The Intensive Training Camp at Fudomine (Part 1)

In the early morning, the sun shines on the earth, a gentle breeze blows, and the air is filled with the scent of mountains, forests, and rocks.

"Whoosh~"

Muneyoshi was already dressed, pushed open the wooden door.

"Get up, everyone get up!"

Muneyoshi stepped forward and forcibly woke the Fudomine members who were still asleep. "Have you all forgotten the crushing defeat in the Metropolitan Tournament?"

"I didn't bring you here for a vacation!"

The members of Fudomine asleep, instantly woke up when they heard Muneyoshi say that.

Everyone quickly got dressed and started washing up.

Two days had passed since the end of the Metropolitan Tournament, and Muneyoshi and the others were no longer at school, but in the mountains on the outskirts of the city.

In the Metropolitan Tournament, Seigaku exploited a weakness and launched a fierce attack, which made Muneyoshi deeply understand the true strength of his team members.

This also poured cold water on the Fudomine team members, who had become somewhat optimistic and excited because of their victory.

Especially the first-graders, they were all putting in their best effort and didn't want to hold the team back any longer.

Besides them, the person most affected was Tachibana Kippei.

This was his second defeat in Tokyo Metropolis.

Compared to the helplessness and crushing defeat he felt when he lost to Muneyoshi, the fact that he fought Akutsu to a tiebreaker before narrowly losing due to his own stamina made it even harder for him to accept.

For the strong-willed Tachibana Kippei, losing a direct confrontation due to his own lack of physical strength was intolerable.

Especially Akutsu, who fought against him, was initially somewhat inferior to him.

However, through secretly learning his use of breath, and through Muneyoshi's guidance on the Aura Path that he had not yet fully digested, he was able to achieve his goals.

She actually improved even faster than him.

This was a huge blow to Tachibana Kippei, but he did not become discouraged after the defeat; instead, he became even more determined.

This is a challenge he's putting himself through.

Noticing that his teammates' progress had stagnated and was too slow, Muneyoshi knew he couldn't wait any longer.

If even the current Seigaku can beat them, what will they do when they encounter Rikkai Dai?

Therefore, he directly applied to the school for permission to participate in off-campus training.

Fudomine readily agreed, Fudomine its Tennis Club had never been a particularly strong organization since its inception.

There were no results at all.

However, under Muneyoshi's leadership, they broke through the regional competition this year and entered the Metropolitan Tournament, securing a ticket to the Kanto Tournament.

They won the regional preliminary championship and the runner-up in the Metropolitan Tournament.

This is unprecedented for Fudomine and has greatly enhanced its Fudomine.

Hearing that Muneyoshi was aiming for better results at the Kanto Tournament, he prepared to lead his team in intensive training.

The school immediately agreed to a week-long vacation, and even asked if that was enough, offering to add more if necessary.

Seeing the school's supportive attitude...

So, Muneyoshi simply applied for three weeks.

Anyway, there's still a month until the Kanto Tournament starts, and they do need time to grow.

After discussing it with Hanamura Aoi, Muneyoshi led them alone to this remote mountain area that few people had ever set foot in.

The mornings in the mountains are quiet and deserted, a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of the city.

Not long after Muneyoshi left the dormitory, the rest of the Fudomine members had finished washing up and lined up, waiting for Muneyoshi to arrange today's training.

"Muneyoshi, what kind of training will we be doing this time?"

Keith asked Muneyoshi with some confusion. Although neither he nor Muneyoshi had been able to play in this loss, he was still in a bad mood.

However, in his view, training definitely needs to be combined with machinery to be done better.

Both Keith and Lin Xiu, who had received elite tennis training since childhood, were very curious about this.

Curious about what kind of training it was that required traveling all the way to these mountains.

"Well, that'll be a secret for now. You'll find out soon enough."

Muneyoshi turned his head and smiled as he spoke to Keith.

"Minister! What is this huge box?"

Kamio Akira, with his Kamio Akira eyesight, noticed a large, sealed box behind Muneyoshi, its contents unknown.

"Oh, right, these are the rackets you'll be using for this training session. I asked Coach Hanamura to make them specially. First-year students, you can start."

Muneyoshi smiled and gestured for the first-year students to come up and choose their own rackets.

"It's so... so heavy!"

"Minister, are we really going to play with such heavy rackets...?"

When Kamio Akira, Ibu Shinji, and the others received the rackets, they felt that these rackets were much heavier than the ones they usually used.

Although you can hold it with one hand, it's not a pleasant experience to swing it for a long time.

"Of course, otherwise why would I let you guys use this racket?"

"Besides, this racket is relatively light; I was already used to it when I was ten years old."

Muneyoshi then took out three more rackets, two of which were pure black and one was grayish.

"Keith, Orange, you two can use my usual racket. Lin Xiu, you use this one!"

After saying that, he handed the rackets to the group of people.

Compared to the weight of Shinji and his teammates' rackets, Keith and Tachibana Kippei's rackets were made entirely of lead, just like the rackets used by the head coach in training the players.

Seeing Zongyan casually take out these rackets and feel their weight in his hands, both Keith Linshuo and Tachibana were shocked.

"Muneyoshi, are all these rackets ones you used for training before?"

Tachibana Kippei asked a question with a hint of shock in his voice, a question that was on the minds of everyone present.

"Of course, Lin Xiu's racket is the one I used before breaking through to the National Level. As for your two rackets, I used them last year."

Muneyoshi's words instantly brought the Fudomine members, who were already curious about why he was so strong, to their senses.

Ah, so this is why Minister/ Muneyoshi is so powerful?

It turns out he had been surpassing them since he was a child!

This boosted everyone's morale even more, especially for Tachibana and Keith. They exchanged a glance and saw the fire burning in each other's eyes.

Keith, in particular, knew Muneyoshi's strength even better than Tachibana Kippei, so when he learned that this racket was the one he used last year, he held on tightly.

"Once I get used to this racket, I'll finally be able to see Muneyoshi's back!"

"Just you wait, Muneyoshi, I won't let you stay ahead for long!"

Muneyoshi took in everyone's expressions and saw that he had only said a few casual words, but he had already stirred up their competitive spirit. He gave himself a thumbs up for his cleverness.

After resolving the racket issue, it's time to start preparing for a day of training.

Although Muneyoshi and his team had plenty of time, their progress in improving their skills was urgent.

"By the way, Ishida, even though your right hand is injured, you can hold the racket with your left hand!"

Muneyoshi glanced at Ishida Tetsu, who had insisted on coming along even while recovering from his injuries, and did not offer him any special treatment simply because he was wounded.

"Yes, Minister!"

"Ahem! Alright, everyone, please put on this set of wrist guards, knee pads, and ankle protectors."

Muneyoshi coughed twice, then pushed out the cardboard box that had just contained the rackets.

"Minister, what do we do next? Practice our swings?"

Kamio Akira, feeling the weight of his body, asked reluctantly with a long face.

"The first phase of training does not require swinging the racket."

Muneyoshi glanced at him indifferently, then looked at everyone and said.

"Alright, how about we start with a trail run? See that big tree over there on the other side of the mountain? That's our destination."

After everyone was dressed, Muneyoshi clapped his hands and pointed to a large tree on a distant mountain peak.

These still very young boys don't understand the proverb "looking at a mountain makes you want to run to your death."

"Yes!"

They glanced at it and thought it wasn't far, then everyone shouted in unison and began to run forward in an orderly fashion.

P. S.: "I haven't written any training posts before, but I can start now. Please vote with your monthly tickets!"

Training teammates has begun!