Chapter 31: Shengzai Will Not Lose, No Matter the Opponent!

At the sidelines, Shimaori held her DSLR camera and continuously took photos, unable to help but speak in concern: “Senior, Seishun Academy has already lost two doubles matches in a row.”

If they lose the third singles match too, this match will be won by Fudomine.”

Because she knew the Seishun players better, Shimaori secretly still hoped Seishun would win.

But the current situation was clear to anyone: Seishun had been backed into a corner.

“I never expected even Seishun’s golden duo could lose—Fudomine has become this strong.”

“And their playing style seems to understand Seishun’s players perfectly.”

Even Inoue had never imagined the situation would turn this way.

He had originally thought that even if Fudomine was a dark horse, at best they could match Seishun evenly.

But now the situation had turned into a complete one-sided rout.

If Fudomine’s third singles player were that Wenren Shengzai…

“Next is the third singles match: please have Fudomine Middle School’s player Kamio Akira and Seishun Academy’s player Echizen Ryoma take the court.”

After the referee announced the players’ names, both sides began cheering for their respective athletes.

“Akira, the opponent is just a first-year—beat him, and Fudomine becomes the regional champion!”

“Echizen, don’t lose, you hear me? We can’t afford another loss.”

“Go, Ryoma! X5!”

Facing the cheers from Momoshiro and other first-years like Horiou, Ryoma calmly picked up his racket and stepped onto the court.

“I never thought Seishun would entrust the decisive final match to a first-year kid.”

Naturally arrogant by nature, Kamio couldn’t help but sneer at the sight of his opponent—a short first-year.

But Kamio was crazy, and someone else was even more crazy.

“I’d rather face that guy named Wenren over there than play against someone like you.”

“As for you? You’re nowhere near good enough.”

Shengzai had naturally already informed Kamio about Echizen Ryoma’s profile.

At first, Kamio had taken the first set by exploiting his rhythm advantage.

But to be fair, compared to Momoshiro and others, Ryoma and Tezuka were all-around players with no obvious weaknesses.

Moreover, as the protagonist, Ryoma himself was a cheat—so after an hour of intense battle, Kamio ultimately still couldn’t withstand the aura’s power and lost.

With Seishun winning the third singles, the score became 2-1.

Seishun’s previously demoralized morale was revived by Ryoma’s victory.

“Great! That kid Echizen won—Fudomine’s ace already played in doubles.”

“Next up, second and first singles—Fujisaki and the captain won’t lose.”

Seeing Ryoma win, Momoshiro cheered along with the other first-years—he’d felt guilty over the doubles loss.

But now the tide had turned; they knew better than anyone how strong Fujisaki and the captain were.

If it were those two, they simply couldn’t believe they’d lose.

Even Coach Katsuki couldn’t help but exhale deeply in relief.

“Are you celebrating a little too early, Momoshiro from Seishun Academy?”

“You’re Kikuhara’s sister—the girl who was with Wenren Shengzai last time…”

“My name is Kiri An! I’m a second-year at Fudomine—not ‘Kikuhara’s sister’ or ‘the girl who hangs out with Shengzai’…”

“Forget it, none of that matters—what matters is that you Seishun are going to lose this match.”

Hearing Kiri An’s words, everyone from Seishun turned to glare at her with hostility.

Among them, Kido, whose temperament was already fiery and whose aura felt sinister and terrifying, glared fiercely at Kiri An: “What did you say? Try saying that again!”

But facing Kido’s threat, Kiri An didn’t flinch—she crossed her arms and said: “Yes, Seishun pulled one back, but it’s still Fudomine’s match point, isn’t it?”

“Fujisaki and Tezuka are indeed strong players—but the next one to take the court is Shengzai.”

“If it’s him, no matter who the opponent is, he will never lose!”

Kiri An’s faith in Shengzai wasn’t blind—though young girls in love do see their lovers through rose-tinted glasses.

But she, Kiri An, had personally witnessed Shengzai’s true strength.

That night, after returning home from the street tennis court, she and her brother visited the Wenren household.

And her brother played a match against Shengzai on the Wenrens’ private court.

In that match, her brother Kiri Kikuhira seemed to make a decision—he unleashed his full power as one of the “Two Heroes of Kyushu.”

The final score? A lopsided 6-1.

It was during that match last night that Kiri Kikuhira and Kiri An finally grasped the terrifying extent of Shengzai’s strength.

Kiri Kikuhira at full power was unquestionably at the national tournament level—even among all middle schoolers today, his strength ranked among the top ten.

Yet such a Kiri Kikuhira was crushed 6-1 by Shengzai, with no chance to fight back.

Without exaggeration, with Fudomine already winning two matches and Shengzai yet to play, Kiri An no longer believed they could lose!

“The second singles match between Fudomine Middle School and Seishun Academy is now underway—serving first is Wenren Shengzai from Fudomine.”

As the referee announced the start of the match, everyone’s eyes fixed on the court.

When they saw Shengzai toss the ball high into the air, Ryoma and Momoshiro from Seishun both narrowed their eyes: “Here it comes—that serve!”

“Wenren Style Type One—Ran Ya!”

“Boom————!”

As a powerful gust of air swept past, the tennis ball shot out at supersonic speed, producing a sonic boom.

Before the crowd could even hear the sound of the ball being struck, the ball had already rolled past Fujisaki’s back.

“Fifteen-love…”

Not just the spectators—even the referee had clearly been startled by Shengzai’s serve.

“What the hell! Did you see that serve?!”

“I knew he was strong, but I never imagined he’d be this strong.”

“Impossible—even in daylight, the ball is completely invisible. So last night wasn’t just about poor lighting.”

(End of Chapter)