Thanks so much for the likes and reviews! Feel so happy that people are still reading this story!

The fight on the Star Destroyer begins now.

Countdown to Rise of Skywalker = 9 days

Hinata couldn't help but bounced on the balls of his feet as the Star Destroyer appeared in front of them the moment they jumped out of hyperspace. The vessel was huge, spanning several kilometres long, a white triangle of destruction capable of blowing their little ship to bits. Ukai called out that they were ready to make contact with the ship as Hinata reached out with his Force bond, calling out to Kageyama no matter how faint his words may be.

He was getting colder and more distant by the minute.

"Kageyama, I'm coming for you," he whispered when someone walked up behind him, Hinata nearly hitting his head on the ceiling as he yelped in fright as Sato quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Were you talking to yourself or something?"

"No… uh I… was just…"

Sato reached to ruffle the smaller boy's head as a distant look appeared on his face as he stared at the Star Destroyer fast approaching in front of them, his eyes trained to a particular circular window on the upper levels of the ship. His narrow eyes seemed to soften ever so slightly as his mouth opened to say something when he closed it, shaking his head as Hinata wondered what was his deal. Sato had always seemed to be lost in thought, trying to reach out to someone or something that was never there. He thought maybe it could be something to do with wanting to reconnect with the Force but he felt it was something much more personal than that…

"Alright boys! We're going to be making contact with the ship in 3… 2… 1… locked on!" Ukai called as they landed on the Star Destroyer, Hinata's heart hammering as he prayed the ship's sensors hadn't detected them.

The good thing about flying in this tiny rusbucket was that bigger ships tend to dismiss it as some random scrap metal flying through space, which was essentially what Hinata thought they are.

"Hey! I may not be able to use the Force like you people but I learned enough to know when you're insulting my baby!" Ukai yelled from the front as Hinata's fingers curled around his lightsaber, the cool metal giving him a bit of comfort as Sato opened the door, the door opening to reveal a hallway made out of sleek black metal. There wasn't anyone in it as they tiptoed into it, the boots squeaking against the floor as they closed the door.

Ukai had parked them along the side of the ship at one of the repair docks of the ship. Praying that no one would blast his baby into hyperspace, Ukai gave his ship one final pat as he gave his blaster a good twirl in his fingers before grinning, his grin savage as a crow just having found his prey as he grinned.

"Let's save your little prince, shall we?"

Hinata didn't say anything as they made their way down the hallways, the sound of whirring machines filling the air as they kept to the shadows when Stormtroopers walked past. While Sato thought out loud it was stupid for them to go waltzing into the vessel without so much a disguise, Ukai commented it would be better than having to wear the uncomfortable armour the Stormtroopers wore and take up more time trying to pull them on.

As Sato and Ukai bickered over their covert problems, Hinata reached out to Kageyama through their bond, searching for him throughout the ship. He knew there was a risk of the Knights realizing they had intruders on the ship if he used the Force but the Force bond was something beyond that; at least that was what he felt.

He felt his mind go through every corner of the ship, images of closed walls and doors moving behind his closed eyelids as he traveled down a dark narrow corridor to what looked like a balcony overlooking a pit. Standing at the edge was Kageyama, his eyes trained to two Padawans fighting in front of him as Ushijima stood at his side, his frame tall and imposing in black as Ushijima turned to look at him. Hinata felt his insides melt as the Knight looked straight at him, his mouth never so much twitching as he heard a voice in his mind.

"You are very brave to have come here with just two people."

"I'm not alone, and that matters."

"What matters is that they are weak, and that you don't stand a chance against my men."

"Power. You're all about power. Why do you look at people because of their power instead of their circumstances?"

"Kageyama and Oikawa have been surrounded by weaklings for too long. Even if their team performs their very best and still lose, they are still weak. Both of them are excellent seedlings that needs suitably excellent soil. Without it, they cannot yield the best fruit in the barren land known as the Jedi Order. Oikawa has flourished so much under my command, and Kageyama will do the same."

"So you're saying if the Seijoh team, one of the best Jedi squads there was was barren land, wouldn't Karasuno be concrete?"

Hinata could almost feel Ushijima flinch ever so slightly at his words as Hinata glared at him, his eyes zoning into Ushijima as he tried to pry into his mind. No matter how much he tried to dig deep, the only thing he saw was pride and power, confidence he could do anything he wanted.

He wouldn't let Kageyama fall into the hands of someone like that.

"My name is Hinata Shouyou of the concrete. I will find you, hunt you down and defeat you on the court."

As quickly as it had come, Hinata felt his mind going back to himself, Ushijima having been cut off from it as he leaned against the wall. Sato turned to look at him with concern as Hinata collected himself, his destination on the ship now certain as he turned to look at his comrades.

"I'm going to save Kageyama. If you want to follow me, that's up to you."

Sato's eyes turning to look at the other direction of the ship as he murmured.

"I have something else to take care of."

Ukai grinned as he clapped his co-captain on the back, his eyes filled with understanding as Sato nodded.

"Its been a long time. Have a proper reunion with him."

At his words, Sato turned his heel and ran down the corridor, his footsteps slowly becoming softer as Hinata turned to Ukai, who smiled as he cradled his blaster against his chest as Hinata's lips curled into a smirk.

"We have a bit of a breaking out to do."

…

Yamaguchi was afraid that this would happen. He knew that many Padawans had been killed off by others in fear of losing their own lives and this was no exception. Only the strong survived on this ship, and he knew he wasn't strong.

He didn't know why he had been selected by Master Shimada in the first place. The man was powerful in his own right, one of the few Masters to use the shoto in combat and to hardly resolving to using his blade to solve problems. While others master had been all about fighting to produce results, Master Shimada would always tell him to avoid using violence at all costs.

"To enjoy being a Jedi or any form of job in that matter, you need to be good. That was what my old master told me. I wasn't the best in my cohort or even someone who was thought to be able to become a Jedi. Training was tough, and I always thought about quitting it so many times but the first time I managed to win a battle with a lightsaber… how many times did it take for me to practice to get to this stage? If I can just savour it one more time, this moment once again, I would be able to survive these training sessions in becoming a Jedi."

How many times Yamaguchi had thought of quitting? As a child, he had thought of running away if it hadn't been for Tsukishima who told him he had no where to go considering he didn't know his family and a life outside of the Temple. When Master Shimada took him under his wing, his life had turned into something he looked forward to, where he was finally able to learn the ways of the Jedi the way he wanted to; step by step.

But maybe this was where it ends.

"Tsukki. You're much stronger than me. I feel it would be better for you to kill me."

"Stop it, Yamaguchi! You're strong in your own way!"

"I could never have survived without Master Shimada but he's now dead. I'm a masterless Padawan who can never become a Jedi without the tutelage of a master. You still have Master Kuroo and your future is so bright…"

"Stop it, Yamaguchi!"

"I'm doing it for your sake, Tsukki! You are the one meant to be a Jedi! I was just someone who was picked up by a Master who went through the same situation as me! It was all luck!"

"Luck.." Tsukishima whispered as he curled his fingers around his lightsaber, his metallic fingers digging into the metal of his lightsaber as he chuckled, "Have a little more faith in yourself, Tadashi."

He ignited the blade, the low humming sound of his green lightsaber whirling through the air as he swung it, swinging it to point directly over his heart as Yamaguchi cried out.

"Live on, Yamaguchi. If Master Kuroo sees me like this," he whispered as a single tear rolled down the side of his face, "he would never love me as an apprentice again."

"Tsukki!" Yamaguchi yelled as the ceiling exploded above their heads, a rumbling sound filling the entire ship as several figures dropped in from the floor above. As they landed nimbly in the sand, one of them turned to look at Tsukishima, his hazel-like eyes roving over his body as he gave his apprentice a smile.

"Tsukki, you think a little body modification would make me hate my cute little apprentice?"

Master Kuroo grinned as walked over to Tsukishima and curled his fingers around Tsukishima's metal ones, his hand flinching slightly at how much his apprentice had been damaged and changed in just a week.

"I'm sorry for not protecting you, Tsukki. Now, I will do my job as your master and show you just how amazing I am," he whispered as he pressed the ignition button of Tsukishima's lightsaber, deactivating it as the boy slumped to the ground, breathing rapidly as Yamaguchi rushed over to his side to hold him against his chest, soothing him as he whispered into his ear over and over.

"Kei. Kei… its alright. You're alright."

Master Kuroo turned his heel to glare at the Knights of Shiratorizawa present above him, Tendou grinning rapidly as he licked his lips, Semi frowning at the execution having been put on hold while Ushijima just looked annoyed. Kageyama had a look of fear plastered on his face, Master Kuroo making a note to reprimand him about his actions later as Kenma muttered.

"Come on, Kuroo. Let's get this over with."

"Alright, kitten," he grinned as he whipped out his lightsaber from his belt, his catlike grin spreading across his face like a Cheshire cat as he smirked.

"Oya oya oya. Let's have some fun shall we?"

…

Oikawa starred outside the porthole that served as his window. For years he had lived on this ship, always staring out into the darkness of space that always seemed to leave him empty and all alone, which was exactly what he was feeling now.

The Knights hardly ever talked to him, not like he wanted to get close with the monsters who had killed his friends and the crew treated him like a god who didn't deserve to be spoken with. The only thing he could do was to retreat to the memories he held dear in the back of his mind, of the days where he and his friends trained in the Temple under the name of Aoba Johsai, the green lightsabers moving in unison as they fought.

"Hey Oikawa! What do you want to do when you graduate to be a Jedi Knight?" Matsun asked as they lay on the grass. They had been taken on an expedition to Alderaan where they had to serve as bodyguards to the Senator of the planet and now that their mission was complete, their masters had allowed them some downtime and chilling out.

The planet was one of the most beautiful in the entire galaxy, mountains surrounding metal palaces that jutted out among the snow. The air wasn't too cold, the sun kissing their faces as they enjoyed the sight of the water, which was a rare sight on the city planet of Coruscant where they spent their entire lives training. With the sun beginning to set, the sky had begun to turn into a pinkish yellow hallow, the stars beginning to come up to light the sky around them. Oikawa had never seen stars as beautiful as he had here and he wished he could stay here forever.

"We have to graduate first to figure out. I don't know if you can ever graduate with that muscle head of yours, Iwaizumi," Maki called as Iwaizumi threw some grass at his eyes.

"Shut it. We're all going to graduate, become Jedi Knights and protect the galaxy."

"Hosh posh. I hear that to the point of being sick. Is there anything else we could do?"

"We could form a squad," Oikawa murmured as his friends whipped their heads to him, their eyes focused on their unofficial leader as Oikawa continued.

"It isn't uncommon for people to form squads as Jedi and go on missions together. Given our compatibility and our experience of having lived and trained since childhood, I don't think they would stop us from doing that."

"What about getting apprentices?"

"Too lazy," Oikawa yawned as Iwaizumi's hand found its way to his face to squeeze his cheeks, making him squeal as he growled, "You need to be something other than self-centred Shittykawa."

"How am I supposed to train an apprentice when I have a hulking gorilla to babysit?" he yelped as Iwaizumi wrestled him in the ground, Maki and Matsun jeering and laughing as they rolled in the dirt until their Masters yelled at them to get back to the palace. Reluctantly, the boys got to their feet, shaking their tunics free of dirt as the first star appeared in the darkening sky.

"When we are Jedi Knights, we will make sure we do everything together. We will always be Aoba Johsai, forever," Oikawa said as he held out his hand in a fist. Slowly, each of the four boys did the same, identical grins on their faces as Oikawa grinned.

"I'm counting on you guys."

"I'm counting on you guys," Oikawa found himself murmuring to himself as he lay on his bed, his limbs sprawled on the dark sheets as he turned to look at the holographic picture he had on his nightstand of him, Iwaizumi, Matsukawa and Maki graduating to Jedi Knights. They had been so oblivious of the future that awaited them, all their dreams dashed and gone to oblivion because of him.

"It wasn't your fault."

There. He was hearing his voice again. Every time he thought of something being his fault, Oikawa always heard Iwaizumi's voice, as alive as he had ever been as it sent warmth throughout him.

"No, Iwa-chan. If I had just complied, no one would have died."

"Not all of us died."

"I killed you with my own blade. I sent the others to their deaths. I deserve to die yet here I am, rotting away as I took part in wiping out the Jedi Order out of spit for what happened to you guys."

"Oikawa, I'm here."

"No… you're never here. You can never be here."

"Tooru!"

Oikawa whipped up his head as the voice rang across the room, his head turning to see a man standing at the entrance of his room. His body was coated with sweat from having run all the way there, his sleeveless shirt showing off ripped muscles and tanned skin coupled with tattoos of the Aoba Johsai clan and the names of their fallen comrades littering the surface as Oikawa's eyes went to his face.

He looked slightly older, his jaw covered with a hint of stubble but other than that, his hair was the same length and the permanent scowl plastered to his face was still present, although this time, it slowly pulled into the beginnings of a sad smile.

"I'm here, Shittykawa. Sorry for making you worry."

No way. He couldn't be alive. He killed him himself. He had to be dead.

But he still couldn't help but say the name that always brought a sweet sound to his ears, the name of the person he called his best friend and would follow him even to death.

"Hajime?"

No offence guys, did you guys expected me to kill off Iwa-chan in this story? I'm not cruel enough to kill off one of my fav characters, it would scar me for life.