Ibu Shinji

"Why do I have to do chores on my first day...? Why am I the one who has to do chores...?"

"All club recruitment is over... I'm not going to get into any clubs, am I...? See... I really won't get into any clubs..."

Amidst the bustling crowd, a muttered voice kept repeating itself...

"Hurry, hurry! I heard a super brave freshman challenged the vice president of the Tennis Club!"

Ibu Shinji had just reached the entrance of the Tennis Club, suddenly looked up.

Several guys who also looked like newcomers ran quickly past him, stepped through the gate, and went inside.

Tennis?

A remarkably courageous new student?

Ibu Shinji, who had been muttering incessantly about being kept behind by the teacher to do chores, suddenly became wide awake. Intrigued, he stopped muttering and followed them into the Tennis Club.

However, as he stepped into the Tennis Club, those conflicted emotions in his heart began again.

"I missed the deadline for signing up to join the club... I wonder if the tennis club has any limits on the number of members or the time frame for recruitment..."

"Oh well... what can I do? I'm just unlucky... On the first day of school... I was made to stay behind and do chores... I guess I'm the unluckiest person ever..."

When Ibu Shinji arrived at the Tennis Club, still muttering to himself, most of the open space on the court was already surrounded by newcomers who wanted to watch the spectacle.

The sound of balls being hit echoed continuously from the court. Ibu Shinji squeezed his way in and reached the very front.

"Drink up, behold my Super Speed Attack!"

On the court, Kamio Akira shouted excitedly and slammed his racket down hard with both hands.

Bang!

"If this is super speed, then your speed is far too slow."

Bang!

"Game score, Tachibana Kippei scores, 5-0."

On the sidelines, Tachibana An, temporarily acting as the referee, shouted loudly.

"Heh, he's a promising youngster, Coach Hanamura, isn't he?"

Muneyoshi stood beside Hanamura Aoi and said with a smile.

"Hmm? Muneyoshi, you're definitely good at judging people's talent. This little guy may not be as good as you guys yet, but with some training, he can still improve a lot."

Hanamura Aoi reached out and moved the frame of her glasses up a little, a satisfied smile appearing on her lips.

Although they had only known each other for a short time, Hanamura Aoi had already discerned that this new student named Kamio Akira was a vibrant individual with a natural talent for speed.

Moreover, compared to other unremarkable talents, he had clearly practiced tennis for some time, had a certain foundation, and his tennis skills and physical fitness were also quite good.

Hanamura Aoi even believes that this guy must be one of the best among the current freshmen of Fudomine.

"Yes!"

Muneyoshi smiled happily at this moment, not only because of Kamio Akira, but also because he saw Ibu Shinji's figure on the other side.

It turns out that his butterfly wings did not Fudomine.

The two players most promising for Fudomine's future development have already arrived.

Although their talent is somewhat inferior to that of Muneyoshi's class and the two future first-year students, they are truly among the best in their class.

On the court, Kamio Akira was covered in sweat; the constant running had greatly depleted his energy.

Although the match had reached Ju's match point, he was not affected by the score disadvantage at all, and instead played better and better.

"Vice Minister, it's my turn to serve!"

Kamio Akira, then took out a tennis ball and threw it out.

He held his head high; although he hadn't grown tall enough yet, his foundation in various aspects was quite solid.

The tennis ball wasn't tossed very high, and it was still rising when he hit it with a single stroke.

"Half-Toss High-Speed Serve!"

Bang!

The speed of the tennis ball increased to another level, directly targeting Tachibana Kippei's left service court.

"Good!"

As the competition progressed, Tachibana Kippei naturally discovered Kamio Akira's potential and grew to admire him more and more.

Except for the very beginning, he was already playing this game as a tutorial.

"However, your speed and strength are still far from sufficient. You'll need to practice more!"

Although it was a suggestion, Ju didn't go easy on him; instead, he wanted to make him realize the gap.

He took a step forward, caught the tennis ball, and hit it back hard.

The speed and power of his return shot far surpassed those of Kamio Akira.

Even with Kamio Akira pushing his speed to the limit, he could only watch helplessly as the ball bounced up and flew out of bounds.

"Hehe! Vice Minister, you're really something!"

After the match ended, Kamio Akira rested his hands on his knees, took a short breath to catch his breath, and then slung his racket over his shoulder and grinned.

"That's amazing!"

"Yes! If the deputy minister is this capable, then how capable can the minister be!"

"It seems joining the Tennis Club was definitely the right decision!"

The newcomers watching around the stadium were amazed. In their eyes, Kamio Akira was already very good, but they never expected that he couldn't score a single point against the vice-captain.

However, this setback did not dampen their enthusiasm; on the contrary, it boosted their confidence in the Tennis Club even more.

Ibu Shinji stared wide-eyed at Kamio Akira in the arena, making a deep impression on him about this fellow first-year student.

Of course, what impressed him even more was Tachibana's movements and composure during the match.

The match between Tachibana and Kamio Akira was just a minor incident.

With the competition over, the new members of the club calmed down and prepared to accept the next arrangements.

At that moment, Ibu Shinji approached Muneyoshi and handed over his application to join the company with both hands.

His observation was very careful; he discovered that both the coach and the vice-captain had interacted with Muneyoshi, and even the vice-captain Tachibana Kippei, showed great respect for Muneyoshi.

Through these subtle movements and expressions, he confirmed Muneyoshi's identity.

Muneyoshi smiled and accepted Ibu Shinji's application.

Compared to the activity of other newcomers, Ibu Shinji was much more silent.

It would be virtually impossible for anyone else to read Ibu Shinji's inner world from his facial expressions.

Even after that, whether in ordinary times or in competitions, his expression hardly changed, as if he were wearing a ceramic mask.

"I wonder how strong his mental abilities are? If possible, he'd be quite suited to the Mental Power Path."

Muneyoshi looked at the expressionless boy in front of him and pondered to himself, "In the original work, Ibu Shinji is called a genius."

Her first battle was against Echizen Ryoma. Being chosen as Ryoma's experience booster means she must have some talent.

Compared to other people's overt talents, such as strength and speed.

Ibu Shinji is more about inner qualities; he possesses both amazing ball sense and skill, earning him the title of "magician on the court."

However, his ultimate achievements were far less dazzling than those of others, and he even fell short of Kamio Akira, which is undoubtedly a pity.

However, when Ibu Shinji stood in front of him just now, Muneyoshi could sense a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy beneath Ibu Shinji's calm face.

Although not strong, the fact that it can be unconsciously emitted indicates that there is potential to pursue Mental Power Path.

In the original work, Fudomine took this path, so Ibu Shinji was not guided in this regard and may have missed the best time, fading into obscurity.

"Ibu Shinji, stay behind after training!"

With that in mind, Muneyoshi decided to try it out himself.

P. S.: I'll slightly adjust Shinji's talent stats, please vote with your monthly tickets~

I'm going on a business trip tomorrow, which might last for more than a week. I'm going to western Sichuan, and there's a lot to do, so I can only maintain basic updates for the next few days. Please understand, everyone.