Bang...
"Senpai, I've broken your Brown Bear Drop too. That means you've used up all three of your returns, right?"
Looking at the racket in his hand, pierced by a tennis ball, Fuji knew he had lost completely.
"Senpai, do you only have those three returns? If you ever face someone who can counter all three again, won't you have to forfeit right away?"
Horio's words hit home. Fuji, who still hadn't recovered from his defeat, was jolted into clarity.
That's right. If all three of my returns are countered, what else can I do to win the match...?
"Forget it, let's stop. You look a little tired, senpai. We'll call it a day."
Seeing Fuji fall silent, Horio said no more.
Whether Fuji had taken his words to heart or not, at least Horio had done what he could.
What was happening on the court was one thing; what was happening off it was another.
Everyone was speechless with shock at seeing Fuji in such a sorry state for the first time. Even Ryoma, who was usually so composed, felt the pressure.
"Have you all finished your matches? You've got time to stand around watching someone else play? Fuji-senpai was getting tired, so we've already finished."
Looking at the regulars frozen in place, Horio dropped his usual joking manner.
In his view, if Seigaku's regulars kept improving as slowly as they had in the original story, they had no chance of winning the championship this year.
So they had to start training harder now. Matches were still best-of-five, and Horio couldn't win them all by himself.
"Kid, you actually beat Fuji. How did you improve so quickly?"
"Because I'm afraid someone will surpass me. Because I'm afraid I won't be able to win the national championship. Because I'm afraid of letting down Captain Tezuka. That's why I have to keep pushing past my limits."
"Senpai Inui, let's have a proper talk sometime. There's something important I want to discuss."
"Sure, no problem. Come find me whenever you're free."
With that, Horio left with his tennis bag. He needed to train hard at the training center. Seigaku's training wasn't intense enough for him anymore.
More importantly, he needed plenty of practice to get used to his new racket.
At the training center
Bang... Bang... Bang... Bang...
"Again!"
Bang... Bang...
"Set the machine to fire all the balls at once. Don't lower the speed."
Bangbangbangbang...
Watching the figure swinging his racket without pause, the training center owner's shock gave way to approval and admiration.
"A new era for the world is about to begin. You're bringing another revolution."
"The semifinals are finally here."
"Yeah."
"Ahaha, you're all so early!"
"Are Horio and Echizen not here yet? Those two are late again."
"We're here. You're all early."
Oishi had just finished complaining about Horio and Ryoma when the two of them appeared.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Oishi led them to check in.
As the Seigaku group walked along, they saw the Fudomine players approaching in their uniforms.
"Oishi, let's settle things at the Kanto Tournament."
"All right. Seigaku will be waiting."
"Horio, once the Tokyo Metropolitan Tournament is over, let's have a match where we both give it everything."
"Of course. I've been looking forward to it for ages. You'd better be ready."
After saying that, Tachibana Kippei led the Fudomine team away from the venue. Seigaku was getting ready for their match against Ginkaku.
"Our stomachs hurt. We're forfeiting this match."
Standing at the net, the Seigaku players were at a loss as the entire Ginkaku Middle School team gave the same excuse.
Aside from Horio, who could only rub his forehead in disbelief, everyone else found it baffling. That included the culprit, Ryoma...
"I don't think anyone expected Ryoma to send us straight to the final without even playing the semifinal..."
After an unexpected semifinal, Seigaku could go straight to preparing for the final.
"Hey, you guys! Why'd you do that? Those players weren't any good. What were you afraid of?"
The Ginkaku players, clutching their stomachs, had just reached the entrance to the court when a voice called out to them, dripping with contempt.
Horio couldn't help frowning when he heard it. The person who'd said those words was Akutsu, the same guy Horio had knocked to the ground twice.
"I thought you wouldn't show up at Yamabuki again. Looks like you haven't changed. If you still don't know your place, I won't go easy on you either."
"I'm telling you, Seigaku, there's nothing to be afraid of."
Akutsu added another taunt, and hotheaded Momoshiro couldn't take it anymore.
"Bastard! I've had enough!"
He charged at Akutsu as he spoke, looking ready to hit him.
"Stop, Momo! If you hit him, we'll be disqualified. Don't do anything rash."
Oishi stopped Momoshiro just in time. Seeing that, Horio stepped forward too.
"Once is an accident, twice is a coincidence. But not a third time. That old coach of yours will probably put you in Second Singles. I'll be waiting."
Having learned his lesson twice, Akutsu didn't answer. He could feel the chill in Horio's eyes, but all he did was grit his teeth and glare back.
"Going by Yamabuki's usual strategy, they focus on their two doubles matches. Add Sengoku, their lucky Third Singles player, and that's how they've always won."
"Even though we beat Yamabuki last year, Oishi and Kikumaru, the Golden Pair, still lost. And that's not even mentioning the other two senpai who lost their doubles matches."
Inui Sadaharu analyzed the situation for everyone. Oishi and Kikumaru thought back to losing to Yamabuki last year.
Their expressions darkened, but their fighting spirit soon returned.
"That's right. If they have another strong singles player, we'll be in trouble."
Fuji was also concerned by Akutsu's appearance. After all, Kawamura Takashi had said Akutsu was a formidable player.
"I'll take Akutsu. He's supposed to be good at everything, right? Then I'll show him what real skill looks like."
Horio had thought Akutsu's talent was worth keeping an eye on, but not enough to make him worry too much.
As Horio saw it, Akutsu was just a natural athlete. He didn't love tennis—in fact, Horio thought he looked down on it.
That crossed a line for Horio, so this time he planned to hold nothing back.
To borrow Byodoin's words: I'll send you straight to hell.
Hearing Horio, everyone couldn't help feeling worried for Akutsu.
Horio was usually joking, careless, and laid-back. But now he spoke with complete seriousness.
The Seigaku regulars who had played against Horio knew he had never shown his true ability. Even his match against Fuji had seemed effortless.
So they had no reason to doubt Horio's words. Now they needed to focus on winning two more matches.
Before you continue