civilwarnovels Chapter 192: 6-0, Luna caught red-handed and Niou who annoyed the cat.
Chapter 192: 6-0, Luna caught red-handed and Niou who annoyed the cat.
In the following games, the pace of the match became completely one-sided and steady.
Hyotei's serve was unstoppable; with a single, devastating shot, the two Seigaku players struggled to even touch the ball. Even with a regular serve, Seigaku's return path was fragmented by Hyotei's tiered positioning.
Although the interval between sets was a bit longer due to the stretching of the formation, the result was not in any suspense.
Hyotei successfully held serve.
In Seigaku's service game, Inui changed his serving strategy again, flipping the angle of his waterfall serve and increasing the ball speed.
He wanted to drag the game into a protracted battle, relying on data prediction to wear down his opponent.
This strategy did work in the first few rallies. Kaidou blocked at the net, while Inui directed from the baseline. Although their coordination wasn't perfect, their individual abilities were undeniable.
Inui anticipated Shishido's several net volleys and moved ahead to block his path. Ootori's baseline returns were also repeatedly hampered by Kaidou's serpentine shots, the unpredictable trajectory forcing Ootori to take a half-step back to return them.
The score was dragged out to 30-15.
But that's about it.
During a high shot at the net, Shishido suddenly changed his volleying technique. He smashed the ball high into the air with great speed, carrying strong backspin and sidespin, heading straight for Inui Sadaharu's backhand.
When preparing to receive the ball with a dry side step, the ball doesn't bounce upwards after landing, but instead lurches forward, almost skimming the ground.
In the instant he was surprised, the ball had already landed on the ground, bounced twice, and then remained still.
"Meteorite interception!!!"
After regaining his footing, Shishido rotated his wrist while holding the racket. His face was expressionless, but his posture exuded composure.
Qian stared down at the landing point, lost in thought. There was no record of this move in the database.
"A new move..."
His glasses reflected the light, obscuring his eyes. "Like the myriad flowers fluttering in the sun, it's all the result of these two months of practice."
The audience in the stands fell silent for a moment because of this move.
Then the discussion exploded like a lit fuse.
"That forward-rushing interception by Shishido just now? Was that a new move?"
"He'd been using slicing and a few common volleys in the previous rounds, but he suddenly changed his style just now, and Seigaku's Inui didn't anticipate it at all!"
"They really did have a backup plan! The Hyotei doubles pair has been hiding something since the very first game!"
……
Qingxue rest area.
Fuji opened his eyes, his pupils reflecting Shishido's back on the court. His voice was so soft it was almost inaudible: "Mochizuki Ryo has been setting up the strategy since the first game. In the first two games, he had Shishido use only slices and the usual volleys, precisely to prevent Inui's data from handling unexpected ball variations. He waited until Inui thought he had figured out the pattern before suddenly revealing it."
"Such deep scheming..." Kikumaru muttered, ignoring the band-aid on his face that had curled up again, and continued his incessant chatter.
Oishi frowned, the bandage on his right arm fluttering in the wind: "Moreover, this ball not only disrupted Inui's serve rhythm, but more importantly, it shattered Inui's mental expectations. He originally thought he had figured out Hyotei's tactics, but he was proven wrong again right after adjusting his model."
"This kind of psychological pressure is the most terrifying."
Ryoma Echizen leaned against the railing, his hat brim flipped up by the wind. He didn't speak, but simply clenched the tennis ball he was spinning in his hand, his amber eyes looking towards the Hyotei coaching bench.
The blond boy was leaning back in his chair, one hand on the armrest and the other holding a teddy bear, his posture still incredibly relaxed.
Echizen, with his keen eyes, noticed that the corners of the other person's mouth curved slightly.
"Tsk." Echizen muttered under his breath, pulling his hat brim down even lower.
……
On the field, the potential advantage was once again cut off.
Kaidou stood at the net, a low hiss escaping his throat, his long-suppressed emotions finally collapsing. Especially when he looked at Shishido's arrogant face on the other side, his competitive spirit began to surge.
The subsequent returns were entirely driven by anger, and they completely ignored Qian's commands.
The two players frequently overlapped in their runs, creating numerous gaps. Qian's data guidance was completely disrupted; he stood behind the baseline and even stopped reporting the landing points.
Hyotei broke serve again without much effort.
比分一直从3-0到4-0，再到5-0。
Every time the referee announced the score, the Hyotei cheering squad erupted in shouts, and even spectators from other schools in the stands joined in with applause and cheers.
The entire audience was abuzz with discussion and excitement.
"Broken! Shishido and Ootori have broken Inui's serve again!"
"Shishido's volley at the net just now was so solid! He only took two steps to get from the baseline to the net?"
"Feng's support from behind never stopped, and the two of them, one in front and one behind, gave Seigaku no chance to counterattack."
"How long did this temporary duo train? They play like they've been playing doubles for years!"
……
In the Rikkai University viewing area, several people watched the game much more attentively.
Marui blew a bubble with his chewing gum, then snapped it back in, his eyes gleaming: "Shishido's volley just now was amazing! His speed from the baseline to the net was incredible, and the timing was perfect. When did he become so fast..."
"Ah Liang has been running with full weights every day for the past two months. He runs 6,000 kilometers before training in the morning and another 6,000 kilometers after training in the evening. That's just the training volume we know about; we don't know anything else..."
Cilang leaned against the fence, yawned, but spoke smoothly, "Ling said his stamina, like Xiang Ri's, is a weakness; he can't play doubles well unless he improves it. So Liang really gritted his teeth and ran for almost two months."
Kirihara's eyes widened: "Running with full weights? Every day?"
"Hmm." Jiro nodded, his reddish-brown curly hair swaying. "He dragged me along for a few days too... but I got too tired and didn't go anymore."
"You're just being lazy," Marui bluntly exposed him.
Cilang puffed out his cheeks but didn't refute.
Yukimura held Luna, listened to their conversation, adjusted the kitten's sleeping position, and spoke in a low voice, as if casually replying.
"Shishido's stamina is definitely much better than during the training camp. Judging from the amount of running he did in the first few rounds, he should be able to play a full two hours without any problem."
"Then Hyotei's biggest weakness in doubles has been addressed." Yagyu adjusted his glasses, his tone tinged with admiration. "Mochizuki Ryo's training plan is truly spot-on at every step."
Niou leaned on his partner's shoulder, twirling his braid with his fingers, and grinned mischievously: "Puri~ Now it's up to Inui Sadaharu to deal with this. In his previous data model, Shishido's hair-cutting methods only included cutting and interception. Now that there's a new move, interception, his calculations will at least double."
"But there's only one game left, and it's Hyotei's serve. Statistically speaking, there's no chance of a comeback..." Yanagi turned to the next page of his notebook, his pen pausing on the paper as he looked at his childhood friend on the court, who was questioning his life choices.
Chengcheng is located in the southern part of Hunan.
Watching the changing formations on the field, the Tanaka brothers muttered, "Their positioning doesn't have a fixed role."
"Whoever is closest to the ball receives it, and the other automatically covers for them." Haoping's eyes widened as he added, "This isn't teamwork developed through training... it's something that comes from playing with a fixed partner for a long time."
"But they weren't a regular pair before, Kohei." Yohei glanced at his brother.
The two fell silent.
"So it's all about practice." Wakatohiro leaned back in his chair, unusually serious. "Didn't Coach Huacun say in the last game that that guy named Mochizuki Ryo actually trained them to be good?"
Huacun adjusted his glasses, the slight smile on his lips deepening: "That's exactly right."
"And this move... he kept it hidden for so long before using it. Ryo Shishido's execution is also very high; he could have scored directly in the first two games, but he waited until match point in the fourth game before revealing his move."
"He was playing entirely according to the coach's tactics," Kajimoto interjected, a hint of seriousness in his purple eyes. "Shishido is usually quite impulsive, so the fact that he could hold back for several rounds without revealing his true strength shows that he has complete trust in Mochizuki Ryo's tactics."
"It's more than just trust."
Hanamura's lips curved into a smile. "He's incorporated everyone's personality traits into his tactics. Shishido Oki, let him charge, but the timing of his charge must be according to plan. Ootori, let Ootori provide support, but the rhythm of his support must coordinate with Shishido's charge."
As Ruoren listened to their conversation, he took off his hat, fanned himself, and whistled: "This fits his strange news perfectly. He truly deserves to be called the Demon King's substitute coach of Hyotei."
"Do you think he might actually be conspiring with his little black cat to bewitch his teammates?!"
Kajimoto was speechless and turned the hat in his hand upside down in his face to shut him up.
"That's why I say..." Huacun was completely absorbed in his own thoughts, pressing his phone against his cheek and sighing, "It's the most perfect work. It's a pity it's not mine."
Shencheng sat to the side, his face cold, and remained silent. His gaze was fixed on the blond boy on the Hyotei coaching bench, never wavering.
The railing he was holding in his right hand was slightly deformed.
……
Meanwhile, Rikkai University had another cute little incident.
Luna nestled happily in Yukimura's arms, falling asleep repeatedly, yawning incessantly while hugging her little fish plush toy.
Once it calmed down a bit, it quickly glanced around and saw that everyone was focused on the field and no one was paying attention to this side. It then stealthily raised its right paw, stuck out its pink little tongue, and gently licked the fur along the edge of the gauze.
He had only licked it twice when the sharp-eyed Niou spotted him.
"Seiichi!" Niou's fox-like eyes darted around a couple of times as he leaned closer to Yukimura, pointing at the kitten with a smug, taciturn tone. "Look, Luna's licking her paws! Her wound's going to get infected!"
Luna was startled by the shout and jumped.
Feeling guilty, it quickly hid its little paws under its belly, looked up and glared at Renwang, its little mustache twitching, and kept meowing.
In a soft, childlike voice, the kitten tried its best to prove that it hadn't done anything wrong and that it was the two-legged creature that had wronged it.
Niou listened to the accusations with an indifferent expression, and with a wicked smile, he reached out and pulled out the kitten's "hidden kitten paw" as evidence, presenting it to Yukimura, the "judge".
The cat was caught red-handed.
Yukimura glanced down; the edges of the gauze were indeed a little damp. Behind him, lilies slowly bloomed, and with an incredibly gentle smile, he took out the baguette-shaped Elizabethan ring again from the cat carrier beside him.
He moved very gently, took off Luna's little straw hat, put a bread ring around its neck, and adjusted the tightness.
Luna was still in a daze and hadn't reacted yet. She lowered her head and tried to snuggle up to his hand, but she couldn't reach it no matter what she did.
Even with its tiny paws, it couldn't pry it open.
The round bread ring around her neck looked like a small donut, making her head appear small.
It was so angry that it spun around twice, then stretched out its little paws again and patted Niou repeatedly, meowing pitifully incessantly.
The voice was soft and gentle, lacking any intimidating power.
Indeed, when you are weak, people find it cute when you are angry.
Niou did the same, deliberately reaching out to poke the edge of its bagel, teasing it with a laugh, "Oh, are you angry? Who told you to secretly lick your wound? What if it gets infected?"
Luna got even angrier, straining forward and waving its little paws even faster, but it couldn't touch Niou at all. Frustrated, it threw the polka-dot fish that Niou had given it as an apology.
Marui, unable to bear it any longer, stepped in front of the kitten and glared at Niou, "Niou, how childish are you! Luna has already been punished, what kind of skill is it to bully it again?"
Jiro nodded in agreement, whispering, "That's right, Luna is still so young."
Kuwabara took a kitten milk stick out of the bag, held it to the kitten's mouth, and gently comforted it, "Sigh, have something to eat."
"I didn't bully it."
Niou held the crumpled little fish, shrugged, and innocently defended himself, "It was the one that secretly licked its wound first, so I worriedly told the commander. And you all saw it just now, it was the one that got angry and tried to claw at me first. Don't try to lie..."
"Yazhi, it won't deliberately cause trouble for you if you don't touch it."
Niou wanted to explain further, but found he really had nothing to argue with. He turned to look at Yagyu, who was smiling at him, a smile that held no sympathy, only "You decide what to do."
Liu adjusted his glasses and added slowly, "Data shows that people who frequently bully kittens usually don't have much luck."
"Minister, you're not being biased too, are you?" Niou clasped his hands together, holding the little fish, and pitifully clutched the coat covering his head as he looked at Yukimura.
"I don't favor anyone." Yukimura put the kitten's straw hat into the cat carrier, completely ignoring their noise.
"Alright, alright, I was wrong again this time, okay?" Renwang pinched the little fish's tail and shook it, then handed it to the sulking kitten, deliberately dragging out his words, "My dear cat, it's my fault for being too sharp-eyed and quick-tongued. You're a magnanimous kitten, please don't be angry anymore."
"You don't want the little fish anymore? If you don't want it, I can give it to one of the other kittens~~"
Luna snorted, abruptly turned her head and snuggled back into Yukimura's arms, sticking her little bottom out towards him. But she still obeyed her whims and took the little fish plush toy, and then refused to look at Niou no matter what.
Niou sighed, stood up, patted his knees, glanced at Atobe watching the commotion, and muttered, "Your Hyotei coach's cat is just as unreasonable as your captain."
Hearing the kitten's pitiful cries, Atobe went over to check on the situation and overheard everything. He raised an eyebrow and said in a dangerous tone, "Hmm~ Who are you calling unreasonable?"
Ren-ou wisely didn't respond.
Beside him, Yagyu leaned close to his ear and added in a very objective tone, "Compared to a kitten... from beginning to end, you have absolutely no chance of winning."
"Which side are you on?"
"I'll help... the cub."
Niou wanted to argue with him further, but Sanada, standing to the side, coughed. Niou immediately swallowed the rest of his words, snorted, and leaned back in his chair.
Everyone around was trying to suppress their laughter, and even Sanada's lips curled up briefly before he quickly suppressed it again.
The match on the field was still in full swing, but this little incident in the spectator area was like a piece of candy melting in the summer breeze, adding a touch of soft sweetness.
When Hyotei reached match point in the sixth inning, Seigaku had no chance to fight back.
Kaidou's racket was knocked out of his hand by Feng's serve for the second time, flying more than a meter away before bouncing twice on the ground. He didn't pick it up; he stood there stunned for a few seconds before bending down, picking up the racket, and walking back to the net.
Qian stood at the baseline, gripping his racket, his eyes filled with a helpless blankness.
Phoenix hit one perfect ace after another.
The final point came with the resounding whistle of a "soul-piercing ball." Kaidou didn't even move; the ball grazed the sideline, bounced twice, and rolled to the edge of the net.
Landing.
still.
"Game, Hyotei! 6-0!"
"The match is over. Hyotei Academy has won!"
After the referee announced the score, the entire stadium fell silent for two seconds.
Immediately, the shouts of the Hyotei cheering squad surged in like a tsunami, as if they wanted to release all the pent-up energy at this moment.
"Shishido! Ootori!"
"Hyotei! Hyotei!! Hyotei!!!"
The support fans fluttered and transformed into a bright golden sea of light, completely igniting the entire stands.
Shishido and Ootori stood in front of the net and shook hands with the two Seigaku players. Inui reached out and touched hands with Shishido, while Kaidou kept his head down, briefly shaking hands with Ootori without looking up.
After exchanging greetings, the two walked side by side to the rest area. Shishido still had a tense expression, but his steps were much lighter than when he arrived. He turned around and bumped rackets with Ootori.
Feng followed beside him, a faint smile on her face: "Shishido-senpai, we won."
Shishido nodded, his voice soft: "Mm."
The atmosphere in the Seigaku rest area is characterized by cool colors.
Kaidou sat on a bench in the rest area, his headscarf untied and clutched tightly in his hand, the colorful fabric already soaked with sweat.
He didn't look up at anyone, nor did he speak.
Qian sat next to him, his notebook open on his lap, the pages filled with obsolete data, most of which were crossed out in red pen from the actual data on the field.
He stared at the nearly empty page, rubbing his fingers vigorously.
Long Qijin closed the tactical board in his hand, his tone calm, "It's not your fault. The opponent's strength did indeed exceed expectations..."
Before she could finish speaking, Haitang jumped up, retied her headscarf, picked up her tennis bag from the chair, and turned to leave.
"Hey, Haitang, where are you going...?"
Kikumaru was about to go up and comfort him when Oishi stopped him. "It's alright, let him calm down. With Kaidou's personality, he'll fight even harder when he loses. He just needs some time to process it."
Kikumaru didn't reply, but whispered, "I didn't expect Hyotei's doubles to be so much stronger, it's like they've completely changed teams."
Daishi nodded, then said softly, "Yes."
Ryuzaki Jin patted Inui on the shoulder, watched Kaidou's retreating figure, and slowly exhaled. After a moment of silence, he stood up and clapped his hands: "Alright, the doubles are over. One win and one loss, it's still a tie. The singles won't start for another two hours, everyone go eat first."
The members of the Seigaku team started moving one after another.
Tezuka stood at the far end, his gaze behind his glasses fixed on the Hyotei coaching bench. Mochizuki Ryo had already stood up and was walking towards the rest area.
The sunlight fell on the other person, blurring their features, but it couldn't hide their relaxed confidence.
Fuji kept his eyes closed for a long while before opening them: "This Coach Mochizuki is even more unfathomable than we thought. In just two months, he's turned Hyotei's doubles from a weak point to this level..."
Tezuka nodded slightly, his eyes behind his glasses serious. "Ah, we can't be careless in the upcoming singles matches."
Echizen pushed his hat up, glanced at the scoreboard, and muttered, "6-0. Still a long way off."
His voice was low, blending into the surrounding chatter, making it impossible to tell whether he was speaking to his teammates or to himself. After speaking, he turned and joined the Seigaku team in packing up their things.
The three first-year students from Seigaku sat dejectedly on the steps, their support flags drooping in their hands.
"They actually lost 6-0..."
Satoshi Horio looked rather grim. He pursed his lips, his eyes darting around as he pulled off his support headband. Looking at the words on it, he muttered dejectedly, "This is such an ugly performance!"
Katsuro Kato sighed softly, "Hyotei is really strong."
Katsuo Mizuno nodded in agreement, paused for a moment, and then said, "They're only good at doubles, which is a weakness for Hyotei..."
Before he finished speaking, the other two understood what he meant.
If they've already struggled like this in doubles, a sport they're not good at, what about singles?
-
In the press box, Saori Shiba put down her camera, her face drooping and her shoulders slumped, looking like she was about to cry. "How could this happen... Inui and Kaidou actually lost, and lost so badly."
Inoue closed his notebook, his expression grave. "Hyotei's doubles system is absolutely professional-level. Dynamic formations, front and back rotations, and comprehensive targeted training. It's not a hastily put-together combination; it's a system that has been refined over a long period of time."
"This Wangyue Ling is no ordinary person."
Saori Shiba pouted, wanting to say something, but didn't say it.
The facts are undeniable, and no matter how much one favors Seigaku, they cannot deny this crushing defeat.
"The Seigaku singles match this afternoon..."
"There's still a chance." Inoue analyzed in a deep voice while packing up the equipment, "Losing a doubles match doesn't mean the same for singles. Seigaku has Tezuka, Fuji, and Echizen. These are all excellent singles players, and their win rate is still quite high."