AN: Thank you for your patients and upbeat reviews. For those of you who might be waiting for the next chapter of challenges vs. consequences, I will try to update it before school starts. Now, here is the next chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis, if I did then Sakuno would have shown up more than she did.

"Hi." (Ex: talking)

Hi. (Ex: thoughts)

Recap

"So you're the infamous mystery author for the most popular online story, 'What Hinders a Prince?,' Sa-chan." I look up to see Fuji-sempai looking at me with his eyes wide-open showing off his beautiful azure colored eyes.

"What!?" just about everyone yells.

Chapter 2

(Sakuno's POV)

Everyone started to crowd around us, and started to look over Fuji-sempai's shoulder, trying to get a better look at the journal and its content. The journal not only held a copy of the latest chapter but also a copy of the previous chapter, bits of story plot/character design; as well as the beginnings of the next chapter, that I was able to get done on the ride up here.

It was silent for a few moments, aside from a few murmurs, until everyone's heads turned to look at me with shocked looks on their faces. Everyone, even Ryoga, Sanada-sempai, and Ryoma-kun, had surprised expressions on their faces.

"Hey, I've heard of that story. It's actually pretty addicting once you start reading it." Ryoga said with a bit of amusement and curiosity in his voice. "Although, to find out that the infamous story, 'What Hinders a Prince?,' was in fact written by a thirteen-year-old girl, is kind of funny." he continues with a smirk on his face while barely containing his laughter.

His quiet laughter snaps Sanada-sempai out of his daze. He starts to scowl at Ryoga, then walks over to him and slaps him upside the head.

"Ow! Hey, what's the big idea?" Ryoga yells. Sanada just crosses his arms over his chest and continues to glare at Ryoga. Ryoga glares back and a glaring contest ensues. After about five minutes, where everyone is just standing quietly watching the two, Sanada-sempai breaks the silence.

"Sakuno-chan obviously worked hard on that story, and seems to like writing it, so as her sempai, we should be encouraging her, not down-grading her." Sanada-sempai says this with such an irked expression on his face that I start to blush.

I never thought I'd receive praise so soon after my secret was discovered, and least of all from Sanada-sempai!

"Sanada is right," Yukimura-sempai agrees, "Besides, quite frankly, I like the idea of having a character from a popular story being based off of me."

"Yeah, but not all the characters match up with who they are portraying. I mean, take my character, *Katsutoshi, he has this habit of sticking his pinky in his ear and cleaning then when he's bored. I mean, seriously, I SO don't do that." Niou says as he sticks his pinky in his ear and cleans them. Everybody just stares art him, with an incredulous look on their faces.

"What?" Niou asks confused as to why everyone was staring at him. I was trying to keep from laughing aloud.

This is just too funny. He isn't even aware that he actually does that!

"You just stuck your finger in your ear!" Akaya points at Niou accusingly, with a surprised look on his face.

"No, I didn't! What are you talking about?" Niou asks a little agitatedly.

"Yes, you did. You just stuck your pinky in your ear, and started cleaning them not just six minutes ago!" Akaya says incredulously, yet angrily.

"No, I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

"No, I did NOT!"

"Yes, you DID!"

"NO!"

"YES!"

"NO!"

"YES!" At this point, they were both yelling so no one noticed when my grandmother returned with our room keys. Therefore, it was quite a surprise when she suddenly yelled.

"SHUT UP!" Most everyone nearly jumped out of their skin and turned around only to come face-to-face with my angry, red-faced grandmother.

"What is the meaning of this? You lot are supposed to be here to relax, not tear each other to pieces! Not to mention that you're in public, not on the tennis courts, so start acting like civilized people and not like boorish, primitive *bakas!" my grandmother yells at them almost in one breath. Years of living with these out-bursts has left me, for the most part, immune to my grandmother's rants; yet, for everyone else, they were flinching with each venom-dripping, high-pitched word that left my grandmother's mouth. When she finally stopped for breath, everyone stood silently and unmoving, for fear that the slightest movement would set her off again.

Although, once grandma had regained her breath, she looked around at the group of teens and heaved a deep, exasperated sigh. This seemed to calm everybody down and released the tension in the air that had grown since my grandmother had started her little rant.

"OK. Now that we are all calm, what started the fight this time?" my grandmother questions in a subdued manner.

"Well, if you mean that started the commotion that lead up to Niou and Akaya fighting…that would be, finding out that Sakuno-chan is the author of 'What Hinders a Prince?'" replies Fuji-sempai, his eyes now closed.

"Huh? Is that all?" grandma asks with a somewhat incredulous expression on her face.

"What do you mean, 'is that all'?" asks Momo-sempai, and Eiji-sempai at the same time, while Fuji-sempai's eyes open wide in surprise.

"Oba has known I was the author of that story, since I started writing it. I mean, she was even the one to suggest that I post it on the internet." I say with a big smile on my face and a bit of laughter in my voice.

"What?!" most everybody yells. Then, everyone starts talking at once, bombarding us both with questions.

"All right, that's enough!" My grandmother has to yell over everyone, to get their attention and quiet down. "As much fun as this topic is, it is late and we all need our sleep. Now, why don't we go to our rooms, but I will warn you that since our group is so big, we will have to share rooms. In addition, they've given us the largest rooms here, so we will be able to stay four to a room. Sakuno, Ann, and Tomoka, you're with me; and I want Momo, Ryoma, Ryoga, and Horio to also room together. The rest of you can pair up as you please."

Once the groups were decided, we headed to our rooms; strangely enough, somehow Kaidou, Katsuo, Kachiro, and Zaizen ended up rooming together, we headed to our rooms. Our rooms were in the west wing of the ryokan, so that we wouldn't have to worry about being woken up early, not that some of us wouldn't be doing that anyway, and allow us to sleep in.

Once grandma, Tomo, Ann, and I reached our room, we immediately claimed our beds; we then unload our things and set about putting them away. When I was finished, I sat on my bed and watched as everyone else finished up, until Tomo spoke up.

"So…I've got a few questions for you, like why didn't you tell me you were the author of like the most amazingly popular cyber story ever written!"

"Yeah, that's what I would like to know. Why would you keep it a secret even from Tomoka, I thought you guys were like the best of friends?" wondered Ann as she too finished putting her things away. At these questions, I let out a deep sigh, which was when my grandma spoke up.

"Sakuno, why don't you go take a bath in the hot springs...Don't worry, I'll handle everything here."

As I nod my head and get up to leave my grandmother turns to Tomo and Ann and addresses them.

"Now, whatever questions you have for Sakuno, you can ask me. I was with Sakuno every step of the way during her writing period, and when she started uploading her story online, so ii should be able to answer any of your questions." my grandmother says with confidence. "Although, what questions I can't answer, you may ask Sakuno tomorrow, deal?"

"Deal." Both Ann and Tomoka say as I shut the door and head towards the hot springs, with my robe at hand.

o0o0o

Since I don't really know my way around this place just yet, and didn't want to get lost, I stopped and asked one of the workers here which way it was to the hot springs. She was more than happy to oblige and told me which way to go. She also told me that the hot springs were *roten-buro as well as single sex. I was happy to hear it because I double I could handle dealing with my *sempai-tachi. I hope that they will be better equipped to deal with it after they get a good night's sleep.

I am so lost in my thoughts that I barely even notice that someone was heading towards me from the direction of the hot springs. I nearly bump into them before I realize that someone was there. Thankfully, though, they put their hands on my shoulders to keep me from bumping into them and falling to the floor. This motion pulls me from my revere, and I look up into the face of Sanada. Sanada-sempai stares back at me for a few more moments before speaking up.

"What's wrong?" this simple question seems to fill me with relief, and lift a weight from my shoulders I didn't even know was there.

"Not much. I'm just worried about how everyone will react, now that they know that I'm the writer of that story. I am worried that they might make me stop writing, o-or that they w-will try t-to take c-con-control of it." As I get even more worried, and worked up, I start to stutter.

Darn my chronic stuttering, I wish I could be more like Tomo, that way I wouldn't be so shy and I wouldn't stutter. Then people would be able to understand me better, I just know it. Practically, the only time I feel like people truly understand me, is when I write my story. That's the main reasons why I even started writing that story, in the first place, and not even my grandmother knows this. I don't plan to tell her either, or anyone for that matter. They just wouldn't understand.

I am shaken from my thoughts as Sanada-sempai clears his throat. I didn't even realize that I had stopped talking, and was now staring at my feet. I look up, and see a slight pinkish tinge to his cheeks, as he starts talking again.

"*Tarundoru! They will come to terms with it, each in their own way. Also, I can assure you that they will not make you stop writing."

"How do you know?" I ask as hope fills my eyes. He stares at me for a few moments before stepping closer to me and placing his hand on my head.

"Because, writing this story makes you happy and they don't want to take away your happiness. We are your sempai; we are here to encourage and help you grow, not tear you down. Understand?" he says this as his eyes soften and a slight smile comes to his face.

"Hai!" I say cheerily as my own smile breaks across my face. At this, he rubs my head then walks past me, saying as he goes,

"Good, then stop worrying."

o0o0o

The next morning, I wake up early and sneak out to go for a walk. I didn't want to be around when everyone woke up, because I didn't feel like I was ready to face them just yet. The walk was quite relaxing, with the morning flowers just starting to open up. I keep walking for another hour, by then I think that everyone has woken up and finished eating breakfast.

As I start heading back to the main building, my assumptions are confirmed as I spot the tennis teams doing their early morning warm-ups before they start their practice.

I guess, even when you're on vacation, you still need to keep in shape. I just hope they still plan to take it easy; otherwise, there wasn't much point in this outing, since they are supposed to be relaxing after all.

All of a sudden, I hear some rustling in the bushes next to me. I stop to try to see what it is, when suddenly a dark shape jumps out at me. I let loose a scream that sends the tennis players running towards me.

"Ahhhhhhh!"

AN: If you have any suggestions on what to name the ryokan, please tell in your review or pm me. And/or if you have any characters that you want to see rooming together please feel free to tell me, and yes teams can be mixed together. Have fun and please R&R.

*Katsutoshi – to win cleverly

*Baka – idiot/stupid

*Roten-buro – outdoor hot spring

*Sempai-tachi – referring to more than one sempai

*Tarundoru – you're getting too soft