26. Executioner

To flawlessly execute and impressively reach a goal was to calculate everything so perfectly that if something were to block your path, you would instantly find a new way to reach it. Completion is integral to satisfaction. It was almost elementary. Anyone would understand that, right?

How wrong you are.

There are people—animals—out there that partake in the ruthless destruction of anyone else's dreams. They run people over and pound them into the dirt so badly it's hard to get back up. Of course, sadists are commonplace for such actions, but there are people out there that will do anything to reach their own goals. Selfish people. People that would kill someone's ambition so quickly, it ruins them completely.

You cannot stand in front of these people so firmly unless you are one of them yourself. That is why Y/n could stand in front of Barou so confidently when being faced by such brawn. That is why Y/n could face Rin. That is why Y/n could stand in front of anyone without feeling much of any intimidation. You cannot intimidate a person of such a hefty ego. It's nearly impossible.

Y/n stared at Rin. Rin stared back. Y/n's eyes drifted to the ball and then he averted them ahead himself. He kept most of his greed on the down-low, but it was clear if you just glanced at his face.

He was trembling with rapacity. Rin realized this, would make sure to take full advantage of it. To watch him tremble with such vigor was to watch someone rise from the dead despite being condemned to the deepest pits of hell, forced to endure torture for all eternity. It was to watch someone fight to cause pain, and only pain. If Rin passed to him, chaos would ensue and everything would become a washout.

But Rin wanted this. He had known from the very beginning that if Y/n's greed for something got too much for him to handle and boiled over, there was no stopping him. It was like trying to stop a hurricane from destroying homes, but Y/n was destroying dreams.

Rin took his eyes off Y/n and waited for the whistle to be blown. He wouldn't pass to Y/n, though. Not yet, anyway. He would wait a bit longer; watch a bit longer. It was integral for a victory. Y/n's anger was constitutive. His merciless insanity resulting in violence was essential. It was fundamental, but at the same time, even Rin found himself afraid he would eventually be at the hands of Y/n's ire.

The whistle blew, and Y/n took off.

Straight for the ball.

Rin kept it away from Y/n as he tore down the pitch ceaselessly. Y/n was close behind him. Behind Y/n was Barou, and behind Barou was Bachira. But in front of Rin was Isagi. The only one that chose to keep his distance.

Before much of anything transpired, a heavy stomp reverberated off the walls of the enclosed field, echoing like a war cry. Rin paused and so did everyone else. Only Rin was trying to predict where Y/n was coming from. The quiet steps were almost undetectable.

There.

🥀🥀🥀

"Sae," Ego mumbled under his breath as he glanced at the man to his side, "what do you think?"

"He's different, isn't he?" Sae asked, though the question was rhetorical. "Take him out of the third selection and throw his mentors in with me. I don't want his progress to be halted by lukewarm idiots."

"I can do that for you," Ego replied.

The kid was like a machine that had abandoned all programming. A monster in a dark cave luring in tourists and drawing out their fight or flight response. From all the mental analysis on Y/n he had stored in his brain (and some stored in notebooks), Itoshi Sae had a pretty good idea of how the kid functioned before Blue Lock and now in Blue Lock. He had documented the change. How he used to think, but barely, and how he thinks more now, if only a bit. He moreso worked without logicality just fine. Sae wouldn't change that. He didn't really dare to do so. He thought Y/n was amazing as is.

He couldn't wait to see how Y/n'd perform against the World Five.

While he didn't show it, his fascination for the boy had grown tremendously as he looked through the files, as he looked through compilations, interviews, etcetera, etcetera... Y/n was, as Aoi had said, a quaint specimen. A special child. A boy willing to do so much to ensure a win. Most of all, a boy with an attraction to soccer so strong it was like his very own heart beating outside of his ribcage.

His dedication was apparent; strong and very visible. A glimpse of that small five year old boy inside of him was noticeable at some points. Points where he seemed to be enjoying himself. Points where the score had stopped mattering.

"But I really want to play, too!" Y/n shouted after being shunned by the others.

"We already said no!" Shouted a boy. A boy he used to play soccer with quite often. A boy with brown hair and an attitude unable to best. "Get lost!"

"But...Tanaka," Y/n drawled in a mumble, holding a ball close to his chest. His arms just barely wrapped all the way around the ball.

Y/n had dirt all over his face from the insane amount of diggers he took just moments earlier trying to slide all over the place with cleats on. It wasn't a smart idea, but he realized that soon after and he resorted to dribbling around cones.

"I said no! You're just weird now! It's like soccer's the only thing that matters to you! It's stupid! You're stupid!" Tanaka argued.

Y/n dropped the ball and grit his teeth, balling up his fists. "I am not stupid! Just because I love something a lot doesn't mean I'm stupid!! If I said you're stupid because you love your mommy too much you'd beat me up! I hope I get famous so you realize you were wrong! At least my cousin loves me and stays with me, unlike you! You're just a stupid little...a stupid...little..."

Y/n's nose was running, and he was having a coughing fit as tears ran down his face. "I hate you! I hate..you! I..hate you so..so..much..!"

"Go and die! You'll end up that way soon anyways 'cause you're always overworking yourself!"

"I don't wanna die!"

Y/n wiped his tears with his shirt and sniffled as he watched Tanaka and his buddies walk away. He hiccupped and turned away as well, grabbing his ball and walking over to stand beneath a bridge. He kicked the ball ceaselessly.

'You poor thing,' muttered a voice, one of which Y/n'd never heard before.

"Hello?" Y/n asked as he looked around. "I don't...want people to think I'm crazy if I'm just hearing things."

'Are you?'

"I don't know."

'That's okay, you don't have to know.'

And he never did know. Nor did he care to know. That ball was his, and his alone. He was bound and determined to get to it.

Rin didn't want him to touch the ball even a little. From behind? The side? Definitely not in front. He pivoted and everyone watched him. Just as he figured out where Y/n was coming from, the ball was completely gone from his feet.

To kill.

That's what Y/n worked for. To murder his opponents from the inside out. To commit a public execution. He was the opposing team's worst nightmare. If he wasn't given the ball, he'd grab it and do the work himself. He didn't need help. He didn't need people. He didn't need their encouragement.

Screw Tanaka, screw Tanaka's buddies, screw anyone that shunned him for his dedication.

He was not afraid to walk this world alone.

Isagi shifted to get in Y/n's way, and it worked for about a second. Nagi tried to slide tackle, but it was as if Y/n's legs were made of iron. Nagi's cleat made contact, but Y/n never lost his balance. He was his own muse; his own inspiration. Like a sledgehammer to a disco ball, Isagi's team was shattered. What was left was shining dimly like the moon's sorry excuse of a light source, slowly getting beat more and more.

Isagi was shattered.

But not into pieces, no. Into puzzles. He watched Y/n like a hawk. There were no obvious weaknesses besides his lack of upper body strength and lack of spatial awareness, but that was about it. You couldn't stop him. He was like the overpowered boss in a game. The one you simply cannot beat until you attack it from its blind spots and over-assess his weakness.

But how could you stop Y/n when he was so incredibly fast?

Chigiri was trying his best to tail Y/n, and Barou was going to cut in front of him. Aryu watched with a wry smile, Bachira was grinning, and Rin was in a state of inward awe. Y/n was just that good. That much of a monster.

"This fight's finished," he muttered under his breath. He locked onto a spot in the net and drew his leg back like he had so many times before.

That whip was dangerous.

That ball was dangerous.

But that goal was beautiful.

It curved right into the top left of the goal at an engrossing speed.

The whistle blew almost immediately, and Y/n set his foot down and turned to walk back over to his side of the pitch unbothered by Nagi's dejected expression, Chigiri's furrowed brows, and Barou's disgusted face.

The clock had run down severely, and neither teams were going to give up. Not this easily.

Y/n was a disgusting monster. One that, if left alone, would find out exactly how to destroy you given the opportunity. Just like how he was left alone as a child. Just like how he was betrayed and forced to watch for weaknesses from the sidelines. His iron-like legs, his disgustingly amazing balance, his own personal whip. He was built to endure low attacks, and built to watch you crumbled with smiling crescent eyes.

It's like he was made.

Not born.

He was so...so...incredible. Impeccable in both looks and in soccer. Rin wasn't far behind, though. Rin had something Y/n didn't. He could use his eyes while Y/n really couldn't. He excelled where Y/n fell short, and that's why they complimented each other on the field. Rin could see Y/n to some extent, but he was so sporadic that it was extremely difficult.

Isagi didn't know what to do. He was at a loss for words, but the next goal was theirs. He couldn't tell if that greed and rage mixed together creating a deadly concoction was Y/n's full potential, but he felt as if it was relatively close.

While they did score the next goal albeit by a hair, Isagi had realized just how wrong he was.

Y/n was everywhere. He was up Isagi's team's ass. He was like the mosquito buzzing in your ear, but also the spider on your wall scaring you shitless. Nothing would throw him off and if it somehow did, he'd bounce right back to get that ball. It seemed as if his stamina had become endless as well. He scored the next goal, followed by the quick retaliation of Isagi's team getting their own.

Rin looked excited to finally have a challenge, while Y/n looked angry that their spirits were still so high.

"Easy there, tiger," Bachira chirped as he gently slapped his hand against Y/n's back. "You'll get the last goal."

Y/n was restless. He had become increasingly more hungry for the ball ever since he touched it. Standing there, waiting for the whistle to blow... It seemed like hours to him.

The score was even, and Isagi's team was dead set on winning. Isagi was fixated on getting Bachira back, but Y/n was fixated on the eventual tears he'd get in return for his win.

The whistle blew just as it had many times before. Rin had the ball, Y/n wanted the ball, Bachira wanted in on what Rin and Isagi had, and Aryu was just trying to be as glam as possible. Y/n wasn't sure if he liked Aryu that much yet, but his height was fun to use.

There was so much undeniable tension between Isagi and Rin. It was disgustingly obvious they were trying to best each other as they improved. Bachira wanted that, and he looked so incredibly dejected.

Y/n kind of felt for him. He wanted to be in the same world as Isagi and Rin, but his world was much darker and involved tension with his emotions. Bachira was in a world almost as dark, so it made room for them to have something to share.

Perhaps...just maybe having someone other than Gagamaru was okay. Not many more than him, though.

Y/n shook his head and tried to grab the ball, but Rin passed to Bachira. Not long after, Bachira was surrounded by Isagi's team. He looked...awfully distressed. Like he was battling something. Like he was letting go of something.

Y/n squinted at Bachira as he watched the latter balance the ball on his neck.

'No,' Bachira screamed with heartbreak in his mind. 'Not now! I don't need you anymore! Go away! I want to make my own decisions! Not now, not now! Get away from me!'

Y/n watched as Bachira raced toward the goal. Had he just abandoned something? Had he just leveled up? Y/n felt his stomach churn and he felt like he was going to hurl. No way someone could have just thrown away something they needed.

Y/n watched Isagi chase Bachira down as he went solo. Y/n battled with his thoughts. Was it really okay to have someone else, or was it better to go off solo? He bit his lip until it bled. He exhaled slowly as he watched Isagi get closer Bachira. He stayed back.

The ball was stopped by none other than Isagi. It hit his ankle, but something wasn't right.

"W-What!? No, no this was supposed to be my moment," Bachira mumbled, his brows curving down.

"I know you, Bachira!" Isagi shouted.

"Here we go again," Y/n rolled his eyes.

"You're the only one Rin can't predict! You're so sporadic that he can't predict you at all!" Isagi continued.

The ball was ignored by both Isagi and Bachira, and it flew back towards Y/n.

Isagi's feet froze in place as soon as he realized that the bad feeling in his gut wasn't just a bad feeling. It was reality.

It was luck.

"I guess all those ladybugs I saw when I was kid really did give me good luck," Y/n mumbled.