Disclaimer: Any original characters are property of myself and myself only. Eyeshield 21 is a series created by Riichigo Inagaki and Yusuke Murata. All characters of Eyeshield 21 are property of the original creators, Shonen Jump and Viz Media. Any references to the NFL and its players are copyrighted by the NFL and credited to their respective teams.
Author's Note: Holy Moley… 50 chapters. You know, I've been writing this fanfic off and on for the better part of the last decade. Things would pop up and my life would get busy and I'd be on long periods of hiatus. I would then find a new drive and some time to pump out several chapters, and repeat the cycle anew. Through it all I've gained a small following of loyal readers. And you all are really one of the only reasons I saw fit to continue writing this fanfic in the first place. So on this, the 50th chapter of Eyeshield Heart, I say, thank you all. I hope you continue to find some humor and some joy out of reading this. Be excellent to each other, and happy reading.
As the two teams wrapped up their pregame warm ups and went to their respective sidelines, the team captains made their way to centerfield for the coin toss. Sena, Dante, and Unsui strode confidently to the middle of the gridiron to meet their foe's representative captains. The trio watched as Takami, Yukimitsu, and a young man named Noburo approached in kind. Takami of course playing quarterback, made sense as a team captain, and Yukimitsu was an analytical genius who understood the game.
Noburo however, was their defensive captain. He stood a decent 5'10" tall and seemed to be solidly built, especially in comparison to his two offensively minded teammates. He had short jet black hair and thin eyebrows atop two thin, yet piercing eyes. Normally he would cut a rather imposing figure compared to your average athlete in Japanese sports. But to his misfortune, he happened to line up across from Dante.
The American had a good 6 inches on the shorter linebacker and easily an additional 50 pounds or more of chiseled rock hard muscle. The fiery red mane that danced wildly around the foreigner's shoulders hid a sharply angled face with deep set, animalistic eyes. Dante bore into Noburo's soul with those bestial orbs, and the opposing linebacker couldn't help but break out in goose bumps when staring down the former Lion of Notre Dame.
The referee broke the silence as he said, "Home team, call the toss." and then flipped the coin high in the air.
Takami easily called out, "Tails." and pushed his glasses upwards with his index finger as his eyes followed the coins arc. As it lobbed end over end and arrived back in the referee's hand, the monochromatic judge ruled it in favor of the home team. Takami made a quick motion meant to let the referee know they would be performing the first kick off.
Before the group left midfield Sena bowed slightly to his opponents and said, "Good luck." which drew a whimsical smile from the former White Knight quarterback.
"You as well." he said in parting as the tall poindexter made his way back to Shuei's sideline to await the opening kick.
As the special teams units took to the field, Sena positioned himself deep to receive the kick. He knew there was a very high chance the ball would not be kicked in his direction. But he was ready nonetheless. As the whistle blew a shrill high pitched screech across the gridiron the game was off. The opposing Doctor Fishes kicker connected with the oblong spheroid and sent it sailing. As predicted it was not heading in the direction of number 21. It appeared that Shuei had a much larger target in mind.
"Oh you gotta be kidding me…" Suitokku grumbled as he saw the ball sailing in his direction. The massive monument of muscle gritted his teeth and set his stance. This was not something he had been prepared for. He had been through such intensive practice to be a lineman because of his learning curve that they hadn't really exposed him to being ready to catch a short kick off.
As the titanic teen watched the wobbling ball catch a gleam of sunlight in its upward arc his eyes narrowed on it. Was he seeing things? He could have sworn just then that it resembled a fish. In his mind's eye he was momentarily back on his family's fishing boat. His brothers had just pulled up a net of mackerel. As they dug into the haul they began tossing the fish to one another in a chain down the deck to the holding tank. As the ball continued sailing through the air end over end the maritime giant couldn't help but smirk. If he could catch dozens of flopping slippery mackerel in a chain gang. Surely catching a football couldn't be that hard right?
The big fella cupped his wide gargantuan hands in front of his mass and kept his eyes on the ball. As it fell into his waiting bear trap like grip he bobbled the pigskin, but only for a moment before grabbing a hold of the wriggly ball. His all encompassing fingers wrapped tightly around its laces, one hand at first, then the second. With an ironclad grip that could compete with the bite of a crocodile's, Suitokku shifted his gaze to the oncoming swarm of surprised Shuei players, and began running down the field.
Like a freight train locomotive, the colossal Okinowan thundered down field. The first tackler to attempt to bring him to the ground was steam rolled and shrugged off as if he were nothing. The second and third would be tacklers were trampled beneath the rumbling mass that was Suitokku. Then the fourth, fifth, and sixth tacklers went for the churning pillar like legs that drove the surprisingly swift titan. Two of them managed to find holds and were dragged along in the wake of Orca's powerful strides. Only when the seventh and eighth tacklers piled on atop of Suitokku, literally clamoring onto his back, were they able to bring him down after being dragged an additional eight yards further still. When the dust settled Suitokku had made it all the way to the opponents 35 yard line. A fine return.
A cacophony of cheers erupted from his teammates as they all piled onto the lineman as he was pulling himself off of the turf. Hearty slaps assaulted his posterior and shoulder pads as they celebrated his success.
"Way to go Suitokku!" Hollered Mizumachi as he jumped onto the big guy's back. He wrapped his arm around the maritime giant's helmet and slapped the top of it rapidly three or four times before hopping off.
Next was Kurita who literally wrapped his arms around the big guy's torso and hefted him off the ground in a spinning hug celebration. "That was fantastic! What a great play!"
At this point even Suitokku had enough of the congratulatory celebrations and answered, "Thanks! Now put me down!" which drew a chorus of laughter from the group. And as the rotund center did just that, there was one final swat to the shoulder pads as Dante came over.
"Way to go Orca! Who'da known you could catch too! AWWOOOOOOO!" howled the bestial linebacker exuberantly. It had honestly surprised the American that the previous play had gone so well. When he saw that ball sailing towards the rookie lineman to start the game he had cursed and bolted in his direction. Only, to his surprise, to watch the uncharacteristically delicate finesse in witnessing this humongous human successfully reel it in and then proceed to stampede down the field for a 40 yard gain.
On the Shuei sidelines Takami was pressing his forefinger and thumb tightly against the bridge of his nose beneath his glasses. Nearby Yukimitsu was visibly deflated and said, "Well that didn't go according to plan."
Takami let out a long sigh and readjusted the frames on his glasses before replying, "No. No it certainly didn't. Next time we'll try our secondary target. All we can try to do is maximize our time on offense or we will never be able to keep up with these guys." The lanky poindexter was hoping their initial trick would work. But apparently the big rookie was decent enough with his hands that catching a short kick was in the realm of possibilities for him. Who knew?
Meanwhile back on the field the ligers lined up for their first offensive snap. Unsui lined up behind Kurita in the "I" formation. Behind him was Riku at full back and Sena at halfback. Dante was close in on the line next to Mizumachi at the left tackle position. Beside the gangly blonde was the thicc blonde. Suitokku lined up at left guard beside Kurita, forming a wall of destructive force that should easily be able to blow through the meager defensive line of Shuei. To the right of them Chuubou and Kakei rounded out the right guard and tackle positions. Monta and a filler player remained closer to the line group at the wide receiver positions.
The formation practically screamed a run up the middle on the left side. After all, with this kind of strength in run blocking, why not? Let them try and stop them. Unsui cooly surveyed the defense and noticed the obvious shift to the left. They were fully expecting to run up the left side of the gut. From behind the privacy wall that was Kurita, Unsui patted his right hip to indicate to Riku and Sena the play was shifting that way. The Kongo brother issued a series of verbal decrees to alert the line of the same intentions. "Green 98! Green 98! HUT!" and with that Kurita hiked the ball directly to Unsui's awaiting hands.
The cool collected quarterback played it as though he was handing the ball off to the left for that run up the middle. And Riku did indeed seem to take the ball straight into that direction, barreling into the back of Kurita and Suitokku. This certainly drew the defenses attention for the briefest of seconds. And that was all it took.
Unsui casually tossed the ball he had tucked away just moments before towards the waiting hands of Sena. The lightspeed runner received the pitch and rocketed off the right side of the line. Using Riku's misdirection, Sena took advantage of the momentary pause from Shuei's defense and rounded the corner, finding the edge and blasting off down the field. The one cornerback that might have been in position to make a tackle found Monta fiercely paving the way with a block for his teammate. Sena easily sailed past them both and dug his feet into the grassy field as they propelled him towards the end zone. The Shuei defense did not stand a chance. That warp drive that powered Sena's running style easily sidestepped the last line of defense in Shuei's safety and jettisoned him past the goal marker for a touchdown.
As the ref blew the whistle and threw both arms upwards signalling a score the Enma bench began to cheer and celebrate. Suzuna riled up her girls and the cheer squad belted out their fight song, "Enma! Enma! Fight, fight, fight! Fear our roar and fear our bite! Touchdown!" And while there wasn't much of a crowd here in attendance for Enma, there were a few loyal fans that did cheer in celebration along with them. But more boos rained down from the home crowd on the opposite side of the field than anything.
One particular fan however yelled out loudly in favor of the Ligers. A loud horn tooted and two loud noise makers banged together as Kuzuri screeched at the top of his lungs. "GOOOOOOOO ENMAAAA!" and let out another blast from his horn.
Suzuna and Juri both turned their attention in his specific direction and the elder Sawai sister laughed, "Is that one of the guys from the tryouts yesterday?"
Suzuna flattened her palm over her eyes and squinted in his direction laughing in turn, "Haha! Yeah I think so. Kuzuri I think?" She waved to him and blew her whistle. "Oiiii! Kuzuri!"
The boisterous badger like fellow stopped smashing his noise makers together when he noticed the cheerleader. He waved back enthusiastically and blew on his horn once more, drawing the laughter of his fellow Enma fans around him. When she waved at him once more he grew confused. What did she want? When the impatient cheerleader blew her whistle again and waved more frantically this time before pointing to the bench he seemed to understand. With a final toot on his horn he bounced up and gamboled on down to the field.
Leaving the bleachers he began to take off on a fast jog. When the 4 foot high chain link fence seemed like it would impede him, he simply leapt over it, swinging one leg over and using its momentum to propel the rest of his form with it. He somehow managed to keep all of his noise making gear in hand as he landed and jogged the rest of the way towards the cheer captain.
"Kuzuri right?" Suzuna asked now that he was much closer. She could tell that he was a tight little ball of coiled muscle and tenacity simply by watching how he carried himself. Kind of like a pint sized Dante in some ways.
The cantankerous shot put star bowed with a wide grin. "Hai!" He responded rapidly. His voice was deep and seemed to resonate from his belly. Standing straight up once more he banged the two hollow noise makers together above his head. "I came to support the team! GO ENMA!"
Suzuna chuckled at his enthusiasm. Initially he had given her an impression of their resident American, but after just a few short moments she realized who he really reminded her of. The stout fellow reminded her of Komusubi now that she thought about it. She smiled and said to him, "Thanks for coming out to support the team! Why don't you help us cheer the guys on!" And she raised her arms and rattled her pom poms.
Kuzuri furrowed his eyebrows in deep thought. He wasn't allowed to play yet, in fact he wasn't sure if he had made the team yet. But already he was being welcomed and asked to do his part. He tucked the horn in his mouth and turned to the stands, blowing out a loud toot and clacking the noise makers above his head. Gnashing the horn between his teeth he yelled, "GO ENMA GO!" and his deep resonating voice carried far into the stands.
While all this was happening, Shidao watched Kuzuri approach and interact with Suzuna. As the interaction went on the mint haired teen felt that pit of fear start to grow in her stomach as she hesitantly scanned the stands. If Kuzuri showed up to support the team, what did that mean for Kohando? Nervously, her eyes searched through the bleachers for any sign of her stalker. To her great relief it didn't appear that he made the trek to Shuei field to "support the team". She let out a small sigh and closed her eyes. It was alright. And even if he had come to the game, it still would be alright because Monta was out there watching over her. The loud booming voice of Kuzuri shook the stands behind her and the minty teen giggled from the ridiculous volume of it. She turned and looked at her sister, "How is he so loud?"
Juri shook her head and laughed awkwardly herself at his boisterous bravado. "I have no idea." The Sawai siblings continued to watch and listen to the thunderous echoes created by the stout little track and field star and could not help but laugh.
Back on the field, Kotaro had successfully kicked the p-a-t and was lining up to kick off to Shuei for a change of possession. The Doctor Fishes were lined up deep, and as the suave kicker connected his toe to the pigskin it went arcing high into the sky. It sailed through the air for what seemed like an eternity to land in the exact corner of the 2 yard line. By the time one of the Shuei players ran to catch it, there were already a pair of Enma defenders there to take him out. Dante and Sena collided with the poor player and knocked him out of bounds right at the 2 yard line. Kotaro walked off the field and removed his helmet, taking out his switchblade comb to run through his glorious locks. "How cool was that?" he winked in Juri's direction, earning an eye roll in response.
As the defensive huddle came together Dante eagerly clasped his hands together. "Awwwright boys! We're close to their goal line. If possible we want safety!" He paused for emphasis and then called the play, "Double barrel blitz!" Suitokku and Kurita straightened up, knowing that play meant they had to clear a path. The designed play was created by the left end which was Suitokku, and the nose tackle Kurita cleared two paths down which Dante and Kakei could blitz the quarterback from. The defensive captain clapped his hands together loudly and called "Break!" dispersing the Enma defense to their respective positions.
As Shuei came to their line of scrimmage, Takami scoured the defense for any indication of their intended play. So far the ligers had shown good discipline against their previous opponents and what little tape they had of Dante and some of the other new recruits indicated high levels of play. Dante was a hard player to read, his animalistic tendencies and rapid quickness were hard to predict. And Kakei's firm and cool attitude made him a stone wall one could not read. The shrewd quarterback could only hope his receivers used their option routes appropriately.
The tall former white knight called hut and the ball was snapped. Taking a three step drop the surgical tactician of the Shuei Doctor Fishes already saw his impending doom. Suitokku and Kurita blew their assigned targets off the line pushing each of them back several feet into the Shuei endzone already. Worse still, in the cracks created by those forces of nature, Takami could see Dante and Kakei rapidly closing in on him. All Takami could hope for was that his receivers utilized their option routes appropriately and he threw the football in the direction he knew to be optimal. Luckily for him, Yukimitsu was an analytical mastermind.
Immediately upon seeing Dante and Kakei take off towards the line, the balding wideout knew the middle of the field would be his best option. From the slot position Yukimitsu quickly turned inward towards the vacant area the two linebackers had previously been, in hopes of giving Takami a chance. As he turned to look for the football he did indeed find it hurtling in his direction. Narrowing his focus on the ball he dove outwards for it and managed to snatch it out of the air before being tackled to the ground by Riku at the safety position. The mark of gain was only for 3 yards. But it was far better than a safety.
Takami did however eat some turf for his efforts. Dante may not have been quick enough to connect to the quarterback prior to the throw, but couldn't stop his momentum and collided with him. The linebacker glowered in the direction of Yukimitsu and the completed pass. Three yards was a paltry sum, but it was more than he wanted. The fiery foreigner turned on the four-eyed quarterback and bore into him with those frosty blue eyes. Time to hunt.
As the team came back together for the huddle Dante bristled and said, "We knew their option routes were going to be their best bet against us. 3 yards is nothing we weren't prepared to give. Lets hold them here. If we can still get a safety, that's the goal. Sidewinder 44!" As the American called the play and the team lined up in their positions the tension was great.
Takami had dusted himself off and looked back to the linebacker that had shoved him to the ground with stern disdain. He had been hit by Shin in practice countless times over the years. He could handle a few pressures from the bestial American and be alright. He nodded in thanks to Yukimitsu for his effort and called the next play before lining up behind center. With additional protection from a halfback and a full back on either side of him, and with three wide receivers ready to go Takami once more scanned the defense. Number 92 was literally pacing side to side like a ravenous wild animal ready to pounce. The former Ojo quarterback narrowed his steely gaze and hiked the ball.
As he did, Enma's defense became a flurry of motion. Dante and Kakei quickly switched positions and the fiery foreigner tore around the edge of Shuei's line to loop back towards Takami. His incredible speed had the tall quarterback back pedaling towards his left tackle as Dante bowled over the poor full back that attempted to block him. The tactical surgeon in training quickly dialed through his reads. Monta had his guy covered, the rent a corner did as well, and Sena? Wait. Where was Sena? A sudden explosion of force connected with Takami's torso as number 21 collided with him from his blindside position. Just as Dante had looped around the right side of his offensive line, Sena had abandoned his receiver to rocket in from the opposite end, easily sidestepping the Shuei blocker that tried stopping him.
In years past Takami might have muscled through it and made the throw considering their difference in frames. But this was not the same Sena Kobayakawa he played in highschool. He was no longer the miniscule pipsqueak he used to be. He may not have been at the level of Seijuro Shin to be sure, but he was big enough now to take out Takami before he could get rid of the football.
"Tch!" Takami cursed as he moved to protect the ball and fall gracefully to the ground as Sena tackled him. But in the process of doing so he looked up just in time to see the crimson meteorite crashing in towards him. Mere moments after Sena had collided with him from behind, and while he was attempting to protect the ball, Dante plowed into his torso, knocking not only the wind from him, but also sending the football flying out end over end.
"FUMBLE!" shouted players on both sides of the ball, and the scramble was on. As the ball tossed delicately through the air, a Shuei lineman attempted to grab at it, only to bounce it further along the line. As the oblong orb bounced to the grassy ground, an avalanche of players leapt atop it. In the resulting scuffle the refs had to literally pull players off the pile to clear the way. When it was all said and done Chuubou emerged with the prize. He let out a loud holler of victorious might and spiked the ball into the ground.
"Enma's Ball!" shouted the referees as they pointed towards Shuei's endzone, indicating the turnover and change of possession had officially occurred.
Once more on Enma's sideline Suzuna spurned her squad on and cheered loudly. "Enma Enma fight, fight, fight! Take the ball back with your might! GO ENMA!" Only now in accompaniment to their dainty voices, a booming baritone shook the steel frames of the bleachers beyond. Kuzuri was blowing his horn and smashing together his clangorous noise making batons as he also cheered on his defense.
Sena helped Takami back to his feet after the ensuing chaos and asked, "You alright?"
Takami was frowning and flexing his throwing hand but sighed and pushed up his glasses saying, "Yeah I am alright. Your friend hits nearly as hard as Shin." Again the four-eyed quarterback flexed his throwing hand and rubbed its wrist with his other hand. "Looks like we've got an uphill battle to climb. Excuse me." Takami stated as he excused himself to return to the sidelines.
While the other Shuei players were swapping out for defense, the remaining ligers stayed on the field. As the Enma offense huddled up with 5 yards to go to paydirt Unsui laid out the plan of action. "Let's go with the first play we initially wanted to run. We're only five yards out, it should work." Upon hearing no arguments from his teammates, Unsui broke the huddle and lined up under center in that same exact "I" formation as before.
This time however when Unsui hiked the ball instead of faking the hand off to Riku to then pitch it to Sena, he did hand it off to the wiley bucking bronco back and fake the pitch to Sena. Sena did his part in rapidly cutting around to the outside to draw the defense's attention. And it did divert some of them. Meanwhile Riku drove his own impressive legs into the field right behind the massive moving wall made up by Kurita and Suitokku. The two monolithic linemen easily road graded their opponents into the endzone and cleared the way for Riku to waltz right in. The referee's once more signaled for a touchdown for Enma and Kotaro came out to kick the easy extra point.
As the special teams lined up for the next kick off it became rather apparent after Kotaro dropped another beautifully placed kick on the opposite corner of the field at their opponent's 1 yard line, that this "uphill battle" Takami mentioned was about as insurmountable as they came. These Doctor Fishes may as well be trying to swim against the wave of a tsunami.
The lethal trifecta of Eyeshield 21 on offense, the bestial Dante on defense, and the masterful special teams play from Kotaro made Enma an extremely difficult foe to contend with. Their line was fearsomely strong in some positions, and incredibly talented in others. Their skills position players were top notch as well with Monta, Riku, and Sena to name a few. Their only glaring weakness was a fill in player for corner and wide receiver, and Unsui at linebacker on defense. If they sured up those positions, this team may very well rival Saikyodai and other monsters in the collegiate league.
But alas, the Shuei Doctor fishes, for all their intelligence and strategy, just couldn't contend with the raw physical talent and wit of the Ligers. For Enma was not just physically gifted, they were clinical as well in their play calling and design. Dante was a mastermind at defensive strategy, and Unsui was an experienced play caller on offense with a level head and a steady hand.
When the last whistle blew the score was outlandishly in favor of Enma with a final tally of 63 to Enma and only 9 to Shuei. At the end of the game when the teams lined up to shake each other's hands and bow Yukimitsu and Takami both congratulated Sena.
Takami sighed and said with a whimsical smile, "Looks like you guys are the real deal. Saikyodai better watch their backs."
Yukimitsu was quick to echo his agreement, "I think if anyone could beat them it's going to be you guys."
Sena smiled pridefully and answered, "We'll win." only to quickly flounder afterwards, "Or at least we'll certainly try our best I m-mean.. Uh…" and he poked his two fingers together laughing sheepishly.
Takami and Yukimitsu laughed at that and wished him and the rest of the Ligers good luck on the rest of their season. Unlike in high school the collegiate season wasn't a one and done single elimination sweepstakes. The teams with the best records went to a set of playoffs which then became single elimination. The two best teams met in the collegiate championship game, and the winner of that went on to the Rice Bowl.
So while the Doctor fishes were a dismal 0-2, and Enma was a perfect 2-0. Things could change rapidly in favor of one or the other. As Dante was wont to say, "Any given Sunday." Unfortunately for them, they played on Saturdays, but the precedence was still valid. But for the time being the Enma Ligers looked like a force to be reckoned with two weeks into the season. The budding powerhouse would certainly garner the attention of many opponents after such an outing for the second week in a row.
