"I give up. You're such a little kid, but I never expected you to be this good."
Kikumaru showed no sign of disappointment after losing. Of course, that was in keeping with his sunny, carefree nature.
In the original story, Kikumaru was the kind of person who could reflect on a loss, shake off his bad mood, and face the next, stronger challenge with an even more positive attitude.
"Senpai, you sure have a lot of variety in your net play. Someone else might have had a hard time predicting where your shots were going."
"Hmph, kid, are you bragging? If we get another chance, I'll definitely give you a surprise."
Horio gave a wry smile at Kikumaru's confident words.
Though Kikumaru in the original story always worked hard to make up for his lack of stamina, aside from playing doubles with Oishi, his performance was truly nothing special.
Horio believed that no matter how much Kikumaru improved, or how impressive his progress was, he still couldn't beat Horio, who had shown only the tip of the iceberg of his abilities.
Horio's match with Kikumaru ended. The following matches against ordinary second- and third-year students were basically formalities, and by the end of the afternoon, Horio had finished every match on the school rankings tournament schedule.
When the match point in Horio's final match was over and the umpire declared him the winner, Katsuro, Katsuo, and several other first-years watching outside the court burst into cheers.
Horio's victory in that match meant he had become a regular player.
After putting his racket away in his bag, Horio slung it over his shoulder and left the court.
Katsuro and Katsuo had to clean the court, so Horio said goodbye to them and headed straight off.
Horio had originally planned to wait for them, but now he just wanted to leave. There was no other reason—he was hungry.
As Horio changed alone in the locker room, he suddenly heard the door open.
He turned around and saw Tezuka Kunimitsu, dressed in the team uniform.
"Captain Tezuka, you're still at the club this late?"
Seeing Tezuka come in, Horio politely greeted him first.
"I wanted to thank you on behalf of Momoshiro and Kikumaru for helping them. And congratulations on becoming a regular."
Tezuka's expression remained stiff, but his words took Horio by surprise.
Horio had assumed Tezuka wouldn't pay much attention to an internal school tournament like this. He hadn't expected Tezuka to have seen everything he'd done—and to have guessed his intentions.
"It's what I should do as a member of the tennis club. You don't need to thank me, Captain."
Horio hadn't done those things to earn anyone's gratitude, but it still felt good to know someone understood why he'd done them.
"I still have to thank you. From now on, we're teammates fighting together. Give it everything you've got."
Hearing that familiar, slightly over-the-top catchphrase, Horio suddenly felt as though his youth had returned. His own blood stirred with excitement.
"Yeah. Seigaku will definitely win the national championship this year."
"Let's work toward that goal. By the way, Horio, give me your measurements. We need to have uniforms made for you and Echizen."
After getting Horio's measurements, Tezuka turned to leave the locker room. He opened the door and stepped outside, but suddenly stopped.
"Horio, if we get the chance, let's play a match."
Horio was taken aback by Tezuka Kunimitsu's sudden suggestion, but then he smiled, understanding.
"I'd love to play a real match against you, Captain. But only after your arm has fully recovered. Right now, you're probably not even half as strong as you are at your best."
At Horio's words, Tezuka's usually calm eyes widened. He looked back at Horio in astonishment.
"You really can see things most people can't. Could it be that you..."
"You're overthinking it, Captain. I haven't opened those three gates. But my Eye of Shattering Delusions lets me see through everything. It's far more advanced than the Radiant Talent Limit."
"I hope that day comes soon. Let's work hard together, Horio."
Tezuka turned to leave, lost in thought, but this time Horio called after him.
"Captain, wait. I'd like to ask you something. Please don't play in any matches until your arm has fully recovered. I'm confident that as long as I'm on the court, I can win every match.
"Until then, please take good care of your arm and let it heal."
Tezuka said nothing. He simply turned and left the locker room.
Watching Tezuka walk away without looking back, Horio smiled.
"Looks like he'll agree."
At a hamburger shop, Horio looked at the line and, despite his rumbling stomach, joined the end of it.
As the line grew shorter, strangely, nobody joined behind him.
At last, with only one person ahead of him, someone suddenly tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and saw Momoshiro and Ryoma.
"What a coincidence, you two. Fancy running into you here."
"Hey, kid, what's that supposed to mean? You make it sound like you don't want to run into us."
"I didn't say that. What were you two doing out so late?"
"Ah... After losing to you and then to Kikumaru-senpai today, I was pretty frustrated. I figured I'd find somewhere to play and blow off some steam. I ran into Echizen on the way, and since we were both hungry, we decided to grab something to eat first."
"Then, Momoshiro-senpai, you didn't make the team, did you?"
"Aw, you already figured it out, so why rub it in? But I'll make it back next time, for sure. Don't worry—I'll still come cheer you on at the district preliminaries this weekend."
Momoshiro didn't look the least bit dejected about failing to make the team, but Horio knew he must be bitterly disappointed.
Still, Horio didn't dwell on it. Momoshiro would definitely grow stronger in the future.
After the three of them had eaten their fill, they were about to head home when they suddenly heard the sound of a ball being struck nearby.
The moment Momoshiro heard it, he got fired up and dragged the other two to a public tennis court. When they arrived, they found that everyone there was playing doubles.
Horio thoughtfully left the opportunity to Momoshiro, who wanted to blow off steam, and Ryoma, who wanted to play tennis every chance he got. He found a seat nearby and rested.
A public court was just a public court. Horio looked around while resting, but didn't see a single pair with decent skills. That made Momoshiro and Ryoma's mediocre doubles game one of the best among them.
But to Horio, the two of them were full of openings.
They were just two players scrambling for the ball on the same half of the court. Even a slightly more coordinated doubles team could keep up with them for a few rallies.
Then, after Momoshiro and Ryoma had beaten another pair, a team consisting of a brown-haired player with spiky hair and a blue-haired player with long hair appeared.
They didn't look particularly strong, but their outlandish hairstyles certainly made them stand out from the rest.
When the two stepped onto the court, the people watching began exclaiming that the strongest pair at the public court had finally entered the game.
Hearing all the praise, Horio turned his attention to their match.
Before you continue