The Man Who Overturned Tokyo's Tennis Clubs

Seigaku Tennis Club.

The news that "monster" Akutsu Jin was playing a match against a student from another school quickly drew the attention of many club members.

The court was packed with spectators, who had crowded around it until there wasn't an inch of space.

When Tezuka reached the court at a leisurely pace and saw the scene, his brows furrowed at the sight of club members skipping practice. He was about to reprimand them.

But just then,

an uninvited guest had already arrived at Seigaku, appearing at the corner outside the tennis courts.

The visitor was a middle-aged reporter in his forties, wearing a beige-green shirt and a red tie. He had short, chestnut-brown hair, a briefcase slung over his shoulder, and a camera hanging from his chest.

The reporter was Inoue Mamoru, who had previously photographed Hyotei Academy.

He had just arrived at Seigaku and turned the corner when the throng of people came into view. The sight took him completely by surprise.

"Wasn't Seigaku's Tennis Club supposed to have been reshuffled and turned upside down?"

"Why does it seem even more lively now...?"

Ever since the first match of the regional qualifiers, Inoue had been gathering information on promising players at schools across Tokyo.

The changes at Hyotei and Rikkai Dai had excited him the most.

That was why he'd kept Seigaku in mind, hoping to see if they had any promising players. But after visiting, he'd been sorely disappointed.

Compared to Hyotei and Rikkai Dai, who had actively embraced change, Seigaku had clung to the same old ways.

But when he'd returned from a business trip to Kyushu yesterday afternoon, he'd heard some exciting news.

—A major upheaval had taken place in Seigaku's Tennis Club.

A first-year student named Tezuka Kunimitsu had taken on the entire club, defeated the former captain, Yamato Yūdai, and become the new captain of Seigaku's Tennis Club.

The first thing he did after taking office was hold an intraschool ranking tournament and select the regulars anew based on ability.

The first-years had performed brilliantly in the tournament, earning places on the team one after another.

The upperclassmen had all been defeated, with the sole exception of former captain Yamato Yūdai.

An event like this went completely against the rules Seigaku had always upheld.

But at the time, Seigaku's coach, Ryūzaki Sumire, had "happened" to fall ill.

She was expected to be absent for four months, leaving her no chance to stop this from happening.

And so, after Hyotei Academy and Rikkai Dai in Kanagawa, Seigaku had become the third team to undergo a complete transformation.

When Inoue heard the news, he couldn't sit still.

Seigaku's Tennis Club had always held a special place in his heart.

Though the club had remained weak over the years and its recent results had been poor, it usually had little news worth reporting.

But the school was the alma mater of his one and only idol—the legendary samurai, Echizen Nanjirō.

It was also where Echizen Nanjirō's tennis journey had begun.

To Inoue, Seigaku had always been shrouded in the glow of legend.

How could he not pay attention now that such a change had taken place?

On top of that, his sharp instincts as a reporter told him there had to be a story worth uncovering behind these events.

That was why he had come to Seigaku's Tennis Club.

Inoue had expected the upheaval to leave a bad atmosphere around the club, but at that moment,

the tennis court was packed with people.

The sight still took him by surprise. It was nothing like he'd expected.

The entire court was surrounded. There had to be something important going on.

Inoue had planned to gather some material, but when he looked up, he spotted a striking figure approaching from the distance.

His eyes lit up, and he hurried over to Tezuka.

Tap, tap...

Hearing the approaching footsteps and feeling a burning gaze on him, Tezuka turned around curiously and looked up.

"Hello, I'm Inoue Mamoru, a reporter for Tennis Monthly."

"I came by today because I heard a few days ago that a lot of major things had happened at Seigaku's Tennis Club. I'm here to learn more about the details."

"You're Tezuka, aren't you? Would you mind giving me a brief interview?"

Tezuka was taken aback. As a first-year, he didn't yet have the imposing presence he would two years later, but he could still stay calm in the face of important matters.

So Tezuka agreed to Inoue's request and invited him to follow him to a less crowded area on the other side of the court for the interview. They could also watch the match from there.

On the court, the two who had faced each other once again were in completely different form.

Muneyoshi's abilities had undergone a dramatic change in the past two months, while Akutsu had, with help from Tezuka and Fuji, systematically learned the proper foundations of tennis and its standard techniques.

He had also corrected many of his bad habits, and systematic training had greatly improved his skills.

But the gap between him and Muneyoshi hadn't narrowed.

The score—4–0 in less than fifteen minutes—made the difference between them all too clear.

Thwack!

Akutsu once again struck the ball hard toward the left side of Muneyoshi's court.

Swish!

Muneyoshi didn't seem bothered in the slightest. With a faint smile, he slid into position.

He appeared right where the ball was headed, stretched his arm out, and reached forward.

Thwack!

The moment his racket intercepted the ball, Muneyoshi put a little force into his forearm and flicked it sideways.

To Akutsu's astonishment, the ball ricocheted in the opposite direction, landing right by the left corner of the baseline.

It was a beautiful shot that skimmed the line.

"Game. Change sides. The score is 5–0."

Seeing the disbelief on Akutsu's face, Saeki Muneyoshi—whose match with Atobe had inspired him to imitate the other boy's showy swagger—decided to tease Akutsu again.

"Well, Jin, don't get too entranced by my marvelous technique."

Muneyoshi's smile grew even warmer. Staring right at Akutsu, he imitated Atobe's tone and posture to perfection.

Akutsu's brows drew together. He shot the clowning Muneyoshi a cold glare with his dark golden eyes.

But rather than shouting insults like he used to, he silently walked over to his service line, his expression grim.

Inside, though, he was anything but calm.

At that moment, Saeki Muneyoshi had risen to the top of the list of people he hated most.

"I'll smash you!"

Akutsu squeezed the ball hard, tossed it up, and rotated his elbow. Then he swung his arm down with tremendous force.

Thwack!

A faint gray light seemed to flicker across the ball, and a terrifying, dangerous aura suddenly descended on the court.

Across the net, Muneyoshi felt as if something were pressing down on his body, slowing every movement.

"Hmm, an aura? Is this... the aura of a beast?"

"Or is it demonic?"

As he carefully sensed the invisible pressure blanketing the court, a glimmer of delight flashed in Muneyoshi's eyes.

Because of him, had Akutsu—introduced to proper tennis in his first year—begun changing years earlier than he did in the original story?

Atobe and Akutsu—both had evolved ahead of schedule because of him.

The future of this world was going to be very interesting!

That was exactly what Muneyoshi had hoped for. Without all those regrets and entanglements holding them back, they should have been able to shine even brighter.

Now, they were simply walking the right path.

"If that's the case, then what about you two, Tezuka! Fuji!"

Muneyoshi looked across the court. Tezuka stood there, having finished his interview, with Fuji beside him—though Muneyoshi wasn't sure when he had joined him.

It was as if the two of them had sensed Muneyoshi's resolve.

Their smiles vanished, and their expressions turned serious.

"Jin, you've improved quickly, but it still isn't enough. Let me show you—and all of you—how I play now!"

A dark aura surged from his body. A flash of black light enveloped the ball flying toward him.

"Inoue, the second round of the regional qualifiers is about to begin. After that comes the Metropolitan Tournament. What should we write about in the next issue?"

Remembering his editor-in-chief's words, Inoue spread out all the photos he'd taken earlier across his desk, planning the contents of the magazine.

He was sure the next issue would be packed with stories.

Then he noticed another set of photos beneath them, taken at Seigaku.

The silver-haired boy dressed in black had left a deep impression on him as well.

And over the past few days, he'd kept hearing news about the boy from other schools and his informants.

Could he use the boy as the focus of this issue, too?

Inoue thought it over, then made up his mind. In the corner of the magazine, he wrote:

The Man Who Overturned Tokyo's Tennis Clubs

The man who had taken on Tokyo's tennis clubs.

P.S. "Please give me your monthly passes and recommendation tickets. I'm not picky. Otherwise, Muneyoshi might not know where to go next."