Chapter 2

He Never Misses

Oliver took in a breath. He drew back the arrow nocked in his bow. He let out his breath and released. The arrow flew and hit the target on the outermost ring. Oliver clicked his tongue in frustration, that was another shot that did not hit the center. He nocked another arrow and released, with the same result. After repeating the motion a few times, he let out a sigh and set down his bow. He walked over to the target to collect the arrows. As he pulled them out, the events of yesterday replayed in his mind; more specifically the sound the bow emitted when he released his forth arrow.

Why can't I do that sound again? In all my time shooting a bow, I've never heard that before.

"Hey, Oliver!" a familiar voice called out.

Oliver looked up to see Asahi waving at him with a stupid smile. Next to him was another boy who looked more embarrassed than anything, as he shook his head with his face in his hand. Oliver waved at him, acknowledging his presence. He then stood up and walked back to the firing area. As he put his bow away, the two boys walked up to him. To Oliver, the other boy looked like Asahi dragged him along.

"Even if you didn't hit the center, those were some great shots," Asahi praised.

"Thanks, but that rarely happens to me," Oliver replied.

"Someone's full of themselves," the boy muttered.

Oliver shot him a glare and the boy stepped back. Asahi caught the exchange and tried to calm it down.

"Come on Tetsuya, no need to say those things. And Oliver, you don't need to glare," Asahi said.

Oliver quickly sized up the boy called Tetsuya as he closed his case.

"How about introductions? Tetsuya, this is Oliver. Oliver, this is Tetsuya," Asahi said.

"Kirigaki," Tetsuya said.

Oliver rose an eyebrow, unsure what that meant.

"My name is Kirigaki Tetsuya," Tetsuya said with a sternness to his voice. "We aren't friends, so you will refer to me by my last name."

Oliver rolled his eyes. "Whatever makes you feel better. Name's Oliver Queen, transfer student from the US."

"Great, now that you're both acquainted, how about being nice to each other?" Asahi asked with a nervous tone.

"Sure," the two boys said, glaring at each other out of the corner of their eyes.

Oh boy, Asahi thought as his sweat dropped.

"You know, you're not supposed to wear shoes in this place," Tetsuya said, staring at Oliver's feet.

Oliver groaned. "These stupid shoe rules are gonna kill me."

Asahi let out a nervous laugh as Oliver walked away. However, when his footsteps stopped, Asahi looked up to see Oliver staring at him.

"That noise the bow made, what is it?"

"Noise?" Tetsuya asked raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, you mean a tsurune. I'm shocked you heard it, you seemed so focused I thought you didn't hear it,"Asahi answered.

"It keeps replaying in my mind over and over. Now, when I fire my bow, I can't hear it. That sound, it was unlike anything I've heard," Oliver said.

Asahi could see the look in his eyes, no longer did he seem like the jaded teen from yesterday. He genuinely wanted to replicate the sound he had made.

"What I'm trying to say is, what is a tsurune and how do I hear it again?"

—

Asahi let out a sigh as he threw his head back. The question Oliver had asked him had thrown him for a loop. He had given him the best answer he could, but he knew he was the wrong person to give an answer. However, the look in his eyes was different than the cold, detached boy the rumors had him pegged for. The only word he could give that look was curiosity. He could feel his body warm up at the thought, but pushed them aside as quickly as they came. As the school bell rang, Asahi was shaken from his thoughts. He looked towards the board at the front of the room and realized that he was not paying attention to the lesson. Asahi groaned and stood up to find Tetsuya so they could have lunch.

As Asahi arrived at Tetsuya's classroom, he peeked through the door and was surprised to see that Tetsuya was not at his desk. He rose an eyebrow and gave another passing glance around the room and nothing. Asahi let out a defeated sigh and walked back towards his classroom.

"Asahi?"

Asahi's head shot up and he looked to the side. He saw Oliver walking up stairs. This was the first time he had seen Oliver wearing the regular uniform. He had always seen the blonde in the gym uniform. He wore the black jacket unbuttoned and he wore a dark green shirt underneath. Everything else about the uniform seemed normal.

"Hey, Oliver," Asahi greeted.

"Yeah, hey," Oliver replied. "Where's your friend?"

Asahi shrugged. "Don't know. He wasn't in his room."

"Right. Anyways, I've been looking at kyudo videos. Everything seems so formal," Oliver said changing the subject.

"So, a foreigner interested in kyudo, you don't see that everyday," a voice said.

The two boys turned their head to see a boy. He looked older than Asahi, but the same age as Oliver; likely a second year. He had blonde hair as well, but it seemed to look dyed. He had dark blue eyes and glasses framed his face. The boy pushed up his glasses as he examined the two in front of him.

"And you are?" Asahi asked.

Meanwhile, Oliver groaned. "Tomokazu."

"I don't need to be introduced, Queen," Tomokazu said with a glare. He took in a breath and pushed up his glasses. "I'm Tomokazu Shuhei, pleasure first year."

"I'm Nakamura Asahi, pleasure to meet you senpai," Asahi said with a bow. "You were asking about kyudo?"

"I was, and why a foreign like Queen here is interested in it," Tomokazu affirmed as he gestured towards Oliver.

"You don't have to patronize me," Oliver muttered.

"What about you first-year, you do kyudo?" Tomokazu asked turning towards Asahi.

Asahi nodded enthusiastically. "Yep, it's so fun. I tried to get into Kirisaki to do kyudo, but I didn't get in." Asahi laughed and placed a hand behind his head.

"Well of course you didn't. Kirisaki is the best school in the prefecture at kyudo," Tomokazu said.

Kirisaki? Oliver thought.

"If the foreigner thinks he can do kyudo, I'd like to him to better than me. I am this school's ace after all," Tomokazu boasted.

"Only you think that," a feminine voice said.

Then Tomokazu flinched in pain and grabbed his side. "What the hell, Kana?!"

"Ignore him. He's just too full of pride," the girl, Kana, said. She ignored the profanities that Tomokazu shouted out which caused both Asahi and Oliver to laugh nervously at.

Asahi gave a the girl a quick glance. She had light brown hair, tied back in a pony tail and had similarly dark blue colored eyes like Tomokazu.

"Hi, I'm Kana Tomokazu. I'm this doofus's sister. Twin sister in fact," Kana said, introducing herself with a friendly wave.

"I'm Nakamura Asahi. Pleasure to meet you Tomokazu-senpai," Asahi said in with a bow.

"Call me Kana. Everyone does already," Kana said with a smile.

Asahi nodded in response. Oliver, meanwhile, moved from the stairs to Asahi's side. The two siblings seemed to be arguing, but they spoke so quickly he could not understand a word.

"Anyways, you two going to join the kyudo club?" Kana asked.

Once again, Asahi nodded enthusiastically while Olvier was more subdued.

"Well, what Shu was saying is true. He is technically the ace, but no one actually calls him that," Kana said with a laugh.

"Hey, I always hit the target, so I am the ace," Shuhei boasted.

"That's still so cool," Asahi said with wonder in his eyes. "What about you, Kana-senpai?"

Oliver shifted his gaze towards the girl. She placed her hands on her hips and smiled confidently.

"You're talking to the captain of the girls team."

Oliver's eyes widened in surprise, while Asahi was more vocal about his.

"Where you the girl at the club table yesterday?" Asahi asked as his surprise faded.

Kana shook her head. "I was busy yesterday, I had her take over for me. You'll meet her today. She's actually a third year."

Then why isn't she the captain? Oliver thought.

Before their conversation could continue, the school bell rang ending the lunch period. Kana said goodbye as she dragged Shuhei with her. The two boys waved back, Asahi with a smile and Oliver being more subdued.

"Hey, you never ate your lunch," Oliver pointed out.

"Oh, crap you're right! Gotta eat it fast then," Asahi said as he unwrapped the cloth.

"Why don't you eat before the tryouts? There should be sometime in between," Oliver replied.

Asahi stopped unwrapping for a moment and look up towards Oliver. "I guess you're right." He rewrapped the cloth and let out a sigh.

Oliver let out a light chuckle. He could not help but laugh at Asahi's antics.

"Here, take this," Oliver said.

Asahi turned towards him and saw him holding out a small bag of potato chips.

"Should hold you down for a little while," Oliver said.

"Thanks, Oliver!" Asahi said, taking the bag happily.

"You should get to class," Oliver said, turning on his heel.

"Oh, right, later," Asahi said as he started to lightly jogged to his classroom.

—-

When the school bell rang for the end of the day, Asahi let out a groan followed by one from his stomach. The bag of chips that Oliver had given him kept him satisfied for only a single class. He grabbed his lunch and quickly wolfed it down, unaware of the people around him giving him strange looks. Satisfied, Asahi stood up from his desk and went to go find Tetsuya. Unlike during lunch period, Tetsuya was at his desk packing his books. Asahi smiled and called out to his friend. Tetsuya waved back and walked towards him.

"Come on, we got tryouts," Asahi said, excitement in his voice.

"Yeah, I know," Tetsuya said.

The two walked towards the kyudo dojo and were surprised to see how many people had shown up for tryouts. Tetsuya vocalized his surprise, while Asahi nodded in response. Asahi glanced around, trying to find any sign of Oliver. He assumed someone like Oliver would be easy to find, but the crowd of people was making it surprisingly difficult.

The door of the dojo opened and there stood the boy with black hair that was sitting at the club table. He was wearing a traditional kyudo uniform, a hakama.

"Okay everyone, tryouts are about to begin. I want those with experience to be on the right side of the hall and those who are relatively new to be on the left side. Does everyone understand?" the boy asked.

"Yes!" the group said in unison.

"Great, then come on in so we can get started," the boy said.

Asahi and Tetsuya walked in and gathered with those who had more experience, which were a lot less than he was expecting. Only eight people, including Asahi and Tetsuya, were standing on the right side. Everyone sat down or was in a seiza position. The boy from earlier stood in front of everyone and placed his hands on his hips.

"Not a bad turnout today. Well, quick introductions, I'm Midoriyama Yusuke. I'm a third year and captain of the boys team. Nice to meet you all," Midoriyama said.

Everyone responded with a hello, satisfied, Midoriyama nodded and gestured to the girl who had walked up next to him. Asahi recognized her from earlier in the day, it was Kana; who was also dressed in a hakama.

"Now that you've met Yusuke, I'm Tomokazu Kana, but you guys can call me Kana. I'm a second year and captain of the girls team."

Midoriyama clapped his hands together and everyone's attention was on him.

"Our coach will be here a bit later, so why don't we get started with the tryouts. First things first, would any of the veterans like to be first, in order to give a demonstration to the newer people," Midoriyama said facing the group with more experience.

The group looked at each other, unsure on who would go. Asahi took in a breath and raised his hand. Midoriyama smiled and gestured for him to stand.

"Great, what's your name and year?"

"I'm Nakamura Asahi, and I'm a first year," Asahi said with a short bow.

"Right then Nakamura-kun, come on up and show us what you got."

"Yes, sir," Asahi responded adding a nod.

Asahi was handed a bow, an arrow, and a shooting glove. Midoriyama moved away to give Asahi some space. Asahi took in a deep breathe and released it. He got into the proper shooting stance and held up the bow. He nocked the arrow and slowly pulled back on the string as well as pushing the bow forwards. He focused his eyes on the target and then he released. The sound of the arrow leaving the bow rang out through the dojo followed by the impact of the arrow on the target; hitting the third ring from the center. Asahi brought down the bow and placed his hands on his hips, letting out a final breath.

Oliver, meanwhile, marveled at how composed Asahi was as he shot. It was the first time he had seen anyone shoot for kyudo. When Asahi had taken him to the dojo, he was not paying attention to the people around him. Seeing Asahi do it, he could see just elegant the sport could be.

"That was an excellent shot, Nakamura-kun," Kana said with a smile.

"Thanks, I've been out of practice for a while," Asahi said with a sheepish laugh.

"Now that you've seen Nakamura-kun do it, would any of the newcomers want to give it a shot?" Midoriyama asked.

The group of newcomers looked at each other nervously, unsure whether to raise their hands. Then a hand slowly rose up and the murmuring of everyone began to die down. Asahi looked towards the group and saw that is was Oliver raising his hand. Asahi cracked a smile as he walked back to the veterans group.

"Ah, so you're the foreigner that Shu was talking about," Midoriyama said.

Oliver nodded as he stood up.

"Well, come on. No need to be shy," Midoriyama said with a friendly smile.

Oliver nodded as he walked forwards. All eyes were now on him, and it was making Oliver feel rigid. As he grabbed the bow from Midoriyama, he let out a breath to calm his nerves. His senior gave him an arrow and Oliver got into position, remembering what Asahi had taught him. As Oliver nocked the arrow, everything around him seemed silent, but it was not an uncomfortable silence; Oliver actually preferred the silence. As Oliver drew back the string and pushed the bow forwards, he let out a breath to once again steady his nerves. The wind picked up causing Oliver's hair to sway with it, then he released. The snap of the string returning to its original position resonated through the dojo. The next sound was the arrow hitting the target. Oliver lowered the bow and got a look at his hit. The arrow had pierced the first ring from the center, garnering surprised gasps from the people around him. Oliver wanted to take another shot, but held back.

Asahi, meanwhile, was smiling. He could see a change within Oliver as he fired his shot and it seemed that many others had noticed as well.

"That's was impressive for your first time," Midoriyama said, astonishment in his voice.

"You sure it's your first time?" Kana asked.

Oliver nodded. "First time shooting a kyudo bow. I have my own compound bow that I've been shooting since I was young."

"Makes sense why you seem used to it," Midoriyama said, placing his hands on his hips.

"Thank you," Oliver said with a short bow.

"Right then. Why doesn't everyone get a chance to shoot," Midoriyama said.

—-

Oliver let out a breath as he released his final shot, this time hitting the target in the center. He brought down the bow and handed it to one of the senior members of the club. He bowed in thanks and walked to the back of the dojo. He sat down in a sekiza position as he watched other archers take shots. He looked towards his hands, the feeling of holding a bow was still fresh and it caused his lip to curl upwards; almost forming a smile. However, it quickly fell after the thought of not making the sound he had heard ring out again. Every shot he had taken sounded the same, and to him it sounded dull. He let out a sigh as he dropped his hand.

The sound of a clearing throat broke him out of his thoughts. He looked up to see Kana looking towards him, a friendly smile on her face. She had her hands clasped behind her back and was leaning slightly forwards.

"Such a serious face," Kana teased.

Oliver rolled his eyes. Oliver already knew of Kana, the two shared a homeroom and a few classes. She then moved next to him and sat down, the smile on her face never left.

"Surprised to see you interested in kyudo. You didn't seem to be the kind of person who'd like it," Kana said.

Oliver rose an eyebrow. "Is it 'cause I'm a foreigner?"

Kana giggled. "Part of the reason."

"I'm only here 'cause Asahi dragged me here," Oliver said, his gaze landing on Asahi.

Kana turned her head in the same direction. "Nakamura-kun?"

Oliver nodded. "He saw me shooting here yesterday with my bow and asked me about kyudo. I shot a kyudo bow for the first time yesterday."

"Well, regardless of your reason for joining, I hope you stick around. Pretty sure Shu will consider you a rival," Kana said.

She then stood up and smiled at him before walking away. Oliver simply nodded in response and watched as she went to talk to Midoriyama. Oliver turned back towards the others who were shooting, there were a few that caught his attention, but overall he had stopped paying attention to who was shooting.

—-

"I'm home," Oliver called out.

"Welcome home!" a female voice called out from the kitchen.

Oliver took off his shoes and pushed them aside before entering his home. He set his school bag down by the stairs and let out a sigh. He rubbed his arms, soothing them. He had shot so many times that he felt as if his arms were going to fall off.

"You're home late. Did something happen at school?"

Oliver looked up to see his mother, Moira, staring at him, arms on her hips.

"Nothing happened. Just got held up is all," Oliver said walking past her.

"Help set the table for dinner, young man," Moira said.

"Yeah," Oliver replied lazily.

After the table was set and everyone had served themselves, the Queen family began to eat. Most of the conversation came from his mother and father, who spoke only about work stuff. Oliver let out a sigh as he poked at his food. His mind was focused on the tryout and how he could not replicate the sound he had made. A few shots rang out with a beautiful sound, but they were not the same as when he hit the target dead center the previous say.

"Hey, Dad," Oliver said, his voice low.

The conversation at the table died down, allowing for Oliver to speak.

"What's up?" His father, Robert, asked.

"I want a kyudo bow," Oliver answered.

"But you already have a bow," Robert replied.

"I need a kyudo bow."

"What's this kyudo you're talking about?" Moira asked.

"It's Japanese archery," Oliver answered.

"Why would you be interested in that?" Moira asked.

Oliver let out a sigh. "A classmate showed me it yesterday and today I went to the school's kyudo tryout."

Both parents turned to each other and nodded.

"Is that why you cam home late today and yesterday?" Robert asked.

Oliver nodded in response. "I really want to try it."

"Did you make the team?" Robert asked.

Oliver shook his head. "There's going to be another tryout before the final roster is decided. That's what the captain said."

"You do seem very invested in this sport. May I ask what classmate introduced it to you? Is he a friend?" Robert asked, taking over the questioning from Moira.

"His name is Asahi. He's a first year and I guess he's my friend. I don't know yet though," Oliver answered.

Both parents eyed each other and nodded again.

"Very well, you can buy a bow for kyudo. However, don't lose focus on your studies," Robert said.

Oliver smiled as he looked up towards his father. "Thanks, Dad!"

Oliver picked up his empty plate of food and placed it in the sink before quickly going to his room.

His parents, meanwhile, remained at the table, amused at the smile he had was brighter than usual.

"Why's big brother so happy," Oliver's sister, Thea, asked.

"He's made friends at school," Moira said placing her hand on the girl's head.

—-

A week had passed since the tryouts and the final members had been decided. For the boys, Asahi, Tetsuya, Oliver, and a few other boys joined as well as some girls. The veterans that joined were allowed to practice with hakama while the newer members had to remain in their gym clothes until more could be ordered.

As the team's practice began to end, Oliver remained still shooting, with the bow he had bought. The others watched as he released arrow after arrow without stopping until the target was full of arrows.

"You'd think he'd know when to stop," one member asked.

"Yeah. Though he doesn't seem to miss," another said.

Asahi and Tetsuya were watching Oliver as they started to clean the dojo.

"Man, he doesn't stop," Tetsuya said, resting his chin on the top of the broom.

"I think it just shows he's invested," Asahi said.

An older man, with greying hair, walked up to Oliver and tapped his shoulder. Oliver slowly brought the string to its original position and removed the arrow. He brought the bow and arrow to his sides and looked towards the older man.

"That's good for today, Oliver. We have to clean up the dojo," the older man said.

Oliver nodded. "Yes, Shirogane-sensei."

Oliver set his bow against the wall and walked across the range to remove the arrows he had shot. Oliver kneeled down and began to remove the arrows carefully. As he set them down, he could hear someone walk up behind him.

"You really never miss, huh," a familiar voice said.

Oliver looked back to see Asahi standing behind him, a hand on his hip. Oliver returned his gaze to removing the arrows.

"I just focus on the target. It's not that hard," Oliver replied. "Though I'm sure I'm bound to miss every once in a while."

"From all these practices I find that hard to believe," Asahi said with a laugh.

"I still don't know a lot of the formalities of shooting. Coach said I needed to work on that," Oliver said.

Asahi crossed his arms. "You're not wrong."

Oliver stood up, arrows in hand as well as the target. "Once I learn those things, my shooting percentage is bound to change."

"Quite the realist aren't you," Asahi murmured.

Oliver could hear what he said, but chose to not respond. When all of his gear was packed, Oliver assisted in cleaning up the dojo. Once that was done, Oliver prepared to go home. As he exited the dojo, Kana was standing by the door; leaning against the wall. The sound of the shoji door caught her attention. Kana gave a polite smile as Oliver returned it with a nod.

"Heading home?" Kana asked.

Oliver nodded. "If you're waiting for Shuhei, he already left."

"I know," Kana replied as she placed her hands behind her back. "I was waiting for you actually. I wanted to talk to you about something."

Oliver could feel the heat rising around his body, but was able to quickly quell it. He let out a breath before replying. "What's up?"

The two began to walk before their conversation continued.

"How long have you been doing archery? In general, I mean," Kana asked.

"Since I was really little. Five years old I'd say," Oliver answered.

"I see. That's why you're so good at kyudo."

"I don't see it that way," Oliver replied.

Kana looked towards Oliver with a curious expression. Reading the situation, Oliver elaborated on what he meant.

"Sure, shooting is mostly the same, but there's something different about doing kyudo compared to the casual archery I do. Well, did I guess. Kyudo is more rooted in tradition and I can see that with how everything flows," Oliver explained.

"Then why did you get into kyudo?"

The wind picked up and causing the loose leaves around them to blow with the it. The two teens hair did the same, fluttering with the wind.

"I just thought it would be fun to do archery with a team rather than by myself all the time," Oliver said with a smile.

Kana could feel as she blushed. She had never seen a genuine smile on Oliver's face, even when she would see him hang around with Asahi.

"Oh, I see. I thought there'd be more to it," Kana said nervously fidgeting with her hair.

"Well that, and Asahi kinda dragged me, but I don't mind that he did," Oliver added.

"Are you and Nakamura-kun friends?"

Oliver shrugged. "I guess so. I would think you're my friend to. You and Asahi are the only ones who went out of their way to introduce themselves to me. Everyone avoided me 'cause I was the weird foreigner."

Kana giggled which caused Oliver to raise an eyebrow.

"What's so funny?"

"You're not wrong about the whole weird foreigner thing," Kana answered while laughing.

Oliver rolled his eyes.

"Well anyways, that's all I wanted to ask. I'm sure we'll be good friends," Kana said.

Oliver nodded in response. "Yeah, me too."

At the schools entrance, the two parted ways with a wave. Oliver adjusted his bag and kyudo equipment before starting his walk back home. As he walked, he saw two boys walking in front of him. One boy had black hair with green eyes and walked with a bike. The other had light blue hair and similar colored eyes along with glasses. What caught Oliver's attention was the two boys were carrying kyudo equipment. As they passed each other, Oliver eyed them out of the corner of his eye. For the two boys, he seemed to pass unnoticed. Oliver looked back as the two boys turned the corner and disappeared. However, he could not shake the feeling the black haired boy gave off. That boy was very good at kyudo and he wanted to shoot against him.

AN: Here ends another chapter. I hope you enjoyed this one. With this chapter, I start to focus on the main plot and character interactions. So expect more of that for future chapters. Remember to follow, favorite, and/or review if you haven't already. Stay tuned for the next chapter by following me on Twitter.