One Step
Written by: Kiasidira Ixari
I'm on a writing spree right now. Hmmmm… I'm maintaining two stories right now, including this story, but this story goes on a faster pace than the other one. The other one I only need to update weekly, but this one I update every 2 or 3 days. We keep it fast. You guys like it better that way anyhow, don't you?
Buiii.
REVIEW PLEASE! The reviews keep the writer going.
To Liek-san: First and foremost, thanks a lot for the review. I'm glad that you took the trouble to review my story even if you're "too lazy to log in" as you had said. Anyways, personally, I really can't decide as well, and that is why I'm going with what the readers want. The problem with me is that I'm okay with all of these pairs. I can manage all of these pairs too, since I'm used to wiggling my way around different pairs and avoiding conflicts. That's why I'm asking the reader's opinions. It's just my indecision, that's all. And the characters… well, I try my best to keep them in character. Everyone does. It's just that some people just don't get the flow of the character at times. I'm glad you like the characterization! Thank you so much for the review. I didn't know how to reply to you, since you were on anonymous, so I just put an insert here.
Thanks a lot to those reviewers who bothered reviewing the last few chapters! My fic has climbed a hundred reviews in less than two weeks, and I am SO surprised. Thanks a lot, you guys! Extra treat for you guys this chapter, there are lots of shockers!
Note: I'm so sorry about grammatical errors. It seems my writing skills are slipping a bit here, so I need to polish up again. Anyhow, please do bear with me! I'll try to read and reread each chapter before posting so that there will be lesser grammatical errors! Thanks a lot for your consideration!
Warning: Some spoilers for the manga and anime OVA ahead.
Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer applies. In addition, I do not own or hold any authority over DoCoMo Group, P&G, Life Card, Shiseido, Kobayashi Seiyaku and Yonex. I rightfully disclaim. I am merely using the names in this chapter.
Step Six: Fudomine Style
(Revised Version)
In the end, Fuji's older sister provided them with a ride. Well, the sushi, at least. The rest of them had to walk, because there were far too many of them and there was no way they would fit inside the small black car.
"Why did Tachibana-san leave right away, Fuji?" Oishi asked as they walked on. Only the whole team was left together. Horio, Katsuo, Kachiro, Tomoka and Sakuno all went home after taking some sushi from the trays, since it was starting to get dark.
"He said they still had to practice for an upcoming exhibition match with Midorigaoka," Fuji explained. "Kamio just happened to have left his rackets in the street courts' locker rooms yesterday so he, Shinji and Ann dropped by with Kamio. Sakurai and Ishida were also waiting for them back at school."
"Sou," nodded Oishi.
"Neeee, Oishii, isn't Midorigaoka the elite tennis school?" Eiji remarked thoughtfully.
At the mention of "elite tennis", Ryoma's ears perked up, his head lifting in rapt attention visibly even if it was only a few centimeters. Tezuka's lips curled the slightest upwards, noting the behavior of the team's only freshman.
"Aa. They're the team who beat Rikkaidai Fuzokukoto in last year's Nationals," confirmed Oishi.
"Rikkaidai Fuzokukoto?" Ryoma repeated interestedly.
"Rikkai Daigaku Fuzokukoto is in the same district as Rikkaidai Fuzokuchuu. They are sister schools as well. The three most well-known middle schools here in Tokyo have sister high schools. This lessens the pressure on the parents of the students during middle-to-high school transition, as well as maintains the reputation of the school by retaining the good students, because schools retain the same names, like our school. Seishun Gakuen Chuu Gakkou and Seishun Gakuen Koto Gakkou. Then there's Hyotei Gakuen and Hyotei Koto Gakkou."
"Sou ka," nodded Ryoma. "So Seigaku for the middle-class but smart people; Rikkaidai for the sophisticated, famous and athletic; Hyotei for the rich and powerful. That explains much."
"Well, not all are smart," Eiji pointed out recklessly. "Take Momo for example."
"Hey—"
"Oh, yeah, I forgot that!"
"You're too cruel!" wailed Momoshiro, crumpling in one corner.
Ryoma snorted. "Oh, get over it, it's true anyways," he waved dismissively, turning back to Inui. "So? Who are the players of Rikkaidai, then? Are they the same team?"
"This year, yes," Inui nodded. "I have confirmed it through Renji. Last year, Akaya Kirihara was only a freshman and by the rules, freshmen are not allowed to enter the line-up for the Nationals team of Rikkaidai. Of course, Kirihara didn't want to go down without a fight, but Yukimura placated him by some unknown method that I would particularly like to research."
"Heeeeh, so they're the same team too," smirked Ryoma. "This makes things interesting," he remarked as they entered Fuji's front yard, the tensai heading straight towards the front door and pulling out his keys. But before he could even insert the keys, the door was pulled open a bit harshly, revealing a harassed-looking and disgruntled Yuuta glaring murderously.
"Y-Yuuta?"
"Ittekimasu!" (1) he yelled into the house, storming past his elder brother and through the crowded front yard.
"Eh—matte, Yuuta! Where are you going?"
"School! Stupid Mizuki-buchou requested a sudden meeting out of the blue!" Yuuta yelled as he started running back towards the bus stop, checking his watch.
Fuji sighed. "Ever since he beat Mizuki, he's been calling him 'stupid Mizuki-buchou'. Sengoku mentioned something about a bet involved with the match, but I'm not sure what it was. What I'm sure is that it had something to do with Yuuta's sudden name-calling."
"Matte, matte, rewind," Ryoma said. "Mizuki is a captain."
Fuji nodded absently, letting them into the house as he removed his own shoes.
"And Sengoku… what does he have to do with anything?"
"Sengoku transferred to St. Peter's Center for Learning," explained Fuji.
"St. Peter's…"
"Center for Learning, yes," Inui nodded. "A school that is co-managed by the owner of St. Rudolph. The owner is a British-American, so the names are… well, recurring."
They moved into the spacious living room, and Kawamura moved into the kitchen with Oishi to prepare the sushi from the trays, which were dropped off by Fuji's older sister.
"Onee-san, are you going out again tonight?" called out Fuji towards the stairs, his voice carrying to the second floor.
"Hai!" his sister yelled back. "I'm getting dressed right now! I'm leaving the house to you, okay?"
"No problem!" Fuji yelled back, before turning to his friends again. "There, we have the house all night."
"Yatta!" Eiji exclaimed, dive-bombing into the soft couch.
"Ryoma, shouldn't you call home first? Your dad will get worried," Tezuka suggested silently, ever the careful buchou.
Ryoma nodded, turning to Fuji. "Fuji-senpai, can I use your phone?"
"Here," Fuji smiled, pushing the speakerphone on the living room side table towards him. "Yuuta seems to have misplaced the wireless phone somewhere again, so you'll have to use the speaker."
Ryoma nodded, pushing the green button and dialing his home number rapidly. He motioned for his Eiji and Momoshiro to stay quiet as the phone started ringing.
After two rings, someone picked up. A singsong voice came.
"Moshi moshi, Reika-chan, sorry I couldn't call you back earlier, I was a bit busy!"
There was silence.
Massive sweatdrops.
A throbbing vein.
"BAKA OYAJI!" Ryoma positively roared, startling Oishi, who dropped the knife on his own finger and started yelling in pain.
"Itai, I cut myself!"
"Nani?!?!? Nya, Oishi, daiiiijouuuubuuuu? Aibou!!!!" Eiji frantically wailed, rushing towards Oishi and pulling Oishi's finger towards his mouth.
"A-Ah, Eiji What are you doing?!" Oishi exclaimed, trying to pull his finger out from Eiji's mouth.
"Wohooo, Eiji-senpai, that's hot!" Momoshiro cheered heartily, laughing his ass off. Kaidoh looked away with a red face and Inui started scribbling away madly. Fuji simply chuckled in amusement, settling beside Tezuka on the smaller, three-seat couch. Kawamura started cleaning the blood-spattered sushi and the bloodied knifeboard, while Tezuka simply sighed.
"Ou, seishounen! Nanda, it's only you? I thought it was someone more interesting…"
"Like Reika-chan?!" sneered Ryoma. "I'll tell okaa-san where you hid your precious Playboy Magazine Special French Edition."
"O-O-OI, SHOUNEN! YOU WOULDN'T DARE!"
"Oh, I would, if you start annoying me any further," Ryoma threatened, smirking in triumph. He knew his father's weakness better than anybody else did (well, except for his mother).
"What do you want anyways?!" roared Nanjiroh, apparently pissed off.
"I'll be home late. I won't be eating dinner," Ryoma sharply tacked.
"Fine," came Nanjiroh's sulky voice from the other side. "Don't blame me if your mother goes ballistic."
Ryoma rolled his eyes, knowing that his father was bluffing. There was no way Rinko would discourage going along with friends; the Echizen matriarch thought that Ryoma was far too much of a loner and reckoned that he should socialize more. "And make sure you feed Karupin," he added in a silent voice.
"I won't forget that; he'll scratch me to death," Nanjiroh deadpanned.
"Hell yes, he will," snorted Ryoma triumphantly. "My Karupin is very smart."
Nanjiroh grumbled some incomprehensible cursing from the other side, before saying, "Ah yeah, Kevin called. He was asking for you."
"I'll just call him back later then," muttered Ryoma, wondering what Kevin wanted this time. "Ja."
"Hn, ja. Be careful on your way home, we don't want you injured. Minna-san, please take care of my little champion here, okay? I'm counting on you all!"
Then the line went dead.
Silence.
"Baka oyaji," Ryoma grumbled, walking over and sinking into the couch between Tezuka and Fuji before crossing his arms and huffing like a child. His face morphed into a big pout. "He's so annoying."
"Come on, your dad obviously loves you very much!" Fuji doted.
"Fuji-senpai, shut it."
Fuji still doted nonetheless.
"So? Did anything else happen while I was away?" Ryoma snapped expectantly, snatching an eel sushi from the tray Kawamura just set down on the living room table. A red-faced Oishi placed a pitcher of juice on the table, followed by a tray of glasses, before sitting down beside a bouncing Eiji.
"Well…" Inui started, hitching his glasses higher up his nose. "…almost all of the Rokkaku players moved on into Akayama Gakkou, except for except for Kisarazu-san and Shudou-san. Kisarazu-san went to St. Peter's with his twin brother, and Shudou-san, from what I've heard, moved to Fukuoka with his family."
"Sou," nodded Ryoma disinterestedly. He wasn't really very interested with the Rokkaku team, since it reminded him of that loud first year he had to play years ago. He picked up a glass, poured himself a decent amount of tea, and drank up.
"And Atobe-san has an intimate relationship with Akutagawa Jiroh-san."
At this, Ryoma choked, coughing and heaving to clear his airway. Fuji, Momoshiro and Eiji laughed as the younger boy bent over and tried to remove the liquid from his airway. Fuji rubbed a soothing palm over Ryoma's back as he straightened up, taking deep calming breaths.
"You did not just say that."
"I did."
Ryoma was silent and wide eyed for a moment.
"Inui-senpai."
"Hai?"
"Explain to me how the HELL Akutagawa-san stands that pompous ass of a bastard!"
Inui shifted his glasses once more and sighed. "I am saddened to inform you that there is currently no data in my system regarding that particular matter."
"Maa, no one really knows, Ryoma," Fuji smiled, petting the shocked freshman's head gently like one would to a pet cat. Ryoma instinctively leaned towards the soft touch. "I guess Jiroh-kun has some bizarre way of being immune to Atobe-san."
"I would worship him if he shares that knowledge," Ryoma muttered under his breath, but the others did not hear him.
"Ne, Fujiiii," Eiji started, snatching another sushi from Momoshiro's tray.
"OI!" Momoshiro yelled indignantly.
"Hmm?" Fuji smiled.
"My sushi!"
"That's the reason why Atobe-san is always after your neck, you know," Eiji remarked as he munched.
"No, my sushi!"
"What reason?" Fuji repeated innocently.
"Eiji-senpaaaai!!"
"You call Akutagawa-san 'Jiroh-kun' all the time. No wonder Atobe-san's always eager to wring your neck," Eiji said after swallowing, leaving Momoshiro weeping for his lost sushi.
Fuji simply chuckled, opening his eyes a tad bit, enough to let through a hint of steel blue. "Maa, no matter how much he wants to do it, he won't be able to get to me, that I'm sure of."
There was ultimate silence following his statement.
Eiji shivered. "Mou, Fuji, close your eyes!"
Fuji chuckled lightly behind his hand, closing his eyes once again and transforming from his "avenging angel" image to his "innocent angel" persona once more. He always liked that feeling of surging power whenever people would shiver and submit under his mere gaze.
"Such a sadist," grumbled Ryoma, shaking his head as he popped another bite-sized sushi into his mouth and chewed carefully. "So? Any other developments you would like to tell me about, Inui-senpai?"
"Apart from the unconfirmed intimate relationship between Sanada Genichirou and Yukimura Seiichi, nothing else."
"Ah, well that one's not that all surprising. Sanada-san's obviously completely into his captain, so there's no mistake about that. I wonder who's the seme, though…" Ryoma added thoughtfully.
Again, all of them excluding Fuji and Tezuka face faulted after hearing such words come out from their baby boy. "R-RYOMA!"
"What?" Ryoma innocently asked, raising eyebrows. He was sixteen. They didn't honestly expect him to be completely innocent, did they?
"Don't you have an ounce of innocence in you?!" Momoshiro asked in mortification.
There was silence as Ryoma leveled Momoshiro with an exasperated glare. Apparently, they do.
"Momo-senpai," he started.
"Hai?"
"Baka. I live with my dad, you know," he stated, as if it would explain everything (which it did, essentially).
There was silence.
Momoshiro chuckled nervously. "E-Eto… I just thought you didn't know about those stuff since… well… eto… how should I say this… you seem to be…"
"Socially stunted?" suggested Inui thoughtfully.
"Yeah, that's righ—"
"Ah, Momo!" Eiji yelped.
There was a crash and the sound of glass breaking.
"Sorry about the glasses, Fuji-senpai, I'll just replace them," Ryoma stated simply, dusting off his hands after throwing the couch pillow straight at Momoshiro's face. Said player keeled over and crashed into the glasses on the table, in turn shattering them into shards.
"That's fine," Fuji nodded, chuckling. "But you know, I'd think Yukimura's the seme."
"Eh? Nande?" Ryoma pouted thoughtfully. In his point of view, Sanada seemed more likely to be the seme.
Fuji hummed thoughtfully, ignoring the noisy racket Eiji and Momo were making in the back while they cleaned up the shattered glasses. The said tensai mussed and twirled Ryoma's hair around his fingers slowly as he searched for the right words to express his thoughts. "You see, Yukimura's not as gentle as he appears to be."
Tezuka nodded in agreement, setting down his glass on the table. "Yukimura is not the captain of one of the strongest teams around for nothing, Ryoma. He can be quite the character."
"Eh?"
"I am kind of like him," Fuji explained. "Though I'm not as quite determined as he is, we have notable similarities. He can be quite fierce when it comes down to what really matters to him, but if you look at him at first glance, he would seem a gentle, harmless, smart young lad."
"Ah, sou… I kind of understand now. I mean, if Yukimura-san can be as scary as you are, then I'm pretty sure Sanada-san will buckle sooner or later," nodded Ryoma thoughtfully. Fuji simply smiled serenely again.
As the other former players settled back down on their seats after cleaning the mess up, Momoshiro sighed as he sank back into the pouf he was sitting in. "So, gaki? What's this overly important and urgent thing you had to tell us?"
"Fsssshh, this had better be worth hearing…"
"Oh, I'm sure it is," Fuji nodded, humming as he slung an arm around Ryoma. "Ne, Ryoma, you're gonna suggest forming a separate tennis club of our own, right?"
"That's right," nodded Ryoma, pulling his feet up on the sofa and sitting on them Indian style. "Form a tennis club of our own, start practicing, compete and win."
There was silence.
Then Momoshiro chuckled. "You think we haven't thought of that yet, gaki? Have you forgotten that Taka-san's business—"
"I know," nodded Ryoma. Honestly, his teammates were starting to disappoint him. He was not stupid, and he was not a child any longer. He had his own brain.
"And even if you know, you're still insisting…?" Momoshiro continued, raising both eyebrows. "Ne, gaki, there's a limit to stubbornness and persistence, you know."
"I know that too," confirmed Ryoma. The others remained silent. "I knew that you would refuse too. It's not like I didn't think about this first. If everything should go as planned, then we'll get our own team and sooner or later the school will recognize that our team is better than the other team… and will recognize us as the formal varsity tennis team."
"And, pray tell, what is this plan?" Tezuka asked, raising an eyebrow.
Ryoma smirked and leaned forward.
"Ohayou," Ryoma yawned sleepily, rubbing his head as he descended the stairs.
"Ohayou, Ryoma-san!" Nanako greeted, placing a bowl of rice on the table in front of Ryoma's seat before settling down on her own seat.
"Ou, seishounen! You're up early today!" Nanjiroh gaily greeted, grinning through his food. Then he squinted at Ryoma's uniform. "Nanda, Ryoma, you can't even wear your uniform properly!" Nanjiroh scolded, motioning for Ryoma to come forward. As the sleepy boy dragged himself over, Nanjiroh reached forward, arranging the boy's collar. A fatherly moment like that was unexpected and very rare, but Ryoma was far too sleepy to comment on it, and Nanjiroh was far too much in a good mood to destroy it.
Nanjiroh chewed on his food, patting Ryoma's chest after fixing the wrinkled collar. "Eat up, boy. It's not good to go out with an empty stomach," he remarked, gulping some water to push his food down and make room for more. "By the way, what was last night about? You were on the phone the whole night. Kevin?"
Ryoma shook his head. "Someone else."
"Someone… else? Masaka! You've got a girlfriend! Introduce me! Is she blonde? Has she got nice boobs? Introduce meee!!!!" Nanjiroh started bouncing on his seat expectantly like an eight-year-old looking forward to the prospect of a trip to the toy store.
"Urusai yo, oyaji," grumbled Ryoma, poking at a piece of meat with his chopsticks with a murderous look. "You're starting to annoy me again. No, I haven't got a girlfriend, it was someone else. And if I ever do get a girlfriend—"
"—or boyfriend—"
"—there is no way in hell I am introducing her to you," Ryoma finished with a tone that left little room for argument. And then he stopped short, settling a flat gaze on his father. "…did you just say boyfriend?!"
"Come on, Ryoma, I'm not that stupid!" Nanjiroh chuckled. "My eyes are good enough to see that so far, you haven't got any girl friends. All you've got are boys milling around you.
Ryoma raised an eyebrow. "And you're gonna accept that."
"I don't have a choice, do I?" shrugged Nanjiroh, as if it was everyday your only son turns gay. "It's your love life."
"I don't even have a love life," snorted Ryoma, returning his attention to his food. He poked at it morosely, pouting. Images flitted through his mind, images of two certain persons he would entertain the idea of a love life with.
"Do you want to have one?" Nanjiroh whispered under ears, wiggling his eyebrows playfully at his son as Nanako hummed silently in the kitchen, having went to get more rice.
"Don't even think of suggesting anything, oyaji," Ryoma snapped. He'd had enough experience dealing with his father and love lives together, thank you very much.
Nanako giggled as Nanjiroh grumbled about Ryoma's stinginess. Honestly, the father and the son were far too alike.
"Oi, Ryoma! I'm here!" called out a familiar voice from outside.
"Ah!" Ryoma exclaimed, downing his bottle of milk quickly and picking his bags up, before hurrying over to the front door. "Ittekimasu!"
"Take care, Ryoma-san!"
"At least get yourself laid today, seishounen!"
"Shut up!" he roared, before grumbling his way to the front door. Slipping into his shoes, Ryoma walked out. "Ohayou, Momo-senpai!"
"Ohayou!" grinned Momoshiro, waving long, muscled arms. "Hurry up, we'll be late!"
"I'm there, I'm there!" sighed Ryoma, hurrying over and hitching himself on the back of Momoshiro's bicycle carefully. They started moving, and Ryoma relished the feel of the wind against his face. Moist summer heat in Japan was not too different from his hometown in Miami, but that didn't change the fact that he hated it.
"Did you finish those calls last night, Ryoma?" Momoshiro asked casually as they descended the road slope smoothly.
"Aa, all set," smirked Ryoma.
"Excellent!"
Kurenai-kochou eyed the nine young lads entering the school grounds, jostling and laughing with each other good-naturedly. Her eyes flitted towards the bespectacled young man smiling ever so slightly towards the youngest member in the group, a young, golden-eyed transferee from the United States.
She remembered talking with that young man, and she remembered asking the said player why such a famous international sports icon would bother going to their school instead of just enrolling in some prestigious school in the U.S., or maybe in Hyotei Koto Gakkou or Rikkaidai Fuzokukoto. Seishun Gakuen was a well-known school for raising normal kids into smart, responsible citizens, yes, but there stood the fact that it was a school for normal students.
Not that she wasn't happy with their new transferee. That was not the case. She was just befuddled, that was all.
And she still clearly remembered the young man's answer and the determined glint in those cat-like eyes burning, throbbing and glowing like molten gold.
"I made a promise to my friends, and that's reason enough."
She smiled subconsciously, recalling that simple sentence that changed her entire spectrum towards these students. These young lads were special. They were more than just normal high school students. It was impressing to her how such young people already held solid determination and direction in their eyes, determination and direction that was missing even in most adults.
They were so young, and yet they learned much more valuable life lessons than most adults do.
She was interested in how things would turn out if she conceded and let them do things according to their own will. Apparently, these boys refused to go down without a fight.
She remembered the serious and determined look on a certain young lad's face from last night. Never had she seen Tezuka so serious ever before. He was even more serious than he had been during their expulsion from the tennis club. That particular incident was politically ridden, and that was what she hated with this school.
When she started managing the school as head teacher around two years ago, she wished so hard for those young boys to be gone from her school. They were nothing but headaches, and they brought politics and money into the school. Bad politics and bad money.
Personally, she did not want to expel those boys from the tennis club, seeing as they were promising and brought new hope to the varsity, but the school's financial standing was threatened. As such, she was forced to hand over and authorize a decision voted by the council majority. It was an 8-7 decision. Had there been just one more person who refused, those boys' futures wouldn't have been jeopardized.
But it seems she'd been worrying about nothing at all.
Last night, when Tezuka approached her and told her of the team's intentions, she was miffed and utterly stilled. These boys really didn't know the meaning of giving up.
Yet even though she knew that this could possibly lead to a scandal in the school, she still authorized a council meeting. She wanted to see. She needed to see what these boys were up to, what they were planning, and how they would rebound from their silence and stillness.
She needed to see how they would once again be reborn and rise to conquer.
This was the reason she became a teacher after all: to see her precious students bloom.
Tezuka raised his hand to politely disrupt the teacher during his History class.
"Y-Yes, Tezuka-kun?" stuttered the teacher. Apparently, teachers were still afraid of him.
"I would like to excuse Oishi and myself from the rest of the classes this morning, sensei," he politely said, rising from his chair and pulling out a folded note from the principal. "I have permission from Kurenai-kochou." (2)
The teacher ran over the note once and nodded in confirmation. "A-Aa, you may go."
"Thank you very much," bowed Tezuka respectfully, before silently exiting the room, followed by Oishi. As soon as they were outside, Oishi scanned the corridor, quickly finding Fuji, Eiji and Kawamura bowing themselves out of their rooms.
"Eiji!" Oishi called out, lowering his voice and motioning for them to come over.
Eiji waved happily, bouncing his way towards his partner with Fuji and Kawamura in tow. "We should get the kouhai-tachi, nya!"
"Kaidoh and Momo are in the same class," Oishi said. "Eiji, Taka-san, and I will go get them. Fuji, Tezuka, can you two go fetch Ryoma?"
"Sure," Fuji agreed, nodding. "We're off, then."
Fuji and Tezuka walked off towards the east stairwell, which was nearer to Ryoma's classroom, while the others proceeded to the opposite stairwell. They reached the third floor in no time, purposefully walking straight towards classroom I-A. Inside the other classrooms they passed, students were murmuring and craning their necks to see them through the corridor windows.
They stopped short in front of their destination classroom's front door and knocked three times, before sliding the door open and bowing respectfully.
"Excuse us," both of them said simultaneously, silencing the class and the teacher effectively.
"Ahh, Tezuka-kun and Fuji-kun, ne?" the teacher nodded. "It's alright, there's no need to bow. Is there anything I can do for you?"
"We would like to excuse Echizen-kun from the rest of the morning classes, sensei," Fuji explained, handing over the principal's note. Near the back of the class, Horio kicked Echizen's foot under the seat, startling the dozing boy awake.
"Itai!" he hissed, leaning down and nursing his foot. Then he looked back up, startled to find his senpais in front of the class. "Ah… it's time?"
"Aa," nodded Tezuka. The teacher handed back the note and nodded in confirmation.
"I've heard of this," Asou-sensei nodded. The good teacher was young and only in his thirties, but was really smart and famous among the other schools for his scientific researches. "I wish you good luck with this issue. I'm rooting for you guys."
Fuji smiled. "Ah, arigatou."
"Saa, Echizen-kun, your teammates are calling for you," smiled Asou-sensei.
"Hai," nodded Ryoma, rising out of his seat and walking off towards Fuji, who immediately slung a brotherly arm around Ryoma and herded him out of the room. The three of them bowed once more and thanked the teacher, before closing the door.
As soon as they got out, Ryoma yawned widely, stretching his back languidly like a cat. "Horio just had to kick me that hard. And my sleep was sooo gooood…" he muttered, leaning against Fuji sleepily. Fuji chuckled and steered him towards the stairwell.
"Well, you'd better wake up. The show's starting."
"Mmm, wake me up when we're there," murmured Ryoma, burrowing his face into Fuji's side. He could smell the strong scent of juniper and a whiff of a cool and crisp scent like fresh autumn air.
Fuji laughed as they descended the stairs. "Hey, that tickles you know. Wake up, Ryoma, we've got work to do," coaxed Fuji, ignoring a chuckling Tezuka as the tensai struggled to wake up the freshman. "Come on, big baby, wake up…"
"Wake up, Ryoma," Tezuka chuckled, coaxing the younger boy as they reached the second floor, just in time for the others to see them. "Come on," Tezuka muttered, pulling Ryoma off Fuji gently and supporting the boy. "Wake up."
"Demo, buchou…" whined Ryoma, this time snuggling up to Tezuka's chest. Lavender, fresh grass, old paper, and autumn, Ryoma smelt.
"Ochibi-chan?" Eiji called, seeing the boy drowsing in Tezuka's arms. "What's wrong with him?"
"Sleepy," Fuji replied.
"Sou kai?" chuckled Momoshiro. "Well, this will wake him up!"
The said power player unceremoniously pulled Ryoma out of Tezuka's arms and hauled the boy over his shoulder like a sack.
"O-Oi, Momo-senpai!" shrieked Ryoma.
"Ssshh, Ryoma, you're too loud!" hissed Oishi, ushering them out of the building hurriedly to avoid more commotion.
"B-But—"
"Unless you wake up, you're not getting down," Momo declared, descending the stairwell swiftly like he was simply carrying a mere backpack and not Ryoma. Eiji giggled madly as they hurriedly descended the stairs after Momoshiro smartly took the east exit instead of the main one to avoid commotion. Once they got outside, Momoshiro dumped Ryoma unceremoniously on the ground. "Awake yet?"
Ryoma grumbled, pouting as he stood up, dusted himself off and stomped his way moodily towards the faculty building. The others chuckled at the childishness Ryoma portrayed when his sleep was disturbed.
"Wait up, ochibi-chaaaan!!" Eiji called, rushing forward and reappearing on both sides of Ryoma. Two Eijis.
"Ne, Kikumaru-senpai, you're really eager to use your techniques again, aren't you?" smirked Ryoma. "Seems you still retained your speed for your Seal Step (3)."
"Of course!" grinned both Eijis, holding up V-signs. "Buii!"
"Eiji, keep it down, we're here," Oishi admonished, receiving a "hai, hai" from both Eijis, before the two melded into one once again. They gathered around in the lobby of the faculty building.
"Everything has been prepared, right, Ryoma?" Tezuka started, voice leveling down to the calm coolness he always displayed during briefings. It was five minutes to ten. Just in time.
"Hai."
"Fuji, you know what you're going to say if they ask questions, right?"
"Aa."
"Right. Let's do this," Tezuka nodded.
"Ou!" came the collective reply, as if this was a team battle (which it was).
The team walked into the conference room confidently, with heads held high. All eyes turned towards them. As promised, the whole council was present, as well as the PTA representatives. There was one very long table, and one side was vacant for the nine of them. The other side was completely occupied by the representatives and council members, and behind them were the current tennis club members glaring daggers at them. Ryuzaki-sensei was sitting near the end smiling at them. At the head of the table was Kurenai-kochou.
"Ah, just in time," Kurenai-kochou nodded to them silently. "Take your seats."
The whole team bowed in unison, before taking their seats.
"Saa, let's not waste time, and get to the point, shall we?" Kurenai-kochou started, turning in her seat and placing her hands on the table firmly over several documents and papers. "As everyone in this room except the current tennis team members know, this meeting was called on because of these young lads' intentions to form their own separate tennis club in the school."
At the mention of the topic, the current varsity members raised their voices in anticipated protest.
"That's unacceptable!"
"Yeah, there can't be two varsities!"
"And the interschool sports competition law states that there can only be one representing team for each school!"
The council members and the principal kept silent, looking expectantly at the other party to speak up.
"Maa, we never really said there would be two varsities (4)," Fuji chuckled, lacing his fingers together as he leaned back in his seat, turning the swiveling chair slightly side to side. Ryoma faintly thought that Fuji would be perfectly suited as a businessman, what with that all-win and no-lose attitude he had, as well as the somehow intimidating friendliness he exuded. "We just said two teams. And it's true that the law states that only one team can go, but it doesn't state which one."
There was silence after Fuji's statement. It made absolute sense, and that sense rang throughout the room, silencing everyone effectively.
"Was that a challenge?" Akita, the team captain asked, emerging from the half-shadow and speaking for the first time. His eyes burned a glare directly towards Tezuka, who had his eyes closed the entire time.
Tezuka opened his eyes. "Take it however you like."
"Nya, we weren't the ones who had problems with existing peacefully anyways," Eiji pouted, cupping his chin with his hands as he leaned his elbows on the table and sat on his chair Indian style. "We really have no problem to go side by side peacefully—we never did; but if you want a challenge, we're not backing down either."
"We can't say no to a challenge, no, we can't," Momoshiro remarked, shaking his head as he closed his eyes thoughtfully. "Na, mamushi?"
"Fsssshhh, got that right," nodded Kaidoh.
Some of the council members who were notably the parents of the current varsity team scowled. Apparently, the council was biased. Some of the tennis team's members were their sons, after all. Some of the others, though, were nodding thoughtfully, as if reconsidering the thought.
The PTA president, a refined middle-aged man, raised a question. "Why the sudden decision, then?"
There was silence for a while as Tezuka and Fuji looked at each other. Tezuka sighed. "Ever since middle school, our life revolved around tennis. We love playing tennis, and we consider it seriously," Tezuka started. "But last year's issue threw a wrench into our plans to reunite and bring the school once again to the Nationals."
"That's exactly what we plan to do," Fuji continued. "We can reach the Nationals with our talent, and we know it. We're not giving up on our dreams anytime soon. We just took a little bit of time to realize that there's no point in giving up now. What the current team isn't doing, we will."
Inui adjusted his glasses over his nose. "You also want that, don't you? For this school to once again reach the Nationals level, that is. It will be an amazing increase boost for your enrollment rates, which have been dropping since five years ago. It will also increase the school's popularity and standards, and the financial income has a 78 percent chance of tripling itself by next year. Wouldn't it be wonderful for Seigaku Koto Gakkou to not only be popular in terms of academics, but also competitive within the sports field? This could be the start of a new boom in the school."
"And also, it's just simply because we want to play tennis again," Kawamura smiled.
"Indeed, your determination is remarkable," nodded one of the council members, one that was apparently standing neutral. "But even if we give you permission to form your own club, you'll have a hard time. You'll need to gather members, gather funds, find a place to practice and find a new coach. And you won't be able to play in the Nationals anyways, since we already have a varsity. I really don't see the point."
This raised murmurs around the table.
"Saa, should I take over, then, Fuji-senpai?" yawned Ryoma from the end of the table, stretching languidly. He really didn't care if he appeared rude; they were rude first.
"It's you again!!" exclaimed Yokubou.
"Oh, Yokubou-san," Ryoma blearily said. "Gomen, didn't see you there."
Yokubou growled and was about to retort, when Ryoma stood up, taking a brown envelope with him as he walked towards Fuji and stood between Tezuka and the tensai.
"For gathering members," Ryoma started, pulling out several pieces of paper from the brown envelope and laying it on the table. It was a paper with names and signatures of students. "We have currently gathered 163 students willing to join the new tennis club on their own accord."
"That is approximately 54 percent more than the varsity's current member count," added Inui.
There was a round of more murmuring at this as the papers of the signatures were passed around the table.
"For gathering funds," Ryoma continued. "I would assume that 430,000 yen is enough to fund one club, right?" he said, pulling out a Chase New York check from the envelope, with his name written in English, the amount in dollars and his signature on it. "I assure you that the check and the account are both authentic."
"4000 dollars (5)?!"
"Goodness, where did you get this kind of money?" Kurenai-kochou asked in shock, staring frozenly at the check before her.
The other council members stared at the check in complete and utter stilled shock. The current varsity members were open-mouthed in befuddlement.
"Mmm…" Ryoma contemplated. "How should I say this… eto… it's from my winnings. It's not even 3 percent of all my savings in the past two years. If I win the next Wimbledon and U.S. Open, then I'll quadruple my earnings, not counting all the commercial pays and promotional salaries and all that crap."
"Wi-Wimbledon?!" stuttered a member of the council, notably Takeda's father. They held the same hairstyle and facial features. "And U.S. Open?!"
"Aa, Ryoma, I forgot about that," nodded Ryuuzaki from the end of the table. "Congratulations on your last win against Federer. That was a splendid match."
"Domo," Ryoma bowed slightly in respect to his previous coach.
"Ryoma?" repeated Yokubou's father. "Masaka… the Echizen Ryoma?"
"The one and only," grinned Eiji. "Our ochibi!" he exclaimed, giggling. Then he muttered to the ever-silent sweat-dropping Oishi, "Was my rhyme good?"
"It was surprising though, how Yokubou and the others did not recognize him," Fuji chuckled. "I guess they just don't watch top pro tennis."
"You don't even need to watch the top pro, you know," Kawamura pointed out. "All you need to do is watch the primetime news."
"Sou da ne!" Eiji remarked, nodding.
"Maa, enough of me," sighed Ryoma. "About which team plays in the tournaments—"
"Of course it's us!" exclaimed Nori. "We're varsity!"
"…how rude," grumbled Ryoma. He just hated it when people interrupted him while he was speaking.
"Hn, ja, can you win?" Fuji asked, maintaining his smile but opening his eyes to reveal icy blue eyes, staring straight at Nori.
Eiji whispered to himself, "The secret weapon!"
"W-What?" stuttered Nori, wavering subconsciously under Fuji's steady steely gaze.
"Can you win?" repeated Fuji. "Can you win against Fudou Koto Gakkou? Against St. Peter's, against Akayama, against Midorigaoka and Hyotei and Rikkaidai? Can you? Can you win against Shitenhouji High at the Nationals? Can you win against all those teams we've beaten, all those teams that reunited this year to claim their revenge over the school who slaughtered them during middle school?"
There was silence.
"Rikkaidai Fuzokukoto's members this year are the same members we went against during middle school," Fuji continued. "Same goes with Hyotei Koto Gakkou. Fudou Koto Gakkou's captain this year as well as their aces are the same people we went against two years ago. St. Peter's has my brother in the tennis team as well as Kiyosumi Sengoku-san from Yamabuki Chuu. Akayama's players are from Rokkaku Chuu, and while they are not that intent on getting their revenge, they are quite eager to have matches against us."
"If you really want to compete, then prove to me that you can face Atobe-san and Sanada-san," Ryoma interjected. "Those two will be after Seigaku's neck, you know. After my neck and Tezuka-buchou's neck, particularly, but the whole teams have had issues with each other previously, and most of them remain unfinished. Am I right, Kikumaru-senpai?"
"Sou, sou!" Eiji nodded eagerly. "I can't wait to kick Gakuto's ass again!"
"Eiji!" Oishi scolded. "Language!"
"Whaaat?!" Eiji pouted. "It's true! Don't you want to test our Synchro against them? And I so want to use my Seal Step to seal Gakuto's mouth for good!"
Momoshiro suppressed a guffaw.
"Of course, I'm sure the council isn't considering sending a team that can't win to the tournaments, am I right?" Fuji continued, turning his eyes on the council members, who shifted uncomfortably in their seats at the onslaught of Fuji's penetrating gaze.
"O-Of course we won't," stuttered the PTA president.
"So?" Kurenai-kochou asked. "What do you guys have in mind, then?"
"A competition," Ryoma stated simply.
There was silence.
"A competition to decide which team goes to the tournaments. Standard tournament setting. 5 matches, standard rules. 6 games each match, standard scoring procedures. 2 doubles matches, 3 singles," Ryoma explained.
"That way, it will be fair," Tezuka sighed. "Fair to both teams, since both will be given a chance to compete. That way, if we proceed no further towards the Nationals and we finish here, we have no one else to blame but ourselves and nothing else t regret further on. This is our last year in high school after all."
"Sou," Oishi nodded. "Regret is the last thing we'd want to have."
Then there was silence.
"It's a good idea, no?" Ryuuzaki chuckled. "Leave it up to these guys to come up with something like that."
"I agree, it is," nodded Kurenai-kochou. More than half of the council started agreeing to the reasonable way to decide who goes to the Nationals. "It's settled, then. A new tennis club will be established with these nine students as the starting regular members, and a competition will be held ten days from now to decide which team will be varsity. None of the two teams will be permitted to wear the school jersey until it is decided. All jerseys will be withdrawn from the regulars of the current team."
"Oh, and one more thing," Ryoma interjected before the head teacher could continue, spreading the last few papers over the table. "If anyone touches Taka-san's family business, then I will make sure that that person's family business falls as well. Major companies are one phone call away, and they are willing to withdraw funds to the companies Yokubou-san, Nori-san, Takeda-san, Akita-san, and Ruichi-san are managing," Ryoma said, regarding the fathers of the said students a level stares. "P&G, DoCoMo Group, Karuizawa Companies, Shiseido, Kobayashi Seiyaku, and Life Card are all willing to pull off funds from you. I've talked to them regarding this matter. The papers on the table make these clear."
"If it's money you're using to unsettle us, it won't work. I have connections, and I have money to back myself up. I can support Taka-san's business even if you try to sabotage it. I just wanted to make that clear," Ryoma finished with a clipped tone accompanied by a burning glare.
There was utter silence.
"Maa, it was pretty rotten of you guys to threaten Taka-san's business if we tried anything like this," Fuji added in an undertone, addressing the other team. He took in the surprised looks from the uninvolved people in the council. Now it was in plain daylight who was involved and who was not. "Anyhow, we'll be looking forward to the matches with you guys."
"That'll be all, then?" Ryoma muttered, turning towards Tezuka, who bowed thoughtfully.
"Did we forget anything?" Fuji asked.
"A coach," pointed out the PTA president. "You need a coach to function."
The team looked at each other. Oishi chuckled nervously. "Somehow, we forgot about this."
"Well, you'll have to find someone within today," Kurenai-kochou said, sighing as she swiveled her seat. "You can't have Ryuuzaki-sensei, since she's got her hands full with the sister middle school's team."
"I've got just the solution for that," smirked Ryoma. As he shuffled in his pockets for his phone, he added in an undertone, "You guys will probably hate me for this later, but this is the best idea I can come up with right now."
He pulled out his red cell phone, the metallic mini-tennis racket and mini-ball straps tinkling as they met lightly. He excused himself, walking promptly out the conference room door while pressing a speed dial on his cell phone and holding it to his ear. The people inside the room waited quite impatiently for five minutes, before Ryoma walked back in. "Yosh, he'll be here in five minutes tops."
"Eh? We've already got a coach?" Kawamura doubled back.
Ryoma nodded in affirmation.
"Who…?"
"You'll see."
"Nya-hoi, Fuji! 1000 yen I'm betting it's a woman!" (Fuji remarked that Eiji was clearly not listening to Ryoma, and had just thrown away a thousand yen.)
"1000 yen on a man," Inui added, shifting his glasses higher up his nose as he pored over his notebook.
"1000 yen that it's someone we don't know!" Momoshiro added.
"Ja…" Fuji contemplated. "…1000 yen that it's Ryoma's dad."
"Eh?!?" came a collective exclamation.
Just then, the conference room door burst open.
Fuji grinned. "You three owe me 1000 yen each."
"Ou, seishounen!" panted a heaving Echizen Nanjiroh, still clutching his little red bicycle. "I came up to the agreement, so don't you dare tell Rinko-chan where I hid the special edition!"
Tsuzuku
(Revised Version)
(1) Ittekimasu – Translates to "I'll be going/leaving!"; a phrase that is customarily said before leaving home.
(2) Kurenai-kochou – "-kochou" is a suffix added to the name of a principal, much like how "-sensei" or "-chan" or "-senpai" works.
(3) Seal Step – It's Eiji's technique where there appears to be two Eijis instead of one. He does it using ultra high-speed steps he call 'seal steps'.
(4) Varsity – The difference between a varsity team and just a team is that the varsities are formally recognized as the official teams and are the ones who compete in interschool tournaments. It is "the leading sports team in an educational function", according to Wiktionary.
(5) A dollar is approximately around 100 yen. It's not exact, but I was too lazy to do the math, so I simply approximated.
Huwahaahhaahahaha!!
I am evil.
PLEASE DO REVIEW!
Kiasidira Ixari
First Publication Version: 11.25.06
First Revision Version: 08.11.07