"Have you guys heard about that practice match between Hyotei and Rikkai Dai a while back?"
At Seigaku's Tennis Club, Inui, the club's strategist, asked his first-year teammates who hadn't made it to the regulars yet.
News of the Hyotei and Rikkai Dai practice match had spread far and wide. Not just Seigaku, but Kanto Tournament regulars like Chiba's Rokkaku, Saitama's Midoriyama, and Tokyo's Yamabuki had all caught wind of it.
After all, the event was published in Tennis Monthly, complete with photos taken by renowned editor Inoue. Inui had even pulled some strings with a friend to get his hands on the match footage of Rikkai Dai and Hyotei.
And today, after training, everyone gathered to analyze that match between Hyotei and Rikkai Dai, considering these two teams were last year's Kanto Tournament champions and runners-up.
"Everyone's here!"
Just then, an elderly woman in an old-fashioned pink jacket walked in, looking surprised to see everyone in the locker room.
The locker room housed the team that had been decided after a thorough evaluation. Takei had been kicked out of the tennis club, and his spot hadn't been filled yet.
Yamato had considered Oishi.
Oishi lacked agility in singles, but his overall court vision was exceptional, making him a natural doubles player. Sometimes, strategy in doubles was far more crucial than individual skill, and Oishi was precisely that kind of person.
Fuji Syusuke and Inui Sadaharu were both promoted to regular members after that match against Hyotei. Even if the senior members of the team voiced objections, Yamato was resolute in naming these two.
And it turned out that Inui Sadaharu and Fuji Syusuke's skills were indeed far superior to those inactive second and third-year seniors.
"...Is this the strength of King Rikkai Dai?"
Everyone watched the recording, stunned into silence.
Fuji gazed at Kamikawa on the screen, that match involuntarily replaying in his mind.
He remained silent.
He had underestimated that boy, Kamikawa Muzuki.
"National level!"
Yamato's eyes flickered slightly as he spoke.
He had initially thought that Seigaku's Fuji and Inui were exceptionally talented first-year prodigies. Even if they couldn't compare to those three monsters from Hyotei, they were still outstanding rookies across the nation.
However, the skills of Sanada and Yukimura, who appeared in the footage, were definitely above Fuji and Inui. As for that boy named Yanagi Renji, in Yamato's opinion, his talent was no less than Fuji's.
King Rikkai Dai!
The reigning champions from last year, subtly exuding an aura of national dominance this year.
For a moment.
Including Yamato and the others, those who had witnessed the disparity quietly lowered their heads, sighing.
Could the current Seigaku truly stand out among these two teams and advance to the Nationals?!
To be honest, even Fuji, who usually didn't care much about winning, felt a flicker of determination to win. But he was still a little worried, not about himself, but about the others on the team.
After all, Fuji had grown significantly during this time. In singles, even Captain Yamato wasn't his match. Fuji was now Seigaku's undisputed top singles player.
But he couldn't lead Seigaku to the Nationals by himself.
Yamato quickly composed himself, adjusted his thoughts, and looked at Fuji and Inui, saying, "What are your thoughts? Or do you have any good suggestions?"
Yamato knew very well that for Seigaku to go further, they could only rely on Fuji and Inui.
This was his third year, and if they stopped at the Kanto Tournament, then next year's Seigaku would have to be led by Fuji and Inui. Deep down, Yamato had already designated these two as Seigaku's future successors.
What?!
In the locker room, the other veteran team members looked at each other.
They hadn't expected Yamato to consult two first-year newcomers at this point.
Fuji slowly shook his head; he wasn't good at expressing opinions. Inui, sitting at the very end, pushed up his glasses and calmly stated, "Captain Yamato, in my opinion, instead of focusing on Hyotei and Rikkai Dai, it would be better to concentrate on Chiba's Rokkaku and Tokyo's Yamabuki."
"You mean...?" Yamato seemed to have realized something.
"To reach the Nationals, we only need to make it to the Kanto Tournament's top four. Assuming Hyotei and Rikkai Dai meet in the finals, what we need to do is advance to the semifinals and defeat either Yamabuki or Rokkaku."
Ah!
Upon hearing this, everyone's hearts trembled. Before they could speak, Fuji added, "Instead of marveling at others' strength, it's better to diligently strengthen ourselves. If we complete the training regimen Inui has set every day, I think making it to the Kanto semifinals won't be difficult."
"Training regimen!"
The faces of those Seigaku veterans changed drastically.
The training regimen Inui had devised was immense, far greater than they had imagined. They had experienced it once or twice before, but only Inui, Fuji, Yamato, and Oishi had been able to keep up.
Oishi, being weaker, had a less intense regimen. However, the training for Inui, Fuji, and Yamato was far more demanding than for the others, but they still gritted their teeth and endured.
Some things, Yamato hadn't made explicit, always giving some face to those veterans who had fought for Seigaku. But after watching that practice match between Hyotei and Rikkai Dai, he realized he was gravely mistaken. Indiscriminately indulging these people would only inflate their arrogance.
Some things had to change.
"Remember, everyone joined the Seigaku Tennis Club to restore its former glory."
Yamato stood up proactively, and under everyone's gaze, he said in a deep voice, "Do you still remember what Captain Saionji said on your first day joining the tennis club?!"
"We are going to lead Seigaku to the Nationals!"
These words, like needles, deeply pierced the hearts of the team's veterans.
"This, this—"
Those veteran players looked at each other, speechless for a moment.
"Coach Ryuzaki, I hope you have no objections."
Yamato's gaze cut through the crowd, landing on Coach Ryuzaki.
"Everyone, dedicate yourselves fully to the fight."
Coach Ryuzaki shook her head. She couldn't offer any proper suggestions, so she just let Yamato continue.
Inui and Fuji looked at each other, their eyes brightening slightly. They had their own ideas. Seigaku might not achieve impressive results this year, but they would only grow stronger next year.
Similar scenes to Seigaku's were not uncommon. Yamabuki, Rokkaku, and even Kansai's Shitenhoji, Maikosaka, and Kyushu's Shishigaku and Higa, all underwent significant changes.
They implemented various reforms, all for the sake of winning their respective regional tournaments and the National Tournament.
Schools within the Kanto region were also influenced by Hyotei and Rikkai Dai, staging various underdog upsets.
Rookies who would have originally needed another year or two to become regulars now had the opportunity to stand on the historical stage.
Everyone's focus was also on Hyotei and Rikkai Dai.
---
Late June.
After suffering a major defeat, almost every member of Hyotei's tennis team threw themselves into even more rigorous training.
The entire tennis club was training intensely, like a raging fire. Many other sports clubs, seeing the tennis club's formidable presence, made way for them.
On the court, the tennis club members who weren't regulars didn't slack off, continuously swinging their rackets. Sweat dripped onto the court, and even with exhaustion etched on their faces, they had no intention of stopping, always maintaining their best condition.
Among the regulars,
Mukahi and Oshitari were practicing doubles with Gen and Kawagoe.
After suffering a major defeat, the synergy between these two doubles pairs had slightly improved.
Oshitari's aura became increasingly steady. He seemed to have sealed off his inner thoughts, no longer betraying his emotions on his face.
Mukahi also made significant changes, no longer solely pursuing height but conserving his stamina. His acrobatic shots were certainly flashy, but most of the time, they were too draining.
The remaining regulars were also immersed in their own training.
Even Jirou, who hadn't played in the Rikkai Dai match, was in high spirits today, eagerly inviting Atobe to a practice match.
"Tezuka, you haven't been secretly practicing swings, have you?"
Kamikawa, having finished his training, stretched his body. He looked at Tezuka, who had just finished his endurance run, his gaze sharp, fixed on Tezuka's left hand.
"No."
Tezuka slowly shook his head.
Kamikawa had been so serious yesterday; he wouldn't treat his tennis career as a joke.
"Phew~ That's good then." Kamikawa smiled, glancing at the vending machine not far away.
He suddenly noticed something and sprinted over, almost leaning entirely on the vending machine, his pupils contracting as if he'd seen something outrageous.
"My—where's my ice soda?"
Kamikawa stared in disbelief at the vending machine. There wasn't a single bottle left. Not one ice soda.
Only those awful bottled coffees remained, and iced ones at that.
Kamikawa immediately thought of Atobe. He turned his head to look at Atobe, who had just finished his match and stepped off the court.
"What's wrong?"
Atobe looked at Kamikawa, puzzled.
"Did you do something?"
Kamikawa pointed at the vending machine, specifically placing his finger on the bottled coffee.
"Do you think this magnificent me would drink such utterly inferior coffee?"
Atobe scoffed. With his status, how could he possibly drink that kind of coffee?
"You're lying."
Kamikawa exposed Atobe's lie without hesitation, then added, "Yesterday, before leaving the Hyotei Tennis Club, I specifically bought ice soda. There was one less bottle of bottled coffee on it."
"Before I went into the locker room, I specifically checked. Oshitari and the others had left. The only ones who remained were you, Tezuka, and me."
"Neither Tezuka nor I drink that iced coffee. Only you... only you would buy it."
Kamikawa seemed to see through everything, staring intently at Atobe.
"Cough, cough—"
Atobe immediately shook his head, saying, "That was—that was Kabaji! Kabaji bought it. You know, this young master only likes to drink Prince of Wales Tea. How could I possibly like such low-grade coffee?"
"Is that so?"
Kamikawa looked at Atobe with a hint of suspicion.
"Of course." Atobe gritted his teeth and nodded.
"Alright, alright. So, when will the ice soda be restocked today?"
Kamikawa waved his hand, no longer dwelling on the issue, and instead brought up the ice soda.
"It should be restocked soon. Even if there's none here, you can buy from the vending machines in front of other clubs. I remember Hyotei Gakuen has over a hundred vending machines."
Atobe breathed a sigh of relief, quickly mentioning the vending machines at other clubs. These had been installed even before Atobe enrolled.
After Atobe enrolled, he had even added more vending machines to satisfy everyone's needs.
When it came to spending money, if Atobe said he was second, no one would dare claim to be first.
Atobe lacked nothing but money.
"Then I'll go check the badminton club next door."
Kamikawa waved his hand, racket in tow, and walked towards the badminton club next door, leaving Atobe standing alone, utterly bewildered in the wind.
In truth, it was indeed Atobe who bought the bottled coffee yesterday.
It was just that the vending machine was almost out of stock yesterday.
Atobe saw Kamikawa and Tezuka drinking that stuff every day. On a whim, he bought one to try, but to his surprise, he bought the wrong one. Just as he was about to buy another bottle, he saw Kamikawa and Tezuka walk out of the locker room.
If they knew he bought such inferior bottled coffee, wouldn't the image he had painstakingly built in front of them be completely ruined?!
Phew... That guy's observational skills are truly astonishing.
Atobe patted his chest, his heart still pounding, then walked away as if nothing had happened.
Anyway, Kabaji wasn't around. Even if Kamikawa confronted Kabaji, Kabaji wouldn't offer much of an explanation.
Just as this little interlude was happening on the court.
At the music room, specifically Tarou's private classroom door, an unexpected visitor arrived.