Seigaku's Crushing Losing Streak

Since the original lineup would lose, they naturally could not stick to the old routine.

Moreover, even if Seiya replaced Shinji and defeated Ryoma, he did not believe Tachibana Kippei, playing singles one, could beat Tezuka Kunimitsu.

So, at Seiya's suggestion, Fudomine soon produced a brand-new lineup.

Their second doubles pair remained Ishida and Sakurai, except their opponents were now Momoshiro and Kaidou.

Their first doubles pair, meanwhile, would be Tachibana Kippei and Shinji, facing Seigaku's "Golden Pair," Oishi and Kikumaru.

Kamio remained in singles three, while Seiya would play singles two.

That way, even if Kamio failed, Seiya still had a high chance of winning against the current Ryoma Echizen, even if Ryoma suddenly powered up.

As for singles one, Seiya and the others had completely abandoned it.

Honestly, even Seiya did not have the confidence to guarantee a win against Tezuka Kunimitsu.

Who knew whether Tezuka would go all out in a desperate gamble? If Tezuka sacrificed his arm, Seiya felt that he could not beat him yet. But if a few more older brothers showed up in the Mind Dream Space later, things might turn out differently.

"Doubles two is Momoshiro and Kaidou? Did Seigaku change their lineup too?"

When Seiya saw Seigaku's players, he froze for a moment. But he soon realized that his involvement had caused slight changes to the plot.

Of course, although there had been a few unexpected developments, they were not a big problem.

In terms of singles ability, Momoshiro and Kaidou were definitely stronger than Ishida and Sakurai.

But Seiya knew Seigaku's pair's weaknesses very well.

This should have been Momoshiro and Kaidou's first time playing doubles, so their flaws were obvious.

As long as he told Ishida and Sakurai about their strengths and weaknesses, winning this match would not be difficult with their coordination.

"Is it just me? Fudomine Middle School's two players have changed their attacking rhythm since earlier.

"And the shots they are hitting are all aimed at the positions Kaidou and Momoshiro hate most."

Fuji, whose eyes had originally been narrowed, had now opened them fully. Watching Momoshiro and Kaidou struggle to return the ball and even begin arguing with each other, his face was filled with gravity.

"So you noticed too, Fuji. And Fudomine's two players only changed their style after saying something to their captain during the side change."

Hearing Inui's words, the other Seigaku players looked at him in surprise. "Inui, are you saying that Fudomine Middle School's captain is a player like you?"

"No. I think there is someone else who is truly giving them advice."

"Fudomine has another expert?" the Seigaku players cried out.

"I saw that second-year named Wenren Seiya talking to their captain for quite a while. And normally, only an on-court coach can give players advice. Players outside the court cannot directly pass along information."

Inui pushed up his glasses and looked toward Seiya in the distance, his eyes gaining a few more traces of interest.

Seemingly noticing Inui's gaze, Seiya flashed him a White Fang grin. An, beside him, looked disgusted as she turned his head back. "You're being so blatant. You'll really give yourself away later."

"It doesn't matter. We aren't breaking any rules. Otherwise, why would those information-tennis players gather intel on other players?"

"Then rein it in a little. We haven't won yet. What if we lose after acting so arrogant?"

An was not particularly surprised that Seiya had information on Seigaku's regulars.

Back at the Street Tennis Court, Seiya had already told her about Momoshiro and Ryoma's signature moves and playing styles.

An had no idea where Seiya got his information, but she at least knew he was not some kind of information-tennis player.

Seiya's family was rich, so An guessed that he had paid someone to gather Seigaku's past information or match recordings.

And when she imagined that Seiya, usually so carefree, might have been secretly studying Seigaku's match tapes late into the night for Fudomine's sake, An could not help feeling touched again.

Of course, if Seiya knew what An was thinking right then, he would definitely cry injustice.

He did occasionally have a habit of watching tapes late at night, but they had absolutely nothing to do with tennis.

They were about something far greater and more meaningful, such as exploring the origins and birth of life...

With knowledge of their opponents' weaknesses and the trump card known as the Hadokyu, Ishida and Sakurai ultimately defeated Seigaku's Momoshiro and Kaidou by a narrow score of seven to five.

They looked immensely relieved after winning. They could feel that the match had become increasingly difficult toward the end.

Seigaku's pair had developed better and better coordination during the match, and their rate of growth had been astonishing.

If they had not followed Seiya's advice and gone all out to end the match quickly, they might already have lost, since they had not built up an overwhelming early advantage.

After Seigaku's second doubles pair lost, the Seigaku players froze when they saw that Fudomine's first doubles players were Fudomine's captain and Shinji, the second-year who had defeated Kakimoku Kuki.

Inui directly pushed up his glasses, his expression grave. "Looks like we've been outmaneuvered. They clearly have an excellent strategist as well."

Coach Ryuzaki's expression was also extremely unpleasant. There was no need to question Tachibana Kippei and Ibu Shinji's strength. Their opponents were clearly using military tactics, aiming to secure victory in the first three matches!

"Don't worry. No matter who our opponents are, we won't lose!" Kikumaru picked up his racket, brimming with confidence.

"Eiji, don't let your guard down. They are formidable opponents too." Oishi remained as steady as an old mother.

In terms of doubles skill, Oishi and Kikumaru were naturally far superior to Momoshiro and Kaidou.

After all, they were the "Golden Pair" that had made it into the National Tournament last year.

However, the so-called Golden Pair was only barely at the national level. Among the doubles pairs in the National Tournament, the current Golden Pair would absolutely rank near the bottom.

And now, their opponents included one of the former Twin Heroes of Kyushu and a genius whose feel for the ball was no weaker than Ryoma Echizen's.

In terms of singles strength, Tachibana Kippei and Shinji were already stronger than Oishi and Kikumaru, let alone with advance knowledge of their information.

So there was nothing more to say about the result of this first doubles match. Seigaku's "Golden Pair" naturally suffered a crushing defeat.

Not only did they lose, they lost even more miserably than Momoshiro and Kaidou. The final score was six to three, and the match took less than half the time of the previous one.

Tachibana Kippei had not even used his ultimate move, while Shinji's Temporary Paralysis had directly sealed away Kikumaru's acrobatic shots.