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"Sometimes the place you are used to is not the place you belong"

                                                              - from the film, The Queen of Katwe - 

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Joining the Raging Bulls was his own decision. He wanted fresh paths, new challenges, and ways to get stronger. That's what he always looked for. A chance to be better, a chance to learn. He bid farewell to his friends and got to his airplane, which was about to set course across the world to America. As he walked inside, his mind wandered around. His anxiety to meet new people made him doubt his own decision. He had never been a merry go lucky kid like his best friends Valt. He was rather quiet with meeting new people. Going to a completely new place, all alone with no one by his side, itself was a major challenge to the Spryzen holder, Kurenai Shu. Shu took his seat inside the plane quietly. Beside him was another guy, already snoring in his sleep. Thankfully for Shu, he got the chance to book a seat near the window which he was immensely thankful for. He sat down on his seat as quietly as possible, making sure he won't wake up the guy beside him. Social interaction was a no no to him. He'd rather enjoy the plane ride with complete silence, listening to music, or reading something. He looked outside as the plane took off. A nostalgic emotion rushing through as he realized he was leaving the home he had known for his entire life. A place he was familiar with. He was leaving his home to find other opportunities, to find more things to experience. The guy beside him snorted, turning around. Shu just gave another glance as he buried himself in the world of music and his thoughts. The silence was calm and eerie. He enjoyed it, a time for himself before he felt someone tapping on his shoulder, making him look at the person beside him.

Somehow the guy was awake. He was staring at him with a big friendly grin, which Shu's mind immediately responded. 'Oh no'. He gave the guy a small smile, taking off one of his earbuds to listen to what he was saying. "Yo!" The guy grinned. His brilliant blue eyes shone in a friendly manner.

Shu blinked, realizing that the guy was waiting for him to talk. Shu gave out a nervous smile as he spoke. ".. Hi"

Earlier, he didn't really pay any close attention to the person sitting beside him. But now he could see that the guy was indeed a foreigner. His Japanese accent sounded thick and different from the native speakers. His sharp jawline and his blonde hair swept to the side gave away his foreign accent. With quite a surprised sound, Shu realized the person looked around fifteen or sixteen."Sup dude!" He said in his weird accent again. "Sorry about my Japanese. I'm an American, so you know Japanese is quite tricky for me"

Shu nodded politely, accepting his apology. After all, he didn't have a good accent in English either. But his English knowledge was better because of their tempered teacher running after them to do their assignment on time. Not that Shu ever skipped an assignment after all. "It's fine" Shu answered, taking the other earbud off thinking that it would be rather rude to talk to him halfheartedly when the guy was obviously all going to this conversation.

"Leo Maxwell" He said, extending his hand to Shu with a goofy smile.

Shu took it and shook hands with him, accepting the polite gesture. "K-" He stopped, realizing the guy introduced himself in the westernized way. "Shu Kurenai is the name" He said with a smile. "Nice to meet you"

The guy obviously did a double take. "Uh... Shoe? Like in S-H-O-E?"

Shu flushed. He should've thought about this before. "No" He immediately replied. "It's S-H-U"

"Ooh" The guy passed him an apologetic smile. "Sorry for that."

Shu shook his head, "It's fine. Can happen anytime"

Leo leaned against his seat. "Are you leaving Japan for your studies?"

"No," Shu replied, not sure whether he should spill everything to the stranger he just found on the plane. But there's no harm in telling he's joining the Raging Bulls, he thought. "I'm a blader, I got an invitation from Raging Bulls."

That certainly took the interest of the other. "Whoa!Cool!" He said, genuinely surprised by Shu's revelation. "It's difficult to join the Raging Bulls, I've heard"

Shu shrugged with a small smile. "I guess. I was also quite surprised at first. Do you beyblade?"

The guy nodded, "But I'm just an ordinary blader. You know, just doing for fun and stuff. I'm more into Bikes and Gaming, anyway. But you must have some sick talent in that field. Honestly "

Shu smiled again. "I'm not that good. But I'm seeking ways to get better"

The rest of the ride was mostly just passing friendly comments and getting to know about each other. Shu got comfortable with the person. They passed much information about each other. Frankly, Shu had never been the type who enjoyed many video games. But in the bey club sleepovers he played quite a few with the other members, which often ended with him losing. Well, in his defense he was new to all this, and it turned out that Leo was a person who had dedicated his life to gaming. He talked enthusiastically about his wins in E-sport tournaments in America. According to him, he just came to visit his grandparents who moved to Japan two years ago, liking the culture and all. According to Leo, Japan was indeed an amazing country to visit. Shu mostly listened, just adding a few ideas here and there. In most of the conversations, it was like that. The other party speaks as Shu listens to them quietly. Because of his introverted nature, he had always been a good listener rather than a speaker.

'Not much of a speaker, are you?" Leo said. His hand smoothing his wrinkled jacket as he called to one of the staff asking for two glasses or orange juice.

Shu blinked, realizing that the guy ordered two juice glasses. The lady came with the glasses, which Leo accepted politely, handing one of them to a still surprised Shu. "Here You go"

Shu accepted the drink with a thank you. He wasn't sure why he always stumbled into a hyperactive guys who would go along with him just fine. "Answering your question," Shu said, taking a sip. "Yeah, I'm not an excellent speaker"

Leo chuckled, patting his shoulder. "It's fine. Besides, I'm can talk to both of us"

The eleven hour journey turned out longer. Shu slept for which it felt like four hours as Leo took out his hand phone and started playing a game which looked too complicated for Shu. Without even him knowing, his eyelids grew droopy as the Spryzen blader let out a soft breath, closing his eyes. When he woke up, they were almost there, closer to their destination. Shu rubbed his eyes and looked beside him to see Leo with an ear to ear grin. "Good morning, sleeping beauty"

Shu huffed, stretching his arms. "Did you even sleep? Ah, wait. You did before they took even the plane off to the sky"

This time it was Leo who huffed, reaching for his arm to pinch Shu's cheek. "Don't sass me young man"

"You're not that old," Shu complained with a small smile.

The plane arrived at their destination. The passengers got off one by one. Leo and Shu followed, all the adults close behind. They were the only kids with no parents. Shu inhaled deeply, taking in all the information in the gigantic airport. It was certainly different from Japan, and the massive buildings made Shu overwhelming regarding the fact that Beigoma had only WBBA building for a massive one. Leo guided him to take his suitcase. He was clearly familiar with this environment. The way he moved with familiarity made Shu realize Leo must've been to this airport quite several times. Shu took his black suitcase with a red stripe outlining the corners. "Thank you"

Leo nodded, his same goofy smile which Shu had grown familiar to by the hours playing on his lips. "Well then, it's time to part the ways. You go to Raging Bulls, I go home. We'll meet again. I can feel it"

Shu smiled, nodding along. "Let's hope that"

Shu watched as the mop of blonde hair disappeared in the crowd. A sudden feeling of loneliness capturing his heart. He wished for someone to be there with him, but he knew that was a hopeless cry. He looked around to spot a taxi driver waving at him to take his attention. Shu reminded himself that the Raging Bulls informed him they would pick him up from the airport. Letting out a relieved sigh, the albino walked toward the black car waiting by the road. "Shu Kurenai?" The driver asked. There was no welcoming smile on his face. His thin lips settled into a perfect line.

Shu nodded. "Yeah"

He took a step back and opened the door for him. Shu got in, uneasy settling inside his stomach. He clenched his fists to keep himself from shaking. Damn it, he is stronger than this. The man got in and started the vehicle driving away from the airport. After some time, Shu relaxed. The familiar silence relaxing him. The driver did not speak a word with him, much less smile as he kept his dark hues trained to the road in front of him. Must be a serious fellow, Shu thought, looking out of the blacked windows of the car. Gigantic buildings passing by, people rushing along the streets. It was the complete opposite of Beigoma, Shu thought, a nostalgia running over his mind. It hadn't been minutes since he visited, but he already missed home. He thought of his phone call to his parents, who worked in Tokyo. It had been a short one, like it was always, but Shu appreciated how they tried to cheer him up. They might not be around with him, but he knew his parents would help him walk along any path he chose. That's just how they were, since he was a child. The driver made a sharp turn and stopped in front of a massive glass building. From top to the bottom, the glass shone in the evening sunlight. Shu got out of the car and stood there for a second. Taking all the overwhelming feelings inside. The driver took his suitcase and gave it to another man who waited by the entrance. Unlike the driver, he wore a friendly smile. His dark hair mixed with gray strands perfectly brushed to the side, giving him a quite youthful look. He looked at Shu. "Nice to meet you Shu Kurenai, I will be your guide for the day. My name is Charles Anderson. Welcome to the Raging Bulls." He said offering his hand.

Shu returned the gesture with a polite smile. "Thank you!"

The man guided him through the maze of verandas. Few passing by trainees just gave him sharp looks. Shu breathed, trying to keep his mind away from the buzzing thoughts. Instead, he focused on the chandeliers and the other ornaments hanging from the walls. The entire building was artistic. One of the walls was decorated with pictures of their wins. There were fancy looking couches and big training rooms seen at each side. Shu blinked, watching as few trainees launched their beys with the familiar countdown. There was every kind of training, from muscle training to stamina, everything was there. Charles stopped in front of a transparent glass door. It automatically opened as the duo stepped into the office room of the manager. The room was enormous, like any other. But compared to the training rooms he passed, this one was obviously smaller than that. At the far corner of the room stood a fancy table with an office chair. On the table was a turned on a laptop with a white mug standing beside it. The rest of the room was fairly empty except for the two plants on either side of the entrance and the two cupboards standing in front of the right side of the wall. Inside the room was a man, he was facing the New York city lights from the long glass windows. From the behind, Shu guessed him to be a man in his late twenties. His arms were clasped behind his back as he stared at the stunning scenery in front of him. The evening light fading away, replaced by the black night coloured by colourful lights from all the buildings in front them.

"Sir" Charles called, "Shu Kurenai is here"

His heart pounded inside his chest when the man turned around. His teal eyes gazing at him, taking all his posture. Shu kept his silent stare at the man as he dismissed Charles. He walked to the table and sat down, gesturing to take a seat in front of him. Shu muttered a thank you and did as he's told. "Welcome to the Raging Bulls" He said, his voice stern with a hint of welcome.

Shu nodded, "Thank you, sir"

"I'm the manager of this place, name's Theodore Glass. I hope you will work hard and bring fame to our team. I heard about your hard work and amazing talent in this field. So I'm expecting so much from you."

Shu nodded, "Yeah"

"About your bey..." Theodore said, reaching one of his hands. Shu took out Spryzen, the bey disk split in halves. Just seeing it broken like this again only bought another sting to his heart. Theodore inspected it closer in his hands. "Seems like the battle with Lui Shirosagi was a heated one"

"Yeah" Shu nodded, "It was." He said, memories flashing inside his mind. That fateful battle. For the last moment, he thought he would win. He had solid trust in his hard work, but in the end he just stared at his bey to see it split into four pieces, crumbling alongside with his dreams and hopes. But Shu Kurenai is not a person who ever gave up, Shu thought to himself before he took this decision to come to America and join the Raging Bulls.

"You can go to the workshop in the basement tomorrow. Lucas, our mechanic, would be there. He'll help you repair your Spryzen"

Shu nodded. "Okay" A ping of happiness rising through his heart. He was happy to have Spryzen repaired again. He wanted to practice so badly.

Theodore smiled, "You nod along to everything. Take a rest"

Shu's face flushed, realizing that all he did was nod along. Nice first expression, Shu thought, closing his eyes for a second. Theodore rang a bell that stood on the table. Charles came inside again. "Lead him to his dorms"

Charles nodded. Shu stood up and bowed out of habit. Theodore cracked a smile at the albino again as he turned around and followed Charles. Shu quietly followed him. The corridors were quieter than before, there were fewer trainees around. All of them looked like they were just after a shower. Charles entered a hallway where identical doors stood on each side. The walls were coloured in a dull grey colour. Shu followed to the corner of the hallway. Charles knocked on one door. After a beat they could hear the lock turning, and the door opened revealing a boy who looked around sixteen. He took one of his earbuds off and raised his brow at Charles. "This is your new roommate, Shu Kurenai." Then he turned to Shu. "This is Ethan Carter," Shu inspected the boy. His blue eyes were dark, and it looked almost black except for the light hue of azure in his irises. Black hair settling on his shoulder with long bangs that his right eyes were almost invisible underneath the bangs. He was pale as Shu, but more tan than him. The dark bags under his eyes and the scowl on his lips played a big part of his appearance.

"Nice to meet you," Shu said, but the other person didn't reply. He just gave Shu a pointed look before giving him access to enter the room. Charles wished them goodnight, leaving them both behind. Shu could hear the quiet murmurs coming from the others who were watching them. He entered the room without a sound as Ethan instantly shut the door behind him. He didn't look like a person who would socialize much with the others. Shu looked around the room. It was quite spacious, with two beds standing in each corner. In between them was a single nightstand right under the medium-sized window with white window sills. Two closets stood in front of each bed. One on each side of the door. There was another white wooden door in the room's corner, which Shu guessed to be the bathroom. It had everything they wanted, Shu thoughts inspecting the room. His eyes moved to his roommate, who was lying on the bed. His tablet on his hand, earbuds in his ears as he completely ignored him. Well, it's for the best, Shu thought, walking to the other bed. He took out the things he needed to have a shower and walked to the room. The shower made him sleepy, and the exhaustion from the plane ride settling in his body. He stepped out from the bathroom, freshly clothed in his shorts and a t-shirt. Shu watched as Ethan glanced at him for a split second before focusing on his tablet again. Shu sat down on his bed, leaning against the headboard. It was going to be awkward. Shu thought, taking out his own phone. Few messages from his parents and his friends back at home were there. A smile crept his lips as he saw the group chat, active as always. But he was too exhausted to reply to all of them, the washed away exhaustion catching up with him. He laid down on the bed, pulling on the covers. His back facing the other male on the opposite bed. It didn't take him much time to fall asleep, and this night there were no nightmares of Luinor.