Chapter 197

Still, he has talent, so he's doing pretty well for himself.

I hope he falls flat on his face.

@@

Brushing aside the sweat-dampened hair clinging to the side of her face, Renka handed the trophy to Chinami, who stood in front of her.

Then, holding her own certificate, she faced forward and beamed.

Click!

After taking the victory photos and sharing hugs with the club members, Renka turned to Chinami.

"You look happy."

"Hehe... Winning a prize is always a joy. Aren't you happy, close friend?"

"Of course I am. Shall we go watch the men's division now?"

"Naturally. I want to see junior Matsuda right away."

It was hard to tell if she wanted to see Matsuda himself or if she wanted to see his skills.

Both, maybe? Probably.

Looking around at the club members and their proud expressions, Renka asked, "Are you all going to watch the men's division?"

"Us? We're going to rest. We're exhausted."

True to their word, her teammates looked completely drained.

They had played consecutive matches, and this tournament was far more intense than their usual regional competitions, so their energy was entirely spent.

If the men's division was dealing with the same thing, their chances of winning didn't look high.

Still, seeing as Goro, who was managing the men's team, hadn't shown up even though the women's finals were over, they must have been managing somehow...

Yamazaki, the anchor, had excellent skills. Matsuda was incredibly talented, and Miura also had a decent level of ability, so they were likely holding their ground.

"Are you all going to stay on the bus?"

"Yeah, we plan to."

"Could you take the trophy and certificate with you, then?"

"Sure. See you later."

"Yeah, see you later."

After carefully handing over the trophy, Renka offered her handkerchief to Chinami, who was sniffling from the cold.

Together, they headed toward the spectator seats in the Gymnasium where the men's matches were being held.

The moment they opened the doors, the sound of applause washed over them.

The atmosphere was quite heated, as if someone was putting on a very entertaining performance.

Checking the tournament bracket with Chinami, she saw that Yeboni Academy had made it to the semifinals, which were just about to begin.

They had already secured their qualification to participate in the next tournament.

"Ah...! Close friend...! The men's division made it to the semifinals...!"

Chinami's voice was flushed with excitement as she scanned the bracket alongside her.

Feeling a swell of pride at the men's strong performance, Renka calmed Chinami down and checked the Yeboni Academy score sheet displayed in the corner of the venue.

In his role as anchor, Yamazaki had fought three matches so far, and the score for all of them was 2 to 1.

Meaning he had conceded one point but scored two, winning every single time.

Just what one would expect from someone as skilled as Yamazaki.

Taking the captain's match, Ikeda had scored two victories and suffered only one 2 to 0 defeat.

For the center matches, Mori had won one bout and lost two.

As for Miura, taking the second vanguard position...

'He did incredibly well...?'

Like the center matches, he had won one bout and lost two.

However, the scores were all 2 to 1. Whether he won or lost, it meant he had always managed to score a point.

One of his losses had even dragged into overtime when the standard five-minute limit wasn't enough, resulting in a narrow defeat.

For someone with so little experience, it was a massive leap forward.

Just looking at the records made it obvious how hard Miura had worked.

It was commendable. She decided to shower him with praise once everything was over.

Finally, there was the opening match where Matsuda played as the vanguard.

Narrowing her eyes as she checked his record, Renka started in surprise.

"...A perfect winning streak?"

He had won every match 2 to 0. Except for one bout that lasted 2 minutes and 12 seconds, all the others had ended in under two minutes.

Given the importance of the vanguard position, the opposing teams definitely would have sent out strong contenders...

Yet he had cut them all down in two minutes or less?

Having sparred with him directly, she knew perfectly well that he had talent, but for him to perform this well... Honestly, she hadn't expected it.

"A perfect streak? Who?"

Chinami, who hadn't checked the score sheet yet, asked.

Offering an awkward smile, Renka was about to answer.

Just then, Chinami pointed toward a section of the spectator seating.

"Ah!? Junior Hanazawa is over there...! Should we watch together?"

True to Chinami's word, Hanazawa was indeed watching the matches with a group of people who looked like her classmates.

Since she was close friends with Matsuda and Miura, she must have come separately to cheer them on.

"Oh! The semifinals are starting. Let's just watch junior Matsuda's match before going over."

With that, Chinami promptly plopped down into an empty seat.

Letting out a short, incredulous breath through her nose, Renka said, "Couldn't we just watch all the matches from here?"

"We could do that, too. Now please be quiet."

Chinami's intense focus on the match of her favorite disciple was amusing.

Chuckling softly, Renka took the seat next to Chinami.

She then watched Matsuda exchange bows with his opponent and step inside the boundary lines.

After performing the Sonkyo, he stood up and immediately raised his arms high.

He quickly took his stance and was about to rush straight at his opponent, but he hesitated due to the shinai extending toward him.

Thrusting the shinai toward the neck like that was the standard way to check a Sangdanse posture.

Matsuda had faced that exact same check countless times from her and the other club members.

He had always struggled to break through it... What would he do now?

Since this was the semifinals and he was facing true experts, she figured he might spend some time feeling out his opponent.

But just as she had that thought—clack!

"Haaht!"

Matsuda swiftly struck down the shinai aimed at his neck. Taking advantage of the large opening as his opponent's blade dipped, he snapped his wrists, rotating his own shinai sideways—

Smack!

He struck the opponent's wrist where it gripped the handle, then rapidly shuffled his feet to retreat. Renka's eyes widened.

It was a clean strike. The form wasn't entirely flawless, but his ki-ken-tai was unified, and he maintained his zanshin perfectly. It was undoubtedly an Ippon.

Flutter!

Exactly as expected, two referees raised their white flags, awarding Matsuda the point.

The third referee had been facing the opposing team's back and probably couldn't see the strike clearly, which was why he remained still.

She was relieved he had scored.

Thinking this, Renka smirked as she watched Matsuda clench one fist tightly while retreating to his starting line.

'Looks like he's having fun.'

It was a good thing.

Since Matsuda had a talent for Kendo, finding it enjoyable would only make him train harder.

Pushing him to enter the tournament was the right call.

Even if he had ultimately listened to Chinami rather than her.

"Goodness...! Goodness...! Did you see that...? This is what it means for the student to surpass the master...! I have nothing left to teach junior Matsuda...!"

"Yeah, yeah. He did great."

After soothing the overly dramatic and emotionally overwhelmed Chinami, Renka kept watching the match, but a frown soon crept onto her face.

The opponent, who had initiated a tsubazeriai to close the distance, was flicking his wrist to repeatedly tap his shinai against Matsuda's Men and mengane.

It was something that happened quite often during matches.

However, the frequency of the taps was far too high. The opponent was doing it on purpose.

It wasn't a foul, but it wasn't good sportsmanship, either.

The opponent probably knew how aggressive Matsuda could be and was trying to goad him into losing his temper...

It had to feel incredibly frustrating. Matsuda couldn't afford to get dragged into it.

Swallowing her anxiety as she watched the match, Renka knit her brows even tighter.

'That bastard...'

While steadily scraping away at Matsuda's nerves, the opponent slyly extended a foot, hooking it around the outside of Matsuda's ankle.

With it placed there, Matsuda would trip and slightly lose his balance the moment he tried to change direction.

Sticking out a leg to obstruct the opponent's path was a clear foul.

If deemed intentional, it would result in a forfeit.

However, the opponent had hooked his foot so subtly that even if Matsuda tripped, the referees might deem it unintentional and let him off with a mere warning.

"Who... Who is that player committing such an atrocious act...!"

Catching sight of the opponent's dirty trick, Chinami huffed in fury.

It made sense that she'd be furious at an opponent pulling those kinds of dirty tricks on her cherished disciple. Renka completely understood.

But honestly... didn't this feel a bit like karma?

He wasn't doing it right now, but Matsuda used to rely on unsportsmanlike tactics during friendly sparring matches all the time.

Of course, that didn't make the opponent right, and since she was on Matsuda's side, it still made her blood boil...

Keeping those thoughts to herself, Renka silently observed Matsuda.

Just as she had feared, Matsuda stumbled over the hooked foot while attempting to slide sideways to break away.

Refusing to miss the opening created as Matsuda lost his balance and dropped his arms, the opponent lunged forward.

He was aiming straight for Matsuda's lowered wrists.

There was a way to prevent him from scoring, even if he managed to strike.

'Fall backward.'

If he fell, there was a high chance the referees would realize a foot was involved and declare the strike invalid.

Praying Matsuda would just fall backward, Renka watched their every move like a hawk, only for—

Smack! Clack!

Even as he staggered, Matsuda parried the opponent's attack with absurd reflexes, regained his center of gravity, and immediately resumed his Sangdanse posture. Renka's eyes went perfectly round.

'Wh-what...? Is he a comic book character...?'

Who pulls off a move like that? Is he a wild beast?

Did he enter some kind of awakened state?

Wearing a dumbfounded expression, Renka focused intently once again as Matsuda charged at his opponent.

Had the opponent's momentum been completely crushed by Matsuda's animalistic instincts?

The opponent shrank back in panic, his foot slipping.

At that exact moment—

Crack!

"Meeennnn!!"

Matsuda ruthlessly cracked the opponent's Men as the guy crashed onto his backside.

It wasn't an attack that would be awarded an Ippon; it was just a swing fueled by pure brute force.

He was paying the opponent back for his unsportsmanlike behavior, right within the boundaries permitted by the rules.

Not only that, but he stepped up to the fallen opponent, leaned his upper body in, and stood perfectly still.

Just like a dog butcher inspecting a dog he'd just beaten to death.

'Is he glaring at him?'

He was too far away for her to see his expression, but knowing the Matsuda she knew, he had definitely realized the opponent had fouled him and was shooting him a silent warning with his eyes.

Watching Matsuda's behavior, one corner of Renka's mouth curled upward.

A guy whose mentality didn't waver, who didn't cower but instead bit back twice as hard.

While it wasn't the playstyle she preferred, having a character like that on the team was definitely a plus, not a minus.

Truth be told, Yeboni Academy was an underdog team.

Although their goal had been to reach the semifinals, not even Goro had likely expected them to actually make it this far.

The fact that all five of them had recorded excellent scores had several reasons behind it, but Matsuda's phenomenal performance as the vanguard must have played a massive role.

And that performance surely included that fierce, tenacious grit of his.

She knew from sparring with him that his talent was outstanding, but this surpassed her expectations.

It was also obvious how consistently he had been practicing. His rate of improvement was exceptionally fast.

Of course, he was still unrefined in many areas, but it was impressive nonetheless.

'He suits the vanguard position perfectly.'

Thinking it would be fun to send him to the national tournament if he kept steadily improving his skills through training, Renka calmed down Chinami—who had thrown both arms up, completely immersed in Matsuda's match—and continued watching the competition.

In the youth genre, whether it was a sports, chaebol, or action story, an opponent who relied on cunning fouls always showed up.

It was an absolute cliché. I had never seen a story where they didn't show up.

Which was why, from the moment I saw my current opponent's slightly sleazy expression, I had prepared myself for fouls and managed to handle the situation smoothly.

Getting my own revenge through a bit of unsportsmanlike play was just a bonus.

I could have fought clean and won against an opponent using fouls.

But I wasn't the protagonist of a shōnen manga. I was just Trash, a guy who constantly thought about getting laid.

I'd acted perfectly in character, so my conscience was clear.

I wanted to humiliate him more, but it might make their next players burn with vengeance, so I held back.

Though I had to wonder if it made sense for Trash to be this considerate of his teammates.

Scoring an additional point against my completely demoralized opponent, I easily wrapped up the opening match and swapped out with Tetsuya.

As I did, I offered the guy some advice.

"Watch your legs."

"My legs?"

"He tried to subtly hook my foot earlier."

"Ah... Senior Yamazaki mentioned your opponent was acting weird... Was that why you almost tripped earlier?"

"Right. They seem like a sleazy team, so stay focused."

"Got it. Thanks."

After finishing the switch and returning to where the rest of the club members were, I flashed a grin at Yamazaki, whose expression was stiff.

"You aren't mad at me for playing dirty, are you?"

At that, Yamazaki shook his head back and forth as if saying I was incorrigible, and replied.

"Why would I be mad at you? I'm mad at the crap your opponent was pulling. Anyway, you did great. Really, excellent work out there."

The second vanguard match that followed was a muddy brawl.

True to being a filthy bastard, Tetsuya played incredibly stubbornly, relentlessly biting onto the opposing second vanguard.

He was concentrating as hard as he could, clearly keeping the fouls in mind, and I could visibly see him improving by leaps and bounds since his first match.

It didn't sit right with me that this punk was growing in real time just like I was.

Made me wonder if giving him that tip was a mistake.

Regardless, if merely watching his playstyle was annoying, how did the guy actually fighting him feel?

Was he grinding his teeth in frustration?

Just as I was pondering that—whack!

I let out an inward sigh as Tetsuya took a solid counter to his waist and surrendered an Ippon.

I told him to stay focused, and here the crazy bastard was using all that focus to lose.

The future looked bleak. Did this mean we had no choice but to rely on the center, the captain's match, and the anchor?

Grabbing the water bottle beside me, I cooled my dry throat and quietly watched the rest of the match.

Fortunately, our team advanced to the finals with an overall score of 3 to 2.

Tetsuya at second vanguard and Mori at center suffered back-to-back losses, leaving us staring down defeat, but Ikeda in the captain's match and our anchor managed to claw out hard-fought victories.

The fouls we had been worried about didn't occur outside of the opening match and the second vanguard match.

Because of them, a minor clash nearly broke out after the matches ended, but a furious Goro had a stern talk with the opposing team's coach and forced them to apologize to Tetsuya and me, putting the issue to rest for the time being.

The finals, which continued after a short break, drew everyone's focused attention.

Not just from the spectators inside the venue, but even from the Kendo Clubs of other academies waiting for the award ceremony.

Since there were only two teams actively competing in the massive venue, it was only natural.

"You've worked hard to get this far. Earning the right to compete in a higher-tier tournament was one thing, but making it all the way to the finals was truly beyond my expectations."

Goro said, encouraging us after bringing the team together.

Seeing Tetsuya's slumped shoulders, he continued.

"Miura, I know your rhythm was broken and you're angry, but stay focused. I plan to take up the issues from the previous match directly with the Association and resolve them somehow. Right now, what matters is pulling your mentality together. You've done well up to this point."

Flinching at those words, Tetsuya's eyes widened.

Was he burning with competitive spirit? It completely didn't suit him.

"Yes, Director."