Chapter 161: Okuhito Iemon
The Ubers locker room was alive with the raw, electric energy of a 3-0 shutout. Even when Lavinho had entered the game in the final minutes, he hadn't been enough to stall Kira's momentum. The scoreline was a statement.
It was a clean, decisive victory. Even Snuffy, usually the stoic professional, was handing out rare compliments to the squad. Sendo had managed to cement his spot in the starting eleven, largely by serving as the perfect decoy for Kira's game-winning strike. However, Snuffy wasn't letting him off easy; the coach was still riding him about his defensive positioning and passing accuracy. With only two games left in the league, Sendo knew that if he didn't evolve fast, he'd be right back on the bench, watching his Hollywood dreams go up in smoke.
"Attention, diamonds in the rough. Time for the updated salary rankings," Ego's voice crackled from the monitors, his face appearing for a fleeting second before the data began to scroll.
The room went dead silent as the list materialized. Kira leaned in, eyes scanning the bids.
"Rank 20 is Karasu. Still at 12 million," Niko noted, looking at the stagnant numbers.
"Probably because P.X.G. didn't have a game today. No match, no new bids," Aiku said, leaning back and stroking the stubble on his chin. He remembered Ego's explanation well enough: the market only moves when you're on the stage.
"Makes sense," Niko nodded.
Then, a name jumped up. Rank 19: Shuto Sendo. 16 million yen.
Kira did a double-take, blinking at the screen. 'Are you serious? Someone actually put up that much for this guy?'
"OH YEAH! Hollywood, here I come!" Sendo practically launched himself off the bench. He lunged forward and grabbed Kira's hand, shaking it with manic intensity. "Kira, I don't even know how to say it. I used to hate your guts, man... but seriously, thank you! I actually have a shot now!"
Sendo knew exactly why his value had spiked. He was being rewarded for being Kira's most effective tool. Kira felt a surge of pure annoyance but suppressed the urge to yank his hand away. He could understand Sendo's desperation. The guy had gone from the arrogant ace of the U-20 team to a guy forced to play out of position just to survive. That kind of ego-shattering fall would break most people.
Aiku patted Sendo on the shoulder with the pride of a big brother watching a kid finally pull his weight.
'He's finally growing up,' he thought.
The list continued.
Rank 18: Ryusei Shidou at 20 million. Stagnant, just like Karasu.
Rank 17: Eita Otoya at 22 million. Even without a goal in two games, his off-ball movement was clearly catching the eyes of some deep-pocketed owners.
Rank 16: Ikki Niko at 23.5 million.
"You're moving up, Niko. Nice work," Aryu said, flicking his hair.
Niko gave a sharp nod. It was progress, but for a guy with his ego, it wasn't nearly enough to satisfy him.
Rank 15: Ranze Kurona. Kira barely remembered the guy, but apparently, he'd done enough to crack the top tier.
Rank 14 was Aryu at 25 million, followed by Aiku at 13th with 27 million.
"Twenty-five million. Glamour is always a steady investment," Aryu mused, looking pleased.
"Twenty-seven. At least I'm still worth more than Sendo," Aiku muttered. He didn't look thrilled, but he wasn't complaining.
Rank 12: Gin Gagamaru. 28 million. As the undisputed number one keeper in Blue Lock, his value was a rock-solid testament to his reliability.
Then, the monitor flickered to Rank 11.
"Okuhito Iemon?" Barou asked, his brow furrowing in confusion.
Kira was just as stunned. 'Wait, wasn't he eliminated? How the hell is he on the board?'
"I should mention," Ego's voice interrupted their confusion, "that aside from the main qualifiers, Okuhito Iemon is the sole survivor of the Wild Card round. He is currently playing for Manshine City in England."
The butterfly effect was in full swing. In the original timeline, Kunigami was the one who crawled back through the Wild Card as a cyborg-like shells of his former self. Now, that dark-horse role belonged to Iemon. Kira wondered what kind of hell the guy had gone through to survive, but a 28.5 million yen valuation meant he'd come back as a completely different animal.
Then, the Top 10 slammed onto the screen.
Rank 10: Kenyu Yukimiya at 29 million.
Rank 9: Hyoma Chigiri at 30 million.
Rank 8: Mikage Reo at 40 million.
Rank 7: Itoshi Rin at 41 million.
Rank 6: Meguru Bachira at 47 million.
Rank 5: Rensuke Kunigami at 50 million.
Rank 4: Yoichi Isagi at 66 million.
Rank 3: Shoei Barou at 80 million.
Rank 2: Seishiro Nagi at 88 million.
Rank 1: Ryosuke Kira at 150 million.
"Are you kidding me?! One hundred and fifty million? You just jumped another fifty million for one game?" Sendo's excitement evaporated into pure, concentrated salt.
"It hurts. It actually hurts. We're the same age! How is the gap this big?"
'He jumped a whole Kunigami in one round,' Niko thought, staring at the numbers.
Kira noticed the shift. Kunigami was still in the mix at 50 million, meaning he hadn't failed in this timeline—he'd just stayed in the program. Isagi was still hunting the lead, but the real shocker was Nagi. 88 million? What the hell had happened in the Manshine City match?
'I need to hit the film room,' Kira thought. 'Something big went down.'
"Food! Move it! If we don't eat, we don't work!" Lorenzo started shouting, herding everyone toward the cafeteria.
Kira took a quick shower and headed to the mess hall. As he sat down with Niko and Aryu, he spotted a group of familiar faces. Yukimiya was waving at him from a few tables over, flanked by Kurona, Hiori, and Igaguri.
"Hey, Yukimiya. Long time no see," Kira called out, flashing a grin.
"Good to see you, Kira," Yukimiya replied. He looked different—more composed, radiating a quiet, dangerous confidence. The last twenty days had clearly changed him.
"I heard you guys just finished your match against Bastard Munchen. Looked like a hell of a fight," Kira said. He was fishing for info.
"Haha... you could say that. We barely scraped by," Yukimiya said with a modest smile, but his eyes were sharp.
"Where's Isagi? Usually, he's the first one in line for seconds," Kira asked, looking around.
"Oh, him?" Igaguri piped up, looking amused. "The idiot pushed himself so hard he fainted the second the final whistle blew. He's in the infirmary."
"Wait, seriously? He's okay, right?" Kira asked.
"The coach said it was just extreme brain fatigue. Overused his vision or something. He'll be fine after a nap," Hiori explained.
Kira felt a chill. Isagi had overused his vision so much he'd blacked out? The intensity in the Bastard Munchen match must have been suicidal. England was clearly no joke.
"You guys are still undefeated, right? I'm looking forward to the day we finally face Ubers," Yukimiya said, his tone turning competitive.
"Same here. We'll be waiting," Kira replied.
Yukimiya nodded and led his group away.
"They've changed a lot," Niko noted, watching them leave.
Kira nodded. 'Everyone is evolving at a breakneck pace. This league is getting dangerous.'