HEEEEEY BIASHES! Okay, check this out. Its FINISHED. I know, right? All the chapters, there, all together. Anyways, have fun, and I'll have a surprising note for you all at the end!

Ryoma: Che. I can't see why we can't tell them now.

Me: Because we can't. It'll ruin the surprise.

Kirihara: I agree with Ryoma.

Ryoma: Don't call me by my first name.

Yukimura: I also agree with them.

Momo: Me too. HEY, EVERYONE! THE SURPRISE IS THAT MA-

Me: -hiding Momo's body behind a nearby... Thing. That has other bodies- Hm? Oh. Where'd Momo go? What were we talking about?

Everyone: O.O Nothing.

Me: Oh. Okay then. Anyways, do the bit now.

Akutsu: Tch. Maci says that... -looking down at little paper- She in no way owns us or the world. Pft. As if we needed to tell them that.

Me: Hey! Stick to the script!

Jiroh: Aren't you supposed to call her with -chan? Hmm? Hmmmmm?

Me: Shut up! Just... Hah... Read and review, please. -knocks everyone out with an air of exaustion and drags them behind the... thing, collapsing on top of their bodies.-

Ryoma sat silently, a smile still dancing on his face as he and his friends celebrated their win at Nationals. They'd gone to Kawamura Sushi, and he was having a good time with them.

That is, he had been, until Tezuka had said that they had something to tell him. Everyone stopped talking, their faces changing from glee to something else. Some were looking guilty, like they were regretting something. But that regret was mixed with something that was abundant on the faces of others: gleeful relief.

The freshman had a sinking feeling in his stomach at this.

Then Tezuka spoke. "Echizen. We've won the Nationals, so there is now no longer any reason for you to remain on this team, or for us to pretend we like you. We'd like you to resign from the team. In short, we've been using you."

Ryoma's smile was gone. In fact, his face was devoid of all emotions, even his usual cocky smirk. Only his eyes showed emotion, but it was a frozen, icy one. His voice was cold when he spoke, "I know."

Ignoring the surprising reaction, Tezuka continued. "Then you know that it's a good idea to resign from the team?"

The boy nodded, standing and grabbing his tennis bag. "I've been wondering when this would happen." And he had. He hadn't known exactly what would happen, but things had been going far too good for far too long. And he was done. He blinked rapidly when his back was turned, collecting himself. No tears would be shed over this.

The prodigy walked over to the door, surveying his team's faces. Tezuka and Fuji were clearly overjoyed that they'd gotten rid of him, though everyone else still seemed to have a small amount of guilt over their actions. This guilt only increased when he spoke again, smirking, but his words lacking their usual condescending bite, "Congratulations, sempai-tachi. Smile, you won Nationals, after all." His voice cracked almost imperceptibly at the end, and six of the faces were stricken.

The boy pushed out of the restaurant, bumping into a person who was standing just outside of it, shocked at what had transpired. He pushed the person into the shadows, pressing his tennis bag into their hands. "Take good care of that for me, ne?" It was an impulsive decision, but he patted the boy on the shoulder as he walked away.

And he was gone.