(I don't own Prince of Tennis!)

Chapter 5 – Heading Towards Kantou

"Seriously, are you sure we're going to do all this?" Haruka's eyes widened at what she was seeing.

What was in front of them was the boy's tennis team and it was a joint agreement between both captains to play against each other to see if they were in perfect shape and everyone knows what happens when Ayane and Atobe are in the same place.

"I am not training with that narcisstic and egotistical brat," Ayane snorted darkly.

Shizuru tried to pacify her vice captain. "Kobayagi, you won't necessarily play against Atobe. You would be playing doubles anyway. I'm more prone to playing against him since I'm a Singles player. So, the singles players here are Mai, Momo-senpai, Isane-senpai and I while the doubles players are Getsugan, Yamaguchi-senpai, Hikifumi-senpai, Shimohi-senpai and you. So, I think your best trainer would be Mukahi-senpai and Oshitari-senpai, they make good doubles partners."

Ayane realized then that her buchou had a point. "Oh yeah, mole diva over there doesn't know how to play doubles."

"Arn~, ore-sama does know how to play doubles." Atobe flipped his hair.

The vice captain hooted with laughter. "Yeah, sure you do. You know how to play doubles with a mirror, that's what!"

Kiyone stifled her laughter while the regulars couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Gakuto rolled on the floor laughing. "She's right about that, Atobe!"

Ohtori tried his best not to laugh. "I'm sorry, Atobe-senpai. But there is a truth to what Ayane-chan says."

Oshitari sniggered at his captain. "Yeah, as far as we're concerned, you're a Singles player only. Shizuru here was a former doubles player so she knows what it's like and Ayane's one half of Hyotei's best pair. Basically, I may be one of the better doubles players but even I'm not sure if I'll get a win from Getsugan and Kobayagi."

Atobe didn't like where this was going. "Ore-sama is not only half a player!"

"Sure you aren't," Ayane continued snickering, "you're one fourth! You can't play doubles properly which means you can't even coordinate!"

Atobe shot back at his freshman. "Ore-sama can coordinate with people just fine!"

Rolling on the ground laughing, Ayane couldn't even get herself to stand up. "Yeah right, as if you can coordinate with someone else! The only one whom you can probably coordinate with is Kabaji but then again, you've never played doubles before so – what's the point? I guess there's something even the great 'ore-sama' can't do!"

Oshitari slapped his forehead. "This better get somewhere."

Gakuto pat his doubles partner on the back. "Don't worry, Yuushi! I can handle Getsugan anytime, anywhere!"

Kiyone impishly grinned at what he said. "Yay, I get to beat up coconut head! I wanna see swirlies!"

Shizuru turned to Shishido. "I heard that you got your place back in the regulars."

"Yeah," he grumbled, "I just have to play doubles now but I don't mind."

Ohtori smiled shyly. "He's been improving so much ever since. He makes a great doubles partner!"

Scratching his head sheepishly, Shishido picked up his racquet. "Then, we better get started now shouldn't we?"

"Ore-sama wants a challenge against the captain." Atobe walked on to the court waiting for Shizuru's response.

Shizuru smiled at her senpai. "It would be an honor to play against you, Atobe-senpai."

Seeing that the matches had started, Ayane grabbed Kiyone. "Come on, we're going to find out who are going to be good doubles players in the future!"

"Is it okay if we try for awhile?" Ohtori walked up to them.

Shishido balanced his racquet on his finger. "Yeah, we need a little warm up. Think you can give us a good game?"

Ayane pointed at Shishido with her racquet. "For someone who's an ex-regular and a former singles player, you sure got some guts in challenging Kiyone and I."

Gakuto challenged Rin like always. "I'll show you the meaning of there's always someone better than you!"

Rin smirked. "Hah, are you saying you're the best? I'd say more like the worst!"

Oshitari tilted his glasses while facing the red haired dancing prodigy. "Hope your Jazz tennis can show me a trick or two. But, I think I'll be playing against Haruka-chan first."

"Maa~, we'll see about that. Besides, most people I play end up in a crying heap." Mai brought out her black and blue racquet.

Hiyoshi muttered while walking towards Momo. "I will overthrow you, Sanada-senpai."

Momo bristled at her last name. "Good luck in trying to beat me, Hiyoshi-kun."

Moving towards the court, they held it like they normally did in tournaments. Doubles Two match first followed by Singles Three, Doubles One then Singles Two and One. "It looks like we're playing first, Rin-chan and guess who our opponent is."

Rin twirled her racquet with a smirk. "I know who our opponents are: its Coconut head and Oshitari-san!"

Moving towards the court, Gakuto hissed at his female acrobatic counterpart. "Whatever, you're just saying that because I'm better than you!"

Oshitari shrugged while spinning his racquet. "Choose one: smooth or rough?"

Haruka watched it spin for a few moments. "Rough."

Landing on smooth, Oshitari tossed the ball to Gakuto. "You're serving."

"You got it!" Boy, did he sound very confident.

Rin positioned herself at the net while Haruka was at the baseline. "Don't let them unnerve you okay, Rin? Even if Gakuto sounds like a police siren, block him out."

Lowering her center of gravity a little, Rin gleefully spun her racquet a few times. "This should be a good work out!"

Kiyone took her seat in the umpire chair. "Okay, Doubles Two match: Hyotei's Hikifumi Haruka-senpai-Shimohi Rin-senpai pair versus Oshitari Yuushi-senpai-Mukahi Gakuto-senpai pair! Game start, Mukahi-senpai to serve!"

Gakuto bounced the ball lightly. "You're going down, Shimohi."

Rin lowered her body. "Let's try that formation, ne, Haru-chan?"

Preparing to receive Gakuto's serve, Haruka was also in no mood to go easy on the two boys either. "Yeah, I think we should. We can't let Seigaku overtake us now can we?"

Gakuto's serve bounced lightly while Haruka gave it a good pile driver right down the line. Oshitari returned it with another strong shot while Rin dived for it; displaying her acrobatics. "This should be a lot easier than expected, show me what you got, Mukahi!"

"Sure, I'll even let you have the delight of watching my famous move!" The magenta haired acrobat somersaulted into the air and gave it a hard smash.

"15 Love," Kiyone watched Rin try and deflect it only to miss and crash on the floor.

Gakuto landed from the air; jeering. "See? You can't even return my Moonsault now can you?"

"You wanna bet on that?" Well, she knew she couldn't at first until she had enough time to figure out the technique.

Gakuto served again and he and Oshitari switched places very easily. Haruka gave them another deep shot. "We can't let them get a point again. We're not as tight as Marui and Jackal but I know we've got some art. Are you with me on this one, Rin-chan?"

"You bet!" It was quite obvious of what she would tell her doubles partner.

Flying overhead, Gakuto sent the ball back down again with his Moonsault but then, Rin had an idea how to return it. "Alright, time to volley!"

Not even allowing the ball to bounce, Rin reacted fast enough to send the ball back at Oshitari. To have been deceived like that on the court was not a very comfortable feeling. "Damn, I didn't know she would get this good! She only saw my Moonsault once!"

Oshitari sent the ball back with a drop shot. "Don't mind that anymore, Gakuto. Just do your acrobatics."

The magenta haired acrobat stretched out to return another shot while Rin really did her acrobatic play. "I'm not allowing you to show off, coconut head!" She was in no mood to be outdone by Gakuto.

Kiyone saw the ball fly fast but she didn't choose to be umpire for no reason. "At least I can train my eyes so I can watch fast balls and return them. Mai-nee-chan was gifted with motion sight and buchou just looks at how the person swings it and recognizes it right away. I want to develop something that I can consider my own."

Because Kiyone was umpire, Ayane couldn't play and so, there was another match between Hiyoshi and Momo. The two had very similar styles. "I'm not going to let you win. I have my own Gekokujou too; there's someone I need to surpass and I'm not going to allow him to get all the glory."

Hiyoshi positioned himself for Enbu tennis right at the start. "I'm not going to let you win either."

"Pick one, smooth or rough?" She wanted to get right down to business.

Hiyoshi stared at it for a moment. "Rough."

The racquet fell on smooth and this allowed Momo to start the service. Retreating to the baseline, she closed her eyes with a thought. "Sanada Genichirou, you may be my cousin but I won't let you hog all the glory from my parents and our family! I will make them proud!"

Ayane sat at the umpire's seat. "Singles Three match begin, Hyotei's Sanada Momo-senpai versus Hiyoshi Wakashi-senpai! Game start, Sanada-senpai to serve!"

Wincing at the use of her last name, Momo bounced the ball a few times while eyeing Hiyoshi. "Get ready to get plastered, boy."

Hiyoshi knew one thing: Momo was known for her traditional style of play. Hopefully, his Enbu Tennis would be good enough to compensate for it. "Gekokujou…"

"You're starting to become irritating with that line, boy." Momo fired her service and Hiyoshi quickly reacted to it.

The two exchanged fast rallies not even allowing one to go near the net. Momo positioned herself to begin her attack. "I won't lose to Sanada, never!"

Seeing that Hiyoshi had fired a smash towards her left side, Momo twisted her body and recoiled like a spring sending the ball fast. She didn't even allow the smash to bounce on the ground, "15 Love!"

Hiyoshi smirked. "That wasn't half bad, Sanada-senpai."

Twitching and cringing at the mention of her surname, Momo picked up the tennis ball while tossing her hair back. "You should know what to call me by now, boy."

"You're Sanada Genichirou's cousin aren't you?" Hiyoshi continued to rile her up. "If you were his sister, you'd look more like a statue."

Unfortunately for him, she didn't take the bait. "I know he looks like a cement figure but get a grip. He's just a rock because he just wants to be cool and all."

Hiyoshi received her service with ease. "He's really like that?"

With a smirk, he fired another pile driver which Momo managed to slice.

"You should know that I'm not like one of those girls," Momo fired another cannonball pile drive down the line.

Hiyoshi repelled it with a backhand. "I know. I just want to see if you're good enough to match up to Atobe-buchou."

Atobe, passing a glance at Shizuru, smirked. "Is this all Sanada's cousin can do?"

"Momo-senpai is more than capable in handling Hiyoshi-san, Atobe-senpai." Shizuru continued watching her players play against each other.

The violet haired senpai proved Shizuru's point because she scored another point against Hiyoshi. "You could learn a lot from me. For all you know, I might be better than Atobe-san."

Hiyoshi received her serve once more with a powerful backhand. "I'd like that because that means I know I'll be ready to face Atobe-buchou."

"Don't get too cocky, Momo-senpai." Shizuru warned her. "Hiyoshi-san's pretty good for a second year student."

Momo did a backhand smash. "Thanks for the advice, Kurenai-chan!"

Hiyoshi bolted forward to return the ball with a drop shot while Momo did a top spin for the killer shot. "Hmmm, you might be right but I still think that I have to Gekokujou Atobe first."

"Good luck with doing that then!" Momo did another fast volley against Hiyoshi.

"40 – Love," Ayane exclaimed while she watched Momo serve again.

Realizing that holding back wouldn't help at all, Hiyoshi played at his full power. "Gekokujou, Sanada-senpai, I can't let you win."

On the other court, Gakuto flew to one end to block the shot from crossing the net while Rin gave it another forehand. "You look so cute when you do that," Oshitari drawled with his famous kansai accent.

Blushing madly, Rin promptly missed the backhand that was sent towards her, "15-40!"

Haruka saw that her partner was about to turn into jelly. "Rin, don't fall for it! Oshitari's doing that to destroy the Dragon Dance!"

"Why? Are you jealous that I'm flirting?" Oshitari knew he was getting the upper hand.

Flirting happened to be one of Oshitari's fortes. "W-well," Haruka too began to turn into a pinkish colour, "not really. Anyway, getting back to the game, I think you should take us seriously!"

The kansai prodigy shrugged. "Sure, whatever you say, Haruka-chan."

Clearly irritated, Haruka positioned herself at the baseline. "Don't let Oshitari's cheesy lines get to you okay? I know he's hot and everything but drop that for now, Rin-chan."

"Okay," half-heartedly positioning herself at the line, Rin knew that Oshitari was just too hot a guy to ignore.

"I don't really think that way of you but," Oshitari hit another forehand aiming towards Haruka, "but it's the way how to play the game." He was deep in thought until he heard Gakuto yell at him. "Yuushi, watch out!"

Without having much time to react, he fired the ball up in the form of a lob. Rin jumped high into the air. "Yay, you gave me a chance ball! Thanks a lot!"

Gakuto slapped his forehead. "Yuushi, why did you give her that shot?"

Somehow, Oshitari had never felt so pressured in his life. He turned to his kohai who calmly watched her teammates while Atobe simply smirked at him. Taking a look at the other side, Oshitari discovered the difference. It also proved why Atobe easily got riled up every time Shizuru approached him kindly or even tried helping him.

The fact that she was a captain and Atobe was always finding some way to mock her infuriated him for once in his life.

Twisting himself around and using the centripetal force around him, Oshitari just did something that Rin didn't expect: the Higuma Otoshi. The smash flew up high into the air and landed exactly on the baseline right there and then, "30 -40! Looks like Oshitari-senpai just had a trick up his sleeve after all!"

Haruka stared at him as if he grew a second head. "Oshitari, what in the world was that?"

"Higuma Otoshi," the kansai prodigy recovered to his normal stance while shifting his glasses, "a technique that can nullify smashes in an instant. As long as I have enough centripetal force, I can neutralize the smash. Didn't you see this in any of your matches?"

Mai pointed out. "That girl I went against, Motomiya Kumiko used it remember?"

Rin thought back for a moment and then snapped her fingers. "Oh yeah, I remember that now! Motomiya-san used that technique which she called the Roundhouse Return!"

Slapping her forehead with a sigh, Haruka stared at her partner stupidly. "Rin, you should be more observant of things. Mai just played her yesterday and you forgot?"

"I didn't really watch." Rin always had short attention span when it came to things like that.

Oshitari positioned himself again at the baseline. "Well, I might be using it a few times. Feel free to fire smashes at me."

Gakuto gave them a cocky grin. "It looks like we're going to take you down!"

Breathing in deeply, Haruka went to Rin and put her hand on her shoulder. "Relax a little okay, Rin? I know it's been awhile since you've had a chance to show off against Mukahi Gakuto-san but I suggest you relax yourself am little. You're getting a little impulsive."

Rin sheepishly scratched her head. "Sorry about that, I just hate it when Mukahi-san starts yabbering on how good he is as an acrobatic player."

Gakuto puffed up. "But that's because it's true: I am the best acrobatic player!"

Scowling at her classmate, Rin received his service again. She sprinted faster now because she didn't want Gakuto to surpass her. Back flipping for a shot, Rin sent it to the baseline where Oshitari returned it with a backhand. Haruka lunged towards the left to receive it and spin it harder than before.

"This is the Dragon's Tail."

Exactly what had happened during her game between her and Yuna, the ball went linear but Gakuto jumped towards it. "I know the weakness to that shot of yours, don't bother!"

Unfortunately for the magenta haired acrobat, he sent the ball up way up high. "Oops, I'm sorry Yuushi!"

A smirk appeared on the kansai prodigy's face. "No, it's alright, I don't mind at all."

Seeing the look on his partner's face, Gakuto knew why and saw Rin fly high into the air. "You're in for it now."

Haruka knew what to expect. "Rin, cord smash!"

Hearing her doubles partner's orders, Rin smashed the ball directly at the white line of the net. However, because of not enough power, the ball couldn't go over. "Deuce," Ayane gaped in awe.

Oshitari looked at the ball roll away from him and his partner. "If that went in, I wouldn't have been able to use the Higuma Otoshi. It seems like Mai figured out the shot and told these two."

Rin landed gracefully like a jaguar with a sigh. "I'm sorry. I'll try harder next time, Haruka."

"No need to be sorry," Haruka pat her on the head, "what matters is that we know how to avoid the Higuma Otoshi. Otherwise, we'd lose if you kept smashing towards Oshitari-kun."

Rin nodded slowly; Haruka was right because now he had the Higuma Otoshi to back him up and Gakuto wasn't just going to sit there and do nothing either. Leaping to her left, Rin received the service followed by Gakuto's volley which Haruka was able to follow up with the Dragon's Tail again. Oshitari this time had a plan up his sleeve.

"S-S-A-S," with a flick of his wrist, Oshitari sent the ball spinning away the moment it bounced off the floor.

Haruka caught it with her technique. "I've seen that technique many times, Oshitari-kun. Don't bother using it against me."

The kansai prodigy was a little miffed that she could return it. "I'm impressed; you actually managed to neutralize its spin with a counter spin."

"I may not be Getsugan Kiyone but I try to at least have her control over the ball," Haruka sent another spinner towards Oshitari.

Expecting this, Oshitari did another S-S-A-S and sent the shot spinning away. "I guess but thanks for giving me back a top spin though."

The ball vanished due to the heavy spin and landed behind Rin. "Waah, where did that come from?"

Haruka managed to analyse it before Rin panicked. "Because of the amount of spin I put, he reinforced it with his own thus making a super spin out of it so, it manages to create an illusion that it disappears. That's why it managed to vanish from your line of sight, Rin."

"Oh," Rin nodded while she positioned herself at the net again. "I won't it let get past me again!"

Oshitari saw the determination with a smirk. "Now this is more like it, I've been waiting for a match like this."

Gakuto, flipping up in the air landed with an arrogant smirk. "I'm not going to let you out stage me!"

Rin and Haruka exchanged glances and fixed themselves into their next formation. "That's something I haven't seen before," Oshitari commented while watching the girls get a lot more serious, "you girls play as if this is a tournament match. Mind telling us what this formation is?"

Haruka brushed her hair back with a smirk. "It's new and we haven't really used it so, hope you two don't mind being our guinea pigs for this formation. After all, an art has to undergo several tests before it is considered one."

"We're gonna take you down," –twirling her racquet over her wrist, Rin lowered her stance, "whether you guys like it or not."

Oshitari pushed his glasses up a little. "Don't say things you can't do, Rin-chan."

The black haired girl received Gakuto's serve with a volley while Oshitari sent a baseline shot towards Haruka who returned it with her two fisted backhand.

"I don't get it," Gakuto was up in the air when he returned the shot, "you girls use a two fisted backhand like guys. Are you sure you haven't switched genders or something?"

"I think that's something we should be asking you, Mukahi-san." Haruka gave him another forehand which sped past him and Oshitari.

"Deuce," Watching the match, Kiyone had a bright expression while she tried to restrain herself from cheering.

Shishido popped open a can of soda. "This is getting good; no one's ever given Gakuto a run for his money except Atobe and that Seigaku red head guy. Though with the way he's jumping, the red head's gonna beat him sooner or later."

Gakuto heard what Shishido had said. "Ya-ah, shut up! That will be the day dogs have the ability to use calculators!"

Rolling his eyes, Shishido sauntered towards Ohtori. "Too bad we can't play yet; the Kobayagi-Getsugan pair is busy supervising the matches."

Ohtori however didn't seem to mind. "Ah, it's okay. But, I really want to see Shizuru-chan play! I mean – she's a Nationals Calibre player and her leadership is pretty good! Maybe she can match up to Atobe-san in a tennis match."

Shishido gambled a little. "I bet she can make Atobe cry with the way she's training."

Ohtori wasn't sure whether or not he should agree with his senpai. "Yeah, she's getting better everyday! We can't let her overtake us!"

She's also getting insanely stronger everyday, Shishido mumbled to himself while watching her intently watch the match. Her eyes followed the pace of the ball and her whole lady-like gentle demeanor threw itself out the window if it involved a tennis match. "I bet she's going to bring Hyotei to the top. Sure Atobe's also National Level but he's got Yukimura and Tezuka to worry about. Shizuru's blazing through the tournament as if it were just a track and field contest."

"Arn~, ore-sama's best doubles pair seems to be staring somewhere else. Could it be at Kurenai perhaps?" Atobe's narcisstic voice cut through their thoughts.

Ohtori didn't know how to lie. "I… Uhm…" (Aww, he's so cute! He's so innocent!)

Shishido scowled while pulling Ohtori's ear. "We were thinking of a new formation, Atobe. Just get your head back into your clouds and swim there for all I care."

Smirking at the silver pair, Atobe's eyes fell upon the first year umpire of singles three. She had that arrogant look despite her being a first year. She didn't bow to anyone except Shizuru let alone, she wouldn't even bow to him. She'd rathe jump into a lake full of hungry and rabid sharks rather than stare him in the face. "Kobayagi Ayane, how you managed to hate ore-sama will so much conviction truly amazes him."

Jirou yawned a little. "When do I get to play, Atobe-san?"

"Don't bother falling asleep, Jirou. Go stare at something else," Atobe ordered; he didn't want his magic volleyist sleeping on him right now.

Jirou actually did find something to stare at. He found Kiyone swinging her legs while she was supervising the match that Hiyoshi was playing against Sanada Momo. "Getsugan-san isn't that bad looking. Her being short's a good thing. At least, she's not as annoying as those other rabid fan girls that I see in the campus everyday. She's the only one who knocks sense into them without trying, literally."

Hitomi began scribbling onto her notebook. "Shizuru-buchou, how do you think we'll fare against Seigaku at this rate?"

The said girl didn't answer but the data girl found the girl's fist turning visibly white. "At this rate, we won't even beat Rikkai Dai. Hikifumi-senpai, work on your footwork. Shimohi-senpai, watch your stamina. Stop making reckless shots unless you really need to gamble for the shot."

Haruka nodded at her captain. "Don't worry about me. I got this covered, buchou."

Rin jumped high into the air while slamming down another shot. "Yeah, my stamina's A-OK!"

"Advantage, Hikifumi-Shimohi pair," Kiyone clapped her hands joyfully for her two senpai.

Rin looked at the court with a sigh. "Oshitari-kun doesn't seem to be pulling out all the stops yet."

Haruka shook her head. "He isn't but somehow, I think its best that he doesn't. That way – we can work a lead over them pretty easily."

Rin hit the ball from in between her legs and the ball darted over the net while Gakuto tried to return it only to have it hit the net. "Game, Hikifumi-Shimohi pair: 1-0!"

Before he knew it, Oshitari saw Haruka and Rin pull out a new formation. "This is something new. I haven't seen this formation yet. What do you guys call this one?"

Haruka smirked before resting her racquet on her shoulder. "It's something we have unnamed. It's a formation we haven't given a name to yet."

Gakuto took it as a bluff. "Yeah right, I bet it's some useless formation that won't even work. I bet you just renamed it from some other formation!"

Wincing at Gakuto's comment, Rin began warming up again. "I'll no – rather we'll prove it to you that it's not some lousy formation a grade school student came up with!"

Gakuto laughed at Rin and turned to Oshitari. "Let's show them that we're the best in Japan, Yuushi!"

"Actually, it's the Marui-Jackal pair that's the best." Haruka noted while remembering the male doubles tennis ranks.

Gakuto huffed up. "I knew that!"

Rin gave Gakuto a droll stare. "Che, as if you knew about it, Mukahi! If you did, you wouldn't be saying you're the best in Japan when you guys clearly know that it belongs to Marui and Jackal right?"

Pouting like a small child, Gakuto seethed at Rin. "You're going down, missy!"

The black haired girl put up her finger and beckoned him to come. "Bring it on, you raspberry coconut sherbet."

Haruka shook her head with a sigh. "Rin, stop insulting him! We should just start playing."

"Oh right, sorry about that." Rin retreated to her position.

Haruka now began her service and Gakuto lunged for the ball with his acrobatics. Rin countered with her own style and often used Haruka like a stepping stool. Flipping high into the air, Rin sent her shots fast and Oshitari moved towards the net as her smash came down. "You forgot what I can do, didn't you, Rin-chan?"

Rin didn't seem intimidated by Oshitari's warning. "It's your gamble, kuwee."

Performing another Higuma Otoshi, Oshitari didn't know what to expect until he realized that there was a reason why Rin jumped so high into the air. "She knows! Gakuto, get back to the baseline!"

Gakuto apparently still didn't get it. "She knows what, Yuushi? Rin isn't that smart, you know."

"I'll show you who's better now!" Rin was still high in the air and with a devastating back hand, Rin made the ball fly right on the left corner of the service box. Tossing her hair back, Rin gave them a goofy grin. "You don't have enough time to do another Higuma Otoshi consecutively, don't you?"

Oshitari smirked while he took the ball for their service. "I guess so. So now you know the Higuma Otoshi's weakness, what next?"

"You haven't figured out my Moonsault yet!" Gakuto boasted like always.

Haruka waved her finger in front of him. "Tsk, tsk, Rin may not have figured it out but I have. The Moonsault takes a lot of time to prepare, doesn't it, Mukahi-san?"

On the other side, Momo and Hiyoshi were still playing it out. A smash descended on to the left side of Hiyoshi's court. "Game, Sanada-senpai: 1-0!"

Growling inwardly at himself, Hiyoshi couldn't believe that Momo wasn't the least bit exhausted despite the long rally of thirty shots. "How… how can you still stand that way?"

Momo wasn't breathing heavily but taking deep breaths. "You as a martial arts practitioner should know this kind of thing. The heavier you pant, the more energy you expel because your body tends to tense up right away, am I right? You're not even playing me at full power are you?"

Hiyoshi tensed up, without gracing her with a response.

Pointing her racquet at him, Momo demanded. "Come at me with everything you have. You're insulting me if you don't even bring out your unorthodox style of tennis. I know you use Enbu tennis, I'm not that stupid. You feel uncomfortable whenever you play tennis in that position thus cutting your reaction time in half."

Hiyoshi was a little surprised when she figured that out. "I guess I can't hide it that well now, can I?"

"To a trained eye," Momo changed her style of tennis, "it's quite easy to spot but to those who don't know much about martial arts - once they see it, they will exploit it."

Hiyoshi tossed the ball up into the air. "Here I come!"

"Bring it on, Hiyoshi Wakashi!" Momo darted forward to receive it and pile drove it down the line.

Her theory was right because Hiyoshi started moving faster and Momo now felt the thrill of the game. "You should have done this awhile ago, boy. Unfortunately, I'll have to end your little charade here and now!"

With a fast backhand volley, the ball flew right in between Hiyoshi's feet, "Love – 15!"

Hiyoshi stared at her blankly. "Is that all you have?"

"I only use all my techniques when the game calls for it, boy." Momo returned to the receiving area, "But, your style needs to be used otherwise you will lose 6-0 to me."

The second year ace of Hyotei continued to stare. "Sure, as if I will."

The ball flew fast but Momo reacted quickly and positioned herself in a different position. "I was never comfortable with bending my knees, I always got used to holding my racquet," –the ball came at her and she cut through it like a kendo sword, "like a blade."

The ball cracked off her racquet and sped towards Hiyoshi who took a few steps back to receive the shot. Giving her a backhand, Hiyoshi darted towards the net while Momo gave him a forehand that headed straight down the line. Managing to stretch out for it, Hiyoshi sent it back as a lob and crashed on the floor while Momo took this chance to lightly tap the ball and gain her point, "Love – 30!"

Hiyoshi couldn't believe that he was getting done in by a girl and someone who was simply Sanada's cousin. If she was nothing compared to Sanada, the mere thought of having to face the emperor made the boy shudder in fear. An angry Sanada Genichirou of Rikkai Dai was not a very good enemy to have.

"What's the matter? Scared of Gen-chan?"

"Wait, w-w-what did you just call him?" Hiyoshi nearly burst into fits of laughter.

Momo swat the ball back nonchalantly. "Gen-chan, that's what everybody calls him back home. He's such a sass as in believe me, I don't know what's wrong with him but seriously, he's a sissy compared to me. I mean – what's with the 'tarundoru' all the time? Ugh, that line of his just makes me want to put his head through a toilet."

Atobe overheard that and he couldn't stifle his own laughter. "You're talking about Rikkai Dai's Sanada Genichirou? He's ninny and a sissy? That's hardly believable."

Momo did another backhand. "Believe me; you don't want to know half of it."

Oshitari happened to get interested. "Pray do tell, Momo-chan."

"Sorry, that's my blackmail material only," Momo smirked evilly. "Go ask Hitomi-chan, she might have some info since she stalks people."

Hitomi adjusted her glasses. "You didn't have to be so blunt."

Suddenly, a smash came in from Hiyoshi's side, "15 – 30!"

Momo cocked her head towards the boy. "Wow, you finally got one in." Her voice was stoic as always.

Hiyoshi hissed at the older girl. "Che, I did a lot of that just so I could score a point. But I'm not holding back anymore, Sanada-senpai."

"Ohhh, so you're really going to do that now? I think you should have done that a few leagues back, boy." Momo positioned her racquet like a blade once more.

They heard a loud and angry snarl from the other side and found Gakuto getting pissed off. Rin had returned all his shots and even copied the Moonsault after five times while Haruka had easily returned Oshitari's S-S-A-S. "How did you do all that? You didn't even see the Moonsault once!"

"I did see it, you blind coconut sherbet!" Rin glowered at the shorter acrobat. "How do you think I beat it, you moron!"

Oshitari looked at the score. "One game to love and they're in the lead love - 15, wow, we're being humiliated, Gakuto. I think we need more work and less insulting don't you think?"

Gakuto continued to glare at Rin. "But she stole my special move!"

"But you made it so that means you can beat it, right?" Oshitari coaxed him like a teacher talking to a dense student.

Gakuto slapped himself on the forehead. "Oh yeah, I forgot about that! Thanks for the smart thinking, Yuushi!"

The kansai prodigy started to wonder. "How did I end up with an idiot like him? But, I guess it would be boring it he weren't an idiot."

Gakuto wanted to pull out his own hair. "I'm gonna get you for this, Shimohi!"

Rin deftly twirled her racquet over her wrist while sticking her tongue out. "Come and get me, Mukahi!"

Haruka shook her head in disapproval. "Rin, not too much violence otherwise, you know what Shizuru-chan will do to us right?"

This made the said girl's face pale. "Yep," gulping in horror, Rin didn't like that. "I remember that day."

Oshitari looked at Shizuru who had a pleasant smile on her face. "I can't imagine her doing anything horrible."

"Trust me because she made us run laps til our legs fell off!" Rin whimpered at the memory.

Haruka lowered her head. "It wasn't just us but all the members were told to run a hundred laps around the school."

Kiyone shivered her in her chair. "Not only that, Yamaguchi-senpai made that evil juice of hers! It gave me stomach cramps for days!"

"Enough with that," Oshitari took the ball from Rin and began his service. "I think we should be getting on with the game."

Haruka received his service with the Dragon Tail. "I hope you don't mind if we try to end this early."

Gakuto noticed that their formation was a lot more different than before. "Hey Yuushi, didn't you notice they're like…dancing now?"

"Reminds me of one of those Shintoism rituals back at the," Oshitari slapped himself on the forehead, "duh, that's where their title came from. The twin dragons of Hyotei: Hikifumi Haruka and Shimohi Rin, why am I so dense? I completely forgot about that. That's where the formation's coming from."

Gakuto recalled Rin's movements which were flowing and was able to compare them to a dragon. "Yeah, she did start moving so differently. I guess it's their formation. Why don't we have one, Yuushi?"

"We don't have one what?" Oshitari raised an eyebrow.

"A formation, we never had a doubles formation except our usual back and front formation," Gakuto recalled the doubles matches he's had with Oshitari.

Come to think of it, he's right. Oshitari only realized now that Gakuto and he never perfected one formation. They just used the basic back and forward formation whereas Rin and Haruka had time to create a very special formation for their use only. Apparently, their formation took complete symphony and harmony with each other.

Exactly like a dragon dance in the Shinto rituals.

With a smirk, Oshitari released another service. "I think we can start making one, Gakuto. I don't think you want to lose to Rin-chan, right?"

The magenta haired acrobat knew exactly who that was. "Alright, time to rip them off, Yuushi!"

Rin dived for the ball and recovered her stance immediately. "Haruka, are we going to make them cry or what?"

"You're evil but," Haruka received Gakuto's volley with a forehand, "I like that idea. Rin, aim high!"

Somersaulting into the air, Rin saw Haruka drive a smash on purpose to force Oshitari bring out his Higuma Otoshi again. "I don't think I'll use it again though," Oshitari let it bounce past him and Gakuto drove it in with a backhand to where Rin was supposedly standing, "15 all!"

Landing on her two feet, Rin couldn't believe that they saw through it. "Wow, that's something new. Being serious and all makes me get cramps and everything."

"Yeah, not many people do that. But, the more challenging it is, the better right?" Haruka had a twinkle in her eye.

Oshitari prepared to serve. "It's time to counter attack, Gakuto."

Gakuto twirled his racquet deftly and caught it again. "Yeah, we'll beat these whiny guys in no time!"

Rin snorted at his comment while getting ready to connect another shot. "Ready, Haruka?"

"I'm not going to lose here because if we do, we have another doubles pair to beat!" Haruka positioned herself for Oshitari's service.

()()()()0000()()()()

"So, what do you think of their performance so far?" Shizuru looked at Atobe who was watching Oshitari and Hiyoshi carefully.

Atobe turned away with a snort. "They're just playing around. Moreover, ore-sama wants a match with you."

Shizuru bowed with a faint smile. "Very well, Atobe-senpai. But I will not hold back."

Oshitari saw Shizuru bowing down to Atobe and he sent a shot too hard that it went out, "15 – 30!"

"Of course, it's a simple as this: Ore-sama no bigi ni yoina, Kurenai." Atobe flipped his hair like always with his usual arrogant smirk.

Shizuru looked at her piece of paper which held the roster while watching Hiyoshi and Momo rally. "Sanada Momo-senpai, I remembered what you told me. You didn't want to live in Sanada-san's shadow anymore. You wanted be known as Sanada Momo, not Sanada Genichirou's cousin. You're getting there, Momo-senpai. Just have faith in your own skill as a tennis player."

Momo fired another backhand towards Hiyoshi who didn't have enough time to catch it. "Game, Sanada: 2-0!"

Breathing heavily, Hiyoshi felt his entire body falter and Momo was still standing. "So, that's your weakness: you were only trained to handle short matches, weren't you, Hiyoshi-san?"

Hiyoshi tried to mask it. "I'm fine, I just fell backwards. That's all."

She didn't buy it. "You can't lie to me, Hiyoshi-san. I know what's happening to you: you can't plant your body properly for an accurate shot which is why most of your forehands are hitting the net. As of now, your legs must be screaming at you to stop running. Your vision should be clogging up by now."

"Tsk, she knows." Hiyoshi looked away in total embarrassment. "I can still play! I will not stop til I overthrow you."

Momo shrugged. "It's your funeral. If it's one thing I've learned in Rikkai Dai during my earlier days is that, one should persevere even against their weakness. To play with no regrets has always been a moral code that Rikkai Dai has lived up to."

Hiyoshi stood up to receive Momo's serve. "I'm not going to lose to a girl."

Gently bouncing the ball, Momo began pin pointing her targets. "I guess the corners are my best bet. Hiyoshi was never gifted with motion sight anyway."

The moment the ball cracked off her racquet, Hiyoshi darted forward towards the corner to receive it. "I didn't know you liked attacking the corners, Sanada-senpai."

Momo ignored the fact that he had just used her surname. "It's rare that someone was actually worth fighting all out on but - keep playing. You might get to see something else."

Hiyoshi smirked while sending a long backhand towards the singles line which Momo easily caught. "Burst like the sound…"

"Burst…? Like the sound…?" Shishido turned to Shizuru.

Hitomi began explaining again. "Oto – this is a technique that Momo-chan invented to counter Sanada-san's Fuu but with more destructive power. Her shot rattles because of the prolonged stay on her racquet and she deftly spins the ball towards the left in order to create a soundwave strong enough to cause disorientation to the opponent. With her accuracy, it aims right at the ear of the opponent and lands right on the baseline."

Fair enough, Momo sent it whizzing past his ear which created an incessant ringing sound in Hiyoshi's ear. Groaning in pain, Hiyoshi collapsed to the floor as it landed exactly on the baseline, "15-0!"

Hiyoshi struggled to get up again while he stared at her. "That's it. I'm not going easy on you."

"You shouldn't have in the first place." Momo began her service.

Hiyoshi darted forward to receive, Momo then set it back with another forehand and when he sent her a long shot, she simply closed her eyes. "Guided like the leaves…"

With a flick of her wrist, the ball simply toppled over the net and rolled towards Hiyoshi, "30-0!"

Ohtori gulped. "What was that…?"

"That was the Aoba, a simple drop shot that Momo had made to counter the Rin of Sanada's FuuRinKaZan. She doesn't use any power but she does reflect back the power of the opponent." Hitomi began scribbling. "When one mentions to her on how much she is like Sanada, she brings out these techniques."

"It's a way of venting out her frustration?" Shishido raised an eyebrow.

Ohtori shook his head. "I hope she doesn't have anything that will kill him."

Hiyoshi stared at the ball for a moment. "A simple drop shot? Is that all it does?"

Momo got ready to serve. "You want to know the next one? I wish you luck in trying to return it."

Hiyoshi resorted to his Enbu Tennis again but Momo was prepared with another technique. "Uncontained like water…"

It was a devastating smash that rendered him defenceless because despite him blocking it, his racquet was knocked out of his hand and the ball managed to break a hole through it. "The counter part of Ka – Tsunami or Sui as dubbed. Momo uses a heavily enforced smash by returning it with twice the normal power rendering her opponent completely defenceless," Hitomi had her usual business smile.

Shishido then began counting. "So, there's the Oto, the Aoba and the Sui, what's next shot called? Is it called "Nadare" now?"

Momo fired another shot which began creating images of several balls coming at Hiyoshi's face and unable to return them, the second year was lucky enough not to get hit square in the face. "40 – 30, that's the way to go Momo-senpai!" Ayane stared at awe with Momo's balanced style of play.

"Unlike most players, Momo can change her style in the middle of the game which makes her more deadly. She can be an aggressive baseliner for a moment then, she becomes a net player and then a counter puncher so basically, she's an all-rounder but on a weaker scale. Unlike Shizuru-chan, she makes things a lot more lethal and wants to break her opponent's minds while Shizuru's style is more on strategy rather than rushing in like a bull." Hitomi continued taking data. "Hiyoshi is completely helpless against Momo because she's been playing Sanada every time she has the chance."

Ohtori watched Momo score another point against Hiyoshi. "So, Momo-senpai is basically National's Calibre because of her cousin?"

"Yup, and she's not going to stop until she beats him." Hitomi watched Momo deal a smash towards Hiyoshi again. "Game, Sanada: 3-0!"

Hiyoshi was really exhausted now and Momo was just getting warmed up. If she was this hard, what if he played Sanada? That was even worse in his opinion. She didn't even let him take a single game from her. He looked at his senpai who was barely breathing heavily but taking deeper breaths than normal but she managed to conserve her stamina so far while he was on the verge of collapsing. Feeling his hand become numb, Hiyoshi tried to tighten his grip but Momo knew that his body could no longer take the damage she was dealing.

"If you can't handle it," Momo pointed her racquet at him. "I suggest you forfeit."

Hiyoshi let the hiss seethe past his teeth. "Forget about it."

"Suit yourself." Momo returned to the baseline to receive Hiyoshi's service.

Gakuto and Oshitari were fairing pretty fine for now. Gakuto flipped high into the air and sent his shot towards Rin who promptly missed it. "Game goes to Oshitari-Mukahi pair: 2 - 4!"

The magenta haired acrobat, landing gracefully on his feet sniggered at the black haired acrobat. "That's all you've got, Shimohi? You sure got no game!"

Hissing softly to herself, Rin stood up while tilting her neck in different angles. "You haven't seen anything yet!"

Haruka pony tailed her hair while she started twirling her racquet. "I've tried the Dragon's Tail but Oshitari-kun's seen right through it already. I might have to use the other one but what good will those shots do? I'm sure as a tensai of the Hyotei team he can figure a way past it only after seeing it five times."

"Is there something wrong?" The blue haired kansai prodigy drawled.

Haruka changed her position. "Rin, I know you're not fond of me doing this formation but we might have to use it."

Rin stared at her with horror. "We're going to do that one? But, the last time we did it, we ended up not walking properly for a week!"

"It's going to take this formation to finish these guys. I don't like it when people retaliate and find a way through our Dragon Dance formation." Haruka assured her. "It just ruins all the hard work we poured into it."

Gakuto stared at them as they renewed their formation. "How did they come up with all these formations in one sitting?"

"Gakuto, they had enough time. They're third year so, they've been playing for quite awhile and because Haruka's pretty creative and Rin's pretty athletic, it's easier for them to create formations." Oshitari felt like he was a teacher explaining to the densest student in Hyotei who happened to be his doubles partner; Gakuto could be so dense and stupid sometimes.

This time, the moment Rin started her service, Gakuto lunged forward not knowing what to expect. She knew that he had no stamina control and she knew exactly how to wear him down. She fired a volley cross court which Gakuto sent back and when she sent it towards her left again, Gakuto sent it back and this time, Haruka sent a shot landing directly in front of Gakuto. Oshitari didn't know what they were getting at. "What exactly are they doing? I," –then, it hit him like a lightning bolt, "Gakuto, stop chasing the ball! You're going to run out of stamina that way!"

Gakuto didn't listen however and Oshitari soon found him heavily breathing. He had forgotten that Haruka had the highest level of stamina among them and Rin wasn't exactly that energy wasteful either. Haruka had trained Rin to easily contort her body with less effort and Rin wasn't short like his doubles partner either. Because of this, her strides were much longer and she wasted less energy. That was Gakuto's problem: he was short and reckless. Those made him lose stamina so much faster than ever. "Gakuto, that's enough already! I'll handle the next-!"

"Nu-uh, Yuushi, you guard the baseline! The net's my territory!" Gakuto blocked another drop shot given to him by Haruka.

He couldn't believe how reckless Gakuto was being. The magenta haired acrobat had completely volleyed every shot given to him and he wasn't even using any accuracy. Haruka was dropping the shots on purpose until she decided to use it. "I got you now, Mukahi-kun. I'm sorry."

Slicing the ball, Haruka made it jump to one side and it rolled right there; not even leaving the place where it jumped. "This is the Dragon's Retaliation."

Gakuto hated shots like that. "Darn it, I hate it when you do that!"

"Yes, it's an irritating move but it is useful, isn't it? I think it's time we sealed this game," Haruka fired another service that Oshitari returned with a backhand.

Rin somersaulted into the air and fired a forehand straight down the line which Gakuto promptly returned but Haruka was there to back up Rin with the Dragon's Tail, "15 – 0!"

Oshitari looked at how the Dragon's Tail was done. "It's somewhat similar to the S-S-A-S but how do I return it? It keeps bouncing in awkward directions that even I can't catch. Gakuto can't catch it and obviously, he's probably going to kiss the dirt before he even sends it over."

Gakuto dusted himself after falling on the floor several times. "What do we do now, Yuushi? Have you tried everything?"

"If I try F&D, Rin will be able to catch it. The S-S-A-S is already returnable by Haruka but there's a higher chance of it going in. The Higuma Otoshi, Rin also saw through it after Mai gave her a couple of hints. Wow, we're running out of ideas." Oshitari was in deep thought while he tried to figure out a plan.

Rin walked over to Haruka. "Yay, we're beating them!"

"Although I feel that we're being a bit too hard," Haruka noted the heavy sweat pouring down Gakuto's face. "Shizuru-chan would kill us if we started toying with them and not taking them seriously,"

Rin looked at Shizuru who was watching the match between Momo and Hiyoshi and heard Ayane declare from the other side. "Game, Sanada: 4-0!"

"Poor Hiyoshi, he's getting clobbered," Rin whimpered while hiding behind Haruka. "Why's Momo so scary?"

Haruka tossed her hair back. "What do you expect? This is Sanada Momo that you're talking about. Never compare her to Sanada because their both in different classes. Sure, Sanada's a strict uptight statue but she's something better because she plays well without being such a statue. She shows emotion from time to time and she even laughs with us. Her cousin's a complete rock!"

Oshitari whistled. "Hey, are you girls going to serve or what?"

Rin glared back at the prodigy. "Yeah, give us a minute, you pansy!" Turning to Haruka, Rin waited for her command. "What do we do now then?"

"We just play our best. Think that we're playing against Marui-Jackal. They're the best pair to set as a standard." Haruka knew that Marui and Jackal were in a class all by themselves in doubles.

Rin set herself by the net. "You got a good point. But seriously, I cannot imagine Gakuto as Marui!"

Haruka stifled her laughter. "Just don't try to imagine Oshitari-kun bald."

Rin would have rolled on the floor laughing if not for Haruka's service. Oshitari returned it with a flat shot which was followed by Rin's fast volley with Gakuto. There was no bounce at all and Rin made sure that she wasted every bit of energy in Gakuto's body. She knew that once Gakuto collapses, Oshitari would soon follow. The man wasn't exactly like Jackal or Kaidoh. "So, Gakuto will have to fall first?"

"He's got a lot of willpower because he's still jumping around like a monkey." Haruka sent another baseline shot which Oshitari returned with the S-S-A-S.

Rin tried to back hand it but missed by a fraction of an inch, "15 all!"

Kiyone swung her legs lightly with a pout. "When do I get to play, Hikifumi-senpai?"

"You'll have you're turn, Rin and I just need to finish off these two." Haruka told the little girl kindly.

Oshitari raised an eyebrow at the two. "Finish us off?"

"Yeah," Rin threw her head back with a cheeky smirk, "you bet your lame butts. We're going to show you what Shizuru's been training us for."

Oshitari saw that Shizuru was not watching his match anymore but still, he wanted to impress her. "If I'm going down, then, I won't go down without a fight."

"You shouldn't, after all," Haruka fired her service. "Doubles is an art that doesn't involve surrender."

With sweat pouring down his face, Oshitari fired a forehand towards the baseline which Rin sent a back hand towards the corners of the court. Gakuto however contorted into a different angle so he could return it while Haruka did a baseline shot while Gakuto did a drop shot but Rin fired it up into the air for a lob. Gakuto sailed into the air. "It's time to show you my Moonsault!"

Rin planted herself firmly into the ground while watching the ball descend down from a smash and using her acrobatics, she hit it before it could bounce, "30 – 15!"

Another forehand flew into the left side right past Gakuto, "40 – 15!"

Oshitari found Gakuto unable to stand and he raised his hand. "It looks like we have to concede. Gakuto's sweating like a pig."

Haruka wagged her finger disapprovingly. "Okay, I guess he's broken a new limit. Though, I'm surprised by Rin's progress considering-."

THUMP.

She found Rin sleeping on the bench and she let out a sigh. "I guess it just mattered on their will power to keep playing."

Kiyone leapt off the umpire chair with glee. "Yay, I can play now! Yane-chaaaan, let's play doubles with Ohtori-senpai and Scowling-senpai!"

Shishido felt a vein pop. "I'm not scowling-senpai!"

Ayane held up her hand. "Wait, let me finish this match. Hiyoshi's going down!"

Momo fired the Sui again towards Hiyoshi which caused him to keel over backwards. The impact was heavy on his racquet; it was like she doubled her power the moment he fired a shot. "You can't start with that shot now can you? You need an opposing force to absorb and double your own strength."

Momo gave him a droll stare. "You only figured that out now? You're pretty slow, Hiyoshi. I guess I'll have to do the Oto and the Sui often then."

Another rally ensued only to end with Momo's forehand going right on the line. "Game, Sanada: 5-0!"

Hiyoshi stood up to begin his service and the moment the ball left his racquet, he rushed towards the net while Momo fired a long shot but he was fast enough to react with his Enbu Tennis. His shots were getting faster but Momo still exceeded him in skill and experience, "Love 15!"

Momo fired another Oto right next to ear causing him to fall backwards, "Love Thirty!"

Ayane yawned a little. "Come on, hurry up! I'm getting old here!"

Momo pointed to the court Kiyone was in. "She's been waiting for you. I'm almost done anyway, double break point."

Hiyoshi kept firing recklessly and Momo strategically feinted and did a smash, "Love Forty, match point!"

He couldn't believe that he was getting beaten this badly. But, what could he do? Momo already had created such a big gap and he was already tired and frustrated. "Giving up so soon, Hiyoshi?"

The brunette shook his head. "You wished!"

"Good," Momo waited for his service to come to her, "I like it when my opponents still have their fighting spirit but the end is nigh, I'll end you here."

Hiyoshi fired a weak service due to his fatigue. With her backhand shot, she sent it towards the corner only to see Hiyoshi collapse after the service. "Game and match, Sanada: 6-0!"

-That's Chapter 5! Sorry for late update! School work. :P