Me: Here is another chapter, minna! Have fun while reading.

Kirino: Att-chan doesn't own Inazuma Eleven.

Shindou woke up by a cloud of smoke that prickled in his nose. He sneezed and opened his eyes to look around. He immediately wished he didn't, for it would have prevented him from seeing the embarrassing position he was in. With Kirino.

He was instantly awake.

The former merman laid on his back and Shindou laid partly on top of him. Their arms were around each other's bodies and Shindou's head was at the height of Kirino's chest. It rose and fell in the rhythm of Kirino's breathing. Shindou, whose face was now the new definition of red, shot upright in order to get out of this situation as quickly as he could, but he ended up waking up Kirino.

"Huh? Oh, eh... Good morning?" the pink haired boy awkwardly started.

"Uhm, yeah, you too." The awkward silence was broken by an amused snicker and when they looked up, they saw that Kariya was smirking at them. The boy sat on his knees by the fire, and his mere presence caused Shindou's and Kirino's blushes to darken.

"Yeah, good morning, Captain, Kirino-san." His mischievous smile was replaced by an innocent expression. "Did you sleep well, Captain~?"

Shindou cleared his throat and adverted his eyes and Kariya's smirk widened when he realized his captain's unease. He was about to make another comment, but the glare Kirino sent him somehow made him change his mind. He tried to shake the feeling off, but the former merman's eyes pierced like daggers through his skin and it only ceased when he changed the topic. He cleared his throat. "A-anyways, can you watch this for a while? I need to check up on Tenma."

"What's that?" Kirino asked.

"A ferret. I went hunting after my watch, and I found this one. There's barely any food left, so I'm preparing it for later." The teal haired boy left and Kirino and Shindou were now alone. An awkward silence lasted between them, until Shindou broke it.

"I eh... I'm sorry for... that." Kirino didn't need to ask what 'that' referred to. Obviously, it was the awkward position they found themselves in when they woke up.

"Don't worry about it... Did you sleep well?"

Shindou's face heated up again as he stared in Kirino's eyes, but he didn't find a trace of a joke. Kirino was sincerely interested in his answer. "Yes, thank you," he nodded.

"Thank goodness," Kirino smiled. "How's your neck?"

"It's fine."

"Can you show me?"

Shindou hesitantly pulled his collar aside and showed his badly bruised neck. It was really stiff and almost every movement hurt. Damn that Tsurugi! Kirino trailed over the purple bruises with his fingers. His touch was so light that it didn't even hurt. Every time they brushed against his skin, Shindou felt a little tingle, but it wasn't from the pain. It actually felt quite nice.

Then Kirino retrieved his hand and Shindou felt like he lost something. "That stupid vampire," Kirino growled. "There was no reason at all to attack you!" A warm feeling spread through Shindou's chest when he heard how Kirino verbally attacked Tsurugi. It felt good to know that the merman cared that much about him.

Soon, Hikaru, Kariya and Shinsuke joined them by the fire. There was still no sign from Tenma. No one really felt like talking after all the events yesterday, so they ate their meal in silence. Kariya's ferret was a welcome addition, but after breakfast, no one was really satisfied. Shinsuke went to check up on Tenma and try to let him eat and drink a bit, and after he returned, everyone sat down around the now extinguished fire.

"Our food is gone and so is our money," Shindou started. This wasn't the time to beat around the bush, so he immediately cut to their main problems. "We'll have to sell something to buy food and water."

"What about the horses?" Everyone turned to Hikaru, who had put the idea forward. The boy shifted uncomfortably under the attention, cleared his throat and continued. "I mean, Tenma is certainly in no condition to ride a horse right now, so we have at least one spare... If we sell it, won't we have enough for all the food and water and stuff we need?" His voice went up at the end of the question, expressing his hope for acceptance of the idea.

Shindou rubbed his chin in thought. The movement hurt his throat as well, so he quickly ceased it. "You do have a point there, Hikaru," he mused. "Selling one of the horses would definitely solve our problems on food and money. But can we afford it, practically speaking? We don't know if the Leader has given up on us or not. For all we know, someone might just be lurking at us now."

And he didn't know how right he was with that last statement, until it was too late.

Eventually, they agreed with one another. Shindou didn't like the idea of having fewer horses to carry them and their luggage, but he understood that they really needed the money and he couldn't find any other idea. He knew Tenma needed medicine of some sort, at least to get his fever down. The poor boy had gotten an higher temperature in the worst possible moment. Right when his body was weak and in lack of blood. They needed antipyretic herbs and a lot of luck if they wanted their friend and teammate to survive.

Tenma's health was their biggest priority.

They agreed on selling one horse - Shindou wanted to keep at least four - in the nearest village, and Kariya and Kirino would be the ones to do it. After all, it might be suspicious for the townspeople if five strangers showed up, offering to sell a horse. People in these remote places often recollect strange faces for a few days and the last thing they wanted was to draw attention. Another reason was that they couldn't simply let Tenma alone.

So the two boys walked alongside in the direction of the nearest village. According to the map that Shindou had taken with him when they ran from the army, it was eight miles away from their current location. Eight miles meant that they had to walk at least one hour to get there, and at least one hour back. It would have been faster if they just rode the horse to get there, but they didn't want to exhaust the animal.

Neither of them said much as they walked; the silence between them got filled up by the sounds of the horse's and their footsteps. It was hard to walk in a straight line when all you saw were trees. Countless trees. As soon as their camp disappeared from view, Kirino didn't know what direction to take anymore. Kariya however, seemed to be quite certain about where they had to go. He kept on looking at the sky and every time they made a turn, he marked the place with a little tower of pebbles. Kirino didn't question the other's actions, he just assumed that Kariya knew what he was doing.

He was glad when they finally arrived at the small town. Kariya went to negotiate with an interested salesman about the price of the horse, while Kirino waited outside. He closed his eyes to enjoy the warm tingling of the sun and the whistling of the birds. It was peaceful and nice and suddenly, he wished he was here with Shindou instead of with Kariya. He blinked and shook his head vigorously to clear the thought away. Where in Poseidon's name had that come from?!

He was startled by a hand that firmly gripped his shoulder and jumped from shock. At the same time, a small yelp escaped his lips. Turning around, he found himself staring into the glimmering golden eyes of Kariya. One second, two seconds, then his heart finally continued beating. His younger companion shot him a confused glance before his face split into a mischievous grin. "Oh, sorry, did I disturb any happy thoughts?"

The words themselves weren't really embarrassing, it was the implying tone that the younger one used which caused Kirino to feel uneasy. "What are you talking about?" he asked. Thank god he didn't stutter there, but he couldn't look the other in the eye either.

Kariya smiled wider. "Oh come on, you were thinking about Captain, weren't you? Just admit it already."

The uneasiness expanded with the moment. "Why would I? You and the others have been acting weird since yesterday evening. Look, Shindou and I are just friends, just like I'm friends with you and Tenma and Hikaru and Shinsuke." He paused for a moment and studied Kariya's face. "Is there another human custom that I got wrong? Like when I first met you guys and... Ahem, kissed Shindou? Did I do something that implied that he means more to me?"

Kariya was about to say that there wasn't such a thing as misinterpreted actions, rather than the loving looks the two people sent at each other, but he stopped himself. He recalled how flustered Shindou had been this morning, when he woke up. The beet-red faces of the two oldest people in their group were a sight that he wouldn't mind seeing again. Besides, it would be good for Shindou to distract him a little from Akane's fate. Struggling to hold back a really devious smile, he feigned an innocent and genuine expression. Luckily for him, he was a master in hiding his true emotions and Kirino didn't sense anything odd.

"Well, actually..."

Shindou entered the small and muggy tent and let his eyes adjust to the dusk. He knelt at Tenma's side and placed a hand on the boy's head, checking his temperature. Tenma groaned when Shindou's cool hand came in contact with his own hot and sweaty forehead. His eyes stirred behind his closed eyelids, but he didn't wake up. Shinsuke told him that Tenma had woken up this morning to eat a little, but Shindou was still worried to death. If the brunette's condition didn't improve soon, he feared the worst.

It was hot inside the tent and a few beads of sweat dripped down Tenma's face. Shindou poured a little water from the water bottle on his sleeve and used it to clean the younger one's forehead, as well as to cool him down a little. After that, he brought the bottle to Tenma's lips and watched as a tiny trickle of water ran into the brunette's mouth. Tenma slowly swallowed the water and muttered a faint "Thank you, Captain." Shindou figured he had been awake ever since he, Shindou, came in.

"No problem, Tenma. Just get well soon, okay?" he smiled.

"It's hot," Tenma replied, still not opening his eyes.

Shindou's smile faltered a bit. "It'll be alright," he said bravely. "Everything will work out somehow." That last part was more to convince himself than to reassure the sick boy. After all, how could things work out without medicine and barely any food or water? No, I mustn't think like that, he lectured himself. Kirino and Kariya will be here soon and then we'll have enough supplies. I just hope nothing else goes wrong from here on. His eyes shifted from Tenma's pale face to the four punctural wounds in his neck. Luckily, they had healed well so far, but he couldn't help but glare at them. If it hadn't been for that damn vampire - who they had freed, for crying out loud! - Tenma wouldn't lay here like this. Shindou gritted his teeth and dug his nails in the palms of his hands. Tsurugi had said that he might want another drink from Tenma, but... did he really mean it? Or did he just want to give them a scare? Shindou wholeheartedly hoped for the last option, because he was quite sure that Tenma wouldn't survive a second drink.

"Captain?" Shinsuke's voice came through the canvas of the tent and Shindou's head jolted in the direction of the sound. He suppressed a groan when his stiff neck protested against the sudden movement. Casting one last look on the sick boy at his feet, he got up and crawled out of the tent.

What he saw greatly shocked him.

If he hadn't been as tired and as emotionally broken down as he was now, he would have noticed the odd thing about Shinsuke's tone of voice. When the boy called out for his captain, his voice had been slightly higher than usual, which indicated the panic that he felt.

If he had been more alert, he would have jumped into action immediately after seeing two of his juniors being held by four strange men. Two men kept Hikaru's and Shinsuke's arms behind their backs, while the other two held a knife on their throats.

If he hadn't been so surprised by the sudden sight, he might have been able to dodge the attack that was aimed at him as soon as he exited the tent. But he was surprised, and before he could comprehend the situation, a fist collided with the side of his skull and he dropped to the ground. Black blurs invaded the edges of his vision and became bigger, leaving him with the feeling as if he walked through a tunnel.

The sounds became more distant too, so maybe he really was inside a tunnel? He didn't know. The voices from the distance were distorted and barely audible over a noisy hammering that throbbed through his painful head. Was that his heartbeat? "Are these all of them, Taiyou-sama?" one voice asked, and another replied. "No, there are two who left a little earlier. I'll take care of those myself, you take these ones away."

Then suddenly, his collar was lifted and roughly came in contact with his sore neck. Shindou managed to utter one groan before he lost consciousness and sank into a room with no sights, no sounds and no pain.

They walked in silence once again, and Kirino used this moment of rest to organize his thoughts. He was so preoccupied with everything Kariya had told him about friendships between humans, that he didn't notice the cunning smile that decorated the other's lips. And Kariya made sure to properly hide it every time Kirino's gaze shifted to him.

According to the teal haired boy, the actions between Kirino and Shindou implied something different from their words. "When you talk to each other, everyone can see that you care for each other to a certain extend. But when you look solely at your behaviour, it just seems like you aren't friends at all. That's what was so amusing to us last night."

After that, Kariya had bombarded him with tips and examples of how real friends behaved among each other. Kirino's head was still spinning, but he wanted to memorize as much as he could. Only a month ago, he would have used this information for his report about the humans. Or doubletailers, as he still called them back then. Funny how much he had learned in a month.

He took a few more steps, but then he realized that Kariya wasn't next to him anymore. As he came to a halt and turned around, he saw that the younger boy was frozen in place, intensely staring at a spot between the trees.

"What-" he tried to ask, but Kariya hushed him.

"Sssh." It was soft but sharp, and Kirino immediately swallowed his next words. Just like Kariya, he stood frozen on the spot, afraid to move another muscle. Meanwhile, Kariya carefully moved again. His movements were slow and small as he took out something made of leather. It consisted of two strings, each connected to a pouch in the middle. Kariya placed a small pebble in the pouch and started to circle it. The movement went faster and released a buzzing sound. He let go of one of the strings and the pebble flew out of it, too fast for Kirino's eyes to see it. It bounced off a tree, just at the moment when a brown blur raced to the top and disappeared between the branches.

Kariya relaxed his figure, which Kirino took as a sign to start moving as well. "What was that?" he asked.

"Squirrels," Kariya answered nonchalantly. "I thought I could get one, but I missed."

"And what is that?" Kirino asked, pointing at the leather thing in Kariya's hands.

"It's a sling. A long-distance weapon."

"A weapon?"

"Yeah, you can fire stones and pebbles at targets, though it's not often used against humans. It's possible, but just like bow and arrow, it takes a long time to learn how to aim properly. The crossbow is more often used in armies, since it's not that hard to aim with it. The sling is often used for hunting small critters when you're on the road. If you camp somewhere for a few nights, you can also set out a few snares. I think I might start on those when we get back."

"I see. We're you a hunter before you joined the army?"

A small nod was the only reply before both got back to silence. They walked like that for a little longer, until they saw the camp in the distance. They both unconsciously quickened their pace, happy to finally be released from their burden, which consisted of food and water. But when they reached the small encampment, it was deserted. The horses were gone, the fire in the fireplace was extinguished and the only tent that was set up, was empty. Both boys dropped their bags and looked around, as if the missing people would suddenly come out of the woods.

"Where are they?" Kariya said out loud, displaying his confusion to Kirino. "Even Tenma is gone! This can't be a joke, something mu-"

"Kariya." The tone of the former merman was serious and cautious, and as Kariya followed his gaze, he knew why.

Behind them was a single boy. He seemed to be of the same age of them and he had spiky, bright orange hair. His skin was pale and his forehead was creased, resulting in a deep scowl. The dull blue eyes were glaring daggers at both boys, and they both knew that this guy wasn't here for a nice talk. At first, no one moved, but then the stranger slowly made circular movements with his hands. Now they noticed the objects the boy held in his hands. They looked a bit like the sling that Kariya showed him, but there were differences.

The sling consisted of two straps, which were connected to one pouch that held the pebble. This thing was different. It was one rope, about three feet long, with two heavy-looking balls on the ends. The stranger held the rope in the middle as he spun it faster and faster. His hateful expression never faltered.

Kariya was the one to figure out what the things were, and what purpose they served. "Kirino-san," he said. "Run."

They both turned around and ran away from the strange boy. They didn't get far though, because the boy soon released the objects in his hands. They hurled through the air, right before one of the ropes came in contact with Kirino's lower legs. The speed of the heavy balls caused them to spin around Kirino's legs, effectively tying him up. He lost his balance and fell to the ground. Another thud taught him that the same happened to Kariya. He heard soft footsteps as the stranger slowly made his way to them.

Me: Once again, a cliffhanger. Cliffhangers are fuuuuuuun~ Hehehe. I promise I'll update soon, but there are a few problems with my laptop, so I'm using my brother's right now and I can only do that when he doesn't want to use it... Yeah...

Kariya: By the way, if anyone has another tip for my 'advises' to Kirino-senpai, please tell them in a review or via PM (if you don't want others to know ;) ).

Kirino: -.- I'm so not gonna enjoy the upcoming chapters.

Me: That's right! ^^ So please tell me your ideas about what "friends" should do, according to Kariya. I'm not sure if I'll use all of it, but I'm a bit short on advises (I only have 'holding hands' XD). Also, if you tell me what you thought of this chapter in a review, I'll be more than happy.

Bye! (L)