"...na! Rena!"

"Urgh..." I sat up and rubbed my head. What happened? All I remember was getting kidnapped.... meeting Takanashi... seeing Jirou and Koujirou... and getting knocked out...

"Rena! How in the heck did you get here---"

"With Gina---"

"ALONE?! Do you know how worried we were?!" 

"What happened?" I asked.

"A boy with mo-hawked hair had led us to nowhere." Kenjirou muttered.

"He works for Kageyama, and it was a shocker to see your brother and Genda...." Otonashi trailed off.

I had a shameful look on my face as I glanced at the opposing side. A hand patted my shoulder; It was Endou's. "We'll get them back, I promise that. Touko, you don't mind being off for a while, do you?"

"I would if the coach allows it." Touko muttered.

"For now, I'll allow it." Kira said. "If she fails, then it's a free ride back to Tokyo."

"I won't let you down, and I'll..." I glanced at the opposing side again. Kira noticed my gaze, and gave a small sigh. "Jirou-kun is your brother, I presume." She said. I nodded at her.

"Everyone, get on the pitch. Kidou's in charge of today's game." She commanded.

Taking Touko's position, I was already feeling a pang of regret... and a pang of the same, cold emotion I felt back then.

"Shouldn't you be with Kuroi and the others? Or did you had enough of gathering data?"  

"You're nothing but a stupid little girl who can never move on."  

"Emperor Penguin #1!"

Jirou's voice and the whistle snapped me out of my thoughts. Jirou used Emperor Penguin #1... one of the forbidden techniques he banned me from copying once I knew it.

"Emperor Penguin #1 is a forbidden technique. Don't use it again!

I turned around, seeing that Kidou was face to face with Jirou, and what scared me was, Jirou had that crazed look in his eyes, like power had overcame him or something...

"Are you afraid?" Jirou chuckled darkly. "Afraid that someone like me will surpass you?"

"No! Don't you get it?! At this rate, your body will---!"

Jirou had cut him off since he was walking back to his side of the field, but not without saying, "There's no value in losing. If it's for the sake of winning, I'll shoot it as many times as it takes."

"Jirou..." 

He glanced back at me, but quickly turned away... 

"Rena,"

I turned around, seeing that Kidou had the same worried expression. Then Endou had ran over to us with the others, and asked why was the technique forbidden. Kidou explained it; It was a technique that Kageyama created. While it was ferocious offensive power, it sends pain through all the muscles in your body. Using it twice can reach your limit, and a third time will...

"You'd never be able to play soccer again?" Endou asked with the expression of worry... the clutched his hand. 

"Endou, if you take that shoot head on again, you won't be able to stand up anymore!" Kidou said with rage and worry at the same time. I have to admit, you wouldn't be able to stand up anymore if you caught it more than once, then failed.

The advisory was for not to let the ball get to Jirou, so that was the one thing I could do to stop him from the madness. The whistle blew again, and Kidou had the ball. Someoka and Ichinose were running with him, and they did Emperor Penguin #2...

"Beast Fang!"

Koujirou caught with ease, but I'm pretty sure he felt pain because I saw him clutch the ball as he knelt to the ground, groaning with pain. 

Now the advisory was to not let Koujirou use that move. Having one point taken, we tried our best to make sure those techniques wouldn't be used. I was lucky that I never predicted this in my nightmare, otherwise, we'd be dead by now.

Then Kidou and Fudou had a feverent one on one steal, then I saw something glow on Fudou's neck... hang on a minute. I saw that in my dream... that must be their source of power. 

"Take this!"

"Not a chance, idiot!"

Just when Fudou was about to kick the ball in Kidou's face, I stopped it by kicking it in mid-air. I heard the whistle, so that meant the first half ended.

"Tsk. You really can't stay out of this, can't you?"

Fudou's sneering face made me sick.

"I can't. I won't stay out of it until I get my brother back." 

We went to the benches, and the managers and everyone else were giving off the same expression; Concern.

"It might be better if we cancelled this match for their sake." Kino suggested.

"That's true." Asuka looked at her. "If we do that then they won't have to use those forbidden techniques."

"I won't allow any mid-match cancellations." 

All of us turned to Kira. 

"Follow my orders during the second half. Fubuki-kun, go back on forward. As for everyone, play with the intent of winning." She said, or more like commanded.

"But Sakuma-kun and the others---"

"These are your coach's orders."

"Are you serious right now?!" Kuroi asked furiously, making everyone look at him. "At this rate, they could end up in the hospital, again! It's bad enough that Zeus had injured them bad, do you want them to injure themselves?!"

"Kuroi, calm down." Gina advised. 

"Calm?! I am perfectly calm! I'm just worried about my brother and my friend!" Kuroi shouted.

"Let's continue the match."

Now everyone looked at Kidou. 

"It's true that if we cancel it now, we won't be able to protect Sakuma and the others." Kidou said.

"He's right." Kenjirou said. "This match is make sure they see the reality that they don't need forbidden techniques to win a match. We won't be able to get to them unless we win this match, right, Rena?"

Kenjirou gave a concerned look at me. I didn't say anything for ten seconds, then spoke up. "If we cancel this match, it means we're letting Kageyama win, and everyone in Teikoku will fall under his influence... I don't want them, especially my brother and Koujirou, to fall under his influence again. We're going to save them through this match!" 

"Rena..." Kuroi and Kidou looked at me, then Kidou patted my shoulder. "You really care about them, do you?"

"They started my dream. I'm just continuing it." I said, smiling. 

Soon Shirou and Someoka were on forward positions while the rest of us stayed the same. When the whistle blew, Kazemaru kicked to me and I ran forward. I was blocked by two forwards but I got past them. I had no time for this, I had to get----

"Pass it!"

'Tch. If it's for Jirou, I better.' I thought I passed the ball to Shirou, who got blocked by Fudou but got past him and the ball ended up to Someoka. Two defenders blocked him but Fudou, being cocky, told the defenders that Koujirou could handle the shoot easy, so they moved away. 

I saw Shirou ran forward, and I saw Someoka's smirk.

"Wyvern Crash!"

The dragon like shoot was heading straight for Koujirou, but then I saw the ball course change and it was actually a pass to Shirou. Now I know why he ran forward. Before Koujirou could even use "Beast Fang", Shirou's "Eternal Blizzard made it in without any trouble, thereby getting us one point. 

"Yes!" I shouted in glee, then glanced at my brother. Though his outside expression was mad, somehow I could still see him giving the same concerned look at me... if only I could see that again without having to worry about something...

The ball was with Someoka again but Fudou dead right purposely kicked him in the leg on purpose. At least he got a foul. Kino suggested that he should switch out but Someoka said that he could still be of use if he stayed. Endou had agreed to it, but I wasn't.

The ball ended up with Kogure but Fudou did a sliding then stole it. Ichinose and Asuka blocked him from passing it to Jirou but he kicked the ball straight into them, leaving the ball to end up with Jirou.

"Emperor Penguin #1!"

The monstrous shoot was flying towards Endou had a straight speed. I had to do something, NOW.

"Rena! Don't!"

Ignoring Kidou's warnings, I stood in front of the goal. I'd hurt my leg, but if it was for my brother, then I'd rather be stuck in a hospital rather than letting them use that technique again.

"Nereus Stream!!!"

I kicked the ball with water surrounding it like a tornado, but I ended up landing on the cold hard ground. I clutched my leg; It hurt like hell. I saw Kidou ran up to me as I stood up. I guess Endou had saved the goal. 

"Urgh, this is way worse than wearing heels." I mumbled. 

"Are you alright?!" Endou asked, or more like shouted.

"I'm fine... but Jirou..." I glanced at him; He was on the ground on his knees, panting heavily. One more shoot, and he'll break.

"Don't do this anymore. Don't shoot it again!" Kidou said, or shouted with anger as Jirou stood up.

"I can't stop." Jirou said. He took on step, and he shouted with pain. 

"Why don't you get it?!" I ran up to Jirou and clutched his shoulders. "If you stop playing soccer, then I will ban myself from playing it!"

"You won't be able to play soccer again!" Kidou shouted.

"You're the one that can't get it, neither of you wouldn't." Jirou chuckled bitterly. "I was envious of the both you. You both moved forward with your abilities. I couldn't catch up no matter how much I tried. Even though we ran on the same field, I couldn't see your world."

He pushed me, but not as roughly as Koujirou did. "But with Emperor Penguin #1, I can catch up to the both of you, or maybe even surpass you!"

"You're being an idiot!" I shouted. "You think I wasn't envious of you?! You were always admired by everyone since you were original, while I just copy things for my own benefit!"

I saw him look at me in shock, then returned to his normal expression of power madness. "That's right... everything you did was for your own benefit. You just stayed with us because you wanted those techniques. Koujirou was right, you can't move on from everything!"

Jirou shoved me and went back to his position. 

The match was at a stalemate, but it was a one-sided stalemate. I ended up flying and landed the on the ground again because of Fudou, and I was clutching my leg badly. 

"This will finish it!"

"Don't!"

He used it again, a third time, and he screamed louder than before. Kidou had ran up to block it but Someoka already did, sending him flying to the ground. The ball went to Fudou, and passed it to Jirou...

...but he couldn't move and fell to the ground...

The match ended up in a tie. We didn't lose or win, but I felt like I lost.

"Jirou! Jirou! Wake up! Jirou..." Koujirou had him in his arms, but he wasn't waking up. 

This was my fault...

I shouldn't have joined them...

I shouldn't have----

"RENA!"

"Wha?!"

A huge explosion bursted, and I stood up as everyone else was running for their lives. I glanced back at the two. I couldn't leave them like this. Looking back at Endou and the others, I ran towards my brother and Koujirou. The ground was shaking, but I wasn't scared.

"R-Rena---"

"No time!" I carried Jirou on my shoulders. "Let's just get out of here before this place blows!"

He nodded as the both us ran to the emergency exit, and luckily there was already a rescue squad as we got on one of the boats. 

"Rena..... you..."

I didn't say anything to Koujirou, and I didn't feel like saying anything either as we rode off.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Sorry, Kidou..."

Endou, Kidou, Kino, Kuroi, Kenjirou and I were near Jirou and Koujirou's movable beds. Jirou was apologizing to Kidou, and  Kenjirou and Kuroi were next to Koujirou's movable bed. I was in the middle of them, not looking at either them.

"Sorry, you three." Koujirou said, a little sadly if I could sense it. "I didn't know that..."

"It wasn't your fault, Kouji." Kenjirou reassured, smiling a little.

Kuroi sniffed and wiped the tears in his eyes. "Y-Yeah... b-blame Fudou for this." He said.

I didn't say anything.

"Rena..."

I felt a hand on mine; It was Jirou's. He gave a light laugh. "I already apologized to Kidou... I haven't said anything yet."

I didn't say anything and glanced at the side.

"Power surged in me... I wanted to surprise you for winning against Zeus, but like I said, power surged in me." He explained. 

"...I can't blame you for it." I muttered. 

"You have every right to get mad, especially at me." Jirou said. I didn't look at him directly, but tears were starting to form in my eyes.

"Ha... And I thought I was the envious one..."

"S-Shut up..." I sniffed.

"Once I get out... let's play soccer again..."

I looked at him directly now, and smiled bitterly, and I was hoping he didn't notice. "Yeah..."

Soon after the ambulance took them away, probably back to Inazuma Town. I wiped the tears off my face, and Gina gave me a pat on the shoulder. "We're going back to Inazuma Town too, so we can visit some people before we go to our next stop."

Back to Inazuma Town? Well... it's better than crying over something like this...