Kanto Finals
The following morning.
Even on Sundays, a large number of students gather at the entrance of Fudomine School.
Most of them were first or second graders, and they were all very enthusiastic.
When the news of Fudomine's victory over Rikkai Dai came yesterday, the principal was practically bursting with excitement, insisting that a celebration be held for the Tennis Club after the match.
This is also why Hanamura Aoi invited everyone to get together yesterday, because a school-organized celebration would definitely be meaningless.
After learning this news, these students also plan to go and witness the Kanto finals of Fudomine today.
The school showed great generosity this time, arranging school buses to pick up and drop off everyone, all to uphold Fudomine's reputation.
Because the principal had already received the news, the cheers for Fudomine's matches were almost entirely from other school teams.
"Everyone's here. Coach Hanamura has already driven himself to the stadium. Let's go!"
Once everyone had arrived, Muneyoshi waved his hand, and everyone boarded the school bus in an orderly fashion, slowly heading towards the competition venue.
Ariake Tennis Forest Park.
The venue for the Kanto Tournament finals was already packed with people.
"It's true what they say, fortunes change. I never expected the Kanto Tournament to be so different this year; it's Seigaku and Fudomine fighting for the final championship."
Inoue Mamoru, a reporter from Tennis Monthly, arrived early as well, as a media professional needed to secure the best viewing spot in advance.
"Haven't Seigaku and Fudomine arrived yet?"
Inoue Mamoru looked around at the growing crowd, but couldn't see the two groups.
"Hyotei Academy is here!"
"Look, that's Yamabuki Middle School over there."
"And Rokkaku Middle School from Chiba, they actually came too."
"That's St. Rudolph's."
Inoue Mamoru looked around at the voices of the people around him, and indeed, apart from Rikkai Dai, almost all the other schools that had been eliminated had come.
This year, a new king has emerged, and all the schools want to witness this moment.
"Hey Atobe, who do you think will be the winner today, Seigaku or Fudomine?"
After arriving at the viewing platform, Oshitari Yushi looked around and then asked Atobe.
"The victors? They are all opponents that Hyotei Academy needs to defeat. The final victory must be achieved by us!"
Atobe snorted softly; both of these schools were considered Hyotei Academy's arch-rivals.
Seigaku and Hyotei Academy both lost to the Hyotei Academy last year, and this year Hyotei Academy lost to Seigaku again.
The same goes for Fudomine; having lost to Fudomine in the Metropolitan Tournament, Hyotei Academy is always ready for revenge.
Therefore, Atobe naturally wanted to defeat both schools.
"However, given Fudomine's performance yesterday, it will be difficult for Seigaku to win. But who knows? Fudomine fought to such an extent with Rikkai Dai yesterday, and the recovery status of Tachibana Kippei is also a concern."
Atobe saw through what was hidden within it.
Fudomine, a school that couldn't even get past the regional preliminaries, has become the strongest dark horse this year under the leadership of Saeki Muneyoshi, overcoming all obstacles along the way.
Seigaku only rose to prominence last year, although Fudomine lost to Seigaku in the Metropolitan Tournament.
However, if Seigaku cannot make changes today, they will most likely Fudomine.
"They're here! The Seigaku and Fudomine people are here!"
At that moment, a gasp drew everyone's attention.
The members of Seigaku and Fudomine, led by staff, slowly walked in from the distance, one on the left and one on the right.
Students and club members from both schools went up to the high platform on the field and sat down to cheer for their respective teams.
The players from both teams then stepped forward to the net and bowed to each other in salute.
"Tezuka, I hope our promise can be fulfilled today."
Muneyoshi looked at Tezuka across from him and smiled slightly.
"Muneyoshi, I hope we can deliver a great match today."
Muneyoshi responded with a smile, a scene that felt somewhat familiar to everyone at Fudomine, as if the other side had said the same thing during the Metropolitan Tournament.
Is this a unique form of trash talk exclusive to Tezuka Kunimitsu?
However, Tezuka noticed that Tachibana Kippei rather quiet today, and his face was still a bit pale. It seemed that he had been very exhausted yesterday and had not fully recovered even after a night's rest.
Tezuka's eyes flickered; this might be an opportunity.
Both teams returned to their seats in the players' section, while Ryūzaki Sumire and Hanamura Aoi went to sit in the coaches' section on the sidelines.
"The final match of this Kanto Tournament is about to begin, a doubles match between Seigaku and Fudomine Junior High. Please bring your players to the stage."
Once everything was ready, the referee's voice came over the loudspeaker.
"Go for it, Fuji!"
Upon seeing the two Seigaku enter, Kikumaru excitedly cupped his hands in front of his mouth, making a megaphone shape, and shouted loudly.
However, the players who stepped out from Fudomine at this moment stunned the audience outside the arena, including the two Seigaku who came on stage.
Meanwhile, Kamio Akira was waving his hands excitedly.
"Senior Lin Xiu, Vice Minister, let's teach them a lesson!"
Kamio Akira and all the first-year students were almost stunned by the combination they had just learned about from Hanamura Aoi.
Vice-captain Tachibana Kippei has actually switched to doubles; how could Seigaku's doubles team possibly be a match for them?
"Fudomine has changed their formation?"
"Was this a surprise attack? Or was Tachibana Kippei too exhausted yesterday and unable to handle today's singles match?"
This idea was not only being discussed among the audience, but also resonating in the minds of the Seigaku team members.
Only then did Tezuka realize that Tachibana Kippei's silence today was because he had become the doubles player...
On the court, the players on both sides stood in place.
"Fuji, we meet again."
Lin Xiu approached the net and looked at the genius who had previously defeated him.
"Lin Xiu, it seems we're facing off again... but I didn't expect Ju to join the doubles match too."
It was possible that the pairing with Lin Xiu was within Fuji and Inui Sadaharu's expectations, but they did not expect that the vice-captain of Fudomine, the regular singles player Tachibana Kippei, would also come to play doubles.
This change caught them off guard.
Especially for data- Inui Sadaharu individuals, changing the data model is tantamount to rendering the previous data completely useless.
"I used to play doubles back in Shishigaku Junior High, haven't you forgotten, Fuji?"
As the vice-captain of Fudomine, he would naturally obey the coach's arrangements for the sake of Fudomine's victory.
Furthermore, it was because of his doubles loss that they lost to Seigaku in the Metropolitan Tournament, so Tachibana Kippei had no objection to Hanamura Aoi's arrangements.
Seeing the unpredictable expressions on the faces of the two people opposite him, a confident smile appeared on Tachibana Kippei's pale face.
"You two from Seigaku, are you ready to face defeat?"
Upon hearing Tachibana Kippei's words, Inui Sadaharu and Fuji frowned slightly, but they did not reply.
"The match begins, a single set to decide the winner, with Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu serving."
After both sides decided on the order of service, the referee climbed onto a high chair and blew the horn to start the match.
Snap... Snap... Snap!
The tennis ball was being pressed repeatedly into Inui Sadaharu's palm, his face serious.
The sudden change of events rendered all his prior preparations futile, and he knew very well that this would be an extremely difficult match.
Bang!
Inui Sadaharu leaped high into the air, and the tennis ball, tossed into the air, was slammed down by Inui Sadaharu at its highest point.
Boom!
The air drawn in around the tennis ball seemed to form a curtain of water, hanging behind it.
In order to take the initiative, Inui Sadaharu did not hold back and used his specially prepared serve technique.
The speed of that shot was astonishing.
"Very good serve!"
Tachibana Kippei, playing in the backcourt, was greatly exhausted yesterday, especially in terms of mental energy, which has not yet fully recovered. However, he was still able to handle such an opponent with ease.
With a little concentration, I could clearly see the trajectory of the tennis ball.
Bang!
He stepped to the left, leaving Atobe, and with a flick of his racket, he sent the tennis ball crashing back into Seigaku's court.
The final of the Kanto Tournament began with this single ball.
P. S.: "Please vote with monthly tickets! Tachibana Kippei's injury hasn't fully recovered yet, but he's moved to doubles, which will allow for more flexible match strategies in the future."