Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

“That’s a major crack,” Shu mumbled under his breath, focusing on the deep line on the very top-left of his bey. Throughout all of his battles, Spryzen had never sustained such a serious injury like this one.

It managed to burst Wyvron, but the impact must’ve been enough to break through some of Spryzen’s outer Layer. In a normal battle, it would probably be fine, but Shu’s next one was against Lui Shirosagi, and Luinor was a hyper-offensive Attack type. If even a Defense type like Wyvron could do this, then going against Luinor might break it clean in half.

“Didn’t even notice it until now…” Shu sighed. There was not nearly enough time until the match to get it fixed, and even if there was, sending Spryzen off for repairs meant he wouldn’t be able to practice either.

And Shu had to practice. After all, not only had he lost to Lui in last year’s tournament, not only had he gained a scar on his eye that would never go away… he also had a promise to keep.

“Shu!” Wakiya’s voice interrupted his train of thought. Good. Otherwise, he would’ve certainly overthinked the whole matter much more than he should.

He looked away from the scar on Spryzen, turning towards Wakiya, who was now standing over the steps. “Huh?”

“There was something I wanted to say to you earlier,” Wakiya started, staring at the sunset in front of them rather than making eye contact. “I did everything I could up ’till now in order to defeat you, and take the top spot—and I mean everything.”

“But… I realised I was able to get this strong because of your influence.”

Shu couldn’t help but smile a little. Wakiya never admitted to being inspired or influenced, and certainly not by his top rival. It was surprising to think that, just a month or so ago, he had been beating himself up at any loss.

“Anyway, I thought I’d say thank you. So… thank you.”

“Huh…” Shu mumbled, before getting up. While Wakiya’s admittance was rare, rarer still was a ‘thank you,’ and he sounded like he meant it too.

“No problem,” Shu replied, shifting Spryzen to his other hand to keep it, and more importantly, the crack on its Layer, hidden. “You up for a do over?”

“I’ll think about it.” Wakiya said, still looking towards the horizon. Then, only adding to Shu’s surprise, he turned away from the sunset, and held his hand out for a handshake. He accepted, just as any other handshake from a rival throughout his career.

“But next time,” Wakiya’s classic confident smile appeared. “victory will be mine.”

“We’ll see.” Shu replied, laughing. He was grateful for this random appearance, it had taken his mind off the damaged bey in his other hand. Or, at least, it had delayed the inevitable.

All of a sudden, Wakiya’s eyes shot to Shu’s other hand, right where his fingers were just barely covering the broken part.

“What’s that?” Wakiya gestured to Spryzen.

Shu swallowed. He wasn’t eager to share it. Wakiya learning about it and being guilty was one thing, but if Valt ever were to hear the news… Shu didn’t need another instance of his best friend worrying sick about him.

“What’s what?” He responded plainly, trying to sound as though he had no idea what Wakiya was talking about.

“That weird… line on Spryzen. What is that?” Wakiya finally let go of the handshake, peering at the bey. “Did something happen to it?”

…

There was no way out now. Even if Shu managed to deflect today and get back to practice, Wakiya wouldn’t let go and definitely ask him tomorrow. And the day after.

“...It’s just a crack. Nothing else,” Shu assured quietly, bringing up his hand to show Spryzen. It was, technically, just a crack, but it had the potential of being much worse.

Wakiya’s expression turned angry at the sight. “Just a crack!? Shu, Spryzen looks like it’ll break if you launch it too hard!” That was an exaggeration, but the threat was real.

“So? What am I supposed to do about it?” Shu sighed again, trying not to let his eyes wander to his own bey again.

“Get it repaired, duh! Seriously, aren’t you Shu Kurenai? Even a total beginner could tell that Spryzen needs to be fixed!” Wakiya replied quickly. Though his voice was frustrated, it was clear that he felt terrible that Wyvron had something to do with Spryzen’s injury.

“I can’t do that.” Shu answered quietly. “There’s no time. Every second that Spryzen is being repaired could have been seconds where I was training.”

Wakiya paused. “Do you think that little of me, Shu?”

“Huh?”

“I am the Wakiya Murasaki, heir to the Murasaki name. Do you think I can’t even get my teammate’s bey repaired?” Wakiya scoffed slightly. “Give it to me. I’ll make sure it’s fixed by tomorrow.”

This time, Shu paused. Wakiya had a lot of influence from his name alone, and it wasn’t farfetched to suggest that he could do something like that. But he didn’t expect for it to actually happen.

“...Thanks, Wakiya.” Shu relented, handing over Spryzen. “Just make sure to give it back as soon as it’s repaired, alright? I need all the time I can get.”

Wakiya smiled again. “Don’t worry. Spryzen’ll be back to perfect shape in no time.”

————

“See? I told you,” Wakiya boasted slightly, handing back the now-repaired Spryzen back to its owner.

“You actually did it…” Shu looked over the part where the crack was—or rather, where it had been. Spryzen really looked good as new, as though it had never been in a battle at all.

“Guess it’s my turn to say thank you,” Shu laughed slightly, looking at Spryzen one last time before turning his attention to Wakiya. “Thank you.”

“Hmph, any good teammate would do that.” Wakiya insisted, though he still looked immensely proud.

“Yeah, sure.” Shu replied. “I just didn’t expect you to get it done so fast.”

Wakiya blinked, face shifting into seriousness. He turned towards the beystadium. It would still be a while until the others got there, he called up Shu quite early, after all.

“Yeah, well,” Wakiya sighed. “...I expect you to win against Lui now, got that?”

“Huh?” Shu looked at him, then at the beystadium. Of course, all of the BeyClub members wanted him to win against Lui, but right now, it seemed personal for Wakiya.

Wakiya scoffed, looking at Shu without turning his head. “Don’t you get it? Since you won against me, that means I can’t battle him now!”

“Ah,” Shu realised it then. Last year, Wakiya had also lost to Shu and lost his chance to battle Lui. “That’s what this is about.”

“Not just that, Shu.” Wakiya finally looked away from the stadium, turning straight towards Shu now. “You saw what he did to Ken back there. And don’t forget all those things he said to Valt, too.”

“Don’t let that bully get away with all that.” Wakiya finished, appearing far more intense than usual.

But he was right. Shu’s upcoming match with Lui meant much more than just a battle. If Shu lost now, it would be his second loss against Luinor, but it would only add to the BeyClub’s losses against Lui, too. It would also break the promise he made with Valt.

“See you in the finals, then?”

Shu wasn’t sure if he could ever forgive himself for breaking that promise if he lost. There was no room for ‘if’ anymore. He had to win—for himself, for Spryzen, for Valt, for Ken, and for the entire BeyClub.

“...Don’t worry,” He smiled slightly. “I don’t plan to lose.”

Wakiya looked worried for a fraction of a second before sighing.

“You better not.”

————

“What a shocker! Who was expecting the first battle of the B-Block semi-finals to start like this!? For the first time in the entire tournament, Lost Luinor has given up two points, the match has just started and Shu already has his old rival up against a wall!”

Valt was ecstatic. Not only was he still riding the high of winning against Zac in his own match, securing a coveted spot in the finals, but Shu had just managed to burst Luinor!

“Oh, yeah! That’s what I’m talking about! Rocking it, dude!” He cheered, somehow louder than the crowd. He was just that stoked, after all.

“No wonder he’s been training with both hands, it was the only way he could perfect his Crux Boost…” Daigo commented, quiet but still awed.

“Oh, wow! That’s smart,” Rantaro replied from his seat, equally impressed himself.

Valt looked more proud of his best friend than anything else. “I figured he’d be plannin’ to pull off something this epic the whole time!”

Daigo nodded. “Yeah, totally. He must have realised how much power he could get out of a double-handed launch.”

“That’s right! But the downside is, it’s way harder to control!” Ken spoke through Keru.

“That’s the understatement of the year…” Besu said, though it was still really just Ken again.

“Yep, but it worked,” Daigo replied, looking at the stage. “He might’ve had to practice it a thousand times, but it sure paid off.”

Wakiya scoffed, though even he felt a sense of excitement after watching Luinor burst. After all, he was the reason Spryzen was in good enough condition to battle Lui Shirosagi at all.

“I could probably do that too if I felt like it,” Wakiya mumbled.

“Yeah, sure you could… not!” Rantaro shot back, looking the slightest bit annoyed.

“What was that?” Wakiya asked, but he already knew what Rantaro had said.

“Nothin’.”

“As if you’re any better!”

“Hmphh… why don’t you say that to my face, Goldilocks?!” Rantaro shot up from his seat, obstructing the view of the little children sitting behind him.

“Sure, with pleasure!” Now it was Wakiya’s turn to stand up, joining in the bickering.

Valt couldn’t hear any of it, though. Not Daigo and Ken’s discussion on Shu’s new-and-improved Crux Boost, not Rantaro and Wakiya’s argument, not even the crowd’s cheers for both Bladers.

He could only see the bright blue stage in front of him where Lui and his best friend stood, and the shining screen reading zero-two in Shu’s favour. It was going to happen.

He was going to battle Shu in the National Tournament Finals!

They had done so in the District Tournament, but that was a small-scale event, and it was just the start. Valt had improved so much since then, and Shu had, too. It was only right that they go against each other in this tournament’s finals as well.

“Finish him off, Shu! Remember our deal! Me and you in the finals!” Valt shouted, breaking off Wakiya and Rantaro’s argument.

Just then, Valt swore he could see Shu talk to Spryzen the way he always did with Valtryek before an important battle. He was going to say something when—

“Ahaha!” Lui burst out laughing maniacally. “So you finally managed to score some points off me. Congratulations! I’m not surprised, I figured you’d show up at least a little stronger than the last time we faced off.”

“Even though I crushed you, I was pretty sure you’d be working on a comeback. It’s good to know that at least you’re trying!”

A commotion erupted in the stands, something about Zac coming back from retirement, and broken off by Wakiya’s blunt, “No one cares!” Valt didn’t register much of it.

“Whatever, I just want to see Shu’s Crush Boost again!”

Toko interrupted his cheering. “Uh, close, but not quite.” Nika joined in for the next part:

“It’s called Crux Boost, kay?!”

“It’s all the same! I mean, it crushes, right?” Valt grinned again, much to his siblings’ disappointment.

Crux Boost or Crush Boost, Valt didn’t really care. All he knew was that he wanted to see it again—he wanted to see Shu win again. And he wanted Lui to feel defeat, too.

“Second battle!”

“You’ve got skills, more than most of my opponents. I’ll give you credit for making it this far,” Lui taunted, gearing up for another launch.

“But this match is going to end just like the last one did!”

Valt stood up then, furious. “Not happenin’! You’re going down right here!”

But neither of the Bladers could hear it.

Lui looked up and right then—Shu saw it. The last face he saw before the metal part of Spryzen hit his eye.

“I know how afraid you are of losing to me.”

“...You’re imagining things.” Shu shot back, but Lui was right. He was terrified. Losing this match was once just a loss, but now there was so much more at stake than his record.

But maybe, that was what he needed to win.

Last time, it was just that, a battle. Shu was naive back then, ignorant. The constant wins had gotten to his head, whether it was noticeable or not. He had let Lui do anything that last match. Now, it was far more.

Now, he had a promise to keep.

Not just with his best friend, but with Wakiya, too.

“Don’t let that bully get away with all that.”

With the entire BeyClub. What kind of ‘blading prodigy’ can’t even keep a promise? What worth was his title as The Crimson Flame if he couldn’t even win this battle?

For the first time, Shu had more than just Valt to impress.

“This is it, Spryzen.”

As Spryzen and Luinor hit the stadium, Shu felt the unease and uncertainty creep up in his mind. If he lost, that was it. There would be no more chances after this.

“Remember our deal! Me and you in the finals!”

No. No ‘if’s. Shu had no time to worry about ‘if’ or ‘how’ right now. The only thing that mattered was the battle in front of him.

When did he start thinking like Valt?

————

Click.

“Wh-What!? Am I… am I seeing this right?!” Hanami announced from his booth, sounding genuinely shocked himself.

It was a shocking sight, to say the least.

The distinct clicking sound indicated that a Beyblade in the match had burst, yet no one, not even the Bladers on the stage could believe which one it was.

“This… this is unprecedented!”

The eyes of everyone in the stands turned to the referee. Even his perfect, emotionless mask had broken for a split second, before he made the call.

“Storm Spryzen, with a Burst Finish. Shu Kurenai wins with a score of 4-0.”

At once, the quiet of the arena broke into both cheers and shock, supporters of each side refusing to keep peace. The announcer himself looked distraught, yet extremely excited at the same time.

…

“He’s done it! Our very own Shu Kurenai has defeated Lui Shirosagi!” Hanami announced, looking close to tearing up. “Look at him! The Crimson Flame can’t even believe it himself!”

It was true. The most shocked person in the arena was Shu himself. Now it was his turn to not hear anything, as he looked back and forth at the pieces of Luinor on the ground, at Lui and then at Spryzen still spinning in the stadium.

Shu Kurenai wins with a score of 4-0.

Shu wanted to pinch himself to see if he had been lost in a dream, but he couldn’t move his hand in the trance either. The screen above him supposedly read the truth—his face above the word WINNER, glowing blue, yet he still couldn’t believe it.

“I knew you could do it!”

Valt’s voice suddenly broke Shu from his trance, and he could sense everything again. The cool air conditioning of the National Arena, the sound of his own Bey still moving in the stadium, the cheers and jeers from the crowd—and his best friend shouting from the stands, who looked about ready to join him on the stage at this point.

“Shu! What’s gotten into you?!” Wakiya shouted alongside Valt, voice tinged slightly with disbelief. He had made Shu swear to win against Lui, but seeing the five-time champion be overthrown surprised even him. “Wake up already!”

“Relax, man,” Daigo responded quietly, gesturing to where Shu had just snapped out of his trance. “He just beat the Lui Shirosagi. Cut him some slack.”

Ken nodded, and spoke in his own voice this time. “Yeah.”

“Shu! Whoa, man, I knew you were, like, good, but that was seriously awesome!” Rantaro joined in, much to Daigo’s dismay.

“He did it!” Nika and Toko were celebrating together, too happy to care about the commotion around them. Nika looked just as close to tearing up as Hanami, and Toko looked nothing but awed at Shu’s win.

Huh, Shu thought, picking up Spryzen from where it was spinning. I did it. He had done it. He had won against Lui Shirosagi.

“Is this some kind of joke?!” Shu’s internal celebration was interrupted by Lui’s outraged voice yelling directly at him. “You! How…”

Shu looked back at the three pieces of Luinor on the ground—and then pushed up his hair as he always did after winning a match, revealing the recent but still healing scar on his eye.

He had done it even before getting that scar, because Valt said it looked ‘totally awesome’ and made him seem ‘all, like, mysterious and stuff.’ Right now, that scar felt much more significant than ever. Now it was a symbol of revenge. Shu had bested Lui Shirosagi, once and for all.

“Guess it wasn’t very much like last time at all, huh, Lui?” He couldn’t stop himself from engaging in at least a little trash-talk now.

Before the other Blader could respond, Shu turned to the stands, straight at where Valt was still grinning and cheering from his seat. “Well?”

Valt paused, and then got the memo, climbing out of his seat onto the stage to shake his best friend’s hand. “That was awesome!” He glanced at Spryzen then, realising how shiny it looked, even after such an intense battle. “Whoa, new paint job or somethin’?”

“Long story,” Shu laughed along with him, too happy to scold him about his ‘unprofessionalism’ now. “Hey, we’ll get that battle now.”

Valt didn’t even catch the first part, immediately grinning from the mention of their upcoming battle. “Yeah! Awh, man, it’s gonna be so cool! I’m stoked!”

“Of course you are.”

Hanami perked up, grabbing his mic again. “Oh, yes! Our finals will be bringing you a truly unexpected match-up, folks! Last year’s runner-up, Shu Kurenai against our surprise wonder-boy Valt Aoi!”

The screen flickered, now showing both Valt and Shu’s portraits under the word FINALS. Shu almost went back into his trance just from seeing it.

“These two are childhood best friends, and judging from their conversations in this tournament, had this Finals match planned all along! Good luck to both our finalists!”

Shu laughed again, absently listening to Valt repeating just how cool their match in the finals was gonna be. His eyes somehow landed on Lui, who was now holding the pieces of Luinor with an outraged expression.

Shu thought he deserved it.

Nevertheless, he was still Shu. Quietly, he placed Spryzen in its proper place, not before mumbling a quiet “thank you” to it, and walked over to Lui, holding out his hand. Even if the Luinor blader had wronged him in the past, Shu prided himself on being cordial no matter what, and he wasn’t about to go down to his level.

“Handshake?”

Hanami jumped up. “Look at that! Shu’s still offering a handshake, even to his arch-enemy! Now, let’s see if the undefeated five-time National Champion will accept defeat with grace and take the handshake.”

Valt looked at where Shu had gone, appearing a little surprised at the gesture, before breaking into a smile. He didn’t hold a grudge for long, and hey, if Lui and his best friend became friends, then he would get tons of battles against him! “Luinor was awesome too, Lui! I mean, that last move was so cool!”

“Seriously, he’s offering a handshake to Lui Shirosagi? Hmph, Shu’s too forgiving.” Wakiya muttered, exasperated. He had seen that scar on Shu’s eye plenty of times, and Wakiya couldn’t understand why anyone would forgive someone like that.

“Oh, c’mon. Maybe they can be friends after this,” Rantaro cut in, looking at the stage intently. “And then the whole Supreme Four can actually, like, be chill with each other! Instead of that intense atmosphere they always have together…”

Lui stared at the outstretched hand in front of him—before pushing it away with a loud scoff. Shu almost looked offended for a second, but then quickly looked like he expected that to happen. Hanami gasped slightly.

“As if I’d ever take a handshake from you!” Lui sneered, assembling Luinor before walking off the stage.

“Hey! Lui!” Valt ran up next to Shu, but it was no use. Lui had long left the arena, and no amount of screaming or calling after him would bring him back here—and certainly not from Valt.

Shu blinked once before letting his hand fall away. “Guess he thinks he’s too good for a handshake.” He sighed, turning back to Valt.

“We both kept our promises, huh?”

Valt instantly grinned again, taking his hand. “Well, duh! Of course we did! Man, I can’t wait ’till the battle now!”

“Well, that’s a wrap for this year’s semi-finals, Beyfans!” Hanami cut their conversation, easing back into his role. “Tune in to our finals for this match-up, the first time in five consecutive National Tournaments that the final battle won’t feature Lui Shirosagi!”

“I expect you to bring your A-game in the finals, then.” Shu smiled.

“Heh, same to you!”

“Hey, you two! The battle’s over! We need to go home!” Wakiya called out, but neither seemed very eager to go along with him, still chatting about something or another.

————

“Hey, Valtryek?”

Valt spoke to his Beyblade in the middle of the night. He would usually be fast asleep at this hour, but tomorrow was the day. The National Individuals’ Tournament Finals.

Most importantly, it was going to be him against Shu.

Valt had been thinking of this battle ever since the tournament began, ever since they made that promise. Yet now, only a few hours away from the match, it felt unreal. It was actually happening.

“Can you believe it, buddy? We’re actually in the finals! Against Shu! Oh, this is gonna be the best battle ever!”

Valt spoke just quietly enough to not wake up his younger siblings sleeping in the other room, but he couldn’t contain his excitement. How could he? It was the most important battle he’d ever had, he’d spent hours training and strategising, and he was sure Shu had, as well. Probably even more than he had.

But was this really the end? Either him or Shu had to win the finals, and after that, it would be over. Sure, he liked it, but he had gotten everything he wanted from the National Tournament. The idea that it would all just end in the blink of an eye…

Valt shook off the thought, and placed Valtryek back in its case, laying back down to sleep. Or at least, trying to sleep.

But was this really the end?

————

Shu glanced at Spryzen from where it sat on his desk. He had set it there to get in some last-minute practice early tomorrow before the match.

…

Quietly, he reached out to take it. It still looked flawless, courtesy of Wakiya’s repair job, but now just slightly battered from facing Luinor. The difference would be unnoticeable to anyone else, but Shu had battled with Spryzen for almost two years now.

“Just a few more hours, huh?” Shu mumbled to someone. Maybe Spryzen, maybe himself. He never stayed up this often—sleeping and waking up early on a schedule. But right now, even Shu was restless.

The night before his match with Lui Shirosagi, he had been uneasy, uncertain. Determined, sure, but terrified too. Scenarios of what could have happened in the battle played out in his mind over and over again, every single situation where Spryzen burst just a second earlier than Luinor, and he lost everything.

He even wondered about what would have happened if Spryzen hadn’t been repaired. It would have broken, Shu thought. He shivered at the very thought of seeing Spryzen in pieces.

Tomorrow was even more important, it was the finals. Yet, he felt excited, not uneasy. He didn’t worry if he had done enough practice or if his strategies would work. No worst-case situations ran through his head. It wasn’t because Shu thought less of Valt, never.

Rather, he had become quite a lot like him tonight.

Staying up late, staring at his bey, talking to himself—and now, this carefreeness. Shu wanted to win, of course he did, yet he didn’t feel very opposed to the idea of losing. If he did, he’d take it, laugh, and say something about how he ‘needed to catch up with Valt now.’ Either way, he would be battling against his best friend, and that was enough.

“What am I doing?” Shu laughed quietly to himself, placing Spryzen back on his desk, and staring down at the floor. Usually, when he did this, he would start contemplating the next battle. Now he just realised how tired he was.

Turning off the light, Shu peacefully drifted off into sleep.

————

“H-ello, Beyfans! It’s the day you’ve all been waiting for, the National Tournament Finals! We’ve got an unprecedented match-up for you today—as for the first time in five years, Lui Shirosagi will not be competing in the finals!”

“He seriously didn’t even show up?” One of the Rideout members sitting next to Gabe scoffed to himself, looking for Lui somewhere in the stands.

Gabe sighed. “I’m sure he’ll be here… eventually. He showed up to watch Shu’s match with Shinki earlier in the Team Tournament. We just have to watch for now.”

“You give that guy way too much credit.”

…

“Al-right! Let’s not wait around anymore, and meet our Bladers for today’s Finals match!” Hanami announced, appearing just as cheerful as ever, though today more… excited? Perhaps it was just because it was the finals.

“In the Blue Corner, we’ve got last year’s runner-up, who just in his last match defeated the Lui Shirosagi! Against someone completely different, will he manage to get the title this year? Give it up for the Crimson Flame, Shu Kurenai!”

Shu laughed slightly as he walked onto the stage. Hanami played it up like this every year, yet today he didn’t mind it nearly as much. Not much annoyed him today, surprisingly.

“And… in the Red Corner, we’ve got a real shocker finalist. He wasn’t even in the big leagues last year, yet now he’s beaten two out of last year’s top four Bladers to get here. Will Valt Aoi be able to get his third victory against a Supreme Four Member?!”

“Hey! What kind of introduction is that!?”

Valt shouted up from the stage. Seriously, a real shocker? And wasn’t even in the big leagues last year!? Technically, he wasn’t, and it was quite a shock to the audience that he had gotten this far, but it still ticked him off. He didn’t realise that Hanami was trying to compliment him.

“Heh, good to know that being in the finals hasn’t gone to his head yet,” Rantaro commented from the front seats, now occupying where Valt would be. “Still our Valt.”

“I think it has, with how he’s shouting.” Wakiya replied, disapproving of Valt’s little outburst against his own introduction. After all, he didn’t get to be in the finals, and would have never even had the chance to be in the final match against Shu because of the bracket placement.

Daigo sighed from his seat. “You two just have to disagree, huh? Even on something random like this?”

Ken nodded, trying to gauge whether Rantaro and Wakiya were about to launch into another feud or if they could keep it down today.

“Hey! You guys stop talking so loud!” Toko cut through the BeyClub’s chatter, looking strangely frustrated right now. “Our big brother’s in the National Tournament Finals! This is a big deal!”

“Against Shu, too! It’s the best match-up ever!” Nika joined in, just as frustrated as her twin brother, but the excitement for the match hadn’t quite faded from her face yet.

“Since when did you guys become such big fans of Valt...?”

“He’s our big brother!” The twins said together, almost reaching Valt’s loudness combined. Almost. “Now shut it!”

…

“It’s finally here.” Shu said quietly, glancing around the entire arena—the packed stands, the glowing screen reading 0-0 for now, and everyone who had been in the tournament watching from their seats.

Except Lui, of course. Shu expected as much.

“Yeah, man!” Valt grinned, turning his best friend’s attention back to him. “Y’know, I still kinda can’t believe it’s actually happening. Someone’s gotta pinch me or somethin’!” He laughed, pinching himself instead. “But it is real! We’re actually in the finals against each other!”

“We sure are,” Shu smiled.

It did feel like a dream. Valt couldn’t even launch Valtryek properly a couple of months ago, and lost to everyone that he battled. But even back then, even in the District Tournament Finals, he had still managed to burst Spryzen, and he hadn’t been half-bad in his battle with Lui Shirosagi at the end of the Team Tournament.

Yet, though Valt’s blading prowess had improved immensely, and he had certainly matured from the experiences—he was still just as sincere as ever. At least one thing in Shu’s life stayed the same, no matter what happened.

“So,” Valt straightened up, or at least as much as he could, with how excited he was. “I know I lost last time but… I’m totally winning this time! I’m way better than our last battle!”

Shu blinked, then shot back a response just as quickly. “As if.”

“What’s that s’posed to mean!?” Valt replied back, voice rising again… though his voice was normally high, so it didn’t seem all that strange. “Oh, you’re going down!”

“We’ll see about that.”

“You—”

Hanami gasped from the announcing booth. “Is that trash talk I hear!? Hey, I was under the impression that both of our Bladers tonight were best friends! In fact, in the Team Tournament, both of them were on the same team!”

“Oh, we’re best friends, alright.” Shu looked up from the stage, talking to Hanami. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t bicker a little. Can’t let Wakiya and Rantaro handle all the arguments in the BeyClub now, can we?”

“Hey!” Now both of them were united in shouting, the very thing Wakiya was chastising Valt for. They could agree on one thing—that comment was uncalled for. “What was that for!?”

Valt giggled from his place on the stage, amused by both Wakiya and Rantaro’s offended expressions. “Oh, good one, Shu!”

“Great,” Daigo held his head in his hand. “Now they’re tag-teaming to make them even more mad.”

Ken frowned. “I hope they’re not actually angry. It was just a joke…”

Back in the announcer’s booth, Hanami nodded very seriously. “Oh! Well, that explains that, I guess!” He smiled, then quickly started talking again. “Wait! We’re stalling over here! Ref, don’t keep our audience waiting!”

The referee nodded once. Was he also listening to the banter…?

“Well,” Shu exhaled softly, turning back towards Valt. “This is it, then. Do your best to try to win, alright, Valt?”

Valt turned back just as fast, face returning to Beybattle Mode. “Oh, yeah? Don’t worry, I’ll definitely win! You can brag about beating Luinor all you want, but I’m winning the tournament! You’ll just have to come back next year!”

“You come back next year.”

“What? No, you will!”

“No, you will!”

Toko and Nika cut in just as Valt was certainly about to respond with a scathing remark of his own, maybe something like ‘well, you lost last year!’ and Shu would shoot back with something along the lines of ‘you weren’t even there last year!’

“Knock it off! Just battle already!”

————

Shu had battled in this arena plenty of times by now. Not just in this tournament, but last year and the Team Tournament, too. Though he was too focused on his own match-ups last year, Shu went out of his way to see all the battles this time. In the research he had done for his battle with Lui Shirosagi, he noticed that the National Tournament had been held in this arena for years.

Yet Shu was sure he had never seen or played in any battle quite like this.

Him and Valt had battled hundreds, maybe thousands of times, but something was different today. It couldn’t be the atmosphere, since this arena and this stadium was nothing new to either of them. Maybe it was just the anticipation for this day that had been building since the very start, or maybe it was just the fact that he no longer had to worry about winning or losing.

Click.

“Victory Valtryek with a Burst Finish. Two points go to Valt.”

Valt laughed from the other side of the stadium, mumbling a little ‘oh yeah!’ to himself as he picked up Valtryek. “Let’s go, Valtryek!”

“Hm?” Valt tilted his head slightly. “Hey, Shu! You’re doing that weird thing again! Snap out of it!”

“Huh? Oh…” Shu glanced down, spotting Spryzen’s three pieces scattered in the bey-dish. When had that happened? He swore he had just launched, and that no time had gone by at all. “What weird thing?”

“Y’know, your whole ‘zoning-out’ thing? You did it after beating Lui too.”

“Ah,” Shu laughed a little, picking up Spryzen. It had bursted, but it didn’t even register until he heard the click. He was getting lost in his own head. “Sorry about that. I was just… really into it, I guess.”

Valt blinked—then burst out laughing. “That’s a serious understatement! You looked totally absorbed. Don’t get too into it, alright? Or you might lose in a super embarrassing way.”

“Nah,” Shu replied without a second thought. “Not happening.”

“Big words for someone who's down two points right now, and didn’t even notice his own bey bursting! We’ll see about you winning!”

“Uh-huh,” Shu smiled, finishing assembling Spryzen with a satisfying click this time. “Don’t get too cocky, Valt. You got two points last time too, remember? And if I recall correctly—”

“Second battle!”

Valt sighed in relief. “Thanks, ref. He was gonna say some seriously wrong stuff there! Now we can get back to the actual fun part!”

“Sure.”

But Shu was glad to get back into the battle. As soon as he could hear both of the beys in the stadium, he simply went back into that strange trance—where he didn’t, couldn’t, think about anything else. He couldn’t even hear Valt call out whatever moves Valtryek was performing. In fact, Shu couldn’t even hear himself calling out his own moves. He just did it, without thinking about it.

Is this weird ‘trance’ what Valt felt during any other battle?

Shu had noticed it since their first battle after he had gotten Spryzen. Valt couldn’t hear any advice or comments he said while their beys were in the stadium. He just retreated into some heaven where all he could think of was how much fun he was having.

“I’m having so much fun right now!”

Yeah. That’s what this was. It wasn’t that it was in the finals or that they had planned this for weeks, or that he had just defeated Lui Shirosagi. Shu had just stopped caring about whether he would win or lose. He didn’t like both outcomes, in fact, because if either him or Valt won, that would mean the battle would end.

Click.

“Storm Spryzen with a Burst Finish. The score is now 2-2.”

“Huh—” Valt gasped slightly as Valtryek burst on impact, though anyone watching could tell that he couldn’t be bothered. Nothing could make him mad right now, not even losing points. “Awh, man! This really is just like last time!”

“See? I told you,” Shu remarked, watching Valt pick up Valtryek’s pieces. Though, he also wanted to keep going, because he had figured it out now. What made Valt so obsessed with this kind of battle. Because it was so much fun.

“Hey, Valt?”

“Hm?” Valt looked up from his launcher. “What’s up?”

“This is pretty fun.”

Valt paused, almost dropping Valtryek in the process—before the biggest grin appeared on his face. “Yeah! This is super fun! Y’know, I almost don’t want it to end! How about we just keep going, like, until we just can’t anymore?”

“I mean,” Shu shrugged. “Why not?”

“Hey, no! That isn’t a good idea at all! For anyone!” Hanami shouted into the mic, sounding sincerely worried. “No matter how epic the battle is, that’s definitely gonna make you exhausted! Plus, this arena isn’t just free for you to use.”

“Hmph,” Valt pouted towards the screen where Hanami’s booth was displayed. “Killjoy.”

“I am not!” Hanami replied, still shouting into the mic, not realising that his voice was already loud enough to hear. “A-Anyway! The score is now tied 2-2! If either of these Bladers get even a single point, they’ll be our new National Tournament Champion! It's anyone’s game now! That is, hoping they don’t actually go through with their plan of stalling…”

“Third battle!”

Shu wasn’t actually considering tying on purpose to draw out the battle—it wouldn’t be any fun if they played poorly just to stay there a little longer. He would much rather have it end naturally than go on artificially. But it did seem fun to mess with the audience a little.

…

Click. Click.

“Simultaneous Burst Finish. No points are awarded. The score remains at 2-2.”

“They’re not serious, right…?” Rantaro mumbled to Daigo who was sitting beside him. “Like, yeah, this is seriously epic, but I don’t think it’ll stay that way if they just keep tying for no reason! And I’ve got a test tomorrow, I can’t stay here forever!”

“They probably just tied on accident, Rantaro. Even if Valt wanted to do something like that, I think Shu’s sensible enough to know it’s a bad idea and not go along with it. Then, there’s no shot of them keeping this going for too long.”

“Sensible enough?!” Wakiya chimed in, choosing to disagree with Daigo this time—at least, he had originality. “Did you see how those two were bickering earlier? I think Valt’s brought Shu down to his level. I kinda expected more from him, but I guess that’s just what happens when Valt’s your best friend.”

“You’re one to talk about bickering, Wakiya.” Ken mumbled quietly. “I think they were just having fun. No big deal, right?”

“Well,” Daigo joined in. Neither him nor Ken were one to incite an argument, but Wakiya had to know how he sounded when he tried to say anything about ‘mindless bickering.’ “At least there’s someone still sensible around here.”

“H-Hey! This isn’t funny, alright? You can’t actually keep tying on purpose! That would be such a boring final battle!” Hanami insisted.

“It was just a joke, man,” Valt grinned at the screen again. “Okay, this next battle’s real, got that, Shu? That was just a trial round.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“But I wasn’t joking back there, y’know? It would be so cool if this could just never end!”

Never end? Yeah, maybe that would be pretty fun. Shu hadn’t really planned what he was gonna do after this battle—whether he won or lost. Maybe he would take a break for a bit, maybe he wouldn’t. If this battle never ended, he wouldn’t have to think about that, either.

————

Valt would have done anything to make sure that it really didn’t end.

He had never cared about the end result of any battle, and this wasn’t any different—but that thought from last night still kept creeping up in the seconds in-between the rounds. The National Tournament had been unreachable last year, and after this battle? It would be over.

Right now, it was perfect. It was the most fun Valt ever had in a match, but it could all be over as soon as either Valtryek or Spryzen stopped spinning. Of course, he could battle Shu again and again, but would it ever be like this again?

But was this really the end?

Valt shook his head slightly. What was he even thinking about? He was in the National Tournament Finals. Against his best friend. There was nothing to complain about here. So why did he even care?

It felt weird. Valt never thought about anything during beybattles. He just went with the flow and did what he wanted to do. Strategy was secondary to how much fun he could be having if he wasn’t thinking about anything too seriously—he would just not care.

Yeah, he just had to have fun. And it wasn’t very hard right now. He couldn’t predict anything that was gonna happen, anything that Spryzen might do. Or maybe he could, and just didn’t want to. It was more exciting that way. He just needed to stop—

Click.

Valtryek shot out of the stadium and landed in three pieces on the ground. The impact sent Spryzen flying too, but it was over. There wasn’t any debate that could be made on which bey stopped spinning first. It was just… over. Just like last time.

“Storm Spryzen with a Burst Finish,” the referee called out in the silence of the arena. “Shu Kurenai wins with a score of 4-2.”

…

“And he’s done it again! Just like his legendary defeat of Lui Shirosagi in the semi-finals, Shu has won the entire National Tournament with two Burst Finishes in a row! It seems last year’s runner-up wasn’t lying when he said that Valt and Valtryek will have to come back for the title next year!”

“I told you,” Shu laughed quietly, then glanced at Spryzen in his hand. He had done it again, huh? He really had. Last year, he went back with a scar on his eye. Seems like Valt wasn’t the only one who had improved significantly.

“I’m not cryin’... there’s just someone cutting onions over here,” Rantaro sniffled, trying to hide his tears with his hands. It wasn’t working very well.

“No one even said that you were crying!”

“Wakiya, just let him,” Daigo muttered. “It’s a big deal. No need to get so bothered about that right now. But you’re definitely crying, Rantaro.”

“You really didn’t need to add that last part.” Ken added, though he was still staring in awe at the stage. “They really are amazing…”

“Awh! Valt lost!” Toko flopped back onto his seat from where he had been standing up during the last round.

“But Shu was so cool! I think Valt will be okay…” Nika reassured him, also looking disappointed herself. “It would’ve been even cooler if Valt won, though.”

Shu chuckled to himself watching his friends chatter in the stands—Rantaro’s insistence that he ‘was totally not crying!’ Wakiya making sure to correct him every time even as he stole glances at the stage, Daigo trying his best to calm them down, and Ken just lost in the middle of it.

“Same old.” Shu smiled before turning to Valt. Huh. He hadn’t moved at all, or even said anything. Shu expected at least an “awh, man!” or something, but he seemed to be stuck in that same weird trance from earlier.

“Hey,” Shu walked over to him, pushing him just enough to snap him out of it. “Now you’re being weird. You know it’s over, right?”

It’s over?

…It’s over.

“Huh? Oh…” Valt blinked, looking up at the screen to see who had won. It now showed Shu’s picture above the word ‘WINNER.’ “Oh, I guess I lost, huh? And the battle went basically the same as before… Well, no big deal! That was seriously awesome!”

“Yeah,” Shu agreed. Valt was still Valt, even after everything. “Seriously awesome.”

“Now you’re just makin’ fun of me,” Valt frowned. “Well, whatever! It was really fun, y’know? And you’re National Champion now! That means—”

“Is that it!?”

Shu stopped in his tracks, immediately looking towards the direction of that very familiar voice. Sure enough, Lui Shirosagi had entered the arena at some point during the match—and had the nerve to be yelling after it had finished.

“That wasn’t ‘awesome’ at all! That was seriously a joke! Is this really the kind of Grand Finale expected in the National Tournament now?” The Luinor Blader gritted his teeth from the very top of the stands where he stood. “If so, then I’m glad I wasn’t there! This was a total fluke!”

Just then, he pointed straight at Valt. “And you! What kind of performance was that? I thought you were maybe a half-worthy opponent, but you’re nothing but a fraud! How can you lose to someone the same exact way twice!?”

He turned his attention to Shu, who was waiting for Lui to finish his tirade before saying anything. “You actually consider this guy your best rival? It’s all a big joke! That whole battle was a complete disaster!”

Valt swallowed. He had—lost the same way he did in the District Tournament Finals. He knew Lui just spoke like that, but something in those words got to him. Lui Shirosagi always got to him, no matter how much Shu told him that he should just ignore it.

“Complete disaster?” Shu scoffed. “You didn’t make it to the finals, so you really don’t have any ground to stand on here. If you wanted it to be a real finale, then you could have won and been here yourself.”

“Tch, I don’t even have the time to argue with you right now,” Lui turned to leave, still with that frustrated expression. “But, Kurenai? Consider getting some better and actually talented friends next time. And then maybe you won’t embarrass yourself.”

Better friends? What did Lui Shirosagi even know about friendship? If Shu was any less reasonable, he would’ve chased after him and defeated him again just for good measure. “So much for sportsmanship,” Shu sighed, and then turned back to Valt. “You don’t actually believe anything that guy says, right?”

“Nah, ‘course not.”

“You’re not just saying that?”

“Nah, man!” Valt replied just a little too quickly this time. “Why would I let someone like that guy get to me?”

Shu stayed silent for a moment before sighing.

“Whatever you say.”

————

“Lui...” Gabe called out to him one last time before one of the Rideout members tapped on his shoulder. “I know, but—”

“Just give it up, man. Why are you even friends with someone like that? And he’s definitely wrong, too. That battle was great.”

“He probably doesn’t actually think it was a fluke,” Gabe insisted, looking at the door where Lui disappeared one last time before settling back on his own seat. “He’s just mad that he wasn’t there to battle.”

“So? That doesn’t make it any better. Honestly, that makes it worse. He can’t even take a loss with grace, he’s not suited to be in any kind of team at all. What kind of person yells like that?”

“Yeah, I know he’s… not agreeable sometimes. That’s just the kinda person he is.” Gabe looked at the blue screen, which showed someone other than Lui Shirosagi's face for the first time in five years. “I was hoping—”

“You’ve got to stop hoping, Gabe. There’s no hope for him.”

“What?”

Gabe jolted up in place. Lui wasn’t even close to likeable, but he still believed that there was a chance for him to grow up and mature. He’d hoped Valt or Shu would’ve shown him that his kind of attitude towards other competitors wasn’t okay, but it hadn’t done anything to help.

“I meant it. You give him way too many chances, and everyone in Rideout is sick of it!” Gabe grew worried as he saw practically all of the Rideout members nod in agreement at the sentiment.

“After that? I think I’d rather quit Rideout altogether.”

“Quit?” Gabe swallowed hard. No, not like this. This entire year had been terrible for Rideout, yes, with their ace member being defeated, but he thought that he could at least save the team somehow. “But—”

“I don’t care about getting stronger or whatever. I can do that in any team. In fact,” Gabe saw his teammate point to Valt on the stage. “That kid’s not even close to Lui’s level, but he can take defeat. And he can actually show up for his team. I’d much rather have a teammate like that than have Lui.”

Gabe had to admit that he was correct, in some way. Lui had power and talent, but that was the extent of it. It was Gabe who trained with Rideout, not him, after all. Lui was just their ace in tough situations, and he was no good at teaching or advising. He didn’t even show up to most of his own team’s matches.

Valt was much better than him in that way. He wasn’t talented or a genius, but he could take criticism in stride. With enough time, he could certainly be a legend in his own right—and Lui Shirosagi’s ‘undefeated’ story had just ended.

“You gotta admit it, Gabe. Rideout’s nothing without Lui ‘cause he doesn’t let any of us get better. You’re part of that too. You heard what he said to Shinki back in the Team Tournament. If you know what’s good for you, then you’ll decide to leave too.”

One by one, Gabe’s teammates stood up and left, some apologising, others just telling him that he should go with them. They all did leave, regardless.

“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll decide to leave too.”

————

“I still can’t believe it’s over, Valtryek.”

Valt mumbled, holding his bey up to his face. He had started to stay up more often since Shu beat his arch-nemesis. Maybe that was making him wake up late too—he always did wake up late, so no one really suspected that anything had changed.

It had been around a week since the National Tournament Finals, and his school break started soon, but it still replayed in his mind over and over again. Valt wouldn’t forget about that battle for as long as he lived, that was for sure. He had been in ‘the big leagues’ for a while now, but that moment Valtryek burst in the final round was when he realised it.

He couldn’t just keep being so carefree anymore.

Valt had, somehow, gotten to the final match of an event like that, yet even he could tell that something was wrong. Did he really deserve to be on that final stage? He had won fair and square, sure, but he had only won once. Everyone else in that tournament had worked tooth-and-nail for their spot.

Wakiya didn’t show it, but Valt could tell that he was frustrated about not being able to blade in the finals after all his hard work. Ken was too sweet to say anything about how he had lost to Lui either, but he felt terrible about it. Every member of the BeyClub worked to try to reach that position, yet he was the one that got there.

Valt still treated Beyblade like a hobby, just something he did because it was fun—but he could still battle in the finals of that tournament? Daigo, Wakiya, Rantaro, and Ken were far more dedicated than him, and Shu was on a whole other level of ‘hardworking.’ That was probably why he won, both against Valt and the undefeated Lui Shirosagi.

“But Kurenai? Consider getting some better and actually talented friends next time. And then maybe you won’t embarrass yourself.”

A fraud, that was what Lui had called him, anyway, and Valt found it hard to argue with. It had just been luck that he managed to win all those battles, seeing as he wasn’t able to win either of the finals he qualified for.

Last year, Valt had seen how much Shu cared about the sport. The moment he got into the National Tournament, there wasn’t a day where Shu didn’t exhaust himself with training. No matter if it was the first match or the very last, he treated every battle with the same amount of respect.

“Man, I wish I could be like that,” Valt sighed, turning Valtryek around in his hand, noticing all the little details in its design. “Hey, do you think if Shu had you instead of Spryzen, he would still be that good at blading?”

…

“Of course he would.” Valt chuckled slightly, but he wasn’t very amused—he knew well enough just how talented his best friend was.

It wasn’t jealousy, exactly. To be jealous of Shu, Valt would need to dislike him, and that was impossible. It was closer to a quiet anxiety that he would never actually ‘catch up.’ After all, Shu had been better than him at everything ever since childhood, before either had a Beyblade.

Valt paused for a second. He had heard from Shu that he had multiple emails from international teams wanting to join them. It wasn’t surprising, he had beaten Lui Shirosagi. In a jolt, Valt got up from his bed and turned on his computer.

Click. Tap. Tap.

“Awh, man… no dice.” Valt sighed, picking up Valtryek again. He hadn’t gotten any requests, and while he didn’t expect to get even half as many as Shu had, at least one would’ve been nice. “No… I can’t keep complaining like this, y’know?”

Quickly, Valt had opened up a page listing the most well-known international teams on the scene. If he couldn’t get into any, then he’d help Shu decide on a team to join, that was the least he could do, both as his best friend and currently, team captain.

…

After what had to be at least a good two hours of research, Valt found that there were only really two teams that were worth going to: BC Sol from Spain, and the Raging Bulls from America. All the others were just worse compared to those two.

BC Sol had long been considered the best international club in the entire circuit, and for one very good reason: Free de la Hoya. He was the number-one ranked Blader in the world, even better than Lui. He was no less than a legend at the sport, and while Shirosagi had five consecutive wins in the Nationals, Free had stayed at the top rank for six years now, longer than either Valt or Shu had been blading in general.

But there was little information about the rest of the team, and from forums online, Valt realised that there BC Sol had been struggling to have Bladers that match up to Free’s skill, and many agreed that he was the only reason the team was successful at all.

On the other hand, The Raging Bulls had no standout Blader, but had consistent wins for years, and each member of the team had some kind of renown or genuine skill. Though they hadn’t managed to win an International Tournament yet, everyone agreed—if anyone was going to defeat BC Sol, it would be them.

But their constant ranking at second-place rather than first, and how none of their members had managed to gain fame as individual Bladers yet was a concern. Valt also found rumours about some kind of ‘secret operation’ that they were conducting, but he didn’t really pay much mind to it, just the idea creeped him out.

Both teams were exceptional, and Shu would definitely have gotten a request from both, but Valt couldn’t make up his mind on which one would be better for him. BC Sol had the talent, but the Raging Bulls had the consistency. If he had to pick—

Do you really just want to stand on the sidelines?

Valt swore Valtryek said that, yet the sound went away as quickly as it came. Do I just want to stand by and watch? No, he thought. He didn’t want to just stay here while Shu and probably the others too advanced in Beyblade.

“You’re right, Valtryek. I don’t just wanna stand around,” Valt agreed. “Y’know what? When that school break party happens, I’ll tell Shu about both teams, and whichever one he doesn’t wanna go to, I’ll try out for.”

Valtryek must have done something to show its approval, because Valt turned off his computer and went to sleep quite quickly after that.

————

“You wanted to talk with me?” Shu mumbled, stepping towards where Valt was sitting. It was the park where they had battled first, and now both of them had battled in the finals of the Nationals. They really had come far.

“Yeah!” Valt perked up, patting on the space beside him, still looking ecstatic after eating all that spaghetti that the entire BeyClub made Shu make multiple times.

“So,” Shu sat down beside him. “What is it? You’re not gonna get bored in school break, are you?” That was a stupid question, of course Valt would be bored out of his mind if he couldn’t see his friends every day.

“No! I mean, yeah, I guess—but that’s not what I wanted to talk about!” Valt pouted, but his face turned strangely serious all of a sudden. “So… you said you got a bunch of requests from all those big international teams, right?”

Shu blinked. He had mentioned that as a joke in class, but those requests stayed at the back of his mind. Whether he wanted to leave Japan or not, whether he wanted to leave his friends in the BeyClub or not.

“What about that?”

Valt looked away for a second before returning, face turning the slightest bit sheepish. “Well… I kinda spent hours researching stuff about those teams this one night. I wanted to help you decide on one!”

“Decide on one?”

Somehow, Valt had decided for him that Shu would be going to any of these teams at all. He wanted to go further with Beyblade, of course, but he certainly didn’t expect Valt to be so eager to help him pick a team out. He hadn’t really thought of any team in particular—for the first time, Valt had done something responsible.

“Yeah! But, like, there’s only really two that are even worth it,” Valt admitted quietly. “There’s BC Sol, that’s in Spain, and then the Raging Bulls, and that’s in America. You heard of ‘em?”

“A little.” Shu hadn’t heard much of the American team, but he recognised BC Sol as the team that the number-one ranked Blader was on. If they matched up to that team, then he figured they must be good. “But not much, tell me.”

“Well,” Valt’s expression turned excited, like he had been waiting to tell him all about the things he had discovered about the teams. “BC Sol’s got that Free guy, you probably know him, he’s crazy good! They’ve been winning international tournaments for ages now! Apparently, they've got a history of it!”

“But…” Valt looked away slightly. “Tons of people are sayin’ that they’ve lost their groove these days, y’know? And not many of their Bladers besides Free are all that talented.”

Shu nodded along to the explanation. He had seen some of Free and Fafnir’s battles, specifically the ones he had against Luinor’s owner. Lui was powerful, but De La Hoya was a completely different kind of talented. Technically, he should be Shu’s next prospect to beat.

“Then there’s the Raging Bulls! They haven’t got any big shots like Free, but they’ve really been on the rise lately. I think they’re expected to win against BC Sol in the next International Team Tournament, or somethin’? They’re definitely consistent!”

This team was new to Shu. Blading had just gotten popular in America recently, so plenty of new teams had started propping up left and right. It was hard to keep up with. But the idea that they might end BC Sol’s reign was a hard feat to beat.

“But…” Valt sighed. “They’ve kinda been stuck at second place for a while, and apparently they’re doing some weird top-secret creepy stuff that no one knows about. It’s just rumours, but I thought I should tell ‘ya.”

“...So?” Valt said after a small pause. “Which one do you wanna go for?”

Shu thought about it for a moment. Did Valt really expect him to decide right now? He had gotten those emails a long time ago, so maybe his best friend expected that he had already done research of his own. It was in his character, after all.

“Well,” Shu said. “Why not just decide at random? Both seem pretty equal to me.”

…

“At random?” Valt sounded genuinely shocked. “Who are you and what have you done to my best friend? Since when do you leave stuff up to chance like this, Shu?”

“I guess I’ve just gotten more carefree lately.”

“You can say that again…” Valt mumbled, pulling out a coin from his pocket. “Well, if that’s what you want. If it ends up on heads, you’ll go to BC Sol, and if it’s tails, then the Raging Bulls. Cool?”

“Yeah,” Shu smiled. It was unlike him, for sure, but he’d rather not keep overthinking it. “Cool.”

“Alright. Here goes.”

Clink.

“It’s heads.” Valt gasped, as though there was any other possibility for a coin flip other than heads or tails. “You’re going to Spain, then?’

“Why not?” Shu laughed slightly. He believed in his skills enough to be sure that he could make it into either club. Plus, that meant he could battle against the Free De La Hoya.

“Though, why’d you spend so long researching just for me?” Shu asked. It was the question he really wanted to ask since the conversation started, but then Valt started rambling on about the teams and he’d forgotten to ask.

“O-Oh, that? Well, you see…” Valt frowned a little, that serious expression returning. “I didn’t get any of those request thingys.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. They would have really been better if—”

“No, don’t be sorry for me!” Valt cut him off all of a sudden. “I… I figured I should start being more serious about this stuff, y’know? You train so hard and I kinda just… exist. So, I thought, that I’d have you pick a team, and I’ll try out for the team you didn’t go for.”

Huh. Shu knew that Valt was serious about Beyblade, he had started before him, in fact, and he talked about how cool it was way before he even got a bey. But tonight, he seemed much more… intense about it.

“Serious, huh? Well, I didn’t expect you to just stand by and watch, anyway.” For some reason, Valt flinched when he said that. Shu shrugged it off and continued. “But why the other team? Sick of me already?”

“No! Why would you even suggest that?!” Valt replied suddenly, making Shu chuckle a small ‘sorry’. “Anyway, if we’re on different teams, then we can battle in the Team Tournament, right? And both BC Sol and the Raging Bulls are top teams, so they’ll totally make it to the finals!”

The finals, huh?

Shu had to admit that the idea of having the battle they had at the end of the National Tournament again, but this time on the world stage sounded quite enticing. It didn’t surprise him that Valt thought about it that fast.

“Huh. You’re right,” Shu paused, then smiled again. “I expect you to get into that American team, then.”

“Oh, I will!” Valt insisted, falling back on his usual cheery voice. “And then we’ll both be in the finals of the International Tournament! Deal?”

“Yeah,” Shu nodded. “Deal.”

“I’ll hold you to that promise!”