The letter of acceptance arrives to Ashito in Ehime. Ashito and his friends are overjoyed at the news, but Noriko, Ashito’s mom, looks at the celebration with mixed feelings. Hana tells Ashito to have a heart-to-heart with Noriko, but he never gets the chance until the day of his departure.

Ashito arrives at Esperion's base, meets fellow test participants and meets future teammates. However, the team's coaching staff promises not to give an easy life to the players' desires.

Fukuda tells Ashito to change position to defender, which was not something Ashito could stomach. His teammates, wondering why Ashito didn't show up to the announcement of the A team promotion, learn the truth and feel shocked. Tachibana, Ohtomo, Togashi, Kuroda, and Asari go and look for Ashito, but he's nowhere to be found. It is Hana, who walks up to Ashito, sitting at a bus stop all by himself.

Esperion B team has a match against Tama Sports University. Thanks to Yoshitsune, they finish the first half with one goal lead. However, Togashi and Takeshima mess up their play at the beginning of the second half and allow the opponent a goal. With Isshiki out of the game due to his injury, the B team changes the formation, and Togashi and Ashito are instructed to move upfield. Date tells Ashito to take what he learned defending and apply it to attacking.

The game against Tokyo Musashino is the climax of the Tokyo Metropolis League for Esperion B team. Although the team has worked on countermeasures against Musashino, the air is still tense within the team and there's a clear sign of anxiety on the faces of many of them during the warmup. But right before the game starts, Takeshima disappears from the locker room with his girlfriend, Tae.

The match between Esperion and Musashino will determine who will dominate the Tokyo Metropolis League. Musashino's ace, Kaneda, takes advantage of the weak coordination between Togashi and Takeshima, giving Musashino a go-ahead score. Right before the end of first half, Kuroda injures himself due to his desperate defense play. During the halftime, Asari blames the center-backs, but Date disagrees with him. Togashi has resented Takeshima for a long time, but now…

Thanks to Ashito's great bird's-eye view, Esperion B team succeeds in bringing down the defense of Musashino and scores a tie-goal. Esperion gains the momentum, while Musashino is confused by Ashito's flexible play. Kaneda can't hide his frustration at seeing just how much Ashito has improved. The desperate battle between the top of the Tokyo Metropolitan League, Musashino, and the challenger, Esperion: Who will win in the end...?