BXBX NOVEL Chapter 533: Emperor's Cup IV
Chapter 533: Emperor\'s Cup IV
But Shun stood apart from the others. His eyes darted around as if searching for something- or someone. His expression changed the moment he spotted the Kawasaki players entering the tunnel.
His face lit up with a smile, the anticipation in his posture making it clear he\'d been waiting for them.
"Well, well, look who\'s here," Tatsuki grinned as he pointed to Shun, nudging his teammate.
As Tatsuki reached Shun, he gave him a friendly pat on the back. "Couldn\'t wait for us, could you?"
Shun chuckled, brushing off Tatsuki\'s playful hit. "You guys sure know how to keep a man waiting," he replied, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Thought you\'d be more serious before a match like this," Tatsuki teased, crossing his arms.
"I am serious," Shun replied, his tone growing firm but lighthearted. "Just excited to crush your hopes today."
Tatsuki raised an eyebrow, grinning back. "We\'ll see who does the crushing. Ready to back up all that talk?"
Shun smirked, "I\'ve been ready. Let\'s make this one to remember."
Tatsuki could vividly see the flames of determination burning in his eyes. So, he couldn\'t help but feel excited.
"But where\'s Hiro? Is he stuck somewhere?" Shun asked as he failed to find Hiro.
"He\'s benched," Tatsuki responded.
Well, it wasn\'t a matter that he couldn\'t talk about. So, he revealed it without any hesitation. However, just as he revealed the matter, many opposing players turned to look at him.
Their eyes displayed a mix of emotions such as disbelief, joy, and curiosity.
It was almost as if they were relieved to hear the news.
Shun, however, frowned his brows as he asked, "But why? Is he injured?"
"Well, can\'t reveal the inside news to an opponent now, can I?" Tatsuki teased.
But Shun understood what he meant to say. It was a fact that he was right now playing against them. So, he couldn\'t pry further.
Hence, he nodded his head, "You\'re right"
After a while, the players emerged out of the tunnel.
The moment the players walked out of the tunnel, the cheers of the fans got louder than before. The sea of supporters erupted as they cheered.
But soon, someone discovered that Hiro wasn\'t in the starting eleven.
So, it got them curious.
"Isn\'t Hiro playing today?"
"I specially came here to watch him"
It didn\'t take them long to find him on the bench.
Even the commentators were surprised, "Seems like coach Haruki is resting most of his players for their next match"
It wasn\'t just Hiro who was benched but a few other starting players were also rested. So, it didn\'t take long for the commentators to figure out the absence of Hiro on the pitch.
Yet still, people weren\'t satisfied with his decision. So, some of them couldn\'t help but express their dissatisfaction.
Coach Haruki, however, didn\'t seem bothered by the jeers of the dissatisfied fans. More like, he couldn\'t be bothered by their jeers.
He knew what he was doing. And he didn\'t need a bunch of fools telling him what to do. So, he maintained a poker face as he calmly greeted the opposing coach.
Beep!
The match then began with the referee\'s whistle.
Immediately players sprang into action as they heard the whistle. They knew that they had to act fast. So, right from the get-go, they charged aggressively as if their life depended on it. With the absence of so many starting players from the opposing squad, it was their only opportunity to take the lead. So, how could they let go of such an opportunity?
Most of them were simply benched. They weren\'t excluded from the entirety of the match. So, who knows when the opposing coach might deploy those players?
It wouldn\'t be an exaggeration to say that they had the advantage at the moment.
With their experienced squad, it wouldn\'t be a pipe dream to win the match against the mighty Kawasaki.
Their motive was clear- take the lead and then park the bus.
At that time, even if the opposing team deploys their stellar players, it would be hard to get a goal back. So, they had to do all they could to secure that first goal.
Even so, despite their effort, it was proving to be rather difficult to penetrate the opposing goal. Despite their lack of experience, the opposing squad was holding well against their onslaught. They were even producing many opportunities.
If not for Shun, it would have been their side who would have already conceded two or more
goals.
"Even the youngsters of Kawasaki are different"
The opposing coach mumbled with a frown.
For most of the game, he had been on edge. It\'s not that his players weren\'t trying hard
enough but the opposing squad was simply too organized.
More than half the squad of the opposing team was made up of rotational players. Yet still, itn/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
was proving extremely difficult to score a goal.
More than thirty minutes had already passed. Yet still, the score remained the same with
neither side managing to take the lead.
The unchanging scoresheet had got the opposing coach worried.
Previously, he had thought that Manager Haruki was underestimating him. But now, he couldn\'t bring himself to think such.
He had to admit that his tactical brilliance was one of a kind.
But just then Kaoru made an important tackle. At this time, most of the opposing players were
dispositioned.
Seeing such a scenario, his eyes perked up with excitement.
Then he shouted, "Push!"
Almost immediately after winning the ball, Kaoru sent the ball flying. At this point, his
team\'s forward was already charging ahead.
All he had to do was play a successful pass.
Sensing the threat, the players of Kawasaki began to retreat. Especially the defenders began
to sprint blindly.