JR Tournament!

Tokyo Metropolis.

Lawson Tennis Center had once hosted the Open. The youth championships were held there every year, and today's elementary school JR Tournament was no exception. If history followed its usual course, the champion would be Rikkai Dai's future Child of God, Yukimura Seiichi.

And Rikkai Dai's future Emperor would naturally have to settle for second place.

Today was the quarterfinals, with matches underway on four courts at once.

The area outside the courts was packed with spectators. Among them were plenty of well-known tennis schools, of course, along with talent scouts from tennis clubs and tennis reporters hoping to land a headline.

"Ryo, how strong is your opponent today?"

"Mm, some nobody named Kamikawa. I should be able to advance without much trouble."

"You're lucky. My opponent's Tezuka, the singles champion in the elementary school division at the Metropolitan Tournament. Looks like my run ends in the quarterfinals."

In the crowd, two boys held their tennis rackets. Their expressions were worlds apart—one excited, the other anxious.

"Mukahi, don't worry. I'll beat that arrogant Tezuka for you."

The brown-haired boy, with his hair tied in the traditional long style of a samurai, spoke cheerfully.

He had absolute confidence in his abilities. Even some middle schoolers couldn't beat him.

If this JR Tournament hadn't drawn so many exceptionally talented players, he might even have had a shot at the title. After all, he was one of the top three tennis players at Hyotei Elementary School.

He was even something of a rising star across Tokyo Metropolis.

"Jiro's up against Sanada from Kanagawa in the next round, right?"

The red-haired boy with straight bangs suddenly spoke. "I hear he's really strong. One of the best in Kanagawa, too."

"Hard to say."

The brown-haired boy slowly shook his head. He glanced at Akutagawa Jiro, who was asleep against the railing like a sheep, and said, "He's a famous oddball at Hyotei Elementary School. He won't lose."

Akutagawa Jiro wasn't very well known in Tokyo Metropolis.

He wasn't as famous there as the brown-haired boy and Mukahi, yet the boy who seemed to do nothing but sleep had more solid fundamentals than anyone else. Both he and Mukahi had played against Jiro, and the result had been an inevitable defeat.

"Oh, Ryo."

The red-haired boy seemed to have spotted someone. He pointed behind the brown-haired boy. "Those are our opponents in the next round."

The brown-haired boy turned at that and saw Kamikawa and Tezuka approaching with their racket bags on their backs. Tezuka looked young, but his eyes held a fierce hunger for victory.

"Kamikawa put a hand on Tezuka's shoulder and said, "If I hadn't come looking for you, you wouldn't have made the quarterfinals today. Your grandpa's something else—he knew you had a match, but still asked you to go fishing."

Tezuka couldn't do anything about his childhood friend. He replied helplessly, "Grandpa didn't do it on purpose. I forgot to tell him about the match, too."

"Don't make excuses for your grandpa."

Kamikawa grinned. "We're in opposite halves of the draw this time. Let's meet in the final."

"You won't lose, will you?"

At that, Tezuka calmly replied, "I won't lose. And I hope you won't, either."

"Our previous matches have always ended in a draw. I hope I can finally have a proper match today and give it my full attention."

"And that Limit of a Hundred Refinements you mentioned—I think I can see that door opening for me."

At Tezuka's mention of the Limit of a Hundred Refinements, Kamikawa raised an eyebrow. "Just like you, Tezuka. That's one of the three gates of Muga no Kyochi..."

Before Kamikawa could finish, a taunting voice sounded beside them.

"So you're my next opponent?!"

The brown-haired boy balanced his racket on one finger and strode over to Kamikawa and Tezuka.

At the sight of the young boy before him, Kamikawa recognized him at once: Shishido Ryo, one of Hyotei's future regulars!

And the red-haired boy beside him was Mukahi Gakuto, also a future Hyotei regular!

He'd only just decided to join Hyotei yesterday, and today he'd already run into one of its future regulars.

Judging by his tone, this guy was his next opponent, too.

"You're Shishido Ryo of Hyotei Elementary School, aren't you?"

Kamikawa walked up with a grin, patted Shishido on the shoulder, and said, "I've heard a lot about you. I hear the net is your specialty."

Shishido slapped Kamikawa's hand away, looking displeased. "It's your bad luck to run into me. I'm sorry to tell you, but your run in this JR Tournament ends in the quarterfinals!"

With that,

Shishido turned and headed toward Court B2.

Mukahi glanced at his own opponent, then turned and followed Shishido.

"Who's he?" Tezuka asked, turning to Kamikawa.

"Shishido Ryo of Hyotei Elementary School."

Kamikawa smiled. "He's pretty good."

"Never heard of him."

Tezuka was silent for a moment, then shook his head and asked, "Is that red-haired boy in the JR Tournament, too?"

"Probably."

Kamikawa recognized Mukahi, but wasn't sure whether he had made it to the quarterfinals.

After all, luck was sometimes part of the game, especially in the JR Tournament, which drew talented players from so many schools.

"Next up is the JR Tournament Group B semifinals."

"Number 15, Shishido Ryo from Tokyo Metropolis!"

"Versus number 26, Kamikawa Mutsu from Tokyo Metropolis!"

Kamikawa nodded to himself, waved at Tezuka, and said, "Bring me a bottle of soda later. I'm heading in."

Tezuka was about to say something, but Kamikawa was already running toward Court B2.

With a helpless sigh, Tezuka lowered his arm. His match would be starting soon, too.

"I'll make it quick," Tezuka murmured, then took his racket and headed toward the Group A courts.

"Shishido Ryo? Kamikawa Mutsu?"

At the boundary between Groups B and A, a boy in a black baseball cap with a racket bag over his shoulder curled his lip in disdain. "I've heard of Shishido Ryo. Kamikawa Mutsu, though? Never heard of him."

This was Sanada Genichiro, the future Emperor of Rikkai Dai.

Standing beside him was a boy with a green headband and dark blue hair: Yukimura Seiichi, the future Child of God who would reign over the entire middle school circuit.

They still looked young, with none of the imposing aura they would one day have as rulers of middle school tennis. Instead, they seemed approachable and friendly.

"Looks like this JR Tournament will come down to you and me again, Yukimura."

Sanada lowered the brim of his cap, his heart burning with anticipation. In his eyes, Yukimura was the only one who could be called his rival. The rest of the players weren't worth mentioning.

"Sanada, don't underestimate the others."

Yukimura smiled. "There are plenty of strong players in Tokyo Metropolis."

"Maybe."

Yukimura's words softened Sanada's attitude a little, but his pride as the Emperor remained undiminished.

In Kanagawa, no one but Yukimura had ever managed to take a single point from him.

That was the basis for Sanada's arrogance.

He'd only entered the JR Tournament because his friend Yukimura wanted to compete. So he'd come all the way from Kanagawa to Tokyo Metropolis. Now it looked like the two of them would face off in the final.

"Let's have another good match this time!"

"Sure!"