DISCLAIMER:
Me: I DO NOT OWN METAL FIGHT BEYBLADE OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTERS. It's been two months after Rago and Nemesis' defeat, and all's pretty good in Metal City... Meh. Lets just cut to the chase.
Kenta sped along the sidewalk towards the B-Pit, his heart racing with hope.
Please, please, please... he prayed.
He burst into the shop, panting. "Madoka, have you-"
"No, Kenta, I haven't found any information on Ryuga yet." Madoka sighed. "And if I had, you'd be the first to know."
Tournament records - that was what Kenta was after. If Ryuga was alive, and had somehow obtained a new Beyblade, he would be in a tournament. If not, there would have to be reports of strange lights or explosions.
Anything would do, Kenta thought.
"Kenta," Gingka said. "You've been asking that almost every day." It was the first time he had spoken up about how uncomfortable his friend's obsession was.
Kenta sat down on the ground and bowed his head. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "It's just that... I just can'tbelieve it's been two months since he... disappeared. I miss him so much." He was itching to venture off into the wilderness again - training endlessly, struggling to stay on a trackless path.
He could do that... he could storm out of the shop and make his way to the distant mountains and forests, but he didn't. It just wouldn't be the same without Ryuga. Kenta knew that. He wasn't happy about the fact that Ryuga could no longer be at his side, but he wasn't stupid. He knew that Ryuga probably wouldn't come back.
Gingka exchanged a sad glance with Madoka.
Kenta frantically beat the counter with his fist, already knowing what they were about to say. "He's not dead! He wouldn't die so easily!" He felt like he was about to throw a very rare tantrum, which has not happened for years.
"How do you know that?" Madoka murmured.
Kenta's brown eyes were shining with unshed tears. Gingka embraced him, trying to comfort his friend. "Don't be upset, Kenta; I'm sure that he's out there somewhere. There's a reason why he gave you his Star Fragment, and that's because you're an amazing blader!"
Kenta blinked back his tears forcefully. "You really think so?"
"We know so, Kenta," Gingka told him.
"It's impressive that he had let you train with him," Madoka said. "He must've seen a lot of potential in you! I know I have!"
Their words were comforting, but Kenta knew that nobody would be able to mend the gap in his circle of friends. So he just nodded and stood up. "I'm gonna go and train." Because there was nothing that made him feel more connected to Ryuga than an intense training session.
"Okay." Gingka smiled at him. "I'll go with you."
"No thanks." Kenta sighed halfheartedly. "I want to be alone." He trudged out of the shop, pretending not to notice his friends' concerned faces.
After an hour of treacherous training, the green-haired blader sighed, withdrew his Flash Sagittario from the Bey Stadium, and sighed. He stared at his Beyblade - still slightly warm in his palm - and wondered if he truly was worthy of wielding such a powerful Legendary Bey. The tall spin track made it quite difficult to grasp the golden top properly, but Kenta was used to it.
Ryuga: His traveling companion... teacher... partner... friend... had died giving the power of this Beyblade to Kenta. But the Sagittario-wielder was still uncertain, uneasy; Was his sacrifice worth it? he thought.
Now that Rago was defeated, there was no danger in the world - and everyone was able to relax... for the moment. Who knew when disaster will strike again?
If - no, when - it does, would he be ready for it? He would.
Kenta tightened his grip around his Beyblade, feeling the all-too-familiar surge of determination flow through him, giving him a fresh burst of confidence. "I won't burden my friends with this," he said aloud. "I have to move on."
He let out a shaky breath and made his way towards the audience seats. It was harder than he had thought it would be. He knew that it was impossible to forget Ryuga - his flashing yellow eyes proud and cold, his unmistakable white and red hair (much like the Japanese flag), as well as the aura of power and superiority that he had always managed to weave around himself.
He stood out in a crowd.
People feared him - respected him. Admired him.
Ryuga was - in his own way - unique. And very much unforgettable.
He was caring in an odd, distant sort of way. Although he and Kenta had never spoken much in their travels, without saying anything, they had become a team. They memorized each other's battle styles, and body language. They had grown so accustomed to each other's company that words were not needed for them to be able to cooperate with each other.
Kenta just sat there - seemingly rooted to his seat - for several minutes.
"Kenchi!"
The mentioned blader turned to the right. "Oh. Hi, Yu, Tsubasa."
His fellow bladers plopped down to his left, Yu the closest. "Are you done training, Kenchi? Do you wanna battle?" Flame Libra's owner bounced up and down on his seat, dark emerald-green eyes sparkling in excitement.
Kenta shook his head as politely as he could muster, a little peeved that his silent brooding was interrupted so loudly.
"No thanks, Yu," he said. "I'm a little tired."
Yu's smile vaporized. "Oh. Okay." Then, that grin popped back onto his face. "What about later?"
"Yeah," Kenta murmured. "Later."
His friend's blond eyebrows furrowed in thought. "You're still sad about what happened to Ryuga, aren't you?" he asked, putting a hand on Kenta's shoulder.
Tsubasa angled his head towards the two smaller boys, his dark gold eyes plainly displaying concern.
"Mm-hm," the green-haired blader admitted.
"I'm sure he's alive!" Yu chirped, swinging his feet. "Ryuga's not the kind of guy who could be taken down so easily! You shouldn't give up!"
"I haven't." Kenta was lying through his teeth. He had already given up.
Yes, Kenta was determined. But he couldn't keep going forever - especially if the chances of Ryuga being alive were one in a million. It was impossible for someone to disappear into thin air without the help of a Bey. L-Drago had disintigrated. Without L-Drago's help, Ryuga wouldn't have been able to disappear like he always did.
There was only one explanation - the Dragon Emperor was dead.
Get over it, Kenta.
Yu grinned at him. "That's good. You should never lose hope. Well, of course you wouldn't - you're Kenta! Determined... I bet a dozen ice-cream cones that that's why Ryuga let you travel with him before he disappeared." He beamed as if that fixed everything.
Which it didn't.
Yu just made him feel worse, mentioning the reason why Ryuga had started training with him in the first place. Knowing that he had violated that treasured fact by giving up on Ryuga left a bitter taste in Kenta's mouth.
He resisted the urge to strangle Yu. Sometimes, it was truly hard to maintain a friendly demeanor. "What did you come here for, anyway?" he asked, putting on his usual mask of optimism and trying to get rid of the conflicted feelings bouncing around in his head.
"Gingka said that you were going to train," Tsubasa said. "so we checked every training place around."
Kenta gritted his teeth.
"We're all worried about you, Kenchi," Yu said. "Come back to us. I'm not saying that we're gonna try and replace Ryuga, but..." His voice faltered.
The trio was silent, each submerged in their own thoughts.
Kenta closed his eyes and let the tears flow once again. He was always so emotional when it came to his friends.
"Kenchi?" Yu wore an expression of vivid shock on his face. He rubbed his friend's back, trying to soothe him. "Don't cry, Kenchi."
Of course, that only made him cry harder.
Do you guys think that I should continue?
