Me: Hi, this is Scarlette Shizuru! I know I haven't been updating in awhile and yeah – it has been one heck of a week! Don't worry – all the drama will resume back soon. As soon as Fuuka and company finish off the team, things will resume to normal and off to romance! XD Rikkai Dai and Hyotei will have their highly awaited match as soon as the girls return and arrest the guy. Also, I don't own Prince of Tennis! I only own the OC's! :D Thank you for the reviews by the way!

Kyouei_shurei: I'll try to put more romance since the Kidnapping of Ayane arc is finally coming to a close. :D Don't worry; there will be a lot more.

Chapter 48 – Smile For Me

The crowds roared louder and chanted themselves into a wild frenzy, waving their huge plastic shields to avoid the splattering of blood. Their howls got louder as beasts of all sorts were brought in, shivering fearfully in their cages as they were tasered by their escorts. Mocking laughters and jeers echoed throughout the whole stadium as Constellation Chaos made their way in their signature L.X.A [League of Extraordinary Alchemists] uniforms while watching in disgust the wild madness.

"I didn't know monsters had hearts and could feel fear," Fuuka spitefully glowered at their audience, tightly gripping her CHroME. "These bastards ought to know what it feels like to be in a cage."

Shizuru sadly shook her head, glancing towards the scoreboard. "Sometimes, people act this way to disguise their disgust and pity. However, these people seem to be that of another kind of specie."

"Are they doing it at random again," Ai whined out of boredom, sitting on the ground. "I really hate it. Sometimes, you're not picked at all."

"Yukimura, I have no idea how you can enjoy this kind of violence," Fuuka shook her head in disbelief before standing on the sidelines as Maya took her place at the centre of the podium. "Yes humans are animals but are we truly?"

Florence coughed lightly, pulling out her inhaler. "I hope we get out of this dump soon. The nitre here is driving me nuts."

Natsuki nodded determinedly as the list flashed on the board, folding her arms. "Well Fuuka, yer anticipation was spot on. Whoever the silver haired stranger is, he's fighting Shizuru fer second ta the last. The other members ah don't see well though."

"We're probably going to end up fighting the beasts in the cage or outside," Fuuka shrugged nonchalantly before darkly narrowing her eyes at the opposing team that entered. "There are times I wished that I never got employed by L.X.A. I mean – who wants to live a life full of darkness?"

"In that darkness, some people are capable of finding some light," Florence smiled as she opened her cellphone, revealing a bunch of text messages from her very concerned teammates.

"Yet there are some who decide ta take everythin' into their hands and crack up their own fire," Natsuki smiled grimly as she glanced at her hand covering the bright stadium lights, wincing a bit at the glaring light. "The problem is – what are the sources of their "light"?"

Maya, upon seeing both teams, quickly grabbed the microphone before greeting the crowd with a huge smile. "Hello, audience! We're live here today for the Urabutousatsujin semi-finals! Today, we have two teams competing for the right to fight the best team in the tournament: Team Constellation Chaos and Ueda Fang! To face the champions, they must fight it out to the finish and leave no opponent alive! According to the rules, if one player is unable to kill their opponent – he or she forfeits the chance of winning the match henceforth losing it completely."

Fuuka paled considerably before casting a glance at Shizuru. "The hell, Kurenai hasn't killed anyone before!"

"We better start prayin' and hope our opponen's ain't a bunch of innocents," Natsuki glowered at the upper box audience where she saw Ueda chuckling darkly inwardly before balling her hands into fists. "Then again, understandin' Ueda's definition of demon's almost like fightin' another human anyway."

"Kurenai, you better pray that this silver haired faggot is not human," Fuuka bristled angrily as the brunette remained completely silent. "His abilities didn't make him look human though."

Inhaling deeply, she pulled out a small letter in her pocket that the L.X.A organization had received on her behalf. Puzzled and curious, Shizuru prepared to slit the envelope open until the bell rang with Natsuki stepping up to the plate first. Her opponent smiled kindly at her as he stood with his lanky structure and his hands calmly placed into his pocket. Raking his slender fingers through his long tangerine hair, he gazed back at her politely with his bright blue eyes. The charcoal gray haired kansai captain narrowed her eyes cautiously before widening her battle stance with her hand ready to draw out her CHroME, watching his movements closely.

"You must be the Amakusa's daughter, non," his thick French accent echoed throughout the stadium as he bowed down gentlemanly like. "I am Rokuso Pierre, son of the Rokuso family. I believe we have somewhat met during those Yakuza meetings, Amakusa Natsuki?"

The female glowered darkly at his figure, sensing a deep murderous intent. "Ah don't remember seeing ya but somehow – ya can't keep pullin' mah leg like that. Ya can look as cute as a possum but ahm purdy sure yer as crooked as a barrel of snakes."

Pierre shook his head lightly with a small chuckle, drawing out a thin rapier from his sheathe. "I do not normally attack women but this tournament seems to be persuading me to do so."

"Then," Natsuki smirked as she loaded up her handgun, tossing her CHroME into the air. "Let's git this done over with!"

Pierre lunged forward with his rapier as it lightly scathed Natsuki's face, forcing her to duck and slide on the floor to release several shots. The French-Japanese man stood erect once again as he pierced the bullets before splitting them into two. Clucking her tongue in annoyance, Natsuki launched herself into the air and started releasing another load of bullets before shifting the magazine over to the next loaded set. Pierre quickly dodged them as the bullets punched themselves through the floor before blood completely drained itself out of his face when Natsuki devilishly smiled with her CHroME right in front of her gun.

Dedicated to the ambitions of man,

Gate of the Goat – Capricorn Deception!

A thick horned sea goat lunged out of the CHroME as it rammed against the male with such astounding force, a crater appeared on the ground. Pierre tumbled back as more gunshots echoed throughout the stadium with him flicking his wrist to snake his rapier and parry the bullets. Natsuki unleashed her sea goat to rampage towards him as Pierre could only evade its attempts to impale him on his horns. Chuckling darkly, Pierre rushed the next attack and somersaulted over the familiar before landing in front of Natsuki with his sword tip touching her throat.

"You rely too much on your creature," he chortled haughtily, seeing the creature cease its movements as Natsuki remained paralysed by the end of his sword. "It senses your anxiety, darling daughter of the Amakusa family. What do you wish to do now?"

Natsuki, swallowing hard, reloaded her gun while cautiously watching the flicker of his weapon. Sweat poured down profusely from her face as she shuddered slightly from the sharpness of the blade. Glancing at the board and at her predicament, the Shitenhouji captain knew she could easily take him out point-blank. Judging by reaction time, she analysed the situation in her head as the clock continued to tick slowly. She left no room for hesitation as Natsuki spun around for a roundhouse kick and flicked away his rapier, able to point the gun at him as he stumbled onto the ground.

"Gotcha," Natsuki smoothly withdrew her gun with a smirk as Capricorn leapt high into the air and repeatedly stomped on Pierre's abdomen. "Well, I gotta admit, ya gave me a good run fer mah money."

Pierre coughed up blood, staring blankly back at the charcoal haired captain. "Strike quick and painlessly, Amakusa-sama. I would rather die by an honourable hand rather than live in shame."

Natsuki stared at him strangely, rolling her eyes sarcastically. "What in tarnation are ya blabbering about? What time are ya from? The time of the walking tin men? No way," –her voice trailed away upon remembering the win conditions. "Do ah have any other choice?"

"If you spare me," he coughed out raspily, struggling under the weight of Capricorn's hooves. "Then, you will lose this match entirely. That is the Underworld."

"Well too bad fer them," Natsuki dismissed Capricorn, extending her hand to help the fallen opponent. "From where ah come from, the Underworld can go kiss mah ass. And if it's one thing mah Pa always used ta say is that there's two theories to arguin' with a woman. Neither one works."

The whole crowd staged an uproar, howling with protests and demands of death. Pierre mournfully scanned the crowd before handing her his rapier while Natsuki shook her head disdainfully at the demands of the underworld crowd. Fuuka balled her hand into fists, throwing a withering glare towards the crowd. Shizuru winced from the reverberating volume while Ai cowered behind Florence.

"This is terrible," Ai whimpered slightly, watching the crowd demand for Pierre's death. "Don't they have any compassion?"

"That's the way of the underworld unfortunately," Florence shook her head disdainfully, glancing at the stadium. "That is also the way of reality."

"SHUT UP," the crowd suddenly snapped their mouths shut when Fuuka faced them with her CHroME burning a deep red flame along with letting out a low humming noise.

Natsuki ceased her dealing of the deathblow as Fuuka's CHroME engulfed her whole body in flames.

"If you people want him to die," she hissed venomously, bending her knees to leap towards them. "Then why don't you bastards come down here and do it!"

The whole stadium full of onlookers fell silent as Fuuka's aura gradually shrank down while murmurs slowly erupted from the crowd. Natsuki refused to pick up her gun until Pierre gestured her hand to hold it towards his chest.

"Remember the rules," Maya announced from her chair as Natsuki found her gun pointed directly on his chest.

"It's alright," he smiled weakly, placing his hand by the trigger, coughing out blood. "Your CHroME already dealt me too much damage. Besides, I just wanted an exciting life."

Natsuki narrowed her eyes while shoving the gun into the holster, scoffing darkly. "If you wanna shut the lights so badly," –she kicked his rapier towards him. "Do it yerself."

Pierre weakly staggered to pick up his weapon, watching Natsuki turn her back on him. He repositioned himself for a lunge as the French-Japanese male swung his sword towards Natsuki. Spinning back, Natsuki immediately drew her gun upon second reflex and fired it without any hesitation. The gunshot echoed throughout the stadium as the bullet burst through the man's body. Silence engulfed the stadium as everything swirled around the gunslinger; sweat poured down her face profusely as Natsuki's heartbeat pounded incessantly in her ears, deafening everything else. The charcoal gray haired girl stared in horror as the man fell back with blood splattering against her face, trembling with a horrible realization. Pierre's body then lay motionless on the ground as Maya tiptoed over to check any signs of life. Shaking her head, Maya stood up while pointing towards the screen.

"The winner is Amakusa Natsuki!"

The crowd howled wildly and chanted for more bloodshed as Natsuki shakily stumbled down the stairs before falling into Fuuka's arms. The red head glared holes at Maya who shrugged fearfully at the Seigaku female tennis captain before pointing shakily at a sadistically chuckling Ueda Shigure. Natsuki stumbled towards the bench as she sat next to the Hyotei Captain while having the whole battle replay before her eyes. Shizuru made the sign of the cross as she ruefully looked at her opponents before them, inhaling deeply at the predicament. Ai drew out her CHroME while glancing at her potential opponents, wondering who would be hers.

"Up next," Maya directed everyone's attention towards the LED screen as the Rikkai Dai's captain showed up next to a woman's picture. "Yukimura Ai of Constellation Chaos versus Blood Soaked Agatha of the Ueda Spirits!"

Fuuka narrowed her eyes at the red haired woman who seductively walked up the stairs as men from the bleachers ogled at her voluptuous curves. "I'm starting to appreciate fan-boys now."

Florence chuckled at Fuuka's disgust at Yukimura's opponent, polishing her claw-like gauntlets. "If boys from your school heard that, prepare to have a completely stuffed locker."

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

At the tennis courts, Seigaku onlookers and Rikkai Dai supporters watched with suspense and anticipation as Echizen darted all over the court while trying to return Sanada's attacks. Forcing himself to activate the MuganoKyouchi, the Seigaku freshman ignored the buckets of sweat pouring down his face profusely as Sanada forehanded the next shot calmly despite the erratic shifts in tennis style. Sliding on the ground, Echizen unleashed the Drive B to which Sanada easily responded with a high smash. The ball rolled near Echizen as they prepared themselves for the beginning after a wild warm up.

Jackal glanced at his watch, biting his lower lip. "It looks like Yukimura's surgery has started."

Kirihara, narrowing his eyes at the scoreboard, hung his head abashedly. "Sorry..."

Marui and Jackal swivelled their attention towards him, raising an eyebrow in unison. "Who said we were blaming you?"

Niou chuckled darkly while leaning against his elbows, letting out his usual mischievous drawl. "Puri~, even our strategist..."

Yanagi averted his eyes from the team, clenching his hands into a fist. "Sorry..."

"Although we have that, we cannot afford a breakage in our concentration," Yagyuu tilted his glasses a bit, analysing the tension between Sanada and Echizen. "One moment of weakness and we'll surely be tripped by them. Sanada-kun is a battle demon. The moment he steps onto the court; all distractions are rendered useless. The only thing probably passing through his mind right now is merciless obliteration."

As Echizen launched himself into the air, he smirked at the capped Sanada. "Hey, they're a lot of demons like you lurking around in the Nationals right?"

The smash came spiralling down as Sanada watched it zip past him, narrowing his eyes at the cocky freshman. "You're still too childish..."

Momoshiro chuckled good-naturedly, gripping the railing. "That Echizen – despite all the pressure, he isn't feeling scared or nervous at all."

Soon, chants of 'Emperor' coming from the Rikkai Dai side resounded off the courts as Seigaku out-powered them with their own cheers for their freshman player. Seigaku regulars shivered with anticipation, never seeing the day where they would compete against the Rikkai Dai demons. Spectators surrounded the courts as cameramen and news reporters wedged themselves into the bleachers to get a good shot or view of the climatic match between the two. Ryuuzaki-sensei glanced at Echizen for a moment, recalling how Nanjirou Echizen used to have that same expression. A wry smile appeared on her lips as she pondered on the question: Will Rikkai win once again or will Seigaku snatch the gold?

Feeling the anticipation of the people, Echizen pointed his racquets at Sanada's black wristbands. "Are you sure you removed the weights?"

Sanada snorted disgustedly at him, glaring holes into Echizen. "I already taken out the lead weights. Don't worry about it. Fight me with all you have!"

Echizen shrugged nonchalantly as he bounced the ball a few times. "Is that so? Whatever you say."

The aura of the MuganoKyouchi swirled around him in a bright white opaque mist as Echizen's pupils lightly dilated. The Rikkai Dai students stared in awe, murmuring.

"Hey, wasn't that like Kirihara a moment ago?"

"The heck – he can activate it via willpower?"

Kirihara's eyes widened with astonishment before he glanced at his hand and then at Echizen. He gnashed his teeth together, wondering how a freshman managed to perfect something like that while he only managed to do it in a pinch. The devil ace of Rikkai Dai snorted angrily, pounding his fist against the bench before glancing at Fuji. He growled honestly at the thought of the MuganoKyouchi only activating when his mind was in a screwy mess, pondering on how to consciously activate such a raw amount of power.

Unleashing the Knuckle Serve, Echizen spun it towards Sanada's right side as the Emperor easily returned it with a smirk. However, the freshman slid around using Akutsu Jin's technique in combination of Fuji Yuuta's Twist Spin Shot much to Fuji's distraught and chagrin of being reminded of Mizuki. Sanada deflected the ball forcibly as it lobbed into the air, seeing Echizen jump high for it with Momoshiro's Dunk Smash spiralling down towards him.

"15 – Love," –Echizen grinned cockily at Sanada as everyone stared in shock and amazement.

"THAT FRESHMAN GRABBED ONE POINT LET ALONE THE FIRST POINT FROM SANADA!"

Soon, the Zero Shiki Drop Shot made its debut as it rolled by the net with Echizen copying the exact stance and expression of Tezuka.

Momoshiro punched the air, grinning triumphantly. "Oh yeah, second point! Keep it coming, Echizen!"

Kikumaru jumped up into the air, cheering loudly. "Yay, go ochibi!"

Seeing Echizen snatch the first point from him, Sanada narrowed his eyes slightly as the chants and cheers from Seigaku became much louder. The capped vice captain glanced back at Echizen who remained completely confident and cocky as the boy spun around the racquet, staring back at him with his dull amber eyes.

"It seems like I actually playing against a fairly strong opponent," Sanada mused to himself, smirking inwardly at the match-up. "However, I have gone up against the Nation's strongest players. I have been through much tougher battles than this. All of my opponents, they have all fallen before me. You, boy, are not an exception to the rule."

"Hey," Echizen tilted his cap up a bit, smirking deviously. "You have a cousin in Hyotei right?"

Sanada raised an eyebrow at him, wondering how the freshman managed to get Intel regarding his cousin. "How is that any of your concern?"

"I played against her before," Echizen shrugged nonchalantly, resting his racquet against his shoulder. "Frankly, she plays better than you."

Sanada quickly calmed himself down before his blood boiled upon Echizen's mentioning of Momo. Recalling all his past and recent matches, the Emperor could not recall a single blemish on his winning streak while comparing his record to Momo's. Sanada snorted disdainfully at her former partnership and blind loyalty towards Midoriyama Nanako, remembering how she would often be in awe of the Hyotei senior before tensions heightened considerably. The Sanada family despised Momo for her constant rebellions especially regarding a certain orange haired boy from Yamabuki and Sanada soon began to question himself: In what way did that make her any better than him? Returning one of Echizen's drive volleys, Sanada darted forward while pondering over the reason as to why Echizen would mention his cousin. Did he know it would irk him? He could not assume that but the mere mention of her being above him despite all her unorthodox methods infuriated him. Suddenly, the cocky freshman appeared above him with his racquet drawn all the way to his back.

"Uncontainable like Water," he smirked, noticing the visible shift of expression on Sanada's face. "Sui!"

The smash echoed throughout the court, reverberating similarly to the crashing of a waterfall. Sanada shook himself away from the distraction, realizing the truth behind Echizen's words. However, he analysed the freshman's playing style and replayed everything in his mind. The Sui seemed restrained or rather completely forced out compared to the usual calm bring down his cousin would do. A dark chuckle nearly bubbled out of his throat; Echizen did not have enough weight to create the same impact the Sui does when the Shinigami herself executed it.

"30 – Love," Seigaku chanted loudly upon watching Echizen gracefully land back on his feet, similarly to a cat.

Momo frowned a bit, watching the match. "Echizen doesn't have enough body mass to create the same impact."

"You have more power due to your muscle mass index," Hitomi recalculated the speed of the smash, writing down extra data. "Echizen's version of the Sui is only at 1/8 compared to yours."

Haruka chuckled slightly, remembering how small Echizen actually is. "Well, he can't help it. It's not his fault he's small."

"It's not in size and weight that contributes to the power of the smash," Momo glanced back at her cousin, shaking her head forlorn. "I'm sure Sanada figured out the flaws to that technique. Mai managed to pull off my Sui before as a scare tactic with the same amount of power I've thrown into it."

Mai nodded lightly while watching Echizen receive another shot from Sanada. "It's the control of one's body."

"Muscle control is highly vital in performing the Anti-FuuRinKaZan," Momo pointed out to the team, watching Sanada backhand the next shot towards Echizen's right side. "While Sanada's focus is basically on his arms, I use my whole body to distribute the weight around. Unlike Rin who can contort and really flex her body, I use the gravity to my advantage. My shots highly accelerate due to this."

"If the mass of the ball is 0.0576 kg and factoring the acceleration due to gravity at 9.8 m/s2," Hitomi watched the ball zoom over the net. "The force would be 0.56 N however that is not including air resistance, tension of racquet strings and human application of force."

Ayane clamped her ears tightly, drowning out Hitomi's calculations. "Argh, too much math!"

However, their conversation regarding the issue was suddenly cut off when a speedy shot zoomed right past Echizen and landed exactly at the edge of the baseline. The capped freshman stared in awe as Momoshiro glanced back at his senpai who couldn't say anything but complete gasp in shock. Kikumaru rubbed his eyes to assure himself he saw something but much to his horror, the ball lay on the other side as Sanada stared back with a deep piercing gaze.

"Swift like the wind," Sanada lowered his racquet while watching Echizen watch the trajectory and pathway of the ball.

Kiyone tilted her head to the side innocently. "Yane-Yane, he plays kinda like Momo-senpai."

"I devised my techniques to make them a complete anti-thesis of his own," Momo explained to the sandy blonde volleyist, shaking her head. "For once, he's actually getting rattled."

Yagyuu, on the other hand, stroked his chin in deep thought. "This is the first time he's used the technique this early in a match."

Niou scoffed darkly while watching the capped freshman perpetually smirk at Sanada. "That just proves how dangerous this freshman is..."

Yanagi lowered his head, recalling all of Sanada's techniques. "This is his ultimate technique set: Swift like the Wind [Fuu], Quiet like the Forest [Rin], Invade like Fire [Ka] and Immovable like a Mountain [Zan]. The moment he used Forest – everything else I used against him was rendered useless."

"Going against his Ka technique had me completely overwhelmed," Kirihara shuddered darkly at the thought of facing it again. "Shit!"

Inui adjusted his glasses before explaining to the astounded freshman trio. "He can crush his opponents with various tennis styles. For Sanada, challenging his opponent directly is more his tennis philosophy. However, it is only because of his overwhelming strength that he can do this. Once he is uses this move set, in the end..."

Yanagi and Inui narrowed their eyes at the match's probable outcomes. "His opponents will lose their fighting spirit."

Shishido glanced at Atobe, recalling the rumours running around Hyotei. "Even our Atobe crumbled under Sanada's Zan, everything after that was deemed useless."

Upon being reminded, Atobe snorted at the mere mention of his defeat. "Aah, shut up."

The chants increasingly became louder with 'Emperor' resounding and echoing all over the place as Echizen began his service. Yanagi glanced at Sanada once more, opening his eyes albeit slightly while watching his fellow demon prepare another Fuu.

So you intend to eliminate him before the Nationals, Genichirou?

As Sanada unleashed the invisible swing, Echizen immediately darted to the other side and countered it. Shock and astonishment clearly wrote on everybody's faces as Sanada darted forward with amusement, seeing that Echizen immediately caught on his attack despite only a single use. However, Echizen increased his running speed while watching Sanada fire another invisible shot. Fudomine's Tachibana watched in interest, watching the freshman who had recently floored Ibu in the Prefectural.

"There's actually someone who can run as fast as you, Kamio," Tachibana chuckled lightly as the red haired Fudomine speed player folded his arms with a snort.

"Geh, seriously," Kamio raised an eyebrow before mumbling. "He's really riding the rhythm."

Ibu scoffed at his fellow Fudomine teammate. "You're so easily copied."

Before the two can erupt into a loud argument, Tachibana pointed to the court. "Don't be so sure Shinji, the same goes for you."

Echizen soon had slices and top spins going all over the place, prompting Sanada create an error in his shot. Slightly frustrated, Sanada quickened the pace of the game as Echizen continued to evolve rapidly with all sorts of fusions of some he didn't even recognize. A pounding backhand came from Echizen as well until Sanada forced him into a volley as the speed increased continuously. The capped Rikkai Dai vice captain narrowed his eyes darkly; where did all these moves come from? He continued to deflect the rapid volley until the ball suddenly reappeared behind him.

"He," one of the Rikkai Dai students exclaimed in shock. "He copied Sanada-fukubuchou'sInvisible Swing!"

"Game, Echizen: one game to love!"

Nobody could believe that an Awakened Echizen could force out Sanada beyond his limits. Even the vice captain himself was stupefied by the freshman's sudden progress as he picked up the ball from the baseline. Sanada pondered on debatability of the MuganoKyouchi's true potential, imagining himself to do such a thing. He shook his head at the absurd notion as Echizen confidently pointed his racquet at him.

"Mada mada dane."

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

Ai stepped up to the plate as her bladed skirt appeared with two more swords appearing in her hands. Agatha tousled around with her wavy long red hair as she dropped her robe off, revealing her naked body to everyone. The men licked their lips wolfishly, gaping at her pale skin. The Rikkai Dai captain slightly tilted her head to the side before drawing back albeit revolted, pointing sheepishly at Agatha's sudden gesture.

"Um, isn't it a bit drafty in here," Ai tugged her shirt a bit, raising her eyebrow in puzzlement.

Agatha smiled lusciously while wagging her finger dismissively, winking seductively. "Tsk, tsk, you shouldn't be deceived that easily."

Preparing her battle stance, Ai watched Agatha slowly reveal her power as her eyes became demonic yellow. A low chuckle bubbled from the older woman's throat as a spider-like dome appeared from beneath her as Agatha seated herself pompously while examining her nails. Maya blinked a few times before realizing that she was supposed to initiate the fight, watching the tension rise between the two fighters.

Maya raised her hand into the air, bringing it down quickly. "Ready, set, fight!"

Without any hesitation, Ai immediately darted towards the legs of the dome as she brought down her blades to reduce it into useless meat chunks. Agatha stared disinterestedly while stifling a yawn and bringing down spiked tendrils. Debris flew from the ground as Ai evaded some while shredding a few into threads. With a bemused snigger, Agatha unleashed another volley of spiked tendrils as Ai darted and leapt out of the way before springing towards the top of the base.

"That's odd, she's been cutting the legs and it's still regenerating like anything," Florence ran her fingers through her long honey brown hair, watching Ai slowly struggle against the monotonous attacks. "Shizuru, have you located its weak point yet?"

Shizuru placed her CHroME in front of her, concentrating her energy into it until a grid and holographic image of Agatha appeared. "As of now, I don't have enough data go on. Ai's going to have to keep fighting it until something shows up."

"Can't you just search for the biggest clump of energy," Fuuka gestured her head towards the huge abomination fighting Ai. "By the way, any background information regarding this prostitute?"

Natsuki programmed her iPad to hack into the database regarding Agatha, widening her eyes in astonishment and disbelief at the data presented. "Well, ah'll be! Y'all better take a good look at this! She used ta be one of us!"

"Nova or Constellation," Fuuka warily questioned, fearing the worst possibility. "Please tell me she's not any of our group."

Natsuki scrolled down the page, reading throughout the data presented before exhaling in relief. "She's a Handmaiden; her CHroME is known as Cassiopeia of the Heavens but because she went through her Coronation – it's officially listed down as Void CHroME 003: Gloria de Cassiopeia."

"Translation," Fuuka raised an eyebrow at the slate haired girl as the kansai captain sighed.

"Don't ask me; I never went to Spain for my missions," Natsuki shrugged uncaringly while watching Ai dart forward once again for another assault. "I have a question though..."

Fuuka and the others directed their attention towards the Kansai captain as she bit her thumbnail. "Ai went through her Coronation but with Kurenai's help, she managed to pull back. But, isn't that usually a one-way trip to hell without any chance?"

"Ai probably has the strongest mental strength among all of us," Shizuru noted as she folded her arms, recalling that moment Ai went berserk. "Somehow, things don't feel right. In a sense that, they know we have school and that we're barely even legal. So, why send us?"

Fuuka smirked while leaning against her arms, chuckling triumphantly. "Simple, it's because we go for quality and quantity."

"Kurenai has a point but Fuuka also does considering we're one of their best performing agents," Florence pondered also on the thought, studying the circumstances. "So, there could be several things."

"Either that or we're extreme troublemakers to the point we're expendable," Shizuru bit her lip while watching Ai disintegrate the other tentacles before springing towards the crown of the dome. "That's it! Ai, aim for Agatha's hair!"

Ai stared at her quizzically with disbelief, sailing through mid-air. "Why?"

"That's where the concentration of her CHroME is," Shizuru re-analysed the structure of Agatha's dome as closed her eyes. "Another tentacle will be flying at you at 3:00!"

Ai ducked as fair enough to Shizuru's prediction, the tentacle flew way above the bluenette's head. The Rikkai Dai female captain launched herself while swinging her blades at Agatha who sprouted huge spikes from the dome. She lazily seated herself while watching Ai desperately cut through the vines and tentacles.

"My, my, my, aren't you persistent," Agatha chuckled humourlessly as she snapped her fingers, causing several tentacles and strands of her hair to rope around Ai's arms. "Interesting – you must be the Princess wielding Virgo?"

Ai refused to grace her with a response as she desperately tried to cut them off only to have the restraints tighten and threaten to pull her apart while Agatha laughed haughtily at the bluenette's predicament. With another snap of her fingers, Agatha commanded another vine to wrap around Ai's neck in order to suffocate her. The bluenette struggled, gasping for air as she swung her blades to cut down the vines. Agatha tousled her long curly crimson tresses while glancing from time to time Ai's constant struggle.

"For a perfect princess," Agatha scoffed haughtily while smirking at Ai's futile attempt to break free. "You sure lack the skills. Or is it because, you're a complete mixture of everyone else and your brother?"

Narrowing her eyes at Agatha, Ai managed to kick free while shredding some of the vines off and swinging around to bring down her blade. Agatha dodged easily before landing a kick on Ai's face as the bluenette countered with her whirling blades, throwing the woman off guard. Seeing some of her hair strands cut, Agatha's expression changed from relaxed to anger as she unleashed more tentacles to stab Ai and some that managed to bury themselves into the teenager's body.

"Ow," Ai winced visibly as she slashed some of the tendrils away, ignoring the gushing blood and the agonizing pain. "You're going to pay for that – big time!"

Agatha's eyes widened with fury as she lashed out more whip-like attacks before impaling Ai again on the ground. The younger female grit her teeth in agonizing pain as she withheld every urge to scream in pain, thrashing violently as her blood splattered against her face and floor.

The audience continued to howl and chant once more for her death.

Agatha sniggered evilly as her tendrils buried themselves into Ai's abdomen, licking the blood off her returning tendrils before skewering Ai through once more. The Rikkai Dai captain resisted the urge to scream as more blood trickled from her lips. Ai, shaking off the trance, watched Agatha in horror as the woman slowly raised her tendril out of Ai's body all soaked in the bluenette's blood.

"Sad, to think I thought you would be a fun plaything," Agatha chuckled bitterly as she snapped her fingers, causing the tendril to whirl up like a drill and spiral straight down towards her.

Ai bit her lip, pondering whether or not undergoing her Coronation would be a good idea. Shizuru stopped her the last time but her words echoed in her mind: Ai is the one with the strongest mental strength among us. The bluenette clenched her hands into a fist before facing Agatha down once more as a smirk appeared on her lips, causing a huge surge of energy to blow Agatha away.

The audience suddenly awaited in silence as Ai stood up from her fallen state.

I may have gone berserk the last time but, Ai's eyes suddenly changed from a kind lavender into a demonic yellow as veins started bulging all over her body. "This time, I won't lose!"

The huge surge caused Agatha to be blasted back towards the wall, shocking the rest of the crowd as Ai transformed back into the winged humanoid now with several upgrades. A halo now appeared on her head as her bladed skirt enveloped her long blue-skinned legs. Her hair sharpened themselves into flying blades and knives as the ground before her suddenly began to weather and wither away with every step she took as her white aura became a menacing dark violet that swirled around her.

"You really know how to piss off people ne," Ai smiled serenely with her sadistic nature appearing, causing Agatha to draw back fearfully.

"Here comes the Yukimura gene," Fuuka snickered as Ai immediately shredded Agatha's body into ribbons, ignoring the blood that drenched her razor sharp hair.

Ai quietly rose up to her feet before glancing at the shredded corpse of Agatha as she walked back towards her teammates. Maya shivered fearfully as Ai returned back to her blue haired form, not even bothering to spare her a glance. However, the mangled corpse suddenly started to move which caused Ai to stop in her tracks.

"Saa, you sure don't know when to give up, do you," Ai immediately spun around to deflect the flying tendrils as Agatha's true body revealed itself.

Agatha hissed as she dislocated her jaw to devour Ai almost immediately until Ai zipped past her before slicing her in two. The body fell to the ground with the blood splattering onto the stadium with Ai carelessly flicking her sword to throw the blood off. Silence dominated the stadium as Ai narrowed her eyes at them.

"Wow, that's a real 180 degree turn," Florence watched Ai walk down the stairs as the bluenette took a seat next to Natsuki. It's as if we weren't even reflected in her eyes...

Natsuki glanced at Ai warily, cringing at the enormous amount of bloodshed. "You're incredible..."

From her merciless nature, she serenely smiled back at Natsuki with a tilted head. "Well, it's the philosophy of the Yukimura clan: everything is a battle even Life itself."

Fuuka watched the next player rise to the plate, revealing a blonde haired woman rise to the stadium with her eyes shifting towards the crowd. Florence froze immediately when she saw the woman nonchalantly cast her glance at her as the British captain stood up before steeling her expression. She brushed her shoulder against Fuuka as she revealed her claws from beneath her jacket sleeves. The moment the woman and her caught eye-contact, Florence changed immediately into battle position.

"It's been awhile, Phantom Miria," Florence clenched her claws together, eyeing Miria warily.

"H-how," the blonde stared at her completely appalled, causing Florence's eyes to widen. "H-how do you know my name...?"

Florence bit her lip in bewilderment, wondering how Miria could be standing in front of her without any memory of who she was. The British-Japanese female pondered for a moment until she heard steel smoothly slide out of its sheathe with the woman standing in a battle stance.

"I don't know who you are," Miria reiterated slowly, watching Florence's cerulean blue eyes. "But I intend to cut you down. The same way I was commanded to destroy L.X.A!"

As she launched herself towards Florence, the British Captain followed the phantasm's trail carefully before bringing up her claws to block Miria's blade. The woman sprung away before landing a kick against Florence's crossed arms as the honey haired girl flew back while digging her heels into the ground. They zoomed towards one another as their blades cracked back and forth with small ignited sparks fell onto the ground until the two speed demons found themselves trapped in a speedy skirmish.

"How can you keep up with me," Miria narrowed her eyes in bewilderment as Florence shoved her away for a counter-attack.

"It should be obvious to you now," Florence bit her lower lip while springing towards her with flashing images. "Do you remember who you passed your technique to?"

Miria swung her claymore onto the ground, pushing off from it to swing around a kick towards the younger princess' face. "Unfortunately for us, I don't. The only thing you are is a threat to Zodiac!"

Nearly stumbling onto the bleachers, Florence launched herself into the air before unleashing a set of nylon strings as it lashed around Miria's arms. The platinum blonde nearly tripped over while struggling against the web-like structure. As Florence landed on the ground, she slashed her CHroME as a bright blue light emitted from it.

Tears drawn from the jars of Heaven,

Let no one touch the ground – Aquarian Tears!

Water spewed out of the octagonal shaped device as a huge water lynx appeared behind her. She directed her gaze towards Miria as the platinum blonde haired woman brandished her claymore before her. She narrowed her eyes once again as Florence lunged at her with no hesitation with the yowling lynx. Guilt seized Florence's heart while watching a former comrade strike back at her. Biting her lower lip, Florence steeled her resolve as she launched herself towards Miria.

I'm sorry; I'm going to have to put you back into your grave once more.

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

Shiraishi, glancing around the mall strip, walked around with Kenya as the Oshitari speed star desperately started searching in clothes stores, toy stores and all sorts of places. Shitenhouji's Bible warily examined Kenya's movements as he started counting the bills in his wallet before glancing back at a certain product. Tooyama on the other hand energetically dragged the sputtering Shitenhoujitensai all over the place while observing some comic books and some manga. Hitouji and Koharu immediately departed for the nearest comedy bar to practice their latest jokes while Gin and Chitose found themselves admiring the Zen garden exhibits.

"What exactly are you looking for anyway," Shiraishi raised an eyebrow while Kenya continued searching anxiously around the stores. "You look like a man who forgot his girlfriend's birthday."

"You do know when Kiyone's birthday is right," Kenya reciprocated the same quizzical look his captain displayed, folding his arms.

Shiraishi pondered for a moment before shaking his head.

"It's October 23," Kenya continued to search around anxiously, raking his fingers through his hair out of nervousness. "Do you know what day it is today?"

"It's August 29," Shiraishi froze the moment realization hit him, running his fingers through his hair. "So, what? It's still like a month away."

"But, can you tell when you're going to meet her again?"

All Kenya met was silence. "I thought so."

"Well, for starters – you really had no idea when her birthday was," Kenya tapped his chin as-a-matter-of-factly while glancing at the other stores, racking his brain for any idea. "The stupid part is – I forgot to ask Yuushi what she's into! The stupid part is – I only have one day to find something!"

Shiraishi rolled his eyes at Kenya, forcing back the evil green eyed monster before he lashed out at his fellow teammate. "You're panicking too much. For starters, she's not your girlfriend. Secondly, where's the obligation?"

"Dude, I want to make a more lasting impression," Kenya furrowed his eyebrows at his sandy haired captain, finding a book store lying by. "First of all, we are friends with her. Secondly, isn't it normal for friends to remember another friend's birthday? Hey, maybe she's into books."

"Harry Potter's the latest craze," Shiraishi shoved him forward teasingly while chuckling good-naturedly, mentally slapping himself. WhydidIdothat?

Watching Kenya glance at all the selections before shoving his hands into his pocket with slight pondering. Shiraishi inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself while reasserting his thoughts. The only image in his head became Kenya and Kiyone walking together, causing him to slap himself outright in front of a crowd of people. People stared at him queerly for a moment as he sheepishly made his getaway, praying that he didn't portray a psychological disorder.

"I'm guessing it's about the Hyotei's baby player am I right," –Shiraishi jumped the moment he found Chitose standing behind him with a hotdog in his mouth. "Dude, you're freaking out about a kid. Chill out, kids like what normal kids like anyway. Get her a toy or something."

Shiraishi narrowed his eyes at Chitose, sighing regretfully. "Chitose, that's the stupidest idea you can give. That's if her mentality is that of Kin-chan."

"What, I'm just spouting off random stuff," Chitose shrugged nonchalantly before taking another bite out of his hotdog. "Remember how her personality's like. That might give you a better edge over Kenya since you two are clearly shooting in the dark."

Shiraishi froze instantly on Chitose's last statement. "How did you know...?"

"You're exactly like a Bible," Chitose chuckled deviously while easing into a more relaxed position. "Easy to read but complicated to understand. It's something you earn over time. And after being your friend for the past three years, I think drawing a conclusion regarding your jealousy of Kenya's affections and advances towards Kiyone is quite easy. Are most captains this dense?"

Shiraishi folded his arms with a challenging smirk. "Alright, name me captains who are like that."

"Tezuka's a rock, self explanatory," Chitose immediately responded while chortling at the thought. "Most of the women do the chasing in his case but somehow – rumours have it that he has someone already. Atobe's barely in that department; he's the one who understands romance better than most of them. Yukimura, assuming something regarding him is like signing your death note. But, you, my good friend, landed yourself in deep crap. No probable method comes into mind other than competing with Kenya for her affections."

Shiraishi gnashed his teeth together, unable to comprehend anything that Chitose's trying to tell him other than chase after Kiyone. He absentmindedly fished out his wallet while glancing at his allowance before looking around at the vicinity.

Kenya, meanwhile, placed the book on the counter until Zaizen placed a pair of headphones next to him. "What's that for?"

"My left earphone is busted," Zaizen snarkily snorted while slapping a few bills onto the counter. "You on the other hand are letting yourself eat dust."

Kenya raised an eyebrow questioningly at the kouhai, sighing in defeat. "Zaizen, honestly – I'm one of the fastest players in the middle school scenario."

"Unfortunately, in a romance race – you're going at a turtle's pace," Zaizen shook his head disdainfully at his senpai, attaching his newly purchased earphones to his MP3 player. "Shiraishi-senpai's already handing your ass to you. Are you gonna surrender or take it like a man?"

"Wait, slow down," Kenya raised his hands in completely bewilderment, waving them in disbelief. "How sure are you that Shiraishi's going after the same girl?"

"Senpai, why would Chitose-senpai suddenly quote Yoda and why would buchou go gloomy after you spoke to him about Kiyone," Zaizen mentally facepalmed, clucking his tongue in frustration at Kenya. "Didn't your cousin drill any romance into your head!" God, you are dense!

"Unfortunately, there are still some screws loose," Kenya rolled his eyes sarcastically at Zaizen. "Look man, I don't think it should progress into something disastrous. It could jeopardize our chances going to the Nationals if we end up arguing over some girl."

Zaizen stamped on his foot, earning him a withering glare from his senpai. "This isn't just some girl! This is Getsugan Kiyone – one of the fastest female volleyists in the junior level! Not only that, she's the heiress to the Getsugan shipping company! Have you lost your mind!"

Kenya shrugged nonchalantly, throwing in his present for Kiyone into his backpack. "So, Yuushi's not that bad off either."

"Asides from status, isn't there any appeal she has to you," Zaizen grabbed him from his collar before shaking his senpai violently, staring beadily at him. "Come on, man! Use your noggin'!"

Kenya remained silent while pondering upon Zaizen's words, noticing his captain also somewhat verbally harassing Chitose outside. The Naniwa speed star imagined Shiraishi and Kiyone together and soon, his blood started boiling as a challenging smirk appeared on his lips. Although the two of them were both at a deadlock, Kenya remembered having once ace card in the romance department but wasn't quite sure about Kiyone's liking to Oshitari Yuushi's sappy preferences. His teeth sunk into his lower lip while trying to figure out any scenario in which he would actually follow Oshitari Yuushi's advice.

Vomiting would be the first thing, Kenya mused darkly, glancing at the book peeking out of his bag.

Fishing out his cellphone, Kenya searched for his cousin's number before preparing his questions and absentmindedly dialling it.

"Oshitari Yuushi," his cousin's smooth kansai drawl echoed from the other end. "It's been awhile since you last called, Kenya."

Kenya remained silent for a moment, contemplating nervously regarding the consequences. Was it a good idea to call him?

"You must be that anxious and desperate to talk to Getsugan-chan if you're calling my phone and breathing absentmindedly," Oshitari chuckled darkly, causing Kenya's eyes to widen.

"I AM NOT THAT DESPERATE," Kenya thickly accented whispered dropped fiercely low, glancing around to check if he garnered any unwanted attention. "Yuushi, you have to help me. Someone's also...!"

"Someone's also after Getsugan and I'm guessing it's your captain," Oshitari's amused drawl came from the other end before he started chuckling bemusedly. "My God, you two are predictable."

"Shut up Yuushi and help me out here," Kenya hissed darkly, casting an observing glance towards Shiraishi once in awhile. "Yuushi!"

"Alright, alright," Oshitari chuckled deviously in mocking surrender, smirking. "Did you know Getsugan-chan's right next to me and my phone is on speakerphone right now?"

Kenya paled considerably while squeezing his phone tightly; beads of sweat profusely trickling down his face. "WHAT!"

"I'm kidding; I'm just picking a bone with you," –Kenya inwardly wished that glares were transmittable through a cellphone, tightening his grip until his knuckles became visibly white. "Anyway, where are you guys? Most of the tennis teams are staying in the tennis courts. We're watching the match between Echizen and Sanada. You're missing out on a good movie."

"I'm guessing the girls' team will compete after Echizen and Sanada," Kenya sighed in relief but started coming up with murderous plans. Yuushi,youbastard.

"That depends when the captains will arrive," Oshitari glanced at his watch before checking the sky for any trace of an airplane. "It's either that or the tensai will be the deciding factor. I highly doubt that the captains' are going to release their serpent-like grasp on their prey."

"What in the world are they doing," Kenya blinked slightly, recalling Natsuki's absence for a few days. "Amakusa hasn't gotten back either."

"Atobe and the girls know and they're not telling me anything," Oshitari frowned slightly, lacing his voice with hints of annoyance. "So, is your whole team coming?"

"I guess," seeing an approving nod from Zaizen, Kenya nodded along mechanically as he lied. "I'm interested in the playing styles. I wanna see what I'm up against."

"Alright," Oshitari smirked all-knowingly on the other end, understanding the ulterior motives. "Just leave Shiraishi behind will you?"

"Yeah yeah whatever," Kenya waved his hand dismissively while watching Shiraishi lean against the trees, waiting for his other teammates. "Look man, I'm gonna meet you there. Although, Shiraishi's a human polygraph lie detector. It's as if he's telepathic."

"Nonsense, humans don't have that kind of ability," Oshitari reasoned out with his cousin, wondering how that would be possible. "That's because your foot keeps tapping whenever you lie and that's what makes it obvious."

Kenya frowned lightly, checking through the glass to see any changes. "I ditched that habit long time ago!"

"Well, start running over here because Kiyone and Ayane are already here," Oshitari shrugged bemusedly while watching Kiyone exchanged tactics with Ayane. "Maybe you can teach her a thing or two. I don't know; she won't listen to me."

"What more me if not you," Kenya sighed despondently at the possibilities. Who knew going after a girl from Hyotei would be this complicated?

"Kobayagi-chan brainwashed her into thinking I'm some bad boy Casanova," Oshitari chuckled sheepishly at the reason, adjusting his glasses. "So, are you coming or not?"

Kenya glanced at his watch as his lips curved up into a smirk. "Give me ten minutes."

As the line went dead, Kenya rolled his eyes to check any hints of movement coming from his captain. "Zaizen, tell Shiraishi that Yuushi wanted to meet up with me."

Zaizen let out a disgruntled snort while pulling out an earphone. "Didn't you just say he's a human polygraph lie detecting machine?"

"He usually believes you," Kenya shrugged unknowingly, sheepishly scratching his head. "I don't know! I'm becoming too obvious when I lie!"

The Naniwa tensai rolled his eyes uncaringly while increasing the volume of his MP3 player. "Well, be less obvious."

"Stop being so philosophical and help me out here," Kenya let out a disgruntled snort while scratching his head out in frustration. "Come on, Zaizen!"

Zaizen glanced out the window, tapping his chin for a moment. He then examined his desperate senpai's expression until a huge smirk came into play, causing Kenya's face to drain itself of colour. Nobody on the team got away with lying except him and Tooyama. Obviously, Kenya lost that ability after doing it one so many times. Not only that, Shiraishi became increasingly observant especially at Kenya ever since the topic "Getsugan Kiyone" started sprouting about.

"Alright, time to outwit the senior," Zaizen cracked his knuckles, smirking deviously in delight.

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

Tezuka soon found himself writing a long letter, wondering what possessed him to do it. At first, things became hard to say until his pen started flowing out with all sorts of ideas and the bespectacled Seigaku captain discovered two pages worth of letters with his small handwriting. Nevertheless, he became more determined although how could he send it to Shizuru? To begin with, the coffee blonde male realized that he had no idea what her address was despite his asking of Inui who also seemed very interested in her whereabouts and location.

Those realizations alone exhilarated him.

The Hyotei girls made it no easier, considering the over-protectiveness of the team concerning their captain's naïvety and gullibility. Secondly, Shishido seemed less likely to simply hand over the third member of the Silver Trio and Ohtori showed no resistance but that alone irked him. Oshitari Yuushi proved to be an unwanted opponent but then Fuji could easily trample him down. Tezuka found himself cornered for once; where to begin?

"She likes little quotes and stuff," –a deep voice came from the door, revealing Lars standing with his arms folded.

"How did you," Tezuka shook his head in disbelief, wondering how someone like him broke past tight security.

Lars good-naturedly cracked his knuckles before lightly shutting the door. "Never underestimate a female and a former military officer. Alisa's having fun out there so I decided to walk in. You're trying to romance her aren't you?"

Tezuka noticed Lars' jet black orbs straying towards his letter, causing him to immediately snatch it away. "It's none of your concern."

"It is, since she is my," Lars hesitated for a moment, wondering how to phrase their relationship. "She is my subordinate after all. Your relationship with her may or may not affect her performance. Hurting her's going to result into you having a lot of hell to pay, Tezuka-san."

Tezuka remained completely silent, watching Lars carefully. His blood slightly began to boil at the mere thought of her getting hurt by him nonetheless. However, the situation rendered him helpless as he recalled the advantage Sanada gained over him in a few months time. The bespectacled boy checked the calendar; three more weeks before Rikkai's Autumn Ball – that was more than enough time for preparation in Sanada's case. His fist subconsciously curled up while he sifted through his computer files with a folder containing some of her pictures.

"The longer you keep that there the more you're going to be known as a stalker," Lars chuckled lightly, causing Tezuka to immediately click the delete button.

"Those weren't mine," Tezuka responded stoically with a hint of defensiveness.

"Sure they weren't," Lars rolled his eyes, mischievously chuckling. "You're quite the person to play around with, Tezuka-san."

Tezuka groaned in annoyance before regaining his composure. What kind of world did I end up in anyway?

"Although I would recommend rushing your healing ability," Lars shook his head sadly, casting his gaze towards the window. "That would be a disastrous move towards your tennis career. So, the quotes should build a small foundation first. Send it with something else – like a simple flower or something. She's more appreciative of the little things in life rather than those big exorbitant jewellery those rich brats want."

Tezuka averted his gaze from Lars before glancing at the letter. With a frustrated sigh, the coffee blonde haired male swivelled his chair around towards his bag to find his sketch book only to find it in Lars' hands as the older man began scanning it with an amused glint appearing in his eyes.

"That's stealing," Tezuka narrowed his eyes sternly at the Swedish male, trying to take it back.

Lars lifted it above his head, easily managing to scan through the boy's sketchbook. "You have a pretty good memory to remember every tidbit of my subordinate. For starters, you actually got the waves of her hair right. Secondly, the smile actually came out realistic. Third, the shape of her eyes is exact – I envy your memory capability..."

Tezuka narrowed his eyes, twitching furiously. "Please give it back."

Lars shrugged nonchalantly before handing it to Tezuka. "Well, I can't stop you. But, I do know one thing: you're on the right track. To be honest, you don't need to work as hard as you think. All it needs is acknowledgement and the perfect opportunity."

Tezuka, completely puzzled, swivelled his chair back towards his desk while glancing at the papers. He prepared to tuck it away however, Tezuka wondered how the situation would manifest itself without Fuji's insane manipulation and interference. However, the presence of Lars in his room continued to befuddle him with all sorts of ideas. Glancing at the papers, he finally decided to search and do things his way without any mayhem getting involved especially one with Fuji's signature scribbled all over it.

"I'll hand her the letter or whatever your sending her," Lars extended his hand to Tezuka, nodding reassuringly. "Honestly, Sanada wouldn't have a chance against you."

Tezuka's heart somewhat lifted upon hearing the former military officer's words. "He won't?"

"Still, it's best you don't let your guard down," –Tezuka steeled his expression once again while Lars pocketed the paper. "He does have the angel-in-disguise working behind him right? What he doesn't know is that you can't change a heart when it already has chosen."

The male Seishun Gakuen captain found himself to be more bewildered than ever. "What?"

"Looks like I said too much," Lars sighed before waving his hand dismissively. "I integrated my number into your cellphone in case you need any message sending again. Technology sometimes neglects the communication of emotions in messages."

Watching Lars walk away, Tezuka glanced at the man's vanishing figure before contemplating on the situation as of now. His body tensed slightly as he watched some of the tennis players show up while talking on their cellphones, regarding the girlfriends. As his arms hung limply on their sides, the bespectacled male smiled bitterly while feeling a warm gentle touch brush against his hands. He glanced at his side, seeing Shizuru gingerly holding his hand.

"Hi, Tezuka-san," –a soft smile appeared until he heard someone in front of him.

"Shizuru, shall we?"

Tezuka looked up immediately and found Sanada gesturing Shizuru to walk towards him. Without any hesitance, the brunette ran towards him before casting back a friendly smile.

"I'll see you around, Tezuka-san."

Tezuka, upon seeing that image, quickly cancelled the probability of that ever happening. His hands clenched into a fist as he quickened his pace towards the practice courts, watching players quickly increase the pace of their matches. Tezuka picked up the tennis ball, staring down an imaginary Sanada on the court.

"I've never imagined the day that tennis would be the very thing that would breed my jealousy," Tezuka quietly berated himself as his serve cracked off instantly, slamming into the baseline.

People's eyes widened as more tennis balls zoomed from his racquet, spiralling straight down into the court. Smoke appeared from the extreme friction as the ball spun against the teraflex court, crashing against the net. He walked solemnly towards the ball machine before cranking it to the highest level and speed, begrudgingly recalling the image of Sanada tugging Shizuru along.

Since when did Shizuru become a trophy to be won?

He immediately reorganized his thoughts as the balls spiralled towards him with menacing speed. Tezuka slammed one back with his usual calm demeanour but couldn't help but imagine Sanada's head every time he sent it against the baseline before crashing it on the wall. The bespectacled boy glared holes into his imaginary opponent, ignoring the murderous aura he happened to emit. Walking towards the ball machine once more, Tezuka turned it off as his uneasily tried to lift his shoulder only to have it completely freeze in agonizing pain. He winced visibly as his racquet clattered on the ground as his eyes strayed towards his trembling hand.

You're going to lose her, the same way you lost your grip on your racquet.

Tezuka narrowed his eyes visibly, subconsciously gripping his shoulder much tighter than he should. He felt the pain slightly alleviate but the weight continued to bring him down as he dropped to his knees. His lips thinned into a grim line as he tried to redirect his focus to his recovery, standing up in determination. He mentally kicked himself out of his daze, wondering how the situation could get any worse. The only thing he could do now is accelerate his healing process as Lars' said but, what chances did he have? Accelerating it would increase the possibilities of him returning to rehabilitation once again.

However, Tezuka smirked slightly to himself as he proceeded on.

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

Wow, that was a really late update! I promise I'll make things faster! XD Anyway, please don't forget to review! Two reviews or more earn you guys the next chapter!