Chapter 169 Tennis 57

Kamikochi, Nagano Prefecture, Japan.

The view is all blue and green. The crystal-clear lake resembles a cobalt-blue mirror, while sunlight shimmers down on the towering, lush green trees beside it. Not far away, a series of sharp, massive volcanic mountains form a unique natural landscape, creating a blend of softness and ruggedness.

Kurikawa Sana closed her eyes, looked up at the sun, and opened her arms to breathe in the fresh air of Nagano Prefecture.

…So comfortable!

Kamikochi is located in the western part of Nagano Prefecture. It is worthy of being called "Little Switzerland" and "the Alps of Japan". It is a hiking paradise in Nagano Prefecture. It has some of the most beautiful volcanic landforms and beautiful lakes in the country, and even the air is exceptionally fresh.

But Kurikawa Sana came here alone, certainly not for tourism.

——She is here to attack.

After the Atobe cruise ended last week, and especially after her tennis match with Echizen Ryoma, the favorability ratings of almost all of her captureable targets soared to 90, with the exception of one whose favorability rating was particularly low.

That’s right, it’s Kunimitsu Tezuka.

[Tezuka Kunimitsu's current total favorability: 50.]

When she first boarded the Atobe cruise ship, Tezuka's favorability was only 41. But after she played ball with Echizen Ryoma, Tezuka's favorability also increased, and with a "ding" sound, it reached 50.

Kurikawa Sana was very confused. Tezuka didn't even see her match with Echizen on the scene, so why did he also increase her favorability?

She couldn't help but send a message to ask tentatively, and Tezuka Kunimitsu also replied. The general meaning was that Tezuka learned from Vice Captain Oishi of Seigaku and others that after the battle with her, Echizen had evolved further and became stronger.

Tezuka said that he was very grateful to her for helping the pillars of Seigaku grow further.

Kurikawa Sana at that time: “…”

Wow, with Tezuka's way of thinking, if she wants to conquer the Tezuka line, she needs to first become a gardener who irrigates the soil of the younger generation of Seigaku.

She couldn't help but think of Ushijima Wakari of the volleyball world. Not only was Ushijima Wakari similar to Tezuka Kunimitsu in his tall stature, icy expression, and deep adult-like voice, but he was also similar in that he liked to be a gardener irrigating the soil.

Ushijima, after such a long time, I finally understand you - Kurikawa Sana thought with tears on her face.

However, there is one difference: Ushijima only appears aloof and cold on the surface, but is actually quite natural, just a serious and rigid character. On the other hand, Tezuka Kunimitsu is a true iceberg, truly aloof, and incredibly difficult to conquer.

So, in order to conquer this real iceberg, Kurikawa Sana put in a lot of effort.

Waiting for Tezuka to return to China and go directly to Seigaku to seek him out for strategy is no longer feasible, it's too rigid.

Kurikawa Sana could already imagine that even if she did find Tezuka at Seigaku, they would just stare at each other in bewilderment. She couldn't imagine how awkward the situation would be. Not only would she and Tezuka be unable to communicate, but she might also risk losing favor with Fuji and Echizen.

She thought that she could only "accidentally" meet Tezuka in scenes outside of Seigaku and then try to conquer him so that it wouldn't seem too abrupt.

Tezuka Kunimitsu's grandfather, Tezuka Kuniichi, had previously said that he would go fishing on Thursday afternoons at the riverbank near Seigaku. Kurikawa Sana seized the opportunity and went fishing on Thursday afternoons, where she ran into Tezuka's grandfather.

While chatting and laughing, Kurikawa Sana helped Grandpa Tezuka catch several big fish again. The old man, who was usually serious and cold, was very happy and smiled, revealing a lot of information.

The first piece of information is that Kunimitsu Tezuka will return to China this Friday. His arm treatment and rehabilitation in Germany have been basically completed, and he is rushing back to participate in the national competition with Seigaku.

The second piece of information is that in order to welcome Tezuka Kunimitsu, the Tezuka family will accompany him on a trip to relax on weekends, breathe some fresh air, and relieve the depression of his treatment and recovery alone in Germany.

Since Kunimitsu Tezuka had just returned from abroad and had little time on the weekend, the Tezuka family decided to take a city tour around Tokyo. They finally chose Nagano Prefecture, which can be reached by Shinkansen in just 54 minutes.

If she continued to ask about the specific location, it would have seemed too contrived and abrupt. She had already obtained the most crucial information, so Kurikawa Sana just smiled sweetly and continued to help Grandpa Tezuka fish. A few moments later, she caught another huge fish. Grandpa Tezuka smiled and stroked his graying beard, then carried the fish, weighing over 30 kilograms, back home.

After returning, Kurikawa Sana immediately made a guide to tourist attractions in Nagano Prefecture.

Nagano Prefecture has many attractions, including Kamikochi, one of the world's favorite destinations for hiking enthusiasts, Hakuba Rock, which has snow-capped mountains all year round, Lake Suwa, one of the filming locations for famous animated films, Karuizawa, a summer resort known as the "back garden of Tokyo", and Naraijuku, a town with a Kyoto-style style... With so many attractions, which one will the Tezuka family go to?

Where can I meet Kunimitsu Tezuka by chance?

Kurikawa Sana decided to set off regardless of anything else.

When she first arrived in Nagano Prefecture, Kurikawa Sana saw an unexpected surprise on her mobile phone.

Instagram sent her a message to a user named "AYANA·T," who had posted a landscape photo of a lake in Kamikochi, Nagano Prefecture, with the caption: "A long-awaited family trip. Feeling completely relaxed (smile emoji)."

AYANA is the romanization of Ayana.

T, TEZUKA, Tezuka.

…This is most likely Aunt Ayana!

Instagram doesn't push notifications to people nearby, but its recommendation algorithm uses users' following and related content to accurately push notifications to users. Kurikawa Sana follows everyone from Seigaku on Instagram, and some of them may follow Aunt Ayana, which is likely why she saw Aunt Ayana's Instagram post.

Kurikawa Sana excitedly clicked on the homepage of "AYANA". No wonder she had never seen it before. It turned out that the other party had not released any new content for a long time. The last time she released something was several months ago.

The content shared on AYANA's homepage has different styles. Overall, you can see that she is a gentle woman who loves life. Sometimes she shares her little ideas on creative cooking, sometimes she shares her Pilates and various sports, sometimes she shares beautiful scenery photos, and sometimes she shares the books she is reading.

It was not until she saw the photo of the Tezuka family's fish tank on the homepage that Kurikawa Sana became more certain that this was indeed Aunt Ayana.

When I continued to scroll down, I saw a post with harsh words on Aunt Caicai's homepage for the first time.

How can teenagers these days be so vicious?! A racket is not meant to hurt people!

“……!”

This was posted two and a half years ago. Judging from the timeline, it was when Tezuka Kunimitsu was in his first year of high school.

Tezuka's arm was injured at that time. After entering the first grade, he showed outstanding talent, which aroused the jealousy of the senior students. His left elbow was injured by the senior's racket, and he has had hidden dangers ever since then.

Kurikawa Sana was stunned for a long time.

I am reminded of the duel between Tezuka and Atobe. The perseverance and tenacity displayed by Tezuka Kunimitsu that day impressed everyone and made them respect him from the bottom of their hearts.

I wonder how Tezuka's arm is doing after his treatment in Germany?

Through the photos sent by Aunt Kamikawa Ayana, Kurikawa Sana determined the location. The first stop of the Tezuka family's trip to Nagano Prefecture was Kamikochi, known as "Little Switzerland".

So as soon as she got off the Shinkansen, she rushed to the sporting goods store and bought a set of hiking gear, including quick-drying clothes, a windbreaker, hiking shoes, and hiking poles, and then headed straight to the plateau, intending to have a chance encounter.

She even calculated the route and time. Judging from the pictures and locations shared by Aunt Ayana, they should have reached Kamikochi to Tashiro Pond after walking for 40 minutes, and it would take about two hours and 20 minutes to reach Myojin Pond, the end point of Kamikochi's recognized hiking route.

Excluding the time she spent driving here and buying hiking equipment, Kurikawa Sana speculated that she only needed to wait at Kappa Bridge, the previous shop on Myojin Pond, and there was a high chance she would meet the Tezuka family who happened to be walking here.

After buying a bunch of specialties at the souvenir shop by Kappa Bridge, Kurikawa Sana ate the cheese and cream-flavored Kappa-yaki from the specialty shop in small bites while wondering if Tezuka would really show up.

All of this was just her speculation. What if the Tezuka family didn't follow this route? Then she would never see them even if she waited long enough.

Time passed slowly. She ate three different flavors of Kappa-yaki in a row, but she didn't see Tezuka.

Could it be that her deduction was wrong? They might have already left Kamikochi.

Just when Kurikawa Sana was about to give up and leave with a look of loss on her face, she suddenly heard a familiar, vigorous voice of an old man -

"I'm not saying anything, but the fish I caught the day before yesterday was already enough to shock Mr. Sanada, and I caught another one today!"

"As expected of a father, he is still strong despite his old age."

"Guoguang, what do you think?"

The brown-haired boy hummed calmly, "Grandpa's skills have improved again."

As soon as he finished speaking, as if he had noticed something, Tezuka Kunimitsu looked forward and met the eyes of the black-haired girl sitting on the bridge not far away.

A hint of surprise flashed across the boy's long and beautiful almond-shaped eyes under his gold-rimmed glasses.

“……!!”

Kurikawa Sana stood up all of a sudden!

She actually got caught——Please call her Agent Sana!!!

It turned out that they arrived later than expected because Grandpa Tezuka was fishing!

"Oh? Isn't this Sana-san?" Following her son's gaze, Tezuka Ayana also noticed her presence and looked at her in surprise, "What a coincidence!"

Kurikawa Sana hurried over, touched the back of her head sheepishly, and said with a silly smile: "What a coincidence, hahahaha..."

Tezuka Kuniichi also looked at her in surprise, "What a coincidence, Sana-san is also traveling in Nagano Prefecture?"

Kurikawa Sana: "...!"

I heard that Grandpa Tezuka was a high-ranking police superintendent before his retirement. If she told an obvious lie, she would definitely be seen through. It would be better for her to be sincere.

Kurikawa Sana then said, "I heard Mr. Tezuka mention traveling to Nagano Prefecture while I was fishing before. After I returned home, I was curious and searched it. I saw that the scenery in Nagano Prefecture is really beautiful, so I came here alone to play. I didn't expect to meet Mr. Tezuka."

When she said this, the girl blushed and looked at Tezuka Kunimitsu shyly.

Tezuka Kuniichi raised an eyebrow in understanding, "I see, Nagano Prefecture is indeed beautiful."

But it was obvious that his grandson, Tezuka Kunimitsu, was also a beautiful sight. Tezuka Kuniichi gave the two children a meaningful look.

Tezuka Ayana, who was standing by, immediately remembered that Sana had once confessed her love to Kunimitsu.

She had thought there was no hope before, but now it seems there is still hope!

Ayana Tezuka quickly observed her son. Since no one knows a son better than his mother, Ayana Tezuka immediately became more convinced that there was still a chance for the two of them.

"If you suddenly decide to travel to Nagano Prefecture, wouldn't your schedule be very rushed?" Tezuka Ayana asked with a smile, "Sana, have you booked a hotel for tonight?"

Kurikawa Sana shook her head, "Not yet."

Tezuka Ayana smiled and took her hand. "If you don't mind, why don't you come with us? Our two-day itinerary is to go to Karuizawa and Lake Suwa. Sana, you're only a middle school student after all. It's still a little dangerous to travel alone. It will be safer if there are more people watching over you."

…Yay!!

Kurikawa Sana was already ecstatic, but she still looked up at Tezuka Kunimitsu and said, "Thank you, Aunt Ayana. If Tezuka-kun doesn't mind..."

Tezuka Kunimitsu stared at her, his brown eyes deep and profound, "It's really not safe to be alone."

His father, Tezuka Kuniharu, who had remained silent, couldn't help but say, "That's right. There have been many cases of middle school girls being abducted recently. We can't take it lightly."

Kurikawa Sana's heart was filled with tears, and she was also deeply touched by the Tezuka family's concern. She said softly, "Thank you, Tezuka-kun, thank you, Aunt Ayana, and Uncle Tezuka... Karuizawa and Lake Suwa are also places I want to visit on my itinerary. What a coincidence."

"That's great, come with us!" Tezuka Ayana smiled amiably. "Speaking of which, the hotel we're planning to stay in tonight is Narai-juku, a hotel run by a friend of mine. If you don't mind, Sana, I'll have my friend reserve a room for you, free of charge. Narai-juku retains the architectural style of the Edo period, and it's especially beautiful when the lights are on at night. It's definitely worth a visit."

Kurikawa Sana opened her mouth wide, almost a little flattered, "Thank you, thank you Aunt Ayana... but this is too polite! I'll pay for the room -"

"No, no, the hotel owner is a good friend of mine, it's just a matter of a word." Tezuka Ayana smiled and pulled her husband and father-in-law aside, ready to create a private space for the two children. "We're a little hungry after hiking for two or three hours. Let's go to the restaurant over there to buy something to eat. Sana, you and Kunimitsu chat first--"

Kurikawa Sana was filled with awe and almost had the urge to stand at attention, "Okay, thank you Aunt Ayana!"

Watching the backs of the three elders leaving, and secretly glancing at Tezuka Kunimitsu who was the only one who stayed by her side, Kurikawa Sana took a deep breath. Even she herself did not expect that it would be so smooth.

When I came to Nagano Prefecture, I actually met the Tezuka family and was even invited to join them!

It was much smoother than she had imagined. The only thing that didn't go smoothly was that she couldn't think of what to talk about with Kunimitsu Tezuka.

The conversation had been silent for two minutes, and Kurikawa Sana felt so embarrassed that sweat was about to drip from her forehead.

Never mind.

Let's have an awkward time.

Kurikawa Sana closed her eyes and tried to find a topic to talk about, "Tezuka-kun."

Tezuka Kunimitsu hummed and looked at her with a questioning look.

Kurikawa Sana: "You look so handsome today."

Tezuka Kunimitsu: “…”

Kurikawa Sana was not kidding, she really felt that way. Tezuka was also wearing a professional mountaineering outfit today, which made him look tall, broad-shouldered and long-legged.

The dark green windbreaker and black trousers made his skin look like cold white jade. His tough and sporty style of dress formed a sharp contrast with the pair of gold-rimmed glasses that he always wore on his high nose bridge, making his facial features handsome and bright.

Maybe it's because I've seen him wearing the blue and white Aogaku team uniform too often, so the first time I saw Tezuka's private clothes, I was shocked by how handsome he was.

Tezuka Kunimitsu was silent for three seconds, then slowly said, "Thank you."

Then the atmosphere cooled again.

Kurikawa Sana: "..."

Ah, her embarrassed cold sweat was about to be blown away by the cool air emitted by the Tezuka brand iceberg.

And there was no sound notification when Tezuka increased his favorability. It seemed that Tezuka didn't like the direct approach.

If you were to compliment someone else on how handsome they are, such as Jin Akutsu, the other person's favorability would probably have skyrocketed.

Just when Kurikawa Sana was too embarrassed to know what to say, Tezuka Kunimitsu suddenly spoke: "Thank you, you look beautiful today too."

Kunimitsu Tezuka was not actually very good at saying these words, but now, he was simply stating a fact.

When he saw her just now, crossing Kappa Bridge, Tezuka Kunimitsu thought he had seen her wrongly. No matter how he thought about it, it was hard to imagine that she would appear here.

A black-haired girl suddenly appeared among the blue-green forest, wearing a pink mountaineering outfit, like a pink elf that had strayed into the mortal world. The girl looked at him with a look of similar surprise, her beautiful white face filled with astonishment.

Just like at this moment, her expression was still full of surprise.

“…Huh?”

Kurikawa Sana was stunned.

Seeing her surprised expression, thinking she was wondering, "Is she only beautiful today?", Tezuka Kunimitsu paused and added, "Not just today, Kurikawa-san is always beautiful too."

…Woo-woo!

Tezuka actually can hit a straight shot!

Kurikawa Sana asked in a somewhat tangled manner: "Um... I, I suddenly joined Tezuka-kun's family on their trip. Will Tezuka-kun be angry?"

Tezuka Kunimitsu shook his head, "No, Grandpa and my father and mother all like you very much."

Kurikawa Sana: "...!"

What about you?

Kurikawa Sana didn't dare to ask, because Tezuka's favorability of only 51 points had already told her the answer.

But at this moment, there was a "ding" sound.

[Tezuka Kunimitsu, Favorability +3. ]

at the same time.

[Atobe Keigo, Favorability +2. ]

[Current total favorability of Atobe Keigo: 98.]

Kurikawa Sana: "!!!"

She subconsciously looked around, almost wondering if Atobe was nearby!

But it was obviously not the case, there was no one around, it could only be that Atobe remembered her, which caused his favorability towards her to suddenly increase.

After breathing a sigh of relief, Kurikawa Sana began to think about the reason why Atobe's favorability suddenly increased.

Atobe's original favorability was 85. On the last night before the end of the Atobe cruise, she didn't know what happened. At 4:30 in the morning, Atobe's favorability increased significantly. She was awakened by the reminder sound in the middle of the night.

When the cruise ship docked, Tebe did not take charge of the situation as he did in the past and lavishly sprinkle roses to celebrate the successful completion of the trip organized by him. Instead, after getting off the ship, he quickly got into his driver's business car, and the expression on his face was terribly ugly.

It seems like I've never seen an expression like that on Atobe's face before.

His expression was ugly, and even had a hint of brokenness. He looked very insecure, as if he was about to lose something extremely important to him and couldn't hold on to it.

Is there anything that even the eldest son of the Atobe Group cannot keep?

After returning to school from the cruise ship, in the following days, Atobe's favorability increased every day.

After returning to Hyotei Academy, Atobe rarely came to class. Everyone was discussing what happened to Hyotei's King and what sudden situation had happened that made Atobe so confused.

A few days later, students in the grade who had medical family backgrounds spread the news that the Atobe family was recently summoning medical experts from home and abroad for a consultation, and no one knew what was going on.

When she heard this, Kurikawa Sana had already vaguely sensed something.

It wasn't until Thursday that Atobe finally returned to school.

Atobe Keigo's face was still ashen, and his handsome face looked a little haggard. He said nothing, but simply grasped her hand and hugged her for the first time.

As if feeling her heartbeat.

“…I will try my best.”

The boy's voice was still deep and charming, but it was more hoarse than ever before.

Kurikawa Sana completely guessed that Atobe must have known about her illness.

She had never thought of using her illness to attack anyone. Even Yukimura found out about it by accident. She had never told anyone on her own initiative.

But for some reason, Atobe suddenly knew it.

Did it happen on the last day of the cruise?

…

Kurikawa Sana shook her head. She couldn't figure it out, so she stopped thinking about it for the time being.

"What's wrong?" Tezuka Kunimitsu suddenly asked.

Ah, it must be because she looked around so strangely just now. Kurikawa Sana laughed and said, "No, no, I just felt very thirsty suddenly and wanted to see if there was a vending machine..."

Tezuka Kunimitsu also looked around and finally took out a thermos from his backpack. "There really isn't any nearby. Drink this first. You need to replenish water in time if you get thirsty during the hike."

"Thank you, Tezuka-kun." After taking the thermos cup, Kurikawa Sana first lamented that Tezuka even used a water cup in such a cadre style, and then thought, if this was Tezuka's cup, wouldn't that be indirectly... ?

I don't know if Tezuka was unaware of this or simply didn't care.

…Maybe I could drink it first and then ask him directly.

Kurikawa Sana filled the lid of the thermos with water and drank it all in one gulp, feeling very refreshed.

After finishing the drink, the girl seemed stunned for a moment, her beautiful white face suddenly flushed. As if realizing something belatedly, she looked at Tezuka Kunimitsu, "Um... is this Tezuka-kun's cup?"

At this moment, the system that knows everything: [………]

Good guy, no performances anywhere.

She really deserves to be a beautiful star in the volleyball world, having acted in TV series and movies. She is still so skilled and effortless in her acting.

Tezuka Kunimitsu paused and said, "I just bought this cup. I don't usually use the lid when drinking from it. I just tilt my head high and pour the water out to drink. My lips don't touch any part of the cup directly."

“……!”

Kurikawa Sana was really touched by his cuteness.

Help, Tezuka explained it in such a serious tone, it's really a contrast!

And it turns out that he likes this way of drinking water. The athletic boy held his head high, and his Adam's apple rolled up and down in his neck.

The boy raised the cup of water high in his hand, then squeezed it tightly, and the water flowed down from the height, rolling into his throat continuously - the scene was so pleasing to the eyes.

Kurikawa Sana's face turned even redder, and she couldn't help but hit a more powerful straight ball, "It's okay, even if you drank it, it doesn't matter."

“…”

Tezuka Kunimitsu's icy face shattered for a rare second.

Kurikawa Sana covered her face in shame.

She was really ashamed of teasing Iceberg - but she would dare to do it again next time.

When Aunt Caicai came back later, she didn't dare to look directly into Aunt Caicai's eyes. Sorry, Aunt Caicai, she did everything to tease your son...

[Tezuka Kunimitsu, Favorability +2.]

Kurikawa Sana: "???"

When she heard the notification sound of the increased favorability, Kurikawa Sana sat up straight again, and all her shame disappeared.

It turns out Tezuka-kun is into this.

I'm sorry, but she will dare to do it again next time.

Tezuka Kunimitsu raised his hand, coughed lightly, and said, "Kurikawa."

"Uh-huh?"

"Thank you for inspiring Echizen."

Ah, I mean the fact that she contributed to the evolution of Echizen's tennis.

Kurikawa Sana touched the back of her head sheepishly, "No need to thank me, I didn't do anything..."

Tezuka Kunimitsu was silent for a moment.

If hitting a visible "black hole" with a pink tennis racket in front of everyone is considered "doing nothing", then he really doesn't know what to say.

Tezuka Kunimitsu once thought that his "Tezuka Domain" or the recently acquired "The Limit of Tempered Understanding" were already amazing skills, or that Rikkai Daiyukimura's "Extinction of the Five Senses" and Sanada's "Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain" were also in this category.

But there are always people better than you. I never thought that there are people who can rub a black hole with a racket.

Kunimitsu Tezuka felt that he should be shocked and should use the physics knowledge he learned in class to question it. No matter how he explained it, it should be impossible for a racket to create a black hole.

But for some reason, every time he questioned this, the folds of his cerebral cortex seemed to be smoothed out instantly, and he could no longer think further, as if there was a higher-dimensional world consciousness that was preventing him from thinking.

The girl in front of him, possessing such amazing strength, was still so humble, cheerfully saying that it was nothing.

After a period of silence, Kunimitsu Tezuka decided to change the subject.

"Kurikawa."

"Hmm?" The girl looked at him with a sweet smile.

Tezuka Kunimitsu looked straight at her, the rims of his gold-rimmed glasses gleaming in the sunlight.

"Do you still like me?"

Tezuka Kunimitsu asked.