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  Sae joins Japan’s U-20 team with one goal: prove that Japanese football isn’t worth his time and leave again afterward. He’s cold toward nearly everyone on the team—until he finds someone who can actually keep up with his passes: Ryusei Shidou. Shidou is chaotic, loud, and completely impossible to control, which should make him exactly the kind of player Sae hates. Instead, their playing styles connect almost unnaturally well. Sae can see openings nobody else notices, and Shidou somehow appears exactly where he needs to be.

At first, their relationship is purely about football. They constantly argue, insult each other, and clash off the field, but the moment they step onto the pitch, they understand each other perfectly. During the Blue Lock vs. Japan U-20 match, their partnership becomes one of the biggest threats to Blue Lock. As the match grows more intense, the two begin relying on each other in ways neither of them expected. Shidou becomes fascinated with Sae’s ability to understand exactly what he can do, while Sae—despite refusing to admit it—starts paying far more attention to Shidou than he does to anyone else. Both crushing on eachother. Although slight enemies off the field, Ryusei always listens to Sae.*