Notes:

Thank you for the reviews. As for Sai, I feel that he was intended to disappear permanently. If they meet, it will only be in dreams.

Please let me know if it sounds awkward when I use 'Shindou' instead of 'Hikaru' during those paragraphs where I use a third person voice from Akira's perspective.

"italics" is used to denote when dialogue is being spoken in a foreign language.

Chapter 2: Drawing to a Close

The discussion room was abuzz with fevered activity, as tournament staff hurriedly put the finishing touches on the stage decoration and straightened the last few chairs into place. A harried-looking lady ran back and forth, briefing various corporate figures about their roles in the ceremony and leading them to their reserved seats next to the stage. Spectators who remained from the discussion session milled around in groups and voices rose and fell – one moment there was only a low hum of muttering, and in the next, a rising crescendo of heated debate.

A hush fell across the room as the doors swung open. As the tournament participants filed in, the noise level rose again as the spectators excitedly gathered around the group to admire their Go idols and reporters from the three countries squirmed their way through the press of the crowd, clicking their cameras frenetically and yelling out questions to various participants.

A man near the front of the crowd made his way towards the Japanese team. "Kurata-san!" he cried out, waving a voice recorder in front of the manager's face, "Do you regret removing Touya Akira from the first board position?!"

"What strategy did you have in mind when you switched Touya Akira with Shindou Hikaru, Kurata-san?" added another reporter, her pen hovering anxiously over a messy-looking notepad.

The Koreans were also being besieged by their own reporters. "Ko Yeong-Ha, you defeated Shindou Hikaru by only half a moku. Were you not playing seriously?" and "An Tae-Seon-san, do you think the outcome of the match would have been different if the Japanese side had not switched their first and second board players?"

"Touya-kun, how did you feel when Kurata-san made you the second board for this game?"

"Shindou-kun – "

Suddenly, a stuffy voice cut through the clamour. "Everyone, please take your seats so the closing ceremony can begin promptly. There will be time for interviews afterwards."

"Ah, thank you, Togari-san," Kurata huffed gratefully to the stern-looking man as he fended off several overzealous reporters and fans. "Come on, we're over there," he told his team as he pointed to a woman waving them to their seats. As they made their way through the dissipating crowd, Hikaru tugged at his collar uncomfortably and tried to keep himself wedged between Akira and Yashiro – out of sight of the crowd as much as possible. His eyes focused straight ahead, unwilling to make eye-contact with anyone in the crowd.

The ends of Akira's mouth tugged up slightly as he observed Hikaru's discomfort. "Relax, Shindou," he said in a soft undertone, "Doesn't look like anyone's out for your blood."

"They probably just haven't seen me yet," Hikaru retorted. "Stick your head out a bit, won't you? Your hair's too flat – they might spot my bleached fringe."

"F-Flat??" Akira sputtered indignantly. He swung around with a retort on the tip of his tongue, but unlike most days, the other boy's mild expression only managed to drain away his annoyance. The way he saw it, Shindou had never been the type to give up. He was loud and brash and rude; he was spirited and burned with a fire that helped him bounce back from every setback, more determined than ever. And yet, there was that disturbing phase of depression that hit Shindou ... yes, almost exactly a year ago to the day ... it had made Akira realise that there was something inside of the Shindou that could – and did – break. That, despite his bright confidence and unwavering determination to forge ahead through all obstacles, there were some burdens he could not bear and some hurts that took an incredibly long time to heal. All the recent uproar about Shuusaku – it made him fear that it was one of those things as well. He did not know what brought the troubled Shindou back to his feet, and if it happened again, he would have no idea how to help. But now as he looked at Shindou, a flippant ghost of a grin on his face and a gaze steady if just a bit tired, he felt an unexpected sense of relief – and wearied, as if some long, unnoticed tension had suddenly melted away.

Hikaru had seen the parade of expressions on Akira's face and glared at him. "Who asked you to worry anyway?" Hikaru looked away for a moment, before continuing softly, "I meant what I said yesterday. I'd play Ko Yeong-Ha, no matter what anyone might say." Pause. "I'm fine."

Akira nodded wordlessly.

"Hikaru. Hikaru!" came a low call.

Hikaru swung around, searching for the source of that familiar voice and spotted the elderly man who had just risen up from nearby seat. "Grandfather? You came to watch??" he blurted in surprise.

The man nodded with a gentle smile. "That was an excellent game, Hikaru," he offered comfortingly. Chuckling softly, he continued, "Perhaps I might even consider adding one or two handicap stones in our next game."

Hikaru snorted, "You're going to need more than one or two to overcome that fifty moku loss, grandfather!"

"Don't you get cocky with me now!"

"Hehehe.... Anyway, I'll drop by your house tomorrow or something. We can talk then." Hikaru gave a small wave as he followed his team to the front seats.

--------------------------------

Yashiro glanced at his watch impatiently. This was so tedious. A bevy of suits had gone up to the stage and babbled on and on about things like 'international cooperation' and 'strengthening of friendships' and 'facing the future together'. He suppressed a yawn. There had been an excited stir when the head honcho of North Star Communications announced that the North Star Cup would be held again the following year, but it hadn't been enough to keep him interested in the proceedings.

"—in third place, Team Japan."

A sharp elbow poked him in the ribs. "Oy, Yashiro, get up. They're calling us to the stage."

"Huh? Oh, alright." He stood up and followed Hikaru towards the front of the room.

On the stage, Hikaru blinked in surprise at the unexpectedly warm applause. Near the back, he spotted Kawai-san waving excitedly and, when they made eye-contact, received a big thumbs-up. Hikaru allowed himself the luxury of a small grin. Slightly relieved, he let his eyes roam over the audience before they came to a stop near the front ... Kitajima-san. The man didn't look too furious though. Actually, he didn't look angry at all. He sighed in relief. Next to him, Akira glanced sideways and smiled faintly.

After they duly received their certificates, the emcee turned to Kurata and said, "Team Manager Kurata-san, will you give us a few words?"

"Of course," Kurata said as he took the microphone and faced the crowd. "Our inexperience showed in the course of this tournament. But although we placed last, I think it is clear to everyone in the audience the great potential of our young Japanese pros. Touya Akira won both of his matches, and both Shindou Hikaru and Yashiro Kiyoharu played exceptional games. Since this is the inaugural tournament of the North Star Cup, perhaps it is best to give our guests a chance to win. But next year, we won't be quite as kind!" Then, as if five minutes of formal speech had been too much for him, he suddenly pointed at An Tae-Seon, the manager of Team Korea and gesticulated wildly. "Don't you think you've gotten away easy! You'll be going down next year! Down!!"

The emcee looked uncomfortable as she tried to pry the microphone from Kurata's hands as politely as possible. "Umm ... yes ... ah ... thank you Kurata-san. And thank you, Team Japan."

The Japanese team left the stage as the emcee announced, "With a loss to Korea and a victory against Japan ... in second place, Team China."

Yang Hai led his team up to the stage, where he too took his turn at the microphone. "I'd like to thank the organisers for coming up with the idea for this tournament. We were pleasantly surprised by the strength of the team fielded by Japan, and we anticipate seeing great progress from them. A second North Star Cup is great news, and we look forward to coming back next year and snatching the trophy from Korea."

Yang Hai, unlike Kurata, handed over the microphone without a fight, and lead his team back to their seats.

"Thank you, Yang Hai-san and Team China. And now, with a 3-0 victory against China and a 2-1 victory against Japan, please welcome the tournament winners, Team Korea."

"Thank you," said An Tae-Seon at the microphone, "For Japan's hospitality during our stay here. We are proud to have demonstrated Korea's strength at Go. We will hold on to our dominance, and I promise that we will win again next year." If Akira had not been forcibly holding Kurata by the jacket, he probably would have raced up to the stage and snatched the microphone from An Tae-Seon's hands.

Hikaru, meanwhile, kept his eyes fixed on the manager, studiously avoiding locking gazes with Ko Yeong-Ha. He did not want to see the self-satisfied smirk on the other boy's face. However, had his eyes slid over to the right just a bit, he would have been surprised to see a serious, pensive expression on Ko Yeong-Ha face.