Yoichi Isagi was clearly startled by the look on Rin Itoshi’s face.
But when he saw Rin grit through the final rep of his leg training, panting hard, he casually held out the spare bottle of water in his hand.
“Here.”
Rin wiped the sweat from his forehead, shot Isagi a sideways glance, and muttered, “Why would I want that? It’s your backwash.”
But Isagi had his own way of making Rin take it.
“No hidden aning. But if you collapse now, Blue Lock is done for.”
“And that’s no good for —so don’t make things harder.”
“Just drink it.”
“Hmph.” Rin hesitated for a mont before finally reaching out to take the bottle.
“Childish.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
Once the water was handed over, Isagi walked away without looking back. But his heart was burning with determination.
(That expression on Rin’s face… it’s the first ti I’ve ever seen it.)
(I want to win a match with him—!)
【Ryūma: Huh? I step out for a bit and soone steals my whole house?】
Before long, the chanical voice chid punctually.
Ding-dong, ding-dong————
Afternoon training begins.
Everyone, please gather in the conference room!
The mbers of Blue Lock soon welcod their “cheat code.” They sat in neat rows, waiting for Jinpachi Ego’s long lecture.
“Hey, Blue Lock!”
“Today is the first day of the Ultimate Training Camp for the U-20 match. How’s everyone feeling?”
“Your bodies should be ward up by now, right?”
“Now let’s work the mind. Let’s talk about the ‘Formula for Miracles’——”
“This phenonon is called FLOW!”
As Ego spoke, everyone straightened up and listened more intently.
Pointing at his temple, Ego continued:
“I’m going to teach you the essential, life-burning thod required of the world’s number one striker.”
“It’s a ntal imrsion state born from one’s ‘optimal experience.’”
“In that mont, you forget yourself and feel nothing but joy—”
Ego pushed up his glasses, paused briefly, then continued:
“Sotis people get so absorbed that they forget even ti itself.”
“They enjoy what they’re doing, and their brain stays in a constant state of excitent.”
“Simply put—that’s FLOW.”
“For example, shogi players sotis enter this state mid-match.”
“Cashiers working part-ti might experience it too.”
“Programrs, mountain climbers, musicians, artists—it shows up everywhere.”
“FLOW has nothing to do with how big or small the task is. It can happen to anyone.”
“And in the sports world—”
“Especially in soccer—this phenonon is no exception!”
“Think back to when you erged from your shell here in Blue Lock—”
Ego spread his hand and paused for several seconds, as if giving them ti to recall.
“You’ve all had a mont where you poured everything into a single play, right?”
Listening to Ego’s explanation, Yoichi Isagi found himself recalling past matches.
(Flow… I’ve never heard the term before.)
(But… it really does feel familiar.)
(If back then…)
(If that shot, that feeling of total imrsion—that was all because of FLOW——)
(Then I’m sure the clue to my next evolution is right here!)
Standing before the screen, Ego didn’t give them much ti to keep reminiscing.
“So, how does soone enter a state of FLOW?”
“There are several requirents, but—”
“What I want to emphasize most is challenging focus.”
“In other words: choosing a goal that is moderately difficult for you.”
“Look at this.”
As Ego spoke, the large screen behind him displayed a diagram analyzing the FLOW state.
“This shows the balance between ‘challenge’ and ‘ability’ required to enter FLOW.”
“When your ability is high but the challenge is too low, there’s no joy—only boredom.”
“Conversely, when the challenge is far above your ability, you start doubting success.”
“You lose focus and fall into anxiety.”
“In states of either boredom or anxiety, humans cannot feel joy.”
“That’s why challenging focus is essential.”
“Recognize your abilities clearly, control them, and aim for a goal that matches them.”
“That’s how you imrse yourself in FLOW.”
“And at that mont, you display a new version of yourself and rise to a higher level.”
“In other words—what looks like a ‘miracle’ to others is actually the result of FLOW.”
Most of the players wore half-confused expressions, but Ego didn’t mind. He pushed his glasses up again and continued.
“But… entering FLOW is not easy.”
“Because in today’s world, people rarely truly ‘imrse’ themselves.”
“Your daily lives, filled with entertainnt and information, are an endless hell used to mask your boredom and anxiety.”
“A single smartphone can give you passive imrsion—that’s the perfect example.”
“It makes you forget ti and self, yes.”
“But that’s not genuine imrsion. It’s not your own engagent.”
“I don’t call that kind of passively induced state a self.”
“The thrill of scoring a goal, the joy of mastering a new Weapon—those belong solely to you.”
“If you’ve felt it, you get it. That is self.”
“Only those who break free from aningless imrsion and throw themselves into soccer will remain.”
“That is what Blue Lock is.”
“Now think, all of you diamonds in the rough—”
“What aning does everything you’ve experienced in Blue Lock hold? And how have you evolved up to now?”
Prompted by Ego’s words, Yoichi Isagi understood his own repeated evolutions.
(Yeah… that’s exactly it——)
(By imrsing myself in my own potential again and again and leveling up each ti… that’s how I made it here!!)
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