The somber expression even spread across the island, affecting the whole mood in a small house in Hakodate. The two women who had been quite focal since the beginning of the game were now getting silenced instantly.

"Now that the team is down by one goal, they have to face two difficult choices." One of the broadcasters said. "They are either sticking with their original strategy stubbornly, waiting on the back while also eyeing a chance for a counterattack, or abandoning it completely by starting to push forward. Either way, both options pose some risks for the team, and now, the choice is back in our young Kumiko Shishida’s hands."

Minami couldn’t help but bite her lips when she saw the camera panning at Kumiko’s figure. The young girl still looked calm, but Minami basically helped raise her. She knew when Kumiko was nervous, and right now, all the signs here, from how she fidgeted the corner of her clothes to the constant tap of her left foot, everything pointed out that she was quite restless right now.

"Kumiko-chan... Come on, you can do this..." The woman couldn’t help but mutter, her fists clenched unconsciously on her lap.

Kumiko herself was indeed quite nervous. However, she hadn’t fallen to the point of panicking yet. No, the girl was still calm-headed, calling Usami for a moment before asking, "You remember the game against Toin Gakuen?"

Usami was stunned for a second, his brain recalling everything about their first game ever here. "Yes, Senpai. Why?" He asked back, confused.

"Tell Hiroshi-kun and Kenji-kun to spread apart and support the flank. As for your role... Well, you know my reference, right, Usami-kun?"

This time, Usami could feel his pupils widen instantly, realizing what the girl was referring to. "You want me to insert myself into the middle? Is it okay? I mean, the midfield line will be quite weak, right?" His tone was hesitant.

"Eh, don’t worry, ask Kazawa-kun to work harder!" She slapped the boy’s shoulder quite hard. "Come on! I know you can do this!"

Before Usami could say anything, the referee had already blown the whistle, asking the players to get ready. Having no choice, the boy just sighed helplessly, running back to the pitch to convey the message to the others. He could also only do it shortly, since the game was about to begin again. However, the boys nodded in understanding, knowing that Kumiko should have a hidden plan here.

"Don’t worry, Usami! Leave everything to us!"

"Yeah, just get ready! We are going to launch our blitzkrieg right now!"

FWEEE!

The moment the referee blew the whistle, Hiroshi kicked the ball back to Takaaki before rushing forward immediately. The same could be said for everyone else, as they all moved in a unit, getting ready to occupy the opposition half. The best scenario here would definitely be them scoring a goal to tie just a minute after they conceded one.

Unfortunately, there was no way Shimizu Higashi would let them do that. No, they also knew the danger from this blitzkrieg attack, and all of their players also reacted accordingly.

"Guard your area! Don’t let them get you!"

"Left side! Left side! There are three!"

Still, Takaaki didn’t really care about them. No, he just took a glance at the front line to lock in his teammates’ position, and since everyone was getting entangled by opponents, the glasses boy pushed the ball on his own, starting to dribble forward. This caught everyone off guard, and the closest one here, Mamoru Suzuki, rushed immediately to give pressure.

"No, no, you cannot do that!"

The moment Mamoru was close enough to shoulder-check Takaaki, the latter ran away to the flank. The former was stunned for a moment, but he thought that the glasses boy couldn’t bear the pressure. So, he increased his strength a little bit, wanting to push further.

However, this was what Takaaki intended to be. His little movement to the flank was enough to give the illusion that he would go there, shifting the opponent’s defensive shape into that spot. Even when he was under the pressure, the boy could still see his teammates clearly, and once he noticed one of his teammates managed to sneak into the opponent’s back line...

’I leave the rest to you, Usami-kun!’

Thud!

The through pass curved so sharply, creating a big C shape on the pitch. It went at first to the flank, but at some point, the curl was enough to send the ball to the middle, straight between Shimizu High’s two defenders. There, somehow, Usami managed to sneak in without anyone noticing, receiving the ball with his left foot.

"OH! What a pass!"

"SHIT! SHIT! CBs, WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?!" Kang Do-Jin shouted with a vein bulging on his forehead as he lowered his stance, shifting his position toward Usami’s side a little closer.

Usami himself didn’t receive the ball perfectly. No, the spin on the ball made it bounce off his foot quite wildly, and his first touch made the ball fly slightly to his shoulder level. This was definitely not a good thing, especially since he only had his back to the goal right now, and the boy could see two defenders were coming to him.

However, Usami was a lot of things, and a quick thinker was one trait that was quite suitable to describe him. Noticing that he was about to get cornered, the boy only thought one thing. ’That means someone is going to be open in the middle, right?’

It was a simple math logic problem. Two people moved, and then an area would be empty. Even though it would never be completely empty, at least, the space there would be good for anyone to fire a shot. So, Usami just pushed the ball calmly with his shoulder...

Thud!

The move caught the two defenders off guard. However, before they realized what was going on here, they heard a shout from Kang Do-Jin from behind.

"HE IS GOING TO SHOOT! COVER!"

BAM!

The next thing they knew, a shot was fired, and pandemonium broke out on the pitch.