"Hakodate Nishi’s captain, get ready!"

After taking a quick rest for about three minutes, the assistant referee finally called Makino here. This time, he was going for another coin toss fight against Kawabe to determine who would take the penalty first. Everyone was so tense, inwardly praying for their captain to win this battle.

Unfortunately for Hakodate Nishi, after a quick discussion, Makino came back with a disappointed face. "Sorry, everyone. I lost."

The others’ faces fell immediately, probably thinking that this was going to be the beginning of the disaster. "Ah! We get the second turn?! This is the worst-case scenario!"

"Fuck it! I swear to God, if we lost the game because of this, I will be livid!"

"Usami, I don’t care about anything else, but if the worst happens, call your father! We need his help to fight this fucking injustice!"

At this point, some of them had already thought that the team was lost. It was a bit exaggerated, but everyone here knew about one particular piece of data. In a penalty shootout, 71 percent of the time, the winner was the team that took the penalty first. It wasn’t just empty data, as the explanation was valid. The second penalty taker would be under more pressure, getting their head messed up by the thought that their team would be down by a point if they failed to score.

"Okay, no need to panic," Kumiko shouted, gaining everyone’s attention. "Remember, whoever is taking the penalty, don’t think too much about whether you miss or not. Always trust that Ryukkun will always have your back!"

All of them snapped their head at the goalkeeper, and that was when everyone realized that they had the god of penalty stopper on their team. The words from Kumiko were enough to send relief down their spine, as right now, the tension seemed to ebb away a little from their shoulders.

"You know what? You are right, Senpai! We have Higo-senpai protecting us!"

"Come on, Higo-senpai, give us your blessing!"

"Chibi, we will rely on you, so bring us to the promised land!"

Seeing that everyone put their hope on him, Higo wouldn’t lie and say that he wasn’t feeling the pressure here. The future of the team was on his back, and his first instinct was just to run as far away as possible. Unfortunately, he couldn’t shrink his responsibility here, so after taking a deep breath, the boy finally mustered his courage in front of his teammates.

"Don’t worry, take the penalty with your heart! Even if you miss, I will be there to back you up!"

"YES! COME ON!"

"Go, Senpai! Don’t let him fool you again!"

Right after that, Higo finally stepped onto the goal. Now, the penalty box turned into the world of two people, the goalkeeper and the penalty taker. Nothing else mattered here. Now, there were no people around whom he could rely, only himself and his ability. With all eyes locked onto him, this was also a nerve-wracking moment, one that could kill him on the spot.

’Okay... I don’t need to be this nervous... Just treat it as a normal training session... If I save it, they will applaud, but if I fail, they will laugh...’

As Higo tried to calm his mind, the first one for Shohei High was ready to step up. It was none other than Kawabe, who, just like Makino, as the team’s captain, had the task of setting up the tone for the entire team. The boy didn’t look that tense here, walking casually to pick up the ball. It was clear that the goal at the end of the second half managed to calm him down right now.

’Oh, well... The last penalty doesn’t really count...’ Higo took a deep breath, starting to jump around the goal line while also keeping his eyes on Kawabe. ’Our score should be 1-1, huh? This is going to be our final battle today!"

FWEEE!

The moment the referee blew the whistle, Kawabe ran immediately, recoiling his right foot for a powerful shot. However, one second before he slammed the ball, Higo had already moved, knowing exactly where he wanted to go.

’RIGHT!’

BAM!

All the people around held their breath unconsciously, waiting for the final result here. Just like before, Higo somehow managed to read the penalty right. However, unlike his last failure, this time, the goalkeeper tipped the ball with his fingers, and while the deflection was light, it was still enough to get the ball out of the goal.

"FUCK YEAH!" Higo roared, realizing that he had just saved the ball.

"YES! COME ON, SENPAI!"

"FUCKING HELL, SENPAI! YOU ARE MY GOD TODAY!"

"COME ON!"

Kawabe himself was so stunned here. He just stood still, frozen on the spot. It looked like his soul was sucked straight away, as the boy’s eyes were so hollow when he stared at the lifeless ball rolling on the ground.

"Fucking hell... He saves Kawabe’s penalty twice today, right?!"

"Goddamnit! That goalkeeper is a gold! I need to get him on the team quickly!"

"Ryusuke Higo... The boy is going to be big in the future, I call it!"

As all the scouts around whispered furiously at each other, the next taker was ready to execute it. This time, Makino stepped onto the penalty spot, putting the ball calmly before walking back slightly outside of the penalty box, giving himself a space to run.

’Come on, Teme... Don’t mess this up...’ Higo prayed, observing quietly from the sideline.

FWEEE!

Once the referee blew the whistle, Makino started his run-up. There was no deception here, just a normal run to gather his momentum. Once he got closer to the ball, his eyes moved slightly, enough to fool the goalkeeper.

’YES! HE GETS IN THE WRONG WAY!’

BAM!

Higo jumped, ready to celebrate the team’s first goal in this shootout. However, things didn’t go as he planned here. The boy just saw the goalkeeper’s move, but not the shot itself. Makino whacked the ball to the left, aiming for the top bins. However, he couldn’t control the accuracy at the last moment. As a result, the ball floated so high, nullifying the advantage that Higo brought to the team.