"No, Sensei! No! Zion didn’t touch him at all!"
"Come on! The touch is light! You said the same to Mamoru earlier, right? Don’t side with South Korea, that’s not fair!"
More Japan players came toward the referee quickly, all wanting to complain over the decision. Hell, some were pretty heated, having thick veins popping on their neck. Their frustration was visible here for anyone in the stadium.
This was understandable, since it was quite frustrating to get punished like this just five minutes away from the end of the normal time. However, their complaint seemed to lose all its power since Zion himself, the culprit of the incident, just froze on the spot with his face pale. It was like admitting that he was guilty here, ready to be punished.
Kageyama-sensei also saw the boy’s state, and he couldn’t help but frown. In this situation, getting shaken up like how Zion was right now would be bad for the team. They wouldn’t have a chance to flip the table here.
Then, his eyes fell on the bench for a second, and an idea clicked inside his head.
"Higo, come here." He said shortly.
Higo perked up immediately, having a good feeling about this. "Yes, Sensei?" He asked.
The man didn’t say anything instantly, still staring at the pitch for a moment as if deciding whether this was worth the money or not. In the end, though, he just asked a question: "Lee Kang-In will probably take this crucial penalty. Now, the players are still delaying time to let me think, but it will be over soon. You will not have any time to warm up, so are you confident that you can stop the penalty?"
Higo’s first instinct was to say yes. After all, this was the chance he had been waiting for, and he would be stupid to let that slide so easily. However, his consciousness was still clear at this point, stronger than his emotional side. The boy didn’t even need to think a second longer before an answer slipped out of his mouth.
"I believe I am better than Zion at stopping a penalty, but there is no such thing as I am confident that I can stop it. At the end of the day, the favor is on the taker, and no matter how good I am, the goal is still bigger, so the chance of him scoring is still better than me stopping."
Kageyama-sensei nodded, clearly feeling satisfied with his answer. "Take off your vest. Before the penalty begins, you will be in to guard our goal."
Some of the staff there bit their lips, probably wanting to interrupt here. However, when they saw how dejected Zion was under the goal, they held back their words, knowing that this was probably the best decision.
It was better to have the goalkeeper who was confident about his chance rather than one who had just made a mistake and couldn’t get out of his pity-party state. The gamble was also worth the money here, since it was only five minutes before the game ended. Even if Higo was worse when it came to distributing the ball, it wouldn’t affect the team’s flow that much later on.
Still, it was a gamble on Kageyama-sensei’s part, and the man knew it quite well. He still hesitated earlier, but once he heard Higo’s answer, the coach finally made up his mind about this decision.
’I would never put him on the pitch if he said yes. It is still better to put Zion than someone who is too overconfident in this situation. However, while he is confident, he still knows his limit and shakes his head at my question. That’s probably why I decided to trust him, right?’
Higo himself didn’t know the storm in the coach’s head right now. No, the moment the nod was given, he took off his vest immediately, revealing the grayish jersey for the goalkeeper before taking on the gloves as well. The fourth referee was also ready to put him on the pitch before the penalty could be taken.
Before he went in, though, Kumiko came for one last talk. "So, it seems that the date is canceled, huh?" She smiled, couldn’t help but tease him.
Higo felt the corner of his lips twitching at that. The boy knew that this was her way to help him relax in this state. So, he answered, "Well, yes, but how about a little bet?"
Kumiko raised her eyebrows slightly. "Sure, I’m all ears."
"If I saved this penalty, you still owe me a date, but if I failed, I will take you to the nicest restaurant back home. How about that?"
"So, whatever the result is, you still win a date, huh? How cunning." The girl snorted. Higo didn’t say anything, just waiting for her to answer the challenge. After a while, a little smile finally formed on her face. "Sure, you have the bet here! Don’t forget about Lee Kang-In’s characteristics and make sure you save it! I don’t mind planning the date as long as we win!"
Higo grinned widely as he finally stepped onto the pitch. The boy didn’t forget to give Zion a high-five, saying, "Don’t worry, Zee! Just sit tight on the bench and wait for the result. Leave it for me!"
Zion just nodded silently, holding back his cry here.
Soon, Higo finally entered the penalty box, where the rest of the players there greeted him solemnly.
"Oi, Ryusuke! You killed my team in a penalty shootout last winter, so don’t you dare let that bastard get you, okay?" Kawabe said while punching his shoulder lightly.
"I know what you are capable of. I still haven’t forgotten the drama last winter. I trust you to deal with this, Higo-kun." Miki Yamane also gave a nod.
"Come on, Higo-san! You’ve done well against us in the past! You have to do the same today!" Mamoru shouted from his spot.
The expectation was high as the mountain, and Higo had to take a deep breath to calm his nerves. The box had already been cleared by the referee, and in front of him, Lee Kang-In was standing, having both arms on his hips.
’Okay, I can do this...’ Higo took another deep breath before putting his focus on the boy immediately. ’Come on, Lee Kang-In! Bring it to me!’