Chapter 268

Inside the Italian wing viewing room, the Ubers players take in the match. Aiku, Sendo, Aryu, Niko, and Lorenzo trade remarks about Kaiser and his spectacular strike, while Baro keeps quiet and turns over what Isagi might attempt next.

On the sideline, Loki asks Noa whether this is the growth he had hoped to draw out of Kaiser. Noa agrees but wonders aloud if Loki doubts his own side is firing on all cylinders. Studying Charles, Loki says he remains certain the talent he is banking on still has room to bloom.

Shido, thrilled by Kaiser's explosion, asks his teammates how to respond. Karasu says they must crush the meathead pinning Shido down and looks to Zantetsu to handle it, who agrees. Tokimitsu panics about losing and Nanase concurs that change is needed, then asks Rin for direction, only to be told to be quiet so Rin can think. Rin notes that Bastard's momentum keeps surging with Isagi evolving, Kaiser awakening, and a new team style forming, yet he spots that the chemistry between Isagi and Kaiser is still unfinished, which convinces him he can tear them apart. He orders Nanase to follow his lead.

Nanase carries the ball forward and is startled to see both Isagi and Hiori bearing down, so he slides it to Rin, but Kaiser cuts the pass off. Alarmed that Isagi and Kaiser may be combining, Rin recalls losing the decisive goal to Isagi during the clash with Japan's under twenty side and the killing intent he felt then, believing that if he could harness that impulse he could topple both Isagi and Sae. Fearing Isagi is improving faster than him, Rin's aura warps into something monstrous as he realizes that what he had been craving was Isagi's pressure.

Haunted by the prospect of losing to Isagi, Rin comes to understand that he requires this very pressure from his rival in order to evolve.

The chapter opens away from the pitch with the Ubers roster observing and reacting to Kaiser's goal. Rin's memory reaches back to the under twenty match against Japan, where a flashback of Sae underscores his fixation on surpassing his brother.