(Both of them triggered at the same time. I'll go stop the bigger threat!)
(Rin Itoshi is being marked by Shuto, but there's no one marking Yoichi!!)
(Too slow to react… the interception—)
But just as Haru Hayate was about to cut off Yoichi Isagi's ball, Shōei Barō—radiating the hunger of a predator—suddenly lunged in!
Haru Hayate wasn't the only one stunned; even Yoichi Isagi blurted out in disbelief:
"Barō?! What the hell are you doing?"
"What am I doing? Isn't it obvious? I'm hunting you!"
As he spoke, Shōei Barō pulled his right leg far back, as if winding up for a direct shot.
(What kind of attack pattern is this?! I don't get it at all!)
(Stealing the ball from your own teammate—who in the world could predict that?!)
Shock aside, Haru Hayate's speed was nothing to scoff at—he twisted around quickly to block Barō's shooting lane.
But unfortunately for him, Shōei Barō wasn't shooting. Instead, he performed his specialty—a heel-flick change of direction!
(A heel flick into a directional feint?!)
(Does a technique like that seriously exist?!)
"Oh! The freshly subbed-in Blue Lock No.14—"
"Shōei Barō shakes off his marker!!"
"Will he go for the shot right in front of goal?!"
As Atsuto Tereasa's passionate commentary boomed, Shōei Barō was immediately met by Miroku Darai's interception attempt.
"Snatching the ball from your own teammate—what a bizarre trump card!"
"Barō!" At that exact moment, Yoichi Isagi appeared in Barō's ideal passing lane.
(Is he going to pass?! No way—he definitely wants to shoot himself!)
(But the outside lane has no shot angle left… so he really is going to pass to Yoichi?!)
(A one-two to shake me off? Or is that just bait and he actually wants to cut inside—?)
(Either way, the outside lane is completely shut…)
Before Miroku Darai could finish the thought, Shōei Barō charged straight into the supposedly impossible outside lane.
(Huh? He's charging into an area with no shooting angle?! Then is it a pass, not a shot?!)
"Barō!" Yoichi Isagi broke through the defender's block with everything he had, shouting urgently.
(Damn! No one's marking Yoichi. If Barō passes now, it'll be… an easy…)
In the next instant, something beyond Miroku Darai's comprehension happened—Shōei Barō performed another heel-flick feint!
(Another heel-flick change of direction?!)
(I can't read him at all!)
"Barō! Pass the ball! This is an important match!"
Yoichi Isagi was practically losing his mind. As far as he was concerned, if Barō just passed, he was certain he could score.
But Shōei Barō couldn't care less. Asking him to pass—especially to Yoichi Isagi—was basically asking for his death.
"Even if the world ends, I'm never passing to you, Yoichi!"
"I'm going to devour you and this match whole!!"
With that, Shōei Barō fired a shot head-on, ignoring Darai's pressure.
[BOOM!!]
The rocket of a shot slammed cleanly into the goalpost and bounced out.
"That idiot! Second ball!!" Yoichi Isagi shouted, whipping around.
Luckily, Kenyu Yukimiya was already there—and he snagged the rebound instantly.
(The defense is off-balance!!)
(Barō's presence has completely thrown the field into chaos!!)
(Set the optimal target!)
"Let's see if you can get through me, Yuki." Teppei Neru stepped in front of Yukimiya with a faint smile.
(Come on—focus everything!)
(Take one step closer to your peak—)
(GO!!)
Yukimiya first sprinted full-speed toward Teppei Neru's left, then at the exact moment Neru moved to intercept—he cut direction sharply!
Beating Neru, Yukimiya kept his eyes locked on the goal, thinking:
(Not time to shoot yet!! Faster!!)
(I'll ride the chaos Barō created and unleash every technique I have!!)
Watching Yukimiya's rapid feints, Neru—who still couldn't catch up—finally noticed something was wrong.
(A full-speed two-touch dribble?!)
(His touch is way more precise than before! Not a one-on-one in open space—he's cutting inside through a congested battlefield!)
(Using players as obstacles, weaving left and right—)
(He's the street-dribble type, isn't he?!)
"Move! I don't have time to play around!"
Right as he shouted, Yukimiya again used Haru Hayate's body as a screen—slipping past him while blocking Neru's chase route.
When the field suddenly opened before him, Yukimiya felt a rush of excitement.
(There it is—my perfect shooting lane!)
"Go on then—shoot it, goggles boy!!" Kazuma Nio snarled, veins bulging.
(So fast?! His pressing is airtight—)
(The lane's closed. No—there's still an opening. Find it now! Lead me into FLOW—)
(Achieve it—my ultimate aim!!)
[BOOM!!]
Yukimiya's spiral shot whipped past Teppei Neru's block and past Kazuma Nio in goal.
(The timing is perfect! This sensation—)
(FLOW!!)
But before Yukimiya could celebrate, Oliver Aiku suddenly leapt straight into the shot path—heading the ball away right at the line.
(No way?! He predicted it?!)
(No—that's impossible! I aimed for the defender's blind spot!)
(He just jumped on instinct?!)
(This gamble-like defending is nothing like Aiku's usual style of thinking first, judging, then acting!)
(What is going on?!)
Before Yukimiya could recover from the shock, he saw Oliver Aiku sprinting at full speed toward another spot.
(No way… did that bastard Aiku enter FLOW before me?!)
"I've waited a long time for this!"
Saying that, Oliver Aiku beat Seishiro Nagi to the ball—heading the rebound high into the air again.
Just as Rin Itoshi leapt up to trap it, Ryūma Banjō soared past him.
"Nice one, Captain!"
Rin clicked his tongue in annoyance and immediately tried to box him out.
But Ryūma Banjō wasn't wasting time tangling with him.
"Not the time for catching up. Later!"
Before the words even finished, the moment the ball hit the ground, Ryūma Banjō executed a heel-flick turn—completely shaking off Rin Itoshi before he could mount any defense.