Lucifer of Rikkaidai
Chapter 34: A Whole New Level
After school, when there was no practice due to court maintenance, Akaya waited for a bus that would take her to Seishun.
"Ey where are you going?" Niou popped out of nowhere and asked.
"Oh, hi senpai. I'm just… going to visit someone." She said.
"Who?"
"Mm… someone."
"From Seigaku?"
"Ulp. God I swear he's psychic.'
"Am I right?" He smiled, looking straight into her eyes.
"Yeah…" She answered, avoiding his gaze.
"You're visiting Fuji right?"
"Yeah."
"I'll go to."
"Why?! Don't follow me!"
"I'm going because I need something too. Oop, the bus is here!"
"Ah w-wait!"
They arrived in front of Seigaku by the time they were having a practice.
"Heh, the last time we came here was hilarious." Niou snickered, thinking of the disaster Akaya caused.
"Hehehe…" Akaya chuckled too, reminded of the hilarity that she brought to the Seigaku tennis club.
"Ah, there he is! I'll go apologize and come back, kay?" Akaya said and dashed off to where Fuji was.
"Now then~ shall I do what Yanagi requested me to do~?" Niou mumbled and looked around the tennis club with his trickster eyes.
Akaya spotted Fuji talking to Ryoma just outside the courts.
"U-Um, excuse me, Fuji-san." She called out. Fuji turned around and found Akaya.
"Eh! You're Kirihara Akaya-kun!" He exclaimed, surprised to find her at Seigaku. Ryoma, who noticed her as well, looked at her with big round eyes. "What might you be doing here?" He asked, smiling.
"U-Um… well…" Feeling slightly awkward by Fuji smiling after all she did to him, Akaya grew nervous.
"I-I'm sorry!" She bowed. Fuji blinked.
"For what?"
"Eh!? You don't know?!" Akaya exclaimed. "I think I hit you on the head… or so it seems… from what senpai told me…" She trailed off.
"Ah~ about that!" Fuji chuckled. "Don't worry, I know you didn't do it on purpose."
"Well that part I don't know, since I was in Red Eye Mode… I thought I'd fixed it but it turned out not. But I got rid of it completely now, I swear!"
"Huhuhu. Even with your Red Eye Mode you still didn't do it on purpose. You framed the ball for that smash and it happened to just come right at my head."
"Really?"
"Mmhm." He smiled.
Relieved by his words, Akaya sighed and smiled. Then Akaya's eyes met with Ryoma's—then Ryoma just suddenly turned away, avoiding her eyes.
'?'Akaya was puzzled.
"You came here just to apologize?" Fuji asked.
"Y-Yeah." She said.
"Well it's kinda disappointing to have you leave just like this… how about a match with this kiddo right here?" Fuji pulled Ryoma and put his hands on his shoulders.
"W-Wait, Fu—"
"I can?!" Akaya's eyes sparkled. "Wait… I beat you that one time."
Ryoma's face flushed in red.
"I'm better. You just got lucky that one time."
"I think not." She retorted back.
"But I am. Want to try?"
"Eeehh I don't know if I want to since I already know what'll happen." She smirked.
"Chickening out, are you?"
Akaya's temper snapped that instant. NO ONE calls Akaya a chicken. Ain't no one. Never.
"Heh… hehe…! Well since you are so eager to lose, let's pla—"
"No can do, Akaya." Niou, again, popped out of nowhere and grabbed Akaya's arm to prevent her from going into the courts.
"What?! Why!"
"Because your senpai says so. Well, it looks like she's done here, so we'll be leaving~" Niou dragged her away.
"Niou-senapi! Let me go! NNNGHH! FUJI-SAN! SO SORRY AGAIN! THANKS FOR UNDERSTANDING! BYEE! OH AND YOU! YOU LITTLE FRESHMAN! I'LL BEAT YOUR LITTLE ASS AGAIN SO PREPARE FOR IT!"
So the two Rikkaidai regulars stormed out of Seigaku.
"I can't believe a girl like that beat me." Echizen shook his head back and forth.
"Why, it's cute." Fuji smiled.
"Not at all."
Akaya, with the help of her teammates, was able to achieve Hyakuren Jitoku no Kiwami;
"Wait what do you mean it's not the second door?" Akaya asked, a bit puzzled. "Did I do something completely wrong?"
"No, no, you're on the right track. I researched it a bit—and it turns out that Muga no Kyouchi is a sort of an initiative to opening three additional doors. You unlocked the initiative and the first door out of the three."
"Then what are the other two?"
"Well, I can't tell you that in too much detail since you are supposed to obtain it through experience. You'll figure out once you get there." Yanagi smiled smugly.
"Che, booooring. Ouch."
Sanada gave her a clout to the head.
"You must always remain focused and modest, Akaya." He said with his arms crossed.
"Yeah okay~"
"You should train more Akaya." Yanagi said. "Jackal's waiting for you on the court." Yanagi looked at Jackal who patiently waited on the court.
"Ah, right! I'm coming Jackal-senpai~!" Akaya ran off to the courts.
Akaya began an unofficial play-off with Jackal. Although they were keeping track of the score, the exercise's purpose wasn't to win, but was to help each other improve areas they lack.
As expected of a man with two hearts, Jackal was very strong in stamina which Akaya lacked. When she first started to play in the team she had the weakest stamina due to her limitations as a female, but through constant training she was able to raise her stamina to a whole new level.
Jackal and Akaya played for about two and a half hours straight.
Yanagi busily took notes on Akaya to collect additional data.
"We're done, fukubuchou." Akaya said as she returned to the bench to get water.
"Good work, kiddo." Niou put a headlock around her and ruffled her hair.
"Waagh! Niou-senapai!" Akaya tried to get out of his grasp.
"Good. Now you're playing with me. Try to use both muga no kyouchi and hyakuren jitoku no kiwami this time. But you're going to play without any of them for the first thirty minutes."
"Already? Doesn't she need to rest?" Niou asked.
"It's to bring out the best of her; resting only shuts the body down." Sanada said. "Let's go, Akaya."
"Alright." She took a sip and headed to the court once again.
"Man, that Akaya! Isn't she tired?" Marui exclaimed as he sat down, chewing on his bubblegum.
"He's not like you, fatty." Niou blurted out.
"Wha—I'm not a fatty!"
"Says a guy who could only play an hour and a half top." Niou snickered.
"You little dickhead! You don't last that much longer than me either!"
"Puri."
"You guys, they're starting." Jackal shushed the two and directed their attention to Sanada and Akaya.
"Are they playing a game?" Yagyuu asked Yanagi and Yanagi shook his head.
"They're just rallying as if it's a game. Keeping track of the score takes too much time."
Sanada first served, using his Muga no Kyouchi to copy Ootori's scud serve. Akaya returned it with ease without her Muga no Kyouchi. Sanada then used Echizen's Drive B. Akaya used her one-footed split step to reach the ball before it bounced twice. Then she went up to the net for a volley.
Sanada used Oishi's moon volley to lob her, but reacting fast to his move, Akaya stepped back and hit a smash. Sanada returned it with Fuji's Higuma Otoshi, but Akaya again saw through it and smashed it once more.
"Th-This is going to go on forever…"
Akaya finally took the first point by faking a smash and using a drop-shot.
"Akaya used a drop shot! Now that's a first." Marui said.
"She's learning how to be strategic. It's a good thing." Yanagi said, smiling.
Then the regulars noticed something weird—Sanada's Muga no Kyouchi settled down and he was enwrapped in a completely different aura that they've not seen before.
"Let's see if Akaya can do well with this one…" Yanagi mumbled.
"O-Oi, Yanagi. What's with Sanada?" Jackal asked.
"He's brought out Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami." He stated. "The Pinnacle of Great Wisdom. It calls out the number of moves until the point ends."
By then everyone in the club's attention was directed to the two. The non-regulars watched in awe as the two excellent players play a match on a whole new level.
"Are you ready Akaya?" Sanada asked, and Akaya, although a bit confused, nodded her head.
They rallied—and Sanada suddenly said, "5."
'Five? What's with a 5?'
Then after five shots Sanada hit a winner.
'Y-You're kidding! That was after 5 shots like fukubuchou said.' Akaya exclaimed in her head.
Each rally Sanada called out a number, and the point ended at the exact number of rallies that Sanada called out.
'H-How am I going to break this…? I've been trying everything to take the point away from him…!'
"Here goes the next one." Sanada said, and served.
'What should I do…!'
Even with Muga no Kyouchi and Hyakuren Jitoku no Kiwami, Akaya kept on losing.
"Damn…" She cursed, catching her breath. Then suddenly, her eyes lightened up.
'What if I try to lengthen the point instead of finishing it…?'
Akaya rallied with Sanada.
"This one will be 7."
'Hm…'
So from then Akaya counted—and on the 6th shot that Akaya hit, she hit a lob to lure Sanada to smash it. 7th turn—Sanada of course took the chance and smashed it.
Akaya's eyes glinted—she immediately brought her Hyakuren Jitoku no Kiwami out, chased the ball, and hit a super rising shot to the opposite side of Sanada.
"Eight!" Akaya shouted as Sanada looked at the ball that rolled towards his feet.
The regulars cheered.
"Now then here goes more." Sanada picked up the ball and said.
Akaya rallied—then suddenly, she could read into Sanada's moves.
"It'll be 5 this time, fukubuchou!" Akaya called out.
"Hey Akaya seems a little different from before!" Marui exclaimed.
As Akaya said, for the 4th shot Sanada hit it lightly to make Akaya hit a hard shot to counter it, but seeing through the move Akaya hit a zero-shiki drop shot.
"She did it." Yanagi broke into a smile, no—a huge grin.
"Woohoo! GO AKAYA!" Marui cheered, pumping his fist in the air.
"That's it for today." Sanada said, catching his breath. "Good job, Akaya." He ruffled her on the hair.
"Yay! Thanks fukubuchou!"
The two walked back to the bench.
"Good job, Akaya. That was Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami you just experienced." Yanagi explained.
"WAT REALLY!?" She seemed surprised. "How did I do that?"
"How did you?" Niou chuckled.
"I… hm… let's see… I dunno I just saw through fukubuchou's moves." She said.
"It's natural that you can't explain how you unlock the doors. But you did unlock it so all is well." Yanagi explained.
"Alright practice is over. Everyone pick up the balls—!" Sanada announced and everyone in the team, including the non-regulars, picked up balls.
"I'm dropping by the hospital. Do you want to go Akaya?" Sanada asked.
"YEAH!" Akaya yelled immediately. "Let's go let's go let's go gogogogo" She jumped around like a kid entering a theme park. Marui decided to follow and the rest headed home.
"Alright. Let's go."
Yanagi, Sanada, and Marui headed over to where Yukimura was.
When they went into the room, Yukimura wasn't there.
The nurse came in and told them that Yukimura will be back from his rehabilitation exercise in a few minutes.
"How is he doing?" Sanada asked.
"He's doing so well!" The nurse exclaimed. "He's already able to walk and lift."
The nurse left.
"In a span of 4 days, Seiichi can already to so much." Yanagi smiled. "As expected of the Child of God."
After waiting for a while, the door clicked open and Yukimura walked into the room.
"BUCHOUUU!" Akaya exclaimed and ran to him, giving him a huge hug.
"Oof. Huhu, hi there Akaya. Hey you guys." He smiled and greeted everyone.
"Hi 'Mura." Marui said, sincerely happy to see Yukimura back on his feet.
Yukimura sat down and let out a sigh after a hard exercise.
"How's the rehabilitation going?" Sanada asked.
"Pretty good. I should definitely be ready before nationals."
"That's awesome!" Akaya gleamed. "I can't wait to play with buchou!"
"I'm glad to hear that, Akaya." Yukimura smiled and pat her on the head.
"Speaking of tennis, Akaya unlocked Hyakuren Jitoku no Kiwami last week and Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami just today." Yanagi said.
"That's amazing, Akaya!" Yukimura's eyes widened. "You improved so fast!"
"She's worked hard." Sanada praised her.
"Hehe, I still have lots more to do, though."
"Good mindset. I'm glad to see you grow physically and mentally. I trust you with Rikkaidai tennis team next year too." Yukimura smiled and said.
'He's an angel…!' Akaya was amazed by how nice he was.
"Junior selection camp? What's that?" Akaya asked while she gobbled down a sandwich. The regulars had gathered after practice at a nearby restaurant for a team dinner. It was about 3 weeks after the Kantou finals and summer break was approaching; Yukimura was almost done with his rehabilitation process and the regulars were eager to practice for Nationals.
"We actually planned this dinner to select who's going to go to the selection camp." Yanagi explained. "The selection camp is a camp where, in order to pick players that will represent the country, players from top school around the district will train and compete to be the lucky eight."
"Heh~ So it's kinda like a tryout to be a national representative." Akaya said.
"Yes. However, it's not only a tryout, it's a way to see all sorts of players you haven't played in the matches; you'll be among several other strong players and get to train alongside."
"Ugh. That brings back some really bad memories…" Akaya said with a dark expression.
"Why?"
"Well..."
"Oh my gosh~ And so I was totally ready to accept his feelings but you know I have a boyfriend~!" A blond girl busily chit-chatted and talked about nothing but boys.
"Ugh, why did she even come here in the first place…" Akaya mumbled.
"What did you say? You stupid Asian! I doubt you'll be picked for this anyways!"
"Better than coming here half-heartedly. Girls like you are a turn-off to a lot of guys." Akaya spat out, crossing her arms and not giving much effort in dealing with her.
"Then why don't you play against me?"
"Nope. My pride won't let me play a novice like you."
"You…! You…! Stupid bitch! You're not even good at tennis yourself! Coward!"
Coward? Coward!? Ain't no one call Akaya a coward. Ain't no one.
"Oh for god's sake, fuck you." Akaya stuck up both of her middle fingers at her.
"Swearing because you can't play. You're just chikening out, huh? You probably can't even serve right!"
"OKAY I'VE HAD ENOUGH, YOU STUPID BITCH!" Akaya's temper rose and she hit a tennis ball right in her face.
"PUHAHAHAHAH!" Everyone except Sanada and Yagyuu cracked up. Yanagi cracked a grin which he could not help from hiding.
"So what happened after that?"
"I got kicked out, of course." She pouted. "Che, and they ended up losing the entire thing too. Their loss."
Sanada cleared his throat.
"Well, this one, I'm sure, is going to be very different from the one you were in, Akaya." Sanada assured. "People from great schools such as Seishun, Hyotei, Rokkaku, Jyousei Shounan and Fudoumine are going to be there."
"Who the hell is Jyousei Shounan?" Akaya lifted her eyebrows.
"Noooo idea." Marui said.
Sanada once again cleared his throat.
"So like every year, we've been sending only two of our regulars out for the camp, and the acceptance rate for both as representatives has always been 100%." Sanada explained. "And so this year, we will send out only two players also."
Akaya was busy finishing up her other half of a sandwich.
"I will go." Sanada said. "And the other one will be Akaya."
"MMGHMM!?" With her food still in her mouth, Akaya shot up and yelped.
Marui hit her on the back to let her swallow her food. Niou silently handed her a drink. She managed to swallow her food after a while.
"YOU'RE KIDDING, FUKUBUCHOU!" Akaya exclaimed. "PLUS, I'M A GIRL!"
"The regulations don't say that girls can't play." Sanada said.
"HELL NO!" Akaya shouted. "I'd rather practice with Yukimura buchou than go to another dreaded selection camp!"
"It'll be a good experience."
"Then what about the other senpai-tachi! You can make them go!"
"But they don't want to." Sanada simply stated. Akaya scanned her teammates but none would make an eye contact.
"WHY DO I HAVE TO THEN!?"
"Because it'll help you. We came to a conclusion that this camp will help you the most out of us."
"NO!"
"Akaya. You will go." Sanada gave her an intimidating glare. The regulars were then fidgeting, worried for the safety of their dear little kouhai who was willing to go against Sanada.
"Make me." Akaya crossed her arms and looked away.
"I will." Yukimura suddenly appeared behind Akaya.