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Fubuki woke in the best mood he had been in all week. Besides becoming one with Atsuya, he had even managed to develop a new hissatsu technique. These thoughts brought on a comforting warmth throughout him. Now, the only thing that could make this better was spending the next half hour before breakfast just kicking the ball around.
He realized this was something he had been neglecting in his pursuit to be perfect. He hadn’t spent the time to truly connect with the ball, as strange as it might sound.
The wind, the straightforward kick without having anything to dodge, it was surprisingly freeing. As Fubuki rapidly approached the goal a burst of adrenaline hit him and he took off. Cutting the air with three red claw marks, he landed in a crouch, howling his freedom to the sky along with the wolf-
Wait.
He turned to find his wolf stretching and plopping down on the ground before rubbing his muzzle against the grass happily in the sun.
“Umm, excuse me,” Fubuki began, slowly standing, but the wolf just yawned. “I’m-“
“Fubuki! Breakfast!” Aki called from the other side of the bus.
He jumped slightly in surprise but managed to answer clearly and give a quick wave. “Ok! Thank you Aki!” Then he turned back to the wolf. “I guess it’s ok if you stay out here for a little bit longer, I’ll be back shortly.”
The wolf gave a grunt and Fubuki took that as an acknowledgement. He had really wanted to finish his shoot though.
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“Hey, Fubuki, are you doing alright?” Endou tilted his head, concerned.
Fubuki frowned. “Of course captain, what makes you ask?”
“We watched your hissatsu this morning, something wasn’t right,” Kidou piped up.
Fubuki smiled. “Just a small distraction that diverted my attention, nothing to be a cause of concern.”
“Glad to hear it!” Endou exclaimed happily. “Minna, soccer yarouze!” He shouted, standing up and pumping his fist in the air enthusiastically.
The team sweat dropped. “We’re in the middle of breakfast, dude,” Tsunami said, pausing in his eating.
“Oh yeah,” Endou rubbed the back of his neck, sitting back down. “After breakfast then. Now time to dig in!” The goalkeeper began to scarf down his meal. The team could only chuckle fondly, that was their captain all right.
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“Ok, Fubuki! Show us all your hissatsu again!” Endou exclaimed, smacking his hands together and settling into position.
Fubuki gave a small glance over to the corner he had been practicing in earlier. It was too far away to tell if his wolf was still lounging or not. He smiled anyways.
“Ok, Captain!”
Gouenji passed him the ball. “Go for it!”
Nodding, Fubuki caught the ball under his foot and kicked it forwards, bursting out into a run. He jumped, cut through the air, and landed in a howl.
He didn’t even have to look to know the wolf wasn’t there, Endou’s confusion was enough to tell him everything. The darn thing was still napping.
Despite that, he continued through as if nothing was wrong. His wolf might not feel like playing but that was all he wanted to do, and he was going to play with every ounce of strength no matter what. Atsuya never would have let him live it down if a “sleeping mutt” stopped him from playing anyways. He chuckled at the thought.
The ball still continued on with incredible speed, but to no surprise on Fubuki’s part, Endou caught it. He could feel the frowns of concern on his teammates faces.
“Fubuki? Are you sure you’re feeling alright? You can sit out if you want to,” Endou offered, stepping out of the goal.
Fubuki shook his head. “No, I’m fine, really. I mean it guys,” he defended.
“Then why can’t you complete Legendary Wolf?” Kidou came forward to join a worried Endou.
“You see... it’s...”
“Is it Atsuya?” Gouenji asked rather directly.
“No, it’s not about Atsuya. See this morning... well, maybe you should come see for yourselves,” Fubuki motioned, heading back to where he had left the wolf.
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The team sweatdropped.
“Ummm,” Endou didn’t quite have the words.
Kidou tried next. “I guess this would explain it.”
Even the normally calm Gouenji looked baffled. “It’s...”
“Sleeping,” the whole team deadpanned.
“I told you, I’m fine, it’s just I don’t think he feels like moving today,” Fubuki gave the wolf a small pat. It stretched and gave a large sigh that ruffled the boy’s fluffy hair. “I don’t think I’d feel right forcing him to play.”
Domon sighed. “Leave it to Fubuki, the guy’s chiller than Tsunami.”
“Hey! If it were me I’d wake that guy up and go to town!” Tsunami said rather loudly.
The wolf growled in response and cracked an eye, staring hard at the defender.
Tsunami flinched and jumped behind Endou. “You know what? On second thought I take naps in the sun all the time! Super relaxing y’know,” he chuckled nervously.
Luckily for him, the wolf accepted it with a huff and nuzzled back against the grass, snoring softly a few moments later.
“Well, I agree with Fubuki,” Endou smiled brightly. “With Alius Academy defeated I think the wolf is just trying to let us know we can finally take a break! Why don’t we all play a good old fashioned game without using hissatsus?”
“Yeah!” The team cheered enthusiastically. It had been a good long while since the last time they played with only their immediate skills.
The wolf growled lowly in his throat at the ruckus.
The team froze. “Sorry,” they whispered this time, and tiptoed away.
Fubuki carefully removed himself from the wolf’s side and followed. Yes, he did still want to preform Legendary Wolf but the soft serene look upon the wolf’s face reminded him of the way Atsuya always looked when he would fall asleep in the oddest places. Content and peaceful, but yet a fierce warrior the moment he woke up. No, there was no way he could ruin that.
—————————-
Unless of course the wolf developed a fondness for the sun over soccer. That was not an “Atsuya” trait and Fubuki couldn’t relate either. He was used to the overcast snowy skies of Hokkaido and he tended to burn quite easily in the sun even with sunscreen. Soccer kept them warm on even the coldest days. Relying on the sun for warmth there was a good way to freeze.
The first cause for concern was when they arrived back at Raimon. Somehow, beneath the storm hugged sky, the wolf had managed to find a single patch of sun and without hesitation patted down the grass and curled up.
“Hey, you lazy mutt! Get your ass over here so I can properly pummel your pathetic Fubuki!”
Someoka’s jeering was enough to thoroughly piss off the wolf to the point Fubuki had to hold him back to prevent the wolf from tearing his hypnotized friend to shreds.
After that, Fubuki could convince the wolf to play a few matches with his friends before he had to leave for Hokkaido, but the last one he was forced to use Eternal Blizzard for his send off hissatsu. It had felt good to use such a familiar move that held a piece of his brother’s soul, but Legendary Wolf was a new form of freedom for both the brothers. It wouldn’t take much to make him admit he missed it.
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Even after the group barbecue and friendly match, everyone still showed up to wish Fubuki well as he headed off to Hokkaido. He was glad to be going by plane, it was so much faster than by bus.
After many hugs and a few tears, he left the Inazuma members feeling strangely happy. The journey had been incredible and he couldn’t wait to share it with Hakuren. He’d miss the Inazuma Caravan but something told him he would see them again, for now he was just glad to have been of assistance and given the chance to make so many friends along the way.
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“Fubuki!!!!!!”
Fubuki had hardly stepped out of the airport when a rush of green and blue collided with him and sent him flying to the ground. There was only one team he knew of with jerseys that colour.
He laughed as the whole of Hakuren’s soccer club clambered around him. After a short time someone finally pulled him to his feet only to be embraced once more.
“Hey guys! It’s good to be home!”
It felt good to have been missed and he hoped Hakuren knew how much he had missed them as well.
“Show us! Show us! Please Fubuki!” Konko begged excitedly.
“What do you want me to show you?” Fubuki asked.
Konko and Juka pouted. “Your new hissatsu!” The two cried out, the rest of the team nodded enthusiastically.
He found he couldn’t deny them and he tilted his head, smile still plastered to his face. “Sure!”
Hakuren was a welcoming sight and the slick ice and snow felt right under his feet. He knew these paths and how to spot the worst areas that might give even him trouble. This was home and he realized this would be his wolf’s first time experiencing Hokkaido. There were enough wolves up here, he hoped his would like it.
As he soaked in the familiar landscape Konko approached him, flanked by the rest of the team. She timidly held out a light blue band.
“Welcome back, Captain,” she smiled.
Fubuki carefully took the band, a sense of nostalgia hitting him. That was right. He had become so used to calling Endou captain, but he himself was also one. The protector of Hakuren.
Slipping the band onto his arm, the whole team seemed to light up. Their captain was back and they knew no one could ever replace him.
After they had split into two teams and the match started it was obvious Fubuki was still the strongest by a large margin, but he was pleased to see his teammates had not slacked off in the slightest. They were faster and their ball control had certainly improved. He knew immediately that they must have pulled more than a few double training menus in his absence. He hoped they hadn’t hurt themselves.
There were patches of ice on the field but the team didn’t mind, using the edge of their spikes to keep control they could continue without pause.
“Captain!”
Fubuki caught the ball and saw his chance, evading two defenders he weaved his way to the net, leaving his teammates stunned. They had seen his fusion with Atsuya from Hakuren’s small tv and he had been bombarded by calls afterwards, so he had explained everything already but they had yet to see his new play style for themselves. They cheered him on as he reached the goal.
“Legendary Wooolllffff!!!”
His wolf appeared, shivering, and quickly glanced around. Somehow managing to spot a rare sun spot, he bounded off to it instead. It was freezing here! Sun meant warmth!
Fubuki still completed the shot to the best he could and it got past their goalkeeper but the team was frozen, baffled.
“I’m really sorry you guys, he’s been doing this since we defeated Alius,” Fubuki sighed. He was growing a little frustrated himself.
They decided to leave the wolf alone for a while as they continued practicing but as the sun began to set the team cautiously approached the wolf. The ones in Hokkaido rarely ventured from the forests, this was the closest any of them had ever gotten, but they hesitated to go right up to him.
“It’s alright guys, he won’t bite unless you try to move him,” Fubuki assured. He remembered quite clearly the time Gouenji had tried to kick a soccer ball at the wolf to get him to stop lounging all the time. Yeah, that’s one time that didn’t work, and it had even been a Kidou approved idea. Fortunately, Fubuki was able to stop the wolf before he managed to gnaw off Gouenji’s leg.
The team raised a brow. “B-but he’ll freeze if he stays there,” Konko fretted.
Indeed, the wolf looked rather cold, shivering as he tried to rub against the ground to warm up. There was no way that would work on the solid, ice frosted dirt, and the whole group knew it. But the sun was supposed to be warm, right?
Fubuki knelt down and placed a hand on the wolf’s fur.
“Hey, maybe you should-“
The wolf sneezed then growled and Fubuki quickly retracted his hand. He hadn’t dared growl at him yet. His eyes flashed.
“You are going to get up from there right now unless you wish to become a Hokkaidan popsicle!”
Hakuren flinched.
“A-Atsuya?” The team stuttered nervously.
The wolf was similarly startled and stumbled quickly to his feet, that was not the tone of a lesser being.
Fubuki’s gaze softened but remained stern. Only he could pull that look off so well.
With very little coaxing, Fubuki managed to get the wolf to the Hakuren dorms where the team all huddled in the gathering room by the fireplace, now roaring with life. The wolf had quickly collapsed in front of the fire, curling up in a shivering heap.
Meanwhile, Konko and Juka pulled a thick blanket out of a cupboard chock full of them to drape over the wolf. Hakuren was good at making sure their students didn’t freeze. Well, in this case their student’s hissatsu animal.
“Hey, where did Fubuki go?” Konko glanced around.
“I’m here,” a now smiling Fubuki walked in from the kitchen, a tray filled with steaming mugs of his famous hot chocolate in hand.
The team eagerly relieved the boy of his burden. It had felt like forever since their captain had made his specialty and it had been dearly missed after their practice sessions in the snow.
Ten little marshmallows bobbed on the surface, the same number as Atsuya’s old jersey. That had never changed and the fact Fubuki still paid this small tribute to his brother warmed their hearts. In this way Atsuya would always be with them, through the small things Fubuki did, perhaps even unconsciously.
Fubuki took a bowl and placed it in front of the wolf who eyed it oddly.
“It’s really good,” Konko whispered between sips.
The wolf looked at her and back at the sweet brown liquid before tentatively taking a lick. His eyes lit up as he quickly continued to lap up the hot drink between the odd sneezes.
When the wolf had finished he huddled down deeper under the blanket and fell asleep, stuffed up snores filling the silence. The team who had also finished their drinks slowly started to drift off and, one by one, they all ended up on the floor fast asleep.
Fubuki was the last one up and he quietly made his way over to the cupboard, opening the door and carefully taking the blankets into his arms. Placing the fabric over each of his teammates, he couldn’t help but smile before wrapping himself in one as well. It really was good to be home again.
—————————-
His wolf recovered quickly afterwards and Fubuki hoped he could finally complete Legendary Wolf outside a match that didn’t hold the world at stake or involve pre game taunts just to get the hissatsu animal moving. Gearing up as his team passed the ball along the field to him, he could feel the wolf’s presence in his mind, eager and ready.
The goal was clear and with his wolf at his side they cut the air and howled to the sky, sending the ball flying past the keeper before he could even begin his own move.
Fubuki turned, a grin of excitement teasing at his lips. His wolf, although still unsure footed on the ice, gave a goofy smile back as if he had just rediscovered how fun soccer was. The rest of the team was ecstatic to say the least, giving Fubuki hugs and the wolf a scratch behind the ears.
Of course the fact the wolf got his share of hot chocolate afterwards to warm up with the rest of the team certainly didn’t hinder motivation. And when the call came to meet at Raimon Jr. for unknown reasons, Fubuki had no doubt his wolf would fight along side him and his team without hesitation again.
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“So how did you manage to get him to work with you?” Endou asked incredulously once the selection match was over.
Fubuki finished his sip of water and swallowed before answering. “Hot chocolate,” he smiled complacently, knowing exactly as to who Endou was referring to.
“You... what? Bahaha! That certainly sounds like you! Welcome back Fubuki!” Endou clapped him fondly on the shoulder.
“Un!”
Gouenji stepped forward, his own drink in hand. “No, really, how’d you do it?”
Fubuki looked at him, puzzled. “What do you mean? We gave him a blanket and hot chocolate and he was much better afterwards! I certainly didn’t have to kick him with a soccer ball if that’s what you meant.”
Gouenji shrugged. “It usually works doesn’t it?”
“If I ever get out of line, I’d prefer it if you sent Fubuki after me,” Endou nudged Gouenji.
The team burst out laughing, agreeing wholeheartedly.