Hikaru no Go: I taught you Go, and you made the Kisei cry?

"you wanna die!"

Huang Mao was stunned for a moment, then his anger intensified. At the same time, the students surrounding him also approached Su Ran.

"three."

"two."

"one."

……

Inside the classroom.

"what?"

Hirosue Naruto grabbed Gouda Takeshi by the collar, his eyes wide: "You're saying that the new exchange student got cornered in the toilet?"

Takeshi Gouda gripped Naruto Hirosue's wrist tightly. Although he was two grades below Naruto, his tone was anything but defiant: "What? Who are you talking to?"

"Why didn't you stop them? Aren't they all afraid of you?"

Naruto Hirosue released his grip and angrily rebuked him.

Why should I care about him?

Takeshi Go lazily slumped back onto the table: "Isn't his hobby Go? He'll just crush them with Go stones."

"You bastard!"

Naruto Hirosue was furious: "You bastard, you're not even fit to play Go!"

"Nonsense, I'm not playing chess."

Takeshi Gouda responded.

"Isn't it just that he was defeated by Akira Touya, and then he won against Akira Touya once by cheating?"

Hirosue Naruto glared at Gouda Takeshi: "I thought you were too ashamed to pick up a chess piece anymore, that's why you stopped playing. I never expected you to be this kind of person!"

"That exchange student named Su Ran solved the endgame set up by Professor Seto. The professor himself said that he has Go talent no less than that of Akira Touya!"

"I'm here now to invite him to join our school's Go club!"

"Even if you don't care about him, you should at least consider our school, right? How many times has our school lost to Haiwang Middle School?!"

These words instantly silenced the entire classroom.

Everyone stared at Naruto Hirosue in astonishment.

"That's hilarious! That kid can't even compare to Akira Touya?"

Gouda Takeshi was slightly taken aback by Hirosue Naruto's words, then sneered, "A puzzle set up by Seto-sensei? Anyone could solve such a simple problem."

"You bastard!"

Hirosue Naruto's chest heaved violently. Without time to explain, he turned and ran towards the restroom.

Gouda Takeshi stared at Hirosue Naruto's retreating figure, his face darkening, and he remained silent.

"The same talent as Akira Touya? Are you kidding me?"

"You've never played Go with Akira Touya, you have no idea what kind of monster that guy is!"

"Even though I'm hailed as a Go genius by everyone, I can't beat Akira Touya by half a point, no matter how hard I try."

"What are you talking about, Seto-sensei!"

Takeshi Gouda clenched his fists, finally pushed back his chair, got up, and followed.

He was extremely concerned about the name Akira Touya.

……

Meanwhile, inside the toilet.

Su Ran straightened her collar, kicked the blond-haired guy and his companions who were lying in the toilet clutching their stomachs and screaming in pain, then turned and left.

He used to be a Sanda (Chinese kickboxing) practitioner and even won several amateur championships in China.

These people...

They've kicked a hornet's nest.

"stop!"

Just then, the toilet door was suddenly pushed open, and Hirosue Naruto, panting heavily, leaned on his knees.

"What are you doing? Some students have already gone to report to the teacher..."

Naruto Hirosue suddenly stopped talking, blinked his eyes, and his mouth was big enough to fit a fist, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Those notorious delinquents were all sprawled on the ground, while Su Ran stood calmly among them.

"you you……"

Hirosue Naruto uttered a few words from his Adam's apple.

"What's wrong? What are you doing here? Ah... is it about me having to pay for the chess score?"

Su Ran smiled at Hirosue Naruto, resuming his usual polite demeanor.

"No, it's not."

Hirosue Naruto seemed a little scared and took a step back, stammering, "I...I...you, I came to...invite you to join our Go club."

"You're so sure I passed the test so quickly?"

Su Ran was slightly taken aback. She hadn't expected that this seemingly dull and reserved senior would be so efficient.

"Yes, you must be quite good at Go, right? Would you like to join our Go club?"

Naruto Hirosue nodded, finally coming to his senses, and spoke much more normally: "With you joining us, maybe next time we can defeat Kaiou Middle School and win the Middle School Go League championship!"

"next time?"

Su Ran shook her head and refused, saying, "Forget it, I have to take the college student exam later, so I'm afraid I won't have time. If I want to participate in the league, then this time."

"this time?"

Naruto Hirosue shook his head, looking troubled: "But this year, the selection has already been made, me and two other people."

"That's it."

Su Ran shook her head, walked past the student who was lying on the ground clutching his stomach, and prepared to leave.

"What are you pretending for, kid?"

Gouda Takeshi arrived unnoticed and suddenly spoke up: "You think you're so good at fighting? What good is it if you can fight? Go isn't about who can fight, and you think you can become an insei?"

"In all these years of our middle school, only Mr. Seto has become an insei, and even now, he has only just reached the professional fifth dan level. It's been almost twenty years!"

"Your attitude, as if passing the graduate school entrance exam is a piece of cake, really annoys me!"

Takeshi Gouda stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the wall, glancing at his classmate groaning on the ground.

"Wow, he's really good at fighting... Just who is this guy? He can even play chess?"

Su Ran intended to join the Go club and continue the Go game that had never started with Sai in a Go competition.

Hearing what Gouda Takeshi said, Su Ran shook her head, pushed open the toilet door, and walked towards the classroom.

At that moment, Hirosue Naruto suddenly grabbed Su Ran's wrist.

His eyes seemed to hold an earnest plea:

"I... am already in the third grade. I've lost for two years. If you can beat me, you will take my place as the captain and participate in this year's Go competition!"

"If you can really defeat me, I'm willing to hand over the captain's position to you..."

"But don't expect me to go easy on you. I... will fight you with all my might!"

Hirosue Naruto looked at Su Ran, his eyes revealing a fighting spirit that was strangely familiar to him.

That kind, exactly like Akira Touya—

Intense fighting spirit!

……

Never back down! This is my way of Go, Su Ran!

"Are you crazy? This is your last year, you'll graduate next year!"

Takeshi Gouda looked at Naruto Hirosue in utter astonishment:

"This year is your last battle. If you give up the captain's position, what if this kid doesn't..."

I know!

Naruto Hirosue waved his hand to interrupt, gritting his teeth and speaking resolutely: "Three years! Three years! I lost for two years, and every year, I played as the captain of Kawaogi Middle School."

"Each time, it carries the expectations of the school, the expectations of parents, and the expectations of peers..."

“Every time, I suffered a crushing defeat. In fact, in the last Go league, I resigned right at the start.”

Naruto Hirosue trembled, his head bowed, his long hair obscuring his face, making it impossible to see his expression.

Having repeated his studies for two years, Takeshi Gouda knew the pressure that Naruto Hirosue was under. He looked at Naruto Hirosue with a somewhat somber gaze.

"You wouldn't understand that feeling... I'm not afraid of losing, I'm not afraid of being disappointed, what I'm afraid of is disappointing those who have hope in me!"

"Neptune High School, they're like a mountain pressing down on me, I..."

"But I...I swore that I would never lose, I would win! I must beat Neptune Middle School, I must win!"

Even just once would be enough!

At this point, Hirosue Naruto suddenly raised his head: "Su Ran, Seto-sensei said you are very talented. I may not be talented, but I am older than you, and I will not lose to you!"

"The teacher said you are a genius."

"But I will become stronger than a genius!"

"I've been playing chess for ten years, and I'm going to prove it to you."

"Come on, let's play a game. If you want to represent Kawaiji Junior High School in the Go competition, you must beat me first!"