Fourth Fifth Chapter: Preliminary Tournament, Hyotei's New Look!

The weather today is excellent. Looking up, there isn't a single cloud in sight, and the sunlight is exceptionally gentle.

Ever since Kamikawa and Atobe's match ended, Atobe has barely come to the tennis club, aside from attending classes daily. He's been radiating a dispirited aura, as if he suffered a major blow.

Aside from Atobe, the other regular players are diligently training according to the plan Tezuka set. Coach Sakaki, who is not well-known, occasionally comes to the court to observe.

Some members who didn't make the cut to become Hyotei's regular players, seeing the improved morale of the official members, have also picked up their pace and thrown themselves into a frenzy of training.

Today is very important for the tennis club after its changes.

This will be their first match as regular players.

The district preliminaries!

After the district preliminaries, they will face the Metropolitan Tournament, the Kanto Tournament, and the National Tournament.

Because Hyotei performed exceptionally well in last year's district preliminaries, they directly advanced to the next round, only needing to play two matches, while other schools have to play three.

This can be considered a privilege for the Hyotei tennis club. Of course, there are three other schools that also received such privileges. They are schools that have performed outstandingly in the district preliminaries and can almost always reach the Metropolitan Tournament.

But compared to Hyotei, they are still far behind.

It's good if one school from a district can advance to the Kanto Tournament, let alone Hyotei advancing to the nationals. They are definitely a boss-level presence in their district.

Atobe, who hadn't appeared for some time, showed up at the tennis club today. His previous dispirited aura was gone, and he had returned to his usual arrogant state, head held high, looking like he was the best in the world.

Everyone noticed Atobe.

But all eyes were on Tezuka.

Then, Tezuka walked down from upstairs and took his position at the front. Before everyone could react, the sound of calm footsteps could be heard from outside the door.

"Thump... thump..."

Sakaki Taro walked down from his office, his expression composed. He swept his gaze over everyone, said nothing more, and simply nodded with satisfaction.

"This district preliminary is when you'll test your strength."

"Whether you're an official member or a player who regrettably lost, you are all a part of the Hyotei tennis club. My only requirement is that you win every match you participate in from now on."

"Use your strength to silence the doubters and conquer the nation!"

As Sakaki Taro finished speaking, thunderous applause erupted across the court. Everyone's fighting spirit was high, united as one, their faces filled with a thirst for victory.

"Let's go!"

Sakaki Taro pointed towards the school gate.

The official members said nothing more, shouldering their tennis bags, they walked towards the competition venue.

The wealthy Atobe, naturally, wouldn't let everyone walk. He specially chartered several large buses, and they headed towards the venue for the district preliminaries with imposing momentum.

Near Hyotei, in Shinjuku Park, located within Central Park of Shinjuku Ward, one of Tokyo's Six Central Wards, which is also the venue for the matches in the Six Central Wards.

According to the rules of the district preliminaries, only the champions and runners-up of each district qualify for the next round, the Metropolitan Tournament.

As the number one seed in the Six Central Wards, Hyotei is naturally aiming for first place, while other schools can only aim for second.

The runner-up also has the qualification to advance to the Metropolitan Tournament, which is their only chance to advance.

As for the tennis schools in the same half of the bracket as Hyotei, they have already begun preparing for next year's district preliminaries.

Even though they heard rumors that Hyotei's regular players this year include many first-years, the strength Hyotei has displayed over the years doesn't allow them to be complacent.

"Woo woo~"

As the buses arrived at the entrance of Shinjuku Park, the students and coaches coming and going to watch the matches all looked towards the buses.

As the bus doors opened, youths dressed in Hyotei's gray and white uniforms emerged. They didn't rush to leave but consciously moved to the sides, clearing a path.

At this moment, Hyotei's regular players slowly walked out from that path.

"They're here, they're here, that's Hyotei!"

"What a powerful aura!!"

"It seems the rumors weren't wrong; Hyotei has sent all first-year students this year."

Everyone marveled at Hyotei's strength. Their tennis club alone has over two hundred members, all looking full of energy and spirit, yet the one leading them is a first-year student.

This gave them a slight glimmer of hope for victory. It seems the reigning champions from last year, the team that reached the nationals, have encountered a gap in their player development!

"Number 1, Hyotei Academy, eight participating players. Please confirm."

Tezuka handed the prepared list to the organizers of the Six Central Wards district preliminary.

The organizer took the list and glanced at it, a look of shock appearing on his face. He looked back at Tezuka and asked, "Are you sure seven of the players participating this time are first-years?!"

"I'm sure," Tezuka replied calmly.

The organizer nodded slightly and said, "The first five matches must all be played. Subsequent matches are won by securing three victories."

"The champions and runners-up of each regional division will earn a spot in the Metropolitan Tournament."

"Do you have any further questions?"

The staff member patiently explained the competition rules.

Tezuka slowly shook his head and said, "No."

The roster had been submitted. Since it was their first appearance, they wanted to play with spirit. Sakaki Taro decided to include all eight regular players for their debut match.

For singles, it would be Tezuka, Atobe, and Kamikawa. For doubles, Oshitari and Jiro would be paired together, as would Shishido and Mukahi, with each pair competing separately.

This lineup was considered Hyotei's strongest available force at the moment.

In the first round, Hyotei faced a tennis school that had already played one match. Upon hearing that Hyotei had fielded a full seven first-year students, the opposing team members were all eager to teach them a lesson.

The result...

After five sets, it was a clean sweep of 6-0 for every match.

Watching the games, the opponents could barely touch the tennis ball when Hyotei served. The rest of the time, they didn't even make contact with the ball. The gap was simply too vast, far beyond imagination.

Many schools had sent people to scout Hyotei's strength, and they were all breaking out in a cold sweat.

Schools that still harbored any hope proactively surrendered before the matches even began.

Such a one-sided slaughter was completely unnecessary.

"It was much simpler than I expected."

Kamikawa lay under the shade of a tree and glanced at Tezuka beside him, speaking softly.

For the subsequent matches, there was no need for the regular players to participate. Sakaki Taro had arranged for the former regular members of the Hyotei tennis club, the second and third-year seniors, to play for fun.

"Yeah."

Tezuka nodded.

The regional divisions within the Six Central Wards did not have any renowned tennis schools capable of advancing to the Metropolitan Tournament. This outcome was within everyone's expectations.