"Night Training" (
Summary[]
The chapter opens with Ashito calling his brother Shun to ask about the financial burden his family bears to support him at Esperion. Shun, surprised but willing, provides the numbers, only for their mother, Noriko, to intercept and dismiss the issue, telling Ashito not to worry. Later that night, Ashito, frustrated by his struggle with basic skills, heads outside to practice his ball control alone. Fellow players Ōtomo and Tachibana, noticing his determination, join Ashito, offering to help him refine his technique. As they train together, Togashi observes from his dorm window, seeing Ashito’s persistent effort.
Synopsis[]
Ashito asks Shun for the financial breakdown of his tuition to Esperion and Noriko hands Shun from off-screen the accountting book containing all the details
The chapter begins with Noriko and Shun Aoi are working at the bar and closing it down for the night. Suddenly, the phone rings and when Shun picks up the phone, he is surprised to hear Ashito on the other end of the line in his dorm. Shun says that it has been a week since Ashito left and that he hasn't called yet and he was worried about his little brother. However, Ashito responds to Shun by only asking how much it takes his family to keep Ashito at Esperion for the next 3 years. Shun says that its a bit sudden for Ashito to ask for this information. Ashito then says that he tried asking their Mom about the information before leaving Futami but Noriko evaded the question. Shun offers to hand the phone to Noriko. Ashito insists to not to do so since Ashito feels that he hasn't done anything remarkable yet.
Keiji Togashi enters the dorm room and silently stands at the door listening to Ashito's conversation. Ashito asks Shun for the information so he can fully focus on Football. Shun looks at Noriko and she hands him the accounting book containing all the information about Ashito's cost. Shun breaks down the financials for Ashito and says that for each year Ashito is at Esperion, they will pay ¥300,000 ( around $2,000). He goes on to say that about ¥60,000 of the payment goes to travel fees for transporting the players from game to game. Shun is taken aback as Ashito says that he will pay everything back to his family in less than 3 years and wants to Shun to pass that message to their Mom. Noriko plucks the phone from Shun's hands and says to Ashito to not let the money work Ashito up too much and hangs up the phone. Shun is surprised as Noriko could not have heard the conversation he had with his brother yet she managed to know exactly what happened.
Later that night, Ashito leaves the dorm house and goes to the nearby wall where he begins to practice receiving the ball after kicking it at the wall. Ashito remembers that during practices keeps messing up when trying to receive the ball. Itsuki Nagano gets irritated and yells at Ashito for trapping the ball incorrectly even after people try to tell him to fix his form. Taira Nakamura walks up to Nagano and tells him to chill out since Ashito just joined. Nagano isn't having it saying that Ashito doesn't even know the basics. Taira says that he would normally tell Ashito not to worry, but he really needs to develop his skills since Eisaku Ōtomo and Sōichirō Tachibana joined at the same time as Ashito yet they are doing far better. Coach Nozomi Date yells at the 3 to go back to practice. As Nagano and Taira walk away, Nagano says that Ashito needs a reality check since he is basically a hindrance due to his lack of skills. Taira says that he has noticed that even after practice ends, Ashito is the one always training and even practicing at night.
Ōtomo and Tachibana approach Ashito who is training alone to help him learn to receive the ball since they say that passes from a real person helps more.
Ashito keeps furiously kicking the ball at the wall and gets more and more pissed off at his inability to properly receive the ball. He thinks that he has been practicing this one skill for a week and has yet to make any improvement. He is suddenly surpised to see Ōtomo and Tachibana approaching him with a ball in hand. They come over to Ashito and say that they are there to help Ashito train and learn how to receive the ball since it is better to do practice with an actual pass from a person. Ashito says that he can't ask them to spend hours to teach Ashito the basics but Tachibana says that he and Ōtomo are only practicing what they did in practice earlier that morning and it just so happens to be that Ashito is there as well. They also jokingly mock Ashito by saying that they want to see the skill gap as well. As Ashito takes Tachibana and Ōtomo's joke in stride and thanks them for the help, Togashi watches the trio practice from his window in his Dorm Room.
Highlights[]
- Ashito calls home, asking Shun for a breakdown of his expenses at Esperion, promising to repay it all within three years.
- Noriko intercepts the call, telling Ashito not to let money concerns distract him.
- Frustrated by his difficulty with receiving the ball, Ashito practices alone at night, determined to improve.
- Ōtomo and Tachibana join him, offering their help and camaraderie as they practice passing skills together.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
- Noriko Aoi
- Shun Aoi
- Ashito Aoi
- Nagisa Akutsu (Background) (Flashback)
- Keiji Togashi (Background)
- Nozomi Date (Flashback)
- Itsuki Nagano (Name Reveal) (Flashback)
- Taira Nakamura (Flashback)
- Eisaku Ōtomo
- Sōichirō Tachibana
Chapter Notes[]
Trivia[]
TBA
References[]
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| Chapters | 23 • 24 • 25 • 26 • 27 • 28 • 29 • 30 • 31 • 32 • 33 • 34 • 35 • 36 • 37 • 38 • 39 • 40 • 41 • 42 • 43 • 44 • 45 • 46 | Volumes | 3 • 4 • 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Episodes | 6 • 7 • 8 • 9 • 10 | Seasons | 1 |
| Chapters | 5 • 6 • 7 • 8 | Volumes | 2 |
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