Ch. 6 Resolve
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Ryuu carefully tracked the movement of the ball in midfield. As he moved, two center backs kept their focus on him as a defensive midfielder religiously marked him.

'I only scored twice last game and once this game. Is there really a need for such caution?'

Despite his thoughts, Ryuu couldn't suppress the grin on his lips. He could feel himself improving as the game progressed. He had even managed to score with a well-placed chip shot in the 23rd minute.

"Right side."

"Go, Yuuto!"

The opposing team withdrew to defend as Ooura East moved up the field.

"Don't lose sight of Ichijyou!"

Ryuu watched as Yuuto perfectly feinted his defender and sent a high left-footed cross towards the near post. The prodigy ran to head the ball. However, instead of jumping straight up, Ryuu rotated in the air and struck the ball with his foot, completing a bicycle kick. The pass landed right in front of Miyazaki, who redirected the ball past the keeper and into the goal.

"ALRIGHT!"

Soon the rest of the team was celebrating with Miyazaki.

"Nice goal!"

"It was because I was completely free! If I missed that, it would have been awful."

The #10 gave Ryuu a side hug as thanks for the excellent pass.

"Good volley, Miyazaki. Now let's score another and win this game."

- - -

Fukui Hiroari, the coach of Ooura East, pumped his fists in excitement after watching the great play.

"Alright! We got the lead! Ichijyou baited his defenders towards him and made an opening for Miyazaki to come in, just as planned."

Hiroari's expression was even brighter as he saw Miyazaki throw his arm around Ichijyou.

"Once Ichijyou joined in the second half, the atmosphere of the team completely changed. These guys who were so afraid of conceding a goal are now relentlessly trying to score as many. Ichijyou, despite his injury, has such a strong presence, and everyone is drawn toward him. Show them how fun soccer can be, Ichijyou!

- - -

As the final whistle was blown, Ryuu trotted towards the bench and was soon joined by Yuuto.

"Ryu-chan, you're incredible; an assist and two goals."

"Hm? Ahh, thanks. Honestly, it wasn't anything special, mainly good timing and proper positioning."

"Still, you were amazing, Ryu-chan!"

"As I said, it wasn't much, but thank you, Yuuto. You played well too."

"Thank you, Ryu-chan!"

As the post-match activities started, Ryu was more focused internally. He replayed every moment of the match with extreme precision and analyzed what he did. Once he was back home, he would write his findings in his notebook and try to think of possible solutions.

'I still have much more to work on.'

.

.

.

"Wow!"

Yuki was amazed by the person in front of her.

"What?"

Anna, who felt like an animal at the zoo, stopped midway through her rehab exercise when she noticed Yuki's twinkling eyes.

"Anna is…Anna is standing!"

"You just wanted to say that…."

"I guess you got motivated after seeing Ryu-chan's play."

Yuki flinched when she saw Anna's scowl and thought the blonde was embarrassed. In reality, Anna cared more about Yuki hugging Ryuu after the match, while she was forced to stay in her wheelchair.

"In other news…Ryu-chan made it through round 2 today! Yay!"

"Whaaaa! Why didn't you tell me when the match was?!"

"The match was in the middle of the weekday, so I couldn't go either. Ryu-chan scored two goals and got an assist."

"Wow…"

"What was that?"

"N-Nothing!"

Anna tried to hide her blushing face from Yuki, who eventually continued with the conversation.

"According to Yuuto, Ryu-chan played even better in this match. Yet..."

"…"

"Yuuto said that Ryu-chan had an irritated expression on the train ride after the game. Ryu-chan, despite his success, is still unsatisfied, but that strong mentality is what makes him so cool! So don't rush rehab, Anna. You won't feel the effect so suddenly."

"Hmph. Be quiet."

"By the way, the next match is in two days. See you!"

Anna watched Yuki leave as she muttered, "Two days…Okay!"

With renewed vigor, she continued her exercise.

.

.

.

On the soccer grounds of Nitsuta Middle School, a scrimmage was being held.

"The next opponent is Ooura Higashi, who has Ichijyou Ryuu."

"The one that came back and scored two goals, right?"

"He scored two more today and even got an assist."

"Damn! He's pretty much completely recovered. He really is a genius…."

After stopping a lobbed pass, an extraordinarily tall player joined the conversation.

"Ichijyou Ryuu, who's that?"

A much shorter defender was the one to respond.

"The genius!"

"Huh?"

"He used to be…You don't need to worry about it, Shogo."

"Hmmm, if Kei says so, then I guess it's fine."

"Yeah, no matter who the opponent, we'll just stop them."

.

.

.

At the stadium, the players of Ooura East were gathered for the game but were busy talking amongst each other instead of warming up.

On the side, Ryuu was juggling the ball and occasionally passing the ball to Yuuto, who would catch it and toss it back gently. The #17's expression was blank, but his thoughts were active.

'Too high. Easy. The left is still too unstable. Sloppy, sloppy. That one wasn't too bad. That one was awful.'

Ryuu was carefully attuning himself to his ideal match state. In theory, he would juggle the ball while walking, but he still lacked the fine control needed to perform such a task. His concentration was nearly broken when he heard a commanding female voice.

"HEY! IT'S RIGHT BEFORE THE MATCH, SO FOCUS!"

Yuuto didn't know whether to laugh or cry at his twin's behavior.

"What? It's Yuuto's twin sister."

"Jeez, so noisy…."

"AH! THEY RAN AWAY!"

Before she could continue, Yuki saw a ball heading toward her. Out of reflex, she caught it with her foot and kicked it back.

"Nice reflexes, Yuki," Ryuu complimented as he continued to juggle the ball.

"At least Ryu-chan is on the team."

Yuki's expression softened as she watched Ryuu, and she thought back to their conversation from the previous night.

- - -

"Playing in the matches confirmed it. I really have lost my touch, at least as a midfielder."

"What do you mean, Ryu-Chan?"

Instead of answering Yuki's question, Ryuu looked at Yuuto and asked him a question.

"Say, Yuuto, why do you play as a wingback and not a winger?"

"Hmm? We'll…I'm not really as fast as most wingers, and I can't dribble that well…and I-"

"Stop. I meant, why are your qualities better for a defensive wing position instead of an offensive one. And to answer its two things. A) Your insane stamina and B) Your naturally cautious play style. You're much more attuned to defending and making occasional runs instead of penetrating a defense or trying to outpace a defender."

"Does that mean you are not suited to be a midfielder Ryu-chan?"

Yuki asked, but she and Yuuto had slight trepidation in their eyes.

"Yes and no. Last week, Dr. Takano said that I reached 175 cm and told me that I'm likely to reach at least 187 cm by adulthood."

"WOW," The twins exclaimed in unison."

"Whether I like it or not, I'm growing to a much bigger size than I expected. Since the accident, my body has changed and will continue to. I need to adapt to it before I can even think of recovering what I had before. I need to reach a state where entering and winning the National Tournament next year will be possible."

"What! That's like 6 months away! The hurdle is so high…

"It's not at all! I don't like the idea of Ryu-chan aiming for just the top 4 in the district. It's not like him at all."

"Ha, I guess you're right, Yuki…."

"If it's Ryu-chan, you'll be able to change this team and even win Nationals!"

Ryuu once again felt it. The unwavering confidence that the Oume twins had in him. How could he not, at the minimum, match their expectations?

"Yuuto, for the next match, don't be afraid to send high crosses."

"What!"

"Isn't Nitsuta Middle School the summer district champions? I hear they have a strong center back…."

"You're right, Yuki. The guy's about 190 cm tall."

"You want to fight against that?!"

"Yuuto. Yuki. I plan to genuinely become a center forward, a bonafide goal-scorer from now on. It's not a question of if I can beat him, but if he can stop me.

- - -

'Ryu-chan. That confidence and that handsome face. He's so-'

"Yuki-chan."

Yuki was drawn out of her fantasy by Dr. Takano, and she turned toward where the doctor was looking. At first, she was confused, but seeing the familiar head of blonde hair and the gentle grandfather walking behind the slim figure, she quickly recognized who had caught Dr. Takano's attention.

"Anna-chan! Wow! Amazing! You're able to walk with crutches now?!"

"If I become serious, this isn't much!"

Anna turned towards Ryuu, who was staring at her, specifically at her legs. Looking down, she saw that they were slightly trembling and tried her best to keep them under control. Looking back up, she realized that Ryuu was much closer to her than before.

"So, you've decided to take the first step forward."

"I-I, Yeah! I have!"

"Heh. How cute."

With that, Ryuu gave Dr. Takano and Anna's grandfather a slight bow before winking at Yuki and leaving.

Anna's face started to heat up as she belatedly realized what Ryuu had called her. Meanwhile, Yuki verbally expressed her embarrassment.

"RYU-CHAN!"

"He's good at soccer and good with girls; how enviable," said Dr. Takano with a cheery expression.

{Doctor, are you able to speak English?}

The young doctor turned his gaze towards the older gentleman.

{Yes, a little.}

{Anna's progress is thanks to that boy. He's been a source of inspiration for her..}

{Ryu-kun really is remarkable.}

{Indeed. I'm very grateful.}

.

.

.

"Look, Anna-chan, Ryu-chan is starting today."

"Hmph! Of course, since he's the best on his team."

- - -

The Ooura East #5 sent a pass towards Yuuto, who ran along the touchline.

Ryuu moved into position as he signaled for a cross.

"Shogo, watch the cross," instructed Kei, who recognized Ryu's hand gesture.

"Pass, Yuuto!"

"You're decently tall, but you want to challenge me in the air?"

Yuuto sent an excellent cross towards the edge of the penalty box.

[Despite Nitsuta's strong defense, Ooura immediately challenges with a long ball!]

"You're going to get hurt."

Ryuu perfectly timed his jump and soared to reach the ball. Shogo was late with his jump, but his height made up the difference in timing.

With a surprisingly small margin, Shogo managed to clear the ball with a header, but he was the one who lost his balance mid-air and crashed to the ground.

'How?'

Landing stably, Ryuu gave Shogo a look before offering him a hand to get up. Shogo was again surprised at how easily the shorter boy pulled him up.

'He's strong.'

"Word of warning."

"Huh?"

"Don't get comfortable. Try your best to stop me, or you'll be completely crushed."

"…"

With those words, Ryuu jogged towards the centerline. Even as the #17 trotted off, Shogo felt the pressure that Ryuu exerted.

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