"Today's just been one of those days," grumbled Matsudaira Chikao, a high school player wearing a green beret, his face twisted in frustration. "I thought both me and Sasaki would make it through, but then *this* had to happen."
"Hmph."
Walking ahead of him, Matsudaira Chikahiko's expression darkened. His luck hadn't been any better. What should've been an easy win turned into a grueling tiebreaker, and he'd barely scraped by.
"It's all because of that guy!" Chikahiko muttered, his mind flashing back to the black-haired middle schooler. "If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have been so off my game!"
"B-brother," Chikao stammered, "are you sure that middle schooler was really that good? I mean, he didn't seem *that* strong to me."
"Idiot!" Chikahiko snapped, glaring at his younger brother. "Are you saying I was faking it out there? That kid's skills are easily at the level of Court 3 or higher. No question about it."
"Court 3?!" Chikao gasped, his eyes widening. "Even if I keep improving at my current rate, I might not even reach Court 5 by my third year!"
"Pathetic," Chikahiko sighed, shaking his head. "If you can't break into the top courts, there's no point in being here. But getting past Court 5? That's no easy feat, especially with *him* guarding it."
At the mention of the red-haired enigma who dominated Court 5, a shiver ran down Chikahiko's spine. Two years ago, that guy had already been a force to reckon with, capable of holding his own against the entire U-17 camp. Some even called him the "Gatekeeper of Hell."
"Hey, bro," Chikao piped up, "if that middle schooler's so strong, why hasn't he been recruited to the U-17 yet?"
"How should I know?" Chikahiko shot back, irritated.
"I-I just mean," Chikao quickly clarified, "if someone that good joined the camp, wouldn't he get even stronger?"
"What's it to us?" Chikahiko rolled his eyes. His brother's naivety was exactly why he was still stuck on Court 11.
"But, but," Chikao mumbled, "if you can't beat him, wouldn't it take someone from the U-17 to put him in his place?"
"Ah, I see," Chikahiko sneered. "You're just looking for someone to teach him a lesson, huh? Well, there *are* some seriously strong high schoolers at the Kanto Tournament. But..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "That guy wouldn't bother with something like this. The only people who'd catch his interest are the top players in the first string."
Chikahiko knew all too well how aloof that red-haired powerhouse was. Conflicts between middle schoolers and high schoolers? He wouldn't even bat an eye.
"Otherwise," Chikahiko muttered, "if *he* stepped in, that middle schooler would be in for a world of hurt."
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
Suddenly, the sound of intense rallying echoed from a distant, secluded court.
"Someone's playing?" Chikao's eyes widened in surprise.
"Yeah," Chikahiko nodded. And from the sound of it, it was a heated match.
"Let's check it out!" Chikao dashed ahead, leaving his brother to sigh at his impulsiveness.
"Whoa!!!" Chikao's shocked voice rang out moments later.
"What's the big deal?" Chikahiko frowned, walking over. "If you want to be a top player, you need to stay calm no matter what's happening. You can't just—*what the*?!"
His words caught in his throat as his eyes landed on the court. His jaw dropped.
"No way... Is this for real?!" Chikao stammered, his voice trembling.
On the court were two players locked in a fierce battle. One of them was the middle schooler Chikahiko had faced earlier. The other?
"N-No. 4... Echizen-senpai?!" Chikao blurted out.
"Gulp." Chikahiko swallowed hard, pinching himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming. The middle schooler was actually going head-to-head with Echizen!
And not just holding his own—this was a full-blown, high-speed showdown!
*Thwack!*
Echizen returned the ball with a sharp, precise shot that landed right on the baseline.
"Incredible... He's so strong!" Chikahiko's heart raced. Shots like that were something he could only pull off occasionally in practice, yet Echizen was doing it effortlessly in the middle of such an intense match.
*Tap tap!*
The middle schooler darted to the baseline, his racket flashing as he smashed the ball back.
*Whoosh!*
In an instant, the air was filled with a flurry of afterimages, the ball splitting into multiple trajectories.
"Afterimage shots... So many of them!" Chikao gaped, his mouth hanging open.
"He wasn't even using his full strength against me," Chikahiko muttered, clenching his fists. Watching the middle schooler now, he realized just how outclassed he'd been.
Even if he could track some of the afterimages, the sheer speed and spin of the others made them nearly impossible to return.
*Swish!*
Echizen reacted instantly, his silver racket cutting through the air as he intercepted the shot.
*Crack!*
But then, a fiery, spinning shot erupted from the middle schooler's racket, the ball accelerating mid-air as it hurtled toward Echizen.
*Boom!*
Echizen managed to return it, but the sheer force of the shot made his grip tighten. His eyes narrowed slightly.
This kid's shots were fast, heavy, and packed with power.
If it weren't for the fact that his opponent was a middle schooler, the power behind that smash would have been far greater than what we just witnessed.
"As expected of Senior Echizen," Ishikawa thought to himself, nodding in quiet acknowledgment.
His *Raging Wind* technique combined the sharpness of wind with the explosive force of fire. The fusion of these two elements created a devastatingly powerful attack. Even a casual swing from him packed 1.5 times the destructive force of Momoshiro's Dunk Smash! Yet, Echizen had effortlessly returned the shot without so much as a change in expression. It was no wonder he was considered one of the top players in Japan's U-17 first string.
"Well then..." Ishikawa muttered under his breath.
After carefully tracking the trajectory of Echizen's return, Ishikawa sprinted forward. Raising his racket, he angled it slightly and swung down with a sharp, slicing motion at the incoming ball.
*Crack!*
In an instant, the edge of his racket collided with the tennis ball.
The impact was like a thunderclap. For a moment, everything around them seemed to fade into darkness, leaving only a blinding flash of lightning in its wake.
*Boom!*
The sound echoed like a spring thunderstorm, and the burst of light that followed was overwhelming.
*Sizzle...*
But in the next second, the ball was caught squarely on Echizen's racket. However, he didn't immediately return it. The ball spun violently on the strings, emitting faint sparks of electricity. The sheer force behind the shot gradually caused Echizen's expression to tighten.
*Snap!*
Then, to the astonishment of everyone watching, Echizen's racket was forced out of his hand.
"What?!"
The members of the Hyotei team, along with Matsudaira and his brother, who had just arrived to watch, instinctively widened their eyes in disbelief.
"Is that all it did?" Ishikawa raised an eyebrow, slightly disappointed.
His *Awakening of Spring* technique was capable of shattering an opponent's racket and, in some cases, even breaking their wrist. Yet here, it had only managed to knock Echizen's racket out of his hand.
"Of course... the physical gap between a middle schooler and a high schooler is just too big," Ishikawa thought, quickly coming to terms with the result.
Considering who he was up against, it made sense. Echizen Mitsuaki, known as No. 9 in the original U-17 rankings, was now likely ranked No. 4. The fact that Ishikawa had managed to score a point against him, even if Echizen wasn't going all out, was still an impressive feat.
"No way... this can't be real!"
While Ishikawa was somewhat disappointed, the others were utterly stunned. The Hyotei players and the Matsudaira brothers, in particular, were in complete shock. They knew Echizen's true standing in the U-17 hierarchy. To see someone knock the racket out of his hand was unthinkable.
"This guy..." Matsudaira Kinhiko stared at Ishikawa as if he were some kind of monster. "Is he really a middle schooler?!"
On the court, Echizen's expression darkened as he picked up his racket. Seeing the broken strings, a mix of emotions surged within him—shock, amazement, and even a hint of disbelief.
At first, he had approached this match with the mindset of a senior, hoping to teach this junior a thing or two and help him lead Hyotei to greater heights in the middle school circuit. But now, Ishikawa's performance had completely upended his expectations. For the first time in years, Echizen felt his blood stirring with excitement.
"First-year," Echizen said, his tone serious. "Do you want to keep going?"
"Of course," Ishikawa replied with a smile. "That was just the warm-up, right? I'd love to see how far you've truly come."
"Alright then," Echizen nodded firmly before turning to the Hyotei players on the sidelines. "Kawasaki, bring me my match racket."
"Y-yes, sir!" one of the high schoolers stammered, still in shock. He quickly retrieved a sleek, silver-and-black racket and handed it to Echizen.
"B-brother..." Matsudaira Kinyo whispered, his voice trembling. "What's going on?"
But Matsudaira Kinhiko was even more stunned.
"A first-year? A middle schooler? And he's only in his first year? This is insane!" he thought, his mind racing.
And Echizen's actions—switching to his official match racket—could only mean one thing: he was preparing to take this seriously, as if it were a U-17 match. The thought alone was terrifying!
(End of Chapter)