"Well? How did it go?" Aoi asked when Saryuu finally returned. She stood up when the door opened further and Helper X followed the white-haired boy inside.

"Haha, it was perfect!" Saryuu laughed as he sat down on the couch. Aoi sat down beside him and she realized that this was the same couch they cuddled on this afternoon. She would have loved to continue where they broke off, but not with Helper X in the room. The said man stood a few feet away from them, still not saying a word. Saryuu didn't seem to notice him as he fully turned to Aoi. "They didn't stand a chance, Saint Elda fell within minutes."

"What did you do to them?" Aoi asked. She felt a little uncomfortable when Saryuu so casually spoke about killing or hurting people, for it reminded her of her first days in Feida. Back then, Saryuu talked like that about Aoi's family as well, and she actually thought that he was heartless. It turned out that she was greatly mistaken, but she still wasn't at ease with that way of talking.

"Nothing major," Saryuu smiled. He seemed to notice her unease, because he rubbed her back in a reassuring way. "I only pointed out their position and offered them a proposal."

"Proposal?"

"To coexist with them."

"And they believed that?"

"Not for a second." His smile widened. "I told them they would have a showdown with us in soccer. We will hold a tournament with three matches to determine who is better and who should get to live here."

"A soccer tournament?"

"Yes. It's called Ragnarok and it will be held in four days. Their three strongest teams will compete against Zan, Giru and Garu and the winner will be in charge from now on." His hand moved from her back to her cheek and he rubbed it with his thumb. "There is no way we can lose this. Feida's days of living in the shadows will soon be history!"

"You shouldn't underestimate them," Aoi scolded him.

He smiled cheekily and pulled her face closer. His voice was hinted with the amusement she knew so well. "Are you doubting me?"

"Not at all," Aoi smiled. "But still..."

She let her voice trail away as Saryuu locked their lips together. Aoi allowed her anxious feelings to be washed away by the comforting warmth of the kiss. Far in the distance was the sound of a closing door. It took her quite some time to realize that it must have been Helper X who left the room. Now they were finally alone and able to enjoy each other's company to the fullest extent.

But no matter how far Saryuu's kisses led her away from the harsh reality, the anxious feeling never left her. It stayed with her, twisting her intestines and nibbling on the happiness she felt this moment. Something was coming, she knew it.

Ragnarok would hold more obstacles than anyone would think.

.

The next day, she walked alongside Saryuu through the empty hallways. They had been in the middle of their kisses when they were interrupted by another beeping sound. That was the second time in a row! One more time and Aoi would toss all those machines out of the window! Saryuu had excused himself and made preparations for a jump through time. He told her that he would return with powerful allies before he disappeared. She knew that he traveled to the dimension where that team from Raimon was fighting against El Dorado. He would convince them to help Feida beat El Dorado, so that their three teams were more powerful than ever.

However, from the moment he returned, his expression had been tensed. He looked straight ahead and a frown marred his face. When he told her to follow him to the other members of Feida, his voice had slightly trembled with withheld frustration. She didn't need to be a psychic to know that things hadn't gone according to his plan. What went wrong? Did Saryuu fail to convince Raimon? Aoi didn't understand how that was possible. Saryuu could be very convincing if he wanted to.

She glanced to her side to look at Saryuu's expression. It was still blank, just like before, but he seemed less tense. It was as if being back at Feida had a relaxing influence on him, as if it allowed him to take a step back and observe everything through the eyes of a leader.

Two voices penetrated her, though they were too muffled by the walls to make out the words. The closer she and Saryuu came, the louder the voices got. She was soon able to determine whose voices it were: Meia and Garo.

"Don't underestimate me!" Garo shouted, which was followed by some noises and rumble. "What's the matter, goody-two-shoes? You call that aiming?"

Flashes of blue and purple light were visible in the slit under the door. Aoi looked at her companion to fathom his reaction. Saryuu had a zero-tolerance for violence within Feida's walls and the argument inside sounded pretty violent to her. But much to her surprise, Saryuu didn't look angry at all. He merely closed his eyes and smiled to himself. "Really, those two will never learn, will they?" he muttered, before he calmly opened the door. Aoi was one foot behind him and looked around the room.

"It's not happening this time," Garo said threatingly to Meia. His back was facing Saryuu and neither he, nor Meia, nor anyone else in the room noticed Saryuu's entrance. "I'll send that deadpan expression of yours flying!" With those words, he charged towards Meia, who readied herself for his attack. Both were clashing their powers against each other, trying to make the other back away.

However, the argument immediately died down when Saryuu spoke up. "What's this? Are you two arguing again?" His tone was casual, almost amused, like these people didn't just break the rules. "Garo, Meia."

Both youths tensed up at the mention of their name. "This isn't what it looks like, Saru. There's a reason..." Garo tried to save what he could, but he quickly shut up when Saryuu sent him a glare. "I'm sorry, it's my fault."

"As long as you know it," Saryuu smiled and Aoi felt the friendly bond that connected everyone in this room. Yes, they may be fighting sometimes, but they are all great friends of each other. No matter how different, they all had something in common.

"So? What's happening at El Dorado?" Meia asked. Saryuu's expression darkened a bit.

"They've joined forces with Raimon."

"What?" The comment came from the latest addition to Feida: Zanark Avalonic. For as far as Aoi knew, he was pretty agressive and he could be quite sadistic too. Zanark had been a criminal who broke out of El Dorado's re-education facility, MUGEN Prison. Now he was a member of Feida, and he immediately became captain of Zan. Garo didn't seem as pissed off by that as Aoi had expected from him. It seemed like as long Garo was able to destroy and act violently, he was content.

But that Zanark was different. Sure, he liked to show off his power as well, but he was more like the quiet type when he was off the field. Both Aoi and Saryuu turned their heads towards him when he spoke up, but Saryuu soon faced the others again. Aoi stared at Zanark for a little longer, though. Isn't it his job as a captain to prevent these kind of situations? she thought. But the matter was forgotten when Saryuu continued speaking.

"El Dorado and Raimon have consolitated to fight in Ragnarok," he said. "Not that doing so will beat us anyway." He showed his confident smirk during those last words, but Aoi was the only one who noticed that a little muscle in his neck twitched. Saryuu is acting more relaxed than he actually is so that the others won't lose confidence or anything. He is a true leader.

Aoi smiled. Even though she knew that he pulled up a façade, she couldn't help but feel positive about the future. She followed him outside when he left and when she was sure that no one could hear them, she said: "Saryuu, what went wrong?"

"Hmm?"

"Raimon were the allies that you had in mind, right? Didn't they listen to you?"

"El Dorado took them before I could have a proper conversation with them." His tone was flat, but he still seemed energetic to her.

"And they were still willing to fight alongside El Dorado?" Aoi exclaimed. "But if they are powerful enough to be Feida's allies, won't it be a hard fight for us as well?" She clasped her hands before her mouth when she realized that she had spoken very loudly. Saryuu merely smiled at her.

"Don't worry, Aoi. I've got more tricks up my sleeve."

"More tricks... Like what?"

He chuckled. "Wouldn't it spoil the surprise if I tell it now?" Aoi pouted and Saryuu let out another laugh as he approached her. "Now now, don't act so cute or I might not be able to hold myself back." He leaned in for a kiss, but Aoi leaned back and dodged him. Saryuu shot her a surprised glance, for this was the first time she did this.

"What tricks?" Aoi asked again. "No sugar before you told me that."

"You're stubborn as ever, Aoi," he smiled. "The first thing we do is leave them alone for a few days. The day after tomorrow, one day before Ragnarok starts, we'll pay them a visit again." He leaned in again and this time, Aoi didn't protest.

"Just a friendly visit?" she hummed innocently against his lips and she felt him smirk in the kiss. She knew the answer already, but for now, it didn't bother her as much.

"It might not be all that friendly," Saryuu admitted.

Sorry for not updating for so long. I've been neglecting this story, haven't I? Well, not much happened in this chapter, but I have something planned for when Ragnarok starts, so please stay tuned. You may have noticed that I kind of stick to the anime with this fic (Saryuu and others went to Saint Elda in the previous chapter, which happened in episode 34 and there are more things like that). I use the anime as a backup and some conversations are literally taken from the episodes.

I don't own Inazuma Eleven GO Chrono Stone and I probably never will. Please leave a review, because it's a real great support! BYE!