The Prince of Tennis: From Data-Driven Tennis to the Pinnacle of His Career

"This idiot, he's already putting on airs before even winning the game."

Seeing Sengoku Kiyosumi's appearance, Kagura Ichijin on the coach's bench lowered his head and helplessly covered his forehead with his hand.

During previous matches, Sengoku Kiyosumi was relatively reserved because there weren't many spectators.

But there are quite a few girls watching from the sidelines, and this guy's old habit has kicked in again; he completely forgot the pre-match instructions.

The country is easy to change, but the nature is hard to change.

Thinking of this, Kagura Ichijin stopped caring about Sengoku Kiyosumi and started silently reciting the system's commands.

Yamazaki (second year of junior high school)

Speed: 2.5

Power: 2.5

Stamina: 2.5

Spirit: 2

Technology: 2.5

Total: 12

Sengoku Kiyosumi (First year of junior high school)

Speed: 2

Power: 2.5

Stamina: 2.5

Spirit: 4

Technology: 3

Total: 14

"Apart from being slightly slower, we have the advantage in every other aspect. As long as Sengoku doesn't let his guard down, we shouldn't lose."

Seeing the five-dimensional comparison, Kagura Ichijin breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Sengoku Kiyosumi is much stronger than Yamazaki. As long as he plays steadily, winning this match shouldn't be a problem.

The rest of the match became a full-blown showcase for Sengoku Kiyosumi.

"Tiger Cannon!"

"15-0!"

……

"30-0!"

……

"40-0!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 3-0!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 3-1!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 4-1!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 4-2!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 5-2!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 5-3!"

……

"Game, Kiyosumi Sengoku, 6-3!"

……

"Match 3 ends, 6-3, Kiyosumi Sengoku wins!"

"Looks like I need to increase my training volume."

Watching Sengoku Kiyosumi wave to the girls outside the arena and walk back with a flourish, Kagura Ichijin secretly made a decision.

After the Tokyo Metropolitan Tournament, we must give Sengoku Kiyosumi a little "spice" to teach him a lesson so he won't mess up in more important matches in the future.

"How was it, Kagura? I played pretty well, right?"

Sengoku Kiyosumi walked over with a proud look on her face.

He won this crucial match, and as long as Kagura Ichijin stays focused, Yamabuki Junior High School will be just one step away from the finals.

"Not so good. We could have won the match by losing just one game at most."

Kagura Ichijin had a stern face and didn't give Sengoku Kiyosumi a friendly look.

Although they won the match, Sengoku Kiyosumi's performance did not meet his expectations at all.

Just now, Sengoku Kiyosumi and Yamazaki played nine games, and Sengoku Kiyosumi won five of them thanks to his powerful serve.

If it were a player who could catch the ball, the outcome would probably be completely different.

"That's true. If I keep playing seriously, I can definitely finish the match sooner."

Sengoku Kiyosumi scratched his head, thought about it carefully, and realized that Kagura Ichijin was right.

Yamazaki isn't particularly strong, and he doesn't have any special moves, making him a relatively easy opponent to deal with.

"The fourth match begins. Yamabuki will play the second singles match, and Hoshino and Oizumi will play the second singles match."

"It's time to end this semi-final."

Kagura Ichijin picked up his racket, nodded to Banta Mikiya on the coaching bench, and then calmly walked toward the referee.

"You must be the captain of Yamabuki, right? I heard you're a national-level player, is that true?"

Ishikawa looked at Kagura Ichijin with a serious expression.

Hoshino Oizumi had already lost two matches, making this one a do-or-die battle for him.

"What's the difference? You're not going to just admit defeat anyway."

Kagura Ichijin spoke in a cold tone.

The term "national-level player" is actually just a general term used to describe players who are highly skilled and have participated in national competitions.

The judging criteria are quite broad, since the national competition is divided into team competitions and individual competitions. The former represents the school, and the latter represents the individual.

As a key player representing the school in the team competition, their strength is beyond doubt.

However, the skill level of the participants in the individual competition varied greatly; some were ridiculously strong, while others were just lucky.

"I want to see just how big the gap is between myself and national-level athletes."

Ishikawa stared intently at Kagura Ichijin, his hand gripping the racket trembling slightly from the excessive force.

It's a rare opportunity to play against a player of this caliber.

Even knowing he was no match, he still wanted to give it his all.

"You know perfectly well what's going on in your heart, so why bother trying again?"

Kagura Ichijin shook his head.

Hoshino University's Osaka branch has at least reached the Kanto Tournament, so they should be well aware of the level of those top schools.

"Perhaps it's because he's unwilling to accept it."

Ishikawa gave a wry smile.

He played tennis from a young age and was considered a genius by those around him.

But after participating in formal competitions, he discovered that there were many people like him.

Most of them were just there to make up the numbers, and they didn't even have the chance to challenge the truly top competitors before being eliminated.

"..."

Upon hearing this, Kagura Ichijin fell silent.

He didn't say anything more, but silently walked to the service area and looked at Ishikawa with a serious expression.

"One game to decide the winner, Kagura serves."

"boom!"

Kagura Ijin tossed the ball high into the air, his entire body leaping into the air, his arm muscles clearly defined, as he swung the racket with all his might!

"15-0!"

"It's even faster than the intelligence said..."

Ishikawa stared at the still-smoking ball behind him, cold sweat pouring down his face, his expression one of utter shock.

Hoshino Daiichi had investigated Kagura Ichijin, so he wasn't completely ignorant.

But when he actually faced that serve, the suffocating pressure still made him feel desperate.

The speed of that ball definitely exceeded 195 km/h!

Let alone the Tokyo Metropolitan Tournament, even in the Kanto Tournament or the National Tournament, a serve of this caliber is extremely rare.

"30-0!"

……

"40-0!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 1-0!"

After successfully holding serve, Kagura Ijin walked to the receiving area and assumed a defensive stance.

Since Ishikawa wanted to know the difference, he decided to be a little more serious and let the other party see it clearly.

"Bang!"

When it was Ishikawa's turn to serve, he took a deep breath, tossed the ball up, and swung his racket quickly.

"0-15!"

"How is this possible?"

Ishikawa stared in disbelief as the tennis ball flew behind him.

The ball was too fast this time; he didn't even have time to start moving before it flew out of bounds.

"Senior, you should continue serving."

Kagura Ichijin raised his racket and pointed it at Ishikawa, his voice cold.

"Is this the skill level of a national-level athlete?"

Looking at the cold-faced, powerful-looking boy opposite him, Ishikawa took a deep breath and forcibly calmed his inner turmoil.

He tossed the ball again and swung his racket quickly.

"Bang!"

Kagura Ijin easily returned the ball without even glancing at it, and turned to walk towards the receiving area.

"0-30!"

……

"0-40!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 2-0!"

After easily breaking serve, Kagura Ichijin silently recited the system's commands during the break between serves.

Ishikawa (Third year of junior high school)

Speed: 2.5

Power: 2.5

Stamina: 2.5

Spirit: 2.5

Technology: 2.5

Total: 12.5

"boom!"

When it was his turn to serve again, Kagura Ijin unleashed his full power once again.

"15-0!"

……

"30-0!"

……

"40-0!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 3-0!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 4-0!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 5-0!"

……

"Game, Kagura Ikjin, 6-0!"

……

"Match 4 is over, 6-0, Kagura Ikjin wins!"

……

Congratulations to Yamabuki Junior High School for defeating Hoshino Oizumi 3-1 and advancing to the finals!

With the referee's whistle, the first semi-final of the Tokyo Metropolitan Tournament came to a close.