"Kimiko!"
She turned to find Tenma running towards her. Without much thought, she gave him a smile. "Hey there! I heard you won against Teikoku."
"It was all thanks to Tsurugi!" The brunette immediately replied. "He made Ultimate Thunder work, and he scored the winning goal with a new move too! Death Drop!"
"I see. That's great then!" Her gaze went down to his dog. "And who's this fella?"
"His name is Sasuke!" He nudged the dog towards her. "Go on, Sasuke. Say hi."
She kneeled down to his level, letting him sniff her hand before petting him. "You sure are a good boy." He let out a small whine. She stood back up, facing the brunette again. "So, you go all the way to the school when you bring him out on walks?"
He laughed nervously. "No... Usually I just go to the riverbank, but I left my bottle in the clubroom..." His gaze turned to the large building. "But... I think it might already be locked."
"No problem. I can get you in."
"Eh? How?"
"Trust me." She held out a hand and he took it, confusion clear on his face. "Don't let go of his leash, alright?"
"Okay― Eh?!" They were no longer by the gates. She flicked the switch, turning the lights on to reveal the club's locker room. "W-What?!" Even Sasuke was looking around wondering what just happened.
"There it is." He made a move to get it, but stopped. Kimiko, who had pointed at said bottle, curled her finger. The bottle began to float and flew across the room, straight into her hand. "Here you go."
He blinked. "K-Kimiko... How...?" Nevertheless, he thanked her when she handed it to him.
"Honestly, I shouldn't have shown you any of that, but I wanted to help you a little." She shrugged. "It's really weird, isn't it? I think I was born this way, but since I was adopted, no one in my family really knows." Seeing him unsure of how to respond, she gave a wry smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to suddenly throw all this at you. Forget I said anything."
"O-Okay..." When she turned off the lights, he took her hand again and they found themselves outside, by the old clubroom. He patted Sasuke's head in hopes of calming him down.
"Hey, Tenma."
"Yeah?"
"Can I ask... What do you think of Kyousuke?"
"Tsurugi? Well..." He hummed as he thought, before a spark seemed to have lit in his eyes. "He loves soccer from the bottom of his heart! I'm even more sure of it after today's match! Actually, I ran into him while I was on the way here. I think he'll start showing up to practice tomorrow."
She chuckled. "I see. Then, take care of him for me, will you?"
"Huh? What do you mean? Are you not coming tomorrow?"
"Some stuff came up, so you won't be seeing me for a while."
"What kind of stuff?"
She nudged his shoulder playfully. "That's for me to know." She gave him a small smile. "Tenma... Please, befriend Kyousuke. He might be a bit of a loner, but if it's you, I'm sure he'll warm up in no time."
"M-Me?" He looked down at Sasuke before slapping his own cheeks. "Okay! You can count on me! I'm sure that, through soccer, I'll be able to understand him better!" He looked at where the sun was setting just a few minutes ago. "It's almost dinner time. I should head back."
She nodded. "Alright then, I'll see you some other time."
He waved as he walked off. "See you, Kimiko! I promise Raimon will keep winning and reach the championship!"
I'm counting on it. She turned to the rundown shelter in front of her. Her hand traced on the crack in the sign. He's going to be just fine. All that's left is...
"Kimiko." She did her best not to tremble at his tone. "Tsurugi Kyousuke, the first-ranked SEED you were meant to keep an eye on, has led Raimon to victory a second time and deserted Fifth Sector. Do you understand what this means?"
"Kuroki-san..." She met his gaze straight on. "The deal is still on. I was the one who brought him in, so I'll be responsible for all of his actions. His punishment falls on me."
"Then you can certainly expect that Fifth Sector will not be lenient with you, no matter what relations you may have with the Holy Emperor."
She gritted her teeth. "Understood."
~~~~~
He looked around when he entered the clubroom. "Huh... So, she really didn't come today..."
Aoi blinked. "Who are you looking for, Tenma?"
"Ahh, no, I just..." He scratched the back of his neck. "I saw Kimiko yesterday. She said some stuff came up, so we won't be seeing her for a while, but... I was kind of hoping she'd be here in the morning to tell the rest of the team."
"Isn't she usually with Tsurugi, though?"
"I guess..."
Midori smirked. "What's this? Since when were you close to Kimiko?"
"I-I'm not! It was just a coincidence!"
Shinsuke blinked. "Then why is your face all red?"
"W-What?!"
The shorter boy toppled over in fits. "I'm just kidding!"
"Hey, Shinsuke," Kurumada was smiling as he called. "I dare you to joke like that again when Tsurugi's around."
He immediately stopped laughing. "N-No way!"
"If she doesn't show up with him later, then maybe Tsurugi knows where she went." Amagi stated. "She did say that they were friends even before they became SEEDs."
"That's true. Tenma, you should ask him." Shindou suggested.
"If he comes―" Kurama was interrupted when the door opened.
"Tsurugi!" Tenma's grin went ear to ear at the sight of the navy haired boy. "You're here!"
Endou looked up from his conversation with Haruna. His grin practically matched Tenma's. "Hey, Tsurugi! Are you officially joining the Raimon soccer club?" The boy looked away but nodded. "Then, it's good to have you!"
"What about Fifth Sector?" Haruna asked. "Are they going to punish you for betraying them?"
"... They stopped contacting me. That's all."
"I see..." They all sighed in relief.
"Tsurugi," He turned to the brunette, who was still beaming. "Is Kimiko with you today?" At his raised eyebrow, he laughed nervously. "I actually ran into her after I ran into you yesterday. She said she had some business so we wouldn't be seeing her for a while, but I thought she might be here in the morning to let Coach Endou and the rest of the team know why."
Tsurugi shook his head. "She wasn't at the station, so no. She's not coming."
"Station? You mean the train station by the riverbank?"
Midori blinked. "She must live pretty far away from here. Can't believe Fifth Sector would send her to a school that she can only reach by train."
"But I don't think I've ever seen her in class before." Shinsuke stated. "I mean, I've even seen Tsurugi in one. And I don't think SEEDs are actually allowed to skip classes."
"Not surprising since she's not enrolled."
"She isn't?!"
Tsurugi raised an eyebrow at him. "She's homeschooled, and even if she wasn't, she's twelve years old. She'd still be in elementary."
"WHAT?!" All jaws within the clubroom dropped. None of them had even got a clue.
Tenma shook himself out of it. "O-Oh... Then..." His brain wasn't able to put together a comment, so he decided to go back to the original topic. "Where do you think she is now?"
"Overseas, probably. She goes on sudden trips a lot."
"Ah... Okay..."
Seeing how none of the children had anything more to say, Endou took the reins. "Okay! Now that all that's out of the way... Everyone, change. We're going on a trip!"
And so, they went back to Teikoku, learning about the resistance and much, much more.