"Hey, Sakuno! Horio told me that Captain Tezuka showed up a little while ago to take over training for your grandmother's group. We have to decorate the cafeteria because the other coaches are letting us have a welcoming party. I'm going to gather up some streamers and paper for a banner sign so meet me there in about half an hour."
Sakuno got wrapped up in another discussion with the physical therapist and ended up being fifteen minutes late getting to the cafeteria.
"Sorry I'm late, Tomoka. Would you like me to help you with the banner or with the balloons?"
"I didn't find any balloons so you can start curling the streamers then color that part of the banner."
"Alright."
"The guys are going to have a talent show after we eat. Do you think Ryoma will sing or do some type of trick?"
"I don't know what he's good at other than tennis."
"So why do you keep disappearing?"
"I've been talking with the dietician and physical therapist to find new ways to support the team."
"Well, for you that's probably a better idea than cheering."
All the players seemed to enjoy the welcoming party. A few groups sang and Sakuno thought they did a very good job. Fuji pulled a tablecloth from under two place settings and Ryoma sang with a couple of the guys from the team. It went well and Tezuka enjoyed it which made Sakuno and Tomoka happy as they took down the decorations and cleaned up the cafeteria later.
The next morning Sakuno passed by the office and noticed Coach Sakaki writing the name Kikumaru on the dry-erase board. Eiji was the first one chosen to be on the invitational team and that afternoon Sanada and Atobe were also chosen. While serving dinner she tried to think of some way to encourage the team, something she could do to congratulate Eiji and help Oishi boost their morale.
"Um, Horio-san, do you know if the team is getting together this evening?"
"Yes, the captain called a meeting for all the Seigaku regulars in the dorm lounge."
"Thank you."
It didn't take long for her to get permission to make a special snack since she chose to make something quick and simple leaving no mess behind in the kitchen. Sakuno arrived at the dorm while everyone was still in the lounge.
"Good evening everyone. I brought a small snack to congratulate Kikumaru-senpai and I hope more of you make the team."
"Thank you, Ryuzaki-san."
Everyone reached for a lemon slice quickly leaving her with an empty plate.
"Good night everyone and please do your best tomorrow." Sakuno bowed and left smiling to herself.
"I like her support." Eiji licked honey from his fingers "It's better than hearing 'Eiji-sama!' every day."
"Mada,mada,dane."
Momoshiro rubbed his knuckles across Ryoma's head as Tezuka mentioned that someone ought to have walked Ryuzaki-san back since it was dark already.
"Fuji left right behind her." Inui adjusted his glasses and took a small notebook from his back pocket.
Tezuka noticed that half of the team frowned at this although he knew she was perfectly safe with him.
It felt good to show her support and know the gesture was appreciated so Sakuno was completely preoccupied with other things she might do for the team as her feet went from one circle of light to another along the deserted walkway.
"It's too late for you to be out alone." A low voice soft as velvet was directly behind her.
"Oh, Fuji-senpai, you startled me." She wished he'd say something else just to hear that deep gentle voice. It was unexpected coming from a boy who was only a head taller than her.
"Tomorrow will be our last chance to play again here."
"I will have time after 10:00 if that is all right with you."
After finishing her breakfast shift Sakuno headed to the training room with a few towels. Two voices stopped her just outside the open door; she didn't want to eavesdrop, yet she didn't want to skip any more duties although interrupting seemed so rude.
"His indifference is disappointing."
"Well, it isn't your decision, Momo."
"I'm not the only one that wanted to see them together."
"Why does it have to be him? He obviously doesn't feel the same way so why not someone a little older, but who is interested?"
"Why are we even talking about this? I asked you about Kirihara, An, don't change the subject again."
"You really don't think he's changed since the championships do you, Momo?"
"I haven't seen any evidence." There was a slight pause "Is he why you haven't spent any time with me until now?"
Skipping this particular job was suddenly a very good idea. Sakuno returned the towels to the store room, grabbed two water bottles and went around to the cement slab to wait for Fuji. She began a few warm-up exercises and stretches since she was early, stopping when she heard a noise behind her.
"I'm sorry, Fuji-senpai, I didn't bring my racket."
"I planned to use mine, anyway." He motioned for her to stand in front of him.
Like last time he wrapped his hand around hers to indicate the proper grip then put his feet near hers.
"Put your feet against mine and bend your knees a little."
Sakuno felt like she was surrounded by her upperclassman once she was in proper position. She also learned that two tennis balls fit into his front left pocket as he alternated between forehand and backhand hitting the same cinderblock each time.
When he suddenly caught the ball with his left hand and let go of her right hand she looked up at him wondering if they were done already. Fuji's eyes were opened in an expression she was only used to seeing when he figured out how to defeat an opponent then he looked at her and she noticed that his eyes were the same shade of blue as the picture of Mount Fiji on her calendar. Sakuno only saw them from the sidelines before and was so absorbed she didn't hear what he said.
"I'll take that as a yes." He gave the ball to her and asked "Underhand or overhand?"
"Um, overhand I guess." He was talking about serving, wasn't he?
"We'll practice without jumping so I don't step on your foot."
He wrapped his right hand over hers and slipped the fingers of his left hand through her left and began bouncing the ball. Fuji threw the ball straight up and swung before she stopped thinking about his eyes and concentrated on serving. It took several repetitions for her to become accustomed to tossing the ball straight up as well as the amount of force he used.
Later in the laundry room she looked at her hands thinking of the way Fuji placed his fingers between hers to toss the ball and the way his right hand wrapped around her grip on the handle. His way was so much better than when Ryoma tried to teach her and kept poking the back of her knees with his racket.
"Hey, Sakuno, where have you been? Coach Sakaki is going to announce the remaining team members during his closing speech. Come on!" Tomoka grabbed her hand and ran to the front steps of the school.
She was glad that Fuji made the team, yet was puzzled that Ryoma was only a stand-by. He was a better player than Kirihara so why did Coach Sakaki put him on the bench? Her grandmother was going to be thrilled with Eiji, Fuji and Ryoma anyway.
On the bus ride back Captain Tezuka had asked her if she needed to be walked home while Coach was in the hospital. She politely declined any assistance because everyone on the team had to work so hard. Sakuno was perfectly capable of getting home without a babysitter.
Sakuno stopped by the tennis courts after school the next day to see if there were any messages for her to take to her grandmother; however Inui reminded her that Coach Ryuzaki had forbidden them to visit as he poured something thick and mauve into several plastic cups.
"I already explained our new training menu and I will visit with her on Saturday to discuss the team's progress." Captain Tezuka eyed the cups suspiciously as he walked passed them.
"Hello, Ryuzaki-san" Syusuke took two cups nodding in thanks to Inui "If you have a moment I'd like to ask for a favor." He handed one of the cups to her and turned toward the nearest bench.
Sakuno sat next to her upper-classman and looked at the odd concoction. It smelled something like artificially flavored medicine, not something that she enjoyed tasting. He sat next to her watching the first year boys carrying balls to the practice courts as he took another sip.
"What was it you wanted to ask, Fuji-senpai?"
"I'm hoping that this isn't too much of an imposition for you, Ryuzaki-san. You see, this week my sister won't be able to pick me up until late so I won't get much dinner or have enough time to do my homework. Will it be too annoying for you if I did my homework at your house since my sister can pick me up there sooner than driving all the way to school?"
"Yes, of course, Fuji-sempai." It was the perfect way to show her support for Fuji-sempai. Knowing he needed to rest and eat well in order to do well at the invitational she thought of various snacks to fix for him as they headed to her house that afternoon.
"Please make yourself at home while I prepare some tea." She gestured toward the living room then bowed quickly before heading to the kitchen. Sakuno started the rice cooker, heated water for tea and then searched through the refrigerator for a snack that the training camp dietician might approve.
His text book and notes were spread out on the low kotatsu table by the time she came back with green tea and edamame. She gave him an extra plate for the soybean pods then retrieved her own backpack from the front entrance by the shoe rack. After finishing her history assignment she grabbed his empty cup and both plates "The restroom is at the end of the hall if you need to use it, Fuji-sempai. I'll be in the kitchen for a little while."
"Thank you for the snack Ryuzaki-san. It was very nice of you." His gentle smile reappeared as he looked up from his math problems.
Sakuno decided to make sweet and sour chicken for dinner because grandma still had some sauce left and got busy chopping carrots, peppers and an onion. She didn't notice Fuji standing in the doorway until she turned toward the refrigerator.
"Will you allow me to help you, Ryuzaki-san?" He pulled the stool out from under the counter by the sink and sat next to her work area apparently intent on watching her.
She was a little flustered by his proximity despite spending some time with him during the training camp; she recalled the way his hand covered hers as she held his racket and felt her face grow warm. "This is an easy dish, Fuji-sempai, just rest from Inui-senpai's new training."
They didn't speak much again until after dinner when she declined Fuji's offer to wash the dishes "It's to thank you for your hospitality, Ryuzaki-san. Is this the way you speak to an upper classman who is being polite?"
He made her feel like she was being rude when she was only trying to treat him like a guest. Sakuno bowed with her hands clasped together as she apologized and conceded to drying the dishes for him. His sister knocked on the door at eight and she and Fuji both thanked Sakuno again for allowing him to impose upon her.
Sakuno didn't mind the intrusion at all since it was pleasant spending time with him even if it was doing homework and washing dishes. She began the assigned reading for her science class; however the house seemed a bit too quiet now that he was gone so she turned the radio on low.
Wednesday morning Sakuno woke up earlier than usual to clean the living room and bath room to make him feel more comfortable this afternoon. Fuji met her at the front gate in front after school instead of the courts and he seemed to be tired so they walked together in silence after their initial greetings.
Sakuno dropped her backpack as soon as she unlocked the door then headed to the kitchen while Fuji set his back pack by the kotatsu table. When she came back with a protein smoothie for him he thanked her just as he had yesterday and went back to writing what appeared to be a research paper. She also had a paper to write for her Japanese literature class and twenty geometry problems.
Steamed vegetables and rice seemed like the best choice for dinner since it was easy for her and there would be fewer dishes to wash. When he joined her in the kitchen offering to help she was prepared with a banana, orange and apple for him to cut up to keep him from watching her and making her nervous. She glanced over at him every few seconds surprised that he peeled the apple and orange so well.
"I saved the extra pineapple juice from yesterday if you want to pour it over the fruit."
"We finished dinner and dessert at the same time." Fuji smiled at Sakuno.
She smiled back; it was nice having him in the kitchen with her even if their meal was very simple. After the dishes were cleaned and put away she went back to the living room to finish her geometry while he sat on the couch with another text book.
His scuffed white tennis shoe distracted Sakura from problem nineteen because he wore low socks that didn't cover the ankle exposed by his uniform slacks. She's seen him in tennis shorts countless times and knew exactly what his legs looked like underneath the school uniform. At training camp she'd even caught a glimpse of what was under the white shirt. He wasn't smiling; she knew from the way his brows were drawn together so it didn't matter that the thick book concealed the rest of his face. His left eyebrow arched drawing her attention to his straight brown hair. It was too long for school standards, yet he didn't seem to get in trouble for it. Sakuno wondered if his wispy bangs were as soft as they looked or if they were as coarse as she expected boys' hair to be.
"Saa, if you use the same procedure for nineteen as you did with problem fifteen you should be able to find the degree of the angle." Syusuke drew her attention back to her homework wondering if the shy sweet first year had really just checked him out.
Sakuno's eyes instantly returned to her paper and she tried to finish the problem quickly despite how hot her face felt. At least he thought she had trouble with her homework and didn't know she'd behaved so inappropriately toward a respected upperclassman and genius of the regular tennis team.
Saturday morning Sakuno met Tomoka at the street courts. The invitational was tomorrow so Sakuno hoped few players would be there giving her a chance to practice. Tomoka waved to An who was stretching with Momoshiro before their weekly game then took a new can of balls out of her bag "Sakuno, you can serve first."
"I will do my best." Sakuno finished her warm-up exercises and took one of Tomoka's balls. She got into position and pretended Fuji was standing over her. She put her feet next to his imaginary ones bounced the ball twice then threw it up with his left hand laced in hers and swung with his right hand wrapped around hers.
Tomoka was shocked when the ball flew over the net and ran to where it bounced. She didn't know how or when her best friend figured out how to hit, but it was much more fun playing against her now. By the time they finished their second set some of the regulars and a few guys from St Rudolf's were waiting to use the court so the girls stepped aside for them.
Syusuke Fuji and Kunimitsu Tezuka arrived as Tomoka headed for the vending machines to get something for them to drink. Sakuno bowed to them in greeting when they reached the top of the steps on the opposite side from the bleachers where their teammates were waiting. "Fuji-senpai, thank you so much for helping me to play better. Tennis is much more fun now."
"You're welcome, Ryuzaki-san. Thanks to you I also have something that makes tennis more fun."
Kaido, Momoshiro and Kawamura wondered what Fuji said to Sakuno that made her blush as she yelped and ran off. It was easy to fluster the coach's granddaughter, but when Fuji's sharp blue eyes followed the girl the three did not trust his motives.
Captain Tezuka couldn't pin point exactly why the team seemed to be dividing. Kikumaru, Echizen and Fuji were concentrating on the Junior Invitational Tournament, but something had been off ever since Fuji began walking Ryuzaki-san home. He asked Oishi to walk with the girl until Coach was out of the hospital which seemed to solve the problem.
Ariake Coliseum had a retractable roof so it was the tennis stadium chosen for the tournament; rain was expected. Sakuno sat between Momoshiro-senpai and Tomoka watching the American tennis machine try to seal Fuji-senpai's tsubame gaeshi. His higuma otoshi won't work against this opponent and the hakugei requires wind power, not possible since the roof was closed. Sakuno gripped her knees wondering what he'd do without his triple counters. It was a long difficult game, but then Arnold forgot to avoid giving Fuji a smash shot who promptly used it to win with a higuma otoshi.
Coach Sakaki chose Kirihara Akaya to play against Kevin Smith in the singles 1 match. Kirihara began the match with Kevin, a short blonde who wanted to face Ryoma because Ryoma's father defeated his own dad so easily. Kirihara slammed into a net pole to keep from losing a point which injured his right shoulder too much to continue. Ryoma had to finish the match. Kevin spent a lot of time researching and mastering all of Ryoma's moves so it was almost like playing against himself. How was Ryoma going to defeat Ryoma? With cyclone smash and knowing that phantom balls have no shadow.
When Coach Ryuzaki is released from the hospital the team planned a surprise party for her. Sakuno picked her up and was supposed to take a taxi back to their house and then come to the school after about half an hour. Kaoru followed the taxi to keep the rest of the team informed of the coach's progress via hand held radio which was a fortunate precaution when Coach Ryuzaki fouled up the party preparations by telling the driver to drop them off at the school. When Kaido updated the team on their new arrival time all decorations are removed from the practice court and everyone ducked for cover.
Tomoka almost blew the surprise by showing up at the court with a bouquet of roses; however Sakura quickly made up a lie that the tennis team regulars were trying to expand their skills by incorporating other sports to create new power shots. Sakuno isn't sure whether she's more shocked that she lied to her grandmother or that the coach didn't catch on to her fib.
Oishi turned to the rest of the team who obviously didn't want to participate in other sports even for an hour. "Ryuzaki-san is right. We all need to create new power shots and if other sports can help us then this is as good a time as any."
"Then we have no choice." Momoshiro was still decidedly unenthused despite the fact that the girl was right.
"Yup." Ryoma nodded as they all disbursed leaving Oishi to set up the tables and hang decorations from the chain link fence with Tomoka.
After checking out the badminton, basketball, and table tennis teams Coach Ryuzaki let Sakuno know that she already figured out that the tennis team was planning a party for her. This was the first time her granddaughter lied to her so she let it slide because it was for the team. Maybe they really will create new power shots after today. She loudly proclaimed the need to rest in the teacher's lounge for an hour giving them time to prepare. Tezuka showed up a little late and let them know he was now fully healed and was going to play in the national tournament.
The coach and captain decided to have another ranking tournament for the tennis club to see who qualified to be a regular for the national championship. Tomoka and Sakuno arrived after the first matches to cheer for the nine players that had been regulars until now. According to Inui's notes one of the regulars would have to be dropped.
Fuji saw the girls sitting by the ranking board and invited them to watch Oishi and Kawamura. Sakuno stood by Ryoma at the chain link fence listening to the other player's assessment of Oishi's strategy. In three years of being in the tennis club Kawamura had yet to defeat the doubles champion, but he did it that afternoon.
Ryoma requested a forfeit during his match with Momoshiro. It would count as Momo's victory, but it made the second year angry enough to jump over the net and lift his best friend by the collar. The team ran over to separate them, Fuji grabbing Momoshiro's arm and Eiji held him back while Kaido stepped between the two best friends and splashed Momo with his water bottle.
The first year spent the next few hours re-thinking his decision not to go to America to play in the US Open with a little help from the captain. Momoshiro talked with the coach about Ryoma's forfeit and whether he should play in the nationals. The two friends decide to play a rematch and although Ryoma won he decided to play in the US Open instead.
Fuji looked at his wet face in the mirror above the bathroom sink. "Everyone calls me genius and yet I still can't think of another counter." He asked his older sister to drop him off at Tokyo Tennis Club so he could use their serving machine. When the other machines became available he used all three at once trying to prepare for moves that might not even be humanly possible.
Sakuno watched the sunrise at the local park thinking about Ryoma leaving. Tomoka joined her and the perpetual cheerleader reminded them both of the fantastic opportunity this was for him and the fact that he was only participating in a tournament, not moving away forever.
Kaido went to visit Ryoma and challenged him to a game using the court in his back yard. Kaoru didn't want the kid leaving Japan without tasting defeat first and didn't hesitate to use boomerang snake. When Ryoma's racket went flying out of his hand Viper walked away saying he'd save the rest of the match for when Ryoma returned.
At the airport Tomoka, Horio and Katou began cheering loudly for him from the top level on the concourse so Oishi ran up the escalator to stop them from irritating other travelers. Horio and Katou gave him various messages from the team, Kawamura gave him special recipe soy sauce that got Inui's attention, Momoshiro handed him his favorite grip tape and Inui decided to share all the data he'd collected on the first year since the day he joined the tennis club. Fuji mentioned that if they took those notebooks to other schools they'd get a lot of money and everyone gaped at him.
"I was only kidding."
Sakuno didn't arrive until 3:04 and thought she'd missed his flight until she heard a familiar voice.
"You came too late. Planning is bad. Your hair is too long."
She faced Ryoma even though she was blushing from his alternative to mada, mada, dane. "The length of my hair is-" She was interrupted by Eiji whistling at them.
Kikumaru took his fingers from his mouth when the pair turned toward him. Momoshiro wiggled his eyebrows as Inui wrote in a notebook. Fuji said that it was good Sakuno made it while Kawamura yelled for Echizen to get closer.
Sakuno tried to explain why she was late, but it was hard to hear over the team's catcalls. "You said the other day that you wanted that tennis ball, the one I drew your face on, so I made this for you."
Ryoma looked at the words No. 1! Nationals no.1 "It's not about the nationals though." This wasn't what he wanted from her.
"It's about the whole world and you being number one."
Well if she was going to put it that way he'd accept it. "Thank you."
He was going to the US Open and no one from the girls' team will practice with her. There was a whole world in between them. "Fight, Ryoma!" Sakuno called out.
He held the ball up in response as he boarded the plane.
Fuji walked out of the airport with the rest of the team until Tezuka stopped him "You won't hold a grudge, will you?" Not that the captain actually thought Fuji planned to sell Echizen's information, but this might cause another rift in the team.
The genius cupped his right elbow in his left palm resting the edge of a finger against his chin as though seriously thinking about the captain's question. "A person's first crush fades with time and first love doesn't last. That is not what I want."
At the national tournament Ryoma arrived from America just in time to play against Higa middle school and had a difficult time defeating his opponent in singles 1. Fuji and Kawamura played doubles and won at the last moment with Fuji's fourth counter kagerou zutsumi, dragon fly, which returned the ball with no spin.
Atobe arrogantly bet Ryoma that he'd shave his head if he lost. Ryoma took Tezuka's position as the team's pillar of strength during his match with Atobe and then approached him with hair clippers despite protests from the Hyotei team. Atobe grabbed the clippers and cut his long grey hair because he was a man of his word no matter what.
Fuji revealed the final counter during his singles 3 game, hecatoncheires no monban, gatekeeper, which Shiraishi, Shitenhouji's Captain hit easily. None of his return shots went over the net though until the score was 6-5. Fuji lost to someone other than Tezuka for the first time.
Seigaku faced Rikkai Dai in the finals instead on Hyotei as they had been expecting. Vice-Captain Sanada was against Tezuka, a match everyone had been waiting three years to see. After a long grueling battle Tezuka lost to Sanada when the ball balanced on the top of the net for a minute before falling backward.
There wasn't much noise at Kawamura Sushi Restaurant that evening because there was nothing to celebrate; it was the last time they'd all play together as a team.