Shoei Barou steps up in the second half.
The latest chapter of the Blue Lock manga was pretty short, as it was announced that due to the illustrator Yusuke Nomura’s bad health, the rest of the chapter will be published next week. In the first half of the issue, we saw the Blue Lock team setting up a new attack pattern in the second half, which is shaking things up. After Karasu and Hiori get the ball going, it’s now time for one of the new players to step up.
Warning: Spoilers ahead!
Blue Lock Chapter 340 recap
The chapter opens with the second half kick-off. Japan is immediately on attack mode, with Tabito Karasu kicking the ball at Shidou, who deftly reflects it to Reo. Reo again passes the ball to Karasu who starts running up with it. France realises that Blue Lock is using a new triangular attack pattern to bypass their defense, and Karasu is at the crux of it. Shidou gets the ball again and passes to Hiori, who is the second crux of this pattern. As soon as he gets the ball, all the players start moving towards the goal.
In this double game maker system, Karasu is charging up and Hiori is changing the pace. With all the players attacking up front, it only leaves Isagi free, and that’s who Hiori passes the ball to. But when Loki tries to take the ball from him, Isagi passes it to Rin. The two aces keep passing between themselves as they run up, but Loki says they’re too slow. Using his super speed, he catches a hold of Isagi.
As Loki catches him, Isagi realises it’s now time for their final surprise connection. They passed the ball to Shoei Barou, who joined the game in the second half along with Shidou and Kunigami. With the ball at his mercy, Shidou gets ready to run up to France’s goal line and looks at the defenders as if they’re his prey.
Blue Lock Chapter 340 review
Since it was a short chapter, most of it was just buildup. I don’t know whether Shidou will be successful in their endeavour, but it’s good to see Blue Lock try something else that still follows their philosophy. It looks like Barou is hungry for a goal, and there are some other new elements that Blue Lock can use to get the score even again. I’m excited to see what happens next.
Blue Lock Chapter 340.2 release date
The next half of the current chapter will be released on Tuesday, 25 March, 2026. You can read the latest updates on Kodansha’s K Manga platform.