"Normal talk"
'Normal thinking'
"Voice talk"
"Hissatsu tactics"
I don't own any of the pictures used here. The credit goes to their rightful owner.
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The ball kicked by Shurayuki is kicked right back in the soccer field making everyone stare at the ball confused.
"You got to be kidding me." Jack looks shocked when someone shows up in the field.
"Ah?!!" Mark cried in shock.
Shurayuki frowns when some girly-girl boy appears out of nowhere and lands on the ground before he kicks the ball up and spins it on top of his finger. He smirks when he got a surprised look from the old Raimon team.
'Now who's this girly boy?' Shurayuki scowls.
"That's Byron!!" Mark was bewildered by that person's sudden appearance in the field.
Shurayuki moves her eyes to look at Mark before she turns back to look at him. 'Judging by him. They have an old history.'
Byron only smirks in amusement after seeing Mark's expression the most.
Shurayuki eyes every one of the Raimon. They all looked shaken up a bit leaving only a few of them confused at seeing that person's presence in the field. 'Judging by their expression. He's an enemy.' She concludes as she turns back to the stranger with a frown on her face.
Mark walks up to Byron with a serious look on his face and tense body but carried on the confidence to face the person who used to be his enemy.
When Mark was face to face with Byron. Byron smiles and greets him. "We meet again, Mark. I thought we would."
But from the looks of things. Mark does not share the same feelings of happiness as him.
The air seems to become denser every passing second. It's as if the air itself became heavier than usual.
"Who the ×#$% is that girly-boy?" Shurayuki raises her eyebrow in confusion. It was more like asking herself more than to others.
Erik sweatdrops after hearing her. Not to mention that he's near her. -_-' "That's the captain of the soccer team we played in soccer Frontiers final. Byron, the captain of Zeus Jr." He said seriously ignoring what she just said.
Shurayuki scowls as she looks at the blond boy. 'Che! Whoever that girly boy is.' Shurayuki eyes narrow. 'It looks like no one likes him.' "Hmph!" She turns away and ignores them. 'It's not like it's my business anyway whether they hate him or like him.' She tears her eyes away from him, not interested in him at all.
Meanwhile, with Mark and Byron.
Mark frowns. "What are you doing here?" He demands.
"I came here to fight alongside you. On your side." Byron replies. Mark does not look convened with his words at all. Before Byron looks at him seriously. "I hate that alien too. I want to take them down!!" He said more seriously.
This shocks and surprises Mark. He did not know this side of him. "You do????"
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Time skip
Byron enters the field wearing Raimon's jersey. Using number 11 as a forward. Coach Lina has decided to change the position of the players to put Byron on the team.
Forward: Saki (Shurayuki), Axel and Byron
Midfielder: Erik, Jude, and Bobby
Defender: Hurley, Jack, Tori, and Scotty
Goalkeeper: Mark
Darren was put to the bench but he did not mine at all. He wanted Raimon to win. Even though it saddens him to know that he's not much of a help for his team for now and he's only dragging them down. But he believed he can get stronger if he trained harder. He knew it and he won't lose heart just because he's not needed for now.
"Wow!! Byron from Zeus Jr enters wearing Raimon's uniform!! Now that's what I call unexpected!!" The reporter shouts in surprise.
"So...your Zeus Jr's captain, huh?" Gazelle smirks as he combs his hair between his fingers before he looks at Byron confidently. "That won't make any difference in the outcome of this game." He looks overconfident in himself.
As for Shurayuki, she eyes the Byron guy closely as if studying him. She doubts that the Raimon will play goody with him and be friendly in this match since he used to be an enemy of them. But the main problem is... she turns her attention to the silver hair captain of Diamond Dust. He's the main problematic person today. Not that it matters to her but... She scowls. She just hates him for some reason. He reminds her of her old self.
Up at the stadium, two redheads watch the game. The game just got more interesting.
"Well, well, things just got more interesting." Torch said with his arms folded.
"Yup. This could take this game to a new direction." Xavier agrees with him with a smirk on his face.
Back at the bench. Sue watches Byron with doubts look on her face. "Can we trust a guy like that?" She asked. She heard what happened to Raimon in Soccer Frontiers Finals with Zeus Jr. She can't believe what they did to win. No wonder the old Raimon team does not trust them. Heck, even she can't trust a guy like that.
"We have no choice right now." Coach Lina replies not taking her eyes off of the field.
"You're right about that coach." Nelly agrees. "But if Byron works out. He'll increase our strength."
"It will be okay. Mark trusts him, doesn't he?" Silvia said with a smile as he watch Mark's serious look on his face.
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Flashback
The old Raimon members were gathered with Mark as they face Byron.
"You see...I could not stay by any longer." Byron said seriously. "I have been watching you guys play with Alius Academy for weeks now. And I was moved by how much passion you put into the game. You guys just never give up, do you?" Byron looks like he meant every word. "I want to be part of it. Part of Raimon's defense of the world."
Mark looks thoughtful.
"Wait for a second here!" Bobby interrupts. He frowns. "None of this make any sense. You invite yourself into our team?" And from the looks of it. He does not like the idea of him in the team.
"Yeah. I don't feel comfortable having Zeus Jr guy on the team." Jack agrees with Bobby.
"I don't blame you for being so suspicious." Byron begins remembering his past where he and his team shared drinks which gives them the overwhelming power to play soccer. He frowns at that memories. "But things have changed now. We all stopped using that awful god Aqua substance. And learned from our mistakes. Out of that we learned the importance of teamwork and backing up each other in the field. We're totally different people now and I will prove it to you!"
Shurayuki was listening to their conversation from a safe distance. Although she did not care about what happened to them in the past...she got a little curious. Anyone would be if you notice the amount of hatred for a single person. 'I still don't get what happened between them since it's hard to hear from this distance. But... I can tell that he did something to make them hate him for it.' She turns away from them. 'Hmph! It's not like I-'
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Shurayuki's Flashback
"I never cared what humans do with their lives. Whether good or bad. However, that does not mean that we abandon both sides just because we hate them for something for who they are. Not something they are not. We should treat everyone as equals. We breath the same air and walk on the same land." Smiles. "And we live in the same home which we called Earth. We're all one big family." A 6-year-old Saki smiles brightly towards her little twin sister. Although she has a lot of bandages covering her face and body. She never failed to smile.
Shurayuki just stares at her with wide eyes. She was shocked to hear this in her situation. Even though she's badly injured.
A small blush adores her cheers as she looks away feeling kinda sheepish. She scratches her cheek in embarrassment. "I know I sound cheeky with all that but..." She faces her again with a wide grin. "That's how I view the world."
Shurayuki stares at her some more before..."Pfft!"
"!!" Saki flinches as her face reddens.
"HAHAHAHA!!" She laughs out loud making Saki more embarrassed. Before she calms down a bit and wipes her tears. "Ha...you are stupid Narusaki."
"Hey!" Saki shouts feeling offended.
Shurayuki ignores it. "But you know..." She stands up straight with a small smile on her lips. "I guess that's what makes you, you. I don't get most of what you said to me but somehow I'm finally starting to understand you a little more, Nee-chan." She smirks.
Suddenly, Saki was dangerously really close to her face in a blink of an eye. Her eyes seem to sparkle as she stares at her with a huge smile on her face.
"Wh-What?" Shurayuki shutters are feeling kinda uncomfortable with this situation.
"You just called me 'Nee-chan'." She replies immediately with a bright smile.
"N-No, I didn't you stupid. Your just hearing things. A-And back off! Your too close!" She pushes her away by her face.
However, this didn't change anything. Saki was beaming with happiness that she could not stop smiling. "She just called me Nee-chan." She's totally lost in her dream.
Shurayuki sweatdrops. 'Did that really make her so happy?' She looks at her sister running around like a small kid as if she just got her favorite candy. Shouting 'She called me Nee-chan!!' Shurayuki sighs but a small smile spread on her lips. "She's too simple to please." Before she ran after her. "Oi! Stop shouting like some kind of mad man! Oi! I said oi!" She shouts as she starts chasing her. "I said stop it stupid!"
But it all went to deaf ears as Saki ran around with spring on her heels and Shurayuki chasing after her.
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Shurayuki's Flashback Ends
Shurayuki frowns. 'Just when I don't want to get any part in it. I just had to remember that day." "Che! This is annoying." She turns away from Mark's group as she clenched her fists. 'Just get back already Narusaki. I don't want to deal with this stupid thing.'
==================================================
Flashback Ends
"Give him Byron! Give him whatever you got!" Mark shouts from his spot.
Byron nods his head seriously.
The Rhine throws in the ball as the match gets started. Balen traps it and starts dribbling the ball.
"Here they come! Diamond Dust is moving on the field." The reporter announced.
Bobby stands in Balen's way as he gets ready to stop him.
He jumps up as his foot is surrounded by a reddish aura. "Volcano Cut!" He then roundhouses towards his target making a wall of flames spouting out from the ground, similar to a volcanic eruption stopping the target from advancing further, and steals the ball from him before dribbling it.
"And here comes Byron! Leading his turn!" The reporter announced as Byron ran ahead of Bobby so that he can get past him.
"Pass it up!" Byron shouts as he looks back at Bobby still running.
But...Bobby does not look like he trusts Byron at all. 'Can we really trust this guy?' He questions himself with a doubtful expression. He was so distracted with this thought that he didn't even see Blown heading his way to steal the ball until it got too late.
"Oh, man! Close but not close to the goal! He walks with the ball again!" The reporter shouts in surprise.
Shurayuki grits her teeth. "Che! That little *bip!* stupid." She just felt her blood boil for some reason. This match is seriously starting to get on her nerve.
The tension is rising within the Raimon as they get worried. Nothing changed even though Byron joined the team, as a matter of fact, it only seem to be worst than before.
"Diamond Dust is on the attack again! And what's this?! Saki is hot on his tail!" The reporter almost looks like he will jump out of the window any time now.
Shurayuki caught up to him before they try pushing each other. They try to overpower one another in strength. Both their forearm clashes each time, trying to push the other away.
"Argh! Getaway! You're annoying!" Shurayuki shouts getting irritated before she finally gives a strong push and steals the ball from him. He stumbled a little before he caught his balance then begin to chase after her.
"Saki steals the ball! And right now she's heading for the goal!"
"Give it to Byron, Saki!" Jude shouts as he tries to lose the person who is marking him.
"Che!" Shurayuki turns and glares at him. "Don't order me around goggle eyes! I know what I'm doing so shut the *Bip!* up!" She shouts angrily. She was already on edge because of Narusaki and the match. And on top of that, she doesn't want someone ordering her around.
Jude frowns as he slows down a bit. He never expected to get insulted in the middle of the match. Somehow, this hurt his pride.
Shurayuki turns and looks at Byron. "You better make it worth it you girly boy!" She warns making him pale. She kicks the ball towards him. Byron gets ready to receive it but...it was too fast for him to get the ball in time and it went out of bounds. "What the *Bip!*!!"
Everyone looks shocked by this.
(Fweeeeet!!)
"Miss it! Their pass is off today! They need to get back their rhythm and fast!" The reporter said.
"Oi! If you want a pass from me then just *bip!* fast!!" Shurayuki shouts at him.
Byron frowns. "But you kicked it too hard. It was impossible to receive it with that speed.." He makes his point.
"Huh?" She glares at him. "Are you trying to say that it's my *bip* fault?" 'What am I doing?'
"No. I mean to say that it was just fast. If you would just slow down a bit for me to" He try to reason with her but she cut him off.
"Screw it! Who are you to say how I should play huh?" 'No, I need to stop this!' "I've always passed my goal like this for a long time." 'Someone...' "Even Narusaki can easily get the ball without any problem!" '...stop me before I make even more mess!!'
Someone places a hand on her shoulder, making her turn.
Brownish-black eyes meet crimson red eyes. "Stop it Saki. You're making a scene here." It was Axel. His eyes widen a little when he notices red trembling eyes. She looks as if she is trying to suppress her deep emotion and hide it. But her eyes failed to hide the desperation and frustration in them and...a little bit of fear... It made him wonder.
Shurayuki glares at him before she slaps his hand away. "Get lost!" She walks away. But secretly, she was thankful that he stopped her before things get more ugly.
Axel watches her retreating back. He scowls. 'She looks too tense.'
"Why is Shurayuki getting all angry about? And why is she not switching back to Saki?" Silvia asked getting worried.
"Yea. Saki is giving free will to Shurayuki to play today. What is happening here?" Celia gets worried as well.
Nelly looks at the coach for explanations.
Coach Lina caught her looking at her. "Don't look at me. I don't know about it either."
Shawn trembles in frustration as he could not do anything for his team right now. Not even for her.
The match continues as Rhine dribbles the ball ahead.
Erik comes in for steal. He twists upside down and afterward creates a flame surrounding him while spinning. "Flame Dance!" He gets the ball from the opponent from the long arms of flames it causes as it blows her away.
"Ahh!!"
Erik then dribbles the ball onwards. "Here they come! Raimon are all in the offense again!" The reporter shouts.
Erik looks ahead to see Axel running ahead with two other Diamond Dust players marking him and Saki is coming from behind but she was marked by Gazelle. Byron was the only player who was only marked by one player.
His only save option is Byron but...he can't just pass him the ball. Who knows what's he's planning. "Take it, Axel!" Erik pass kicks the ball at Axel, surprising everyone.
Axel traps the ball with his chest but the two players marking him take this chance as they jump in.
"Why did he just pass it to Axel when he was covered by markers?" Celia asked confused.
"I guess they still do not trust Byron." Silvia answers. Getting worried now.
Axel was struggling against the two players as he try his best to keep the ball away from them. But luck was not in his favor today. Icer, one of the players marking Axel suddenly gets in and kicks the ball back.
Shurayuki saw this as an opportunity as she increase her pace.
"Don't even bother," Gazelle smirks making her eyes widen. He dashes past her before trapping the ball.
Shurayuki grits her teeth. 'Even though I'm using Narusaki's body! Why?!' She turns and starts chasing after Gazelle who dribble the ball to their net. 'Why can't I speed up like her?!' She asked herself in frustration.
"It's not only about body Shurayuki. It's also about power." A voice said inside her head.
'Aniki! Your awake!' Shurayuki sounds so relieved to hear him. 'Then is Narusaki-'
"I'm afraid not."
Her face fell.
"Listen Shurayuki. Don't try to rely on violence and anger. Your spirit is already stained with too much hatred and anger. If you don't stay calm, you'll lose control of this body, or worst case scenario...you might end up killing Narusaki as well."
All blood on her body turns cold as she turns pale and she stops dead in her track.
"The reason why you and I can't use any of Narusaki's ability is that we are not in sync with her body at all. We're moving it but we are not syncing. Our souls are still in the items Narusaki wears. Without it, we're nothing." He explains.
'Then what about the Hissatsu tactics we did together? Aren't we doing what she's doing?' She frowns.
"Yes, that might be true for the most part. But did you forget something?" He asks. "The reason we were able to do that Hissatsu tactics is that we had combined our power as one. Narusaki who already has synced with her own body shared a small connection with both of us which allowed us to use some of her ability for some time. Narusaki acted as a bridge between us and her body. Kinda like a link. But the link can only last for some time before it breaks off the connection we have to her body as it leaves damage to her spirit if kept for too long. I only found this out too late." He sounds guilty. "Her body may have become strong to handle our powers but her spirit is not yet ready. She still needs time before she does anything in the future."
'Oh...I see...' she feels guilty as well.
"Don't blame yourself. It's no one's fault. We were just too late to realize this before." Hikaru said trying to take a heavy load off her head for now. "If you truly feel guilty then play it as you mean it. A team is not just about yourself. It's being with everyone. That's what a team is for. Play not just for yourself, but your whole teammates. They're all counting on you on this. Both Narusaki and I are😊. Just do what you can for your team. Make them believe that they can rely on you in hard times and... (genuine smile) trust in them." Hikaru's words made Shurayuki bewildered.
She never thought about it like that. All those times...she only relied on herself or her siblings for support. And after she was sealed away. She could still see what Saki sees and hear what she hears. She thought that she finally understood her sister and she changed after Saki broke the seal. But...the truth is...she never did change. She acted selfishly on her own accord and let her own emotion get the best of her.
She clenched her fists, looking down at the ground. "I'm an idiot..."
She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder, making her turn her head to the side. It was Axel. He looks worried.
"Are you alright?" He asked. "You suddenly stopped running. I thought something happened to you. Is your leg ok?" He looks so concerned about her. Even though they barely talk or even know each other. He's showing kindness to her.
What surprised her the most is that she never treated anyone in the team equally and yet...
She looks at her team who had stopped to throw a worried look at her. They look concerned.
She smiles a little. 'I'm really an idiot for not noticing this earlier.' "I'm fine. Just catching up with my late thoughts." She grins. 'A team who actually looks after one another. I'm seriously getting jealous of her.'
Axel smiles. "Glad to hear that. Now let's go. We still have a game to settle." Shurayuki nods. He looks so tired and yet he did not fail to send her a small smile.
Shurayuki smirks. 'He truly is an Ace striker.' "Did I miss anything?" She asks as she looks around before her eyes land on Gazelle who seems to be pissed.
"Yea. Mark just saved the goal, nothing much." He smiles.
'That's why he looks pissed. Che!' She smirks. "Anyways, time to be a little serious now." She gives a glance at Byron who looks at her. "Time to wrap up things here."
Axel looks at her a bit confused but when he looks in the direction where she's looking. He finally understood.
The three of them shared a serious look.
'I need your help in this aniki.' She smirks.
"Yeah. I'm ready." Hikaru replies back getting ready.
Frost dribbles the ball, heading straight for the goal.
However... "Not on my watch human." He hears a voice near him before red crimson eyes make contact with his eyes. And in a matter of seconds, the ball gets stolen from him.
"What's this?!!" The reporter shouts. "Saki just showed up stealthily and steals a ball like stealing a candy from a baby!!"
Shurayuki smirks.
'Che! I just met his eyes to distract his attention for a moment there. A move where you make someone believe they're moving their body but in reality, their movements become a bit slow as they collect their thoughts of the sudden appearance of someone in front of them, causing a slow reaction in them.' Shurayuki looks up ahead. 'It's all thanks to aniki.'
"Now your mine you human!" Gazelle came running for her.
"Think again stupid!" She pulls out her tongue at him making an angry vein pop on his forehead.
"Why you!" He growls as he came at her like he's gonna murder her.
She just smirks before she kicks the ball to the nearest player. "Hey, Sea Boy! Your up!"
"Huh!!" Hurley looks up to see the ball heading his way. He quickly traps the ball with his chest as he looks at her offended by the name but he can't argue back with her now. Two players from aliens are heading his way.
Gazelle stops before she reaches her. "Screw this! Go for the ball!" He orders his two members of the team.
Balen and Blown quickly head for the ball. They quickly jump at him. Blocking him. However... "It's a home." Hurley saw Byron in between their gaps. He smirks. "Go, Byron!" He shouts before kicking the ball towards Byron between the gaps.
Byron traps the ball by his chest. Taking Bobby, Erik, and Axel by surprise. Shurayuki only smirks. Byron looks completely shocked by this before turning serious. "Game on."
Shurayuki looks at Byron who dribbles past the alien team. "Che! I hope you are right about this aniki." She whispers.
"I'm sure of this. The first thing to do is get back the team together. For that, the team needs everyone to participate to make it work, which includes Byron as well. Second, they need to trust him. As far as I know, that's only possible if one of the members passes him the ball. My best beat was Hurley since he's the guy who put his trust in his teammates and he doesn't seem the type of guy who will hold grudge against anyone even if he hears something bad about them. Also, this way, it gives a message to everyone that we're playing as a team, not individually. And as they say, your biggest enemy will turn into your biggest allies." Hikaru explains his simple strategy.
'Hmm...It makes sense.' Shurayuki thought. 'Narusaki would be a great help too if it weren't for her distancing herself from the team. And the team barely knows me well so this would have been meaningless even if I did pass the ball to that girly-boy.'
"Wrong."
'Huh?'
"You both might not have realized this since both of you are so ignorant."
'Aniki!' Shouts getting offended.
"But..." gets serious cutting her off. "Your team has already accepted you as their team."
"Huh...?" She looks surprised.
"I've been absorbing everything since the day Narusaki joined the team. Even though she started as a little cold member. However, as time went on with her team. She changed a lot. Both of you did. You might not have noticed it but...the team already open up space for you two right from the start. They all see you as a member of their team." Hikaru replies making Shurayuki's heart skip a beat. She felt so warm and fuzzy. A small blush adores her cheeks. Her lips curled upwards and seem to be stuck that way. She won't know why but...after hearing what Hikaru said. She can't help but smile like an idiot. She feels extremely happy for no reason at all.
Shurayuki gets back to reality when Gazelle moves. She frowns. "Let's see what you can do blonde boy." He smirks.
Shurayuki gets right back and blocks him. Making him grit his teeth. "Not on my watch human." She growls.
"Why you arrogant-" He growls but gets cut off by Byron.
"Heaven's Time." Byron snaps his finger in the air, stopping the time. This enables him to dribble easily through two players coming his way.
After he dribbled past them, he snaps his finger once more to make time flow normally again. Due to the displacement of time and space, the path where he dribbled becomes a cyclone, blowing the opponents away.
This seems to amaze both Gazelle and Shurayuki.
"Nice," Gazelle smirks. "But I'm disguised with you. Siding with those who dragged you from your royal throne. You should be ashamed."
'Is he trying to make him hate us now?' That was her thought.
"They didn't drag me off it. Far from it. I walked off. And the strength of Mark and others from the team woke me up from my nightmare. And I can take control of myself!" Byron replies with more confidence. A ray of hope shining in his eyes. He really looks grateful.
Shurayuki smirks. 'He's not such a bad kid.'
"You guys are bozez when you had the power you have. But now your nothing!" Gazelle smirks as he dashes forward to steal the ball from him. Forgetting Shurayuki has him marked him.
"Yea. That's what you like to think." Byron said calmly before he kicks the ball to the side where Axel appears and takes over the ball.
Shurayuki swifts right in and moves in the other direction of Axel. This surprises him. "Huh?!"
Axel pass the ball right back to Byron who dash past Gazelle who was too shocked to move. "Keep your eyes open! And I'll show you what I can do!" Byron shouts as he dribbles the ball pass.
Shurayuki stops herself from interfering. She stops to the side and watches the show. 'He should be grateful that I'm letting him take this glory. Che!'
"God Knows!" Byron grows a pair of wings and flies up into the sky while crossing his arms. He releases the energy by uncrossing his arms and storing it into the ball. The ball gets fully charged with a bright light and he kicks it in full power creating the shoot.
"Wow, amazing..." Mark gasp in surprise as he stares at the shoot.
"That's way more powerful than it was before!!" Jude cried out in shock.
As for Shurayuki...her lips curled down. Somehow, she did not look pleased or amazed at all.
"Wah!" Belugo watch the shoot coming at the goal in surprise before it went inside the net nearly tearing the net with that shoot. He couldn't even do anything as a goalkeeper.
"GOOOOOAL!!!" The speaker shouts in joy as Byron lands on the ground perfectly with a satisfied smirk on his lips.
"Nice one Byron!" Mark shouts amazed by that shoot.
"Byron scores the first goal for his new team!" The reporter shouts.
Byron walks before he lifts his hand for a high five when he got close to Axel. (Slap!) And high fives.
"Huh?!!" Bobby and Erik look kinda surprised by this. They never expected an old member of their team who knows well how Byron treated them to act friendly. And now he's actually sharing a high five with a guy who was supposed to be their enemy???
Axel and Byron share a satisfied smirk after their tag team. They really pulled it off. Then Byron face Shurayuki who had her eyes shadowed by her hair.
Byron walks to Shurayuki next and tries to do the same but she swiftly turns around and walks away. Leaving him out cold and confused. She stops and looks over her shoulder. "Don't get me wrong but I don't like being friends with a stranger." She said coldly before leaving him with a frown.
Axel scowls when he noticed her give a cold shoulder towards Byron. 'What's up with her?'
"Shurayuki...." Hikaru whispers in low voice. He sounds worried for her. He could understand that.
'It's okay aniki.' After a long pause, she replies. 'I'm fine.'
Hikaru stayed silent. He was clearly worried about her sister.
"Huh!!" Silvia stood up from her seat in excitement. "Oh yeah!!" They finally scored. She ignored Shurayuki for now. Probably think that Shurayuki is being Shurayuki.
"We just took the lead!!" Celia looks like she can't believe her eyes as she shakes Nelly's shoulder. They finally managed to score against Diamond Dust.
"Oh yeah! That guy is so awesome!" Sue said with excitement.
"Awesome! He just did that big move without even taking anybody else!!" Jack cried out in shock. Never expected this guy (This guy👉Byron) to actually score a goal that easily.
"That's a crazy shoot alright!!" Scotty agrees with him. He was in a state of shock. "Where did he learn to do that?!!" He asked no one.
"It's nice to have that attack power on our side!" Tori seems more than happy to welcome Byron with open arms in the team.
"The past is in the past. Live in now people." Hurley smirks.
"Hm." Jude agrees with a smile.
Bobby and Erik share a look with a smile on their face before they nod their head. Ready to accept Byron as one of them.
"That's right everybody!" Mark shouts as he holds his goalie's jersey. "We're wearing the same uniform and we're fighting the same fight!!" He shouts as he takes one step forward with his hand folded into a fist. "And we're all aiming for one thing! WIN THIS GAME!!" Mark shouts with lots of power and spirit.
"YEAH!!" Everybody shouts at the same time. Except for Shurayuki who frowns.
(Scratch) Gazelle combs his hair out of habit. A habit when he gets irritated or annoyed. "Okay, I'm impressed. These kids are good and their captain is one of a kind." Before he looks up with an evil gleam in his eyes. "Which only makes me wanna crush them more."
"Let's see about that." Came to a cold whisper behind him. He quickly turns around to see glowing crimson red eyes that look like a monster. For a moment his whole body froze and his skin turns pale. It feels as if he's staring at his death door. "The one who will be crushed will be you." Her cold and murderous aura left him frozen to his spot. He can't seem to even move his eyes away from her. "Don't act so tough human or you'll regret it." She turns away from him leaving him to sigh with relief. He felt weak in his knees but...he can't show his weakness in front of others especially in front of the Raimon team.
His only thought was 'Who is she? And why is she addressing me as a human?' All the people know them as aliens and yet she... He frowns. 'She's definitely hiding something.' That was his last thought.
Up at the stadium. "What the heaven's name did that happen?" Torch asked his fellow redhead in annoyance. "How can they score a goal so quickly?"
"It's alright. He's always getting hang of those things." Xavier replies with a smirk.
Torch looks at him confused. "Of what?"
"The Raimon. And the power of Mark Evans." Xavier gives him a simple reply making Torch more confused.
"Huh?"
"Just keep watching. There's more to them than meets the eye. Especially that girl name Saki. She went toe to toe with our previous match with speed." Xavier smirks as he shifts his eyes on Shurayuki who walks away from Gazelle.
"What's with you?" Torch said getting more confused. "Are you in love with Evans guy or something? Or that girl?"
Xavier did not reply this time as he watch over those two who caught his eye.
"You said that girl went toe to toe in speed with you guys but I don't it here right now. Are you just bluffing?" Torch frowns.
"I'm not," Xavier said seriously before he frowns. "Something seems off about her." He said making Torch look at him confused.
(Fweeeeet!!)
The game continues. Jude has the ball as he dribbles towards the opposite side.
An evil gleam shows on Gazelle's face. "It's time for me to show." He lifts his finger at the sky. "The most terrifying..." he brings down his hand in cutting motion. "...darkness!" All the players in Diamond Dust smirk as they all share the same expression on their faces.
Shurayuki suddenly felt uneasy when she noticed this. 'What's this? What are they up to?' A sweat rolls down the side of her head. Her body was tense. Her eyes widened in horror when she realize it. 'Don't tell me...!!' She turns to Jude. "Oi goggle eyes! Dodge!!" She shouts at the top of her lungs.
Jude frowns at the nickname but ignores it as one of the big fellas from Diamond Dust is headed his way. "Frozen Steal!" He came sliding towards him. Jude dodge him in nick of time but...unfortunately, he lost the grip on the ball.
"Darn it!" Jude cursed after he lands on the ground.
'Dame it! They're moving fast!' Shurayuki thought getting frustrated.
"They're playing rough. It's time we should go for our next plan." Hikaru said with a serious tone.
Shurayuki nods subconsciously as she prepares herself.
She watches as the Rhine passes the ball to Droll. They were moving without wasting time. Just like the Genesis team.
"That's okay! I'll stop him!" Jack shouts as he uses his Hissatsu tactics. "The Wall!"
Droll jumps up before stomping on the ball "Water Veil!" creating a wall of water as it washes up and destroys Jack's wall.
"Aaaaah!!" As the water pushes Jack back.
"Shurayuki! Behind you!!" Hikaru suddenly shouts alerting her.
She quickly dodged to the side before Gazelle push her. He smirks. "Your lucky this time human." Before he dashes and traps the ball. And begin to dribble forward.
Shurayuki scowls. "This *bip!* is really pissing me off!" She growls under her breath.
"And Gazelle is through!! Now he is one on one with Evans!!" The speaker shouts.
"Not on my watch." Shurayuki chases after him with all her might. 'Why isn't Narusaki's body moving the way I wanted? It feels too...stiff for some reason.' She wonders as she ran.
"And Saki is hot on his tail again!!" The reporter shouts bewildered.
"Huh," Gazelle smirks when he noticed this. "You don't stand a chance human." He said looking over his shoulder making Shurayuki glare at him before he looks back at Mark. "And you! Prepare to get frozen!" He shouts.
"Fine!" Mark gets ready to stop anything he throws at him.
Gazelle stands straight while crossing his arm then turns to look at the side turning the field into a glacier. He then disappears and reappears again and kicks the ball with his sole towards the goal with the ball covered in ice. "Northern Impact!" The ball moves at top speed towards the goal making Shurayuki's eyes widen.
'It's too late!' She failed to stop him.
"Here comes Gazelle's enormous move!" The speaker shouts in anticipation.
Mark stomps on the floor with a foot, closes his fist, and spins the arm. "Fist of Justice!" A yellow fist comes from behind him and punches the ball while spinning. "Uuuurgh!!" Mark looks like he's struggling with that shoot. Mark tries his best to push back the ball but in the end... "Aaaaah!!" The shoot eventually pushes him back before entering the net.
"Huh!!" "Huh?!!" All the Raimon players gasped in shock when that shoot overpowers Fist of Justice.
"What-What is this?!!" Darren looks bewildered as he stands up from the bench. But not only him. Even Axel, Jude, and Shurayuki have the same expression on their face while they're in the field. They scored against them. Now they're even. That means they need to start all over again.
(Fweet! Fweet!)
"GOOOOOAL!! Gazelle just blasted in!! Diamond Dust is equalized!" The speaker shouts as the Raimon watch with disbelief. Just when they could win, the Diamond Dust scored on them.
"Arg!" Mark looks frustrated at this. He thought he'll stop the shoot somehow but he never expected it to fail.
"That's all you got for me?" Gazelle smirks looking down at Mark before he turns away from him. "How totally disappointing." His eyes meet red crimson eyes for a moment before his smirk widens making Shurayuki twitch in anger. "How pathetic." He whispers near her as he passes by her.
Shurayuki's eyes widen in shock. She always heard this word billions of times. And it's from her mouth. Her hair cast a shadow on her eyes as she tightens her fists. That's the word she always uses to refer to Saki. Now she understands what it feels to be on her shoe. It might be just a word to her but now...she finally understands that it has thousand of meaning behind it. A word where it changes everything in your life in a mere second. She looks down at the ground totally defeated for the first time.
(Fweet! Fweeeeet!)
"That's it! The first half is over!" The speaker announced ending the first half.
The Raimon gathers near Mark. Shurayuki did not even bother to move from her spot. She has that blank look on her face. She totally lost it. Darren ran to the field to check his team.
"Ah! Nuts! Still, that was one heck of a shoot." Mark grumbles but he admits that the shoot packs a lot of power.
"Are you okay Mark?" Darren asked him feeling worried as he watch him walk in the front and a little before he stops before replying.
"Of course I'm okay," Mark replies but you can hear the frustration in his tone. "Besides, my movements aren't complete yet." (Think!) He hits his left fist on his right palm as his smile returns once again with a determined look on his face. "I'll stop it next time! And then we'll win this game!" He's back to normal now.
Axel and Jude smile, feeling better just by Mark being Mark.
"That's the spirit." Jude smiles.
Soon they all moved to their bench to rest. Shurayuki moved like a puppet on strings without conscious of her surroundings. She was deeply affected by this match even though a lot has not happened in this game but right now, she's not herself today.
-----------------------
"In the second half of the crucial Raimon vs Diamond Dust game! They're both intense!" The speaker shouts.
Hurley summons a gigantic wave surrounding the field. Then he surfs along with the wave on the ball before he jumps above the wave, pulls off a double somersault to gain velocity, and then kicks the ball towards the goal. "Tsunami Boost!" He shouts as the shoot makes its way to the goal. Shurayuki looks at the shoot a little surprised. She never expected him to actually make a strong shoot like that.
The goalie spins half and ice gather around his right hand. "Ice Block!" When the ball comes, he spins back and punches his right hand at the ball, leaving the ball into ice in his hand.
"Aw! Stink bomb!" Hurley gets disappointed that it didn't work well.
Shurayuki frowns at seeing this. She begin to move away from there but her eyes did not leave the goalie.
The game continues as Diamond Dust players keep stealing the ball and try-scoring but every time that happens, Mark stops them left and right. He was doing his best to keep the ball out of the net. However, they were not the only ones trying to score. Even Raimon players were doing their best to make a goal.
The game was getting intense by a minute.
"Both teams are fighting for their lives! Who knows what's gonna happen next! Anything can happen at all!!!" The reporter shouts like crazy.
The Raimon backup players watch the match with intensity.
Shawn watches the match, hoping for his team to turn the tables. "Come on guys. You can do it." He whispers as he puts his trust in them.
Coach Lina frowns as she watches the match. Especially Saki. She knew Shurayuki has the body right now but it was weird for her to see her not change into Saki.
Back in the field. Shurayuki dribbles the ball as she moves forward towards the goal. She was having a tough time running around at this moment. 'This body is becoming heavier by every minute! It's slowing me down!!' "Che!" She grits her teeth in anger.
"Here comes Raimon's forward!! Charging for the goal!!" The reporter shouts.
"I gotta score! I have to!!" Shurayuki charges in with all her might. 'Or there's no point being again!'
Gazelle lifts her arm and brings it down in cutting motion to signal his team to attack. He looks like he's gonna love this one.
The Diamond Dust players begin to make their move again.
Gocker runs at her before he slides with ice. "Frozen Steal!" Then, he slides while creating many ice shards pop up from the ground.
"Grab the ball between your feet before using the somersault to the side!!" Hikaru shouts in her head.
Doing just as her brother instructed. She grabs the ball between her feet before she jumps up in the air. However, in mid-action, she decided to do something a little different from what he told her a bit. She spins in the air to dodge another player using her hands getting the support from the opponent's shoulders before she finally lands on her feet on the ground before dribbling the ball again.
"Wow!!! Talk about a big move!! Saki just dodged two players at the same time!" The speaker shouts in his mike.
Shurayuki grits her teeth as sweat rolls down her cheek. It took all her effort to make her body dodge two players like that but now...
She looks forward to where the goal is ahead. She smirks. "I'll make this count." But deep inside...she felt uneasy for some reason.
"Here she comes folks!! The Raimon forward is charging in for a goal!!"
She stomps on the side of the ball to make it spin and raise in the air. A large firefox with 9 tails appears behind her. Then she jumps high in the air. Rotating 180° as red fire gather around the ball and her feet before she kicked the ball hard. "Fire Kitsune no.6!" She shouts as the fox runs up with the ball. But however... "Wha-!?" Her eyes widen when the fox flickers before it disappears in red mist leaving the ball unarmed.
Beluga the goalkeeper lifts his arm before stopping the ball easily. He have a look on his face as if it was not even worth his time.
"What's this?!!" The reporter shouts. "Saki's Fire Kitsune disappeared like a cloud of smoke leaving the ball to be caught by Diamond Dust goalkeeper so easily!! Talk about losing a big shoot!!"
Silvia closes her mouth with her hand to stop herself from letting out a surprised gasp. Everyone in watch in wide shock look in their eyes. One of Shurayuki's best strong moves seems to lose its effect mid-shoot. A shoot she's so proud of.
"What happened here? Did she chicken out or something while shooting?" Sue said looking at Shurayuki in wonder.
Shawn looks at Sue before he glares at her. "Shut up! She's not that kind of person to chicken out on a game!" His eyes turn orange burning with anger before turning blue again.
"Sorry okay? I didn't mean it like that!" Sue defends herself while backing off a bit.
This surprised the people who knows him. He's never quick to anger like this. Well except for his twin brother personality.
The Raimon team watch her in surprise and concern. Something is definitely wrong with her today.
Shurayuki was speechless with this outcome. She stood frozen on her spot as she stares at the ball caught by the goalie. 'H-H-How's that possible...?' She asked herself in shock.
"Hey!!"
Shurayuki snaps out of her shock when she hears a loud call. She turns back to see Mark waving at her from his spot.
"It's okay! You can do it next time!" Mark shouts making her grit her teeth in frustration before looking down at the ground as she glares at it.
She knew Mark was just trying to make her feel better but she...her disappointment and anger...is just getting the most of it right now.
She slowly moves to her team's side. On her way, to her team side, she happens to pass by Gazelle. He didn't waste time there making her feel low. "What a pathetic shoot you got there." He whispers as he walks past her making her surprised again before her eyes get shadowed by her hair. She grits her teeth and clenched her fists in frustration.
The game continues as Gazelle dribbles the ball to the goal.
"Look out!!" The reporter shouts as Gazelle makes his way. "He's the same venomous guy in the first half!! Can Fist of Justice hold up to it?"
Gazelle kicks the ball with his sole towards the goal with the ball covered in ice. "Northern Impact!"
"It's gotta work this time!" Mark said to himself as he makes his move. He raises his leg and stomps on the ground with his foot, then closes his fist and spins the arm. "Fist of Justice!" A yellow fist comes from behind him spinning before he punches the ball.
The two Hissatsu tactics clashes with one another as it tries to overpower one another. "Uuuurgh" He grunts as he tries to push back the ball with all his might but...the fist gets destroyed and he gets thrown back. "Aaaaagh!!"
(Fweeeeet!)
"GOAL!!" The reporter shouts at the top of his voice. "Gazelle has taken down Fist of Justice and broken its fingers!!"
"Do you see that?" Gazelle said looking down at Mark. "That's how our team is gonna win this game!" He declares announcing his victory already.
Mark glares at him.
"Okay. This is going a little bit better." Torch said looking down at the match from the stadium.
"That's right. And his biggest save is broken twice." Xavier agrees. He looks to Shurayuki who stood still on the field with her eyes hidden. 'I guess she's not special after all.'
"I can't believe what I'm seeing. He smashes the Fist of Justice." Sue said not able to believe what she's seeing here. Everyone was tense and worried now.
"It will be alright," Silvia said trying to calm everyone down. But she can't stop worrying about it herself though.
"That's right. We can't let the game end like this. He gotta find a way to stop their shoots." Nelly agrees although she feels tense.
"He will." Celia hopes for the best.
"He better. We can't afford to lose any more points." Shawn said getting frustrated.
"We'll just have to find a way to keep the ball forward." Coach Lina said calmly.
Back to the match.
"Push it up, everyone! Don't give them the chance to shoot the ball!" Jude shouts enough for everyone in the team to hear as he ran.
"YEAH!!!" The team shouts with determination except for Shurayuki.
The Raimon team did all their best by not letting the Diamond Dust players get the ball.
"The Raimon are pushing forward!! But it's like pushing against an unmovable wall!!" The speaker shouts. "Will they be able to break through?!!"
Tori quickly pass it to Jude who traps the ball with his chest before the other player gets it. "Take it, Byron!" He shouts.
"Sure!" Byron smiles before he comes running. Jude quickly pass him the ball before Byron took it and begin to dribble forward.
Three markers rush in for a block but...the Raimon was ready for this.
"Go, Axel!" Byron shouts before he kicks the ball to the side.
Axel caught it. He didn't waste time using his Hissatsu tactics right away. He crosses his arms, tightening his body. Whilst his arms are still crossed, a fiery tornado appears behind him, which soon turns into a demon made out of flames behind him, while in the air. He unfolds his arms and kicks the ball into the air, and the demon fully appears. He then stands in the demon's hands. The demon throws him into the air while he comes to the ball and kicks it. "Fireball Storm!" The ball heads towards the goal with a firestorm following it.
"Ice Block!" The keeper thrust his hands forward and stops the shoot, turning it into ice but... "Huh?!" It could not calm down the fire inside before the shoot breaks the ice and push him back aside. "Aaagh!"
"Fweeeeet!!"
"GOOOOOOAAAL!!" The reporter shouts with great excitement as Raimon scores their second goal. "Blaze blasted off Beluga!!"
This made the other team happy to have a second point. They cheers.
"All right!" Sue shouts feeling excited.
The managers were also feeling a bit relieved with this. Coach Lina looks pleased. "They play well together. That was perfect."
Back in the field. Gazelle looks at Axel's back. Not able to believe himself in what he saw. "Did they just..." he looks grim. "...score again?"
"Every second brings the end closer to the game! How is this thing gonna end?!" The speaker shouts.
Gazelle moves forward with new determination and anger. "Come on! We need to win this game! There's no option!" He orders his team.
The Diamond Dust began to secure the ball more effectively and push back Raimon more. They did everything to not let Raimon have the ball.
"This is amazing! Blaze and Byron are pushing hard against Diamond Dust! Everybody is blocking everybody!" The reporter shouts announcing the match to nobody.
"Tsk!" Axel grits his teeth when he felt a little disadvantaged here. And seeing Byron, he was not doing well too. They were both exhausted pushing hard against Diamond Dust.
Jude frowns. Their forwards are tried and the forward is...
He turns his attention to Shurayuki who still had her head down. Not moving at all. He can't see her face since it was shadowed by her hair. 'If this keeps up. We'll not only lose but also lose Saki. And I don't want her to be like Shawn. I need to do something. For the sake of our team!' He thought seriously.
"There's no time left. Whoever scores the next goal is gonna win it all." Mark said getting a little tense.
Jude looks back at Mark and Erik. "It'll be us."
Mark and Erik nod their head. They understood what he's referring to.
The ball is kicked up in the sky. Before the Rhine gets the ball, Jude makes it just in time and gives a headbutt to the ball sending it down to Erik. "Take it, Erik!" He shouts.
Erik gets the ball before dribbling forward. "Bobby! Mark! You ready?" He shouts.
"Ready!" Both of them shout leaving their post behind making Hurley surprise.
"What the heck are you doing out of the net?!!" Hurley asked looking at the empty spot where Mark left and back to Mark.
However, Erik was not expecting an attacker waiting for him. He looks up to see Clear. "Huh?!"
"Frozen Steal!" By the time he realizes it, Clear steals the ball making him fall.
"Huh?!!" Bobby and Mark stop. They were surprised to see someone else use Gocker's Hissatsu tactics.
Byron stops and lets out a gasp when he realizes the empty spot in the net. "Oh, shot!"
"Disaster!" The reporter shouts in horror. "The Raimon's goal is wide open! And Saki is the only one who is close to it! Will she be able to defend it in her condition?" The reporter shouts.
Shawn panic a little.
"Shurayuki! Watch out!" Mark shouts at top of his voice to snap her out of it.
"Huh..??" She reacts to her name making her look up but only to see the ball head straight to her. She didn't move or even bother moving from her spot. (Smack!) The ball hits her hard making her lose her balance easily. She felt so....weak.
"Shurayuki!!" Everyone in her team shouts with horror. They were all shocked.
Shawn stood up on the bench with a horror look on his face as his skin turns even paler.
The fall seems to feel like forever for Shurayuki. It is almost like time has slowed down for her. She reach her hand for the sky as she fell with a longing look in her eyes. 'Please... Please... come back...nee-chan...' she closes her eyes before she lands on the ground hard and hits the back of her head. (Thud!) "Agh!" She let out a gasp of pain, with her eyes widening in shock before it dulls and the world begins to go blank around her.
"Shurayuki!!" Her teammates shout as they rush for her.
"The forward in Raimon, Saki has just taken down by the ball folks!! Is she gonna be okay?" The reporter sounds worried.
Shawn was about to run to the field to check on her but a hand on his shoulder holds him back. He turns to see coach Lina. "I know you're worried for her Shawn but you know you can't enter the field when the match is still going."
Shawn nods his head in understanding as he tries to restrain himself.
Back in the field. Mark tries to shake Saki/Shurayuki awake. "Hey! Shurayuki! Come on wake up!" He looks at his teammates. "She needs to be taken to the hospital immediately." His team agrees with a nod.
Suddenly, a hand grabs his hand stopping him dead in his action. He looks down slowly to see that it's none other than her hand, grabbing his own tightly as if her life depends on it. But her eyes were still closed.
He squeezes her hand to assure her that he's here. "Come on buddy. We're all here for you." He said trying to smooth her out of her pain a little.
==================================================
In a Dark Void
A girl was flooding in a dark void, deep in slumber.
"Please..." ???
A faded voice was heard echoing in the place making her scowl in her peaceful slumber.
"Please..." ???
Her fingers stir before it begins to twitch as if a new life is given to her.
"...come back..." ???
She begins to move a little finding it odd and at the same time familiar with the voice.
"...nee-chan..." Her eyes shot open wide revealing a brown pair of almond color. Her eyes became wide awake before she sat up straight in shock.
"Shurayuki!!" She cried out in panic and concern. She can feel horror and terrified from the bit of her stomach. She felt emptiness, lonely and cold for some reason. As if somethings missing.
A bright light shines up above her getting her attention. It gives out warm sanitation. She wants to feel its warmth. It felt like 100 years have passed without any feeling any warmth. She stood up on her feet feeling a bit wobbling but fine. She never turns her eyes away from the light. Fearing that it might disappear if she looks somewhere else. Slowly but surely, she lifts her hands to the light as if she's trying to grab it. She tries her best to reach out for it.
As if answering to her will, the light begins to extend more around the dark void, spreading more warmth before it finally consumes her whole body before she disappears.
==================================================
Back to reality
The Raimon watch as she slowly flutters her eyes open to reveal brown color before blinking several times to adjust to the light. "Where am I?" She asked half dazed. 'I feel like I was asleep forever.' She thought bringing her hand to her head. Her head hurts a little but it slowly begins to disappear now.
"Saki you're awake!" Mark shouts in relief. "Are you feeling better?" He asked out of concern.
Saki stares at him as if she's looking at a stranger. She gets confused as to why a stranger like him is concerned for her? And Saki?
But first, she needs to sit up. She doesn't want to lay down when a stranger is talking to her.
"I-I'm fine. Thank you for asking." She replies politely and a bit timidly. She notice the group of people was looking at her with relief look in their eyes. 'Why are they staring at me like that?' She asked herself in panic but outside she try her best to stay calm. "W-Where am I?" She asked once.
"Huh? Oh, we're on the soccer field playing a match against Diamond Dust. One of the alien team." He response back.
"Soccer? Match?" She looks at him confused. She looked at them. They were all wearing soccer uniforms and the guy next to her is wearing a keepers dress. She looked down at her clothes to see that she's wearing one of their uniforms. This confuses her more.
"I know it's not a good time to ask you this but can you continue playing the game Saki?" Jude asks suddenly getting everyone's attention including her.
Mark was about to protest but she beat him first.
"U-Um...sure thing." She agreed. 'I can't say no when he's asking nicely.' She thought.
Mark looks at her with concern. "Are you sure you can continue?" He asked a bit worried. "You don't have to push yourself you know."
She looks at him in surprise. She didn't expect to receive kindness from the stranger. This was quite surprising. She gives him a reassuring smile. "Hm!" She nods her head. "I will be fine. Thank you for your concern." Now, this surprised the team. They never expected to receive heartfelt gratitude from her but they ignore it for now.
"Then let's continue. We don't have any time to waste around. We have a game to settle." Jude said seriously receiving a series of agreements from the team.
Byron walked up to Jude while the others went and took their positions. He saw Saki going to the defense side making him confused. Before she was suddenly stopped by Mark who said something making her pale and shock before she nods in embarrassment as she slowly makes her way to take her current position with her head down. She looks nervous and scared for some reason unlike earlier. He turns his attention towards Mark.
"Hey, Jude," Byron call out his name still keeping eye on Mark. "I don't like that move at all. Mark is way too far away from out of the net." He said out of concern. "It's too dangerous right now."
"I know what you mean. But we need to win this somehow. And sometimes when you need to win so bad, you have to take a risk." Jude replies seriously.
"Mark going on offense leaves a too big of a hole in our defense. A hole that we're not able to cover." Byron speaks up her mind.
"Don't worry about it. Now that Saki is back, she can cover up the hole easily." Jude smiles.
Byron looks at Saki who looks like she wanted to run and hide somewhere right now. He frowns. "Are you sure?" He asked not taking his eyes from her.
Jude looks at Saki seriously. "I'm sure she'll handle it. I have faith in her."
"Alright then. If you say so." Byron said before he ran up to take his post.
(Fweeeeet!)
"Here we go again, folks! The game between Diamond Dust and Raimon continues after some accident! Saki is back on her feet and is ready to play!" The reporter shouts.
Saki stood nervously as the third forward in Raimon. Imagine her shock when they told her that she is one of the forwards when she asked about her post as a defender.
'This is unexpected...I mean... what am I supposed to do? I never played as a forward. It's Shurayuki's spot.' She started playing with her fingers.
Coach Lina frowns when she noticed this strange behavior of hers but she ignored it for now. She's not the only one though. Shawn, Jude, and Silvia notice this as well.
Jude dribbles the ball forward as his team takes up their positions to receive the ball anytime.
"And here comes to serve for another try! We're almost out of time! Will this be the last time?" The reporter sounds on edge.
"Let's try again Mark!" Jude shouts.
"Yeah!" Mark yells back.
"Come on Axel!" Jude calls for him as the three of them begin to move forward.
"You got it!" Both of them shout back.
Saki started to panic when Mark leaves the net, leaving it wide open. 'What's he doing?!! Is he crazy!!!'
"Mark is out of the net again! Looks like they're trying to use Inazuma Break!" The reporter shouts.
'He's doing what now?!' Saki shouts inside her head in shock 0_ o
"Heeeyaah!" Jude shouts while kicking the ball upwards covered in purple energy but however...Icer comes out of nowhere and traps the ball with her chest. Stopping them from performing the Hissatsu tactics.
"Huh!!" This surprises them.
Icer did not waste any time before she start dribbling the ball to the goal.
Saki panic. 'What am I supposed to do?! I'm a forward right now! Should I help defend the goal too?!!' @~@ her eyes were swirling in confusion on what to do.
"And the goal is wide open again!!" The speaker shouts in panic. "It is deserted like a horrible place!!"
"Saki!" Jude shouts to let her know that it's time for her to act quickly but...
'Huh? Is he referring to me? Is he telling me to leave my position as forward and go defend the goal now? What am I supposed to do?' She hesitates a lot of questions pop into her head making her confused as to what to do and didn't make a move to defend the goal.
Byron quickly acted and stalls Icer before shouting. "Get back here Mark! Move it!"
Mark quickly runs back to the goal to take his position.
But...he's not the only one to make his move. Gazelle was running to. Aiming to score a goal after receiving the ball from Icer. "I won't let you!" He shouts before he receives the ball from Icer and begins to dribble forward. "Now your team will be frozen forever!" Gazelle shout before making his move.
'F-Frozen...forever...?' Saki repeats making her scared. Sudden pain in her head makes her flinch before it disappears again as soon as it came. Her body trembles at the mere thought of it.
"Northern Impact!" Gazelle shouts as he kicks the ball with the sole of his feet before sending it flying to the net.
Mark looks back to see that the shoot has been launched, so he skids to a stop as he turns and faces it. He raises his leg and stomps on the ground with his foot, then closes his fist and spins the arm forward. "Fist of Justice!" He shouts.
'What's he doing?!' Saki panicked again.
Before Mark thrust his hand forward, Jude shouts at him. "Don't do it!! Your above the line! Stop it!" Jude warns him quickly making Mark realize it. "They'll score penalty!"
Mark watched as the shoot got closer and closer each second. He doesn't know what to do. When he can't think of anything. He decided to use his head instead. "Aaargh!" He let out a battle cry before he leans forward before the shoot and his forehead clashed.
Suddenly, a yellow energy fist shots forward from his head stopping the shoot and pushing the shoot and Mark back away before it disappears.
This shocks everyone. Saki did not think it much of a shock though. I mean, goalkeepers can use other means to use to stop the ball other than their hands when they're away from the goal post.
Mark quickly finds his balance and stood his ground before looking up at the flying ball in confusion. "Huh?" He stop it?
"What the-!!!" Jude gasped in shock.
"Impossible!!" Gazelle looks surprised.
Even Coach Lina was surprised by this.
"W-W-What was that?!!" Not to mention even the reporter was surprised with this. "Evans just used his head to make a big save!!"
(Fweeeeet! Fweet! Fweet~!)
"And the game is over!! Diamond Dust has been denied and there's no chance to the goal!" The reporter shouts announcing the end of the match.
"What on earth...did he just do?" Celia asked in surprise. She can't believe her eyes.
"I guess that it's his new move," Silvia replies but she doubts about it.
"Ah..." Nelly was just speechless as to what to say.
"Well, that's it Gazelle." Xavier walks in the field casually when everyone was too busy trying to progress what just happened here.
"Ah!" This snaps coach Lina out of her daze and looks at Xavier in surprise. She didn't expect him to appear.
"Now who's he?" Saki whispers to herself in confusion.
"Xavier." Mark looks at him confused as to what he's doing here.
Xavier smiles at Mark. He stops near Gazelle facing Mark. "That was a wonderful display Mark. You have improved a lot relatively in a short period." He praises him.
"I'll do anything to defeat Alius Academy. And I don't care how hard I would work for it." Mark said determinedly.
"I want to see you put up together the world's strongest team." Xavier challenges him.
Mark scowl. "Good. Because that's what it's gonna happen." Mark was not going to take a step back.
This surprises Xavier a bit but he smiles again. "Well, I'll be seeing you soon." He smirks with closed eyes.
The Diamond Dust team gathers around Xavier as the black Blue ball shines brightly. Torch joins with them.
Gazelle just glares at Mark. "I'll take you down next time. I'll promise you that! Vengeance will be mine!" He declares before they were completely covered in bright light before they disappears in thin air. Now, this shocks Saki.
"Next time?" Mark asked looking down at his hands. "I guess that means we have to get stronger."
Jude frowns.
Tori sighs in exhaustion. She was about to leave the field when she noticed something weird.
Saki was staring at where those aliens disappeared not too long ago with a wide shock look on her face. She looks a bit pale and she was sweating a little as if she has seen a ghost.
"Hey. What's the matter Saki? Are you alright?" She asked in concern.
Saki points her trembling fingers to that previous spot where their opponents disappeared to. "T-T-They just disappeared!!!" Saki cries out in shock getting a lot of her teams' attention on her. "H-H-How's that possible?" She asked getting scared a little.
Mark looks at Saki confused. "What do you mean Saki? Did you just realize it today? I mean, you have seen them disappear every time after the match you know."
She snaps her head quickly in his direction making everyone think that she might break her neck. "What do you mean?!" She asked in alarm. She suddenly grabs his shoulders. "I never played a match against them ever in my life! Who are they?" She asked making everyone surprise. "No..." She quickly retreats her hands to her side when she realizes something. "But first. Who are you guys?" She steps back, away from them.
"Huh? What do you mean Saki? We're your team." Mark said taking a step forward but she flinch and takes a step back with a scared look on her face.
"S-Step back!" She shouts frightened. "I don't know who you all are! And I never joined your team!" She clenched her eyes shut. This makes it an even more confusing and surprising situation.
"What's going on here?" Coach Lina asks stepping in.
Everyone looks turns to look at her.
"It's Saki," Tori said pointing her thumb over her shoulder to Saki. "She said she doesn't know us and how she joined the team." She explains feeling a little concerned.
Coach Lina looks at Saki who looks at her before she avoids her eyes.
"What's going on guys?" Shawn asks confused.
His voice caught her attention. She quickly looks up to see Shawn looking at Mark for an answer before turning in her direction. Her mouth quiver a little before her lips curled up into a smile. She quickly ran to him and hugs him tightly as if her life depends on it. "Shawn!!" She said happily. "I'm glad to see you again."
"Saki? W-W-What are you doing?" He asked feeling tense all of a sudden. Her face heats up, turning red.
She pulls away from him while looking at him in his eyes while scowling. "Why is everyone calling me Saki? Did you forget my name already? It's Narusaki! Na-ru-sa-ki." She said breaking the words.
Shawn cools down and looks at her a little surprised. He remembers something she told her before in secret.
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Flashback
Shawn and Saki sat down to take a break from their training. The place where CCG girls showed them was the underground training center. When they were trying to come up with a new move.
Shawn looks at Saki who was wiping her sweats off her head. "Hey, Saki."
"Hm?" She response back.
"I was wondering... why don't you ever use the name you were given. I mean...I know Narusaki sounds long to call but it still sounds nice. You don't let anyone call you by your name except your siblings. Is there any special reason for that?" He wonders.
Saki pause before her expression turns grim. "I don't have the right to be called by that name. And also, it only reminds me of what happened in the past. That name itself brings a pang of guilt deep inside me and I don't want to remember it." She clutches the towel tightly as if remembering a bad memory of her past. "And I let my siblings call me by my name because I want my siblings to remember it for me. Remember the me that's not me right now." She replies as her hair hides her eyes.
"What do you mean by you that's not you right now?" Shawn asked confused.
Saki turns away. "I feel tired today. I guess I'll be heading back early today. Bye." She said avoiding the question before she walks out of the training area leaving Shawn confused and guilty for asking a touching topic.
The next day, they continue practicing as if nothing happened yesterday after Shurayuki switch places with her in breaks and he never mentioned it again. He doesn't want to make Saki uneasy around him.
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Flashback Ends
Shawn looks at her confused. Why would she want to be called Narusaki now after she told him that?
Coach Lina frowns. "I guess the shock of the sudden fall has altered some of her memories. As of now, she doesn't have any recollection of the present."
"WHAAAT??!!!" Everyone shouts in shock.
"You mean to say...." Jack said with a trembling tone.
"She lost her memories?" Bobby completes for him.
Coach Lina nods her head. "I'm not too sure but judging by her. It might be true."
Everyone looks back at Saki who quickly hides behind Shawn.
"Then why can she only remember Shawn?" Axel asked her.
"You may not know this since you were not there at that time of explanation but Saki and Shawn were childhood friends. They met in Hokkaido when they were 7." Coach Lina explains looking at her who looks at her confused.
"I see..." Axel nods in understanding.
"I don't know how much of her memories are altered. So it's best to let the doctor check on her." Coach Lina said looking at Shawn who understood what she means. Since he's the only one she remembers, he has her complete trust in him. He's the only person she can rely on in her situation.
He nods his head before turning to face Saki/Narusaki. "Let's go to the hospital Narusaki. We need to check the injury on your head." He said smiling.
"My head?" She looks confused before remembering something. "Oh yeah! I forgot! I remember falling over something and hitting my head hard before I lost consciousness! Is it gonna be okay?" She asked feeling scared.
Raimon watches her in shock. Today they witness a different kinds of emotions from Saki in a single day.
Shawn smiles reassuringly. "It's gonna be alright. We just need to go and see the doctor. It will be fine."
"Okay!" She smiles throwing her hands in the air like a little kid. She grabs his hand making him confused.
Unlike before, he doesn't feel uncomfortable around her anymore. It feels like he can relax with this side of her without having to panic or blush. This confuses him. But the behavior does not matter. Saki is Saki right....?
He frowns.
"Come on let's go already!" She starts pulling him by his hand.
He snaps out of his daze before smiling. "Y-Yeah. Sure. Let's go." He replies before they leave their team behind.
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Hey guys! I'm really sorry for taking such a long time to publish my new chapter. You know work has been keeping me busy those days and the works are not gonna do by itself. But work is work. Can't argue with that. It keeps me busy and I don't have to stay bored for too long doing nothing.
I hope you had enjoyed the chapter.
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Bye!
See you all in the next chapter!