Chapter 10

Izumi turned on her computer and navigated to the Project Frontier website. With two weeks to go before the preliminary rounds started, she had more confidence in her team. All the constant practicing had seen to that, as well as bonding the group together. True, they all had their flaws. Tomoki still had trouble with taking hits, Takuya was still dangerously impulsive, Kouji's anti-socialness didn't mesh all that well with working together, and Junpei's busy schedule caused him to miss most practices.

In spite of these problems, the group was coming together. Takuya and Tomoki had taken to hanging out outside of the game, for example. Tomoki was more confident in his ranged attacks, and he hit almost all his targets now. Even on high-speed flying Digimon like Kouichi's Jazamon. Junpei might not be able to practice with them most of the time, but he had come up with some great ideas for training. At his suggestion, Izumi had started playing tactical video games like Fire Emblem and Advance Wars to take advantage of Tinkermon's flying and improve her strategic abilities. She was also learning more melee-style attacks from Kouji.

But all that paled compared to the changes she'd seen in Kouji himself. His cold aloofness had noticably softened, especially when his brother was involved. In just two weeks she'd seen the Strabimon user go from completely anti-social to someone who could patiently explain in-game concepts to the two newbies, and someone who would give good, if terribly blunt, advice to Izumi. Oh, he still wasn't perfect; he was still abrasive. He still scowled and glared, still snapped when Takuya or Tomoki goofed a manuever up, and Takuya's constant needling didn't help. The two bickering and arguing were both a headache and a source of amusement for Izumi and the others.

Izumi's thoughts turned to the group's unofficial sixth member, Kouichi. Kouji's soft-spoken twin was far sweeter and friendlier than his brother, if not very good at getting involved and somewhat closed off. Izumi was trying to get him to open up a bit more in what was something of an uphill battle. Kouichi wasn't rude or anything, but Izumi got the impression that he preferred flying around by himself over interacting with anyone, with the exception of Kouji and to a lesser extent Tomoki. In his own way, the Jazamon user was just as standoffish as Kouji was.

Izumi logged in to the game's website and noticed that she had a PM. Shiba_inu, one of her oldest in-game friends. She hadn't heard from him since teams had been chosen for the tournament, but she suspected that he'd been just as busy practicing as she had.

Huh, I wonder what he wants? She thought.

...

Takuya had the family laptop that Thursday night. Usually it alternated between him and Shinya unless one them had homework that required computer use or one of his parents wanted to use it. He had finished his homework and was hanging out with Junpei and Tomoki via FrontierChat. The conversation had quickly turned to Tri-Angel's latest announcement.

[ Keta: So, have you heard about the video coming on Sunday? ]

Takuya had already seen all the flyers advertising another promotional video for the tournament.

What do you think it'll be about, he typed.

[ Keta: Probably more information about the Adult forms ]

[ 123Touto: Maybee there's some new stuff weren't you saying they might put in an adventure mode Junpei? ]

[ Keta: It's too soon for that, but they might announce they're working on it ]

[ 123Touto: Kouichi would like that ]

Takuya grinned. Kouichi, who usually spent his time at in-person meetings reading fantasy adventure books or drawing fantasy creatures, would love it.

It's too bad Kouichi doesn't have a computer, he thought. He'd enjoy this conversation. Kouji also rarely bothered with FrontierChat, since he could talk to them just as easily in the game. Izumi would probably be on soon, however; she usually came on around that time.

[ Keta: Like I said, it'll probably take them months, if not years, to make an adventure mode. VR tech is still in its infancy right now. I'm just amazed that PF works so smoothly ]

[ CrazyPunch has entered the chat ]

There she is! Takuya's fingers moved on the keyboard.

[ ReddoRanger803: Izumi! ]

[ 123Touto: Hi Izumi ]

[ Keta: Izumi! What's up? ]

[ CrazyPunch: We need to do a team meeting. In person. Junpei, how soon are you available tomorrow? ]

[ 123Touto: Is it something bad? ]

[ Keta: I get out by 6:30, but it takes me a while to travel ]

[ CrazyPunch: No, it's something good. One of my friends wants to do a 5-on-5 regular battle Saturday between us and his team to get ready for the tourney. ]

Takuya's eyes widened in surprise. An actual battle against another team? That was the best way to really show off their strengths and analyze their weaknesses before the tournament began.

[ CrazyPunch: I want to make sure we're all on board with this, so I want us all to meet up in person tomorrow. That includes Kouichi. Is 7 a good time for everyone? ]

[ Keta: Really? That's amazing, Izumi. I'll try to be there ]

Takuya grinned as he began typing.

[ ReddoRanger803: I'm up for it, but my mom might be annoyed with me for missing dinner ]

[ CrazyPunch: Don't worry. I was planning on having us meet up at a restaurant. I need everyone to bring money for food if they can. ]

Well, that was a good idea. Takuya turned to his mother, who was on the couch watching TV.

"Hey Mom, my team in the Project Frontier tournament wants to hold a meeting tomorrow night over dinner. Is that okay?"

Yuriko thought it over for a minute. "As long as you come home right away afterward. And don't forget your wallet this time."

"That was only one time!" Takuya turned back to the chat.

[ 123Touto: Will we finally see you in reel life? you've missed every in-person meetijg we had so far ]

Tomoki's lousy spelling aside, he had a point. Takuya's team had taken to doing in-person meetings every Saturday. Tomoki had even persuaded the twins to come out to those meetings, yet Izumi had made excuses to miss every one of them. He knew she was something of a private person, one of those few people he'd met with her Digimon's opacity turned to full, and she was often online, but it was sometimes infuriating to have to explain what she'd missed.

There was a slightly longer pause than normal.

[ Keta: Izumi? ]

[ CrazyPunch: Thats because my parents don't know I'm playing PF. They don't think it's safe. ]

Takuya blinked. Was that why Izumi was so secretive with her identity? It seemed like such a small thing.

[ CrazyPunch: I'm trying to keep my parents in the dark about me playing, so I've been hiding myself. I'd appreciate it if you three didn't take any pictures of me or tell anyone about what I really look like. ]

[ Keta: That's fine ]

[ 123Touto: Of course Izumi ]

Takuya typed We'll see you tomorrow.

...

Junpei stepped onto the train. His backpack weighted down with heavy books and homework courtesty of his tutor.

Fifty questions worth of problems over the weekend, he grumbled to himself. I know Professor Furukawa is challenging me to make sure I understand those logarithms, but I don't have as much time to meet the others and practice. Not unless I can do both at the same time...

He wished he could just stop time, do the homework in one shot, and meet up with the others. He also wished that summer vacation would come already.

Good thing summer break is coming up soon. Professor Furukawa is going on vacation for a couple of weeks and I won't have to worry about school.

Finals before the summer break were scheduled to start a few days after preliminary rounds started. He knew it was stressing out the other kids on his team, but overall everyone was looking forward to vacation time.

Several stops later, the train pulled in to a different station and Junpei saw not only Tomoki but both of the twins among the people boarding.

"Junpei!" Tomoki exclaimed. "You're here!"

"Yeah, I caught the early train," Junpei said. He winced at all the people boarding; he wasn't fond of being crammed like a sardine, but it was only for one more stop.

"What's this restaurant we're going to called again?" He asked out of curiosity. "It was something foreign."

"Uh, Cucina Italia, I think," Tomoki said. "I think it was an Italian place."

"I've never tried Italian food before," Junpei remarked. "I wonder if Izumi likes it?"

"Oh yeah, you guys met her when she got Kouichi his Digivice, right?" Tomoki turned to the twins. "What did she look like?"

"She's about my age." Kouichi's soft voice was barely audible over the train's sound. "Probably another fifth grader. I think she might be foreign, or has foreign ancestry. She was hiding her face and eyes, but her skin tone was a bit different. She also had a man with her who she said was her uncle, and at one point he spoke in a foreign language. It could have been Italian, I don't know. The man with her was definitely not Japanese, and...I don't think they were related. They looked too different. He was very dark-skinned, she wasn't."

The train's PA system announced the next stop as their destination and Junpei pulled his backpack closer in preparation.

"But if that guy wasn't her uncle," Tomoki said. "Who was he?"

"Maybe her chauffeur?" Junpei suggested as the train came to a stop. "She said last night that her parents don't know she plays Project Frontier. And remember she had no problem with getting a Digivice and a year-long subscription. So maybe she's rich."

"Come to think of it, maybe he's an uncle by marriage?" Kouichi suggested. "Or maybe he's an honorary uncle, like a friend of her parents?"

"Or maybe it's none of our business," Kouji grumbled.

That effectively stopped the conversation, at least until the four boys arrived at their stop and separated thenselves from the commuter crowd.

"Hey!"

Junpei looked up to see Takuya running over to them.

"Takuya!" Tomoki grinned up at the older boy. "Were you waiting for us?"

"Nah, I had to use the bathroom. You guys ready to go?"

The Italian restaurant was a relatively quiet place, away from most of the city's bustle. The front held a large patio with several empty tables and folded-in umbrellas, which made Junpei think of some big, awkward birds roosting. The inside was clean, well-lit, and sported a decent crowd of mostly couples dining in. The boys paused in the foyer.

"Any sign of Izumi?" Tomoki asked.

"I'm not seeing her," Kouichi replied.

"You guys made it!"

The familiar voice came from behind them, rather than in front. Junpei turned to see a beautiful girl standing in the restaurant's entrance. As Kouichi had said, Izumi's skin was a slightly different color from a normal Japanese person's, possibly due to either a deep tan or some foreign ancestry. Her eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, her hair hidden under a broad sun hat, and her lovely smile was brighter than the sun. Her lips moved...

Speaking to him...

Oh.

"Uh, sorry, I was daydreaming, um, what did you say?" He stammered awkwardly.

Izumi paused. "I was saying that I'm happy you could make it, Junpei. I know you have a busy schedule, and this is kind of out of the blue."

Junpei laughed awkwardly. "You know me, Izumi, I'm all about the team."

She had that beautiful smile again and Junpei felt his stomach flutter in response.

Oh, I hope I'm not gonna get sick, he thought.

"I've reserved us a table, so let's sit down and get started." Izumi caught the eye of a dark-skinned, dark-haired man sitting at one of the tables by the window and made a slight gesture with her hand. The man nodded, then Izumi motioned for her teammates to follow her out to the patio. She led them to one of the tables at the patio, which was now being prepared by some of the restaurant workers. Junpei, realizing that they were about to sit down, decided to subtly move closer to Izumi so that they could sit next to each other. A waiter quickly poured them all drinks and handed them some menus. After they had ordered, Izumi cleared her throat.

"Okay everyone, we're here because we've got our first big battle tomorrow. It'll be at eleven, but I want us to meet up around ten forty-five. I took the liberty of reserving a five-person station for us in Shinjuku, so we'll be able to be there in person."

"Five-person?!" Takuya blurted out in surprise. Junpei felt his eyes growing wide in respect. Project Frontier had no extra charge for using two-player cubicles, but renting cubicles for more than two players came with a charge of an extra 1500 yen [~10 dollars] per player. Five-player cubicles were also not common due to space constraints, and they were so in demand, especially with the tournament, that Tri-Angel had added reservations and an additional time limit, with another charge if users went over the hour-long limit.

I knew she was rich, but this is something else, Junpei thought.

"I want everyone to remember that this isn't a tournament battle, that it's okay if we don't do too well or lose." Junpei could almost see her glare through the sunglasses, first at Takuya, and then at Kouji.

"Everyone got that? Now I want—"

"Yeah, we know about all that," Takuya retorted, cutting Izumi off. "So, our strategy for the battle should be about playing up our strengths and covering our weaknesses. I think we should—"

The Flamon user suddenly stopped in a yelp of pain and jumped in his seat, as if someone, probably Kouji, had kicked him under the table.

"Takuya, I was talking first," Izumi said politely. "Can you wait until I'm done please?"

"Sure, fine, whatever." He glared at the other boy, confirming Junpei's guess, before crossing his arms.

Izumi cleared her throat pointedly. "As I was saying, this battle isn't just for the five of us. Kouichi, I know you can't officially be on our team because of the five-person limit, but you're part of the team and I want you to come, too. We need every bit of help we can get, so I'd like for you to watch the battle on the screen and write down all the ways you think we could improve."

"But I've only been playing for two weeks!"

"I know, but I think you'll really be able to help us. You're learning the game, and you're good at observing things. Takuya, what were you trying to say earlier?"

Takuya shifted his glare to her. "As I was saying, we need to play up our strengths. I play a lot of soccer, so I'm used to teamwork. I think we should concentrate on sticking together and eliminating the opponents one by one."

You've got to be kidding me, Junpei thought.

"You realize that that ganging up on one opponent leaves all of us wide open for the others, right?" Kouji asked acidly. "And that some of the opponents probably have flying Digimon? You still have trouble hitting Junpei and Izumi when they're in the air, let alone a fast-moving Digimon like Jazamon."

"It is a decent strategy, Takuya," Izumi intervened as Takuya opened his mouth to retort, "but I think we need to modify it a little. Okay, Kouji, you have two healing moves, right? Hikari no Ushi and what was the other one...?"

"Light Palm."

"Right." Izumi paused to explain to the two newbies. "Hikari no Ushi's a AOE attack that heals half of any team member in the area's hit points, but it's got a very small range. You have to be within five feet of Kouji for that to take effect. It also has a huge cooldown time of about six minutes. Light Palm is a ranged move that heals about a quarter of damage and any status effects, but it's got three minutes of cooldown time with a range of maybe two feet. We treat it as if it's a melee move. Kouji, you're our only healer, so it goes without saying that you should avoid the worst of the battles."

"Yeah."

"Oh," Tomoki said. "Does this mean I should stay close to Kouji?"

"It's better if you stay away from the fighting altogether," Junpei told him. "Remember, your strength is in ranged attacks and you're not good with melee."

"That's what I'd do," Izumi continued. "I think that once the fight begins, Tomoki, you should find a high point that gives you a good view of the battleground. Then you can just start aiming and firing, harassing the opponents from above while Takuya and Kouji do most of the melee attacking. Meanwhile, Junpei can concentrate on any flying Digimon the other team has. He'll do most of the battling in the air."

Junpei felt his face grow hot as she smiled at him again.

"I-I'll do my best, Izumi."

Her smile grew even broader before she turned back to the others again.

"The reason I want Junpei to focus on eliminating any other flyers is because I'll be concentrating on scouting out enemy positions and making changes in the battle plan when needed. I've been playing a lot of tactics games and learning about strategies."

That was my idea! Junpei realized, as a trickle of pride flowed through his chest.

"Now, Takuya..."

The Flamon user looked up from where he'd been playing with his drink, a sullen expression on his face.

"You're right in that you're our hardest hitter attack-wise," Izumi told him, "but all of your strongest attacks are melee. When the battle begins I need you in the worst of it, and remember that we're a team. Don't forget the others. Try to stick close to Kouji or stay within Tomoki's range. Let them do the support work while you concentrate on the melee."

"I can do that," the Flamon user said.

Can he? Junpei frowned as he recalled all the times in practice when Takuya had ignored the others and had leapt headfirst into trouble, usually involving getting taken down by Kouji. He strongly suspected that it would take more than a warning to disuade the impulsive hothead. A quick glance showed that the others had the same skepticism on their faces, especially Kouji.

"Okay, so that's all of us." Izumi glanced around the table before picking up her drink. "Now, it doesn't matter if we win or lose this tournament, but I want to tell you all that we're doing a good job. When we're finished eating, we can go home and get plenty of rest."

She held up her drink. "We can do this. Here's to a good and fun game."

Their glasses clinked together in a toast.

...

In spite of Izumi's words, Tomoki was so nervous he could barely sleep that night. He was all jitters and jumpy nerves as he took the train to Shinjuku and the stadium. Standing outside of the stadium, he realized that he was the first one to arrive.

Well, he thought as he surveyed the sidewalk, at least I won't have to worry about missing it.

He leaned against the stadium's walls and tried to think of his strengths, rather than his weaknesses. True, he had improved to the point where he could easily score over 85% on the advanced ranged training course, and he'd become quite proficient at using his ice to move around faster, but when it came to melee fighting, he was easily the worst on the team. Thanks to training with the others, he no longer froze up when someone hit him with a melee attack, however he still flinched whenever seeing a blow coming.

Stupid Katsuharu, he thought.

Admittedly, his neighbors hadn't bothered him since the encounter with "Kouji," and Kouichi's advice of staying in public and using Takuya's stadium had worked so far.

"Tomoki! You're here already?"

Izumi was coming up the sidewalk, followed by a man who was probably the "uncle" that Kouichi had talked about before. Tomoki realized that he had also seen the man in that restaurant earlier.

"Yeah," he said. "I was just too nervous to wait at home."

Izumi laughed. "I understand. It's your first big fight, so I bet you're excited. Don't worry, you'll do fine. And even if we lose, it's not like it's the end of the world."

"I know."

Izumi moved over to stand next to him, but as she did Tomoki noticed a harsh smell around her, as if she had recently used some cleaning chemicals. He didn't have very long to wonder about that as he saw Takuya heading over.

"Takuya! Over here!"

"Hey!" The Flamon user called cheerfully. "You ready for your first battle, Tomoki?"

"Well, I am a bit nervous..."

"You'll do fine. Any sign of the others?"

"Not yet."

"They'll be here soon," Izumi said reassuringly.

"Hey Izumi, who's that guy?" Takuya asked, pointing to her companion.

"Oh, he's my uncle. My aunt's husband from Italy." Izumi's laugh was a bit forced, as if she was trying to hide something. "He wanted to see what Project Frontier was like."

Tomoki frowned. Hadn't Kouichi said that the man had been with her that time she'd bought his Digivice? Maybe Junpei was right and he was her chauffeur? If he was, then why was she lying about it? Was she trying to hide that she was rich? Come to think of it, both times that he'd seen her in person she seemed to be hiding her hair and eyes. What was going on with that? Tomoki wanted to ask her about it, but didn't want to come across as rude, so he kept silent.

Fortunately, they didn't have long to wait before Junpei and the twins arrived, then the group went into the stadium to set up the room.

"Okay let's get all our stuff stowed away," Takuya said as he pulled off his hat and placed it in one of the cubbies. Tomoki followed suit, glancing at Izumi as he did. The girl stood next to him, and took a deep breath, as if to steel herself before finally pulling off the sun hat. What came out was a thick head of just past shoulder-length hair that was an unusual shade of black, even darker than the twins' hair. It seemed to be almost unnatural in comparison. Her hair also seemed to be the source of the chemical smell he'd noticed earlier, and as he took a closer look at it, he saw dark drops beginning to form on the back of her neck.

Is that dye? He thought.

Her "uncle" frowned, and said something in what Tomoki presumed to be Italian.

"I was in a rush, okay?" Izumi snapped irritably. "I grabbed Pa—my dad's hair dye by mistake, and didn't notice until it was too late."

Tomoki and the other boys shared an awkward, concerned glance before Kouji finally spoke.

"I don't think it's going to affect her playing. Let's log in and get this over with."

As the team got into the five VR chairs, Tomoki noticed that Izumi did not take off her sunglasses until just as she put on the helmet, deliberately obscuring her eyes. Yet another odd thing on top of the many odd things happening. He spared a glance for Kouichi as he grabbed his own helmet. The other new player looked like he was perfectly content with standing back and watching his brother play, but Tomoki could see the spark of jealousy on his face as the cubicle's TV screens came to life.

I shouldn't be thinking about it, he reminded himself. I need to concentrate on the battle.

Then the helmet was on and the rest of the world quickly faded out.

[ Synchronizing. Do not power down the system. Project Frontier will begin shortly ]

The starting arena materialized around him, along with the other players' Digimon.

[ Synchronizing complete. Welcome, Tomoki Himi ]

"Okay, we're all here." Izumi activated her menu and invited her friend, then after a couple of moments five other Digimon materialized.

"Crazy!" One of them, a boy around the same age as Takuya, exclaimed. His Digimon was a pink and blue feminine-looking rabbit-like Digimon that Tomoki's HUD identified as a Lunamon. "You guys are early!"

"So are you," Izumi laughed. "Guys, this is my friend Shiba_inu and his team."

"And this is my friend CrazyPunch and her team," Izumi's friend grinned. "You guys ready for this?"

"Bring it on!" Takuya retorted.

...

Author's Note: 1500 yen is around 10 U. S. Dollars.