Behind the Mountain

"Okay, I understand. Arrange it for him!"

"Yes, his position is still valid!"

That's settled. You can handle the rest yourselves.

At the Heart Cliff behind the mountain, Mifune Nyudo hung up the phone call from the Kurobe within the base, took out his sake gourd, took a swig, and said to the two people not far away:

"Come here, everyone!"

Upon hearing this, the two who were practicing stopped what they were doing and surrounded Mifune.

"Coach, is that over there?"

"Um!"

"What was the result?" Oni Jūjirō was also very curious about Muneyoshi's battle.

"Not bad, you beat Domoto."

"Hmph, that's more like it!"

Byōdōin was very satisfied with the result, but Mifune Nyudo's next words made his expression change slightly.

"Dōmoto Shingo has combined the paths of power and speed, and unleashed the First Stage Shining Shot."

As he spoke, Mifune Nyudo's gaze fell on Byōdōin. Dōmoto Shingo hiding for so long; his intentions were obvious to him.

"Hmph, that guy actually wants revenge on me?"

Byōdōin's tone was mocking, but judging from the way he gripped his arm tightly, one could tell that his heart was far from calm.

Oni Jūjirō didn't pay attention to any of this, only feeling slightly surprised:

"If he can defeat Dōmoto Shingo on both paths, then Saeki Muneyoshi can be considered to have perfectly established himself in the first stage of the Path of Darkness, and can continue to expand his path based on this?"

That's right!

"What? A ghost? Are you scared? If you can't handle it, I'll do it!"

"I will personally send him to hell, just like I sent you down there, Byōdōin!"

Mifune Nyudo paid no attention to their argument; a slight smile appeared on his lips. "It seems arranging for him to fight Amadeus has indeed worked well. Now it depends on how he guides him."

The news that Dōmoto Shingo and Natsume Ryūichi, the strongest third-year students in the First String, were defeated by Saeki Muneyoshi spread throughout the entire training camp in an instant.

It wasn't long before everyone knew about it.

The older students are now too afraid to speak loudly in front of Saeki Muneyoshi.

Many people witnessed the devastating battles in previous matches, and the fear of Saeki Muneyoshi's strength gripped the hearts of almost all the reserve players.

Even Dōmoto Shingo was defeated, let alone them.

After resting for a few hours, Muneyoshi had basically recovered. He walked around the base with Irie and Tanegashima, and many people reacted as if they were mice before a cat when they saw them.

They quickly dodged.

"Haha, Muneyoshi, you're really famous now! Your intimidation level with them is almost comparable to Byōdōin and the demons!"

Muneyoshi felt somewhat helpless; he didn't want to become someone that everyone disliked.

The two had already fought to such an extent that it was impossible for them to hold back.

The group chatted and laughed all the way.

Suddenly, Irie asked meaningfully, "Saeki -kun, what are your plans next?"

He originally just wanted to ask Muneyoshi who else he wanted to challenge, but he didn't expect this.

"Irie- senpai, Tanegashima- senpai, I've decided to temporarily leave the base and return to the school!"

Muneyoshi pondered for a moment, then answered calmly.

"Going to school is fine... Hmm? What? You're leaving?"

"When?"

Muneyoshi's answer surprised the two of them.

"I'm leaving tomorrow. I've already asked Coach Kurobe and the Kurobe."

"Then what will you do in the future...?"

Tanegashima had no time for jokes at this moment, and his face was full of seriousness.

Seeing this, Muneyoshi smiled, "I'll definitely come back, I'm studying in Tokyo!"

Hearing Muneyoshi's reply, the two were finally relieved.

Then Irie said, "Since you've made up your mind, I won't hide it from you anymore. The person you want to challenge is waiting for you in the back mountain right now."

"The back mountain?"

Muneyoshi thought to himself, "As expected, this is the only place."

"Thank you for Irie. I'll head over to climb the back mountain now!"

Phew!!

Several eagle cries pierced the sky, and several large eagles with sharp beaks and talons circled down from the top of Heart Cliff.

They landed around Mifune Nyudo, one of them even perched on his arm, which was bound with burlap.

Whew!!

Having been raised by Mifune Nyudo for many years, he had long since developed human nature.

"Oh, is someone coming? Looks like that little guy is almost here!"

"Ghost, it's your turn!"

"Heh... so it's finally here, Coach. You want me to guide him? No problem. But I, Oni Jūjirō, am not so keen on being someone else's stepping stone!"

Oni Jūjirō stood up and said coldly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes, and a dangerous aura emanating from him was revealed in that instant.

"I won't hold back. If he can't withstand it, he might really be going to hell."

Mifune Nyudo watched Oni Jūjirō's departing figure and smacked his lips twice.

He chuckled.

If Byōdōin had said those words, he might have believed them. But if it was Oni Jūjirō, whose seemingly fierce but actually peaceful personality was just a softie at heart, he was all bark and no bite.

"Oni, this time I'll allow you to remove six layers of your power restriction when facing Saeki Muneyoshi."

After saying that, Mifune Nyudo lay down and stopped paying attention.

As darkness fell, the night on the back mountain became tranquil.

A crescent moon shines, making the edge of my heart seem as if it is illuminated by a bright light, even at night.

Byōdōin Hōō sat calmly before a pool of water, his face serene and his breath deep and resonant. He had never stopped the meditation practice he had been undergoing with his Rokkaku Old Man.

Meanwhile, on the court ahead, Oni Jūjirō sat upright, quietly waiting for Saeki Muneyoshi's arrival.

Using the moonlight, Muneyoshi used both his hands and feet to finally climb the treacherous mountain peak.

"The coaches wouldn't let me take the shortcuts they had; they made me climb the mountain instead..."

After climbing to the top of the mountain, Muneyoshi couldn't help but think to himself that the steep mountain path was truly dangerous.

However, for him, who was full of energy, the process of climbing the mountain was also a warm-up and recovery for the match against Dōmoto Shingo.

Upon arriving, Muneyoshi immediately looked around.

This was his first time visiting this place, which was used in the original story to train losers.

It feels like a memory has come to life.

However, when he arrived at the barren baseball field in front of the cabin, a figure who had been waiting for him stood there upright after seeing Muneyoshi come up.

"Senior Ghost, I've finally found you."

"Muneyoshi, you're too slow."

Oni Jūjirō opened his half-closed eyes and fixed his gaze on Saeki Muneyoshi:

"I heard you got Dōmoto Shingo's number 2 badge? That's a really high ranking, it's actually above me. Give it to me!"

"What if I don't pay? What does Senior Ghost plan to do then?!"

Following Oni Jūjirō's words, Muneyoshi also began to show his talent.

"Then I'll come and get it myself!"

"In that case!" Muneyoshi put down the tennis bag on his back and took out a racket.

"Senior Ghost, please enlighten me!"

The two came to the net and shook hands. Muneyoshi didn't believe Oni Jūjirō's words about wanting his badge at all. Knowing the other's personality, he immediately understood that this was Mifune Nyudo's arrangement.

However, he wasn't averse to it; he had originally planned to challenge Oni Jūjirō before leaving.

This arrangement suited him perfectly.

"Saeki Muneyoshi, remember this: this isn't like our previous practice sessions. If you want to fight me, you'd better be prepared to die!"

Do you understand?

Oni Jūjirō's tall figure exuded an oppressive aura, and his tone was more serious than ever before.

Upon hearing this, Muneyoshi laughed, "Senior, you should also be careful. I'd like to try catching ghosts too!"

P. S.: "My last match before leaving the training camp, please vote with monthly tickets!"

That's three chapters today. I've updated over 300,000 words in the past month, and I'm starting to feel the strain. Even other authors who work full-time don't put in as much effort as me. I'm quite busy with work during the week, and the protagonist has one last battle to fight before leaving. That marks the end of my first year.

Please vote for me, everyone! Let's see if we can break 1000 votes. If we do, I'll give you two extra chapters!