The Rise of the Iron Wall!

Chapter 156: A Penalty?!

"Fuck, no!" Jun was the first one to react. He was so tense that veins popped so clearly on his neck as the boy approached the referee with eyes bulging wide. "Sensei, the ball just touches my waist! Look here! You can see the dust!" He pointed at his jersey heatedly.

Right after that, all the Hakodate Nishi players were snapped out of their thoughts, as they followed the boy along.

"Yes, Sensei! What the hell?!"

"You cannot even see the contact between Jun and the ball! How could you decide that it is a penalty?!"

"Okay, everyone! Move back!" As the captain, it was Makino’s job to take over this shit. He was also ready to complain, but inwardly, the boy knew that once the referee made a decision, nothing would be enough to change his mind. "So, Sensei, can you give us an explanation here?" He asked flatly.

The referee opened his mouth, but it seemed that words stuck in his throat here. He even gulped nervously, an unbecoming scene for someone with the highest status on the pitch to be intimidated by the players he judged.

However, with Makino’s stern gaze and the other Hakodate players who were ready to pounce on him, the man had every right in the world to be intimidated right now.

"First of all..." The man spoke slowly, trying to ease the tension. "Can you ask your teammates to back down first? I wouldn’t mind giving them a yellow card for their intimidation attempt, you know?"

Makino just snorted at that cheap threat. Today was the final day of the tournament, and there was no rule that stated any player who got a yellow card would be fined by the organizer. Even if all eleven players on the pitch got a yellow card, that wouldn’t really affect the team at all, especially since they were just three minutes away from the end of the game.

Still, for the progress of the game, he asked the others to stop, letting him handle the situation.

"So... What is going on? Because I swear to God, my teammate is right. Your position is not close enough to see what happened there." His tone was still flat as he demanded the answer.

"I might not be able to see it clearly, but I saw he raised his arms, and the ball bounced from that spot right after that. This is an obvious conclusion from my part, the hand definitely touched the ball." The referee explained.

However, if anything, this only made Makino scowl. "That is by far the most far-fetched conclusion I have ever heard, Sensei! Don’t you think that what Jun said is right?! That the ball didn’t touch his hand, but his waist?!" He was trying so hard to keep his temper from exploding right now.

However, it seemed the referee really wanted to test his patience.

"No, that won’t do. I know what I saw earlier, and it was only possible if the ball bounced from your teammate’s hand." The referee shook his head firmly. "Anyway, my decision stands here. You don’t need to argue anymore. Let’s go back quickly, or your time to fight back will only be shorter."

This was enough to shut the boy up instantly. Indeed, if a goal happened, Hakodate Nishi would only have two or even just one minute left to fight back, not enough in a normal game, let alone against Shimizu Higashi. However, he still felt dissatisfied here. How could a referee be this irresponsible?!

Kumiko was also trying to complain to the fourth referee on the sideline, but it seemed she also met a thick wall there. Hell, she looked so emotional right now, pointing at the pitch so animatedly as if trying to show her point. This was the first time Makino—and so many other players there—saw the girl like this.

Unfortunately, the result was the same. The fourth referee just shook his head, saying something like respect the decision or something of that, not giving the team any chance to file their complaint. In the end, Makino just walked back to the team dejectedly, knowing that he had failed them all here.

"So, how is it?" Higo asked, with Jun behind, biting his lips nervously.

When Makino shook his head, everyone’s face dropped instantly, knowing that the judgment was made. Jun, especially, was the most affected here. The usually cheerful boy seemed to be about to pass out due to the guilt he suffered right now.

"I—I mean—I am so sorry, everyone!" He choked in the middle of his stutter; his eyes were so red and watery. "If only I wasn’t there..."

Well, it would be a lie if the others didn’t think on the same line there. However, there were no ’what-ifs’ in the world. No, the decision stood, and they had to face it bravely.

"Don’t worry, Jun." Makino patted his back solemnly, trying to show support to his kouhai. "Just... Trust Chibi. He has done amazingly and created so many miracles today, what is one more for him?"

All eyes suddenly turned on Higo, and the boy himself, albeit the frustration he felt, somehow could still muster a little bit of a smile here. "Yeah, if you want to say sorry, do it for Hiroshi. After I save this penalty, the MVP trophy will be in my hand, you know?" He joked around, trying to liven up the atmosphere.

Hiroshi just snorted lightly at that. "Well, if you are able to save this shot, I will be the one who gives you the MVP trophy, Senpai!"

"Ha! I’ll hold your words!" Higo laughed.

Somehow, even though they were about to face a do-or-die situation, the one who held their fate right now was so at ease, which helped them feel relaxed a little bit. However, no one really knew that Higo’s left hand couldn’t really move again at this point; the impact of Mamoru’s last free kick, combined with the exhaustion, finally took a toll on him.

As the boy walked onto the goal line, he glanced at his left hand slightly, inwardly praying, ’Just... Please, let me save it one more time...’