I don't own Prince of Tennis. If I did, I would know the difference between a tennis racket and a badminton racket.
Echizen Ryoma had just finished tennis practice and was headed home. While throwing away his empty ponta can in the trash, he noticed a girl with ridiculously long braids inside a building through a window. Curiosity—and nothing more—propelled Ryoma to go in. After silently inviting himself in did he remember who that girl was. She was coach's daughter—Ryuzaki Sakuno.
But this Ryuzaki was different. Even Ryoma could see that. First of all, she wasn't dressed in her school uniform, but was from head to toe black. A black boy tank, black athletic shorts, black leggings hidden under the athletic shorts…The only color she had on were her red boxing gloves. Ryoma noticed with amusement that she had no shoes on, but it hardly mattered, since she was on a mat. In front of her was a huge punching bag. The kind that Ryoma could only move using tennis, and not his bare hands.
Perhaps the weirdest thing was that this Ryuzaki wasn't blushing. Her eyes were looking forward, unwavering, and her mouth set in a determined line. Ryoma also noted Ryuzaki's defensive stance. Her hands were next to her cheeks, with her arms tucked in close to her ribs. Her feet were shoulder width apart, but her left leg was in front of her right. Hopping on the ball of her feet—much like his split-step, Ryoma thought.
Ryuzaki lunged forward, and hit the punching bag in front of her with her left then right hand, then moved back. Still jumping on the balls of her feet, she waited a bit before lunging forward again. She punched with her right hand, and kicked with her right foot, and finished it off with repeated jabs at a point on the punching bag. Finally, she stepped back.
The next time Ryuzaki lunged forward, she was a flurry of movement. She threw straight punches, hook punches, spinning kicks, and different types of moves Ryoma couldn't name. Each punch or kick was precise and strong, and the punching bag was dented in quite a few places. Ryuzaki even ducked, jumped, and blocked at times, as if there was a real opponent fighting her. Ryoma stared at her in amazement.
When Ryuzaki threw her final punch, it was as if she froze to take a picture. Ryoma could clearly see her left hand solidly contact the punching bag, now dented badly. Her left shoulder was thrown out, but her head was straight forward, her eyes focused on the spot she was punching. Her mouth was slightly open as she yelled "ha", and her bangs billowed off her head. Sweat was flying everywhere. To Ryoma—a hard-core athlete—this was a sight to be appreciated.
Ryuzaki took a small break, using a towel to mop the sweat and to drink some water. It was then that she noticed Ryoma. Ryuzaki instantly shed some of her confidence and power, and her shy demeanor returned. She blushed—from either heat or embarrassment—and stuttered, "Oh. R-ryoma-kun. H-hi."
Ryoma didn't answer, but instead just tugged his cap down. Ryuzaki thought she saw him blush, but before she could make sure, he was out the door.
Even though he didn't know it yet, he…..
Oh my.
Echizen Ryoma had just fallen for a fighter.
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