Chapter 292: The Goal is Valid! Leading the Game!

Author’s note: Special thanks to KosherBeef52 for the 36 Golden Tickets to support this story! I really appreciate the love here! Also, shoutout to Hattorin, Robin_Kristiansen_7344, Ventallion, and Masatoshi_K who keep sending their Golden Ticket for this story! Hopefully, you can enjoy everything so far!

Unfortunately, this is going to be the last double-update day of the month. I apologize a big time here, but I want to start the next month with a massive update, so I will use the next few days to write more Chapters first for the future. I am so sorry, and thanks a lot for your understanding!

-0-

Honestly, Kenji’s last move was not something that Toin Gakuen’s goalkeeper expected. He knew that there was a possibility of a shot toward the near post, but when the boy saw Kenji cutting to avoid Misao’s block, he shifted his center of mass immediately, predicting that the opponent would whack the ball straight to the far post for the bigger and better angle.

No one in their right mind would pull Kenji’s move in such a heated moment. The boy didn’t even take a glance, didn’t take any shooting motion that gave the goalkeeper any idea of what to expect. Hell, if anything, he just executed the ball as if he was tackling it, extending his right foot slightly forward before poking the ball with his toe.

However, the result was there.

With the goalkeeper moving his center of mass slightly toward the opposite side, there was no way he could turn back immediately. In the end, he just froze on the spot, staring helplessly as the ball rolled gently—albeit mockingly—into his goal.

Thud!

"OH! WHAT A GOAL!"

"COME ON, KENJI! YOU ROCK!"

As the entire stadium was silenced by this scene, all the Hakodate Nishi players went into a frenzy. Cheers erupted from the bench, with Kumiko herself also punching the air passionately. This was the first goal that the team scored in the national stage, so the importance was beyond anything else in the world.

Kenji himself, of course, didn’t forget to celebrate. He ran toward the corner flag, hitting the coldest knee slide in front of the home team’s crowd while spreading his arms cockily, as if saying, ’This is me, what can you do?’ Of course, this small gesture was enough to snap the crowd out of their shock.

"FUCK YOU! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO PROVOKE, YOU FUCKING SISSY?!"

"THAT’S A FUCKING FOUL! YOU MOTHERFUCKER, WHY WOULD YOU BE SO PROUD?!"

"GET OUT OF HERE! I’LL GO TO HAKODATE AND BANG YOUR FILTHY MOTHER!"

The angry shouts from the crowd echoed throughout the whole stadium. However, the more he heard it, the more Kenji was satisfied with this reaction. It was always nice to wind the crowd up like this, making them agitated for completely nothing. Well... Not for nothing, per se, as the crowd really annoyed the hell out of him since the start of the game.

Hell, after celebrating together with the boy, Hiroshi and Usami had to drag him away from the corner, not wanting to provoke things further. Kenji just accepted it, grinning widely at Usami. "That was one hell of a pass, Senpai! As expected from you!" He praised with a big thumbs-up.

"Ah... It is nothing..." Usami rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. However, based on how red his ears were, it was clear that the boy was happy with this result.

Of course, not everyone was happy here. All the Toin Gakuen players, for example, were gathering around the referee to complain about the last collision.

"Sensei, can you explain this?! I mean, he snuck up from my blind spot and charged straight at my shoulder as if he wanted to kill me! Look, it even leaves a bruise!" Naoya tried to explain while also pulling the neck of his jersey slightly to prove a point. He was also shielding the referee from his teammates, as the boy was the team’s captain here.

Of course, the teammates didn’t really care about that. They kept spouting so much nonsense, grumbling about the referee’s unfairness in this game.

"Fuck it, Sensei! This is getting ridiculous! How many times do they have to foul us for you to blow the whistle?!"

"Don’t talk about the fucking national’s intensity! We have already experienced this shit so many times, we know how it usually works! This is beyond normal!"

"Are you trying to get us killed first or what?!"

The referee was so flustered by the complaint. While yes, he wasn’t really afraid of the boys in front of him, he played in front of their home crowd. He really didn’t want to know what the supporters would shout at him later if he sided more toward the opponent.

"The goal cannot be canceled because the process itself is clean. Takahashi-kun, you know this is your usual operation style, right? You should know that we didn’t call that a foul usually." He tried to explain while also blaming Toin Gakuen’s captain. "Still, I can see your point here. After this, I will be stricter with my judgment for the rest of the game. Don’t worry about that."

Hearing that, all the Toin Gakuen players smiled secretly, feeling satisfied with the result. Even though they were still annoyed with the goal, now, they had something to gain from the referee. Their pressure worked, and later, while the referee wouldn’t really side with them openly, at least, in a fifty-fifty situation, they would be considered the victim first.

Of course, Naoya himself was still dissatisfied with himself. "Sorry, everyone. My carelessness brings us down by one goal." He apologized directly to his team.

"Eh, don’t worry, Captain! This is still quite early!" Genta Kojima, the humongous striker, just grinned widely while patting his friend’s shoulder. "Everything will be okay. Just watch our back carefully, and we will give you a VIP seat to see how we avenge ourselves later. Just sit still and don’t think too much, okay?"

"Yes, Captain! One goal is nothing! Trust us!" The other attackers also nodded in agreement.

"This is also our fault, to be honest." The defender, Misao, said solemnly. "If only I hadn’t gotten fooled with that cut, we would still be in a tie situation. Sorry, everyone."

"Eh, don’t worry, Misao! Just like what I said earlier, you will get the VIP seat to watch how we avenge you! Just sit still and enjoy our performance, okay?"

Naoya just looked at his teammates, who were still trying to cheer each other up, and he couldn’t help but feel warm inside. This was the team that he was leading; all were willing to have each other’s backs and work harder to help their friends. With this kind of cohesion, how could they lose the game?

On the stand, though, there was one particular boy who completely disagreed with Naoya’s assessment. He just shook his head, saying firmly to his friends, "Takahashi-sanis screwed, I call it."