3. Nagi Seishiro Provokes Bachira Meguru

During the second selection at Blue Lock, an epic showdown unfolded as Team White challenged Team Red. Each team had four players fiercely competing to acquire a player from the losing team. Team Red, led by the strength of Rin, Aryu, Bachira, and Tokimitsu, faced off against Team White, which included Nagi, Isagi, Chigiri, and Barou. However, Isagi had an unshakable determination to defeat Rin and reclaim Bachira for his team.

Bachira, who had experienced playing alongside Rin and Isagi, was captivated by their brilliance in analyzing the field and orchestrating strategies to score goals and thwart enemy attacks. Although Bachira saw Rin and Isagi as the “monsters” he admired and found joy playing alongside, he often felt isolated in their world.

Bachira perceived that Rin and Isagi found joy in playing soccer by scoring goals that fulfilled their personal ambitions. In contrast, Bachira’s happiness stemmed from passing the ball and supporting these “monsters” to score. Yet, he eventually realized that continuously playing to seek out monsters and teammates who matched his playstyle would never make him equal to Rin and Isagi.

The game’s winning condition was simple: the first team to score five goals would be declared the victor. At that moment, the score was tied 4-4 as Team White and Team Red battled fiercely to secure the win. Bachira found himself conflicted—should he pass the ball to Rin or go for the goal himself? Suddenly, Chigiri appeared and stole the ball from a distracted Bachira.

Even though Bachira had contributed one goal and one assist for Team Red, Nagi coldly criticized Bachira’s hesitant play, pointing out how uncharacteristically indecisive he had become. Nagi even asked if Bachira was deliberately holding back.

Nagi further added that Bachira shouldn’t assume he would be picked if Team Red lost, stating that he was more interested in selecting Rin. Nagi confidently believed that even Isagi, Bachira’s close friend, would choose Rin, who held the top rank at Blue Lock, instead of Bachira.

Nagi’s taunt deeply shook Bachira, igniting fear as he imagined the bleakness of playing soccer without the presence of his two admired “monsters,” Rin and Isagi. This forced Bachira to remember why he had created his imaginary monster in the first place—to have a friend to play soccer with.

In the past, Bachira was a prodigy of free-spirited soccer. His exceptional dribbling skills left his childhood friends struggling to steal the ball from him, making it impossible for them to keep up with his talent. Eventually, they chose to stop playing soccer with him and preferred playing video games instead.

Resolute, Bachira decided to no longer serve the monster in his soccer game and stopped passing to it altogether. He banished the monster from his life for good.

Bachira embraced his identity as a self-sufficient player, recalling the joy of playing soccer even when he was alone. The fear of playing without teammates no longer haunted him.

As a result, Bachira astonished Team White’s players with his freestyle football mastery, pulling off three consecutive nutmegs against Isagi, Chigiri, and Barou. He became a formidable dribbler, weaving past multiple Team White players with ease. Bachira played selfishly, refusing to pass to anyone, as his sole goal was to score for himself.

After using a rainbow flick to escape a triple team from Barou, Chigiri, and Nagi, Bachira delivered an awe-inspiring strike toward Team White’s goal. Though the shot seemed destined to be a certain goal, Isagi, driven by his sharp instincts, intercepted the ball mid-air, sending it skyward. The ball then fell perfectly in front of Rin, who swiftly seized the opportunity and scored the fifth goal, clinching a spectacular victory for Team Red over Team White.

In the end, Isagi’s mission to reclaim Bachira for his team failed entirely, as Rin succeeded in recruiting Isagi instead.

This unfortunate outcome was a direct result of Nagi’s provocation. His words forced Bachira to confront and overcome his trauma of playing soccer alone. When Nagi mentioned that if Team White won, neither he nor Isagi would choose Bachira and would instead take Rin, Bachira found the strength to rediscover his individuality and stop relying on the monsters he once admired.