Ryoma closed his eyes for half a second. In his mind, he saw the game’s “V-Zone” meter—that fictional burst of team spirit. He opened his eyes. “Alright. Let’s script this.”
“Don’t freeze,” Ryoma muttered, wiping rain from his eyes. His palms tingled. This was his first final. The Nintendo Switch in his bag back in the locker room had logged 300 hours of Rise of New Champions —he knew every animation, every frame of Tsubasa’s Neo Drive Shot . But knowing and stopping were different.
Sliding volley. Goal. 1–1.
In the 18th minute, Ryoma received the ball near the center circle. Kojiro Hyuga, on crutches, shouted from the sidelines: “Move forward, Hoshino! Don’t just pass sideways!”
The rain stopped as Ryoma lay on his back, staring at the sky. Hyuga limped over, offered a hand, and said the words Ryoma had heard a thousand times in the game’s post-match victory screen:
The All-Japan Youth Championship finals. Stadium floodlights carve shadows into the wet grass. 50,000 fans roar.
Ryoma stepped left. Defender #1 slid past air. Step right. Defender #2 collided with his own teammate. Ryoma was through. One on one with goalkeeper Genzo Wakabayashi—the SGGK.