Chapter 4: Betting's Not My Thing Apparently
"Move. You're in my spot," the voice directed at her is dull and annoyed. Obviously not pleased with the situation at hand. Aomine Daiki sighs as he stares down at the figure in his spot, her breaths coming out slow and calm. A direct opposite of what they had been doing two weeks ago. He hadn't seen her for a while, though he supposes that was because while he was busy slacking off like a trooper, she was sucked into the Stride Team whether she wanted to be or not. He didn't mind though. Those two weeks where she wasn't around to be in his spot were nice- tranquil even. He had been permitted to sleep in peace on the roof, rather than have a restless nap on some other portion of it. He had been looking forward to doing the same thing he did yesterday, today, his magazine in hand and ready to be looked over until sleep took him. However, when arrived, he found her laying there in his spot sleeping the day away. "Oi," he tries again. The scene seems oddly familiar, though he can't remember from when as he nudges her ribs with the toe of his shoe. "Wake up and move already".
Only one of Tatsumaki's eyes opens as she shifts the arm blocking away the sun, landing hazily on the tall figure that hovers above her. For a moment, she worries that it may be her Captain, the man being a slave driver. The most recent two weeks of her life have been far more active then they had been prior to then. Part of her regrets ever joining the Stride team, but the majority of her regrets nothing. In the mornings of those two weeks, she got up like usual- showered, ate, and then jogged to school and then around the school itself a few times before heading inside for a home room based nap. At the end of the day- namely after she finished skipping Osaki-sensei's class- she was approached by Hanabusa himself rather than Yuji. He demanded that she come to practice and learn the pace of her team mates. Of course, she had refused and made to turn around only for Yuji to appear behind her with a plate. Upon that plate had been a rather tall tower of waffles topped by berries of all sorts. A sucker for waffles and fruit, they managed to bribe her into attending practice. The next day followed the same pattern, however Yuji had offered to her cherry danishes imported from Germany itself. How he managed to do that, she still doesn't know. However, she accepted the bribe of breakfast foods and trained. This continued on for two weeks. Tatsumaki would get up. Do her morning stuff, go to school and nap through most of her classes. At the end of skipping history class, Hanabusa and Nobuyuki would appear with the demand of training and the bribe of a breakfast food that she likes.
Unfortunately for them, they ran out of breakfast foods that she liked to bribe her with by the end of the second week. Thus freeing her from the harsh training. It was a task for her even, though not in the sense that she was dead tired by the end like everyone else. Instead, it was the task of getting them to find something difficult enough for her to do without accidentally discouraging any of the second or third string members. That race alone two weeks ago was enough to drive away a few members who decided to quit while they still didn't have all of their heart into the sport. But, now with her freedom back- as she doesn't take 'redo bribes'- she has gone back to skipping history class and napping away the day until Stride practice is over.
But now here she is, staring up at the one person who dare wake the sleeping cheetah so to speak. "Sorry, I don't think so. I was here first. Besides, it's my spot". She insists to the ace basketball player.
Aomine disagrees with a snort, "Like hell it is. I'll move you myself if I have to".
"No you won't"
"You wanna bet?" the taller teen raises a single brow, a challenging smirk appearing on his lips. Does she seriously think he won't? That day of the race alone was more than enough to give him a taste of her personality. She won't report him to the teachers for harassment or anything like that. "Move your body out of the way".
Tatsumaki returns the smirk, finding the dark look on his face amusing and interesting at the same time. It takes talent to both be serious and kidding at the same time. "Sure do. I bet if you beat me at a Stride race, I'll give you this spot".
"Tch. Like hell I'll take that," he's fast but he knows that he can't beat her at Stride, "How about you play me one-on-one at basket all. If I win, I get that spot".
She has heard more than enough stories of his ability at the other physically taxing sport. Not only from Yuji, but from the various random sports magazines she's read. Generation of Miracles? Fancy title but probably true beyond normal belief. "Nah, I'm good. I know the basics of basketball and that's it. You'd beat me in five seconds flat".
"That's the point," he grunts, the smirk falling from his lips. This is getting annoying. What surprises him, however, is the laughter that escapes her lips. What's so funny? It's not like he's trying to be a comedian or anything. So what's with the laughter? "Why are you laughing?"
Tatsumaki sits up and finally stands, brushing off her skirt and straightening her hair a little bit as she does so. "You are. It's great to know that someone like yourself is out there, isn't it?"
"We're nothing alike," he denies.
But she insists, "Oh but we are. Heh. We both skip classes- because let's be honest, they're not worth our time- and we take lots of naps. We're both crazy good at what we do. And we're both pretty stubborn. I wouldn't be surprised that if you're really as good as the magazines and Yuji say you are, that you think no one else can beat you other than yourself. I know the feeling well". She waves off her words, however, soon enough ignoring his stunned gaze.
How did she know he thinks like that? Seriously, he's talked to her a handful of times and already she's in his head? What the actual hell? Grumbling, the blue haired male slouches, his shoulders hunching forward as though dejected. He doesn't want to be like this weird girl who smiles for no reason and is friendly to just about everyone. To top it off, she's a smartass even to him. Not cool. "If you're not sure about me being as good as they say, then let's play a game. If I win, I get that spot of mine back". He insists. All he really wants to do is 'read' his magazine and take a deserving nap. Is that too much to ask for?
Unfortunately, it would appear that it is.
Because the Stride expert chuckles, stubbornly staying where she is as she denies, "Sorry. You won't be getting my spot any time soon, Aomine".
This is getting really annoying. However before he can release the rebuttal he was going to send her way, the cry of, "Aomine-kun! Aomine-kun if you're up here then you better get up so you can go train! You're supposed to be with the team by now!" This causes Aomine to curse. He really doesn't feel like listening to her whine and complain today. Or ever really.
"Tatsumaki, get your lazy butt down to practice too!" The familiar voice of Yuji calls after the ace of the Stride team. "I know you're up here so hurry up and make my life easier for once, would ya?"
This time it's Tatsumaki's turn to curse, her green eyes shifting to the door. What is she going to do now? She could always leave on her own, scale the building's wall all the way to the ground with what skills she has. But leaving Aomine behind to take the heat would just be mean. She doesn't know him well, but she likes the guy. Even if he is seemingly always grumpy. However before she can ask him to suggest something for them to do, a large hand grabs her upper arm, tugging her along as he heads for the roof that protects the staircase that leads to the very place they're standing atop. "Wait a minute, woah there Aomine," she commands, honestly surprised he would be so forward. Sure he's a blunt guy, but to just up and grab her arm like that? What's up with him? "What are you doing?"
"Getting us out of here, now shut up idiot," the ace demands, "Help me onto the little roof- I'll help you up afterwords".
"And how do I know you won't leave me here to suffer?"
"Just shut up and do it," Aomine hurries as he hears Satsuki get closer. Thank god she has a habit of climbing stairs slowly. "Help me up there".
Tatsumaki pauses before sighing and relenting. She really doesn't want to be the reason why they got caught trying to sneak away. So, she lowers her body and cups her hands. His foot alone is fairly heavy, however when he pushes off with his standing foot, she works with the momentum he's made and shoves him further up until his hands hook onto the smaller roof. "Okay Aomine, let me up!" She rapidly whispers upon hearing the door open. Her jaw clenches. She doesn't want to go to train today, but if she gets caught Yuji's going to yell her ear off until she does! Before she can call his name again, his head pops over the edge and so do his hands. With a sigh of relief, she leaps deftly, catching his palms with her smaller ones and using her feet to help him pull her up- or, she would have if he hadn't decided that he didn't need her help. Apparently she is more than light enough for him to pull her onto the roof with a powerful tug of his strong arms. It causes a slight flying sensation to go through her, but she accepts it all the same. Once on the roof, the young woman crouches low, daring not to move towards the edge of the thin roof. However she can hear the conversation between the two cousins as clear as day.
"I could have sworn she'd be up here," Yuji's voice groans, "We have our first mock race in three days! The least she could do is hang around and watch to support the others".
At his side, Satsuki stomps her foot once, a groan escaping her lips, "And Imayoshi-senpai isn't going to be happy about this either. Oh! Aomine-kun you idiot!" After a pause, she sighs, "I'm going to go look elsewhere. You coming, Yuji?"
The green haired lad sighs, "Well, they seem to think similarly so I might as well". The sound of retreating footsteps sounds off before the door to the roof is closed with a clang.
Aomine waits, pausing in order to make sure neither Satsuki nor her cousin end up coming back just to find him coming down from his shared perch. However, when there's no sign of their return, he relaxes and opts for getting down. He hits the surface hard, crouching low on flat feet in order to keep his knees from taking the force of the impact. He smirks, pleased with his quick thinking, and turns to the girl that had been up there with him. "You coming down? The coast is clear," whether or not, he doesn't care. What he does care about is the magazine he had stuffed into his pocket at the last second. And the fact that that his spot isn't being inhabited by some stranger. With this in mind, he settles down and lays back onto his back, booklet over his face. He hardly registers the sound of a new pair of feet landing on the roof's surface, the sound faint.
Tatsumaki sighs as she looks back towards the closed door, but she doesn't have the feeling she normally does when Yuji is looking at her- that hair rising feeling that makes her think she's going to get yelled at again- and thus allows herself to relax. Well, now that's out of the wa- "Ahh!" Her scream startles the blue haired youth laying down, causing him to nearly leap to his feet, "You're in my spot!"
"It's not your spot, it's mine!" Aomine states, "Get it through your damn skull!" he points a corner of his magazine at her to help support this 'fact'. Calming down from his shock, he lays back down and sighs, "Besides, is that all you were getting upset about?"
"...No," Tatsmaki grins, "Not really. I was just wondering why you were reading a magazine with a hardly clad woman in it? Can't you get any in real life? You're plenty good looking...Though I guess maybe it'd be better if you weren't scowling all the time". Sitting down, the teenager leans back on her hands, positioning her new spot maybe a foot away from his own. "See?" she points out upon seeing the frown, "Like that. You should really cut that out- it won't get you a girlfriend any faster you know". A cheeky grin rests on her face, amused.
Aomine grunts. This girl...She's almost as annoying as Satsuki is! Or maybe she's more like Tetsu? He means, she doesn't scream and demand that he do as she bids like Satsuki does, but she's still persistent and nosy like her. But like Tetsu, she's not loud- save for that exclamation a second ago- even when she's getting into his business where she's not welcome. And also like Tetsu, she's acting like they've known one another for a while now. Which they haven't. "What do you care?" And just why is she so amused like something having to do with his choice of 'reading material' is funny?
"Oh, I don't really," she assures, "But still". She shrugs her shoulders, "Have you ever felt them?"
"Felt what?"
"Boobs".
Okay, now he's confused, "Eh? Have I ever felt boobs before?" Again, why the hell does she care?
"So I'll take that as a 'no'," honestly she's mostly trying to make a conversation. She's not much of a fan of silence, and with this guy laying there looking at what could be considered soft porn she couldn't help but speak. She does have reasons, of course, once she would gladly give to the navy haired boy if asked for but that's neither here nor there at the moment. "Anyways, looking at the cover I'm guessing there's only big breasted women in there".
"I like big tits. What's your point?"
"Well, my point is this: How do you know if you like large knockers if you've never handled any? Take it from someone whom actually has them," she ignores the uttered 'yea, barely' from him as though she had never heard it in the first place, "Boobs are like food. You can say you like a certain kind all you want. But until you've had any kind at all, you can't decide for real just what you like best".
He can't believe he's having this conversation. Scratch that, he can believe it. But what he can't believe is that he's having it with a girl instead of another guy. Is she right in the head? Probably not. All that acrobatic shit's probably had her hit her head more than one time too many. "I know what I like," he insists, "Now can you go away?"
"Oh no," Tatsumaki denies, "I'm too persistent to just walk away now, good buddy-"
"I'm not your buddy-"
"I need to educate you it would seem. But I guess...If no one else is willing, I'll let you touch mine. I mean, you've gotta learn somehow, right?"
At this, Aomine sits up completely, slapping the colorful booklet of paper closed with a snap and placing it to the side fare more roughly than he would have liked. But honestly, he doesn't give a shit at the moment. "Okay. Stop. Why the hell are you having this conversation with me? Why don't you go do something it is you do at times like these? Like leave me the hell alone for example".
Ah, there it is, the demand for the real reason for her rambling. It was bound to come along eventually after all. The look she had taken on, that of a classic airhead, disappears and the smile falls from her lips. Best put away the 'constantly happy and smiling' Tatsumaki away and switch to 'serious Tatsumaki mode'. Never the less a calmness comes over her and a sigh escapes her lips. "Why would I do that when you're so incredibly interesting?"
"...Hah?"
"Ah~. Don't make me explain," she whines upon seeing his bland look. She was bound to have to, the chance of not having to being rather slim, but unfortunately she does. "Okay, simply put, it's because you and I are a lot alike. We're unbeatable. I know all about your skills as a basketball player, Mr. Generation of Miracles. The unbeatable ace who can take on an entire team of players by himself and still come out on top. I did my research about you. You give off this vibe, you see. The kind that made me curious. So, I did some digging. Ended up watching each of your matches from back in middle school. Funny thing is, as it got later and later in your last year you stopped smiling in the videos as much. And then in one, you said something to that buddy you always got amazing passes from and walked away. Poor little guy looked like a kicked puppy. Anyways, that's when I realized it. You're just like me. Someone who found out that they can't be beaten. So you- like me- stopped in hopes that someone would claw their way up to your level and give you a real challenge. Become someone worth your time- a rival if nothing else". She pauses and then grins, "So I figure, why not become friends with the jerk who also crushes dreams of others? Bird of the same feather should flock together, you know".
Aomine is silent, his blue gaze careful. He sets aside the odd fact that she did a history check of some sort on him. Satsuki does that on other players- and people in general- all the time. He does not bother to deny that the look in her eyes is the same one that he recognizes to be in his own. There's really no point. But ah, is there really any point in letting her know that she's right either? Feh. She can figure it out on her own if she's so confident in herself. "You want to be my friend?" This chick is freaking insane. Does it look like he wants any friends? Things are fine just the way they are. "As if I would want to be friends with you. Weirdo," a girl who talks about boobs as though she knew more about them than him. Sure she's got some- barely- but that doesn't count.
Tensai purses her lips, the two folds of skin pressed together into a thin displeased line. She had been hoping he'd be willing to at least give her a chance. "You're no fun".
"Just go away," Aomine demands.
She grins on the other hand, playful, "Only if you beat me at a race".
"Hah? I'm not doing any of that Stride crap".
"I never said Stride, I just said race," she insists, "Come on. It'll get you out of my spot and I'll have fun crushing you".
Okay, this girl is too cocky for her own good. Aomine sighs, feeling his pride tugging at his nerves and causing a competitive sensation to rush over his flesh. Her? Beat him? She's fast and sure she'd beat him at Stride. But a simple race? Like hell. "You can't beat me in a race," he tells her with a grunt, looking to a new picture and away from her completely. "You're fast but I'm faster," this he is nearly certain of.
But the sound of laughter greets his ears, something not like bells or anything stupid like that. Instead it sounds simply smooth- graceful even, if laughter can sound graceful in the first place. It shocks him a bit, but when he looks to the girl whom insists on bugging him, he finds her smiling confidently. Fire burns in her green eyes as a hand flings some hair back over her shoulder. "I'll take that challenge, big guy," she announces, "You can always take your words back though. I'll understand that you don't want to risk getting beaten by a girl at a mere game of running in a circle". She sees his lips turn deeper into the scowl he wears and spots the dark shadow coming over his eyes. "Your pride wouldn't be able to take it; I understand, really I do". Shrugging, she gets to her feet and turns, "Ah~ what a shame. And here I thought you'd be more than just a meat head basketball player".
"Oi!" she's seriously irritating, "Where do you think you're going?"
"Huh? Oh, home. I'm hungry," she throws over her shoulder and waves, "See ya Aomine".
…...
The ace leaps to his feet with a swift movement, foregoing his magazine for the time being. No one comes up here so it'll be safe even if he doesn't get it later. "I don't think so," he denies, jogging to catch up with her and then hold the door closed with his superior strength once she gets there. "You're not going anywhere until I've out run you. Got it?" He realizes he's falling into her trap, but damn it no one fucks with his pride like that. Especially not this cheeky girl here.
Tensai pauses, hand on the handle of the door, for a moment and innocently tilts her head, "Oh, I thought you didn't want to race me?" Her words are too innocent, too sweet sounding, for them to be honestly confused.
"Tch. Shut up. Let's go race," he grounds out, staring what could possibly be death down at her. He removes his hand from the door, ignoring her curious look as he storms his way down the stairs, hands balled into annoyed fists. God. Why are women so damn manipulative? Playing him like that- the bitch. He can't figure her out for the life of him- let alone why he wants to figure her out in the first place- one minute she's happy and joking, the next she is serious and intelligent and then she's sly and cool before going back to happy again! He's never seen such a multi-sided person before. And damn it, it makes him want to figure out which one's the real one so he can properly avoid her or get her to go away.
Tatsumaki follows the tall bronzed teen down the stairs and to the track that is normally used by a different team from her own. However, as it is later in the day, clubs coming to a close, it would appear that they closed shop early so to speak. There is not a single person in the area, leaving the two as alone as they had been when they were on the roof. The sun has begun to set, the days still fairly short as it's still only spring. Soon they would be getting longer, but now is not the time. Both tall figures make their way onto the rubbery turf that is the track, marked by white lines to show runners where to stay within during their practice or meet. "So...How do we wanna begin?" She questions. However, when she is given a testy glare that speaks more than the words 'I don't kno' in turn, she sheepishly smiles. "It's my job to figure that out?...Okay...How about...," her eyes trail around the area, only to land on something specific. "When that bird over there takes off". Aomine is silent as agrees, obviously wanting nothing more than to get the race done and over with.
For a good few moments, neither runner says anything, watching the sparrow as it hops around looking for feed. Curious, it tilts its head here and there but other than that does nothing but hop and chirp a bit. It is a lonesome little thing, and as either racer continues to hold themselves at the ready it is almost as though it may never fly away. It's funny, however, as one may note the similarities in their ready stances. Both are low, their legs bunched and ready to push off at a second's notice, their arms hanging uselessly at their sides. However where as Aomine's torso is slightly pushed forward, Tensai's is nearly vertical. Both their eyes stay on the bird as it pokes and prods at various things in search for food; neither say a single word.
Team Sakabara
Shigeru Akihiko- Akihiko is the Captain of the Sakabara Stride team. Being as large as he is allows him to be both incredibly strong and fast. With this in mind, his best skills are slopes and curves. His stamina is off the charts as well, making him the best at the more taxing portions of races. He is fairly flexible, a feat in and of itself for someone as big as he, standing at 6'7'' with wild spiky gray hair and stunning red eyes that out do even Yuji's and Satsuki's reddish hues- they seem to glow even during the day. He likes to imagine himself to be fairly classy, and as such prefers to dress in pinstripe suits and wear fedoras- occasionally he can be seen wearing black rimmed glasses for show. He is the son of a Stride Association Executive, and as such is powerful man in the world of the sport. He is a first year in high school and fought the hardest when Tatsumaki left just before the Winter Festival tournament. Despite almost constantly smiling and bubbly- which is an odd combination for his ikemen (handsome/cool guy) features, it is dangerous to anger him. He is quick to painful violence and is not afraid to threaten his enemies with dark torture for doing anything he doesn't like. He is not much of a strategist but it is said that it would be stupid to go against him in any way without a full proof plan for he is highly adaptable. Upon meeting Tatsumaki in her first year of middle school, he had fallen in love with her and her abilities as the top prodigy as well as her as a person. They had grown extremely close through the years though his love is one sided and still lingers to this day. One could call him- and be right- obsessed with her. He would do literally anything for her to be by his side, including kill.
Takahashi Sora- Vice Captain of the Sakabara Stride team. Takahashi is the only person other than Tatsumaki whom can stop Akihiko's anger. The adoptive brother of Akihiko, Sora is very kind and gentle at heart. He adores Akihiko, and is often seen at his side regardless of where Akihiko is going. Being as gentle as he is, he is a lover of all life and is not afraid to show his feelings towards others. He tends to keep people at arms' length, however, due to his darker past. Being from a mafia family and beaten by his father for being unable to take his father's place as a son should, he was abandoned shortly before he met Akihiko. That in turn was about a year and a half before he had met Tatsumaki. Knowing the darker laws of the world, he keeps away from strangers to protect himself from any sort of harm. At the same time, due to his gentle nature he cries easily. Much like Akihiko, he is in love with Tatsumaki. Unlike Akihiko, he is willing to see her happy with someone else- though he would adore it if she were to ever be with his brother although that is unlikely- if not with him. Sora is a master at straights and gimmicks and has average endurance. However his speed control is off the charts. Able to 'feel' the wind, he senses rather than sees how fast he needs to go in order to reach his goal. He stands at a total of six foot one, making him Tatsumaki's height. His hair is neatly kept and brown to go with his stunning purple eyes.
Osamu Norio- Norio is the curves master of the team. With superb speed control and balance, Norio can run on walls of curves when they are enclosed, and has more than often times run on walls to avoid gimmicks. However it is his fast mind and logical thought process that allows him to calculate just how much power one needs in order to handle most portions of the race. His endurance like the others is far higher than average, however his flexibility is a bit less than the others. Norio is a cold man, supported by his deep voice and his silver-blue eyes that have earned him the Prince of Blizzards back at school. Despite his colder personality, he has bishounen features, making him out to be beautiful as opposed to Akihiko's robust. Norio, to go with his blue-silver eyes, has long straight purple hair that he normally keeps up in a high pony tail with bangs and longer frontal strands to frame his pale face. Seeing him smile is rare, however Tatsumaki often got him to do so with either her antics or her abilities. Being a man of logic and wanting to be a doctor when he's older, he has used her body to study how muscles work and just how much energy a 'perfect' body can out put. Oddly enough, he too is in love with Tatsumaki, however he is far less straight forward about it compared to Akihiko or even Sora. Small things, he believes, are what win the heart over as that is what Tatsumaki had done for him in the past. He is selfish, however, and like Akihiko would rather keep her to himself forever if he could instead of let her have the outside world where other men could see her.
Tsuyoshi Yuudai- The fourth member of the Sakabara Stride team. Yuudai is a slope and endurance master, he is also excellent at blocking, however his gimmick skills compared to the others are below average. Compared to the common Stride runner, however, they are amazing. Yuudai is a rather loud- boisterous even- young man. Built like a brick shit house despite only being six foot four, most would assume him to be a football or rugby player. With broad shoulders and muscles upon muscles, many refer to him as Soldier Boy back in school. However, he likes to think of himself as a knight instead. He is a noble fellow, more than often going out of his way to help people be they acquaintances or plain strangers. Unfortunately this normally messes with his sense of time and more often than not sense of direction- both of which are near nonexistent. Yuudai had fallen in love with Tatsumaki at first sight, sharing the same class with her in middle school along with Yuji. He saw her friendly and playful nature and saw a goddess of beauty and kindness. When he saw her skills in Stride one day, he devoted himself to her even further and joined the team as well. Yuudai hates all other men save for his team mates, and as such has dubbed anyone not himself or on his team to be not good enough for Tatsumaki. He worships the ground she walks on, and in the past has more often than not offered to carry her like the princess he believes she should be treated as until one day she becomes his Queen. Anyone whom so much as looks at her wrong is on his black list. Yuudai dresses himself in simple clothing more than half the time, sticking to muscle shirts and cargo pants or shorts with boots. His hair is red with natural golden streaks in it, making it look like fire as it holds a windswept look, its natural spikes all gently pointing to the back of his head despite being shorter than Akihiko's and two strands dangle over his face near the corner of each eye. His eyes are a neon orange.
Raiden Tomio- Member number five of the group of friends Tatsumaki abandoned. Tomio is a shy young man with shaggy straight brown hair layered and long enough to reach the nape of his neck at longest. His bangs are short and parted to the left. To go with his hair he has pretty light green eyes that have blue flecks in them. He dresses conservatively in that he tends to wear pants even in the summer and nice short sleeved shirts when not wearing the uniform of Sakabara High. While Sora is gentle in nature, he is confident. Tomio however has low self esteem despite being a prodigy when it comes to gimmicks. Often times, he holds back against opponents because he does not want to anger them and make them want to hurt him. Having been a sickly child and grown up using Stride to make him stronger, though his body has grown out of that stage he still fears getting hurt. Tomio has Hyperthymesia, a the ability to remember everything and anything he sees with clarity far better than a simple photographic memory. He can remember every day of his past as though he had lived it five minutes ago. As a result, the day Tatsumaki saved him from bullies on his first day of middle school is his most cherished memory. He had fallen in love with her kind out look but ability to stand strong when the time came. Too shy to ever admit his feelings, he has always been soft spoken around her. However, when he knows she is not looking he cannot help but stare at her with adoration. Deep down, he would rather her be by his side forever than by anyone's- even if they are one of his friends.
Izanagi Nao- This young man has long straight black hair and bangs that center on his forehead whilst longer strands frame his slightly tanned face. His eyes are a steal gray-black which are hidden behind black rimmed glasses. This long hair is kept in a rather loose low ponytail, allowing some strands to dangle around his neck despite being tied in place. He is actually a second year at Sakabara High and is the relationer for the Stride team though he had at one time been the Track team's relay ace in middle school and his first year of high school. Nao is the kind of man whom is more like a mother hen than anything. Being gay as the day is long may have something to do with it. Despite only being a year older than all of them, he sees each of the Stride boys as his sons or younger brothers, and as such has taken on the duty of making their conjoined dream come true. Beat Tensai Tatsumaki and bring her back to them. As far as he knows, each of these boys love her with all of their being for various reasons. Whether it is because she did something for them, or it was simply because they got to know her. He honestly hates her, having had to work hard to get them to trust them with their shared secret goal. And upon finding the reason behind it, he worked even harder to make them able to beat her. This is why they hadn't competed in the End of Summer tournament- they were not ready. He wants nothing more than to see his boys succeed, even if it means that this Tensai Tatsumaki will cry.