Professor Aruno joined them for their ride to God Eden, while Gouenji and Haruna saw them off. It took a while, but eventually they got to their destination.
"It hasn't changed. Everything's the same as that day."
"So, this is God Eden Stadium."
"This is where Second Stage Children came from."
"Tenma!" The brunette turned to find Shinsuke and Nishiki by a large cart. "We found the balls!"
"Nice, Shinsuke!"
Tsurugi looked around. "Kimiko's not here..."
"Should we look for her first?" Shindou suggested.
"Everyone!" A voice called to them from one of the tunnels. A blonde girl ran over, cheerfully waving at them. "I thought you guys would've gone to the forest, so I went there instead. I came here only after I saw the caravan in the sky. Sorry about that."
Tenma grinned. "Don't worry about it! You're here now and that's what matters!"
She chuckled. "Thank you, Tenma." She turned to the green haired boy. "You're Fei, right? And the bear is Wondeba?"
"Yes!"
"I'm not a bear!"
"Nice to meet you two." She held out her hand and they shook firmly. "There's this guy in a white robe that has all this weird technology and he explained everything to me already, so I know what's happening. I'll be joining you guys in this fight, even if I don't really play."
"Any help at all is appreciated!" They decided not to question the 'guy in a white robe' bit.
She nodded before finally facing the rest. "So, it's just Kyou, Shinsuke, Shindou-san, Nishiki-san, and the managers, hm?" Her eyes glowed and the seven fell into a trance. When it stopped, she smiled wryly at them all rubbing their temples. "Everyone alright?"
"Yeah... Though I don't really get what just happened..." Midori muttered.
"The version of events that happened in your heads should just about match mine and Tenma's. Your heads are still adjusting to the sudden changes, but it'll work its own miracle subconsciously. You guys can now just focus on getting Keshin Armed right."
Tenma took out one of the balls, smiling brightly. "Alright! Let's start training!"
~~~~~
After parking the caravan on the side, the managers got to work on setting up drinks and towels while the boys got in line in front of the only adult with them.
"Professor Aruno, how are we able to use Keshin Armed?"
"Keshin Armed, eh? That's..."
They were all ears, ready for his advice and directions any time.
"... a mystery to me as well!"
They swore they could've heard a clown's horn honking at that very moment.
"While space-time theories are my strong suit, I'm a complete amateur when it comes to soccer. I can't come up with the slightest idea on how to use Keshin Armed. Anyway, I'm done sightseeing, so I'll be going now." And he was gone, just like that.
"Then, allow me to explain!" Wondeba yelled. "When a player and their keshin fuse through Keshin Armed, they are able to move more efficiently. Their speed and power exceed those of the normal keshins."
"So how do we do it?" Tenma asked eagerly.
The blue bear turned his back to them. "I don't know the method."
"Eh―"
"But as long as you believe you can do it, you can!"
Tsurugi had his arms crossed. "Positive thinking, huh?"
Disappointed, but not surprised.
"You need to listen to your keshin's voice."
"Fei, you know how?"
He nodded. He gave Tenma a ball and directed him to one side of the field. The other four waited their turn on the other behind him. They watched carefully as Tenma started kicking the ball, bringing out his keshin.
"Majin Pegasus Arc!"
"For Keshin Armed, you must listen to your keshin's voice. Concentrate and listen from within. Release all of your power in one go."
Tenma closed his eyes before finally bringing his hands up to cross above his head. "Armed!" But even if his keshin split into shadows of the armor, they didn't attach to him. "It's hard..."
"Can't you explain it in simpler terms?" Nishiki asked.
"It's really more about you feeling it instead of understanding through words." Fei explained. "All I can say is that you must feel your keshin, listen to its voice, and synchronize your feelings."
"Synchronize our feelings..." Tenma gave him a determined nod. "Let's try it."
"Kensei Lancelot!" Tsurugi let out another scream, but instead of arming him, his keshin disappeared. "Raising my energy alone isn't enough."
"Sousha Maestro!" Shindou closed his eyes. Focus my spirit into the keshin... However, it too disappeared. "No good..."
"Gouseishin Titanias! And... Armed!" Shinsuke turned around and jumped towards his keshin, but it was gone before he could reach it.
"Sengoku Bushin Musashi!" Nishiki turned to his keshin. "Hey! Would you happen to know how to use Keshin Armed?" He wasn't given an answer.
"I've got to recall how I felt when I was able to use Keshin Armed." Tenma tried again, but didn't get results. "Once more!"
"That's it!" Wondeba's whole body turned pink before he started screaming. "Burn up those hearts! Burst with passion! Raise your enthusiasm full slot!" All the others around him covered their ears.
Little by little, they started getting tired. Fei headed out to the field to help Tenma, who was still trying. Behind them, Tsurugi kept his eyes on them.
That's not a good sign. Kimiko wandered over and handed him a drink. "Something you want to talk about?"
He took the bottle but shook his head. "Not really."
"Want me to read your mind instead?"
"No." He paused before quietly adding, "Maybe later."
"I'm here for the long run this time." She patted him on the back. "If you need me, I'm always behind you."
He almost smiled. "Yeah. I'll hold you to that."
~~~~~
"It's no good!" Tenma collapsed on the field. "I can't use Keshin Armed no matter what I do! What do we do?"
"I wish you'd teach it to us in more concrete terms..." Shinsuke panted.
"You could say that again." Nishiki muttered.
That was when they heard a strange sound from the sky. A purple aircraft descended into the field and from it, five people were teleported out.
"Protocol Omega 2.0?!"
"Not so." One with brown hair stepped forward. "We are... Einam."
"Reiza."
"Quarth."
"Zanou."
"Gaura."
"We obey Alpha as Team A5." His arms crossed. "You mean to train on this island and learn Keshin Armed? That's laughable. Before you waste your time with futile effort, we'll teach you to be as obedient as the rest of your friends. We'll show you a world of hurt and make you never want to play soccer again."
"A soccer battle, is that it?" Fei concluded.
Tenma's eyes narrowed. "Okay! Then, if we win, turn history back to the way it was!"
"Give us back Coach Endou!" Shinsuke added.
Shindou nodded. "And take off the mind control you have on the rest of our team!"
"Very well. But only if you win."
Kimiko frowned at this. They have no intentions on keeping that promise, but this would be a good chance for them to learn Keshin Armed. She decided to keep the thought to herself. Fei dropped out of the match and had the five from Raimon in the lineup for the same reason.
The match started with Team A5's kick off. Einam had the ball and managed to completely dodge Tsurugi as the latter ran towards him. "This battle has nothing to do with changing history. The mutual resonance you're hoping for won't be happening. Therefore, the possibility of you achieving Keshin Armed is zero. You've already lost before you even began. Shoot Command 06."
"Plasma Ball."
The ball easily passed through the three midfielders, leaving the goal for Shinsuke alone. He called out Gouseishin Titanias and used Majin the Hand but it wasn't enough to stop the shot.
"Shinsuke, are you okay?"
"I'm fine..."
"That power was unbelievable!"
"Let's make it one more point before the game ends." Einam mocked, walking back to his side of the field.
"What?"
"This is a soccer battle. Whoever scores two points first will be the winner."
"Not like you can to begin with." Reiza muttered.
"We accept your challenge." Shindou stated.
"Our fight with you has caused us to lose our leader Alpha." Einam threw them a glare. "Through our anger, you will pay."
"Anger?"
~~~~~
"Now, let's have some fun."
"C'mon, give me what you've got!"
"Don't block them! Let them have free reign." Zanou held his hands out wide. "Just try and aim right here!"
"Interesting." Nishiki smirked. "Guys, let's go!"
"Okay!"
Nishiki dribbled the ball up to near the goal line. "Sengoku Bushin Musashi! Armed!" But nothing happened.
"No way..."
"That's about it."
Wondeba frowned. "So, fighting spirit isn't enough!"
Midori grunted. "C'mon Nishiki! Get moving!"
"In that case..." The ball glowed red and he kicked it twice, in time with his keshin slashing its swords. "Bushin Renzan!" While it was on its way to the goal, he turned to the brunette. "Tenma, make a shoot chain!"
"Okay!" He dashed at full speed, creating a cloud of dust behind him. "Shin Mach Wind!"
"Keeper Command 03!"
"Boom Shout."
He caught it easily. Smirking, he threw the ball upwards for his teammate to head down. The impact blew most of them away, but Tsurugi managed to stay on his feet and chased after the ball. Quarth caught it before he did and used Spinning Upper to pass him and passed it over to Einam. Once again, he used Plasma Ball and, despite Tenma and Shinsuke calling out their keshins, it wasn't nearly enough to stop the shot.
But something else did.
A large sword fell from the sky, along with a large shadow taking form before them.
"What is that keshin?"
"Dark Exodus?!"
"Which means―"
The large figure deflected the ball and brought its blade down, splitting the field in half. By the time the dust cleared, Team A5 could no longer find their targets.