True enough, the next few days were still the same, what with them getting swarmed whenever they were. The most infuriating part, though, was that when they started doing their training again, so many people came to watch them like they were just a bunch of clowns, waiting for them to do something good.

What made all the players uncomfortable, though, was the fact that they kept getting recorded wherever they were. Hell, Kenji even had two or three creepy girls stalking him going to the toilet, and if not for him shouting help to the homeroom teacher, the boy didn’t really want to know what they were going to do to him.

Kumiko also saw that the training was affected here, so she decisively changed their training ground from the school’s pitch to a mini soccer field not far from the school that was owned by one of their teachers.

"Oh, man... It has been a long time since I came here..." Hori groaned while stretching his stiff body, trying to make himself relax.

Higo also nodded silently, glancing around in nostalgia. "This is the same place where those three retired senpai challenged me in the past, right?" He whispered to Kumiko questioningly. The image of those three senpai, Miyashi, Junya, and Ojiro, flashed inside his head.

"Yeah, and I remember well enough what happened that day." Kumiko couldn’t help but smile, reminiscing about the past. "You, a hot-headed one who didn’t even know them at all, decided to challenge them in a shootout just because of a little bit of banter, right? You still remember that?" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Ah..." This time, Higo couldn’t help but rub the back of his neck sheepishly. At that time, he was indeed getting provoked, but when he thought about it now, the boy realized that it was just a light one, and he was the one who made things bigger. "I was just a foolish young man at that time..."

"Well, it was only seven months ago, you know?" Kumiko giggled merrily.

This change of venue was so sudden that it caused some protests from the students who wanted to watch them. Fortunately, Kumiko had a strong excuse that couldn’t be denied by everyone else.

"The snow is starting to get thicker, and the ball cannot even roll properly. We have always been doing things like this in the last two years. When the snow starts to get quite high, we will move to Haraguchi-sensei’s place for our daily training."

Yeah, they were already entering December, and the weather started to get colder. It wasn’t as bad as Sapporo or even the northern part of the island, but the intensity of the snow started to affect their daily training. So, all those who were disappointed with the change of the venue had to accept this, since the team itself still needed training here.

Soon enough, Kumiko started instructing each one of them to train. It was just a conditioning one, trying to ensure that their body didn’t forget the high-intensity game a few days ago. They just did a lot of mini games like 4v4, a game of rondo, one-two pass, and so many more.

However, those were the menus for the outfield player. For Higo, Kumiko brought him deeper into the building, where more facilities could be seen.

"Um... Kumiko-chan, where are we going?" Higo couldn’t help but ask.

"Wait a moment, we are about to arrive," Kumiko answered without looking at him. Soon enough, they arrived at a plain, dark door that seemed to be ordinary, and the girl turned to him with a solemn gaze before saying, "Brace yourself, Ryukkun. This will be rough."

The boy gulped unconsciously, somehow not wanting to know what was behind the door. Unfortunately, it was too late, as the girl dragged him inside forcefully. There, he saw a boxing gym, where all the people were training in martial arts. Some were punching and kicking a punching bag, while the others were having a sparring fight in the boxing ring.

Higo blinked for a moment before he found one familiar figure there. "Is that Miyashi-senpai?" He asked hesitantly, pointing at a figure who was still fighting in the ring. Seeing the team’s former goalkeeper there, the boy suddenly had a bad feeling here.

Just a moment ago, he and Kumiko had just talked about their retired seniors in a nostalgic manner, and yet, he was able to see one of them so quickly after that? This coincidence was too good to be true, and even Higo himself couldn’t help but shudder, knowing that a brewing conspiracy was already in front of him.

"Miyashi-senpai! Here!" Kumiko called.

The boy stopped fighting immediately, turning around before his eyes beaming when he found Kumiko. "Kumiko-chan, you are here! Oh, Higo-kun is here as well! Come on, let’s start this shit!"

"Good! Come on, Ryukkun! Step into the ring!" Kumiko cheered, pushing his childhood friend straight to hell.

"W—Wait, what?! What is going on?! Why would you want me to be there?! No, you cannot do this to me! No, Miyashi-senpai, don’t thr—URGH!"

Higo was still in panic here, not knowing what was going on. One second, he was ready to train for football, and in the next one, he got dragged into the boxing ring and was forced to fight against his retired senpai. This development seemed to be too fast to be true, and yet, here he was, having to receive a punch from Miyashi.

"Come on, Higo-kun!" Miyashi’s smile was so evil as he punched his own fist threateningly, the sound of the boxing glove hitting each other was deafening. "This is just the beginning! Get ready to defend yourself!"

"No, no! No!"

Kumiko couldn’t help but flinch, looking at her childhood friend in pity. The girl also felt guilty here for not telling him firsthand. However, she hardened her heart immediately, knowing that this was necessary.

’He has been freezing at least three times since the collision against Esashi High, trying his best to avoid any collision. No, that wouldn’t do. As a goalkeeper, he cannot be timid like that. His body has to be forced to remember that a clash is not a bad thing, and the only way to do that safely is from this boxing spar.’ She thought inwardly, wincing once again as Miyashi threw another side punch to Higo’s stomach.

’Miyashi-senpai is an experienced fighter and knows how to throw a punch without injuring his opponent, so everything should be okay. Just... Good luck, Ryukkun. You will need that.’