All the Difference
Disclaimer: Prince of Tennis belongs to Konomi Takeshi, not me.
A/N: For much longer author's notes, please visit my livejournal page. My profile here has the link, as well as periodic updates between chapters that report how far along the next chapter is. Feel free to share your thoughts on the story or Prince of Tennis in general.
Anonymous Reader Replies:
No.13paranoidfridge - Thanks for sticking with the story! Part of the reason I was unhappy with Chapter 7 at first was precisely because it felt too melodramatic until I reworked a few passages. Even though this chapter was much more lighthearted, I couldn't completely ignore the fact that Fuji was still uncertain about such a big change in his life and the relationships he had built for two years were going to be changing a lot. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Thanks to everyone who has added the story to your alerts and/or favorites!
It's the story's birthday! It's mostly a coincidence that the update was finished in time to be posted today, but enjoy!
Chapter Summary: Tournament season is fast approaching. Fuji gets his first taste of tennis as an official member of the Rikkai team.
Chapter Eight: Law
March 26, 2006
Compared to the first time Fuji had visited, the Rikkai campus was a hive of activity when he arrived. The sound of the surf pounding against the coast was easily drowned out by the dull roar of students and adults milling about the campus. For the younger children, clearly incoming first years, today was a prime opportunity to familiarize themselves with the campus before classes began in a week's time.
As Fuji entered the main gates and began weaving through the crowds, he felt the weight of stares from the people left in his wake. He tightened the grip on his equipment bag self-consciously. There was a small bundle of nerves he had been unable to completely squash, and the unexpected attention was only worsening his apprehension.
It was only after noticing a very young child (an elementary-aged boy that most likely was dragged along with the rest of his family to tour the campus) openly pointing at him that Fuji understood. It wasn't anything he had done that was drawing attention - it was what he was wearing. Opening his eyes a little wider, Fuji observed that the glances lingering on his uniform were filled with a mix of pride and awe. For the few people whose gazes he met, he hurriedly dipped his head in cordial greeting and acknowledgment of their admiration.
He only wished there was some way of letting them know that he hadn't done anything to deserve their respect.
Fuji expected to calm once he reached the familiar environment of the tennis courts, but he felt his breath catch in his throat when his destination came into view. The scene was one of controlled chaos, with tennis players wandering about as far as the eye could see. The majority was wearing the signature yellow-and-black of Rikkai, but a smaller number of teenagers were dressed in black warm-up pants and plain white polo shirts. Those players were mostly clustered, although a few had been brave enough to break away from the main group and take over space at one of the tennis walls.
"Fuji!"
Fuji pinpointed the voice calling his name coming from a little further down the row of practice walls, at the very end. The distinctive appearance of Jackal's head was visible above the crowd, so it was easy for Fuji to confirm who it was who yelled out. Fuji headed in that direction, and was relieved to see that Jackal was not the only familiar face around. Marui was monopolizing the wall they were in front of, slamming a ball with his racket with increasing flair. In between quick glances in Fuji's direction to make sure he was still walking in the right direction, Jackal watched the volley tensai's antics bemusedly from a safe distance so he wouldn't get hit. Nioh and Yagyu were also nearby, standing a few feet apart from each other engaged in a fast-paced volley drill. Despite the quick pace of the exercise, both boys raised their hands in greeting once Fuji jogged over.
Marui wrapped up his warm-up with a backhand shot that popped up over all their heads and bounced out of sight. He muttered a quick "Yo!" in Fuji's direction before pestering Jackal into retrieving the ball for him. "Why do I have to get it?" Jackal complained. Marui shrugged his shoulders and popped a bubble from his chewing gum, as if that was a good enough explanation. Since no one else commented and Jackal trudged off to track down the ball, Fuji concluded it was reason enough.
While he waited for Jackal to return, Marui wedged himself into the drill with Nioh and Yagyu, turning the two person exercise into a test to see if the three of them could maintain the speed of their returns and keep the ball from hitting the ground. It was impressive to watch, but with Jackal gone Fuji was acutely aware that he was still an outsider - no matter how much he blended in with the crowd on the surface.
As if he heard the turn Fuji's thoughts had taken, Nioh glanced over. He looked Fuji over from head to toe, punctuating his inspection with a silent smirk. Fuji dropped his equipment bag to the ground and tried to convince himself to ignore Nioh's amusement with the way he was still getting used to his new uniform. They were going to be playing on the same team starting today; there was no reason for him notto dress like everyone else.
Reflecting on how much Fuji looked like he belonged with the Rikkai team only drew his attention that much more to the players that were dressed differently. "Who are the opponents today?" Fuji asked. Much as he expected, the question didn't cause the trio to pause in their drill even a bit.
"Ninomiya," came the response, courtesy of Yagyu. "They're from a little to the west of here, in the Naka district."
Fuji nodded and continued studying the other players. "I'm not familiar with that team at all," he confessed.
Marui snorted. "Of course you're not. They're a decent enough team to scrimmage against, but they rarely make it past their city tournament."
"Which makes them an ideal choice for practice matches such as this for precisely that reason," Yagyu smoothly added, as if Marui hadn't jumped into the conversation. "The trouble they have in their city tournament ensures that we have freedom to try new techniques or strategies without worrying about it affecting us later in the season." Yagyu turned to Fuji as the rally briefly turned into a battle between Nioh and Marui to force the other to miss a return. "They're also very protective of their players, so any scouts are chased away."
Marui let out a frustrated groan as the ball flew under his racket and smacked into the training wall. "Scouts usually get chased off here anyway," Nioh drawled, "not that it would do then any good even if they could see us in action."
Fuji unzipped his bag and withdrew a racket and a ball, the latter which he threw to Marui. He stepped over to where the other ball had rolled to a stop. "I see," he said. "So, how is this type of practice run?"
"Matches have already been assigned," Yagyu explained. He had stepped back so that Marui and Nioh could continue their one-on-one battle. "The list has been posted on the door to the clubroom, with more copies tacked to the fencing posts around the courts for reference." Fuji bounced the ball he had picked up, then launched into his own warm-up against the wall. Anticipating Fuji's next question, Yagyu continued. "The line-up for the matches this year was planned by Sanada-kun and Yanagi-kun. The Ninomiya coach also assisted, of course."
"Do you know what your specific opponents are like," Fuji asked after he switched to his backhand. Yagyu exchanged a glance with Nioh, who turned to Maui, who shrugged.
"Nope." He smacked the ball at Yagyu, dragging the Gentleman back into their warm-up. "For scrimmages like these, Yukimura or Sanada always tells us our match assignments in person."
"That's because they have to give us our special instructions at the same time," Nioh added.
Fuji caught the tennis ball and turned expectantly to the others for yet another explanation. It was Yagyu who took pity on Fuji's ignorance first.
"It's expected, as a matter of course, that each of the Regulars win their matches without dropping a game, just as if it was a tournament match. However, for scrimmages, we also receive an extra restriction." Yagyu paused to acknowledge Jackal's return to the group, wayward tennis ball in hand. "The restriction could be anything, really. It depends on the player, the opponent, and whatever Yukimura-kun has identified in each of our playing styles that requires the most improvement."
"Except this year, it's up to Sanada," Marui pointed out.
"Speaking of which, Sanada is speaking with Nanbara-sensei," Jackal interjected, which piqued the interest of his veteran teammates. "It looked like he was still trying to smooth things over." Nioh and Marui both shook their heads in amusement. Without waiting for Fuji to ask, Jackal smiled kindly at his new teammate and launched into a story. "Last year, Ninomiya had a hot-shot first year that they thought would help them sweep their city tournament and challenge us at the prefecture tournament. Everyone on the team insisted that the kid play Yukimura." Jackal shrugged. "So, Yukimura let him."
Fuji nodded, interested in hearing the outcome. "How did he do?"
"Yukimura won, of course," Marui said, popping a fresh piece of green gum into his mouth. Again, Fuji nodded. He had expected that much. Scrimmage or not, it would have been the talk across the national tennis circuit if the so-called Child of God lost a match. "The kid didn't get a single point," Marui continued. "By the end of the game, he was a mess."
"Well, to the boy's credit, he did manage to finish the match," Yagyu noted neutrally.
"Ah," Nioh agreed. "He was stumbling all over the court, more likely to hurt himself with his racket than hit the ball, but he must have had some potential to keep moving that long."
"Maybe he did," Marui said, emphasizing his use of the past tense, "but not anymore." Marui turned back to Fuji. "Rumor is that the poor kid was so shook up from the match that he hasn't touched a racket since."
"Their coach is still a little sore over that," Jackal said, tying the story together. "After they lost their star player last year, he threatened not to train against Rikkai anymore."
"They probably only agreed to come back this year because they heard Yukimura wouldn't be playing," Nioh commented sourly.
A somber mood settled over the group in the wake of Nioh's observation. Yagyu folded his arms across his chest, while Jackal clenched his jaw. Marui viciously smacked the ball he was still holding at the wall, then caught it with his hand. To Fuji, it looked like he wanted to squeeze the ball until it popped open at the seams.
"Jackal! Fuji!"
Everyone shook off their funk when they heard the no-nonsense call to attention. Fuji in particular straightened as Sanada approached the group. It might have been silly, but he was more aware of his loss to Sanada now that he was "under his command", so to speak.
"Your match will begin on court three in ten minutes," Sanada instructed brusquely. Fuji felt his new fukubuchou visually inspecting him. The taller youth's faze lingered on the wrist and ankle weights. Fuji suspected that it required all of Sanada's willpower to not demand that he count the weights in front of everyone. However, other students were still milling around nearby. He probably didn't want to give the impression that Rikkai didn't trust their Regulars.
Fuji felt somewhat annoyed that he was subject to that type of suspicious scrutiny, but tried to let it roll off his back. He was practically an intruder. With the exception of Akaya, the entire Rikkai competition squad consisted of third years. Even though not all of them had been Regulars during their first year, the bond they had formed while training together couldn't be ignored. It was just like the bond that Fuji had formed with Tezuka, Oishi, Eiji, Inui and Taka-san, after all.
"Jackal," Sanada said, pulling Fuji's attention back to the instructions being given by his new fukubuchou, "You're responsible for the defense. They are not allowed to score more than two points the entire match. Fuji," he continued, shifting the weight of his stare onto his newest player, "you have the offense. You are required to score within four shots, including Jackal's returns."
"For every shot that goes over those limits, you will both run five laps around the athletic grounds." Fuji's eyes widened. As a school that catered to multiple levels of education, its sports facilities sprawled across the campus. Five laps around that area would easily equal a kilometer. If he got into even one long rally, he and Jackal could find themselves required to run a marathon.
Fuji quickly understood what powerful motivation those special instructions were.
"I want the match finished in under 40 minutes," Sanada continued. "Every five minute interval longer than that will be ten additional laps." Fuji swallowed nervously and nodded in acknowledgment. Sanada briefly made eye contact with Jackal before turning to his next target. "Marui!"
As the volley tensai received his instructions, Fuji glanced over at Jackal. Something felt off, and it wasn't just nerves. The foreign-born student smiled reassuringly. "Worried?" he asked.
"About you? Not at all," Fuji responded.
"Don't doubt yourself," Jackal advised. "Four shots isn't so bad. I heard that, once, Yukimura required Sanada to finish an entire match using only aces - service and returns." Jackal shook his head. "That was a fast match. But even with four shots, we should easily make it under our time limit." Jackal clapped Fuji on the shoulder as Sanada addressed the entire group again.
"I will be observing the first round. Nioh, Yagyu, you will play after this round of matches."
Fuji looked around at their group. He noted that he and Jackal had rackets in hand - Marui and Yanagi, who had materialized behind Yagyu at some point, did as well. It looked like they would both be having singles matches. Since he had been preoccupied with his conversation with Jackal, he wondered what special restrictions they had on their matches.
Suddenly, Fuji realized what was bothering him. "Where's Akaya?" he asked his partner softly.
Jackal grimaced. "Dunno. The kid has a habit of getting lost when we go to practice matches hosted by other schools, but there's no excuse for missing one on our own campus." He sighed and shook his head. "Wherever he is, he might want to stay there. Sanada is going to be furious with him whenever he does show up."
Before Fuji knew it, the knot of Regulars headed down to the courts. A few clumps of people were forming in various spots around the playing area. There were both spectators from the other school as well as students dressed in the Rikkai uniform, but the majority of the people surrounding the court Fuji and Jackal were walking toward was wearing the trademark yellow tennis uniform. Ever observant, Fuji couldn't help but notice more than a few vicious glares aimed in his direction.
His fingers involuntarily clenched around the shaft of his racket. The hostile glares were a reminder that he might have earned the respect (or tolerance) of the elite tennis squad, but he was still a stranger to most of the Rikkai tennis club members. His performance today would probably have a long-lasting effect on how he was received next week when the new term started.
Jackal made an envious noise under his breath. The unexpected sound pulled Fuji's concentration back to the people that mattered for the next 40 minutes - their opponents. Two players were already on the court, shaking their limbs to keep them loose. Fuji immediately spotted why Jackal was jealous. Aside from him, each of the boys on the court had relatively long hair. The taller of the two had auburn hair, not unlike Fuji, while the broader of the pair had pitch-black hair.
"The darker-haired one is named Araki," Jackal informed Fuji in a low voice. He shifted so his mouth was blocked from view and their opponents could only see his profile. "He was on the team last year. He's a pretty aggressive player. Not intentionally violent, but the potential to get hurt from his shots is higher than your average player. I'm surprised he's in doubles this year." Jackal shook his head, still struggling to reconcile his memory with the current situation, then focused on the other player. "I don't recognize his partner. He could be new to the school, or new to tennis, but I doubt Sanada would put us up against a rookie."
Jackal must have decided that whichever was true was inconsequential, for he headed to the net after that. Fuji followed, greeting Araki first with a silent handshake. He and Jackal swapped partners. He quickly learned that the taller brunette was quite different from his partner. After introducing himself ("I'm Suzuki! Suzuki Jyan!"), Suzuki enthusiastically shook his hand...well, more like his whole arm. If it wasn't for the pained sigh from Araki, Fuji might have suspected that he was trying to injure him. Instead, Fuji found his customary smile instinctively widening. Suzuki was genuinely excited to play this match, and that joy was contagious.
A Rikkai player that Fuji wasn't familiar with settled himself into the umpire's chair. "Kuwahara-Fuji pair versus Araki-Suzuki pair, Kuwahara to serve!"
Fuji took a position close to the net and crouched low to the ground. His efforts to keep himself out of the path of Jackal's serve were almost ruined when an unexpected scream of "FIRE!" caused him to violently flinch. Only past experience of training with Taka-san, who was equally prone of shouting English phrases at the top of his lungs in the middle of a match, allowed him to immediately push himself back into his game mindset. Araki hit a shallow ball, which allowed Fuji to score the first point with a quick smash to his opponent's forecourt.
After his second serve, Jackal defended the first two shots. Fuji moved back to the baseline, answering a lob with a flat shot to Suzuki's alley for the point. He returned to the front on the next shot, scoring on the fourth ball with a passing shot that stayed just outside the reach of Araki's racket. Fuji used a cross-court shot between their opponents on the third shot of the next ball to clinch the first game in Rikkai's favor.
As he walked beside Jackal to swap courts, Fuji wondered if the Ninomiya pair knew that he was on the Regulars or if they thought he was just a random pick from the general Rikkai squad. Suzuki didn't appear to care one way or the other, but Araki studied him suspiciously as he bounced the tennis ball in preparation for his serve.
As part of the receiving pair, Fuji had a chance to analyze everything he had observed about his opponents to this point. Like Jackal had warned, there was a cruel edge to Araki's tennis that was fiercely controlled. In comparison, Suzuki's style was wild. It was possible that Suzuki's power exceeded Araki's, but neither he nor his more composed partner could channel that power effectively. Fuji targeted that weakness, pinpointing his third shot so that Suzuki's backhand soared above the ball's bounce.
Fuji's efforts to meet his four-shot limit were causing him to fall into a nearly-musical pattern. Four-beat rhythms were some of the most common musical cadences, he mused as he found an opening near the left tramline on his fourth shot. Keeping that in mind, Fuji used his footwork to outmatch his opponents and get into position to score up the middle of the court on the third point. He managed to finish the game in only two shots with a broad groundstroke that rocketed past Araki before he could react.
His breathing was heavy as Fuji jogged back to the baseline for his serve. He could feel the adrenaline pulsing beneath his skin as his desire to exceed Sanada's expectations grew. Fuji snuck a glance at his opponents, then withdrew a ball from the pocket of his shorts. Sanada hadn't put any restrictions on the styles they could use. If speed was an important factor to this game, there was no reason to handicap himself by avoiding his special techniques. He might not have a speed serve guaranteed to give him a service ace, but the tricks he did have up his sleeve could achieve the same result.
With a flick of his wrist, Fuji launched the first of his underhand serves. As planned, Suzuki was left staring at the ground where he expected the ball to bounce in amazement, for it had disappeared in front of his eyes. Araki looked a little concerned that his partner had missed such a gentle serve. After Fuji repeated the trick for Araki, the dark-haired boy's concern blended with the confusion he was now experiencing first-hand.
Fuji didn't expect Suzuki to have figured out the trick to returning the disappearing serve that quickly, despite bouncing with excitement in hopes that Fuji would use the same technique. To his amusement, Suzuki seemed to become more enthusiastic when he missed again. Even though it was Araki's responsibility to field the fourth serve, Suzuki crouched down as if he had a chance to return it. When Araki missed the final shot, clenching the service for Fuji, Suzuki leapt into the air and shouted "wakiwaki!". Araki simply groaned.
"Game, Kuwahara-Fuji pair! Three games to love. Change court."
As they swapped courts, Fuji heard Araki demand that his partner stop using gibberish to describe his emotions and speak proper Japanese. He chuckled when it seemed like Suzuki remained oblivious to his partner's exasperation and continued to reenact the way the ball had vanished whenever he tried to return it.
"Nice shots," Jackal said, smiling appreciatively in admiration of Fuji's control of the ball. Fuji quietly said "Thanks." in response. To be honest, he was just relieved that he was able to wrap up those points without having to worry about his opponents returning them. The fact that he was able to do so in a little less than a minute was another stroke of good luck.
Increasing the tempo of the match couldn't have happened at a better time. As soon as Suzuki launched his first serve, Fuji could tell that something had changed in their opponents' strategy. It looked like they had finally caught on to the fact that Fuji was the only one scoring points. Their movements became much sharper and more guarded when Fuji dashed to return a ball, closing off avenues that Fuji would have used to score. He found himself rushing to the net on the fourth shot to force a drop shot to the ad court. Araki had anticipated that, and hooked his racket under the ball and angled his shot up. The sound of Fuji's heartbeat thudded in his ears when the ball smacked against the top of the net and bounced back down into their opponents' court.
Relief flooded Fuji's body. He had nearly failed to keep that rally under the required four shots. The pressure to avoid another close call weighed heavily on his mind. Fuji opted to stay at the front for the next three points, continuously volleying until he forced an opening in the opposing pair's court coverage. When the umpire's call rang out ("Four games to love."), Fuji wiped away the sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand.
He would have preferred to retreat to the baseline, where he was most comfortable, but with Jackal serving next it was important for him to remain at the net. Fuji considered how lucky he was that both of his opponents were about the same height as him - maybe even a little shorter. It made him less susceptible to lobs than if he was playing someone of taller height, such as Inui or Sanada. In fact, the opposite was true. His height was an advantage, for once. Fuji managed to handle Jackal's first serve by hitting two lobs to the back court, followed by a drop shot to score once the opposing pair was out of position.
Fuji needed to rely on Jackal to defend a few shots on the next two balls, signaling by hand when he was ready to poach for the scoring point. The volleying in the previous game had taken its toll. Between volleying, a style he normally used sparingly, and the weights he was still wearing around his wrists and ankles, Fuji could feel his fatigue building. It was hard to forget that he was playing with double the weights that he had been using just a month earlier, which had already been a considerable step up from what Seigaku trained with at that point in the off-season. Fuji wasn't a stranger to long games, but the special restrictions on the match caused him to push himself harder in a shorter period of time. Someone with less stamina would have been in serious trouble by now.
Araki tried to volley over Fuji on the game point, but he was starting to feel his second wind after handing the defensive burden off to Jackal for a short time. Fuji launched himself into the air and smashed the ball into the backcourt directly behind both of his opponents.
"Game, Kuwahara-Fuji pair! Five games to love. Change court."
Fuji and Jackal were one game away from wrapping up the match in their favor, and comfortably within their time limit. However, the Ninomiya pair wasn't going down without a fight. Araki in particular was looking a little desperate to exploit some type of flaw in their game. Fuji had managed to intercept his shots even when they lobbed them to Jackal, so he was now concentrating his serve and returns directly on Fuji. Fuji signaled for Jackal to stay near the baseline. Jackal might have ultimately been responsible for the defense, but he had to prove to himself that he could handle being directly attacked and still stay within the special restrictions. He lobbed three times, forcing both of his opponents to defend the rear of the court, then smashed into the ad court for the point.
Araki's next serve went to Jackal, who hit a shallow ball that forced both players to cover the net. It was the perfect set up so that Fuji could lob to the left back corner before either player could recover their formation. Araki looked pained as he served to Fuji's court on the next ball. He and his partner had been dominated by the makeshift Rikkai pair, and the conflict between his desire to win and just wanting the match to be over already was evident in his expression. Suzuki managed to pull Fuji into a brief volley exchange, but Fuji ended that on the fourth ball with a passing shot straight up Suzuki's tramline.
"Match point!" announced the umpire.
For the final ball, Fuji waited behind the base line while Jackal received. Araki's return headed to the backcourt as expected, so Fuji was ready. He sliced the ball toward the net, where it hit the cord and bounced into their opponents' court.
"Game Set. Won by Rikkai, Kuwahara-Fuji pair. Six games to love."
Fuji noisily sighed, happy that the match was over. He realized a few of the Regulars had joined the crowd of observers, including the fukubuchou. Sanada nodded approvingly and walked away, undoubtedly to handle some other club business before his own match. Fuji managed to shake Araki and Suzuki's hands and make it over to the sideline before he felt his knees try to buckle under the immense relief that they had avoided any penalty laps.
Yagyu passed both of the players cups of chilled water before heading out to take their place on the court. Once Fuji lowered himself to the ground, Marui threw a towel over to him.
"That's what you expect from our animal tamer!" he announced, popping a bubble.
The other Rikkai players glanced at each other, letting the silence speak for their confusion over Marui's abrupt declaration.
Nioh finally broke the lull in the conversation by dramatically sighing and cradling his head in his hand theatrically. "Looks like all those sweets have finally rotted your brain, fatty. What are you yammering about?"
"Shut it!" Marui retorted with a grimace. With tournament season on the horizon, Nioh was safe from physical retaliation for those horrid marui jokes he liked to come up with. However, it didn't make him like them. And speaking of new names... "I just think we need to get Fuji his own nickname. It'll get confusing if people are calling us both tensai," he pointed out.
"Maybe we should just call you something different," Nioh fired back. "Maybe the bouncing ball of Rikkai?"
"I said shut it!" Marui said, launching himself at Nioh. His fingers were inches away from Nioh's neck before Jackal grabbed Marui's arms and pulled him away from the Trickster.
Fuji laughed at the antics of his new teammates, but carefully reflected on what Marui had said. Maybe he had a point. The problem he had with the Rikkai uniform was that he still expected to pull it off and see a Seigaku uniform underneath. Perhaps he needed to think of himself as a whole new person so that he could adapt to how things were done at Rikkai. He could embrace this new beginning with all that it entailed - a new uniform, a new playing style, and so on.
Then again, changing too much would be like creating a new identity. He wouldn't be able to continue evolving if he lost sight of his past self, and Fuji didn't come to Rikkai to wipe the slate completely clean.
Fuji bunched the towel up and threw it back at Nioh, who was enjoying exchanging taunts with Marui even more now that he was physically restrained. "How did everyone's matches go?"
"I wish we had already played," Nioh complained. "It's bad enough that I got stuck playing with Sanada in doubles, but our opponents are jokes. Hata and Yoshiyuki, I think are their names."
"Correct," Yanagi said. "Hata Shurinosuke and Yoshiyuki Kirin, both third year players. Average players at best, but an experienced doubles team. They should be an adequate test of your ability to work with a difficult partner."
"That's an understatement," Nioh replied. "I've got a grouch on my side of the net, but the other side's worse. Hata's ridiculously flamboyant, almost as bad as Hyotei's Atobe. And Yoshiyuki is just a goofball."
"Hey, Yoshiyuki has his funny moments," Marui cut in, sparking a new round of bickering with Nioh.
"Yanagi, did your match go alright?" Fuji asked.
"Ah," Yanagi confirmed. "My opponent was also a third year, Ono Kyosuke. He's a naturally intellectual player, but he forces himself to be more aggressive than he needs to be, which hampers his playing style. With an internal conflict such as that, he isn't really suited for competitive tennis."
"My guy was the same way. Inada, erm, Inada Gen, I think it was," Marui said, wracking his brain for the unimportant name. "At least he understood that he wasn't really cut out for tennis. After our match, he told me point blank that he's dropping out in favor of joining their school's theater club."
"No way! Sempai, I missed all of your matches?"
Everyone turned to see a pouting Akaya bent-over, clutching his knees and panting while he tried to catch his breath. His sudden appearance had stunned the rest of the Rikkai Regulars.
Well, almost all of them.
"Akaya!"
Akaya let out a soft "eep!" and turned to face an infuriated Sanada. He rubbed the bottom of his nose with a knuckle nervously. "Fukubuchou, you wouldn't believe what happened this morning..."
The small group witnessing the encounter would later say that they could pinpoint the exact moment that Sanada's temper went from a steady simmer to a roiling boil. His eyes narrowed to barely more than slits and he barked without hesitation "Tarundoru!"
As fast as a katana blade, Sanada's arm slashed through the air and smacked Akaya across the cheek. The soon-to-be-second year tumbled to the ground under the force of Sanada's slap.
Fuji gasped, finding it unbelievable the way Sanada had just attacked their youngest member. Shock gave way to concern, and eventually anger on Akaya's behalf. He pushed himself to his feet and even took a step toward Sanada to let the respected fukubuchou know exactly what he thought of such violent behavior, but someone grabbed his shoulder and held him in place.
"Don't interfere," Nioh quietly ordered. Fuji's eyes flashed with repressed anger in response. "But he - "
Nioh interrupted him again. "That's how things are done at Rikkai," he explained. Fuji glanced around at the group. There was disappointment on everyone's faces, but none was directed at Sanada. He felt his anger bleed away into confusion. "Look, Akaya's not hurt," Nioh assured Fuji, "and he'll think twice about being late to practice again."
Nioh dropped his hand from Fuji's shoulder after recognizing that he wasn't going to try and take a swing at Sanada for the time being. "Yeah, it's harsh, but that's the law of Rikkai."
The way Nioh phrased his words piqued something in Fuji's mind. "The law?"
Nioh smirked. "We evolve by exposing ourselves to adversity, all so that we can obey the two rules that should never be forgotten: Losing is not allowed. Winning is an absolute."
While he absorbed the "law" that he had just been taught, Fuji listened half-heartedly to Sanada issue the instructions Akaya would have to follow as he played his match. Not only was he required to add penalty weights ("Since you obviously still need to increase your speed," Sanada said in a harsh tone), but he was not allowed to enter the forecourt. In the analytical part of Fuji's mind, he absently noted that a restriction such as that would make him particularly vulnerable to drop shots. With a 10-lap penalty for each point scored against him, Akaya was all-but guaranteed to run several kilometers once his opponent figured out that he wasn't chasing shallow balls.
As soon as Akaya composed himself enough to fetch his equipment, Nioh turned back to Fuji. "If you want to help the brat, it wouldn't hurt to warm up with him. Cheering him up a little might keep him from taking out his frustration on the wimpy second year that's his opponent. Aka-chan would probably overwhelm that Fukami kid even if he was in a good mood."
Fuji nodded gratefully for the tip. Keeping his body active was a better option than letting his mind wander. He decided to take Nioh's advice and track down Akaya so that they could both work off the brunt of their frustration.
As he briskly walked out of the court area, Fuji realized that the Rikkai club members were very careful to stay out of his way. The clumps of players were also watching him with far less hostility than they had when he first walked into the court with Jackal. It had been replaced with wariness, having witnessed him play what appeared to be a ruthless game with very little flash to his playing style. Fuji felt his esteem for Yanagi (because it seemed more of his style than Sanada's) creep up. With the restrictions that had been placed on him and Jackal, any mutiny over an outsider being promoted to the Regulars had been squashed before it could even gain traction.
Fuji had already won a battle that he hadn't even known he was fighting. That seemed to be the type of "absolute" winning that Rikkai prized.
Uneasiness pooling in the pit of his stomach, Fuji began to wonder if perhaps attending Rikkai wasn't the best fit for him after all.
Next chapter: With classes starting, Fuji has no time for unease. But is he really suited for playing tennis at Rikkai?
Feel free to let me know what you think! As always, the livejournal post for this chapter (same username) contains an inside look at what's going on in my head as I work on this story. In this chapter's extended notes, I'll discuss the first glimpse at an inside joke that I've been planning for a while (nearly a year) as well as some series references that wormed their way into the chapter by accident, among other topics. Stop on by to chat about what you saw or hope to see!
