Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with The Prince of Tennis and own absolutely no rights to it. All credit goes to Konomi-san and the people who made this awesome manga possible!
The Princess of Tennis (version 1)
The Train Ride to A Long Way from Home
The lady at the Attendance desk was a dry, pasty woman who seemed to look at everything and everyone with distaste. When she saw Sakuno, she wrinkled her crooked nose and snapped, "And you are?"
"I-I…" Sakuno was too petrified to speak coherently and simply blushed and stuttered. "Um…my name…Ryuzaki. Sakuno Ryuzaki."
The woman muttered something under her breath and ran a finger down the clipboard.
"Eh…oh here you are. Sakuno Ryuzaki, 14 years old. Previously a second-year and Seigaku. You're here because you were part of a serious assault on a member of your school's tennis club." It wasn't a question.
"I-I…"
The lady sighed and put down the clipboard. Her sharp grey eyes sized up Sakuno's small frame. "You don't look like a thug, that's for sure. Oh well, appearances are deceiving. I'm sure that behind that cute face of yours you're wearing a delinquent's mask."
Sakuno couldn't find a response to that statement, and the woman obviously didn't expect one. She grabbed a sheet of yellow paper off her desk and tossed it to the girl. "Take that and go to room 3. And take your backpack with you if you don't want it stolen."
"Ah…hai. Arigato." Sakuno bowed quickly and hurried to the designated room. As she pushed pass two gun-carrying security guards, Sakuno caught a glimpse of her grandmother's back. For a fleeting moment, the chestnut-haired girl considered turning around and calling out to her.
Please, obaa-chan, don't leave me here!
Sumire Ryuzaki's reflection walked out the front door and into the street without looking back.
"Hey girl, you gotta problem?" One of the guards was looking at her suspiciously. Sakuno shook her head no and walked in.
The room was empty, bare like a cell. It was basically a cubicle with one door. Except cubicles weren't made out of iron and didn't have security guards positioned outside. Sakuno dropped her backpack on the ground and slumped to the floor. She tucked her knees under her chin and closed her doe-brown eyes.
Flashback
"Please obaa-chan, don't make me go there!" she had cried the morning her grandmother bluntly told her to pack a few things because she was leaving. "I'm sorry for what I did to Ryoma-kun. Please don't make me leave obaa-chan!" Sakuno begged, tugging at the woman's leg.
"Be quiet." Ryuzaki-sensei stepped away quickly and glared at her granddaughter, who was crying and kneeling on the bedroom floor. "You are not my granddaughter. I don't know you. Now pack. You have 5 minutes."
Five minutes later, Sakuno was dragged, still screaming, into the car and driven to the Juvenile Delinquent Reception Building. It was a large, iron, miserly structure, which did little to lift Sakuno's mood. Her grandmother pushed her out and shoved her into the JDRB.
"I hate you. I never want to see you again."
End Flashback.
"Ryuzaki-san? It's time to go." A surprisingly mild, kind voice interrupted Sakuno's reverie. She looked up in surprise. A middle-aged man standing in the doorway was talking to her. He resembled Fuji-senpai somewhat, with a calm smile and light brown hair. The only difference was that this man wore glasses.
"M-me?" The man nodded, motioning for her to follow him.
Sakuno debated on whether or not to go. Finally, figuring she had nothing to lose, she picked up her bag and obediently trailed after him out of the room
"My name as Yukito Ikatani, your escort, by the way," the man said as they walked down the crowded hall. Apparently, some big event was happening, because the hallway was jammed with people. "And you are Sakuno Ryuzaki, correct?" he added, smiling.
"H-hai, Ikatani-san."
Yukito laughed. "There's no need to be so formal, Ryuzaki-chan. It's not like you're going to prison or anything." He saw Sakuno's skeptical gaze and amended, "Well, perhaps that's not best way to put it. But still, I don't bite."
"Where am I going?" Sakuno asked. She looked around. "Is there some sort of assembly?"
"No, you're going on a train, didn't you know?"
Sakuno's hand tightened on the slip of yellow paper. "A train? To where?" Yukito frowned concernedly.
"Are you sure you want to know?" he asked. "Perhaps it would be better to wait-"
"I want to know now. I'm sick of not knowing what's going to happen to me." Sakuno was silent for a moment, surprised at her own audacity.
Yukito hesitated for a moment, and then said softly, "To the Tokyo Adolescent Correction Center."
"I beg your pardon, Ikatani-san?"
"It's juvie, of a sort," the man said quickly. "Children about as old as you are sent there to be, erm…corrected."
Sakuno was silent for a moment. "Sounds fun," she finally said, sarcastically. "How long?"
"As long as they see fit."
"Crap."
"Try to see the light in it, Ryuzaki-chan," Yukito said. They had stepped through a door and were standing on a bustling platform filled with rowdy-looking teenagers. "It should take no more than a year for you."
"Do you even know what I'm here for?" Sakuno asked drily.
A shadow crossed over Yukito's peaceful face and he murmured, "Assault on a member of your school's tennis team."
"Exactly. I don't think they're going to let someone with something like that get of the juvie in a year."
They were standing in front of the train now. Yukito nodded to the stationmaster, who let Sakuno on board.
"You're to go to compartment 124," the uniform-clad man said gruffly. "Nice to see you again, Yukito-kun. Still trying to help the delinquents, eh?" he added.
Yukito simply smiled good-naturedly and handed Sakuno her backpack. "Be good, all right? I'm sure it was all just a big mistake. You're a good person, Ryuzaki-chan." He held up a hand in farewell and walked away, soon disappearing into the crowds of people. The chestnut-haired girl watched him go thoughtfully.
Ikatani-san is a nice person…
"The train will begin moving in two minutes. All passengers, please be on board at departure time," an automated loudspeaker blared over the noise, startling Sakuno out of her thoughts.
"What an adventure," she mumbled to herself sarcastically. "Oh well, grin and bear it Sakuno. You can do this!" She marched determinedly into her segment of the train.
A few minutes later, the wheels began to turn and the train lurched forward on the track, going slowly at first but then moving faster and faster.
Sakuno was still searching for her compartment when she saw the platform being left behind her. Briefly, she pressed her face against the glass, staring at the onlookers, but her grandmother and the Seigaku students were nowhere to be seen. Sakuno watched helplessly as she rode way on the train, to a Long Way from Home.
