Chapter 778: The Battle Of Friends IV
Being cautious of each other’s strength prevented the two from making a move, which slowed down the match.
However, one could sense something brewing.
From the looks of it, this balance wouldn’t last for long.
The audience held their breath as something stirred in the air.
Hiro and Larranaga interlocked their gazes, each sensing something coming.
Then a cold glint flashed past Hiro’s pupils as he exhaled a puff of cold air before dashing. With swift, nimble steps, he closed the distance between him and his opponent.
The strands of grass underneath dangled.
’He’s coming!’
Larranaga’s senses heightened for a brief moment as he sensed the oncoming attack. He raised his guard as he stabilized his breathing.
He knew he couldn’t allow himself to panic.
He had to keep his cool.
Just as he sensed, Hiro closed the distance in an instant. However, he remained unfazed as he braced himself for the incoming threat.
Upon getting close to him, Hiro felt a sudden shift. His senses tingled as they warned him of something unforeseen.
However, he didn’t panic.
Instead, he became much more assured.
He knew he had entered the opponent’s range of defense. He knew he had infiltrated the sacred space of his opponent.
He had won most of his duels in this space, and he excelled in tight-knit duels.
Despite knowing that Hiro challenged his opponent in his own game. He wasn’t afraid of close-range duels.
Though he excelled in duels where he could control the space, he wasn’t afraid of close-range duels.
Things might have been a bit different when he lacked strength. But now that he had built enough strength to allow him to stand his ground, he wasn’t afraid of close-range duels.
Larranage swept his leg as he tried to snatch the ball from Hiro. Being a tall giant, his leg reached much farther as well.
The reach wasn’t something to joke about.
Even while keeping his pressure on Hiro, he was able to reach spaces which would have been impossible for a person of Hiro’s stature to reach without performing a sliding tackle.
Like a reaper slicing through the stalks of grass, his legs made an arc as he tried to snatch the ball.
Hiro tipped the ball with his left foot, slightly lifting the ball from the ground. The ball avoided the opponent’s legs by a hair’s breadth.
However, before Hiro could even cherish this evasion, the opponent pressed his shoulder against him.
This forced Hiro to retreat.
He flinched as he took a step back, once again avoiding the opponent.
Larranaga, however, didn’t seem generous enough to allow him to catch his breath as he pressed further, maintaining his pressure on him.
However, this time, Hiro didn’t seem flustered.
Instead, a smirk tugged onto his lips as his pupils flared up.
’Just as I anticipated.’
That smirk didn’t go unnoticed as his opponent noticed it. Upon noticing that smirk, he felt a strange chill all over him, and his expression twisted.
For some reason, he felt his heart pound as if he had seen a ghost.
He also felt a strange, ominous feeling welling up from within. This feeling gripped his heart, and his complexion paled.
Even so, he couldn’t bring himself to pause.
He couldn’t tell what was going on in Hiro’s mind. He couldn’t see through his intentions. What was he attempting to achieve?
Did I get lured into some kind of trap?
Questions flooded his mind as he attempted to snatch the ball.
Then all of a sudden, he noticed something—his own teammate charging towards him from behind Hiro.
Hiro had been obscuring his vision, preventing him from noticing him.
From the looks of it, this teammate of his appeared to be uncontrolled. He could tell that he had pushed himself through sheer desperation. This meant he wouldn’t be able to control his tempo.
If he kept rushing at him at that rate, a collision was inevitable.
’Is he looking for a foul, instead?’ Larranaga thought, his pupils filled with confusion.
Then again, a set-piece at such a distance wasn’t advantageous at all. Even if he was an impressive set-piece taker, the distance from the post wasn’t one to scoff at.
Hence, he found it even more troublesome to see through Hiro’s intentions.
For players like him who used their minds to play the game, he had to consider all sorts of possibilities.
’Perhaps, he’s going to avoid the collision somehow?’
Different possibilities flashed past his mind as he tried to comprehend his situation.
While the two of them engaged in a confrontation, the gaze of the audience locked on them, their hearts thumping with excitement.
Though different possibilities flashed past his mind, he couldn’t allow himself to be distracted. Hence, whilst still rummaging his mind, he kept his pressure on Hiro.
Then he blinked as he braced himself for the somewhat inevitable collision. His teammate had closed the distance to the extent that it seemed as if he was going to collide with Hiro.
Though this wasn’t what he wanted, he still couldn’t help but drop his guard.
Well, though it had seemed like a matter of minutes, he had expended quite a lot of his mental fortitude keeping Hiro occupied.
To stop a player of his caliber, he had to think a step ahead of him.
Hence, all this calculating had drained him.
’Let’s just give them this set-piece. It’s much better...’ He concluded as he dropped his guard.
Considering the position of his teammates, this seemed like the optimal outcome. Well, it was better than allowing him space to operate after all.
This would also allow them to position themselves better.
However, just as he dropped his guard, Hiro sidestepped. Utilizing his left foot, he dragged the ball to the left, and then again he struck the ball with the inside of his left foot as if he were performing an elastico.
Just in a matter of moments, he vanished from his sight.
’WTF!’
He blinked as panic and confusion gripped his heart.
However, before he could even compose himself, his teammate came rolling towards him.
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