The first thing Riku Hayami noticed about Blue Lock was the silence.
Not the absence of noise—there were whistles, footsteps, the thud of footballs—but the silence between players. No encouragement. No teamwork. Just hunger in their eyes, each one measuring the others like prey.
"Welcome to hell," someone muttered nearby.
Riku exhaled slowly and stepped forward onto the training field. Hundreds of strikers stood around him, all believing the same thing:
I'm the one.
The giant screens flickered to life.
"Blue Lock exists to create the world's greatest egoist striker," Ego Jinpachi's voice echoed coldly. "If you can't survive here, quit now."
Riku didn't flinch.
Because the moment his foot touched the turf, something else activated.
SYSTEM INITIALIZING…USER CONFIRMED: RIKU HAYAMISTATUS: DORMANT POTENTIAL — AWAKENING
His vision blurred for half a second. Data flooded his mind—angles, distances, trajectories. Then a translucent blue interface appeared before his eyes.
Riku froze.
…What?
TEMPLATE SYSTEM ONLINEAVAILABLE TEMPLATES (LOCKED): 9UNLOCKED: 1
A silhouette formed on the screen. A familiar name burned beneath it.
Tsubasa Ozora
Riku's heartbeat spiked.
Before he could react, a ball was launched into the air by a nearby player. Instinct took over. His body moved before his mind caught up—feet positioning perfectly, spine aligning, vision widening.
Time slowed.
He saw everything.
The defender's blind spot.The keeper's center of gravity.The exact curve the ball needed.
Riku struck.
The shot bent unnaturally, slicing through the air and slamming into the top corner of the goal.
Silence shattered into gasps.
"What the hell was that?""Did you see that curve?""That wasn't luck."
Riku stared at his foot, breath shaking.
SKILL ACTIVATED: Drive Shot (Prototype)TEMPLATE MASTERY: 1%WARNING: BODY STRAIN DETECTED
The interface pulsed again.
NEW OBJECTIVE ASSIGNEDMISSION 001: Perfect Pass TrialTASK: Complete 10 flawless passes under pressureREWARD: +2 SKILL POINTSFAILURE: NO PENALTY (YET)
Riku clenched his fist.
This wasn't a dream.
This wasn't just talent.
This was a weapon.
Across the field, a sharp gaze locked onto him—cold, analytical, suffocating.
Itoshi Rin.
Nearby, another player watched with wide, calculating eyes, already adapting.
Yoichi Isagi.
Riku met their stares and smiled faintly.
If this place is hell…
Then he would become something worse.
SYSTEM NOTICE:FUSION FEATURE — LOCKEDREQUIREMENT: SKILL POINT THRESHOLD NOT MET
Riku's smile widened.
"Then I'll earn it."
The game had begun.