NIKE -Blue Lock-

Morning prayers

HERE AFTER AN ETERNITY

Chaos ruled the field. An ordered chaos, isolated, yet catastrophic. A chaotic soul lost within order, and that order disrupted by a single source of havoc.

There was only one question occupying the minds behind the screens, all thinking in unison.

What the hell is Micheal Kaiser doing?

The blonde's expression could be summed up in a single word from his language: beklemmung.

They watched him run, sweat, pant, grit his teeth like a hungry leopard chasing down a gazelle.

Kaiser's eyes were wide open: the field seemed to expand and distort under his adrenaline-fueled gaze. His breathing was labored, the air burning painfully in his lungs, his heart racing wildly, muscles taut and ready.

But there was no time to slow down.

Every fiber of his being was stretched to the limit, poised to sprint, dodge, fight, demolish anyone who dared stand in his way.

Do you want to know how it feels to be loved?

There was no escape.
That voice whispered incessantly, like an echo in a long, endless tunnel. Like a prayer, or perhaps a curse, repeated over and over until your ears bled.

His eyes cut through the field like a sharp blade, ignoring everything that wasn't the opponent's goalpost. Anything that dared enter or even brush against the boundary his gaze had drawn... had to be removed.

Ness was a few meters behind, ready to receive the pass, hands raised to call for his attention.

Did Kaiser see him? Yes.
Did he hear him? Yes.
Did he care? No.

Kaiser dribbled across the field, leaving Karasu, another opponent dodged, in his wake.

"Kaiser-" Ness, his trusted midfielder, called out, hands still raised, his face tense.

"I'm here!"

The purple-haired midfielder's voice broke through the chaos in Kaiser's mind: the voice of a friend, an ally, someone familiar.

But to Kaiser, in that moment, it was just background noise compared to the question filling his head... that melodious yet wicked voice that refused to leave his mind.

Do you want to know how it feels to be loved?

Every step he took, every labored breath, every heartbeat pushed him further from everything and everyone.

Even from himself.

"I don't need you..." Kaiser thought to himself, swiftly dodging Nanase with a feint to the left and a quick move to the right.

"Micheal!" Ness called again, his voice now almost desperate. His wide, violet eyes were fixed on his friend's face, full of concentration yet heavy with anguish. He could feel the sting of knowing Kaiser wasn't relying on him like he often did.

"MICHEAL- TRUST ME!"

The purplenette's words reached him, trying to break through the armor of isolation Kaiser had built around himself.

For a brief moment, the blonde glanced at his friend out of the corner of his eye, seeing his desperate yet determined gaze, ready to receive the ball.

A flicker of conflict flashed in his blue eyes, a split second of hesitation.

But then, that relentless voice in his head seized control again.