The final score froze at 2–1.
After Shirase Haruto's decisive goal, Toritsu High completely fell apart.
They were desperate to claw back their pride, but now, every move was haunted by hesitation. They had to guard against Shirase's passes, his coordination with teammates—and most of all, the terrifying possibility that he might unleash another impossible long shot from nowhere.
And as always happens: the more desperate you get, the more mistakes you make.
Near the end, Hayama Hayato almost netted another, but the opposing goalkeeper barely managed to tip it away.
Then came the final whistle.
Before Shirase could even catch his breath, the captain and several teammates lunged at him.
"Don't run, Shirase!"
"That was insane!"
"Pressure—mas ne!"
Shirase hadn't even been trying to dodge them, but he was promptly buried under a pile of sweaty, overjoyed teammates—a glorious manly dogpile of victory.
Across the field, Toritsu High's players stood frozen. Some glared at the ground, others clenched their fists in silence.
Finally, one muttered bitterly, "We underestimated them… and the data we had on Shirase was wrong. Too many gaps."
"Yeah. Anyway, it was just a friendly match," another said quickly, forcing a smile, as if saying it out loud might soften the blow.
But Hasebe—the ace who'd been utterly stifled by Shirase—spoke quietly, his tone heavy.
"Even if we had Shirase's full intel, could any of us have stopped him? His speed? His passing?"
Silence.
The answer was obvious.
They couldn't.
Even knowing that Shirase's teammates—aside from Hayama—weren't that experienced, they'd still meshed perfectly with him.
Because Shirase had already run through their coordination countless times in simulation.
Hasebe glanced toward the celebrating group surrounding Shirase. "Do you still think this was a friendly match?"
No one answered.
They all knew it wasn't. The moment Shirase and Hayama connected for that first goal, the idea of "friendship" had gone out the window.
They hadn't come here to bond. They'd come to win.
And even treating it like a championship game, they'd still lost.
"This year's national tournament…" Hasebe muttered, face set in grim resolve. "They'll be a real threat. There's still time before regionals—enough for them to grow even stronger. When that happens…"
Everyone turned to him.
"They'll be one of the new championship favorites."
No one disagreed.
During the post-match handshake, Hasebe still couldn't hold back his curiosity. He looked straight at Shirase.
"Why do you know me so well?"
Shirase smiled faintly. "Maybe we've met somewhere before."
—Always the cryptic one.
A group of supervising teachers and staff approached just then. While Kojima Kana and the others were distracted, they went straight to Shirase and Hayama with friendly smiles.
"If either of you ever take an interest in Toritsu High, you're welcome to visit anytime."
Shirase nodded politely. "Thank you. But someone's already told me that before."
The staff chuckled awkwardly. "Ah, that's not what we meant. Since you've played against us now—if you ever want to sharpen your teamwork or play more practice matches, we'd gladly host another friendly."
"I understand," Shirase said evenly.
His calm, detached reply left them momentarily speechless.
Even to casual onlookers, it was clear after today: Shirase Haruto was in another league.
So they turned to Hayama instead—more approachable, more open—and repeated their offer.
Hayama smiled politely, thanked them, and let it drop.
Because unless Shirase transferred too, he had no intention of leaving Aoyama.
When Shirase's group finally left the stadium, the Nakano quintuplets gathered their bags to head for the subway.
...
Meanwhile, the Yukinoshita sisters and Hiratsuka-sensei simply walked toward their car.
"That match was incredible," Hiratsuka said as she climbed into the passenger seat, still energized. "I didn't think that kid Shirase was that good. I knew he was fast, but this? He's on another level."
"He's definitely improved," Yukinoshita Yukino agreed softly.
"Right? So my memory's fine after all." Hiratsuka grinned. "He's only going to get better from here."
From the driver's seat, Yukinoshita Haruno's tone was light but probing. "Do you think he could actually go pro after graduation?"
The question made both Yukino and Hiratsuka blink. Neither had really thought about it before.
After a pause, Hiratsuka perked up, fastening her seatbelt. "You know what? It's possible! Maybe I should grab a photo with him while I still can!"
Haruno raised an eyebrow, amused. "A photo? For what?"
"As a keepsake, obviously!" Hiratsuka said with a straight face. "Come on—he's got the looks and the physique. If he keeps this up, he'll make headlines the moment he goes pro!"
Haruno laughed. "So that's your real reason."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Hiratsuka pouted.
Haruno didn't answer, but Yukino sighed and rubbed her temple. "Hiratsuka-sensei, have you perhaps forgotten something?"
"What thing?"
"With how close you are to Shirase, do you really think he'd refuse if you asked for a photo later?"
"Of course not," Hiratsuka said matter-of-factly. "But a photo before fame and one after fame are completely different!"
Yukino gave her a deadpan look. "You just want bragging rights, don't you?"
"Ahaha… you caught me."
"So childish," Yukino muttered.
Through the rearview mirror, Haruno caught her sister's reflection and smiled faintly. "Aren't you going to congratulate him in person?"
"I'll see him again soon. There's no rush," Yukino replied, turning toward the window.
"But congratulating someone now and congratulating them later aren't the same," Haruno teased.
"What are you implying?"
"Nothing. Since you don't want to hear it, I'll stop."
Haruno chuckled and focused back on the road.
Honestly… you clearly want to talk to him, so why pretend otherwise?
She could still picture her sister's face when Shirase scored—that flash of emotion, quickly suppressed.
Then her mind drifted to the image of the five radiant Nakano sisters in the stands.
Her gaze flicked to Yukino's reflection again.
And suddenly, everything clicked.
Ah… so that's it.
You're afraid of being misunderstood—by those five sisters.
Haruno smiled to herself, amused.
What a foolish little sister.