"HUH?!" All of Team Z gawked at Akira's immediate refusal of Kuon's plan.

Kuon, ever the peacekeeper, stepped forward. "Is there something wrong with the strategy, Hitori-san?"

Akira nodded his head, "Yes. No matter what, I'm gonna be the main striker. There are only a few people on this team that can actually be good enough to a striker and I'm the best."

Raichi growled as if he was a rabid animal, "You cocky little shit, just 'cause you got a hat trick doesn't mean you're better than me!"

"Well let's see, my three goals to your zero. I  AM better than you, Raichi."

If Raichi was angry before, he was positively livid now. He would grabbed Akira by the front of his jersey if Akira didn't raise his hand in a pacifying gesture.

"But I'm nothing if not fair, so how about this: let's have a duel. If you or anyone else here thinks they deserve to be the main man then duel me like your life depends on it. If any of you beat me, then I'll step down and you'll be the main striker. How about that?"

"YOU'RE ON!" Akira's grin got even wider as he saw the fire in their eyes. He was going to enjoy snuffing it out.
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FIRST MATCH: HITORI AKIRA VS GURIMU IGARASHI

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The training field was filled with laughter as we look in to see Akira rolling on the ground with tears going down his face.

Did he lose?

Oh no, he was just laughing at the fact that the worse person on the team stepped up first to challenge him. It was stupidly crazy!

Apparently, the others felt the same way. Raichi, Kuon, Gagamaru, and Iemon shook their heads in disappointment. Maybe they tried to talk him out of it? Isagi, Chigiri, and a few others rested a hand on their foreheads. The only other people laughing Bachira and Naruhaya.

"HUH?! What's so funny?!"

"YOU ARE! FOR THINKING YOU COULD POSSIBLY BEST ME!" Akira was finally on his feet, but wobbled as he looked like he was ready to keel over in laughter again.

"I'll show you! Let's start!"

Kuon had thrown a ball into the center, prompting both players to run towards. All in all it was a lot more fair than having one of the players start with the ball first, but that went out the window when going up against a speedster like Akira.

Igarashi couldn't even get two steps in before Akira zoomed in and swiped the ball out of midair and kicked it from the centerline like he did at the start of the match against Team X.

'It wasn't a fluke. He can recreate a goal like that so easily?' Isagi stood on the sidelines with Kunigami, Chigiri, and Bachira. They decided not to try and compete against Akira for the role of main striker, but for Isagi it was a hard pill to swallow.

He wanted to also go against him, but knew that he couldn't hold a candle to Akira as he was. However, that didn't mean he would give up. Maybe by watching Akira play here, he could find some kind of inspiration that he could use to improve himself.

"Okay, next." Akira sent an absolute demonic smile towards the other competitors, making them shiver.

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SECOND MATCH: HITORI AKIRA VS NARUHAYA ASAHI

Instead of throwing the ball in the air, Kuon rolled the ball into the middle of the pitch fast.

Akira was first on the ball, but stopped to trap it to kill the momentum. Just as he was about to move forward, Akira pulled the ball back allowing...

Naruhaya to slid past him with his leg out?

"W-what?! H-how did you...?"

"Nice trick, trying to steal from behind, too bad I saw from a mile away." With that done, Akira kicked the ball, sending it rocketing into the net. Looking back at a disappointed Naruhaya, Akira's face softened. Akira walked up to him and offered a hand to him. "It was a good idea Naruhaya, I mean it. You're a crafty one, gonna have to keep an eye on you if we ever end up on different teams."

Akira ended it off with a head pat, prompting Naruhaya to show a sheepish grin.

Akira looked back at the others to see them smiling knowingly at him. It was then he realized what he did and that kind of act was usually reserved for his younger siblings, but Naruhaya did remind Akira of them so he lost himself and showed his soft side.

"What the fuck are you guys smiling at!?!" While everyone decided to joke around with Akira until the next match, Isagi stood there looking thoughtful.

'How did he see Naruhaya? Wasn't he looking at the ball when he—wait!' Isagi remembered back to when Akira and Naruhaya moved forward. Naruhaya had stepped out of Akira's line of sight to get behind him. Akira's head was turned towards the direction of the ball, yes, but his eyes. 'His eyes weren't on the ball, they were on Naruhaya! That's what he meant by he saw him! He tracked Naruhaya all the way until he ran past his peripheral. From there on, he had to guess where Naruhaya was gonna come from. Maybe he used his peripheral to see him as slid in for the tackle? His reaction speed must be top notch.'

"Hope you're ready, bastard!"

"Bring it, ya shark tooth bitch."
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THIRD MATCH: RAICHI JINGO VS HITORI AKIRA

To say it was a physical battle would be an understatement. Raichi's whole plan to body Akira off the ball, but Akira was born stubborn and wouldn't back off so easily. However, one had to give and Raichi wasn't known as a stamina freak for nothing.

With a shove, Akira was on the ground while Raichi seemed poised to steal the ball.

"Not so cocky now—what?"

As Raichi was about to kick it, Akira had hooked his ankle around the ball and had done a leg sweep away from Raichi and ran towards the other side of the field, kicking the ball into the net.

"You're physically stronger and got a little more stamina than me, so I had to get creative. Not bad, Fang Face."

Raichi still seemed angry at losing, but looked embarrassed after getting a compliment and admittance than he had a one up on Akira in something.

"Whatever...bastard."
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FOURTH MATCH: GAGAMARU JIN VS HITORI AKIRA

Getting pass Gagamaru was pretty easy for Akira. Besides Bachira, Akira was the best dribbler on the team, but Gagamaru made up for it with his reaction speed and reflexes.

When Akira thought he now had an open net, he shot the ball. However, right before the ball crossed the goal line, Gagamaru was able to kick the ball into the crossbar for a last second save!

Everyone on the sidelines were shocked that Gagamaru was able to stop the shot, but the rebound...

Landed directly in front of Akira!

"Thanks for the assist, Jungle Boy."

And like that, Akira had beaten all of his opponents and cemented himself as the main man of the team.