Captain Tsubasa: My Way

The whistle blew.

Nankatsu kicked off the match. Misaki took control of the ball, swiftly dribbling past two of our midfielders with graceful ease.

"Tsubasa, heads up!" he shouted, lifting his eyes and delivering a precise pass forward.

Tsubasa received it cleanly. I was already on the move, closing in.

"Nice pass, Misaki!" Tsubasa responded.

"The Golden Duo, on full display!" the commentator exclaimed with excitement.

"Not so fast." I said as I stepped in to confront him.

Tsubasa began dribbling. 'This... he's the first opponent I've faced who's almost just as technical as I am.' I thought. But even now, I can tell, we play differently.

In Tsubasa's dribbling is smooth. Every touch is designed to remove the obstacle in front of him with the least resistance, eliminating defenders before they can even react. I, on the other hand, dribble with intent to pressure, breaking rhythm, exhausting defenders with sharp turns and aggressive tempo.

"I'm going to win this match." Tsubasa said calmly, confidence in his voice.

He slipped past me with a quick feint.

"Tch." I clicked my tongue in frustration and immediately followed.

"Collapse the defense!" I shouted to my teammates.

Tsubasa didn't hesitate. Outside the box, he wound up for a shot and launched a powerful strike toward our goal.

The ball cut through the air, but just before it reached the goal, Soda stepped in and blocked it with a perfectly timed tackle.

"Damn." Tsubasa muttered.

"Great read, Soda!" I shouted back.

Without wasting a second, Soda sent a long ball forward, launching it deep toward our midfielders, flipping the field in our favor and igniting a fast-paced counterattack.

The ball was sent my way after a clean pass from Kuramochi. I advanced up the pitch, pushing forward but this time, Tsubasa stepped in to intercept me, ready to stop my charge.

I started dribbling, stepovers, then a quick roulette where I switched feet mid-spin. I slipped past him, but he immediately turned and began chasing me down.

"We're witnessing a duel between two virtuosos!" the commentator exclaimed.

I kept moving forward, but suddenly the Otomo Quartet lined up to block my path. "You're not getting through!" shouted Urabe.

I went right at him, breaking his ankles with a sharp cut. He stumbled—"Argh!"—and I left the rest of them in the dust, carving through their formation.

Now face-to-face with the goal, I unleashed a right-footed curler. The shot started bending toward the right but mid-flight it veered sharply into the top left corner.

Wakabayashi, already set, exploded into the air and at the last second punched the ball away with a powerful fist, launching it clear of danger.

"Save by Genzo Wakabayashi!" the commentator exclaimed.

"You'll never score from outside the box, even Tsubasa couldn't do that," Ishizaki said with a smirk.

"Never say never." I replied calmly, jogging back into position.

The ball was in the feet of one of Nankatsu's defensive midfielders. He passed it to the right winger, who quickly crossed it into the box for their striker, Kisugi.

Kisugi attempted a header, but Tsuji, our goalkeeper, reacted swiftly and caught the ball cleanly. Without wasting time, he threw it to Nakai, who relayed it to Mihashi. Mihashi then passed it forward to Ide, but Ide was cut off by Takasugi, one of Nankatsu's defenders.

"Misaki, here!" Takasugi called out, sending the ball to Misaki. Misaki and Tsubasa immediately executed a one-two, flowing down the middle of the pitch.

Tsubasa ended up with the ball again, but I was right there beside him. I pressed in hard, shoulder to shoulder, disrupting his rhythm. The contact threw off his balance, but before he could lose the ball, he cleverly backheeled it toward Misaki.

"I've got it!" Soda shouted, intercepting the pass. He quickly sent it toward me.

Tsubasa, still recovering from the collision, tried to take it from me—pushing, pressing, giving everything he had.

I feinted left, trying to throw him off, but Tsubasa read it and stole the ball cleanly. He tried to slip past me with a quick dribble, but I extended my leg and managed to tap the ball back with the tip of my foot.

"They just won't stop! Trading dribbles one after the other!" shouted the commentator, as the crowd erupted in awe at our intense one-on-one battle.

"You're incredible, Shin." said Tsubasa as he regained control of the ball.

"You're not bad yourself." I shot back, intercepting it again.

Before he could charge in to steal it once more, I made a quick decision and passed the ball forward to Ide. He received it well and charged into the penalty area with Ishizaki breathing down his neck.

Under pressure, Ide took the shot.

But Wakabayashi didn't even flinch, he caught the ball cleanly.

"Nothing's getting past me." he declared calmly, holding the ball firmly in his gloves.

The ball was sent forward again, finding its way to Misaki. He swiftly dribbled past our defensive midfielders, Hayashi and Yoshida, cutting through the center of the field.

Now face-to-face with Soda, pressure mounted.

"He's tough." Misaki muttered.

"I am." Soda replied, stepping in hard, trying to steal the ball. But Misaki managed to slip past him with finesse.

He approached the right side and, without hesitation, sent a sharp pass toward Tsubasa. I was already in motion, ready to intercept the moment he touched it.

But to my surprise, Tsubasa let the ball roll between his legs, perfectly timed straight into the feet of Kisugi, who was waiting just behind him.

"Damn it." I muttered, realizing our defenders had been a step too slow.

"This time… I've got it." Kisugi said as he positioned himself, eyes locked on the goal. He struck with confidence.

Tsuji was fully focused, reacting instantly to the shot heading his way, but unfortunately, it was just out of reach.

The ball hit the back of our net.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

"First goal of this final, scored by Teppei Kisugi!" the commentator announced, his voice filled with excitement.