Author's note: Wow, I can't believe how fast I'm updating. Don't get used to it, folks. But, I'm having a holiday, so you can hog onto the feeling for a little more while. Hope you enjoy the Districts! And to any possible Chinese people reading this, Happy New Lunar Year! (Yeah, we have a weird calendar)
Around seven in the morning, Yukiko was striking a pose similar to that of a teapot, one hand on hips and one tapping on her cheek. Anyone who had a single ounce of brain cell kept a ten mile radius from the blind girl who gave off an aura more murderous than any Sanadas could muster.
All because of a late seaweed idiot who had a death wish.
Jackal groaned, "Akaya's gonna die. And no one's gonna play doubles two."
Yukimura and Yanagi sighed and looked at their registration form. "At this rate, we might have to forfeit." Yanagi said worriedly.
Sanada cracked his knuckles. His mood wasn't much better than Yukiko's. "What did Akaya say on the phone?" He growled.
Marui gulped. "Err, something about saving a princess from the dragon's hide?" Just then, the guy who had a death wish appeared. "Sorry I'm late!" Kirihara bounded into sight, apparently more cheerful than guy scheduled for execution should be.
Before the boy could escape to his safe haven behind Yukimura, a leg tripped him.
"You think you could be late and get off easy, ah?" Yukiko smiled a weird smile. "Tell me, was the princess very heavy?"
The next five minutes was too gruesome to be put into words. In simple conclusion, when Yukiko was finally done with him, Kirihara resembled something like a platypus and panda hybrid, with a squashed nose and tons of bruises.
Yukiko glowered. "Repeat after me. I, Kirihara Akaya,"
Kirihara sniffed pitifully. "I-I, Kirihara Akaya."
"-solemnly swear-"
"-solemnly swear-"
"-that I will never be late again-"
"-that I will never be late again-"
"-and that I will never tell far-fetched lies."
"-and that I will never tell far-fetched lies."
"Say you're an insufferable jerk."
"Say you're an- Ow! Okay, okay! I'm an insufferable jerk."
Yukiko crossed her arms, finally satisfied. "I'm going to wash my hands." Then she turned and swiped left and right with her cane.
Yukiko had just come out of the washroom when her cane promptly met the leg of a passerby.
"Ouch! Watch where you're going, lady!" It was a guy she'd hit.
"Whoops! Sorry, didn't mean to. Or did you notice I can't exactly see?" Yukiko was already in a bad mood, and this guy over here wasn't helping.
"Listen, blind girl," The guy growled, "I'm the legendary One-Shot Hitman of Joshibi, and you don't want to mess with me. Now scram!"
"Yeah, right, and I'm the Queen of England. You and your oversized ego can take a break, loser." Yukiko snapped back mercilessly.
"What'd you say, girl? You want a taste of my Fireball then? You want a match? I'm the One-shot Hitman, and if I lose to the likes of you, a blind girl, then I'll even get my team to forfeit our match against Rikkaidai." The guy snarled.
At that historical moment, the fragile string of patience finally reached its limit and snapped. Yukiko stomped her cane on the ground. "And if I lose to the likes of such pigs, I'll get my team to forfeit the whole tournament."
"Jesus Christ, I can't believe you, Yasuo-fukubuchou. The captain will flip if he hears of this." A boy, crossing his arms, sighed as Yasuo stretched a few limbs.
"Relax, Iku. What Mihama-buchou doesn't know won't kill him. It's just one blind girl. How bad can things get?" Yasuo smirked and stepped onto the court.
"You can serve first, you pig-istic pig." Yukiko smiled eeriely, her white summer dress not exactly matching her expression.
"You can shut up after having tasted my Fireball." Yasuo growled and tossed the ball upwards. "FIREBALL...ATTACK!"
It was at that split second when Yasuo's mind went another way, thinking: Oh Christ, I just might lose this game. Because it was at that moment when Yukiko sprang into action. There was a flash if green and white. An arm drew back to hit the ball. The ball rolled past Yasuo's feet.
"Wow, that Fireball felt cold. Well, I suppose that's about as much as a pig can handle, Pig." Yukiko smirked.
That's impossible... My Fireball has been defeated? Just like that? Yasuo stared at the round ball in his hand. No, it must have been a fluke... I'll teach that girl a lesson!
"FIREBALL...ATTACK!" Yasuo fired the shot again. In the same, easy way she had, she returned the ball with no effort at all.
"No observable speed, power or spin at all. I didn't think it was possible for a Fireball like that to exist. You sure have created an admirable feat, Your Royal Pig-ness. Consider me awed." Yukiko grinned.
After a few more breezy Fireballs, the game went to Yukiko.
"Your Royal Pig-ness, please allow me to demonstrate a shot of what the Fireball should look like." Yukiko curtsied irritatingly.
Tossing the ball higher up than normal, she bent her legs to a half-crouch, and arched her back, drawing her racket back to hit the ball. In less than one-tenth of a second, there was a loud crash in Yasuo's court. Turning slowly, Yasuo did not dare see where the ball went. As if it had always been there, the ball laid quietly unmoving at the edge of the court. There was a black burnt mark inside the court lines that had not been there before.
Yukiko got out of her stance and curtsied again. "I present you the Light Speed serve. It's the fastest serve in tennis history, with a speed of 341km/h, faster than even sound itself, Your Royal Pig-ness. You can't see it with the naked eye. nor can you hear it before it lands, 'cause its faster than the speed of sound. Simply put, it's impossible to return."
Just then, Iku, Yasuo's friend on the spectator's stand, suddenly grasped the metal railing. With a trembling finger, he pointed at Yukiko. "Could it be... that blind girl is the rumored blind sophomore coach of the Rikkaidai?" Yukiko made a V-sign. Yasuo blanched, but he had no idea what, no, who exactly he'd gotten himself into.
By the end of the match, a lot of people had gathered around the court to watch the match.
Another Light Speed Serve crashed into Yasuo's court. Yasuo fell to the ground, sweating streaming down his face like he'd just taken a shower.
"Game and match, Yukiko, 6-0!" Yukiko sang. "Am I or am I not the embodiment of genius? Now, do stick to your promise and forfeit your match, Your Royal Pig-ness!"
Yasuo growled under his breath. Just then, a man pushed past the crowd and grabbed Yasuo by the collar. "Yasuo! What. Have. You. Done? You made such a bet knowing the consequences? Do you know what had happened when you were here playing your game?"
Apparently, the match between Rikkaidai and Joshibi had started. Joshibi had lost both doubles and had been counting on Singles 3 to make a comeback. Too bad the Singles 3 player had made a stupid deal with a blind girl.
There weren't a lot of schools in Kanagawa, and for Rikkaidai, the next round would be the finals. When the team gathered for a pre-match meeting, Yukiko just yawned and said, "Same line-ups, people. Just win the match already and we can go for some celebratory pizza." The regulars just shook their heads at their coach's careless attitude.
Kirihara and Yanagi totally thrashed their opponents, both physically and mentally. I mean, who wouldn't be scared when your facing opponents who can predict your every action and turn into your worst nightmare?
Sanada and Yagyuu did pretty good as well, though in Yagyuu's opinion, Sanada hogged the ball a bit too much and was a bit disappointed not to have played much.
Yukimura was legend on the court. He seemed quite cheered to be able to play in a match. Normally, like last year, they put other regulars in the three matches to observe and jot down data. And since most of their games finish in three straight wins, the Big Three, in the last two singles as a trump card, they don't always get to play. This year, the Big Three had become visibly happier during tournaments, to be able to play. Less scolding, more smiling (or not, in Sanada's case), it increased the team's morale too. Yanagi stroked his invisible beard thoughtfully and muttered, "Ii data..." The games, of course, were all won by 6-0.
The only people upset were the members of Joshibi. And everyone who lost their butts off to Rikkaidai.
The moral of today's story: Do not be a pig and piss off blind people.
Author's note: Heads up: upcoming chapters will be more about school life before we step into the Kanto Tournament. I'm gonna release a bit more about Yukiko's past and stuff, so keep posted! Read and review, people! I haven't got great ideas about the school life thingy, and I might not start writing until I see a suitable amount of motivation *wink, wink* So people who've bothered to follow me and read this but haven't reviewed... Cheers!