Back in the Vortex locker room
Silence clung to the walls like damp air
No one spoke
Not even Leo who always tried to joke after a loss
Reiji sat on the bench
Unlacing his boots slowly
His fingers paused mid-motion
The goal replayed in his mind again and again
Kei's backheel
The impossible curve
The timing
It wasn't luck
It was art
Executed by a madman
---
Coach Hiroshi finally broke the silence
"We weren't ready for chaos
But this is a lesson"
Reiji looked up
"Not a loss
Just a message"
The coach nodded
"Exactly"
But behind the coach's eyes
There was a flicker of concern
Not for the team
But for Reiji
---
Later that night
Reiji wandered Tokyo's empty streets alone
Head down
Hands in pockets
He'd never felt outplayed before
Outmatched? Maybe
But outplayed in the realm of creativity?
Never
He walked past a glowing vending machine
Stopped
Bought a can of black coffee
Sat on a bench nearby
He pulled out his phone
Searched the name: Amano Kei
The screen showed minimal results
Old articles
Expulsion notices
Footage of a fight at a youth tournament
Red cards
Angry quotes from coaches
Then one article stood out
"The Boy Who Refused to Follow"
Reiji read the first few lines
> "Kei Amano doesn't disobey
He simply doesn't see why he should follow"
Reiji muttered
"That's not chaos
That's clarity"
---
The next day
Training resumed
But Reiji wasn't at practice
He sat on a rooftop near the Vortex facility
Notebook in hand
Sketching formation lines
Breaking them
Redrawing them
Creating new systems
He was thinking not just about stopping Kei
But becoming the kind of player who could rewrite the game again
Down on the pitch
Leo noticed his absence
"Where's the Ghost?"
Coach replied
"Watching from above"
---
That afternoon
A delivery arrived at Reiji's door
No return address
Just a black envelope
Inside
A single photo
Kei
Grinning
Holding a paper that read: "Rematch someday"
Reiji smiled
Folded the paper
Taped it inside his notebook
---
In another part of Tokyo
Kei stood with his coach
Who was yelling about structure again
Kei wasn't listening
He stared at a blank tactics board
Then walked over
And drew a big question mark on it
"Coach
Tactics are great
But sometimes
It's fun to be the glitch"
---
Back at Vortex
Reiji stood in front of the junior players
He'd volunteered to coach them for a day
"Do you know what makes a genius?"
One kid raised his hand
"Talent?"
Another said
"Hard work?"
Reiji shook his head
"No
It's the ability to confuse everyone
Even yourself
And still win"