Hikaru no Go: I taught you Go, and you made the Kisei cry?

In the online battle lobby.

With both THESAI and SAI accepting the match, this long-awaited duel finally began amidst great anticipation.

After a round of guessing, this time, SAI played black and THESAI played white.

"Sai, where should we go for the first step?"

Hikaru Shindo gripped the mouse tightly, his body trembling slightly.

THESAI!

We, who have always strived to be like you, have finally met today!

"A formidable opponent, this feeling is truly exhilarating..."

Sai was equally excited, feeling his spirit tremble. Like Su Ran, he had been longing for this match for a long time!

"So, the first step is to go down here."

Hikaru Shindo wiped the fine sweat from his right hand and gripped the mouse tightly: "Okay, two columns, three rows, small eyelets, right?"

"Yes, Hikari."

Sai nodded, his face more serious than ever before: "Two columns, three rows, small eyes."

Hikaru Shindo moved the mouse slightly and clicked the right mouse button.

On the board, a black stone has been placed in the small eye position in the upper left corner.

Soon, THESAI on the other end of the computer also placed his chess piece.

Sixteen columns and sixteen rows, stars.

"Xiao Guang, sixteen columns, seventeen rows, small eye."

Sai pointed his fan at the chessboard on the computer, his eyes filled with a strong fighting spirit.

As if THESAI had anticipated this, the white piece quietly appeared on the board the instant Hikaru Shindo placed his piece.

Fifteen columns in three rows, hanging at the corner!

Upon seeing this move, Sai paused for a moment, then gripped the fan handle tightly: "Hikaru, three columns and sixteen rows, small eye!"

THESAI's fourth move landed in the 17th column and 17th row, a small flying kick to the corner.

"It got caught on the corner again..."

Sai's eyes flickered uncertainly.

"He played exactly the moves from the Edo period, and the opening was so familiar to me."

"Is he waiting for me... waiting for my sharp point...?"

"A mysterious chess player on the internet..."

A moment later, Sai lowered the fan in his right hand and held the handle in his left.

"It's very interesting. It's like going back to the Edo period, where I played against countless strong opponents under the guidance of Torajiro."

"But... now that I have the burden of six and a half points, should I choose another move?"

After a moment of contemplation, Sai pointed with his fan to the angle of Kuroko's small eyes.

"Xiao Guang, sixteen columns and five rows, sharp."

Sai's eyes revealed a look of curiosity.

"Since you're looking forward to my sharp point, then come on!"

……

Kyoto Sanatorium.

Two elderly men dressed in kimonos were intently watching the chessboard on the computer.

"These two players named SAI are really stubborn. The one named SAI didn't change his habits at all because of the strength of his opponent. He still used the Shusaku style right from the start... such an ancient style."

"And THESAI, as always, showed a strong fighting spirit. Instead of trying to occupy corners, he chose to repeatedly target corners..."

Kobayashi Koichi frowned, somewhat puzzled by THESAI's unexpected move. (The rest of the text appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated gibberish.)

"But according to current Go theory, most people would go to occupy the corners, right? I remember that in the era of Shusaku, there was no komi rule."

"THESAI adopted the ancient technique of 'hanging corners' to seek a way to engage in combat..."

"It's really strange... In those days, there were no 'tie' rules, and hanging corners was to seek change and disrupt the situation. Now that there are 'tie' rules, why are they still doing this..."

Kato Masao stared intently at the chessboard, ignoring Kobayashi Koichi's puzzled expression.

When SAI made his next move, landing steadily on the small corner, both Go masters froze, their faces showing disbelief!

A figure came to mind.

"This is... Honinbo... Shusaku!?"

……

Looking at the computer screen, where the black piece had landed in the 16th column and 5th row, Akira Touya's eyes widened, and he couldn't help but stand up slightly.

"Little Sharp!"

Akira Touya stared at the computer screen, speechless, as Hikaru Shindo's image flashed through his mind.

An old, fixed pattern...

The clumsy, awkward way of holding the child...

"SAI, is that Shindo?"

Touya Kouhiro stared silently at the computer screen, his eyes lowered, saying nothing.

Ogata stood next to Akira Touya, adjusted his glasses, and turned to look at Kouhiro Touya, trying to discern something from his teacher's face.

Tajiya Kouhiro remained expressionless and calm. His long experience of battling on the chessboard had long since cultivated his composure in the face of both honor and disgrace!

"That sharp finger..."

"Honinbo...Shusaku?"

……

SAI and THESAI made their moves very quickly, continuously placing their pieces under the watchful eyes of countless people!

"Seventeen columns, fourteen rows, jump!"

With a curious look on his face, Sai directed Hikaru Shindo to place the pieces. Inside this small box called a computer, he felt his blood boiling with excitement!

"it is good."

Hikaru Shindo moved the mouse and placed a chess piece.

Su Ran quickly followed suit and placed a piece as well.

Thirteen columns, seven rows, pounce!

"flutter?"

Sai stared at the computer screen in shock: "They rushed in at this time?"

"This THESAI who won ninety-nine games in a row is nothing special."

Hikaru Shindo smiled and pointed to the Go board: "Sai, if we go in now and capture a piece..."

"No, they will die without a burial place!"

Sai shook his head and continued Hikaru Shindo's words.

Hikaru Shindo was somewhat stunned, and asked in confusion, "Sai...why?"

Sai's eyes flickered, and his expression became increasingly serious.

"This white piece is a thorn! It arrogantly pierces the black formation, but the black pieces can only let it go!"

"Because if we capture this white piece, our movement will be slower!"

"If you make a mistake, the white pieces will be able to launch an attack from the flank!"

"I'd rather lose a piece than lose the initiative. My opponent is no ordinary player; he's THESAI, that incredibly strong player whom even I sometimes have to admire!"

Sai's smile had long since faded, and he gripped the fan handle tightly.

"Truly... a brilliant move... Seeing this move, I felt as if I could sense the aura emanating from that other side..."

"It's been a long time since I felt this way. The last time was when I played against that boy, Su Ran... It was a kind of pressure that far surpassed that of Akira Touya!"

Sai pointed to the points on the chessboard.

"Xiao Guang, three columns and eighteen rows! Move!"

……

"flutter!"

Kobayashi Koichi stared at the computer screen, stood up from the futon, his eyes shining, and paced back and forth involuntarily.

"Brilliant! Brilliant! THESAI is amazing, he even had such a move!"

"That move reminded me of the game I played against him a few months ago... Kato, you know, in that game, I tried my best to hold on, but by move eighty-seven, Thesai still found a weakness and broke through in one fell swoop..."

The more Kobayashi Koichi savored this move, the faster his breathing became!

From the start until now, both sides have been making seemingly uneventful moves, until this last move, THESAI finally revealed his true colors and showed his true strength!

Kobayashi Koichi glanced at Kato Masao, seemingly talking to himself, yet also asking a question: "Kato, that guy named SAI, he'll probably be utterly annihilated by THESAI soon, won't he?"

Kato Masao silently shook his head. He had also been defeated by Thesai. Ninety-nine moves, although only twelve more than Kobayashi, but at their level, each additional move meant seeing something completely different.

THESAI's save was indeed extremely aggressive, but...

It's probably not enough to break through SAI!

Sure enough, SAI quickly placed his hand on the computer screen!

Three columns and eighteen rows, turn!

Kobayashi Koichi was stunned, somewhat unable to comprehend this move.

"Now... go over there and break it?"