'Are they playing this fancy?'
'Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap! This is too exciting! I can't wait to see the river of blood.'
'Who do you guys think they'll pick if Tendou's team wins? Nagi? Isagi? Or Bachira?'
'Can't they just pick all of them?'
'You idiot, go read the rules first.'
'If it's Reo, he'll definitely pick Nagi. I'm not so sure about Tendou!'
'But on the other hand, if Isagi's team wins, they'll most likely pick Tendou, right?'
'Can't it be Reo? Can't Tendou and the "young lady" stay together?'
'Ew, you upstairs are so disgusting…'
The rules for the third stage of the selection were out, and the viewers were incredibly excited. They had originally thought that a direct clash between Tendou's and Isagi's teams would be exciting enough. They hadn't expected there to be a "player stealing" segment. This arrangement made them eagerly await the upcoming plot.
Tendou closed his eyes to rest, but was actually silently watching the bullet comments. As expected of keyboard warriors, every one of them was a troll. After a while, he simply turned off the bullet comments. Out of sight, out of mind. It was mainly some of the fujoshi comments that were hard to stomach.
...
"Beep~"
The room door opened again. Another new team had arrived at the third stage. After learning the rules for advancement, they all chose to stay away from Tendou's team.
This was the deterrent effect of being No. 1.
In the first round of selection, these players had all, more or less, been crushed by a genius player. Be it Itoshi Rin, Aryu Jubei, Karasu Tabito, or Yukimiya Kenyu, and so on. Without exception, all of these people had left a great shock on their minds.
And the result?
Those geniuses weren't even ranked number one? Then how strong must this guy, who was so handsome it made them jealous, be? They didn't dare to play against them at all.
Mikage Reo and Chigiri Hyoma both tried to challenge some teams with decent overall rankings. Without exception, the other party chose to avoid the battle.
"Tch! At this rate, when are we going to get to the fifth stage?" Chigiri started to complain. "Maybe Isagi and the others will have already passed, and we'll still be here. How am I supposed to get Isagi or Bachira to advance with me then?"
"What stupid things are you talking about? In Isagi's team, no matter how you look at it, they should prioritize snatching Nagi!" Reo earnestly defended Nagi.
Hearing this, Chigiri subconsciously sneered, "Nagi, Nagi all day. Without Nagi Seishiro, can't you play football?"
"Speaking of which, when you played against us, you also only knew how to pass to Nagi. The moment you were slightly restricted by Isagi and the others, you lost your composure."
"What did you say!" Reo clenched his fists. Chigiri didn't back down an inch, pressing his forehead against the other's. Before the match had even begun, the "young lady" and the "young master" had started fighting.
At this moment, Tendou, who had been feigning sleep, suddenly opened his eyes and, for the first time, took the initiative. He walked up to a three-man team, extended his right hand in Whitebeard's signature gesture, and said, "Let's have a match, Crow."
Chigiri and Reo instantly stopped. This was the first time Tendou had proactively invited another team to a match. And this team's rankings were fifth, sixth, and fourteenth. They were Karasu Tabito, Otoya Eita, and Hiori Yo. (The author notes: I forgot if Hiori was teamed up with Karasu, and it's a waste of time to go look through the manga now, so just treat it as a plot arrangement).
"Fifth, sixth, and fourteenth?"
"Their rankings are all higher than ours!"
Chigiri and Reo instantly felt immense pressure. So this was the kind of existence Tendou wanted to challenge?
"Huh?"
"A match against you guys?"
Karasu didn't agree immediately but first read the rules twice. Then, he began to observe Tendou's team. Besides Tendou, the No. 1, the remaining two were in the top twenty. No wonder no one was willing to play against them.
After the first round of selection, there weren't many players left. The tag game eliminated 25 people. The group stage eliminated 3 teams per group; even with 3 top scorers staying, that was still 30 people gone. With a total of 5 groups, that was 150 people. In other words, after one round of competition, at least 175 people had been eliminated, more than half. Adding those who couldn't pass the first stage, there were probably only about 100 people left in Blue Lock now.
A team with a No. 1 and two top-twenty players was indeed daunting. Of course, if they could win, they could obtain a No. 1 combat power!
"What do you think, Eita? And you, Hiori?"
Karasu sought the opinions of his two teammates. In terms of overall team strength, they were stronger.
"Mmm... if we win and snatch the No. 1, wouldn't that be cool?"
"Should we reconsider?"
Unlike Otoya, Hiori was very cautious. He always felt that this person named Tendou was not so simple, even if their own team's overall strength seemed stronger.
"There's a dissenting opinion. Then let's vote. Those who agree to play against them, raise your hands."
After Karasu spoke, he was the first to raise his hand, followed by Otoya.
"2:1! Since that's the case, it's decided." Karasu looked at Tendou with confidence. "Welcome to our team, No. 1!"
So confident.
"I'm very interested in you, Crow."
Tendou also smiled, turned around, and told Reo and Chigiri to get ready.
And so, the match between the two teams was set.
"They actually chose Karasu's and Otoya's team."
Behind the scenes, Anri blinked her cute, big eyes. They had seriously observed all the matches in Blue Lock. It could be said that among all the current 3-man teams, the ones with the strongest overall strength were Itoshi Rin's team, Tendou's team, and Karasu's team. She hadn't expected Tendou and the others to meet so soon.
"But no matter what, after this match, the strongest team will definitely emerge!"
"Maybe they can even cause some trouble for the all-star team?"
She was a little expectant, but Ego poured cold water on her.
"That's impossible. You're overestimating these kids."
Amateur players, and a group of seventeen or eighteen-year-old amateur players at that. How could they compare to the pros? It would already be quite an achievement if they could steal one or two goals.
"Can't I just imagine it?" Anri was unhappy.
...
The screen flashed.
Tendou's team and Karasu's team had already arrived at a special field. The field used in the second selection was different from the first. It was a special, smaller field suitable for the number of players, and even the goal was smaller than a normal one. This placed a higher demand on the players' shooting skills.
"Heads or tails?"
Karasu came to the center circle, a calm and composed smile on his face. Before the match began, they needed to toss a coin to decide who would kick off.
"Heads."
Tendou casually chose heads. Karasu then tossed the coin into the air.
And then.
Tendou turned and walked back to his defensive position without waiting for the coin to land.
Karasu was stunned for a moment. When the coin landed on the back of his hand, he saw that it was tails.
"Your eyes look very special, No. 1!" Karasu, after a moment of astonishment, continued to smile. He was very good at observing, hailed as the "assassin" of Blue Lock.
...
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