But her expression carried a trace of urgency.
Clearly, due to the tight schedule, she had tossed aside the events from earlier.
Seeing Yukima Azuma step out
She quickly approached him.
She reached out and adjusted his collar and belt.
She straightened the collar properly and tightened the belt neatly.
Then, Sora Ginko took Yukima Azuma's hand and pulled him toward the entrance.
"Awawa~, holding hands!"
Hinatsuru Ai, standing nearby, widened her eyes in admiration.
As Yukima Azuma was pulled along, he casually grabbed Ai's hand as well while passing by her.
Hinatsuru Ai immediately showed a satisfied expression
Just like Yukima Azuma, she too was pulled along.
Early in the morning, the three of them hurriedly took a taxi toward the Tokyo Shogi Association.
Fortunately, the Ryuou Tournament's opening ceremony was held in Tokyo.
Otherwise, they might have really been late for the first match.
Only after getting into the car did Sora Ginko finally breathe a sigh of relief.
It was only then that she realized
She was still holding Yukima Azuma's hand.
She hurriedly let go.
However
Even though she let go, Yukima Azuma had no intention of doing the same.
Her fair, slender fingers remained firmly clasped in his, their fingers intertwined.
Sora Ginko bit her lip lightly
But said nothing.
"Ginko-senpai, you were so adorable in that maid outfit, like something straight out of a dream."
"But why did you dress like that to wake me up today?"
Yukima Azuma first offered the highest praise for Sora Ginko's maid attire.
Then, he voiced the question lingering in his mind.
Sora Ginko hesitated.
Her fingers instinctively tensed.
"That it's because I lost a bet with Master... Hmph!"
As she spoke, she lowered her head.
Even the tips of her ears, hidden beneath her beautiful silver hair, were now flushed red.
Hearing that, Yukima Azuma immediately understood.
Deep in his heart, he sincerely thanked the one Sora Ginko called MasterShakando Rina.
The Master Sora Ginko referred to wasn't the same Master that both of them shared.
It was a female shogi player named Shakando Rina.
For nearly 20 years, she had held the title of Jouryuu Myouseki.
She had achieved the status of Eternal Four-Crown in women's shogi, once dominating every single title, thus earning the name "Eternal Queen."
She was an incredibly formidable senior.
She often studied shogi with Sora Ginko.
And was someone Sora Ginko deeply respected.
On a side note
Despite being so powerful
She was still only a women's shogi player and had never attained professional status.
This fact alone showed just how difficult it was for a female player to become a professional in the world of shogi.
Shakando Rina believed that Sora Ginko had the highest potential to become a professional female shogi player.
It could be said that she had placed great expectations on her.
Therefore, she wholeheartedly mentored her without expecting anything in return.
Thanks to this, the two of them shared a very close relationship.
And naturally, this Master was also well aware of Yukima Azuma's existence.
In the past, she had proactively helped with Sora Ginko's matters on multiple occasions.
This time was no exception.
Yukima Azuma thought for a momentperhaps he should buy a small gift and personally visit Shakando Rina later.
Just to thank her in person.
After all, he had just witnessed an unbelievably beautiful sight.
As for the little girl sitting beside him
Hinatsuru Ai was currently using her phone to search for maid outfits on Amazon.
But after browsing through several stores, none had sizes suitable for children.
In the end, she had no choice but to give up in frustration.
....
About fifteen minutes later.
The taxi stopped in front of the Tokyo Shogi Association.
The three of them got out and quickly walked inside.
By now, there weren't many people outside the association.
However, quite a few reporters were gathered at the entrance, waiting for news.
The moment they saw Yukima Azuma approaching, the reporters immediately swarmed around him.
The association staff quickly stepped in to disperse the crowd.
The opening ceremony of the Ryuou Tournament had already ended, and the first preliminary match was scheduled to begin at 10:00 AM.
Late players would be given a maximum grace period of five minutes.
If they were still absent after five minutes, they would be declared an automatic loss.
Right now, it was already 9:55 AM.
In truth, these association staff members were waiting here specifically for Yukima Azuma.
"Yukima 7-dan, please follow this way."
Under the staff's guidance, Yukima Azuma quickly made his way down the tournament hall corridor.
Sora Ginko and Hinatsuru Ai stopped walking.
Both of them checked the timethen let out a sigh of relief in unison.
"We finally made it Shishou, mou~!"
Hinatsuru Ai puffed up her cheeks and grumbled.
She had been looking forward to this match for a long time.
As long as Yukima Azuma won the Ryuou title, as promised, she would officially become his disciple.
"Rather than worrying about Azuma, you should be more concerned about yourself."
Sora Ginko gazed at Yukima Azuma's back as he walked away.
She knew he had been extremely busy lately.
The fact that he overslept today was clearly due to sheer exhaustion.
She wasn't good at explaining these things
But she also couldn't stand hearing anyone complain about Yukima Azuma.
"When Azuma wins the Ryuou title and officially takes you as his disciple"
"You'll be stepping into the world of professional shogi."
"As the disciple of Ryuouof Azuma."
"If you don't become a professional female player within three years, wouldn't that be a disgrace to Azuma's name?"
Hearing that, Hinatsuru Ai suddenly tensed up.
She played shogi because she loved it and admired Yukima Azuma.
So she had never been too concerned about titles or ranks.
But if it meant tarnishing Yukima Azuma's reputation
That was something she could never accept!
"Ai won't bring shame to Shishou!"
Hinatsuru Ai whispered in protest.
But deep inside, she felt a little anxious.
Right now, she was simply learning shogi from Yukima Azuma.
The only people she regularly played against were Yukima Azuma, Sora Ginko, and Kiyotaki Kousuke.
So when it came to her actual skill level
Hinatsuru Ai had absolutely no confidence at all.
Chapter 166: Stand Proud Child, The Future is Yours
Chapter 166: Stand Proud Child, The Future is Yours
Exactly 10 o'clock.
Yukima Azuma arrived at the competition venue just in time.
The audience had been quiet, but the moment Yukima Azuma appeared, a commotion erupted.
In this Ryuou tournament, if one were to name the most anticipated player...
There was no one else but Yukima Azuma.
He had achieved total victory in the previous official tournament to claim the championship.
The youngest to ever reach 7-dan.
Many people wanted to witness it.
To see just when Yukima Azuma's undefeated streak would finally come to an end.
Would he continue writing his legend in the Ryuou tournament, winning consecutively to seize the Ryuou title...
Or would he fall along the way, a genius hitting an impassable wall?
Amidst everyone's watchful eyes.
Yukima Azuma walked toward his match table.
"Hello... Eh? An acquaintance! I remember you, Kawai Kenichi 1-dan, right?"
As soon as he sat down, Yukima Azuma saw the young man sitting across from him and smiled.
As for this young man...
Yukima Azuma still had some impression of him.
In the preliminary rounds of the official tournament, he had faced this opponent in his very first match.
Back then, Yukima Azuma played aggressively, and the game ended quickly.
Even though it was a one-sided slaughter...
Yukima Azuma could sense that this young man's skills were not weak at all.
Originally, after the preliminaries.
Yukima Azuma had intended to give this player some guidance if they ever met again.
After all, he had been treated as nothing more than a "sacrificial lamb" to make an example of.
But as it turned out, Kawai Kenichi 1-dan had been eliminated in the very first round.
There was no opportunity to meet again after that.
When Yukima Azuma found out about this, he had been quite puzzled.
After all, with a skill level around 3-4, even if he had the misfortune of facing him in the first round, it shouldn't have led to outright elimination.
And now...
Kawai Kenichi 1-dan, sitting across from Yukima Azuma, was sweating profusely.
Back in the preliminary rounds of that tournament, after his match with Yukima Azuma...
His "shogi spirit" had nearly collapsed.
In the two matches that followed, he played erratically.
Eliminated early from the preliminaries.
After returning home, he shut himself in, devoting himself entirely to analyzing moves to stabilize his mindset.
It wasn't until a few days ago that he finally regained his "shogi spirit."
After that, he registered for the Ryuou tournament.
Kawai Kenichi 1-dan hadn't even been aiming to win the Ryuou title.
He simply wanted to play a few solid games of shogi to rebuild his confidence.
However, earlier, during the drawing of matchups, his first-round opponent had not yet appeared.
When he asked the organizers, he was told that a competitor had arrived late and had missed the drawing.
Checking the list.
That late competitor was none other than Yukima Azuma 7-dan.
Upon learning this, Kawai Kenichi 1-dan felt as if the sky had collapsed.
"You even remember someone as insignificant as me? I'm truly honored."
Kawai Kenichi 1-dan shot up from his seat, trembling as he bowed deeply to Yukima Azuma.
His attitude made Yukima Azuma freeze.
This kid that polite?
"Please, take a seat."
"No, no, no, you first!"
"Eh? Do I look that intimidating?"
"No, no, getting to play against you is my honor!"
Yukima Azuma was still bewildered but eventually sat down.
Only after seeing him sit did Kawai Kenichi dare to do the same.
"Well then, now that both players are present, let the match begin!"
The referee placed the game timer in position and announced the start.
"Please guide me!"
Kawai Kenichi bowed deeply.
"Uh please guide me."
Yukima Azuma gave a slight, symbolic nod.
Kawai Kenichi went first.
In theory, once a player has established their own playing style, the opening moves from both sides should be familiar and played swiftly.
However, Kawai Kenichi hesitated for a long time on the very first move.
In the end, he advanced a bishop pawn.
Last time, he had played Aigakari and was utterly crushed by Yukima Azuma's Aigakari.
It seemed he had developed a psychological shadow.
But if he didn't use Aigakarihis best strategy
Then he would probably lose even more miserably.
So, after much hesitation, Kawai Kenichi still decided on this move.
Seeing his opponent enter an Aigakari formation,
Yukima Azuma immediately switched to Furibisha.
His opponent had been so polite; he couldn't bring himself to be too ruthless.
With Yukima Azuma's shogi skill level of 9
If he played the same style as his opponent,
It would surely crush his opponent's shogi spirit, making him doubt his entire existence.
It would be just like what happened to Meijin before.
By the next game, he might completely lose his sense of the game.
By using a different playing style, even if he lost, his spirit might waver, but at least he would still retain his feel for shogi.
On the audience stands.
"Oh, it's Furibisha! Shishou rarely uses that move!"
Hinatsuru Ai watched Yukima Azuma's board intently on the big screen.
"It's not that rare."
Sora Ginko was also staring at the broadcast screen, unconsciously recalling her recent matches against Yukima Azuma.
Yukima Azuma had always been a versatile player, able to play in various styles with ease.
But recently, he hardly ever repeated the same opening.
In every match, he seemed to be experimenting with a new sequence of moves.
And despite all the chaos in his playstyle, she still saw no hope of victory.
Sora Ginko could feel it clearly.
Yukima Azuma had gone even further ahead.
Even though she was desperately trying to catch up.
The gap between them only continued to widen.
"Really? Shishou almost never uses it against me!"
"You haven't played against him much lately."
"Oba-san, are you showing off?"
"You little brat Just wait, play two games against him and you'll understand."
While they were chatting
The situation on the board had already become clear.
Kawai Kenichi's Aigakari formation had been utterly shattered.
Yukima Azuma's Furibisha strategy was nearly at a transcendent level.
No matter how tight his opponent's defense was, he could break through with ease.
However, since Yukima Azuma had deliberately given up some moves
Kawai Kenichi managed to hold out until the 200th move.
After struggling for a while longer
Kawai Kenichi could only smile bitterly and place his piece down in surrender.
"I lost."
"That was an excellent match."
"Eh? R-Really?"
"Umu, stand proud. You are strong. I will remember you. The future is yours!"
Yukima Azuma stood up and patted Kawai Kenichi on the shoulder.
Poor kid, another disastrous opening match.
Might as well give him a little motivation.
...
After giving his unfortunate opponent a dramatic, fraudkuna-style encouragement
Yukima Azuma immediately left the venue.
There was still some time before the second match began.
Meanwhile, Kawai Kenichi remained frozen in his seat.
"The future is mine?" he repeated the words.
Then, his gaze gradually became resolute.
"That's right! Even though I lost, last time I only lasted forty moves, but this time I made it to two hundred!"
"I'm not standing still, I'm moving forward! No matter how hard it is, I'm still advancing!"
"Even Yukima-senpai praised this as an excellent match! My efforts weren't in vain!"
"I will keep fighting! Tatakai! One day, I will stand before Yukima-senpai with pride once again!"
Spurred by a single "compliment"
Kawai Kenichi, a mere 1-dan player, was instantly set ablaze with fighting spirit.
