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“It’s finally over” Isagi thought to himself while sliding on his knees, screaming his lungs out. He beat everyone in the match, he beat Rin, he beat Kaiser, he was the NEL’s champion. Or at least that’s how he felt until he saw the bids. 240.000.000 yen from Bastard München. The same as Rin’s from Re Al, where his brother was playing too.
He didn’t know what to think of his offer. It was a huge amount of money, more than he ever imagined, but he couldn’t shake some deep, unknown feeling off. He wanted to accept it, but after the Blue Lock 11 vs U20 Japan match he promised he would lead Japan to victory. He declared war against the world. He had to think…
After celebrating with the people from Blue Lock, he couldn’t take his eyes off a certain blonde, who looked utterly crushed still. Ness was standing a few feet away, seemingly wanting to walk over, but Isagi was faster, grabbing Kaiser’s arm and pulling him up.
“Don’t you dare to sulk now, Kaiser. Drink the loss up and turn the anger and disappointment against me. You are supposed to be a proper obstacle in my life.”
The blonde’s eyes widened as he heard his own words being thrown back at him, the clown he wanted to break, the gem he wanted to crush. He underestimated Yoichi, it was clear now. The raven-haired striker proved himself on many occasions, and he changed Kaiser more than he wanted to admit. He made the other go back to zero, making him build everything up again, using his ego and everyone on the field for the sake of his own goal.
That night, neither of them could sleep. Instead, they both thought through the events of the last few weeks, from Kaiser arriving to Blue Lock with the Bastards, from the first moments to the last.
***
Their first meeting… When Kaiser sabotaged Yoichi’s shot, when the blonde pulled him closer by the chin, when Isagi felt that weird, warm sensation in his stomach first. When his life started to be filled with that deep, royal blue.
After that, Kaiser would randomly find Isagi to tease him, touching him only to disinfect his hands after with the wipes carried around by Ness. Except when they found each other at night on the training grounds when they wanted to practice more. They didn’t know their limits when it came to soccer, after all.
After the match against Barcha, however, Kaiser became more cruel, bullying Isagi during those late-night training sessions, mocking him the whole time with taunting words, making him trip over his own feet all the time, until Yoichi started to curse him out, calling him names. Sometimes the blonde stopped, but most of the times he didn’t, continuing to ridicule the other until he threw his translating airbuds away so at least he won’t understand what Kaiser said.
***
The turning point was the match against Manshine City, where Isagi started to use his metavision. Kaiser was fascinated by the way Isagi evolved minute by minute, using any method possible to win. Still, it was too much for the raven’s body, making him faint, only to be caught by his hair and Kaiser was the one carrying him to Noa’s room. The first two days after the match Isagi didn’t go to their usual unofficial training sessions, and the blonde was clearly annoyed when he finally showed up the third night.
“Well, well. Blue Lock’s ace finally decided to grace me with his presence, huh? You disappoint me, Yoichi. Did you really need so much time to recover?” The blonde mocked, towering over Isagi with a frown.
Isagi only showed Kaiser aside, picking the ball up without a word, and the blonde understood immediately. They didn’t need to communicate, they just went against each other, crashing and fouling without care, both of them covered with bruises by the end.
The most intense was the eighth night. Kaiser had a slight limp from a kick into his knee, and Isagi had a busted lip from a shoulder hit. The blonde was holding the other up by the neck of his training suit, and it only took a few seconds for them to crash their lips together violently, engaging in a bruising kiss which ended in panting, and both being covered by each other’s blood.
“We are not going to talk about this.” Kaiser mumbled before leaving, leaving Isagi with questions written all over his face. And as the blonde said, they never did. It didn’t happen again either, and they weren’t playing as aggressively as before, but mostly because the match against Ubers was getting closer.
One day before the match, however, they didn’t practice. Instead, Kaiser was holed up in a monitor room, the only place where he could indulge in his habits even Ness didn’t know about. He always sent the poor boy away when he needed it. Still, Isagi managed to find him right in the moment he blew the addicting smoke out, making it seem like his hair was grey instead of blonde and blue. It was beautiful, but Isagi swore to never admit it.
“…Kaiser, what are you doing?”
“None of your business, Yoichi. I’d like some privacy; would you mind leaving?” Kaiser’s voice was clearly tense, but still, Isagi walked closer, looking at the cigarette between the blonde’s fingers.
“You shouldn’t do that, especially as an athlete.”
“I said it’s none of your business. And I hope you know, if you tell this to anyone, I’ll ruin your life. I can do it in a moment.”
“I’m aware, yes. I won’t tell anyone, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t stop…” Isagi mumbled, looking at the monitors in front of them instead.
“It’s not something I can just put down that easily, Yoichi.” The blonde laughed bitterly, taking another drag before holding the cigarette out to the other. “Come on, try it too. I’ll teach you. Or are you a little scaredy cat?”
“I’m not, but I legally can’t do it anyway. And it would be bad for my health…”
“So, you are scared~”
“I told you I’m not! Damnit, give it here…” Isagi took it with a groan after all, but just stared at the burning rod for a few moments before Kaiser spoke again.
“You’ll have to put it in your mouth first, Little Yoichi~ Then you inhale, but not let it down, then take a breath through your nose. You let the smoke out after~”
The blonde explained while standing up, looking down at Isagi with his head tilted. The raven followed the instructions with shaking hands, but the smoke filled his lungs immediately, and he ended up having a coughing fit while Michael just laughed. However, it wasn’t a cruel, mocking laugh, it was out of pure amusement. When he finally calmed down, Yoichi looked up with tears in his eyes.
“Are you trying to actually kill me, Bastard Emperor?”
“No, what do you take me for, Little Clown. It’s not my fault you can’t follow basic orders. I’ll show you how it’s done.”
Kaiser took the almost completely burnt cigarette back, inhaling the way he explained, only to lean down and blow the smoke between Isagi’s half-open lips. The Japanese was taken aback and stumbled a few steps back, covering his face so no more smoke would get into his system.
“You are such a fucking asshole, Kaiser!” He yelled before leaving the monitoring room, almost bumping into the automatic door on his way out. He hated Kaiser. He hated him.
***
Isagi won their bet against Ubers. The only questions on Kaiser’s mind were why, and how, all of his thoughts were around Isagi, he just couldn’t erase it. The little clown he wanted to crush so badly overcame and devoured him, barely leaving bones behind. His cry of frustration echoed in the stadium, but barely anyone paid attention, only Ness. But he didn’t need that damn dog’s eyes on him, he needed to kill Yoichi.
After that match, he refused to practice with the other. All he could think of was how to put that damned Jester in his place, how to show Isagi that he was still the Emperor of this story.
That was, until he went too far and finally figured everything out. The night when Ness found him curled up on the floor while choking himself, the monitors showing playbacks of Isagi’s plays, while Kaiser laughed manically, tears escaping his eyes and drooling all over the floor. Ness was finally sure; Isagi Yoichi turned Michael Kaiser into an irreversibly unhinged emperor, who knew no limits.
The next day, when Kaiser wanted to have a late training session alone, however, the object of his obsession showed up – of course he did – his eyes thin as they landed on the blonde’s neck.
“What happened?” He was walking closer, eyeing the finger shaped bruises on Kaiser’s neck, instinctively reaching up to touch them, until the other stepped back.
“What do you think you’re doing, Yoichi? You can’t just touch me like that.”
“I won our bet; that’s the least you could let me do. Honestly, you should be on your knees in front of me.”
Kaiser just sneered at Yoichi’s newfound confidence, quickly getting into his face, his voice low as he spoke slowly.
“I’m not bowing to someone like you, Little Clown. You only tied; the true victor will emerge in 5 days. Be prepared, Yoichi, I’ll wipe the floor with you. You won’t be the last man standing.
Isagi only huffed, grabbing Kaiser’s training suit to pull him down to the same level as him.
“You will be the one dancing for me, Naked Emperor.”
Isagi didn’t know what possessed him, but it felt just right to mark his words by leaning close and biting Kaiser’s lip, just enough to make it bleed a little bit.
“Let’s see who will kill the other. Give it your all, Kaiser.”
The raven left after, and Kaiser could only think that Blue Lock created a real monster as he wiped his blood away from his mouth.
***
After the last bids, everyone went back to their rooms. Kurona and Hiori were restless, replaying goals with exaggerated movements and extra sound effects, making Isagi and Yukimiya laugh, but soon everyone was too exhausted to stay awake. Except for Yoichi. After an hour of tossing and turning he decided to go to the private rooms provided to the Bastard München players, but not to visit Noa. He knocked on one of the doors, and soon it opened, revealing Kaiser in his red robe, who seemingly just finished showering.
“What do you want, Yoichi? You humiliated me enough today, don’t you think?”
“Just let me in, Kaiser. I’m not in the mood for your theatrics.”
Kaiser huffed and stepped aside, letting the other in, sitting back on the bed. Of course, the room was luxurious, much bigger than the blue lock players had for 4 people, Monitors all around the walls there too, cushioned chairs with a table, nothing like the others.
“So, what do you want, Yoichi?”
“I couldn’t sleep, and my legs brought me here. It seemed the most logical, I guess.”
“Oh? So, you did fall in love with me, after all~”
The blonde mused, taking a cigarette between his lips, tapping around for his lighter, but he couldn’t find it. Isagi stepped closer instead, holding it out.
“Did you not notice that I took it last time?”
“Just light it for me already, Schalksnarr.”
He didn’t understand the insult as Isagi ripped the translating airbuds, not curious what Kaiser wanted to call him. He just held the lighter out, lighting Kaiser’s cigarette with a frown. He didn’t want to speak; he didn’t want to hear Kaiser’s voice. He just sat beside the blonde on the bed, with a deep sigh before laying down, pulling the other with him too.
He could hear Kaiser still talking, not understanding a single word, and after a while he just had enough, slapping his hand over the blonde’s mouth, who decided that the most efficient way to remove it was licking Isagi’s palm. The raven quickly pulled away, wiping the salvia into the sheets while cursing, then proceeded to hit the other in the chest. Kaiser only laughed, rolling his eyes before turning on his side, holding himself up with his elbow as he just watched Isagi.
“Why are you looking at me like that, Kaiser?” Isagi asked quietly after half a minute, breaking the silence. However, he didn’t get an answer, as the blonde just smirked, taking a drag from his cigarette, clearly contemplating whether he should blow all of it into Isagi’s face, or not, but decided against it after all. He leaned away to do so, before putting it out and leaning into Isagi’s personal space.
“Ich würde dich jetzt echt gerne küssen…” He mumbled, knowing exactly that the other couldn’t understand a single word.
“I’m not going to put back the earbuds in just so you can mock me again.”
“Ich ziege dir.” That stupid smirk was still there as Kaiser leaned closer, kissing Isagi. This was nothing like before, not bruising, led by the heat of the moment, but slow, almost tender.
Isagi was too shocked to do anything, but returned it a few moments later, gently touching the blonde’s neck, where his tattoos were. Neither of them wanted to pull away, they didn’t want to break the peaceful moment of not fighting. They didn’t stop, because what if they did, and the bubble would burst forever?
Still, everything has to end once. Kaiser was the one to pull away, touching their foreheads together, his eyes closed. He didn’t want to open them; he didn’t want to see the expression Yoichi was making.
The other felt how Kaiser’s forehead furrowed, and seeing how tense the other was, he decided to slide his hand up from his neck to his cheek before pressing their lips together again sweetly for a few moments.
“That face doesn’t suit you, Kaiser. Not worthy for my rival.” Isagi chuckled, making the blonde smile too before he pushed his shoulder a bit and pushing the translating earbuds back into Yoichi’s ear.
“Let’s have a rematch. 1 vs 1, just the two of us.”
“As if you’d ask me out on a date. Is that what you’re doing?”
“Think whatever you want. Go and get dressed.”
Isagi just groaned as he sat up, leaving Kaiser’s room to put the usual training suit on. The blonde was already there when he got to the usual training room, ball in his hand.
“Whoever scores first wins. No fouling, no injury on purpose. Like a normal match, got it?”
“Like you weren’t doing the same thing, Kaiser. You were worse than me, actually. I can still feel where you elbowed me in the ribs.”
“I can’t help that you are so frail, Yoichi~” The blonde mused, setting the ball in starting position. “I’ll let you have the kickoff, okay? Maybe you’ll have a bit of a chance in 1v1. You don’t have a whole support system here, only you and me~”
“This will cause your death, my Darling Clown. You’ll taste the bitterness of complete defeat.”
They stood face to face for a few moments before they started, but it looked nothing like soccer from outside, more like they were dancing around each other, not wanting it to end, just like the tender kiss they shared in Kaiser’s room. It took almost 20 minutes, but their final fight ended with the German’s goal, who pointed at Isagi with sharp eyes.
“I won. See, Yoichi? I’m still better than you. You can never outdo me. Never.”
The blonde was panting, but not because the match was that intense. It was the excitement, the adrenaline pumping through his veins as he walked closer. However, Isagi didn’t have the reaction he wanted. He seemed completely calm, with an almost cold smile plastered on his face.
“But… You only tied. I scored more than you, remember? You lost to me once, and now you think you truly won? You’ll need more than that to defeat the blue lock’s Demon King.”
“Don’t mess with me, Yoichi… I won our match, I outsmarted you. I won.”
“Sure, if that comforts you. Tomorrow, you’ll go back to Germany. Make sure to train more, so we can have a good time going against each other again.”
Kaiser’s eyes widened as he listened to Isagi’s words, looking at the Japanese, not wanting to hear any more of what he had to say.
“Be better than me, Kaiser, and beat me at the U20 championships.”
With that, Isagi walked away, his world more colorful than ever, filled with blue, but Kaiser’s became the dullest shade of grey once again.