Prince of Tennis Fraudster

Moreover, the tennis environment in Japan is not very good. Since the national pride of that era, Echizen Nanjiro, no other decent professional player has emerged.

"Engineer! Masaharu, your future is to become a great engineer, your future lies at the University of Tokyo!" Masaharu tried his best to persuade his son, not wanting him to go astray.

Given Niou's current mathematical abilities, it's highly likely he'll be admitted to the University of Tokyo in the future. He might even pursue further studies in the United States.

As a father, Zhenlian cannot allow his child's future to be ruined by his ignorance.

"Let's make a pact between men, Father!"

Renou's gaze remained unwavering as he stared into Zhenlian's eyes and said, "If I can join Rikkai University's tennis club, become a key player, and win this year's national championship, will you let me play tennis freely, okay?"

"you……"

Zhenlian glared, but in his heart he began to consider the bet made by Niou.

It's only been four months since the national tournament for junior high school students this year. If Renou really does become a key player and win the championship as he says, then his future development in tennis does indeed have a good chance.

His thoughts raced through his mind, and Zhen Lian said coldly, "What if you fail to do so?"

Niou smiled and said, "Then I will study hard and definitely get into the University of Tokyo!"

"Ugh……"

Looking at his willful son, Zhenlian sighed inwardly. However, his gaze remained unchanged; instead, the frost in his eyes grew heavier.

"Remember your promise!"

"Yes!"

Niou stood up and bowed to Masakazumi, "Thank you for your support, Father..."

He looked up, a sly smile flashing across his face: "Then my racket..."

“Let’s just use the old one for now.” Zhenlian waved his hand, but seeing Niou’s waning smile, he added, “We’ll talk about a new racket after I get paid next month…”

"Ok."

Niou nodded, and after finishing his last meal, he dressed and said to his father, "Then I'll go to school now."

"Go to school? Isn't today registration day?" Zhenlian frowned.

“Yesterday I passed the test and have successfully joined the tennis club…” Renou picked up his racket, turned and walked out the door, leaving only his voice echoing in the room for a long time.

"That little brat!"

Zhenlian sighed with a wry smile; no wonder he was so confident earlier. And as he recovered, Niou reverted to his former 'bad' personality.

Then, his expression turned serious: "I don't know if this is good or bad..."

Rikkai University, Tennis Club.

Today, even more people came to register. After all, this is Rikkai University, whose tennis club has won 15 consecutive Kanto championships and 2 consecutive national championships, making it a highly sought-after destination for first-year students.

"Senior, I'm here to join the tennis club!"

"Yes, we all want to join the tennis club!"

Seeing Ueno's miserable expression at the registration desk, Niou smiled, turned, and walked off the tennis court. There, second and third-year students were practicing tennis.

Chapter Fourteen: Retrieving the Ball

A new semester begins, and familiar faces are replaced by new ones.

However, Rikkai remains a strong team and is favored by outsiders, mainly because they still have the foundation to win the championship.

Yukimura, Sanada, Yanagi, Yagyu, Marui, and Jackal were all key members of the original team. Kirihara, the seaweed-haired boy standing in the middle of the group, was a representative of the rising stars.

Rikkai University is practically invincible right now. Therefore, Niou's joining the team went largely unnoticed.

Today, Niou, dressed in casual denim clothes, walked into the crowd under the complicated gazes of the second and third-year non-regulars.

"You've arrived." Yukimura, wearing a coat, greeted Niou with a smile. Niou, unfazed, nodded in return.

The captain of Rikkai, a legendary prodigy in junior high school tennis, undefeated to this day. It's hard to imagine that he's not as serious as many people think.

However, when training began, Niou shook his head with a wry smile. At that moment, Yukimura seemed like a different person. The aura he exuded, which wasn't directed at any one individual but made a group of non-regulars unable to lift their heads, deeply shocked Niou.

"Is this the style of the king, Rikkai?"

Yukimura's gaze sharpened as he swept it across everyone's face. He said in a deep voice, "Except for the regular players, everyone else, swing your rackets one thousand times!"

A thousand times!

Renou's heart sank. As expected, Rikkai's training intensity was extraordinary. Looking at the other players, however, they had already gotten used to this intensity and were picking up their rackets to practice diligently.

He joined them, practicing with his racket.

call!

call!

call!

"Hey, look! They're training!"

The commotion on the field immediately attracted the attention of the new students not far away. In particular, Renwang, dressed differently, stood out like a crane among chickens, forming a stark contrast with the ordinary players.

"Who is that person? Isn't Rikkai supposed to have very strict rules?" someone asked, puzzled.

Rikkai is not only famous for its outstanding strength, surpassing all others. Rikkai's rigorous training is also well-known. However, the presence of Niou among them has raised questions.

"Well……"

Beside him, a first-year student who had arrived yesterday thought for a moment and said with a wry smile, "He's a freshman in the tennis club, I guess."

"A freshman?" The person next to him was even more puzzled. "Who exactly is this person? Why can he go to training while we can't?"

"you?"

Upon hearing this, the first-year student scoffed and said disdainfully, "Let's talk when you can hit an outside spin serve!"

Topspin serve!

The freshman shuddered; this was an extremely advanced technique he had only ever heard of in tennis magazines.

"cut……"

Their conversation was overheard by Kirihara, a regular player who was passing by on his way to a run. He chuckled, glanced at Niou who was swinging his racket with a practiced air, and quickly caught up with the other regular players.

"What era are we living in? Does everyone dare to say they can serve with topspin now?"

In Kirihara's heart, disdain quietly transformed into dissatisfaction, and negative emotions slowly grew.

"Slurp!"

Walking at the back, he glanced in the direction of Niou one last time, stuck out his tongue and licked it, as if he had found the perfect prey.

"998, 999... 1000!"

"call……"

After everyone swung their rackets for the last time, their bodies slumped, and they let out a heavy sigh.

A thousand swings are no easy feat.

They're not like the regulars who can leisurely practice tennis after running twenty laps.

The starting lineup for the run didn't include Yukimura, Sanada, and Yanagi; they are Rikkai's true core. Therefore, they didn't need to train with the others. At this moment, Sanada spoke up.

"Everyone has one!"

"exist!"

Everyone's expression stiffened, and their slumped bodies immediately straightened up.

"Everyone, begin your free practice now." Sanada said, looking at Niou: "As for you..."

"I understand." Niou nodded knowingly and walked to the side with Nakajo and Nakagawa.

Without Sanada saying a word, he knew what the other party was going to say. Although the fault for yesterday's events was not his, in Sanada's eyes, since they had joined Rikkai, they should be treated equally.

Otherwise, without establishing rules, the other side will find it difficult to gain the respect of the people in Rikkai.

"Ah, very good!"

Sanada nodded, then turned to the others and said, "Pair up in twos, we'll practice doubles today!"

"what?"

Those who were initially enthusiastic immediately looked disappointed. Few tennis players enjoy doubles; after all, only a minority can tolerate the restrictions and limitations of doubles.

"What, is anyone dissatisfied?"

Sanada's gaze turned cold, and his narrowed eyes flashed with a sharp light, startling the others into quickly suppressing their disgust.

"Wow, this is Emperor Sanada!" A woman exclaimed from a distance.

She wore a light blue shirt and denim shorts, which accentuated her beautiful figure. Her chestnut-brown casual short hair, combined with her delicate and slightly mature features and light lip gloss, gave her a unique charm.

Beside him stood a middle-aged man wearing a light blue striped shirt. He had a dark chestnut-brown buzz cut, thin and sunken cheeks, but his eyes occasionally flashed with a wise light. Coupled with his distinctive boomerang-shaped eyebrows, he gave off a rather extraordinary impression.

Hearing the woman's exclamation, the man laughed and said, "This is Rikkai University, the king of tennis, the top tennis school in the Kanto region and even the whole country."

The two were Inoue Mamoru and Shiba Saori, reporters for a professional tennis monthly magazine. With the new semester starting and the tennis club reunited, they naturally wouldn't miss the chance to interview the defending champions, Rikkai.

That's why I rushed over from Tokyo early this morning.

"Huh? That person..."

Inoue's sweeping gaze suddenly fell upon Niou, who was retrieving the ball, and he was drawn to the latter's unique way of doing so.

Chapter Fifteen: Tennis Monthly

boom!

boom!

Unlike Nakajo and Nakagawa, who were constantly retrieving balls from the court, Niou carried his racket and wandered around the perimeter. Whenever a tennis ball flew near him, he would sweep it back into the player's court with his racket.

He did it more than ten times in a row without making a single mistake.

Who is that person?

Following Inoue's gaze, Shiba Saori saw Niou, but her delicate brows furrowed.

“I don’t think he’s a challenger,” Inoue said.

Rikkai, which achieved two consecutive national championships, is both a forbidden zone for many players and a shortcut for some who aspire to instant fame.