My Prince of Tennis has a high proficiency level.

"I wonder if Yamabuki has any handsome male players."

"A handsome guy?"

Inoue laughed dumbly.

As a professional journalist, his focus has always been on the strength of the players. Fortunately, on the Seigaku side, the number one and number two players, Tezuka and Fuji, are both very handsome boys.

Newcomer Echizen is also very good-looking. If they pursue a professional career in the future, these three will not even need makeup or filters for their cover photos.

As for Yamabuki's side...

"If I remember correctly, Sengoku is alright looking."

A handsome face appeared in Inoue's mind. The reason he remembered the person was because Yamabuki had played too aggressively in the first two matches of last year's Tokyo tournament semi-finals.

Two consecutive victories have put Seigaku in a corner.

Sengoku, who was ranked 3rd in singles, was also very popular, and Inoue once thought that Seigaku was going to lose. Until Tezuka appeared and easily crushed Sengoku, Seigaku turned the tide and won.

To be honest, the reason Yamabuki lost that match wasn't because Sengoku wasn't strong enough, but because Tezuka was too strong. Besides, Yamabuki only had one Sengoku.

"so......"

Thinking of this, a thought popped into Inoue's mind: "Who is this Shibukawa?"

He had investigated the other party's information and found that before this fall, there had never been any indication of this person appearing, either in Yamabuki or elsewhere.

The other party seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

Mysterious and powerful.

With Yamabuki's doubles prowess combined with Sengoku's singles ability, if they were to have another player capable of consistently defeating Seigaku's Fuji, Seigaku would be in real danger in this year's tournament.

As a professional journalist, Inoue was also very curious about the other party's identity.

soon.

It was 2 PM.

After lunch and a short rest, Inoue drove with Shiba Saori to Yamabuki.

A week has passed since the start of the school year.

Once the initial excitement wore off, the newcomers became much more composed during club activities. After making a few inquiries, Inoue brought Shiba Saori to the Yamabuki tennis club.

When the two arrived, Shibukawa was leading a running training session. All the team members were clearly divided into three groups.

"That's interesting."

Inoue spoke with some surprise after seeing how everyone was training.

"What's wrong, senior?"

Zhi looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Aside from the neat running formation, there doesn't seem to be anything special about it."

"You're wrong about that."

Inoue shook his head upon hearing this, saying, "Don't underestimate the running formation. A neat formation indicates that their speed is very even, therefore, their breathing must be very steady and their rhythm must be well maintained."

Zhi nodded repeatedly: "I know that. The secret to running is breathing."

"You're right, breathing is fundamental to running. Only by mastering your breathing rhythm can you achieve a high level of performance."

At this point, Inoue's gaze sharpened slightly, and he said in a deep voice, "The problem is, one person's breathing rhythm can be controlled. But for a group of people to maintain the same breathing rhythm is not so simple."

Strictly speaking, tennis is not a team sport.

Even in singles, it's still just a two-person team effort. Therefore, many people are quite unconventional. Their personalities are incredibly diverse; you can find all sorts of people.

Taming these people and maintaining a high degree of consistency is even more difficult.

But Yamabuki now gives Inoue a very stable feeling. Everyone is moving in unison, operating like a precision instrument.

"So, what you mean is?"

"This shows that Yamabuki's usual training is very effective, and the coach and captain are very authoritative."

As Bantian spoke, his gaze was fixed on the black-haired boy at the very front of the group.

Compared to six months ago, Shibukawa's hair has grown longer. But he didn't cut it short; he just trimmed it slightly to make it look more natural, and his facial features have become much softer.

This made him appear less sharp and more mature and composed.

"Is he the minister of Yamabuki?"

Before Inoue could speak, Shizuka's gaze locked onto Shibukawa. It wasn't that she had good eyesight or excellent observation skills; rather, she was immediately drawn to his good looks.

"Probably."

Inoue nodded slightly.

He was still observing Yamabuki's training when he saw that after one lap, the last few in the group stopped and were panting heavily.

The second team ran six more laps than them.

The first team ran 6 more laps than the second team.

After a simple warm-up, all the team members, regardless of age, were covered in sweat and looked much more energetic.

"A tiered system?"

Inoue, upon seeing this, said something thoughtfully.

He could tell that Yamabuki's training had its own internal operating model. Everyone was training step by step, no one was slacking off, and the team atmosphere was very good.

Not casual, but not serious either.

This made Inoue even more curious about who this new head of Yamabuki was.

...

"Next, let's begin the first match of Group A."

After resting.

The first school-wide selection competition after Yamabuki's advancement to higher education begins.

Those whose names were called immediately perked up and walked onto the court with utmost seriousness.

"Muromachi Jūji vs. Nakamura Yūichi".

soon.

The two whose names were called walked to the edge of the court.

On the left is Muromachi, whose expression is rather unpleasant. However, his opponent opposite him, named Nakamura Yuichi, looks even more displeased.

"Is he Muromachi?"

Inoue looked at the boy in sunglasses on stage.

"Does the senior know him?"

Zhi asked curiously.

Inoue nodded: "He's quite famous in Yamabuki. He's always been called Yamabuki's genius and is said to be Sengoku's successor."

"Yamabuki's genius?"

Zhi's eyes widened immediately: "So, he's on the same level as Fuji?!"

"How could that be?"

Inoue shook his head repeatedly: "That's just one perspective. Let alone Muromachi, even Sengoku's talent is actually inferior to Fuji's."

This isn't a filter; it's the truth.

In last year's Tokyo tournament semifinals singles match 2, Fuji was a key figure in helping Seigaku advance by strongly suppressing Yamabuki's captain, Uesugi Kenichi.

The Muromachi in front of him... it's not that Inoue looks down on him, but judging from his past performance, he'd probably only be a decent second-year student if he went to Seigaku.

Bang!

however.

When the match started and Muromachi hit the bullet serve, Inoue's expression changed instantly.

Boom!

The tennis ball lands on the ground.

Nakamura, who was opposite him, couldn't even react.

"15-0!"

"A direct score?"

Zhi's eyes widened instantly.

"Ah."

Inoue's stiff expression eased a bit, and he shook his head, saying, "It's a bullet serve, extremely fast. Even Momoshiro's serve is probably only at this level."

"But......"

Hearing this, Zhi, who was standing next to him, asked with a puzzled look, "If he's so strong, why does he look so pale?"

"It's very simple."

Just then, a soft laugh rang out. The two turned to look and saw a handsome young man with orange hair smiling at them.

"That guy looks terrible because he was placed in the group of death."

"Thousand Stones?"

Zhi spoke with some surprise.

As one of the top performers in Yamabuki, she naturally did her homework before the interview.

"What are you referring to as the 'group of death'?"

Inoue, however, was more interested in the match in front of him.

"Because of the group list."

Sengoku explained, "Muromachi's strength in Group A is just right, ranking third."

"So that's how it is."

Inoue nodded in realization.

This grouping also occurred in Seigaku, who recently finished their school selection trials. Echizen, Kaidou, and Inui were grouped together, with the latter two being former regulars.

Although Echizen was a newcomer, he was very strong, and in the end he even defeated the other two who were more favored to advance.

"The problem is that Seigaku's incident was an accident, and even Tezuka probably didn't realize how strong Echizen was."

Inoue, quick-witted, thought: "But in this match, the captain and coach of Yamabuki must know the players' abilities very well. It's impossible for them to make such a basic mistake as wasting a spot."

Normally, the school's selection competition aims to choose the eight most talented and strongest contestants. The grouping process is based on a balanced distribution of contestants across the four groups according to their individual abilities.

But now, a second-year student whose serve is at least on par with Momoshiro's is only ranked third in the group. Either Yamabuki is just too strong, or this situation would occur no matter how the rankings are determined.

Either the coach and manager of Yamabuki are idiots and made the wrong arrangements.

"Or perhaps... Muromachi isn't that strong?"

Bang!

But at that moment, Muromachi's serve landed again.

That incredibly powerful and fast serve once again brought a look of shock to Inoue Kazushima's face.

"30-0!"

"Another direct score?"

"How is that possible? His opponent couldn't even touch the serve?"

The two were deeply shocked.

Muromachi, seemingly venting his frustration, launched a furious attack, utterly defeating the third-year student named Nakamura.

Bang!

In the blink of an eye.

Less than 15 minutes into the game, Muromachi's powerful smash brought it to a close.