Chapter 37: Analysis Progress 100%

As the ball dropped, Yo Hiori and Hisakawa Mii leapt at the same time.

They collided in mid-air, but Hiori got control first and landed with the ball. Struggling to steady himself, he readied a pass to Ryūma—when suddenly a figure slid in from the side and cleared it away.

Team Y’s right attacking midfielder, who had been lying in wait, wasted no time. He lofted a long ball straight toward the penalty area.

Ryūma didn’t hesitate. He exploded into a sprint toward his own box.

Hiori also turned and raced back, but without the look of frustration he once carried—he no longer doubted himself so easily.

At the drop zone, Matsutani Kageaki and Rin Itoshi arrived together.

Others jostled for space, blocking one another or watching the ball’s trajectory, ready to snatch it first. The penalty area had descended into chaos.

With Team V’s four-back system, four defenders were already there. Six more Y players had piled in, and the triplet brothers had managed to recover too.

That made thirteen players clustered in and around the box.

As the ball fell, Team Y suddenly snapped into motion.

Matsutani leapt for it, expecting Rin to rise with him and prepared himself for a collision. But Rin spun on his heel and darted away instead—leaving Matsutani no time to think, as Ryūma was already charging back.

Landing, Matsutani immediately pushed the ball left. Kobayashi Shima, waiting there, swung for a direct shot!

【Thud!】

“Not happening!”

Putian Daiwa, even while being held back by a Y player, threw himself into a sliding tackle and blocked it.

The deflection fell to Y’s right attacking midfielder. He readied his strike—

—but Ryūma was already there, purple light flashing in his eyes as he lunged a foot in to block.

At the last instant, the Y midfielder switched—turning what looked like a shot into a side-footed pass left.

(Damn, he read me again? He hasn’t looked back once, but still knew I was closing in...)
(What the hell, are these guys hacking? How do they know what’s behind them without looking?)

Ryūma braked and looked left just in time to see Matsutani already swinging before the ball even arrived.

“Out of the way! The three of us are shutting you down today!”

The triplets clashed with three Y attackers, muscling into Matsutani’s shooting lane.

But Matsutani never intended to shoot. His foot swept over the ball, then with a deft heel flick, he back-passed to Y’s left attacking midfielder.

That player instantly redirected it wide right, where Kobayashi Shima was waiting in Team V’s half.

Shima looked to chest it down—but Ryūma was already airborne beside him, forcing a desperate jump. Despite his effort, Ryūma managed to head it first.

But heading wasn’t Ryūma’s strong suit. The ball spilled awkwardly back into the penalty area.

It dropped right between two Y players and two V players.

All four lunged at once. Within seconds, the scramble knocked the ball loose to the left side of the box.

Matsutani was already there. As it reached him, he swung for the shot.

“You take high, I’ll take low!”

Hiori barked to the keeper, then sprinted at Matsutani himself.

【Thud!】

Both froze—because it wasn’t a shot at all. It was a disguised pass.

The ball skipped straight to Y’s right attacking midfielder, who was already striking.

“This one’s ours—”

But before he could finish, his grin twisted to horror. A shadow burst in from behind, snatching the ball off his foot.

It was Rin Itoshi—who had quietly slipped back into the box from the very start.

Team Y went rigid. The same thought hit all of them at once:

In such a blistering passing sequence, anyone could have taken the shot. But Rin had read it perfectly, predicting who would finish.

Their faces soured. There was only one explanation:

They’d been figured out. And if they tried this tactic again, Rin would break it every time.

Ryūma stared at Rin’s back, stunned.

(To anticipate the final target in that flurry of passes... and not fall for any of the feints...)
(And to have been in the box from the beginning, waiting for it all to unfold...)
(That means... he’s cracked them?)

“Stop him! Foul him if you have to—just stall until the others are back!”

Hisakawa Mii and Matsutani shouted in unison.

Shima didn’t yell, but the way he spun so fast he almost fell showed he was just as shaken.

Y’s left attacking midfielder got there first, grabbing at Rin from behind to slow him down.

But just as his hand reached out, Rin coolly spun with the inside of his right foot, carrying the ball away.

He ghosted right past the midfielder and surged into the center of Y’s half.

At least the interference had forced him to adjust his line, giving Y’s left and right midfielders time to recover. Both converged on him at once.

But Rin, having already dismantled their system, saw through them completely.

A Chop Feint dropped them flat. Rin surged forward, driving deeper into Team Y’s half.

Desperate, Hisakawa threw himself into a sliding tackle.

“Too obvious.”

Rin’s voice carried an edge of impatience. He trapped the ball, spun into a Marseille turn, and skipped clear, leaving Hisakawa sprawled behind.

Charging into midfield, Rin met Shima, Matsutani, and the right attacking midfielder, who had scrambled back.

Green light glowed in his eyes. His feet danced over the ball, touches so quick they couldn’t guess his next move.

While they hesitated, he broke left. Matsutani lunged to block.

From Shima’s view, Rin immediately shifted again—

(He’s going for the nutmeg while Matsutani’s covering!)
(I’ve got you this time, Rin Itoshi!)

Shima dove for the gap between Matsutani’s legs.

But Rin had tricked him. He did change his stance—only to slip the ball to his left foot.

With a quick strike, he fired it through the right midfielder’s legs instead.

Then, just a step behind the ball, Rin burst through as well—charging straight toward Y’s backline!