Chapter 583

"So this matter... is especially twisted. I was furious at first and wanted to scold people, but after hearing the whole story, I didn't know where to vent my anger."

Natsume Chikage nodded with deep feeling, his tone also carrying a bit of sympathy:

"... I can understand."

Shanshan Yingshu restrained the complex expression on his face and became solemn again:

"But no matter how absurd the reason is, our Kendo Club is indeed extremely short of people now. Your joining at this juncture is really a huge help; thank you very much!"

Natsume Chikage waved his hand:

"No need to be so polite. My joining is also because of some... personal reasons; it can be considered each taking what they need."

Shanshan Yingshu was thoughtful:

"Is it because of the arrangement from Near-guard-senpai?"

Natsume Chikage didn't deny it:

"Pretty much."

The gratitude on Shanshan Yingshu's face became a bit more sincere:

"Then it's even more related to us. It was our Kendo Club that asked the Student Council for help, and Near-guard-senpai came forward to find you. We've noted this favor."

Natsume Chikage was a bit surprised:

"So there was such a layer of relationship in the middle..."

He then remembered a more practical question:

"Speaking of which, senpai, how many members are left in the Kendo Club who can still participate in the competition?"

Shanshan Yingshu sighed long, a haze covering his brow:

"Originally, we had fifteen members with the strength and qualifications to participate. Now, the ten who fought can't play."

"Including me, only four people can fight currently. There are other freshmen in the club, but as soon as they heard they had to go up and fight in the national competition as soon as they joined, they either said they had no confidence or directly said their strength was not enough, and they all refused, and even felt our Kendo Club was too unreliable and simply quit the club."

His tone became heavy:

"To tell the truth, Natsume-kun, if you don't come... we won't even be able to meet the minimum number of participants for this Yulong Flag competition. The Yulong Flag competition stipulates that each team must have at least five registered players."

"So we really need you very much!"

Shanshan Yingshu had personally asked Natsume Chikage before if he knew Kendo, and the answer he got was "I haven't learned it."

Therefore, he didn't actually hold much expectation for Natsume Chikage's Kendo strength in his heart.

Right now, his biggest expectation was just to gather the number of people and obtain the qualification to participate.

As for the competition itself, he and the other three core members would do their best to fight for it.

After all, the Yulong Flag adopts the "General Battle" tournament system, where the team is eliminated if all players on one side are defeated.

As long as the four of them as main players can win as many opponents as possible, they won't let Natsume-kun play.

So, in his initial conception, Natsume Chikage's role was more of "making up the numbers."

But in any case, this was a national-level competition.

He still hoped that Natsume Chikage could at least familiarize himself with the basic rules and etiquette in the remaining ten days or so, so as not to be at a loss on the field and make a fool of himself.

"Natsume-kun, I remember you said before that you haven't learned Kendo, right?"

"Since you are now our temporary member, can you take time to come to the Kendo Club for some basic training and joint practice between now and the competition?"

"At least understand the competition process and basic etiquette to avoid being too unfamiliar when on the field. Of course, I know you have to work, so we can try our best to coordinate the training time with your schedule."

Natsume Chikage thought about it and explained:

"Regarding this, Near-guard-senpai actually took me to a Kendo hall before and hired a professional teacher to give me a crash course."

"So I basically understand the basic process, rules, and etiquette of Kendo now."

Shanshan Yingshu's eyes lit up, and he said pleasantly:

"You've been guided by a professional teacher? That's great!"

"This way we don't need to teach you from the most basic things, which can save a lot of time."

"However, in order to test the training effect, and to let you integrate into the team faster and familiarize yourself with the competition rhythm... I still hope you can try your best to come to the club for joint practice every day in the days before the competition."

He emphasized:

"Of course, there are only ten days or so left until the competition. As soon as the competition is over, you can immediately return to the Collection Club; there is no problem at all."

"So... I hope you can come over after school this afternoon, is that okay?"

Natsume Chikage pondered for a moment and nodded:

"Mm, I understand, I will come over this afternoon."

Of course, the reason he agreed was not that he really wanted to come over to exercise every day.

It was precisely because he didn't want to come over every day that he agreed to come over after school this afternoon.