Chapter 13: The Day of New Students' Opening

Time flies; winter passes and spring arrives, and before we know it April is here.

Budongfeng Middle School again has the new students' opening day.

A naive boy with a white headscarf gets off the bus, follows the signposts, and walks with the crowd toward Budongfeng Middle School.

The distance is short; after turning two corners, the school gate suddenly appears before Shitian Tie's eyes.

A red banner welcoming the new students hangs high, and the bustling crowd passes beneath it.

A stern man in a crisp suit stands at the most conspicuous spot at the school gate, his face radiating a warm smile as he repeatedly greets people.

Shitian Tie carefully surveys the scene before him; he has just arrived from Kansai to Tokyo and feels unfamiliar with everything around him.

At that moment, a voice comes from ahead.

"First-year Class 3 students, please gather at position No. 3!"

Shitian Tie looks in the direction of the voice.

In front of the sign marked with the number 3, an upperclassman in a black uniform raises his arm and shouts loudly, his golden sleeve insignia standing out on his shoulder.

In other areas, upperclassmen also wearing gold sleeve insignia call out different classes, and the freshmen line up into separate groups according to their class assignments.

Shitian Tie quickly checks the class written on his enrollment notice, then walks toward the crowd of Class 3.

In the group, they cluster in small clusters of three to five, most of them having risen from Budongfeng Elementary.

Many already know each other and are already daydreaming about their future middle school life.

Shitian Tie stands alone in the line, appearing somewhat out of place.

Ahead of the Class 3 line, a boy with dark‑red hair curiously scans his surroundings, his red side‑bangs fluttering lightly as his head turns.

His name is Shenwei Ming.

"We will now tour the campus once, then return to the classroom."

After the upperclassman explains the upcoming itinerary to everyone and finishes counting the numbers, he leads the large group onward.

Budongfeng Middle School has a history of over fifty years, and the campus is dotted with tall, sturdy trees, creating a beautiful scenery.

In this season, the foliage is dense, and some fearless little birds flutter down from the branches, circling above the freshmen's heads.

"Over there ahead is the school auditorium; large events are usually held there."

"To the right is the gymnasium, and it even has a swimming pool!"

At each stop, the upperclassman gives a brief introduction, prompting waves of discussion among the freshmen, their faces full of excitement.

Soon the group approaches the vicinity of the tennis courts, and faint sounds of tennis balls being struck drift over.

But at that moment, the upperclassman who was supposed to introduce the Tennis Club silently closes his mouth and quickens his pace.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound becomes clearer; upon reaching the green metal net, the freshmen finally see a person standing on the baseline, serving.

On the opposite side of the court, triangular cones of various colors are scattered at different spots.

The person lightly jumps, swings the racket, and lands.

The tennis ball turns into a after‑image that knocks down a triangular cone, and each knocked‑down cone is of the same color.

"What a fast ball speed!" Shenwei Ming, who is walking ahead, suddenly slows his pace, his eyes shining as he watches the serving practice on the court.

Just a light swing, yet it can produce such a fast serve.

So the Budongfeng Tennis Club is that impressive? That's completely different from what the newspaper said!

At this moment, Shitian Tie at the back of the line also watches the serve in astonishment.

"What an astonishing force!"

The sound of the tennis ball hitting the cone is solid, indicating that the cone's hollow interior is filled with something.

Yet even so, the cone is still easily knocked down, showing the tremendous force carried by the tennis ball.

The First‑year Class 3 group quickly leaves the tennis‑court area.

The groups from other classes follow closely behind.

Hearing the sound from the tennis court, a boy turns his head slightly.

Beneath his deep‑blue hair is an expressionless face, as if wearing a false ceramic mask, exuding a chilling aura.

No one dares approach him; a circle of empty space forms around him.

But after seeing the scene on the court, an unusual sparkle rarely appears in the boy's eyes.

"What impressive ball control."

At the Budongfeng school gate.

Shuidao Zhengzhang, dressed in a crisp suit, finds an empty corner and gently massages his cheeks, which have been forced into a stiff smile.

"There are far fewer new applicants this year."

Thinking of the mess the previous principal left him, his face twitches uncontrollably.

But Shuidao Zhengzhang is no longer a greenhorn; the resentment in his heart lingers only for a moment.

He knows his most important task now is to promptly restore Budongfeng's reputation.

It is precisely for this reason that, on opening day, he personally goes to the school gate to welcome the freshmen and has arranged student‑council members to guide them on a campus tour.

This is to leave a good impression in the hearts of students and parents.

"However, to restore Budongfeng's reputation, we still have to start with the tennis department."

Shuidao Zhengzhang falls into a moment of contemplation, and his hand rubbing his face couldn't help but stop.

Today is also Youth Academy's freshman enrollment day.

The youthful, beautiful girls change into spring‑summer uniforms, their long, fair legs in pairs beneath short skirts, forming a fresh and beautiful scenery.

And at this moment, inside the Seigaku Tennis Club.

The club members line up neatly, with Coach Ryuzaki standing at the front of the formation.

Last year's third-year members have all graduated, leaving the positions of president and vice-president vacant.

Before the new students join, the Tennis Club's organizational structure needs to be re-established.

Long Qi Jin took out a list and scanned the Tennis Club members.

After a moment, she slowly spoke.

"The position of Seigaku Tennis Club president will be taken by third-year Qing Tian Bang Nan."

As soon as her words fell, the third-year members around Qing Tian Bang Nan burst into cheers, and he also wore a look of joy on his brow.

"Thank you, Coach Long Qi Jin; I will surely lead the club with dedication!"

Qing Tian Bang Nan immediately walked forward with delight, bowing to Coach Long Qi Jin to express his thanks.

Long Qi Jin nodded slightly, preparing to continue announcing the vice-president.

"Seigaku Tennis Club vice-president."

As Coach Long Qi Jin's voice just sounded, third-year Xiao Feng Qing Shi silently straightened his chest.

He was the first of their year to join the Tennis Club; by seniority, the vice-president position naturally should go to him.

"Then it shall be second-year Tezuka Kunimitsu who takes the post!"

"Thanks—"

Xiao Feng Qing Shi was about to utter the word 'thanks' when he suddenly realized that the person appointed vice-president was not himself, and the foot he had just lifted fell back down in utter embarrassment.

"How can a second-year brat be vice-president? On what basis?"

In front of the gates of Li Hai Da, a crowd of people gathered here.

"So many people."

A boy with wine-red hair leisurely walked past the crowd.

A brat with hair as long as seaweed stood on the high wall.

He lifted his chin high, pointed a hand at the sky, and shouted arrogantly:

"I will become number one!!!"

The boy, however, yawned lazily, tears welling from the corners of his eyes, his slightly curled wine-red hair trembling lightly as his head tilted back.

"The students of Li Hai Da are really full of energy, completely unlike those of Four Heavenly Treasure Temple."

I used to think that Shouzu's second-year was the president of Seigaku, but when I rewatched Prince of Tennis, I realized that at that time he was only the vice-president.

This surprised me a bit, but upon reflection it makes sense, and it also explains part of the reason why Seigaku previously couldn't achieve good results.

The next chapter will be late; I haven't finished writing it yet, my typing speed is too slow—just two thousand words, yet I need nearly five hours (benefit).

(Estimated I won't finish, friends don't need to wait; let's release three chapters together on the evening of the fourth.)

(End of chapter)