Prince of Tennis: The Emperor's Eye

"Shukuchihō, huh? Didn't expect him to start blending Ryūkyū martial arts into tennis this early," Akashi murmured softly. Seeing Kite move as if teleporting, he showed no surprise at all. In the original work, Higa Middle School's most impressive move wasn't the explosive serve or the changeup ball—Habu. It was the god-tier defensive technique, Shukuchihō, especially Kite Eishirō's all-directional version. Regular shots simply couldn't threaten him. That was one of the key reasons Akashi wanted to recruit Kite.

On the umpire's chair, Krauser was stunned. This kid named Kite had such crazy speed, even he couldn't compare. As expected, anyone Akashi set his eyes on was far from ordinary. Even though Kite's Shukuchihō was brilliant, against Akashi's full-field perception, its effectiveness dropped sharply. Akashi easily hit the ball toward the back right corner of Kite's court. He wanted to test just how developed Kite's Shukuchihō was. Kite didn't disappoint. Once again, he flashed like teleportation, appearing at the back right corner and returned the shot smoothly. The rally went on for a few more shots. After observing enough, Akashi stopped holding back and slammed the ball into one of Kite's blind spots. Even with Shukuchihō, blind zones in motion were still unavoidable. Kite could only watch as the ball sailed past him out of bounds.

"0-15"

"If I'm not mistaken, that was Shukuchihō from Ryūkyū martial arts, right? Keep your upper body still, move your feet fast to the target point first, then shift the upper body while the opponent's unaware. Am I wrong?" Akashi narrowed his eyes.

Kite's head snapped up. He stared at Akashi in surprise. "You knew about Shukuchihō?!"

"Heh, not only do I know it, I also know most people who master it can only move forward and back quickly. To shift left and right like you do, you'd need balance far beyond the average person," Akashi said mysteriously.

"You… I underestimated you. Didn't expect a rich kid from Tokyo to know Ryūkyū martial arts." Kite adjusted his glasses with his right hand, pushing the left edge. His expression was still shocked.

The match resumed. But now that Akashi had figured out Kite's current level, he stopped playing nice. Even with the cross racket, he effortlessly hit balls to twisted, sharp angles. At first, Kite barely kept up using his all-directional Shukuchihō. But he was still a 12-year-old. Bit by bit, he started falling behind Akashi's rhythm.

"GAME! 1-0"

"GAME! 3-0"

"GAME! 6-0. Winner, Akashi Seijurō!"

The match ended in Kite's total defeat. Throughout the whole game, he only used Shukuchihō. Techniques like the Exploding Serve and Habu from the original work clearly hadn't been developed yet. Kite wasn't as extreme as he would become later. After the match, he silently packed his racket and turned to leave. Akashi decided it was time to reveal his true reason for coming.

"Kite-san, would you be willing to join my tennis club?"

Kite paused. He turned his head with a surprised look. "Join your tennis club?"

"Yes. I forgot to mention, I have another identity—Tennis Club Captain of Fudomine Middle School in Tokyo. And I sincerely invite you to join our tennis club," Akashi spoke earnestly. He paused for a second, then continued, "From our brief interaction and the match just now, I can sense it. Kite-san, you have ambition, don't you? So do I. Our tennis club has only one goal—National Three-Time Championship! With you on the team, I believe we'll build an era that belongs to us alone."

"Build our own era, huh? Sounds… right up my alley." A cold gleam flashed across Kite's glasses.

"So that means… you're accepting my offer?" Akashi smiled.

"Of course. If everything you said is true. But school hasn't started yet, right? Akashi-kun, how can you be so sure you'll become captain? No matter how strong you are, you're still a first-year, aren't you?" Kite asked in a low voice.

"You don't have to worry about that. Akashi is already a board member of Fudomine Middle School and had the tennis club rebuilt. Even though school hasn't started yet, the tennis club is already under his control," Krauser cut in coldly before Akashi could speak.

Kite raised an eyebrow slightly, then turned toward Krauser and responded with equal coldness, "I see. As expected of a rich boy from Tokyo. By the way, since Liliadent-san is here with Akashi-kun, I suppose your tennis skills must be impressive too?"

"Call me Krauser. I prefer that over Liliadent, thanks. As for my strength, you'll have plenty of chances to see it once school starts," Krauser replied, his voice growing colder.

Akashi looked at the two cold-blooded boys facing off and thought, 'Is this what they mean by like repels like?' Still, if the two of them played doubles, they'd probably be a nightmare for any opponent.

"Alright, Krauser, Kite, we're all teammates now. No need to be so confrontational. For us, only victory matters. Nothing else does. Oh, and Kite, from now on, I'll cover all your tuition and tennis training expenses in Tokyo. If needed, your family can come too. I'll arrange your housing and their work," Akashi added generously.

Kite's eyes lit up. For someone as self-serving as him, what could be more important than benefits like these?

And so, Akashi finally secured the last key piece of his tennis club. The time had come for him to reign over the tennis world and build the miracle era that belonged to them.

Akashi and Krauser didn't stay long in Ryūkyū. After handling Kite's enrollment details, they rested one night and boarded their private jet back to Tokyo.

In the days that followed, Akashi fed all the data he'd gathered on future team members into the system for analysis. Then he distributed each member's personalized training plan. Even Tezuka received one. When he saw how detailed and accurate it was, even Tezuka was stunned.

Akashi paid special attention to Akutsu's training. That guy's talent was top-tier. Under the system-designed regimen, Akutsu's control skills improved rapidly, and Akashi was thrilled. He even custom-ordered a cross racket for him.

That's right—Akashi had decided to teach Akutsu the Sweetspot technique. In the original, Akutsu learned Light Strike just by watching Byōdōin a few times. Honestly, if not for Ryōma's protagonist plot armor and intentional narrative bias against Akutsu and Kintarō, they would've outpaced everyone else long ago.

Time passed quietly. Before long, it was time for school to start. Tachibana Kippei, Chitose Senri, and Kite Eishirō were all flown into Tokyo on private planes arranged by Akashi. Their families, uneasy about sending their children so far away, came too.

With the power and wealth of the Akashi Group, their housing and jobs were settled with ease. This let the boys focus entirely on school and tennis.

On the first day of school, Akashi arrived at Fudomine Middle School with his driver and butler. The principal originally wanted to greet him personally, but Akashi didn't want to draw too much attention on day one.

After stepping out of the car, Akashi told the butler and driver to return and pick him up after school. Then he walked into the campus. During the boring opening ceremony, Akashi, as the freshman representative, was invited to the stage to give a speech. After a brief self-introduction, he declared:

"I'm sure many upperclassmen noticed the tennis club has been rebuilt. The old abandoned building has been turned into new courts. And I, Akashi Seijurō, will be the new captain of the tennis club. I will lead this brand-new club to win the national championship!"

The students below immediately erupted into chatter. Akashi, having finished, didn't linger. He walked straight off the stage and returned to his seat, completely ignoring the noise.

Among the crowd, several students remained silent, expressionless. These were the very players Akashi had recruited himself. Tezuka and the others believed every word of Akashi's speech. They were confident that they would earn the championship glory that belonged to their team.