true Fubuki-san?" Our midfielder asked, Trusugi at the back opened his eyes, Tenma was pretty observant. Fubuki nodded once again, clearly surprised.

"I had to leave, they fired me, slowly they were disguised as normal teachers around the junior high, then new students were transferred... It was way too late to do anything when I finally realized what was going on." He explained, we moved indoors, apparently, they have a strong tactic we need to break if we want to win.

"Absolute Barrier, that's what it's called." Endou, Kubo and Fubuki-san explained it. They concentrate most of the players at the front, the sides are left open so we need to make quick passes between us in order to break it. The keys are speed and finishing with a goal.

-Tenma's PoV-

"I think both Tsurugi and Terma would be the ideal performers of this technique. " Kurama said. No way, he believed in me? Was he faking? I nod with a smile, even though I knew deep down he didn't think of me that way. He probably thought I was worth nothing. No one would ever trust me.

During practice we tried to imitate their defense, to no avail. I kept having those thoughts again; Jack was kind enough to remind me how awful I was. I knew that to call Denon I needed to ignore his voice, but I just couldn't, it was shouting inside my brain.
I felt as if I was ready to give up. During the break, a letter arrived from a former player, the so-called "Score king" , a striker that was given the opportunity to study abroad in Italy. He was very good according to what the captain and the rest said about him.

'He would be able to complete the tactic with a blink of an eye unlike you, Ten-trash' the familiar voice whispered. Practice resumed after that comment, everyone was in an energetic mood, ready to help Funuki's team realize the mistake they had made.

"Come on, Tsurugi!" I motioned to him.

"I know, you don't need to tell me!" He answered back, suppressing a grin.

As we practiced, Endou, Kidou, Haruna and Fubuki were staring at us, I could tell, even from a distance. As I came closer with my plays, I managed to understand some things.

"I want to join your revolution, I need to make someone understand the power of real soccer and the eternal friends you can make thanks to a sport you love." He had tears in his eyes as he kept talking. "Yukimura flourished under my wing, I saw that child grow fond of soccer, I saw him growing under Eternal Blizzard, and now... I have not only lost a team, but a boy I promised..." He hiccuped a bit due to the tears accumulating in his eyes. "I promised him I would be there no matter what, and due to that Fifth Sector, I cannot do that." He takes a rock with his hand and throws it as far away as possible out of rage. "He thinks I betrayed them but I had no choice..."

Endou put a calm hand on his shoulder, his characteristic smile plastered on his face. "We will help you get your team back, I swear."

Next day they completed the technique, though I knew that it wouldn't last. I had little to no energy in my system. I felt light headed in the train ride, it was really cold outside, I shaked my head. My eyes opened in shock: everything was covered by ice.

I stared at my arms: covered by the long uniform, they hurt like hell. 'You won't last, this game isn't for you, you are just a burden to the team.' My eyes got teary. 'You, filthy thing, you are a bloody mess, last night we had some fun, right, Tenny?' I shivered at that last high ring-tone.