Dynasty Awakening: Building My Own Football Empire-Chapter 262: Late Arrival

Kenji was currently pacing back and forth in the private lounge, a look of panic on his billionaire features. He checked his Rolex multiple times every minute before turning towards the flight departure board which hung up on the wall.

He had been in the airport since 12 pm because today would be the day he would be flying to Liverpool for the biggest match of his ownership. As long as the private jet arrived on time, he would be in the stands by kickoff.

However, his jet had been delayed for almost 4 hours now due to a "maintenance issue" with the luxury coffee machine. At first, he was a little annoyed, but after being delayed again and again, he turned frantic.

It was almost 2 pm, which he had been told would be the final update about the flight. Kenji could only pace around to calm himself down, thinking that he may miss out on his Misfits playing at Anfield.

He was constantly doing the math in his head, trying to figure out when he would arrive in Liverpool if they left now from London. The game started at 4:30 pm, and the flight would take around 45 minutes.

If he went directly from the airport, then there might be a chance of arriving by the start of the game. But that was only if the flight left within the hour. Just as he was about to go ask the pilot to fly without coffee, he heard an announcement from the speakers.

[All passengers for the private flight to Liverpool please proceed to the tarmac and board the aircraft. We apologize for the delays and any inconvenience that you have experienced.]

Kenji felt a wave of relief overcome him as he heard the scratchy voice over the PA system. To others, it might have sounded like a standard announcement, but to him, it was like the voice of an angel telling him his portfolio had doubled.

He quickly grabbed his briefcase and motored his way to the departure gate as fast as possible. Once he finally entered his leather seat, he felt the fatigue that had built up from the entire transfer deadline day, threatening to put him to sleep.

Before giving into the fatigue, Kenji sent Michael a message that he had finally boarded after all of the delays. It was currently 2:30 pm which meant Michael should be able to tell the boys before they finished their warm-up.

Once the plane took off, he briefly closed his eyes before entering the sweet embrace of a power nap. He was only jolted awake by the shaking of the plane as it touched down on the runway.

Disoriented, Kenji quickly flipped his phone open and noticed that it was already 4:15 pm on Saturday.

’Damn it! The game starts in 15 minutes, I’ll never make it in time.’

He was filled with despair for a moment before his face suddenly flashed with determination.

"I might be a little late boys, but I’ll still make it," he muttered, clutching his phone.

Perhaps it was because they could see he was in a rush, or because Kenji was a frequent visitor to the VIP terminal, but he managed to make it through security in record time. He hailed a luxury Uber and got into the back seat.

He turned to the driver and produced a few crisp £50 notes, "Please take me to Anfield as fast as you can."

The driver was an older Scouser, however, his eyes seemed to sparkle after being given the task. "Hold tight lad, I know a shortcut."

In the next moment he sped off, causing Kenji to almost let out a cry of surprise while he did his best to hang onto his briefcase. Anfield was only 25 minutes away when there was no traffic, but on matchday, it was chaos.

With the old man’s surprisingly deft driving skills, weaving through back alleys, they made it to the stadium in just under 20 minutes. Kenji left the car with shaky legs, grabbing his briefcase from the back seat and thanking the driver.

After his legs finally started working properly, Kenji jogged with his suit jacket trailing behind him towards the VIP entrance. As he walked up the stairs to the Directors’ Box, he could see the game in full swing.

Looking at the scoreboard he let out a gasp of surprise.

LIVERPOOL 1

BARNSLEY 0

Liverpool was currently in the lead, yet as Kenji looked down at the field he saw that Barnsley were under heavy pressure and currently had the ball in their own box with only 1 defender back. Instead of finding Michael on the touchline, his eyes were focused on the match.

He saw the Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah cut inside and shoot a ball which was promptly blocked by Diego Nunez who was sliding. Kenji felt his heart jump into his throat and he couldn’t help but yell out.

"CLEAR IT!"

Diego, who was currently lying on the floor felt as if all his surroundings had become silent. He saw the ball rebound and instinctively tried to bicycle kick the clearance towards Vladimir Petrovic who was waiting at the edge of the box.

Kenji watched on in shock as the ball floated in a slow and high arc in the air towards Vladimir. The Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez easily managed to outrun the clearance, cruising onto the ball and putting a second shot on target.

By the time Vladimir reacted, the striker had already unleashed a thunderbolt.

"What the hell was that clearance?" Kenji was dumbfounded. He had seen Diego play plenty of times since buying the club and he had always had a chaotic but effective clearance style, which was why he was the ’Bull’ in the first place.

A myriad of thoughts ran through his mind, ranging from his defender’s weird decision to his sudden lapse in concentration.

"Has he eaten too much pizza?" he murmured.

There was a group of scouts around Kenji’s age around 20 meters away who were all equipped with tablets, furiously typing after witnessing the play.

"Ahh, what a shame. He was such a good prospect too." One of the men said after placing down his tablet.

"Yeah, we can’t afford to have such a large liability in the defense." Another replied.

"But that goalkeeper on the other hand... He’s not only holding Liverpool to a small score, he’s also made a triple save."

CLANG!

The ball smashed against the crossbar and bounced out. Jan Visser, the Barnsley keeper, dived and punched the rebound away just before Darwin could tap it in.

"SAFE!" The away fans roared.

Kenji collapsed into his seat, wiping sweat from his forehead. It was only the 10th minute and he felt like he had aged ten years.

Michael Sterling stood on the touchline, his arms crossed. He looked up at the Directors’ Box and saw Kenji arriving. He gave a small nod, but his face was grim.

Anfield was a cauldron. The noise was deafening. ’You’ll Never Walk Alone’ still echoed in the rafters.

"Arthur," Michael whispered without turning around. "They are pressing us to death. We can’t breathe."

"I know Boss," Arthur squeaked, hiding behind his notebook. "Salah is too fast. And Trent is playing in midfield again."

Michael looked at the pitch. His Tactical Eye was flashing red warnings everywhere.

FATIGUE: HIGH

PRESSURE: EXTREME

CHAOS LEVEL: LOW

"We need to wake up," Michael muttered. "We need a spark."

He looked at Mateo Vega. The Painter was isolated. He was surrounded by red shirts every time he touched the ball.

Then, Michael saw something.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was pushing high. Very high. Leaving a gap behind him.

A gap the size of a small country.

Or the size of a fast Japanese winger.

"Kaito!" Michael screamed, pointing to the space. "RUN!"

Kaito Tanaka heard the command. He didn’t look back. He just activated his engines.

Jan Visser saw the movement too. He didn’t pass short this time. He drop-kicked the ball.

It flew over the midfield. Over the press.

It landed in the space.

Kaito was there.

"ZOOM ZOOM!"

The Anfield crowd gasped. The speed was unnatural.

Virgil van Dijk turned. The giant Dutchman was fast, but Kaito was already at top speed.

"Go on!" Kenji screamed from the VIP box, spilling his champagne.

Kaito took a touch. He was one-on-one with Alisson Becker.

The best goalkeeper in the world stood tall.

Kaito didn’t shoot. He remembered the Zone Simulation. He remembered the training.

He stopped.

Van Dijk slid past him like a freight train unable to brake.

Kaito looked up. He saw a purple blur arriving in the box.

Victor Osimhen.

Kaito chipped the ball.

It wasn’t a shot. It was a present.

Victor rose. He jumped higher than Konate.

BANG.

The header flew into the net.

GOAL.

Liverpool 1 - Barnsley 1.

The away end erupted. The silence from the Kop was heavy.

Michael punched the air. "Yes! That’s it! That’s the counter!"

He turned to the bench. "See? They bleed. Even giants bleed."

But then, he looked at Klopp.

The German manager was smiling. A terrifying, toothy smile.

He wasn’t worried. He was excited.

"Oh fuck," Michael whispered. "He’s enjoying it."

The game restarted. And Liverpool didn’t slow down. They sped up.

It was going to be a long afternoon.