Chapter 147: The Match Continues

"What should we do?" A male student wearing kendo protective gear and the Yachay High School emblem had a solemn expression on his face, cold sweat slowly streaming down his temple. "Who goes first?"

"L-Let Ueda go first," another boy said with a look of terror in his eyes.

The boy called Ueda heard this and immediately stared at him with dissatisfied eyes, somewhat agitated. "Why me? Wouldn't it be better if Kawashima went first?"

"Me? M-My style isn't suited for going first. You're good at defense, wouldn't it be better if you went first to wear down his stamina?" Kawashima's eyes flickered as he lowered his head.

"Why doesn't Senior Saeki go first? Senior Saeki is at least in the top four of the kendo tournament, he shouldn't be much worse than that bald guy, right?"

"Hey, I'm the senior here! Matsunaga, you go first!"

Watching them pass the buck to one another, Sakai Sayoko, who was sitting aside and trying to recover her stamina, wore a somewhat disdainful expression. She merely glanced indifferently at Kawamura Takeshi, urging him to hurry up and make a decision.

Kawamura Takeshi took a look at Aoki Tsukasa, who was already fully prepared not far away, standing straight with a shinai gripped in one hand, and let out a long breath. With a grave expression, he walked over to his club members and whispered, "Ueda goes first."

Hearing this, Ueda shook his head in resistance. "I..."

"Shut up! Do you not even have the courage to fight now? If anyone doesn't want to fight today, hand in your club withdrawal form immediately!" Kawamura Takeshi whispered a reprimand, his eyes wide. "It's not like I'm asking you to go die. You just need to last ten rounds and wear down some of his stamina. Can't you even do that much!"

Ueda opened his mouth, lowered his head with an ugly expression.

*Didn't you hear what that bald guy said? He said someone would get hurt!* Ueda's eyes trembled. *Why, why does it have to be me going first!*

"Then Saeki goes. Saeki has experience and quick reflexes. We mustn't give that fellow on the other side a chance to breathe. We'll exhaust him through a war of attrition!" After saying this, Kawamura Takeshi pushed Ueda forward. "Hurry up, put on your men."

Reluctantly, Ueda reached out to put on his head protector, tightened his grip on the wooden sword, and walked with sluggish steps toward Aoki Tsukasa.

Beneath the men, Aoki Tsukasa's gaze was razor-sharp, but his tone was flat. "Is it you? The scapegoat pushed forward by your teammates?"

"N-Nonsense." Ueda gripped the shinai tightly, gritting his teeth. "Beat me first before you talk big!"

Perhaps because the men obscured Aoki Tsukasa's face, the fear in Ueda's heart subsided just a fraction.

If it were a formal kendo tournament, Aoki Tsukasa certainly wouldn't speak so casually. After all, etiquette is a very important aspect of kendo matches. But this was essentially a dojo challenge match, so Aoki Tsukasa's sole objective was victory, and he would use every means possible to maximize his chances of winning.

Whether it was his previous words or his deliberately fierce expression, it was all intentional on Aoki Tsukasa's part—a method deliberately used to pressure his opponents.

Kendo is like a game of chess. If you can make the opposing player feel fear right from the opening moves, the direction of the entire match will naturally tilt in your favor.

"Do your best! Tsukasa-kun!" Teruhashi Kokomi raised her hand in the crowd, cheering loudly for Aoki Tsukasa.

Her flushed face and excited appearance caused quite a few male students to let out envious wolf-whistles. Yet because of this, the heavy atmosphere on the court was eased considerably, and many students who had been deeply disappointed with the kendo club once again raised their voices to cheer loudly for Aoki Tsukasa together.

The overwhelming cheers from the crowd added an extra layer of pressure to the hearts of Yachay High School's team.

"Ready!" After arranging his club members, Kawamura Takeshi stepped onto the arena floor. Looking at Aoki Tsukasa, he tried to steady his nerves and shouted loudly, "Red corner, Mayu High School, Aoki Tsukasa! White corner, Yachay National High School, Ueda Yuuga!"

*Don't fall right from the start, Ueda-kun!* Kawamura Takeshi took a deep breath and let out a fierce roar: "Begin!"

The command to begin had barely left his lips when Aoki Tsukasa sprang forward like a bursting beast, leaping high into the air from where he stood, letting out a fierce kiai: "Die!"

*A jumping strike?* Sakai Sayoko, resting to recover her stamina, saw a cold flash in her eyes: *Although this kind of sudden surprise attack is abrupt, Ueda should have been prepared for it.*

Sure enough, Ueda Yuuga managed to react to Aoki Tsukasa's heavy jumping strike. He hurriedly raised his sword to block. The next moment, the incredibly loud clashing sound of the bamboo swords made his eyes flicker with a hint of terror.

*Such immense strength!*

Ueda Yuuga's standing parry posture was forcefully beaten down into a kneeling position by Aoki Tsukasa's downward slash! That's right, he was beaten right down to his knees! Dropping to one single knee, a dull thud echoed out, and the shinai he held aloft was still trembling.

The surrounding people involuntarily let out gasps of astonishment: "Whoa!"

Even Sakai Sayoko couldn't help parting her lips slightly in shock.

What use is blocking it? Aoki Tsukasa sneered, standing right before Ueda Yuuga. He forcefully pressed his shinai downward, and Ueda Yuuga, who was already in a kneeling stance, was instantly crushed by the sheer weight of his force, collapsing helplessly onto the ground in a fluster.

"Die!" Aoki Tsukasa roared again, gripping the shinai with both hands reversed, and drove downward with his entire body weight, viciously stabbing toward the prone Ueda Yuuga.

Ueda Yuuga had long since forgotten that this was merely a training match; the feeling Aoki Tsukasa gave him was as if the two were fighting a battle to the death. An unprecedented wave of panic made him forget even how to use his shinai to parry. Instead, acting purely on instinct, he scrambled on his hands and knees across the ground in an extremely ungraceful manner.

Did it help?

No matter how fast Ueda Yuuga moved, how could it possibly outpace Aoki Tsukasa's top-down thrust?

The shinai pierced viciously into the throat protector of Ueda Yuuga's men. The tremendous force penetrated the guard, forcing a muffled groan from Ueda Yuuga as he coughed repeatedly, his eyes rolling back slightly.

"Red corner, ippon! The score is valid!" The referee from the Mayu kendo club immediately raised the red flag in his hand.

Kawamura Takeshi felt deeply unwilling, but this strike had been far too clean and decisive. Whether it was the kiai, or Aoki Tsukasa's form and center of gravity, it was utterly flawless. Moreover, this strike was a follow-up executed within three seconds of Ueda Yuuga falling to the ground, which did not violate kendo rules. If one really wanted to nitpick, perhaps it was that Aoki Tsukasa's top-down stabbing motion was uncommon in standard kendo movements, and perhaps the edge alignment could be used to rule it invalid?

*No, this was a thrust to the throat, edge alignment doesn't matter. Should I penalize it as invalid due to a lack of zanshin? But...*

"Does referee Kawamura have any objections?"

The Mayu kendo club referee asked aloud, a trace of smugness evident on his face.

*Tsk!*

Kawamura Takeshi bit his teeth in secret, raising the red flag with a blank expression: "No objections."

With his head lowered, Ueda Yuuga slowly climbed up from the ground, picked up his shinai, and gradually resumed the chudan-no-kamae ready stance.

However, whether it was Aoki Tsukasa or the few onlookers who understood kendo, everyone knew that Ueda Yuuga's will to fight had been shattered.

Aoki Tsukasa concealed the blade behind his right side, pointing backward while slightly lowering his head and bowing into waki-gamae.

*Arrogant!* Sakai Sayoko, watching from the sidelines, bit her white teeth in secret.

In modern kendo matches, apart from a tiny handful of rare schools, anyone who starts with stances like waki-gamae or hassou-no-kamae is indirectly showing contempt for their opponent!

Ueda Yuuga maintained his sword stance with a blank expression, uttering not a word. In his eyes, his opponent was gone, leaving his mind in utter chaos.

Aoki Tsukasa slowly tightened his grip on the hilt, an excited smile hidden beneath his men.

"Match continues!"

"Ready!"

"Begin!"

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PS: The author sneaks away from the shadows, only to be recognized instantly by the readers and surrounded.

A sturdy reader grabs the author by the collar and says loudly, "Your updates have been slow lately, and why aren't you writing the omake properly either?"

The author breaks out in a cold sweat, wearing a forced smile on his face: "I-I haven't been in a very good condition lately."

"Hmph, consider this a warning. If you don't treat us bosses right next time, we'll smash your head open!" The sturdy reader waved his fist, turning to leave with the other readers in a swaggering manner.

The author secretly clenched his fists: *Do not bully a young man into poverty!*

"Oh right, do you still want recommendation votes?" The reader suddenly remembered something and turned back.

The author flashed a brilliant smile: "Thank you, brother!"