The game of chess was both an entertaining event but also one of extremes strategies and overall insanity. It could be so easy to lose, yet just as easy to win. Something you were all too accustomed with. You had been playing chess for years, ever since you were a little kid. And now, you still played it. Hell, you just got better with time and peaked in high school. You were setting up a board with Height's Alliance courtyard, just to have some practice games. You wanted to work out new strategies that you deemed were hypothetical and possible counters to them.
Once you were done with the initial setup, you opened up your laptop and pulled open a few videos of older strategies you had mastered. Your hope was to combine them all into something lovely. As you were setting up, you heard a few footsteps approach you. You glanced up and saw Tokage, your classmate, walk into the courtyard. She had walked up to your chess set and looked it over.
Tokage: Hey (Y/N). What's going on here?
(Y/N): Not much. Jus testing up for a lesson.
Tokage: Who's it for?
(Y/N): Myself. Trying to build up new strategies for chess. Seeing what sticks and what won't.
Tokage: Sounds like fun. Never really got into chess.
(Y/N): I could teach you sometime. Assuming you would want to that is.
Tokage: Sure, I'm game.
You smiled a bit as she sat down opposite you. You closed your laptop and turned to face her. And thus, the game began. You made some basic opening moves, with Tokage doing her best to counter them. She was a highly intelligent girl, but when it came to chess, she still had a lot to learn. Mind you, she knew about piece movement and countering, but compared to you, she was a novice. You moved some more pieces rather quickly and Tokage did her best to keep up. Eventually, the central slaughter began with you taking the first few pieces. Afterward, the game quickly fell into your favor with the mid-game match-ups and captures.
You held total control of the center, castled to get your king to safety, and truly began to dominate the field. If you had to be honest, it was a little overkill for you to do all this to a novice when it came to the game of chess. Still, you knew Tokage. And she hated being talked down to.
So, when the endgame began, it was a slaughterhouse. You were easily able to take down her king and get her into checkmate. You smiled a bit when you claimed victory. Tokage looked the game board over and was a bit in shock. She looked back up to you and was a bit shocked some more. She closed her mouth and laughed a little. She smiled at you and watched you chuckle a little.
Tokage: So then, care to teach me some of those strategies?
(Y/N): Don't see why not. Now, the first thing you need to know about is castling.
Tokage leaned in as you continued to teach her the game of chess. The game was simple enough as it could be. Plus, you didn't need to waste time on how each pieced move or otherwise. And like everything Tokage did, she quickly began to excel at it. She was able to have a good opening game, able to castle pretty quickly, and got her to hold on to things.
The midgame was a bit more brutal. Again, the center proved to be a slaughter and she quickly lost her hold on it. You moved out and developed your rooks and got her slowly pinned down. A couple of trades this time around and soon enough, it was once again Tokage hanging on by a thread. One leapfrog checkmate later and the game was yours. Tokage leaned back in her seat and looked over the board.
You smiled a bit and began to take the pieces and set them back up into starting positions. After a while, you looked up and saw Tokage looking at you with a bit of a glare. You didn't know what else to say and just looked at her in total fear. She smirked a little and leaned forward and smiled.
Tokage: Teach me endgame.
(Y/N): You're not upset?
Tokage: Oh I am. But I want to beat you fair and square.
You slowly began to smirk as you went over the basic premise of endgame and how to properly either draw out a stalemate or get your opponent into an easy checkmate.
After about an hour of teaching, you both called it a day there and retreated back to the dorms for a good night's rest. This trend would continue for some time. You would go to class, have some fun in training, return to your dorm room, do your work and then meet up with Tokage after evening training to play some chess. You had to admit, she was getting better with time. Hell, she was doing some impressive moves in early and midgame, clearly showing she was doing her own outside research on counter strategies to yourself.
Luckily for you though, and unfortunately for her, you were also doing your own outside practice for chess. You still worked on your new strats in order to throw her off her game every so often.
And honestly, it was kinda fun to see her struggle. Of course, to make up for this fact, she would whoop your butt in combat practice. But hey, that was no big deal. You were beating one of the top 3 in your class in a game of wits. How impressive was that! So, you continue to one-up her in chess time after time, clearly showing her that you were holding back most of the time you two played. It got to the point where most of the other members of Class 1-B would witness some of the game. Of course, it was mainly only Ibara, Kendo, and Shishida.
Still, after a few weeks of working, you had beaten Tokage every single time. So, you got a knock on your door and opened it to see her standing there.
Tokage: Ready?
(Y/N): Ready. Don't get too cocky by the way.
Tokage: I won't. Watch me.
You rolled your eyes and smiled a bit before grabbing your set. You walked to the courtyard, sat down, set up the board, and went at it. Opening was pretty standard. Pawn to e4, pawn e5, Knight developed out to f3, so forth, and so on. The game was pretty standard up until the end of the midgame. Your pawn structure made it so that no matter where Tokage would move around the center, something of her's would be lost.
However, the sides were completely left open. An overlooked factor. Something Tokage used to her advantage. She had a fresh rook developed and moved to the side. In a quick strike, you lost your bishop keeping her king pinned down. You quickly retaliated and took her rook. She then took your knight with her own and the slaughter began. She used the cover to advance a pawn and break up your structure.
You were a bit taken aback by the action. Still, you adapted the best you could and began to play into your strengths. You countered a bit, brought out the Queen, and moved in for a killing blow. However, Tokage was able to also develop her Queen and chased yours around the board a little to give her time to move up some more pieces. Eventually, you tried to counter the best you could, but it was no match. In a few short moves, Tokage had claimed checkmate.
She offered you her hand and you took it and smiled at her.
Tokage: Good game.
(Y/N): Indeed it was. Bravo. It only took you 42 games to beat me.
Tokage: So close.
(Y/N): Not even close at all.
Tokage: (Sarcastic) Ha ha! (Talking normally) Thanks. And...thanks for teaching me. This was a lot of fun.
(Y/N): It was. I haven't had anyone to play chess with since coming here full time.
Tokage: Well, you got someone now. And I'm sure Nezu would love to play a few games too.
You smiled up at her. It was worth the sacrificed loss.
