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

When the referee uttered the name "Keigo Atobe," everyone in the stadium, except for the Hyotei supporters, seemed to have been collectively poisoned and rendered mute.

With his mouth agape, the constant, resounding cheers of the team echoed in his ears.

The students from Seigaku were the first to react.

Momoshiro's mouth was agape, and the heavy support flag in his hand fell to the ground with a thud. The flagpole hit the steps and slid down.

Kikumaru stood beside him, his hand still in the clapping position, half-raised in the air. This awkward, unclosed position lasted for several seconds before he finally managed to squeeze out a muffled "Huh?!"

"Hyotei..." The bandages on Oishi's arm were still swaying in the wind. He struggled to process the scene before him, his voice tight, as if something was stuck in his throat. "Hyotei also put Atobe in singles match number two?"

He didn't wait for anyone's reply; it was more like he was confirming it with himself.

Fuji's eyes, which had been curved in a smile, suddenly snapped open. His gaze passed over Atobe on the court and landed on the blond boy in the stands who was talking to Yukimura.

The other person was tilting their head and talking intimately to Yukimura, a slight smile on their lips, which created a strange contrast with the shock of the crowd.

Fuji stared for a while, then the slight smile on his lips vanished completely. "...I see."

Ryoma Echizen pushed his hat brim up, revealing his amber eyes. He stared at Atobe in the center of the court for two seconds, clicked his tongue, and slammed the tennis ball he was spinning into his palm. "Tsk. The Monkey King is such a troublemaker. If you're going to play, just play. Why bother with all this show-off stuff?"

Tezuka stood at the other end of the field, looking at the confident and dazzling boy opposite him. He hadn't moved since the referee announced the other's name, but his eyes slowly sharpened.

The left hand holding the racket was curled up even tighter than before.

He had thought that he could at least get through this one.

Yeah.

Ultimately, they will have to face each other.

It doesn't matter whether it's earlier or later.

Tezuka straightened up again, switched the racket to his right hand, and tested the grip.

After a brief moment of shock, the murmurs from the sidelines resumed. This time, it was completely different from before.

"Holy crap! What a plot twist! So Hyotei hid Atobe on the coaching bench all along, just waiting for Seigaku to reveal their hand? This is so exciting!"

"Exactly! This is the real Tian Ji horse racing strategy! Seigaku tried to avoid the battle with Tezuka, but Hyotei just threw their trump card in the second position! Captain against captain, no one can escape!"

"No wonder Atobe was laughing earlier, he was watching Seigaku walk right into his trap! Now that's what you call a pre-match tactical battle! You dare to dodge, I dare to chase and attack! How cool is that!"

"My goodness, they should sell tickets for the game between those two schools."

"I'll buy any ticket, even a standing ticket! The ultimate showdown hasn't even started yet, and I already feel it's worth the price!"

"Exactly! This tactic was even more exciting than the actual match!"

"That substitute coach... that guy named Mochizuki Ryo... did he plan this all along?"

"Nonsense! Otherwise, why would Atobe be in singles second place! The roster was submitted this morning."

"Didn't Hyotei completely thwart Seigaku's plans?"

"You mean 'overturned'? This is 'grinding them to the ground'! Tezuka wanted to avoid the fight and play the second position, but he ran into Atobe, and now there's no escaping it!"

"I take back what I said earlier about Hyotei; their substitute coach is a fucking ruthless guy."

"I take it back too. Seigaku was celebrating just now, and now they're all dumbfounded. Falling from heaven to hell, the contrast is immense. That's ruthless; that's psychological warfare—giving you hope first, then crushing it."

"That's right, Seigaku thought they were playing Go, but Mochizuki Ryo just flipped the board over. His face is green now."

"I took a picture with my phone; this moment is worth a hundred million."

……

The murmurs spread outwards from the center of the stands like dandelions being blown away, engulfing every row of seats, and even the staff standing on the sidelines subconsciously took a half step forward.

It also swept through the spectator areas of other schools.

Fudomine, Kamio's sneakers clicking on the edge of the steps, leaned forward half a body, his face flushed, pointing at Atobe on the sidelines, his voice clearly filled with anger and displeasure: "Fools? That captain from Hyotei just called us fools? What did he mean by that... There's a limit to arrogance!"

Next to him, Ibu was muttering to himself with his head down, "It's Atobe. How could it be Atobe? Hyotei actually hid their captain. Wait, how did they know Tezuka was in the second position at Seigaku? They shouldn't have been able to guess. The lists are supposed to be kept secret... But wait... what if they just guessed..."

"Shinji, can you please stop reading?!"

"I'm thinking." Ibu's mouth didn't stop, but his voice lowered, becoming a muttering only he could hear. "Analysis is necessary... otherwise we'll suffer next time we encounter Hyotei..."

"you……"

"Kamio." Tachibana Kichihei reached out and pressed his shoulder, then stood up from the bench, walked to the railing, placed his hands on the iron bars, and glanced back and forth between Atobe and Mochizuki Ryo before slowly saying, "Hyotei has always placed Atobe in the second position from the beginning. Putting Atobe on the coach's bench serves two purposes: first, to keep an eye on Kabaji to prevent injury, and second, to wait for Seigaku to reveal their cards first, waiting for them to fall into the trap! A counter-attack."

"Waiting for Seigaku to reveal their lineup first?" After hearing her brother's analysis, Tachibana An's fingers tightened around the hem of her clothes. "Then wouldn't he know Seigaku's lineup before the match even started?"

"Of course." Tachibana Kichihei's tone was flat, but his brows were slightly furrowed. "You could even say he knew before Coach Ryuzaki himself."

Tachibana An was silent for two seconds, then looked at the blond boy. His relaxed demeanor made her heart tighten. "What if we run into Hyotei again later..."

Yoshihira Tachibana did not respond.

But silence itself is a response.

Kamio pulled his toes back from the edge of the step, kicked the empty step in front of him, and the sole of his shoe hit the rubber floor with a dull thud. "...Damn, this is annoying."

Ibu started muttering again: "His formation logic... He put Atobe in the second position... What if Seigaku doesn't produce Tezuka... Then his calculations would be pointless... No, no, since he dared to arrange it like that..."

"Fukashi," Kamio interrupted him, "Take a break."

Shinji's lips moved twice more, but he ultimately didn't make a sound.

In the castle of Shonan, Hanamura Aoi stood with her arms crossed, her wine-red curly hair brushed behind her ears by the wind. From the moment Atobe appeared, the smile on her lips had never faded.

The laughter wasn't loud, but Kajimoto heard it clearly and glanced at her sideways.

"Coach, you've been smiling for a long time."

"Because it was truly amazing." Hanamura Aoi turned to look at him, the light in her eyes genuine. "What are the expressions on Seigaku's faces right now?"

"Their faces were all pale."

"Actually, I'm more interested in seeing Ryuzaki Jin's expression." Hanamura Aoi's smile deepened. "She probably never imagined that her carefully laid plan, the 'Tian Ji' horse race, would be overturned by someone using the same logic. Oh dear, she tried to draw a tiger but ended up with a dog, hahaha~"

Beside her, Ruo Ren was completely stunned, oblivious to the fact that her hat had slipped off her head and fallen to the ground. Her eyes were wide open: "That Mochizuki Ryo... just how many brains does he have? Putting Atobe in Tezuka's singles second-class rank... who would have thought of that?"

"So this is textbook-level tactical counter-attack." Hanamura Aoi rested her chin on her hand, watching Mochizuki Ryo's back on the sidelines, the corners of her mouth curving higher and higher, her voice filled with undisguised admiration, "From the moment he handed in the roster this morning, he put Atobe in singles second, he never intended for Tezuka to avoid the match from the very beginning."

"Seigaku dared to use the Tian Ji horse racing strategy because they knew Atobe Keigo was too proud and would never settle for second place in singles. Unfortunately, they overlooked one thing."

"You underestimated Atobe's trust in this substitute coach," Kajimoto chimed in, a hint of surprise in his purple eyes. "For Atobe Keigo to be willing to play the shooting guard position, this Mochizuki Ryo is indeed no ordinary person."

"Absolutely." Hanamura Aoi's smile widened, cupping her face in her hands with the eagerness of a collector eyeing a treasure. "Give your opponent hope first, then strike them down from the highest point. We want Mochizuki Ryo more and more. No, we have to find a way to recruit him to our team."

Kajimoto glanced at her sideways: "Coach, he's already in his third year. Besides, he's the young master of the Mochizuki Group. Why would he leave a prestigious school to go to ours?"

"I know." Huacun waved his hand. "Can't I even think about it?"

If the man turned his hat brim back, facing the field, his voice tinged with amusement, "Coach Hanamura is poaching players again. But to be fair, this reversal is quite something. I thought Seigaku was a sure thing, and Oshitari was going to get thrashed, but it turned into a clash of titans. What a win!"

Shencheng, who had been silent all along, rubbed his fingertips against the strap of his racket bag, and suddenly uttered, "...This person really shouldn't have stayed at Hyotei."

Hanamura Aoi turned to look at him, her smile deepening.

At St. Rudolph's, Mizuki closed her notebook, leaned back in her chair, and slowly circled her bangs with her index finger.

"Kanzuki?" Akazawa turned to look at him. "Aren't you going to write anymore?"

"What to write?" Mizuki's voice held a hint of self-mockery as she opened and closed her fan twice. "This kind of variable has never appeared in my scripts before. Atobe Keigo actually willingly went to fight in singles match two. He actually willingly... no, not willingly. He was persuaded."

"By whom?"

"Wang Yue Ling." Guan Yue repeated the name, her tongue touching the roof of her mouth, her tone tinged with surprise: "I guessed Hyotei would let Atobe play singles second, but I didn't place too much emphasis on the probability. Because Atobe's personality is too distinct—the grand finale, the flamboyant, the center of attention. Putting him in the second position is like dethroning an emperor. But he did it."

"That was a really clever move today. Before submitting the list, Mochizuki Ryo had already anticipated Seigaku's strategy of using a 'Tian Ji' strategy (a classic Chinese idiom meaning to use a horse racing technique to outmaneuver a group of opponents), and then she even pulled a trap for Seigaku."

"This Wangyue Ling is much more difficult to deal with than I thought."

Yuta stared, mouth agape, speechless for a long time. "This...this Hyotei coach is amazing! He can even predict this kind of formation?"

He had previously thought Seigaku's formation was clever, but Hyotei completely dismantled it in the end.

Akazawa crossed his arms, his expression grave: "Yes, to be able to understand the opponent's strategic logic so thoroughly, Mochizuki Ryo's tactical abilities are even stronger than rumored. Now the outcome is hard to predict."

"If I weren't a third-year student, I'd be graduating this year." Mizuki tossed her notebook aside, crossed her arms on her knees, and said, "I would do everything in my power to get him to come to St. Rudolph."

"Are you serious, Mizuki?"

"When have I ever been tempted to poach people?" Mizuki chuckled, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "What a pity."

Chigoro Sengoku blinked, then blinked again. He tilted his head back and chuckled, a laugh filled with genuine admiration. "Wow... amazing! That unconventional tactic was so lucky. No, it wasn't just lucky, it was prediction. That Mochizuki Ryo completely predicted Seigaku's prediction, incredible!"

Tan Taichi clutched the green hairband, his little face full of admiration: "Coach Mochizuki is so amazing! Sengoku-senpai, did Hyotei foresee from the beginning that Seigaku would field Tezuka as their second singles player?"

"Whether it was foreseen or not is another matter." Sengoku put his hands behind his head, watching with interest the defeated expressions of Seigaku and the others. "The key is that they dared to gamble too. They gambled that Seigaku would put their ace in the second singles, and that Tezuka would accept that arrangement. Their courage is unmatched."

"Then Tezuka-senpai wouldn't be...?"

"Checkmate." Sengoku clicked his tongue. "I tried to dodge, but I ran right into it. Super unlucky."

Tan Taichi didn't reply, and looked back at the field.

Akutsu watched the blond figure on the sidelines, his brows furrowing slightly. He stayed here purely to see if it was worth it for that "idiot" Kawamura to lose an arm.

But the turn of events on the field... was not what he expected.

That guy named Wang Yueling, even though he was sitting in the stands, made the entire direction of the game follow the line in his hand.

Akutsu twitched his fingertips, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he didn't speak, but the interest in his eyes grew stronger.

Compared to the people he'd encountered on the tennis court before, he was more eager to play a match against that blond kid. He wanted to see if the guy was just all talk or if he actually had any skill.

The old man fanned himself more slowly, listening to the conversation between Sengoku and Tan Taichi. He noticed the interest in Akutsu's eyes, and the smile lines at the corners of his mouth deepened.

"What did I tell you? That young coach at Hyotei is cunning. That counter-attack was brilliantly executed." He spoke slowly, his voice low, but each word seemed to savor its meaning. "Not only did he calculate accurately and hold back his trump cards, but he also had the guts. That old woman's little scheme has hit a brick wall."

"The younger generation is truly formidable! This year's Kanto Tournament is much more interesting than in previous years."

The wind blew from the direction of the court, bringing with it the soft rustling sound of the net straps being tossed about.

The old man turned his gaze from the court to Akutsu beside him, and said encouragingly, "How was it? Isn't tennis interesting? Come back and play a little longer. There are still many worthy opponents waiting for you to challenge on the court."

Akutsu's fingers, which were resting on her arm, curled slightly, very lightly, as if it were an unconscious movement.

The old man saw this but didn't continue speaking. He lowered his palm-leaf fan and looked back at the field.

At Rokkaku Middle School, Aoi Kentaro jumped high, waving his arms and shouting, "Wow! Hyotei's purple-haired captain is on the court too! So cool! Both captains are on the court! This match is going to be amazing! But why are they both playing singles second place?"

Saeki smiled and nodded, his gaze shifting between Atobe and Tezuka before he chuckled softly, "...because someone has thought further ahead."

Who can see further ahead?

Saeki glanced in the direction of the blond figure in the stands, remained silent for a few seconds, and then suddenly spoke: "When a hunter sets a trap, he never looks at whether the prey will actually step into it. He only looks at whether the trap is set accurately enough."

Kentaro Aoi tentatively asked, "Hyotei is the hunter, and Seigaku is the prey..."

Saeki glanced back at him but didn't say anything.

Tengen stood to the side, glanced at Tezuka, then at Atobe, remained silent for a moment, and then blurted out, "The hide-and-seek failed. Pfft~"

Kuroba glanced at Tengen, his tone slightly amusement: "Hikaru... your timing for that lame joke was perfect."

Tiangen was praised for the first time today, and he tilted his head in a daze.

In the press box, Saori Shiba held up her camera, her face still beaming with joy, but now frozen in place.

After a long while, I subconsciously pressed the shutter button several times, but the lens only captured Atobe's back and the frozen atmosphere on Seigaku's side.

She put down her camera, her voice both angry and anxious. "Atobe Keigo? How could it be Atobe Keigo? He... Atobe... What's going on with Hyotei? Why did they put Atobe in the second-place match too?"

Inoue wrote "Double-team showdown brought forward" on his notebook, his tone complex: "What a brilliant counterattack. We were all fooled by Hyotei. From the moment the rosters were submitted this morning, they had already planned Seigaku's change of formation."

"Wang Yueling's hand is very well hidden."

Shizusa came to her senses, bit her lip, picked up the camera again, and pointed the puffed-up lens at the blond figure not far from the stands.

He took two photos, put down the camera, and muttered with a hint of dissatisfaction, "What the hell? Hyotei is so cunning! Hiding the captain and deliberately waiting for Seigaku to reveal their cards before going on stage—isn't that underhanded?!"

She rattled off like a mother hen protecting her chicks, "And that Mochizuki Ryo is incredibly cunning. She's so young and already knows how to play these opportunistic tricks; what will she be like in the future? She's clearly trying to catch Tezuka off guard—how despicable!"

"Saori." Inoue flipped through the notebook, his brow furrowed, but he was calmer than Saori Shiba. "This can't be considered cheating. The roster was submitted for filing before the competition; we just didn't expect it."

He paused, looking at Atobe in the arena, "I just didn't expect Atobe Keigo to be willing to play singles against two. This is indeed beyond common sense."

"What kind of common sense is this? They're clearly just being opportunistic!" Shiba Saori protested, raising her voice even higher. "Our Tezuka could have easily won the singles match, but now they've messed things up and he's facing Atobe head-on. Isn't that just messing with people's mentality? It's all that Mochizuki Ryo's fault for using such underhanded tricks."

She sulked, then raised her camera again and furiously snapped photos in Tezuka's direction. "I'm on Tezuka's side! Our Tezuka won't lose! He'll definitely beat Atobe! He'll slap them in the face!"

As she finished speaking, many people in the reporters' section frowned, glanced at her sideways, and then turned back.

Inoue didn't argue with her anymore, but just lowered his head and wrote something in his notebook, his pen pausing for a moment.

He knew in his heart that Hyotei's tactics had indeed completely overwhelmed Seigaku.