My love index is at its maximum.

Gritting teeth.jpg

Tsukasa Tazaki looked up, and their eyes met. He picked up a piece of eel and stuffed it directly into the blonde girl's mouth.

"Ugh... Tazaki, you bastard!"

Kana Shimamoto tilted her head and looked at the two of them: "You two, stop fooling around."

The married teacher's lips were slightly pursed, a cute gesture that was clearly incongruous with her age, yet it didn't seem inappropriate at all.

Tsukasa Tazaki raised the corners of his mouth and asked with ill intent, "Are you free tonight, teacher?"

"No!" Shimamoto Kana picked up a crab leg for him and smiled playfully, "Eat more, or you won't be coming back to school if you don't win the championship tomorrow."

"Guaranteed to complete the mission!"

"I look forward to your performance." Shimamoto Kana smiled and gazed at him, her eyes gentle and tender on her oval face illuminated by the light.

After dinner and a shower, back in the room, Murakami Mizusaki dragged him to play "Mario Kart 8" together, during which the two kept calling each other noobs.

After Tazaki Tsukasa mastered the "game" skill, Murakami Mizuiro, unable to beat or out-argue him, could only pull out the cartridge of "Overcooked 2": "Women play racing games, real men should cook!"

Tsukasa Tazaki loosened his wrist: "Go to sleep!"

With my eyes closed, I can comfortably anticipate tomorrow's final match.

Chapter 206 National Competition (End)

On August 16, at Fukuoka Dome Stadium, the fiercely contested semi-final of the Dragon Flag competition for men was underway.

Inside the fully enclosed stadium, rows of meticulously designed lights crisscrossed, shining like stars, while shadows danced on the ground, creating a tense yet passionate atmosphere.

In the southeast corner of the stands, a group of students held up signs that read "Kitagawa" and "Tasaki." They had come from Tokyo to cheer on Tsukasa Tasaki. Below them, members of the Kitagawa Concert Band were checking their instruments. These students, along with the support group, formed a support team of nearly a hundred people, all ready to go.

Including the audience, I estimate that a third of the entire school came.

Kana Shimamoto crossed her arms and stared intently at Tsukasa Tazaki on the field.

The air conditioning was strong indoors, and she wore a shirt over a blazer. Because of her good figure and the close-fitting clothes, the Kitagawa oak-shaped school emblem on her chest was stretched high.

Kuriyama Sakura sat cross-legged beside her, holding a mechanical pencil and diligently calculating data in her notebook. As she wrote with focused concentration, she suddenly looked up to observe the battle on the field.

"Red wins the second round and takes the point!"

"In the fourth game of the first round of the semifinals, the red team, Kitagawa Academy, has won. Please welcome both players off the stage to prepare for the fifth game."

As the referee's unanimous decision rang out, cheers erupted from the densely packed stands.

The male commentator in the commentary booth shouted excitedly, "Forty-four kills! Tazaki from Tokyo has achieved forty-four kills in this tournament! He only needs one more win to tie the record set by Kikawa yesterday!!!"

"So incredibly cool!" The female host exclaimed with sparkling eyes, smiling adorably. "Both sides are so cool, what an exciting battle, these passionate young men, it makes me want to grab the microphone and go on stage myself."

"I said, Ms. Sugita..." the male host reminded her reluctantly, "Please look back at me, I'm your work partner today!"

"I don't like older men." The female lead tilted her head as if she was having trouble. "A handsome, genius swordsman is Miss Sugita's dream lover."

The male host casually picked up a bamboo sword, brandished it, and asked, "Am I not cool?"

The female host covered her mouth and laughed.

On the large electronic screen, the entire performance featured the two singing and responding to each other.

The audience burst into laughter.

After the warm-up, the female host turned to the commentator and asked, "Mr. Okamoto, do you think Tazaki can continue to win in the fifth game?"

"Based on my years of experience, today we will witness the birth of a dominant player..."

Amidst enthusiastic cheers from the audience, Tsukasa Tazaki took to the stage once again.

Kuriyama Sakura smiled slightly, then lowered her head and continued working.

"Snapped!"

The pen lead broke, and a small patch of the pristine white paper was stained black by lead powder.

"I can't calm down..." Thinking this, the minister pressed the pen cap with his thumb and looked up again, his stern and beautiful eyes fixed on Tsukasa Tazaki.

Even if he was certain he could win, he still wanted to see the whole process with his own eyes.

"noodle!"

On the field, Tsukasa Tazaki broke through his opponent's defense, and his blade struck the opponent's mask directly.

The gas sword always possesses a lingering spirit, making it an impeccable strike.

The three referees raised their flags together: "Red team, Kitagawa Academy, wins!"

In just four days since the start of the tournament, there have been 89 instances of such precise strikes to the opponent's face. The mental journey of every fighter facing Tazaki Tsukasa has been remarkably consistent.

Cautious defense → Probing cautiously → Losing the first round → I'm going to counterattack → To hell with my kendo dream!

This is a freak!

The match resumed, with both competitors bowing and then resuming their stances. The entire arena fell silent once more; the 40,000-seat stadium was completely still, with impeccable spectator etiquette maintained.

The player from Daifuku High School in Kumamoto Prefecture was currently under the influence of the "I want to fight back" buff. At the start of the match, he raised his bamboo sword with both hands and attacked Tazaki Tsukasa with an upper stance.

This is a starting move that abandons defense and launches a full-scale attack.

The advantage is that it can put a lot of pressure on the opponent, but the disadvantage is that it makes the opponent vulnerable to a sudden throat strike. However, if the opponent is a weirdo who focuses on hitting the face, then defending the throat is not a problem.

Taking advantage of his upper-level opening move, the captain of Daifuku High School launched a preemptive strike, aiming a slash at Tazaki Tsukasa's left shoulder.

Tazaki Tsukasa calmly raised his sword to parry.

"boom!"

The bamboo swords collided in mid-air, and the Great Blessing Master felt a heavy weight piercing through his arm, as if he were facing a mountain that filled him with despair.

Do not……

We can't give up like this!

Staring at Tazaki's mask, which was less than five centimeters from the tip of his sword, he gripped the hilt tightly with both hands and pressed down hard on Tazaki's blade. There was no strategy involved; he simply wanted to overwhelm his opponent with pure brute force and humiliate him!

In Kendo, the duel is not only a contest of skills and physical strength, but also a very important part of the mental battle!

As long as you keep putting pressure on your opponent and maintain your momentum, there will always be a moment when you can overwhelm them!

A fire ignited within Daifukushu, who stared intently at Tsukasa Tazaki through his mask and shouted, "Men!"

Using sound to amplify the momentum, one can completely suppress the opponent.

creak...

The smooth surface of the bamboo knives made a sour sound as they rubbed against each other, giving many listeners goosebumps.

Tazaki Tsukasa suddenly stepped forward and raised both hands to deflect his opponent's bamboo sword.

Immediately afterwards, he quickly closed in, held the bamboo sword high, and slashed down with unstoppable momentum.

"noodle!"

Unable to withstand the physical challenge, their central defense was wide open, their momentum waned, and their movements became sluggish. As if they were being overwhelmed with negative buffs in a video game, the commander of Daifuku didn't even have time to make a defensive move before Tazaki Tsukasa slashed through his mask, causing him to stagger backwards off the field.

Without hesitation, the three referees exclaimed, "Red wins the second round, taking the point!"

"In the fifth game of the first round of the semifinals, Kitagawa Private Academy emerged victorious, successfully advancing to the finals! Congratulations to Tazaki-kun for achieving 45 kills! Let's celebrate this miraculous moment!!!"

Accompanied by the male host's passionate roar, a close-up of Tsukasa Tazaki appeared on the big screen—still irresistibly handsome with a radiant smile that even the sun would shy away from.

The student spectator group from Beichuan in the southeast corner was the first to erupt in a loud cheer, their shouts deafening.

"Tazaki! Do your best!"

"Kitagawa! Victory is certain!"

A giant tifo, hastily produced overnight, slowly descended from above their area. The 18m x 13m poster featured a "Super Saiyan" version of Tsukasa Tazaki.

The boy wore a pristine white shirt with an oak-shaped school badge on the chest. He was surrounded by lightning, his hair was slightly lifted by the air currents, his brows were cold and ruthless, and his gaze was filled with an arrogant air of looking down on the world.

Meanwhile, the Kitagawa Symphony Orchestra, which had been preparing for a long time, also began their support performance.

The sheet music for "Tsuna Awakening," the energetic background music from the TV anime "Katekyo Hitman Reborn!" composed by Yasuharu Takanashi, was placed on a black music stand. As an elegant conductor dressed in a black tuxedo walked onto the stage and raised his baton, an incredibly passionate cheering performance was about to begin.

The entire audience held their breath.

As the conductor's baton began to wave, musical notes of all colors burst forth from the instruments, swirling and dancing in the air, sweeping across the entire venue with the force of a stampede of horses.

The violin is short and passionate, the cornet is cheerful, the triangle is crisp and lively, and the bass drum is thunderous; at each key point, the pianist presses down the keys heavily, producing a high-pitched vibrato that seems to end the world.

The sounds collided repeatedly, the main melody simple and direct, causing everyone's heart to race and their breathing to quicken. The exhilarating duel anthem was about to ignite the inner child within each of them.

After the song ended, the entire venue fell into a deathly silence.

They were all waiting for a trigger, a trigger that would completely ignite their emotions. And, as expected, that trigger fell on the male host, who was trying to lighten the mood.

He leaped onto the table, ripped off his tie, pointed one hand at the ceiling, and shouted with boundless pride, "I have returned from the end of reincarnation! Your defeat stemmed from only one thing: opposing me!!!"

The atmosphere in the arena was instantly pushed to its peak.

“Tasaki~”

"Hey~"

“Tasaki~”

“hei”

A shout of "Tasaki!" came from the east, and a "Hey!" echoed from the west. More than 40,000 people spontaneously started a human wave, with cheers and shouts growing louder and louder.

Tsukasa Tazaki walked off the stage in a daze.

I had heard that Japan's cheering culture was spectacular, and now I've finally experienced it firsthand. It was definitely worth the trip!

Turning back to the Kitagawa students, he stared blankly at Shimamoto Kana: "Our school's cheering squad is actually that good?"

"When are you going to learn more about your own school...?" Shimamoto Kana rolled her eyes at him and then tapped his forehead. "Although we're terrible at 'martial arts,' in the field of 'literature,' Kitagawa is the undisputed champion!"

Tazaki Tsukasa remarked, "The young masters and ladies of wealthy families are truly terrifying."

The performance by the Kitagawa cheerleaders continued, and the second song was "Fervent Duelist," the BGM used in matches from the TV anime "Yu-Gi-Oh!" The duel theme composed by Nobuyoshi Mitsumune turned the entire stadium into a disaster zone for chuunibyou (middle school syndrome).

The male host, adept at creating a lively atmosphere, held a microphone in one hand and a business card between his index and middle fingers in the other, shouting with boundless chuunibyou (a Japanese term for someone with delusions of grandeur): "When the sky is filled with thunder and chaos, gather the ancient magic books from the chain, their power can reach the limitless! When good and evil intersect, begin the ritual to summon the judge of hell! Descend, Sky Dragon of Osiris!"

Everyone in the room stood up, took out their cards, and started a game against the person next to them.