Love Tennis and Yumiko Miura

"That kid's probably still a beginner, too green." The coach said, looking accustomed to it. As a long-time coach, he'd seen countless one-sided matches. High school club tournaments, where the quality of tennis players varies, are particularly prone to large scores.

During the fifth game, Zhixian glanced at the coach in the audience.

The coach understood and stood up to adjust the camera.

"Is there something wrong?" Chiyo wondered. There was no wind and no one touched it, so the camera was very stable.

"Zhixian is going to practice a new playing style, so I need to adjust my focus," the coach explained.

"That's it!"

The fifth inning on the field surprised the audience.

The outcome was clearly decided, but Zhixian didn't seem to be in a hurry to end the game, and the two of them actually ended up in a stalemate for a few more beats.

Once the game drags on for multiple frames, the player with poor ball control is bound to make unforced errors. In the fifth game, Zhixian didn't score a single point; every single shot ended in an unforced error from his opponent, a pattern that lasted four consecutive games.

"What's the point of playing like this?" Chiyo continued to ask questions based on the principle of asking if she didn't understand. After all, she had a coach by her side so she might as well ask.

"There's a style of play called baseline counterattack. After switching to singles last year, he's been using an active offensive style, but he was crushed to a similar player in the semifinals of the national tournament."

"Baseline play is a tactic based on forehand and backhand drives from the baseline. Its guiding principle must be to create offensive opportunities through changes in speed, spin, and placement."

"Zhixian was a doubles player before, so after discussion, we felt that a baseline counterattack style would be more suitable," the coach concluded.

21. Regional Qualifiers (Part 2)

Although it was a change in play style, even so, it was not something that the players in the first round of the regional qualifiers could withstand - not to mention that this was a team that was even weaker than the Sobu team.

The game quickly ended with a score of 6:0.

So after taking off your jacket and trousers, you have to put them back on soon, so it’s more convenient to not take them off.

Zhixian chose to be perfunctory in response to the congratulations from everyone in the tennis club.

"There's another match this afternoon," Zhixian said to the coach. "It's the third singles match, so I'll take care of it then."

"I understand." The coach nodded, packed up his things, and left. The next game was still a few hours away.

"How do you feel, Nozaki?" Zhixian asked as he put the racket back into his tennis bag.

"I made a simple sketch, and I have an idea for the storyboard." Nozaki showed his sketch and simple storyboard. "I think it should be fine."

"As expected of Nozaki-kun!" Chiyo said with admiration.

No matter what Nozaki says, you will support him, right? Zhixian secretly complained.

"Hmph, what a perfect match, my friend Tachibana." No one else could say this except the red-haired Mikoshiba. His preferred lines depended on what game he was currently playing.

As far as Zhixian knows, Mikoshiba is a loyal fan of the FF series, but unfortunately, neither he nor Nozaki has much contact with the FF series.

"Are you interested in tennis? Actually, I have a game to recommend on PSP." Zhixian was ready to recommend it to Mikoshiba.

"Well, we can give it a try." The handsome red-haired guy nodded.

----split line----

In the afternoon match, Zhixian still played as the third singles.

The opponent was stronger than in the morning, but still not enough. However, the two doubles matches before that were a one-win and one-loss.

In other words, Sobu still has a chance of winning. As long as they can win one of the second singles and the first singles, they can advance to the next round.

The Sobu Tennis Club, though weak, has been practicing hard lately, and Totsuka has played a big role in this.

Even the weak minister had made up his mind to ask the service club to practice their ball skills, so why shouldn't they work hard? Or perhaps they were indeed stimulated by Zhixian.

Although this tennis club is not very strong, the members have good character, which is something worth praising. Since the mixed doubles incident, the cohesion of the tennis club has been increasing day by day.

But this still has nothing to do with Zhixian.

"Keep doing your best, Tachibana-san!" Totsuka ran over to encourage Chixian before she went on stage, with anticipation evident in his eyes.

"..." Zhixian stood there and looked at Totsuka for a long time, "Let the second singles player warm up, the match will be over soon."

"Eh?! Okay!"

Ahhhhh, daze, Zhixian sighed and went on the court with the racket.

Baseline players actually also have the difference between active offense and conservative defense.

Let’s finish it quickly this time, Zhixian thought as he tossed the tennis ball high into the air.

He was indeed a baseline player in the past, and Zhixian thought that he was very familiar with this style of play.

But the girl with flying blonde hair was no longer in sight, all that was left was the net and the opponent on the opposite side.

Since I can't keep watching over her, I'll use this trick I finally mastered for myself.

Next, the opponent's ball hits the net.

"What a pity." The opponent looked regretful. He felt that he was almost able to score.

"Do you think you can score?" Zhixian asked.

"Isn't that right? Even though I can't beat you, I can still score points, right?"

"The listed wadoka na."

Because Zhixian rarely goes to the net, the opponent thinks he still has a chance to score if he hits short balls.

But the fact is that his counterattack was once again missed.

"Huh?" He was a little puzzled, but didn't say anything.

The third ball still hit the net.

"This isn't a coincidence, is it, Tachibana-kun?" the other party asked in a very firm tone.

"As you can see."

The fourth ball still ended up hitting the net.

1:0, Zhixian is leading.

"Coach, why do most of the opponent's balls never go out of bounds?" asked the studious and inquisitive little Chiyo.

"Sakura-chan, do you know the Hexagram from ancient Greek mythology?"

"I don't quite understand." Chiyo said truthfully.

"The Hecatonchus is a general term for giants with 50 heads and 100 arms in Greek mythology. Hesiod called them 'Oranides' in 'Theogony', and the more common name is 'Hekatonkris'."

"This move's name comes from the fifty thousand-eyed, hundred-armed giants in Greek mythology. When you counterattack, no matter what your opponent does, the ball won't get over the net."

"What's the name?" Mikoshiba, who had been listening for a while, knew that this must be a very handsome name.

"The Guard of Hekatonkris, or the Guard of the Hundred-Armed Giant, is simpler."

"The Hundred-Armed Giant can't get past the net because of its hundreds of arms? Got it!" Nozaki had another idea. He thought it would be very impressive to draw a stand-in figure behind the protagonist. (Wait, you're a shojo manga artist, right?)

"When counterattacking, the ball spins at high speed on both sides of the racket, producing super-square spin, and counterattacking. The opponent must produce several times more spin than the server in order to counterattack over the net." After explaining the origin and the principle, although Chiyo and the others did not understand it at all, they understood that it would be difficult to crack it.

The opponent on the court was still trying to break through the million-dollar giant's defense. The result was only a continuous contact with the net. Even more despairing was that the point of contact not only did not rise, but instead became lower and lower - this meant that the spin on his return shot was getting weaker, while the spin on the opponent's shot was getting stronger.

"That's it." Zhixian mercilessly swept his opponent 6:0, not allowing the opponent to get even a single point.

"Tachibana-san, you're so strong!"

"Tachibana-senpai is simply invincible!"

When he came off the court, Zhixian felt the cheers from everyone in the tennis club, as if he was the savior who saved the world.

"Yoshi! I have to work harder too!" The second singles player patted his cheek to encourage himself before going on court. "Great job, Ju-san! I'll work hard too!"

"...Really." Zhixian finally escaped the encirclement when the second singles match started. "We're still far from there."

At this moment, there was a faint smile on the corner of the boy's mouth.

22. Study Session (Part 1)

After the first day of the regional qualifiers, Sobu High School was about to face its midterm exams. According to regulations, students who failed the midterm exams were not allowed to participate in the competition, and since Sobu was a preparatory high school, few people worried about this.

However, Zhixian felt a little bit dangerous this year. Although he was a sports student, he still needed to pass the exam.

He just barely passed the exam in the first grade, and now in the second grade he still doesn't study very hard.

So at Chiyo's suggestion, they decided to hold a study session.

The attendees included Chigen, Chiyo, Nozaki, and Mikoshiba.

Well, although they are not a group of academic geniuses, they can still make up for each other's weaknesses by leveraging their strengths.

The study place was decided to be a family restaurant with refills instead of Nozaki's apartment. Chiyo's reason was that if she did that, she would suddenly start drawing manga and it would not be possible to have a good study atmosphere.

Nozaki is also very supportive of the study session. It can be said that anything he has not experienced falls within the scope of his subject matter.

He draws love comics for high school students, but his own experience as a high school student is not rich enough, so he will never miss anything that can be used as material. This not only enriches his high school life, but also makes the comics more realistic.

This characteristic has led to numerous letters from fans asking whether Yumeno Sakiko is an active high school girl. However, both the author and the editorial department have remained silent on the issue.

It is true that they are active high school students, but they are not female high school students, but male high school students.

If readers knew that their favorite girls' manga was drawn by a man, it might cause unnecessary trouble, so Yumeno Sakiko's identity has always been kept secret.

However, Nozaki also said that it was not because he hid it well, but because no one in the school believed it.

Would you believe that a 190cm tall man who kills cockroaches without blinking is a shojo manga artist? Not to mention real life, even if it were a manga, no one would believe it.

But one thing is beyond doubt, that is, teacher Yumeno Sakiko takes her work extremely seriously - now she is staring closely at the beverage machine, observing the types and arrangement order of several beverages, and she said that she wants to taste each one so that she can have a clear idea in her mind when drawing comics.

"Nozaki-kun..." Chiyo said helplessly.

"What's wrong, Sakura?" Nozaki was drawing something in his sketchbook.

"What are you doing?"

"Collecting materials." Nozaki answered without stopping his hands.

"But we are here to study!" Chiyo put her hands on her hips.

"It doesn't matter. Tachibana hasn't arrived yet anyway... I'll finish the painting soon."

"Hehe, Nozaki is indeed the one who plans to try every kind of drink. This idea coincides with mine. Look at my mixed potion!"

While suffering from a Chuunibyou syndrome, Mikoshiba poured different drinks into the same cup to create a "mixed potion". It is unknown whether drinking this potion will cause any debuffs.

A few of them were making a lot of noise, and everyone at the table next to them was watching.

"What's wrong with that group of people?" Yumiko frowned and looked at Mikoshiba and the others. "Are they crazy? They poured the drinks together."

"Maybe it's just for fun." Yuigahama smiled foolishly while touching the ball on the back of her head - she actually wanted to do the same.

"Well, those two have a strong sense of CP." Ebina also expressed her fujoshi-style opinion.

"...... Himeko, if you don't speak, no one will think you are dumb." Youmiko was speechless. Whenever this girl saw two men, she would mutter something about top and bottom, and add all kinds of adjectives in front of them, such as domineering and black-bellied top and tsundere queen bottom.

Sometimes when he gets drunk, his nose will bleed - so Yumiko has developed a skill to plug the other person's nose with a tissue anytime and anywhere, and she is very skilled and rarely makes mistakes.

"Forget it, I guess we're here to study too, so we'll be quiet in a while, right?" Youmiko didn't take it seriously. Although the three of them were having a study session, they were actually eating, drinking, chatting and studying at the same time.

And chatting is the main purpose, and there is not much time for studying. This is also the norm for female high school students. They are bored every day and chat every day. It seems that female high school students only know how to chat, play with their phones, and chat on their phones: these three seemingly indistinguishable things.

Yumiko had the domineering title of "Queen of Fire" at school, but she wouldn't get angry unless you provoked her. So she generously decided to ignore those idiots like Nozaki. After all, they weren't concentrating on their studies, so it wasn't like they would be affected.

At this time, the glass door of the store was pushed open, and Youmiko heard the waitress say "Welcome", and then a familiar male voice sounded.

"I have friends in there."

He has a friend in there? Yumiko was stunned for a moment, then saw Zhixian, dressed in casual clothes, walking towards Chiyo who stretched out her hand to greet him.

...Yumiko frowned, not bringing up a new topic. Instead, she quietly picked up her textbook and exercises. Seeing Yumiko's expression, Yuigahama and Ebina fell silent and each picked up their own textbooks.

23. Study Session (Part 2)

"Tachibana-san, come here, come here." Xiao Chiyo raised her hand high and waved, afraid that Zhixian couldn't see it.

Zhixian stretched out his hand in response, indicating that he had seen it.

So he walked towards the seat where his friend was sitting.

When he passed by the seats where Youmiko and the other two were sitting, he didn't notice anything unusual and just walked straight past.

"Sorry, I seem to be late." Youmiko heard Zhixian apologize to her friend.

"It's okay, it's okay! Let's get started then?" The person who answered should be the girl wearing two red satin bows with white dots. She has bright orange hair and a petite figure. She is the kind of person who will leave a deep impression on others.

Yumiko thought the girl was a little too short, looking like an elementary school student or a recent junior high school student. (Chiyoko is 145cm tall.)