𝐒𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓 | 𝘽𝙡𝙪𝙚 𝙇𝙤𝙘𝙠

01. 𝘐'𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦

"𝐉𝐎𝐈𝐍 𝐌𝐄" Sae said, his voice hurried, "Become the best in the world alongside me."

They were enticing words, admittedly, words that excited Adonis about a future that was surely soon to come.

It was no more than two days after the game, that Sae Itoshi stood at the front door of Adonis Saint's shared home, his eyes glued to the pavement.

This man was his best friend, yet he felt there was so much shame in him asking such a thing. In reality, he just still felt the guilt of what he'd said during that game. He knew he was in the wrong.

But he never wanted to lose again.

He saw that shot again and again, it replayed in his mind constantly. With each closure of his eyes he saw his failure, replayed as if to torture him.

He knew now that Adonis was a genius, just like he was, with that, the perfect asset Sae needed to truly rise through the world.

"uhh.. sure I guess?"

The Itoshi brotheres were already an unstoppable duo, but when you add the man that defeated Itoshi Sae to that mix, they'd be guaranteeed victory over every team they beat.

And that's exactly how it was.

With Sae and Rin on the team, Adonis's fate, ultimately, became the opposite of what he'd desired before.

He was bored, winning every game and blowing every team out. It wasn't any fun to him in the slightest.

The feeling was just like when he'd played on his own team, but instead he had teammates that could do the work for him.

Over time, Adonis slowly replaced Rin, taking a majority of Sae's passes, effortlessly turning them to goals.

It felt like no matter where Sae passed it to, Adonis was always able to turn it into a point for their team.

The two easily became the best youth strikers in the country of Japan, they would be the players to save Japanesse football.

Yet it was all so undesirable to the Saint, the fame, the recognition, not being able to go to the store without being noticed.

He just wanted to play the sport enjoyably, to play against an opponent that would actually give him a challenge.

A challenge like that championship game, a challenge that forced Adonis to become greater.

There was no feeling comparable to the one he felt at the end of that game, the pure ecstasy that consumed his brain when he saw the defeated face of Japan's Genius.

In that moment, at the end of the game, Adonis wanted nothing more in his life than to win.

His mind became a blank slate that desired only for victory, his desperation fueling his actions.

There was no player that could force that out of him, not in Japan, not after he joined up with Sae.

Even then, he wasn't sure if even Sae was capable of that any longer. Not for a man that kept evolving without remorse for his opposition.

As a result, he began restricting himself, holding back on his ability, bringing himself down a few levels.

He locked the ceiling of his talent behind a wall and restricted himself as he was, refusing to continue this charade.

After all, what type of predator goes all out on their prey?

Not many people realized Adonis playing down to his opponents, because they still effortlessly won.