Queen of The Suits Chapter 46: Convinced, a prince of tennis fanfic

Me: Thanks for all the reviews so far! I know you guys are feeling a little awkward with all the action-adventure going on but I promise to put more romance! The last chapter was loaded with gore and stuff but heck – don't want to keep you guys bored now do I? By the way, I do not own Prince of Tennis! Also, please try reading my other stories. I posted two new stories "Beyond the Stars" [Fairytail] and "Providence of Redemption" [Bleach]! Don't forget to review them! Thanks~

Chapter 46 – Convinced

After rehabilitation and intense therapy for his shoulder, the bespectacled coffee blonde wiped the sweat off his brow before settling himself onto his chair while facing his laptop. The Seishun Gakuen captain frowned slightly before letting a thin line appear on his lips. He held the paper in his hands in which the website where his coach had advised him to go, contemplating whether or not to attempt accessing the website. Tezuka preferred the logical side of things in which it is easily explainable by Science, Math, anything practical or by Inui which led him to glare holes into his laptop. He folded his arms, swivelling the chair around before taking a glance at the clock ticking away.

4:00 PM.

Tezuka redirected his attention to the laptop, wondering if there was anything bet upon. Two scenarios popped into his head: if his coach were correct, he would at least figured out a way how to make signals or suggestions that he liked the brunette. Second scenario would be the worst case in which if left unattended, Sanada would be gaining the upper hand and thanks to Yukimura's prodding and Rikkai Dai's violent over-supportiveness – Sanada would attempt to make a confession and Shizuru would accept it without even knowing his own affections towards her. Although most girls would prefer being fawned over by the two men, Tezuka could not imagine Shizuru being that sort of person. Her sense of responsibility overrode everything that would have made her a fan girl which made him appreciate her company and earned her a few jealous onlookers from his school [most of them fan girls and Fuuka being one of the few who are still "normal"]. However, a smile crept up his lips when he traced his fingers over his own. Despite having quite a hangover from that event, Tezuka distinctly remembered the scent and taste.

She tasted like honey... strong yet unimposing...

Upon receiving Fuji's text, Tezuka deleted it on the spot – hoping that his "highly endowed" coach wouldn't try to read and violate his privacy. However, the question nagged him repeatedly as both girls appeared in his mind. Fuuka, being the captain of Seishun, obviously had the drive and motivation that could propel a team. However, her violent outbursts made it almost impossible to reason out with her and even an explosion wouldn't make her change her choice. Shizuru viewed things differently and without any boisterous action instantly commanded the team. However, she didn't have a backbone to insult anyone let alone hurt anyone. To physically injure for small damage then that would be plausible but somehow, he couldn't imagine her taking down people with martial arts unlike Fuuka who had a long juvenile record. Why Ryuuzaki-sensei actually agreed to someone so violent he had no idea why but Tezuka acknowledged that the girls' team wouldn't be anywhere without Fuuka.

He leaned against the backrest of his chair, pondering on the images of Fuuka and Shizuru. Tezuka shook himself out of the daze; he silently berated himself for being irked by trivial matters such as romance.

However, the thought of Sanada escorting Shizuru to the Rikkai Dai Autumn Ball did nothing but drastically decrease the temperature in his room.

Tezuka lamely typed the website address and began rummaging through the forums and stories posted online. The page unlike its indicated address revealed pictures of blue roses and honeysuckles along with an embedded MP3 player to play all sorts of songs. A guestbook loaded with comments filled the page and most of them said how successful the person's ideas were. A frown marred his features as he continued scrolling down. Seeing nothing but compliments, Tezuka found himself completely frustrated for the first time in his life. Nothing seemed helpful until the coffee blonde teenager decided to click on the embedded MP3 player, causing a song by Elliott Yamin to echo around the vicinity.

How do I get close?

When she looks like an angel

A moment of her time just seems impossible to me

It's hard to find the words, to get to know this stranger

I'm scared of what she'll say if what I say sounds incomplete

And it feels like we belong together

Can someone tell me where do I start?

Tezuka narrowed his eyes at the song before checking the title, wondering whether or not Fate wanted to laugh in his face. The coffee blonde teenager could easily imagine Fuji being the administrator of the website and having a triumphant smirk scrawled across his feminine features but flowers never appealed to the crazy tensai. The only flower blooming plant the honey haired tensai appreciated would be the Night Blooming Cereus which his sister had bought for him overseas. After navigating and surfing through pages, he located one of the stories written online by the "Queen of Diamonds". Romance never occurred to him and neither did it become his forte. However, one line at the conclusive paragraph quickly caught his eye:

"Love does not impose yet it forces the walls built around the heart to come down."

That's ironic; Tezuka frowned a bit before he began typing his review and comment about the conclusion. However, the Seishun Gakuen captain could not help but notice the milieu of the story.

Walking along the tennis camp pathways, Agito exhaled sharply before turning to the crimson-eyed brunette keeping up with his pace. "Saya, do you play tennis for recognition or... is there any factor that contributes to your ability?"

Tezuka blinked for a few moments, wondering how similar Agito sounded to his mannerisms. The only difference between them would be that this character "Agito" seemed slightly more talkative and straightforward compared to his usual monosyllabic personality. The character portrayed almost his exact reactions – as if, this administrator knew him personally. Tezuka twitched a bit, wondering whether or not Fuji was the crazy administrator but cancelled his suspicions again when he noticed the female companion in the story. Her appearance and description quickly called up the image of a smiling Shizuru in his mind until he snapped himself away from his trance. The bespectacled male proceeded to close the website before he felt his sanity had taken a drastic drop but decided against it when he saw the FAQ portion on the left column. After a few minutes of loading, tips and advises for romance flashed in his face when he noticed multiple people thanking the administrator and publisher. Two familiar names showed up on the screen "Kansai Casanova" and "Queen of Diamonds" which caused the boy to continue screening it.

Posted on: 9/8/2011

Relica says: "How do you get a boy to notice you when he is absolutely dense to the point he doesn't understand when a girl flirts with him?"

Kansai Casanova: "Simple, you have to make it more obvious or tell him straight. If your object of affection isn't the type for mushy stuff then, the best would be to make it subtle and direct. Although, I'd go for the more romantic approach though."

Queen of Diamonds: "I'd start it off with a note. Sometimes, writing things down can make a good foundation for things."

Tezuka leaned against his palms before weighing his options. Telling Shizuru straight out would jeopardize both reputations, make her a target for fan girls and all other things considered – their tennis careers would suffer. Seigaku's golden boy always never left anything to chance and now he himself found a situation where almost anything was possibly disastrous [in his opinion]. Out of pure amusement, Tezuka decided to leave a comment to see if it would earn any response.

Posted on: 14/8/2011

KT_1007 says: "What do girls appreciate the most?"

A simple question will suffice, Tezuka warily rechecked his question before erasing and changing the entire dominant impression. After posting it, the Seishun Gakuen captain prepared to shut down his laptop but the song continued playing. His hand halted before clicking the big red 'x' at the rightmost corner as he closed his eyes to listen. The melody soothed his jumping nerves while images started to float through his imagination. Shizuru stood at the other end of the hallway in a pretty white dress with her gentle and sincere crimson red eyes staring back at him while presenting a warm smile, reaching out for his hand. Tezuka let a chuckle bubble from his throat while trying to abandon his fantasies at the back of his head.

She's always on my mind, there's no room left for thinking

I'm tired of waiting slowly fading it needs to happen now.

Cuz I'm running out of time and I feel this ship is sinking

The doors are closing I am frozen I need her around

And it feels like we belong together

Can someone tell me where do I start?

Feeling a sense of calmness and somewhat agreeing with the lyrics, Tezuka shook his head before looking at the name of the song. "Can't Keep Loving You from A Distance" by Elliott Yamin," –he opened the search engine and found several sites with the piece until a notification appeared on the website. Someone responded already?

Posted on: 14/8/2011

KT_1007 says: "What do girls appreciate the most?"

Queen of Diamonds: "It highly depends. How is this girl like? Although, if you don't want to post it here for all the general public to see - you can e-mail me if you like at backstreetgirl_22793 yahoo. com. jp so you won't be inconvenienced. There are some conversations that can be private but that's at your own discretion."

Tezuka's eyes widened albeit slightly at the e-mail address; the very same person who collaborated with him in article writing managed this website! The coffee blonde male quickly scanned his messenger list to check who remained online despite the ever changing time zones. Most of his teammates were already asleep but one remained awake, his writing colleague. His mind debated whether or not he should disturb his partner for something so trivial but recalling how Sanada currently had the upper hand quickly settled his issues.

kt1007: I didn't know you managed a romance website on freewebs.

backstreetgirl_22793: XD Yeah, surprises surprises huh? So... what's this girl like?

kt1007: How can I be very secure on knowing that you will not disclose this sensitive information to anyone?

backstreetgirl_22793: Palabra de Honor, signor. :)

kt1007: ...What?

backstreetgirl_22793: It's a Spanish term that the Spaniards used when they make promises to other clients. The meaning in itself is "Word of Honour".

Tezuka hesitated for a moment, staring at the white keyboard before wondering how he could describe her. Instead of entering it in the chat box, the teenager opened up a new e-mail tab but inspiration refused to help him as the page remained completely blank. An uneasy stillness settled in his stomach; he contemplated on what words would be best but never could find any. Literature and English always required this from him but most of the time – his topic would be about tennis and something philosophical instead of something whimsical such as getting the girl of your dreams to accept the sincerity of his feelings. His mind ran into a wild confusion, throwing his trail of thought into a topsy turvy chaos while he continued to ponder on how to sketch out her character graphically with words alone.

Tezuka furrowed his brows at his first set of sentences before wondering how he could extend it into a paragraph. Inspiration did nothing for him but slowly his hands started typing things out mechanically. Clicks became the only thing audible next to the low humming of the air conditioning unit.

I once met her when she had yet to become the captain and she already had prominent skills, even managing to corner Sanada – one of Rikkai Dai's demons. Yukimura also admitted that he was impressed by her performance in a sense that she kept up with boys without much difficulty. A smile spread across her face each time the tennis ball collided with her racquet as if she had been given a new toy or a reason to live. "I play tennis because it makes me feel alive," she maintained her trademark benevolent smile while I remained completely astounded by her style of play. She inspired first year students to rise beyond those who have more experience than them and put back together a team that nearly disintegrated, according to certain rumours floating around.

A crease appeared on Tezuka's forehead as he narrowed his glare at his laptop screen. Seconds slowly transformed into minutes ticking away as he quietly contemplated in front of the blank e-mail.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Hey Shizuru," Fuuka sauntered out of the bathroom, wiping her face after a steaming bath. "Your laptop doesn't engrave magical runes out of nowhere. What the hell are you waiting for anyway?"

The brunette continued playing the puzzle game she had downloaded online while waiting for a certain somebody to respond. A bitter laugh nearly escaped her as she went back to the website regarding her romance stories that she had collaborated with her favourite kansai senpai, Oshitari Yuushi. Both of them preferred writing with no restrictions hence the inspiration to create a website capable of housing their stories although Oshitari did most of the writing and responding to his female fans. Shizuru checked the stat counter at the right side of her window, seeing that over a million people had logged in to check out what the site entailed.

"Oshitari-senpai's going to be happy when he finds this out," Shizuru giggled softly, scrolling down to look at the other comments. "Oh," –a loud ringing echoed through the luxury suite. "A new message?"

The message instead of being a short concise one became an extremely graphic and detailed character sketch.

To: backstreetgirl_22793

Fr: kt1007

Her smile bewitched anyone who glanced at her direction and with an aura of a commander; she gathered a set of people who believed in her ideals as the tennis captain of Hyotei Gakuen. Completely contradictory to the persona of that of the captain of the boys' team Atobe Keigo, she reveals not only in her tennis style but also in her way of dealing with people that she has become the epitome of elegance and simplicity. Amongst the students in the school I attend, many murmur and whisper her name not only in fear but also in reverence. She naturally makes anyone underestimate her abilities before taking them down but congratulates her opponent for an attempt, a very rare trait in most athletes nowadays.

And those words continue to repeat themselves in my mind as if it became some mystical mantra even until today.

Comparing her to Souma Fuuka who attacks problems with such brutality would be trying to make similarities between apples and oranges. Yes, they are both captains with skills that are worth fearing, revering and perhaps envying but a frown always mars her gentle features whenever people cower at the sight of her. Instead of taking that to her advantage, she extends her hand to help her opponent improve – hoping that they would understand their own limit and exceed it. However, many people would often dub her as a "doormat" and would abuse her kindness which I believe she does not deserve. Not once have I seen her lose her calm and benevolent composure; she always intrigues me to as if whether or not she developed a backbone in talking back to bullies.

If I were asked what her most striking characteristic it would be, that would be her eyes.

People deemed blood red eyes like hers "demonic", similar to a certain Rikkai Dai's ace's bloodshot eyes when he becomes extremely enraged. However, they never promised murder or held any malevolent intent. With her gentle heart and the fact that she is a knockout in the looks department, she is guaranteed any boy that she confesses to when there is someone who becomes her target of affection.

Shizuru contemplated on it for a moment, reading the descriptions repeatedly to ensure that her eyes were not deceiving her. Realization thundered itself in her mind as a throbbing sensation spun the world around as she tried to convince herself that there may be another person with the same description. However, the specific phrase "tennis captain of Hyotei Gakuen" pinched the brunette hard that everything screamed legitimate and reality. Her body trembled with anxiety while she pondered on an appropriate response, contemplating whoever this person could be. Her memory rewound back as far as it could but the only several people who appeared that far back along her childhood would be Tezuka, Sanada, Oshitari and Shishido.

Could anyone possibly come up with something this accurate?

As she continued to ponder, the honey brown haired Jyosei Shounan captain loomed over Shizuru's shoulder curiously. "So, who sent you that?"

Shizuru squeaked before slamming her laptop shut, fighting the blush that threatened to crawl up her face. "Um, it's someone asking a little advice is all..."

Florence swivelled back and forth, trying to discover the sender while Shizuru tightly gripped onto her laptop. Slightly frowning at the baffling predicament, the British captain faked annoyance and frustration before quickly feinting on the Hyotei female's left side before snatching the gadget cleanly while dodging any of the younger girl's attempts to retaliate. The crimson eyed female clucked her tongue before narrowing her eyebrows, lunging at Florence to reclaim her precious laptop.

"Hmmm," Florence wrenched her laptop open before scrolling through the messages, sighing with amusement and curiosity. "Who's kt1007? You have a boyfriend already?"

Shizuru's eyes widened with denial as her face flushed into thirty different shades of crimson; the sophomore captain launched herself towards the former Flash Goddess as yelps and evil chuckling echoed throughout the suite. The door from the neighbouring suite creaked open, revealing Natsuki with a tub full of mocha ice cream who bemusedly seated herself while watching the two grapple and battle each other for the laptop.

"Mah, mah, mah," Natsuki drawled with her thick kansai accent, spooning another scoop of mocha ice cream. "Someone explain ta me again why we're gonna require another twenty mil from da bank accoun's. Ah reckon that our executives are gonna shit kittens with the idea of withdrawin' almost everythin' from the treasury just to repair one of those buildin' or an island Shizuru and Fuuka accidentally blew up due to romantic affairs."

Shizuru frowned darkly, pointing accusingly at Florence. "She started it by trying to invade my privacy."

"I was asking who it was," Florence protested defiantly, folding her arms impishly. "Ojou-sama wanted to know what our little princess had to hide."

"A carcass disguises nothing but maggots and dead rats," Fuuka scoffed mockingly, earning a slight glower from the younger brunette. "Besides, it's probably some sappy romance story."

Florence frowned disapprovingly at the Seishun Gakuen Tennis captain, shaking her head distastefully. "Must you always antagonize our younger sister simply because you're both after the same man?"

With a disgusted snort, Fuuka stormed away before slumping on the bed while plugging her ears with her earphones. Florence shook her head while Shizuru sadly averted her vision from the red haired captain until noticing Florence patting her on the shoulder with a reassuring expression. Ai barged in with a basket full of candies with a lollipop stuck in her mouth, jumping up merrily and childishly before plopping onto the bed next to sulking red head.

"Hey, why's Strawberry-chan steaming again," Ai titled her head innocently to the side, exchanging glances between the two Tokyo captains. "Ooooh, did Shizuru-chan confess to Sanada-senpai yet?"

Fuuka scowled darkly before looking straight up at the ceiling with the crystal chandelier, folding her legs. "Unfortunately, not even a deathblow from our opponents could terrify her into confession mode. Besides, we still have a score to settle with one another before one of us surrenders."

Florence, rolling her eyes in surrender, quickly walked up to the two girls and pinched both of their ear lobes earning her a glare from Fuuka and a slight yelp from Shizuru. "Will you two assert your priorities before having your romance lives ruin our chances of survival and earning back Kobayagi Ayane?"

Shizuru lowered her gaze away from the British-Japanese female, curling her hands into fists – remaining silent. However, the Jyosei Shounan captain visibly winced from the sudden change of colour in the younger captain's aura. Fuuka's physical presence pounded against the tension as Ai and Natsuki stagger back slightly, noticing the demonic aura emitting from both captains. Florence noticed aura's suddenly change to green, reflecting jealousy while Shizuru's reverted back into ebony – revealing her restraint over her frustration. Slightly furrowing her eyebrows, Florence dragged them towards the bathroom before throwing them both into the bathtub and filling it with cold water.

"HOLY GOD, WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU," Fuuka yowled before kicking herself out of the tub, tumbling onto the ground in her now freezing state. "I JUST TOOK A BATH DAMN IT!"

Shizuru glacially glowered and whispered fiercely before dragging herself out of the tub, soaking wet and frozen. "Florence..."

"It was the only way to cool your tempers," Florence shrugged nonchalantly before handing both of them the towels provided by the hotel. "So, who's our next match?"

Fuuka growled darkly before throwing off her drenched clothes, suiting up into a spare set before plopping down on the carpeted floor. "Well, now that Ninja Five is down since the psychotic bluenette over there," –referring to Yukimura Ai who daintily sat on one of the chairs before innocently swinging her legs, "massacred and eradicated them out of existence. We'll end up fighting one of the teams sponsored by Ueda. A lot of them not being a potential threat."

"We can' assume that," Natsuki pointed out sternly before opening her Palm Pilot and laying it in front of them, folding her legs next to the scraggy red haired captain. "We're purdy much like gnats in a hailstorm agains' these ole cusses down here at da range. Most of them make an angry momma look bad 'cause they don' have all the eighteen pence sittin' in their heads. They purdy much wan' us in their beds since we're a bunch of lasses and we're stuck out here on some desserted isle."

Florence began typing on Natsuki's Palm Pilot before checking the database of LXA, inputting her CHroME serial number as her password. "Well, for now – I was able to tap into the system of ZODIAC using the hidden servers provided by LXA to locate the missing vice captain," – seeing a red circle zoning in, the British female blinked for a few moments while trying to confirm the results of the search. "Hold on – that's impossible! It says here that she's located somewhere on this island."

Fuuka grinned evilly as she revealed her CHroME in hand, tossing it up and down determinedly. "Ready for a little spring cleaning, ladies?"

"Ueda-san wouldn't be that brainless," Shizuru tapped her chin, pondering on any possible situation. "He'd try something that would erase his signature or presence within the problem."

"The typical coward response to a kidnap is that he will use Kobayagi as one of the competitors," Florence frowned darkly at the predicament, checking every possibility. "Does she have any martial arts background?"

"Three of her brothers are fighters or body builders," Shizuru recalled Hitomi mentioning a little background on Ayane's life during their match with St. Rudolph however, she began praying and hoping Ayane would not be included amongst the fight roster. "So, her fighting style would be basically wrestling."

It would be worse if Fuuka or anybody else would fighter asides from me.

The current Hyotei captain leaned against the front bed frame, contemplating on any possible pattern for combatants. She shuddered at the imagination of Fuuka being Ayane's opponent; both of them knew nothing about temperance or self-control. Their boisterous yelling often reminded Shizuru to stand at least two feet away from them in order to regulate the volume of their voices reverberating in her ears. However, their short-tempered fuses contributed to their extreme destructiveness – verbal or physical hence making Shizuru pray even harder that Fuuka would remain in the last slot of the fight roster which would be reserved for the captains.

Ayane's safety all depends on our abilities – we definitely cannot forfeit!

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Wow," Horio gaped from the bleachers, glancing towards Oishi. "Inui-senpai must have been really tightly knit to Yanagi, huh?"

The Seishun Gakuen male vice captain nodded slowly before watching the match carefully, easing a little more into the bench. "Inui and Yanagi were former doubles partners and in fact, could surpass senior players in the Junior Tennis circuit. Although, I only know their history a little bit but apparently, Yanagi had moved away without telling Inui anything so – to them, this is kind of a reunion after two years."

"He's been watching Inui-senpai use his Data Tennis in the first half," Momoshiro narrowed his eyes for a moment before observing him more closely. "After he sees that senpai has confidence in his data, he begins his counterattack."

Echizen moved slightly towards the edge of his chair, interested by the sudden change of play.

"No," Fuji's cerulean eyes revealed themselves as he watched Yanagi begin his decimation. "He's trying to destroy Inui-kun's data tennis."

Inui's eyes widened with horror and disbelief as all his targeted shots began zooming past him with insane speed. Although he could predict the pathway, having to physically apply the principle increased the strain on his body. Sweat poured profusely down his face as he continued to maintain a defensive position throughout the entire set. Yanagi quickly began his attack and repelled the Sonic Serve despite having the Data Master to have anticipated the suppression.

"Your tennis won't work on me anymore, Sadaharu," Yanagi curtly stated as he walked away from his former partner, casting a somewhat withering glare towards him. "Although I have to commend you, indeed – you have completely grasped all the data pertaining to my playing style and personality. However, it is also because of that data – is the very reason as to why you cannot win. After all, who was the one who taught you data tennis?"

"Game, Yanagi: three games to two!"

Rather, it has been four years, 2 months and 15 days to be exact.

Inui mentally repeated the time-skip while overhearing Oishi narrate his doubles history to the freshman. He frowned slightly but fired another forehand towards Yanagi's left side while anticipating another cross-court shot coming from his former doubles partner. Bodily fluids trickled down his face as he ignored his glasses slipping off while attacking with a light backhand. As the drop shot floated over, Yanagi rushed on forward and drove it to the very small corner which flew beyond Inui's reach.

"Fifteen – love!"

Staggering backwards from fatigue, Inui struggled to disregard any thought of falling back into submission. The memory of both him and the Professor being unable to finish their Singles match against one another completely irked him but the pressure of the match weighed down heavily on his shoulders. If Seigaku loses this match, they would have broken their promise to Tezuka – being unable to win the Regionals to permit them to enter the Nationals. As a lob sailed into the air, Inui leapt up for a hard smash only to have Yanagi easily return it with the Kamaitachi speeding past him.

"Thirty – love," Inui knitted his eyebrows together before glancing at the notebook that solemnly lay on the coach's bench.

He closed his eyes, meditating for a moment before visualizing the whole match in his mind. It didn't require any statistical help for him to conclude his defeat if his style of play remained the same. However, his hands balled up into a fist as Inui bit his lower lip – baffled and bewildered with his decision. Although it meant abandoning everything that he had trained for, his data based on Yanagi proved to be ineffective and deemed useless.

Here it goes...

Inui smirked, pointing at Yanagi as his friend prepared for his service. "It seems you were right about that, Kyoujyu."

Yanagi glowered a bit before tossing the ball into the air for a fast service. As the ball zoomed towards him, Inui slammed his racquet against the tennis ball for a speeding volley while Yanagi stopped its speed effortlessly on the other end. Watching the ball float towards him, Inui closed his eyes – realizing the gamble his choice was going to be before exhaling sharply and facing the ball.

Starting from now on, I shall forsake all my data...!

Yanagi furrowed his brows a bit, perceiving a slight shift in Inui's personality. "There is no victory for one who would forsake their style."

However, Inui leapt up into the air and with a brash decision – smashed the ball straight towards Yanagi's racquet and knocked it straight out. Yanagi flinched slightly from the speed and strength as Inui landed back on his feet, allowing him to go and retrieve his racquet for a few moments. Rikkai's data master flexed his wrist for a moment, smirking inwardly at the new power that suddenly emerged out of nowhere now that Inui abandoned his normal style of tennis. A smile curved up his lips; his data had been right – the very thing that held his friend back had been the data provided.

"Perhaps I may have relied too long on my Data Tennis," Inui stood upright with his mystifying green eyes revealing themselves behind his thickly made glasses. "With this, I abandon whatever data would work and rise above the past!"

Soon, Yanagi found Inui running amuck all over the place with complete unpredictability causing him to run calculations in his head and at the same time maintain the consistency of his shots. Despite the distance between him and the shot, Yanagi found himself baffled onto why Inui would actually expel much energy in chasing down the shot if with much difficulty. Momoshiro, Kaidoh and the whole Seigaku tennis team stared in astonishment as their data master awakened himself to a new style of tennis in which he would ditch the data and attack randomly.

"N-nice fight," Momoshiro gaped before trying to slap himself out of his daze.

"This is Inui after he forsakes his Data Tennis," Oishi shook his head in disbelief and amazement. Tezuka's missing a lot in Germany...

Horio punched the air enthusiastically before jumping up and down confidently with a huge grin. "I don't understand what senpai's going at but this is awesome!"

Ryuuzaki-sensei smiled while easing a bit more comfortably into the coach's bench. "Instead of thinking with his head first, his body will react faster. After all, now that he doesn't have many things to consider – all the energy will concentrated solely on attacking and returning all the shots. There's no doubt about it...!"

"Game, Inui: four games to three!"

"You're relying on animal instincts to defeat someone like Yanagi," Sanada frowned a bit while watching the match, scoffing darkly at Inui's desperate attempt. "Such an absurd notion of tennis would be defeated by Rikkai Dai."

However, his head kept on swivelling around - checking the bleachers where Hyotei Gakuen stood. Atobe remained leaning against the fence with Oshitari and the others whereas the female Hyotei team watched carefully. He recognized Uchiha Isane basically through Niou – knowing she was legendary to have clocked the fastest serve for the women's division. Momo, being his cousin, now hung around Yamabuki's vice captain much to his chagrin. Getsugan Kiyone, the smallest girl, reminded him more of Kirihara except being more innocently sadistic whereas the devil ace naturally lashed out anything. Yamaguchi Hitomi would function as Yanagi's female counterpart. Nagisaki Mai became Yukimura's tutor mate if he recalled right although he wasn't sure exactly what Yukimura needed help in other than his health. Hikifumi Haruka and Shimohi Rin obviously fought on par with Marui and Jackal, resulting to him working the two boys into the ground even more. However, he noticed the considerable decrease in volume now that Kobayagi Ayane was absent but a crease appeared on his forehead.

Where's Shizuru?

He also recalled Yukimura Ai being absent from school and also the other three major captains missing from their teams. However, Hyotei took on a heavier brunt with Kobayagi Ayane missing and their strongest last resort – Shizuru missing. His eyes reverted slightly into a melancholic gaze at the ground despite his never-changing stoic expression however; Sanada continuously reminded himself that he would bring home the gold for Yukimura. Although deep in his mind, he wanted her to watch him decimate Seigaku and the only thing is that his opponent was not Tezuka.

The mere thought pounded him with excruciating annoyance, causing him to gnash his teeth as inconspicuously as he could manage.

However, the victory would definitely be a plus. Shizuru concentrated her efforts on victory; an ideology that he, Tezuka and she shared in terms of fighting against other teams. Nothing would satisfy them best except the taste of victory. Sanada stared at himself inwardly in disbelief, wondering how awkward it was for him to actually think about how to get a girl to like him. Obviously, he would try to impress her but the one thing he didn't understand was how. Watching the match of Niou, he knew Isane wouldn't approve that kind of tennis – especially if it involved physical injury. The main concept the female Hyotei team built itself on would be acquiring victory through non-violence. He directed his attention back to the game while wondering who his own opponent would be now that Tezuka went for rehabilitation in Germany, somewhat preparing himself to take on Singles One. However, his thoughts wandered off again the moment the month of September clearly posted itself on his watch – causing his face to become a bright crimson to which he tried to conceal with his black cap.

"I didn't know it was that hot," Niou mischievously hung his head in front of Sanada with a "cat-got-creamed" smirk. "Oh, your little vampire isn't there?"

Sanada glared daggers at the blue eyed Trickster goading him, curling his fists tightly. "Niou, continue watching the match and secondly, she's not a vampire."

"Fukubuchou," Marui leaned against the coach's bench with a cheeky grin, swivelling his head towards him. "You're thinking about Yane-chan's buchou aren't you?"

"Of course he is, Marui-senpai," Kirihara grinned deviously while leaning against Sanada's head, surveying the match and ignoring the bulging temple. "Yanagi's obviously got this whole match sewn up so, you can relax a bit."

Yanagi on the other hand wished he could contradict Kirihara right there and then but focused on the match as he took note of his increasing chances of winning. Inui randomized his pattern however the Professor easily identified a pattern and began attacking the blind spots.

The moment you abandoned your playing style, Yanagi furrowed his eyebrows before jumping off the ground, bringing down a strong smash. "You have destroyed all your chances of victory!"

"Game, Yanagi: five games to four!"

As both players headed back towards the benches for a time-out, Inui hung his head and averted his eyes from his coach. The data master slowly extended his hand towards his notebook, wondering if everything had been done properly.

"So, you really can't play without your data, Inui?"

Seishun's data master swivelled his head towards his old coach whose lips thinned out into a grim line. "Are you sure you're incapable of taking him down without the data?"

Inui halted for a moment before flipping through the notebook and nodding stiffly, heading back towards the court lifelessly to face Yanagi once more. The tension weighed heavily onto his mental stability and he prayed for once that his body will not collapse under the heat and tension.

The Professor, Yanagi Renji, exhaled sharply while trying to calm the rapid pacing of his heart before directing his attention towards his former doubles partner – Inui Sadaharu. Sweat poured down both of their faces although he managed to maintain his upright position, his mind screamed at him that he overlooked a particularly small detail. However, Yanagi remained deeply engrossed with obtaining victory and control over the match while brushing away a drifting leaf from his shoulder before glancing towards the scoreboard.

"Here I come, Sadaharu," Yanagi placed the ball in front of him, readying his service.

"I won't admit defeat just yet, Renji," Inui gasped heavily for air while trying to maintain his composure.

Yanagi however ceased his talking the moment realization drummed itself into his head. He cautiously analysed the ball, the tension, the score – everything. His body slightly trembled, never realizing that he would be the one played instead of being the one utilizing the data for manipulation. His eyes widened a bit as he watched Inui smirk in confidence.

Without losing his calm composure, Yanagi lifted his racquet before pointing accusingly towards Inui. "You purposely played it in a method that we would end up wherever we left off, didn't you Sadaharu?"

The Seishun Gakuen data master at first said nothing at first as his glasses slowly slipped off his nose, revealing a pair of mystifying emerald eyes. "Perhaps... or consider it whatever you believe."

"You repeated the same mistakes in that match," Yanagi tightened his grip on the racquet, feeling a wave of nostalgia and foolishness crash against him. "Not only that, there were some attacks that were returnable with many loopholes but you chose not to pursue."

Inui readied himself for the service, adjusting his glasses. "You were saying I abandoned something? I seem to have forgotten. Did you think I have abandoned my data?"

Yanagi narrowed his eyes in irritation. "Are you telling me you let me hit according to your data – in order to recreate the same development of that time?"

"However, that all ends here," Inui chuckled humourlessly as he lowered his stance. "Renji, from here on – there will be no data!"

Tossing the ball into the air, Yanagi responded with the same determination. "I'll make you eat your words, Sadaharu!"

Inui forehanded the ball straight towards Yanagi for a down-the-line shot, expecting another drop shot from Yanagi. As the ball floated over, he drove down the shot but Yanagi slicing it under with an abrupt spin that bounced away from the other data master and forced Inui to chase it down. The ball flew for the other end of the court as Yanagi effortlessly hounded the ball while Inui prepared himself at the baseline to receive the shot.

On the topmost area of the bleachers, the male Hyotei captain stood next to Kabaji while observing the growth of Seishun Gakuen. Atobe's icy blue eyes narrowed slightly not only because of Inui's sudden growth but also his impatience as to where Ayane could be. Right after he had confessed to her and Ayane slowly became a little more comfortable with reciprocating her feelings, someone drove out of nowhere before putting a bullet into his hip [which happened only to be a minor graze] and snatched her despite her putting up a good fight. A wave of helplessness washed over him as the captain gripped the rail tightly.

"It seems that this match will be a miracle," Atobe utilized his Insight as he cast a withering glance towards them, smirking slightly. "Your players are growing well, na, Tezuka?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Welcome back to the Urabutousatsujin," Maya announced cheerily, dancing around as more howls and chants demanding for violence echoed throughout the stadium. "After the elimination of Ninja Five, let us welcome Constellation Chaos for the next round!"

Fuuka sauntered in with her usual glacial militarian glare before letting out a disgruntled snort while Shizuru maintained her benevolent composure despite having Ai jumping around excitedly with Florence and Natsuki trying to contain the hyperactive and childish girl in one location. People howled and chanted in anticipation for the next set of fighters, revealing an old man shuffling in followed by several gaudily dressed characters. Each of them carried an air of dominance over the other players as some of the audience staggered back in horror.

"For the challenging team, we have Ueda Majin," the scantily clad umpire beckoned the other team with enthusiasm as they all walked in with a frosty and arrogant demeanour without casting a glance or attention towards the audience.

Fuuka raked her crimson dishevelled hair back with annoyance, scoffing momentarily with a darkened glare. "Where the hell are these guys from – the circus? We're not freakin' freak-show tamers!"

Shizuru narrowed her eyes while watching them take their positions by the battle platform, twitching slightly. "That's odd – I can't sense anything..."

"Frustrating isn't it – to not be able to discover anything about your opponent? To have your own empathic senses blocked," Florence sighed disgustedly at the situation in frustration, running her fingers through her honey blonde tresses. "I'm not very fond of whistling in the dark either but what choice do we have?"

Fuuka cracked her knuckles, sporting a sardonic grin. "Alright, which bastard gets to die first?"

The LCD screen flashed five open slots while creating a roulette with all their images; all battle positions remained empty and with question marks, indicating random selection. Fuuka sulkily leaned against the wall while Shizuru began her stretching with Florence warming up for an agility-based battle. Natsuki loaded her pistol with bullets before polishing her CHroME, remembering the teams marked on her palm pilot depending on their potential strength and threat. The clamminess of her palm agitated her to nearly drop her gun but she tightened her grip on it, remembering her mission as an LXA agent. Ai showed no significant difference as she rested her chin onto the stadium floor while watching the other members of Ueda Majin enter the platform.

"There will be a new set of rules," Maya gestured for everyone to observe the screen, smiling cheerfully and energetically. "The battle scenario and combination of players will be decided via roulette. There will be four kinds of battling: all-out war, tag team, singles or triple threat. Triple Threat will select three random players from each team and they will be forced to battle one another until only one is standing whether or not they are teammates. Tag Team is a partner-type battle with one dominating over the opposing pair. All-Out War is when the whole team enters the ring to combat one another until one team remains standing and the Singles is self-explanatory. Are there any questions?"

Both teams remained silent as Maya understood it as a negative, singing out jovially. "Alright, let's get this show on the road!"

The roulette began flashing many pictures as the battle stadium took on a new appearance with a forest appearing with a Mayan Pyramid erupting from under the ground. The pictures flashed:

Battle Area: Mayan Pyramids

Battle Style: Tag Team Match

Combatants:

Souma Fuuka- Kurenai Shizuru versus Rigald-Kobayagi Ayane

Shizuru's expression drained itself from colour as her body trembled in horror with the results staring mockingly in her face. "We can't fight her...!"

"Oh shit," Fuuka muttered a longer string of swear words right after, glaring at Shizuru. "Not that I care that your vice captain's our opponent but, I'm your damn partner?"

Florence facepalmed in a surrendering manner, sighing dejectedly. "We're doomed; Fuuka's the type to rush into combat and go completely berserk on us regardless of how much injuries she has received."

Natsuki folded her arms with a frown marring her features, shaking her head in disbelief. "Who's Rigald? Nobody got any idea who that is?"

"Someone who we have to beat the shit out of," Fuuka coldly stated before hauling herself up onto the platform, eyeing her opponents in their costumes. "Well, who knew I get to kick both your asses since Kurenai's got no ruthless bone included in her body structure."

As their extravagant costumes fell, Kobayagi Ayane stared lifelessly at Shizuru and Fuuka while Rigald smirked at them. "I see you're very well-acquainted with my partner."

"No shit, Sherlock," Fuuka snarled icily before drawing out her CHroME, revealing it before him. "I'm gonna pummel your filthy butt before you can lay a hit on me."

Shizuru reluctantly unsheathed her CHroME although hesitated when she glanced at Ayane whose emerald eyes became a dull olive green hue. Her aura immediately darkened when her gaze met the old man's as he cackled gleefully at her, taunting her to reveal any ruthlessness. Steeling her resolve, Shizuru displayed her CHroME for everyone to see as the aura surrounding the octagon-shaped device evolved from silvery blue into a royal cerulean colour that flickered wildly. Ice crinkled and cracked as the floor froze with Shizuru's murderous aura, causing Fuuka to slowly inch away from the younger captain while whistling in astonishment.

Calm before the storm huh, Fuuka watched Maya declare the match to begin, lunging forward for the beginning of their assault. "Kurenai, let's - whoa!"

However, Fuuka slipped on the sheet of ice as everything within a two meter radius of Shizuru froze upon contact. The brunette flashed forward with her double edged naginata flying around towards Rigald who effortlessly dodged the attack. Ayane wordlessly attacked her with her fist colliding with Shizuru's stomach. However, the female Hyotei captain didn't even flinch as she performed a bicycle kick to force Ayane back. Fuuka leapt onto Rigald's shoulder, pummelling him down onto the ground before bringing out her CHroME as flames draped themselves all over the Seishun Gakuen female captain as a shawl with a pair of horned-gauntlets locking themselves onto her arms. Ayane headbutt Fuuka but not without the crimson haired captain slugging her with a mean left hook, causing her to stumble back. Rigald zoomed forward while trying to impale Fuuka who found himself constricted by the lashing chains from Shizuru's extendable naginata.

"Wow, this is rare for Kurenai-chan to reveal so much power," Maya exclaimed before dodging a stray debris of rocks flying all over the place.

Analysing Rigald's attacking pattern, Shizuru's eyes glittered demonically and vengefully as Fuuka maintained the same pace to keep up with the Hyotei captain. Rigald and Ayane hounded Fuuka, seeing how her speed barely equalled Shizuru's before splitting up. Rigald's silver eyes glimmered, enraged, before he began punching Fuuka with a fast motion whereas Ayane managed to lock her captain with not much difficulty by simply crossing the Hyotei captain's arms behind her back. Fuuka dug her heels into the ground, preventing herself from flying back further before catching Shizuru as Ayane hurled her across the platform.

"You idiot," Fuuka seethed angrily before shoving Shizuru away from her, shaking her by the shoulders. "I know you're boiling mad at your inability to snap Ayane out of it but hell – don't drag me with your wallowing self-pity! We have to win – not get ourselves killed!"

Shizuru stood frozen for a moment before glancing at Ayane and then at Fuuka, hanging her head a bit low. "Alright... defeat Ayane but only knock her unconscious," –she glared holes into the vermillion crowned captain. "Do not kill her or hurt her lethally – or something very unfortunate will occur with your life after this..."

Fuuka waved her hand dismissively, walking ahead of Shizuru. "Yeah, yeah, whatever – I just want to get this over with."

Shizuru's murderous aura changed back into her normal colour as she sprinted after Rigald, clashing her blades against his claws. Fuuka charged at Ayane before swinging her gauntlets and pounding the ground with flames boosting her strength. Ayane easily parried the crimson haired captain despite her being pushed back as they both got into a shoving match while Shizuru exchanged limitless strikes with Rigald who managed to cut a small strand of hair from her. As Fuuka prepared to decimate Ayane with the Scourge of Aries, her punch got deflected by a black octagon-shaped device as it started changing form.

"Shit," Fuuka muttered under her breath before springing away, watching a huge crimson gauntlet swallowing up Ayane's right arm. "Holy God, what is that?"

Shizuru stared in horror before dodging another attempt from Rigald. She sprinted towards Ayane who released a set of chains before constricting Shizuru and pounding down Fuuka. The Hyotei vice captain mercilessly flung them around effortlessly as Shizuru crashed against the pavement while Fuuka flew towards the VIP seats in the stadium. Dust and smoke wafted into the air as Fuuka shook herself out of the daze while Shizuru wriggled herself free before attacking Rigald and Ayane again.

"You can't defeat her," the old man cackled mockingly at the other two defenceless and desperate captains, leaning against his cane. "That is the Void CHroME of Aries – the Ram's Revenge! You will not survive against any of her attacks! Among all my experimental subjects, she is the only one with enough mental and physical capacity to maintain a strong control over the CHroME!"

That explains why he kidnapped a lot of girls each with an extremist shit of a talent, Fuuka bristled her teeth at the old man, lunging for him until a huge force field deflected her attack and exploded her own strength back at her. "You son of a bitch...!"

Shizuru evaded most of Rigald's attacks and parried Ayane's as much as possible, praying she would not be forced to disable her own vice captain let alone – terminate. She saw the CHroME emblazing itself onto Ayane's right shoulder as the gauntlet continued to engulf her entire body parasitically as the tangerine haired vice captain emotionlessly created a crater beneath all three of them. Leaping up into the air, the brunette rained down another assault of limitless strikes – targeting the main core of the CHroME in hopes of snapping Ayane out of her trance. Rigald however flashed behind her before kicking her back and plummeting the sophomore into the cement and crushing her head with his hand.

"Unfortunately, she cannot recognize your voice," Rigald mournfully smiled as he tightened his crushing grip on Shizuru's head, earning him a slight yelp from under. "You made a disastrous calculation in not wishing to harm her. She does not care if your body is turned into masses of scarred tissue; the CHroME is her mind now."

Fuuka leapt onto Ayane and throttled her, tangled the tangerine haired freshman in a full-nelson. "Damn it, get up Kurenai! Kobayagi has the strength of Hercules! I can't hold her down forever!"

Rigald thrusted Shizuru's face deeper into the pavement, grinning sociopathically as she continued to struggle desperately for oxygen. He lengthened his nails into claws before pressing it against Shizuru's neck, narrowing his eyes at the slowly unresponsive female. Shizuru's struggling halted as a silence engulfed the entire stadium until the cries and demands of the crowd were heard; some wanting for him to crucify her naked. Fuuka snorted with disgust as she hurtled Ayane towards the wall before rampaging towards Rigald until a bright blue light emitted from beneath him and water sprayed from beneath stadium, encasing him in a sphere of highly pressurized rippling water. Shizuru inhaled deeply for air after releasing herself from his grip as she deactivated her naginata before it became a complete robe around her body.

"This is what happens when you enrage the moon and the ocean," Shizuru twitched before ruefully chiding him, clambering up to her feet.

Gripping his throat tightly, Rigald hyperventilated and desperately clambered around the sphere for available air pockets as Shizuru continued to compress the hydrosphere into a smaller compartment. Fuuka smirked approvingly before engulfing herself with a blazing inferno with malice glinting in her eyes, glaring at Ayane. The tangerine haired girl mimicked the exact movement with black flames surrounding her without showing any reaction as it lashed against her skin, burning it away and healing the wound at the same time.

Damn, that's going to cut down her lifespan like anything, Fuuka concentrated all her flames into her right fist as she charged towards Ayane who bolted towards her with the same speed. "You may have the same bloody CHroME as I do but that doesn't mean you have the same amount of experience as I have!"

With one exploding punch, Fuuka shattered the Void CHroME as life and lustre simultaneously returned into Ayane's eyes as she stumbled back in horror. "Wh- what the heck? Where am I?"

"You're in an Urabutousatsujin," Fuuka indifferently responded with a sarcastic roll of her eyes, glancing towards Rigald who burst out of the water sphere. "Well, looks like he survived..."

Rigald coughed heavily and repeatedly until Shizuru pinched a nerve in his neck, causing him to fall asleep. "Maybe we should have done this the first time..."

Fuuka gaped at her as if she had grown a second head, resisting the urge to clobber Shizuru on the head. "Geez, how long did it take you to figure that out, Captain Obvious?"

"Winner: Souma-Kurenai pair," Maya announced enthusiastically as the crowd demanded more bloodshed and violence, howling and chanting.

Fuuka and Shizuru led a badly shaken Ayane off the stadium as the captain sat next to Ayane, guiltily hanging her head apologetically. "Ayane, you're not even supposed to see that..."

"That you participate in underground tournaments and that's why you're always full of bruises," Ayane smoothly and coldly interrupted before beadily staring back at her crestfallen brunette captain, folding her arms. "How much money do you guys even make with all the deaths piling up?"

"It depens," Natsuki cautiously responded, hoping Ayane didn't prove to be the inquisitive type.

"No wonder you're always messy, buchou," Ayane stood up as she began wagging her finger, nagging her senpai with a shrill motherly tone. "That's why people are always so terrified of you because you always surround yourself with brutes! Secondly, raise that chin – you weren't raised in a barn or a sewer for that matter! Third – have you even consulted the others of where you're going? Do you even have any medications with you in case your knee submits?"

Natsuki and Florence sweatdropped as Shizuru visibly shrank from the shrillness of Ayane's voice, wondering how the younger captain managed to survive that insane amount of nagging everyday. Fuuka chuckled lightly, somewhat grateful that Vera didn't have that ability of nagging people. Ai giggled childishly as Shizuru tried to get a word in edgewise but failed miserably as Ayane continued harping and scolding her as if she were some kindergartener that played in the mud.

"I, I'm sorry," Shizuru tightly closed her eyes, waiting for the impact of Ayane's infamous Phantom Backhand. [N/A: adopted from Anna from Shaman King! XD]

Silence fell upon the whole team until Ayane embraced Shizuru, causing the brunette to stumble back in surprise. The Hyotei captain noticed her L.X.A uniform soaking up salty crystalline tears as Ayane hugged her harder than before, clinging onto her as if the apocalypse would occur the next day. A quiet sob echoed from the vice captain as Shizuru pat Ayane on the back as comfortingly as she could, smiling bitterly at how much worry and concern she had caused. Another sigh escaped her as she remembered that this kind of activity was the main reason why she kept on rejecting every confession or never conquered her difficulty of being able to make strong tightly knit group of friends. Some even dubbed her as the "Ice Queen" but she knew it was out of safety.

"This tournament will be where I will make my last appearance," Shizuru reassured Ayane while trying to stop the vice captain from hiccupping due to her crying. "After that, my devotion will remain strictly on tennis. I do not want to endanger any more lives and this part of my past was supposed to be buried along with everything else. But ever since ZODIAC started acting up again, things resulted into taking a different course of action."

Fuuka scoffed before throwing a dirty glare towards the old man, dusting her clothes from all the cement and leftovers. "Anyway, we'll need you to remember everything that happened while you under that crazy old coot. Secondly, damn – what do you use for a strength training regimen: trucks?"

Ayane shrugged unknowingly before admitting meekly, completely unable to remember the weight requirement. "My brother usually lends me his barbells so – I end up using them. I never check the weight of the barbells but whatever it is – it sure helps a lot."

Soon, the roulette reappeared on the screen as the images started flashing rapidly. Ayane shuddered with horror as she hid behind Shizuru with their images flickering back and forth, praying she would not be included in the line-up. Fuuka wiped away the trickling sweat as the battle results showed up, calming her pounding heart as best as she could. Natsuki readied her pistol while Florence sharpened her claws before revealing them to the other team members with a dark glint from her platinum blue eyes.

Battle Type: Singles

Battle Arena: Parthenon

Competitors:

Yukimura Ai versus Suhiyoshi Genma

Upon hearing the declaration of her match, Ai bubbly jumped onto the stadium while rolling up her sleeves and lowering herself into a battle stance. "Sou ka, it looks like I'm taking on their leader."

Genma leaned against his cane as small bit of russet peeked through under his wrinkled eyelids, chortling darkly. "You're an overconfident brat."

Trust me, Fuuka whistled with confidence, leaning against the wall. You're talking to the wrong person when you say that to her.

Without any hesitation, Ai placed her left hand over her chest to reveal her CHroME as an armoured skirt surrounded her along with blades and a halo levitating over her head. Genma unsheathed a katana out of the cane as the bell rang throughout the stadium, signalling the start of the match. He launched himself forward as Ai flung a set of swords towards him only to have them blocked while he feinted behind to prepare for a death blow. Ruffling her armoured skirt, Ai ducked under him as his sword collided with the metal plated fauld while the halo sprouted a new set of blades and relentlessly tracked him down. With a back-flip, Genma flicked his wrist to repel the blades and re-direct their attack only to be challenged by Virgo herself as she performed a pirouette to unleash another assault of flying swords and daggers.

Interesting, Genma leapt higher into the air, avoiding the blades as he sailed through the air.

"Tch, he keeps flying around," Ai clucked her tongue in annoyance as she grabbed one of her blades and lunged towards him.

It seems she's a combination of the other four, Genma blocked her attacks as she swung perilously near his neck before he managed to create a distance between them. The speed of the British girl, the superhuman strength of the red head, the skill and grace of the brunette and the accuracy and flexibility of the charcoal haired one. An artificially created being perhaps?

Ai landed on the ground gracefully as she beadily observed his next movement. Genma backtracked a bit, placing his sword over his shoulder for an impaling technique. Her eyes narrowed a bit as she darted towards him with five swinging swords coming at him until he sliced through her defence, shattering all the blades. Ai stumbled forward as her face collided with his roundhouse kick, sending her to the ground. The female Yukimura quickly recovered before rolling out of the way as the sword clanged against the bloodied pavement.

"You're an interesting one," he grinned toothily at her, evading her other attempts of hacking off his limbs. "How would you like to participate as one of my experimental subjects? You're the perfect blend of all the four yet there's nothing mentally or emotionally contradictory about your personality. There seem to be no adverse effects either to your body. How could anyone wield the technology to create such a flawless weapon?"

Ai puffed up her cheeks impishly as she released another set of swords, wielding two broadswords single-handedly. "I'm not a weapon!"

"Of course you are," Genma somersaulted into the air, watching the swords deeply implant themselves into the ground before grinning malevolently. "You must be the clone of Yukimura Seiichi no? The little boy I was supposed to perform an operation on regarding his... Guillain-Barré Syndrome?"

Ayane wearily glanced towards her captain as Shizuru silently bandaged her bleeding arm and aching knee, sitting next to her wordlessly. "Buchou, will you tell the others?"

"Eventually," Shizuru bitterly smiled at their predicament before glancing at her fresh slashes and gashes, scratching her head sheepishly. "I don't know how I'm going to narrate every single detail vividly but is it alright if I leave out the gory details and summarize everything instead?'

"Mai-senpai's going to sense if you're lying and hiding stuff," Ayane giggled softly at Shizuru's bewildered expression, hugging her knees close to her. "How do you plan on escaping from the tournament?"

"We're ain't leaving until we locate Ueda Shigure," Natsuki strode over to them smoothly before sitting in front of them. "However, Ayane – the plane is waitin' fer ya outside in case ya wanna go home immediately. Hyotei cannot stand without the captain, vice captain or both. They need a leader and Atobe left fifty messages on our answering machine so ahm assumin' he's all worked up an' gettin' his skivies in a twist."

Ayane warily glanced at her buchou who gave her a reassuring smile as Florence escorted her away from the battlefield with Ai as a diversion.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Ooooh, Shizuru got mad~. One of those very rare moments in time when she does. XD I know I totally screwed up the tennis part but Ayane was bound to show up sooner or later. XD Don't worry – all this gory action will end at maybe the next chapter or the one after this. All this will then return to the tennis drama so – yep.

Btw, please don't forget to review! I only update when I receive at least 2-3 reviews!