Chapter 455: Ito’s Strange Request
"Higo-kun, a word, please."
It was right before the players entered the pitch, when Hiroki Ito suddenly called Higo to have a little chat. Not knowing what the man wanted to do, Higo just shrugged, following him to one corner of the tunnel for a private moment there.
For a moment, silence followed, since Higo didn’t intend to open up this conversation. He just scanned the man in front of him quickly from head to toe while waiting to hear what this was about.
’Thinking about it, this is probably the first time we actively communicate with each other, right?’ Higo muttered in realization. ’I mean, besides in our very first game, we usually are not paired together that much. Most of the time, he will just be with Zion. So, maybe he just wants to establish an order?’
After a few seconds in silence with his head full of questions, Higo finally got the answer he wanted, and it was definitely not something he expected.
"I want you to treat me like I am Makino-kun."
"...Eh?" Higo blinked once, confused. "Care to tell me again?"
"I want you to treat me like I am Makino-kun." He repeated the sentence down to every word without even blinking, as if this was the most obvious thing in the world.
Still, this was a big problem.
There was no way Higo could treat anyone else like they were Makino. First of all, he knew his friend quite well, and vice versa. That meant they could mock each other relentlessly, knowing each other’s bottom limit so that no one could get offended in their daily bickering.
Also, how could you treat someone you just knew for two weeks like someone you have been friends with for so long? That was definitely unrealistic, right?
"I don’t mean in real life. We are not that close, I know that." Ito suddenly added, probably realizing the confusion left from his request. "In the second half, I just want you to treat me like how you treat Makino-kun. Give me a command and move immediately without you having to check me first. Trust me fully with your back, I will complete your order flawlessly."
’A, so that’s what it is about...’ Higo let out a little sigh, slightly relieved that the misunderstanding was resolved quickly. Still... "Care to tell me the reason? I mean, it wouldn’t look good for the team’s captain to be commanded by a rookie goalkeeper, right?" He couldn’t help but ask.
"That is a trivial thing that I should never care about." Ito brushed off the concern nonchalantly. "As long as we win and I can show my best performance, that is enough."
For that, Higo just felt the corner of his lips twitching once again. ’Yeah, as expected of him, a samurai through and through. If he starts talking about Bushido or something like that, I would run straight away after this.’
Little did he know, though, that his thought worked like a jinx. Right after that, Ito’s gaze wandered far to the pitch before the man said, "I saw the defensive combination between you and Makino-kun in the first half, you know?"
"Oh?"
"Yeah, and I have to say that it is incredible." The man sighed, his face softened for the first time... Ever? "I have seen so many good relationships between a goalkeeper and defender, but I have never seen one like yours. The immense trust that Makino-kun put in your command is scary. I am sure if you ask him to jump off the cliff, he would follow it in a heartbeat."
’...If only that could be the truth...’ Higo muttered under his breath, amused.
"People only see Makino-kun’s quick decisiveness, but your command is the crucial part. You asked him to jump to the left, he would follow. You asked him to open up a space, he wouldn’t hesitate. You asked him to cover for your spot, he would guard you closely. That trust only comes from one thing. Competence. He knew that your decision, no matter how outrageous it was, would still put the team in the best situation. That feeling... Let me be able to feel that way as well..."
This time, the man truly bowed, as if trying to show how sincere he was. Of course, Higo wouldn’t just accept the request just because of that gesture. If anything, he even felt more panicked here, inwardly screaming to himself.
’WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! GET UP! THAT TEME AND I ARE NOT SOMETHING LIKE THAT! DON’T MAKE PEOPLE MISUNDERSTAND, OKAY?!’
Unfortunately, he still had to answer this, so in the end, the boy forced his troubled mind to calm down a little before asking in a strained voice, "Does Kageyama-sensei have any idea about this?"
"He doesn’t know, and he would never agree beforehand." The man answered with a straight face.
Higo’s face palmed when he heard that, inwardly cursing, ’If you know about that, why are you still asking me something like this?! Are you so fucking hateful of me that you want to see me in trouble?!’
"Don’t worry about anything else. If something wrong happened, I will take responsibility later." Ito said once again, noticing Higo’s change in expression. "Also, Kageyama-sensei might not agree now, but once he sees that the effect is good, he will try to put more thought into this, so this is your chance."
Now, this sounded like a proper negotiation. Instead of just asking for help, Ito also showed a piece of cake that he would get if everything went well later. Still, this also put him at risk of getting scrutinized by the coaching team, so Higo had to be careful here.
"...If anything wrong happened, it would never be my responsibility, okay?" He asked once again for confirmation.
"Yes."
"You will also follow the order without any question or hesitation? No half-assed effort in any duel I put you in?"
"Don’t worry, I am ready for everything."
Well, Higo didn’t have any choice here. Looking at Ito’s determined eyes, he had no choice but to let out a deep, tired sigh and said, "Fine, you win. Follow my order, and let’s see if the result is really that good."
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