On The Side Of The Pitch With You

Another Division

Half way through, Mizukawa came down and briefed them on their next opponents. Thailand's Mach Tiger, who won against Qatar's Desert Lion by 5-0.

So by the end of the day, they cleared Level 2.

And, just for their curiosity, tried Level 3.

So if anyone asks... Yes, he definitely loves the Black Room.

Sadly, they can't train in it all day everyday because they still had teamwork drills to go over, so the day after, they did their regular training in the front pitch. They were all beginning to more or less run at the same pace, with the exception of Minaho and Manabe, who appear to be somehow going faster than the rest despite lagging behind just seconds before.

I guess that bridge did wonders for them...

"They're all so motivated!" Tenma said proudly.

He couldn't help his own smile at that. "Yeah. They had me worried at the beginning, but..."

"Tenma."

"What?"

Their senior eyed the group who were still running. "We're missing one person. Look harder."

They did.

Tetsukado was leading them, with Sakura, Matatagi, Kusaka and Ibuki right behind him. Manabe and Minaho were back to lagging behind them for using up too much energy too fast.

Seven there... and the three of us are here...

Tenma blinked. "Konoha isn't here."

Huh. "Now that you mention it, she wasn't here for breakfast either."

"Then, she never came back...?" Aoi asked.

"You know where she is?"

She nodded at the brunette. "I met her in front of the boarding house this morning. She said she was going out for a walk."

And just then, the rest of the team arrived. Manabe and Minaho collapsed on the ground, but the orange haired boy managed to speak before the rest.

"A walk... Do you mean Morimura? She's probably at the park." He took a deep breath before continuing with, "She's usually around there during free time. I bet she wanted to be alone."

"Morimura loves animals, so I've often seen her play with the stray cats in the park." Manabe added.

"But maybe something's wrong?" Matatagi said. "She's always been prompt about attending practice before."

"She seemed pretty pressured about whether it was okay for her to stay on this team or not." Minaho added in.

None of them could deny that the small girl had been barely any help in their previous matches. She also seemed to have the hardest time catching up to them, as well as getting too nervous to move more often than not.

"I'll go look for her!" Aoi suddenly declared. "Tenma, you keep practicing. The semi-finals are close, so leave this to me."

"Okay then. I'm counting on you to find Konoha."

"Yeah!" With a determined look, she ran off in the direction of the park.

"I wonder if Konoha staying on this team is best for her..."

No one could give Shindou a straight answer. Things only got even more complicated when Aoi returned on her own after lunch. And even worse still, their caretaker came over with a letter in hand, stating how the girl wouldn't be returning to the boarding house.

Aoi sighed. "When I talked with her at the park, I should have brought her back..."

"It's not your fault, Aoi." Matatagi said, Sakura agreeing from beside him.

"Morimura is troubled." Kusaka suddenly spoke up. "She's convinced herself that she's a burden to the team. If we don't do something, she might quit."

"... Maybe we should just let her." Sakura said softly. "Konoha is really shy... And it seemed hard for her to play soccer in front of the entire stadium."

"Yes, the weight of representing Japan may be too heavy for her." Manabe stated.

"She doesn't have an aggressive bone in her body." Minaho added. "I don't think her gentle nature is a good match for a competitive sport like soccer."

"None of you understand anything." Kusaka cut back in.

"What do you mean?"

"She's amazing. She saw with just one look that I wasn't facing myself." He then stood up, his back still facing them. "Maybe what Morimura really does want to do is play soccer."

"Kusaka..."

"I think I can understand. What's shutting her off from the rest of the world is what shut me off too. It's like she can't face herself..."

Amber eyes narrowed slightly. A mutual understanding, huh...

"I'll go look for her." Matatagi suddenly said, standing up as well. "I mean, she even left a note. If she wants to come back but can't, that would be sad."

"I'll go too!" Tenma said. "Our match is soon, so the rest of you should continue with practice."

"No, I'll come too." Tetsukado smiled.

"Okay, let's go!"

"Yeah!"

And the four of them left along with Aoi, who lagged behind after a short exchange with Mizukawa. Most of them left the field soon after, losing themselves in their thoughts.

The only one who stayed behind were the remaining two from Raimon. There wasn't much they could do with just the two of them, so they settled on practicing passes. Not that they could fully focus though.

"About Konoha... What do you think about her, Shindou-san?"

"Coach chose her for Inazuma Japan. Therefore... He must have some reason for doing so." The navy haired boy nodded, satisfied with that answer. However, his senior wasn't done. "But whatever that reason is, I have no idea. But with Tenma..."

A smile made its way to his lips. "I'm sure that with Tenma, things will work out somehow." He kicked the ball into the goal.

By afternoon practice, they were all back together, Konoha looking slightly sturdier than before.