It was July, and the sun was shining bright, scorching down. As the temperatures soared, the training enthusiasm at most schools started to dip. But Hyotei was different. Atobe had specially moved their tennis courts indoors.
Thanks to the indoor courts, the training atmosphere at the Hyotei tennis club hadn't diminished at all; in fact, it seemed to be subtly intensifying.
With the Kanto Tournament about to kick off, Tezuka was heading to the drawing venue, with Kamikawa tagging along.
"Seriously, Tezuka, I'm not even the vice-captain! Couldn't you have just made Atobe come? Why drag me along?" Kamikawa was fanning himself like a propeller, it was just too hot.
It was so hot that Kamikawa didn't even want to move. All he wanted right now was to lie down in Hyotei's indoor arena, enjoying the central air conditioning. Even if he sweated, it wouldn't be this "hot as a dog" feeling.
"Atobe... he didn't want to come. Said it was too hot."
Tezuka mentioned casually that he had originally invited Atobe, but Atobe really didn't feel like moving, so Tezuka had no choice but to call Kamikawa instead.
"Says the guy who acts like we're heat-resistant," Kamikawa grumbled. That certainly sounded like Atobe. Unless he was the captain, he wouldn't bother showing up for a drawing ceremony like this. He'd be too lazy.
"Honestly, a simple notification afterward would have been enough. Anyway, if we win the Tokyo championship, we won't even need the drawing."
Kamikawa sighed helplessly, then pulled Tezuka along toward the drawing venue. It was just too hot outside; Kamikawa couldn't stand it anymore.
"The Kanto Tournament drawing ceremony will now begin. The champions from Kanagawa Prefecture, the champions and runners-up from Tokyo, and the champion from Chiba Prefecture will have their spots directly confirmed. For the remaining schools, please send a representative to the stage to draw once your school name is called."
A middle-aged man in his forties with graying temples stood at the center of the podium, speaking into a microphone.
There were a total of 16 teams advancing to the Kanto Tournament. Last year's champions, Rikkai Dai from Kanagawa, were placed in the number one spot. Last year's runners-up, and this year's Tokyo champions, Hyotei, were placed in the number 16 spot.
Both teams were protecting their respective halves of the bracket. As for Rokkaku, the Chiba Prefecture champions, they were placed in the number eight spot. This meant that Hyotei wouldn't face Rokkaku until the finals.
"Next, Seishun Gakuen from Tokyo!"
As the host's words fell, Seigaku's representative, Yamato Yuudai, walked to the center of the stage, reached into the box, and quickly pulled out a slip of paper.
"Number 10!"
The venue quickly erupted into a buzz of discussion.
"Seigaku? If I'm not mistaken, that's the team that 'Samurai' Nanjiroh was on, right?"
"Yeah, I heard they barely made it into the Kanto Tournament this time through the loser's bracket playoff."
"That's rough, they're going up against Green Mountain, the Saitama Prefecture champions, right from the start."
"Tell me about it..."
A wave of discussion quickly swept through the venue. Most people felt that Seigaku, having barely made it into the Kanto Tournament through the loser's bracket, would definitely stop at the Round of 16.
Green Mountain was a team that had made it to the National Tournament last year. Their head coach was even a former professional player. Both in terms of legacy and actual skill, they far surpassed Seigaku.
"This isn't good. It's Green Mountain Middle School."
Yamato gritted his teeth as he walked down from the podium. He blamed himself for drawing such a bad lot, facing a team that had reached the Nationals last year right from the start.
Accompanying Yamato was Sadaharu Inui, known as the "brain" of the team.
"Don't worry, Captain Yamato."
He pushed up his glasses and said calmly, "With our current strength, we have a pretty good chance against Green Mountain. You have to believe in the strength of the entire team."
"Phew..."
Yamato let out a breath and nodded, his gaze falling on the participant list. Their luck was still pretty good; at least they didn't draw number 15, or numbers 13-14. Facing Hyotei would only happen in the semifinals, and by then, Seigaku would already have one foot on the national stage.
Reaching the Nationals—that had been Yamato's biggest wish for the past three years, and now the opportunity was right in front of them.
"Captain Yamato, number 12 is Yamabuki!"
Inui's words instantly shattered the hopeful thoughts that had sprung into Yamato's mind. Yamato stared at the participating teams on the podium and, sure enough, saw the name Yamabuki Middle School at number 12.
Immediately, Yamato turned his head and saw a burly third-year student in a dark green uniform. It was Kitayama Itsuku, the captain of Yamabuki Middle School.
"This isn't good. Seigaku will face Yamabuki in the quarterfinals."
At this moment, Mamoru Inoue, editor of Tennis Monthly, rushed into the drawing venue with an intern reporter and also saw the drawing results on the podium.
"Click, click, click-click."
After a continuous series of photos, the intern reporter recovered and asked Inoue beside him, "Senior, is Yamabuki Middle School really strong?"
"Very strong! They were Kanto Tournament semifinalists last year and even made it to the National Tournament. Yamabuki's doubles teams have always been at a national level."
"And this year's Yamabuki has four new players. Their talent is not to be underestimated; they even gave the rising Hyotei a fair amount of trouble in the Tokyo Tournament."
Inoue's tone deepened. Seigaku held significant memories for him. He had also graduated from Seigaku, following in Nanjiroh Echizen's footsteps, but instead of pursuing professional tennis, he chose to become a renowned reporter for Tennis Monthly. For him, Coach Ryuzaki was a highly respected senior.
However, in recent years, Seigaku's tennis club had not performed well, almost every year stumbling in the Tokyo Tournament's Kanto selection. This year, due to Hyotei's bold choices, many schools had also undergone changes, including Seigaku. But from his perspective, the current Seigaku still lacked a certain spark, and what's more, they were facing Yamabuki.
The current Yamabuki, both in doubles and singles, was stronger than what he had seen in previous years. The difficulty for Seigaku to step over them and head to Nationals was imaginable.
"Yamabuki, Seigaku... they'll meet in the quarterfinals."
"Too bad Rokkaku is in the other half of the bracket."
Kamikawa shook his head with some regret. He really wanted to play against the current Rokkaku. Rokkaku's coach, "Old Man" (Oji), was a legendary figure. From the storyline, even Mifune had to respectfully call him "senior." He even taught Byodoin how to walk the Asura Path, and Byodoin gained an understanding of the Alaya-Vijnana from it, an "Other Dimension" skill.
Alaya-Vijnana: The subconscious guides various infinite strategy modes, ultimately leading to absolute strategy, but it places an immense burden on the body. Prolonged release would significantly shorten one's tennis career.
"What's wrong?" Tezuka noticed Kamikawa's unusual behavior and asked.
"Nothing, I just feel a bit bored."
Kamikawa glanced at the drawing. Hyotei's next match would be against Aihara Middle School, the runner-up from Chiba Prefecture. After reaching the quarterfinals, they would face the winner between Itosha Middle School from Ibaraki Prefecture and Kohaku Fourth Middle School from Gunma Prefecture.
These schools generally weren't very strong. Rakka Middle School and St. Rudolph Academy, also from Tokyo, were both placed in Rikkai Dai's half of the bracket. These two schools were in deep trouble facing Rikkai Dai and Rokkaku. They'd most likely stop in the Round of 16, or with a small chance, the quarterfinals. Either way, they wouldn't make it to the semifinals.
The drawing ceremony quickly concluded.
Rikkai Dai's representative slowly walked over to Hyotei's designated seating area.
"Kamikawa, Tezuka, Yukimura asked me to pass a message to you both."
The person who came was Ishida, Rikkai Dai's top doubles player, who usually liked to play the good guy.
"What message?"
"The championship belongs to Rikkai Dai!"
Ishida's voice intensified. Before Kamikawa and Tezuka could react, he signaled the second-year students he had brought with him, and they swiftly left the drawing venue.
"Tch."
Kamikawa waved his hand, not taking it seriously. "Good thing he ran off quickly! Looks like that practice match gave Rikkai Dai a lot of confidence, huh?"
"I'm afraid Rikkai Dai will be disappointed this year."
Tezuka stood up and led Kamikawa away from the drawing venue.
Back at Hyotei, Tezuka gathered everyone and announced the results of the drawing.
"Looks like we got lucky!"
After hearing the drawing results, Gakuto Mukahi's heart swelled with joy. He hadn't expected the drawing to be so favorable this time. Hyotei's half of the bracket was filled with weaker, almost "trash" teams. Besides Yamabuki Middle School, Gakuto hadn't even heard of any of the other schools.
Of course, Gakuto also silently tossed Seigaku into the "trash" category. A team that barely made it through the loser's bracket—how strong could they have possibly become, even if they had improved?
"Don't let your guard down, Gakuto!"
Oshitari gently pushed up his glasses, speaking in a calm tone.
"Gakuto, I think Oshitari is right; we absolutely can't be careless."
Shishido twirled the racket in his hand. He was now part of Hyotei's first-string regulars, but he wasn't sure if he'd actually get to play. There was no spot for Shishido in either singles or doubles now. The doubles pair of Gen and Kawamura had much better synergy than any temporary pairing.
However, Shishido wasn't discouraged. He trained until he was the last one remaining every day, constantly increasing his strength. He firmly believed that he would one day reclaim his starting position.
"It seems everyone is now clearly aware of the group assignments."
"In that case, let's all go and complete the training we haven't finished today."
"Dismissed."
Tezuka's gaze swept over the team; his expression remained cold, without a ripple of emotion.
"Yes!"
Upon hearing this, the gathered tennis club members quickly dispersed and began to complete their unfinished training for the day.
However, their faces were beaming with joy. It was clear that they were pleased with this draw. Who wouldn't want to face weaker teams and smoothly advance all the way to the Kanto Tournament finals?
"Uh, Tezuka, I'm going to finish my training now too."
Kamikawa mumbled, his gaze fixed on the vending machine.
He hadn't had a chance to drink a cold soda the entire way. Sitting in the venue with air conditioning was bearable, but the bus ride back was just too much for Kamikawa to handle. Even with the air conditioning on the bus, Kamikawa found it unbearable.
"You want a cold soda, don't you?"
Tezuka saw right through Kamikawa's thoughts. This guy had been going on about wanting a soda ever since they started heading back. You'd think he couldn't live without soda.
"What do you know?"
Kamikawa rolled his eyes, then pointed at Atobe, who was watching the scene unfold, enjoying the show. "On a hot day like this, if you don't drink soda, are you going to be like that simpleton, always clutching a hot tea?"
"Cough, cough..."
At that moment, Atobe, who was observing the commotion, lightly coughed twice and slowly walked past the two of them as if nothing had happened.
But come to think of it, drinking hot tea on a scorching day—who could accept that? But Atobe had long since formed the habit; he'd stick to a cup of tea every day, regardless of the weather.
Tezuka thought Kamikawa had a point and nodded, saying, "Get me a can."
"Why should I?"
Kamikawa immediately protested, holding out his hand. "Give me money. No money, no soda for you."
"Fine."
Tezuka agreed very readily this time, taking out some change and placing it in Kamikawa's palm.
Kamikawa glanced at the change in his hand, raised an eyebrow, and said, "Not enough. Where's mine?!"
"You expect me to pay for yours too?"
"I'm running the errand, you pay for it. That's just how it works."
"Alright, fine."
Tezuka didn't argue further, taking out a bit more money and putting it in Kamikawa's hand.
"That's more like it."
Kamikawa nodded and walked toward the vending machine.
"Tezuka, a can of soda doesn't cost much, does it? Is there really a need to be so stingy?"
Atobe leaned in, looking a bit confused as he asked.
"Atobe, you don't understand!"
Tezuka slowly shook his head. How could Atobe, a rich young master, understand this kind of joy? What Tezuka truly wanted wasn't that cold soda, but the sheer satisfaction of pulling a fast one on a friend.
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