A/N: Just wanted to give a quick thank you for all of the reviews, especially MoonLuna2009. Your review was so beautiful that it almost brought tears to my eyes. I've read it over and over and it makes me so happy every time. ^_^ Thank you so very, very much! Now on with the show (story)!

The other regulars stood in astonished silence. No one had been able to move or even yell out as they had watched Eiji and Oishi go over. They had heard a splash a few seconds later, which had only served to stun them further.

Momo was the first to begin to rouse himself from the stupor. "Eiji-senpai… Oishi-senpai…" he began, slowly looking around the group and then returning his gaze to the waterfall. He was starting to feel restless, that he needed to do something and do it now. "What should we…" he started, his voice bordering on frantic. But he quieted just as quickly as he had began upon feeling a hand settle on his shoulder. Momo turned to see Kaidoh. Kaidoh was silent, but his expression said everything. Panicking would only worsen the situation and time was of the essence. Momo realized this, but it was getting harder to keep calm. He hung his head, brows knitting together, hands balling into fists and shaking slightly. He had never felt so helpless.

"Tezuka…" came the voice of Fuji. His eyes were open and shining with worry, no trace of a smile on his face. All eyes turned on the (former) buchou, expectant.

Tezuka turned to face his teammates with his usual calm, stern expression. Naturally, the sight had shaken him up as well, but if he showed signs of panic, the others would soon follow suit. So, he would do what he always had: take control of the situation. "We need to find a way down so that we can follow them," he stated matter-of-factly. Tezuka then turned to the data player of the group. "Inui, any suggestions?" he asked.

"Ah," responded Inui, pushing his glasses firmly up the bridge of his nose, all eyes now trained on him. "It just so happens that I have brought along some equipment that will do well in assisting us," he continued, sliding off the backpack he had been carrying. He sat it down, kneeling in front of it, and began to open the backpack, the other regulars' eyes peering curiously and anxiously at him. From the backpack, Inui pulled a large coil of thick rope. "If we secure this rope to that tree there," Inui explained, pointing to a tree close to the edge of the ground that would lead to the bottom, "then it should be able to support one person's weight at a time and we can go from there," he finished. Apparently Inui had been analyzing the situation from the beginning and was one step ahead of everyone else.

"Will the rope be long enough?" Taka again voiced his concern.

"The length should be sufficient enough for us to make it down unharmed," Inui confirmed, already making his way towards the tree, the others following close behind.

Inui tied the rope in a few thick, tight, expert knots around the base of the tree. He then gave the rope several hard yanks to test its durability. Once satisfied, he tossed the rest of the length of the rope over the edge and prepared to head down. "I'll go first," he stated. "That way, I can test it out and be at the bottom should anyone slip and it become necessary for me to catch them," he added. Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Be careful, Inui-senpai," Kaidoh said softly but seriously.

"Ah," Inui replied simply, and with that, set off, the others watching him and the rope, hoping that nothing would go wrong.

The trip down was safe and pretty quick, Inui noted, pleased, although the rope was not precisely l

ong enough, leaving about two feet between itself and the ground. But that was not a dangerous distance, so he signaled for the others to come down as well.

Tezuka came down next, making it look even more effortless than Inui had. Fuji followed, somehow making something as simple as climbing down a rope look graceful. Taka was next, albeit he went more slowly and cautiously than the others. Kaidoh made his way down quickly, hissing a little as he went. Momo had tried to go a little too fast, resulting in him nearly slipping and losing his grip, sending a fresh shot of adrenaline through everyone else, but he quickly regained his composure and made it down safely. Echizen was the last, taking little time and effort to reach his senpai-tatchi. Everyone was down safe and sound.

There was no immediate sign of Eiji or Oishi, so the other regulars decided to follow this smaller portion of the river. No one knew how far down it would reach, but Eiji and Oishi had to be somewhere.

They just hoped that the Golden Pair would be alright.

A/N: And there it is! I apologize if this chapter seems boring, but it was necessary in the story. We can't just forget about the other regulars ^_^ And I have to keep my suspense factor in place ^_^ Thank you again for the reviews! Next chapter, we'll find out what happens to Eiji and Oishi. ^_~