A/N: A FUTURE PAIRING HINT IN THIS CHAPTER! I'm not really sure if the pairings super popular, as he usually gets paired up with someone else, but whatever... :)
Time: Kanto Regional Tournament
Matchups [Semi-Finals]
Seigaku vs Fudomine
Rikkaidai vs Hyotei
(A/N: Different from the anime)
|Seiichi's POV|
One Week and 3 days Ago...
I didn't look him in the eye for the past day.
I couldn't.
I knew my motive behind my decision. And as the date looms closer and closer, guilt began to form in the depths of my stomach.
I'm limiting his potential.
And possibly making us lose the whole match.
I know that...It's just...
I can't bear to lose him...
I can't Ican't Icant Icanticanticanticanticanticant
I gazed down at the paper in my hands. No. Not even my guilt could make me black out what I wrote.
Carefully tucking the paper into a crisp white envelope, I walked briskly to the closest mailbox and quickly dropped the envelope in.
|No One's POV|
Two days later...
The news travelled fast if you're one of the top 4. By sundown, everyone from the 4 teams was told, and more than 90% were mystified.
What caused the great Child of God, AKA, Yukimura Seiichi, to make such a decision?
Especially if the long-forgotten name, Echizen Ryoma, was beside his.
|Ryoma's POV|
One Day Later...
I fidgeted with my jacket's zipper. This isn't right. The Kanto Semifinals is on Tuesday. Which is tomorrow. TOMORROW FOR GOD'S SAKE!
And yet, Seiichi still haven't shown us the listings...I thought, struggling to suppress a groan.
I looked at Seiichi. He's rubbing the back of his neck again, and I know he only does that if he's concentrating really hard. And there's that subtle hair tugging again. Looks like he turned from concentrated to nervous...
"Oi! Ryoma! Why are you always staring at Mura-buchou like that?" Akaya asked. Loudly.
A blush crept up my cheeks as everyone started to look at me. Thank god my bangs could cover my eyes.
"What are you talking about?" I replied, forcing myself to not stutter.
He opened his mouth to retort. I silenced him with a venomous glare that practically screamed 'ohhhhh don't you dare say it'. Akaya quickly snapped his mouth shut.
I sneaked a look at Seiichi. He didn't look fazed. In fact, he looked lost in thought. I briefly thought about asking him about it, but then decided against it, since for the past few days he didn't really talk to me.
I sighed softly.
Karupin nuzzled my neck reassuringly.
Hn. Even she knew I was sad...
|Genichirou's POV|
I struggled to not gape like an idiot.
Thank goodness we have Akaya.
"Wait a second...WHAT?!" Akaya shrieked.
Seiichi gave him a cool stare.
"Do you have a problem with my arrangements?" He hissed icily.
Akaya's mouth moved quickly, but no sound came out except for sputtering. I flicked my eyes to Ryoma. He stood still, silent, using his bangs to cover his eyes.
"Seiichi, what is the meaning of this?" I heard myself say out loud.
Seiichi turned on me, eyes narrowed.
Abruptly, he softened his eyes and smiled sweetly.
"I just want to try out a new thing!" Seiichi answered cheerfully.
I sweatdropped. Sometimes, I seriously wonder if Seiichi's bipolar.
"But...You never played doubles before in an official match in your whole life..." I trailed off.
Seiichi shrugged.
"So? It's only Doubles 2," he answered, sounding unaffected. "As long as you guys win the other matches, we'll be fine!"
No one moved or made a sound.
Until...
"Uh, buchou..." Ryoma mumbled, uncomfortable. "I, uh, um...I kinda suck at doubles."
Seiichi blinked.
"Oh. Hm. Never thought about that."
Renji (A/N: Bleach...XD)twitched. He looked sickened.
"Seiichi, you have less than 3% chance of winning," he whispered, eyes opened in slits.
"Well, that's why we're practising today!" Seiichi replied again, in that innocently cheerful voice.
"So I'm guessing I'm doing Singles 1?" I asked, glancing at him with weary eyes.
"Correct. Genichirou, singles 1. Akaya, singles 2. Renji, singles 3. Masaharu (Nio) and Hiroshi (Yagyu), and Marui and Kuwahara (Jackal) will have a match today to decide who gets to be Doubles 1," Seiichi told us breezily. "After their match finished, the winner will practice with us. Sora will be the backup to the backups."
I sighed. Well. It's not as if anyone could say no to Seiichi.
"...I suppose you already submitted the listing?" Ryoma muttered dully.
Seiichi gave him a quick nod.
"Hai~"
With that, everyone went with their usual training partners. Renji came beside me, lips faintly smiling.
"Ah, well, at least I get to go against Sadaharu," he remarked, his voice amused.
Checking to see that no one's watching me, I smiled back.
"Hn. I'm pretty sure that's why Seiichi placed you in Singles 3."
Renji smirked.
"Ha. Never thought I'll see this day. The heir of the Yukimura Union. Playing doubles. With the Seigaku prodigy, no less."
My eyes widened.
"...Seigaku prodigy? Heir of the Yukimura Union?"
Renji faced me, his sharp brown eyes open, piercing me.
His lips quirked into a smile, then quickly turned into his normal expression.
"Let me explain, shall I?"
|Ryoma's POV|
~30 minutes later~
I looked at Seiichi with a worried expression on my face. Sure, this is "practising", but really, it's just a match.
"Um, buchou, the plan?" I asked hesitantly.
He gave me a small smile.
"You, front. Me, back. Good?"
I scratched my head.
"It's fine. But I don't think I'll remember that. I tend to chase after the ball. So huh..."
Seiichi shook his head in an amused manner.
"Well, there's always the Ah-Un strategy," Seiichi smirked.
I sighed. I suck at doubles. It's a fact. Well, Seiichi would probably take the whole court anyways if our "match" with Sora was any indication, I thought as I ran to take my place.
"Oi! Why amI at the front anyway?" I asked him.
"Because you're short! And your arms are short! And even if your speed is 4, your power is .5 less than mine!" (A/N: According to his U-17 camp stats)
I suppressed my eye roll. I am not surprised he knows my stats,I thought. Picking up the tennis ball near my feet, I tossed it in the air and slammed it down.
"Twist serve tornado!"
Jackal ran up, arms already outstretched. He smirked.
"Pinwheel Beat!"
I ran after it, ready to hit, when Seiichi's blue hair invaded my field of view.
No! Oh shit we're going to hit each other-
But we didn't. Seiichi ducked slightly, and as my racket missed the ball, it bounced off the tip of his and it arched high up into the air. My eyes widened. The ball...
"It changes directions, Ryo-kun," he muttered to me. Then, his eyes narrowed. "Dance of the thousand petals, kirihanasu!"
My breath hitched. One ball changed into 7... Marui ran after it, miraculously still hitting it.
"Super raising!"
I wasted no time.
"Seiichi, this one's mine!" I shrieked, jumping high in the air. "Rondo Towards Destruction!"
The smash was directed towards the shocked Jackal, knocking his racket out of his hand. Marui tried to run after it, stopping suddenly as it already touched the ground twice.
"F-FIFTEEN LOVE!"
Seiichi looked mildly surprised.
"...As expected, Ryoma," was all he said.
|Renji's POV|
"Outside of my calculations, yet again, Ryoma-kun," I mused.
I glanced at the still silent Genichirou. He was twitching quite violently...
Hm. I do hope he's not going to have a heart attack, I thought absentmindedly. That would be such a shame.
|Ryoma's POV|
I looked at the pair quietly, silently assessing them. Of course, they were not out of breath, but...
"Ne, Ryoma," Seiichi murmured to me, "aim lobs at Marui. His Wonder Castle can hit back all shots-except for lobs. Also, Jackal's stamina is extremely long. Which is why you should make Marui run, not him."
I nodded quickly. Seiichi resumed his place, hands gripping the tennis ball. He tossed it, the ball meeting the little corner between the tip of his racquet and the strings. The ball went at a weird angle, spinning towards Marui. As he prepared to hit it, the ball suddenly arched down, skidding towards the boundary line. It spun in place at the tip of the line, until it sprang up, arched and flew towards Jackal.
"Now that, Ryo, is the V serve," Seiichi shouted.
I didn't reply as I am already heading for the ball that was back in our side of the court.
I grinned.
Ok, sure, this is a move I've only seen and never really practised, but I'm going to try it anyways. Moving my hands quickly in a circular pattern, I placed it in front of the ball, then quickly retracting my hand and smashed it towards Marui.
"Bio-Magnetism!"
His racquet approached the ball, tilting to the side awkwardly before the ball weakly came back to our side.
Seiichi ran up, pushing me lightly to the side as he smashed it back.
"Honestly, Marui, is this the best you can do?" Seiichi smiled, eyes suddenly darkening.
Jackal slammed it back, eyes widening as the ball touched his racquet. Marui looked at him with concern, eyebrows furrowed.
"Yips!" some unnamed person shouted.
"Aim it at Jackal!" Seiichi shouted at the same time.
Yips? I thought as I registered what Seiichi said. Not thinking too much of it as my racquet already touched the ball, I did a weakened version of the Cyclone Smash, gasping as Jackal's hit went out.
What? HOW?!
"O-OUT! T-THIRTY LOVE!"
~30 minutes later~
"S-SET, YUKIMURA AND ECHIZEN! 5-0!"
I looked at Seiichi, who was testing his strings, lips faintly smiling. My heart was hammering.
How far does this guy's abilities go to?!
I turned back my head. Our opponents...They're...
My eyes twitched.
They were practically wondering around on the courts, eyes wide and dilated.
Fear crept into my heart. For once I am glad I am playing withSeiichi, and not against him.
"Still going to play, boys?" Seiichi hummed. "Because I've already stripped away 4 of your senses. Must I strip away your sense of hearing, too?"
Hearing his voice, they focused back.
"Never, buchou," Marui vowed.
Seiichi sighed.
"Very well. Suit yourselves. Ryoma, it's your turn to serve," he shrugged, handing me the ball.
I shakingly accepted, our fingertips brushing slightly. He eyed my shaking hand, eyes narrowing.
"Ryoma-"
"No," I breathed, "It's fine. I'm fine."
He made no further comment.
I tossed the ball up and slammed it down.
~10 minutes later~
"GAME, SET, MATCH, YUKIMURA AND ECHIZEN! 6-0!"
I collapsed on the ground as cheering sounded everywhere. My hands were freezing cold, I noted as a drop of sweat rolled down my face.
"Ryoma, are you alright?" he asked softly.
I smiled weakly.
"Yeah, of course. You should, uh, ask Jackal-senpai and Marui-senpai that, not me."
He looked at me weirdly.
"No worry, it'll wear off after they walk off the court."
"A-Ah, I s-see."
I stood up quickly, heading over to my water bottle. I sipped slowly, as to avoid conversation. I don't know why I feel this way. He...His style of tennis shouldn't have bothered me. But here I was, acting all frozen inside and stuff.
You guys made a great team, that little voice inside of me told me smugly.
I mentally glared at it. Somehow, I feel a churning feeling, being associated with such a...cold and violent style of tennis.
Yips, I mused. I suppose that one of the reasons why he's nicknamed the 'Child of God'.
Seiichi draped a towel over my head.
"Practice is over," he announced.
I nodded my thanks. Inside, my confusion is taking up wayyy too much space. I don't get it. I'm perfectly ok with Devil Mode, yet feel fear from Yips?! Shouldn't Devil Mode be more violent and therefore scarier?
A cool breeze ruffled my hair. I looked up, seeing almost everyone left. A sudden panic surged. It was only me and Seiichi.
"...Ryoma," he murmured. "Are you scared of it?"
I almost jumped in surprise. I knew exactly what he was talking about.
"No," I lied, eyes glued to the floor. "I mean, w-why would I be?"
...
...
...
A warm hand touched my left cheek. I glanced at him in alarm.
"Ryoma..." he whispered, his violet eyes clouding over. "I..."
He abruptly stood up, hands tugging his blue hair slightly. Muttering a quick apology, he spun on his heels and walked out.
|Seiichi's POV|
I sat, curled up in my bed, a book clutched tightly in my hands.
Why did I do that? I thought miserably, biting my lip.
I took out my racquet, bouncing a ball on the tip up and down, my book long was forgotten.
Hn...I knew Ryoma and I would be compatible. At least, in doubles.
Pisces...It's most compatible with Taurus, Cancer, Scorpio and Capricorn, and Ryoma just happens to be a Capricorn.
I smiled sadly.
Well, I thought, what if I don't use my Yips tomorrow?
Because I still haven't forgotten Ryoma's face when he figured it out. It made me...
Cracked.
The fear in his golden eyes...
I hate it. So for the first time in 6 years, I hated my ability.
I hated how it brought that emotion into those sunlight eyes.
I was still bouncing the tennis ball up and down when a knock sounded at my door.
"Come in."
Genichirou's and Renji's heads poked through. I smiled slightly.
"Why hello."
Renji closed the door and looked at me coolly.
"Hello to you too, 3rd heir to the Yukimura Union."
I looked at him sharply.
"We need to talk," Genichirou supplied with a wince.
I sighed.
"You don't say..."
A/N: Review? THANK YOU!