APOTHEOSIS ✦ BLUE LOCK (x Male OC)

Chapter 6 : Weapon

"Do you get it now?" Hayami asked the others once he finished explaining the purpose of the game through his perspective.

"A striker has to be amazing enough to lead his team," he added, highlighting the points from his previous explanation. "Someone who can incite the skill of his team's DFs and MFs."

"Certainly," Kuon said, "Playing football normally, you wouldn't really stop to think about that..."

"So Ego purposely cobbled up the system where we could realize that 'A team's best scorer isn't decided by rank alone' ?" Narahuya asked.

"I think so." Isagi chimed in, "Ego used that rule to make something clear to us. He forced us to discard our ideas of tactics and positioning, to "score goals entirely on our own'."

"Our team's foundation would be created after the explosive clash between our egos," Hayami cut him off. "Football-and the teams within it-are born from a top-notch striker. That was Ego's message for us."

"And Kunigami's kick earlier wasn't a 'fluke'," Hayami said, looking at Narahuya. "It's the same kick from when we were playing tag during the first elimination. Kunigami kicked the ball with his left foot and his kick was so powerful that kicking the ball from that distance was possible. If someone else had kicked the ball, it wouldn't have reached the goal post.

We were able to score another goal because of Kunigami's left foot kick; because that's his individual skill."

"Well, well, you're on the right track."

Ego suddenly chimed in, his figure appearing from the television screen in the room they were in, catching some players by surprise.

"Listen up, you unpolished gems," he started, "The second match of the fifth stratum concluded just a few moments ago, with team V trampling over team Y with a score of 8-0."

Ego stretched his right hand in front of his chest and a hologram showing the scores of team V and team Y appeared from it.

"These are the current standings," he added.

The hologram changed into a table containing the results of all the matches the teams within the strata have been through. At the top of the table, placing first place so far was team V while the one placed at the bottom was team Y. Team Z placed 4th; second from last.

Hayami stared at the table from across the screen, narrowing his eyes.

"Eight-zero?!" Igaguri screeched, hands on his head.

"Are you kidding..?! Team V is too strong..!!" Narahuya yelled.

"'Beginning from scratch', 'making a foundation', and 'individual skill'. I see you have been thinking about my words and it looks like you've almost figured out the core of what's needed to 'create something from nothing.'"

"To accomplish that, let us talk first..." Ego began, a hologram of the Japanese flag appearing from the palm of his hand. "About our country, Japan."

He began talking about baseball, comparing it with football.

"-It is plainly a sport where one performs a single role while giving it their all, perfectly matching Japan's character. Thus we are strong." He said, tossing a baseball ball up-

"But football is different." -he finished, catching the ball again.

"Offense and defense intertwine continuously on the field and the sport is played in close quarters. It's a game that can't be won by perfectly fulfilling just one role. Thus, what we need..."