Author's Notes: Because Jirou requested, here's the next chapter! And regarding your questions… yes, it's a promise not to take part in Gear Fighting again, and yup, there's baseball. Jirou's actually part of the varsity team. *grins* And to you, Luthien… update your story! Man, Soul Release got me so hooked! XD

I would like to thank everyone who read and reviewed --- special mention to moonlight, because I haven't mentioned you yet! Gomen nasai for that! ^__^ Your reviews really keep me going, guys, so if you want me to get the chapters out faster, you know the trick! *winks*

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Eight

Alexander Borg took a deep breath to savor the sweet-smelling breeze. It had been quite sometime since he last set foot on Japan, and he was glad that he arrived early enough to do a little sightseeing. He missed the country greatly, and he told himself that he was going to enjoy before keeping himself busy with the task at hand. His first destination: the Tobita Club's headquarters, which had been his second home many years ago. He was aware that so much had changed, but he wanted to check how things have been going, nonetheless.

However, what he had to do first was inform the person who called him over that he had arrived. Taking out his cellphone, he scrolled through his address book and dialed the number of the Gear Fighter he had nicknamed Gougetsu. Yes, old habits die hard, and just like what he did with Takeshi Manganji, he had codenamed his teammates according to their Gears' names.

"Hello? Oh yes, Boss, I just arrived," he informed as he walked further into the open to get a clearer signal. "I'm off to see the sights, and watch the finals, of course. Which reminds me, congratulations." He paused to listen to the other's reply. "You're right about that. Everyone's saying the same, too. But how are you going to get away with your plan the way you did with the Si Xing Hu Tuan?" A sigh. "Again, you're right. Well, I'll talk to you later. Keep on fighting."

With that, he ended the call, picked up his luggage, and went out of the airport, his eyes darting around for a cab that would take him to his first destination. He had work to do, yes, but he was to have fun while waiting for the Asian Cup to come to its conclusion. Then his real job was to begin.

"This sure is a first," Kyousuke commented as soon as their former captain sat down, pausing to take a sip from his glass of tomato juice. Afterwards, he looked at his teammates and finished to clarify the matter, "The four of us together like this here in the university, I mean. As the ex-members of the Tobita Club."

A nervous laugh came from Jirou, who quickly stuffed another piece of his favorite snack into his mouth as soon as he finished commenting so as to have an excuse not to speak. "Well, yeah. It's been a while, huh? Guess we've had too much work to do…" He didn't exactly know what to say, for they had never been gathered to discuss about Gear Fighting matters ever since their dramatic fallout four years in the past. If they were ever together, Kouya was usually missing, and most of the time they discussed about college matters.

After another wave of silence crashed upon them, Kuroudo raised a blond eyebrow at their captain and broke the spell by asking, "So what did you want to talk about, Kouya?" He piled up his things, stacking the many pieces of journal sheets on top of each other neatly, before he looked back at the youngest member of their team and waited for his answer.

"You're going to think I'm out of my mind but…" the first year began hesitantly, sighing in defeat eventually as he knew that it was useless to beat around the bush. He was just glad that they were huddled at the far end of the cafeteria, far from everyone else. At least he didn't have to worry about eavesdroppers. "It's just that I've realized how stupid I've been, how silly I've acted, and I think it's about time we make a stand for what we believe in." He stopped to listen to his friends' comments, but they chose to say nothing, indicating that he go on with his speech. If it was what one could call a speech. "Sean came to see me today. He told me---"

"Wait a minute," Jirou interrupted, a quizzical look on his brawny features. "Sean Firestone?"

Kouya nodded, rather surprised at his comrade's reaction. He thought the older Gear Fighter was already aware that he and the Gear God knew each other personally. "Yes, him. And let's just say he actually knocked some sense into my brain, although I refused to acknowledge it at first. We need to go out there and open their eyes, guys. We need to join those who are out there fighting for what is right, before it will be too late to change anything."

Suddenly, their Gear Master slammed his fists on the table, standing up as he did so with his dark-haired head bowed. Their attention was immediately averted to him, and even though he spoke with a voice barely above a whisper, a voice that was nothing in volume compared to all the noise inside the cafeteria, they could still hear his every word. "You can't get yourself involved," Kyousuke protested. "It's too dangerous. Don't do it."

"Why can't we? And what's too dangerous about Gear Fighting anyway? It's not like we're personally going to have a death match with whoever our opponent is just because it's what the rules state. So why the fuss?"

"Because…" the genius began, but immediately shook his head, his voice trailing off and his tone switching into an apologetic one. "I can't tell you. I'm sorry. But you just have to trust me on this one. Don't get yourselves involved, please."

"That's all you can say? You're sorry that you can't tell us? Oh, for crying out loud!" Kouya snapped hotly, rising up to the challenge his teammate was putting up. He felt Kuroudo grab his arm, but he only jerked away in reflex. Even after how many years of being together, practically as brothers, one of them still had secrets to keep? It just wasn't right. It wasn't fair. He felt betrayed. "Don't you trust us anymore? After all that we've been through… was that it?"

Kyousuke lifted his head to gaze into Kouya's chocolate-colored eyes with his coal-colored ones. "Some things just don't change. You're as immature as you've always been, Kouya. You don't think before you speak, and you go around accusing people of being who they're actually not," he snapped back in a tone that was just as harsh. When the person concerned did not reply, he straightened up and fixed his glasses. "It's a long story, but if it's the only way to convince you not to get involved then I'll tell you all about it. However, you have to promise me that it will remain a secret between us. Break that and I will kill you."

He took a few moments to look around, scanning the area to check if there was something to be suspicious about. Not noticing anything peculiar, he sat back down, motioning Kouya to do the same, and took a deep breath in preparation for what he was going to tell them. "Ming Wu's behind all this," he whispered, although he tried to look as nonchalant as possible so as to prevent people from thinking that he was actually leaking out top-secret information. "And I mean all. He's the one pulling the strings of the GFA officials, the puppets of his little play, most especially that of Commissioner Cechetti, his own protégé. I don't know how he did it --- nobody does --- but he managed to brainwash Cechetti and have him kill his own wife and father-in-law so he'd have the power over the entire Gear Fighting community."

"Does Sean know this?"

"Very much. In fact, he was nearly killed himself, but he luckily managed to escape. He fled to Germany soon after, and he has been hiding there ever since. Under Harry Gamble's protection, of course. And that's why he hates both Ming Wu and Cechetti with passion. The two of them tore the Firestone family apart, and with it, the GFA. But that's not all; that was four years ago." He swept his gaze from one teammate to another, before he averted his gaze to his clasped hands. "Ming Wu has a personal vendetta against the Tobita Club as well. Against Yuhya, against Takeshi, against us. But he wasn't able to find the excuse to get rid of us four because we dropped out of Gear Fighting just when he was putting his plans into action. And that's the reason why I don't want you to get yourselves involved. The old man's a psycho. He'll have you killed without hesitation, should you make the slightest move. He's got the power, the authority, and the resources to do just that."

Nobody spoke after that, and for quite a long time that Kyousuke hesitated to look at his friends' faces to see what their reactions were. He was forced to look up, however, when he felt a hand clamp on his shoulder, and soon he found himself looking into Kuroudo's glassy Mediterranean eyes. He swallowed; he had the gut feeling that he was about to be asked the question he had feared right from the beginning that they would ask.

And indeed, the question came, right out of his best friend's mouth. "How do you know all this?"