AN: This is probably my least favourite chapter so far, which is why I struggled with writing it, and the update was delayed this week. It is more OC-heavy than I would've liked, and somewhat droning. I think it's necessary for setting the stage for the Shiraitodai school tournament arc, but I could've probably written it better. Well, what's done is done. I might edit this chapter in the future. On a separate note, the promised OC list has been posted on the AO3 version of this story, and will always be positioned as the final "chapter" on the list. Hope this helps for those who want to keep track of the OCs.
Of the Champion and Flowers
Chapter 14
Asakura felt an invisible pressure walking alongside their mahjong club's ace. For whatever the reason, Miyanaga Teru had started commuting to and from school with her little sister, though Asakura had yet to hear the Miyanaga sisters speak a word to each other along the way. Saki didn't seem to mind though. She looked to be in a rather cheerful mood, engaging Asakura in a light conversation. Uuuu…why am I even here? I hope Miyanaga-senpai isn't hungry enough to consider eating me. I'm not very tasty! – Asakura mused inside her brain. To be fair, that was probably her overactive imagination at play. The elder Miyanaga kept a two-pace distance from them, reading a book while nibbling on a chocolate-banana crepe. Is it really such a good idea to be reading as you walk, Senpai? Please don't hit yourself on a lamppost; I cannot bear the responsibility of failing to protect our school's greatest asset! I don't want to die yet!
"Asakura-san?" Saki's voice woke Asakura from her pointless musings. Asakura reluctantly peeled her gaze away from Teru, praying to all gods that Teru wouldn't wander off and be hit by a truck or something while Asakura wasn't looking. Thankfully, Teru ducked the fire hydrant in front of her with expert efficiency – maybe her magic mirror worked in real-life too?
"Ah right, we were talking about the training camp," Asakura answered. "Seems like you brought quite a bit of luggage with you, Miyanaga-san."
Well, both Miyanaga siblings brought quite a lot. Asakura swore their backpacks could fit a bear inside. Why would you need to bring that much to a hot springs resort? Shiraitodai was an ojousama school – they sure weren't going to starve their students, particularly those of the prized mahjong club. Maybe the younger Miyanaga didn't know that, but surely the older one would know, right?
"Umm…I didn't join a club in middle school, so this is the first time I've gone on a training camp. Maybe I got a bit too excited, haha. I packed some books and snacks and before I knew it…my bag got a bit full," Saki said, scratching her head.
No, no, "a bit" is a huge understatement, don't you think, Miyanaga-san!?
"But Hakone, huh? I thought the camp would be at Atami. I heard from our senpai that it has always been at Atami," Asakura said.
"It is because of the Atami Castle prank."
Asakura nearly jumped when Miyanaga Teru joined the conversation. She made a visible gulp, but luckily for her, Teru's gaze was still stuck to the page she was reading. She continued her explanation. "There is a replica castle in Atami that the mahjong club would always visit on the last day of training camp. After the trip, the first-years from last year thought of the prank of answering 'Atami Castle' for every question they did not understand in their history classes, and this prank spread quickly outside of the mahjong club. The first-year history teacher got very upset and complained to the Coach – well, his strict attitude was probably why he wasn't very well-liked in the first place…"
What…What world have I just been reincarnated into? Why is the unhuman Miyanaga-senpai educating me on the school's unofficial student history!?
Meanwhile, Sakano Keina had been doing a lot of sneezing all morning. She reached a hand to her forehead just to make sure the temperature was normal. Yup, it was. She sure hoped she wasn't getting sick, because she had been hyped for the mahjong club training camp, or more specifically the school tournament that would be held during it, for a whole week. Maybe it was just allergies…
"It's because of the prank you pulled last year. I'm sure every team's senior members are busy explaining to the first-years why our camp is at Hakone this year," Sakai Michiko tsukkomi'ed without Sakano even saying anything. She had been around Sakano for long enough to know what kind of character she was.
Sakai's misfortunes of being tied to Sakano started in the first year of middle school when the two were placed in the same class. Sakai was a quiet nerd while Sakano was the class weirdo, you know…the one who breakdanced to her own introduction and caused everybody to avoid her the entire semester. But Sakano latched onto Sakai and insisted that they walk home together, even though they didn't even live in the same direction so this really just meant the short walk from school to the station. And why was Sakano so interested in Sakai? Because they shared the first character of their surname! That was it! Gosh, what did Sakai do in her past life to be graced with such idiocy in her current one? And so, her unending torture at the hands of Sakano began…
Sakai thought she could be rid of Sakano if she entered Shiraitodai High School. It was quite a decent school in the West Tokyo area, and its fame upon winning the 69th Mahjong Interhighs only caused its already high admission averages to soar even higher. Now, Sakai was a very good student. She could get into pretty much any high school she so pleased. But Sakano was a lazy bum who couldn't ever be bothered to study for exams – too busy wrecking the eardrums of her poor neighbours with her electric guitar, Sakai supposed. Except after knowing Sakai applied for Shiraitodai, Sakano followed…and actually got in! Damn the unfairness of this universe! Why did geniuses have to exist, and why did Sakano have to be one of them!?
And so, Sakai was stuck standing outside Higashi-Fuchuu Station with Sakano on this fateful Friday morning, having their fellow schoolmates stare awkwardly at them because Sakano couldn't be assed to wear her uniform properly. Sakai should've done her research properly before applying for Shiraitodai – the school fit Sakano far more than she had expected, having a western leaning to its teaching methods, thus was far more relaxed about uniform rules compared to most other high schools in the nation. Look, the school idol Hirose-senpai might like to leave her belt hanging when wearing the summer uniform, and the famed monster of high school mahjong, Miyanaga-senpai, often forgot to tuck her winter uniform tie under her sweater, but wearing the dress shirt unbuttoned to reveal a MonHan T-shirt underneath was next-level delinquent, Sakano Keina! And seriously…of all T-shirts you had to pick MonHan! Are you trying to pick a fight with Miyanaga-senpai and her two sisters? Oh right, Awai's surname wasn't Miyanaga…nearly forgot.
When Chida Hanami arrived at the station with her middle school junior, now Shiraitodai first-year, Yamanouchi Rika, Sakai heaved a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, the normal people have arrived. On second thought, they weren't quite normal either. Chida and Yamanouchi lived on campus. The fact that they agreed to Sakano's stupidity and walked all the way down here to meet them at the station, only to go back the other way to school, was enough for Sakai to shake her head in disbelief. Then again, Sakai wasn't one to speak when it came to indulging Sakano. It was too much work arguing with a lunatic; might as well just go along with her whims.
"Who are we still missing?" Sakano asked, or shouted, more like. Sakai rolled her eyes.
"Obviously Honda. We only have five people on the team," Sakai retorted.
"Umm…Kaede-chan got up late this morning, so she is still having breakfast in the cafeteria. She said that she'll meet us on the bus," Yamanouchi responded.
"As expected of Honda-sama. An idol must be full of character, and fashionably late. Very good!" Sakano declared.
"Very good that there is finally someone who'd say no to your idiocy. And stop calling her Honda-sama. It's embarrassing."
"I am not embarrassed by my admiration for Honda-sama's glory!"
"Nobody cares about your embarrassment or the lack thereof, Sakano Keina. We're talking about Honda's embarrassment over having a senpai like you!"
Chida giggled at Sakano and Sakai's exchange. Please, this isn't cute! – Sakai wanted to rebuke.
As they finally began their walk back to Shiraitodai, Chida spoke again, "So, Keina-chan, why did you ask us to gather at the station today? Is there something you wanted to talk about before we board the bus for Hakone?"
"Kekeke…I wanted to reveal to you the name I put down on our team application before the President announces it at the training camp!"
"You made Chida and Yamanouchi walk all the way down here for that? Just how self-centered do you have to be?" Sakai snapped, but relented a second after. "Whatever, this might be a good thing. I think we'd all appreciate a heads-up before Hirose-senpai announces that we'd be competing as Team Sushi-is-Delicious-but-Mayo-Chicken-Sandwiches-are-Better."
"No, no, what you said is factually true but it's too long a hashtag," Sakano answered.
"Our team name isn't a bird app hashtag, Sakano Keina!" Sakai yelled, vein bulging from her forehead.
"So what is our team name? Don't keep us in suspense, Keina-chan," Chida asked.
"Dun Dun Dun…"
"Stop with the sound effects. It's annoying!"
"Our team name is…KUROGANE!"
Sakai smashed Sakano's back with a heavy palm strike. "The hell? You read too much manga or something!?"
"What manga? I named us after the world's first mass-produced four-wheel drive…"
"AND WHAT DOES A CAR HAVE TO DO WITH MAHJONG!?"
Sakai was tired.
"Well, well…Miyanaga-senpai's team is called Torahime after all, and the name seems to be well-received on the national level," Chida defended Sakano.
"That's because she has every right to be chuunibyou. She has a magic mirror and takes her winning tiles from the wall with a tornado in her right arm. An electric tornado, may I add. There was an article on Weekly Mahjong Today where they interviewed a physicist about it, and he said Miyanaga-senpai's arm had to have been rotating at a speed of at least mach 146." Sakano shook her head. "Anyway, what's done is done. Stupid name aside, what is our team's strategy in the school tournament? Miyanaga-senpai might be unbeatable, but do we stand a chance against the rest of her team? Or at the very least, do we stand a chance at second-place?"
"There are 26 teams competing this year. The tournament will have two seeded teams based on cumulative individual rankings, and the remaining 24 teams will participate in a 4-advance-1 first round. The two seeded teams will enter in the second round, which will be in a 4-advance-2 format. The finals will be on the last day of training camp; as with last year, the media will be invited to cover that match," Sakano explained. She did have good points to share when she got serious. Why else would Sakai agree to join her team?
"The scary thing is that Team Torahime won't be seeded this year. The younger Miyanaga wasn't around for the last ranking test, so that automatically throws Torahime into the wild card pile," Sakai added.
"Let's hope we don't get drawn into the same bracket as Team Torahime in the early rounds. I've played the younger Miyanaga-san twice, and she is very close to Miyanaga-senpai's level," Chida said. "Keina-chan, did you get any info on the two seeded team?"
"The Fuyuki Sisters' team is seeded, as expected. But you heard? They're only second seed!"
Now that, Sakai did not predict. While Team Ja-no-Me (what was with their mahjong club and chuuni team names? Team Snake-eye? Really?) did have Naitou Akane as a handicap, they recruited her specifically against the elder Miyanaga. Naitou's ability of playing into the smallest hand on the table was a sad one in Sakai's opinion, but it might as well be the natural enemy of the elder Miyanaga's staircase. Team Ja-no-Me was definitely gunning for the school championship – the remaining members were all within their club's top thirty, with Fuyuki Rin and Akashi Koto both in the top ten and were part of the temporary Team Torahime during the Spring Tournament. If they were only second seed, then…
"The Ghost #3 really formed a team?" Sakai asked.
"Bingo! Or more accurately, she joined Fujiwara-senpai's team. Their name is 'Akatsuru', as in a red crane, and their theme is 'adaptation'."
"Wait, Fujiwara-senpai? Number One ridiculous Hirose-senpai fangirl? Even if the entire Shiraitodai is Hirose-sama's fanclub, she's undoubtedly the most insane. Why the hell would she form a team to challenge Torahime? Am I hallucinating?"
Sakano shrugged. "The concubine is trying to catch the Emperor's attention perhaps?"
"Oh please, our high school isn't an Imperial Harem! And since when is that horn-bearing monster Hirose-sama's queen?"
"Queen of high school mahjong then?"
"Shut up, Sakano Keina!"
"But Kobayashi-senpai forming a team with Fujiwara-senpai, huh? This would be tough…" Chida said.
"I've never played Kobayashi-senpai before. Is she really so difficult an opponent? She's at least less of a concern than Oohoshi-san and Miyanaga-senpai, right?" Yamanouchi asked.
"Miyanaga-senpai's unlimited renchan makes you want to cry, and Oohoshi forcing your hand to start at 5, 6-shanten is depressing, but if I had to pick, I'd rather play them than Kobayashi-senpai. I've only played her a few times, but she's really bad news. At least Miyanaga-senpai and Oohoshi would beat you head-on. Kobayashi-senpai makes you feel like it's your own fault for being beaten. Her playstyle is highly psychological, luring you into making mistakes. Her path to victory is paved from your regrets. It's scary as hell!" Sakai explained. "And if Kobayashi-senpai were to join a team, she'd definitely be grouped with Kamizuki-senpai and that gangster Takeda. Kamizuki-senpai is another psychological player, but if you don't depend on your supernatural abilities, then she's playable. Takeda is nasty though. She's full of firepower – getting hit by one of her hands would really set you back. Given that Fujiwara-senpai is the team leader, I'd guess Asakura is on the team too. Dear lord, I feel sorry for her. I wouldn't want to practice with those freaks!"
What Asakura needed was not Sakai's sympathy, but for anybody to take her away from her present position!
Just when she thought she could bid farewell to their club's monster ace upon boarding their assigned bus for Hakone, she was stuck with yet another monster…or rather, the devil.
Why is Kobayashi-senpai sitting next to me? I thought she'd sit next to Kamizuki-senpai…are the gods out to punish me today?
Unlike the other teams, Akatsuru was scraped together at the last moment; their members weren't particularly close, so while the others were waiting outside for their teammates before boarding, Team Akatsuru took their seats early. To be fair, being stuck with Kobayashi wasn't the worst that could've happened to Asakura. If she got stuck with their team's delinquent lieutenant, Takeda Fuu, then she'd really cry!
She had thought she'd be sitting next to her student council president, Fujiwara Ayaka. Alas, Fujiwara had taken a seat next to Kamizuki – the two had encountered each other by chance while exiting the dorms and became engaged in a conversation about the student council, seeing as Kamizuki was the representative for class 3B. For all the mocking comments about Fujiwara being a rabid Hirose-sama fangirl, she was actually a very responsible student council president, working diligently to keep the school of over two thousand pupils and a hundred extracurricular clubs running smoothly. Asakura wished more people could see this side of Fujiwara, though to be fair, Fujiwara's Hirose-sama bootlicking could be…err…a bit much.
Perhaps out of politeness, Kobayashi offered to sit next to Asakura instead. In reality, Asakura would rather have sat next to Saki, but the latter seemed to be "fighting" with Awai over who got to sit next to Miyanaga Teru at the moment – when Asakura said "fighting", she meant Awai being extraordinarily insistent, as usual, and Hirose Sumire arguing with her on behalf of Saki's imouto rights, of course. Sure, Miyanaga Saki was dominant on the mahjong table, but off it, she was timid as a little mouse – certainly no opponent to Awai's hundred years elementary school level brattiness.
Most first-years had little knowledge of Kobayashi, but Asakura hung around a lot of older students due to her involvement in the student council, so she knew a thing or two about Kobayashi's history. One thing that was frightening enough was that she was the one who pulled Miyanaga Teru into the mahjong club two years ago, baited her with books was how the rumours went. Asakura could see some merits to that assertion, as Kobayashi was currently reading a novel from the small stack she had on her lap. Who would bring a bunch of books to a field trip…umm…training camp? Right, Kobayashi and the two Miyanaga sisters.
Another thing Asakura knew was that Kobayashi's mahjong playstyle was horrific. She had only played the latter once during the ranking test this year, and it traumatized her beyond the likes of being busted out fifteen times in a row by Miyanaga Teru. Sure, she had won a hand here and there, but it had felt like a fluke rather than a solid win. At least the rare times where she managed to collaborate with the others to break Miyanaga Teru's staircase, they were all left with a sense of immense relief and accomplishment. But while playing Kobayashi, whenever she made a conscious move to advance her hand, Kobayashi would win in the next few turns. The scenes of her own failures were still fresh in Asakura's mind, making her shudder. It was said that your playstyle on the mahjong table was reflective of the kind of person you were – in which case, was Kobayashi a sadist who took delight in trampling others' dignity?
"Kiri-chan?" Kobayashi's voice brought Asakura back to the present. She froze, having realized that she had been staring at Kobayashi the whole time. Kobayashi didn't seem to care though. She fished out some candy from her pocket. "Want some?"
"I'm taking your cherry," a hoarse voice sounded above Kobayashi. It's…It's Takeda! – Asakura screamed in her mind, edging back against the bus window. Takeda reached for the cherry-flavoured candy on Kobayashi's palm. In response to Takeda's vulgar statement, Kobayashi just narrowed her gaze.
"I offered Kiri-chan candy, not you."
"Don't be stingy, Boss."
Takeda stuck out like a sore thumb at their school. Her hair was jet black, short, slicked back with hair gel, and her eyes were a red so bloody that they were chilling to look at. She seemed to enjoy people's discomfort though, intentionally wearing her uniform shirt with its top two buttons loose so you could vaguely see a white, knotted scar on her left shoulder. Everybody said that her family was affiliated with the Yakuza. So why was she still at their school? Surely, she'd be a stain on Shiraitodai's reputation, right? Well, for one, Takeda was fabulously rich – her parents donated a science lab. For two, despite her appearances and crude demeanor, Takeda's grades were apparently excellent, and she had never caused any trouble. She treated all her schoolmates as nearly invisible anyway, except for Kobayashi, for whatever reason.
"Takeda, sit down. The other students are trying to board, and you are getting in their way," Kamizuki sounded in the row behind Asakura and Kobayashi. Her conversation with Fujiwara looked to be over, and she was not the least bit pleased that Takeda was bothering her best friend. Takeda gave an annoyed "tch…", but did as her senpai told, taking a seat across the aisle.
Kamizuki poked her head out from behind Kobayashi's seat and continued speaking, "I was just talking with Fujiwara-san about the school tournament. Seems like Torahime is unseeded this year because of their new captain, so we're the first seed and won't compete until Sunday. So, what are our plans? You got any tactics figured out, Shizuku?"
"Not really," Kobayashi had gone back to reading. Her response garnered a humoured snort from Takeda. As though to rebuke Takeda though, Kobayashi did elaborate, "I think we will have to wait until the tournament bracket is drawn before we can finalize the tactics. Either way, there is only one team who would stand between us and the championship; question is, who can we cooperate with to take them down?"
"Arrogant aren't you, Kobayashi-san?" Fujiwara retorted. Kobayashi didn't pay her taunt much heed, only flipping the page on her book.
"I am merely stating the fact. If we're on the same side of the bracket as Torahime, I'm sure Hirose-san would try to target us should we survive Miyanaga-san's onslaught in the vanguard match. Similarly, if Team Ja-no-me were placed on the same side of the bracket as Torahime, Hirose-san would prioritize dropping them during the semis. The reason is simple – in Torahime's perspective, it would be most troublesome to face us and Ja-no-me at the same time, which could only happen in the finals since we're both seeded teams, and thus would be placed on opposite sides of the tournament bracket. In converse, it would be most tactically advantageous for us to cooperate with Ja-no-me against Torahime, so we must ensure that both our teams make it to the finals."
"So you're saying Hirose is gonna play sneaky with her sharpshooter skill, but you're gonna out-sneak her? Ha! I like that!" Takeda answered.
"So far, you've just said the obvious. What are the concrete plans then? We have the rest of today and Saturday for training. How are you planning on proceeding?" Fujiwara asked.
"I did say that we will have to wait till the brackets are drawn before we can finalize our tactics, right? But if you insist on hearing my analysis, I can continue rambling a bit." Kobayashi answered, voice pleasant, though clearly ridiculing Fujiwara. "Though your playstyle leaves much to be desired, Fujiwara-san, I'm not particularly worried that you will put us in the worst position after the vanguard match, should we be the ones to face Torahime in the semis. Hirose-san will still try to make a move in the sergeant match, so Kiri-chan, you will be crucial for our defence. While I do not have the monstrous luck required to accurately mimic Miyanaga Teru-san's playstyle, I have some confidence in mimicking Hirose-san's. I will use that skill to train Kiri-chan. But we must not only think about ourselves – Team Ja-no-me has a higher likelihood of being dropped out by Torahime if they're drawn into the same bracket. We can't have that, since Naitou Akane-chan's ability will be necessary for keeping our loses from the vanguard match to a minimum. Therefore, I suggest a combined training session with Ja-no-me, seeing as we both won't play until Sunday. Specifically, Akane-chan's sacrifice will cause Ja-no-me to drop to fourth place after fighting Miyanaga Teru-san. Luckily, Akashi Koto-san is a very solidly defensive player. She should be able to hold out against Hirose-san in the sergeant match. Problem comes from their lieutenant, the younger Fuyuki-san. With Matano Seiko-chan on the table, the lieutenant match will have a quick pace. I will try to use that pace to train the younger Fuyuki-san, in exchange for Akashi-san to help Kiri-chan strengthen her defence. I think such a deal would be agreeable to Team Ja-no-me."
"Isn't Ja-no-me co-lead by Fuyuki Rin? She's a total pushover, so I just know she'd agree to anything…" Takeda gave a lopsided smile, then turned her gaze towards the boarding students, one of whom happened to be the Ja-no-me ace she had just been talking about a moment earlier. She called out to her. "Hey, Fuyuki, come here for a minute!"
Fuyuki Rin was the kind of person who'd always pick the mahjong table on the farthest corner of the room because she didn't want people to notice her presence, so one could imagine her shock at being singled out by the school famous delinquent. She might've given a slight yelp and backed behind her friend and fellow Ja-no-me co-leader, Akashi Koto, completely forgetting that she was Takeda's senpai, and Takeda really had no right to order her around. Akashi glared at Takeda in Fuyuki's defense.
"What do you want?"
Kamizuki gave a long sigh. At this rate, not only would they be unable to strike a deal with Team Ja-no-me, Akashi and Takeda might even break out into a spat. And neither was Kobayashi reining in Takeda, nor was Fujiwara willing to step in to neutralize the situation, seeing as she had her own beefs with Akashi. Who else but Kamizuki would have to take care of this mess? She couldn't depend on the poor little first-year, Asakura Kiri, right?
"Akashi-san, Fuyuki-san, if you have some time, do you mind if we talk a bit? It is about the tournament," Kamizuki addressed the two directly, ignoring Takeda. Akashi cast a last suspicious glance at the delinquent second-year before turning back to Kamizuki.
"Well, I've been meaning to speak to you too, so might as well do it now," Akashi said. She led Fuyuki to their seats across the aisle from Fujiwara and Kamizuki. And thus, the responsible soon-to-be adults began their negotiations. Asakura wiped the nervous sweat off her brows. Thank goodness their bus wouldn't get transformed to the lowest hell before it even set off onto the road!
Wait…she shouldn't be happy just yet. Didn't Kobayashi say she'd train her by mimicking Hirose's playstyle?
So that'd be a sadist intentionally ron'ing off your tiles till you sob a river…
What have I done wrong in my past life, Kami-sama!?
"Awai, learn to get along with Saki. We're on the same team now."
The coach told her to get along with Teru's little sister, now Sumire was also telling her the same – what was with the whole world siding with that little horned monster over the brilliant "stargazer" Awai-chan? Awai pouted.
"I didn't do anything to her!"
And she was not lying. They kept implying that she hated Saki when she never had! She was just…annoyed. Since Saki's arrival at Shiraitodai, Teru had acted weird, and Teru's weirdness carried such an air of sadness that even Awai knew not to insist on answers from her most beloved senpai. If Miyanaga Saki weren't going to resolve those problems, then what was she doing here? The way Saki had played Haneda, Chida, and Sumire in the Torahime selection match…Awai could not accept it. She could not accept why Teru drafted Saki onto the team over that half-assed performance, especially when Saki's presence seemed to cause Teru such pain. Why couldn't Saki just go back to Nagano? Why did she have to steal Awai's place by Teru's side, only to do absolutely nothing but stand there in silence?
"If this is about Saki replacing you as captain, then get over it. You are no child anymore," Sumire continued, jabbing into Awai's sore spot.
"Sumire-senpai! Is that really what you think of me!?" Awai snapped. Her brows were furrowed, clearly holding back tears, and it made Sumire relent. She sighed.
"No. I apologize. I…I don't want to make excuses for what I just said. It was wrong. But I want you to know that Teru and I made the decision not because we think lightly of you. Do you understand?"
Saki could not get a word into this awkward conversation. It all started when Teru and she met up with the rest of their team at the school parking lot, ready to board their bus for Hakone. Awai quickly latched onto Teru and clearly intended to sit with her, but likely out of concern for their still fragile sibling relationship, Sumire suggested that Awai give up her spot to Saki instead. Awai did not take the suggestion well at all. While she didn't say anything outright about Saki, she clung adamantly onto Teru, refusing to let go even when the other mahjong club members stared their way at the commotion. Thanks to Seiko, Takami, and even Asakura, that attention was finally re-directed to other matters, leaving Awai and Sumire to argue in the corner.
"Awai, let's go take our seats. It is almost time to set off," Teru finally interfered. Though she had remained silent and her expression plain as usual throughout the entire encounter, Saki could tell that her sister was likely as awkward as she was. The pretense did not pass Awai's scrutiny either. Awai gave a rare glare to Teru.
"Do you think that I'm throwing a childish fit over this too, Teru? Is that why you're pampering me? Out of pity?"
Teru did not know how to answer. She was famed for having the ability to see through each person she faced, and this was not constrained to the mahjong table. But it was because she understood Awai's true intentions that she could not respond. How could she explain to Awai that none of this was Saki's fault, but Teru's own? That Awai's desire to protect her from Saki was unfounded, as Saki's presence was merely a fuse for reminding Teru of her own weakness, something that she'd have to face eventually anyway? That was right, Saki was not weak. Teru was. She could not live up to Awai's admiration.
Awai strode into the bus alone. Seiko gave Takami a knowing gaze before nodding in determination. "Hirose-senpai, Miyanaga-senpai, let me check on Oohoshi."
"Thank you, Matano. Please do that," Sumire said. She then turned to Saki, who looked lost for a course of action. "Saki. You don't mind me calling you by first name, do you?"
"No, not at all! It is probably more…convenient."
"Yes. Anyway, let's take our seats too. I want to get to know you and the other new members of our team better. Teru, I'll leave Shibuya to you."
"Un."
And so, they finally took their seats, and soon after, the bus rumbled down the road towards neighbouring Kanagawa Prefecture. Sitting next to Sumire, Saki didn't really know whether or how to start a conversation. Sumire saved her the trouble though.
"What just happened back there…I'm sorry. I wanted to help you and Teru, but I might've been too imprudent. For that, I apologize."
"It is not Sumire-senpai's fault. It…It is between Oneechan and me. There…were things that happened. In the past. So, it's…complicated."
"But I can tell you are starting to reach Teru. Don't worry, I am sure you two will mend your relationship soon."
Sumire gave a reassuring smile that calmed Saki's nerves. Saki held her fists together to gather her courage once more. "Right now, we just have to concentrate on winning, right?" she asked. Sumire's smile widened.
"That's right. Once we get settled at the resort in Hakone, lots will be drawn to determine the tournament brackets. The unseeded teams should be no problem for us. I doubt you would even make an appearance. But on Sunday, we would play either the first seed, Team Akatsuru, or second seed, Team Ja-no-me." Sumire handed a file to Saki. "Teru and I compiled this last week. There is basic information on the composition and themes of both teams, but what is most important for you to read are the play records of the captains of both teams."
Saki flipped to the pages Sumire talked about. Team Ja-no-me's captain was their ace, Fuyuki Rin. Ranked sixth in their club, she was one of Shiraitodai's best players, having played as Torahime's temporary vanguard during the Spring Tournament. Seeing that Saki was reading Fuyuki's records, Sumire added, "At our club, we play two kinds of matches: regular practise matches, where we pick our own opponents, and ranking matches, played in a tournament style. Placement in each match earns you points, with practise matches worth fewer points than ranking matches. The school ranking is determined by cumulative points earned. The reason why I'm explaining this to you is that I want you to be careful when interpreting the ranking system. Fuyuki Rin is a player whose ranking underestimates her true strength, as she does not play many practise matches, thus she forfeits a lot of points she could've won by playing weaker members. Her true strength is definitely above Matano's and my own. The only players at our school who can reliably defeat her are Teru, Kobayashi, and probably Awai and yourself. I know you are wary of Kamizuki after your first match with her, but do not let Kamizuki overshadow your caution for Fuyuki. Fuyuki is on the level of a prefectural ace. Even Senriyama High School's Onjouji Toki could not bring her down during the Spring Tournament."
Saki read through the pages, but unlike her old Buchou, Takei Hisa, she was not proficient at interpreting the hands based on records on paper. Rather than specific tiles, Saki was better at grasping the overall flow of the game when she was playing. Thus, it was difficult for her to understand where Fuyuki Rin's strength lay. She did find Fuyuki's discard choices to be…familiar.
"The way Fuyuki-senpai plays…reminds me of my friend," she muttered.
"Oh? Someone from Kiyosumi?"
Saki nodded. "Haramura Nodoka-san."
"Ah, last year's Intermiddle Champion. I can see what you are getting at. Fuyuki Rin would certainly be a very strong digital player. She does arrange her own hand based on sound principles of probability. But where she differs from Haramura is that Haramura's play skews the tile mountains towards answering her hands. I don't know if she realizes it herself, but from her play records, you can see that the supernatural abilities of her opponents become dulled, because the tiles answer Haramura's call, thus the table becomes more like an online game. But with Fuyuki, the tile mountains answer her in a different way. Take a look at her opponents' hands. Whenever someone other than Fuyuki wins, you can see they've committed to their hand structure early, and all the discards are tiles that truly have no use in that hand structure."
It was as Sumire said. The only way you could win against Fuyuki was to beat her in efficiency. Maybe that was the wrong word…Saki should say, "conviction".
Saki was left with mixed emotions, excitement to prove herself, and unease at the possibility that she might waver and fail. Noticing Saki's hesitation, Sumire gave her a little pat on the shoulder.
"Don't worry. We are a team. Teru and I have come up with a training menu to help you prepare for Fuyuki and Kamizuki. For now, analyze those records and try to imagine what a game with them would look like. I prepared a little snack for you while you do that – replenish the blood sugar, right?"
Sumire took out a beautiful box from her backpack. Saki recognized it immediately.
"The waffles from Tokyo Station!"
"This time you can share it with Teru, right?"
"Un!"
"Save the strawberry one for her," Sumire pointed at the waffle in the center. Saki grinned.
"Thank you, Sumire-senpai! Sumire-senpai really likes Oneechan, right?"
"Eh?"
It was the first time Saki had seen Sumire with such expression, a bit surprised, a bit embarrassed, pink rising up to her cheeks. She cleared her throat and forced down the pitch of her voice to sound more serious. "Well, err…we are classmates, so yeah."
Saki was happy and relieved that her sister had made such good friends at Shiraitodai. It ascertained that Saki had not made the wrong choice to come here.
Hakone was a town in western Kanagawa Prefecture, a bit over an hour bus ride from Tokyo. Built around Lake Ashi, a gorgeous crater lake with a magnificent view of Mount Fuji, the town was made famous for its numerous hot springs resorts since antiquity. Though it was the first time Saki had visited Hakone, she enjoyed the familiarity of the mountainous landscape – reminded her of the Akaishi Mountains that backed her hometown.
Like true ojousama, their accommodations were located right on the lake. Each team received its own living unit containing three western-styled double bedrooms opening up to a tatami-lined common area, already equipped with a mahjong table at the school's request. The tournament games would be played in a ballroom they had booked on the ground floor, and video footage would be available live on the television screens of each team's living unit. Of course, there was also no shortage of access to Hakone's famous hot springs. While each team had their own small private bath from their living unit, most students would probably pick the large open bath on the hotel's property. Apparently, their school was rich enough to reserve one of the two open baths all to themselves! The luxury was something Saki found hard to imagine when compared to the dilapidated state of Kiyosumi High School, especially its sorry little mahjong club.
"Alright, Kids. I'm going to issue your room keys now. You have half an hour to put down your luggage, puke if you're carsick, roll on your king-sized beds or whatever, then come back down to draw the lots for the school tournament. You have the rest of the day to practice, or if you're bloated with confidence like Team Torahime, you can spend the day binging on onsen manju instead…"
"We won't!" Sumire interrupted the coach indignantly. The coach only shrugged.
"…Anyway, tomorrow will be the official start of the tournament. Sleep well, play well, enjoy your youth – though don't you dare do anything stupid that would ruin our school's reputation. The press will be here on Monday. If you don't know how to carry yourself, look at our Champion for tips on how to deliver your best commercial smile…"
Teru had a feeling the coach was against her today. Oh well. She kept stuffing her mouth with the Tokyo Station waffles Saki had shared with her.
"If there are no more questions, I'll start handing out the keys…"
"I have a question!" one of the students jumped up with a raised hand. Yes, everybody could see your mess of black hair, Sakano Keina. No need to keep hopping.
The coach gave a soundless "ugh" expression. "And what's not clear to you, Sakano?"
"Where can we find onsen manju? I want to binge them like Team Torahime!"
"I said, we aren't binging onsen manju!" Sumire retorted.
"Actually, I'm curious."
"Not you too, Teru!?"
The coach rubbed her temples. So THIS was the nation's two-time Interhigh champion school? Really?
"Ask the Internet!" the coach ignored Sakano's protests and started reading off her list, "First up for your keys, Team Akatsuru…"
After getting their keys, Team Torahime went to their assigned unit. Sumire knew she'd be the one to divide up the bedrooms among the six of them, and it was already causing her a headache. Awai was still uncharacteristically silent, pouting with arms crossed. Sumire whispered to Seiko.
"Matano, has Awai been like this the entire time?"
Seiko gave an awkward smile. "Pretty much. I tried to crack some jokes to make her laugh, but she just glared at me. Sorry I couldn't do anything."
"Don't worry about it. You're new to the team and not really familiar with Awai. I think it's unreasonable to expect you to solve our problems. If anything, I'm quite regretful for dragging you and Shibuya into this mess."
"Oh, no no no, it's totally fine," Seiko waved off Sumire's worries. "I may not be very familiar with Oohoshi, but I think she is a good kid. I can tell she cares a lot about Miyanaga-senpai."
"She does. That's why we, especially Teru, don't really know how to deal with her. We know her intentions are good, but…"
"Since there are no hard feelings, I'm sure everything will turn out fine."
After Sumire unlocked the main entrance to their unit, Saki took a moment to admire the breathtaking view on the other side of the glass doors that led out to the balcony. Noticing that everybody had already entered, she hurried inside, a bit embarrassed by her own country bumpkin behaviour. Meanwhile, Takami was already resigned to her fate of having to share a room with her Miyanaga-senpai, seeing as Seiko was already gesturing Awai to follow her, probably in hopes of defusing the tension that had hung since this morning. To her surprise, Awai refused Seiko's offer.
"No way I'm rooming with Hedgehog-senpai."
"You called me…what? Hedgehog?" Seiko asked incredulously. Rather than angry, she seemed more amused.
"Awai, apologize to your Matano-senpai," Sumire immediately scolded.
"It's fine. Don't worry about it. I'm just curious, why hedgehog?"
"Your hair looks like a hedgehog, Matano-senpai," Awai answered plainly, clearly defiant of Sumire's orders.
"A-wa-i…"
"What? I already called Hedgehog-senpai Matano-senpai, Granny Sumire!"
"You…"
Awai left Sumire fuming. She reached over, grabbed Saki by the wrist, and pulled her into the bedroom closest to them. "Miyanaga Saki, you're coming with me!"
Saki did not expect to be yanked by Awai into the room. The others were stunned by this turn of events. Seiko was the first to snap out of it. "Shall we then, Takami?"
Takami nodded in affirmation and the two picked the next room, leaving the last for Sumire and Teru. Teru gave a tired sigh. Sumire interrupted her thoughts. "You're probably thinking that this is all because of your own conflicts, right?"
"Awai can be childish, but her antagonism of Saki is definitely because of me."
"Well, yes, but I think that's not the only reason. Didn't you say that Awai doesn't quite understand what true strength is?"
"You mean, my decision to put her in vice captain position?"
"Be it on the mahjong table, or off it, Awai's understanding of strength is straightforward – to defeat all opponents by as big a margin as possible. Of course she cannot understand Saki's more rounded approach, built on compromise and cooperation. Even without you, Awai would still come into conflict with Saki over these clashing views. I don't think it's a bad thing for Awai to confront this sooner rather than later. Awai needs to learn that there is more than one way to live with pride, and Saki needs to build a conviction to defend her viewpoint. I don't think it's a bad thing for them to argue a bit now. In fact, I quite look forward to the outcome."
This was like a replay of Teru's childhood, her own headstrong attitude contrasted to Saki's gentleness and sensitivity. As much as Saki admired her older sister, Teru also took pride of her younger sister. They had what each other did not have. Yet, ultimately, their differences still led them down separate paths, leaving Teru to wonder if she could really accept Saki for whom she was, and whether Saki had ever truly accepted Teru either. Perhaps this was why, though Teru wished Sumire's predictions would come true, she could not be equally optimistic.
As though seeing through Teru's mind, Sumire added, "You worry too much. For all of Awai's flaws, she isn't a narrowminded, unforgiving person. She'll get along with Saki eventually. Just give them time."
"I suppose I will need to fight harder for a larger lead in the vanguard matches to make up for any losses their imperfect conditions may incur."
"Says the one who is most concerning. Go on and nap a bit in our room – I'll wake you up before we need to go down to draw the lots."
"I do not acknowledge you!"
"I will definitely settle things with you, Miyanaga Saki! I swear by my sparkly name!"
Sparkly name? Saki would've giggled if not for how serious Awai sounded when she said those two sentences. Saki didn't believe herself to be someone so great that everybody must recognize her, but for some reason, she really wanted Awai to do so. They were teammates after all, and Awai was so close to Saki's sister. To be recognized by someone her sister recognized – that was probably why Saki was motivated to answer Awai's challenge. While they stood waiting for their team leader, Teru, to draw Torahime's lot, Saki silently reaffirmed her own decision: she will show Awai-chan that her path was not a mistake!
Teru held up the number she had drawn. Sixteen. That would place them in Group B.
"B-side's seeded team is Ja-no-me. You made a great draw, Teru," Sumire said when Teru returned.
"And if all goes as planned, our match on Sunday will also feature Team Airport-Not-Narita."
Sumire rested her forehead on her palm. "My gosh, did you really have to say Haneda's team name?"
"I am surprised she formed a team of her own in the end. I was not aware that she is acquainted with Itou, Saionji, and…"
"Fifty-third ranked Hayashi Kana, and sixty-fifth ranked Shinomiya Haru; the two you know as Wayfinder and Fountain. They are all second-years, for one, and for two, they got to know each other from our recruitment event. Formed the team to have fun. I'm serious. That is their theme."
"While Wayfinder and Fountain are weak…"
"I just said their actual names. You forgot them already?"
"…I think Haneda, Itou, and Saionji have enough strength to pose a threat to Ja-no-me. I want to give them a hand in advancing to the finals."
"You mean use their collective hands to eliminate Ja-no-me, right? I get shivers when you say something evil so self-righteously."
"I am sure Team Ja-no-me is scheming with Team Akatsuru against us too, so I am merely respecting their fighting spirit by treating this as seriously as possible."
"To be fair, this is a school tournament, and not the prefectural or national tournaments. Inter-team interactions before and during the school tournament are encouraged rather than banned. Especially since we are the champion school, we can expect to be targeted during the Interhighs. Having a preview of that is probably good for our training."
As the coach had previously stated, they were dismissed after the lots were drawn. Returning to their living unit, Sumire called everybody to order.
"Alright, now that the lots are drawn, let's finalize our training plan. Everybody has gotten the personalized data package Teru and I have distributed?"
Saki took out the file Sumire had given her on the bus. Apparently, the others had also received their own special files. Awai had hers set on the tatami in front of where she was sitting, but she did not flip open the pages.
"Tomorrow's match with be with unseeded teams. I will try to eliminate them during the vanguard match; even if I cannot, Sumire will finish the job in the sergeant match. Instead of concentrating on tomorrow, I want you to prepare for Sunday and Monday's matches," Teru stated. She flipped through her own booklet and showed the others one of the pages. "This is an overview of Team Ja-no-me. Their theme is defense. Their vanguard is Naitou Akane, first-year, speciality is playing into the lowest hand on the table. Sergeant is Akashi Koto, third-year, an experienced player with a good sense of winning tiles, thus she would not only avoid playing into hands, but also has the capability of switching the draw order to prevent her opponents' tsumo wins. Lieutenant is Fuyuki Harusa, first-year. I have not played her directly, so this is from my observations of her games with others; she has a suppressive ability against her shimocha, and an offensive ability that gives her effective tiles under specific conditions. She doesn't use her offensive ability often. Vice captain is Suzuki Haruka, first-year, specialty is structuring her hand to receive others' discards, with a propensity towards terminals and honours-based hands. Captain is Fuyuki Rin, third-year and the ace of their team. She can freeze opponents' hands to a single possibility, and also has an offensive ability to tsumo using tiles that have already appeared in the river, though like her younger sister, she does not use the offensive ability often."
"That is a lot of information to digest. Do you have a summary of the training plan?" Sumire asked.
"I will rethink my strategy against Naitou. For you, Sumire, it will be tough to snipe Akashi."
"Should I at least try?"
"No. Focus on suppressing Akashi's wins. The best situation would be that you and the other two teams ron off each other and keep the absolute points exchange to a minimum."
Awai did not seem to approve of the strategy, if her offended expression was anything to base off of. Sumire ignored her though, only nodding her understanding.
"What is crucial to knocking out Team Ja-no-me in the semis would be the lieutenant match," Teru continued. "Matano, you will train with Awai to see if you can use calls to advance your hand with her Absolute Safety Zone active. This should mimic Fuyuki Harusa's suppressive ability, should you sit as her shimocha. This would help Awai train against Suzuki Haruka as well, seeing as Suzuki is also a player with a high call rate. Saki, you will be playing mahjong online. That should help you prioritize efficiency, which is the only way of defeating Fuyuki Rin."
"Sounds good. Shibuya and I will join Awai and Matano's table. You can keep track of our progress, Teru."
With that, they started their training for the day. Tiles clattered on one end of the room, on the other, Saki clumsily selected her first discard from the computer screen. No matter how many times Takami had played Awai, she'd still feel a jolt of fear travel down her spine when the Absolute Safety Zone came active. As expected, her starting hand was miserable, and by the looks of it, everybody else was in the same sorry state as she was. Five turns in, Awai tossed her thousand-points stick. "Riichi!"
Not when I am dealer – Sumire thought. She might've tried to take on a supportive role during Saki's game in the recruitment event, but she was in actuality quite bad at it, seeing as she was an offense-oriented player. She considered what tiles Matano, her toimen player, might need. Matano could only make pon off her, not chii. It was too early for Sumire to get a good sense of what hand Matano might make though. She held back the wind and dragon tiles for now, wanting to give Matano some more time to draw them in. Instead, she played a terminal 9-sou, thinking that it would be a better choice to pon off instead of a middle tile, since pon'ing middle tiles would make future sequential melds more difficult.
Matano was struggling between structuring her hand as a tanyao or a toitoi. She decided to give up the tanyao and took Sumire's 9-sou. "Pon!" she called, hoping this would quicken her hand, or at the very least, interrupt Awai's ippatsu. Still, Awai tsumo'ed three turns later.
"Riichi, menzen-tsumo, ura-dora north triplet, 5-han 40-fu mangan, 2000/4000."
Seiko gave a nervous chuckle. "Guess even our collaborative efforts can't stop Oohoshi, huh?"
"Of course! Thinking you can feed each other to overcome my flow control is futile. Give it up, Sumire-senpai!" Awai declared.
Sumire smirked. "If I let one or two hands dictate my tactics, I wouldn't be sitting here as your mahjong club president. Matano, don't give up so easily. We stopped Awai from drawing the hatsu and took out 2-han from the value of her hand, ippatsu and yakuhai. A little more and we can stop her from winning altogether."
"Yes, Hirose-senpai!"
On the computer screen, Saki made an open kan, only to draw in an ineffective tile. She remained in tenpai, but without valid yaku. Tossing the rinshanpai led to her kamicha declaring a win.
"…This is hard," she muttered. Teru happened to be watching her.
"Did you feel that the rinshanpai would be your winning tile?" she asked Saki.
"No. I…can't feel anything. It's scary."
"Then do not play based on intuition. There is no reason why you'd make a daiminkan here. It would break your menzen status. The most efficient path would be declaring riichi for yaku – your pair wait here is on a suji of your previous discard. When you declare riichi, the other players not yet at tenpai might bail, and more likely to play your winning tile due to the suji trap. Understand?"
"Un!"
The day wore on till the sun disappeared behind the mountains, lighting the skies red. Aside the half-hour break they spent eating a small lunch delivered to their living unit, they had been playing mahjong, racking up sixteen hanchan's by dusk. When they were finally done, Sumire collapsed back onto her chair, dangling an arm over its back.
"This was a long day…" she said.
At least by the thirteenth hanchan, Sumire, Takami, and Seiko finally worked out the technique for suppressing Awai's wins and kept the points difference for each player within the hanchan to under ten thousand points. In the last hanchan they played, Awai got so frustrated that she wanted to use her double riichi ability, only to be stopped by Teru.
"But why? I would beat Sumire-senpai, and Takami-senpai, and Matano-senpai, and that Suzuki all at once with my double riichi!"
Sumire rolled her eyes. "You can't beat all four of us at once. There isn't 5-people mahjong."
"That aside, you may not be able to win around the final corner with Shibuya, Matano, and Suzuki on the table at once. Shibuya's Harvest Time during all-last would negate your Absolute Safety Zone. Declaring double riichi would be extraordinarily dangerous, as you could deal into her yakuman hand. Matano and Suzuki's high call rates could interrupt the flow enough that the game might never reach the final corner. So, other than this being a practise session to train your basic skills outside of your supernatural ability, using your ability in such circumstances may not be wise anyway," Teru explained.
"Uuu…" Awai pouted, unwilling to accept Teru's advice without at least trying to do things her way first. They left her be, turning towards Saki.
"Are you almost done, Saki-chan?" Takami asked. They peered over Saki's shoulder at her digital game. Poor girl was in third place coming into South 4, starting with an iishanten hand that had a dora triplet, but no yaku. She came into tenpai by the seventh turn, but her one-sided wait was a 6-wan that had yet to appear on the table.
"I…I don't know if I should declare riichi here…" she uttered.
"It is early enough that if she riichi's, the others might bail, right? East looks like they're not yet at tenpai. If fewer than two players tenpai, and second place isn't one of them, Saki would take second place by the ryuukyoku points exchange," Seiko deduced.
"But would second place really bail? They already have a yakuhai triplet pon'ed. Should be easy to go for a quick hand," Sumire interrupted.
Saki chose to damaten for now but was unable to switch her wait to something better. She did end up drawing in the fourth of the dora she already held in her hand.
"Make a closed kan, then declare riichi," Teru advised.
"Eh? But…But last time I didn't win on the rinshanpai…" Saki said.
"Not for the rinshanpai. It is for threatening your opponents. Judging by the discards and calls, I doubt anybody else is at tenpai yet. If you show a hand that is at least 5-han, they will bail."
True to her word, while Saki did not win off the rinshanpai, her riichi declaration sent her opponents discarding safe tiles. Saki never managed to tsumo on the 6-wan, but the game did end in ryuukyoku with Saki the only one at tenpai, earning three thousand points from the others' penalty.
"She really did climb up to second place with the ryuukyoku points exchange! Too bad she didn't tsumo though. It was a poor wait, but I would've loved to see her take first with at least a mangan," Seiko commented.
"Mahjong is a game of luck, but when playing digitally, it is important to evaluate the probability of victory, as everybody else would also be basing their decisions by such principles," Teru said.
"Didn't you say Haramura Nodoka is your friend? It is Saturday tomorrow – maybe you want to contact her for some tips on online mahjong, and play some games with her for practice? All of us use supernatural abilities, so while we can give you advice based on experience, Haramura might be even better at this style of play," Sumire suggested.
"I…I will try!"
"Good, then let's call it a day, have dinner, then hit the baths. My back is sore from sitting all day," Sumire said.
They all nodded in agreement, except Awai who wasn't paying attention to what was said. Kids these days – Sumire thought. Awai was like a moody middle schooler going through puberty. Sometimes you had to leave her be so she had the time and space to process her whiny fweeeelings.
And really, it didn't take too long for her to recover, at least partially. Their dinner was that good! The hotel served a multi-course meal of fusion cuisine, such as the appetizer salad served with delicately flavoured deep-fried Hakone tofu and wakasagi, dressed with sweet soy sauce, and the main course of honey rosemary salmon baked with local mountain yam. Teru was taking her sweet time savouring each dish, while Saki looked so impressed that her eyes might start watering. The coach was ravenous, scarfing everything down at a mind-numbingly quick pace and then went hunting for seconds. Sumire surveyed the meal scene curiously. While she was used to good food as someone born into the ultra-rich, she did find the food here extra good because of the good company she was with. After their feast, they set down their belongings at their rooms, took a short rest, and then went downstairs for the baths.
They washed themselves thoroughly before hitting the spring – the water had a classic rotten egg smell, milky with sulfur. That first step into the water was always a shock, the heat searing through your skin. But soon enough, they all sank themselves shoulder-deep into the bath, relishing in the silken texture and gentle warmth. It was said that the spring was good for your blood vessels, whatever that meant. They were probably too young to worry about their blood vessels anyway. But Sumire sure appreciated the relaxation of her stiff back. She leaned back against the rock wall of the bath, closing her eyes in content.
Just when Saki was about to do the same, she straightened up, alarmed by something in the distance. Footsteps pattered closer, and the door separating the showers from the bath opened to reveal five more people about to enter. "Oh, it's Team Torahime," the one at the head of the group called. Sumire got up to greet her.
"Akashi-san, it has been a while since we chatted. How are things?"
"Not bad. We worked hard polishing our skills today. I'm sure you'll all demolish your opponents tomorrow to meet us on the table on Sunday, so we better be prepared."
Akashi…Saki vaguely recognized the name. Ah, she was the co-leader and sergeant of Team Ja-no-me! Then…
Saki's eyes were drawn to the person behind Akashi, skin pale, hair long and white, her eyes a steel grey, devoid of colours. She stepped into the spring, and though it was not scientifically possible for the water to be anything but hot, Saki felt as though the newcomer had just frozen the surface into a layer of ice. There were no doubts about it. The aura Saki just sensed could not be a mistake. This hauntingly beautiful person now staring at her with a wintry gaze…she must be the one Saki must defeat!
Fuyuki Rin.