.

*sigh* Jirou couldn't help but shake his head after Kazuya's opponent fell to his knees at the second round of their duel. He would have been considered a top contender since he had reached the gates of internal energy at a very young age, but he had unluckily encountered a unsurmountable mountain which was in a form of a younger person who he had underestimated.

This mountain not only blocked his batch but completely broken the confidence he had built. Jirou couldn't help but feel pity at Kazuya's opponent. Kazuya finished the first round in a flash but the second match persisted until the last second. The flurry of attacks didn't stop and it was as if his stamina had been swindled down to last only one round.

"Winner, contestant Kouzuki!" the crowd rose to their feet to cheer. This time, it wasn't just the people from Sacred forest academy, Kazuya's domination had completely stolen the show.

Nanami, who felt bitter about her loss was elated after Kazuya had won. She felt that he had shown intensity that was unlike any of his other matches in this tournament because she was eliminated by that person.

*huff huff* "T-thank you for the match… I apologize for my arrogance" Kazuya's opponent was trying to catch his breath but bowed and apologized sincerely. He had truly learned a lot from this match and he couldn't thank Kazuya enough for the tips he gave him.

Despite Jirou's sharp eyes, he couldn't see that Kazuya had been talking to his opponent during the duration of their match. Only the two who were engaged in the battle were able to hear each other. Although it looked like Kazuya had launched a flurry of attacks for the duration of the round, he was actually giving his opponent some insight about his abilities.

Kazuya learned this when he was in Edea and combined with his experience in teaching Tomoyo about mana, he gave a few tips to help his opponent grow much faster. He was reminded of himself when he saw what his opponent was so he couldn't help but lend a helping hand.

"I'll be looking forward to our next match then" he smiled and headed towards the side where Miyamoto was. Jirou was by his granddaughter's side waiting for their turn so the two coaches were separated.

"Good work Kouzuki-kun. Only one match left, who do you think you're going to face?" Miyamoto handed him a towel and a drink.

"Thanks sensei. I'm not really sure since it has been a while since I last faced that naïve girl" Kazuya glanced at Ayame and tried to get a feel of her improvement but he could barely sense any mana from her. This made him more confident that she was indeed a control type that would have troublesome abilities.

"For you not to be sure means that they should at least be equally matched right?" not getting a clear answer from the only person aside from Jirou who Miyamoto trusted the opinion of made him a bit nervous.

"They should be. Robot girl will have the edge if it comes to raw abilities but the naïve girl had the advantage of craftiness and experience" Kazuya finished wiping his sweat and took a look at his state.

"You should get a set of new clothes from the lockers. Your clothes have been hugging your body because of the sweat and you might catch a cold" Miyamoto urged.

"Okay then, I'll be right back" he turned and headed for the locker rooms without looking back. He wasn't worried about the next match because he knew all too well what Tomoyo was capable of.

Kazuya had been guaranteed at least second place. He decided to take a shower because they would proceed to the awards ceremony immediately after the champion had been decided. This was to make way for the middle school's matches that would take place immediately after.

"Hmm?" Kazuya frowned. There were hardly any people because Tomoyo and Ayame's match was about to begin yet he felt multiple gazes locked onto him.

He usually wouldn't have minded but the hostility in those gazes on him were stronger than the ones he felt while he was participating in the tournament. There was even a presence that was obviously following him from closely from behind.

"(Are they finally going to show themselves? It sure took them long enough)" Kazuya couldn't help but smile inwardly while he intentionally slowed his pace down.

He increased his vigilance as he led the person following him towards a path where there were less people. Glancing at the cameras, it was clear that them being deactivated meant that it was indeed a move from the new owners of the venue.

-

Meanwhile back in the arena, Tomoyo and Ayame stood across each other in the dueling area. This was the rematch that everyone had seen their matches had anticipated. Even though the match between Ayame and Kazuya was also anticipated, these two had fought very evenly that no one knew who would win if they fought again.

"BEGIN!"

Both girls wasted no time and immediately activated the mana that they have been practicing so hard to control ever since their last match. This was the deciding factor in their last match and both of them knew that it will play a major role in this match as well.

*PAK* *PAK*

Crisp sounds echoed through the arena as both of their bamboo swords continued clashing against each other. The judges were stunned since they only heard such clear and crisp sounds during intense matches that were at least in the high school level.

The opponents that these girls' defeated couldn't help but accept their losses as inevitable after watching the two go at each other seriously. They were flabbergasted at Kazuya's earlier performance but compared to his match, they couldn't see how these two could have possibly lost against him.

"(This girl got a lot better)" Ayame couldn't help but admire the little girl a little. Compared to their match a year ago, Tomoyo was still far from giving her much of a fight. Their last match closed the gap and made her consider her as worthy opponent yet in an even shorter timeframe, this robotic girl was her match.

Strike for strike, the two matched blows without care for their stamina. For both of them, this was the championship match. Their prize would be to face off against the one whose skills they both chased after. Ayame especially wanted to build a relationship with him because he appeared to be knowledgeable about the strange abilities they shared.

"(This girl is so lucky…)" Thinking about how she had the privilege of learning from and being around him. However, this thought distracted her as Tomoyo quickly changed her stance to a tsuki. A lighting fast thrust made Ayame realize her mistake of thinking she still had the advantage over the two of them.

"Point Shiroyuki!" The referee was amazed by the flawless execution of that thrust since they were warned before the finals that Tomoyo was once prevented from using strikes because of her strength and lack of control.

-

Back in the corridors, Kazuya immediately stopped after turning towards a corner. The cheers of the crowd filled the halls and he figured out that the first round was over. There would be a short interval before the final match so he only had limited time to deal with this matter.

Not long after he turned, a shadow tried catching up after losing sight of him. Kazuya immediately blocked that person's way to gain the element of surprise in case they really had other things in mind other than following him.

"Kyaa!" a petite girl with blonde hair was surprised and jumped back. She fell on her behind but that was the least of her concerns, the boy who she was following was now standing in front of her looking like he had been disappointed to find her.

"Why are you following me?" Kazuya looked at the girl who he had not seen for a while but couldn't mistake for someone else.

"I-I…" Kurumi felt like crying because unlike her expectations, him frowning just after seeing her made her feel like her world was crashing down.

Kazuya's frown deepened as he felt multiple presences starting to move towards them. He had led them to a dead end to deal with them but the appearance of this girl just complicated things a lot. He didn't know he should do because he was confident in fending for himself but he was sure that he couldn't fight them without letting this girl come to harm's way.

"It doesn't matter why you were following me for now. You better get away from here as quickly as possible or you'll be in trouble!" Kazuya helped her up and warned her.

"T-trouble?" Kurumi looked at him and felt warmth that he was worried about her. Contrary to what he wanted, she made up her mind to stay with him unlike what she had done in the past so she stood her ground and made him realize that she was not going to leave him.

Kazuya felt a headache coming on because he really couldn't understand how this girl thought at all. They hardly knew each other so why was she being so troublesome? Didn't she understand simple reasoning? Trouble is meant to be avoided and not chased after!

"This is not the time to be stubborn Stoc—" an idea suddenly popped in his mind. "Kurumi-san, you said you were my friend right?"

"Y-yes, we were very close…" she what he said earlier in the back of her head and concentrated on answering the question. This a rare chance that was given to clear things up with him.

"Then no matter what happens, do not tell anyone of your identity. I want you to promise me this. I promise that no harm will come to you" Kazuya tried to make a deal with her as the hostile presences came closer. He remembered what Miyamoto taught him and held her hand to press her for an answer.

*thump thump*

Kurumi couldn't help feeling touched. She would have never thought that she would hear those words coming from him again. She was convinced that despite losing his memory, no matter how he seemed to have changed, he was still the same Kazuya-kun that she knew. This just proved it.

"I promise…" she let herself be pulled behind him as a few rough looking men grinned after finding the two at a dead end.

-

"BEGIN!" the referee signaled the second round of the rematch between Tomoyo and Ayame.

Once again, Tomoyo wasted no time to attack. This time however, Ayame sharpened her senses and stood still. The point she carelessly lost made her realize that one moment of carelessness could cost her the chance of standing in front of Kazuya in the grandest stage of this tournament.

The first time she lost to Tomoyo, she didn't really think much of it because she knew that she was still above her in terms of overall abilities. The two of them would have still met in this tournament so taking a loss wasn't that big of a deal for her.

Now that this was the final chance for her, Ayame removed the distractions from her mind and concentrated in the opponent in front of her. She knew that Tomoyo had already been doing it hence her initial point loss.

*PLAK*

Ayame gripped her bamboo sword and parried Tomoyo's powerful strike. Her eyes focused precisely at the point where Tomoyo's strike would be most vulnerable and immediately struck. She reviewed the videos of her fight against Kazuya numerous times and used them to improve herself.

She knew her strengths and weaknesses, this was where her real talent was. She wanted to pit herself up against Tomoyo to see how much she had improved since their last fight and had already gotten a good grasp of her abilities. There was no longer a reason to keep fighting at her terms because Ayame was not here to train, she was here to win.

The parry caused Tomoyo to become a bit unbalanced. Ayame didn't waste any time and immediately followed up with a counterattack. A thrust for a thrust, Ayame struck at Tomoyo's throat and flawlessly connected.

"Point Kuronuma!" the referee loudly declared. He was the same referee who judged the same match where she lost against the champion in the previous year. He looked proudly at the girl who had improved herself enormously.

The crowd once again erupted into cheers. This round had ended with a single counterattack and there was no telling who was going to win at this rate. This was what everyone was expecting and this was what they got. The two girls looked at each other once more, both showing no intention of backing down. They truly wanted to win this match.

-

Back in the dead end where Kazuya and Kurumi had been cornered, She leaned on his back as she thought who would dare threaten him while she was here. Remembering what he made her promise earlier, she couldn't use her identity to save them from this plight. This had always worked before and now she was felt troubled on how she would be able to help him.

"Come with us peacefully and you won't get hurt, kids" one of the men that had a big scar on his neck approached them arrogantly.

"Let the girl go, she has nothing to do with this" Kazuya didn't back down and faced the man without worries. This surprised the man but since he was facing a kid, he thought that Kazuya was a spoiled fool who didn't know fear.

"No can do boy. We wouldn't want her telling on us right?" he scoffed and turned towards the other men who began laughing menacingly.

"I see… so not only are you dogs, you're loli-con dogs" Kazuya didn't hold back and provoked them.

*BAM* the scarred man's eyebrow twitched and he kicked Kazuya, throwing him into the concrete wall.

"Kazuya-kun!" Kurumi immediately ran to his side after realizing that he had let go of her hand so that she wouldn't be thrown along with him.

*cough cough* "I'm alright. Remember your promise. Everything will be alright" Kazuya whispered to her ear as she tried to help him back up.

"See? She clearly called you. You can't say that she isn't involved now" the man grinned. He was glad to have kicked this cocky kid.

"Heh… A dog quick to bark and bite. Those are the types that won't last very long" Kazuya wiped the blood that trickled down his lips. This man really didn't hold back against a kid.

"Your courage is real, I'll give you that" The man approached him again and gave him another kick. Kazuya pushed Kurumi away and crashed against the wall once again and coughed a few mouthful of blood.

"Kazuya-kun!!!" Kurumi wanted to run towards him but was grabbed by one of the men. They wasted no time and gagged her with a piece of cloth.

"Take them to the young master's room. Make sure that no one sees them" the men picked up Kazuya who was weakly laying on the floor. Worried about what would happen to him, Kurumi started to shed tears while cursing herself for accepting such a promise.

.