The Rise of the Iron Wall!

Chapter 368: Shimizu Higashi High’s Perspective

Meanwhile, far on the western part of the city, all the players from Shimizu Higashi High had just woken up, groaning lazily as most of them still felt the fatigue from their last game yesterday. However, no one took an excessive rest yet. No, right now, they were in the middle of a meeting to discuss their next opponent, as the schedule was indeed so tight for them.

One boy in particular, though, stood still with eyes closed, as if he were meditating here.

Unfortunately, his mind was far from being calm right now. No, a storm was raging inside his head, dragging the memory he had been trying to suppress so that it emerged on the tip of his forehead.

"Let me take it." The boy in memory said confidently, demanding the ball from his teammate.

"You?" The boy who was still holding the ball was taken aback here. That boy glanced around subtly, his expression unsure.

"Don’t worry, leave everything to me!" The first boy patted his head confidently.

In the end, the second boy could only bite his lips here, burying all of his resentment before giving the ball to him. Then, once the referee blew the whistle, once the boy started his run-up to take the shot...

BAM!

It was blocked completely, denying him the goal.

"...Gyeol-a... Han-Gyeol-a!" His little memory lane trip suddenly met an interruption, as that boy, the one he snatched the opportunity from in the past, shook his shoulder quite violently. Once his consciousness was back, he blinked for a moment, just to find that the boy was looking at him concernedly.

"Are you okay?" That boy asked. freёweɓnovel.com

"Don’t worry, everything is fine." The boy said in deliberate, slow Japanese. "Just reminiscing about the past..." His gaze wandered far once again.

Yeah, that boy was Park Han-Gyeol, the foreign striker from Shimizu Higashi High. Next to him, the team’s superstar was also there: Mamoru Suzuki. Somehow, even with a language barrier between them, those two grew so close to each other, and once the gap ebbed away from the Korean striker getting the grasp of the language, they were basically inseparable. The fact that they both were attackers may have also played a role here.

Mamoru Suzuki just frowned a little at the answer he received before the boy asked, "So, what is it in your mind?"

"Just... Thinking about our last game against Hakodate Nishi." The Korean striker answered after pondering for a moment. "Mamoru-kun, remind me again: have I ever apologized to you for snatching that penalty that day?"

Mamoru Suzuki was taken aback for a moment before a wry smile formed on his face. "This again? Yes, you have been doing so for more than I can count, you know? Don’t overcomplicate things. Here, just eat something." He put a sunny-side-up egg into his friend’s plate.

Han-Gyeol just nodded quietly, stabbing that crooked sunny-side egg with his fork. Seeing this, Mamoru couldn’t help but sigh, feeling exasperated. It wasn’t the first time the Korean striker apologized to him for that day, and the striker had a reason to do that. After all, the takers for several free kick situations had always been determined before the game, and on that day, it was Mamoru Suzuki who should take that shot.

Honestly, it would be okay if the penalty was in. The worst, though, was that it was saved, leaving the boy with guilt and embarrassment.

"It has been a few months since that happened, so why are you thinking about that again? Is it because they are our next opponent?" Mamoru Suzuki asked knowingly, taking a sip of the warm tea in front of him.

"Heh, if anything, I have been thinking of that game every day, and as time goes by, my resentment only grows stronger, you know?" Han-Gyeol sneered. "That game... So far with the team, that is the only game I didn’t score, and it really ticks me off," He mumbled the last part lowly.

Well, even though Mamoru Suzuki couldn’t hear it, he just nodded in understanding. After all, this was the record that Park Han-Gyeol was always proud of. Since joining the team, he has always scored in every match he played, never taking a break even once. Well... That was before they met Hakodate Nishi, where the Korean striker was completely blocked by that iron wall from Hokkaido.

"Well, you will have a chance to show off your dominance later, so don’t get yourself too excited before the game begins." Mamoru Suzuki couldn’t help but give advice.

"Heh, Mamoru-kun, you hypocrite. I know that you yourself are also excited, right?" Han-Gyeol snorted amusedly. ƒгeewebnovёl.com

For that, Mamoru Suzuki could only rub the back of his head awkwardly, not being able to deny it. After all, Ryusuke Higo was the toughest goalkeeper he had ever faced, and based on what the boy observed throughout the whole tournament, Higo seemed to be growing stronger every day.

Thud!

"Um?" Mamoru was startled when he noticed something hit his head quite lightly. He glanced around, just to flinch instantly in the next second at the sight of his captain crossing his arms while looking at him not-so-amusedly.

"Well, care to explain your daydream, Mamoru-kun?" He asked, his voice poisonous sweet.

"N—Nothing, Senpai! Just sharing stories with Han-Gyeol-a, right?" He asked the Korean striker next to him, his eyes pleading.

Having already been bitten by the boy next to him, Han-Gyeol didn’t have any choice but to grunt lightly. "Apologize, Miki-san; we dozed off a little."

Their captain, Miki, hummed for a moment, looking at them straight into the eyes before finally nodding. "Don’t repeat it, okay?"

"Yes..."

Once the captain went back to the front line, they both let out a relieved sigh before snickering secretly behind. The captain just rolled his eyes in exasperation when he overheard it, pretending that he didn’t know anything.

"Okay, just like I said before, Hakodate Nishi High is an ultra-defensive team, one that we all should respect. I mean, it is not often to see the end of the spectrum in tactical football, right?" The captain spoke to the rest of the team. Then, a slight mischievous grin suddenly formed as the boy continued, "Well, fortunately, we have already found two weaknesses in their game, so everything will be easier for us."