A/N: Well, things aren't looking good. Lets see what I can do in this chapter.

I will add that Umeko is Umeko's first name. Those who don't know her call her by her surname, Kikoishi

Edited (08/06/2016)

Disclaimer: It was on a cloudy day like today that Takeshi Konomi thought up Prince of Tennis. (random)


Chapter Eighty

"Wah! I can't believe I lost!"

Yokoishi uncovered her eyes and dropped her shoulders. She thanked the guardians for their participation and dismissed them back to their temples. What a waste. Had she known the match would have ended so soon, she would never have used all three of them.

"She looks disappointed." Suzu combed her hair back and wiped some of the sweat off her forehead.

"She does look a bit down. At least she won." Nariko added.

Yokoishi shook hands with her defeated opponent and danced back to her bag. It was a close game, with the scores ending at 7-6. When her opponent started to use her technique that was when the game grew hard for Yokoishi to alter the effects. Normally, out of pity, she would let the opponent win some points back. This game was truly hard on her. Though she was happy about the win, she found it difficult to breath and had to reduce her cheering down to the bear minimum.

She rejoined the team. They were happy for the win yet their quiet mood meant they still thought about Umeko's slip-up. Before Yokoishi could shuffled along the row, Shikawara was already out and climbing down the stairs to start her match. She didn't push pass her, she was just in a hurry to get this day over with. Yokoishi glimpsed Fuji from above and threw her hands in the air.

"Did you see my win Fuji-senpai! Aren't I just amazing!"

Fuji flicked a look to her. How could she have not noticed – what did she think she was doing with all that power? Fuji gave a small wave and Yokoishi took to her seat. Arai thanked Yokoishi for securing a victory and got a pompous snort in return.

"Yes, Ryuzaki-sensei will be most pleased with the first win of the day." Her grin was creepy and it told Arai all she needed to hear.

The girls settled down to watch Shikawara's match. On the outside Shikawara seemed focused, but on the inside, in her mind, she was fighting hard to keep that spirit from waking up. Over the past few days the heaviness that was burdening her lifted. Now in its place, she kept hearing her mother's voice. Even now she could hear that proud and over bearing tone, ordering her to give her a little bit of freedom.

There wasn't much in the world that scared Shikawara. She was used to guns, knives, dodgy characters and blood. But it's not everyday you hear and see ghosts. It's not everyday that your dead parent taps your shoulder asking to get let into the human realm. She known the only way to be rid of the hovering voices and sudden taps was by way of releasing her, but that would only mean that she would be able to see her mother as a living spirit, and that would really mess with her head. If it wasn't someone else toying with her mind, she seemed to do it all on her own. How did things get this weird?

Never in her life would she have imagined tennis being this complicated. When you watch it on TV, you just see it for what it is. Had she known powers and spirits and smells were used in a bizarre spiritually why, she would have picked football or chess… But there was something about the way the team treated each other that made her pick tennis over anything else. She was an only child and had also wanted a sibling, so when she saw the way the girls treated each other, she was drawn towards the sport. Their togetherness and devotion made her want to be apart of this mini family. As of late, it was all falling apart. What with Fuji and Arai fighting in the shadows. That didn't bother her as much as she could see it was a battle of power. What bothered her was the way Jinhana disrespected a fellow player and the way the girls kept secrets from each other. It was starting to be a broken home and she was sick to her back teeth of seeing things getting torn apart.

Shikawara played like she always did. Her strength got her through to the next round. She remembered the advice Yokoishi gave her. If dragged into an illusion she needed to manipulate it the same way one would when controlling a lucid dream. Thanks to her extra training, she got the hang of it, which was why she was able to get the better of her opponent who seemed to master the subject of calligraphy. The ball would dart off in strange directions before trying to open a door to different environments. Not only could she stop those illusions, it helped her ward off her mother's presence.

Her win wasn't easy, if not for her inner struggles. She let games slip and even dragged it into a tie-breaker. The points were nothing on Tezuka's or Atobe's level. She made it 13-11. She fell on one knee when she won. Shikawara forgot how intense a prolonged game could get. Now she remembered why she liked to finish them quickly. At least her opponent was pleased with the match. It ended fairly and was something for both of them to be proud of.

"Taichi, that's the best we've seen you. You were really good." Yokoishi praised her.

Despite the praise, Shikawara could hear the concern behind the words. She could hear that Yokoishi wanted her to release that hovering spirit. Because of that she wouldn't bring it up.

"Oh no. That means it's my turn!" Umeko gasped. "I don't know if I'm good enough to play against their captain. She's the one who nullified me last year."

"Just make sure you trap her before she traps you." Arai said, since no one else give her advice.

But Umeko was not looking forward to this. Fuji watched her walk down the steps. She didn't bother take her bag. Just a racket was all she needed. Fuji breathed out through her nose as a weird smell breezed past her. It seemed that Bunsei's captain, Kana Matsumoto did the same as Fuji. She breath out through her nose and held it for a second. Umeko wondered what she was doing.

"Sensei, I'll do my best, but she really scares me."

"Kikoishi-chan, play to the very end and don't show any signs of weakness, okay."

Umeko took to the courts, it would seemed that Matsumoto recognised her from last year and that made a smirk curve across her red lips.

"Aren't you a familiar sight." She said.

Umeko looked at their hands as they reached out to greet each other. She didn't know what to say.

"Oh don't look so worried, I'll only do the same thing as last year."

Umeko snatched her hands back and took to the baseline.

"Hmm, what move to use on you? How about the bass." Matsumoto smirked. She waited for the umpire to call the game to start and she served.

The team was shocked when they saw Umeko avoid the ball.

"She better not let my win go to waste." Shikawara said.

Umeko slapped her cheeks. She needed to snap out of this sudden fear. How can you play tennis without hitting the ball, unless you want the other team to win in the space of five minutes. Get it together. The Bunsei team were wondering what was wrong with Umeko. But she had every reason to be scared of their captain. They let the two carry on without any opposition. The first game was won in no time. Umeko was called to serve and she was very reluctant. If she touched the ball after Matsumoto returned it then something would happen to her. It was hypocritical of her, she knew that, but she was paralysed after last years' experience.

"If you don't play me seriously you'll lose, Kikoishi-chan."

She told herself that maybe Matsumoto had changed. She had to convince herself to try and play the game, but when she returned the ball on several occasion the floor would vibrate beneath her feet, causing her to stagger and miss.

"You're not even going to let me taste your moves? I'm disappointed Kikoishi-chan"

She let the scores slip to 0-3. When she heard her team call out to her, she had to try and win back some points. She should be familiar with Matsumoto's move. She didn't switch from using the bass so if she could just catch the ball before it hit the ground then she could get some points. It was Umeko to serve. As she threw the ball up a piercing sound travelled into her ear and forced her to cover them. Matumoto switched the game quickly. That screech from the violin was enough to draw blood and pop her eardrums.

"Consider this payback for what you did in your last game, when you broke that girl's arm."

What bad luck. She didn't think the Bunsei team were there that day. Now what was she going to do? She could do what Kikumaru did… no that would be too shameful of her… she had to carry on with this match.

She served and Matsumoto allowed her room to return the ball. She wanted to see if Umeko had developed anything interesting over the past year. Sadly, Umeko didn't seem to drag her into any illusions or try to put any smells pass her. Matsumoto had done her research on Umeko and as long as she got to her first, then Umeko couldn't do anything to her. As soon as the game started she had planned to toy with Umeko like a lion club does with a baby warthog. Cat and mouse. She would certainly take revenge out for those she had tormented up until now.

That was her true intentions and she wouldn't let up until the last point. Such an effect took its toll on Matsumoto. It was draining to toy with this feeble mouse, but she enjoyed it. She revelled in Umeko's embarrassment when she switched from the bass guitar and the violin with ease. Every now and then Matsumoto would wipe the sweat from her forehead and tap her chest to help the air flow around her. She wiped her nose again and thought nothing of it. She knew her limits and with the score now at 0-5 she was going to switch to the flute before her chance ran out.

Umeko picked herself up off the court. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. The humiliation kept her school silence, they didn't know what to make of it and it was the first time they saw Umeko in such a state. They could feel the lose in the air. Umeko took to her feet. She knew what was coming. Having been tortured with the eruptions of the bass and the pitch of the violin, it would call for the deep emotions of the flute. But which emotion would she create in her? Whatever she used it would completely change the chemical balance in her body and make her act in that manner, like a drug. If she played a happy song, she'd be fine, but if Matsumoto allow a depressing song to float into her ear canal, she would bring Umeko to tears. Umeko hated this girl. She couldn't wait for the last four points to be won.

"Why is she just standing there?" Nariko asked, not knowing what to expect.

"Whatever she's going to do, it ain't gunna be pretty." Shikawara replied.

Umeko wiped the sweat from her face, as did Matsumoto.

"Ready, Kikoishi-chan? I know the perfect emotion for you."

Umeko brassed herself. When she tossed the ball up and heard the sound. It wasn't the same tune she remembered from last year. This one was slow and war torn, the kind of score a movie would use after a disaster. An apocalypse, with one man standing, looking over the place he called home, knowing that he was the only human left. He lost everyone and everything. Umeko could feel the pain within the song and couldn't stop her heart from feeling that lost. She couldn't stop the images of people dying around her and plaguing her mind. Even when she shut her eyes the screams and the crumbled buildings wouldn't go away.

"Hmm, I'm going to make you run around for a bit, Kikoishi-chan. Wear you out before finishing you off." Matsumoto ran in to hit the ball Umeko served with maddening strength. Matsumoto looked up and saw the tears of lose fall from her eyes and marvelled at her skill. She could have easily won the game but she wanted to stretch it out. They would have to wait several weeks before they could play in the finals, so Matsumoto made the pumped-up Umeko play to her hearts content.

While using the emotions of the flute, she couldn't use any other technique, which was okay as she didn't need to. Seeing Umeko's heart broken face every time she lost a point was more then enough of a victory for her. After five minutes of letting Umeko run around, Matsumoto ended the game with a slam out of her reach. Umeko dropped to the floor and cried out in agony, she hid her face from all those watching and didn't have the will to move.

Matsumoto laughed. She walked up to the net and pointed down to Umeko. She was about to say something to her opponent when she felt someone take her hand.

"One set match, Bunsei Academy to serve. Begin!"

Did she hear right? Matsumoto looked over to the umpire to correct him when she heard the cheers and loud roars from the crowd telling her to win it for Bunsei. She also heard Seishun's school cheering Umeko on to take the last game by any means necessary.

She could still feel something in her hand. When she looked back, Umeko was standing in front of her with a big grin on her face. Matsumoto screamed and staggered back. She didn't count on her legs being tired and fell over. When Umeko saw this she couldn't help grinning and pulled the skin of her eye down.

"Got you!"

Matsumoto looked around. "What do you mean, you got me? The match has finished already. I won!"

"BA~KA! We've not begun yet." Umeko laughed behind grinning teeth. The crowd only fuelling the result of her best move yet. "But you look like you've just had an remarkable match all by yourself, am I right?"

Matsumoto didn't want to believe it. She tried to stand up. She could feel the exhaustion all over her body and couldn't understand why she was so fatigued. "How did you?"

Umeko couldn't stop grinning. She looked a bit demonic. "You thought I'd be the same loser as last year, did you? Shame on you for underestimating me. I set you up from the moment I saw the line up and that I was against you. I wasn't going to let you get me first. I've been glancing you from the beginning, watching and making sure that you tried to force a bad smell from under your nose."

"How? People can only use their skills in a game. You're making stuff up. What use would you have for it outside the game?"

"Poor, poor girl. Thinking that I would be so restricted. I'm one of the few who doesn't need to be in the game to use my skills, let me show you."

Matsumoto smelt something toxic under her noise and before she knew it, she was surrounded by large moths. Her phobia.

"Heh, heh, heh. I love being me." She removed the illusion and held a fresh tennis ball up. "Shall we start the last match of the day?"


tbc…

A/N2: Oh Umeko, you trickster you. Good job everyone else. You made it to the finals? (I think I need to go back and change some detail...)

Chapter 81: Ryuzaki-sensei returns. Echizen gives Fuji some good news but will she get the answer she's looking for.

Woot, thanks for reading. XOX