Disclaimer: I don't own Prince of Tennis, or anything similar to it. ^.^ ; The personalities of the characters are my friends', and the personalities of the original Prince of Tennis characters are theirs.

Chapter Three: Oishi's Secret

"I feel like something's out of place…like something's not right…" Kyoko said when the group was almost at the movie theater.

"Is it Fuji?" Eiji asked, pointing to Fuji who was spacing out.

"Hmm…could be…" Kyoko said, pondering what it possibly could be.

"I think you just want food," Sachi said.

Her and Momo were right outside the movie theater.

"Well, duh!" Momo exclaimed. "Why else would I be here?"

"You said you liked me, so I was taking you out because you finally stopped lying! We're not doing this anymore!"

"Wait, that's what the terms were to come here?! Did you want me to admit it?!"

"Yes! I was sick of you lying all the time! We all were. I thought you'd finally grown up and learned to deal with your problems!"

Momo laughed. "It's hard to deal with my problems when they keep coming back!" Momo said, pointing accusingly at Sachi.

Sachi took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I always thought we were very similar, but apparently not anymore. Well, I'm going to just go to Eiji's house to get Bombaclot. I'll see you later."

With that Sachi walked off, leaving Momo standing there confused.

The rest of the group arrived moments later.

"Momo! Where's Sachi? What did you do to her?!" Eiji exclaimed.

"She went to get her dog…" Momo said.

"To my house!" Eiji said, running off.

The rest of the group was a little confused, but they followed.

When they got there, Eiji burst through the door. "Mom! Where's Sachi?!" he exclaimed.

"She's sleeping on the couch, be quiet! She's had a rough day so I let her take a nap. Go play outside," Eiji's mother said, shooing him out.

Eiji walked outside and informed the rest of the group. "She's sleeping, so we can't go in there. I guess we'll just solve the mystery tomorrow!"

"What mystery, Eiji-sempai?" Momo asked.

"It's a secret! See you guys tomorrow at the tournament!" Eiji said, running back inside his house.

"I guess that's our cue to leave, too," Kyoko said, looking at everyone else.

Everyone waved at each other, and walked toward their houses.

Ryoma and Kyoko's houses were in the same direction, so they walked together.

"So, are you excited for the tournament?" Kyoko asked after a while of walking.

Ryoma fixed his hat. "I guess."

"I know you guys are going to win."

"Yeah…"

Kyoko quietly sighed and racked her brain for another topic, but came up empty.

"So…are you coming to the tournament tomorrow?" Ryoma asked, avoiding eye contact with her.

"Huh? Oh, of course. I wouldn't miss it," Kyoko said. "What time is it at?"

Ryoma smirked. "I'll just come and get you in the morning."

"Oh, are you sure you'll get up on time?" Kyoko said, smiling at Ryoma.

She knew he was known for oversleeping.

"Yeah, yeah. I will. Well, we're at your house, so I'll see you in the morning. Be ready by eight," Ryoma said, before continuing walking toward his own house.

Kyoko smiled at him as he kept walking, and then walked inside her house to get ready for bed.

The next morning at Eiji's house, Eiji was already ready and was waiting for Sachi.

Sachi was putting a leash on Bombaclot, but still wasn't ready to go. "I guess we have to go watch sweaty boys play a girly sport today, Bombaclot," she said, patting her head.

"Come on Sachi! I'm going to be late," Eiji said.

"I'm not ready yet. Just go and I'll catch up!"

Eiji sighed, but grabbed his stuff and walked out the door.

As he made his way to school, he passed by Ryoma, who was walking to Kyoko's house.

"Hey, Chibi-chan! Where are you going?" Eiji said.

"Huh? Oh…Eiji-sempai…I'm going to pick up Kyoko…"

"Ooh, Chibi-chan! Are you going soft on Kyoko-chan?" Eiji asked, pinching Ryoma's cheek.

Ryoma just stared at Eiji. "Eiji-sempai. Don't."

"O-kay! Well, I guess I'll see you two at school for the tournament!" Eiji said, continuing walking.

Ryoma smirked at him as he left, then walked up to Kyoko's front door, and knocked on it.

Kyoko answered it, and smiled at Ryoma.

"Hello," she said.

"Good morning," Ryoma said, fixing his hat.

She closed the door and the two made their way to Seigaku.

When they arrived, they waited outside for everyone else. They saw Eiji up at the front, stretching alone.

"Hey, Eiji!" Kyoko said, waving at Eiji, who looked up and waved back. "Where's Sachi?"

"She's still getting ready," Eiji said, flipping his hair to imitate a girl. "You girls always take forever…"

Kyoko smiled. "We can take quite a while. I hope she comes soon…the tournament is today, and it'd be a shame for her to miss it!"

Just then, Sachi walked up with Bombaclot. "Am I allowed to ditch out halfway through?" she asked.

"Like always," Eiji said, rolling his eyes.

"Okay, cool. I think I'll get a smoothie second half," she said, smiling.

"But…then you'll miss all of the tennis action!" Kyoko said.

"Right…tennis action…" Sachi said, laughing a little.

"Well, we'll let you know what happens," Kyoko promised, to which Sachi rolled her eyes.

Kaidoh walked up to the group and looked at Bombaclot. "Can I…pet her?"

Sachi handed Bombaclot to Kaidoh, who smiled a little when he pet her fur.

"Ha! You're such a girl, Viper! Petting a dog!" A voice said behind the group.

They turned and saw Momo walking up to them.

Bombaclot growled at Momo as he reached them.

"I like this dog…" Kaidoh said, nodding with approval at Bombaclot.

Kyoko nodded in agreement. "She knows who the bad guy is," she said, petting Bombaclot. "Good puppy."

"Hey!" Mom protested. "I am not bad!"

"Right Momo-sempai…" Ryoma said, smirking at him.

"We should head down to the courts now," Kyoko suggested.

"I think I'll get a Pink-star. Yeah, Pink-star smoothies are awesome…oh, I need to get water for Bombaclot in a little bit, don't let me forget!" Sachi said.

"Got it!" Eiji said, giving her a thumbs up sign. "You should bring me some, too! I forgot mine at home…"

"Even though we have a big tournament today?" Ryoma asked, looking at him in disbelief.

Eiji laughed and rubbed the back of his head. "I set it down, then went to brush my teeth…and by the time I was done, I forgot where I put it. Sachi was making me run late, so I had to go…"

Sachi was about to protest when Oishi walked up to the group. "Well, that's not good. I don't want you to pass out while we're playing."

"It'd take him half a second to be running around again, he'll be fine. You have no idea how little he sleeps at night," Sachi said.

"I get my full three hours!" Eiji objected.

"See what I mean? He's a freak. Give him ten minutes; it's like an hour long nap for a normal person."

Oishi smiled and patted Eiji on the back. "I've got some extra water just in case you need any. I know your stamina is good, but just to be safe."

"O-kay!" Eiji said, smiling.

"You're such a mother, Oishi-sempai," Ryoma commented.

"I'm just watching out for my partner," Oishi countered, smiling at Ryoma.

The group started toward the courts.

"So who are you guys playing first?" Kyoko asked.

"I don't know. Oh, I see Tezuka," Oishi said, pointing at Tezuka who was making his way over to the group. "Be right back…"

Oishi walked over to Tezuka, who looked at Oishi with a expressionless face.

"We've got a problem," Oishi said.

Tezuka just stared at Oishi. "What now?"

"Well…it's more like I've got a problem…it's…Sachi…"

"Not you, too…"

"No, at least, I don't think so…see…"

The rest of the group just looked on at them, wondering what they were whispering about.

"What do you think they're talking about?" Kyoko asked.

"Captain business?" Ryoma guessed.

"I doubt it. It's probably gossip!" Momo said.

"Oh! Oh!" Eiji said, running over to Oishi. "What's the gossip, Oishi??"

"There's no gossip. We were trying to figure out what order to play everyone. I had to whisper in case another team's manager is sneaking around."

"Aww..come on Oishi! You can tell me! What doubles partners talk about stays between doubles partners!"

"Really, Eiji, I don't know what you're talking about…" Oishi said.

"Fine! Be like that! I will find out!" Eiji said, giving Oishi a cunning smile before he ran off.

"Be sure to stretch before we play!" Oishi called out as Eiji ran.

Kyoko looked over and saw the team order boards. "Oh, so we're playing Hyotei first?"