After Park Han-Gyeol, it was Koki Morita who took the shot. Unlike the Korean striker, though, the boy walked calmly as if he was just strolling around the street market to buy vegetables. Morita sure didn’t have any nervousness in his bones.
True enough, he proved that by executing the penalty not just perfectly, but also beautifully. The moment he was about to shoot it, his eyes darted to the left side, baiting Kang Do-Jin to move there as well. However, in the last second, Morita changed his stance instantly, switching back to a slow Panenka that moved in a parabolic course before falling gently to the back of the net.
Thud!
"Fuck! What a sexy penalty!"
"Yeah, that boy sure is a menace! His name is Morita, right?"
"I see him there!"
Morita clenched his fist after watching the ball go in, but did not show any ripple in his emotion. It was as if he had just done a little job here, nothing special about it.
Higo couldn’t help but shake his head, secretly wondering, ’He sure has the nerve of steel, huh?’
With that goal, Japan was currently in the lead, and if Higo managed to stop the second penalty, their advantage would be so big that it was like they had one foot on the next round already. Unfortunately, it seemed that the South Korean team didn’t intend to just lie down and let their opponent beat them like that.
Oh Se-Hun, the next taker from their team, managed to send the ball so wide it was out of Higo’s reach. Even with his clairvoyant ability, Higo still failed to get it, and for a moment, it looked like the ball was about to go wide.
However...
CLANK!
The ball hit the goalpost so loudly before bouncing into the goal, giving Team South Korea their first point in this shootout.
"Damn! So close!" Higo punched the pitch in frustration.
"Don’t worry, Higo! That’s just one!"
"Yeah, you’ve done everything you could! You also move in the right direction!"
"Keep it up for later!"
The cheers from the back were enough to lift up his mood. Honestly, he was so fortunate that the shootout was taken from this side, right where all the Japanese supporters gathered. No matter what happened, he would always be able to hear their voice, assuring him that he wasn’t fighting alone here.
Unfortunately, that thought disappeared instantly as the next executor from Team Japan, Kawabe, failed to do his task. Somehow, his path choice didn’t resemble his bold personality. The boy aimed to the right, but it wasn’t straight to the edge. No, it was still one arm from the middle, and Kang Do-Jin didn’t even need to move far.
No, the goalkeeper just needed to let his body fall with both hands raised to cover his face, and in the end...
BAM!
The ball met his palm perfectly before bouncing back to the penalty box, giving Japan the taste of failure for the first time today.
"YES!" Kang Do-Jin roared immediately; thick veins popped on his neck as he was getting too excited. "COME ON!" He laughed, pointing at the South Korean team while also ignoring the stun-locked Kawabe on the spot.
Seeing the South Korean team celebrating with each other behind the center line, Higo shook his head slightly. Honestly, he had only seen Kawabe execute a penalty twice. First was in the winter tournament when he blocked it, and then now it was being blocked again. It seemed that the boy wasn’t really a good executioner on the white spot.
Still, he didn’t say anything here. His task was not to console the boy with his words, but with his action.
’As long as I could stop the next shot, everything would be okay.’ He took a deep breath, punching both gloves while also trying to get ready.
The next one who came was South Korea’s number 7, the one who replaced their striker at the beginning of the second half earlier. Higo didn’t really know his name, but the boy looked confident here, so he couldn’t help but feel interested.
’He didn’t do much in the game, just replacing Oh Se-Hun’s position as the winger while that boy shifted toward the center. However, all of his crosses always went to a dangerous place, and he knows where to put it. His accuracy is dangerous, but his power is lacking. That means... Another top bin, right?’
Honestly, this was the kind of player that always gave him a headache. The one who knew where to put the ball and how to do that. However, it seemed that the number 7 was too cocky here. Indeed, he aimed at a difficult place, so close to the goalpost just like Oh Se-Hun. However, the boy wanted to pay Morita back for that humiliating Panenka, and as a result...
Thud!
The ball moved quite slowly, and if the goalkeeper had already predicted this to come, this kind of shot was definitely the easiest one to block. Hell, Higo didn’t even block it. He extended both hands in the air while diving on the left side, and since the ball itself was slow and weak, the boy didn’t hesitate to catch it.
"YES!" Higo clenched his fist before pointing out at Kawabe, who was praying from behind the center line. "Kawabe, I get this for you, Bastard!"
In return, Kawabe just laughed so hard he was crying right now. However, anyone could see that the burden on his shoulder was elevated by the save earlier.
Meanwhile, the situation on the South Korean team was far from being good. They were so ashen at that number 7’s stupidity. I mean, who dared to pull a Panenka in this crucial moment? Also, it would be okay if it worked, but how was he stupid enough to get read like that? They would be a laughing stock tomorrow, for God’s sake!
Now, the score was still 1-1, but South Korea had already missed two penalties. If somehow Tagawa managed to score the next one, they would be down by one point, and they would be closer to going back home empty-handed.
Now, the poisonous thought that no one wanted to think about finally started to slip into their mind.
’Damn! Are we going to lose today?!’