Chapter 46

"Let's go, Sanada. Let's go and have a fight with Senior Finn and Senior Tim today." Yukimura had already chosen his opponents for today's training.

The combination of Finn and Tim is one of the substitute combinations of the German U-17 official team, and their strength is ranked among the best in the team.

Sanada nodded and followed Yukimura. "No problem."

The competition for the German U-17 is very fierce, and the places for the Japanese U-17 auditions are basically filled. Unless there are accidents, the reserve players will not be activated for the places in the German U-17 arena. The players in the training base, whether doubles or singles, are the top few selected through various competitions.

When you can't make the rules, you have to follow them. Sanada and Yukimura acted separately, following the rules of the training base and rapidly improving their internal rankings.

The German U-17 team, from coaches to players, was cautious. Q.P., the recognized leader of the next generation of the German U-17 team, had never had a formal match with Polk, who was undefeated in his career.

I heard that Q.P-senpai is planning to have another fight with Polk-senpai after being fully prepared.

From top to bottom, Yukimura is a person who hates losing, and sometimes he can feel the gap without a complete game.

Of course, it would be better to experience it personally. Neither Sanada nor Yukimura is someone who is easily defeated by failure, but for a training base full of elite spirit, winning or losing is a criterion for being selected for the list.

"Has the opponent been determined?" Tim asked.

Finn nodded. "They're doubles players recommended by Berti. They're as strong as our future seeded players. They even took out the arrogant Max."

"Their rankings are rising steadily, and it's not just their singles strength that's impressive. Be careful not to become a stepping stone for them, Finn," Tim warned.

Finn was clear-headed. "After all, they're no longer on the same track as us. While losing would be embarrassing, the more important thing is the match against Bernhard and the others. If we win, we can join the expedition."

"Know."

All the German players at the training base know that the base is a small competition arena. If they are completely figured out in one game and their obvious weaknesses are found, they will be faced with a series of defeats.

"Tsk! Those two are challenging again." Elmer Seyfried has always been unhappy with people from other countries entering the German U-17 training base.

Frankensteiner practiced on the pitching machine. "Don't worry about them. Just do your training. The weak ones will naturally be eliminated."

Even though they were on different tracks and had only practiced with high school students according to tactical requirements, it didn't stop Elmer Seyfried from complaining. "Why are they taking up Germany's quota? They're not much better. Oh, and Frankensteiner. I heard Coach Heinrich is going to pick up the new recruits. Captain Polk personally invited them."

Regarding Elmer Seyfried's eagerness to try, Frankensteiner focused on hitting the ball and said without looking back, "It's best to wait until you are sure of the opponent's strength before taking action, otherwise you may not be able to participate in the U-17 opening ceremony."

The Polk Offensive Partner Selection Tournament is a competition organized by Polk for his own breakthrough.

As the strongest active player, it is very difficult to go further, so Polk has been looking for opportunities to break through.

The match was fruitless, but after it ended, Polk realized what he needed on the court. He immediately ran to the lobby to meet Tezuka and invite him to join the German U-17 team...

Sanada and Yukimura, unaware that someone familiar was coming, were battling the combination of Finn and Tim.

The period from junior high school to high school is a time of rapid physical growth. As long as you haven't reached the peak yet, every step is an upward progress.

"6-4, won by Yukimura, Sanada!"

It wasn't difficult for Sanada and Yukimura to win, as the opposing players were still holding back and didn't want to use their skills in this match.

The result is the final answer. Maybe the opponent has other ideas, but Sanada and Yukimura also kept a lot in reserve.

Sanada knew Yukimura's goal clearly, so he said that there was no official competition, and the results would depend solely on practice. Yukimura's eyes were always on Polk.

Even without counting the sparring, it was overwhelming, and Sanada felt that even if he gave it his all, he wouldn't necessarily be able to beat Polk by a single round.

Sanada and Yukimura's internal rankings moved up again.

Just when Sanada and Yukimura were renovating, the German U-17 training base welcomed a Japanese player, Kunimitsu Tezuka.

He was brought in personally by Polke and Sigmund Pöppke, the head of talent scouting for the German U-17 team.

This directly alarmed the U-17 head coach Can Retru.

The German U-17 head coach's actions attracted the attention of the entire training base. Everyone was curious about what was so special about this player who was personally invited by Polk.

Kunimitsu Tezuka walked into the training base with an upright posture and steady steps.

The entire base attaches great importance to this baseline test, as it concerns Polk.

Whether it was head coach Can Retlu, Q.P., who was targeting Polk, or even Michael Bismarck, who always looked down on the younger students, they all went to the training ground to observe...

Two junior high school students from Germany, Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner, did not miss the fun either.

The arrival of the newcomer is the fuse that ignites the battle between the junior high school students.

Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner looked at each other. Elmer Seyfried had long been dissatisfied with the foreign players. Now there was a new Japanese player joining, and there were only three places in total. Excluding Berti, plus the newcomer, there were five people competing for two positions, and the chances of competing were much smaller.

Looking around at the people and players watching the test, apart from the official U-17 team members, no one was treated the same as the newcomers.

This attention made Elmer Seyfried jealous. He snorted coldly and tightened his grip on his racket. "Hmph, another Japanese player comes along. Do you think they can survive here? This is the German team. I want to see how good they are."

Frankensteiner patted Elmer Seyfried on the shoulder and said, "Don't be impulsive. Let's see how strong he is first."

The new players were treated differently. After being tested by Coach Heinrich, they were directly taken away by Captain Polk.

"Tsk!" Elmer Seyfried curled his lips in disdain. "Our numbers aren't bad either. I won't acknowledge him unless we've beaten him."

Considering the special treatment for newcomers, if you go up to the challenge and win, you'll be done with it once and for all. If you lose, your career path will start half as slow.

Apparently, Elmer Seyfried, having calmed down, was not going to mess with the captain and coach's favorite.

"Hey~ Frankensteiner. If the newcomers can't solve the problem, let's solve the ones we can solve first. We can't have more Japanese players than German players on the team. It's time to let the seniors see who the elite is." Elmer Seyfried turned his gaze to Sanada and Yukimura.

In Elmer Seyfried's opinion, if he can defeat Sanada and Yukimura, both of whom are Japanese players, he can not only prove his own strength, but also give the newly joined Japanese player a warning, and consolidate his place in the main competition.

After understanding Elmer Seyfried's idea, Frankensteiner was silent for a moment. This was indeed a good opportunity to prove himself. Even if there were some minor accidents, he could withstand it. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Elmer Seyfried's eyes were filled with defiance: "I don't care. I can't just watch them show off their power on our territory."

Frankensteiner sighed and finally nodded.

Sanada and Yukimura, who had rested well, had not yet walked out of the training ground door when they were blocked by Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner who were coming towards them.

Elmer Seyfried crossed his arms, deliberately blocking the two men's path. "Sanada, Yukimura, don't think you're so great just because you've won a few games. Today we're going to teach you a lesson and show you that Germany's turf isn't easy to navigate."

Yukimura glanced back at Sanada. Elmer Seyfried loved to chat with him when they ran into him. "Did you specifically block the door this time because the match was about to start and you couldn't help yourself?"

Sanada took a step forward and said coldly, "If you want to fight, then fight."

Elmer Seyfried flexed his wrist. "I hope you can still be so stubborn later."

Frankensteiner waited for Elmer Seyfried to choose the first person. Although he didn't say it explicitly, Frankensteiner had sufficient confidence in his own abilities.

"It's you, Yukimura. I want you to know that outsiders have no place in the German team." Looking at the two men's standing postures, Elmer Seyfried chose Yukimura, who was always protected by Sanada.

Yukimura's lips curled up slightly, revealing a confident smile. "As you wish."

"He's dead." Seeing Yukimura's smile, Sanada turned the brim of his hat and silently met Frankensteiner's gaze.

After choosing your opponent, the game will start soon.

Elmer Seyfried served first, with great speed and power, trying to give Yukimura a head start from the start. However, Yukimura easily caught the ball and quickly returned it with a tricky crosscourt shot.

Yukimura had already started the fight, and Sanada stood on the adjacent court. After a simple guess of ball rights, both sides set up their positions, and a fierce duel was about to begin.

As soon as the game started, Frankensteiner launched a fierce offensive.

Sanada planted his feet firmly on the ground, his eyes fixed on the incoming ball, moving nimbly and returning it with precision. The ball flew back and forth between them, accelerating.

Sanada felt the shadow of Yukimura in Frankensteiner's style of play. Yukimura's style of play was to put pressure on the opponent through easy returns.

Frankensteiner's precise attack puts pressure on the opponent.

This mentality forced Sanada to adapt for two lifetimes, and the only opponents who were not affected were those with strong basic skills.

Fenglinhuoshan and Yinlei. If Fenglinhuoshan are commonly used basic moves, Yinlei is a move specially prepared for Tezuka Kunimitsu.

Black Dragon Slash is specifically designed to counter Yips' moves.

Not to mention the later Iai and the newly learned extra-dimensional moves.

When the score stood at 3-2, Sanada took the initiative to attack. "Black Dragon Slash!"

The tennis ball changed its trajectory due to the airflow generated by the powerful swing, missed Frankensteiner's return, and landed on the ground to score.

The electronic scoreboard automatically displayed the score. "30-0!"

"The trajectory has changed again." Frankensteiner kept calculating in his mind how to counter Sanada's attack.

Sanada continues to serve...

On the other side of the court, the game between Yukimura and Elmer Seyfried also entered a white-hot stage.

Of course, it was what Elmer Seyfried thought was a fierce game. The arrogant Elmer Seyfried kept changing the angle and strength of his serve, showing off his skills like a peacock.

Yukimura knew Elmer Seyfried's character from the first encounter. All we can say is that after showing a little weakness, the preparation for his mental moves was unusually smooth.

The score was 4 to 2. Elmer Seyfried, who was not reminded by outsiders, was still immersed in his own rhythm and thought that Yukimura was gradually falling behind.

He became more and more proud, his serves becoming more exaggerated, and he occasionally made provocative noises. "Is that all you can do, Yukimura? Your so-called strength is just that! If I had known earlier, I would have chosen another opponent. Maybe the game would have been more interesting."

Yukimura responded calmly, watching his score increase with a constant smile.

"5-2!" As the electronic scoreboard displayed the new score, Yukimura remained calm and composed. Elmer Seyfried, on the other hand, was inexplicably flustered.

Yukimura, with a significant lead, even had a chance to glance over his shoulder at Sanada's game. "Black Dragon Slash? Good, Sanada. I wonder if it can sever my dreams."

Seizing the opportunity, Yukimura quickly went to the net to intercept after Elmer Seyfried served.

Although the game was clearly a 5-1 advantage, Elmer Seyfried felt increasingly uneasy, and he could sense the same pressure he had felt when practicing with Frankensteiner.

Yukimura scored directly with a powerful smash.

"6 - 2!" Yukimura won this round easily.

After the game, Elmer Seyfried shook his head. When he came to his senses, his face flushed red. He threw his racket to the ground in anger and shouted, "This is impossible! You must have done something tricky!"

"The gap in strength is so obvious. Instead of complaining here, you might as well go back and improve yourself." Yukimura shook his head, still smiling.

Meanwhile, the match between Sanada and Frankensteiner also entered its final stage.

Frankensteiner was still holding on, constantly adjusting his returns, trying to break through Sanada's moves.

"Black Dragon Second Slash."

When Frankensteiner cracked the move, Sanada directly upgraded the Black Dragon Slash, with an extra turn to bypass Frankensteiner's swing trajectory.

The tennis ball streaked across the court like a flash of black lightning, landing precisely within the designated area. "6-4!" the electronic scoreboard displayed the result of the round.

Sanada and Yukimura both won the game, but before they could say anything, they were interrupted by a voice.

"It's so shameful! You should be expelled from the U-17 training base." Michael Bismarck said.

Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner's faces instantly turned grim upon hearing this. Elmer Seyfried wanted to retort but didn't know what to say, so he could only clench his fists and lower his head. Frankensteiner gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with resentment.

"If this happened in an international tournament, wouldn't it be a national disgrace?" Michael Bismarck looked down upon all middle school students, even some high schoolers, with equal disdain. He hadn't expected his own country's representatives to be completely annihilated in a competition of the same level. "With your level of skill, you dare challenge others here? Don't you even consider your own strength? The German team doesn't need losers like you."

Sanada and Yukimura were not angered by Michael Bismarck's words. As the winners of the match, they were not the main targets of verbal attacks.

Overwhelming the German junior high school students in one fell swoop was considered a display of strength and a half-provocation in the German U-17 team.

Although the organizer of the competition is being criticized by the seniors, U-17 refers to those under 17 years old. Junior high school students are only given special treatment in this test. Under normal circumstances, they need to compete for a place in the competition with these players who have or are about to enter the professional competition.

Michael Bismarck struck a blow against the German junior high school students, and the coaches remained silent.

Tezuka Kunimitsu, accompanied by Polk, the coach, and a group of onlookers, toured the training base and experienced the German training menu...

When we were introducing each other, we found out that all the junior high school candidates on the team were not there except Berti. When we arrived at the training ground, we saw two games that were about to end.

Polk took over the endgame, ignoring Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner, who had been scolded by Michael Bismarck, and introduced them to Kunimitsu Tezuka: "The winner is Genichirō Sanada, and the other is Seiichi Yukimura. Both are strong players. The ones who just lost are Elmer Seyfried and Frankensteiner."

Tezuka Kunimitsu nodded slightly, his gaze lingering on Sanada and Yukimura for a moment. "Thank you for your guidance."

Sanada and Yukimura politely returned the greeting, and it seemed that the turmoil caused by the match result had subsided with the addition of the newcomers.