The scoreboard blinked:
Seikan High 1 – 0 Aomori North High.
But no one was smiling yet. Not even Masaki.
From the moment the ball returned to the center circle, everything changed.
Keiji adjusted his captain's armband, sweat already trailing down his neck.He call back all his team to tell quick change of strategy.
"In the right flank just do it slow don't go too fast just trap their midfield first," he said calmly.
The midfielders nodded. The next 15 minutes were going to be war.
⸻
The Tactical Shift
The ball was back in play.
Immediately Aomori North pressed with aggression. Their formation tightened, squeezing space in the middle. Taira, normally calm under pressure, had to take two quick touches before sending it wide to Aoi.
Aoi cut in sharply but was met by a crunching tackle from Aomori's right-back. The ball spilled to Keiji, who launched it forward with a perfectly timed lob.
Morisaki came off his line fast, diving feet-first to cut out the cross.
"Clear!" shouted Jito.
The ball was booted into midfield, but Aomori had found their rhythm.
Misaki Taro called out instructions while pressing. "Mark tighter on their #10, he's dropping deep!"
Jun Misugi drifted closer, intercepting a pass and threading it diagonally toward Masaki. The play looked promising, but Keiji stepped in again. The way he read the pass felt almost inhuman.
⸻
"Damn it!" Hyuga growled. "He's everywhere!"
Masaki kept his cool. "That's the point. He wants to bait you."
Hyuga rolled his shoulders. "Then I'll take the bait and break the trap."
On the next play, Masaki drifted wide left to stretch the defense. Misugi and Aoi rotated through midfield like gears turning perfectly. Hyuga made a dummy run.
Masaki received a ground pass from Taira, dribbled inside doing a fake shot.After that he pass it to Hyuga with the outside of his foot.
The trap had been triggered.
Hyuga broke through the line — one-on-one with the keeper.
He struck it cleanly.
The keeper dive but
Goal. 2–0.
Keiji stared at the net, then turned away calmly. His team jogged back without a word.
But Keiji's eyes… had something else in them now. Calculation.
⸻
From the next kickoff, Aomori North moved with uncharacteristic speed.
"Aoi, they're pushing the fullbacks up!" Soda shouted.
"Everyone stay compact!" Captain Taro ordered.
Higuchi and Jito held the central line tight, keeping the center locked, but Aomori was patient. They passed and probed, forcing Ishizaki and Soda to commit.
Then came the switch.
A fast diagonal from Aomori's central midfielder to the left winger. Ishizaki was half a step behind.
"Watch the overlap!" Soda yelled.
It was too late.
The winger cut it back inside just as Keiji came sprinting like a freight train from midfield.
Jito moved to block but too slow.
Keiji didn't even stop the ball. He met it first-time with his left foot and do a low-driven shot that flew just out of Morisaki's reach.
Goal. 2–1.
The stadium gasped.
Keiji celebrate.
He pointed two fingers to his temple, then jogged back. "We're not done."
⸻
The last 5 minutes of the half turned into a tactical brawl.
Keiji man-marked Hyuga forcing him to pass early. Hyuga is still calm and he pulled wide to lure defenders with him. That opened space for Misaki and Aoi to make delayed runs from midfield.
Aoi nearly slipped one through in the 41st minute, but the shot was blocked by a sliding defender.
On the other side, Taira tracked Aomori's #10 like a shadow, cutting off lanes and poking away passes. Misugi led a high press that forced Aomori to play long balls.
"You're mine now," Misugi whispered after intercepting one such lob. "You can't win with just Keiji."
But Keiji was still dangerous.
In the 44th minute, he sent a laser-guided ball to the left wing. A low cross nearly found its way through, but Jito got his foot to it just in time.
Just as the referee blew for halftime,
⸻
Halftime
In the tunnel, Hyuga slammed his fist into the wall. "Tch, we let them get one goal. That bastard scored."
Masaki exhaled deeply. "He's not just defense. He's the trigger."
Taira nodded. "They're using him like a spring. Lure us in and then launch."
Misaki placed a hand on Masaki's shoulder. "He's waiting for you. You're the key to unlocking him."
Masaki narrowed his eyes. "Then it's time we break that lock."
As they walked into the locker room, a fire had started in their eyes.
⸻