Echizen's New Rival

Chapter 5 Foreseen Love Duel at the Camp

"Oi! Ryuzaki's here…" Momoshiro shouted, calling her name out the second after. It caused the other members to look towards their direction and also wave a hand to acknowledge the both of them.

"Gomenasai, we're late…" she said when they both arrived. She bowed apologetically towards her upper-class men who didn't really mind since they were still incomplete. The girl was also surprised when, Rei who was beside her at that time, also bowed down in imitation considering that he had lived all his life in a tradition very much different from the Japanese.

"Heki- heki, there's always someone who comes in later than all of us after all." Eiji said, putting a hand on Sakuno's shoulder which was joined by a wink to assure her that it was all okay. Sakuno was taken aback and asked, "Is Ryoma not here yet?" She surveyed the immediate vicinity to look for a particular

tennis prince.

Fuji who was across Sakuno shook his head and smiled, "Maybe he helped an old lady cross the street," He said with a serious face that made the others follow a laugh.Sakuno chuckled but then she began to take notice that everyone was wearing their  own set of casual clothes. It was good for a change since she always see the blue and white jersey on her sempai's.

The genius tennis prodigy is in his usual white, collared 3/4ths and dark gray pants and Eiji is in his knee-length shorts and a black-orange t-shirt that he was proud of. (Well it's because he had a picture with the chocolates in that shirt). Kawamura who was busily entertaining Inui had knee-length shorts too and a white shirt on top with a sushi design in the front.

"Anyways, there's still fifteen minutes more to go so we don't need to worry." Oishi said contradicting his own self for the truth showed clearly that his face is misshapen with worry even after plastering a smile over it. The vice-captain himself wore a white shirt with a tennis logo in the front and some gray pants while Captain Tezuka who kept silent all the while is wearing a gray collared shirt and dark pants. Momoshiro sighed. He grew silent as soon as Sakuno and the man beside her arrived.

He knew he'd seen him somewhere but he just can't remember where. 'At the tennis alley perhaps?' he thought. When the man seized another good look before he gave up, that's when he saw the

same peculiar looking tennis bag that he had seen yesterday on his shoulder.

"Hey, you're Sakuno's boyfriend!" Momo said in a shout of surprise finally remembering who the man was. Sakuno almost choked to death when heard that remark. She remembered that she wasn't able to clarify things that happened yesterday because she was too upset to defend herself.

"Boyfriend?" Rei asked looking at Sakuno for confirmation. The girl had wide eyes, the widest he had seen so far and she looked a bit troubled. He could almost see her shrinking from the embarrassment but found it attractive rather than a bother. "Is that how she introduced me?" he asked kindly, almost teasing.

"Oh, Ryuzaki has a boyfriend?" Eiji asked cheerfully. He bounced up and pats the girl's head like a cat. "That's good Ryuzaki-chan. you have a good looking boyfriendnyaa…" Eiji added.

Oishi and the others laughed and Inui, with a sparkling new information at his front can't help but comment. "That's a new data I should write about…" he said, opening up his notebook and began scribbling some notes in it. Seeing that, Sakuno almost shouted in defense.

"Chi-chigau mou…" she said blocked. She anxiously shook her head in denial and looked at the regulars shyly. "Well, that's odd since I really saw him kiss you yesterday…" Momoshiro added. He, realizing what he had just said, slapped his forehead when he forgot the promise he had made to the girl. Well, at least he shares the responsibility of keeping it a secret even to the other members of the tennis club.