MC Bookstore Chapter 187 Hyotei's New Fixed Doubles Team, Shishido's Break of the Serving
Chapter 187 Hyotei's New Fixed Doubles Team, Shishido's Break of the Serving
Yukimura did not participate in their conversation at all.
He sat in a chair, with Luna nestled in his arms, her two front paws clutching the fabric fish given to her by Niou, her tail tip swaying gently like a small pendulum.
Hearing the sound of snacks, it twitched its tiny triangular ear tips, raised its heterochromatic eyes to glance at the three outstretched hands, and then slowly buried its head back in Yukimura's arms, seemingly unmoved.
The fabric of the little fish has a faint lavender scent, a familiar smell.
Its little head was tilted to the side, and it used its tiny black nose to nudge the blue polka dots on the little fish's body. Although the little straw hat on its head was a bit of an obstacle, it did not dampen its enthusiasm for exploration at all.
Yukimura lowered his head and gently flicked the tip of its ear with his fingertip. Luna immediately dropped the little fish, tilted its round face up, rubbed its head against his wrist, and made a soft gurgling sound in its throat.
Marui seized the opportunity and brought the cat treat to Luna's mouth again.
Luna twitched her nose and glanced back at Yukimura, as if seeking parental consent.
Yukimura nodded slightly, and it opened its little mouth to take the tip of the cat treat in its mouth, while holding Marui's fingers with its two front paws and licking them in small bites.
Kirihara squatted down beside him, his eyes sparkling: "It's so small... its paws aren't even as thick as three of my fingers."
"Keep your voice down..." Marui protectively held the cat treat in his hand, afraid that Kirihara would frighten the cat. "It's timid."
"It's not timid at all." Niou leaned over Yagyu's shoulder and teased Luna's tail tip. "It was patting me earlier, it was so fierce."
Luna's ears twitched, she loosened the cat bar, turned her head, and slapped Nioh's finger with her paw. The force was so weak that it barely made a sound.
Niou withdrew his hand, feigning a hiss in pain: "Again? Does this cat hold grudges for life?"
Luna tilted her head, glanced at him, then turned back to continue licking the cat treat, her little tail held high, her smugness obvious.
Kuwahara watched from the side, rubbed his bald head, and chuckled sheepishly, "It's quite good at remembering things."
"Absolutely." Marui held the cat treat up a little so Luna could tilt her head back to eat it. "Just as smart as this genius."
Kirihara scratched his loose, curly hair and nervously leaned closer to them, whispering a warning, "Niou-senpai, be careful. Mochizuki-senpai's cat is from hell; Luna might really know magic, and then you..."
Luna wasn't actually hungry. She got bored while licking the cat treats, so she climbed up on her short legs and clung to Yukimura's shoulder with her paws, looking towards Sanada.
Sanada was staring intently at the field when he suddenly felt something soft touch his elbow. Looking down, he met the kitten's round, heterochromatic eyes, one blue and one yellow, like two glass marbles.
His body froze completely. When he saw Luna licking her lips with her pink tongue, his Adam's apple bobbed, but his face remained tense, and his fingers curled slightly at his sides.
He didn't look away, just stared at the kitten.
Luna tilted her head and looked at him cutely for two seconds. Her little nose twitched, and she realized that this two-legged creature was completely unmoved by the Cat King's beauty.
After a few more seconds of stalemate, it realized that this two-legged creature had a problem with its eyes, otherwise why hadn't it... fallen for its adorable charm after so long?
Luna huffed and puffed as she pulled her paws back in, slowly turned around, turned her back to Sanada, and then snuggled back into Yukimura's arms to lick her paws.
But the tip of its tail flicked against Sanada's arm in a playful, teasing motion.
Sanada looked at the small black ball of fur, his fingertips twitched, but he eventually withdrew them, clenched them again, and stared straight ahead, as if the brief eye contact had never happened.
Niou witnessed the whole scene, suppressing a laugh as he nudged Yagyu with his elbow. Yagyu glanced at him, shook his head slightly, and didn't say anything, but the corners of his mouth subtly turned up.
……
The audience was already buzzing with discussion.
"Huh? Hyotei's doubles first team is another temporary combination? Going all out like this? I remember it used to be Ootori and Kabaji, right?"
"The last match was surprising enough, and now even the doubles pair isn't their usual lineup? Isn't doubles always been their weak point?"
"Who knows? Maybe they're keeping it a secret. Look at that formation in the last game, I've never seen anything like it before."
"Is this a new combination at Seigaku? Inui and Kaidou teaming up for doubles? I've never seen that before."
"Both of today's doubles matches feature new faces, so hopefully they'll be interesting to watch."
"Didn't you see the momentum in doubles match two just now? If it weren't for the unexpected incident, Seigaku would have lost miserably. I think this doubles match one is also in trouble."
"Not necessarily. Seigaku has Sadaharu Inui, who's famous for his data-driven tennis. And Kaidou's snake shot is something most people can't handle."
"A snake ball? That seems to be it..."
The whispers drifted away on the wind, landing lightly in people's ears.
In the aisle on the other side of the stands, the Shonan Jōsei team had just finished their match and followed the cheers.
As they walked in through the audience entrance, the atmosphere inside reached a new peak. Deafening cheers, mixed with the clattering of support fans, greeted them the moment they stepped into the stands.
Ruo Renhong walked ahead, his hat brim turned upside down. He paused for a moment, then let out a light whistle.
"Whoa! What a commotion!!!"
He reached up and pressed his ear, whistled lightly, and dangled his hands in his pockets. "I thought Hyotei had already won the championship. Turns out, the doubles match hasn't even started yet."
"That's so slow."
Kajimoto Takahisa walked behind him, his purple eyes scanning the court. The scoreboard showed the score of the first match, and in the center of the court, the two teams of players were shaking hands at the net.
He paused, then said in a low voice, with the composure of a minister, "It did take quite a while. We finished all five sets, and this side only just finished one."
"That's perfect." Ruoren smiled and walked down the steps, finding a good spot to sit down. "I thought I was missing something big."
Even if there are big events, you won't be able to make it.
Kiriyama Daichi followed behind him, his voice booming so loudly that it drew the attention of the spectators nearby. "When Hyotei forfeited in the doubles, you were still dozing off in the rest area."
"How was I supposed to know they'd forfeit?" Ruoren shrugged, looking innocent. "I thought they were a sure winner."
The group of people from Chengcheng Xiangnan gradually found a good spot to sit down.
Hanamura Aoi walked at the back of the group, her wine-red curly hair swaying slightly in the wind. She sat down next to Kajimoto, her phone charm hanging at her side, a chibi version of Kamishiro and Kajimoto, swaying back and forth.
Her gaze swept across the field before settling on the Hyotei coaching bench. The haughty blond boy was leaning back in his chair, one hand resting on the armrest, his posture so relaxed it didn't seem like he was playing in the Kanto Tournament.
Huacun pushed up his thin-rimmed glasses, a subtle, enigmatic smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
"Looking at the moon..." she murmured.
Kajimoto overheard this and glanced at her sideways: "Coach, you haven't given up on poaching that coach yet?"
"How could we just let go of such a perfect candidate? There might be another chance to persuade them in the future..."
Hanamura leaned back in his chair, his voice tinged with a strange, excited anticipation. "And the fact that he was able to send out two pairs of rookie doubles players today shows that his training methods and player management skills are... very strong. Ah~ what a perfect young man~ why isn't he from our Shiroi Shonan High School~"
"..."
If someone is speechless at their coach's disappointment, they tilt their head and change the subject: "Hyotei is our next opponent, right?"
"If Hyotei beats Seigaku today, then..." Reiji Kamishiro sat on the other side of Coach Hanamura, his icy tone seeming to be squeezed out from between his teeth.
His gaze fell on Mochizuki Ryo on the sidelines, paused for two seconds, then shifted back to the court. "That silver-haired guy, the data shows his gravity-powered high-speed serve is pretty good..."
"Wow, the sun has risen in the west! I can't believe I'm hearing your praise today, Shencheng." Ruoren smiled and patted his shoulder. "But with your phantom-style fighting style, it doesn't matter who you're fighting."
Shencheng ignored him, his cold gaze fixed on the field as if he were looking at prey.
Yohei Tanaka and Kohei Tanaka sat together, their movements almost synchronized. Yohei glanced at the court's positioning and frowned slightly: "Hyotei's doubles pair... their spacing is very standard. The time difference for covering should be very short."
"Stronger than Seigaku's team."
Kohei chimed in, his voice almost overlapping with his brother's, "Those two from Seigaku, the coach said before, one is a statistics-oriented player, and the other is a one-on-one player. Their personalities and playing styles clash."
"They haven't even started fighting yet," Ruoren said, tilting her head, her voice tinged with laughter. "And you're already sentencing them?"
"You can tell about 70% of their teamwork just by looking at their positioning." Yohei observed the court. "Those two from Hyotei have a kind of... well, symmetry."
Kohei nodded: "Like us. Right... Yohei."
Yohei glanced at him: "...It's not that similar, is it? Kohei."
The twins simultaneously curled the corners of their mouths and opened their mouths at the same time.
"It just looks impressive."
"They might not be as strong as the enemy if a real fight breaks out."
The two voices were exactly the same, and both had a hint of resentment in their tone.
Kiriyama Daichi and Ota Sho stood next to the twins. Ota frowned slightly, staring at the two Hyotei members without saying a word, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the strap of the ball bag.
Kiriyama scratched his head, his hair still damp with sweat from the match, and said in a muffled voice, "The Hyotei team seems to be quite formidable."
-
The handshake ceremony on the sidelines had long since ended.
Inui and Kaidou walked back to Seigaku's half of the court, while Shishido and Ootori returned to their positions on Hyotei's half.
The cheers from the stands stopped abruptly the moment the referee raised his hand.
Having learned from the previous match, the Hyotei cheering squad packed up neatly, and the surrounding audience also lowered their voices.
All that remained was the rustling of flags in the wind and the faint sounds of balls being struck from other stadiums in the distance.
The first-year students from Seigaku who were about to shout were taken aback by the sudden silence. Horio closed his half-open mouth, looked around, and secretly put his raised hand back down.
The field fell silent.
The red-orange color of the synthetic track had a matte finish in the sunlight, and four sneakers made a soft swishing sound as they stepped on it.
The referee confirmed that both sides were in position, blew his whistle, and the clear sound broke the brief silence.
"Match begins! Seigaku serves."
Sadaharu Inui stood behind the baseline, pinching a yellow tennis ball between his fingertips and bouncing it twice on the ground.
He quickly reviewed the data in his mind. While Shishido Ryo's volleys at the net were solid, his anticipation speed wasn't top-tier, and the high bounce of his waterfall serve was enough to avoid his volley range. Winning the service game would stabilize his position.
Toss the ball, bend your knees, and swing your racket.
The entire movement was fluid and precise, with the ball bouncing high with strong topspin, heading straight for the half of the ice rink.
"Waterfall serve!"
The ball bounced sharply upwards after crossing the net, landing on Shishido's backhand corner.
This was Inui's well-planned opening move. According to data from the Metropolitan Tournament, Shishido's success rate in receiving serves from this landing point was less than 40%.
Just in case, Inui mentally anticipated Shishido's possible return shot landing point and even calculated the next shot's connection.
But he was calculating based on Shishido Ryo from two months ago.
The expected return ball did not come from the calculated trajectory.
The ball had barely crossed the net when Shishido had already moved.
Without any hesitation, he took a powerful step forward, leaning forward two paces, and held his racket horizontally in front of him to try and hit the ball. He kept his center of gravity low, and his racket met the ball at the highest point of its bounce. His timing was perfect, and his shoes made a soft sound as they scraped the ground.
With the racket face slightly tilted, I used the momentum to slice the ball back with double the force.
"Smack."
The ball slid rapidly along the net and landed on the left side of the middle of Seigaku's half of the court, just avoiding Kaido's net coverage area.
Qian paused for a moment.
The trajectory of that return shot was not included in his data model.
Kaito rushed over to cover from the left side of the net, but it was too late; the ball had already bounced a second time.
I didn't encounter anything.
"15-0".
The referee's voice announcing the score was exceptionally clear in the quiet arena.
A low gasp of surprise rippled through the audience.
Inui himself froze for half a second, his racket and feet hovering in place. He had calculated countless possible returns, but he hadn't anticipated that Shishido would dare to preemptively hit the ball like that.
My heart feels heavy.
Such a large deviation in the first point is not a good sign.
"They actually went straight for the rising ball?"
Daishi leaned forward, his arm under the bandage unconsciously tensing slightly, pulling at the wound. He quickly relaxed, his tone full of surprise. "You've got guts. That shot required such precise timing. Even in the big tournaments, people wouldn't dare receive a serve like that. Isn't he afraid of missing?"
"Because he calculated the rotation correctly."
Fuji opened his eyes, his brown pupils reflecting the figure of the long-haired boy on the field. He sighed softly, "And the timing of the prediction was at least 0.3 seconds earlier. It seems that Hyotei has been training more than just physical fitness these past two months."
"They probably even did special training on serves from data-driven players." Ryoma Echizen paused his spin, his eyes under his hat becoming more serious.
Tezuka listened to their conversation without saying a word, but the fingers hanging at his sides tightened slightly.
Horio's mouth was agape, the shout of encouragement stuck in his throat, and the first point was lost. His arm froze in mid-air, his mouth opened but no sound came out, and his face turned even redder.
"W-What happened? How did Inui-senpai's serve get returned so easily?"
Katsuro Kato and Katsuo Mizuno exchanged a glance, neither daring to speak.
-
Lihai Grand Viewing Area.
Liu's pen flew across the paper, leaving a string of fine numbers: "The timing of the volley was 0.27 seconds earlier than the previous record, the hitting point height decreased by 12 centimeters, and the volley stability improved by 37%. The accuracy of judging the rising phase has improved a lot."
Without looking up, he added with certainty, "I've improved since the training camp."
Sanada nodded slightly, the shadow cast by his hat brim obscuring his eyes. "With a solid foundation, it's only a matter of time before you master it."
Niou raised an eyebrow, smiling as he looked at Mochizuki Ryo on the sidelines. He then twirled his braid with his fingertips. "That Ryo guy, he's really ruthless. During the training camp, Shishido was forced by him to practice his rising interception thousands of times a day. It was definitely worth it."
Just after he finished sighing, he smiled and nudged Liu Sheng with his elbow.
"Hiro~ Look at the expression on that Inui guy from Seigaku's face. His brain is probably full of question marks. Puri~ Using old data against new opponents, it's no wonder he's losing points."
Yagyu adjusted his glasses, his tone calm. "Data is static, people are dynamic. Inui relies too much on static data."
Yukimura chuckled softly upon hearing this, his fingertips brushing against the kitten's drooping ears. Luna wiggled her ears comfortably, and the little fish in her arms almost slipped off, but she quickly grabbed it back with her paws.
Just then, it heard the sound of the ball being hit. It raised its little head, turned its ears around twice, and seeing that there was nothing new, it lowered its head again to nibble on its little fish.
Yukimura looked down at the kitten in his arms.
She gently stroked the kitten's nose with her fingertips, a faint smile in her eyes, and murmured softly, "Ling's training is always extremely rigorous. Even I'm strictly controlled..."
In the Hyotei rest area, Atobe lightly tapped the railing with his fingertips, his knuckles touching the beauty mark at the corner of his eye, a faint smile playing on his lips. Hiyoshi stood to the side, arms crossed, muttering "overthrowing superiors," his eyes revealing clear approval.
Cilang rubbed his eyes and praised softly, "A-Liang's return shot was really beautiful."
Hiyoshi's eyes darkened slightly when he heard this. "Since Shishido-senpai returned to the starting lineup, he hasn't let his guard down on a single ball."
On the coach's bench, Mochizuki Ryo leaned back in his chair, his azure eyes half-closed, like a cat that had basked in the sun. His fingertips rested on the cool metal armrests as he watched Shishido's final stroke on the court, a sigh escaping his lips.
Taki practiced his data-driven serve for two months, and its spin and landing point were more tricky than Inui's "waterfall serve." Hyotei's regular and semi-regular players receive hundreds of these serves every day, and they are already extremely familiar with them.
Wang Yueling's thoughts returned, and without much expression, she simply uttered a sentence in French in a low voice.
"Bien joué. (Well played!)"
His voice was very soft, carried by the wind, and Atobe in the back stands could vaguely hear it.
She glanced at him sideways, scoffed, and said with her usual arrogance, "Oh, it's only one ball, why are you so smug?"
Wang Yueling heard his complaint, raised an eyebrow, and did not refute it.