~ Jumping up and down. I've started on a new chapter! I'm feeling good right now. I'm glad that everyone liked the last chapter. I'm going strong right now; it's great!
Onward! To the next chapter!~
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Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN EYESHEILD 21! I DON'T OWN ANYTHING THAT YOU MAY RECOGNIZE FROM SOMEWHERE ELSE! I DON'T MAKE ANY MONEY OFF OF ANY OF IT!
Speech- "Blah"
Thoughts- Blah
Random Stuff That I'm Doing – Blah
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Sena was in a good mood the day of the game. He had gotten up early enough that he was able to make a healthy bento lunch for all the players before he went for his jog. He had received calls from all the dock brats wishing him good luck and promises to try to get to the game. He did get some of the girls promising to come and cheer for them in uniform. It was a good morning all around.
He arrived at the school ten minutes before anyone else. Hiruma arrived next, producing some carts from somewhere. The team leader hooked two of the carts together before taking the third somewhere. He was very pleased when he came back.
Sena decided to ignore this behavior from the captain, firmly believing that if he asked, it wouldn't be good for his mental health. His belief was further proven when he saw Hiruma writing tardy on some white head bands with dog bones attached to them.
As his teammates arrived, he mentally checked off everyone. Juumonji, Kuroki, and Toganou arrived in time to nodded and wave hello to him. It was close to the time when they needed to leave when he noticed that four boys weren't there yet. With a sinking sensation, he got into the second cart when he was told to.
When the boys arrived everyone was in the carts and Hiruma pressed them into service. Wearing the head bands, and being chased by the dog that Sena had met that first day, they pulled everyone to the stadium. The dog, Cerberus, pulled the third cart that had all their equipment in it.
It was rather embarrassing to see the Ojo players arrive in buses while they arrived in such a sad way. Especially when Hiruma was enjoying it so much.
"Hurry it up, he's going to eat you!" the blonde captain hollered out, cracking a whip that Sena had no idea where it came from. When the boys stopped on their side of the field, Sena was quick to note that there seemed to be a very large amount of people sitting in the stands. Mostly girls from the look of things.
"Why so many for a local game?" Sena mused out loud. Kurita walked up behind him.
"They're here to see Haruto Sakuraba," he explained. Mamori walked up carrying some towels.
"Wow—there's the T.V. station," she said, looking over her shoulder. Kurita nodded and looked down at the field.
"That must be why we're at this field," he said. "I've never played on real grass before."
As Sena handed out uniforms and equipment, he saw that Ojo was having meals delivered to the players. Handing shoulder pads to a player, he went over to where he had stored the meals he made this morning. Walking over just in time to hear some players grumble about being hungry, he smiled at Mamori. She held up a small box.
"It's not nearly so fancy, but I made it myself," she said. "Please help yourselves." Sena cleared his throat as well.
"I got these this morning as well, so we have a good meal for you guys," he displayed the bentos. He passed them out as Mamori gave everyone one of her rice balls. He was handing Hiruma his when the older teen stopped him.
"You didn't pick these up at a store." It was a statement. Sena blushed a little and shook his head. Ducking his head down, Sena looked up at the teen through his eyelashes.
"No, I made them. I wanted the team to have something to give them more energy for the game," he said shyly. "Most store bought bentos don't have much nutational value."
Hiruma looked at him with an unreadable expression before taking the lunch with a nod of thanks. Sena hurried to pass out the rest of them to the players, and he set the box he made for the dog in front of the animal.
Opening the box he made for himself, he settled down near Hiruma. He wanted to be near the teen without it being obvious. It wasn't easy having a crush on the demonic teen, but Sena wasn't going to be deterred from trying to get Hiruma's affection. He just had to take it slow and ease his way to getting the blonde captain to accept him.
It was as he was finishing his lunch when he saw not only all of the girls in cheer uniforms, but all of the boys from the docks and most if not all of the workers and managers arrive. He stared at them for a small moment, sighed, and got up to talk to them. He walked over to them in an unhurried stride that closed the distance between him and them in a short time.
He came to a halt in front of them and planted his hands on his hips. He didn't say anything at first, he just stared at all of them. They were beginning to fidget when he finally spoke.
"Do I even want to know why you all are here?" was the very dry question that came out of Sena's mouth. "I mean, I knew that some of the girls were coming to cheer us on. I didn't realize that I was going to have all of the docks emptied, just to watch me play." Deruku snorted.
"Well, you should have, Sena-kun," he said. "The dock brats are going to come to all of your games. Though, I will admit that I didn't know that the workers were coming. Or the managers for that matter."
"I told the workers that you had a game and they wanted to come," Reuisu said. "The other managers knew and wanted to support you as well. Marukusu-sama would have come but he had to work on payroll." Sena sighed and shook his head. He sent the girls over to the watching team, and he sent the others to the stands. He grabbed Deruku's arm before he left.
"Do any of you have any cameras?" Sena asked, accepting that he wasn't going to get them to leave. He was actually kind of happy that they all wanted to come. "I need an excuse as to why I won't be on the sidelines—"
"And saying that your going to take pictures in the stands is a good way to be at the game but not be seen," Deruku interrupted, nodding. "I know that some of the boys do, so I'll talk to them. Any type of pictures in particular?"
"Ones that show formation would be great and helpful," A voice from behind Sena said.
"You can see things from the stands that you don't get on the sidelines." Hiruma walked up in time to hear and answer Deruku's question. The blonde and brunette eyed each other over Sena's head. Hiruma with calculating curiosity; Deruku with slightly hostile curiosity.
Deruku knew that Sena was interested in Hiruma. It was in the way that Sena watched and looked at the taller teen. He just wasn't sure if he liked the older boy for Sena. Hiruma knew who and what this boy was and who everyone else was as well. He just didn't understand how the damn chibi knew them. He would find out how though. Soon.
"It's time to get ready for the game, Hiruma-san," Sena interrupted the staring match. He turned Hiruma around and pushed him back to the team. After telling Mamori that he would be in the stands, he grabbed his gear and went to go change. He was on his way back when Cerberus came running around the corner. He quickly crouched and scooped up the dog when it dove for him. Scratching the mutt behind the ear to calm it, he continued walking to the field.
When he rounded the corner, he was surprised to see that everyone was happy to see him. He was very confused when the team started talking about sacrificing him to Shin, but he dismissed it when Kurita walked up to him.
"Sena, I thought you went home," the older boy whispered. Sena sent him a searching look.
"No, I wouldn't do that," Sena said. "I just went to go get changed. I want to play in the game. I'll do the best I can!" Kurita smiled. At that moment, Sena received a hard kick in the rear. He set Cerberus down and turned around.
"What? What I do to make you mad?" Sena inquired of Hiruma, who was walking away. The question was ignored as Hiruma called everyone to huddle up.
"He's not mad at you," Kurita said behind him. Sena shrugged and went to the huddle.
After the same rally cry as the last game, they set for the kick off. Hiruma caught the ball only to be tackled right away.
"Urgh…this game will be different from the last one," the blonde captain said as he sat up. Sena nodded, noted something that Hiruma hadn't seen yet, and settled into position. As per the game plan, when the ball was thrown into play, Sena faked taking the ball and headed off. The linemen went after him just as he had hope. Leaving Ishimaru free to take the ball and head for the end zone.
By the time Sena was tackled and the White Knights realized that he didn't have the ball, Ishimaru was at the thirty yard line and even when he was tackled, he was very close to the ten yard line. It was at that moment that Hiruma saw what Sena had noted earlier.
"Shin's on the bench. We've got a chance," Hiruma said before turning on the lineman.
"Alright, Eyeshield 21 will be running the ball this time. Linemen, you'd better block as hard as you can!"
Sena listened to them grumble and Hiruma snapping at them that they didn't need to hold the opposite team for long, they just needed to hold the team back long enough for Eyeshield to get through. Juumonji eyed him during the huddle and as they got ready. Sena got the feeling that the blonde lineman guessed who he really was.
When Juumonji glanced at him again, Sena smiled. With a slight nod, Juumonji put all his strength into pushing against the opposing linemen when the ball was put into play. As a hole was created, Sena shoved through and made it across into the end zone.
"Touchdown!"
"YA-HA!"
For the extra-point conversion, Sena was the ball setter. After the ball was hiked to him, Sena waited until the last second before Hiruma kicked the ball, and just as the older teen made to kick the ball, Sena moved the ball into his arms. He set off towards the end zone. He had to give it the White Knights, they did recover quickly. He made two yards before he was push out of bounds.
"Well, it can't be helped," Hiruma said as Sena walked up. "But at least the fake worked. It might have been too much to expect our guys to push all the way to the end zone." Hiruma did the kick off for the next quarter. He just kicked the hell out of it, causing it to hit someone on the sidelines. Sena watched as the Ojo players switched out players. Just as Sakuraba stepped out onto the field, the girls in the stands went nuts.
"SAKURABA-KUN!" all of them screamed. Sena watched with a huge amount of amusement as the security guards tried to make sure that the girls didn't stampede the player. They were succeeding so far.
Glancing over at the dock girls, Sena started laughing, hard. Hiruma looked at him, confusion evident. Unable to speak just yet, Sena pointed first at the stands and then to their cheerleaders. Hiruma started chuckling as well.
Their girls were staring at the girls in the stands in complete and utter horror. It was clear that they couldn't fathom why those girls were acting like they had no brains at all. Sena knew that they spent most of their time at the docks, instead of keeping track of the latest fashions or whom was the most popular actors were.
So, when faced with their complete opposites, they didn't know how to react. It was funny. Once Sena and Hiruma got control of themselves, they joined the huddle.
"Okay, listen up. There's no way our amateur team can stop the White Knights," Hiruma started out. "We can't completely stop their running and passing. So then here's what we'll do…" Sena listen to Hiruma's crazy idea as the girls screamed even louder.
"You do realize that that's insane, right?" Sena inquired when he finished. Hiruma nodded.
"And that's fine. Football is not a game of chance…you've got to strategize to get a lucky punch in!" Hiruma grinned. As the team waited for the refs to quiet the girls down, Sena watched as a really big Knights player walked over. If Sena was remembering right, the teen's name was Otawara. He was the only player on the opposing team that was a match for Kurita. Otawara grabbed a field marker from its holder.
"Kurita…" Otawara walked over to the friendly teen and bent the metal marker into a zigzag pattern. He tossed it onto the ground at Kurita's feet and laughed. Kurita picked it up and, in a similar show of strength, straighten the marker back out. Kurita handed it back to the holder with an apologetic expression. Having watched Kurita do this, Otawara walked off laughing. Sena and Kurita weren't really sure what that was all about, but they ignored it in favor of getting into formation.
Sena could hear the confused murmuring over their choosing to use a goal line defense instead of a different formation. Hiruma's plan was insane, but thinking on it made Sena see that it had the best chance of working. When the White Knights quarterback, Takami, set the ball into motion, Kurita push all his strength in to the fight with Otawara. He was able to make Otawara go down, but he wasn't able to get to the quarterback.
Takami threw the ball to Sakuraba, who caught the ball but went down instead of running with it. Sena noticed that while he caught it, the ball had enough spin to it that if he hadn't gone down, the ball would have flown out of his hands. Sakuraba did the right thing going down. It was clear that he needed to practice catching though.
The game continued in this fashion, Sena reading each pass to see if he could get it. It wasn't until they were twelve yards to the end zone that Sena saw a chance. As Takami threw the ball, Sena saw that it was low enough that he could intercept it. He took off towards Sakuraba, reaching him in time to reach up. Remembering Hiruma's advice from that day, he put his thumbs together with his arms stretched up. The ball landed directly into Sena's hands, but just like with Sakuraba's first catch, the spin on the ball caused it to pop out of his hands. Right into Hiruma's.
"Nice going, damn chibi," Hiruma grinned before turning and heading back down the field.
"YA-HA!" The White Knights scrambled to back up and cover the interception. Two players were able to come up and block Hiruma, but before they could tackle him, Hiruma turned and tossed the ball back to Sena. Up until now, Sena wasn't able to show his full speed as he was a decoy mostly.
Now Sena was going full throttle and was dodging blockers with ease. As the White Knights weren't prepared for someone really fast, they were to slow off the blocks to properly block him. One player got close enough to push him out of bounds, but Sena stop dead for a half-second which caused the player go past him and out of bounds. Sena was going again before anyone figured out what happened. He was across the goal line by the time anyone was able to make a proper defense.
"Touchdown!"
The extra-point conversion didn't work but that they scored twice was something to celebrate. It was as Sena was exchanging high-fives with his teammates that he felt a shiver go down his spine. He turned towards the White Knights bench just as Shin stood.
"Hmph… So he's coming in, huh?" Hiruma observed. Sena felt a hard shove, pushing him towards the linebacker. "Hey there—so your rival makes his appearance. Go give him something to get riled up about!" Sena grunted as he stumbled forward. Standing up straight, Sena tilted his head and cracked his neck.
"Someone remind me why I joined this team?" Sena inquired rhetorically, rubbing his neck. Shin stood in front of him, glaring. Sena arched an eyebrow at the linebacker. "You shouldn't glare so much. It will give you wrinkles. And possibly an ulcer if you're not careful."
With that Sena turned and walked back to his teammates. As he walked passed Hiruma, he swept his leg out and knocked the captain on his ass. He leveled a glare at the blonde teen, getting his point across without saying a word. He didn't like being used like that.
Shin watched as the smaller player walked away. It was almost as if the teen didn't care if his team won or not. Shin had to admit that the boy's attitude ticked him off more than he would like. Although watching Hiruma fall on his ass due to the small player was kind of funny.
Both teams got ready and began the next play. Sena faked going to the right and shot through the middle. Shin got past Kurita and was coming at him full speed. Sena was able to dodge around him but Shin reached out and latched on to him with one hand. Sena went down clutching the ball. Ah, the dreaded Spear Tackle. You know that kinda hurt. Sena thought, his side throbbing slightly.
Shin eyed the Deimon running back. The smaller player was muscular, but Shin didn't think that it came from being an athlete. His body was the general well build of someone that exercised daily, but didn't necessarily workout athletically. He would have to test his theory.
"With Shin in the game, we won't be able to go through the middle," Hiruma said during their next huddle. "All we can do is outrun them by going around to the right."
"Yeah, but… we can't hold Otawara back any longer," a lineman said tiredly. "Even if we double team him." Hiruma growled irritability.
"That's it!" he snapped. He pointed at Kurita. "Damn Fatty! You've got to stop Otawara and Shin!"
"That's ridiculous…" Kurita protested weakly. Sena listened to all this facing away and with half an ear. He was busy thinking up ways to get around Shin. He heard Hiruma yelling at a distance.
"ARE YOU LISTENING?" Knowing that the yell was for him, Sena waved a hand detachedly.
"Yeah, yeah." Hiruma frowned at the thoughtfully tone. It was clear that the younger player's mind was elsewhere. Hiruma followed Sena's gaze. His eyes landed on Shin. Green eyes narrowed slightly as their owner's mind whirled. Hmm…
Up in the stands, the dock brats were torn between being proud of their 'Little Wolf' and pissed at the lineman that tackled him. They didn't like that he could be hurt, but they also knew that it came with the game. Deruku had finally told them to shut up the talk about beating the teen up, saying that Little Wolf would have their heads for it. He directed a similar comment to the workers, since they were making the same comments. All of them shared the same belief when it came to Sena: pissing him off was bad.
Deruku watched as Sena gazed at number 40. Deruku could almost see the thoughts being processed and tossed as Sena discarded one idea after another. Deruku knew and believed that Sena would beat the taller linebacker. It would just take a while for him to do it. So Deruku would wait and watch. Watch for the miracle that is Sena, the Little Wolf of the Docks.
The next play was just like the last one. Sena took the ball and Shin went after him. When Shin got close, Sena protected the ball so that the lineman couldn't take the ball. However, that wasn't what Shin had in mind. Shin came up behind Sena and picked him up under the smaller teen's arms. Sena blinked once, looked down, and then sighed.
"Really?" Sena asked the taller player. Shin looked down at him. "Was this necessary? Especially since—" Sena swung both his legs back, between the taller teen's legs. "It didn't work!"
With an amazing show of gymnastics, Sena swung his legs up and over both their heads. Freeing himself in the process, Sena flipped over and behind the taller teen. Having kept the ball safely tucked against his body, Sena rocketed off as soon as his feet touched the ground. Around Shin and dodging Otawara, Sena was tackled by another player after that. Sena grunted as he got up and walked over to Hiruma.
"At least I blocked an interception," Sena said to the blonde as he passed him. Hiruma gave him a very dry look.
"Yeah, you block it alright. With gymnastics!" Hiruma blurted out. "I have never seen anyone do that in any situation." Sena shrugged.
"It's not against the rules," he patted Hiruma's shoulder comfortingly. "Relax. When I joined the team, you got a wide range of skills. I'll write them down later, okay?" The blonde nodded.
The next few plays were an irritating show of Ojo's skills as they not only caught up but passed them in score. At half time the score was 35-12 in Ojo's favor. Sena had been Spear Tackled a couple of times now and his ribs ached. He quickly changed back into his regular clothes. He calmly walked up to the team.
"Great game guys! You're doing well," Sena congratulated the team like he had been watching the game, not playing it. "Keep up the good work." His teammates just waved at him, though a few gave him some disbelieving looks. Ishimaru looked around.
"Hey, where's Eyeshield 21?"
"I saw him heading to the bathroom," Sena lied easily. "There was a long line, so it might be a while. I'm sure he'll be as quick as he can." As his teammates nodded in agreement, Sena's eyes wandered. As his gaze hit the stands, Sena saw someone he really didn't want to see. He growled under his breath before he headed over to the stands.
Just as he passed the Ojo bench, he heard the coach of the White Knights yelling at them. Not liking the way he was degrading them, Sena made a minor detour to a water cooler that was nearby. He grabbed a cup of ice water and walked up behind the still yelling coach. With the aid of the bench, Sena dumped the water on the man's head.
"Telling them that their idiots doesn't help an iota," Sena coolly informed the man as he turned around. "All that does is undermine their confidence. Try some constructive criticism. Point out what they did wrong, then tell them how to fix it. I'm sure you'll find that it works better then yelling at them."
Sena smiled coldly at the stunned man before walking away to the stands. He left a shocked team behind him. No one has ever stood up to the Shoji before. The kid wasn't even a second year! Shin watched the kid walk away with narrow eyes. That physique was familiar. ..
The small brunette walked up to the top of the stands, coming to a stop next to a dark haired boy with dread-locks. Sena balled up his fists, leaving the middle knuckle up. Bringing both hands up to either side of the older boy's head, Sena drilled the knuckles back and forth. He got a satisfying yelp of pain from the boy. Sena let go and planted his fists on his hips as the dark haired kid turned around.
"Are you stalking me, Agon?" Sena demanded. "Because if you are, I will make that call."
Agon's eyes widened at the sight of the small teen. The older teen smiled slightly, before shaking his head.
"No, I'm not stalking you," he said in a sugary voice. "I came to watch the game. Checking out the competition." Sena snorted before leveling an icy glare at the annoying bully.
"Lose the sugar, I'm not one of your hookers," Sena snarled out, making the Shinryuji players that were with Agon, one that looked surprisingly like the annoying boy, back up a bit. "That had better be all that you're here for. All of the dock brats and the dock workers are here, should I need them." Sena pointed to the section were his friends were looking at him with curiosity. Agon's eyes went huge at the sight of the dock brats and the workers, all of them looking his way. He swallowed hard before looking back at Sena.
"I promise I'm not here for anything other then the game," the taller boy's voice was sinecure. Sena studied him for a moment longer before nodding and walking back down to the field. Taking note of the time, Sena quickly hid and changed back into his uniform. He confidently strode to the team, once again Eyeshield 21.
"Ready to go?" he inquired of the team. Getting nods and calls of agreement, he stood next to Hiruma. Glancing at the captain, Sena nudged him.
"So what are our chances to win this?" Sena asked, gazing out across the field at the opposing team. Hiruma looked down at his ace then out at the field.
"It's about 0.1 percent of a chance," he said. "As long as it's not zero percent, we still have a chance."
"Very true," Sena agreed. "Let's win this." The captain's and ace's thoughts in sync, they stepped out on the field together when the teams were called back onto the field. Their positive attitude spread to the rest of the team, causing the Deimon team to step up their game. Everyone played harder making it harder for the White Knights to score. The White Knights played harder in response, the Devil Bats having as much difficulty scoring. The Knights scored once more as the clock got closer to the end of the game.
By this time Sena had been Spear Tackled several times. His ribs were a throbbing burn. He knew at least one was cracked and several were very bruised. He was going to have a hard time moving when the game was over. I need to move a little faster. Just a little farther and I'll beat him. Sena was determined to beat Shin.
Each run Sena did, he went faster. Shin caught him each time. Even when Sena spun around him instead of dodging out to the side. Shin was perplexed by this. The small player should be tired, almost exhausted. However, it was like he had just entered the game. He was getting faster with every play. Shin didn't know what to make of it.
"Damn chibi, go rest during defense," Hiruma said, pointing to the bench. "There's no hope for an interception at this point." Sena nodded and sat down. He watched as the Knights scored again. As he got ready for their offense, he saw Hiruma start to pack up his gear. A quick look around confirmed that no one else had seen the captain just yet. Moving quickly, Sena grabbed Hiruma's arm and dragged him around a corner so that they were out of sight.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Sena demanded of the startled blonde. "The game isn't done yet."
"It's as good as," Hiruma snapped back. "Our chances are at absolute zero now. It's pointless to keep playing when you know there's no chance."
"So? We still have a chance to score one more time before the game ends," Sena glared at the teen. Hiruma glared back. "I just need a little longer. Just a bit more. I can beat him!"
Hiruma blinked. Sena was so earnest that he was shaking slightly. "Shin, I mean. I can beat him. I just need to go a little faster."
Hiruma gazed at the small teen. Sena wasn't even looking at him anymore. He was looking at the field, where Shin was. Hiruma recognized the look. It was on Kurita's face when someone mentioned the Christmas Bowl. It was on his own when he thought about winning the tournament. The look of longing and determination to get what they wanted.
"So you really want to do it, huh..?" Hiruma asked. "…Beat Shin?"
"Yes." There was no hesitation in Sena's answer. He wanted to beat Shin and he would. Even if he broke a couple of ribs in the process. Hiruma nodded, and put his helmet back on. They walked back to the team, Hiruma calling for them to huddle up as he did.
The next few play set the tone for the rest of the time. Sena and Shin faced off, Sena getting faster after every Spear Tackle. After one really hard tackle, Sena felt those cracked ribs break. It made it harder for him to breathe but he didn't say anything.
Sena went up the left side in the next play. He could feel Shin coming up behind him however, just in front of him, Sakuraba was on the field reaching for something. Sena was too close to come to a full stop, but he was able to slow his run down. The impact was lighter because of it and the slower time allowed Sena to switch his and Sakuraba's positions. He landed hard on in the little dig-out with Sakuraba on top of him.
"Oh noooo!"
"Sakuraba-kun!"
Sena carefully moved out from underneath the taller teen. He broke a couple more ribs in the fall, dislocated his shoulder, and to top off his list of injures, he heard a snap from the vicinity of his other shoulder. The on-site medic came over to check on them. Sena stood and waved him off.
"I'm fine. Just a few bruises," he claimed. "Check on him. I did hit him at a fast speed." With one last doubtful look the medic checked Sakuraba over.
"Yow!"
"It's bad," the man said to Shoji. "I think it's his collar-bone." Sena watched as Sakuraba's manager went nuts and drove the player off in his car. The girls in the stands went insane at that moment. The hollering covered the snapping sounds his ribs made when he popped them back into place. After that was done, he walked over to Hiruma.
"Here, hold my arm straight out," Sena instructed, gesturing to his dislocated arm. Once Hiruma had a firm hold of his arm, Sena twisted his body slightly then straighten and shoved against his arm at the same time. With a nasty crack, his shoulder popped back into place. He rotated it slightly, nodded, and walked towards the center field.
"He would have had me that time…" Sena mused out loud, deaf to the booing of the girls. "I just need to go a little faster." He joined the team huddle.
"Alright, we don't have a lot of time left," Hiruma said, an evil grin on his face. "Time for brute force. This time we're going to break through the middle. Run as fast as you can!" The last was directed at Sena. Nodding, everyone got ready. Hiruma set the ball and handed it to Sena. Kurita put all he could into opening a hole for Sena to run through and he succeeded. He took out Otawara and almost took out Shin at the same time. Shin got out of the way just in time to go after Sena.
Sena could once again feel Shin catching up to him. Sena worked his legs harder, going faster. Shin still was catching up though. I WILL BEAT HIM! Just as Shin reached out to tackle him once again, Sena put on a burst of speed. He accessed the hidden speed that he never had a need to pull out. The 40-yard dash in 4.2 seconds; light speed.
He crossed into the end zone, barely conscious of doing so. He was in a lot of pain from his ribs and his other shoulder area. He stumbled to a stop and dropped to one knee. Breathing as deeply as he could, Sena forced the exhaustion and pain away. He stood in time for the team to surround him.
"I'm alright," he said, swaying slightly. "I can play."
"Bullshit," Hiruma snorted. "You're exhausted. Go rest." Just as Sena started to turn, Hiruma stopped him. "Hey, damn chibi. It only happened once. You only succeeded once, and you tried dozens of times, but you did it. You beat him!" Sena smiled all the way to the bench.
Watching the team was hard for him. Sena wanted to be out there with them. When Mamori gave him a drink, he smiled his thanks. He was too tired to say anything. He heard the whistle blow shortly after that. The White Knights had made another touchdown and there was no time left. The Ojo White Knights won 68-18. Deimon was eliminated from the Spring Tournament.
Kurita started crying at one point. Sena patted his arm and joined the team to go bow to Shogun. As they crossed back over to their side, Sena passed Shin. Shin gazed at the smaller boy as he walked up. There was no doubt in the linebacker's mind that Eyeshield 21 and the boy that scolded Shoji were one and the same. The boy had guts and was very strong in his own right. He was a worthy rival.
"Ojo's going to the Christmas Bowl." That was all that Shin said as he walked by Sena. Sena smiled.
"Deimon will be there waiting," was the reply that Shin received. Sena went to change. It took longer then the last two times since he had to favor his ribs and arms. Once changed, he joined the team again. He did his best to congratulate them on a good game, but everyone's spirits were low. At one point Hiruma shoved the T.V. camera crew away, saying something about new players.
Sena wasn't all that sure on what the captain said as at that point, he was walking in a haze of pain and exhaustion. He vaguely heard Mamori and Hiruma talk before he felt himself be guided around. He felt himself be settled in to a car, and then he didn't feel anything as he lost the fight and passed out.
Hiruma glanced down at the dark head that landed on his shoulder a second ago. Seeing that the kid had finally passed out, Hiruma left him alone and returned to gazing out the window. The damn chibi amazed him on many levels today. From knowing the dock brats to beating Shin. That gymnastic move that he did to get out of Shin's hold was shocking and unique.
Hiruma looked back down to study the small teen resting against him. The long hair fell across the exhausted face. Honey brown eyes were shut in unconsciousness. Hiruma recalled when the damn chibi shoved him against the wall to yell at him. Those eyes were light with a flame that turned them an amber color that was close to a wolf's eye color.
Thinking on that brought back when Sena went up into the stands to yell at Damn Dreads. Hiruma still found it hilarious that the Great Agon was afraid of the small Sena. Although watching the kid snarl at the Damn Dreads was kind of frightening. Hiruma knew that the damn chibi had a temper but he didn't really feel the need to witness it.
They were half way to the hospital when Hiruma heard a cell phone go off. Since the ring tone wasn't his, he assumed it was Sena's. Quickly locating it, Hiruma looked at the caller id. It read Deruku. Hiruma flicked it open and put it to his ear.
"Yeah?" A short pause followed.
"Hiruma? Why are you answering Sena's phone? Where's Sena?" the leader of the Dock D brats demanded. "Did he get hurt playing?" Hiruma re-positioned both the phone and Sena into more comfortable positions.
"I'm answering the damn chibi's phone because he passed out," Hiruma answered easily. "I'm taking him to the hospital to get checked out. He says that he's fine; however I don't believe a word of it. No one gets Spear Tackled that many times without getting a least some bruised ribs, and when he went crashing into the dig out? Yeah, there is no way in hell that he got just a few bruises." He heard a snort.
"Yeah, that sounds like Sena. He doesn't like to make a fuss when he's hurt. He prefers to down play any injures he gets."
"I'll keep that in mind," Hiruma promised, before seeing that they were arriving at the hospital. "We just got to the hospital. I'll keep you informed on what the doctors say."
Hiruma closed the phone and stuck it in his pocket as the cab came to a stop. Not bothering to try and wake the unconscious teen, Hiruma picked him up and carried him inside bridal style. He was quickly able to persuade a doctor to check on the Deimon ace.
"He has six broken ribs, four cracked, the rest are bruised, and he's cracked his left shoulder blade," the doctor explained to Hiruma after a quick examination and x-ray of Sena's upper body. "He'll have to take it easy for a couple of weeks, but he'll be fine. We've wrapped his ribs so that they stay in place. I'd like him to stay over night for observation."
Hiruma nodded and the doctor left. A quick call to the damn chibi's parents, a white lie about why he was in the hospital, and Hiruma was settling down in one the chairs next to the brat's bed.
As he waited for the brunette to wake up, Hiruma entered all the new information that he got on the kid into his lab-top. He was typing that Sena knew the dock brats when he remembered that he had to call the damn leader. Pulling out the chibi's cell phone, Hiruma scrolled through the contacts. Hiruma raised an eyebrow at the amount of names that were in the contact list. He hadn't realized that the chibi was so popular.
He got the damn leader's number and programmed it into his own phone so he didn't have to keep looking it up. He called and appraised Deruku of Sena's condition. Hearing that the damn chibi was going to be in the hospital didn't calm the dock brat but Hiruma didn't really give a damn. He did tell the damn leader that the team needed those photos as soon as possible. All he got in reply to that was a growl and the phone disconnecting.
Hiruma shrugged and went back to cataloging his new information. He had finished with the chibi's info and had moved on to the other team players when he heard a soft cough. Glancing up, his eyes connected with honey brown eyes. Sena gazed at him sleepily. Hiruma felt something inside him clench at the sight. He ignored it in favor of smirking at the tired brunette.
"Look who's joined the land of the living."
Sena tiredly blinked at the blonde demon. Deciding that it wasn't worth replying, Sena took stock of himself. His ribs ached and his shoulders hurt but nothing seemed overly wrong with him. With a grunt he sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Hands on his arms stopped Sena from getting up.
"Where do you think your going?" Hiruma inquired mildly. Sena looked up at him then down at his arms. For some reason, Sena was very much aware of how warm those long hands were. He past it off as him being really tired, knowing that it was more then that.
"I'm going to head home," Sena answered at length. Hiruma snorted. "There's nothing wrong with me. I don't need to stay."
"You broke six ribs, cracked four, bruised the rest, and cracked your shoulder," Hiruma listed off. "I'd say that that means that something is wrong. The doctor wants you to stay overnight so you will. You're barely awake as it is." As he talked, Hiruma made him lay back down. Not that it was much of a fight to do so. Sena wasn't even aware that he was lying down until he was flat on his back.
"I don' wanna stay here," Sena pouted tiredly. Hiruma had to strangle the ridiculous urge to suck on that pout. Hiruma shook his head to clear it. Before he could argue with the brunette, he saw that Sena had fallen a sleep again. Shaking his head in amusement, Hiruma packed up his stuff, scribbled a note for the brat, and headed home. The kid will be fine alone, and he needed to get his head on straight.
Sena woke up the next morning feeling much more aware and in a lot more pain. The doctor prescribed him some pain meds and discharged him with the warning to take it easy. While he got dress he noticed the note left on the table.
Damn Chibi,
Since I know you'll want to know, Sakuraba is in the same hospital as you. Room 418. If you go see him, DO NOT ruin the Eyeshield 21 image that I've built. He's suppose to have done that tackle on purpose.
Yeah, yeah, I know that you didn't do it on purpose, but the public doesn't need to know that. So go and apologize, but don't mess up my hard work. I already got the pictures from the damn dock leader so don't worry about getting those.
Hiruma
Sena shook his head. Only his team captain would take advantage of an accident like this. Shoving the note in his back pocket, Sena headed off to school in pain. His prescription wouldn't be done until after school and the pain killer that the nurse gave him to tie him over didn't mask all of the pain.
Knowing that he didn't have a lot of time before school started, he ran over to his other schools and dropped off his completed homework. While he was at each school, he arranged it so that he could pick up the whole week's worth of homework instead of having to come back every day.
Since he was short on time, he decided to take the express train instead of his usual one. He made it to the school with an hour to spare. As he walked towards the school, Sena heard Mamori call his name then felt a hard slap to his back. Barely able to keep from screaming in agony, Sena had to take a deep breath before he could greet Mamori.
"Hi, Mamori-nee-chan," he smiled tensely. Mamori narrowed her eyes at him.
"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" she asked, concern pour from her. Sena waved a hand dismissively.
"I'm fine. Just a little sore," he explained. "When Haruto-san got hurt, the girls in the stands jostled me around a little. I took some pain killers earlier, they just haven't kicked in yet." A little white lie never hurt anyone in Sena's opinion.
"Oh, okay," Mamori said, still a little suspicious. Luckily for him, Sena heard some noise coming from the clubhouse. Curiosity aroused, Sena walked over to see what was going on. Finding a construction crew working on the small building wasn't what he expected. Spotting Hiruma, Sena went over to him.
"What are they doing to the club-room?" he inquired. Hiruma smirked evilly.
"It's being renovated. The principal is paying for it," Hiruma turned towards Mamori. "Hey, damn manager, did you finish editing the video?"
"Don't speak to me like that," Mamori said loftily as she pulled the tape from her bag and handed it to the blonde. Her thoughts at that point moved on to a similar topic.
"Oh yeah, may I see those photos you took in the stands?" she asked, turning towards Sena. Hiruma held up an envelope.
"I had them developed." As Mamori exclaimed over the different angles in the photos the blonde handed her, Hiruma handed the rest of the pictures to Sena.
"Here, get these in order by the end of school. Be sure to take it easy today," Hiruma warned in a low tone. Sena nodded and headed into the school. He settled into his seat with enough time to get most of the pictures in order. When the bell rang, he put them away and got out his books.
Lunch seemed to come quickly to Sena. Taking the lunch that Mamori had given him earlier up to the roof, Sena finished putting the pictures together. Just as he finished, Juumonji, Kuroki, and Toganou joined him up on the roof. He watched as they moved gingerly; obviously favoring sore muscles. He gave them a small smile in sympathy.
"So where were you today for morning practice?" Kuroki asked sourly. Sena didn't think that the dark haired boy was to thrilled with being in such a sore state.
"I was in the hospital," Sena calmly informed him. "I got thrown into one of the rails when those girls went insane. I bruised some of my ribs and Hiruma told me to make sure that I hadn't cracked any of them."
"Oh." Kuroki looked a little sheepish at that point. Sena watched Juumonji eye him suspiciously. The former bully would be hard to get around. Sena decided he would think on it later. They finished their lunch quickly and headed inside since it looked like it was going to start pouring at any second.
The rest of the day flew by for Sena. In no time at all, it seemed like he was waiting for Hiruma to show up to take the photos. As he waited Sena looked out the rain-pelted window, down at the field. He noted that the step ladder drill was still on the now muddy ground. He heard the door slam open.
"Aren't you finished with the photos, you damn chibi?" Hiruma yelled at him. Hiruma was in a very angry mood. Having to listen to the damn manager bitch at him for 'Poor Sena-kun' being hurt in the stands was just damn annoying. Not having the photos to look at wasn't helping either.
"We didn't come hear to rush you," Kurita said as he came in after Hiruma. "This is the only class room with a TV that we can use since the team room is closed to us." Sena smiled up at the big lineman.
"No worries. I was waiting for you guys to show up," he explained, holding the stack of photos up. "I'm finished with the photos. I don't know which classroom is yours' or I would have brought them to you." Sena watched as Hiruma set up the TV. He guessed that Hiruma made the school get it last year.
"Since you're done with the photos, head home," Hiruma pointed the remote at him.
"Remember, the doctor said that you need to take it easy. I don't want to risk your ribs getting worse." Sena packed up his things, ignoring the part about the doctor. He did get a warm feeling over the fact that Hiruma was worried about him.
Sena headed outside to the field. He had been planning on putting the rope ladder away, but when he got there and saw that he had some time before he absolutely had to leave, he ditched his umbrella and jacket. He started doing the drill. Slowly at first, but getting faster with each repetition. And when he slipped and fell in the mud, he got right back up and did it again.
He had been at it for half an hour when he heard his name being called. Glancing up, Sena saw Deruku and Reuisu standing near the entrance to the field. He slowed to a stop and walked over to them.
"Hey, what's up?" he asked, a little out of breath. His ribs were on fire now that the meds that the nurse gave him had worn off. "What are you two doing here?"
"Hiruma gave me a call," Deruku informed him. "He told me that you had orders to take it easy from the doctor and that you weren't exactly doing that. I asked Reuisu-san to give me a ride to pick you up." Sena scolded slightly.
"Tattle-tale," he muttered. Deruku and Reuisu laughed.
"I think he was just concern, Sena-kun," Reuisu corrected. "Now come on. Let's get you dry." They gathered up Sena's things and put the ladder away. Getting in the manager's car, Sena remember that he had to get his pain meds and his school work from Ojo and Shinryuji. When he told them that he had to go get them, Reuisu told him that he would drive him to go get them. Since the schools were closer, they went to get the homework first.
Getting his work from Shinryuji was surprisingly easy. No one bothered him, though he did get some odd looks from the students that were still there. Not wanting to know, Sena ignored this behavior. Getting his homework from Ojo was a different matter.
For some reason, there were a lot of older kids hanging around the front of the building. Seeing all those kids, Deruku got out with Sena and ignored the protest of "I don't need a babysitter!" While the older kids didn't bother them on the way in, they did stop the dock brats on the way out.
"What are pathetic rats like you doing here?" one of them sneered. Deruku raised a very annoyed eyebrow.
"Getting some paperwork," he sneered right back. "What else would we be doing in a grand total of five minutes?" The older teens had both angry and confused expressions on their faces. Evidently no one has stood up to them before.
"Hey brat, don't you know who I am?" the boy, who seemed to be in charge of the group, asked. Sena knew, mostly because he read the paper. The kid was some big CEO's only child and heir. Very few people had the gumption to talk back to the kid. Since those people were his parents, Sena fully believed that there was going to be fight.
"I don't know," Deruku informed the now shocked kid, and before he was informed about the status of the rich brat, "and I don't care. You're standing in our way, and we have places to be." Sena had to say; he never seen that shade of plum before. Up went the kid's fist, down went the kid. Deruku was all about the hitting first and hitting hard.
Sena joined in when the rest of the group of fifteen rich kids jumped to help their leader. The fight lasted maybe ten minutes but in that time it gain the attention of Reuisu, the kids' parents waiting in their limos, the teachers, the principal, and the football team on their run. As the last kid went down, the first parent came running up.
As their parents babied them and demanded that they be punished for hurting their precious babies, Sena and Deruku wandered over to Reuisu. The manager just stood with his hands on his hips, grinning and shaking his head in amusement. The three of them watched as the principal and teachers tried, and failed, to calm the parents. Sena had to admit that it was funny watching them all, but he couldn't really appreciate it since his injuries were making it hard to breathe.
As he watched, Sena saw the football team standing back out of the way. Among them was Shin, who was staring at him. Sena nodded to him in a silent greeting, before his attention was moved back to the quieted group.
"What happened here?" the principal demanded to know. Fights didn't happen on his campus. Not with the rich children, anyway; none that he heard of. He did notice that they had a tendency to bully the kids that were on scholarships. Since he had no real, hard evidence of it, he couldn't do anything about it.
"Those little heathens hurt our babies," one mother shrieked out. Sena spoke before he thought.
"Damn woman. Could you possibly get any more shrill?" Clearly, his filter between his thoughts and his mouth stopped working when he was in severe pain. When the woman gasped in outrage, he noticed that several of the parents had to rub their noses. Deruku and Reuisu didn't even bother to hide their grins. The principal coughed and cleared his throat.
"Now Kobayakawa-kun, that wasn't polite," he scolded softly, the twinkle in his eyes belying the tone. "She's just concerned about her son. Now tell me what happened."
"Deruku and I were leaving the campus when he," Sena pointed at the leader, who happened to be the woman's son, "stopped us and asked, I quote, 'What are pathetic rats like you doing here?' in a very snide tone. Deruku, taking exception to the tone and being called a rat, informed him that we were getting some paperwork and inquired, again quote, 'What else would we be doing in a grand total of five minutes?' He also used a very snide tone, I believe in retaliation." Several of the football players and parents had to clear their throats to keep from laughing.
"Then he," Sena gestured to the boy again, "asked if we knew who he was. Deruku informed him that no, he didn't know and that he didn't care. He then said, quote, 'You're standing in our way, and we have places to be.' At that point, he," again gesturing, "raised his fist, with the intent to hit us, by-the-by. Deruku, however, never was one to stand there and take it. When the ring leader of your kids went down, the rest and I joined in. That about sums it up."
By the time Sena finished explaining what happened in his very matter- of- fact tone, several of the parents were giving their children some very hard looks. The woman, however, clearly didn't believe him.
"You filthy little liar," she hissed at him. "My Tombo is an angel! He wouldn't hurt a fly!" Sena, Deruku, and Reuisu all raised an eyebrow at that blatant show of maternal blindness. The principal stepped in at that point.
"Marukusu-san, there is no reason for you to be so hostile," he informed the irate woman. "Kobayakawa-kun was just giving us his side of the story. If Tombo-kun's side differs then we should hear his side. Marukusu-kun? Do you want to add something?"
It was clear that Marukusu was going to give a very different, and damning to Sena and Deruku, version about the fight when another car pulled up. When the man stepped out, Tombo suddenly went very quiet. His mother, on the other hand, went very loud.
"Romya! Come and look at your son! These little brats," at this point she sent a poisonous look towards them, "hurt my baby!" The man that walked over looked his son over then looked Sena and Deruku over. He zeroed in on Sena.
"I'm sorry to have missed your game yesterday, Sena-kun," he said to the amazement of his wife, and everyone around. "I trust that it went well?" Sena beamed up at him.
"As well as can be expected, Marukusu-sama," Sena bowed respectfully to the man.
"Deimon lost 68-18, but it was a good game. Did you finish payroll?"
"Thankfully, yes," Marukusu sighed out, before he grimace. "Not that it got rid of any of the paperwork on my desk." Sena laughed. Mai-san latched on to her husband's arm.
"You know this… this heathen?" she shrilly asked. Sena watched in vast amusement as Marukusu gave the irritating woman a contempt-filled look.
"Yes, I know him. I know all three of them. They work for me, the younger ones in a different fashion," he stated quite clearly and calmly. Those who hadn't left yet and knew what Marukusu did for a living quickly connected the dots. His wife did as well. She gasped and turned horrified eyes towards them. When all they did was smile, she swayed slightly.
Because there was one thing that she knew, that she really didn't want to know right at that moment.
Dock brats don't lie when it comes to fights. They're proud of each and every one of their fights. They like to have very detail as truthful as possible, and for one reason only. They never lose. Every fight a dock brat goes into; they go in it with the intention to win. Why lie about what happened in a fight that you won? Especially since you've never lost one?
That's why she was feeling a little faint. Since Sena was a dock brat, the version that he told was the truthful version. Which means her baby was going to hit an underclassman, just because he didn't like the response he got.
As his wife wrung her hands, Marukusu turned to look at his son. Tombo wasn't as confident now that his dad was here. His dad didn't let him get away with anything. Since the kids he was going to beat up were dock brats, he was in even more trouble now. He hadn't bothered to check their wrists and now he had to suck up the beating that he got instead. Life officially sucked for one Marukusu Tombo.
With a slight gesture of his hand, Marukusu sent his son and wife to their car. He would deal with them at home. He similarly dealt with the remaining parents and teachers. Turning back to his manager and dock brats, he frowned slightly at Sena's labored breathing.
Knowing that the teen had received some rough treatment the day before, he gestured for him to leave as well. Reuisu caught his eye as he left with Little Wolf and Deruku. A slight nod and he knew he would get the full story later.
Sena caught Shin's eye has he left and smiled apologetically. Sena had wanted to talk to the linebacker before he left but with the way that he was in pain, that wasn't going to happen. Shin nodded back in reply and went back to his run. Sena walked as normally as he could to Reuisu's car. He slid into the back and hoped that the ride to the pharmacy went by fast.
Sena was in a pain-filled haze by the time they reached the hospital. Reuisu took one look at the out-of-it teen and went to get the pain meds himself. Getting a water bottle from a vending machine on his way out, Reuisu read and opened the pill bottle. Opening the back door, he popped one of the large pills in Sena's mouth.
"Sena-kun, come on. I need you to swallow this," he urged quietly. With a little more coaxing he was able to get Sena to swallow the pill and some water to wash it down. He closed the door and got back in the front. He put the now closed pill container in the teen's back pack and started the drive to Sena's house.
They were almost at the small teen's home when Sena's pain had ebbed enough for him to be aware of his surroundings. He looked around and, seeing that they were on his street, grabbed his bag. Slowing to a stop in front of the house, Reuisu rolled down his window. Sena got out and turned back to them.
"Thanks for helping me today," he said, tiredly. "I guess I did go a little overboard today. I'll try to take it easier tomorrow. Promise." He smiled at them and received two return. He headed inside as they drove off. His mom, thankfully, wasn't home. His dad was though.
"Hey, son. Are you alright?" Shuma asked, concerned. "Your team captain called. He said that while you were in the stands some of the fans went a little insane, and you were hurt. That he took you the hospital to be looked at. Is that true?"
"Yeah, I was shoved into a rail pretty hard," Sena said soothingly. "The doctor said that I had bruised several of my ribs and cracked a couple. He gave me some pain killers and told me to take it easy. It should be healed up in a couple of weeks. I overdid it today, but I took a pain med so it's not too bad. I think I'm going to call it a night though." Shuma nodded and made a light dinner for Sena to eat in his room.
Sena took a quick bath to sooth his sore muscles and then did his homework for the week. Once that was out of the way, he ate dinner and laid down. The pill he took was totally kicking his ass right about now. He watched as the ceiling not only spin but tilted sideways.
Closing his eyes didn't help either. Deciding not to fight sleep, Sena took as deep a breath as he could and relaxed. You know as much as the game hurt, it was a lot of fun. Maybe playing football isn't so bad. Hiruma isn't that bad either. Sena smiled at that last thought and fell asleep.
!
~Tada! All done. And I've started on the next chapter as well. All good, all good. So I hope you all liked it. Reviews please? Pretty please? ~
