𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐓 ☆ 𝐁𝐋𝐔𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐊

004

   ↠ 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 2018 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃 𝐂𝐔𝐏, 𝐉𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐍 𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐈𝐗𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍. "Err... Once again, our Japanese representative team has keenly felt the wall that is the best in the world." Japan Football Union's new hire, Anri Teieri said. "I believe we must take this to heart and devise a plan to come back even stronger for the next World Cup. What do you think, Chairman?" 

   "Huh? We're making money, so who cares?" Japan Football Union Chairman, Hirotoshi Buratsuta said boredly, leaning on his knuckles. "In the end, football is just business. Let's just find some foreign coach who seems good or a Japanese guy and if it doesn't work out, we'll just fire them. Even if we don't do anything, just representing Japan is enough to make out brand profitable."

   Anri glared at him without saying anything. "What if your proposed reform ends up hurting profits? Some people may appeal against you. May appeal... may a... Maya... Ah!" He started to laugh, "I said Maya! Like Maya Yoshida!" The other Union started to laugh as well.

"Ba Ha!"

"How about that, Oka-Chan?!"

"That was pretty foul!"

"I'll give you a red card!"

   "It's true that Japanese football has made great advancements over the last twenty-five years and we've become a participant in the world cup. And thus it can be said that we've achieved a certain level of success. However, allow me to state this clearly! At this rate Japanese football is in danger of never winning the World Cup." Anri glared at Buratsuta.

   "Huh? Anri-Chan, do you really believe that Japan can win the World Cup?!" Burastsuta asked, grinning. Anri got up, "Of course I do, you damn Tanuki. That's my dream!" The other men whispered about her chest. Anri walked towards the tv, "Japan passing-style football can be effective internationally." "We can win if we play our own type of match." It's because we keep saying things like this that we never make it past the best sixteen." 

   "If you're saying all that, Anri-Chan. Do you have some kind of plan?" Buratsuta asked, 'They're so big.' He thought.

   "I will produce players who can lead this country to a World Cup victory!! Please observe! This is the indispensable coach who will help us destroy and remake Japanese football. Jinpachi Ego." 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

   "Congratulations, you unpolished lumps of talent." A lanky man spoke, you yawned, clearly tired from staying up for too long. "According to my personal judgement, the three hundred of you are the best strikers under eighteen. My name is Jinpachi Ego. I was hired to give Japan a World Cup victory." People started to mutter, confused.

   "I'll say this plainly. Only one thing is necessary for Japanese football to become the best in the world. The birth of a revolutionary striker. With the three hundred of you here, I will conduct an experiment to create the world's best striker. Look." Ego pointed behind as a projection appeared.

   "This is the facility created for that purpose, "Blue Lock." Starting today, you'll all be living here together while undergoing the special training I've devised. You can't return to your homes, and this marks the end of your previous football careers. But I promise this, whoever survives this Blue Lock and outlasts the other two hundred ninty-nine. The last remaining person will become the world's best striker. That concludes my explanation. Thank you." 

   You smiled, getting up from the corner, stretching your limbs out from sitting on the ground. "Umm! Excuse! I can't consent to your explanation." Ryosuke Kira raised his hand, "Each of us has our own precious teams and some of us are preparing for nationals. Running off to some place that makes no sense. I can't abandon my team to participate in that." Ego stared as he remained silent.

   'What morons.' You groaned, rolling your neck around. 

   "Yeah! I've got nationals, too!"

   "And what's that stuff about living together?"

   "Who are you, anyway?!"

   "Bring out somebody legit!"

   "Yeah that's right!"

   "I see. You're all really sick, huh?" Ego spoke, "Then piss off. If you want to leave, I won't stop you." You glanced around, taking a bite of milk bread.

   "Your teams are precious? Instead of becoming the world's best, you'd rather be the best high schooler in our country's football backwater? Huh?" Ego taunted, "I get depressed when I think about people like you carrying the future of Japanese football. Listen, Japanese football teamwork capability is the best in the world. You can say it's a gift from our country's propensity for considering others." 

   "But besides that, everything else is second rated. Let me ask you, what is football?" Ego asked, staring dead at everyone. "A sport in which eleven people combine their power? "Treasuring our bonds"? "For my friends' sake"? Wrong. And that's why this country's game has always been weak."

   "I'll tell you... football is a sport in which you score more points than your opponent. Whoever scores the most points is the best. If you want to play "getting along," then piss off." Everyone looked around at each other. 

   "I disagree. Please take that back. Players like Honda or Kagawa, there are plenty of others watching eleven people battle together. We grew up watching our Japanese teams cooperate! They're my heros! And you're wrong." Kira argued, you glared at him, 'He's making this harder. I don't wanna stay here forever.' 

   "Hm? Honda? Kagawa? Hmmm? None of them have won the World Cup, right? Then they're trash. I'm talking about being the best in the world. Got it?" Ego grinned as Kira glared at him. "Take Noel Noa, for example. He beat out Messi and Ronaldo to take the Ballon D'or. Do you know what the best striker in the world said? "Instead of assisting my teammates to win by 1-0. It feels better to pull off a hat trick and lose 3-4." You see?"

   "Eric Cantona, the greatest football player of the twentieth century, said "I don't care about my team. I just want to stand out." And the greatest player of all time, three-time World Cup winner Pele, said "The world's best forward, midfielder, defense, goalkeeper, whichever you ask about, the answer is still me." ... that. HOW ABOUT IT?! BUT THESE GUYS ARE NUMBER ONE! THEY WERE ALL REVOLUTIONARY STRIKERS!!" Ego bent back as he yelled the last part of his speech.

   You bit your bottom lip, 'Yep, he's crazy all right.' 

   "All of them are peerless egoists. What Japanese football lacks is ego. If you're not the world's top egoist, you can never become the world's best striker. And I want to create someone like that in this country. The lone hero who will stand atop two hundred ninety-nine corpses. Now, you lumps of talent. Let me ask one final question. Imagine you're at the last match of the World Cup. Eighty thousand spectators. You're in that field. The score is 0-0, the game has gone into overtime. The last play, you've broken through and received a pass from your teammate. It's a one-on-one showdown with the goalkeeper. There's a teammate twenty feet to your right, if you pass, you can certainly get a point. But you gamble your nation's hopes and the assurance of victory to shoot without hesitation. Only those sorts of crazy egoist."

   "May proceed ahead." Behind Ego, the door opened creating a huge gust of wind. "I'll say this once more. Football is a sport that exists for you strikers. Think of everyone besides yourself on the field as supporting actors. Discard your common sense. On the field, you're the leading actor."

   "Rejoice in your own goals over all else and live for nothing but that moment. That's what it means to be a striker."

   With that, you saw someone running towards the open door. You grinned, running after him.