Inside the German team's meeting room, QP, Volk, and Coach Ken sat watching the video of Japan's match against Greece. Only now did they realize just how many of Japan's middle school players possessed overwhelming strength this year.
"Compared to Japan, our German middle school players are clearly a level below. We'll need to report this back to the national training base," QP said seriously after finishing the entire recording, turning toward Volk.
"Relax a little, Aoba," Ken replied with a chuckle. "In overall strength, Germany still far surpasses Japan. And our real focus this year should be Spain. With Medanoré's return, he'll definitely come to challenge you, Volk~"
"I know," Volk said with a grave expression. "But we can't afford to overlook Japan—especially their middle school captain, Akashi Seijurō. I could tell during the exhibition match that he wasn't using his full power."
"Exactly. In today's group match, he actually made Zeus—the Greek captain known as 'the omniscient and omnipotent man'—commit repeated errors. That's far from normal. And based on the exhibition yesterday, I've noticed his playstyle resembles Data Tennis, but it's also distinctly different," QP analyzed, his tone thoughtful.
"His eyes are special," Volk added, recalling the match's fine details. "It's as if they can see things others can't. Yesterday, Bertie made several subtle movements—tiny ones—that Akashi still read perfectly, predicting his returns every time."
Meanwhile, the American team was having a similar discussion about Japan. But they also paid particular attention to Greece, since Zeus's actual performance didn't quite match the intel they'd gathered before.
Because of Akashi's sudden rise—like the flap of a butterfly's wings—the Japanese team had become the center of worldwide attention at the U-17 World Cup. Countries that normally wouldn't spare a glance for a nation ranked outside the top twenty were now watching Japan closely.
Back at the Japanese team's hotel, after everyone had digested the shocking result of Australia defeating England, Mifune finally announced the lineup for the next day's group match. His voice boomed through the room:
"Take Squad's captain—Oni Juujirō! Members—Ochi Tsukimitsu, Yukimura Seiichi, Sanada Genichirō, Shiraishi Kuranosuke, Tōyama Kintarō, and Ishida Gin! Everyone got that?"
"So, we're keeping a middle school–dominant formation again?" Irie commented with a grin. "Looks like the head coach plans to save most of the high schoolers for the match against England the day after tomorrow~"
"Not necessarily, Kanata~ After all, there are still three heavyweight middle school players who haven't played yet," Tanegashima said meaningfully, a faint smile on his face.
At his words, everyone instinctively turned to look at Tezuka, Akutsu, and Atobe. No one knew how the coaches would arrange tomorrow's roster, but one thing was certain—most of the middle schoolers had already shown their stuff, while the high schoolers were still conserving their power.
"Tomorrow's field lead is Coach Kurobe, right? I actually have something I'd like to discuss with you," Akashi suddenly said, glancing toward Kurobe Yukio, who stood behind Mifune.
"Oh? Sure thing. Though now I'm curious—what is it that you want to discuss, Akashi-kun?" Kurobe replied, raising an eyebrow.
Akashi and Kurobe soon stepped aside to talk. The others tried their best to eavesdrop, craning their necks discreetly, but Mifune, being Mifune, simply walked right up and joined the conversation outright. To everyone's amusement, he even began nodding in agreement halfway through—clearly impressed with Akashi's suggestion.
———————
The next day, when Team Japan arrived at the venue, Kurobe led the Take Squad members into the stadium first, while the rest followed Mifune to the player's hall. Unlike the previous day, today's arena had no player rest area.
As for the support team and fans who came to cheer, they were forced to remain outside watching from the giant screens—because all tickets for the indoor seats had sold out months ago, not a single one remaining.
Fortunately, Inui Sadaharu and Yanagi Renji, as part of the medical and data analysis staff, were allowed inside. The few members of the medical team entered under the envious gazes of their teammates. The moment they stepped in, they were met with deafening cheers and the booming sound of Australia's national anthem echoing through the arena.
The Take Squad had barely stepped onto the court when they were greeted by a wave of boos. Some fans even held banners telling the Japanese players to "Go home!" For many of the middle schoolers, this was their first time standing on a true world stage, and the hostility took them completely by surprise.
"This year's host nation is Australia," Oni said gravely, his expression hard as he looked at his team. "So today's match is pure away ground for us. You'd better get used to the atmosphere quickly—because this is something every one of you will have to face sooner or later."
"Eh? Hey, look, someone's waving at us! Is that how you do it?" Kintarō shouted excitedly when he saw a spectator flipping him off. Thinking it was a friendly gesture, he happily returned the same sign—only for Shiraishi to grab his wrist in alarm.
"Kintarō! Don't ever do that again," Shiraishi said, half exasperated and half helpless. "That's not a greeting—it's rude. Extremely rude!" He sighed, rubbing his forehead. At this point, he really wished Krauser were here to help keep the kid in check.
"Australia's reputation has always been… complicated," Ochi muttered coldly, his voice carrying an icy tone that made the nearby players tense.
"Go home, Japan!" A chorus of voices suddenly erupted across the stadium, loud and synchronized. The faces of the Japan Team members darkened immediately.
"Every single person in the audience today is a local Australian," Yanagi said, stepping into the room just then. "Not even one seat was reserved for spectators from other countries."
"According to the data," Inui added, adjusting his glasses, "tickets were completely sold out months ago—before the organizers had even officially opened sales to the public."
"So this is what they call host-country privilege?" Yukimura said quietly, his expression calm but his tone icy as his gaze swept over the jeering crowd.
Sanada stayed silent. He could feel the oppressive weight of the crowd pressing down on him, his jaw clenched tight. Fortunately, Oni noticed the tension immediately and stepped over, patting him on the shoulder in reassurance.
Meanwhile, on the Australian team bench, Georgie sat with an arrogant smirk, eyes full of disdain as he watched the Japan Team. In his mind, as long as he followed the match plan his younger brother Noah had devised, there was no possibility of losing. Too bad he didn't realize he was facing someone who already knew the script of this story.
"The Doubles 2 lineup will go exactly as I arranged it. Got that, useless captain?" Georgie sneered, turning toward the Australian captain, Jean Fitzgerald.
"You bastard! How dare you—" Chris shot to his feet, furious, about to lunge forward when Jean quickly grabbed him by the arm, holding him back.
"I trust you and Noah to bring us victory," Jean said sincerely. "So please, just keep your promise."
"Tch, national honor, huh? How boring," Georgie muttered with a scowl. "Just worry about your own job." He kicked away a nearby water bottle and slumped arrogantly into his chair, sprawling across it without a care.
"Captain, he's too arrogant! Why do we keep putting up with this?" Chris grumbled, still fuming.
"Enough, Chris," Jean said firmly, shaking his head. "No matter what Georgie says, it doesn't matter. He's indispensable to our team. Only those two brothers can lead Australia to the world stage." His voice was steady but full of conviction.
On the opposite side, strange noises came from the Japan Team's bench. To everyone's confusion, the seven members of Take Squad had suddenly formed a circle. The Australian audience thought they were about to chant for morale—but then the group started playing a game instead.
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
The crowd blinked in disbelief, stunned for a moment before erupting into loud boos that shook the stadium.
"Yeah! I won!" Kintarō yelled at the top of his lungs, jumping in excitement.
"Hmm~ seems like my luck's pretty good today," Shiraishi said cheerfully, stepping forward. "Didn't think I'd be the first one to play a match."
He smiled and raised his right hand toward Kintarō. "Then, I'll be counting on you today, Kintarō-kun."
"Match! Match! Match!" Kintarō shouted gleefully, still bouncing with energy before slapping Shiraishi's raised hand in a high-five.
This—was the plan Akashi had discussed with Coach Kurobe the previous night. He'd suspected that Australia's team strategist, Noah, would try to predict their lineup in advance, so rather than play into their tactics, he'd left it entirely to luck. Since all seven Take Squad members were strong, letting fate decide who played was the best way to disrupt Noah's calculations.
"And now, we'll begin the Group B Doubles 2 match!" the umpire announced. "Australia—Jean Fitzgerald (third-year high school) and Chris Hoppman (third-year high school)! Japan—Shiraishi Kuranosuke (third-year middle school) and Tōyama Kintarō (first-year middle school)! Players, please enter the court!"
As the announcement echoed through the arena, the four players stepped onto the court together. The stark height difference between Shiraishi and Kintarō made for a rather comical sight, but the Australian pair's expressions were deadly serious. No matter how young their opponents were, they knew better than to take the Japan Team lightly.