Once the lineup was confirmed, the remaining players began their training for the day. Those who weren't selected felt a trace of regret, but no jealousy. They knew the names on the list were either overwhelmingly strong or had special abilities, making them well-suited to compete.
As for Akashi's leadership, everyone had already accepted it. After witnessing the last two points in his match with Tokugawa yesterday, no one dared claim they could beat him. Even Yukimura and Tezuka thought the same, and Akutsu had lost the urge to challenge him.
Everyone also understood that their current strength wasn't just from their own training—Akashi's contribution was huge. The intense training camps, the insanely detailed training plans… all of it was etched into the middle schoolers' hearts.
Oni wasn't on Court No. 1 today. Akashi could already guess where he'd gone—likely tomorrow, Oni would be one of their opponents. His focus now was on deciding tomorrow's order of play.
From past experience, the current U-17 top ten was exactly the same as before, with no changes—except that Mōri had moved up to ninth place, likely because Ochi let him. That change wouldn't have much impact, so tomorrow's likely doubles pairings should be the same as before, meaning his match order would need to be targeted.
"For the first doubles match against the top ten tomorrow, I think it'll probably be Mōri and Ochi. Atobe, Sanada—you two take that one. Settle things with your senpai from your own school," Akashi said to them.
"Hah? This lord has to pair with this guy again?" Atobe complained.
"You'd better not hold me back, Atobe!" Sanada shot back.
Still, neither started arguing or objecting. Since Akashi had already decided, any displeasure would have to wait until after tomorrow's match. Seeing that, Akashi continued:
"As for the second match, it should be Tōno and Kimijima. Tachibana, Chitose—you two take that one."
"Leave it to us! We'll win beautifully, right, Chitose?" Tachibana grinned.
"Of course. We'll make those high schoolers really feel the power of middle schoolers," Chitose replied with a smile.
"Hmph. Tōno's mine after tomorrow. As for now, I'll let you handle him," Sanada said sternly to Tachibana and Chitose.
"How about I just get revenge for you tomorrow?" Tachibana raised a brow at him.
"If you can do it, I won't object. But don't get careless," Sanada said, glancing unconsciously at Niō.
That made Tachibana and Chitose a little awkward—they still hadn't forgotten their loss back in their first year. Thankfully, Akashi didn't care about that anymore and said nothing.
"As for the third doubles match, I'm not entirely sure, but based on data from Inui Sadaharu and Yanagi Renji, there's more than a fifty percent chance it'll be Ōmagari Ryuuji and Tanegashima Shūji. So… Fuji, Niō—you two take that one. With Tanegashima there, winning won't be easy, but give it your all." Akashi turned to Fuji and Niō.
"Tanegashima-senpai's 'Void' is definitely troublesome, but it's not impossible to counter. Tomorrow's the perfect time to try," Fuji said, eyes open and full of fighting spirit.
"We worked well together before, so I'll be counting on you again, Fuji-kun. Puri~" Niō grinned.
"Yeah. I'm looking forward to teaming up with you again, Niō-kun," Fuji replied with a smile.
"As for singles… Oni should be reclaiming his ranking now, and will probably lock in the top five. From what I know, among the top five, only Kaji is a bit weaker, so Oni will likely play as No. 5…"
"I'll take Oni!" Akutsu interrupted before Akashi could finish.
"No, Akutsu. I have another opponent in mind for you tomorrow. Don't worry—his strength is no less than Oni's. As for Oni, Yukimura, you take him," Akashi said.
"It's an honor to face Oni-senpai," Yukimura replied warmly.
Akashi nodded, then looked at Akutsu. Seeing the annoyed look on his face, Akashi found it a bit amusing but kept his expression calm and his tone serious.
"Akutsu, I know you've got a bit of an obsession with Oni, but among the top ten, there's someone that only you can probably handle—aside from me. No. 3, Watanabe Duke, is yours."
"I see… with the 'King of Destruction's' power, maybe only Akutsu can deal with him," Fuji nodded in agreement.
"King of Destruction, huh? Sounds interesting. But you just said he's no weaker than Oni?" Akutsu asked.
"Of course. Why else do you think he's held the No. 3 spot so long? You think it's just because he follows Byoudouin? Don't forget, Duke was once the captain of the French team, and his strength is easily on par with Camus," Akashi said sharply.
Everyone immediately recalled the trip to France in their first year and nodded. If that was true, Duke was a dangerous hidden threat—his power likely no less than Oni's or Byoudouin's.
"Next is the important part! Tezuka, listen carefully! That No. 4 player is someone none of you should recognize—but I know who he is!" As he said this, Akashi couldn't help but glance over at Ryōma.
"As for who he really is, you'll probably find out tomorrow. But I suspect he most likely won't play against you. He might even just forfeit. However, if the match really starts, you must follow my signals closely. The moment I tell you to stop, you have to stop playing. Do you understand, Tezuka?"
No one had ever seen Akashi with such a serious expression before. Everyone began wondering who this No. 4 really was—it didn't seem to be anyone they had encountered at the training camp so far.
"I understand. If you're saying this, you must have your reasons. Tomorrow I'll do exactly as you say, Akashi-kun. But I hope after the match, you'll explain the situation in detail," Tezuka replied with equal seriousness.
"Mm. I'll find a chance to explain, but I still need to confirm some things. If I get it wrong, it'll be a big problem," Akashi said with a nod to Tezuka and the others.
"As for Byoudouin, there's no need to say more—I'll deal with him personally! Now, about the matches for the lower ten, have you decided? Do you need my suggestions?" Akashi turned his gaze to the other side.
"Don't worry, Akashi-kun. We've already decided. Our win probability is 91%," Inui Sadaharu said confidently.
"Good. Then that's settled. All members dismissed! Go train or get ready!" Akashi waved his hand, signaling them to leave.
Meanwhile, at the U-17 First Court, Oni appeared. The members of the First Court looked at him curiously, while Byoudouin gave a cold snort but said nothing—he knew Oni's strength all too well.
"I think you know why I'm here. Will you hand it over, or do we settle this on the court?" Oni said slowly as he walked up to Kaji Kazena.
"If you've got the guts, then hurry and take it, Oni~" Kaji shot back without a hint of fear.
"Game! 6-0! Match over!"
"Sorry, Kaji. I'll be taking your No. 5 badge," Oni said coldly, looking at the opponent collapsed on the ground.
"Oni… you… actually…" Kaji forced his head up, but before he could finish, he passed out.
"So you finally remembered your responsibility, Oni," Byoudouin said, eyes cold.
"Hmph. My business isn't yours to worry about, Byoudouin. You should focus on tomorrow's match. Those kids won't be easy," Oni ignored him completely and walked off the court.
"Oni!!!" Byoudouin's face twisted into something terrifying.
Night came quickly. Since Ryōma was still focused on tomorrow's match, he stayed on Court No. 1 training with Kintarō. Others were around as well, so unlike before, Ryōma didn't wander off—and naturally didn't run into his older brother, Echizen Ryōga.
The next morning, as the sunlight spilled across the training camp courts, Mifune arrived in a helicopter. But he didn't alert anyone outside of the coaching staff—today, he was just here to watch.
Before long, in the central plaza of the camp, Byoudouin led the First Court members in. His face radiated a murderous aura, and behind him, Tōno looked excited, licking his lips. The others' expressions were more neutral.
At the same time, Akashi arrived from the other side with the 19 players chosen yesterday. His presence was in no way weaker than Byoudouin's—if anything, it was even stronger. The two walked to the center of the plaza and stared each other down.