Again, where does this shit come from. Also again, why am I so obsessed with fem!Hikaru?

a storm in a teacup

Oka clapped her hands. "Touya Akira is amazing!" She gushed. "I've never seen a game so complex!"

"Hey!" Rui butted in, obnoxiously. "Shindou Hikaru is much cooler than Touya Akira!"

Nase grumbled.

Here we go again…

"I'm still awed by her performance against Ko Yeongha!" The boy went on to say.

"Rui," Nase sighed, hands on her hips as she looked down at their recreation of Touya's game. "Are you trying to pick a fight with Oka again?"

"No!" The boy protested. "I'm just stating the obvious!"

Oka snorted. "What's so obvious about that? Didn't she lose both matches in the Hokuto Cup?"

Rui gave her a narrow-eyed glare. "Idiot!" He sniffed. "You can't judge a game just by looking at who won and who lost!"

"Regardless," Oka turned back to the game, folding her arms. "No matter what, she's incomparable to Touya Akira!"

"Even Kurata-Sensei chose Shindou as the first player, not Touya!" Rui argued back.

Oka frowned, before shooting back. "You just like her cause you think she's hot!"

"What?-! That's not it at all!" Rui denied, though he was blushing furiously.

Nase scratched her nose. "Who knew Hikaru-chan would be a topic of argument like this?" And, with a sidelong glance to the two arguing below her. "Or that she'd have so many fans already…"

It was true, many Insei looked up to her, not only for her skill but because she was such a friendly girl—not that many had met her. Aside from her, she supposed. I feel so old. After all, she'd taken the exams with Touya, and with Shindou the year after. And now, three years later and she was taking them with Rui and Oka. Of course, this year she was determined to pass.

"Poor Oka," She flopped down next to Komiya. "Always getting picked on by Rui."

"You've got it all wrong!" He chuckled. "Oka is always snapping back at Rui—which makes them fight all the time."

Nase blinked. "Oh?" That sounded a little familiar…

"Rui is always so relaxed while Oka is practicing hard—but their ranks aren't that far away. That's why she's edgy and tense. If anyone's getting picked on, it's Oka."

For some reason, Nase was beginning to think of Touya and Shindou, who seemed to share a similar relationship. Or used to, anyway. Their relationship now…

She looked back at the two kids, and blew a raspberry. Huh, history worked in funny circles some times.

"Oka," Rui began to Nase's left. "I used to be lazy and skipped practices—but for now, I'm gonna be serious! You better watch out!"

"Serious?" Oka echoed, rolling her eyes. "Are pigs flying yet?"

"Wha—hey—!"

"Good morning everyone."

They all snapped to attention as Sensei entered the room.

"Good morning, Sensei." The chorused in unison.

Rui turned once more to Oka. "I wanna test my skills in the Itosisi Tournament!" He said with conviction. "Next year, they're gonna hold another Hokuto Tournament. I'm gonna be a pro player this year and I'm gonna participate in that tournament!"

Oka balked at him. "No way…" And then, angrily. "Do you really think it's that easy?-! Don't act so tough—you're only ranked sixteenth!"

"If I'm serious, even for a little bit, I could surpass you easily." Rui snickered.

"Even being serious takes time!" Oka pointed out, frustrated.

"Rui! Oka!"

The two turned around guiltily, Sensei looking a little less than pleased. "What are you arguing about this time!" And then, "You're disturbing everyone else here. If you two can't stop arguing, you'll be expelled!"

Rui laughed. "Haha, sorry sensei! I'll stop arguing, I still want to be an Insei."

Oka looked much more cowed—in fact, she looked on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry Sensei…"

Sensei sighed. "Well, before we start, I'll pass around the schedule for the upcoming Itosisi Tournament next week. Group One members ranked 1 to 16 take one please."

Rui smirked at Oka. "The first match in the Itosisi Tournament is against a pro—I'll win for sure!"

"I…" Oka swallowed, but looked determined as well. "I will win too, so we can see the difference between us!"

"Well then let's bet!" Rui grabbed his paper. "We'll see who can win in the first match."

Oka stuck her tongue at him, before looking down at her paper.

They both swallowed.

Nase looked at them disapprovingly.

Uh-oh…

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Rui was one hundred percent, completely, irrevocably unprepared for this tournament. Not only was he playing a pro, he was playing Touya Akira, the player some deemed the best out of the New Wave. Though he was a Shindou Hikaru fan through and through, that didn't mean he couldn't see Touya for what he was—a fantastic Go player.

Shindou's better! He reminded himself, relieved he wasn't playing his idol.

Though he was still more frightened than he'd like.

Not that he'd tell Oka that.

His eyes were immediately drawn to the entrance, where a pretty blonde girl was emerging through a small knot of reporters.

"Oka…" He ribbed her, finding some brief amusement as the girl literally jumped. "You're opponent for your first match is here!" He teased, finding private relief in watching her face grow pale.

"I—I—…" She gulped. "I'll win for sure!"

Fat chance of that. He thought to himself. Oka was quaking in her physical and proverbial boots.

Not even seeing Shindou Hikaru less than ten feet in front of him was doing much for his nerves. But the girl did look very pretty. Shindou always looks pretty. Rui thought to himself—admiring her hair, which was a stylish mixture of blonde at the bottom and black at the top, and pretty bottle green eyes. Everything about her was stylish and pretty; she had the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen, an adorable pink mouth and that smile. That was one of the things he admired the most about Shindou; she was a great Go player, but she also didn't lose touch with the real world. And she was awesome! Just the other day in an interview for Go Weekly she said that she still occasionally played soccer with her friends—so cool!

"You did say her skills were nothing special, right?" Rui asked, just to rub salt in the wound.

"S—Shut up!" Oka floundered. "When did I say such a thing?-!"

Okay, she had definitely said something similar. She didn't feel so confident anymore though… it was one thing to hear about her in the papers, and completely another to see her face to face. Shindou was… incredibly intimidating, in that way only beautiful girls could be. She was alarmingly pretty, and Oka really liked her dress… and her jewelry… and her makeup…

"When?" Rui scoffed, about to judiciously remind his friend of a time not too long ago when she thought herself better than the great Shindou Hikaru.

But the two were immediately silenced as Koyima pointed them out to Hikaru. Rui swore his heart stopped when Shindou's green eyes trailed over them.

"Hikaru, those two Insei standing over there.." He could barely hear Koyima over the crowd and the thrumming of his own heart.

"The one on the left is gonna be your opponent today." He's talking about Oka! "She's ranked fourteenth in the first group. And it hasn't even been a year since they were made Insei!"

And then, Rui was sure his heart really did stop.

"And the one on the right would be facing Touya. He's ranked sixteenth." Koyima explained with a laugh. "That's really incredible, huh? Can't believe they're still fifth graders—those little squirts!"

"Don't underestimate him just because he's ranked low." Shindou advised lightly. "I used to be ranked sixteenth you know—but on the same year I passed the pro exam."

"She did?-!" Rui gaped aloud.

"Did what?" Oka whipped around.

He grinned at her. "Did you know Shindou passed the Pro Exam as a sixteenth Insei? That's amazing!"

"W—What are they talking about?" Oka asked him fearfully.

Rui gave her a mean-spirited smirk. "Well, Komiya-san must have told Hikaru about how you were saying how bad her skills were!" He lied.

Oka looked like she swallowed a sour plum, her face twisting.

But Rui's fun was ruined as he heard Touya Akira's voice—a distinct, polite tenor—as he brushed past them, suit and all. Rui made a face at him. For being a renowned young player, he certainly didn't dress the part. He rivaled old men in his suit. Rui sniffed. That guy was always so formal! He didn't know how to loosen up and have fun like Shindou did.

Rui swallowed. S—Soon I'm gonna face… I'm gonna face the great Touya Akira… He thought, a little fearfully, as Touya waltzed right over to Shindou and greeted her.

He hadn't even been aware the two were friends!

And then, with horror, were they friends?-! How could Shindou be friends with someone like Touya?

It was Oka's turn to smirk at him. "You did say you're gonna win for certain, right?" She pointed out.

"I—Idiot!" He sputtered. "I was just…"

His response was cut off as he noticed Touya looking his direction. There was a moment in which their eyes met, before Touya turned away again.

Rui nearly fell over.

And he ignored me straight away! Not only that, but in favor of discussing something with Shindou. Oh, so they were conversing now too? And here he had thought they hated each other…

"What's up with that, anyway?" He grumbled.

Oka peered at him curiously. "Up with what?" She echoed, genuinely confused.

"Those two." He pointed to them with his finger. "I thought they hated each other."

Oka blinked at him. "You idiot!" She scolded. "Don't you know? They're rivals!"

"Rivals?" He repeated with shock, before blowing a raspberry. "Yeah right!" Like he'd believe something as crazy as that. If Shindou was going to have a rival, it'd be him, he thought determinedly. He'd be the one to make the older girl strive further down the Path of God—not Touya!

With that conviction in mind, he followed the announcer towards his seat as the crowd eventually settled down into their respective places, waiting eagerly for the prodigy to take his seat across from him. Though his palms were sweating, and his heart was a rapid, fluttering bird in his chest, the boy didn't sway in his determination.

"In the first match, all Insei will be facing a pro player. All matches will be using the Tagasaki System. Insei will play with the black stones, thank you."

Touya sat down smoothly in one motion, almost making Rui flinch. He refused to show any weakness in front of that impassive, stone-like face, however.

"Your guidance please." The pro said.

Rui gritted his teeth in anticipation, doing the same. "Your guidance please."

Meanwhile, Oka was having a similar issue. I'm gonna face Shindou Hikaru! The girl thought with no small amount of dread, chancing a quick peak at the older pro's beautiful, serious face. She flushed, and looked back down.

"Y—Your guidance please!" She bowed her head.

"Your guidance please." Shindou replied evenly.

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Whipped. Rui thought morosely. Touya was like an impenetrable wall of solid offense and defense. Almost mechanical in his esoteric reading ahead, and almost destructive with his complex skill, Rui was aware that Touya had him outmatched in every way possible.

"In the blink of an eye, the game was decided. "He bemoaned aloud to his equally disheartened companion, slumped onto the bench next to him. "In my heart, I knew I was done for."

"Me too." Oka agreed, looking disappointed. "Shindou used tactics I'd never seen before. All of a sudden, I couldn't come back."

Rui sighed. "Touya Akira really is good!" Better than good, actually.

"Shindou Hikaru too…" The girl added, before flopping into her hands. "But we knew this all along."

Rui narrowed his eyes. "But I'll still try harder and become a pro."

Oka nodded from the cradle of her palms. "Me too."

"And I'll participate in the Hokuto cup too!" Rui decided, seeming to look forward at something Oka couldn't see.

"You want to participate in the Hokuto Tournament?"

The voice startled the two young Insei, Oka near falling off the bench and Rui flipping upright to attention, both looking startled that their intimate moment had been interrupted. But it was only one of the Go Weekly guys, looking a little lost like he'd been hunting for a vending machine but had yet to find one.

"Wow, so the Hokuto Tournament isn't just heating up the young pros—but also the Insei!" He exclaimed with a chuckle.

And at that, he rubbed his chin, continuing on. "That's right. Even though Japan lost, the representatives of Japan have drawn the attention of the world!"

"Don't worry," Rui turned to Oka with a glint in his eye, "We'll win the tournament when our time comes!"

"What?" Oka's mouth dropped open.

"And when the time comes, I'll be the first board!" Rui folded his arms, looking smug. "I have to be!"

"Are you listening to yourself?-!" Oka guffawed, slapping him upside the head. "You're not even a pro yet! Aren't you ashamed of yourself?-!" And then, deflated, "Even in today's matches… we couldn't do anything against Touya Akira or Shindou Hikaru."

The man blinked. "Oh! You know the two of them are gonna face each other in the second match this evening. Who do you think is gonna win?"

Rui pondered this with much thought, before he closed his eyes and said with the utmost dogmatic confidence, "Touya Akira, hands down."

Oka's eyes bulged. "Huh? What?-! You said it yourself that Shindou was the better player!"

"But after facing him myself, I realized that Touya is stronger!" Rui replied.

"No you're wrong!" Oka retorted. "Shindou is definitely the better of the two!"

Rui blinked. "Ehh? Your opinion changed too?-!"

Regardless, the two of them both watched, quite mesmerized, as Touya and Shindou began their second match of the evening. Rui was struck by their fortuitous dedication, a tenacious certainty that he'd never found in himself. And Oka was awed by the ease in which their stunning intricacy seemed to birth from, such elaborate complexities that stemmed from the subtlest of hands. Both of them watched with their own persistence, vowing to find their own purpose and become pros themselves.

In the end, it didn't even matter who won the infamous Touya Shindou match.

"Even if she lost by half a moku," Oka announced as they left the room after a lengthy post-discussion with their Sensei and fellow Insei. "She still had superior skill. Shindou is just so much more of a candid player than Touya—and to think, she's only been playing for a few years! How long has Touya been playing? Since he was like four?"

"But Touya's tenacity always wins out in the end, doesn't it?" Rui noted, hands behind his head. "Bah. Why are we arguing this? Just yesterday we had the exact opposite opinions!"

"That's true…" Oka murmured, before throwing her hands up in the air. "You're right! They're both great players. I guess it really doesn't matter after all."

"When I grow up, I'll be just like Shindou." Rui exclaimed with doggedness. "And I'm gonna marry her."

Oka howled. "Yeah right!" And then, with laughter, "And I thought you liked Touya now?"

"He may be better," Rui agreed. "But Shindou's still cooler! She's so cute! And who would want to dress like Touya, anyway?"

"Like you have a chance with her!" Oka snickered, but said nothing in her idol's defense. Though it was a tie between him and Shindou.

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Meanwhile, standing beside Touya in the hallway, Hikaru doubled over in laughter.

Touya blinked down at her from his tea. "What?"

"Y—You didn't hear any of that?" She chuckled, wiping at her eyes. Kids these days… they were fucking crazy!

"Hear any of what?" Touya repeated, looking annoyed with confusion.

"These kids were arguing about us." She waved him off. "You know, those kids we played today."

He nodded. "The Insei."

"Right. Well, apparently that girl is a really big fan of yours—was, anyway." Hikaru amended, sticking out her tongue. "Now they both like me better."

"That's impossible." Touya replied evenly, sipping at his canned tea. "No one would like you better than me."

"Wha—" Hikaru roared, before blinking. "Did you just make a joke?" She laughed with a smile, anger evaporating.

Touya said nothing, looking away and hiding what could have been a slight smile.

"It's kind of encouraging though, don't you think?" Hikaru continued on, scratching at her cheek. "They're so young… but they're each others rivals and play together and help each other succeed."

"That doesn't sound familiar?" Touya quipped back.

Well, it certainly did remind her of them. Though they had never been really rivals, not until recently anyway. It was always one chasing the other—Touya chasing Sai, her chasing him. Only now had they leveled onto an even playing field, reaching for the same goal together. And even then, some could argue they were a little more than rivals. And that wouldn't be wrong…

"Maybe a little bit." Hikaru teased with a smile.

Touya smiled back, before lowering his tea. "Hikaru…"

Oh, it was that tone. And not only that, but her first name. The girl bristled, folding her arms with a sniff in preparation for what she knew was the inevitable question. "Someday is someday Touya!" She grumbled. "Jeez…"

Touya blinked. "Wh—no, that wasn't what I was going to ask."

Surprisingly. It seemed every time he wanted to know something about Sai he'd use that voice of his that had her halfway to melting—though it was to no avail. He wouldn't be getting answers out of her for one hell of a long time! Not until she was good and ready to explain it all—and even then, she may never get to that.

"Oh." Hikaru blinked. "What was it?"

He rubbed at his hair, looking a little awkward and his cheeks were a little pink. "I was just wondering if you wanted to come over…"

"To come over?" Hikaru echoed, and then, "But aren't your parents home?"

"Well yes but—" And this time, he really did blush. "I didn't mean like that! Just to hang out."

"Hang out?" Hikaru repeated, almost blindsided that Touya would use such a hip phrase—hell, that he even knew what it meant! "Oh. Sure! And do what?"

"We could play Go…" He answered feebly.

Hikaru laughed, gripping her sides. "That's not hanging out!" She protested. "And we do that all the time, anyway! Or are you forgetting that we're professional Go players?" For once, he looked a little cowed.

Hikaru hummed in thought. "I could teach you how to play soccer!" At Touya's face, she laughed. "Or maybe not. We could watch a movie though—hey! You're coming to my game right?"

"Your game?"

Ugh. Clearly he'd already forgotten.

"My soccer game." She reminded with a smile. "It's against Kaio—don't worry, we'll whip your school's ass, anyway—and you did promise me!"

Touya remembered no such thing, but there really wasn't a point in arguing with her. Generally, the majority of their arguments ended with some supreme explosives from both of them, and some serious groveling from him. Typical.

Shindou was the most stubborn—if not beautiful—girl he'd ever met, and while most of the times her mulish, unreasonable bullheadedness annoyed him, there were times when he found it a little endearing too.

And anyway, it wasn't like he could change her, so he might as well just put up with it.

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Meanwhile, Hikaru hadn't been the only one listening in.

At the sound of her voice, the two Insei had stopped to snoop slyly at the corner—much to the crushed dreams of Rui.

"They—they go out?-!" He bemoaned to himself, face in his hands as he crumbled to the ground; his dreams of happy marriage to the most beautiful go-playing girl he'd ever seen were crushed by a boy almost twice his age. Not only were they rivals, but boyfriend and girlfriend! His worse nightmare had been realized!

Oka was blushing too. "I didn't know Shindou-san was his girlfriend…" She sounded a little dismayed.

"Oh, don't tell me you like Touya Akira!" Rui spat, rolling his eyes. What a typical fangirl!

"Hey! I don't!" The girl protested hotly. "It's just, well he's a really good player, and he's very handsome…" She looked down.

"And anyway, why can you like Shindou Hikaru but I can't like Touya Akira?" She whisper-shouted back at her rival.

"Because Shindou's the greatest!" Rui explained like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"No—that's Touya!"

They'd already reverted back to their old opinions, it seemed.