Staring at the silver-haired boy before them, who wore a faint smile, Yanagi Renji and Inui Sadaharu felt their minds go blank. Google Search
They had never imagined that Kannagi Shinichi would know who they were, much less invite them to come along.
Unlike Kannagi Shinichi, whose name had already spread throughout the country, they had only enjoyed a little renown as a doubles pair back in fourth grade.
Over the past two years, however, they had barely appeared in the elementary school tennis scene. Compared to Kannagi Shinichi now, they were all but unknown.
"I remember you. You're Yanagi Renji, a first-year regular at Rikkai Dai." Kannagi Shinichi first looked at Yanagi, then turned to Inui with a smile. "And you're Inui Sadaharu, a first-year regular at Yamabuki."
At Kannagi Shinichi's words, the two froze, momentarily forgetting to reply.
Seeing them like this, the faint smile on Kannagi Shinichi's face grew. It seemed neither had expected him to know who they were.
But they had both seen their share of big events. After a brief moment of surprise, they quickly collected themselves.
"We just didn't expect the famous tyrant of the tennis world to know so much about us."
There was a note of gravity in Yanagi Renji's voice. He believed Kannagi Shinichi hadn't recognized him by chance. It was quite possible he'd looked into Rikkai Dai—and perhaps Hyotei had been keeping an eye on them all along.
"You weren't nobodies back then, either. People only stopped recognizing you because you've been out of the limelight for the past two years."
Kannagi Shinichi's smile faded. Then he said something that left them both stunned.
"By the way, are you two still playing Data Tennis?"
"What...?"
The two stared at him in shock. Kannagi Shinichi even knew they played Data Tennis. Did that mean the data from Hyotei's match today had been deliberately shown to them...?
Both were clever, and clever people tended to overthink things. Seeing their bewildered expressions, Kannagi Shinichi knew he'd thrown them off balance.
He chuckled inwardly. Who told you to collect data on Hyotei? If I don't mess with your heads now, you might actually gather some useful information—and that would be bad news for Hyotei.
"By the way, would you like to come watch Yamabuki's match with us?"
When Kannagi Shinichi spoke again, Inui Sadaharu hurried over to ask, "Kannagi, are you going to watch Yamabuki's match too?"
"Of course. In all of Tokyo, Yamabuki is the only team Hyotei has to take seriously."
Kannagi Shinichi made no attempt to hide it. Keeping an eye on your rivals and learning about them was only natural in tennis.
"Renji, do you want to go?"
At Kannagi Shinichi's confident reply, Inui Sadaharu glanced at Yanagi Renji, wanting to see if his friend would join him at Yamabuki's match.
Yanagi Renji saw Inui Sadaharu's questioning look and nodded slightly before turning to Kannagi Shinichi. "Sorry for the trouble."
Yanagi Renji was also quite interested in Yamabuki Middle School, where Inui Sadaharu now played. Inui had hinted before that Yamabuki had grown very strong.
"It's no trouble. There's plenty of room on the bus."
After Kannagi Shinichi led Yanagi Renji and Inui Sadaharu onto the bus, all the Hyotei regulars turned their attention to them.
They had heard Kannagi Shinichi's words and knew the two came from schools that would compete with Hyotei for a place at the National Tournament.
Naturally, that made them curious about the pair.
Yanagi Renji remained calm under the Hyotei regulars' scrutiny, but Inui Sadaharu felt a little awkward.
After all, these were Yamabuki Middle School's biggest rivals in the Tokyo tournament. It was only natural to feel uncomfortable sitting among them.
Fortunately, the awkwardness didn't last long. Yamabuki's courts weren't far from Hyotei's, and within half an hour, they had reached the venue.
Yamabuki had already finished the second doubles match and moved on to the first doubles match.
The Hyotei team looked up at the scoreboard. Yamabuki's second doubles team had won the opening match 6–0, and the players had both been first-years: Minami Kentaro and Azuma Masami.
The other Hyotei regulars didn't know those two, but Kannagi Shinichi did. In the future, they would become a nationally ranked doubles pair, nicknamed the Potato Soldiers.
The Yamabuki first doubles team on court now was Kikumaru Eiji and Oishi Syuichiro, who had transferred from Seigaku.
The score stood at 5–1 in Yamabuki's favor. No wonder they would become the Golden Pair. They'd only joined Yamabuki recently, yet they already worked together so well.
Watching Yamabuki's two doubles pairs, Kannagi Shinichi furrowed his brow.
What Hyotei lacked most right now was doubles players. He, Atobe, and Akutsu were all strong singles players, while Shishido Ryo, Mukahi Gakuto, and the others had played singles as well.
Kannagi Shinichi had already spotted Hyotei's weakness: doubles was the team's biggest problem.
After this match, he planned to suggest to Sakaki Taro that they form a doubles team. Shishido Ryo and Akutagawa Jirou were his first choices.
Shishido Ryo excelled in speed and explosive power. As a back-court defender, he could protect his partner's side while they attacked. He was also a natural doubles player; he just hadn't realized it yet.
Akutagawa Jirou, meanwhile, had excellent volleying skills. With a strong defender behind him, his attacking ability would shine in doubles. But he had one major flaw: he was always sleepy. It wasn't a problem off the court, but if he nodded off during a match, it would seriously disrupt the pair's teamwork.
It looked like Hyotei's "Golden Pair" would have to wait until Ohtori Chotaro joined the team. For now, they'd have to make do with Akutagawa Jirou.
But the priority was to get Shishido Ryo fully accustomed to doubles. By the time Ohtori Chotaro joined, Shishido Ryo would already have a year's experience.
As Kannagi Shinichi considered Hyotei's doubles problem, the first doubles match came to an end. Kikumaru Eiji and Oishi Syuichiro won 6–1.
Watching the "Golden Pair" leave the court, Kannagi Shinichi knew that with the six former Seigaku players on the team, Yamabuki had truly risen.
Both of their doubles pairs had the potential to compete at the national level. Add to that their singles reserves—Tezuka, Fuji, Inui, and Sengoku—and the coaching ability of Bandou Mikiya, and Yamabuki might become one of Hyotei's biggest rivals at the National Tournament this year or next.
"Next is the third singles match: Yamabuki Middle School's Fuji Syusuke versus Liyuan Chuan of Sato Academy."
"Fuji, win this match..."
"Fuji, show them what Yamabuki can do..."
On the court, the squint-eyed boy picked up his racket and smiled at the people cheering him on. "I'll bring the victory back to Yamabuki."
Meanwhile, up in the stands, Kannagi Shinichi turned to Oshitari and said, "Oshitari, watch this match carefully. Fuji Syusuke's tennis is very similar to yours. He may well become your biggest rival."
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