Blue Lock: Limitless

As Isagi stood over Igarashi.

The game was in full swing, every second mattered.

Every move could decide who stayed and who left.

But Isagi wasn't focused on the ball.

His attention was fixed on Kira.

He stood at the center.

Whose expression is intense but conflicted.

Isagi moved.

He dashed past Igarashi, who remained crumpled on the floor.

Snatching the ball with swift precision.

Without hesitation, he flicked his foot.

Sending the ball flying toward Kira.

It spun perfectly into his path.

Kira's eyes widened in disbelief as the ball struck him squarely.

He stumbled, regaining his footing only to freeze.

Shock written across his face.

"Wait, what the—?"

The room held its breath for a single heartbeat.

Before Kira's voice broke the silence.

"Isagi…kun?" he called, confused.

His eyes searched Isagi's face.

"What are you doing?"

Isagi met Kira's gaze.

"This is for your own good," he said.

Kira's jaw tightened.

Frustration flashing across his face.

He snapped, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!"

Isagi said nothing more.

He turned his back on Kira.

Stepping away without hesitation.

One by one, the others in the room followed suit.

The distance between Kira and the rest of them widened.

An invisible line being drawn.

Bachira, observing the situation with a mischievous grin.

"Interesting…"

Igarashi, in particular, felt baffled but pleasantly relieved.

He had expected to be the one holding the ball again.

Yet here he was, safe—for now.

…

"Dammit!" Kira cursed.

Isagi's words had struck deep.

Planting seeds of doubt in Kira's mind.

Kira clutched the ball, his posture tense and controlled.

He was a prodigy, a star player, he can't afford to lose here.

70 seconds left.

Kira made his first move.

Surging toward Raichi with explosive speed.

His footwork was crisp.

The ball rolling toward Raichi's legs with precision.

Raichi barely dodged, a last-second sidestep saving him.

65 seconds.

Kira then re-shifted his focus to Imamura.

Sprinting toward him with renewed aggression.

His attack came sharp and fast.

But Imamura evaded, twisting out of the ball's path with moments to spare.

Kira's breath came quicker now, a bit out of breath.

55 seconds.

Kira lunged at Igarashi next.

He made his shot.

It was clean, the angle sharp.

But Igarashi dodged.

The misses were piling up, each one chipping away at Kira's confidence.

45 seconds.

He was watching, reading his opponents, searching for patterns.

Sharpening under the pressure

Calculating every dodge and miss, honing his instincts.

35 seconds.

Kira's movements grew more calculated.

His attacks were deliberate.

Forcing the others to work harder to avoid him.

25 seconds.

Kira's gaze locked onto Imamura again.

His footwork was precise, his aim controlled.

The ball zipped across the floor.

But Imamura spun away at the last second.

Kira's teeth clenched, but his focus didn't waver.

15 seconds.

Kira turned to Raichi, his eyes narrowing.

Raichi was not as quick this time.

Kira saw his chance.

Anticipating Raichi's movements.

Kira sent the ball hurtling forward with pinpoint accuracy.

Ding!

Raichi was "It."

But Kira didn't celebrate.

There was no time.

The clock was still ticking and it wasn't over yet.

10 seconds.

Raichi wasted no time.

Counterattacking with ferocity.

Bachira, sensing the moment, suddenly joined the fray.

His grin widening as he started attacking Kira.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Kira barked, dodging frantically.

"You gotta aim for the strongest guy~!" Bachira sang.

His voice playful but his intent deadly.

The dual assault left Kira scrambling.

Every dodge drained more energy, leaving him vulnerable.

Raichi, seeing the opening.

Launched the ball with ruthless precision.

Kira saw it too late.

The ball struck his foot.

5 seconds.

Kira instinctively trapped the ball.

His body moving on autopilot.

There was no time to think.

Only time to act.

His eyes darted for the nearest target.

Igarashi.

4 seconds.

Kira's movements turned sharp.

In a flash.

The ball flew toward Igarashi.

3 seconds.

Igarashi dodged.

Just by an inch.

2 seconds.

Kira didn't stop.

With every fiber of his being.

Muscles tensed.

Into this very last shot.

1 second.

Boom!

The ball struck Igarashi's hip.

Ding!

Igarashi was out!

Silence fell over the room as the timer hit zero.

Kira slumped to the ground, chest heaving.

His face a look of relief.

He had survived, but more importantly.

The hesitation was gone.

Replaced by a hard-won understanding of what it meant to compete in Blue Lock.

Putting his life on the line to survive.

Isagi watched this.

He knew his plan had worked.

Kira was no longer the naive idealist who hesitated.

He had finally adapted and embraced the brutal reality.

But there's more.

A distinct digital ding resonated.

[Survive in the Admission Exam]

Reward:

+100 Points for surviving.

Match Performance Points:

+50 Points per tag.

Total Points Earned for this Mission:

= 150 Points.

Then the notification vanished, replaced by a new window.

[Name: Yoichi Isagi]

- Status -

(1) Physical Fitness: C+

(2) Soccer Technique: B-

(3) Game Intelligence: A

(4) Talents: (1/~)

(5) Devour Shop: 1430 Points

Isagi's eyes widened.

"1430 Points… I'm now more than half-way through to be able to afford an S-level Talent!"

It may happen sooner than he'll expect it.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The unmistakable voice of Jinpachi Ego echoed through the room.

"Good job, you unpolished gems," Jinpachi's voice rang out.

"But now, let's continue with the results."

The players stiffened.

Their expressions hardening in anticipation.

Isagi's heart remained steady.

He knew what was coming next.

Jinpachi paused, drawing out the silence for what felt like an eternity.

His cold eyes scanning each of them.

When he finally spoke again.

It was with the finality of a guillotine's drop.

"The player we will get rid of is… Gurimu Igarashi! You are expelled!"

The words hit with brutal force.

The air felt thick, suffocating.

As if the very atmosphere had changed in an instant.

Igarashi, still standing in the center of the room.

Looked as though he had been struck by lightning.

His face was drained of color.

His shock evident in every feature.

Igarashi's eyes, wide with disbelief.

Scanned the room, as if searching for any sign that this wasn't real.

But there was no escape.

His body seemed to crumple.

As the weight of the expulsion crashed down on him.

His fists clenched, and his shoulders slumped in defeat.

Then, in a moment of raw anguish.

Igarashi's breath hitched and tears began to fall.

Slowly at first, and then in torrents, staining his bruised face.

"Damn it!" Igarashi's voice cracked.

"I tried so hard…! And yet, I still lost…"

The words hung in the air.

A painful truth that echoed around the room.

Isagi watched.

A knot of sympathy tightening in his chest.

He wasn't the only one.

All around him, the other players exchanged uneasy glances.

Some looked away, unwilling to face Igarashi's pain.

While others couldn't tear their eyes from the spectacle of his breakdown.

Igarashi's face was drenched in sweat and tears.

The marks of the brutal game still visible in the form of fresh bruises.

His once-confident demeanor had crumbled.

Replaced by a look of hollow despair.

This was the price of failure in Blue Lock.

And then there was Kira.

Kira stood quietly in the corner of the room.

His eyes locked on Igarashi.

He had been a part of the moment that sealed Igarashi's fate.

His mind was racing as the full impact of what had just happened began to settle in.

He could have been the one standing there.

Eyes filled with disbelief and despair.

Torn between anger and regret.

A second earlier, or a second later.

And things could have turned out very differently.

The thought sent a chill through Kira.

If he hadn't acted when he did.

It could have been him expelled instead of Igarashi.

That fact, that heavy truth.

Hit Kira like a wave crashing down on him.

It was a choice between him and Igarashi.

There was no other way around it.

He had chosen himself.