Yawning, Serena arrived at the training ground, just as the sun had just risen.
"Training session at dawn...on a Saturday? Only Hiruma could come up with such a sadistic trick."
Thinking she was the first to arrive, she spotted Kurita and Komusubi sparring while battling practice dummies.
"Great... already I thought Kurita was a training freak, I see he found a fan who acts exactly like him."
However, she was more surprised when she saw Yukimitsu running around the field. Already looking exhausted, when training hadn't even started, the boy was struggling to keep his running and his breath.
" Already arrived ? " Serena asked. "Did you also come two hours early?"
"No way." Admitted the boy, when he passed close to her.
Giving himself a little pause, Yukimitsu tried to catch his breath, as he affirmed.
"I've only been here twenty minutes! And yet..."
Turning to the defending duo, he confessed.
"They've been there longer than me and it doesn't even look like they're tired."
"Yukimitsu...I'll tell you a secret. Serena stated. "All the boys on this team are nothing human.
Hearing it someone laughed.
"I hope I'm not concerned." Ishimaru affirmed.
Glancing at him, Serena questioned him.
"How long have you been here?"
" I just arrived. "
"That's reassuring! A little more, and I thought I hadn't seen you yet! Sorry, but your ability to go unnoticed makes you as inhuman as the other guys."
Immediately, Ishimaru was on his knees as he brooded.
"Sorry... for not being like the others."
"That… That's not what she meant." Yukimitsu tried to reassure him.
"By the way, what are you doing here?" Serena asked him.
"Hiruma summoned me." The runner assured her. "According to him, I should now participate in more training. »
"And your athletics club?"
Hearing the famous question, Ishimaru seemed undecided.
"I don't know... what I want to choose."
" Huh ? "
"I've been running for years and yet I don't feel like I've improved for a long time." The boy confessed. "And on top of that, since I've been playing with you, I always have the impression of meeting people who are all more incredible than the other."
Showing a smile, he declares.
"Eyeshield said I lacked motivation so...I just want to know if this club can give me what I'm missing to become something more than just a run-of-the-mill racer."
Seeming to understand him, Yukimitsu nodded. However, quickly ignoring them Serena only focused her attention on a sentence he had just said.
"If Hiruma told him to come, then that means..."
"MAX TRAINING!" Suddenly shouted Monta, arriving on the field.
Nevertheless, surprised not to be the first, he began to shout, while looking around him.
"What? I'm not the first? Almost everyone is here? I'm so disappointed! But at least that means practice will start soon."
"How can you be so excited on a Saturday morning?" Serena questioned him.
"A banana and a latte." The boy affirmed. " Nothing better to start the day. "
Yawning like Serena had done when she arrived, Sayo walked in a zig-zag way, while she seemed to be tired.
"Training on a Saturday morning at dawn? It's worse than the army."
"Hiruma made you come too?" Serena asked.
"Yes." Sayo replied simply, before lying down on a training bench. "I don't know what got into him but in any case I'm going to take advantage of your training to take a nap."
However, she jumped when she heard a machine gun.
"Who said take a nap, Fuking Doll?" Hiruma shouted. "Everyone, get ready! We're going to warm up by jogging 10 kilometers."
" A what ? "
"I'm going to die." Sayo complained.
"One more moan and you'll give me a hundred push-ups." Hiruma growled.
"Hey, I told you I wasn't going to be on your team." The girl retorted.
"Hiruma, stop abusing her." Mamori growled, as she rode her bike near the pair. "Sayo just entered the ordeal to help Yukimitsu! Nothing else."
"I'm tired of her just staring at us, during our practices." The boy growled. "Let her learn to strengthen herself a little! Her body will thank me."
"Not me, anyway." Sayo retorted.
Then, looking behind her, she saw only Kurita, who was having a hard time keeping up with the rest of the team. Yet, she was certain that another person must be behind her.
"Where's Yukimitsu?"
Turning around, Hiruma grabbed a pair of binoculars before groaning. Seeing a silhouette in the distance, he saw Yukimitsu running in slow motion, while he seemed unable to go any faster.
"He'll have a long way to go if he really wants to look like Eyeshield."
"At fact, where is he?" Mamori asked. "Why Eyeshield doesn't train with us?"
"He'll join us later." Hiruma assured her.
"And the three brothers?"
"Them… I'll have them here in two seconds." Hiruma assured her, with three phones in his hand and a cruel smile on his face.
Also starting to feel tired, Ishimaru thought it best to slow down.
" Ten kilometers is a lot for a warm-up! I better save my strength for the real training session. "
However, as soon as he slowed down he saw Serena passing him.
" Huh ? "
Seeming to have a good rhythm, the girl ran at full speed without seeming to feel the slightest trace of fatigue.
"Damn it." Monta said, finally stopping near Ishimaru. "There's no point! If I try to follow her rhythm to the end, I'm going to die."
Remaining silent, Ishimaru only stared at Serena, while he saw that her size was similar to Eyeshield's.
Finishing her run arriving in front of their training ground, Serena began a series of stretches, while waiting for the others to join her. Gradually, she saw Monta and Ishimaru join her, before being followed by Komusubi, Mamori, as well as Jumonji and his friends.
"Oh? Did you finally come?" The blonde wondered.
"Shut up." roared the trio, unhappy to be here on a Saturday morning.
Eventually, Kurita and Sayo back up to them before collapsing to the ground.
"Call an ambulance, please." Sayo begged.
Simply smiling, seeing her redder than a tomato, Serena put a bottle of water on her head.
"Will you settle for that?"
In an instant, the bottle disappeared, while Sayo had already opened its cap and placed her lips on it. And in two seconds, the water that was there disappeared in her throat.
"AHHHHHHHHHH!" she cried, feeling alive again.
Then, trying to crawl on the ground, she declared.
"I have to get away, before Hiruma comes back here."
Unfortunately, she saw a pair of legs, in front of her, while the sound of a gun was heard.
" Turn around, if you don't want to disappear without leaving the slightest trace. " Hiruma advised her.
Behind him, Cerberos came walking, while a rope was hanging from his collar. And at the end of the rope was Yukimitsu's foot, while the dog had to drag it some distance, while the boy was unable to finish the jog.
"Everyone on the field." Hiruma ordered. "Ball handling drills."
"AHHHHHHHH!" Sayo shouted, feeling a ball clap in her hands.
Before catching it, the young girl juggled with the object for a few moments, before managing to hold it in her hands.
"I got it." She gloated, lifting the ball into the air. "I finally caught it."
"STUPID GIRL." Hiruma roared, firing his machine gun. "Instead of screaming, run to the End Zone and get back here in less than ten seconds."
"AYE!" the girl cried, running away.
Groaning, Hiruma felt a balloon hit the back of his head. Stepping towards him, Serena affirmed.
"I know Sayo's performance isn't glorious! But honestly, do you really need to harass her?"
"Tsss! Stupid." The boy growled. "I have no choice! Now that we have seven recruits, I have to adapt their training according to their skills."
Turning his gaze to Komusubi, who was displaying a rivalry with Jumonji and his friends, he saw the foursome practicing while trying to tackle each other.
"These four are promising! When the brothers have developed a desire to play with us, I could entrust them all to Kurita."
Then he looked at Ishimaru running.
"For him, it will just be enough to toughen up certain exercises for him to be at our level."
Coming back to Hiruma, Sayo was breathing heavily, as she ran as fast as she could to get back to her original spot.
"I...I'm back."
"Sixteen seconds to cover such a small distance?" Hiruma roared. "Do that again... FASTER."
Again frightened by his weapons, Sayo began the exercise again. Seeing her go, Hiruma affirmed.
"For her, it's not a question of being athletic or not! She has practically no willpower! Nevertheless, if she manages to realize that she is capable of doing something other than complaining, I could potentially do something with it."
" What about our latest recruit? " Serena asked, looking at Yukimitsu.
Being in front of Mamori, the boy had to catch the balloons she was throwing towards him. But, while Sayo had managed to catch one of Hiruma's balls, Yukimitsu felt Mamori's balls bounce off his hands, before falling to the ground.
" I consider him a hopeless case. " Hiruma affirmed, not even looking at him.
Running forty yards, Sayo and Yukimitsu tried to cover the required distance as quickly as possible. Managing to get there first, Sayo heard Mamori tell her her time.
" Sayo-chan ... 5.4 seconds."
Then, waiting for Yukimitsu to pass him, Kurita declared.
"Yukimitsu ... 6.1 seconds."
Hearing this, Hiruma was groaning.
Feeling like his arm muscles were exploding, Yumitsu put down the iron bar he was trying to lift, before lamenting.
"I am unable to lift more than ten kilos."
"Let-s go, Sayo! I know you can do it."
Lifting an iron bar as well, Sayo had a red face again, as she gritted her teeth.
"T...Te...TEN!" she cried, managing to lift her as high as she could go again.
Then, putting her down, she lay on her training tray, while she felt like she couldn't feel her arms anymore. Gently passing a towel over her brow, Serena congratulated her.
"You must have lifted 15 kilos! I'm proud of you."
"It's torture." Sayo affirmed.
Again, seeing the performance of the duo, Hiruma groaned.
Now performing a slaloming race between cones, Sayo finally showed some fluency, as she used dance steps to zigzag between cones with ease.
Unfortunately, not managing to be as comfortable as her, Yukimitsu tried to imitate her before quickly falling to the ground.
Seeing this, Hiruma declared.
"Could I really do anything with this guy?"
"Honestly, I thought Sayo would be the one you cared about the most." Serena asserted, who was standing behind him. .
"Are you kidding? Stamina, ball handling, speed, fitness, agility... she beats this guy in every way."
"Sayo would be happy to hear you say that! But, I know for a fact that she's not very athletic."
" I never said otherwise. " Hiruma retorted. "I'm just saying that she can potentially reach the minimum level imposed so that she can survive the next training sessions."
Blowing a bubble with chewing gum, while looking concerned, he eventually admits.
"Today's training is not how we could win against teams like Ojo! To have a chance of beating them, we have to increase the intensity of our training! And unfortunately, some won't be able to keep up, if we don't prepare them enough."
Looking at Yukimitsu, he affirmed.
"He risks quickly becoming an annoyance for our team."
"End of practice." Hiruma announced, firing his submachine gun again.
"Thank god." Sayo rejoiced. "I want to go home and sleep until Monday. "
"Forget this stupid waste of time." Hiruma retorted, as the team gathered in the Devils Bats quarters. "Now we will talk about the results of the Spring Tournament! At the moment, the qualified teams are the Nagas of Shinryuji..."
"These assholes." Serena growled, thinking back to Agon.
" They won the Tokyo tournament? " Monta asked.
"No, the Kanagawa one! The final of the Tokyo tournament is taking place today, and among the two teams in the final, we have…Ojo."
"Shin is in the final." Serena understood.
"I admit that the rules concerning tournaments are still unknown to me." Yukimitsu confessed. "At the moment, how many teams can still hope to participate in the Christmas Bowl?"
"The Christmal Bowl will pit the best team in Eastern Japan against the best team in Western Japan." Kurita told him. "To determine who will be the team that will represent half of Japan, many tournaments are organized and, in the end, eight teams will be united in a final tournament! The team that wins this final tournament will participate in the Chritmas Bowl . "
"So if Ojo wins today, they'll be among the eight teams that make it to this final tournament." Monta figured out.
" We'll have to wait until tonight to find out who's going to win. " Sayo said, pretending to leave. "Just send me a message to let me know if I can watch this game on TV."
Nonetheless, Hiruma's face appeared right in front of her, while the blond flashed a wicked smile on his face.
"Why settle for TV... When you can watch this game sitting in the stands?"
" Huh ? "
Less than half an hour later, after Hiruma kindly asked Habashira and his subordinates to take them on a motorbike, the Devils Bats were now outside a stadium, where a lot of commotion could be heard.
" This is where the final is played. " Hiruma affirmed.
"SEIBU ! SEIBU ! SEIBU! "
"OJO ! OJO ! OJO ! "
"No need to inquire about the names of the two teams in this final." Serena remarked, as she stood in the stands, looking for their seats.
"We're late." Hiruma affirmed. "Half the game is almost over."
"Who wins?" Monta asked, looking at the scoreboard.
"The score is 20 to 7!" Kurita remarked.
"Seibu scored a touchdown against Ojo?" Monta wondered. "They're not dummies."
"Idiots." Hiruma growled, sitting down in his place. "Look better."
"I feel like Seibu has 20 points." Yukimitsu remarked.
" WHAT ? "
As surprised as they were, Serena looked up at Shin, who on the court looked tired.
"Ojo is being ridiculed?"
Looking at the field with a bored expression, Sayo affirmed.
"I wouldn't want to be defeatist, but knowing that Ojo defeated you, I can't even imagine the score of our team against Seibu's."
"That's strange." Kurita remarked. "I didn't remember Seibu being such a powerful team."
" It's thanks to this guy. " Hiruma affirmed. "Kid."
sitting in a chair, a man appeared to be taking a nap, while his hat covered his face. Seeming to hear Hiruma talking about him, Kid heaved a weary sigh, before removing his hat from his face.
"Things are going way too well! Usually that means bad news is coming soon."
Then, he threw a bottle of water in the air, before affirming.
"You need to drink, Tetsuma."
Grabbing the water bottle, one of his comrades raced, like a robot, to grab the bottle.
"An android?" Monta wondered.
"His name is Tetsuma and he's the main receiver of Seibu's team and maybe even the best receiver of this tournament." Hiruma affirmed, looking at various information on his laptop. "He is able to cover 60 yards in 5 seconds and lift 115 kilos."
"He's both fast and powerful." Kurita remarked.
"It's not the most important thing." Hiruma retorted. " What characterizes this guy are his races! Whatever the obstacle, he will perform any race requested without deviating more than 10 centimeters from the requested trajectory. "
"He's better than Monta?" Sayo asked.
"Without a doubt." Hiruma affirmed. "In addition, their method of play is totally different! Fucking Monkey is a player who knows how to jump high to grab the ball! However, he will then easily be knocked to the ground by the opponent! On the contrary, Tetsuma is a player who behaves like a train, whose route no one will change."
"Just... is knowing the route passes so important?" Ishimaru asked.
"Damn." Hiruma growled. "It's not athletics, where you just have to run straight! During an attack, I couldn't pass the ball to the monkey, while ordering him where to run! The enemy would easily be able to to know where to position themselves to win the ball! Before each agreement, I would give my orders to the receivers and it will be up to them to know where to position themselves."
"American football is a lot tougher than I thought." Monta confessed.
Suddenly, Hiruma gave him a sheet, where there were all the pass routes he needed to know.
"You're going to have to teach me all this."
" What ? "
"And this is for you." Hiruma affirmed, handing more leaves to Ishimaru and Serena. "Fucking Blondie, you'll give that sheet to Eyeshield! These are the running back passes."
"We too have to learn them?" Ishimaru wondered.
Then, Hiruma gave the last leaves to Yukimitsu and Sayo.
"I don't know where you will be placed! So you will teach me all the pass routes."
"Hey, Hiruma! Sayo is out of the question for any of your matches." Mamori retorted. "She's just training with you, but she told you she wouldn't play."
"Tssss! Stop protecting her." Hiruma grunted. " Where is the problem ? "
At this moment, a sound of impact was heard, at the moment when a Seibu player was violently tackled to the ground by Otawara. Seeing the player on the ground looking like a pancake, Sayo started shaking in fear.
"I'm going to get pulverized."
"Attack for Seibu." The referee announced.
Immediately, several players on the field left, while others took their places. Both among them, Kid entered the field, while pushing Tetsuma in front of him. Having an incredibly swollen stomach, the boy seemed to have gained 50 pounds in ten seconds.
"What happened to him?" Monta asked.
" Tetsuma is someone who obeys all orders, even the most absurd, and sometimes in an exaggerated way. " Affirmed Hiruma. "If his coach orders him to drink, he won't stop until he hears his coach give him the order! In my opinion, his team took a long time to notice that he drank several liters. "
"Is this guy a jerk?" Serena asked.
being in attack position, Seibu faced Ojo's defense. being behind his comrades, Kid was completely in the open, while no other player was beside him, to protect him.
"Compared to Hiruma, he's really exposed." Monta remarked.
"It's because he executes his specialty...the shotgun! And to achieve that, no player has to be in the way of the ball."
" SET ! HUT ! HUT ... "
Running in all directions, Seibu's receivers and running backs scattered all over the opposing court, causing Ojo to hesitate before running towards one of them.
" Kid announced his strategy to the rest of his team. " Hiruma announced. "They know full well that most are just decoys meant to get the attention of Ojo's defenders."
"SUGOI!" Monta affirmed. "We have to do the same."
"With our current defense?" Hiruma growled. "Compared to Seibu's, our defense can't protect our quarterback effectively! I'd be tackled in a few moments! Besides, Kid has one more advantage than us."
Suddenly, Otawara managed to pulverize Seibu's defense and rushed towards Kid.
"If you can't tackle all the players, just tackle the quarterback."
However, seeming to give him time to get closer to him, Kid only smiled confidently, before tossing the ball while crossing his arms.
"What?" Otawara wondered, feeling the ball pass by him.
Flying at full speed, the ball traveled the field, like a current of air, before being grabbed by Tetsuma.
"SUGO!" Monta and Yukimitsu shouted.
"I barely had time to see the ball." Mamori confessed.
"Kid is the fastest quarterback in Japan.." Hiruma assured.
"Gain 14 yards." Affirmed the referee.
"SEIBU! SEIBU! SEIBU!" shouted the crowd.
"Is it me or is Ojo really being ridiculed?" Ishimaru asked.
At that moment, hands pressing on his bladder, Tetsuma left the field, before heading for the locker room.
"Oh? I think Seibu has lost one of his best assets."
"How can you be so stupid?" Serena asked.
"Never mind." Monta affirmed. "I doubt it will change anything."
" On the contrary, it changes everything. " Retorted Hiruma.
And this proved to be true, when Ojo managed to take advantage of Tetsuma's absence to reverse the situation. And at the end of the match, Ojo managed to win 21-20 against Seibu.
And while his coach fired several times with his revolvers to vent his rage, Kid let out a weary sigh, while affirming.
"Like I said, when things go too well, it's just a bad new approach."
"If Tetsuma had stayed, Seibu could have won." Kurita remarked.
Watching the losing team leave the field, Serena couldn't help but be suspicious.
"A problem, Serena?" Asked Sayo.
"I confess that I often focus on Ojo, while forgetting the fact that there are other super-powerful teams! Seibu... it's definitely not a team like Zukuto! To beat them, I know I have to training to improve my team play."
" Me, that scares me. " His girlfriend retorted. "So many teams participate in these tournaments, and only two teams will be able to participate in the Chritmas Bowl! Suffice to say that seems to be impossible to participate in it."
"It's just because it's complicated that it's fun." Serena retorted, raising her fist. "Winning against losers? It's a bore."
Then, looking at the sheet that Hiruma had given her, she read the different combinations, before starting to run.
"Hey, Serena." Monta shouted. " Where are you going ? "
"I'm going home jogging."
Startled at first, Monta spotted him moving around using Hiruma's tactics.
"Hey! I'm not going to let you outwit me."
Imitating her then, he began to run in zigzag. Seeing them do it, Yukimitsu hastened to do the same, noticing that he had to take the opportunity to improve himself.
Seeing the trio running, Sayo affirmed.
"They are tireless."
"They mostly have the will that we don't have." Ishimaru remarked.
Suddenly hearing machine gun fire, the pair spotted Hiruma gathering the rest of the team, to run them too. Seeing this, the duo understood that they had no choice and, wanting to avoid being shouted at, they began to run, while seizing their sheets.