The Rise of the Iron Wall!-Chapter 13: Esashi’s Crazy Wave of Attack!

Soon, the referee blew the whistle, signalling that the second half finally begun. Kumiko narrowed her eyes instantly, noticing the change in the structure of the opponent’s formation.

’They sacrifice one of their defenders, knowing that our low-block structure will not bring a threat to them, eh?’ Her mind was figuring out what the opponent’s coach wanted to do. ’Well, let’s think of a way to prevent their new wave of attack first, and later, try to find a chance to bite them in their asses.’

With that thought in mind, she rose from the bench and told Takaaki, the glasses-midfielder, to come.

"Listen, Takaaki-kun, tell Hori-kun and Ishinori-kun to shrink to the penalty box, and you help us cover the flank. Also, ask Yuji-kun to switch positions with Hiroshi-kun. I am sure they both know what to do."

Both Hori and Ishinori were the team’s fullbacks, and their shrinking of their defensive area was basically Kumiko’s declaration to invite the opponent to attack further. As for the switch between Yuji and Hiroshi, even though Yuji was the striker, the team’s cheetah was quite tenacious in pressuring the opponent’s midfielder, and putting Hiroshi up front would also allow the team to counterattack once the chance finally fell under their feet.

This quick adjustment, just two minutes after the game began, really showed Kumiko’s tactical proficiency. However, that alone was not enough, as football was a dynamic game. No matter how many layers of plan she prepared for, any unexpected moment could happen, just like right now, when Jun suddenly failed to clear away the through pass to Nishimura, who ran from his blind spot.

"Oh, shit! Jun, what the hell is going on?!

"Goddamnit, Higo! Run forward!" 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Makino gritted his teeth, trying to speed up and reach the opponent’s side. Even if he failed to stop it, at least the captain wanted to disturb his opponent’s stance, and while it could result in a direct red card, he still felt that his sacrifice would be worth it.

Higo himself also took three steps forward, wanting to shut down the near post area immediately. His eyes narrowed slightly, observing how this new substitution would convert this chance. Then, when their eyes met for a split second, Higo suddenly felt a scene flash in his brain, and he knew his clairvoyance ability didn’t disappoint him in such a crucial moment.

’Between my legs! Shit!’

Once he knew which direction the ball would go, it was easy for him to block the shot. The boy just kneeled slightly while also extending the right foot to cover the far post. Right after the shot was taken, he had already spread all of his limbs to cover the entire goal, and even with his short reach, at such close distance, this was still enough to block the shot.

BAM!

’Fucking hell!’ Higo cursed inwardly as he felt a sharp pain in his thigh. ’It hurts!’

This should be the first time he got hit by a shot from within four meters—or maybe even closer—and he could feel his thigh burning like crazy. Fortunately, the ball bounced upward, straight above the post. Even though it was still a corner kick, at least the threat had subsided.

"Yes, Chibi! That’s how you should’ve done it!" Makino roared, pulling the goalie from the ground. "Nice save, Bastard! Show them who rules here!"

"Yeah! Come on, Higo-senpai! Thanks for saving my ass." Jun grinned goofily.

"Hey, hey, hey, what the hell is going on here?!" Higo still winced unconsciously, rubbing the burning thigh subtly. "Jun, that slip was shit! It should’ve never happened! Put more concentration and don’t make a silly mistake like that so easily, okay?!" The goalie scolded Jun firmly.

"Ah... Sorry, Senpai, but you know I am not that good with my feet, right?" Jun scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

Their celebration was cut short when, suddenly, from the opponent’s bench, Esashi’s head coach roared furiously.

"NISHIMURA, WHAT THE HELL IS THAT WEAK ASS SHOT?! ARE YOU A SPY SENT BY OUR OPPONENT HERE?! DO YOUR FUCKING JOB SERIOUSLY!"

That number 14, Nishimura, had his face flushed in embarrassment. However, he also felt wronged by the accusation here, as the boy himself didn’t want his shot to get saved like that. Hell, he himself felt like everything went perfectly, and he didn’t reveal any flaw that could give away his thought for the opponent’s goalkeeper to read.

’So, how could he manage to react that quickly?’ Nishimura narrowed his eyes at Higo suspiciously. For the first time since the game began, he started to show interest in this short goalkeeper.

After a while, the game resumed again with the corner kick for Esashi. This time, the delivery was perfect, but the executor could be said to be disappointing. Jumping the highest, Esashi’s center back was able to win the aerial duel, but his header was quite weak and went straight above the post. It didn’t pose any threat to Higo, so he just let it go without hesitation.

That didn’t mean the opponent’s attack was done, though.

Hakodate Nishi’s midfielders failed to hold the ball for too long, resulting in the possession being returned to Esashi once again. Well, not failing, per se. Their focus right now was to defend, so they were willing to give up the ball quickly. Their only purpose was simple: to waste as much time as possible and slow down the tempo.

Still, the situation hadn’t changed for the home side. Hakodate Nishi kept defending with all their might, and Higo also got busier protecting his goal. The only positive side here was that Higo had already forgotten about his nervousness before the game, as right now, his concentration was completely on the pitch.

He made a few more saves, keeping the opponent at bay. It was fortunate that they didn’t know this was Higo’s first-ever game, or they would’ve thrown a tantrum already.

Then, his biggest test of the day finally came in around the 75th minute of the game, when a corner kick bounced slightly out of the penalty box. The scene was quite chaotic, with most players being inside the box. In that chaotic moment where Higo couldn’t even see the ball as he got blocked by the sea of people in front of him, Esashi’s midfielder took advantage of that by launching a volley from outside the penalty box.

Higo’s clairvoyance flared once again, and after noticing the ball’s trajectory, he couldn’t help but curse.

’Oh, shit!’