must love tennis

"We met in the hospital."

On the way back, as soon as Ryoma found an opportunity, he confessed frankly.

The two people from Kanagawa had bid farewell to them at the station, and returned with a full load of fishing rods and buckets—of course, Kirihara still had to carry the pile of heavy barbecue equipment on his back, and he should be thankful that the charcoal was all burned.

When the two are far away, it will be difficult to hide the curiosity of the brothers.

Anyway, I have to explain quickly...

"Hospital?"

Tezuka's faint glance made Ryoma feel guilty.

She was embarrassed to say the moment she followed him and Deputy Minister Dashi, she turned her head and said in a hurry: "Uh, it was the match with Fufufeng, remember? Didn't I go to the hospital for an examination later? It happened that day And, uh, there was an accident..."

She vaguely summed up the "accident".Anyway, the other party knew what was going on, and the two brothers could guess it logically.

"That's when Yukimura-senpai gave me his handwarmer." Ryoma finished slowly.

"Did you see it at a glance at that time?"

Irie's expression was subtle: "Kun Yukimura is really amazing."

you do not say.

As the winner of two consecutive championships, Minister Tachikai, if Sanada is called the "emperor" of the middle school tennis world, then Yukimura is the "son of God".Not a class at all, imagine that!

Ryoma has been popularized by Horio, a classmate who is keen on gossip, and he is deeply impressed.

only……

"It's still very unscientific, isn't it?" Irijiang Zuodo raised his eyebrows and said amusedly, "If you grow up to be two or three years older, that's all. I don't think the current appearance is just a problem of eyesight."

"..."

You seem to be alluding to something, it's a bit too much.

Ryoma felt that this topic was a bit sensitive, so he kept silent.

Speaking of which, she has also been puzzled for a long time, why the eyes of Li Haida's main candidates are sharper than the other?In terms of insight, Atobe is also doing his part, but he obviously didn't find anything the first time...

This should be the normal reaction of normal people, right?

She raised her head, met Tezuka's gaze, and stuck out her tongue in embarrassment: "I definitely didn't take the initiative to expose it, it's true, Minister."

Tezuka didn't seem to be concerned about this issue, he looked at her quietly for a while, and said, "Echizen, what are your plans after the national competition is over?"

Huh?

Long Ma was stunned for a moment, unable to turn around for a while, why did he suddenly jump to this question.After the Nationals?

If I have to say it, this kind of thought has never appeared in her mind.

The few months of the Junior High School Tennis League are not long or short. When the selection reaches the national level, there are only twenty elite teams selected from hundreds of thousands of school teams.

Now it has entered August, more than ten days.The opening ceremony was on NO.17 in August, and the game also started on the same day. They were the seeded team, and they started to participate in the second round, followed by the quarterfinals and semi-finals in the next two days, and then to the finals on the last day. There is no rest time.

In order to complete the national competition before the end of the summer vacation, the schedule is very tight, and therefore, there is no relaxation from the beginning to the end.

Once you get a little slack because of the promotion, if you want to celebrate in advance, you will be eliminated immediately without mercy.

Like other seniors, Ryoma devoted all his attention to preparing for the battle, and never considered other issues, only thinking about becoming stronger.This is of course not a bad thing.

So what if you win?

Thinking of this, Ryoma's face also showed a little bewilderment.

"Uh, keep... working hard?" She blinked and looked at the minister, not quite sure what answer he wanted her to give this time.

There is no doubt that every word of Tezuka has a purpose, he never said unnecessary nonsense, and he was too lazy to explain to others.

Can only rely on guesswork.

Ryoma scratched his cheek, racked his brains for a while, and seemed to understand something.

Last time, Tezuka asked on the tennis court, why do you play.

After that battle, Ryoma woke up and realized that tennis was played for herself, and she pursued it because she liked it... At that time, what did she say when she hurried to the minister's house?

——"I want to win, and keep winning."

"Win the championship of the national competition with the seniors of Qingxue!"

After winning, is this the end?

of course not.

Whether she wins or loses, she will continue to go on, never thinking of giving up.

but……

There was a very practical question before her.

No matter how reluctant Ryoma is to admit it, he has to face it.

At this time, Tezuka took the lead in considering this issue for her, and directly put it on the bright side.He looked at her quietly: "This year may be your only chance."

The words were cruel, like a signal of some kind of end.

Ryoma knew he was right.Tokugawa and Irie were listening nearby. They had always trusted her and defended her, but they knew each other very well, so they kept silent and did not want to disturb their conversation.

"I will try my best to fight for it, and I won't regret it." She thought about it and replied calmly.

"And after that?" Tezuka repeated.

It was already obvious, what he was asking was what would she do after the game, no matter whether she won or lost?

The age of 12 is the dividing line for most adolescent development, and girls generally go faster.Longma is already considered a late-developing physique among her peers, but in the past few months, her height has also increased significantly, and with it, her chest has also developed.

She's used to wearing tight sports tank tops, and so far there's no sign of that, but in a few months, it probably won't be.

Anyway, boys and girls are different.

In the next one or two years, their stature will grow rapidly, their bones and muscles will become stronger and stronger, and correspondingly, their physical fitness will far surpass them.Whether it is speed, physical strength, or explosive power, their advantages will be reflected in all aspects.

Echizen Ryoma is very strong, which is already recognized by the middle school tennis community.But she knows best herself that soon she will no longer be suitable for this arena.

One day, she will have to go back to her own place.

...Although I am really unconvinced.

Ryoma slowly breathed a sigh of relief: "I should, I will retreat."

After speaking, she closed her mouth and continued to walk behind Tezuka.The sound of footsteps, tool boxes, fishing rods, and buckets rubbing against each other and hitting each other echoed in the alley.

Not far ahead is the station, where they are about to part.

Tezuka stopped, stretched out his free hand, and placed it lightly on Ryoma's shoulder.

After quitting the tennis club, it will be difficult for Ryoma to stay in Qinggaku.Because no one will understand why she quit, and she can't continue to practice and participate in competitions.It is even more impossible to expose their identities here, and the organizing committee can cancel their results at any time.

Leave Japan and come back to America?This is not something that can't be considered. The smelly old man in her family must have been prepared for this issue.

If you want to play in the professional league, it's better for a girl to recover her status as soon as possible. The sooner, the fewer loopholes and handles will be left, but it can't be said that it is foolproof.

She was thinking deeply, but she heard Tezuka say, "I seem to understand this point."

"……Eh?"

"Why can't other people see it." He said slowly, "Although it is already obvious sometimes."

At this time, Irie who was behind him also let out a slight "ah" and said thoughtfully, "Is that so?"

how?

Before Ryoma could react, he turned to look at his two elder brothers.

Tokugawa didn't look surprised at all, and mouthed a word to her: "Illusion."

But wait!

She looked at Tezuka in shock: "Minister, how did you know? We never talked about it! —— and he wasn't there when the cruise ship..."

"I didn't know at first." Tezuka's face was calm, and he pushed his glasses, "But Atobe thought I knew."

……what?

Ah? ?

--Oh!

Irijiang Zuodo couldn't hold back, he burst out laughing, breaking the originally delicate atmosphere, and his voice was also very happy: "The young master of the Ice Emperor is really interesting."

He himself would probably be pissed off when he heard that.

Ryoma rubbed his chin, probably guessing something.

Sure enough, Tezuka continued: "He has always been very careful."

Although at first glance he may seem like an arrogant guy, but Atobe has always considered everything and will not easily let go of loopholes.He even worried about the future for Tezuka and Qing Xue.

When will Ryoma recover his true identity, and what will he do after recovery?What kind of consequences will happen? If it is not handled well, will the storm of public opinion be unfavorable to them, and will it affect her participation in professional leagues in the future?

...To be honest, Ryoma himself, and possibly Nanjiro included, didn't think about such a distant matter, so Atobe had already thought about it for them in advance.

Then, it is conceivable that he couldn't wait to call Tezuka, ask his opinion, and planned to "discuss" with him...

"Combining what happened to you at sea and that island," Tezuka said slowly, "I can probably guess what happened to you."

Ryoma scratched his cheek in embarrassment, not knowing what to say.

She originally thought that the minister didn't know anything about it, so she simply kept it a secret. Anyway, the less people know, the better, it's safe for everyone.Now that the Dong Chuang incident is revealed, will his concealment make him very unhappy?

Then, she remembered something again: "Ah, the one from Li Haida—the fraud master!"

"Oh, that self-taught illusionist in the video." Irie Kanata groaned, and nodded his index finger, "I see, if someone uses illusion to cover you, then this illusion can be possessed People with the same ability can see through...or crack it, right?"

Tokugawa said calmly: "However, he is not alone."

It was Li Haida's group of candidates who saw through. No matter when or how, the first time they saw her, they almost all spotted her.

Ryoma couldn't help but heaved a sigh of relief, it seemed that she really wasn't pretending too badly.It's that they're so special.

"Maybe they are influenced by their companions, and they all have the eyes to see through the truth." She looked into the distance, and there happened to be a group of pigeons flying in the sky.

Tezuka said unhurriedly: "It seems that you don't have to worry anymore."

"Hmm..." Ryoma thought of another thing at this time.

Ten years after being exchanged, Senior Dashi ran over worriedly and told her that her name "does not exist" in the future files, presumably someone has taken care of the follow-up troubles.

Who is it?

Ryoma only struggled with it for a second, then gracefully forgot about it.

— Forget it, it’s not very important, anyway, as long as you know, everything will be solved.

She just needs to concentrate on playing the game in front of her!

"Minister," Ryoma raised his head and said seriously, "After the national competition, I should continue to work hard and enter the professional league."

In response to her confident "oath", Tezuka nodded and gave a soft "um".

"Together."