Fudomine's Training Camp (2)

Although summer had arrived, the cool morning breeze brought no heat to Muneyoshi and the others as they traversed the deep mountains and forests.

The lush, tall trees blocked out the sunlight, and the soft chirping of birds echoed in my ears.

However, the group from Fudomine, who were running through the mountains, had no interest in witnessing this scene.

"Looking at a mountain makes a horse run itself to death." They clearly saw a tall tree not far away and thought they could reach it in no time, but when they actually started running, they realized they were completely wrong.

The mountain road is undulating, and in many places there is no road at all, with dense forests and shrubs growing everywhere.

Although the heat was blocked by the deep mountains, walking on mountain paths was extremely physically demanding, and often it was necessary to forge a path.

That's already tiring enough, and on top of that, you're carrying a specially made racket that's far heavier than a regular racket?

Furthermore, Muneyoshi made him run while swinging his racket.

Before long, Ibu Shinji and Kamio Akira were the first to run out of energy.

"I... I can't take it anymore."

"I can't take it anymore!"

They looked like they had only run a little over half the distance, but they were already panting heavily and had to stop and walk slowly, supporting their backs.

The soreness in my feet and legs, as well as the muscle soreness from my dominant hand when swinging the racket, began to appear.

Even Keith, Lin Xiu, and Tachibana Kippei, who had better basic skills, were all a little out of breath.

"What's wrong, everyone? Are you already tired? You know we've only run halfway. This is deep in the mountains. The only place we can find supplies and food is under that tree."

"Even if you go back now, you won't be able to eat anything at your resting place, so good luck, Kamio and Shinji!"

Seeing that the two had stopped, and that the others were also feeling tired, Muneyoshi quickly turned around and encouraged them.

"Oh, right, I forgot to mention before I left that anyone who doesn't arrive on time will go hungry today!"

Muneyoshi was leading the race when he noticed that some of the others were having second thoughts, and he suddenly grinned mischievously.

"What!"

Kamio was shocked, and the others also showed slight changes in expression. They hadn't eaten anything before setting off, and now they were engaging in such strenuous exercise...

They certainly didn't want to go hungry on their first day of training.

Encouraged by Muneyoshi's words, the group, who had felt completely exhausted, suddenly found a new source of strength and gritted their teeth to continue running forward.

"Forty minutes left until the deadline! Keep going!"

Upon hearing that there were only forty minutes left, everyone rushed to get started.

Keith and Lin Xiu, who were originally just jogging slowly, are now putting in all their effort and sprinting forward with the energy of a 100-meter dash.

However, despite Muneyoshi's encouragement and support, the physical gap between the first-year students was still too much for them to overcome.

Although Kamio had tried his best and even earned a reputation for speed, he still couldn't compete with these "beasts".

When he, Ishida Tetsu, and Ibu Shinji reached the finish line, Muneyoshi, Tachibana Kippei, and the others had already started doing post-run stretching.

Moreover, Muneyoshi, who arrived first, had already finished stretching and started eating breakfast.

Seeing that even the first-year students had caught up at the last minute, Muneyoshi felt that sometimes stricter rules could have a different effect.

And at that moment, he suddenly remembered the punishment tea from Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu.

If such a thing were available, the effect would probably be even better.

Should we ask Inui Sadaharu for some next time?

In fact, the punishment tea Inui Sadaharu was prepared with strict proportions, and although it looked unpalatable and quite terrifying.

However, it plays a significant role in physical recovery and gradual improvement.

"Next time, ask Inui Sadaharu if you can get the formula..."

After a series of stretching exercises, breakfast, and several sets of routine swing practice, everyone gradually began to adapt to the weight of the rackets, and their physical strength gradually recovered.

"Alright, everyone seems to have gotten used to their rackets. Now we'll move on to the Stage Two of training."

Seeing that everyone was starting to adapt, Muneyoshi began to announce the next phase of training.

He then led everyone into the dense forest.

"Muneyoshi, what are you doing?!"

Following Muneyoshi's instructions, everyone tied their legs to the tree, hanging upside down like bats.

"Simply swinging the racket won't provide enough training; let's move on to practicing returns."

"Of course, if you can't catch it, you can take a step back and catch the ball with your bare hands, but if you fail, the pain will be your punishment."

"What?"

"Minister Muneyoshi, is this how you expect us to play?!"

"Return the ball! Catch the ball!"

Ignoring the changes in their expressions and their exclamations, Muneyoshi took his racket and stood in front of them.

Smiling, he grabbed a handful of tennis balls.

Bang!

Bang bang bang bang bang bang!

He hit seven balls in a row very easily, and with considerable force.

Fudomine members could even marvel at Muneyoshi's dazzling ball skills, they witnessed this scene.

That's a seven-ball streak! They've never even imagined doing that before, let alone actually doing it.

However, the tennis ball was already flying towards them in the next second.

Except for Keith, who is facing two goals, everyone else is facing one goal.

Pfft~

A series of dull thuds rang out, followed by cries of pain.

"Ouch!"

"It hurts!"

"Minister, you really went for it!"

In the first round, apart from Tachibana Kippei and Keith returning a point, none of the other players were able to return or catch the ball.

Even Keith only managed to return one point.

Upon seeing this, Muneyoshi frowned slightly.

"You're already feeling pain? If it's painful, then think carefully about your experiences of losing the Metropolitan Tournament. Is it the physical pain that's unbearable, or the humiliation of losing the competition?"

"Do you all want to keep experiencing that kind of failure? Anyone who makes another inappropriate comment, don't blame me!"

Muneyoshi's expression turned cold, a dark aura emanated from him, and he spoke in an icy voice.

At that moment, everyone felt Muneyoshi's determination.

At the same time, Muneyoshi's words pierced their hearts like a knife, especially those of Tachibana Kippei.

"Muneyoshi!"

"Are you kidding me! How could I possibly want to keep experiencing that kind of failure!"

"I want two balls too, just like Keith!"

With Tachibana Kippei leading the way, everyone else's emotions were also stirred up.

"Again!"

The crowd roared, and Muneyoshi, sensing their anger and emotional outburst, served again.

This time, he fulfilled Tachibana Kippei's request and upgraded both his and Keith's tennis balls to three.

The next second, ten tennis balls flew from Muneyoshi's hand, and the sky was filled with balls like stars.

In an instant, screams, the sound of balls being hit, and roars echoed throughout the mountains and fields.

As Muneyoshi gradually increased his intensity and released his power, Keith and Tachibana Kippei also felt immense pressure.

Furthermore, with their incredibly heavy rackets, they were no longer able to use them to return the ball.

Many have joined the ranks of those catching balls in the industry.

However, they couldn't hold out for long. The muscle soreness, the difficulty of exerting force while suspended, and the power of the tennis balls that Muneyoshi hit all began to make them unable to cope.

Then, Muneyoshi's tennis balls began to bombard them relentlessly.

Keith and Tachibana Kippei also joined the screaming crowd, becoming just as miserable as the others.

P. S.: "Please vote with monthly tickets!"

Such training only exists in comics; it's practically torture. Please don't try it yourself!