Ok, normal disclaimer, I don't own it don't sue me. Café Madu is an actual Café in Tokyo, I've never been but I looked it up on the web, it's not where Mizuki took Ryoma but I had to have some name to insert in there. Anyways, sorry it took me so long to update, I've become a florist and I got the job just before easter so I hit right in the busy season. I've had no time to really think about writing much, sorry. Now though it should have died down to normal, other than all the funerals and weddings but those you can't predict. Sorry, I'm rambling. On with the story, and remember if you kill me for not updating then the story will never go on.
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Warning, Yukimura and Kirihara will be ooc. I've seen the entire season and the first few national championship episodes, I have up to #17 of the manga books but it doesn't have much of their characters. If anyone could help me with them I'd be grateful. And I'm willing to rewrite that bit of the chapter.
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Ryoma flinched and tried to back away as the older boy holding him by the shirt raised his other arm with a clear intention of hitting him. The blow never came though and he slowly opened his eyes as a new voice spoke.
"Che… you're more annoying than the brat you're holding there. Why not pick a fight with someone a little closer to your size shit face?" a boy with longish spiky grey hair growled out as he squeezed Sasabe's captive wrist a little harder.
"Who the hell are you?! Let me go bastard! This isn't any business of yours, it's between me and this little monster." Sasabe managed to grind out between clenched teeth which were a clear sign of the pain the other was inflicting.
The grey haired boy simply grinned and put even more pressure into his grip making the older boy release Ryoma as he tried not to double over in pain.
"Name's Akutsu. And I'm making it my business. Get lost Gaki, I'll take care of this annoyance."
"But…"
"I said get lost Echizen, unless you'd rather I let him beat you to a bloody puddle!"
Ryoma did the only thing he could right then, he ran.
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"Why would Ryoma not be sure that we were going to stay together?!" Atobe grumbled more out of anger than curiosity. It was just too silent in the limo right then and they all knew they had things to clear up.
"Do I really have to answer that after today?" Fuji replied dangerously.
"We need to calm down. We all know that we don't know Ryoma as well as we thought. What I want to know is how we didn't realize this before, and where the hell he is." Sanada said trying to subtly continue the subject.
"He's unsure because we've made no real effort to know him beyond what we saw. He's tried and put up with several things from each of us, but we've never done the same for him. If we had we would know his favorite restaurant and games. We would know what was bothering him, maybe even why he lef…" Tezuka faltered as he started to say that last word.
"I won't believe that he left us. He didn't! Something must have happened to him. And after this I am never letting him out of my sight again." Fuji growled.
"Agreed." Sanada whispered into Karupin's fur as he hugged the cat, their living reminder of their missing lover.
"Where do we go next? We can't just wander idly and hope to find him." Atobe spoke up.
"What about the court he and I used to challenge each other on in middle school? I used to find him there on occasion when he was confused about something." Tezuka suggested.
"The one the sky train passes?" Fuji asked and received a nod.
"Lets go."
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"Hey Oishi-san! Isn't that one of the St. Rudolph players?!" Kentarou asked loudly pointing at Mizuki who had just exited a restaurant up the street.
"Aoi-kun could you lower your voice just a bit please? I think we've frightened enough people today." Oishi said wincing as his ears were assaulted by the loud voice next to him.
"Pardon? We should go ask him if he's seen Echizen-kun."
"Yeah! We need to ask everybody. You never know who's seen O'chibi. Let's go!" Eiji practically shouted as he grabbed the Rokkaku player by the wrist and took off running.
"Oi Mizuki-san!" Eiji shouted as the two caught up to the boy.
"Do you want something?" Mizuki snapped.
"Calm down. We just want to ask if you've seen Echizen Ryoma anywhere today." Oishi said as he hurried up to them with a racketless Taka in tow.
"Echizen… who the hell do you think did this to me!? No, I don't know where he went either." Mizuki ground out before storming off after they'd caught a glimpse of his very wet pants.
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"Hey! You two are on the same team as Echizen Ryoma right?" Kajimoto called out addressing Inui and Kaidoh who were still searching with Renji.
"Indeed. Have you seen him today by chance?" Inui asked smoothly as he sized up the Jyosei high school tennis captain.
"Personally no; but our school coach Hanamura-sensei did. I was hoping you knew what he said to her, she's still sputtering nonsense from the encounter." Kajimoto replied looking slightly annoyed.
"We haven't seen him all day. Did your coach happen to mention where she ran into him?" Inui queried.
"Can't you get a hold of him?" the tennis captain asked in confusion.
These were after all two of the brat's teammates, one being an incessant data gatherer who should know ways to contact each of his own players, the other had never seemed close to the boy whenever their schools played each other but was all around protective of his team. These two shouldn't really have to ask him where their teammate was.
"Fssh! That's not the point! He asked you a perfectly reasonable question. Where did your coach see Echizen?" Kaidoh burst out revealing just how stressed the situation was making him.
"Well if you're going to be that way about it… wait. Something's wrong isn't it?" The Jyosei player suddenly caught on.
"We simply misplaced him with no way to contact him. Nothing to worry about. Now will you please tell us where she saw him?" Inui insisted downplaying the problem.
"If you're sure. She ran into him near 'Café Madu' on Kotto street, but I was able to get her to tell me that he took off pretty fast."
"Thank you. Kaidoh, Renji, we're going to Kotto street."
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Kirihara Akaya would never admit it out loud to anyone but his captain and vice captain, but he was worried about Ryoma. Thankfully it was his captain that he was walking with looking for the missing teen. He and Ryoma had really become close over the last couple of years. The boy had been the first to reach out to him and show the other players that he wasn't a red eyed devil anymore. He wasn't always nice, but he wasn't about to hurt anyone without good reason now. His attitude however seemed to play off Ryoma's quite well and he found he didn't mind the teasing insults the younger boy occasionally threw. They weren't serious and he could dish them out just as well as he could take them. At first they'd just sporadically met at the street courts and played each other. That had gradually led to them grabbing a bite to eat after and from there they just seemed to become more and more comfortable with one another. Akaya knew things not even Ryoma's teammates knew. He knew all about him coaching handicapped kids at the private courts. He knew that Nanako's boyfriend seriously scared Ryoma, that the man had actually tried to run him down in his car once and that he had tried to get rid of Ryoma's cat once as well. That incident is what led to Ryoma insisting Karupin never return to his parents' house so long as Nanako was dating that bastard. Now if Ryoma went somewhere with his boyfriends Akaya got to cat-sit since the feline had only taken to select staff who normally either went with the boys or had the same time off.
Akaya smiled at that thought. He really liked the cat and Ryoma was hilarious to watch when he was saying goodbye to her.
"…aya… Akaya… hey quit daydreaming Akaya. I've been trying to catch your attention for five minutes. I know you're worried but we need to keep our eyes open if we want to find him. Rou is counting on us to find Ryoma." Yukimura said as he casually draped an arm around the younger boy's shoulders.
"Sorry Seii-sama. I was just remembering a few things. Hey, isn't that the jackass who played for Yamabuki Jr High for part of Ryoma's first season? The one that likes to beat people up?"
"Where? Oh, what was his name Akatsa or something?" Yukimura asked. He vaguely remembered Sanada mentioning the boy as no threat.
"Something like that. That guy he's beating on looks kind of familiar too. I think he's come up to Ryoma a few times when I was with him to annoy him. Sasabe I think. Hey, now I remember the other guy. That's Akutsu Jin." Kirihara replied.
"Well, shall we interrupt and ask him if he's seen Genichirou's little lost kitten?" Yukimura said lightly not letting go of the younger boy.
"Only if you don't ask him in those words. If Ryoma ever found out we knew Genichirou-sempai calls him that in private he'd commit triple homicide."
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