Tokyo girls have a big problem

Chapter 229 Are you on defensive or offensive?
Elsa Tenyu ignored the boys' teasing.

She looked at the Admiral of the East Sea: "You can come and watch Aoyama-kun's match this afternoon."

"No need," said the General of the East Sea.

She looked at Aoyama Ryou: "I challenge you to a duel, now!"

Qingshan thought for a moment and said, "Okay."

Compared to words, duels are more direct and effective, though this varies from person to person, at least for the Admiral of the East Sea.

"Best two out of three, let's go," said the East Sea General.

She wasn't surprised at all that Aoyama Rie agreed to a duel; it seemed that duels were a regular occurrence in her life.

"Don't touch my food, I'll be right back." Aoyama Risa got up and wiped his mouth.

"Together! Together!" The men's group stood up.

Needless to say, the women's group as well.

"Can Aoyama-kun win 2-0?" Higashiura Kana asked.

"Let's see if he's serious," Elsa Tenyu replied.

Although everyone was looking for a place to duel, because of her beauty, it looked like she was a Saint Seiya warrior protecting Athena.

Kana Higashiura laughed: "Elsa, you've changed. The old you, if someone didn't take kendo seriously, you'd be lucky not to like them, let alone hate them."

Elsa Tianyu pondered, "I am also evaluating him. If Aoyama-kun does not suit my taste, I will immediately give up on him."

The fact that suitors also consider the right to give up is a matter of course, yet it leaves Higashiura Kana speechless.

How many people can do that?
During the lunch break, the areas inside the stadium designated for competitions are unavailable, but the corridors are still accessible, where many athletes practice and wait for their afternoon matches.

They found a spot in a corner.

Sunlight streams through the window, spreading out like a magic circle—its effect being to heat the room—which is probably why the space is empty.

"Best of three games, Aoyama Risa on the red side, Kokubo Yuika on the white side." The vice minister served as the referee.

Minister Kinoshita has not yet adapted to the reality.

"start!"

Squat down, then stand up.

Neither side was wearing protective gear, and no one said anything. The system's guidance was fine, but if they couldn't even endure this little bit of hardship, they shouldn't be practicing kendo.

"Go to hell!!" The East Sea General looked irritable, and he was just as irritable in reality.

Aoyama Rika stared at her calmly.

Facing the swift sword, he raised his hand to strike.

"boom!"

General Donghai felt her body stiffen for a moment; the opponent's sword was like a bamboo sword and a steel blade, and her entire body felt like it was about to crack.

She quickly retreated, deciding to win by speed.

The bamboo sword in his hand instantly transformed into silver spider silk!

—You can win by playing slowly, but to break free from the entanglement, you must win decisively.

"noodle!"

explosion!

[Talent: Slow Motion] greatly enhances combat power, giving you an immediate advantage.

"boom!"

The bamboo sword of the East Sea General was knocked away and spun around in the air.

The girl stood frozen in place, with Aoyama Risa's bamboo sword hanging above her head.

The bamboo sword fell with a thud, and only then did people realize: this was indeed bamboo.

Clearly, in the hands of the athlete, it can unleash astonishing speed and fierce momentum.

"Smack!" Aoyama Risa lightly tapped the head of the Tokai General with his bamboo sword.

He turned and walked back to the starting line, deflecting the bamboo sword of the East Sea General.

The East China Sea General instinctively caught it.

"Red, Red wins!" The deputy minister finally realized.

In reality, he didn't see it clearly at all, just like a student who answers "Yes" when the teacher asks "Do you understand?", simply trying to get by.

The East Sea General looked at Aoyama Ryo.

After a brief pause, he started shouting like a madman.

"what!!!!"

She rushed over at almost the speed of air.

Under her rage, the bamboo sword flew like a cannonball with a trail.

Without fear, Aoyama Riki charged forward.

"noodle!"

--explode

The bamboo sword crashed to the ground once more, and from the shadows within the magic circle of light, the General of the East Sea was disarmed once more.

Aoyama Risa's bamboo sword once again hovered above the head of the East Sea General.

It was as if what had just happened was an illusion, and neither of them had moved.

Aoyama Risa did not draw this time.

He sheathed his sword, turned around and said, "Let's go back and continue eating. There's a match this afternoon."

"The food's still warm! Warm rice is the best food to kill a general, Guan Yu!!" the men's group shouted.

These Japanese people know more about the Three Kingdoms than he does.

“I didn’t expect you to agree.” Elsa Amamiya walked beside Risa Aoyama. “In my memory, you don’t like fighting.”

"You don't know me."

"Now I understand."

"You still don't understand. I don't like swordsmanship, nor do I love fighting. It's just that I've always tended to use force when faced with conflict." Aoyama Risa said with a half-smile.

“Violence,” Higashiura Kana blurted out instinctively.

Elsa Amane imagined that after marriage, the two would fight each other with swordsmanship at the slightest disagreement.

“I’m even more looking forward to being with you now,” she said.

"Huh?" Kana Higashiura looked at her incredulously.

"Let's eat first." What else could Aoyama Risa say?

After finishing his meal, Aoyama Risa found a spot to practice his swordsmanship, while the East Sea General secretly watched him from the shadows.

He pretended not to see it.

I secretly decided that as soon as the game ended today, I would go back to the hotel immediately.

Today, the boys' division also has two matches. The first match is against Higashiyama High School from Kyoto Prefecture, and the second match is against Hachioji Shigen High School, which is also from Tokyo.

Both teams won two games in a row yesterday, and they are very strong.

Dongshan High School fared well; the four matches involving forwards, second forwards, centers, and vice-captains were evenly matched.

After Kinoshita entered the fray and defeated two opponents, he seemed to be returning to reality, and the huge psychological gap transformed into anger.

Unfortunately, after defeating two opponents, he was forced to leave the ring due to exhaustion and could not continue his winning streak.

Finally, it was a battle of generals.

"start!"

Squat down, then stand up.

When General Higashiyama met Aoyama Ryo's gaze, the murderous aura made him feel as if he had been touched by ice, and his heart shrank into a ball.

"Tortoise!!!" Aoyama Risa slashed down with his sword.

"Oh no!" General Higashiyama tried to calm himself down, but it was too late.

boom!
General Higashiyama fell backward, and despite his efforts, he couldn't keep his balance and fell onto the smooth floor.

Once he sat down on the ground, a massive wave of numbness washed over him from the area where he had been slashed, instantly spreading throughout his entire body.

My body felt as if it had been cut in two.

What a terrifying guy! He seized the opportunity perfectly, and he's incredibly strong!
He was using a bamboo sword and was even wearing protective gear, yet he still got beaten up like this!

"Alright!!" the enlightened men's group roared.

He won with a single sword strike, sending the enemy flying, which greatly boosted morale, and even the coach applauded enthusiastically.

"That's great!" cheered Ono Mitsuki.

"Is the opponent alright?" Ono Mika wasn't worried about the opponent, but rather that something happening to the opponent would affect Aoyama Ryo.

"Wow, that's amazing! If every match is like this, I'll be able to understand kendo too!" Akika Gasai exclaimed in admiration.

"You've really worked hard, sitting here all day even though you don't understand it," said Bess Sakura.

"Don't say that," Akika said shyly. "It's so hot outside, there's no way to go out."

"You don't like Aoyama-kun too, do you?" Bess Sakurako asked.

After asking the question, Bess Sakura quickly took in the expressions of everyone around her.

It goes without saying that Amakusa Sawa likes it; not only in Tokyo, but also in Fukuoka, almost everyone knows.
Drummer Mengshi liked it, which was expected.
F. Rino likes it, but doesn't have any particular desire to make it happen;

The same applies to Misato Inoue;

Ono Mika likes him, but she's also a little wary. She seems gentle, but she's actually very possessive.
Ono Mizuki likes it, and still has a bit of naivety. She is more curious about other people liking Aoyama-kun.
See above for love.
Oops!

The young lady was smiling elegantly as she gazed at Bess Sakura.

Bass Sakurako liked it, but she was a little resentful; it seemed she had been rejected? As for Agatsuma Akika's explanation, she didn't listen carefully because of Bass Sakurako's panic.

In the time it takes to exchange just a few words, the second game of the duel between Aoyama Risa and Higashiyama Daisho has begun.

Squat down, then stand up.

General Dongshan needs to adjust his mindset. He can be defeated, but he cannot be defeated by his own mistakes.

"Cross!" Aoyama Ri took action.

General Dongshan's vision blurred, and a blurry whip shadow struck his face.

Overheating, he instinctively raised his knife to defend himself.

"boom!"

It was as if a small hand grenade had exploded, showing how much force Aoyama Risa had used.

After overheating, General Dongshan was covered in cold sweat and almost got killed by a single blow!

General Dongshan pushed forward with all his might, trying to get the sword blades to push against each other.

Aoyama Risa quickly retreated.

"Face!" At the same time, he used a retreating attack on the face.

General Dongshan ducked down and dodged in an extremely awkward manner.

It was terrifying, horrifying, like a giant python hanging from a tree, its heads facing each other, while its thick, powerful tail silently descended from behind, ready to strike.

"Nishikawa! Calm down!"

"Do not be afraid!"

The coach's voice could be heard from the preparation area.

General Higashiyama took a deep breath.

"Haa!!" he roared, shaking off the chill and negative emotions from his body.

All that's left in my body is heat.

Having escaped the suppression of murderous intent and the shadow of being defeated in one move, General Higashiyama unleashed his full power once he entered the battle.

He brandished his hands, and the bamboo sword transformed into countless sharp shards of glass, swarming towards Aoyama Ryou like a bee.

Aoyama Ryo gripped his hands tightly, channeling his strength into the bamboo sword.

He took a step forward, his bamboo sword dancing wildly, like a shield pressing down.

"boom!"

"boom!"

General Dongshan's bamboo sword touched the shield and then immediately moved away, constantly adjusting its angle to attack from the side.

The three referees were highly focused and subconsciously adjusted their positions to avoid missing the decisive blow.

opportunity!

General Dongshan's eyes lit up.

"Hands!!!" With a battle cry, power surged through his entire body as he slashed at Aoyama Ryou.

But this was a flaw that Aoyama deliberately created.

The sword flew past Aoyama Risa's forehead.

"Cunt!!" He countered.

"Bang!" The loud impact drew attention, making people wonder why such a sound would occur during a kendo match.

General Dongshan plopped down on the ground again.

"Score! Red wins!"

"The victory is decided!"

Bow and leave.

Even through the face shield, all I could hear were cheers and congratulations.

——Current progress: 3/9.

While these thoughts were on his mind, Aoyama Risa was actually more focused on the battle than winning the Jade Dragon Flag championship.

Fighting against the system is certainly more intense and can improve your skills more, but the system is not a human after all. Fighting against it is ultimately like playing a high-difficulty single-player game or against the AI, and you can never shake off the mindset that 'this is a training match'.

Official matches are different; regardless of the opponent's skill level, they are, after all, real people.

Aoyama Risa was merely pleased to have killed the system five times in a row, but if he were to kill five official players from a school in a row, even if the opponents were of average skill, he would be ecstatic.

Anyone who plays games should be able to understand this mentality.

"You've also achieved a double kill!" Jun Aizawa congratulated him.

"How many consecutive strikes has the Sword King achieved so far?" Aoyama asked.

“Kyushu Academy is terrifyingly strong. He hasn’t even had a chance to play yet. If you want to fight him, we can’t help you,” Kinoshita explained.

In other words, Aoyama Ryou must defeat Kyushu Academy's forward, second forward, center, and vice-captain, and on that basis, he must retain enough stamina to be recognized by the referee in order to fight the Sword King.

"Are you confident?" Jun Aizawa asked.

"No." Aoyama Risa was telling the truth.

A genius like the Sword King is probably born with innate talent, whether it's good physical fitness or fast reaction time, so fast that it's almost like "bullet time" wouldn't be surprising.

"Who cares? Kyushu is in Group A. If we make it to the quarterfinals, that's a victory!" the center forward said.

Minister Kinoshita and Tsutomu also nodded in agreement.

Jun Aizawa didn't care about the ranking; he just wanted to kill the two of them and then confess his feelings.

"Qingshan, what do you think?" the coach asked.

"To fight the Sword King is to win!" Aoyama Ryou replied.

"Keep trying!" Even with such a goal, the coach felt it was difficult and could only offer his blessings.

"Let's win the next match first," Aoyama Risa said with a smile.

Everyone nodded, their expressions turning serious.

On July 25th, Kaiming's second match was against Hachioji Shigyaku High School. The opponent's lineup was somewhat unusual, with their strongest player placed at the forward position.

"Aizawa, beat him once, and you'll have a double kill!" Aoyama Risa said to Aizawa Jun, who was the first to step up.

"I will bring back more information for you!" Jun Aizawa himself had no desire other than to die.

"start!"

Squat down, then stand up.

"noodle!"

In an instant, the bamboo sword flew to Aizawa Jun's eyes.

Just how much talent and how much practice does it take to unleash a sword like that!

Jun Aizawa was completely convinced of his defeat.

"I'm sorry." He walked back with his head down.

Soon, the second forward and center forward also returned with their heads down.

Before going on stage, Kinoshita took several deep breaths. He was no longer thinking about how to win, but how to lose gracefully.

Think about it carefully, you'll lose far more often than you'll win in life. Learning how to lose is far more important than winning, isn't it?

With this awareness, Department Head Kinoshita stepped onto the stage.

"start!"

Squat down, then stand up.

Kinoshita, the club president, demonstrated by setting up a defensive formation, explaining that in Yu-Gi-Oh!, monsters positioned like this won't lose any life points even if they are defeated.

In the context of Kendo, it means: losing is acceptable, but it won't affect your mood!

"what!!!"

With a battle cry, the vanguard of Hachioji High School (abbreviated as 'Hachioji Practice High School') charged forward and collided with the club president, Kinoshita.

boom! boom! boom!
Attack and defense.

Minister Kinoshita had a precarious feeling, as if he were standing on thin ice, relying on a flimsy shield and immense luck to barely stay afloat amidst a hail of arrows.

All I wanted to do was escape; I had no desire to move forward.

Who would charge through a hail of arrows?

"noodle!!!"

Kinoshita, the department head, was struck hard on the head, and even with protective gear, his vision went black.

This time it wasn't a psychological issue, but a physical one that was truly on the verge of collapse. Fortunately, his belief in 'losing gracefully' was strong enough to miraculously keep him standing!

"Score! White wins!"

With his head knocked out, the club president, Kinoshita, quickly lost the second round.

Hachiji (abbreviation for Hachijiji High School) strikers scored four consecutive goals!
It's both surprising and unsurprising.

"Qingshan, we're counting on you!" The crowd had no dignity left; they just wanted to be pawns on the big boss.

"I'll do my best," Aoyama Risa said with a wry smile.

He had felt guilty before, thinking he had taken their spot, but in the end, it was a two-way street!
He prefers a two-way approach, whether it's family, love, or friendship.

Just as Ai said, he will confess to Mika a second time, but there will be no third time.

Thinking about this, even Aoyama Rin, who was acting aggressively in this relationship, began to have trouble breathing.

Failure will cause you harm.

(End of this chapter)