"Ryo Shishido, huh~"
Right now, Shishido was still incredibly arrogant. It wasn't that his vision was poor, but rather that the environment at Hyotei Elementary was too limited; he'd only encountered a handful of players.
Even against someone his own age like Akutagawa, Shishido could still snatch two or three points with his net play specialty. Without experiencing true tennis and understanding the gap between himself and the real tennis pros, he would never become a top-tier player.
"I hope he can give me a good match."
Kamikawa's gaze swept over Shishido, and he secretly shook his head.
"That look..."
For some reason, Shishido felt a sudden tightening in his chest. He looked up but didn't find anything unusual; it was just a very ordinary player.
"I'm overthinking it. I'll finish this quickly, then I can go watch Mukahi's match."
Shishido's thoughts had already drifted to another court.
He had been playing tennis since he was a child. During that time, he had faced many strong players, and even the middle school second team players at Hyotei were no match for him.
Kamikawa Muzuki...
A name he had never even heard of. How strong could he possibly be?!
"Which?"
While deep in thought, the two arrived at the net.
They chose sides. The JR Tournament, after all, was a proper competition. Serving rights were determined by a coin toss or spinning the racket, based on the outcome. The winner had the priority to choose the court side and serve, while the loser chose after the winner made their selection.
"I'll give you the serve."
"I'm in a hurry."
Shishido twirled his racket on his finger and turned to walk towards the back baseline.
"What an arrogant kid."
"That kid seems to be Ryo Shishido from Hyotei Elementary?"
"Ryo Shishido? Who's that?!"
"Don't you read tennis magazines? He was just featured yesterday. They say he's one of the top three tennis players at Hyotei Elementary. With his skill, he could even be a regular on the middle school first-year team."
"Really? Can an elementary schooler beat a middle schooler? Their physical build and strength are on completely different levels."
The biggest difference between elementary and middle school students is physical strength. The period from elementary to first-year middle school is a developmental stage. Excessive training during this period can lead to stunted growth and accumulated fatigue, resulting in reduced secretion of growth hormones and significantly affecting height development.
This is why a certain Nanjiro didn't put Echizen through too much training when he was young. Gradual growth is necessary to reach higher stages.
Kamikawa stood on the baseline, the rustling noise of the crowd reaching his ears. He held the ball in his left hand, adjusted his breathing, and focused his gaze forward.
"Match start! One set!"
After both players were ready, the umpire raised his hand and loudly announced, "Kamikawa Muzuki to serve! Game one!"
Whoosh!
As soon as the words fell.
Thwack!
Kamikawa tossed the ball, raised his hand, and swung his racket, all in one fluid motion.
The tennis ball flew out, a light yellow trajectory streaking through the air.
Thud!
The ball landed right on the edge of the inverted triangle of Shishido's service box.
The ball hugged the service line and bounced outwards.
Shishido's eyes widened, his hands gripping his racket tightly. He only heard the sound of the ball landing, but his body couldn't react in time.
"15-0! Ace!"
Shishido turned his head to look at the landing spot not far in front of him, his pupils slightly contracting.
In that moment, he couldn't react. Was this guy's serve really that fast?!
He didn't even have time to return the serve.
"Do you need me to slow down the ball speed?!"
Kamikawa held the tennis ball and walked towards the opposite half of the court.
The service box is divided into two halves, the left and right. Each game starts with a serve from the right half, and after each point, whether scored or lost, the server switches halves, alternating until the service game ends.
"This guy!" Shishido gripped his racket, looking at Kamikawa again.
Around 1.6 meters tall, he looked about the same age as him. His face seemed very young, without the aura a "strong player" should possess, yet he could hit such a unique serve.
As a tennis player from Hyotei Elementary, Shishido had naturally seen Ochi Tsukimitsu, the captain of the middle school tennis club who had led Hyotei through the Metropolitan Tournament all the way to the national semifinals three years ago.
But...
Kamikawa clearly didn't have that kind of aura, and even the aura displayed by the middle school seniors was stronger than his.
"I was careless for a moment. I won't let my guard down again."
With that, Shishido held his racket with both hands, spread his legs, and lowered his center of gravity. Like a lion waiting to pounce, his eyes were focused, completely devoid of his previous underestimation.
The spectators also noticed Shishido's movements.
"An ace right from the start. Is that kid really an elementary schooler?!"
"Hiss... This elementary schooler named Shishido seems to be getting serious."
"In his last match, he apparently beat his opponent 6-3. His skill is surprisingly strong too."
"He probably just got careless and didn't react in time. After all, he's one of Hyotei Elementary's top three."
"Yeah..."
"..."
Thwack!
Toss, raise, swing, all in one fluid motion.
This serve was similar to the last, aiming for the edge of the service line, a highly threatening fast serve.
Thud!
Shishido rushed towards the sideline, swinging his racket quickly.
The moment he returned the ball, he leaned forward, gripping his racket with both hands, preparing to go to the net.
Thud!
The foot he had just stepped forward with stopped as Kamikawa swung his racket, and he quickly retreated.
"Damn it!"
Shishido cursed under his breath. His original net-rush was instantly disrupted, forcing him back to the baseline.
For serve-and-volley players, the most dreaded shots are opponents hitting cross-court shots in the opposite direction, as well as shots aimed at their feet.
This was a cross-court shot aimed at his feet.
The angle and speed of the return were incredibly tricky.
Shishido retreated just in time, swinging his racket to hit the bouncing ball.
The ball hit the net cord, spun violently, and then slowly dropped down.
"Net! 30-0, Kamikawa leads!"
"What incredible spin."
He had reacted to that shot, but the astonishing spin on the return caught him off guard.
If the previous shot was luck, or him underestimating his opponent and being careless, then this return clearly showed the gap between them.
The speed, reaction time, and technique displayed in the return were undoubtedly at a very high level.
Shishido was arrogant, but not foolish. If he still couldn't see the gap between himself and his opponent, then all the tennis he had played these past few years would have been for nothing.
Among his peers, besides those two monsters from Kanagawa, could anyone else really do this?!
Thwack!
Thud!
Having suffered two setbacks, Shishido quickly got into the zone.
However, he couldn't find a suitable attacking point. Kamikawa hit almost every shot to a place where Shishido could barely reach it. Shishido's unyielding nature made him desperately run around the court, yet he still couldn't score a single point against Kamikawa.
"Another cross-court shot!"
"Pressed right on the line. Is this really the control an elementary schooler should have?!"
"Holy cow! Another reverse cross-court shot! This guy's technique is a bit too abnormal!"
"..."
Outside the court.
Watching the back-and-forth offense and defense on the court, the spectators let out gasps of amazement. They had seen similar scenes in the JR Tournament's elementary division once before.
That was three years ago, a white-haired boy from Hyotei Elementary.