CHAPTER 1

Date: 30th January
Location: Tokyo, Japan

Emily walked down the streets of Harajuku, weaving expertly around the throngs of Japanese teenagers that milled about the area. She and the rest of the All Starz had arrived at the city of Tokyo the twenty-eighth, three days earlier than the date of the cruise so that Max could visit his Dad. The half-American and Rick were currently staying at Bakuten, half an hour away from Tokyo while the rest of the team stayed at a hotel. They were to meet up at on the cruise later on.

Bits of conversation floated from behind her just as she turned the corner.

"Eh, Mike, look at that!" Eddy exclaimed incredulously with a laugh. There was a pause before the boys burst into laughter at whatever it is that they were looking at.

"Who in their right mind would wear that?"

The bespectacled girl clenched her teeth, trying her best to ignore the two boys who were trailing after her, gawking and commenting on the oddly dressed teens around them. Thank goodness no one paid attention to their offensive comments, she thought irritably, or they'd probably get in trouble. Some of the clothes worn by the Japanese youngsters were rather outlandish, but at least Emily had the decency to keep her thoughts to herself. Shaking her head, she stalked ahead.

She stopped outside a hobby shop, peering interestedly at the beyblade display. Hard metal system beyblades were arranged neatly on the shelf, polished to perfection as they shone under the afternoon sun. A sign sat behind them, written completely in Japanese, but Emily was willing to bet that they were proclaiming the power the beyblades held, neglecting to mention that they were difficult to control, especially for rookies. She had seen many bladers in the States that were lured by the promise of power and bought them, only to give up soon after.

"Hey, hey, Em," Michael said as he came to stand next to her, bending down to look at what she was looking at, whistling admiringly when he saw the blades. "Nice."

She turned her head to face him, "what?"

"Let's go to that café," he said, pointing to a shop further down the street, "We're kinda hungry," he added, giving her a sheepish lopsided grin, the corners of his pretty blue eyes crinkling. Beside him, Eddy nodded, rubbing his stomach.

"Mmm, alright," she mumbled. Emily spun on her heel and headed towards the café, called the Black Alice, ignoring the way her heart rate increased whenever Michael shot a smile her way.

.

"Irashaimase!" A bright, cheery voice greeted as soon as the All Starz walked into the café. It was a young woman, dressed in a black French maid costume. She smiled and bowed. The Americans inclined their heads awkwardly in response just as another girl approached them, yammering away in Japanese. She ushered them to a table by the window and presented them the menu. Michael opened it, only to stare at the foreign words.

"It's in Japanese," Eddy said, stating the obvious as he looked up to stare at his friends. "And there're no pictures."

"No, duh," Emily rolled her eyes.

"Can any of you read it?" Michael asked as his stomach rumbled. The other two shook their heads. The waitress, who had been hovering nearby spoke up with a concerned look on her face.

Emily looked at her thoughtfully. "From what little Japanese I know, I think she's asking if there's a problem."

"Tell her we don't understand the menu!" Eddy urged. Emily was quiet for a moment, thinking quickly, "I'll try."

She turned to the waitress. "Er, watashi-tachi…er, wakaranai…" She tapped the menu. Michael tried not to grin; it was amusing, not to mention rare, to see the redhead struggling with something. It made her seem human, like the rest of them. "…menu. Eigo menu?" Emily added, a hopeful tone to her voice.

The girl's mouth fell open, a look of understanding dawning on her face. "Chotto matte kudasai, eto," she raised an index finger, "one minute," she said. As she turned away, someone from the table next to the All Starz's intercepted her.

Michael sighed and turned to stare out the window as rapid-fire Japanese filled his ears. Sometimes being in a foreign country sucked.

.

A couple of minutes later, a Eurasian-looking girl about their age with approached their table, the waitress at her shoulder. Michael eyed her hair, wondering how she dyed the side-swept bangs in what looked like every colour of the rainbow. She looked vaguely familiar, he realised, but he couldn't place her. Emily had a small frown on her face. She took out her iPad from her satchel and began typing furiously away.

"Hi. So you guys need an interpreter?" She asked with a friendly grin.

"Yeah," Eddy answered. "Can you help us?" He gestured at the menu, a sheepish look on his face.

"Sure," she pulled it towards her and rattled off some of the items the café served. "I'd recommend the parfait," she said as the All Starz decided. "I just had it and it's really good."

Emily didn't look up from her tablet. "I think I'll have that," she told her. "I'm not that hungry anyway."

The girl nodded and passed the message on to the waitress. Michael had ramen and Eddy decided on omelette rice. "Anything else I can help you with?"

"Umm, no, I don't think so," Eddy replied, glancing uncertainly at the unusually quiet Emily. "Thanks a lot for your help!"

The girl laughed. "Nah, I should thank you," she said, leaning down, hand raised to cover her mouth in a conspiratorial manner. "I'm getting a free parfait out of this, so really, it's no problem."

"Glad to be of service," Michael said with a chuckle.

"Well, alright then, see you guys around." She gave them a small wave and strolled away to towards the back of the café, where she re-joined her friends. A brunette with thick black eyeliner at her table glanced in the All Starz's direction, making eye contact with Michael who was facing them. Her lips lifted into a tiny amused smirk as she looked away. She said something to the Japanese girl, who started to eat faster. Michael cringed as she heaped huge spoonfuls of ice cream in her mouth, rather reminiscent of Tyson. The group stood up as soon as she was done.

"Are they leaving?" Emily asked Michael who nodded. Emily twisted in her chair to watch them go, a calculating look on her face. He had an idea who the girls were now.

"What're you looking at?" Eddy followed their gaze. "Who're they?"

"The Kamikaze Girls." Michael and Emily answered in unison.

"Kamikaze Girls? Are they like, the girl version of the Blitzkrieg Boys?" Eddy guffawed at his own joke. Emily rolled her eyes. "Wait, are they in the tournament? And how come I haven't heard of them?"

"Yes they are, and because you were too busy watching basketball! Honestly, Eddy, are you sure you're a beyblader? Sometimes I wonder about your commitment to this team!" Emily ranted, throwing her hands up in the air. "You have to keep up with the news!"

Eddy scowled. Trust Emily to turn a simple answer into a nagging point. He made a face at Michael who ignored him. He actually agreed with her this time. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. So are they a threat or not?"

Unconsciously, Michael leaned forward, waiting for her answer. He hadn't seen the girls' stats, but he'd seen the way they bladed. It definitely was on par with the World Championship standards.

"They will be if you don't step up!"

Which, in Emily terms, meant that the All Starz could take them. Michael leaned back in his chair, feeling relieved and slightly silly to be worried over a girly team. Psh, we'll probably wipe the floor with the rookies and send them crying back home, he thought with a smirk.


AN: Hey, I updated after a week! It's a record! I know it's a short chapter, but at least I can update faster…? XD Anyway, thanks for reading and let me know what you think! Any improvements, etc. :D