The days passed in a cycle of classes and training sessions.
The boys from the football club gathered on the pitch with Coach Ishii and Coach Suzuki standing before them.
Coach Ishii looked carefully at each of them.
"Tomorrow's the match... and now I'm announcing the starting eleven."
A wave of tension immediately spread through the squad.
"We'll be playing a 4-4-2. Andou in goal; Aoki and Noguchi at centre-back; Ueno at right-back and Sugimoto at left-back. In midfield, Ono and Tamura in the middle, with Shimizu and Tanaka on the wings. Up front, Nishimura will play just behind the striker..."
Kaneko stared at the coach without looking away.
"Aliberti."
Kaneko let out a disappointed sigh, while Noguchi glanced at him.
"Noguchi!"
Caught off guard by the sudden call, Noguchi turned to Coach Ishii.
"You'll be the captain."
Noguchi stood there in disbelief for a moment.
"Unless you'd rather refuse..."
Noguchi's expression immediately hardened with determination.
"I'll do it!"
"Good. Start training!"
The players headed towards the centre of the pitch, except for Noguchi and Kaneko.
Noguchi looked as though he was about to say something.
"Raizo—"
But Kaneko walked away before he could finish.
The new captain closed his eyes and let out a quiet sigh.
Riccardo had watched the entire exchange from a distance.
[A couple of hours later]
Coach Ishii picked up a football.
"We're finishing early today... go home and get some rest."
Coach Suzuki stepped forward.
"Tomorrow, after classes, be at the school gates. We'll be waiting with the team bus. Don't be late!"
"Got it!" Noguchi replied.
A couple of minutes later, Kaneko emerged from the changing room, walking briskly under everyone's gaze.
Noguchi hurried after him.
"Raizo!"
Kaneko stopped and turned around.
"What do you want?"
"You know... on paper I may be this team's captain tomorrow... but as long as you're part of this team, that armband will always be yours."
"So?"
"It means this team still needs you! Stay focused... you'll get another chance to prove yourself!"
Kaneko let out an irritated sigh.
"Ah... who do you think you're talking to? Of course I'll take back the armband and my place in the starting eleven... this is my team!"
He turned and resumed walking towards the exit.
Noguchi watched him go before smiling faintly.
"He made me give that embarrassing speech for nothing..."
Riccardo walked up beside Noguchi.
"Senpai!"
Kaneko heard Riccardo's voice but didn't turn around.
He simply kept walking.
"I'll never give up my place in the starting eleven. If you want it back, you'll have to give me more than one hundred percent!"
Kaneko snorted as though that was the most obvious thing in the world.
Noguchi placed a hand on Riccardo's shoulder, guiding him back towards the changing room.
"Come on. Tomorrow, even if it's only a friendly... we'll be facing the best."
Riccardo nodded before following him.
"Yeah..."
[The following day]
Classes ended, and the students headed towards the pitches and gymnasiums for their respective club activities.
Sato was walking across the school courtyard with another girl when they passed by the football pitch.
She stopped when she noticed it was completely empty.
"Do you know why the boys' football club isn't training today?"
"Is there someone you're interested in?"
"No, no. I always walk past here, and they're usually training at this time..."
Another girl walked over to them.
"Excuse me, are you girls heading to the athletics area? Could you help me carry those boxes to your storage room?"
She pointed at several boxes stacked beside a door.
"Sure!"
Sato's friend immediately stepped forward.
The three girls each picked up a box.
"Thank you so much! You really saved me!"
As they walked away, Sato glanced back at the football pitch with a thoughtful expression.
[Elsewhere]
The boys stepped off the team bus, which had stopped outside the gates of Maebashi Ikuei High School.
As soon as the last player got off, Coach Ishii stopped beside Coach Suzuki.
"I'm going to do that thing..."
He then turned towards the team.
"I'm going to inform the principal that we've arrived and thank him for arranging this match. In the meantime, warm up with Coach Suzuki."
Coach Ishii walked away.
Coach Suzuki also started moving.
"Come on, boys."
The team followed him.
They arrived at the pitch, where the home team was already warming up.
Riccardo noticed around ten people watching, including several students and what appeared to be three scouts.
He then walked over to Nishimura.
"There are even scouts here..."
"As usual, they're not here to watch us."
Coach Suzuki stopped in front of the pitch entrance.
A man walked over to welcome him.
Coach Suzuki held out his hand.
"Good morning. You must be Coach Yamamoto?"
"That's right. And you must be Coach Ishii?"
Coach Suzuki smiled politely.
"I'm afraid you've got the wrong person. Coach Ishii is speaking with your principal at the moment. He should be here shortly. I'm the assistant coach, Coach Suzuki."
"I see... Well, thank you for coming. It's always an honour to play against the great and historic Shūdan-teki."
Coach Suzuki and the players immediately picked up on the irony in his voice.
Still, Coach Suzuki kept his composure.
"It used to be..."
The two coaches shared a light laugh, leaving the Shūdan-teki players exchanging puzzled looks.
Coach Suzuki quickly composed himself.
"Well then, I'd like to get the team warmed up. May we go onto the pitch?"
"Of course! Please, go right ahead!"
Coach Yamamoto stepped aside.
The team walked onto the pitch.
The three scouts outside immediately noticed their arrival.
One of them stepped over to a camera.
Pinned to his jacket was an ID badge bearing his name: Hasegawa Tsubasa.
"It's a mystery how we even found out about this friendly..."
Another scout, Murakami Hiroto, walked over.
"Yeah. If it weren't for Chief Hoshino, we would've had no chance to watch Maebashi Ikuei before the prefectural tournaments!"
"Exactly! He never disappoints!"
"It's just a shame about their opponents... Even if it's Shūdan-teki we're talking about, their boys' football club has never really been competitive."
Hoshino was watching the pitch when he noticed Coach Ishii arriving.
His eyes widened in shock.
"Wait... that's..."
Murakami looked at him curiously.
"Chief, did you notice something?"
"You two think this is going to be a one-sided match..."
He smiled faintly.
"You have no idea what's coming."
Murakami and Hasegawa exchanged confused glances.
Meanwhile, after introducing himself to Coach Yamamoto, Coach Ishii joined his team.
Noguchi spotted him first.
"Guys! Gather around Coach!"
Everyone stopped warming up and followed his instruction.
"Coach Suzuki, they're underestimating us... aren't they?"
Coach Suzuki looked at Coach Ishii with complete confidence.
"One hundred percent."
Coach Ishii let out a quiet sigh.
"Well... that works in our favour."
He then turned to face the team.
"For them, this is just a friendly. For us, it's our starting point. Give everything you've got, regardless of the result, and prove that you're on their level. Because at Shūdan-teki, we believe every match is far more than just a game. Understood?"
"Yes, Coach!" the team answered in unison, their voices almost startling both the opposing players and the spectators.
Maebashi Ikuei's number seven walked over to their number ten.
He was noticeably shorter than his teammate, and his short red hair matched the colour of his vivid red eyes.
"They're really fired up... Senpai Ito," he said with a puzzled expression.
Ito, with his short dark hair and striking sky-blue eyes, nodded.
"Yeah, Morita... almost too fired up for a friendly."
Their goalkeeper walked over from behind them.
His imposing height towered over almost everyone else on the pitch.
Curly brown hair framed his light brown eyes, which were shining with excitement.
"Then we'll be even more fired up... and we'll crush them!"
Another player stepped beside him with a smile.
The captain's armband stood out on his arm, while his long dark hair, tied into a ponytail, swayed with each step.
"Kobayashi's right. Friendly or not, we always give one hundred percent."
Ito smiled at those words.
"That's right. Both Kobayashi and Captain Takahashi are right. We're the defending champions... let's show them why."
Riccardo looked over at the opposing team.
The moment his eyes settled on Takahashi, he found himself staring at him with curiosity.