My system allows me to copy talents

Chapter 401 Timeskip II

Taking small steady steps, Kota trudged up the path to his house. His muddy cleats slung over his shoulder, while his jersey appeared to be in a tattered state— a testament to the hard-fought battle he had just recently.

The neighborhood was eerily quiet, and the afternoon sun was casting long shadows on the ground. Right now, he was on his way home after a tiresome match.

Despite a hard-fought match, his team had lost and he couldn't shake this feeling of uneasiness gripping his heart. For the most part of his journey back home, his eyes full of distress remained fixated on the ground beneath.

And, it almost appeared as if he was moving barely on instinct.

As he neared his house, he ran into many familiar faces. Seeing his dispirited state, they concernedly asked him if he was alright. Yet, he couldn't even bring himself to respond to their worries. And, so he walked past them without uttering a word, completely ignoring his presence.

Those people too didn't find his attitude rude. Instead, they looked at him with eyes full of pity as they started sympathizing with him.

"He must have lost the match"

"Sigh~ I hope he doesn't take it to his heart"

They whispered among themselves as they tried guessing.

Then finally, Kota reached his house.?Wearing a dispirited look on his face, he opened the door. A familiar creak resounded as he stepped inside.

"Mom, I'm home," he called, his voice heavy with fatigue and disappointment.

"In the kitchen, Kota!" his mother's voice rang out, filled with an unusual excitement that Kota was too tired to notice.

He tossed his cleats aside and started heading upstairs. Disappointed, he then headed straight to his room. Coming from a football match, usually, his mother would nag him to get cleaned first. And, for sure, looking at his state, he needed a much-needed cleaning.

If he rushed into his room without getting cleaned, he'd probably incur the wrath of his mother. But, he wanted nothing more than to lie down on his bed at the moment.

Even so, he couldn't bring his sweat-drenched jersey to his bed now, could he? So, as he slid the door of his room and walked into his room, he undressed and tossed his sweat-drenched jersey onto the laundry basket.

With a wall full of football idols, a fair amount of trophies, and certificates displayed in the cabinet, Kota's room was neatly cleaned and perfectly organized. Even his only table was immaculately organized. There wasn't even a single drop of trash on the floor.

Among those walls full of football idols, one figure reigned supreme. Just above his bed was a huge poster of Hiro. Even at his table, you could see his picture with Hiro at the airport, framed. Not to mention his autograph.

If any looked at his room, they'd tell at one glance how much big of a fan he was of Hiro.

Changing into a pair of casual clothes, he then jumped onto his bed. Lying with his face facing the ceiling, he mumbled while looking at the poster of Hiro right above his head, "When will I get to play like you?"

"You're really impressive Hiro. Just how did you manage to change your adversity into your strength? I really can't fathom how you overcame one of the biggest losses of your life and even improved from it"

"That World Cup campaign, even when you were the most impressive player of the campaign, you took the whole blame on you"

While he was reminiscing about the scene of the U17 World Cup 2023 where Japan had lost against Spain, a scene of the press conference flashed in his mind.

Defeated as Japanese players returned home, reporters bombarded them with questions. Criticizing their performance, they didn't spare a little empathy as they blamed the players for their failure. Unlike his other teammates, Hiro didn't receive much criticism.

Yet he sprang onto the camera as he took the entire blame on him to shield his teammates from the public defamation.

"We're sorry for disappointing you. But all of the players have given their absolute best. So, if there's anyone to blame then it should be me for not being an idle captain," as he said those words, he looked straight into the camera. Then silently he bowed his head before apologizing, "I'm sorry for not being able to fulfill your expectations"

When he apologized publicly in front of so many people, everybody was stunned by his actions. They couldn't bring themselves to open their mouth as they were left utterly speechless by his choice of action. A stunned silence filled the space.

Why was he shouldering the blame? He had been nothing but impressive. Yet, right now he's shouldering the entire blame.

Reporters and fans alike, they couldn't bring themselves to blame Hiro. Some reporters even felt apologetic for pressuring the team. While the general public upon witnessing Hiro's gesture started becoming furious at the reporters.

But before they could haul curses at the reporters, other players, and coaching staff, all of them bowed their heads as they apologized for not letting them down.

And, the situation became even more awkward for a while. Then the entire space resonated with the words of encouragement as fans started cheering. The entirety of the fans became united as they showered the players and the staff with words of encouragement and appreciation.

Even though he didn't bring them the glory that they desired, he later was nominated as the best player of the tournament for his performance. However, he couldn't finish on top as he barely missed out on the top spot against Mateo.

Even so, Mateo's led team couldn't clench the glory as well. The title ultimately got snatched by the Germans. It would be injustice and disrespectful to use the word snatch though.

Since they defeated all those title contenders fair and square, it'd be more acceptable to say that they deservingly won the cup. They didn't have any one single-star player who stood out from the rest in the tournament.

But instead, they had a whole batch of star players who played as a team. That's why they won the title. As there's a saying teamwork makes the dream work.

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