Me: Jesus, you know what? I'm not typing documents on my net-book anymore! Apparently, because my mainframe is windows 8 – it can't read windows 7 too well so I had to redo the whole damn chapter AGAIN. I am so sorry for the increasingly annoying delay. It's not easy to retain all this information in my head either and inspiration is hard to get! This time, I'm not taking chances. I'm gonna use the google doc to transfer and edit back and forth so it won't mess up anymore. Anyway, I don't own any of the Prince of Tennis characters! I only own the OCs! Any characters that have some similarities to the real characters are just by coincidence.
Chapter 71 – May the Odds Be In Your Favour
Soon, the tournament came around with all the teams departing from their transports. Atobe found himself amazed by the huge dome, looking at the flags hanging around. It's the Mishima Zaibatsu, Atobe mused dryly. Since when were they a supporter of the games? They were more into arms dealing and lending of military power in case Japan had been threatened. The purple haired captain of Hyotei shrugged nonchalantly while slinging his bag onto his shoulder and looking at the other members travelling behind him. Akutsu slung his bag over while helping Isane pull out her bag from the trunk. Shizuru on the other hand slowly stepped down from the bus while looking in amazement at the dome. However, Atobe's eyes travelled towards Tezuka as if he was seeing any reaction from the Seigaku captain.
"Again, he does not do anything," Atobe raked his fingers through his hair in annoyance while waiting for Tezuka and the others to catch up.
Tezuka slowly made his way towards the dome, walking alongside Atobe. He glanced a few times at Shizuru before walking along. His heart slightly twitched in pain, wondering what her response would be. Ayane just had to pick a fight with Vera, he snorted in annoyance. He sighed while closing his eyes tightly before continuing to walk on and look on forward. He couldn't afford to think of his feelings for her now. But he still felt a powerful boiling flame inside him. The kind of flame that personally wanted to burn a certain someone into cinders; it was that one event that happened that he couldn't take his mind off on…
Awi Jahi's attempts to woo her.
The way he referred to her was like she was some toy, some object – he could feel his blood boiling and his hands began clenching tightly into his fist. He couldn't help but feel so infuriated and Kurenai, being the nice person she was, didn't fight back. He could only imagine if Ayane had been the one who had flirted with. She would have turned the man upside down and what more Fuuka? He knew the red head to be ticked off by the drop of the hat and would have probably broken the man's bones in ways he could never have imagined to begin with.
"Kurenai likes you, you idiot."
Tezuka swivelled his head towards Atobe. "Huh?"
Atobe wanted face-palm but simply shook his head. "Kurenai is not the type to say but she will show you how much she cares. She is like you; a woman of action and decisiveness. She doesn't inform but simply leads by example. Something that infuriated me to no end because there were times ore-sama had to clean up her mess."
Tezuka remained silent at Atobe's statement. "Ah."
"That's all you're going to say? Tezuka," Atobe frustratedly ran his fingers through his hair. "Ore-sama thought you were smarter than that. You should also know Kurenai after you kissed her when you were dead drunk thanks to your reckless tensai. Secondly, do you not know how much effort ore-sama had to put in order to make sure Kurenai did not get suspended for attacking those Seigaku seniors?"
Now this definitely caught Tezuka's attention. "Atobe, what are you…?"
"Do you remember that time your arm got busted? Of course you do, you threatened to quit based on the stories," Atobe scoffed darkly with a stern glare, rolling his eyes at Tezuka. "However, Kurenai got a wind of that as well. Ore-sama remembers the name of the man. His name was Takesue was it not? He was the one who decided to destroy ore-sama's chances of having a proper game with you."
The bespectacled male chuckled in amusement; Atobe was as narcissistic as always.
"Since Nagisaki had a cousin over there, she wanted to visit and so she brought her combat-oriented best friend along," Atobe let out a disgruntled snort. "When Takesue saw her, he began picking on her. And obviously, that didn't suit well with Kurenai. You can only imagine what kind of destruction and trauma Kurenai was capable of. She is capable of taking ten full-grown men with her bare hands and giving her Arnis sticks and blades do not help the situation."
Tezuka remained silent; he remembered what Shizuru was capable when he had seen her fight a veteran fighter. She easily fought him without losing her cool and she danced along without any wastage of energy. If he were to link an animal to her, it would be the phoenix. He had heard rumours of her Hyakuren aura take the shape of a huge phoenix swooping in and defending her whenever necessary and he had to admit, it fit her profile. The phoenix, a majestic creature as it was, was fiercely protective and could stun the crowd with awe with the beauty of its rainbow coloured wings. The sound of its trill welcomed many good things and the flames were very controlled. The flames could either lash out and burn the person or heal gently with a warm touch.
"Nyah, this place is so huge," Kikumaru jumped around in excitement.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Tezuka looked around him when he saw the courts lying before him. The dome was huge with synthetic grass courts all around with the stadiums being able to focus on whatever game they chose. He inhaled deeply before looking up when the roof of the dome suddenly opened to let in the bright sunlight with the wind brushing past his hair. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply to let the wind brush past him and fill his nostrils. It felt fantastic!
"Wow, this place is humongous," Shiraishi nodded in agreement. "I've never seen anyone build a place this huge. I wouldn't be surprised if it belonged to the Atobe corp."
"That's the thing. Ore-sama does not own it," Hyotei's king let out a disgruntled snort while looking around. "The Mishima Zaibatsu does and ore-sama doesn't even understand or know when they started supporting the sports world."
"Maybe it's to keep the press off them," Shiraishi glanced around while looking at the screens. "Most of their clients if I remember right were looking for military enhancements."
"Saa, just like Wimbledon, na," Fuji smiled serenely at Tezuka as the male nodded.
Watching the players interact with one another, Ryuuzaki-sensei let a smile curve up her lips as the boys began interacting with one another. All of them have come a long way from training and now today was the day they'd prove their strength. She saw Tezuka talking more to Sanada and Atobe entering the conversation now and then. She remembered watching Tezuka puncturing a hole through the wooden log with his services and Atobe smashing holes into the ground with his own smashes. Atobe despite his egotistical demeanour proved to be more powerful than she thought he was. No wonder he had managed to drive Tezuka back!
However, she knew that he was not Hyotei's crown jewel.
It was the girls' team.
She glanced at Sakaki. "I'm sure you're very proud of the five girls."
"Not five but six," Sakaki lightly smirked as he glanced at Isane talking to Akutsu. "I never expected Uchiha to get this far but it seems that being exposed to some violence gave her a bit of a backbone."
The Hyotei coach glanced at the six girls, watching them interact with the other players. Isane started taking pointers from Akutsu whereas Ayane was trying to get a good view of the other players. He could only chuckle as Kiyone struggled with jumping up and down. Poor kid, Sakaki sighed deeply. It was going to be awhile before she grew an inch or two. Shizuru, Mai and Momo stood calmly as he looked at the women's team which was Hyotei dominated.
"All four queens have been selected plus the two former queens," Sakaki glanced at the other women's teams. "I would like to see them try trumping over the girls."
Strangely enough, Sengoku was the only one who remained silent.
And most people found it strange to find Yamabuki's usually happy and chipper Lucky Sengoku to be quiet.
The orange haired vice captain had other things on his mind as his eyes trailed towards the girls' team walking in. Momo stood behind Mai who followed behind Shizuru, walking along. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly had gone on but a bitter smile slowly curved up his lips. Momo was the first one to stand up to his antics as he sadly fished out the pictures that his sister had given him. He saw Momo smiling with another man and laughing as his eyes slowly went towards the time stamp.
September 12, 2013 – 7:30 pm.
He chuckled bitterly; that was the same day that both of them had gone to the festival together.
"Wait a minute," Sengoku's eyes suddenly widened in realization as he immediately began fishing out his other pictures, seeing the crease on them. "The time stamp…!"
He had his own picture in exactly the same position and the exact same time stamp. Both of them read September 12, 2013 at 7:30 pm! This made no sense! How could Momo be in two places at once? Unless she had a twin sister – in which both of them never saw her with anyone with the same colour of hair as her in the family. That was what made her incredibly unique among the Sanada! He began to observe the picture carefully as he tried merging the picture together and why did the position seem the same and even the guy looked like him! Realization hit him like a lightning bolt but why would his sister do that? It didn't make any sense!
"Ah, this is too much," Sengoku began yanking the curls on his hair in frustration.
However, on the other side – even one member of the girl's team had begun wondering.
Momo walked along and watched Sengoku from afar, biting her lower lip anxiously. What exactly had happened between them? It made no sense as to how those pictures manage to end up in Sengoku Tohru's possession. She felt her heart drop down to her stomach and tears began to well up in her eyes. The event still remained fresh in her mind and his angry shouts still echoed through her memories. Her hand clenched tightly up into a fist as she closed her eyes.
"Conceal it, you are a samurai," Momo breathed in and out slowly while fighting the tears in her eyes, trying to calm herself down. "Emotions like this are…"
"Not necessary? Useless? Distracting?"
"Ye," Momo snapped her eyes open and found herself staring at the amber gold eyes of the tensai. "M-Mai?"
"Emotions are always necessary. It's what makes us human," Mai smiled lightly while turning away from the Hyotei Shinigami. "Momo-senpai, I know what it's like to be thrown aside. And it is a painful feeling, we're allowed to cry and vent out our rage but we cannot let it control us."
Momo blinked several times in disbelief, realizing that Mai had also been fighting her own emotions. "M-Mai… All this time…"
"Shizuru has been my outlet for these kinds of things," Mai shrugged nonchalantly, nodding earnestly. "She willingly listened to me and she was willing to carry the burden of all our feelings. That is her salve; maybe that's why she's stronger than us. That's why I managed to find myself a way to get Yukimura back. It hurt to realize that he forgot me but I decided to put my romantic feelings aside and just let him know the truth. He may not know for now but it's better than nothing."
Momo nodded with a bitter smile. "I guess you're right…"
"Sengoku Tohru has chosen to mess with the wrong team, Momo-senpai."
She swivelled her head towards her captain, seeing fury and vengeance dancing from the usually calm and gentle eyes. "Shizuru…"
"She can insult me, destroy me and do anything she wants to me," the brunette's gaze remained unchanged with her stare unflinching. "However, I refuse to stand here and watch her destroy my senpai especially one who had protected me from the one person I blindly believed in. Secondly, what kind of queen lets her loved ones get hurt? Tezuka-san was not involved in this yet I found her finger prints all over the knife she used to stab him with."
Momo swallowed hard; despite Shizuru's voice being calm, it was eerily dead and devoid of emotion.
"Concealing is correct in one context and that is to conceal any suspicion that you are hell-bent on destroying her," Shizuru clenched her fists tightly with her once soft-spoken voice became more jagged with knives. "However, the one thing you do not conceal is your fury. Your rage and your regret – let those three things become the driving force of what you desire. Rage not towards the person but at yourself for not standing up when you had the chance. Because, I too cannot forgive myself for getting Tezuka-san involved when I had the chance to eliminate her."
The Shinigami wanted to gawk in surprise; Shizuru was never the one to vote for violence. However, the devoid look in the brunette's eyes spelled differently. She could see the fury boiling inside Shizuru and she could only be amazed as to how much discipline the captain had to maintain a proper decorum despite having her target being at least 30 feet away from her. If Shizuru could fire needles with pinpoint accuracy, taking down Tohru from this range wouldn't be too hard.
"We will find a way to expose her," Shizuru firmly stated before whipping around to follow behind Fuuka. "I swear to it."
Momo remained completely silent in response to Shizuru's words as she watched the mixed team walk up right next to her. She could feel Shizuru's rage but it was not the boiling type. It was cold, unfeeling and ruthless. She clenched her fists tightly at the mere sight of herself; how could she submit to her emotions like that? The Shinigami stood strong and tall while looking at the other teams assemble near her. Her emotions regarding Sengoku could be dealt with later! She had a tournament to win! She clenched her fists tightly as a triumphant smirk graced her lips.
But also hearing Shizuru's words made her realize she could never hold a candle to her captain's combat skills.
Images of the battle in Hideyoshi Castle flashed in her mind. Momo remembered how quickly Shizuru dispatched her opponents and made short work of them with a whirling naginata while dancing among flying arrows. She still couldn't believe her captain's fighting capacity at that time but now she had more reason to believe that Naomi had picked the better one. A year ago, Momo did not believe that Shizuru had any capacity to scare her opponents into submission. She had a sweet princess face and her acting skills were horrible to boot. In fact, she was scared of almost anything and the last person the team would expect to chop a person into pieces.
Then again, there was a saying that went along the lines of "looks could be deceiving".
"Momo-senpai?"
The purple haired female Sanada snapped herself out of her thoughts and looked at the sandy blonde volleyist standing behind her with her big liquid blue eyes staring at her. "Yes?"
Kiyone jumped and down, struggling to see. "Can I please sit on your shoulders? Everyone is so tall…"
A laugh escaped her throat as Momo smiled kindly, lowering herself down. "Go ahead."
Kiyone may not be the most observant girl when it came to situations but Momo was happy for the girl's childish behaviour and innocent demeanour. As she felt Kiyone secure herself on top of her shoulders, Momo lifted her up into the air as the volleyist gained a better view. She could only the imagine written across Kiyone's face as her shoulders began taking the impact of Kiyone's excited jumping up and down on her shoulders. Soon, the announcer and the other judges gathered to the stage in front of the microphone.
"EVERYONE, WELCOME TO THE GOODWILL GAMES! This games are here as a foster of good relationships and good sportsmanship among all the countries! Today, we have a new addition to the event which will be the mixed event in which both boys and girls are allowed to compete be it Singles or Doubles. There will also be a free-for-all in which the players will be fighting representing their country!"
Teams and supporters cheered on loudly as chants could be heard all over the stadium. Isane swallowed nervously, feeling a lump form in her throat. Nobody told her about the Free-For-All! But whatever it was, they had to win! It was something she couldn't lose now! Not when Akutsu had put so much work into her. It was one of those days in which she wished she had paid more attention to the details of the tournament. But then, she wouldn't be the one constantly targeted by the higher ranks. She could imagine the ones being targeted are usually the captains so she could somewhat rest easy.
"Don't be so sure."
Isane swivelled her head towards the gray haired male.
"They can also do doubles," Akutsu snorted while playing with a used up cigarette. "But don't you remember what you told me? Or was that all for show, Uchiha?"
Isane shook her head and bit her lower lip determinedly. "No, I plan to win and that's all there is to it!"
"Good," Akutsu smirked before puffing out a smoke ball. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
The teams then reported towards their locker rooms and as Atobe opened the door, even he stood in astonishment. There was a common room and two doors leading into segregating locker rooms. He shook his head; where and when did the Mishima have time to create this? If he remembered right, majority of their industries were very military related. Even their soldiers were top class and would achieve any mission given to them 90 percent guaranteed. Why 90 percent is probably the most realistic, Atobe snorted in annoyance while looking at the place. He saw no traces of the Mishima emblem within the training room while tracing and fingering all the furniture in the room. All the players slowly sauntered inside with a completely stupefied expression as Kikumaru rushed in with Yukimura Ai and immediately began bouncing on the couches.
"Wow, this is like a hotel, nyah," Kikumaru bounced up and down happily on the sofa. "And the pillows are so soft!"
Ai swung open the refrigerator with her eyes glimmering with delight. "They have candy inside the refrigerator!"
As the other team members walked in, Tezuka slowly placed down his tennis bag on the side while continuing to investigate the place around him. The low humming of the aircon echoed through his ears while he continued to brush his fingers against the doorframe and the table. The place had been newly renovated, Tezuka mused lightly while continuing to look around the place. He sauntered towards the locker rooms for boys as he also saw the locker rooms for the girls with a common room linking both rooms together.
"Hey look! Didn't we see this guy somewhere?"
All the team members went towards the TV as Tezuka's eyes widened in recognition to messy dark blonde hair with mismatched golden and red eyes.
Awi Jahi.
Egypt's number 1 junior player.
Egypt's Pharaoh – the Morning Star.
And also known as the asshole who had been hitting on Shizuru.
He couldn't think of any milder term for him. Other than "dimwit", asshole was pretty mild. If Momoshiro and Kaidoh were in his position, the Seigaku captain was certain they could have made something more cringe-worthy. However, the mere appearance of Awi Jahi set his blood on fire. He couldn't describe the feeling; he could imagine many ways how to kill Awi Jahi and keep him away from Shizuru. No, Tezuka quickly began cancelling the rash thought in mind. Shizuru is not a tool and neither is she some trophy or bird I can shove in a cage and keep her there. But the energy pulsing through him felt raw, primitive and powerful…
It was almost ecstatic.
His hands slowly clenched to a fist as he started inhaling deeply to keep his composure before lashing out at the mere image. Ever since he had admitted his feelings for the brunette, he could see that his other emotions had been spilling out. Tezuka began walking around and pacing around to keep his head cool but one look at the television and the mere sound of the Egyptian's voice irritated him.
"I hope my crimson-eyed butterfly is watching," he smirked on screen with girls squealing in the background. "I am definitely looking forward to see Neith play. If Fate were to be so kind, I would love to whisk her away and take her as the evening star. I do not intend to have some fool keep her pinioned here to this earth."
Some fool, you're the fool.
Tezuka scowled darkly to himself before leaning against the door frame away from the TV. How could Awi Jahi talk about her so simply made him want to turn the man upside down or maybe break his face! He gripped his shoulder until he brushed his palm against a bandage right under it. His eyes widened slightly before a small smile curved up his lips.
Shizuru may never say how she feels but she will definitely show it.
There were a few times he didn't want to listen to Fuuka but this was the one time he was glad he did.
He remembered being half-conscious after crashing on the ground. But he was more surprised with someone at Shizuru's height and build being able to carry him. Fuuka's build involved more strength so he wouldn't be surprised if she was the one who carried him. But from what he heard from the other girls, she apparently jumped all the way to the second floor window. He remembered how light and gentle her hands were; it glided across his skin with a warm feeling brushing against his skin. He heard her voice soothing him as he could feel fear completely seize his entire body after he had been stabbed. No, Awi Jahi cannot have her. This time – this time for sure!
I can't let this happen.
As he began walking towards his own locker, the bespectacled male saw Sanada walking out of the locker rooms after he had dumped his things inside.
"Sanada."
The capped Rikkai Dai vice captain raised an eyebrow. "Tezuka."
"When do we know who our opponents are going to be?"
Sanada furrowed his eyebrows a bit. "Weren't you listening? The PA will be the one to announce it."
Although his tone was stretched into annoyance, Sanada noticed Tezuka's fists curled up until his knuckles had turned white. He knew that feeling and he was certain it had to do something with the Egyptian player, Awi Jahi. Tezuka had been perfectly fine a few moments ago until they began watching Awi Jahi play his match. Sanada bristled a bit upon hearing Awi Jahi refer to Shizuru as his "crimson-eyed butterfly". The nickname had been utterly retarded! As flamboyant and cheesy as a certain kansai tensai was, he could barely imagine him calling her such a thing. A butterfly was an understatement as to what she truly was on the court although he could say that the "butterfly" did capture some part of how she looked. He could see the flames dancing in Tezuka's eyes. It wasn't flames of determination or anything but something that reflected a cold, relentless fury.
"Tezuka, I know you," Sanada folded his arms with a stern gaze. "It's that same feeling…"
"What kind of man would let another man slander a queen," Tezuka furrowed his eyebrows darkly, effectively cutting off Sanada.
Sanada knew what Tezuka was like when something he loved was being threatened or being taken away from him. He could see the cold fury dancing in his onyx eyes and he glanced towards Tezuka's tightly clenched fist. If anything, Awi Jahi had angered the wrong man more than the wrong team.
"I understand your rage but try not to make it too obvious," Sanada folded his arms.
"Arn~, even ore-sama does not need his Insight to see your rage."
Tezuka and Sanada turned around to see the purple haired Hyotei male captain walking towards them with their arms folded together with a smirk.
"Ore-sama knows what you're feeling, Tezuka. That raw feeling of wanting to claim a woman as your own," Atobe sat down on the couch, resting himself comfortably. "The desire to have her in your arms and cherish her warmth - ore-sama knows that wild, primitive feeling. A king feels that when his queen, his crown jewel is being threatened."
"She is not my queen nor is she my crown jewel," Tezuka knitted his eyebrows together, folding his arms. "She is…"
"She is definitely not just a friend. That is for sure."
Tezuka glanced up at Shiraishi who was watching the girls from the open door. "Shiraishi, she is…"
"She cannot possibly be someone who you can treat as a friend," Shiraishi chuckled lightly in amusement with a glint in his eyes. "I've the seen the way you look at her. You're more protective and possessive than you show, Tezuka-kun."
Tezuka frowned slightly; having three people ganging up on his case was not something he would rather be involved with. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Tezuka slowly walked away and sat next to a silent Sengoku. He didn't need to be a rocket scientist to know what Sengoku had his eyes looking at. In the other room, he could see the girls exploring their quarters and Ai jumping on the bed. Shizuru on the other hand had begun observing the room in her usual quiet fashion while Mai had started talking to Ayane about something. On the other hand, Momo and Isane started figuring out tactics and fixing up things to make sure nothing gets lost.
"I just don't understand."
Tezuka swivelled his head towards the orange haired male; he had known him long enough in the same room that he had something in his mind.
"Who am I supposed to believe, Tezuka? After all that's happened…"
Tezuka saw Sengoku's eyes watering up and his fists clenching in frustration. Ever since he had become roommates with the happy-go-lucky vice captain of Yamabuki, he had been able to observe all his mannerisms down to the last bit. Sengoku pursed his lips with a bitter sigh while hugging his knees against his body while sitting against the wall.
"I should have just listened. Then again," Sengoku chuckled bitterly. "I guess I really am unlucky to fall in love with a Shinigami. She took my heart. And now, I can never have it back."
"That all depends if you're just going to rely on your concept of luck to pull you through."
Sengoku swivelled his head towards the Seishun Gakuen captain. "Huh?"
"You were named Lucky Sengoku because you knew how to counter things on the court and everything else seemed to fall in your favour," Tezuka leaned against knees, placing his weight on his arms. "But the luck that you have lived on the court isn't the same as the one you can apply to daily life."
Sengoku nodded stiffly. "I guess so… How did you get so lucky with Shizuru?"
"We're not exactly a thing, Sengoku. But," Tezuka smiled lightly while watching Shizuru trying to fix Natsuki's and Fuuka's mess yet again. "I at least let her know my feelings. If she were to reject me, it would be painful but the happier part would be in knowing that she knows that my heart belongs to her."
"But wait a minute, you guys aren't together yet," The orange haired male blinked several times. "I thought you guys were…"
The bespectacled male sighed deeply. "Someone decided to interfere and try to get to her before me."
Sengoku chuckled bitterly. "That's really unlucky…"
"At the same time however, it isn't," Tezuka folded his arms before giving Sengoku a firm stare. "The question however now is… Will you let it?"
"Let what," Sengoku raised an eyebrow.
"Will you let your concept of luck control or will you prove to her that you don't need luck to show her that she truly means something to you?"
"ATTENTION TEAMS! FIRST MATCH WILL BE TEAM JAPAN VERSUS TEAM EGYPT FOR THE MEN'S DIVISION! GIRLS' DIVISION WILL BE TEAM AMERICA VERSUS TEAM SWEDEN! TEAMS, PLEASE REPORT TO THE COURT IN 30 MINUTES!"
From the other room, Fuuka scratched her head and chuckled. "Aww man, I thought we were going to play today. Sucks to be us. Maybe they shit their pants or something."
"I wouldn't go that far," Florence giggled with a curt smile, folding her legs elegantly while taking her place on one of the chairs. "I am pretty sure we have our own battle, it's just Sweden and America decided to duke it out first."
"Ahm purdy shure either way – we're gonna beat 'em like a rented mule," Natsuki flicked a piece of earwax from her ear, shrugging nonchalantly. "Although, there's some other way to pass the time. And ahm purdy shure that it will be a good thin' for both our teams."
Ai bounced up and down with a huge grin. "Oh oh, are we gonna go buy Candy Floss? Are we gonna have a party…!"
"Naw, Sugarcube – half the team can check out our competitors and the other half can jack up the guys as if they passed down an ice cold beer," Natsuki chuckled and glanced at Shizuru. "Besides, ah know just tha thing that can make Tezuka-han beat that Egyptian man like a rented mule. So, Shizuru – why don't ya go outside and watch the others play? Ah mean, Tezuka could use the boost."
Everyone nodded before glancing towards Shizuru with an all-knowing grin, causing the brunette to shake her head.
"Guys, I don't think my presence will make any difference during the match," Shizuru shook her head while stepping back shyly, biting her lower lip meekly.
Mai nodded with a slow smile curving up her face. "Oh, I think it will."
"Indeed, there would be some power up and I am very certain that Tezuka would love to obliterate that poor Egyptian into bits in front of you," Florence tousled around with her honey blonde hair, drawling with her thick British accent. "After all, he is still a man and outside the context of the tennis court – you are a woman."
Shizuru swallowed hard when she saw Mai's sardonic grin curving up her lips. She stared straight back at the amber feline eyes of the tensai before letting out a defeated sigh. Ever since that time, she wasn't sure what to call her relationship with Tezuka. She had just decided to run off. Her body had subconsciously run off and her mind had decided to shut down the moment he had told her. However, she couldn't figure out as to why she decided to sprint off and leave him hanging. Was it really for Ayane's sake or was it because she could not believe?
"I... I couldn't believe that he could like someone like me," Shizuru gripped her arm tightly with bitter smile. "It was an impossible dream..."
"Ah wouldn't call it impossible, Sugarcube," Natsuki grinned while slinging her arm around Shizuru's shoulder. "Ah think ya just gotta face the situation head on and ya can't always have him making the first move. A relationship is two-way; not one way."
"Mm, I guess..."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Team Japan and Team Egypt soon lined up and headed towards the courts. Tezuka lined up next to Atobe with Echizen following behind him. He saw the people howling and cheering with some waving the Egyptian flag. His classmates from Seigaku were also there and many of them were recognizable faces. However, he felt his heart fall a bit as a familiar brunette didn't show up among the stands.
"Aww, looks like my crimson-eyed butterfly won't be here to watch."
Tezuka snapped his head towards the source of the voice as his eyebrows knitted themselves together a bit. Of all the people to end up in front of, it just had to be Awi Jahi. He clenched his fists tightly while trying to keep himself calm, staring him down with his usual stoic stare. However, the way he referred to Shizuru set him off. He could feel the heat burning from his blood and his mind swirling in a complete rage. Nobody claims Shizuru like a trophy! Nobody!
"...She's mine," his voice whispered with a deathly venomous tone.
Awi blinked several times. "Eh?"
"She is not your butterfly. Butterflies do not last long," the bespectacled male looked straight into Awi Jahi's eyes with a challenging stare. "She is the Queen of Diamonds. And she's not yours, she's mine."
Shiraishi stared in shock as he saw the malice and possessiveness gleaming in the Seishun Gakuen captain's eyes. Some of the other players stared and gawked in astonishment as to how feral Tezuka sounded. Despite his face not showing it, his eyes spoke a whole waterfall of words that could possibly send Awi Jahi six feet under. The sandy brown haired captain noticed Tezuka's knuckles becoming white and he didn't need to have the famous powers of Hoshimura Florence to know how angry the Seishun Gakuen male was. If someone started hitting on Kiyone that way, he'd probably do something worse. Wait, she's not even my girlfriend, Shiraishi shook his head before glancing back at the bespectacled male. He knew Tezuka to be calm and composed; it was rare that he even showed any signs of emotion at all. The sandy brunette however could see what Tezuka was looking at and the way Awi Jahi. He know the complete story but hearing the words "crimson-eyed butterfly" and "queen of diamonds" made him understand what exactly ticked Tezuka off.
And he wasn't sure whether or not he wanted to see the destruction happen or just be witness to the chaos left behind.
"Ohohoho, and who are you to say," Awi Jahi folded his arms with a mocking smirk.
"For your information, Neith is a far cry as to what Shizuru is," Tezuka's eyes blazed with a relentless fury that promised funerals despite his stoic demeanour. "You have no idea of who she is."
"Neither do you. I am the Morning Star – I will claim what's mine," Awi chuckled darkly, walking away. "Tezuka Kunimitsu."
"Doubles Two begin! Players remain in the court!"
Tezuka stepped back before dropping his hand on Kikumaru's shoulder. "Yudan sezu ni ikou."
Kikumaru grinned impishly while giving him the "v" sign. "Nyah, don't worry about it buchou!"
Atobe chuckled in amusement while tapping Shiraishi's shoulder. "Get ready; your opponents look like they only need to breathe and play tennis to live."
Shiraishi, completely puzzled, swivelled his head towards the opposing side as his eyes widened. Atobe wasn't kidding; the players they were going against looked exactly alike. The two boys stared back at them with a soulless stare with tattoos branded on their faces. Shiraishi swallowed hard while trying to figure out who exactly the two boys were. They both had the same bald haircut and their tanned skin had been decorated with hieroglyphics. He swallowed hard; where did these two come from?
"Nyah, they look so scary," Kikumaru leapt in fear and hid behind Shiraishi, cowering behind the Shitenhouji captain.
Shiraishi ruffled Kikumaru's hair with a chuckle. "Don't worry, Kikumaru-kun. We'll be able to figure this out."
I hope...
Shiraishi didn't know any other way to assure the red haired acrobat other than tell him that they would be able to figure it out. After all, they were fighting opponents they have never fought before. The Goodwill Games before used to be more on America and Japan but he could only figure that the other countries decided to join in and Japan did want to bolster its trade a bit. With a huge smirk curving up his lips, the Shitenhouji captain quickly picked up the ball and slowly walked towards the baseline.
"Doubles Two will now begin! Shiraishi-Kikumaru pair versus the Rahotep-Rahotep pair! Game start, Shiraishi to serve!"
The sandy brown haired captain bounced the ball a couple of times while looking at the opponents standing across them. Their stances were the same, the stares were the same – to the heck with it, even their shoes and jerseys were the same. Telling these two apart will be a pain, Shiraishi mused darkly while watching and looking for any blind spot. He tossed it straight up and went for a fast serve as the boys quickly reacted to it with the baseline player moving in to strike.
"So it begins," the Egyptian coach smiled coyly while taking her seat on one of the benches while Ryuuzaki-sensei sat down to watch Shiraishi and Kikumaru.
She had heard her fair share of rumours of Japan producing a good set of players. In fact, she had heard of those who had been being looked for by the other western countries to pirate them into their own national team. One of them she heard happened to be Tezuka Kunimitsu, who had been aiming to go to Germany to begin playing in the pro-circuit there. Another was Atobe Keigo – he played in the British circuit for sometime. But she never heard of the two however, she could see Shiraishi's eyes glimmering.
"This boy looks interesting," the Egyptian coach folded her legs elegantly.
"Coach Amunet."
She looked up to see Awi Jahi lazily sitting against the rails. "Awi, what is it?"
The dark blonde dual coloured-eyed male shrugged nonchalantly. "Think you can rig a match for me and four eyes over there?"
Amunet looked over her shoulder to see Tezuka standing on the other side. "What is your slot?"
"Singles One, coach. I'm fully intent to show that man what happens when he is to steal something that belongs to a king," Awi cracked his knuckles with a mischievous grin. "Usually, the punishment for that is death."
Coach Amunet chuckled in amusement; when was the last time she had seen Awi so fired up? Good thing she allowed him to go walking around and he just had to go walking into the training camp of the Japanese team. A few hours after, he started harping about seeing a girl whose beauty rivalled that of Nefertiti. But then again, he was quite a player himself. Amunet sighed while continuing to watch the boys exchange shots with one another. However, she soon started looking at Osiris and Set playing against Shiraishi and Kikumaru.
"You know, I could never tell those two boys apart," Awi snorted in annoyance, scratching the back of his head. "Who's Osiris and who's Set again?"
Yeah, who the heck is who?
Shiraishi quickly returned a forehand with a cross court back hand with one of the Rahotep brothers. He glanced at the two boys, trying to tell them apart. He bit his lower lip as his eyes darted to and fro from the court. Both boys quickly darted across the court with one of the brothers taking the front row while Shiraishi found himself playing against the baseline player. He sent another baseline while watching Kikumaru fend off the net player as both players tried escaping one another. Osiris sent a strong forehand straight towards Kikumaru who deflected it with a drive volley.
"Nyah, they're really strong," Kikumaru quickly deflected it and started volleying with Set. "How can you tell who's who? They don't even talk!"
Shiraishi dashed towards the corner as one of the volley shots escaped Kikumaru and forced him to slightly spin lob the shot. The ball barely floated over the net as Set bent over to slightly lobbed it over. The ball flew straight up in the air as Kikumaru leapt up and spun with a quick spinning backhand.
"There it is! The Kikumaru Beam!"
People from Seigaku started cheering loudly as Kikumaru landed back on his feet and darted towards the net. Shiraishi quickly reacted to Osiris and he still couldn't figure out how to tell the two boys apart. He quickly ran towards the left corner and sent a down the line shot towards Osiris, watching the other Rahotep brother play. He smirked as Osiris didn't move until Set struck the ball right up front and let it drop limply right in front of Kikumaru.
"What the," Shiraishi's eyes widened; when did that happen?
"Love – fifteen!"
Shiraishi clucked his tongue while looking at the ball in Kikumaru's palm before taking one more look at the twin brothers. Set and Osiris wordlessly walked back to their positions and switched places, looking at Shiraishi and Kikumaru with emotionless eyes. The Shitenhouji captain bit his lower lip anxiously while bouncing the ball again. How could he tell which one was which? Obviously, that was their advantage since they were the same and nobody was sure in which one could hit.
"Well, let's try pushing them a little bit more," Shiraishi served again while watching Set react to the ball.
Come on, there has to be a difference! No two twins are exactly the same!
He stared in utter disbelief as even their running pattern was the same. But that should be humanly impossible, Shiraishi darkly snorted inwardly to himself. He found himself guarding the baseline while Kikumaru continued pushing at the net. He sent a drive volley towards the baseline as Osiris sent a fast forehand straight towards him to which he deflected. While Kikumaru started deflecting and holding back the two brothers, Shiraishi started watching for any distinct mannerisms from the two boys. The ball flew back and forth and Shiraishi began countering normally, waiting for one of them to make a mistake."Tch, they're extremely synchronized," Shiraishi darted forward for a fast volley until a smash screamed past them.
"Love – thirty!"
They're so synchronized.
Oishi stared in astonishment and admonishment as Kikumaru and Shiraishi struggled to keep on fighting. How were they supposed to tell the two apart? Obviously, the boys knew that and they were using their almost completely identical-looks to confuse Shiraishi and Kikumaru. He bit his lower lip; there has to be a way to tell the two boys apart. There's got to be a way, he chanted inside in his head while watching Kikumaru jump high into the air to smash another lob straight at them to which Set and Osiris easily responded by sending a low smash towards Shiraishi.
"Tch," Shiraishi bent down and floated the ball right over the net.
Kikumaru watched the ball float as the two boys quickly attacked the net. He started looking over until his eyes widened in realization. With a quick twist in the air, he sent himself dropping down faster and landed on his left palm and skidded around. As soon as Set smacked the shot over, Kikumaru caught the ball from behind his ear and sliced the ball to send it spinning on the edge of the net. The two boys didn't react as slipped down towards the ground with Osiris lobbing straight up.
"Chance ball," Kenya cheered from the railings. "Go get it, Shiraishi!"
The sandy brunette smashed with a slice for a strong top spin as the ball zoomed towards the boys and refused to bounce and whirled around without getting high enough. Osiris and Set stopped dead in their tracks as a huge smirk spread across Shiraishi's face.
"Fifteen- thirty!"
Shiraishi however wasn't content. It took them that long to set them up and he could feel himself straining considerably. Kikumaru had begun sweating profusely with him jumping around and taking out the lobbing shots. Both of the players knew one thing; the playing style of the two brothers had been completely simple. None of their techniques had any fancy shmancy principle behind it. Shiraishi frowned a bit before hitting another cross court shot, hearing the Egyptian supporters cheering loudly in the back.
"Shiraishi-senpai, attack the middle!"
Shiraishi blinked several times and found Kiyone jumping up and down at the railing before noticing the two brothers leaving the middle wide open. As the ball lobbed up again, Kikumaru prepared to jump but he immediately went after the ball.
"I got it," Shiraishi spun around for a quick smash, right in between the two brothers.
"Thirty – all!"
As Shiraishi landed, he and Kikumaru did a high five as a triumphant grin spread across his face. Time to turn the game around!
Osiris and Set glanced at each other for one moment before nodding mechanically at one another. Osiris prepared to receive Shiraishi's serve once more as the he watched the kansai male send it across. Shiraishi on the other hand watched the twin's movements, taking note for any notable difference. If not for Kiyone's yelling, they probably wouldn't have been distracted. He bit his lower lip and attacked the baseline with a deep forehand shot. His eyes widened as Osiris started moving faster when the shot exploded from his racquet, prompting for Kikumaru to just deflect the shot. The ball went awry and smacked Set in the head, causing Kikumaru to gasp.
"Nyah, I'm so sorry," Kikumaru gawked in shock as the ball lobbed straight into the air.
Osiris however didn't stop and instead jumped and with fury burning in his eyes, smashed the shot straight at Kikumaru's stomach. The red haired acrobat bowled over but luckily had his racquet up to absorb some of the impact. Shiraishi saw Set flat on the ground, not even moving and Osiris started sending fast and deep shots. He kicked off the ground and started smashing quickly towards Kikumaru who keeled over from the impact.
"Eiji," Oishi gawked in fear and shock; how did Osiris suddenly become that fast? "Eiji, watch out!"
Kikumaru's eyes widened when the ball smacked into him again while Shiraishi had tried to deter Osiris' attacks. Set slowly got up again before stalking towards the back. Shiraishi could have sworn that his eyes had begun to glow as Osiris' had a more vengeful stare as his attacks started becoming more piercing as the next backhand shot zoomed right between Shiraishi and Kikumaru. Everyone's eyes widened in horror as veins started to bulge from his arms and his temples.
"Thirty –Forty!"
"What the hell is that," Akutsu twitched with annoyance. "That thing looks like something that crawled out of my ass!"
"I don't think you even want something like that crawling out of your ass," Sengoku winced as Osiris let out a bestial howl. "What is…?"
"Ore-sama would think that the Rahotep brothers have lost more than their humanity to achieve this kind of synchronicity," Atobe narrowed his eyes with his icy blue eyes staring deeply at the court. "But that exactly is what is going to bring these two brothers down."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Fuuka on the other hand stood at one side of the court while watching the women's teams playing. She scoffed slighty; some members of the American Team barely reached her standards! Sakuno would be able to handle them without Vera and even then, Hyotei Gakuen's Getsugan Kiyone could fight them with one hand tied behind her back in Singles. The red haired Seishun Gakuen female ran her fingers through her shaggy messy short hair with an annoyed snort before leaning against the wall while watching the two star players of the women's team step up.
"Ruby Colemann," Fuuka raised an eyebrow while watching her step up. "I wonder who her opponent is…"
Ruby flicked back her mahogany brown hair before tying it up with a dark blue ribbon with sparkling steel grey eyes. In front of her, a red haired girl nodded with her lavender purple eyes flashing confidently while she spun her racquet in her hand.
"Garnet Söderling," Florence bit her lower lip with a smooth chuckle. "What an interesting line-up…"
Natsuki shrugged nonchalantly, folding her arms. "Ahm purdy sure you ain't interested in these lasses, Fuuka. You're targeting someone more powerful. Someone who's got the name of Schümacher?"
Ai grinned and jumped up happily. "Isn't Veronica Schumacher supposed to be representing for Germany?"
"Ya bet yer darn tootin' candy yer right! She's one of the strongest females in Germany and knows how to put most of our male servers ta shame," Natsuki chuckled lightly and played around with her charcoal grey hair, listening to the crack of tennis balls. "Ahm purdy sure she's got enough power to blow a hole through the walls in this stadium with a single shot!"
Florence nodded curtly. "Indeed. Although, I am quite certain that the winner of this match is Ms. Söderling. After all, she is the niece of the tennis player – Söderling himself."
"Not only that, her ability is very similar to Shizuru's," Fuuka glanced at Garnet serving another shot. "Colemann's got the speed to outrun Söderling but Söderling's got the brains to get Ruby to burn herself into nothing. Her speed can only go so far if you don't have the stamina for it."
Ayane swallowed nervously as she watched Ruby flash from one side to another. "Wow, I thought only Hoshimura-san, Mai-senpai and Shizuru-buchou were capable of flashing at that speed."
"This competition is here also to make other countries see what the others are capable of," Mai bit her lower lip, watching Ruby noiselessly flash from one side to another. "But this isn't the first time I have seen them. Kotetsu also brought Shizuru and I to the Goodwill Games and we won against Egypt, Ukraine, Czech, Slovenia and America. I've seen this line-up for the American team and the only new one I saw this year is Catherine Foster. Britain has Lady Hiddleston and Natasha Cumberpatch for their top guns and they were the champions last year; Kotestu managed to fight her to the tie-breaker but lost after. Shizuru and I won against the Adler-Horton pair of Britain but after that we had a bit of a snitch when we placed against Russia. Russia has monsters."
Fuuka bit her lower lip nervously. "Yeah, they were the kind of monsters that make the bogeyman look bad."
"Or someone who could make Lucifer hide in fear," Florence shuddered. "Their power was stupendous."
"Ah wouldn't even say that their power was humanly possible," Natsuki flinched slightly at the thought of facing Russia, shaking her head vehemently. "Homura Katsuki, Kotetsu Naomi – all of them completely obliterated."
Kiyone shivered fearfully. "Are they really that strong?"
"Maybe but that doesn't mean we didn't get stronger either," Momo chuckled while ruffling Kiyone's hair.
The Shinigami remembered the time the line-ups for the Goodwill games were decided. Although she had been selected as the reserve player, Momo remembered the loud explosions and gasps of admonishment when Russia and Japan had been placed to fight against one another for 3rd place. The purple haired Shinigami shivered violently when she remembered facing against one of the Russian players – Emilia Valkova, sister of the famous beyblader Yuriy Valkov. Emilia looked too pretty to even be human – with the same bright red hair and gleaming bright ice blue eyes. Her ferocity matched her brother's; her attacks were pinpoint accuracy that froze her opponents dead in their tracks.
"Ice Queen Emilia Valkova," Momo bristled fiercely at the thought before shaking her head. "No, I have to focus! Watch the other players! And see which one wins!"
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Game, Rahotep-Rahotep: four games to one!"
Shiraishi couldn't believe how humiliating the score was. But nobody had expected Osiris to be extremely violently and powerful. His forehand shots were relentless, cracking past and sending Kikumaru sprawling on the ground. The sandy brown haired Shitenhouji captain could feel his arms falling off but he knew he had to persevere. They still had the chance to turn the game around as he started bouncing the ball, biting his lower lip. He inhaled sharply while looking at the two brothers with Set standing in the back with closed eyes. Osiris on the other hand had an aura enveloping his entire body while preparing to defend from both players.
"I'm amazed," Coach Amunet nodded in approval, pulling out a notebook and writing down some notes. "I have never expected for Osiris and Set to master the Soul Link ability. I know Juushinhi and Tachiwara of Jyosei Shounan were able to achieve Soul Link but this is something new."
Tezuka narrowed his eyes. "This seems different from the usual Soul Link though."
"That's because it is."
They all swivelled their heads towards Shizuru.
"This is something that is different – the soul of Set-kun is the one who is keeping Osiris down," Shizuru glanced at the back. "Attacking Set instead of Osiris could cause Osiris to lose control. This relationship is similar to something L.X.A knows as Falling. In this case, the concept is awakening to one's bestial instincts and fighting for nothing but winning."
"In a sense," Fuji watched the shots explode back and forth, knitting his eyebrows together. "He is reverting back to another state and in exchange for power, he throws away his humanity. To become a beast is to become physically more powerful."
Shiraishi struggled with a forehand, listening to Shizuru's explanation. If that were the case, that would explain as to why Osiris' power suddenly jumped up.
Awi chuckled lightly, hearing the brunette's explanation from one side. He heard how smooth and kind her voice was but despite that carried the authority of a queen. The way she quietly watched the match made a small smile curve up his lips. The way she stood her ground; he was certain she was part of the segregated matches. He had heard rumours on how her kind self sheds itself away when she enters the court; how he longed to see that rage and anger reflecting in her eyes!
"That look suits her more," Awi chuckled in amusement until he heard a loud explosion. "Oh…?"
The Rahotep brothers staggered back while Kikumaru had landed right in front of Shiraishi with a huge grin. "We got it, nyah!"
"Game, Shiraishi – Kikumaru pair: two games to four!"
The sandy brown haired kansai male breathed heavily, feeling his heart pound painfully against his chest. He glanced at the two brothers as he noticed Osiris considerably slowing down and fangs started growing from the side. Shiraishi winced in disgust and shook his head; what in the world just happened? The aura swirled around and the air around him became heavier, throwing his head into a huge spin. He glanced at Set who remained completely stoic throughout the competition whereas Osiris had completely changed in disposition and power.
"Tch," Shiraishi snorted in annoyance at their score, looking at Kikumaru with concern. "I don't think Kikumaru-kun can take it much longer…"
Kikumaru breathed heavily, staggering and falling onto the ground. The red haired acrobat could feel his stamina being completely stretched beyond his limits. His body wobbled while he tried to keep himself standing straight, watching the other pair play. He saw Shiraishi waiting for him to get up while noticing Oishi's distressed look. Rin stared in concern and anxiety; he could see how bad the match was. But, no, the red haired acrobat shook his head vehemently. He'd rather die trying than dying right now!
"Don't worry about me, Shiraishi-san," Kikumaru grinned cheerily. "I can still play!"
Ryuuzaki-sensei could see how far the red head had been pushing himself. Despite the smile, she could see his knees trembling and his eyes half-shut along with his palms becoming completely sweaty. Shiraishi managed to carry the game through while allowing Kikumaru to rest but she could already see that the kansai male was also being pushed to his limit. She watched another forehand fly from Shiraishi as Osiris suddenly zoomed to the deep end of the court and sent an explosive shot towards an unmoving Kikumaru. However, the red head managed to weakly raise his racquet and deflect the shot even if it did knock him back a bit.
"Sengoku, go get warmed up," Ryuuzaki barked. "Things are going to get ugly from here on out!"
The orange haired male wasted no time in running as fast as he could to start warming up before his match. The Seigaku coach could see how the match was unfolding. Shiraishi's backhands managed to force Set to move ever so slightly and left Osiris unmoving but it still left her wondering as to how Osiris managed to gain such insane speed. His eyes narrowed and his fists clenched tightly around the racquet before sending an explosive shot towards Shiraishi who stretched out for it and deflected the shot. However, Shiraishi himself flew back and tumbled on the court.
"Shiraishi-kun," Kiyone gasped in horror. "Get up! The match isn't over!"
Shiraishi weakly tried to push himself up as he saw the imprint on the bandage as to how hard the ball had slammed against his arm. He inwardly thanked his coach for their little "training" secret while slowly scrambling up to his feet when the ball suddenly spiralled towards him and hit the ground, spinning quickly. The ball spun fast enough to curve and slam against his jaw, knocking him head first into the court.
And the last thing he remembered was hitting the floor along with a loud cry of his name.
"SHIRAISHI," Kiyone gasped in fear and jumped to help only to be held by Shizuru. "Buchou…?"
Shizuru shook her head melancholically with a sad sigh passing from her lips, turning away from the brutal fight and biting her lower lip anxiously. "As much as it pains you, this would pain him more if you jumped straight into the fight. It won't be murderous for you but it would be murderous to his pride as a tennis player. We can treat his bruises later. The only thing we can do now is let them fight to the end."
"TIME OUT!"
The people stared and began murmuring fearfully as Shiraishi showed no signs of moving. Kikumaru immediately ran to Shiraishi who clearly looked he was out cold. Ryuuzaki-sensei checked for any broken bones and any signs of response from the kansai male. She swallowed hard while noticing the deep impression on his jaw; Osiris really gave him a heavy blow. On the other hand, Coach Amunet seemed to smirk in amusement while looking at the other players of the Egyptian team.
"Tsk, tsk, that boy made a mistake of pushing those two boys into a corner," Amunet chuckled mischievously, folding her arms. "Although, this was already a pre-determined match. That makeshift pair had nothing against the Rahotep brothers no matter how much they struggle against them."
Kiyone made her way towards Shiraishi, staring in fear and horror. How could those boys get so powerful? The only pair she knew had that kind of capacity was the Soul Link pair of Jyosei Shounan and even then they weren't selected. Shoving past the people, Kiyone effectively knocked down the arbiter and grabbed Shiraishi by the shoulders and began shaking him. Seeing there was no response, she began slapping his face with tears brimming in her eyes while clenching her fists tightly. She glanced at Osiris and Set, feeling all the blood boil in her head and her body.
"Tennis is not something you use to hurt people. And tennis is not for your little amusement," Kiyone's liquid blue eyes suddenly narrowed into a deathly stare but she grinned childishly. "I hope you show up in the Free-For-All Matches so Yane-Yane and I can squish your little bald heads like lemons."
Approaching the Japanese Team, Coach Amunet politely bowed down with a fake smile. "I am terribly sorry for the accident. Osiris and Set have no control over their power whatsoever."
So she's one of Hyotei Gakuen's rumoured ace cards. Getsugan Kiyone – the Queen of Clovers.
Coach Amunet chuckled in amusement while walking away, seeing the people haul Shiraishi away on a stretcher. However, she couldn't forget the innocent fire that began burning in the smaller girl's eyes. A smirk curved up her lips as she glanced at the other members of the male tennis team.
Well then, they just made a mistake for Fate had already determined who wins.
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That's chapter 71! Sorry it's so late! This chapter had been corrupted so many times! . Hopefully, I'll be able to update chapter 72 faster! Please don't forget to review!