Gale-Dragon: Finally, I have completed Chapter 9. I'm so happy :-). Enjoy my loyal readers.
"Talking and Quotes"
'Thinking'
(Author making a comment)
*Action when talking*
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9th Down; The Lost Dog, and The Magazine.
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Three weeks. THREE LONG PAINFUL WEEKS of helping the construction crew and harsh training and the amefuto club base was nearly finished with the renovations. The grand opening would be in two days. The entire team was relieved that the whole thing was almost over, but no one was more excited than Sena. Hiruma didn't kill him like he thought she would, but during the three-week construction, Sena really wished that she did. She was reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeealy torturing the running-back, but he had no regrets about his confession throughout the entire torture. Guess you can say that the only thing that kind of confused the Running-Back was the fact that the She-Devil never brought up the Club Kiss in any way what-so-ever, but there was no way he wasn't going to mention it because he was worried that she would increase her torture. Sena supposed that the only good thing about the whole thing was that Hiruma didn't have her period yet; she probably would have killed him if she did (Just a recap about this fact, a woman's period is roughly every 28 days or so. Time-wise, the last chapter took place around 19 days ago, when Hiruma's period was just about finished; therefore, the She-Devil does NOT have her period at the moment).
Hiruma forced Sena to wear 2.5kg (5.5 pounds) weights on EACH of his arms AND legs for the ENTIRE three weeks of construction AND practice. Okay, yeah, it didn't sound like much, but try to wear that weight on you when you're doing the heavy lifting and running (Poor Sena). Stuff really weighs you down quickly; no pun intended. It was just pure luck that Sena didn't collapse on the street before he got home. A couple of times throughout the three weeks, Sena had suspected that Hiruma was increasing the weights, but he had really no way of proving it.
The only people who were aware of this torture was Hiruma, of course, because she's the one who's doing it, Sena, the poor victim, and Kurita, whom just so happened to be the one to walk in on the She-Devil forcing the weights on Sena. Being the kind-hearted giant he was, Kurita told Hiruma that she was going overboard with the training. After shooting him with her AK-47, Hiruma stated: "Who's the F*ing Captain Here?" Sena told Kurita that it was his fault that this is happening (Technically it is…). Kurita told Sena not to push himself too hard. "Exactly what did you do to get Hiruma to get so worked up anyway?" Kurita asked Sena curiously. The running-back caught the She-Devil giving him a glare that said tell-him-and-I-will-make-sure-that-you-will-die-where-you-stand-f*ing-chibi. Sena managed to stutter out an "I r-re-al-y d-d-don't want t-to t-talk a-about it." Now Kurita wasn't sure if he even wanted to know.
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It was morning the next day and at the moment; Sena, Raimon, and Mamori were on their way to Deimon High. It was a pretty ordinary morning for the three, at least until they stumbled across two men trying to haul a big brown and black dog, which kind of looked like a Doberman without a docked tail or the cropped ears, into a car. The dog obviously didn't want to go into the car and was trying to bit the two men. At first, the three thought that they were going to, or attempting to, take the dog to the vet, but one of the men said in an agitated tone "Damn mutt, Get into the Damn Car." Okaaaaay, that's not how you coax a dog into a car… The dog somehow got ahold of one of the men's leg and bit down, hard, and causing the man to shout in pain. The screaming caught the attention of a nearby police officer and the two men bolted when they saw him, leaving the dog and the car behind.
What was the heck was that about? The dog sniffed Sena a bit then looked up at him with those big innocent black eyes.
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Hiruma was currently glaring at the manager, receiver, and secretary/running-back. She really wanted to shoot the three with real bullets at the moment. "Care to explain why you guys brought "That Thing" here?" The She-Devil stated as she pointed to the "That Thing", which so happens to be the dog that was almost dognapped. The three did explain that whole situation to Hiruma, and that the dog seemed to really like the three so the police officer asked them to look after the dog while he asked around the area to see if anyone was missing a Doberman since the poor dog only had a collar and the part of her ID tag that showed that her name was Isako (Cute name for a big dog). They told the officer that they were students at Deimon High so that they could be notified when Isako's owner could be found. Isako sniffed Hiruma during the explanation and then she laid down right next to her, for some reason the Doberman seemed to actually be comfortable around the She-Devil.
After the three finished explaining, Isako yawned, showing everyone her big, sharp teeth. It didn't seem like the dog was worried, come to think of it… She was waaaaaay too calm considering what just happened. Weirdest thing that was happening right now was that Isako seemed to think that Hiruma was the nicest, sweetest, most loving person in the whole wide world. (Does anyone feel sorry for that poor, poor dog?).
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Yukimitsu did confirm that Isako was indeed a Purebred Doberman, after looking through a dog breed book and looking over the big dog. Raimon looked at Isako and asked why she had a tail and floppy ears since all of the Dobermans that he's seen have pointed ears and a stump of a tail. The scholar explained that the Doberman breed is actually born with tails and floppy ears and that the tails are docked and their ears are cropped to give them a more menacing appearance since the breed was created to look menacing. Mamori stated that that was cruel to do that to a dog and patted Isako on the head and said cheerfully "But it looks like your owner really cares about you to not do something as horrible as that." That was when Isako walked over to Hiruma, who was polishing her precious AK-47, and flopped down right next to her. The entire team thought it was weird, Hiruma included. Why did this dog so attracted to the She-Devil? Come to think of it, why wasn't the principal or any of the teachers coming out to ask about the Doberman? Sena concluded that the school staff probably thought that the Doberman belonged to the She-Devil.
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It was during the team's amefuto training exercise that they realized the reason why Isako seemed so comfortable with Raimon, Sena, and Mamori, not to mention the rest of the team. Her owner must either be an amefuto player or is an amefuto fan because she was actually participating with the team with their training, well, either that or she just loved to go after the ball. At least, that's what everyone figured until Hiruma threw a spiral for Raimon to catch. It was an easy catch for the receiver, but he was thrown off by the Doberman jumping in front of him and caught a ball with her mouth. This shocked every member of the Devilbats, especially when she dropped the ball directly in front of the She-Devil, almost as if she wanted Hiruma to throw the ball again as her tail wagged. The She-Devil cackled and stated mockingly "Looks like this gal wants to join the team, maybe she'll be a better receiver than the f*ing monkey." The She-Devil picked up the ball, getting ready to throw it again and getting the big dog excited. Now Raimon was pissed off and fired up. A sweatdrop appeared on Sena's head as he thought 'It shouldn't really surprise me that she does this kind of thing. Hmmm, but I wonder who Isako's owner is though?' Using an Amefuto ball to play fetch… Hmmm.
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The only thing that worried the team was Cerberus. Honestly, that beast could really make a crocodile cry real tears, before eating the reptile. Everyone but Hiruma thought that Cerberus would really kill the Doberman. So when the demon dog saw the big dog, they started to panic. But the unexpected happened with Cerberus, something that not even the She-Devil could ever see coming. The Devil Dog brought the Doberman a bouquet of roses … Wait? What?! The entire Deimon Devilbat team made a double-take… Ano?... Ano... Oh… OH!... The Demon Dog fell in love with the Doberman… Ano… Wow… (Sooooooooo didn't see that coming… Ano… So Hiruma's dog DOES have some kind of heart… Huh, who knew).
It looked like Isako didn't return the demon dog's feelings and snapped at him when he got too close. Cerberus kept on "Courting" the Doberman. It was a reeeeeeeeeeeeeeealy a weird sight. Weirdest thing yet, no one was really sure who to feel sorrier for…
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It was lunchtime, so everyone was eating lunch. Well… Isako wasn't eating anything that was offered to her, not the dog food that the team had for Cerberus and not the human food that some of the other students was trying to offering her. Yukimitsu wondered if it was because she was a big dog breed, if she was on a special diet, or if her owner only fed her a certain brand of food. Either way, it was a problem, since no one knew when the last time she ate.
Somehow, Kurita pulled out a giant onigiri from who-knows-where. Isako sniffed the air and immediately followed her nose towards the Devilbat giant. The Doberman sat in front of Kurita and looked up at him with her tail wagging happily and her tongue hanging out of her mouth. Was she interested in the onigiri? "Kurita, what's in that?" Sena asked when he saw Iasko sitting in front of the giant. "Salmon and chicken," Kurita replied before looking at the Doberman, who was giving him her best puppy dog eyes. (Awwwwwww). Kurita's heart melted, so he tore the onigiri in two and one of the half into a bowl for the Doberman. Isako happily ate it. Salmon, chicken, and rice for dog food, it was a bit strange? Yukimitsu did explain that the three were actually good for dogs, but still… The Devilbats ate their respective lunches in silence. Who was the owner of this Doberman?
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After lunch, a man with a police officer came by the school. He was well dressed, short black hair that was combed back, dark brown eyes, and old brown shoes. He came to the school because the police officer told him that three Deimon High students had his dog. Oh, it was the same officer that Sena, Raimon, and Mamori ran into earlier today. So this was Isako's owner… Wait a minute… Why was she growling at him? While the rest of the team talked to the man, Sena and Hiruma noticed that the Doberman was not happy to see the man. Her teeth were bared, she was keeping her body close to the ground, her ears seemed to press to her head, and her tail was stiff. Isako was ready to attack the man!
"I don't think this is your dog," Hiruma stated plainly, stepping between the dog and the man. "In fact, I think you're in cahoots with the two who were trying to dognap this poor fella here," Hiruma stated with a menacing smile on her face. Sena agreed with her, but Raimon didn't and said: "Come on, are you really that evil as to keep a man away from his loving dog?" Hiruma cackled and said, "You really underestimate me Monta, and this guy isn't the dog's owner." She moved to the side revealing to everyone the Doberman's growling form and asked: "Does this look like a dog that's happy to see its owner?" Now Isako looked as menacing as her breed was meant to be.
The officer piped in, with his arms folded, "If this is really your dog, call it over." The man clapped his hands and said "Come here, buddy! Come here, boy!" The Doberman didn't move, all she did was growl. Hiruma smirked and stated, "You just proved that you're not the dog's owner." The She-Devil was right; there was no way Isako's real owner would get her gender wrong. The officer immediately cuffed the man saying something along the lines of dognapping being a crime. Yukimitsu added that this crime is considered a grand theft crime because Purebred Dobermans are worth between ¥24,125 and ¥361,875 ($200 - $3,000). Yup, this guy was going to jail. And apparently the two guys that tried to dognap Isako earlier got caught by Cerberus, and now all the men were not going to bother Isako for a very long time.
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Well, three dog-nappers were off the Street, but the Devilbats were no closer to finding Isako's owner. Sena wondered if that person was really worried about their missing dog. 'I mean this person didn't get her ears cropped or her tail docked, this person also feeds her chicken, rice, and salmon, and uses an amefuto ball to play with her…' The running-back thought as he walked home with Raimon and Mamori by his side, and had the Doberman on a leash.
Hiruma refused to take the Doberman home with her since she didn't want dog blood everywhere; no one was sure which dog she was talking about and they didn't want to know. Sena has a cat. Raimon and Komusubi had a parent that was allergic to dogs. Kurita's dad doesn't like dogs. The delinquent trio refused to get involved with the dog. Yukimitsu's apartment doesn't allow big dogs. So Mamori offered to house the dog until they found her owner since her parents loved dogs and her house was big enough, plus they stopped by a quick stop market and got Isako rice and chicken for her breakfast.
Maybe they should make some Found Flyers around the area to find the Doberman's owner.
Isako's ears perked up, she heard something. "What's wrong girl?" Mamori asked the dog. She, in turn, started wagging her tail and darted off, with Sena in tow. Raimon and Mamori raced after the two shouting at the Doberman to heel or stop. The big dog didn't stop; she kept on running, not noticing that she was pulling extra weight. Sena was doing really well with keeping up with Isako, which did surprise him. Perhaps maybe Hiruma wasn't just torturing Sena when she was forcing him to wear the weights during training, those weights really did help with his stamina and running speed. But his two friends weren't able to keep up and they ended up falling really behind the big dog and Sena.
"ISAKO." Sena heard someone calling, and it sounded close. Isako barked, rather loudly (Trust me those dogs have a loud deep bark). "Isako?" Now the voice sounded a lot closer, sounded feminine actually.
Sena tripped over a rock, lost his grip on the leash, and tumbled to the ground. When the running-back got into a sitting position, trying to ignoring the stinging all over his body, he saw what was best described as a very happy reunion. He couldn't help but forget the throbbing pain when he saw it.
Isako's tail was wagging so fast that it could go flying off in a blink of an eye and she was practically jumping on a person, whom Sena couldn't see at the moment because the big dog was blocking the bulk of his view, but he could hear her. The running-back could hear the person telling Isako that she was looking all over for her and was happy to have finally found her as she hugged the dog as the canine licked her owner's face happily. Now Sena could see the person. She looked like she was in her final year of high school, she was close to Hiruma's height (Roughly 168cm / 5ft 6in), she had purple hair that reached her elbows, she also had purple eyes, she was well tanned, and she was wearing a sky blue short-sleeved shirt, long khaki pants, and was wearing a pair of cobalt blue athletic shoes (1). The young lady finally noticed Sena when he said: "I guess you're her owner." She nodded as Isako licked her owner's check.
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After about five minutes of searching, Raimon and Mamori were finally able to find Sena and Isako; they also saw that they were with a young lady with purple hair. They saw the young lady politely bowing to Sena and then walked away with the Doberman, who was happily wagging her tail. The two then started to walk over to Sena.
"Sena, who was that? And why is she leaving with Isako?" Mamori asked her childhood friend. Sena replied as he turned to his friends "Oh that was Kimiko, she's Isako's real owner." Raimon then asked Sena "Are you sure that was her owner?" considering the fact that someone did pretend to be the dog's owner earlier today. Sena smiled and said "Don't worry; she was Isako's real owner. You should have seen how happy they were when they saw each other, Isako was licking Kimiko's face and she didn't mind it at all, it was just pure happiness. Plus I asked some questions about Isako, you know, just in case." Raimon and Mamori glanced over towards the direction the young woman and her dog went, they managed to see her scratching the dog's ear, causing the dog to lick her hand. The two Deimon students now knew that she really was the dog's owner.
As the trio headed back home, a realizing hit Raimon like a ton of bricks. "Hey guys, I just thought of something," Raimon stated, getting Sena's and Mamori's attention. Raimon continued with a look that was a mixture of seriousness and confusion "Isako's owner is a girl, right." Sena nodded, not really sure where his friend was going with this. "So… Why was Isako so friendly with Hiruma?" Raimon asked with all seriousness. Mamori realized that the receiver was right and added: "Come to think of it, you're right Monta." Raimon then muttered that his name was Raimon.
It was a good thing that Sena wasn't facing his two friends because now he started to sweat bullets. 'Crap… Of course, Isako would be fine with Hiruma. Her owner's a girl and so is Hiruma. Oh, Kami, they're going to realize that Hiruma's not a boy,' Sena thought as he tugged at the helm of his sleeves. This was bad, no not bad, it was a DISASTER. The running-back was sure that the She-Devil was going to blame him for it and would… Sena gulped in fear, he didn't want to even think about it. "Maybe…" Mamori started with a serious tone. Sena could feel his heartbeat thundering in his chest. "Kimiko has a boyfriend who's the quarterback of an amefuto team," Mamori stated both seriously and happily. Sena was completely relieved by that statement, although he was a bit disappointed that Mamori came to that conclusion that quickly. Raimon folded his arms, was sporting a serious face, and said "Maybe, but I'ma not max sure about that. I think there's another reason why." Sena knew he was right, but there was no way he was going to say it, so he said "Ano, maybe we're overthinking it. I mean Isako could have liked Hiruma because she thought s..HE smelt nice or something." Mamori easily thought that might have been a possibility, but Raimon wasn't too sure.
~}i{~
Mamori told him that she would text the rest of the team to tell them that Isako was with her real owner, so the three went to their respective homes. Sena was happy that he found the Doberman's owner. He was also really happy that he found out that Hiruma wasn't just torturing him, she was also training his stamina and speed. The running-back had one of Hiruma's phone numbers, so he texted her telling her that he really appreciated her special secret training. Sena was really smiling when he sent the text; he figured that the She-Devil really did care for him, perhaps there was a small chance that maybe she loved him back (… Okaaaaay …. Anyone thinks that Sena's trying a little TOO hard to see the good in Hiruma?).
~}i{~
When Hiruma read that text, she cursed under her breath and said to no one in particular "How the hell did that f*ing chibi find out?" She closed her flip phone and looked out the window. 'Guess the chibi's smarter than I gave him credit for,' the She-Devil thought looking up at the night's sky. (Wait a minute… she actually WAS secretly training Sena without him knowing?...) A sinister grin appeared on the She- Devil's face as she thought 'I guess this means I don't have to hold back on the f*ing chibi's training.'
The smile faded from Hiruma's face as rubbed her lips with the second knuckle of her right index finger. The She-Devil couldn't figure out why the Club Shed Kiss was bothering her so much. It wasn't a bad or annoying bothering, it was a weird kind of bother that made Hiruma feel, well, strange. A kind of strange that actually made her feel happy and some other emotion that she couldn't pinpoint what it was. It made her heart beat faster, made her feel all warm and fuzzy in that fluttering heart, and it made her feel like she ate some kind of live flying insect and it wanted out. Hiruma could solve anything, but this kind of thing seemed impossible for her. At first, she thought it was hormonal, but she couldn't blame it on her period since she's been feeling that way long after her last period ended.
Hiruma didn't even notice that her face was flushing red. 'What the f*ing hell could this feeling be?' the She-Devil thought as she leaned back onto her bed. (… Okaaaaaaay….. No Comment).
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The Next Morning.
The renovations were officially complete. The entire team was completely ecstatic with the accomplishment. The inside was as big as the outside. Everything was shiny new and everyone had their own locker for their team uniform, except for the delinquent trio, who had to share one (There was even a plaque with Huh Huh Brothers written above). The trio weren't the only ones that were unhappy with their predicament. Raimon was not happy that the name on the plaque above his locker was not his, it was Monta.
The receiver jumped up on a bench and shouted, while pointing at the plaque with his foot, "OI! THIS IS IT! I HAVE SOMETHING TO SAY TO EVERYONE! STOP MAKING FUN OF ME BY CALLING ME "MONTA"…" That was when Hiruma stated nonchalantly "I got it from Joe Montana." That got Raimon's attention pretty quick. The devilish quarterback explained that Joe Montana was one of the greatest superstars in the NFL history, that he used his skills to manoeuvre his many dramatic comeback victories, and explained that that skill was called "Montana Magic". The monkey-like receiver could easily imagine hordes of fans cheering him on. With a goofy grin on his face, Raimon struck a pose and started to call him Monta (Guess I'll be calling him Monta too…). Both Kurita and Sena couldn't help but think that the She-Devil really is a class "A" manipulator.
Mamori walked into the new locker room with a smile on her face and said "Now that we have so much room… We can finally get everything in order." She didn't notice that she accidentally dropped a magazine, but Kurita and Komusubi noticed it. The gentle giant picked up the magazine, which was about Amefuto (No surprise there). He opened it and said "Oh. Amefuto Monthly… I haven't read this month's issue is yet." Kurita turned to an article featuring the planes for the magazine's 20th year anniversary, and boy were they doing something big for that. A high school Amefuto team from America; Houston, Texas to be more precise, was coming to Japan to play a high school team on June 6th. The magazine stated that there were too many applicants, so they were going to do a drawing lottery to see who will be playing against the Americans.
Mamori couldn't help but pipe in "But that's the week after next… Isn't that right in the middle of the Kanto Tournament? Will teams be able to play?" Kurita answered back "Anyone who's not playing in the Kanto Tournament." Monta nervously stated, "Someone who can't even make it to the finals would challenge the Americans?" Sena said that no one was that crazy.
"I already sent in our application," Hiruma stated very calmly as she was pulling on her school blazer (Remember, She's wearing the boy's uniform).
Everyone in the Amefuto lockers practically shouted: "ARE YOU CRAZY?!"
Now Sena reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally wanted to hide in a corner and cry. 'Of all the girls in this school… I HAD to fall for the Daughter of the Devil King of Hell… Life is most definitely cruel….' Thought the hidden running-back trying his best not to make a face that showed what he was thinking… Not like it was working or anything… Monta noticed that look. 'Is Sena hiding' something?' Wondered the receiver.
~}i{~
At the Amefuto Monthly's Editorial Department, the lottery drawing was underway. A man in his 30s with a huge Afro, bushy eyebrows, big rounded nose, was relatively heavyset, was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, and well-worn jeans had his hand, okay mostly has an arm, in a raffle box. This man was an Amefuto journalist by the name of Kumabukuro. He wasn't surprised that not a lot of applicants apply for this event, after all, there was a major tournament going on. Kumabukuro asked the editorial manager "How come we're doing this during the Kanto tournament anyway?" The Editor-in-Chief, an older man with a high forehead and round wire-rimmed glasses, stated almost in a bored tone "We had no choice. The American said it was the only time they could come." Kumabukuro pulled out one of the applicant's names from the raffle box; it was a BIG piece of paper. The Amefuto journalist was relatively impressed by the strategy used by the winning team. Kumabukuro finally stated out loud "That settles it – "The Deimon Devilbats" will be playing against the NASA Aliens. This will be an interesting match, since Deimons team's small and all." The editor-in-chief told Kumabukuro to forget about the raffle drawing. The Amefuto journalist asked why and the editor-in-chief explained that they already had a team picked out to face the Americans. The editor-in-chief told Kumabukuro "It be disgraced to have a puny team represent Japan? These guys looked like they could measure up against the Americans brawn. *Pulls out a magazine and shows the journalists a picture of the team that has been predetermined* This heavyweight team is known for their "Pyramid Line". The Taiyō Sphinx."
~}i{~
Back with the Deimon Devilbats in their new locker room the very same day. The team just got the email from the Amefuto Monthly magazine. Monta, Sena, and Kurita read the email.
The email read "Thank you for your application. Official lottery results, the Taiyō Sphinx will represent Japan in the competition."
Kurita had an odd mixture of tones when he said "Aww … That's too bad, but it's also kind of a relief…" It sounded like a mix of happiness and sadness that they weren't chosen. Hiruma, on the other hand, stated, with her evil cackle "That's what I thought. It's a little too perfect for that team to have picked." The She-Devil pulled out a cell phone, punched in a phone number, and when the other line picked up she stated in her manipulative cheery tone "Hello, Amefuto Monthly? Want an interview with the much talked about player, Eyeshield 21?" Kurita, Monta, and Sena knew exactly what that meant. 'Why, oh, why did I fall in love with HER?' Sena thought as tears streaked down his face. Monta saw those tears and wondered why his friend had them.
~}i{~
About 10 minutes later, at the Amefuro Monthly editorial department building. Now in his Eyeshield 21 persona, Sena was wondering how this all happened so suddenly. Oh right, Hiruma-chan. The running back mentally flinched, it was getting incredibly difficult for him to keep the She-Devil's secret, especially by the fact that he was in love with her. Sena sighed 'Life is very cruel.'
Speaking of the She-Devil, she called to give them instructions. Make an excuse to use the bathroom during the interview and then infiltrate the computer room. Sena wondered why on earth Hiruma would make it sound like it was so simple. Nevertheless, he did so. Easily avoiding all employees, including the one in the computer room.
Over the cell phones, Hiruma instructed Sena to type in something called "IPCONFIG"(2) and then type "NETSTATE"(2). "What language are you speaking?!" Sena whispered into the phone, he really didn't have any idea on what she was talking about. Now the She-Devil was annoyed, she told him that she was in a text him a step-by-step procedure to follow precisely. Sena looked at that list; he didn't understand half of what they were. Hiruma was going to kill him if he didn't do this right.
~}i[~
Kumabukuro wondered if Eyeshield 21 was sick or something, after all, he was taking a long time in the bathroom.
~}i{~
Okay, Sena managed to get into the computer's interface. Wasn't an easy thing for him; since he had never done this sort of thing before. The hacking part anyway. Next thing Sena knew, there was a whole series of computer text appeared on the screen. Since he didn't know what it meant or what to do, he snapped a picture with his cell phone and sent it to Hiruma. The She-Devil was impressed with the Chibi's idea.
Now Hiruma took over the Magazine's Computer room.
As Sena snuck out of the Computer room, he whispered into his phone that this was probably illegal, but the She-Devil assured him that Justice was on their side (A devil saying justice was on their side… anyone else finds this sentence odd?). Then Hiruma stated over the phone "Now, the preparation is complete! Let's seal the deal by sending an e-mail!" Sena had no idea what she meant, but he knew something was going to happen. He felt really sorry for the people at Amefuto Monthly.
~}i{~
9th Down: Scored
~}i{~
Omake Moment:
Sena couldn't believe his eyes! He never thought he sees the day this would happen! He never thought this would ever happen! Sena actually had to pinch himself just to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He wasn't. He couldn't believe this was real.
Sena was backstage with Kurita, and had their eyes on the stage, more specifically the person on the stage.
Even though she was wearing a long black wig, wearing a long, beautiful, light blue, tight, sleeveless dress that didn't hide her figure, had black eyeliner crafted around her eyes, and pink lipstick carefully painted on her lips. Both Kurita and Sena easily recognized that young woman on stage as Hiruma Yoichi. Both had the same flabbergasted look on their face. Neither teen had ever seen the She-Devil in any type of skirt or dress before…. Wait a minute…. Why was she in that getup and on stage anyway?
}{ 15 minutes ago }{
Sena was going to one of Mamori's friend's high school music festival with 99% of the Deimon Devilbats (Hiruma wasn't with them). The team was going to enjoy this, especially since Hiruma gave them the day off. Okay, yeah, everyone thought it was strange, but they didn't care at the moment. They had one whole day of no practice or helping out with the construction; they were going to completely enjoy it. It was very lively at the festival, oh yes; the team was going to enjoy it.
Kurita and Sena were in utter bliss until they spotted a certain someone wearing a long black wig, a pink sleeveless shirt with a big red heart on the front, and light blue skinny jeans. 'What's Hiruma doing here and what is she wearing?!' both Sena and Kurita thought when they saw her. So, the two snuck away from their group to confront the She-Devil.
Turns out Hiruma was getting more info for her "Little Black Book". That didn't surprise the two. What surprised Kurita and Sena were what the She-Devil was wearing. Her explanation was "I'm disguised as a girl so no one would recognize me while I collect some data." Neither of the Devilbat players knew what to say.
"There you are Koki!" Said a voice that belonged to one of the female students that attends the high school that the Devilbats were currently at. The three Devilbats looked around for this "Koki". The female student grabbed a hold of Hiruma's wrist and stated "Koki stop flirting. Our class is up next and you were supposed to be getting ready." Then she walked off with Hiruma, telling the teen that she wasn't Koki, in tow. Sena and Kurita had a look on their faces that stated Oh-My-God-This-Is-Positively-Horrible. Both Devilbats raced after them.
}{ Present Time }{
Kurita and Sena couldn't stop the high school class from prettying up Hiruma, who was looking really appealing in that tight blue dress, or stopping them from pulling her onto the stage, with a microphone headset, with the class band, in front of over A HUNDRED PEOPLE, INCLUDING THE REST OF THE DEVILBATS! This was not good, not good at all, and Kurita and Sena knew it.
A violin started playing than a piano started. The two Devilbats that were behind the curtain were starting to panic. How could the She-Devil be so calm?
Hiruma took a deep breath and started singing. Whatever things that Sena and Kurita were feeling at the moment, they were completely gone at this point.
"Every night in my dreams
I see you, I feel you
That is how I know you go on"
Hiruma's… Singing… Was… Actually… Really… Beautiful… "I didn't know she could sing…" Sena whispered to Kurita. And the gentle giant replied, "Neither did I…"
"Far across the distance
And spaces between us
You have come to show you go on"
Every single person in the entire audience was completely entranced by the singer. Including a giant, with a long flowing dark mane, that was leaning against a sturdy made food tent, who was with two of his friends. Both of the giant's friends were a lot shorter than he was, but the two were close to each other's height. One of them had shoulder-length blond hair and the other had short spiky brown hair. The brunette said to her friends "She's certainly has a good voice, I'd say." The blond teen said, "It would be more beautiful if she had more muscle on her." The brunette looked at him with a funny look that said of-coarse-you'd-say-that. The giant just chuckled.
"Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on"
Mamori couldn't help but think that she was listening to an angle. 'If only Sena could find a girl like that,' she thought. Monta was imagining the singer being Mamori.
"Love can touch us one time
And last for a lifetime
And never let go till we're gone"
Sena couldn't help but wonder how the She-Devil could sing like an angel.
"Love was when I loved you
One true time I hold to
In my life, we'll always go on"
At this point the real Koki was backstage. "Wait… If Koki's here… Then who's on stage?" asked the class president to the class that was backstage with him. His classmates shrugged in confusion.
"Near, far, wherever you are
I believe that the heart does go on
Once more you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on
You're here, there's nothing I fear
And I know that my heart will go on"
Shin of the White Knights just so happened to be jogging by when he heard Hiruma's singing, He actually stopped to listen. He was too far away from the stage to see who was singing, but then again he didn't really care who was singing, he was just fine listening to the voice. For some reason, an image of Takami-chan appeared in his head, which made Shin think 'Perhaps… This voice is telling me to work harder for her affection even if I don't know how.' After a second or so, Shin concluded that that was the case and continued his jogging. (Bit of a simple-minded answer, but hey, to each their own, right? Besides, it's good to be motivated).
"We'll stay forever this way
You are safe in my heart
And my heart will go on and on."
The audience erupted in applause. As soon as the curtains closed, Hiruma raced off as fast as she could, Kurita and Sena followed her.
}{ 5 Minutes later }{
After the three managed to ditch that class group, the three decided to use an abandoned tent so Hiruma could get out of that dress and made sure that Sena and Kurita were guarding the tent flap. The two knew that if they didn't stand guard or peek inside, the She-Devil would kill them on the spot.
Mamori spotted her two friends and called out to them. They waved to her but didn't move. Mamori did ask why they were standing there and the two replied that they were admiring the festival, adding that it was well put together. They didn't want their friend to be on the receiving end of the She-Devil or find out that Hiruma is a girl. She easily believed that and told them to enjoy themselves before leaving. Both were relieved.
When Hiruma exited the tent, she was wearing a new blue short-sleeved shirt, green cargo pants, no makeup, and was still wearing that long black wing. Sena was the one courageous enough to say "Ano, you have a really nice singing voice." The She-Devil glared at the two and said in a threatening tone "Do Not EVER Bring That Up." Kurita and Sena vigorously nodded. Hiruma left the campus.
"Hard to believe she sings like an angel," Kurita whispered quietly to Sena, who in turn replied, "Hiruma an angle…." After a minute or so of silence, the two agreed to never speak of Hiruma's singing ever again. After all, it was reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelay weird having the words "Hiruma" and "Angle" in the same sentence without the word "isn't" between the two.
'That singing is certainly not helping me with my affections for her, that's for sure,' Sena thought before him and Kurita went back to the festival.
}{
By the next day, everything was back to training and construction for the Devilbats. But during their class time, the only thing that the other students were talking about was that mysterious singer with the voice of an angle from yesterday's music festival. Both Sena and Kurita couldn't help but cringe at that.
~}i{~
Omake Moment: End
~}i{~
(1): Yup, that was Harao Kimiko of the Taiyō Sphinx.
(2): Due to the fact that I took an IT class, I actually know what these two words mean. They're both Command Prompt commands. IPGONFIG is a Microsoft Windows console application that displays all current TCP/IP network configuration values and can modify Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (or a DHCP) and Domain Name System (or a DNS) settings. And NETSTATE is a command-line tool that displays network connections for the Transmission Control Protocol (both incoming and outgoing), routing tables, and a number of network interface (network interface controller or software-defined network interface) and network protocol statistics. These are basically tools to figure out the basic setup of a computer, or in Hiruma's case, a way to hack a computer.
~}i{~
Gale-Dragon: I know that this Omake Moment isn't like the other Omake moments, but this was on my brain for a while. Anywho, I hope everyone enjoyed the chapter. Chapter 10 will be the DevilBats vs the Sphinx. That should be fun.