They all piled out of the bus quickly, looking around the open area with curiosity and eagerness.
Reiji stared at the crowd that was already forming, finally feeling like the tournament was upon them.
"Okay, we'll go straight to the registration desks and get the process done. Follow me and don't wander off," Nishimura Sensei signaled, leading them towards the lines just beside the parking lot.
There were already a lot of people there, so it seemed as if it would take some time to complete.
It wasn't just their group; the other clubs from Souhei High that were on the same bus followed behind them, their respective coaches leading them to the specific line for their martial art.
Although MMA generally had far fewer people compared to the other practices, the queue for the line didn't seem much different in numbers, which was due to the fact that only a certain number of members were allowed to participate per school.
Hence, their group had 5 people for each gender.
Fujita Senpai and one other woman named Yuna Senpai were participating in both the individual tournament and the group division.
The other eight, including himself, were only there for the latter.
Once they stood in line, he looked around to see if there was anyone he recognized from the game, a small habit he'd built up over time.
But of course, he didn't see anyone he knew.
Aside from Yui, who was in a line quite far away from him.
She kept looking over with a pout, as if she wanted to leave and join him instead, to which he could only chuckle.
Soon enough, it was his turn.
"Name?" the middle-aged woman asked without looking up.
"Yagami Reiji."
"School and division?"
"Souhei High, team division."
A few other minor questions were asked before she completed filling in the document.
".....Okay, here's your entry badge with the relevant info, don't lose it," she replied, handing him a small card.
Once he got this, he stepped aside and decided to catch up with Yui, since she still had quite a few people in front of her.
He informed Fujita Senpai and walked over to the women's taekwondo queue, his movement catching Yui's eye as she lit up like a light bulb.
"Reiji!"
"Look at you, you barely slept!" he sighed when he reached her.
She had faint dark circles under her eyes, and her hair clearly hadn't been combed.
"Hehe, I was too excited. This is my first major tournament!"
"Huh? What do you mean, didn't you participate last year?"
"No.....I missed out on the City Tournament, and that made me ineligible for the others. I only got to fight in some meaningless ones later on," she muttered.
"Why?"
"Ah? Um, no reason, just wasn't ready."
"....."
Clearly, there was a story behind it, but Reiji didn't know what it was.
'That stick-in-the-mud probably said or did something.'
"Well, that doesn't really matter. I'm sure you're gonna win," he smiled.
"Of course! There's no competition," she grinned, flexing her arms.
The people around stared at them in obvious dissatisfaction, and the girls in front of their spot in the line, who were from another school, glanced back with disdain.
Reiji smirked when he saw this, leaning in to whisper in Yui's ear.
"Wow, you have a lot of doubters. You need to show them later, right?" he egged her on.
"Hmph, you just wait and see!" she snorted back.
Within a few more minutes, Yui completed her registration and got her badge, and they heard from some of the seniors that the coaches were gathering everyone from Souhei High to a corner of the parking lot before they entered the main building.
As they were walking over to the meeting point, Yui opened up her pamphlet, which contained a bunch of relevant information about the tournament, including the schedule.
"Hey, hey. When's your match? I'll come cheer you on," she asked.
"Let me see....Hm, our first two team matches are somewhat conflicting, but I can come see your third one first, and then we can both head over to watch mine?"
The men's and women's matches were held in separate gymnasiums within the same building, so it would take time to travel between them.
"Damn...I guess that's fine," Yui sighed.
"Don't worry, I'm not participating in the individual matches later on in the day, so I can come watch all of your fights."
"Really? Okay!"
Her crestfallen face immediately brightened up, making him laugh.
***
"Alright, since everyone is here, we would like to say a few words."
Reiji and Yui stood off at the outer end of the group, listening to the coaches at the front.
"You yourselves know just how hard you've worked over the past few months. No, the past few years. This tournament is the start of the culmination of that hard work, the best platform for you to go out there and prove to yourselves that everything you've put into your craft was worth it. Ignore the noise, the doubts, and the nervousness. Instead, embrace the pressure you're feeling at this moment and enjoy the experience you will soon go through, because I promise it will be a moment you will never forget in your lives."
Another coach stepped up once she finished her speech, clapping her hands once to gain everyone's attention.
"The rules say that we need to reach the Top 10 to advance to the National Tournament. Is that enough?" she asked.
"No!" some called out from within the group.
"Look at you sissies. I asked you if that is enough?"
"NO!"
"That's more like it. Remember one thing. Never be satisfied, because that is the only way to push yourself to become better. If you're fine with mediocrity, then you have learned nothing from your coaches about martial arts."
Finally, Nishimura Sensei replaced her, scanning the students in front of him with a scowl.
"I will only say one thing," he stated, his voice deep and slightly raspy.
Everyone straightened up subconsciously, looking right at him.
"Win."
***
"Good luck," Yui said, a little reluctant to part ways. "Be careful with your injury."
"I will, and I'd say the same, but it doesn't seem like you'll need it," Reiji grinned.
"Hehe, you'll see!"
"Okay, go ahead now. Your first match is starting soon."
".....Tch, fine."
He watched her rejoin her team as they all headed over to the women's area inside the building, while he himself picked up his duffel bag and made his way towards the changing room.
He entered to see his teammates already changed into their uniforms, wearing their tracksuit jackets over their upper bodies since they would be shirtless on the sparring ring.
"Junior, we're going ahead to the gymnasium, change quickly and join us," Fujita Senpai patted his back and left with the others.
There were a lot of people in the changing room, with students from various schools chatting away as they put on their different uniforms.
But Reiji went to a fairly isolated spot and started to change, checking his bandages once to confirm it was done properly.
The movement in his arm was getting better and better at a fast rate, and he felt he could maybe even throw a few jabs with his right arm to keep the opponent guessing instead of hiding it all the time.
"Holy shit! Dude, that tattoo is insane!!"
He turned to see a student with a buzzcut wearing a karate gi, his eyes shining as he walked circles around Reiji to study the dragon tattoo on the left side of his body.
"Seriously, this is so cool! I wanted to get something like this, but my mom has a black belt in belt whipping!" he continued.
"Thanks, I guess. But don't get something this big if you really want to get one."
"Why not? It looks so intimidating!"
"Because you'd have guys coming up to you every time to ask about the tattoo," Reiji chuckled.
"Pfft, fair enough!" the boy laughed. "I hope I'm not bothering you."
"Nah, you're good."
"Oh shit, I'm late. I'll see you out in the gymnasium!"
The boy raced off to leave the changing room, and Reiji shook his head and continued to change.
But just as he was about to turn around, he heard a loud sound.
*WHAM*
"OW! HEY, WATCH IT!"
Reiji saw the same guy he was chatting with sprawled on the floor as he rubbed his head, glaring at the people who slammed the door open with great force.
He narrowed his eyes when he saw the green tracksuits they were wearing, clicking his tongue once he noticed the snake design on the sleeves.
'That must be Oshima High.'
The man at the front, who was about 2 meters tall, glanced at the guy on the floor and sneered.
"Sorry, you're so small that I didn't even see you."
"You!"
The buzzcut student scrambled to his feet, but before he could do anything, he was yanked back by someone from the same school.
"Let it go, man, we're already late for our first match."
"....Tch."
The guy glared once more at the towering giant and left the changing room.
Well, he tried to.
Once he walked past the people at the front, a sneaky little foot popped out just in time for the guy to trip over and fall down again.
The boy clenched his fists and frowned at the cackling people from Oshima High, trying to see who did it.
And then he heard a condescending laugh.
"What type of shitheads are sneaking into this tournament? Falling because of a door, tripping over a foot...What a fucking disappointment."
Reiji raised an eyebrow and zeroed in on the person who spoke, a small smile growing on his face when he saw the silver-haired, green-eyed man who was looking down at the guy on the floor.
'Well...there he is.'
