SailorStar9: This is Chapter 25 of this fic. (Sighs) Guys and girls, is it too hard for you to leave a review, instead of just putting this fic up on your favorited list and story alerts?

Disclaimers: I own nothing, except for the plot bunny. Because, if I did own Cardfight! Vanguard and Sailor Moon, Aichi won't be such a wimpy protagonist and the Senshi would be kicking more MOTD butt than Sailor Moon.

Chapter 25: A Stormy Beginning! The National Championship!

Kai awoke with a slight weight on his chest, he shifted slightly, trying to hold onto what little chance of going back to sleep he could before he opened his eyes and looked down to find Ami's blue hair in his vision. He smiled slightly as he gently shook her awake.

"Come on, Mouse, it's time to wake up." Kai whispered into her ear.

Ami stirred and opened her eyes lazily to look up at him. She blushed, seeing as she had woken up whilst lying on top of her boyfriend.

"Morning to you too, Mouse." Kai chuckled, Ami jumping off him.

"Keep that up, and no breakfast for you, mister!" Ami shot back.

"Kourin!" Morikawa gashed at the souvenir stands.

"Morikawa?" Aichi gaped.

"Now, my tournament hall limited edition goods collection is complete." Morikawa grinned. "I achieved what I set out to do today!"

"Good for you…" Izaki muttered.

"And just what did you come for?" Ami sighed.

"Cheering on Team Q4 takes a back seat." Miwa noted.

"It's apples and oranges." Morikawa smirked, flashing his fan-club membership card. "This also means a huge boost to my Ultra-Rare fan club points. And I'm really to cheer them with bells on. There's nothing wrong with my way of life. Aichi, I'm here!" he called.

"In a way, you let me slacks, Loser-Umi." Kamui remarked.

"Don't you mean, 'relax'?" Ami corrected.

"That's what I said, isn't it?" Kamui wondered.

"Come to think of it, Reiji and Eiji aren't here." Aichi reminded.

"Well, if Loser-Umi made it, I'm sure they'll show up soon." Kamui declared.

"Knock it off!" Morikawa snapped. "I'm Katsumi!"

"You think he could hear me?" Kamui wondered.

"No, probably just instinct." Aichi sweatdropped.

"Wait, aren't we missing someone?" Ami blinked. "Where's the Manager?"

"AH!" Aichi exclaimed, suddenly remembering.

"It's times like this I really wonder if we could just knock Morikawa out and leave him behind." Ami muttered as Morikawa fan-boyed over Kourin.

"This year's opening ceremony sure has razzmatazz." Koutei noted.

"Was it different before?" Aichi asked.

"There was a lot of fanfare, but it wasn't as boisterous as this." Koutei nodded. "They don't have anything like a concert from an idol group."

"I don't care for all this noise myself." Gai remarked.

"But it's making some people happy, so what's the harm?" Yuri pointed out.

"Nonsense…" Kai muttered.

"You're a riot, Toshiki, you know that." Ami giggled.

"By the way," Gai noted. "There are four of your team, so have you decided who's going to fight?"

"Stop it, Gai." Yuri scolded her brother. "Don't be so nosy about another team's strategy."

"Nope, doesn't really matter." Kai corrected. "We don't even call it a strategy. It's simple. The weakest player amongst the four of us gets left out."

"Kai!" Kamui snapped. "Ever heard of something called tact?"

"I really need to teach him more about subtlety." Ami sighed.

"Wait, Kamui." Aichi voiced. "It's okay. I'll bow out. The weakest fighter is left out. What Kai said is right. And the weakest fighter in Team Q4 is me."

"Then it's settled." Kai declared.

"Kai, answer one question." Kamui demanded. "What is Vanguard to you?"

"Searching for someone who's stronger and beating that person in battle." Kai replied.

"I see…" Kamui muttered. "Originally, I didn't go to Card Capitol because I liked it. It's just that I didn't want to be part of Team Handsome, so I started dropping by out of necessity. What I'm saying is that I didn't have especially strong feelings for Team Q4. But now, I think we've got a good team. I want to win with this team. But you… it was the same situation previously. You don't even think twice about telling people to quit or drop out. Kai, what do you think a teammate really is?"

"I have no interest in that." Kai shrugged. "No matter what I think, it doesn't affect the outcome, does it?"

"I can't take it anymore!" Kamui fumed. "I'm sorry, but…" he turned to Aichi. "I can't fight alongside him anymore. So… I'm sorry!" he took off.

"Let's go, Tokura." Kai voiced. "Come on, Aichi. If you don't come, on top of Katsuragi's disappearance, Team Q4 forfeits. Do you want that?"

"Did something happen?" Shin asked.

"Can I say something?" Koutei cut in. "Did you know that the national tournament is held on two says, today and next week? The elimination rounds take place today. So if you win today, you'll be able to advance to the final tournament a week from tomorrow. Right now, instead of chasing after him, maybe you should get through the preliminaries and secure a place for him to get back to. I think that's what teams are all about."

SailorStar9: Now that's done, read and review.