Chapter 61: Searching
The one-on-one between Bachira and Rin had begun.
Kira, however, wasn't watching their spectacular battle.
He had recently discovered a problem: the attributes he could absorb had begun to change.
[Detected absorbable attributes from Meguru Bachira have changed]
[Dribbling +15 (Continuous decay)]
[Passing +10 (Continuous decay)]
"What's going on here?"
Kira wondered.
[As the host's own abilities increase, the closer they become to the target's attribute values, the lower the absorbable attribute value will be.]
[When the host's ability in a certain area exceeds the target's by a specific amount, that absorbable attribute will no longer be detected.]
[However, as the absorption target is also evolving, there may be instances where absorbable attributes increase.]
So that's how it worked.
Kira was beginning to understand.
It meant that if his own dribbling eventually surpassed Bachira's by a significant margin, he would no longer be able to absorb Bachira's dribbling attribute at all.
As his own dribbling ability increased, the value he could absorb from Bachira would naturally decrease.
And now that Bachira's creative passing ability had awakened, he could also absorb the increased passing attribute from him.
If one day—
A day came when there was no one left for him to absorb from—
He would have become a "pentagon warrior," standing at the pinnacle in all aspects.
A thrill ran through Kira at the thought.
Still, he needed to focus on the present.
Take it one step at a time.
Having settled his thoughts, Kira began to recall and meticulously analyze the various soccer techniques he'd experienced while using Rin's Trial Card.
His body began to move unconsciously.
***
Elsewhere.
"Here I come! One more ball."
Bachira moved the ball rapidly, rushing toward Rin.
His left and right feet continuously shifted, supporting his body.
Continuous step-overs!
Bachira's signature move.
"Too green. Your intent is too obvious."
Rin timed his moment perfectly and shot his foot out.
The ball at Bachira's feet was stolen with pinpoint precision.
Bachira lost his center of gravity and tumbled to the ground.
"Not bad. Getting serious now, are we?" Bachira asked, still prone on the floor.
"Shut up, Mushroom Head. I didn't expect this to be your level. That 'by-feel' dribbling of yours is completely useless against me," Itoshi Rin critiqued, holding nothing back.
"But I still had a chance to get past you, didn't I? How would you know if I don't try?"
Bachira sounded unconvinced.
"No need to try. I can see the result at a glance."
Itoshi Rin picked up the ball, palmed it in one hand, and glanced at Kira before continuing, "In reality, you're terrified of fighting alone. When you play, you're always searching for someone else."
"That kind of weak ego doesn't stir my heart in the slightest..."
A weak ego.
Always searching for someone else?
Lying on the ground, Bachira sank into a memory.
Searching for someone.
It seemed to have been the theme of his entire life.
Meguru Bachira.
He had loved soccer since he was little.
He'd clutch his soccer ball whether he was eating or sleeping.
As a child, he played soccer from morning until night.
"Hey, Bachira, come play soccer with us!"
In the beginning, the other kids around him would invite him to play.
But.
Gradually.
Bachira was too strong.
Every time they played, he was the brightest star on the field.
"Bachira's too good. This is boring..."
"Let's just go home and play video games."
The other kids started to avoid playing soccer with him.
"One more time! Just one more time, guys..." Bachira's pleas went unheard.
Not only that, but the other children started to think there was something wrong with him.
That playing soccer all the time had made him start hallucinating.
Nobody wanted to play with someone so creepy.
"There's nothing wrong with you at all..."
"They don't understand you, Bachira. It's just that the things you feel... they're not capable of feeling them."
Back home, his mother held him and comforted him softly.
"Then what should I do, Mom? I just want to play soccer with them. It's so much more fun than video games." Young Bachira was at a complete loss, unsure how to handle it.
"Hahaha, my Bachira is really something special."
His mom stroked his head, saying proudly, "To have your own unshakeable conviction... that's a very rare thing."
"You just have to believe in him and live life the way you want to."
"When people grow up, you know, they start to want to believe, but they find they just can't anymore..."
"So when you start pretending not to hear it, little by little, you'll genuinely become numb and won't be able to hear your own voice anymore..."
"What you must believe in is something both illusory and vital—it's the voice of the 'Monster' that exists inside your heart."
"Mommy has always believed in that voice!"
His mom pulled back the canvas in front of her. Little Bachira was holding his soccer ball.
He looked at the easel and saw the massive, dark silhouette of a monster.
The entire room was filled with his mother's paintings and her art supplies.
Bachira's mother, Bachira Yu, was a famous painter in Japan.
An adult who had always followed her own unique path.
'Is that the Monster in Mom's heart? Then what about the one in mine...'
Bachira was no longer confused.
He began to enjoy the happiness that only he could feel.
And so, Meguru Bachira—
gradually began to play soccer alone, with the Monster from his imagination.
As Bachira grew older.
His teammates on his teams also became stronger and stronger.
But Bachira.
He was still the most dazzling one.
The teammates around him couldn't understand his passes.
They couldn't understand his ideas.
They weren't on the same level.
When Bachira played with them, he even felt it was less interesting than playing with his own Monster.
Meguru Bachira had always believed in the joy of soccer.
But, in truth, he was also afraid.
If it stayed like this forever, with no one understanding him.
Playing soccer all alone.
It was a loneliness so deep it felt like dying.
But everything...
It all changed the day he arrived at Blue Lock.
"Everyone, I have something to say."
At that moment, Bachira's sleepy eyes opened, and the first thing that filled his vision was the sight of Kira, foot on the ball, looking arrogant and proud.
"I want to make a bet with all of you. I'm challenging every single one of you, by myself."
"If you're the Demon, you kick the ball straight at me, no holding back."
"If I'm the Demon, I'll kick it at one of you… whoever I feel like targeting, depending on my mood."
"If I lose, I'm out. Done. But if I win, I'm in charge of football matters in this room from now on. Deal?"
'Challenge all of us?'
'Is he insane?'
At first, Bachira was shocked, but his eyes immediately lit up with excitement.
This guy's presence.
It overlapped perfectly with the Monster in his mind.
The Monster friend he had always wanted to meet, the one he was always searching for... it had to be the strongest one.
He was right there!
And so, Bachira leaped up and pounced toward Kira.
He had to play soccer with this guy!!!
***
Fourth Stage Training Field.
"Ever since then, I've believed the person who could understand my soccer the most was Kira."
"Of course, I still think that now."
Bachira suddenly stood up, faced Itoshi Rin, and said, "Hey, do you have a Monster inside you, too?"
"Huh? What do you mean, Mushroom Head?"
Rin was completely baffled.
"Hmm, it's not something that's really there. It's like... the imagination in your heart of the most perfect way to play."
"I think every amazing player has a Monster inside them!"
Bachira explained his idea to Rin.
"How would I know something like that?"
Itoshi Rin looked exasperated. He glanced at Kira, who was still training, and began to walk away, looking bored.
At the same time, his mouth didn't stop: "It's because you're controlled by childish things like that that you've become so timid and naive..."
"You can just play soccer with that Monster for the rest of your life. While you do, I'll become the world's number one striker."
Having said his piece, Rin left coolly.
"Whew," Kira was completely immersed in his own training, totally unaware of the conversation between Bachira and Rin.
Bachira gave the training Kira a complicated look, then turned his gaze to Rin's retreating back.
He realized. Perhaps, Itoshi Rin was also nurturing a Monster in his heart—one that Bachira couldn't understand.
A Monster completely different from Kira's!
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