Chapter 3: Chemistry – A Clash of the Mid-Field Strikers
The next day was spent having the team do different drills and practice games until sundown before practice was declared officially over. The Japan national team settled down that night to a hearty dinner and socialization with their new team member, Kazuko.
"So Kazuko, what made you decide to want to play as mid-field striker?" Izawa began as soon as they were through with dinner.
Kazuko lowered his chopsticks and thought about it for a long moment. "Actually, I'm not all that sure why I decided to play in that position. Maybe it's because I feel most comfortable playing the game from there. It helps me see everything going on and start planning a means of attacking the opposition's defense," he explained.
"That's pretty much how Bas sees his position as well," Ishizaki admitted, crossing his arms.
"Was that the position you started off with?" Matsuyama inquired.
Kazuko shook his head. "I was just a mid-fielder connecting my passes off to the strikers of the team. So I had focused more on assisting goals rather than scoring them."
"I see…" Matsuyama acknowledged, stroking his chin in afterthought.
"Did you develop that disappearing shot all by yourself?" Shingo asked excitedly.
"Yes. Actually, it all really depended on how fast the ball had to be moving, so I had to think up of a way for the ball to spin so fast that you couldn't see it anymore. Usually I would just add an extra spin on the ball when it's passed to me to create it, but I've learned that it takes up so much more of my power to achieve the speed I need for that shot. That's particularly why I don't use it too often in one game," Kazuko explained.
Izawa slammed his closed fist onto his open palm. "That explains a lot!"
"So guys, Bas and Hyuga are flying in tomorrow morning! Let's make sure we give them a great welcoming!" Takeshi declared, throwing a fist into the air as everybody responded with a loud cheer and enjoyed the rest of the night.
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Both Tsubasa and Hyuga had boarded a plane earlier that same evening bound for Japan, lasting 14 hours from Spain and 15 hours from Italy. They had agreed to meet up at the airport terminal to head to the training grounds together by way of Mr. Katagiri. At 6:40 in the morning, Japan time, both players had landed and were on the road to the training venue where the rest of the national team was practicing.
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---PRACTICE FIELD, 6:58 A.M.
Kazuko was up early and was down on the field running some laps around the pitch to warm up his legs for today's training.
'I'm going to meet Bas and Hyuga today… There's a big chance we'll be having another practice game with them around to decide a proper line-up to work with for the upcoming World Cup. There can't be two mid-field strikers, so I'm sure the coach wants to see who's better for the part. I'm not going to give away that position so easily!' Kazuko thought optimistically to himself, continuing around the pitch.
Katagiri parked the car and escorted Tsubasa and Hyuga to the dorms, helping them with their luggage.
"I'd like to go and see the field for a minute, Mr. Katagiri!" Tsubasa called, jogging up the hill that overlooked the pitch. He smiled at having come back to Japan before spotting someone running around the field. "Hey, isn't that…"
"What's up, Bas?" Hyuga asked, walking up alongside him, looking down to the pitch.
"Looks like Kazuko's up early again," Katagiri noted, adjusting his sunglasses.
"He's always up this early?" Tsubasa inquired incredulously.
Katagiri nodded. "He does a morning jog twice around the whole soccer pitch every day before practice starts."
"So that's Kazuko Kawazoe, is he?" Hyuga said more to himself.
"Practice starts at 7:15. Why don't we bring in your luggage then you can join the team down on the pitch?" Katagiri suggested as the two nodded and followed the man into the building. It didn't take long before the whole team was gathered on the field, welcoming back Tsubasa and Hyuga.
"It's great to see you again, Bas!" Ishizaki said cheerfully, taking him into a playful headlock.
"You're looking fantastic, Hyuga!" Ken pronounced, looking over their former Toho captain.
Coach Mikami cleared his throat loudly, calling everybody's attention. "Right, I'm glad to announce the arrival of Tsubasa and Hyuga, who'll be taking part in our training for the upcoming World Cup starting today." A few extra greetings were passed around before they quieted down again. "As I said before, today we'll be holding another practice game with Bas and Hyuga with us. Same teams as before. Tsubasa plays with Genzo's team, and Hyuga plays with Kazuko's. Get your jerseys!"
The players collected their respective colors and discussed strategies to integrate Bas and Hyuga into their game.
"So I get to be on the same team as Kazuko, huh?" Hyuga stated, examining him from head to toe.
Kazuko nodded to him. "I'm very pleased to finally meet you in person, Hyuga."
"So are we changing our plans now that we're playing with Hyuga?" Taro inquired, looking around between their members.
"The only difference is just worrying about how to execute the plays," Takeshi pointed out.
"Kazu can take care of that! After all, he doesn't play mid-field striker for nothing!" Ishizaki quickly declared, lounging an arm across Kazuko's shoulders.
"Izzi…" Kazuko began before the Tachibana twins agreed.
"We'll leave you to set up the plays, Kazu!" Masao stated.
"And put in some goals as well!" Kazuo added.
Ishizaki lowered his arm and gave him a thumbs-up. "See that, Kazu? We'll support you all the way!"
Hyuga placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'd like to see how you play with my own eyes. So show me what you've got!"
Kazuko nodded. "No problem, Hyuga. I'll do my best."
On the other team, Tsubasa immediately inquired about Kazuko's performance.
"So how was your last practice game with him?"
"It ended 3-1, Kazuko lamentably scoring all three goals, though the others tried to get a shot past Genzo under his leadership," Matsuyama explained.
"He's really something else. I had difficulty shaking him off," Jun added.
"Kazuko takes on a totally different personality when he's playing soccer. You saw his game with Domingo, Bas," Genzo told their captain, hinting at a warning which he hoped he would get.
Tsubasa turned to examine Kazuko for a moment before returning his attention to his team and nodding to them. "Alright, I'll be marking Kazuko. Let's test things out for a little bit before we get into launching an attack. But when the chance arises, don't waste it and get a goal!"
Both teams cheered in agreement to their corresponding plans before they positioned themselves all over the court as Morisaki came forward with the official ball and set it down on center circle. He pulled out a coin and did the traditional coin toss, which Taro and Tsubasa called.
"It's heads. Taro's team gets the kick-off," Morisaki announced as Tsubasa spotted Kazuko and stuck his hand out towards him.
"Let's have a good game," he said encouragingly.
Kazuko took Tsubasa's hand and grasped it, shaking it firmly before releasing his hand. "Let's enjoy ourselves, right?"
Tsubasa smirked and nodded in reply before he jogged back and into position, waiting for the whistle to blow.
"Conditions are the same as before. The first team to score 3 goals wins the match. And just so I can assure everyone's giving 100% into this, I'll begin analyzing my choices for the final line-up for the World Cup in this game. So make sure you show me why I should put you in the starting line-up!" Coach Mikami reminded them before he allowed Morisaki to begin the game.
Morisaki brought the whistle up between his lips and blew on it as Taro passed it to Hyuga, who quickly back-passed it to Kazuko before they started off the first attack.
"Alright, let's get ourselves a goal!" Hyuga cried, running ahead with Takeshi hot behind his heels.
Kazuko had the ball and charged forward, avoiding a tackle from Nitta before he confronted with Tsubasa.
Coach Mikami was assessing some things, writing them down on his clipboard.
"Bas is going to try and get the ball off Kazu," Katagiri pointed out. "I wonder who'll get the ball… Will it be Kazuko or Tsubasa?"
"We won't know until we see it for ourselves…" Mikami stated.
'Okay then, Kazuko. Let's see what you're made of…' Tsubasa thought to himself as he and Kazuko were inches from each other.
Kazuko narrowed his eyes, as he stopped in his tracks with the ball, keeping it in his possession as Tsubasa tried to steal the ball from him. Both mid-field strikers fumbled for the ball with their excellent footwork before Kazuko managed to move the ball back towards him and made a side pass behind him to Shingo, who took off with the ball.
'This guy means business!' Tsubasa thought to himself, regaining his footing and sprinted off after the ball. "Somebody stop Shingo!"
Kazuko followed pursuit immediately after passing the ball, moving up to help with crossing the ball.
Shingo brought the ball up and spotted Taro, passing it over to him. "Over to you, Taro!"
Taro and Izawa jumped up for a header, Izawa getting it as Kazuko immediately jumped up and received it with his chest before controlling the ball's landing as he continued forward. Jun and Matsuyama ran forward to stop his momentum before Kazuko sent the ball forward.
"Takeshi! Hyuga! Over to you two!" he hollered, avoiding the double sliding tackle.
"Jito! Genzo! Stop them from scoring!" Tsubasa cried, running forward to help with defense.
Genzo spread out his arms. "Come on! I'm ready for you!"
Takeshi received the high pass and ran with it as he and Hyuga approached the penalty area. Quickly spotting an opening, he passed it to Hyuga, who winded up for a shot.
"You're not going to score!" Jito declared, charging forward, ready to receive the shot with his body.
"Better get out of the way! This is my new improved Tiger Shot!" Hyuga shouted, connecting his foot with the ball after collecting his power, sending the ball hurling quickly towards the goal.
"You're not going to score so easily!" Tsubasa declared, sliding in and winding up for a kick, returning the shot with his own. He managed to do so with his Drive Shooter as the ball soared upwards at an angle.
"Then we'll just have to try again!" Kazuko called, running forward and jumped up to connect with the ball.
"Watch out, he might just take a shot!" Jun commanded over to Jito.
Kazuko smirked. 'You guys have a lot more to learn about my playing style…' Kazuko took an overhead kick and passed it down to Taro, who took it and just barely dodged Teppei's confrontation as he passed it over to Shingo.
"Let's get ourselves a goal, Kazu!" Shingo stated brightly.
"Don't think it'll be so easy!" Matsuyama said, moving in from behind Shingo to get the ball.
"Pass it now!" Hyuga barked, running off to an open space as he brought an arm out to get Shingo's attention.
"Here you go, Hyuga!" Shingo said, making a slick pass over to him.
'You're in position to shoot, Kazuko. I want to see what you make of this pass…' Hyuga thought to himself. Turning his back to the goal, Hyuga made a connecting pass to Kazuko, who was at an angle to shoot.
"Get in there!" Kazuko brought his foot back, having considered Genzo's position before taking aim and firing a shot towards the goal.
Genzo's eyes widened as he noticed that the ball had a particular spin on it as it veered off to the other side of where he was guarding. He quickly ran towards it and dived to catch it, stretching out his arms, the ball now within reach. Suddenly, it disappeared as he fell to the ground, the sound of the ball spinning into the back of the net, Morisaki blowing his whistle to confirm the goal.
Tsubasa turned to Kazuko and smiled. 'Seems I've underestimated him…'
Hyuga resisted from gaping his mouth at the disappearing shot that had been executed right in front of him. Shaking his head, he turned to Kazuko and grinned. 'We were right to get you into the team, Kazu… You're amazing…'
"Nice shot, Kazu!" Takeshi complimented.
"That disappearing shot of yours is amazing!" Shingo declared, jumping onto Kazuko from behind, wrapping his arms around the boy's neck.
Kazuko smiled. "Thanks." He turned to see Hyuga approaching before straightening up, looking up at their main striker.
Hyuga smirked. "Not bad, Kazuko… Now let's keep getting ourselves more goals!" he declared, raising his arm as their fellow teammates who were within ear range cheered in agreement.
Genzo took the ball and got to his feet, dusting himself off as Tsubasa and Jun approached him.
"Are you alright, Genzo?" Jun inquired.
Genzo nodded. "Yeah, I'm alright." He looked down at the ball. "That disappearing shot of his is dangerous. It's only the second time I've been confronted with it, but I still can't figure out how to get to it."
Tsubasa took the ball, a smile etched over his face. "Don't worry, Genzo. We'll get a goal back for that. Don't worry about it," the captain reassured their goalie.
"You should watch out, Bas. Nobody's seen how Kazuko operates when he's on defense," Jun reminded him as they made their way to the center circle.
"Why's that?" Tsubasa asked.
"I was marking him even when he was defending in our last practice game, so we don't know what he can do when he doesn't have a mark." They reached center circle as Jun turned to Kazuko, seeing him talking with Taro and Hyuga. "If you want to chance on another goal just to see what he can do without a mark…" Jun trailed off, turning back to Tsubasa.
Tsubasa thought about their options before nodding. "We'll see what happens. After all, this practice game will determine our final line-up to take to the World Cup. It's better if we see for ourselves what each player is capable of both in offense and defense to strategize properly and assign them a role befitting their playing style to bring out their best capabilities as soccer players," he reasoned.
Jun nodded in understanding as he moved to position.
'Bas' Drive Shooter… Hyuga's Tiger Shot… and now Kazuko's Disappearing Shot… Our players will stun the world with their strength, teamwork and skills!' Katagiri thought to himself as he witnessed the latest goal before the game was set to restart with a score of 1-0 in favor of Taro's team.
Morisaki blew the whistle as Jun passed the ball to Tsubasa before the game went underway. Tsubasa carried the ball forward, charging head-on. He avoided a sliding tackle from Shingo before facing off against Kazuko once again.
'It's another clash of the mid-field strikers…' Katagiri noted. 'Who will win this time around?'
Tsubasa narrowed his eyes and tried out the Santana spin popularized by Carlos Santana on Kazuko, turning his back to him and flicked the ball up and over the boy as he maneuvered quickly around him to receive the ball as it descended in an arch over Kazuko.
Kazuko saw this move once before from Santana himself and let the ball roll over him as he stuck his foot out behind him, kicking the ball back up into the air once more to prevent Tsubasa from getting away with it too quickly. Both mid-field strikers jumped up to claim possession of the ball as Tsubasa won it, heading it towards Matsuyama, who took it and sprinted forward to face Ishizaki.
"It's about time Izzi stopped this attack!" Izzi proclaimed, charging forward and performed a sliding tackle as Matsuyama effortlessly jumped over it and passed it back to Tsubasa, who had caught up with him.
"Nice pass, Matsuyama!" Tsubasa commended, moving forward as he faced Taro.
"Taro, go and mark Jun!" Kazuko called, racing down to confront Tsubasa once again.
'This guy's sure got some tenacity. Kind of like how Shingo was when he first joined the team…' Tsubasa thought to himself, accepting the challenge as he looked over his shoulder. "Try and stop me then, Kazuko!"
Kazuko smirked. 'The truth is, Bas… I don't need to…' he thought to himself, watching as Tsubasa was blocked by the Tachibana twins before he shook him off and passed it over to Jun. Taro managed to intercept the pass and started off towards the other side, avoiding Nitta's attempt of stealing the ball as he crossed it forward to Shingo.
"Do it, Shingo!" Taro called as Tsubasa, Jun, Matsuyama and Kazuko gave chase to Shingo.
"Hyuga! Takeshi! The ball's coming your way!" Kazuko shouted. Shingo heard this and nodded back to Kazuko over his shoulder as he avoided Teppei and Hajime's double sliding tackle and passed it to Takeshi, who swiftly gave the ball to Hyuga.
"Put it in, Hyuga!" Kazuko called.
"This one is going in!" Hyuga declared, winding up for a powerful Tiger Shot.
"Genzo, watch it!" Matsuyama cried.
Genzo spread out his arms. "I'm ready! Give me your best shot, Hyuga!"
"Better get out of the way of this one!" Hyuga's foot connected with the ball as it soared towards the goal at such incredible speed, heading straight at Genzo. The goalie ran forward to confront the ball, grasping it between both hands, applying all of his weight against it as he slowly slid backwards towards the goal line. Genzo just managed to stop its spin before it crossed the line as he straightened up.
Hyuga took a step back. 'Darn it! He blocked it!'
'Looks like Genzo's figured out a way to stop shots like Hyuga's Tiger Shot…' Katagiri noted with keen interest.
Genzo ran forward and kicked the ball back into play. "Go get us a goal, Bas!" he shouted.
Kazuko moved forward and intercepted the long pass.
'Kazuko!' Hyuga exclaimed in his head as he watched the steal.
"Don't give up so easily, Hyuga! Try it again!" Kazuko shouted, jumping up from a tackle from behind and crossed it over to the striker once more.
Hyuga moved to receive the ball. 'Kazuko stole the ball back… I won't waste his efforts!' he told himself firmly as he took control of it as it landed on the ground before he sprinted forward into the penalty area.
"Genzo, watch it!" Tsubasa cried.
Genzo spread his arms out once more. "You're not going to score!"
"Just use the right amount of power, Hyuga! The rest is in your technique to score a goal!" Kazuko told Hyuga.
Hyuga's eyes widened as he winded up for a shot. 'The right amount of power? Technique?' he repeated before he looked at Genzo and goal he was guarding before letting his foot connect with the ball off its sweet spot and sent a shot towards the goal before it veered slightly to the right, catching Genzo jumping to the opposite direction before the ball went in.
Morisaki blew the whistle as Hyuga's team cheered.
Tsubasa stopped in his tracks and looked over to Hyuga and Kazuko before smiling. 'It's incredible… Kazuko just told Hyuga to remember about the techniques of scoring and he made a fantastic spin on the ball to fool Genzo… For a power player like Hyuga who usually aims straight for the net…'
"That was great, Hyuga!" Takeshi cheered, running up to them.
"It was all thanks to Kazuko's words," Hyuga stated, patting the boy on the shoulder.
Kazuko nodded. "One more goal, then," he said before the team cheered.
Tsubasa moved to where Genzo and Jun were. "So he can steal the ball fairly quickly and at the same time anticipate passes…" he said. "He calls out where the ball's headed even if he doesn't have the ball himself. It shows you how much he trusts his teammates to carry out that play…"
"He's a dangerous all-around player," Jun admitted with a sigh.
"But let's not get ourselves discouraged! We can still catch up!" Tsubasa stated, turning to the rest of his team that had gathered with them. "Alright, we're done observing. Now we play some realsoccer!"
"ALRIGHT!" Tsubasa's team cheered before getting into position.
At kick-off, Nitta tipped the ball to Tsubasa, who took off with the ball. "Let's go!"
Kazuko ran up to confront him. 'Okay, let's see what happens now, Bas…' he thought before Tsubasa quickly passed the ball backwards to Teppei.
"Mark Bas, Kazu!" Taro called as he moved over to Teppei.
Kazuko looked at the field for a moment before his eyes widened. "Izzi! Look out for the cross to Hajime!" he called.
"What?" Izzi responded as the ball was launched into the air towards the side where he and Hajime were. They both jumped for possession as Hajime managed to head the ball down where Izawa took off with it.
"Izawa!" Tsubasa called, waving over to him.
Kazuko kept up with Tsubasa as they came closer to the goal area. 'It'll either be a cross to Bas or…'
Izawa avoided Masao's sliding tackle before passing the ball to Jun.
"Ken! Look out!" Kazuko warned as Jun moved into the penalty area and got himself ready for a shot on goal.
Ken stretched his arms out. "I've got it!"
"Try stopping this one!" Jun cried as his took a shot on goal, pinpointing the lower corner as Ken dived. His fingertips just managed to graze past the ball as it skidded into the goal and the whistle was blown.
"That was an awesome goal!" Tsubasa commended, running up to Jun.
"Sorry about that, Kazu…" Izzi apologized, moving up to Kazuko.
"Don't worry about it, Izzi," Kazuko reassured him, clapping him on the shoulder.
"We just need to start getting a bit more serious ourselves… Right, Kazu?" Taro offered with a small smile on his lips.
Kazuko nodded as the rest of his team joined them in front of Ken's net. "We just need to score one more goal, guys. Let's make this attack count, and give them no chance to steal or even get possession of the ball!"
"YEAH!!" the team replied enthusiastically as they headed back to the positions.
"Kazu…" Ken called, effectively stopping the boy.
"What is it, Ken?"
"I'll…"
Kazuko smiled. "I know you'll protect the goal at all costs, Ken. I believe in your abilities," he said encouragingly before heading off.
Ken nodded firmly before the game restarted. The intense attack done by Taro and Kazuko's team on Tsubasa's was flawless; passes were nearly perfect, easily getting past the defense before it ended with Hyuga's successful shot on goal, with an assist from Kazuko. The final whistle blew as the players shook hands and took a well-deserved break.
Coach Mikami scribbled a few things on his clipboard. 'Looks like we'll be sending quite a strong team to compete for the World Cup this year…' he thought to himself in slight amusement.