VI.

                                    

                                          

                            

                                
                            
                              
                                  
                              
                              
                                
                                  
                                  
                                
                              
                             
                            
                            
                          
                          
~~~
As our first week at Blue Lock commenced, we were met with a rigidly taxing training schedule. Ego had explained how everything at Blue Lock was specifically designed to improve our football skills and in consequence, each day we faced hellish new workouts. 
Sweat dripped down my temple and my arms shook under the weight of my bench press as I forced the bar upwards for the umpteenth time. Holy shit, I thought, gritting my teeth as I brought the bar down for another rep. I didn't think I would be this far behind everyone.
Giving myself the luxury of taking a quick glance around the weightroom, I took in the sight of a handful of my teammates beside me also at the benches. Each of their weights were increasingly larger than mine by at least a hundred pounds. Furrowing my brow, I turned back to my own bar and continued struggling through my set. 
A chuckle sounded from beside me causing a frown to overtake my features. "How's the little princess doing?" the white haired Jingo Raichi asked rhetorically, a venomous smile crawling onto his face. "You know, you looked wimpy from the beginning, but I didn't think anyone could be that weak!"
I bit back a retort, refusing to look at him as I pushed my bar up with new ferocity. He'd been calling me 'princess' all week, and though at first it had taken me by surprise, I quickly deduced that my gender had not been revealed, and in reality, he was just an asshole. Just you wait, I thought darkly, refocusing on forcing my bar skywards.
When our time in the weightroom was up, Team Z headed down the hall to a different gym for our second block of workouts for the day. My time to shine, I smirked as we entered the treadmill filled room. 
Wataru Kuon, who had taken to being the responsible one of the group, grabbed the clipboard by the door and assigned each of us to a treadmill where we found our individual paces had been preprogrammed into the machines. Similar to the weightroom, I was situated between Raichi and Isagi.
Beginning our runs, I couldn't help but feel a wave of satisfaction upon finding that my pace was one of the fastest in the room, second only to Hyoma Chigiri. Though the pink haired boy didn't seem at all happy to be running. Not that I can blame him. 
Raichi seemed to also have a surprisingly fast pace and he didn't hesitate to make it known to the slower players. To my delight however, he begrudgingly left me out his taunts. 
Right, I thought smugly as time progressed and Raichi's endurance began to run dangerously low. You might be strong in the weightroom, but here, I win. 
~~~
Every muscle in my body ached from the long day of training as I stared up at the dark ceiling in Room Z. The lights had turned off long ago for the night, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't fall asleep. My mind was wide awake.