AN: yeah i dont own captain tsubasa

Chapter 2: Explanations

"Mixed-Gendered?" she mumbled, puzzled. That sounded… unusual. Most coed tournaments were all domestic and amateurs, but a FIFA sponsored one? That seemed very unlikely.

"Yes, coed," Natsukawa-san confirmed. "I know it sounds absurd, but I hope you listen to me for a moment."

"O-kay?" she answered unsurely.

Natsukawa-san smiled, then cleared her throat. "Well, the reason we actually thought of this idea was because of players of this generation. All over the world, many have been praising the boys of this age as the Golden Generation of soccer, producing the likes of Elle Sid Pierre from France, Karl Heinz Schneider from Germany, Gino Hernandez, Ramon Victorino, Juan Diaz, and our very own Oozora Tsubasa.

She couldn't help but smile when she heard his name. Of course, he would be considered one of the best. He was one of the best, and she couldn't help but feel proud that he was being acknowledged worldwide. With all the hard work he's put into improving himself as the greatest player he wanted to be, he deserved this acknowledgement.

"But, it's not just the boys that have shown great talent," Natsukawa-san added, and there was a certain tone of pride in them. "The girls of this generation have also shown great amount of ability in player soccer. They have introduced us to the likes of Frieda Nacht of Germany, Claudette Jacques from France, Emily Carter from America, Regina Alfonso, and most especially, you."

"Me?" she exclaimed in surprise. She couldn't help but be bewildered of such a thing. Sure, she'll somewhat admit that she's good nationally (though she'll always argue that it's because of her teammates that she was even recognized. Honestly, without them, she'll just be one of the average soccer players out there. At least, that's what she thought) but what things did she do to be given attention internationally? Aside from the Girls Junior Youth International Cup she was chosen for back when they were third year junior high students, she didn't have any other international appearances.

"You, Sanae-chan," Natsukawa-san replied calmly. "I don't know if you realized it, but the U-15 girls had a lot of expectations on their shoulders when you guys were in the Girls Junior Youth International Cup two years ago." She paused as she took a sip from her cup of tea. "Nadeshiko* just won the Women's World Cup a year before that."

Yeah, she clearly remembered that part. The whole team was huddled in this very same area, watching and holding their breaths every time they see a Nadeshiko game. But, what did that have to do with them?

"And because of that, you were all expected to do the same thing we did. The members of the Association expected you guys to win."

Oh. W-well that sounded scary. It was a good thing she didn't know about this or else she would have broken from the pressure.

Natsukawa-san though, suddenly beamed. "And you know what's awesome?" she asked rhetorically. "You guys didn't fail to meet those expectations. In fact, you went beyond. The association didn't exactly expect for you guys to win against France with four goals."

She gave a bashful smile. Remembering their victory two years ago was always a treat. It always gave her a sense of accomplishment as well as joy of how amazing it felt playing with the greatest players of her age from all over the world. In a word, she was in a constant state of excitement and euphoria because she was so glad and grateful they gave her a chance to be there, representing Japan.

"Then the boys did the same thing, facing hard adversaries like you did, and they came out victorious," Natsukawa-san added, and then mumbled to herself. "And basically trampled over the ladies' victory."

Then she looked back towards them. "But the fact is, that we are producing the best soccer players today, and just imagine seeing them all on the field, showcasing all their talents to the world. That men and women can hold their own against each other."

That did seem like a nice thought. Besides, they've been doing a girls vs. boys match for three years now, and they knew that both teams were pretty equal.

"That's why, with some other people, have proposed this Mixed-Gendered Tournament to FIFA to show everyone that this could work. Besides, a little competition never hurt anyone," Natsukawa-san winked.

She gave her idol a smile, while she took a sip of her tea before putting it back down.

"So, what do you say Sanae-chan?" Natsukawa-san continued. "Would you be willing to join?"

She was about to answer, but then they heard a voice, specifically Ayame's voice.

"I'm back!" Ayame called out, then they heard footsteps coming to their direction. "So, I bumped into Irino yesterday when I ate out with Ayuri and she told me about this one Mixed-Gendered Tournament someone suggested and- Oh my god, is that Natsukawa Kaede?!"

She exclaimed while taking a step back, a look of disbelief written on her face.

Natsukawa-san chuckled as she and her mom shook their heads. Dear god, why did she have to be like this of all times?

"I take it you must be Kiseki Ayame?" she asked, giving her a soft smile.

"Yeah," she answered still awestruck. "Sanae, why is Natsukawa Kaede in our living room? Tell me I'm not dreaming. Because I'm sure the drugs they gave me at the orthodontist yesterday is messing with me. But that doesn't make any sense! I got those yesterday! They shouldn't be working anymore."

Natsukawa-san burst out laughing while she could only shake her head from her cousin's rambling. With the way she was acting right now, she would have agreed that Ayame was actually still affected by whatever drugs those dentists gave her.

Her mom actually sighed and stood up, taking the teapot and plate of cookies to refill it probably.

"I can assure you, Ayame-chan, that you are not dreaming," Natsukawa-san told her.

"Yes, I am," she countered as she turned away from them. "Because I vowed to myself that the day I meet Natsukawa Kaede, I'm out of my braces and definitely not after the day I got them."

Natsukawa-san turned to look at her amusingly, while she could only give her an apologetic smile. God, Ayame. She's embarrassing them even more.

"She can be like that," she reasoned. "Sometimes." She then sighed and turned her attention to her cousin, who still refused to look at them and seemed to be mumbling to herself in French.

She rolled her eyes and called her. "Ayame, just come here and sit," she told her. "No, you're not dreaming and yes this is the actual Natsukawa Kaede in our living room."

They heard Ayame grumble but it sounded like English this time, but she complied with her order and gingerly walked towards them and took a seat beside her.

"How do you even know I'm not dreaming," she whined as she crossed her arms. She couldn't help but roll her eyes again. Really, she could be too stubborn sometimes. "In fact, how do I know you're n-"

She didn't let her finish by hitting her in the arm.

"Ow!" her cousin yelped. "What was that for? What did I ever d-"

"There," she interrupted before Ayame went into a tirade. "Do you still think you're asleep?"

"…No…" she answered as she rubbed her arm, as look of realization crossed her face. "So, I'm not dreaming?"

"No, Ayame," she sighed. "I've already told you that."

"Oh," she muttered then she turned towards Natsukawa-san, wide-eyed. "So, that's actually the real Natsukawa Kaede?"

She gave a groan of frustration while noticing how Natsukawa-san stifled another laugh.

"Yes," she sighed in resignation. "We've been over that. This is actually Natsukawa-san and she wanted to talk to us."

Natsukawa-san gave her a nod. "In fact, I was just talking to Sanae-chan about the very thing you were about to ask."

"Oh," she mumbled as she leaned down on the couch. "Oh. Oh."

"Yes, oh," she snarked.

"I just totally embarrassed myself, didn't I?"

"Yes. Yes you did."

Ayame covered her face with her hands. "Oh my god, I'm such an idiot," she groaned, but it was muffled by her hands so it just sounded like she was grumbling. Honestly, it only made her sound more of a fool than she was already being.

"Ayame, your only making yourself sound like an idiot more," she whispered harshly. "So please, just shush and lament later. You're embarrassing yourself. And take your hands out of your face please."

As if realizing how true her words were, Ayame only sunk more into the couch and groaned even more.

Natsukawa-san chuckled at their antics as her mother came back from the kitchen, carrying a fresh pot of tea and more cookies.

"Oh, you guys are fine," she assured them. "It's fun to see you guys interact. It shows how much you guys trust each other."

"You should watch them when they're on the field, Natsukawa-san," her mom said as she arrived back with more tea and cookies. "Their teamwork is superb, and it's always a treat to see them play together. They're not called the Victory Duo for nothing."

Ugh, were they still using that term? It's embarrassing. Why were they still using it?

Again, Natsukawa-san chuckled. "I see," she said, "I hope that this duo joins the mixed gender team to represent Japan then."

"Wait," Ayame exclaimed as she finally showed her face, "There's actually a mixed gendered thing going on?"

"Yes," Natsukawa-san nodded. "That's actually the reason why I'm here today. I wanted to ask Sanae-chan and you as well if you would be willing to join. I already explained to Sanae-chan why we are having it, and I would explain it to you, Ayame-chan, but it seemed like you already heard about it from Miki-chan. What do you, Ayame-chan? Do you want to join?"

Ayame stared at Natsukawa-san for a long time, but by the way her face tightened, she knew her cousin was thinking deeply about this, and was considering it.

"I will," she started, "but only if Sanae's joining."

What? Why did she have to get roped into this? If she wanted to do it, then she should.

Not that she wasn't thinking of doing it. She still didn't know.

Natsukawa-san suddenly chuckled.

"That's funny," she said. "All the other girls I talked to said the same thing."

Huh, what?

"Huh?" she asked.

Natsukawa-san hummed as she took another sip from her tea. "That's what all the other girls said. Asaki-san, Miyahara-san, Irino-san as Ayame-chan said, and even Hiyazaki Saya who I heard has quite a rivalry with you."

"I wouldn't exactly call it a rivalry," she grumbled just as Ayame said, "More like a one-sided rivalry."

She gave her cousin a look just as Natsukawa-san chuckled again.

"But even still, that says something about you, Sanae-chan," she told her. "They were only going to do it, if only you will. They look to you as their leader without even thinking about it."

"But why me?" she managed to croak out. She didn't know why they would think that way. As far as she knew, her leading them for one international tournament shouldn't warrant her as the de-facto leader. If anything, Seiko-chan would be perfect for the position.

"Because we believe that you have what it takes to show the world what we're made of," Ayame answered with a huff, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "What else would it be?"

Oh, um, that's a lot of pressure to handle. And what about Hiyazaki-san? She's been internationally recognized since she moved to America. She's even more qualified to be the face of the team than she was.

"You look like you can't believe what Ayame-chan said," Natsukawa-san remarked, and she could only give a tight lipped smile.

"I'm not surprised by what she said," she continued. "I recently watched videos of some of your matches, especially those that you performed abroad, or those against foreigners. And every time I look at you, you weren't nervous at all, unlike some of your teammates. It was, as if you were even excited to be on the field. You were just playing your heart out, even when things did get a little rough."

Well, she actually really was, and sometimes she even forgot that her teammates weren't as nervous as she was.

"But, I guess the reason they look to you as their leader is because they knew you love soccer too much," Natsukawa-san finished.

She looked to her cousin in confirmation, who only gave her a smirk before nodding.

"And it seems like they want you as their leader again," she added. "So, will you? Are you willing to be their leader again and play against the best players of the world?"

Was she?

One side of her didn't think she was worthy of playing in such a worldly level. This was totally different the one she played two years ago, and not to mention, they would also be playing against guys, foreign guys to be exact.

But, if she did, then she'll be able to play against the world's best. She'll be able to play with Japan's best players, and have fun with them.

And if she did it, then she'll be able to play alongside him.

Calming her racing heart, she couldn't help but smile as Natsukawa-san grinned at her answer.

"Yes."

End Chapter

AN: sanae seemed like she really didn't want to do it, but she already did once natsukawa-san told her about it, she's just really skeptical and stuff. speaking of, natsukawa kaede is actually made by takahashi-sensei too. she's from the novel Soccer Shoujo Kaede, which was based on Homare Sawa and the japanese team who won the 2011 FIFA women's world cup. i always find it funny that it was the women's first who got a world cup before the mens. so, i made her be the girls' idol because of that. takahashi-sensei even said that sawa is tsubasa in real life, except female. so yeah, this happened.

anyway, thanks for reading and please review!