Chapter 24: Benefactor
By the time the second stage began, the number of participants had already dropped sharply.
Naruhaya Asahi glanced at the monitor: teams of three were to advance to the next stage.
He looked around at the leftover players and couldn't help sighing.
Team Z's guys—terrible skills. He didn't want them.
The three from Team V had scored against him during their match—he wanted them—but they'd probably already formed a team among themselves.
It's over. He was going to be stuck with trash teammates. X﹏X
"Hey, over here! Naruhaya."
A voice sounded behind him—it was Zantetsu.
Asahi immediately walked over in surprise.
"Zantetsu? You're still here?"
Zantetsu replied,
"Nagi and Reo dumped me. I asked around—Nagi teamed up with Isagi and Bachira from your group, and Reo teamed up with Kunigami and Chigiri. So I got left behind.
So? You got any ideas?"
Asahi's lips curled upward in a faint smile.
If someone asked him which member of Team V he most wanted to team with, he would answer without hesitation: Zantetsu.
In their match, even though Asahi had underestimated him, the fact that Zantetsu scored a goal proved both his skill and luck were above the others.
So the former tyrant of Team Z strode forward, stretched out his hand without a hint of hesitation, and invited warmly:
"Let's team up! I think the two of us together will be really interesting!"
Before he finished speaking— smack!
Zantetsu slapped his hand in a clean high-five—team formed.
To be honest, if it weren't for the final game where that little tyrant gathered all of Team Z and made them extend their hands toward Team V, Zantetsu would NEVER have teamed with someone who once insulted him.
Maybe seeing those 11 hands reaching out from players of all backgrounds created a strange feeling in him…
So when he heard the little tyrant hadn't arrived yet, he decided to stay, listening to his heart.
"Yeah."
Their hands clasped together.
Now that the two had formed a team, the next step was to pick which lucky player would join them.
Ten minutes later…
Asahi and Zantetsu were squatting like mushrooms in the corner.
During this time, Asahi struggled to suppress his nausea toward the "ball-trash" players while he and Zantetsu tried inviting the remaining solo players.
But seeing Asahi in the corner earlier, desperately suppressing his vomiting—and his short, underage-looking stature—those players rejected them instantly.
After several attempts, they still had no third teammate.
"Hey~ Naruhaya, if this keeps up, we're gonna get eliminated, right?"
Zantetsu drew circles on the floor. ┌( ´_ゝ` )┐
"Looks like it…"
Asahi lowered his head. O__O"…
No!
He wanted to play against top world-class players—no way he was ending his Blue Lock life here.
Suddenly, Asahi thought of a brilliant idea.
He placed a hand on Zantetsu's shoulder, pulled him close, and whispered excitedly:
"Say… what if I just use my fists and punch every remaining player here? Whoever stands up first, we pick him as our teammate!"
Zantetsu pushed up his glasses, using his limited brain cells to evaluate the feasibility.
"..."
Asahi watched him think and guessed he had hit Zantetsu's intellectual blind spot.
Just as they were contemplating whether to actually use violence, a voice sounded behind them:
"Um… if it's okay, can I join your team?"
The two squatting boys immediately turned around, looking upward at the descending angel.
The "angel" wore a white headband with the Blue Lock emblem across his forehead and blinked at them.
Asahi and Zantetsu stood up at once and each grabbed one of his hands.
"Welcome!! Benefactor!!"
Great—they got a teammate without violence!
The "benefactor," Nanase Nijiro, smiled happily as the two held his hands.
"Mm, thank you for letting me join."
Thus, the three-person team was finally complete—ready to enter the NEXT STAGE.
THREE-MAN CELL.
Naruhaya Asahi, Tsurugi Zantetsu, Nanase Nijiro
—these three advanced to the Third Stage.
The remaining players in Stage Two all instinctively clutched their stomachs, inexplicably feeling like they had escaped a disaster.
Inside the passageway to the next stage, Asahi grinned from ear to ear, reaching out to shake Nanase's hand.
"Hello, Benefactor! I'm Naruhaya Asahi. I'm really glad to meet you here. This handsome glasses guy is Tsurugi Zantetsu—he's a good dude!"
Hearing the word "handsome," Zantetsu's face turned red.
He pushed his glasses, trying to hide his flushed cheeks.
"Don't say that… it's embarrassing."
Nanase couldn't help laughing.
He found these two very interesting—and easy to get along with.
So he shook Asahi's hand firmly.
"Haha, nice to meet you! I'm Nanase Nijiro, first-year high school. I'm happy to work with you! Right now I feel super 'juwa juwa'!"
Asahi and Zantetsu froze.
"Juwa… juwa?"
Nanase instantly realized his mistake—his face turned bright red.
"S-sorry! 'Juwa juwa' is my hometown expression. It means 'my heart is racing'."
"No worries, Nanase."
Asahi waved lightly.
He had infinite tolerance for his benefactor.
Then Asahi began introducing himself.
His voice was calm and gentle—completely different from the brutal tyrant he had been in Team Z.
"Due to a traffic accident, I seem to have lost my memory, so I don't really know what grade I'm in. All I know is… I spent the last several months overseas and only returned recently."
Zantetsu quietly listened.
Hearing Asahi say he had been abroad surprised him for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal.
After Asahi finished, Zantetsu spoke:
"I'm in second year of high school. Um… if I do something wrong, please don't call me stupid."
His tone was shy, with a faint blush.
Nanase and Asahi exchanged glances and laughed, assuring him it was fine.
And just like that, the three began chatting about themselves, growing steadily closer.
Nanase continued using polite language; to him, Asahi was a senior with overseas experience, and Zantetsu was a second-year senpai—both admirable figures.
And for some reason, he felt he'd joined a formidable team.
Confidence surged through him.
"Senpai… I don't know why, but I feel like with this three-man lineup, we're certain to win."
"Well, having that feeling is normal."
Zantetsu glanced instinctively at Asahi.
With the former tyrant of Team Z beside him, he also felt unbeatable.
Asahi caught Zantetsu's look and confidently strode forward.
He felt incredible.
To his right: his former enemy—Zantetsu—who'd scored against him.
To his left: the benefactor who saved them both—Nanase.
With these two with him, he felt terrifyingly strong.
Joy.
Invincible.
Victory.
Soon the three arrived at the Third Stage.
Inside were several stone pedestals, clearly meant for players to sit and rest.
Then a recorded message from Ego Jinpachi appeared on the screen.
"Next is the Second Selection's Third Stage: Three-on-three team battle."
"Teams formed earlier will now face each other in 3v3 mini-matches. Each team will have a BLUE LOCK MAN as their goalkeeper.
The first team to score five goals wins."
"The winning team may select one player from the opposing team and steal him—forming a new four-man team."
Hearing this, Zantetsu and Nanase spoke at the same time:
"Hanetsuke!"
(A Japanese children's game where kids split into teams and steal teammates based on wins and losses.)
Amnesia-Asahi: "??"
Ego's recording continued:
"With each stage cleared, your team gains one member. A team that reaches five members enters Stage Five and clears the Second Selection."
"But teams that lose must go back one stage.
And if a two-man team loses in a 2v2 match—and remains unpicked by anyone—the player left alone is eliminated."
"This is the full picture of the Second Selection's steal-your-opponent format—
[Rivalry Battle]."
He then emphasized:
"You are free to choose which team to challenge. A match only begins if both teams agree."
"And whom you fight alongside determines your survival.
To give you reference, we now reveal the updated Blue Lock rankings—this time real rankings based on the order of clearing Stage One. Rankings will change depending on match results…"
When the explanation ended, numbers appeared on their sleeves.
Tsurugi Zantetsu — 53
Naruhaya Asahi — 88
Nanase Nijiro — 99
As soon as Asahi heard they had to beat more teams and steal two more players, he felt awful and slumped onto a stone seat.
He liked the current three-man team.
He didn't want two ball-trash players ruining his mood.
But…
To meet the world's top players as fast as possible—he would speedrun this.
Suddenly, Zantetsu asked:
"By the way, what were those rules again? I didn't really get them."
Obviously, he didn't understand anything Ego said.
Nanase was just about to explain again when Asahi cut in:
"It means we need to find two teams, beat them, and steal two ball-trash players."
Nanase: Ball-trash…?
Zantetsu asked:
"So where do we find other teams?"
Asahi leaned his cheek lazily on his hand.
"We just wait for some dumbass team to challenge us.
Whoever dares show up—we crush them.
Other than you two, everyone else is the same trash to me. Ptooey."
Understanding the three key parts—"two matches, steal players, dumbass comes"—Zantetsu nodded.
Nanase: Dumbass? Are these senpai using some kind of secret code? So mysterious…
Before Nanase could think further, all three of their stomachs growled loudly at the same time.
They looked at each other—then burst out laughing.
They must've burned too much energy shooting 100 goals.
Asahi checked the nearby map and led them to Stage Three's cafeteria.
Three-man teams were served stir-fried vegetables.
(Two-man: natto & pickled radish.
Four-man: steak.)
As Asahi carried his tray, another three-man team approached Zantetsu.
"Big guy—how about a match with us?"
A purple-haired, crow-eyed player asked.
Zantetsu kept eating silently.
Asahi glanced at the "dumbass" trio.
For some reason, the "dumbass three" felt a dangerous shiver—as if a beast had glanced at them.
But seeing Asahi's under-170cm height, they assumed it was their imagination.
"Well? Want a match?"
Asahi looked at Zantetsu and Nanase.
Both nodded—no objections.
So Asahi replied simply:
"Sure."
The purple-haired boy clapped.
"Good~."
After they finished eating, all six players used fingerprint authentication to open the 3v3 match gate.
TEAM WHITE: Naruhaya Asahi, Kiryuin Zantetsu, Nanase Nijiro
TEAM RED: Karasu Tabito, Otoya Eita, Hiori Yo
On the 3v3 field, the broadcast explained the rules:
[This special mini-field is 40m long and 30m wide. The goal is miniature-sized. Goalkeeper: BLUE LOCK MAN.]
[Winners steal one player to proceed. Losers lose one player and drop back a stage.]
[First to five goals wins!!]
[Second Selection — Third Stage — RIVALRY BATTLE!!]
[KICK OFF!]