While the three of them were changing indoor shoes at the entrance, people greeted Hitomi Hosokawa one after another.
Shiina Kiri had registered in the kendo club last time, but she hadn't participated in club activities in the past few days, so she didn't know anyone in the dojo, and she stood aside like a follower.
"Kitazawa, wait a minute." Hitomi Hosokawa suddenly called out to one of the boys.
The boy named Kitazawa ran over and asked, "Deputy Minister, what's the matter?"
"I'm going to have a competition with this classmate Shiina Kiri later, and I'd like you to be the temporary referee." Hitomi Hosokawa said and glanced at Shiina Kiri.
In kendo competitions, the determination of effective strikes is more complex and requires consideration of multiple factors such as strike location, strength, and timing. In order to reduce the possibility of misjudgment, three referees are usually required.
However, the match between the two is not considered official, so a referee can make do with it.
"Of course." Kitazawa Hibiki looked at Shiina Kiri with a smile and nodded as a sign of goodwill.
After a brief acquaintance, several people walked towards the dojo.
Yuki High School Kendo Stadium has a special kendo competition venue. A rectangular white ground line about ten meters long and wide is drawn on the bright tung oil wooden floor.
There is a crosshatch drawn in the center of the field, and two "start lines" on both sides of the crosshatch.
Shiina Kiri and Hosokawa Hitomi each changed into kendo uniforms and put on protective gear in the locker room, and then returned to the arena one by one. They stood in front of the starting line to salute each other, and then squatted to salute each other.
Kendo in the island country pays great attention to etiquette. This is probably why it is difficult to change the old habits of the Yuki High School Kendo Club.
It’s not all about being pedantic and stubborn, but more about being content with the status quo and not wanting to make changes. If you do more, you will make mistakes, but if you don’t do nothing, you will make no mistakes.
And Aozora's arrival is like a dimension-reducing blow, her identity and strength are both hard to compare to, and her talent stands out from the crowd.
"Get ready!" After the ceremony, Kitazawa Hibiki raised his hand and said solemnly.
Both sides should prepare their starting postures, which are both offensive and defensive mid-part postures.
However, there is a huge height difference between the two of them, and their faces cannot be seen clearly even though they are wearing masks. From a distance, they look like an adult and a child, but they are more than one head apart.
Kobayakawa Kazuki stood outside the venue, looking at Shiina Kiri's figure expressionlessly, but his eyes were full of colors.
Maybe beauty is in the eye of the beholder?
'This guy is really well born.'
Even though his face is completely invisible from this angle, he has an indescribable temperament that is difficult to summarize.
Just like a scholar and a person who has not studied, a rich girl and an ordinary person, you can tell the difference at a glance.
The Shiina Kiri in her eyes was different from others, which made her fall deeper and deeper into it, but she couldn't really tell what was different about it.
He is obviously a scumbag with the same playfulness as Aozora Shinsuke, so she should be disgusted after discovering his scumbag nature.
So when Shiina Kiri said that he was a "player"-like existence, she immediately doubted whether he had done something to her.
For example, "props", "hypnosis"... or something else.
But later she denied it, because as Shiina Kiri said, when she noticed him, he was not as dazzling and seeking the limelight as he is now.
At that time, what attracted her to him was his somewhat decadent self-confidence, and he didn't show anything different during that year.
It's like her private property, no one can touch it.
Although she usually dresses like a boy, her psychology is still normal and she goes through puberty like a normal girl. It is normal to pay attention to someone of the opposite sex.
He just happened to walk into her sight.
but.
'What a scumbag, I really want him to...' Kobayakawa Kazuki frowned slightly.
If you weren't a man...wouldn't you be bothered?
Shiina Kiri in the field was naturally unaware of the monitor's psychological activities. He held the bamboo sword in both hands and looked firmly at Hitomi Hosokawa in front of him.
Kitazawa Hibiki took two steps back.
"start!"
Following this order, Hitomi Hosokawa tensed up visibly and roared, completely different from his previous quiet demeanor.
She raised her sword and tapped it to the left, feinting to attack Shiina Kiri's mask. When she saw him taking out his sword in a defensive stance, she instantly changed direction and struck at Shiina Kiri's raised right hand.
When Shiina Kiri defended again, she had clearly lost three of her strength, but she could barely resist it. However, the backlash when the two bamboo swords came into contact was not strong. At this time, Hitomi Hosokawa roared.
"Card!"
The bamboo sword landed on Shiina Kiri's left rib with a sound, and there was no time to react.
"The carcass is valid, the red side gets the prize!" Kitazawa Hibiki raised the red flag in his left hand and announced loudly.
This is all done in an instant.
The previous act of feinting reminded Shiina Kiri of the scene when someone was trying to break through with the ball while playing basketball in high school. This trick was tried and true for a rookie like him with little actual combat experience.
He only had "additional points" and "skills" and yet he lost so completely.
"Awesome." Shiina Kiri exclaimed sincerely.
Sure enough, just like in the memory, this quiet study committee member changed into a different person when he picked up the sword, which made people wonder if he had a split personality.
Hitomi Hosokawa nodded slightly when he heard this, but did not show any emotion.
In fact, it is not something to be proud of from a beginner who has only been exposed to kendo for a few days. However, there was a detail when the two bamboo swords came into contact just now that made her raise eyebrows.
Shiina Kiri's power is too terrifying.
Kendo is not only a competition of skills, physical fitness is also very important.
For example, it is recognized that the women’s Jade Dragon Flag is not as exciting as the men’s Jade Dragon Flag.
And most importantly, Hitomi Hosokawa could see that Shiina Kiri was full of energy when she drew her sword.
After all, it’s not a matter of arms, whoever is more powerful wins.
The reason why she was really concerned was because Shiina Kiri "injected" power into the bamboo sword and used it effectively, rather than just having all his strength.
This is not like a rookie who has just touched the bamboo sword!
But if he wasn't a rookie, why was he so weak in technique and easily offloaded by her?
Hitomi Hosokawa didn't think much more, but returned to the starting line, intending to see the true level of Shiina Kiri from the actual battle in the next round.
Kendo competitions generally have three rounds, with two out of three rounds being the best.
In the second round, both sides were still in the middle position. Kiri Shiina was too comfortable with her recent training, while Hitomi Hosokawa remained respectful, or perhaps vigilant.
"start!"
As soon as Kitazawa Hibiki finished speaking, Shiina Kiri took two steps forward and took the lead in attacking, without any sign of losing the round.
Generally speaking, at the same level, the attacking side will be at a slight disadvantage. The defensive side can observe and predict the opponent's attack, so as to make corresponding responses to effectively resist and counterattack.
After reading the opponent's intentions, seize the initiative.
This is like deadlifting without taking cover in chicken fighting. (Of course, this comparison is not rigorous. The difference between offensive and defensive advantages in kendo is very small.)
In this competition, Hitomi Hosokawa's backpack is full of props, and any skill he throws out can sparkle his eyes, but he only has bullets in his backpack.
In order not to lose the game in a daze like the last round, he could only seize the opportunity.
??????55.??????
Naturally, his actual combat skills cannot compare with Hitomi Hosokawa's more than ten years of hard training, but he is very "talented"!
Shiina Kiri held the bamboo sword and quickly slashed at the opponent's armor. Hosokawa Hitomi's eyes shrank and he raised his sword to block.
She could even predict the power of this sword, and the tiger's mouth was already slightly hot from the force.
Shiina Kiri suddenly changed direction and slashed her side ribs with a sword...
"Card."
After hitting it, he quickly staggered away, then held his sword and faced Hitomi Hosokawa.
He has more than just "strength".
"The body is valid, White gets the advantage!" Kitazawa Hibiki raised the white flag in his right hand.
"this……"
Hitomi Hosokawa stared blankly at the location where he was hit.
…
"cheers!"
"cheers!"
After everyone clinked the glasses, they drank half the glass of juice.
Shiina Kiri picked up the chopsticks, picked up a piece of barbecue and put it into his mouth.
"So Shiina is really new to kendo?" Kitazawa Hibiki looked at Shiina Kiri with wide eyes, as if he felt that a few people were playing tricks on him.
"Well, I just came into contact with it recently." Shiina Kiri replied calmly after swallowing the beef.
Recently, seven days is the most recent, and three months is also the most recent, right?
He was not specific enough to say that he had just touched the bamboo sword three days ago. That would be too shocking.
"This is amazing! You can actually get the book from the deputy minister!"
Kitazawa Hibiki previously thought that he and Hitomi Hosokawa came from the same kendo family. After all, how could a beginner compete with Hitomi Hosokawa?
She is only in the second grade, but she is qualified to be tied with the third grader Nakajima. Her strength is self-evident.
She was just overshadowed by the airborne eldest lady.
In fact, before that eldest lady transferred to another school, Hitomi Hosokawa had been hailed as a kendo genius rarely seen in Yuuki High School for decades!
Those kendo teachers were all very optimistic about her.
"It was just a fluke. Didn't you lose in the end?" Shiina Kiri said modestly.
He was a rookie after all, and he was able to score a point just by surprise. In the third round, Hitomi Hosokawa was on guard. After counterattacking, the bamboo sword hit his hand and his sword flew away.
He had some doubts about whether the girl was angry and did it on purpose.
"You're already very good, Shiina-san. You know, even Deputy Minister Nakajima has a hard time scoring points against our little Hitomi!"
A girl with a ponytail said during the dinner, staring at Shiina Kiri and unable to move away.
This party was an impromptu event, but it was quite lively. Since there were three boys, Hitomi Hosokawa specially invited a girl with whom he had a good relationship.
She has a distinctive look. My name was introduced to me before. My name is Akita Keiko. She is in Class B of the second year. She is Hitomi Hosokawa’s childhood friend.
Shiina Kiri glanced at the class leader who was pretending to be serious and said nothing, and thought to herself, I don't dare to accept these words. If you think that we can have a good conversation, if you ask me for my email address and mobile phone number after the party, you might end up in trouble.
"Shiina-kun is really strong and talented." Hitomi Hosokawa said following Keiko Akita's words.
It would be too scary to be able to use it just after seeing it once.
Although in hindsight I felt it was a bit raw, the strength and speed were remarkable, and it was not like other beginners who were imitating others.
"Hosokawa-san praised me, class monitor."
Shiina Kiri didn't mind the big deal and moved her butt towards Kobayakawa Kazuki.
Hitomi Hosokawa stared at the gap between the two of them, which was no more than a finger apart, and took a deep breath.
No, it was obvious that Shiina Kiri and the minister were boyfriend and girlfriend, so she must have got it wrong.
"If you don't say anything, you still lose?"
Kobayakawa Kazuki raised his right elbow and pushed him, keeping his distance.
Ever since Shiina Kiri proposed a romantic relationship, she would always get closer shamelessly. Recently, rumors that she is gay have appeared in Yuuki High School.
It's also strange. Doesn't she think other boys get along like this? Is it because she looks a bit white?
She felt that Shiina Kiri had been in too much limelight recently.
"You really can't beat him, Hosokawa-san is too strong."
Who would have thought that he would never dream of Aozora Nai again after that time. He thought he would meet her in dreams in the future, and thought he would have many opportunities to practice kendo combat with her.
"But Hosokawa-san, can you accommodate the Jade Dragon Flag quota?"
Shiina Kiri remembered the business, picked up the cup and saluted Hitomi Hosokawa.
"What? Shiina, are you going to participate in the Yulong Banner? Next year?"
Before Hosokawa Hitomi could answer, Kitazawa Hibiki took the lead and asked.
"What a pity. If Shiina you had joined the Kendo club in the first grade, you might have helped me get a place in the national competition, hehe." He said with a look of pity on his face.
Yuuki High School's kendo hall has complete facilities, but the kendo club is not very strong. In addition, the girls' side has Hitomi Hosokawa, who has won many awards, so the boys in the kendo club are actually a little depressed.
"Kitazawa, Shiina-san plans to participate in this year's competition."
"This year?" Kitazawa Hibiki was surprised.
"The Yulong Banner competition will be held in one month, right? Shiina, you..."
Although Shiina Kiri performed very well in the dojo before, he is still a newcomer after all.
There are geniuses in this circuit, but I have never heard of a few quick geniuses!
"Yes, this year's Yulong Banner, Kitazawa senior you is an official member of the competition?"
"Hmm..." Kitazawa Hibiki seemed to remember something and suddenly looked at Hitomi Hosokawa.
"So, Deputy Minister, if you want me to be the referee, you don't want me to persuade Deputy Minister Nakajima!"
Yulong Banner is divided into men's and women's groups. Although Hitomi Hosokawa is the deputy minister, it is impossible for him to bypass Nakajima Sai and enter the men's group.
"Impossible, this is his last year, how could he give up..." Kitazawa Hibiki paused, turned around and patted Shiina Kiri on the shoulder. "I'm sorry, Shiina, um, I'm not looking down on you.
I mean, you know, I am very optimistic about you!"
Shiina Wu smiled and waved her hand, indicating that it didn't matter.
Last time, Football Club Horii Kaze even bluntly rejected him.
That's right, who will let in uncontrollable factors in the last year? This is not a movie. Who will play kung fu football with you?
Hitomi Hosokawa shook his head and said softly, "I will tell Deputy Minister Nakajima. When he asks Kitazawa, just tell the truth."
Hitomi Hosokawa wasn't too concerned about this matter at first, she just felt a little touched. After all, Shiina Kiri said that she wanted to participate in the competition because of Aozora.
She also gave him this opportunity because of her respect for Aozora. Otherwise, with the current situation of the Kendo Club, there would be no need to recruit people in name to obtain funds.
But Shiina Kiri's strength surprised her. Is he really a genius?
…
This party could have lasted for a long time, but Shiina Kiri had a part-time job in the evening and had to leave early at 3:50.
Kobayakawa Kazuki planned to send him to the convenience store, so he also left the table.