Ten minutes of the match had passed… but the tension on the field was rising as if the ground itself was about to explode.
Team Z was starting to find its rhythm,
and Team W sensed that something was off…
Because they were facing a player…
whose movements were unpredictable.
Asaf Shinji.
---
Team W on the Attack
Team W regained possession and began advancing with a clear plan:
Isolate Asaf.
Three players surrounded him, while Hiro advanced with the ball at high speed.
Konigami shouted:
– Watch out! He's trying to get past!
Hiro bypassed Konigami with a powerful sprint.
Then he easily dribbled past Reitsu.
Isagi said nervously:
– If we let him get close… he'll finish us off!
That's when Asaf stepped in.
He ran like lightning.
A shadow step… then a phantom step.
He dribbled past two W players without being touched.
The moment Hiro lifted his foot to shoot…
Asaf's foot was already in front of the ball.
Hiro collided with him hard, but Asaf braced himself perfectly.
The ball bounced away.
Hiro yelled angrily:
– Get out of my way!!!
Asaf looked at him coolly:
– If you can't get past me… that's not my problem.
The system displayed:
> [Analysis: Hiro is starting to lose his emotional control]
[Probability of making mistakes: +32%]
Asaf smiled:
"Good… the angrier he gets, the slower he gets."
---
A deadly counter-attack
Isagi grabbed the loose ball and said:
– Asaf! To the right!
Pachira ran after him, laughing:
– Let's do something crazy!
Asaf sprinted towards the attack in three consecutive steps… Breath quickened on the court.
Two W players blocked his path.
The system showed:
> [Three-way dribble chance: 41%]
[Pass to Bashira chance: 62%]
[Shadow step chance: 78%]
Asaf thought to himself,
"A step... is the best."
He disappeared for a moment.
Then he reappeared in the middle of the defenders.
Then he disappeared again behind them.
One of them shouted:
– N-No way!! How did he do that?!
Bashira burst out laughing:
– Yah!! I never get tired of you!
Isagi was stunned:
– That's not a human dribble...
Asaf found himself right in front of the goalkeeper.
Preparing the shot... The system displayed:
> [Top left corner: 75% chance]
[Right corner: 52% chance]
Asaf shot towards the perfect corner...
But...
At the very last second... Hiro appeared.
He lunged forward like a beast, placing his foot in front of the ball.
The ball hit him and flew out.
It made a sound like it had hit a rock.
Isagi:
– Hiro… went after it?!
Pachira:
– This isn't human…
Hiro stood up, breathing heavily.
He glared at Asaf:
– Listen to me carefully, Shadow…
I won't let you steal my goal.
This match… is mine.
Asaf replied with strange calmness:
– We'll see.
---
W Team Counter-Attack
After Hiro's incredible save, W Team launched a rapid attack.
The ball was now with their midfielder, Saito.
Chigiri tried to catch him… but he was too quick to pass.
The ball reached Hiro again.
Ego on the screen said:
– Now the real test begins… W's most aggressive attack.
Hiro advanced towards Zone Z.
But this time…
He doesn't want to shoot directly.
He said in a low voice,
– We'll finish you off by using your own brains against you.
He suddenly passed the ball to another player.
The Z players' eyes darted around. The ball came back to a third player.
Then it came back to Hiro.
Isagi shouted,
– That's a triangular pass!
It creates a shooting opportunity!!!
And indeed…
Hiro found himself unmarked in front of the Z goal.
The goalkeeper yelled,
– Close the space!!! Close it!!!
But no one was close enough.
Hiro lifted his foot.
The shot was perfectly executed.
Asaf's system displayed a red alert:
> [High-powered shot: 95% chance of a goal]
Asaf thought to himself,
"No… not now."
---
A moment of stillness… then an explosion.
As Hiro shot… Asaf moved.
But not a normal run…
A double shadow step.
He wasn't supposed to use it like that.
The system had warned him before.
But Asaf ignored everything.
He disappeared…
Then he reappeared right in front of the ball.
Pinch!
The ball hit his foot hard, sending him sprawling half a meter.
Everyone froze.
Isagi:
– Asaf… stopped Hiro's shot…?!
Pachira:
– This is insane… This is impossible!
Hiro's eyes widened for the first time.
He shouted:
– What?! How did it get there before the shot?!
Asaf felt pain in his foot…
But he stood up anyway.
He said in a quiet voice that cut through the air:
– I told you… It's not that easy, Hiro.
---
End of Chapter Eight
The game stopped for a moment, as if the world stopped with it.
The players of Team W were in shock.
The players of Team Z were stunned.
Ego, in the control room, smiled for the first time:
– It seems "The Shadow" is starting to bare its claws.
Meanwhile, Hiro continued to glare at Asaf with eyes full of rage and fury.
– I won't let you win… I won't let you take my world!
Asaf replied without blinking:
– Then… try to defeat me.
The match hadn't even truly begun yet… and the Beast and the Shadow had entered into a merciless battle.