A mix of helmets and unfamiliar uniforms filled Hiruma Youichi's vision as he heard the blaring of the referee's whistle off to the side. Seconds later, he felt the weight lift off of him. The Devil Bats quarterback got back onto his feet, took off his helmet for a breather and glanced at the scoreboard.
Fifty-four to zero in the opponents' favor with just under five minutes left in the first half. Hiruma scoffed.
All around him, he could hear the deafening screams of the crowd followed by deep rumbles from the skies above. It was clear that everything from the score to even the fucking weather was in favor of his opponents. No amount of trick plays or psychological warfare was going to change that.
"It could be worse…!" He looked to his right to find a large, rotund, chestnut-headed boy walking up to him. He was fiddling with his helmet and attempted to give Hiruma a reassuring smile. The blond merely snorted and turned his back on his best friend, Kurita Ryoukan. "I mean, think about it, Hiruma! We managed to stop them from scoring several touchdowns even though it's just the two of us against twenty-two of them!"
"They still have four touchdowns and four field goals under their belt, fucking fatass." That's what he wanted to say, but for some reason, the words got caught in his throat. Hiruma remained silent for a moment, just staring blankly at the stormy skies.
At the rate they were going, with just the two of them making up a team, the dream of going to the Christmas Bowl seemed to be just another dream, rather than a reality. But that didn't fucking matter. He was Hiruma fucking Youichi and he wasn't going to go down without a fucking fight. He was going to win this fucking match, no matter what it takes.
The quarterback let out a sigh, put on his helmet and said, "Get into position before we get penalized, you fucking fatass."
Kurita just nodded without a word in response, fastened on his helmet and went to crouch at the line of scrimmage, his hand on the ball. Hiruma raised his hands in preparation for the snap.
"SET! HUT! HUT! HUT!"
He snatched the ball, faded back and moved to tuck the ball securely in his arm when he saw a shadow dart forward from the corner of his eyes. His head snapped around and he saw a Devil Bat uniform bearing the number two streak passed defenders with relative ease.
Without a second thought, Hiruma went back into his throwing stance and launched the ball at him. He was immediately brought down after he caught it, but Two had gotten the team an eleven yard gain. Exactly what they needed.
"Deimon! Eleven yard gain! First down!"
"Yay!" Kurita cheered, jumping with jubilation.
The player took off his helmet as he jogged up to the two of them and Hiruma couldn't remember the last time he was so happy and relieved to see his adorable little sister, Tatsuki, there on the field with them. He didn't even reprimand her for taking off her helmet in front of everyone.
"Sorry!" she apologized breathlessly, clapping her hands in front of her. "I didn't see the last guy! I was actually hoping to get us a fifteen yard gain."
"It's okay!" Kurita chirped, reaching to give her a bear hug. "You got us a first down at least!"
Hiruma could only grin. The chances had just gone up and his brain was already churning out different cards he could use now that she was here. "Time to get your asses going. We've got fifty-four points to get back and only two quarters to do it."
Tatsuki stared at her brother for a few seconds before turning to study the field. "Onii-chan? I think… that we should use a run. Maybe it'll get us a first down."
He also studied the field for a moment. "Alright. We'll do that."
The other two nodded and their small huddle dispersed.
After he got into position, Hiruma noticed how far away Tatsuki was from him and became confused. She was the one who suggested the run, so why was she all the over there? She couldn't honestly be thinking of letting him run it, could she? That girl knows better than anyone that she's better suited for a run than he was. She had a better time. But with no time to yell to her about it, he started the play.
Hiruma went to fake a pass to his sister and run it, but then, he heard footsteps behind him. Eyes wide with shock, the quarterback whirled around and another Devil Bat player appeared next to him, his hands outstretched. Hiruma was only able to see his green eyeshield and the number twenty-one before the player grabbed the ball and took off with an insane burst of speed.
Only after he had cleared about twenty yards was he stopped.
"Deimon! Twenty yard gain! First down!"
"Ooooottto! What is this!? Deimon has made an instant and sudden comeback with two consecutive first downs! With only two minutes and thirty seconds remaining in the first half, will they make an even bigger comeback like a touchdown!?"
"You bet your asses that we will!" Hiruma cackled, now fully enjoying the game. He kicked Twenty-One in the rear and then pointed at him. "We're going for a run again! Fucking shrimp, use Ruka as your lead blocker!"
"Eh?" he simply responded, confused.
"Ah! A lead blocker is someone who runs in front of the running back during a play to protect them from the opponents," Tatsuki hastily explained before her brother got violent. "Basically, I will be your shield."
"Run like your life's on the line and get us another first down!" Hiruma told him.
"Hai!" Twenty-One responded.
The now four Devil Bats rushed to their formation. Seconds later, the quarterback began the play. Tatsuki got a head start, pushing aside potential blockers as Hiruma handed the ball to the running back.
At first, the two of them were able to clear through the defenders easily, but then two of them appeared with one hidden behind the other. The one in front tackled the girl to the ground, revealing the one in behind. He lunged at Twenty-one and downed him eight yards from the line of scrimmage.
"Che! I guess I should have expected that!" he muttered. "Okay, Ruka, I guess we'll just have to do this with a long pass. And hurry to your fucking positions, fucking brats! We don't have time!"
Tatsuki looked confused as she jogged back to her post. "Onii-chan, why are you telling me that?"
Hiruma didn't have time to think twice about that question. The first half was almost up and they needed to get a touchdown fast.
The play began and the blond faded back, waiting until Tatsuki got into position for the long pass. A player broke through Kurita's defense and forced him to run off to the side, but not out of bounds. He looked up to find the number two jersey, but spotted a number eighty instead, on his side of the field.
"Hiruma-senpai!" the new, monkey-like player shouted, holding his large hands out.
His demonic smile appeared on his face. He now understood why Tatsuki was so confused. He didn't need to pass to her; the Devil Bats had a receiver. He reared his arm back and catapulted the ball before he was tackled by the blitzer from before.
The ball streaked passed the defenders and right into the receiver's hands before the cornerback could even come around to block it. He was, however, fast enough to tackle monkey boy down before he could run.
"Deimon! Thirty-five yard gain! First down!"
"Yosha!" Eighty and Twenty-One shouted, bumping arms. "Twenty more yards!"
"What the hell is going on!?" one of the opponents yelled out in frustration, throwing his helmet down. "They should be weaker than this! They should be crying about how much of a point difference we have!"
"They suddenly got stronger…!" his teammate murmured in agreement, glaring at the Devil Bats. "At this rate, they'll get a touchdown."
"It doesn't matter – there's no way they'll be able to catch up with a fifty-four point gap," the captain told his team. "We just need to keep it or widen it; simple as that."
Hiruma cackled. "Like we'll let you!" He pointed at Twenty-one. "Fucking shrimp! I'm gonna fake a pass to the fucking monkey this next play, but it's actually for you! You better keep your eyes peeled! And run like your life depends on it! Got it!?"
"Hai!" he responded firmly.
But when the play began and he went to throw the ball, Hiruma realized with a jolt that the opponents were smarter than he had given credit for. All three receivers were covered, especially Twenty-One. And to make matters worse, four defenders chose to blitz him this time.
There was no other choice but for Hiruma to secure the ball and be sacked by one of them.
"Hah?"
"Haah?"
"Haaah!?"
"HUGO!"
Suddenly, four blurs shot from either side of him and blocked one player each. The blond's eyes widened. Each of them was wearing a Devil Bat uniform, indicating that they were also part of the team. Kurita could only stare in shock as the other four easily contained the blitz before he closed his eyes with a wide smile. When he opened them again, they were ablaze with a fierce fire and, with renewed strength, he surged forward.
"FUUUUNURABAAAAAAA!"
At once, the entire line surged with him, overpowering the defense and making them eat blue sky.
Hiruma could only cackle in delight at the sudden appearance of a great line. He now had a free view of the field and that was when he noticed another two new players. One was bearing the number thirty jersey while the other one had thirty-seven and both of them were free of mark. His fierce grin grew wider and he lobbed the ball to Number Thirty-Seven.
He caught the ball flippantly, with one of his legs held vertically in the air, before he took off to run the ball for a touchdown. The entire team roared out in approval as they rushed to smack him on the back or kick him in the behind.
He merely winked in response and gave them a thumbs-up. "Aha-ha! The Devil Bats' first touchdown in an entire half! With this, my fans would have increased ten-fold!"
Hiruma could only frown. "Fans? The fuck are you – "
He was instantly cut off by a roar of "DEIMON! DEIMON! DEIMON! DEIMON! DEIMON!" from crowd. He looked over in shock and found a group of cheerleaders on the sideline, led by a small black-haired girl in roller blades. His eyes traveled over to the bench to find a pink-haired girl holding up a camera, that old drunkard Doburoku, Cerberus, a pig, and four bench players. For once, they had bench players.
The pink-haired girl suddenly started to make signs with her hands and Hiruma somehow understood. He chuckled and signaled back cheekily, causing her to grow irritated with him. She grabbed the kick tee sitting next to her and chucked it at him with a huff. He caught it in surprise. It was Musashi's kick tee.
"You aren't really planning to use a kick, are you?" a familiar voice behind him asked.
"Has that year and a half away from American football rotted your mind, fucking old man?" he snorted, turning to face his other best friend, Takekura Gen, aka Musashi. "With a fifty-four point gap, you think a mere seven points is gonna cut it? No fucking way. We're gonna run it."
The kicker merely grinned. The other Devil Bats that had gathered behind did the same. Without another word, each of them went into formation. Hiruma placed the kick tee down, called the snap and slammed the tip of the football onto the kick tee with his finger on the other tip. Musashi revved up to kick in a big one.
Seconds before the kicker's foot made contact with the ball, the blond grabbed the ball, rose to his feet and tossed it to the passing Twenty-One. He and Musashi then charged at the struggling line to back them up. Twenty-One followed right behind them and leapt for a dive.
"Aaaaand touchdown! Deimon's two-point conversion is a success! Suddenly getting a surge of strength, the Devil Bats have managed to secure eight points from the opposing team! With the score now at fifty-four to eight, we head into HAAAAAALFTIIIIIIME!"
"YAHA!" Hiruma roared happily as he and his team gathered at the bench.
His wide, demonic grin stuck on his face as he looked around at his teammates. They each grabbed a water bottle and some sliced honey-soaked lemons from the pink-haired girl, whom he now realized to be the team manager, and then scattered about the bench to take a rest.
It wasn't just him and Kurita on the field anymore. They had teammates. Musashi was back. The Devil Bats finally had a full roster a year and a half after its formation. Sure, with the numbers they had, they would have to run both offence and defense, but the blond boy had no doubt in his mind that they could do it.
Twenty minutes passed quickly. He gathered his team for a huddle before the kickoff.
"These bastards got fifty-four points on us, but not for long," he began with his wide grin. "In the next two quarters, we're going to take those points right back and then some! You better get your asses into gear, fucking brats! We got a ninety-nine percent chance of winning this game, so you better not fuck up and let them win with that one percent!"
"Oh!" they all shouted in response.
"Yeah… we won't just beat these bastards…" Hiruma inhaled as much as he could and then roared, "WE'LL KILL THEM! YAHA!"
"YAHA!"
And then, the buzzer sounded.
Hiruma's eyes snapped open. The alarm clock continued to buzz somewhere above his head and he moved to shut it up when a slender hand beat him to it. He heard a tired groan from Tatsuki next to him before she sat up and yawned widely. And then sneezed.
"Merry Christmas," she sniffed, crawling out of bed slowly. "How's your arm?"
He blinked for a moment before he realized that she was talking about the fractures he had gotten from the Hakushuu game. The blond boy cackled. "What do you think?"
Tatsuki cracked a small smile and sneezed again. "…today's the day."
"Go pop some pills before you get even worse," he nonchalantly responded, throwing the blankets off and getting up to get dressed. "And I better not catch you without some warm clothes at the game, Ruka, or I'm gonna ground you."
"Like you can do that to me," she sniffed again. She grabbed a set of thick clothes and moved to steal the bathroom before him. The girl paused at the door. "Onii-chan."
"What?"
"Win."
"Idiot. It's the Christmas Bowl. You bet your fucking bright basketball career that I'm gonna win it." Hiruma suddenly stopped, causing his sister to double back and look at him questionably. He gave her one of his wide, demonic grins. "No… you bet your fucking bright basketball career that the Devil Bats are gonna win it."
She smiled. "I'll do just that."
Tatsuki left the room and he cackled loudly.
Yeah. It wasn't just about him and Kurita anymore. If it was, they wouldn't have made it this far. They wouldn't have made it all the way to the fucking Christmas Bowl.
No. This time, it was about the Devil Bats.
I finally write something again after what seems like years! Well... it probably has been about at least two years since I last posted something. I have a lot of fanfics lying around waiting to be polished, but I doubt that would be happening soon.
ANYWHO, I got inspiration for this fanfic after reading Dreaming by RavageDarkness, so everything that you find here that mirrors his/her fanfic is credited to him/her. It's a very similar concept and I wrote it with the idea that the members of the Devil Bats were always there - Hiruma just needed to find them all. Also, the little bit in the beginning where Kurita says "against the twenty-two of them," for those who don't know, teams can switch players based on offense and defense, hence they could have at least twenty-two players playing in one game.
Uh... Oh yeah. Tatsuki. My OC. She is Hiruma's little sister, younger than him by three years and she possesses the physical talent that he lacks. A great basketball player, Tatsuki gets pulled into play selective American football games for her brother because of her abilities, with the higher-ups (reluctant) approval. Most of the time, however, she is just another spectator on the bench. She's also Hiruma's motivation. His nickname for her, as you have guessed, is Ruka.
That's it for this time - I hope I'll be able to post another fanfic soon.
Hope you enjoyed this.
Reviews are very welcome. :)