The Prince of Tennis: The Quincy of Rikkai University

Chapter 59: Kikumaru is about to be exhausted (Please read it again on Tuesday!!!)

"Rikkai University is leading, the score is 30 to 15."

The referee announced the score after seeing Kikumaru Eiji stand up, and then after confirming the situation of both sides, signaled for the game to continue.

Yanagi Renji tossed the ball calmly, then swung the racket to hit the tennis ball out.

The one who received the ball this round was Shuichiro Oishi. He concentrated and held his breath as he watched the flying tennis ball, then held the racket tightly and swung it according to his own judgment.

hit!
When Oishi Shuichiro felt the real feel of the racket, he was delighted. He had carefully observed the angle of Kikumaru Eiji's receiving the ball in the previous ball, and then based on his experience, he guessed the approximate direction that the opponent might hit the ball.

"Well done, Oishi!" Kikumaru Eiji praised his partner after seeing his successful counterattack.

While saying this, his body was also moving, running to the middle of the front court to guard against the opponent's sneak attack.

Hideichiro Oishi's return ball was of good quality and went straight to the unguarded area in Rikkai University's backcourt.

However, Yanagi Renji did not seem surprised that Oishi Shuichiro was able to return the serve, and he still ran sideways to the landing point with an expressionless face.

He held the racket with both hands and hit the tennis ball back with a forehand, just like before, a very fast flat shot.

The tennis ball flew over the net like the wind and fell in the opposite direction of Kikumaru Eiji.

Faced with this return ball, Kikumaru Eiji did not doubt it and immediately chased after it and tried to intercept the tennis ball before it hit the ground.

When the racket collided with the tennis ball, Kikumaru Eiji felt his arm sink.

“It’s so heavy—”

The impact of the tennis ball was stronger than he thought. He couldn't figure it out for a moment. Renji Yanagi was not a power player, so how could he hit such a heavy return?

He barely managed to hit the tennis ball back. Kikumaru Eiji's receiving action was a little deformed, so the quality of the returned tennis ball was very poor.

Naturally, Marui Bunta immediately caught this non-threatening tennis ball. He just gently adjusted the angle of the racket and placed it in front of him motionlessly. The flying tennis ball changed its angle after hitting his racket and landed in front of the Qingxue net.

40 to 15, Rikkai wins this game by just one goal
Kikumaru Eiji stood up and looked at the tennis ball that had rolled on the ground with a heavy breath. A feeling of powerlessness arose in his heart.

……

In the preparation area of ​​Qingxue, Inui Sadaharu, who saw this, had already completely figured out the other party's plan in his mind.

"We can't go on like this. Rikkai University is planning to develop a targeted strategy based on the physical weakness exposed by Kikumaru Eiji."

Inui Sadaharu spoke in a deep voice, and his words attracted the attention of the people around him.

"But Qian, I didn't see the other party deliberately targeting Kikumaru like Yamabuki targeted Oishi."

Fuji Shusuke had sensed something was wrong a long time ago, but he ultimately failed to see through the other party's true intentions. He just used his intuition to sense that something was wrong at Rikkai University.

"This is the cleverness of Rikkai University. Unlike Yamabuki, they don't directly target a certain player. Instead, they use psychological games to make the opponent fall into the trap they have set long ago without realizing it."

"Fuji, you should have noticed that almost every ball returned by Rikkai University lands in a position where Oishi can catch it if he takes a few steps forward. It seems that they are learning from Yamabuki's method to deal with Oishi."

"But for Kikumaru, he can catch up and receive the ball from this position with just a stunt tennis ball."

"So, after the match between Yamabuki and Kikumaru, who do you think will take the initiative to receive the ball, Oishi or Kikumaru?" Inui Sadaharu asked Fuji Shusuke.

After Fuji Shusuke followed Inui Sadaharu's line of thought and thought about it, he immediately understood.

"I understand. They are taking advantage of Kikumaru's psychology. With a ball like this, Kikumaru will definitely take the initiative to catch it before Oishi does, because..."

Fuji Shusuke swallowed the words he hadn't finished, but everyone else present, including Ryuuzaki Sumire, had heard and understood.

Rikkai University's strategy was to use Kikumaru Eiji's guilt for not helping Oishi Shuichiro when he lost to Yamabuki, and to have him catch the ball that Oishi Shuichiro should have done. Kikumaru Eiji did not doubt this move, and in his subconscious, he just felt that he was sharing the pressure with Oishi and not letting the last situation happen again.

"Renji, is this your plan..." Inui Sadaharu looked towards the half-court area on the Rikkai University side, his eyes fixed on Yanagi Renji's confident expression.

At this moment, Inui Sadaharu understood that Rikkai University wanted to gain the most direct and easy victory by paying the least price. They wanted to win the second doubles match without bloodshed.

Once a player on Seigaku's side runs out of energy and loses the ability to counterattack, the subsequent game will lose suspense and Rikkai University will be able to win the game without spending any more energy.

"Is this the person who is called a military strategist? What a terrible calculation." Fuji Shusuke sighed. This game gave him a more intuitive and profound impression of the so-called national champion.

"If they continue like this, Oishi and Kikumaru's chance of winning will be almost 0%, although they don't have much chance of winning this match itself." Inui Sadaharu said in a deep voice.

“Do I need to remind them?”

"Let's give it a try, although it's a little late in my opinion."

Inui Sadaharu observed the condition of the two people on the field, which was not optimistic.

boom.

On the court, after Yanagi Renji served, after just a few rounds, Seigaku lost points.

Kikumaru Eiji dragged his heavy feet to catch up with the tennis ball that fell on the other side of the center line, but his body was a little tired and he gradually began to fail to react. He could only watch the tennis ball hit back by Marui Bunta pass by his eyes before he could barely catch up to the point where the tennis ball had just landed.

"Rikkai University is leading, the score is 3 to 1."

The fourth game has been decided and the referee announced the result.

At the same time as the sides changed in the fifth game, Kikumaru Eiji and Oishi Shuichiro also realized this after being reminded by Inui Sadaharu and others.

However, at this moment, Kikumaru Eiji found that his limbs felt as heavy as if they were filled with lead. He had inadvertently wasted most of his physical strength by continuously using special shots to counterattack in the first two rounds.

The foreshadowing laid by Rikkai University has successfully produced an effect on Kikumaru Eiji, and his physical strength is about to run out.

“Hoo, ho, ho—”

Kikumaru Eiji took a sip of water and breathed heavily. He said unwillingly, "Damn it, I didn't expect the other party to have such a plan."

At this time, he already regretted his previous excessive impulsiveness. He realized that with the physical strength he currently had left, he might not be able to hold on until the end of the game.

"It's all my fault. I'm a burden to you." Oishi Shuichiro blamed himself.

"No, Oishi, we are partners. Partners should share the pressure of teammates, right?" Kikumaru Eiji shook his head and did not acknowledge what the other party said.

"Eiji, you..." Oishi Hideichiro's face froze, and he realized that now was not the time to blame himself. He immediately changed his expression and said with a forced smile: "Then let's continue to persevere and finish this game."

"Well, I won't give up just like that." Kikumaru Eiji nodded heavily.

The game is not over yet. Even though they are exhausted, they have to continue fighting until the winner is decided, not only for Qingxue, but also for themselves.

On the other side, Marui Bunta looked in the direction of Qingxue, blew bubbles and said easily: "Yanagi, it seems that it is about time."

Yanagi Renji nodded slightly: "Well, it's time to wrap up. I have already collected all the data."

For them, this game is over.

Today's follow-up reading is crucial!!

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(End of this chapter)