VS. Ubers

Noel Noa reads out the eleven who will start against Ubers. Gin Gagamaru takes the goal, Mensah and Birkenstock hold the back line, Ranze Kurona and Kenyu Yukimiya work the wing-back roles, and Jingo Raichi drops in as defensive midfielder. That last pick raises eyebrows across the squad, but Noa explains that Raichi's raw contact strength has climbed further than anyone else's and that he now wins the ball best in isolated duels. The coach wants that dueling edge holding the team together.

Up front, Alexis Ness sits central, Benedict Grim covers the left, Isagi mans the right, and Kunigami with Michael Kaiser lead the strike line. Noa sizes up their rivals, a Marc Snuffy side built on famed defending and a reputation for cold tactical brains. He frames Bastard's attack around its two pillars, Kaiser and Isagi, declaring that whoever cracks that Italian wall will be crowned the squad's king.

Raichi gripes about being reduced to a cleanup man behind the two princes, yet swears to defend no matter how filthy the job becomes. Noa cautions Kaiser against fixating on Isagi and orders Isagi to justify his striker billing with actual goals. As the team walks out, Ubers greet them coldly, with Oliver Aiku sneering at the German pups, Ikki Niko promising payback, and Shoei Baro slamming his head into Isagi in a rough hello that leaves both players wincing.

Both sides reveal their starting formations ahead of kickoff. Raichi learns he has been slotted in as a defensive midfielder, a role that catches him off guard. Baro welcomes Isagi with a headbutt hard enough to hurt them both.

VS. Ubers is the sixth chapter of Volume 24 and the 209th of the series, set within the Neo Egoist League Arc. It runs twenty-two pages. The chapter is written by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and illustrated by Yusuke Nomura.