Author's Note: Yay, back! Thanks to all my reviewers! Love you! Now here is the tenth chapter.

Disclaimer: Don't own PoT/TnO

Chapter Ten

Oishi watched as the ball landed with perfect precision in the service area. Gripping his racket tightly, he braced himself to return the serve. The ball hit Oishi's racket, bouncing off the strings and back over to Tezuka. 'Tezuka-san is very good.' Oishi thought. 'Somehow playing him seems…familiar.'

Tezuka smacked the ball back to Oishi, who was already on the move. 'He is playing differently from before.' Tezuka noted. 'The Oishi I knew would not hit with such power as this Oishi does. No! Focus! I cannot afford to lose focus or it may cost me the match.' Steeling himself, Tezuka watched as Oishi returned the ball to him again. Tezuka sliced his next hit which cause the ball to spin away from Oishi. Oishi had predicted he would hit to the corner of the singles line but the spin caused the ball to bounce back towards the net.

In order to return Tezuka's hit, Oishi slid to stop himself and then managed to propel himself towards the ball. Just a second too late before the ball bounced on his side of the court and then out of bounds.

"15 Love," Ryoma called.

Oishi just stood there, looking at the ball that lay on his side of the court. 'I just can't shake this feeling that…this match is…wrong.' Oishi thought. He looked back at Tezuka who was just staring at him. Oishi stared back; something inside him didn't allow him to turn away, not from Tezuka's intense gaze. It was Ryoma who broke the silence.

"Na, Buchou," he called.

Tezuka tore his eyes from Oishi to look at the freshman. "Hn," he answered in his usual short replies.

"Your serve," Ryoma called.

Tezuka nodded and bounced a second ball; preparing to serve again. Oishi once again readied himself to return the serve.

In the bleachers, Fuji was still holding a distraught Eiji. The redhead had been continuously crying, getting the tensai's shirt wet.

"Nya, why, Fujiko-chan?" Eiji asked, his voice hoarse from all the tear-shedding.

"Nani?" Fuji asked gently, trying not to upset the already emotionally unstable Eiji.

"Why did Oishi leave, nya?" Eiji asked, his blue eyes, tinged with red from the tears, staring at Fuji.

Fuji looked back to the two players on the court. "I don't know," he answered honestly. "There might be something that only Tezuka knows."

Eiji sat up, not minding the tears that still flowed down his face. "T-Tezuka knew something we didn't, nya?" he asked.

"Saa…"Fuji said, his smile faltering for a second. "He knew Oishi was not coming back…"

"Hoi! Fujiko-chan, we already knew that too, nya," Eiji said, his voice becoming no louder than a whisper, almost drowned out by the smacks of tennis rackets to a tennis ball.

"And he also knew that Oishi would not remember us."

Eiji visibly froze, tears gathering at the edges of his eyes once more. Fuji winced at Eiji's teary face and knew he should not have told him. However, telling Eiji the truth might have been the best thing Fuji could do for him. Lying and saying that Tezuka didn't know anything would inevitably come back to hurt Eiji more since Eiji cared very much for his doubles partner.

"O-Oishi…d-doesn't r-rememb- Fujiko-chan!" Eiji wailed launching himself back into Fuji's arms. "Nya, it's not fair! Why Oishi?" Eiji turned his head so his sobs were muffled once again by Fuji's shirt.

Fuji shook his head. 'Only Tezuka knows.' He looked back to the match; at the struggling captain who kept too many secrets.

Oishi was sweating profusely trying to keep up with the seemingly inhuman captain of Seigaku. 'Tezuka-san…he seems so relaxed.' Oishi thought as he struggled to hit the ball back. He knew he was losing his strength from the way his racket was sliding just a little in his sweaty palm. 'Perhaps I am over my head in this match.' Oishi thought as Tezuka hit a seemingly normal forehand. 'No, I must not let Hyotei down!' Oishi thought as he hit the ball towards one of the corners of the singles court. The ball flew towards the intended spot as Oishi's hit dictated but somehow, it curved back to where Tezuka was standing.

Oishi's eyes widened the slightest bit as Tezuka hit the ball past him. He was too stunned to try and counter that. 'How is it possible?' Oishi wondered. 'I was aiming at the corner…'

Atobe smiled just a little. 'Ahh Tezuka, you are using Tezuka Zone against your former teammate. Ore-sama's plan is set in motion.'

'What am I doing?' Tezuka asked himself. 'This is Oishi! The one I owe my life to…the one I…' Tezuka forced himself to stop that train of thought. That one word would bring back that fateful day again and Tezuka already relived it countless times. Every day in fact, since that happened. 'I forced him…He admitted his feelings and I…' Tezuka was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't see Oishi approach the net until Oishi was up in the air, smashing the ball down on his side of the court. The ball whizzed past Tezuka's immobile form, gaining a point for Oishi.

"40-15," Ryoma called out.

Tezuka snapped his head up at the score. Oishi had managed to steal a point from him. His competitive side flared at the thought of anyone stealing a point but his rational side cheered for Oishi. His two conflicting sides threatened to tear him apart as the desire to win and the desire to lose clashed with each other.

Tezuka saw the lob Oishi hit to him and instinctively he ran up to head it off and smashed the ball. Letting out all his frustration that had built up inside, Tezuka envisioned the ball as the object that stole Oishi from him. The ball was now the embodiment of everything Tezuka loathed that forced Oishi and him apart.

Hitting the ball as hard as he could, Tezuka watched the ball shoot straight towards Oishi, whose eyes widened at the speed the ball was traveling. Oishi held up his racket to keep the ball from hitting his body. His racket, already loose from his sweaty hands, shook with the force Tezuka had hit the ball. Trying to retain a firm grip, Oishi pushed against the ball, but in the end, the force behind the ball was too great.

Oishi was forced to take a step back but he didn't notice the first tennis ball lying in his path. His left foot stepped on it, causing him to lose his balance and he crashed to the ground, a resounding 'smack' echoed throughout the courts as Oishi's head came into contact with the hard surface. Silence filled the courts and everyone could only look at Oishi lying on the ground.

Tezuka just stood on his side of the court, all his muscles frozen. 'Not again'.' His mind screamed. 'Kami-sama! Not again.' His mind flashed back to when Oishi jumped in front of the car to save his life. That had been Tezuka's fault and now? He felt guilt grip at his heart again and Tezuka felt his heart tear in two as he just watched his oldest friend lay there on the court. His mind wasn't functioning properly and "Senpai!" he faintly heard someone calling. 'Who was it? Echizen?' Why wasn't he moving? Why didn't he run to Oishi's side? Why…

Ohtori was the first to move. "Oishi-fukubuchou!" he called out as he ran towards his vice captain. Oishi just lay on the ground, unmoving. "He's hurt." The other regulars came running and stood around them.

Fuji and Eiji ran down the bleachers as soon as they heard the 'smack.' Eiji watched in horror as he saw Oishi's head hit the surface of the tennis court. A soundless screamed forced his mouth agape and his blue eyes widened. He grabbed Fuji's hand and the both of them pushed through the other regulars to see Oishi there. "Nya!" Eiji cried. He forced himself to remain standing.

"Call an ambulance!" Momoshiro exclaimed his voice frantic. Kawamura had already fainted.

"Baka, panicking only worsen the situation," Kaidoh said.

"Oi, Mamushi, we have a crisis on our hands. You could be a little more supportive!" Momoshiro yelled.

"Shut up, the both of you!" Gakuto yelled.

Momoshiro and Kaidoh were about to retaliate when a commanding voice shouted. "Silence!"

Everyone immediately shut up. Atobe stood there, cellphone in hand. "An ambulance has been called," he said, regaining his composure quickly. All the Seigaku regulars looked at him. Since when did Atobe ever care for anyone but himself? Ryoma had already gotten down from the referee's chair and stood beside Atobe.

"Why?" he asked.

Atobe didn't even glance at him. Ryoma frowned at the fact that Atobe was ignoring him. "Monkey King," Ryoma called.

"Insolent…" Atobe began to say before he caught himself and forced the crude words from his mouth. "Ore-sama felt Ore-sama should keep things in control."

"Che," Ryoma said, tugging on his white cap. "You just beat Buchou to it." Then he walked away to rejoin his Seigaku teammates.

Author's Note: Err...yeah, I don't know why my chapters are getting crappier but they are. Curses! I'm going to try extra hard to make sure my chapters get better.

Read and Review! Arigatou!