Hello again people! Here I am with the eighth chapter. It again took a while to write it, but I have to update other stories from time to time… whatever.

Now, some talk with those who wrote a review.

Imperial-samaB, LabMember009Isaac, FateBurn, Toolazytologin, xghosthunter115, DarkBladerZX: Many thanks people, here's an update, sorry that it again took almost two months…

xxOblivionxxx: Tabane and Chifuyu could be hardly called "MILFs", but they're more mature, no arguing with that.

Crow of Hecate: It's still valid.

The Quotable Patella: Agree, maybe pragmatic isn't the right word exactly, but closest I could come with. Besides, as story progresses – some changes may happen…

Oslight: Of course she did, maybe we even learn about its contents one day…


Chapter VIII – 11 O'clock, at sea.

July 9th, about 10:30 AM.

"I can see the sea!" As the bus went through the tunnel, the girls in the class shouted out. It's the first day of the seaside school, and fortunately, today the weather's clear. The sea that's reflecting the sunlight off is rather stable, with the sea breeze gently swaying it.

Houki, Rin, Cecilia, Charlotte and Laura – all were traveling in the same bus, no doubts they all were driven by the same intent – to 'capture' a seat near Ichika. However, only thing that was awaiting all of them was disappointment, as now Ichika was sitting on 1st row seat, right beside his sister, who was this field trip supervisor. All girls were displaying a displeased look, but Ichika didn't even notice them, or rather, he noticed but ignored them, as he was staring into his holoscreen during the entire trip. Chifuyu was busy with her own work, she was constantly making notes in her notepad, probably she was making last corrections to her training plans for this trip.

"What's wrong with him?!" Rin hissed as she stood up from her seat and looked at Ichika, only to see that he's still don't care about anything around him. By the way it was hard to say what exactly she's doing here since her class should be in another bus…

"How can he be so indifferent about us?!" Cecilia, who was sitting beside Chinese girl, agreed, "I won't forgive him that insult!"

On the other side of the corridor, Charlotte just let out a dreary sigh. Not only she couldn't get a seat near Ichika, she was also irritated by a girl that was sitting beside her – Houki, who was acting all weird since today's morning. She was either unable to calm down or was fidgeting, and it didn't seem like that is somehow connected to Ichika…

In contrast to others, German student, Laura Bodewig, didn't seem displeased and/or angry. Rather, she seemed aloof somehow. She was looking into the window, at the same time wandering in her own thoughts… and, surprising girls that was sitting near her, she even smiled a few times, touching her neck.

The secret was in that silver chain around her neck. Of course she never wore any jewelry before, but now she was… Yesterday, right after his talk with sister, Ichika found Laura, while she was still talking with her second-in-command, Clarissa. Not willing to disturb her he just said his goodbye, as he was sure that she can find her way back to academy on her own, but before he left, he presented to her that silver chain. It was nothing special, gift he presented out of courtesy, nothing more. But for Laura it seemingly meant much more… And most likely, Clarissa added her own explanation…

"We're about to reach our destination. Everyone, sit down," The entire class immediately obeyed Chifuyu's order. This leadership ability is really outstanding. Just like homeroom teacher of class 1-1 said, the bus soon reached the hotel. The 1st years of I.S. Academy scoot off the four buses in a chaotic manner and started to line up.

"Then, this is the Kagetsu resort. From today onwards, we're going to be in their care for three days, so everyone is to be more respectful and not let the staff's work increase," Chifuyu instructed.

"""Thanks for taking care of us!""" After Chifuyu finished speaking, everyone said their greetings.

I.S. Academy seems to be taken care of by this resort every year, and the lady boss-san in the Japanese clothing bowed to just arrived people politely, "Alright, please move this way. The freshmen this year seem rather energetic. That's good."

She's probably about 30+ years old, and she gives off a hardworking woman vibe. Maybe it's because her profession makes her smile often, as she doesn't look like she became the lady boss of this place at all. She sure feels young.

"Oh my, is this the rumored...?" Meeting Ichika's eyes coincidentally, the resort administrator asked Chifuyu.

"Oh, yes, as there's a male student this year, it'll be hard for you to separate the baths. I'm really sorry," Orimura-sensei apologized. Did she forget again about Ichika's indifference about baths?

"No no no, that's not the case," Administrator smiled, no doubts she noticed right away that 'male student' and Chifuyu looks much alike, "He's a fine boy. Feels reliable."

Chifuyu took a breath, no doubts she was intending to say something caustic, but Ichika was expecting that so he quickly stepped forward, offering his right hand for a handshake, "Lieutenant-commander Ichika Orimura, pleased to meet you," Ichika introduced himself as stars on his shoulder straps glinted under the morning sun.

Administrator looked at Ichika's arm in confusion. "Oh, a thousand apologies!" Ichika postured deep regret as he quickly removed his arm and bowed to lady boss instead, "I've returned from the USA recently, and getting rid of these western habits appeared to be quite difficult…"

"Oh, no, no need for apologizes!" Administrator quickly replied, "It was just unexpected, hahaha, I'm not offended at all!" She assured, and there were barely noticeable playful notes in her laugh.

"IIcchhiikkaa…." Rin growled through teeth, again displaying those yandere eyes…

'She's twice as older than you, how can you… flirt with that woman?!' Cecilia thought resentfully.

But those two were only ones who seemed angered, other girls seemingly didn't notice anything. "My younger brother here's really intolerable. Sorry to bother you," Chifuyu apologized.

"Oh my, I have to say, Orimura-sensei, you're really strict with your younger brother," Administrator noted, still smiling.

"Because I'm normally cleaning up the mess for him," Elder sister added, looking at her younger brother with narrowed eyes.

Ichika stepped back to his place in line, beside his sister, and when administrator turned away to look at other students, he slightly leaned towards Chifuyu and whispered, "Say whatever you like, she's at my side now…" Elder sister didn't reply anything, only looked at her brother with that 'we're not done yet' sight.

"Then, please head towards your rooms," Administrator announced as she finished counting the students. "There's a changing room at the annex. All students who want to go to the beach, please head there to change. If you aren't clear on where it is, you are welcome to ask the staff members."

After the girls answered 'yes', they immediately walked to the resort. Anyway, everyone has to put their luggage down before doing anything else. On a side note, it's free and easy for the entire first day, so as for meals, everyone has to go to the resort's restaurant.

"A-Ahe-Ahem-Orimu~" That weird manner of calling someone, it must be that Nohohon-san… Looking behind Ichika, instead of looking straight at him, she's the same as normal, moving towards him at a snail's pace. That sleepy look of hers is most probably real. "Where's Orimura's room~? The room plan never indicated it. I want to play with you, so hurry up and tell me~"

As she said that, the girls around Ichika immediately pricked their ears, no need the emperor's eyes to see that. But what can they do even after knowing where his room is? They really think that Ichika is going to 'play' with them?

"Well, I don't know," Ichika replied plainly, 'But I hope it is as far away from you as possible,' He mentally added. Though, it is pretty obvious that he can't share the room with other girls, so his room should be located somewhere someplace else. The reason why it is 'seems' is because Yamada-sensei only put it like that. She didn't tell any specifics.

"Orimura. Here's your room. Follow me," Elder sister called for Ichika. She headed somewhere deeper inside the building, and since she didn't pick up her bag, Ichika took a hint. *Sigh* He sighed, picking up sister's luggage as well, so now he was carrying two big boston bags, one white and one black.

On a side note, this resort's rather spacious and wide. It's already amazing that this can take the entire batch of students this year. The interior decors successfully blend the interior decorations and the latest facilities. The optimized air temperature regulator's really nice thing. Even the corridor's rather cooling, making one feel comfortable.

"Over here," Chifuyu pointed at a door at another side of the corridor.

"Hmm? Really...?" Ichika asked with skepticism. Pasted on the door is the paper with the words 'Staff room'.

"The initial plan was to give you a single room, but if we do that, there will be girls who will ignore the lights out timing and try to stay in your room," Chifuyu explained the situation.

"Nonsense," Ichika snorted. "One snap of my fingers and they'll leave my room, marching in formation."

*Sigh*. "Doesn't matter," Elder sister sighed and continued, "Due to fact that this year we have more freshman than usual, there are simply not enough free rooms to give anyone a personal suit, so in the end, it's been decided that you'll be rooming with me."

"Well, that suits me just fine," Ichika commented. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Like that Ichika definitely do not need to bother himself about keeping his 'fangirls' at bay. "And with me here you won't have any troubles finding your clothes in the morning," He added, avoiding Chifuyu's attempt to hit him with her notepad.

"Let's make this clear first. This is official academy's event, so I'm still a teacher, don't forget that," Chifuyu reminded with narrowed eyes.

"As you say, Orimura-sensei," Ichika replied indifferently, looking for a place where he could drop his bag.

"Good to hear," Chifuyu nodded, taking her own bag from Ichika's hands.

It was a twin person's room, but the room itself is rather spacious. The wall is a shoji door, and the scenery from here is really good. The entire sea was right in front of Ichika. As the room's facing East, its residents can definitely see a beautiful sunrise. "It's not that bad…" Ichika said, examining the room he'll be staying in for the next three days. Besides that, the bathroom is isolated from the room, and even the sink has its own room. The luxurious bathtub is so big that this guy here can extend his legs out.

"The large bath can be used… ah, whatever," Since Ichika was quite indifferent towards baths, Chifuyu decided to not bother herself, explaining details about it. Nevertheless, even though there were only the two of them, Chifuyu was still fulfilling her duty. That's exactly how she works – always fulfilling her duties to the end, whatever they are.

"Alright, it's free and easy today. We'll just leave our luggage here. You can do whatever you want…" Chifuyu said, but as her eyes once again met with her brothers' eyes, she quickly added "…and no, you're not allowed to deploy your I.S. today! Stop tinkering with it for a bit and go breath some fresh air. Besides, since you're class representative, ensuring everyone's safety is your duties as much as mine, so go to the beach."

*Sigh* Ichika sighed. 'Ah, alright, maybe I really should take a day-off…' He thought. "What about you, Orimura-sensei?"

"I still need to contact and check with the other teachers. There's a lot of things to deal with. However, well, ahem…" Chifuyu cleared her throat "…nevertheless, I also intend to swim today. Besides, a certain younger brother specially bought a swimsuit for me."

"I see," Ichika nodded. In the end, that was exactly what she asked him to buy when he was in California, as, in the matter of fact, with his emperor's eye Ichika knew his sister's dimensions even better than Chifuyu herself, and he was reliable in terms of choosing clothes.

*Knock knock*. Their conversation got interrupted by the knocking on the door.

"Excuse me, Orimura-sensei. Can I bother you for a while?" That voice definitely belongs to Yamada-sensei.

"Sure, please enter," Orimura-sensei called for her.

On hearing Chifuyu's answer, Maya opened the door, and almost crashed into Ichika who stood in front of a mirror, near the door. "WAH! ORIMURA-SAN!" She exclaimed in shock as she noticed him at the last moment.

"You don't really have to be that shocked..." Ichika facepalmed. It seems that she came here to deal with teaching stuff, as Yamada-sensei seemed like she was looking through some documents as she entered, and then lifted her head up and saw him.

"So-Sorry! I forgot that Orimura-san's sleeping in Orimura-sensei's room!" Maya frantically apologized.

"Yamada-sensei, I thought that was your idea, right?" Orimura-sensei asked with narrowed eyes.

"Ye-Yes. That's right! Yes! I'm sorry!" Being on the receiving end of Chifuyu's sharp glare, Maya looked like she got bitten by a snake.

"Alright, Orimura, we're going to work. You can go wherever you want, so enjoy yourself," Chifuyu addressed her brother.

"Very well, I'll head to the beach soon, just give me a few moments," He replied as he came out to room's balcony and closed door behind himself, he just needed a few minutes to gather his thoughts.

"Don't take too long," Chifuyu reminded.


10 minutes later.

Completely pale, even a bit gray, Maya Yamada was sitting on sofa, barely holding the cap of tea with shaking hands. When Ichika left the room, Chifuyu took documents that Maya brought, and while she was examining them, she asked Maya to help her unpack her stuff, and this is when unexpected thing happened… So now, while Maya was rethinking her entire life, Orimura siblings were deafeningly yelling at each other.

"…this is M.T.D.I.T! I began to develop it as a possible replacement for quantum transfer technology which I.S. uses now, but this is the very early prototype, no way it could be used on living beings, let alone humans! You wanted Maya to turn into a chaotic set of ones and zeros?!"

"…you damn idiot! How many times I told you to not bring here anything dangerous?! Which part of that you didn't understand?!"

"…it is not dangerous if you don't touch it! Yesterday I bought two new bags – white for me and black for you – how could you mix them up?!"

"Shut up and get rid of that damn thing!" Elder sister ordered.

When Chifuyu asked for Maya's help she pointed at a wrong bag. Maya took out Ichika's prototype and accidentally switched it on. At the last moment, thanks to her inhuman reaction, Chifuyu managed to knock out that device from Maya's hands. It fell on chair and that chair just disappeared, turning into blue square particles. When Maya realized that, if Chifuyu wouldn't have interfered, she would've been the one disappearing… well, Chifuyu was fast enough to deliver her to toilet or poor sensei would vomited right on the floor.

Ichika picked up his hapless device and it disappeared into his quantum space. Chifuyu looked at Maya. No matter how much she was angry at her brother right now, she knew that she's as guilty as he is, so if she'll try to cheer up Yamada-sensei now it'll only make things worse.

"Orimura!" Chifuyu called for her student, "Today you're responsible for student's safety, get out there and make sure nothing happens, understood?" Seemingly she just couldn't let him go without punishment, but she couldn't be too hard on him either… it was her mistake, in the end.

"As you say," Ichika snorted. He still had a lot of things to say about that, but not in front of poor Maya, they can sort things out when they again will be brother and sister, not a student and a teacher.


July 9th, about 11 O'clock AM.

On his way to the changing room, Ichika met Houki. That was just coincident meeting, nothing more. The problem was the mysterious scene in front of her. Houki stood there, staring at it with very strained face expression.

There were bunny ears sticking out from the ground. On a side note, we're not talking about living bunny ears here, but 'bunny ears' that 'bunny girls' from a bar would wear. It's just that these bunny ears are white, not pink. And there's even a 'Please pull' piece of paper stuck on it.

"She went completely wrong in the upper storey?" Ichika wondered, looking at bunny ears with condescending expression in his eyes. "Interesting, does she…"

"I don't know, don't ask me. It has nothing to do with me," Houki immediately denied everything before Ichika could even finish his phrase. Ichika just facepalmed, Houki was still as dense as ever. Though, here's no doubts about this ears' meaning…

Her talents are limitless, the genius amongst geniuses, the woman who self-proclaimed to have 35 hours a day, the developer of I.S., and Houki's older sister. It's definitely Shinonono Tabane, alright.

"Okay... will you going to follow instruction? Or you want me to do it?" Ichika asked.

"Do whatever you want. It doesn't involve me," After saying that, Houki immediately left. Well, Ichika was well aware that her relationships with Tabane are somewhat hard to repair, and both sisters are equally guilty.

Ichika was left alone in front of those 'ears'. Being assigned as a life-guard for today, Ichika had to go to the beach, who knows what those girls can do… But if he leave *this* as it is, it may pose even more immediate danger. Ichika could read almost everyone like an open book… but this one was completely unpredictable.

*Sigh* He sighed, leaned down and pulled bunny ears from the ground.

"What are you doing?" High girl's voice asked.

"Oh, Cecilia. It's nothing, can't you see? I was just pulling these bunny ears from the ground…" Ichika said with sarcasm.

"Wha-What?" Cecilia asked back with a surprised voice. This can't be helped. If Ichika wouldn't have exactly known what it is, even he would feel that it's just nonsense.

Instead of answer, Ichika just pointed upward. Right above, there was a thing that was flying at supersonic speed.

"UWAAHHH!" Blonde screamed and leaped backwards.

*DONK!* An unidentified flying object drilled deeply into the ground, and it looked like…

"A-A carrot...?" Cecilia's eyes widened. That's understandable as it really looked like an illustration-style transforming carrot. Ichika, however, doesn't seemed surprised.

"Aww! You're meanie, Ik-kun!" The carrot split into half, and the person who appeared, looking like a child whose prank was discovered, was the aforementioned genius – Shinonono Tabane... Ichika never could understand why she's spending so much for these absurdly-looking entrances, but that's what makes her unique and so interesting. "Well, when I used a missile to fly, I was nearly shot down by a certain country's scouting planes! I'm a creature who knows how to learn. Fui Fui!" She's wearing a tightfitting blue and white skirt that's like the one in Alice in Wonderland.

She leaned forward, attempting to take the bunny ears from Ichika's hands, but at that moment Ichika made quick step aside and forward (no doubts he was using emperor's eye), so when Tabane made a step, she ended up pressing her lush breasts to Ichika's chest. "Oh, nice, they're as resilient as ever… and became even bigger, I think," He commented as he put bunny ears on her head. Is she acting the part of Alice in Wonderland alone? Doesn't matter… "It's been a while since we saw each other in person, Tabane-san." Ichika's tone was different from usual, until now, he was only talking like that to his sister.

"Yup yup, it's been long, really long. Speaking of which, Ik-kun, where's Houki-chan? Weren't both of you together just now? Did she go to the bathroom?" She asked, not even trying to change position Ichika lured her in. Their faces were so close that from aside it looked like they're going to kiss.

"Hah..." Ichika snorted. "Houki's still Houki. She went off to escape any possibility that you two could be seen together," He answered her question, not even trying to sweeten the pill. He knew that it won't discourage Tabane even a bit, no matter what Houki thinks – no one knows her better than her elder sister. "So, it's your today's quest – find Houki," Ichika added.

"Well, no problem. I can use just this little Houki-chan detector to find her!" Tabane announced joyfully as she finally stepped away from Ichika.

"Ah, so you brought a cheat tool…" Ichika sighed with false disappointment.

"Bye bye, Ik-kun. See you later!" Just like that, she vanished like the wind, and blazingly fast. On a side note, it seems that the 'Houki-chan detector' she was talking about seems to be that pair of bunny ears. In any case, these ears successfully turned towards where Houki went. Detector's design was quite disputable, though…

"I-Ichika-san? Who was that...?" Cecilia seemed deeply shocked, and not only by Tabane's extremely weird appearance and overall behavior, interaction between her and Ichika seemed unacceptably intimate.

"She's Tabane-san, Houki's older sister," Ichika replied as if nothing unusual happened.

"Huh... WHAAT?" It wasn't even exclamation, more like a scream. "That… That was Professor Shinonono? The professor who's currently missing and every country's looking for?"

"Yes, this is she – Shinonono Tabane," Ichika replied with irony.

On a side note, this seaside school event has a theme called 'I.S. mobilization in unrestricted area', so there are all sorts of new models sent over from all countries. But as outside personnel are not allowed to participate, access to this area is heavily restricted. However, as expected of Chifuyu's childhood friend, she likely ignored all the rules completely and sneaked in. 'Really, I'd like to see a rule that would stop Shinonono Tabane,' Ichika smiled to himself.

"Ichika-san?" Cecilia called for him again. "If that was Professor Shinonono, why you… why she… why you two seemed so close?" The way two were talking, it really seemed weird, to say the least, at least for those who didn't know anything about Tabane.

But Ichika wasn't in mood to discuss that. "Don't bother about that, she's looking for Houki, so it looks like it's unrelated to me for now. Speaking of which, I'm going to the beach. What about you, Cecilia?"

"Oh, okay, I'm going to the beach too. Oh-Oh yes! Ahem!" Cecilia cleared her throat. What's wrong? Is she trying to imitate Chifuyu? "I-I can't rub sunblock lotion on my back, so I want Ichika-san to help out... can you?" She seemed embarrassed asking for that.

Ichika looked at her with somehow ironic smile. Her intentions were as clear as noonday – by asking him to apply the sunblock lotion on her back she wants to let Ichika fell softness of her skin, to taste all her curves with his own hands. Cheap trick, but pretty effective. And Ichika had no reasons to deny it – this day will be a complete waste of time anyway.

"Alright," He shrugged, "But I'm afraid I can only spend a few minutes, onee-san wants me to act as a lifeguard for today…" Seemingly, Ichika was still displeased with Chifuyu, so he didn't call her 'sensei' in front of another student.

"Re-Really? You won't take it back, right?" She sounded really agitated, even excited.

"Who do you think I am?" Ichika narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, sorry, Ichika-san," Blonde quickly backed down. Really, Ichika isn't the one who takes his words back, "I got it! See you later then!" After nodding hard twice, Cecilia ran to the annex. She's not as fast as Tabane, but her footsteps are rather light.

"Alright. See you at the sea then," Ichika said and headed towards changing room.

Of course, being a guy, he was told to use the inner most changing room in the annex's changing rooms. On a side note, once he left that annex, he should be going straight to the beach, as quite a lot of girls were already there.

Speaking of which... The inner most changing room – this means that Ichika has to go past all the female changing rooms. Of course, he won't be able to see what's inside (not that he ever wanted), but he couldn't avoid hearing screams of excitement, like those:

"Wah, Mika! Your breasts are so big! You're still in puberty, right!?"

"Kyah! Don't! Don't grab them!"

"Mena's swimsuit's rather bold! Amazing…"

"Really?! This is common in America…"

By the way, Ichika had to agree with the last statement, swimsuits that US women are wearing were quite daring, not by his standards, but comparing to Japanese ones…

In any case, all these topics are being discussed casually. To be honest, Ichika was quite indifferent about hearing these. For common boy, it most likely would be embarrassing, but what common boy would be doing in I.S. Academy training camp anyway?


Ichika quickly changed to his swimming trunks and headed to seaside. He bought those swimming trunks while he was in California, just in case (he still had hope that he'll be able to avoid participation in this 'training camp').

"Ah, look, it's Orimura-sama!"

"Are… Are you for real?! Is… Is my swimsuit weird?! There's no problem, right?!"

"Wahh! His physique's amazing! He did train!"

"Orimura-sama, let's play beach volleyball later!"

Having just exited the changing room, he met a few girls who exited from the neighboring changing room. They're all wearing cute swimsuits of different kinds… but nothing eye-catching. "Oh, if there's time later, okay," Ichika replied somehow automatically.

And then, Ichika took a step to the seaside. "Damn, it's already hot…" He complained. In fact, Ichika didn't like beaches… He was a very good swimmer, but he preferred swimming pools.

The beach was already full of female students. Some are sunbathing, some are playing beach volleyball, some are swimming, everyone's doing all sorts of activities. As it was said, they're all wearing swimsuits of many different colors, and in a certain sense, it's even more eye-blinding than the July's sun.

"Ouch!" Rin yelped as she suddenly fell right beside Ichika, as he quickly stepped aside. "Hey! You promised to not do that again!" She exclaimed resentfully, lying on the beach's sand. In middle school, as a cheerleader team captain, Rin often was jumping on Ichika's back, and then climbing on his shoulders, waving her hands around, as if "celebrating victory". It was fun for the first few times, but Ichika quickly became annoyed by that, so using his all-round field of vision, he began to dodge her jumps.

"Rin? Oh, sorry, I didn't notice you…" Ichika said innocently. He looked around. Since it was a resort, its beach of course already was 'equipped' with lifeguard service – Ichika noticed two high cabins with two men in each one, so his interference's most likely unneeded. Besides, if he'll announce that he's also a lifeguard for today, girls may get some stupid ideas, like faking their drowning, etc. It's better for him to just mind his own business, in any case his emperor's eye won't miss if something really serious will happen.

"Ah… Hey! What are you two doing?" Walking over here, Cecilia questioned Ichika and Rin. She's holding onto the foldable beach umbrella, a beach mat, and a sunblock. She's wearing a bright blue bikini, and the sari that's tied around her waist has a bit of elegance. It looks nice, just like a model. The ample breasts the swimsuit emphasizes are more alluring than what one could imagine… if only she would be a bit more mature…

"Does it look like that we're doing anything?" Ichika asked. Really it looked weird, Ichika just standing there, watching into the sea, and Rin lying beside him and screaming. By the way, Rin's arguing brought attention of several other girls.

"Anyway, Ichika-san, please hurry up and help me apply the sunblock!" Cecilia shouted.

"""WHAAAT!?"""

Cecilia had to say it very loud to outvoice Rin, who just couldn't settle down about that Ichika dodged her, but due to that, other girls stirred up:

"I'll get the sunblock!"

"I'll get the beach mat!"

"I'll get the beach umbrella!"

"Damn, I've already applied the sunblock… I'll wash it off then!"

'Here are so many of them… If I use my digital deconstruction device on a few, most annoying of them, no one will notice, right?' Ichika thought, watching all these walking estrogen generators. Anyway, the girls who gathered here because of Rin's screams dispersed because of Cecilia.

"Ahem, I'll leave it to you then." Cecilia gently took off her sari. She sure can act as a real ojō-sama, even that action looked pretty elegant…

"Okay," Ichika sighed, "Just the back, right?" He asked.

"If… If Ichika-san wants, you can apply it on the front as well…" She replied with trembling voice.

'Ichika-san wants that all of you, including his elder sister, stopped wasting his time…' He thought, though he didn't say it aloud, as it wouldn't help anyway, so no reason to ruin these girls' mood for no reason. "Let's just start from the back and then we'll see."

"Alright, if that's the case…" Cecilia suddenly undone the swimsuit knot that was tied at the back and pressed her breasts against her swimsuit as she was lying face-down on the beach mat. "I-I'm ready. Please rub, okay?"

"Very well..." Ichika replied. The swimsuit that was undone is now stuck between the beach mat and the body, as Cecilia's completely defenseless back is naked for show to Ichika. The cleavage that's revealed under the armpit is distorted, and it's looking quite sexy… Also, maybe it's because she's pressing down, but her curvy buttocks aren't making anyone to forget about them, and her straight legs are as pretty as ever.

"Okay, let me warm up my hands first," Ichika said as he plunged his ever-cold right hand into the hot sand to warm it up. Then he squeezed the sunblock on his palms and rubbed it between before applying it on Cecilia. He sure looked like he knows what he's doing…

'Hmm… Cecilia's skin is really supple... I can say that it's comfortable just by touching it with my only living hand...' Ichika thought.

"Mn... That's nice!" Blonde moaned sweetly, "Ichika-san, do the bottom part as well."

"Are you sure?" Ichika asked, he seemingly has no issues with that.

"Yes, of course!" Cecilia confirmed (more loud than needed), "...since you already started rubbing it on me, please rub onto the parts my hands can't reach, including the legs, and the butt."

"As you wish…" Ichika shrugged, but just when he was intending to get more sunblock to continue, Rin suddenly got between him and the English girl.

"What are you thinking?!" She asked indignantly. "Can't you see that you're making Ichika uncomfortable, making such requests. But if you need it that much, I'll rub it for you, until you're all sticky."

"KYAH! Ri… Rin-san, why did you come here to me… AH! IT… IT'S COLD!" Cecilia screamed as Rin suddenly begun to cover blonde's body with sunblock, without preparations.

"What's the problem? Since you just need to apply a sunblock, it's doesn't matter how you do it. I'll rub it on you," Rin said maliciously.

"Ahh, that's enough! Behave yourse…" Cecilia shouted angrily as she stood up, and the swimsuit slipped down the body as she raised her arm, seemingly intending to shake her fist. But as she did that, even her long hair could hide her chest no longer, so it was revealed for everyone.

"KYAH!" Cecilia suddenly realized that she's standing topless right in front of Ichika. She quickly ducked down, so embarrassed that even her ears were all red.

"Ah... sorry," Rin said, it was obvious that she's not sorry at all.

"It… It… It's basically, saying sorry now, that's... RIN-SAN! I DEFINITELY WON'T FORGIVE YOU!" Cecilia yelled, still holding to her breasts.

"Hey, relax, you have an excellent body, there's nothing to be shy of," Ichika said calmingly.

"Well, thanks…" Cecilia replied but suddenly she got the full meaning of Ichika's words "…WAIT, ICHIKA-SAN?!"

"By the way, in California I saw a lot of women sunbathing topless, isn't it a trendy western custom?" He inquired, still looking at Cecilia, despite he had to turn away quite a while ago.

Unable to justify herself, the blonde could only aim all of her fury at a chinse girl. "RIN-SAN, GET OVER HERE!" Now Cecilia's face was as red as beet, she's unable to grip her fist tight and swing over as she maintains that pose, frozen there.

"Hmm... I'm running off then. Bye bye!" Rin shouted as she grabbed Ichika's arm and began to drag him towards the sea.

"She wasn't joking, she really won't forgive you," Ichika commented, though he let himself to be dragged into the sea, dealing with an overembarrassed Cecilia was the last thing he wanted to do now.

"Forget about her!" Rin exclaimed, "Let's have a race to that buoy over there, Ichika! If you lose, you have to treat me to parfait at 'CRUISE'… READY, GO!"

"Seriously? You do realize that you don't have a chance against me?" Ichika asked as he chased after Rin. On a side note, the cheapest parfait 'CRUISE' sells for 1500 yen. Ichika was indifferent towards parfaits, but when he'll win, he can ask for something equal in price.

"We'll see about my chances!" Rin shouted, her competitive spirit was as high as ever. "I was a mermaid in my previous life, no way you can beat me in the sea!"


'I'm really sorry, Cecilia, but I cannot let you win this time,' Rin continued to swim against Ichika as she pondered. Her strategic plan to get closer to Ichika and attract him with good-served, home-made food ultimately failed. 'I thought that was a good strategy!' But Ichika was always busy with his I.S., or training, or he simply was nowhere to be found, 'Really, what's wrong with him…'

Besides, there was another problem with her plans, and that is 'he still sees her as a girl, not as a young woman'. To be honest, Rin was rather frustrated because of that. Chinse girl really was feeling that her flat chest's quite a disadvantage.

'No, no worries! There shouldn't be that many girls who would stick close to him! As for Cecilia, well, it was a close shave...' Thinking up till here, she remembered the situation just now. 'Sunblock lotion... Ichika wasn't looking stiff at all, and he surely knows how to do that… how?! Anyway, maybe I should just get him to apply it on me…'

It was Cecilia's idea, but the winner is whoever does it first. 'But… but, he'll touch my body. It, it doesn't matter if I touch him, but if he's to touch me... It's… it's a little embarrassing...' She cooled her gradually reddening face into the sea, but the fluttering in her chest doesn't stop as it becomes even faster. '...But other girls would definitely have confessed to him...'

*Bukubukubuku*, Rin was not exhaling, but sighing to hide her embarrassment. The air was forming bubbles in the sea. 'Huuh, Huang Lingyin, buck up! You're already studying in I.S. Academy, what do you intend to do if you don't work harder!?'

"Hey, Ichika! Watch me… what?!" Wandering in her own thoughts, Rin didn't notice how Ichika went ahead of her. There was still some distance between her and the buoy, but Ichika already was sitting on that buoy. "How?!" Being deeply shocked, she accidentally took in a large amount of air. But this is the sea, so what she breathed in wasn't an air, but a seawater.

"!?GLUPPLUPLUP?!" As it was too sudden, Rin sank into a light moment of panic and started struggling due to the sudden loss of balance. 'Wa… Water, ran in...! Up, got to go up...'

But as this was the water, she didn't know which direction she was swimming towards. As Rin looked like she was really about to drown, a strong arm grabbed her and began to pull her up. She knew that steel grip, 'Ah! Ichika... This is Ichika's arm...' A sense of relief spread through her chest. Rin hugged onto the strong arm and floated up to the surface.


"Hey, mermaid, are you alright?" Ichika asked, even in such situation he couldn't rid of sarcastic notes in his voice.

"GUHA! Ha ha! I… I'm alright..." She coughed, spitting seawater.

"Really, don't you know? When you're swimming – think about swimming, you shouldn't have your head in the clouds," Ichika scolded her. He of course noticed that she's distracted and he had pretty good guess why she was distracted.

"That… That's not it!" Rin protested, "I nearly drowned because… because of you..."

"That's what I meant," Ichika replied with the same sarcastic notes. "Ah, it doesn't matter now," He sighed, "Let's get back to land. C'mon." Ichika turned his back on Rin.

"Wha… What are you going to do?" She asked uncertainly.

"How does it look like?" Ichika asked as if it was obvious, "Get on. I'll carry you back."

"I… I'm alright. We're just heading back to the beach after all," Rin mumbled, flushing slightly.

Even though she said that, Ichika couldn't just leave alone someone who nearly drowned right now. Her biorhythms were unstable, and if he'll leave her and she'll drown – Chifuyu definitely will go hog wild. Besides, Ichika definitely wasn't in a mood to persuade anyone right now. "Hetare Nigō [Loser №2], don't make me repeat myself," He looked at her with a very cold gaze. "Today I'm responsible for student's safety. You will obey or I'll report to Orimura-sensei that you have almost drowned. Shall I explain the consequences to you?"

As she heard that, Rin's innards grew cold, she could very well imagine what awaits her… "Ok… Okay! I got it..." Now Rin is finally obedient enough, she silently climbed on Ichika's back.

He learned a lot of things from his elder sister, in particular Chifuyu once taught her brother how to carry someone while swimming. "Pat my back if water enters your mouth. You'll choke if you start to talk," Ichika instructed.

"Mmm…" Rin gave inarticulate respond with her mouth shut as Ichika was swimming towards the coast. Ichika saw that she pouted her lips, no doubts she was offended when Ichika threatened her and called her a loser once more. But after a few minutes, when they already were close to the shore, she relaxed.

"Well, about that, Ichika..." She said quietly.

"Be silent," Ichika instructed, "You'll drink seawater once you talk."

"No, that's alright. Forget about that, well..." Her voice was quiet, but the last few words reached Ichika's ears clearly, "Tha… Thank you..."

"Don't mention it," Ichika nodded his head in response and continued to carry Rin up the coast.

Ichika's feet touched the sea floor. "Ichika, It… It's okay. I can walk on my own now," Girl on his back mumbled.

"Don't be hasty," Ichika replied, ignoring Rin's words as he continued to carry her.

"No! That's enough, hurry up and let me down!" Noticing Ichika returning to the coast, the other girls quickly turned around. Rin probably was against the idea of being seen by those people, so she was struggling quite stubbornly.

"Alright, alright," Ichika sighed tiredly, "I'll let you down, so stop moving wildly. Even if you were a monkey in your previous life, what'll happen if you fall?"

"I… I was a mermaid in my previous life..." Rin mumbled resentfully.

"Whatever…" Ichika bent his body down and let Rin off.

"I-I'll go over there to rest..." After saying that, Rin quickly ran to the annex. Having been carried back, she was really embarrassed as her face blushed quite a bit. And Ichika knew the reason.

"This is why you're Hetare…" He sighed, "If you want me to stop seeing you as a little girl – stop acting like one…"

By the way, to say that Ichica is a good swimmer is like to say nothing. He won over Rin, and even carried her back to the shore, and all that despite one of his hand was made of metal, and he has dozens of subdermal implants made mostly of palladium and gold.


"Ah, Ichika, you're here!" Having his name called up, he turned around to see Charlotte and… something.

"And what is this?" Ichika asked skeptically, "Aren't the two of you a bit too old to play a… towel mummy?"

There's a super mysterious thing, it's covered completely in quite a few towels, from the head to the knees... but Ichika recognized those neat little feet – Laura.

"Alright, come out now, it's alright," Charlotte said encouragingly.

"I… I'll decide whether it's alright..." Yeah, Laura's voice… But why is it that the proud and calm Laura sounded so cowardly? And Charlotte's trying to cheer her up…

"What are you two doing?" Ichika asked again, that was quite an unhealthy scene.

"Oookay, it's rare for you to wear a swimsuit. Let Ichika see it!" Charlotte continued her attempts to encourage Laura.

"Ho… Hold on, I need a bit of mental preparation as well..." Laura mumbled.

'What's wrong with you now?' Ichika thought in annoyance, 'I already saw you naked several times, what else you think I didn't see… by the way, I saw this one naked as well…' His sight fell on a French girl.

"Well, you've been saying that for a while, and you still haven't come out. And since I helped out, he should have the right to see it as well, right?" Charlotte continued to persuade Laura.

Speaking of which, Charlotte and Laura seem to be staying in the same room. Seemingly, Ichika really managed to set both of them straight – one was posing as a boy, other was proud and lonely… But now they are just ordinary roommates, with surprisingly good relationships. But seems Laura's still has some issues with socialization. Maybe she would change if she's with someone intimate like Charlotte… time will show.

"Okay, Laura, if you don't want to show yourself, I'm going to play with Ichika and ignore you," Charlotte announced, seemingly she got tired of persuading Laura… or not?

"Wha… What?" Laura stuttered.

"Yeah, let's do it. Let's go, Ichika," After that, Charlotte grabbed Ichika's hand, and then leaned on his shoulder as she started to drag him towards the sea.

"Wa… Wait for me! I… I'll go!" Laura slightly panicked.

"Like that?" Charlotte asked with mischievous smile.

"Humph…" Laura snorted. "I'll take it off! I'll take it off!" So that's was Charlotte's plan to make Laura rid of her 'cover'?

'What a damn kindergarten?!' Ichika thought in annoyance. Worst of all – he knew that it'll come to something like this, and that's why he didn't want to participate in this 'training camp' in the first place.

Several pieces of towel dropped down in an instant. Under the sun, Laura's dressed in a swimsuit. And as for that swimsuit… The black swimsuit is decorated with a large number of laces. On first glance, it looks like a sexy lingerie. Her hair that's usually not dolled up is now tied into ponytails on left and right side. Though it looks like she's imitating Rin's get up, in truth, Laura looks… well, very nice. Seeing her really insecure added that cuteness factor. Too bad that it wasn't what Ichika liked…

"It's not weird at all! Right, Ichika?" Charlotte asked explicitly cheerfully.

"Oh, yeah, this one really does suit you," Ichika replied, but he just said what girls were expecting him to say. In fact – his thoughts were straightly opposite – if this swimsuit can turn a 'German Ice' into embarrassed junior schoolgirl, then it *does not* suits her, but Ichika already grew tired from all that.

"WHA...!" But neither French nor German girl have noticed Ichika's indifference. Laura seemed to be taken aback by that as she paused for a while, her face all blushed. "That… That's enough for courtesies..." By the way, chain that Ichika bought for Laura was still on her neck.

"No, I'm just saying what I see," Ichika said, whatever it's good or bad – it's a different story. "Do you agree, Charlotte?"

"Yup, I told her that she was cute, and yet she didn't believe me at all. By the way, I helped design Laura's hairstyle! It's rare for her to wear a swimsuit, so she should of course look a little trendier!" French girl exclaimed with a 'hidden' hint.

"Oh. So that's how it is. Yeah, your swimsuit suits you well too, Charlotte," Ichika replied. That was mostly truth, by the way.

"Uu, yeah! Thanks." After Ichika praised her, Charlotte fiddled with her hair looking embarrassed.

"Ori-mu-ra-sama!"

"We just agreed to play beach volleyball!"

"Wha…?! Against Orimu~… That's great!"

That's the girl to whom Ichika promised to play, and some of her friends, and that Nohohon-san. As it was said, he agreed somehow automatically, but what's done is done, besides, not that he was too busy right now.

"Heh! Here, Orimura-sama!" The beach volleyball flew to Ichika. After receiving the ball, he looked at people beside him.

"Okay, you two should be fine," Ichika addressed Laura and Charlotte, "It'll be 3 on 3. Alright, prepare the court." After hearing Ichika's reply, the two girls quickly began to expand the net, and the Nohohon-san began to draw the boundary on the beach. 'Damn, she's super slow…' Ichika facepalmed.

"Then, we'll use the basic rules, okay? Maximum of 3 hits, no consecutive spikes, first to 10 gets the set!" A girl from the opposite team announced.

"Alright, you people can serve first," Ichika threw the ball over.

The receiving girl's eyes glowed (her name was something like Kushinada-san), "Hohoho, let me show you the Summer Devil of July's... ability!" She jumped for the serve. Ichika couldn't complain about the speed or the angle – no doubts, she's from the volleyball club.

"Watch me!" Charlotte shouted that. As expected of the reliable honor student. Maybe she wasn't from the volleyball club, but she's country representative candidate – her physical training is exceptional. She chased after a ball and managed to spike it. Since it was 3vs3 instead of normal 2vs2, positioning from normal volleyball could be used. Ichika assumed setter's position, as no one suits this place better. He quickly reached position to hit the ball, but instead of hitting it, Ichika just caught it, thus stopping the game.

"Orimura-sama?" Girl from the opposite team asked in surprise? "You know, in volleyball you can't hold the ball like that…" Seemingly she decided that Ichika don't know the game's rules.

"Oh, sorry, Kushinada-san, but I had to stop the game, it seems we have a technical issue," Ichika explained his actions.

"What's wrong?" Another girl from opposite team asked. She examined the net and boundary, but everything seemed proper.

"No, no," Ichika clarified, "Here's an issue with my team member…" As he said that, he threw the ball back to Kushinada, and then headed straight to Laura, who was wandering in her own thoughts during the game, as she couldn't leave alone that chain Ichika presented to her.

„Du da drüben! Du kam hier zu schlafen?!" Ichika asked with loud commanding voice. [You there! You came here to sleep?!]

„Sir, nein, Sir!" Laura even jumped form unexpectedness, and replied automatically. [Sir, no, sir!]

„Dann reiß dich zusammen!" Ichika demanded, "Wenn ich wegen dir verlieren, werde ich etwas Besonderes für Sie arrangieren! Möchten Sie zu laufen an der nächstgelegenen Stadt und zurück zu Fuß?!" [Then pull yourself together!] [If I lose because of you, I will arrange something special for you! Do you want to run to nearest town and back on foot?!]

„Nein, Ausbilder! Bitte nicht! Ich werde versuchen härter!" Laura saluted. [No, Instructor! Please don't! I'll try harder!]

„Ich hoffe du wirst, für dein eigen Sake..." Ichika replied with some maniacal expression in his eyes. [I hope you will, for your own sake…]

Laura shook her head to get back to her senses. 'What the hell was that?!' She was pretty shocked, being treated like that, not that such a treatment was new for her, though… 'Damn, they're so alike that I even called him 'instructor'?!' But just as Laura opened her mouth to say something aloud, Ichika cut her off.

"Save your complaints for later, we're on court now, play!" He ordered. Laura seemed offended, but one thing was certain – Ichika's 'shock therapy' did work, German girl now seemed sober.

"What did you say to her?" Charlotte wondered, she seemed surprised, particularly with that Ichika can speak Laura's native language freely.

"Rien de spécial" Ichika replied, now speaking Charlotte's native language, "Je viens de dire qu'il y aura des conséquences si nous perdons à cause de son." Then he smiled with that menacing smile again and added, "Par la manière, le même applique à vous... Ne me décevez..." [Nothing special][I've said that there will be consequences if we lose because of her][By the way, the same applies to you... Do not fail me...]

Charlotte gulped slightly… Something told her that this is not the time to argue about that he can't neither give orders nor threaten her or Laura… Besides, being bossed around like that, she felt herself offended… but also excited?!

In the meantime, Ichika again addressed the opposing team, "Sorry for delay, please, let us resume our game…"

Though, girls in opposing team were quite amazed. "Orimura-sama, how many languages you can speak?!" Asked a girl with European appearance, as much as Ichika could remember her name was Milla O'Conree, and, despite her Irish-like surname, she actually was from USA.

"Hmm?" Ichika looked at her, "Nine, including my native," He replied as if it was nothing special.

"Am… Ahem…" Milla mumbled incoherently.

"We can discuss my linguistic skills later, now, Kushinada-san, please serve the ball," Ichika urged her.

"Ah, well," Kushinada shook her head to regain her mindset, "No matter how much languages you know – they won't help you on this court, Orimura-sama! Here I go!" She again jumped for the serve. And again – speed and angle – all was very good.

But Ichika seemed calm as ever, "А вот это мы еще посмотрим," He said quietly, using another foreign language as Charlotte again chased for a ball. [We'll see about that]


10 minutes later

'Is he for real' Thought one of girls that were spectating the match, 'Is that really a captain of middle school football team that won all three national tournaments in a row?'

'No doubts that he's good,' Thought another girl, 'He's skilled and he sees court very good, but… nothing special…'

No doubts, girls that were watching that match right now were expecting much more from such a famed person. Those who were expecting some spectacular show and/or Ichika's overwhelming victory probably were disappointed. On the other hand, girls from a team that played against Ichika were in no position to complain about his skills – they were losing. They managed to score some points as well, but difference in score was growing, slowly but steadily…

"Nice pass, Ichika!" Charlotte shouted as she once again scored. Just now Laura intercepted the ball, Ichika got the rebound from her and passed the ball on Charlotte, who successfully scored. And that's how it was since the beginning of the game – Ichika himself never scored even once. Only helping in defense sometimes, he let girls to do scoring and intercepting, as, despite that both girls were of relatively small height, physically they both were in excellent shape.

"Damn!" US Girl swore… "He's not even trying to play seriously! Just passing, nothing more…"

"Yeah, but even like that…" Kushinada agreed, she was breathing pretty heavily, "…we're losing…" Though, particular reason of their current situation was that Nohohon-chan, who could be counted as 0.5 of normal player at best.

"Oh, it seems you people are in trouble," A sharp voice said from behind. All who were nearby turned towards voice's source as one, excluding Ichika, who noticed his sister's approach long before that.

She's wearing a black swimsuit that only intensifies her aggressive sexuality, revealing all that what should be revealed… and a bit of what shouldn't, but it wasn't vulgar, either. It looked like a mix between of swimwear, a goth harness and some BDSM attire, but unlike some girls around here, she definitely feels no embarrassment at all. That trained figure's being shown under the sun without any selfishness. Chifuyu's black, waist-long, gorgeous hairs were in perfect match.

Even though the hands on her waist aren't different from usual, there's a slight sense of sexiness the way it looks now. Not to mention she's got good looks, like a model. Compared to the other girls, she has an overwhelming victory over them.

If you look at this from a non-distorted point of view, the curves revealing those breasts are really ample. And this swimsuit emphasizes a lot on the bustline, so naturally, no surprise that many eyes were attracted by that.

"Andrés Sardá…" US Girl from the opposite team sighed, looking at Chifuyu "…I saw it in a catalogue, but such a thing is too daring for me… besides, it was too pricy…"

"Wow… Orimura-sensei… amazing…"

"Orimura-sensei's swimsuit is so daring… cool…"

"Ah… I want to become like that as well."

"I don't think you have any hope."

"How would you know if you don't try?"

The students were debating furiously, they were whispering of course but Ichika managed to lip-read their talking. "Excellent…" He said quietly, rubbing his hands.

Laura, as everyone else here, was astonished by looks of a woman that she idolizes, French girl, on the other hand, turned to Ichika. "Why is that you seem so satisfied, Ichika-san?" Charlotte asked suspiciously.

"Why shouldn't I?" He asked as if that was a question with an obvious answer, "She's my sister and she looks astounding… that swimsuit is definitely worth those 540$ I spent for it," Ichika again nodded to himself with satisfaction.

Charlotte blinked twice. "You… you bought that?" She asked as if she lapsed into idiocy.

"Yeah, when I was in California," Ichika confirmed as if it was nothing special.

'What kind of relationships you two have?!' Blonde thought, moving her sight from brother to sister and back. 'That swimsuit…' She once again looked at Chifuyu '…it fits her perfectly. Does he know all her dimensions?!'

In the meantime, while all those girls were admiring Chifuyu, she approached the court. "Sensei, you wanna play with us?" US girl, Milla, asked.

"I wanted to enjoy this really pitifully little free time swimming in the sea…" Chifuyu replied, but then her sight met with her brother's "…but I won't mind a little warmup," She then nodded to the girl.

"Sensei~ I'll sub for you~" Girl in fox suit announced in her usual, slow manner. She passed the ball to Chifuyu as two other girl approached sensei to discuss the situation.

"Finally, I can play normally," Ichika said, warming his hands.

"What you mean, Ichika-sama?" Asked one of girls who were spectating the match.

"Isn't it obvious?" He replied. "Until now I was just passing the ball, if I would've been playing seriously it would be a one-sided game. But now, since she's on court… Hey, Hetare Sangō [Loser №3], Hetare Shigō [Loser №4], get out of your stupor and come here," He called for his teammates.

Seemingly, Charlotte was still shocked, trying to understand relationships between Orimura siblings and Laura was looking at Chifuyu as bewitched, but Ichika's voice returned them to reality. "Oh, stop trembling already," Ichika said a bit scornfully, as girls now looked a bit uncertain, which is understandable – they're now against Chifuyu Orimura herself, even if that's just a volleyball.

Ichika, on the other hand, don't seemed worried at all. "Of course, she's strong as a demon, but, first – she won't be using her full strength for a mere game, and second… she has a weakness that we're going to exploit…" Ichika gave a predatory smile.

"A weakness?!" Two girls asked at the same time.

"Don't be so surprised," Ichika's looked at them with his heterochromic eyes, "No one's perfect… even though she's saying otherwise…" As 'she' he meant Tabane of course. Ichika lowered his voice, "Orimura-sensei has no idea how to play in team," He explained, "I.S. battle or simple sport game – her style by no means suited for the team work."

Indeed, being only twelve years old, Chifuyu was the oldest in the family composed of only her and Ichika. Kind neighbors (i.e. Shinonono family), a childhood friend (i.e. Tabane), it's all was good but… they were still strangers. To ensure her own and her younger brother survival she had to learn to rely only on herself, to believe only in her own powers (fortunately she had more than enough). But because of that she became a host in herself, and Ichika was intending to use that peculiarity.

Chifuyu prepared to serve the ball. Bam! Speed, angle, precision – all were by order of magnitude greater than of other girls. Still, Charlotte managed to catch the ball, and Ichika was already waiting for rebound. He jumped up, and this time it didn't seem like he is going to pass the ball, all looked like he's going for the score. Two girls from the opposite team reacted quickly, preparing to defend. But, just as Ichika expected, Chifuyu, instead of letting girls to go for the ball and wait for rebound, she also dashed to that side of the court, thinking that they won't be able to defend from her brother's attack. Just as Ichika expected. At the last moment, he changed ball's direction and passed it to Laura, who stood right near the net.

German girl received the ball and send it to enemy's team side with a very acute angle, securing the point, as even Chifuyu with her inhuman speed and agility couldn't cross the entire court in time to block that attack. 'Wow… what a wonderful pass…' Laura thought, she herself didn't expect that she will be able to score so nicely, 'Angle, timing… it landed to my hands perfectly…' Ichika's passes were pretty good before that, but comparing to this one they all were quite clumsy work…

'Damn…' Chifuyu swore, looking at her brother who just gave high-fives to his teammates, 'So that's how it is…' She realized that Ichika used his emperor's eye to score just now. First, he made sure that Chifuyu won't be able to return to net in time, predicting her movements, and then he used his eye on his own teammate to give a perfect pass, so Laura could attack without delay, 'He's not joking… And we all are wearing swimsuits… All our muscles are in full view… Very well… Then I'm not holding back!'

Ichika noticed that glint of vehemence in his sister's eyes. "I see you're finally up to play seriously," His eyes flashed, "Then let's do this, sensei!"


15 minutes later.

'Damn, he's so strong… so this is the one who won all middle school championships for three years in a row, no doubts…' Kushinada thought.

'Are you kidding me?!' Milla thought, 'Even with Orimura-sensei at our side…'

Indeed, even with Chifuyu playing seriously, difference in score wasn't shortening, in contrary, it even grew a bit more, 15-20 more minutes and it will end with Ichika team's confident victory.

And Chifuyu…

'What the hell?!' She didn't show any emotion, but, in fact, there was quite a mess in her head. 'Just when he became that powerful?! Since when I became so bad sister that I didn't even notice his growth?!' No, of course she saw all Ichika's victories in I.S. battles, but his I.S. had technical advantage in every battle, and his opponents were just coevals. But now he's against his elder sister and here are no I.S., only power of his emperor's eye and an ability to use his teammate's sills very effectively. Don't get it wrong – Chifuyu was very proud of her brother, but, on the other hand, in their personal adversary, she wasn't ready to lose to him, not yet, not now…

*Sigh* She made a deep breath. 'No doubts, you're powerful…' Chifuyu smiled, finally showing some emotion '…but today, I'm not going to lose!'

'What?!' Suddenly, Ichika physically felt tremendous increase of intensity of his sister's aura, 'Is she serious?!' At the same moment, Charlotte jumped up to serve the ball. "No, wait!" Ichika shouted, trying to stop his teammate, but that was too late, blonde already sent the ball over the net.

Everything happened within split second. Chifuyu dashed to the net and jumped up, and hit the ball. From aside it seemed as if a volleyball turned into a fireball when Chifuyu hit it. It flew over Ichika's head and landed accurately into court's very corner, even that he saw what's going to happen – he had no chance to intercept the ball. But probably most astonishing thing was Chifuyu's jump. It seemed like she didn't jump but flew up, her head was way above net, she reached height of at least ten feet, being only five feet six inches tall herself, she literally jumped over her head…

"What… was that…?"

"Incredible…"

"So… This is… Orimura Chifuyu…"

"Brunhilde…"

Spectators were tongue-tied, looking at Chifuyu in shock.

Ichika turned around and looked into the eyes of his sister. These eyes were sparkling… "Interesting…" He said with strange smile on his face, it's been a while since he saw Chifuyu in such a state. "So, you want to win that badly? The Archangel…?"

In that state, not only Chifuyu's speed became at least twice as much, now she could see entire court, including her teammates, so even being an individualist, she could let them defend some part of the field… And worst of all, Ichika could no longer deceive her with false hit direction. Until now, Ichika scored several points using his emperor's eye. He could predict Chifuyu's moves and send a ball to the opposite side, but now, with her powers fully awoken, she could start moving after he hit the ball, and still intercept it.

Chifuyu took the ball, preparing to serve. Jump! She hit the ball and once again it like turned into a fireball. However, this time Ichika managed to intercept that due to distance and using his eyes capability. However, he didn't block, because Chifuyu already was in the middle of the court, it seemed like she was moving almost as fast as ball itself. Blocking would be dangerous as it would've returned the ball to Chifuyu. He saw that both Laura and Charlotte were dismayed.

"Laura!" Ichika shouted as he passed ball on her, "Pass the ball back to me!" He gave voice command, since now, with her Archangel awakened, Chifuyu could easily read all their combinations nevertheless.

"Jawohl!" She carried out Ichika's order, though she did that automatically, as she had no idea what Ichika is intending to do.

Ball flew up, and Ichika jumped for it. Chifuyu took position near the net as she saw that the far side of the court is covered by her teammates. Ichika jumped up to hit the ball, and at that moment Chifuyu heard his voice. "Onee-sama… You're really magnificent… I don't think I can match for you yet… But I won't let you win that easily!" Chifuyu looked into brother's eyes and her own eyes widened as she realized what he's going to do – she left far side of the court to her teammates, but that was a mistake, and now was too late to fix that.

Ichika smashed the ball with full power of his robotic right arm. Ball flew like an artillery shell and hit that US girl, Milla, right into her solar plexus. "Guuh!" A girl screamed as ball hit her with tremendous force, literally smashing her into the ground. She fell on sand and almost lost her consciousness, as ball also fell on sand, thus Ichika got the point.

"Ichika-san?!" Charlotte exclaimed, looking at him in shock.

"Victory is everything in this world. Victor is acknowledged, vanquished is disavowed. Those who acts against me is never forgiven…" And as he said that, both Laura and Charlotte suddenly noticed something weird. Heterochromia of Ichika's eyes… it was no more! Usually his left eye was orange and right one was crimson, but now both his eyes were of the same, fiery-red color, and glowing with golden light. It seemed as if colors of his two eyes were mixed together and then distributed evenly. Besides, now some high iron notes were mixed into Ichika's voice.

It was a dumb scene as no one even knew what to say…

"It's our turn to serve…" Ichika turned to Laura, still speaking with that high iron voice.

"No," Chifuyu interfered, "That's enough, it's already past midday, hurry up and go have lunch!" Seemingly, elder sister decided to conclude this game. That feeling of unbound power from her disappeared.

"As you say, sensei," Ichika said simply and headed towards the changing room, surprising all those around him – no arguing, no sarcastic comments… no anything.

"Everyone, c'mon, go have lunch!" Chifuyu clapped her palms loudly, gaining attention.

"Wha… what about you, sensei?" One of girls asked uncertainly? Almost everyone around here were confused.

"I'm going to swim," Chifuyu replied shortly, and headed towards the sea.

Still being heavily confused, girls headed towards the restaurant, furiously discussing the volleyball match they just saw and its very weird conclusion.


And that's it for chapter VIII, hope to see you soon people.

P.S. Don't be lazy, write a review!