The Middle School Team Roster

Japan U17 Training Camp.

After the painful experience of failure, the middle school students all fell silent.

Of course, this silence was only temporary, and only for high school students. For Saeki Muneyoshi, who was also a junior high school student, the silence was impossible to shake off.

After entering the training camp and experiencing a new level of tennis, especially after witnessing the power of Court 3, the junior high school students couldn't sit still.

If Stadium 3 is like this, then what will happen to Stadium 1?

Realizing this, the junior high school students disregarded some of the unspoken rules of the training camp and began to systematically challenge Saeki Muneyoshi.

Logically, the coaching staff should have stopped such a challenge.

However, for some reason, perhaps it was because of the guilt they felt for colluding to scheme against junior high school students, or perhaps they saw that Saeki Muneyoshi was very careful with his strength.

So the coaching staff simply ignored the matter.

Sure enough, Saeki Muneyoshi looked at Akutsu, who had collapsed again on the opposite side of the court, and Yukimura, Tezuka, Tachibana Kippei, Keith, and the others on the sidelines.

Seeing that none of them took the initiative to challenge him again, he breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew this was compensation from the coaching staff, and also a challenge from the junior high students.

Moreover, the coaching staff was initially worried that such challenges wouldn't be very effective, but with the weekly data updates...

The coaches discovered that everyone similar to Saeki Muneyoshi, whether teammates or opponents, was evolving at a speed that was difficult for ordinary people to comprehend.

They evolved much faster than other high school students, and even other junior high school students who were not close to them.

After discovering this, the coaching staff was happy to see it happen, and Muneyoshi, after initially complaining, also got into the swing of things.

As this high-intensity training intensifies, with so many opponents training against them, a large number of junior high school students collapse on the ground from exhaustion every day.

This allowed Muneyoshi to finally break through his stamina barrier, and his speed also improved slightly.

At this point, Saeki Muneyoshi could confidently say that he was ahead of the vast majority of people in a protracted battle.

In the evening, after tormenting Akutsu, Tachibana Kippei, Keith, and Sanada again, Muneyoshi took a shower and then went to the restaurant for dinner.

While they were eating, Lin Xiu, Shinji Kamio, and the others walked in, looking somewhat nervous.

"What's wrong? Did you lose the game again today?"

Seeing that the others looked tense, Muneyoshi couldn't help but ask.

Lin Xiu and the other two sat down, glanced at Saeki Muneyoshi with a complicated expression, and asked, "Muneyoshi, do you know the list of candidates selected for this junior high school entrance exam?"

Lin Xiu's words puzzled Muneyoshi. What list?

Because he had been busy with "training" these past few days and hadn't paid attention to other news, but considering that the time was almost up, he quickly guessed what Lin Xiu meant.

"Is it the upcoming Four-Nation Exchange Tournament with America?"

"That's right, everyone in junior high school is talking about Muneyoshi right now, but I heard from the coaching staff that there are only a limited number of spots available this time. Do you know who they'll be choosing?"

Seeing Lin Xiu take the initiative to train, Muneyoshi chuckled. This was unlike Lin Xiu's usual calm and unassuming personality.

Therefore, Muneyoshi jokingly asked, "What, you want to go too?"

Lin Xiu shook his head. He had no interest in competitions that represented the country, and he knew that he was just an exchange student and did not have the qualifications.

He wanted to ask Keith if there was a chance.

Muneyoshi, of course, knew Lin Xiu's thoughts, but this time he didn't guarantee anything. After eating the last piece of food, Muneyoshi took out a tissue to wipe his mouth and said calmly:

"This roster was definitely arranged by the coaching staff; as a trainee, there's absolutely nothing I can do about it."

Hearing Muneyoshi's words, Lin Xiu realized he had asked the wrong person. After all, matters involving the roster were definitely confidential and could not be easily revealed.

This Four-Nation Exchange Tournament is a short-term event, with four matches over four days, resulting in extremely high intensity and schedule density.

Therefore, in order to avoid injuries and to allow for more personnel rotation, a total of fourteen junior high school students, plus several high school students, will be selected to represent Japan in the competition.

This opportunity to represent Japan is incredibly appealing to them, who are still in junior high school.

Upon learning this news, the junior high school students trained incredibly hard.

Bang!

Bang!

The training camp was filled with junior high school students training. After finishing dinner, Muneyoshi felt a bit bloated, so he started taking a walk around the camp to digest.

He passed by each venue without lingering, and soon Muneyoshi came across a rather interesting duel.

Outside the stadium where Oshitari and Fuji were facing off.

Muneyoshi glanced at the scoreboard. Fuji was Oshitari Fuji 5-4, and Fuji still had possession of the serve.

A gentle breeze blew by, slightly lifting Fuji's brown hair. Fuji opened his slightly narrowed eyes, his gaze towards Oshitari carrying a hint of coldness.

"Oshitari -kun, this match should end now."

Bang!

As Fuji finished speaking, the tennis ball flew from his hand, turning into an orange streak of light and shadow, and appeared in Oshitari's half of the court in the blink of an eye.

Step... step... step...

And Fuji, who had competed against Fuji many times, knew his habits very Oshitari.

The moment he saw the tennis ball's trajectory, Oshitari made his judgment and moved his feet quickly.

He caught up with the tennis ball the instant it bounced, lowered the head of his racket, and pulled it away.

Hit the tennis ball directly in the opposite direction of Fuji's movement trajectory.

Moreover, Muneyoshi's eyesight was astonishing; he could see that the instant Oshitari countered, he reversed the spin that Fuji had applied to the tennis ball.

He forcibly changed what was originally Topspin into a backspin ball.

Bang!

Oshitari's counterattack was brilliant.

And just as he expected, after the tennis ball flew over the net, it flew directly towards Fuji's opposite side.

"Hmph, this is the moment I've been waiting for!"

But Fuji's pace was just as fast; with a quick, single-legged step, he changed the direction of his movement.

Furthermore, after catching up with the tennis ball, Fuji did not use the conventional method to break the backspin, but instead aimed at the tennis ball and delivered a powerful slice the instant it bounced off the ground.

Not only that, Fuji not only used one side to slice the ball, Fuji also used the other side.

Sizzle... sizzle...

This move was not only familiar to Muneyoshi, but also to Oshitari in the arena. It was the move that Fuji used during his match against Yukimura in the National Tournament.

The Hecatoncheires' Guard.

As this move appeared again, a smile appeared on his gentle and handsome face, "Your counterattack can no longer get over the net."

Just as Oshitari's high-flying tennis ball was about to clear the net, it suddenly plummeted downwards in mid-air.

Thump... thump...

The first time Muneyoshi watched Fuji and Oshitari compete was during the first-year Metropolitan Tournament, when Oshitari was the better player.

Now, Fuji's talent has been developed, while Oshitari's progress, though not slow, has fallen behind Fuji's pace...

Then, Saeki Muneyoshi saw the match between Yanagi Renji and Mitsuya Akito.

Compared to the plot-driven death a year later, the competition between these two has only just begun.

At the net, Yanagi Renji and Mitsuya shook hands.

Looking at the figure in front of him, Yanagi Renji said excitedly, "Akito, I've collected all your information over this period of time. My winning percentage in this match is 67%..."

Seeing Yanagi Renji's confident gaze, Mitsuya didn't refute. "Alright, let me see how far your Data Tennis has progressed!"

Snap...

"Game, Mitsuya Akito wins, score 6-0."

Looking at the two on the field, Saeki Muneyoshi's lips curled into a slight smile, "Yanagi Renji is still far from being able to collect data on Mitsuya."

The next day.

On the high platform in the training ground, all the junior high and high school students gathered together, Kurobe Yukio began to announce the list of players participating in the Four-Nation Exchange Tournament.

"Now, students whose names are called, please step forward."

Aside from world championships, Mifune Nyudo doesn't usually appear in regular matches, so Kurobe is in charge of this one.

"Yukimura Seiichi, Tezuka Kunimitsu, Mori Juzaburo, Atobe Keigo, Sanada Genichirou, Niou Masaharu, Akutsu Jin,

Fuji Shusuke, Tachibana Kippei Chitose Senri, Kite Eishiro, Shiraishi Kuranosuke, Hara Tetsuya...

Kurobe's gaze fell on Saeki Muneyoshi. Originally, this spot was intended for other junior high school students so that Saeki Muneyoshi would not take up a junior high school student's spot.

But the head coach told him, "Why not take advantage of such a good deal?"

"And, the junior high school team captain, Saeki Muneyoshi."

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

Keith and Lin Xiu will not be selected for the final roster. After the Four Nations Tournament, I will arrange their future after the National Tournament in their third year. It can be considered an Easter egg I planted before.

They were originally presented as figures challenging and attacking Muneyoshi, and I also want them to exist as rivals in the end.