The stadium was still buzzing. The echoes of the crowd's cheers, the flashing cameras, the murmurs of admiration swirled together into an overwhelming storm of noise.
But amidst all that, Shun only had one thing on his mind.
He walked toward Rika, his expression unreadable. His footsteps were steady, cutting through the fading excitement like a blade.
Rika stood there, arms crossed, trying to look unimpressed, but there was a slight twitch in her eyebrow. Shun knew that look well—she was annoyed but trying not to show it.
Finally, he stopped in front of her, leaned in slightly, and smirked.
Shun:"Was it better than you?"
A gust of wind swept across the field, brushing past them.
Rika blinked, her lips parting slightly as if she wanted to say something—but she didn't.
Behind her, her teammates were whispering among themselves, staring at Shun in a completely different way.
Teammate 1:"He's kinda cool, isn't he?"
Teammate 2:"That bicycle kick… I've never seen anything like that."
Teammate 3:"Didn't he just call out Rika? That confidence is insane."
Rika clicked her tongue and turned away, her short hair swaying as she crossed her arms.
Rika:"Tch. Don't get cocky, ponytail."
Shun chuckled at the nickname but didn't say anything. He had already won this exchange.
The Locker Room—A Different Atmosphere
Back in the locker room, the team was on fire.
Renji:"BRO, DID YOU SEE YOURSELF?!"
Kaoru:"Shun, I swear the cameras probably caught that in 4K Ultra HD!"
Toru:"That was some anime protagonist sht, man!"*
Shun casually tossed his towel over his head and sat down.
Shun:"You guys are acting like I don't always do this."
Renji:"ALWAYS?! Bro, that was like, movie-level stuff!"
One of the younger players, Mitsuki, walked up hesitantly.
Mitsuki:"Shun-senpai… That was amazing."
Shun raised an eyebrow.
Mitsuki:"Can you teach me how to do that?"
Silence.
Then—
Renji:"PFFT—HAHAHAHA! YOU THINK IT'S THAT EASY?!"
The entire locker room burst into laughter.
Shun just sighed.
Shun (internally):"Guess I'll have to deal with this hype for a while."
Meanwhile—The Girls' Locker Room
Rika was still fuming.
She wiped her face with a towel, trying to cool off, but her teammates wouldn't stop giggling and whispering behind her.
Teammate 1:"So… What do you think of him, Rika?"
Teammate 2:"He called you out!"
Teammate 3:"You gotta admit, he's kinda…"
They all grinned at her.
Rika groaned and threw her towel over her face.
Rika:"Shut up."
But deep down, she couldn't shake the image of Shun's goal from her mind.
And for the first time, she started wondering—
"Just how far can he go?"
A New Coach for Both Teams!
The sun had barely risen when Shun and his teammates arrived at the training ground, expecting their usual morning drills. But today, something was… different.
A group of familiar girls stood on the other side of the field, stretching and chatting among themselves. Rika and her teammates.
Shun raised an eyebrow. Why were they here?
Before he could ask, his coach, Takumi Sagara, clapped his hands loudly.
Coach Sagara:
"Listen up! Rika's coach had an urgent matter to attend to, so I've been asked to oversee both teams for the next few days."
Everyone:
"…HUH?!"
Equal Training for Both Sides
The boys' team groaned, thinking they'd have to go easy on the girls. The girls' team smirked as if they had something to prove.Coach Sagara grinned."Don't worry, I won't go easy on either of you."
That's when the real nightmare began.
Intense Training Begins
Endless Running:
Shun and his teammates started jogging, thinking it was a warm-up."20 laps.""WHAT?!"Rika's team didn't complain. They just started running. Shun glanced at Rika, who was already ahead of him.
Passing Drills:
Shun and Rika were paired together for passing exercises. Shun's passes were sharp—Rika's were even sharper. Some teammates fumbled the ball, earning them push-ups as punishment.
Strength Training:
The coach made everyone do sit-ups and squats while balancing a soccer ball.Toru and Renji collapse immediately. Kaoru tried to show off but fell flat on his face.
1v1 Battles:
Each player had to steal the ball from their partner.Shun vs. Rika. The moment the whistle blew, Rika dashed forward—too fast. Shun barely kept up, using his reflexes to counter her moves. The others stopped their drills, watching the two rivals go at it.
At some point, Coach Sagara smirked.
"Not bad… this might get interesting."