Prince of Tennis: Shocking! Hyotei's Demon King is a Yukimura fangirl!

At the edge of the rest area on the Hyotei side, a few people stood not too close together, but their eyes all fell on the side door.

Feng first withdrew her gaze, her fingertips slowly tracing the texture of the racket handle, her silver-gray hair falling down to partially obscure her eyebrows and eyes.

"Kawamura-kun's hand..."

He spoke softly, his eyes filled with worry, "Can it be saved?"

Liu was sitting next to him organizing data. Hearing his question, he paused, pen hovering over the paper in his notebook. He spoke steadily, as if reading a pre-prepared report.

"For that final sprint wave shot, I rechecked the instantaneous speed and angle of force. The explosive power exceeded that of a regular wave shot by 47%, corresponding to a tendon load of 5.2 times that of a normal shot. Given the condition of his arm at the time, the probability of him fully recovering after hitting two shots of that intensity in succession is probably..."

"Renji, there's no need to say anything more," Yagyu interrupted, his gaze behind his glasses calm. "He's already in the medical building. No matter how precise the data is, it can't undo the damage that's already done."

The tip of Liu's pen lightly touched the paper, drawing a very faint line, and then said nothing more.

Whether he can be raised or not is the path he chose. At least... he got the result he wanted.

Shishido raised his hand to smooth the sweaty stray hairs on his forehead, gathering his long hair behind his head. His gaze fell on the ball marks left on the ground. After a long silence, he finally snorted, "If Kabaji had acted rashly and tried to catch those two balls, there would be more than one person being carried away by now."

Upon hearing this, Shinobu glanced at Mochizuki Ryo, who was still talking to Atobe on the coach's bench. He took off his glasses and held them in his hand, wiping the lenses with a glasses cloth. His tone was casual and lazy. "No, Atobe sitting on the coach's bench is Ryo's double insurance. Kabaji wouldn't dare to disobey."

Taki nodded in agreement, flipping through his tactics notebook with a soft rustling sound, and explained to the serious-looking Shishido, "Before the match, Ling repeatedly checked the power thresholds, which balls could be received, and which balls had to be put down, all clearly marked."

"When it comes to risk management, Hyotei has never been ambiguous."

Oshitari remained noncommittal about his words, put his glasses back on, glanced in the direction of the medical building, and sighed, "Kawamura Takashi... he did play a good game. It's just that his tennis finale ended a bit hastily."

"Whether it's hasty or not, as long as he feels it's worth it, that's fine." Taki put down his tactics notebook, took out a small fan and blew it on his face, and replied softly, "We can't understand how the person involved feels, so just mind your own business."

Jiro woke up at some point and moved closer to the two of them. His curly hair was blown into a mess by the wind and stuck to his forehead, but his eyes were clearer than usual. "I used to think the scenes of burning out in manga were cool, but... seeing it with my own eyes, why do I feel so choked up?"

Just then, footsteps came from the side.

Kirihara has just returned from checking on the situation at Kabaji's place.

"I just asked Haruno the butler, and Kabaji just has a minor wrist sprain. A couple of days of ice will do the trick." He leaned over the railing to catch his breath, then came closer, his eyes sparkling. "But seriously, Kawamura-senpai is amazing! His hand hurt so much, yet he still managed to hit such powerful shots. That's the spirit of Bushido!"

As he spoke, he subconsciously glanced in the direction of Sanada and Hiyoshi, seeking their approval.

His two allies, one standing at the very edge with his hands behind his back, his hat brim pulled low, obscuring his expression, and the other subconsciously touching his forehead, his lips moving but saying nothing.

"Bushido, huh? Aren't you afraid of getting hit on the head by Ryo again?"

Niou, who had been leaning against Yagyu, straightened up when he heard this and slapped Kirihara on the back of the head. The force wasn't heavy, but it was enough to make him shrink back.

"Trading your entire life for a single game of tennis, that's called being foolish."

"How can you call that stupid!" Kirihara rubbed the back of his head and jumped back half a step, stubbornly retorting, "For the team to win! I'd do it too!"

"You're going?" Niou raised an eyebrow, his voice trailing off, a hint of malice in his smile. "With your skinny arms, you'd probably break after catching two Hadouken. What will you use to eat barbecue then? Your feet?"

Marui, with a beef jerky dangling from his mouth, came over, nodded, and patted Kirihara on the shoulder. "Yeah, Akaya, with his arm ruined, he can't even hold a cake properly, and he can only watch others eat barbecue. That's so miserable, much worse than losing a game."

He chuckled, but there was no real smile in his eyes. "You were staring wide-eyed at the game today. If you'd gotten so caught up in that scene that you actually tried to swing your arms like Kawamura did on the court that day, I really would have Jack rip you off and tie you to the net."

Kuwabara nodded seriously beside him: "Okay, I'll take care of tying it up."

"I won't be that badly hurt!" Kirihara immediately bristled, his face turning red with anxiety. He took half a step forward. "I'm Rikkai's ace, I definitely won't break my hand..."

The group of people were talking amongst themselves, making a lot of noise.

"alright."

Liu closed his notebook with a soft click. He looked up at Kirihara, whose thoughts were dangerous, his tone flat yet possessing a calming quality.

"Aka, come here."

Kirihara pursed his lips and reluctantly moved over.

"Your blood pressure was high the day before yesterday. After Dr. Zhang gave you electroacupuncture, you were so scared that your limbs went weak. I had to carry you home. After that, you ate vegetarian meals for two days in a row. You can only eat meat today because you came to the competition. Now you dare to say you're trading your arm for points."

Kirihara's face instantly fell. He scratched the back of his head, noticed the glances from the others around him, his ears turning red, and muttered softly, "Yanagi-senpai... why bring this up again?"

"I'm mentioning this so you'll remember it," Liu said, looking at him. "With your physique, even normal care makes you suffer so much. If you were to seriously injure your arm, the suffering would be more than ten times that. At that point, forget about grilling meat; you'd even have trouble raising your arm normally."

Yukimura stood beside Luna, holding her in his arms. Hearing this, he smiled and gently stroked the kitten's fur with his fingertips. Luna comfortably squinted her eyes. "Renji makes a lot of sense."

"Aka, tomorrow you and Renji should go to Dr. Zhang's for another full check-up, and get a month's worth of nutritional meals to help you recover. So you won't keep thinking you're in great shape and can handle anything."

Kirihara froze, his face drained of color, and he looked at his captain incoherently, "N-no need, Captain... I'm really fine... I won't say anything more..."

Luna, who had been dozing in Yukimura's arms, perked up and peeked out when she heard Kirihara's flustered voice, trying to gather information. She tilted her head and stared at Kirihara for several seconds, confirming that the two-legged creature had angered her father, Yukimura. Her little mustache twitched with anger, and she opened her mouth to meow, as if she were joining in the scolding.

Kirihara hung his head dejectedly, his curly hair on top of his head fluffy like a ball of black cotton.

Luna stared wide-eyed, kicked her short legs, and leaped out of Yukimura's arms, precisely grabbing Kirihara's curly hair.

The soft paws pressed against its head, and the little paws even hooked onto two strands of hair. Kirihara let out a yelp, not daring to raise his hand to grab it, afraid of hurting the kitten. He could only stiffen his neck and support the kitten from below, afraid that it would fall.

"Feed, feed... don't pull my hair..."

Yukimura chuckled and reached out to hug him back.

The kitten shook its head at Yukimura's father and meowed, as if to say, "The Cat King will teach this disobedient two-legged beast a lesson."

After meowing, it picked up a tuft of curly hair, wagged its tail, and rolled around in the curly hair as if in a daze, the bread ring rubbing against Kirihara's forehead, making it itchy.

Kirito's mind was originally filled with the passionate thoughts of Bushido and fighting with all his might, but after the cat's antics, most of those thoughts dissipated instantly.

An uncontrollable bubble of imagery popped into his mind: he was lying in bed groaning with his arm in a cast, while Niou-senpai and Marui-senpai sat by his bedside, one eating grilled meat and the other eating cake, deliberately waving them in front of him.

He shivered and subconsciously touched his arm.

It seems... it really is quite tragic.

Forget it, I'll just have to obediently follow the instructions of the minister and Senior Liu!

After Kirihara figured it out, he reached out to catch the kitten on his head, but Luna, still not done playing, started playing hide-and-seek. He tilted his head to the left, and Luna dodged to the right; the two of them were having a great time.

Sanada stood silently to the side, his hands behind his back. He looked much more relaxed than before, and his fingertips tightened slightly over the old wound on his waist.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and he spoke slowly, his voice low and thoughtful, "Victory is certainly important. But a victory at the cost of future health is not something to be celebrated."

Niou heard this, walked around to him, twirled his hair halfway around with his fingertip, and teased him with a smile, "Oh, the ultimate spokesperson for our Bushido spirit, you've changed your tune already?"

Sanada glanced at him but didn't refute him. His gaze returned to the empty center of the court, where the rubber surface reflected the sunlight, making his eyes sting.

Yukimura glanced at Sanada's clenched fist, let out a soft sigh, and looked towards Seigaku. "Kawamura wanted to put a beautiful end to his tennis career... but the end shouldn't be like this."

Ren Chao raised his chin towards the Seigaku rest area, his tone nonchalant, "He might not think that way himself. We're here lamenting his future, but he's probably thinking about finally getting this point. He doesn't even care about his own hands, what's the use of us feeling sorry for him?"

Wang Yueling walked over from the coach's bench and quietly listened to their conversation. She spoke softly, her voice just loud enough for those around her to hear.

"Some of the points you just mentioned, I think could be explored further."

People around turned to look.

Irie raised his eyebrows, crossing his arms as if to listen attentively. Tokugawa's gaze shifted, turning his head to look at Irie's face.

Hearing her owner's voice, Luna secretly peeked out from above Kirihara's head with her two "Doritos" (a type of cat snack), her round, heterochromatic eyes looking over, her little tail tip wagging happily.

Mochizuki Ryo turned to the side, looking at the boys from Rikkai and Hyotei, his azure eyes calm:

"Kawamura took this gamble not because he didn't know his hand would be ruined. He knew it better than anyone, but he still did it."

"Because he doesn't feel like he 'can't win,' but rather that he 'can't afford to lose.'"

"The difference between these two words... is huge."

He tapped the railing lightly with his fingertips. The metal railing was scorching hot from the sun, and the sensation traveled up his fingertips, carrying a burning heat.

"Firstly, he felt that he was not strong enough and that he only got the spot in singles third by squeezing out Echizen. If he lost, he would let everyone down."

"Secondly, he's going home to take over the sushi restaurant after graduation, and if he doesn't win this match, it will be his last official game. For him, it's the end of his entire tennis career. He wants to make it perfect, even if it comes at a higher price."

"The last and most important reason. The score was tied 1-1, and he felt that this game was a do-or-die situation. The opponent was very strong, and only if he won, and his teammates scored one more point, would Seigaku advance. The third-year students could still play together."

"So this game is very important, he can't afford to lose."

The wind made the hem of his clothes flutter slightly, and in the distance came the sounds of staff tidying up the site, and the muffled sound of plastic chairs being dragged.

"With all these things piled up together, he had no choice at all," Mochizuki Ryo continued. "Everyone around him was saying 'Go for it!' 'Give it your all!' No one was telling him to 'Stop playing, you can trust your teammates,' not even the coach. Everyone was watching him make his own choice. Every word was pushing him to the brink of 'We can't lose.'"

"Kawamura only felt that stopping would make him a sinner, but he could only trust himself."

"No one is unafraid of getting injured. He was just afraid that if he lost, the disappointment of his teammates would hurt him more than the injury itself."

Luna yawned as she listened, her little tongue curling up and then retracting. She stretched out her paws toward Yukimura, her dark paw pads swaying in the air, as if asking for a hug.

Yukimura reached out and scooped the kitten back from Kirihara's head, cradling it in his arm. The kitten snuggled against his arm, purring softly, which made his wrist tingle slightly.

"It's completely the other way around on Kabaji's side." Mochizuki Ryo paused for a moment, then glanced at the Hyotei coaching bench. "He knows that even if he loses this game, there's still Atobe and Oshitari, and the players who come on later can catch up. Atobe also clearly told him not to try to take the lead, and that no one would blame him if he lost. So he dared to back down and give up those few points."

Ultimately, the selection of team members is never a matter for one person alone. The more confidence the team gives him, the more options he has.

As if understanding, Luna tilted its head and rubbed its nose against Yukimura's wrist. Yukimura touched its ear tip with his fingertip in response.

He turned his head to look at Wang Yueling, a hint of inquiry in his eyes, "If it were you, how would you stop it?"

Wang Yueling considered the question for a moment, a hint of a smile flashing in her azure eyes, which she quickly concealed, a mixture of youthful nonchalance and coach's decisiveness.

"What else can we do to stop him? During halftime, we took the racket from him and pressed him to the sidelines to apply ice. Let him cause trouble if he wants to; we'll deal with it after he calms down."

"If you really think I don't respect his will, you can come and fight me after the game."

"But on the field, if I say I can't play, then I can't play."

He paused, then added softly, with a hint of French at the end, "I can't bear to see the team members above jeopardize their futures."

A few seconds of silence fell, even the wind seemed to slow down. The boys stood there, each lost in their own thoughts.

Jiro took a piece of fruit gummy candy from Kuwabara's snack pocket, popped it into his mouth and chewed it slowly, the sweet taste spreading on his tongue.

He mumbled, "I see. No wonder Kawamura seems so honest, but he's so brave in his actions."

"Personality determines choices."

Liu reopened the notebook, the cover making a soft rustling sound. His tone was steady as he analyzed the information he had collected, combined with Wang Yueling's words.

"Data shows that Kawamura Takashi consistently ranked at the bottom in win rate among the Seigaku regulars throughout his three years of junior high school. He is a player with low self-esteem. He also places the team's wins and losses on his own shoulders, making him more prone to extreme behavior in this situation. He needs to prove himself worthy of his regular position with victories."

"Team trust is something that sounds abstract, but it's what gives you confidence in crucial moments." Shinobu twirled the drink bottle in his hand, water droplets dripping from the bottle between his fingers. He gazed thoughtfully in the direction of Seigaku's rest area. "Doubles rely on teamwork, and singles also have support. If you lose a game, the next person can win it back; there's no need to gamble with your health."

Taki nodded, the breeze from the small fan brushing against his forehead. "When we were arranging the lineup before the match, Ling calculated the margin of error for each game. Even if we lose in singles match three, we still have an 80% chance of advancing in singles match two and singles match one."

"We never put all our eggs in one basket."