To be–––the Meijin.

That dream drove me to dive headfirst into the unforgiving world of Shogi hopefuls in training with no guarantees about the future.

One has to become a Shogi player to become the Meijin. Armed with that knowledge, I jumped at the chance to enter the Sub League without a second thought.

The Sub League: where there’s no telling what’s in store.

The only thing I could clearly see in that never-ending darkness was my dream.

Of course, my goal once I became a pro was to become the Meijin.

But in the pros––caught in the constant ebb and flow of the placement matches—that dream got chipped away to the point that I couldn’t see it anymore.

Promoted, demoted, staying stagnant …… The process repeated itself so much I thought I would never have a chance to become the Meijin.

That chance belonged to players who turned pro as junior high students and got promoted all the way to A rank without getting stuck once: the chosen ones. I started to believe players who counted victory stars with each passing year, praying there would be enough like me who would get demoted, who weren’t meant to have a shot.

I hit the ceiling so many times when I belonged to C-2, going 9 wins and 1 loss over and over again, that the despairing thought that I would never get promoted began to seep in.

The same thing happened in C-1, and again in B-2 and B-1, always hitting my head on the ceiling …… Even when I was finally promoted to the A rank, I went 4 and 5 and found myself back in B-1 after only one season.

I was the only one unable to stay in A with four victories. Hitting that ceiling was a hard pill to swallow.

I guess I never had it in me to be the Meijin after all ……

The turning point came when I had that painful taste in my mouth.

I took two apprentices.

One a four-year-old girl and the other a six-year-old boy. I made them live-in apprentices.

Surely, there were plenty who thought it was strange in this day and age.

However, I was the most astounded by what I’d done. I was in no position to look after other human beings no matter how you looked at it. Even I thought I was trying to run away from reality. No matter how talented those kids were ……

Though, it seemed those two kids thought I was the best in the world.

“Why aren’t you the Meijin, Master?” they asked me point-blank, their faces completely serious.

“Bein’ Meijin ain’t somethin’ ya can just decide on yar own,” I said that day. “Ya gotta be chosen by the Shogi gods …… My turn may be comin’ up, though.”

When they heard that, they went around saying, “Our Master’s going to be Meijin really soon!” to anyone and everyone. That put me in quite a fix more than once.

However, a desire to meet their expectations could be the reason I was promoted once again. I’m not sure how else to explain how my record keeps improving despite having so much more to do than before ……

Looking back on it, I was also promoted during the biggest event in my life to date. That just could be how it goes.

Dreams are mysterious things.

Holding onto them was so easy as a kid, but doing so as an adult is very difficult. Light and yet heavy, clear but also murky, they are mysterious indeed.

My apprentices found the dream that I had lost and gave it back to me.

I will never lose it again.

Now that I’m back in A, I want to take another shot at making that dream come true.

However, the decisive move in the match came in the early game with Kuzuryu’s aggressive    6 Five Knight offensive.

The A-ranking Takanobu Shiraishi, who was directly involved in match analysis, explained with enthusiasm, “Up until now, defensive Bishop Exchange has been a biding strategy. Simply wait until the opponent forces an attack, triggers a Repetition Draw, etc …… However, that 6 Five Knight proves that the defender can meet the offensive head on. The balance of power among Bishop Exchange strategies has been rewritten overnight!”

According to Shiraishi, Kuzuryu’s new discovery shows that the previously believed obligatory    9 Four Pawn can be omitted.

“It was common knowledge that leaving it in place would prevent any and all attack opportunities down the edge. At the very least, I believed it to be true for my full twenty years as a professional. That twenty years has been turned on its head by this seventeen year old. A young man who became a professional less than two years ago did it in one move. Can you believe it?”

If the words of the Bishop Exchange Specialist, aptly nicknamed Unicorn, are to be believed, Kuzuryu’s discovery will be analyzed for a long time to come.

With this victory, Kuzuryu remains undefeated in the placement matches. To date, he has won ten consecutive league matches. What’s truly impressive is that four of those were against the Meijin himself.

His unfavorable record last season put him at a considerable disadvantage when placement matches began. Should he win out, Kuzuryu will be promoted to C-1 no matter what. Two matches remain. He is more than qualified for promotion.

At this very moment, one boy’s appearance in the Shogi world is changing the history of the sport in monumental ways.

In closing, I would like to leave off on a comment the Ryuo provided concerning the    6 Five Knight offensive fresh from his latest victory in a winning streak dating back to his successful title defense.

“Starting a revolution sounds fun.”

(Kumquat)

“The trash that prevented the Meijin from getting the Eternal Septuple and his 100th title season.”

“The trash that revolutionized Bishop Exchange defense.”

“The trash that’s been piling up victory stars by advancing a single Knight using offensive Bishop Exchange.”

“Isn’t it crazy how he can win with such a newbie strat? Shocking how the generation raised by The Knight that jumps far falls prey to the Pawn can fall to something that level, don’t you think?”

“That match today was crazy …… People have gotta be scared to play a yagura against him ……”

“Even that Natagiri couldn’t stand up to him with a yagura.”

“Kuzuryu, the Yagura Slayer.”

“This Loli-con is scary as hell.”

“But, come on, everyone knows that new move he played came from software, right?”

“I’ll just put this out there, but the term from software stopped being a knock against players years ago.”

“Yep, yep. The fact that perv can play like a computer already makes him more than human.”

“That just makes him scarier.”

“With Ai H. and Ai Y. growing up so fast and Naniwa’s Snow White promoted to 3-dan, it feels like he’s at the center of everything happening in the Shogi world right now.”

“I heard that he also does practice sessions with Sota-boy, that grade school kid who got promoted to 3-dan last week.”

“So, boys or girls are fine so long as they’re grade schoolers, eh ……? Lolita complex exhibit A, that one ……”

“Just sending Ten-chan out into the world is a saintly achievement in and of itself. Thank you.”

“Think maybe it’s about time the thread title got changed?”

“After being OP forever, I couldn’t care less.”

“This Trash Ryuo and wishing on cranes thing’s gotta go.”

“But, keep around the History’s Strongest Loli-Lover.”

“Agreed.”

“Get rid of the Trash Ryuo and put in something like Top Breeder?”

“Agreed with force.”

“Agreed in a flash.”

“All right, that’ll be the next thread title!”

“All set~ > Top Breeder Yaichi Kuzuryu Thread1000 History’s Strongest Loli-Lover.”

“Gr8.”

“Nicely done! Come and play Shogi against Ai at mine!”

Chairman Tsukimitsu’s cool and composed voice echoes out of the speakers in the hotel’s massive and extravagantly decorated grand hall.

“You have emerged victorious in the season’s Ryuo Title Match. Therefore, I hereby anoint you as the 30th season Dragon King, Ryuo.”

He holds up a certificate made of thick, traditional-style handmade paper.

Handing it to me, I respectfully take it with both hands.

“Congratulations.”

“Thank you.”

It’s just paper, but the certificate is heavy enough to make my hands shake.

The weight of a title.

“…… This is your second time. You must familiarize yourself with this feeling.”

I guess he must’ve sensed my nerves because the chairman switches off the microphone and whispers into my ear, “I’m not so sure. I’ve still got a lot to learn ……”

Coming up with that was all my terrified brain could do after getting teased by the Eternal Meijin.

I also meet Sasari Oga’s eyes, the chairman’s secretary looming behind him like a shadow, currently holding a large empty tray painted with many layers of black lacquer (where the certificate used to be). She gives me a soft smile. The corners of my eyes start heating up as memories start coming back to me of the little nudge she gave me just before the rematch of the Fourth Ryuo Title Match.

Then I step over to stand next to the chairman with the certificate in my hands so the photographers have a chance to take a few pictures.

The chairman and I exchange words back and forth amidst all the smiles and camera flashes.

“I was wondering, chairman. With you being blind and all, how do you read the certificate?”

“I have done this ceremony enough times to have the terminology memorized. The format itself is set, so only the vocabulary and names are changed for each one.”

“That explains it.”

“I remember being on the receiving end long ago, but recently I have always been behind the microphone. It would be nice to stand on the receiving end for a change.”

That got me to crack a smile at first, but his tone cut right through me. I freeze, that grin stuck on my face.

He has to contend with his handicap, but Chairman Tsukimitsu is still an active player and also has an A ranking. I wouldn’t be surprised if he did claim a title …… He’s still in the running to challenge the Meijin in this year’s placement matches too ……

On a side note, regarding titles, the Ryuo gets anointed, but Big Sis was conferred the Women’s Throne title at the Conferring Ceremony yesterday.

The Meijin gets presided, the King gets bestowed and the Throne gets granted.

It’s interesting how the certificates say pretty much the same thing, but the wording changes for each one.

Next up, the president of the newspaper company that has the rights to the Ryuo Title Match presents me with the Ryuo Cup (formally known as the Chichibunomiya Memorial Cup) and my prize money.

Altogether: 43,200,000 yen.

–– Including last year’s prize money, I’ve made almost 100 million ……

It’s said that the average businessman makes 200 million yen during their career, so I’ve almost reached the halfway point and I’m still seventeen. All I’m doing is playing the game I love …… Almost doesn’t feel real.

That’s when I notice someone looking up at me from below the stage.

“! ………… Master ……”

My Master, Kousuke Kiyotaki 9-dan, is quietly grinning at me from a little ways away.

His eyes are glistening from beneath his glasses, which is making me have to start fighting back tears.

If I’d never met him …… What would I be doing right now? Where would I be?

“And now, it is time to present the Ryuo with flowers,” Chairman Tsukimitsu says to the microphone and–––.

The main doors to this grand hall capable of holding a good thousand people swing open as three girls walk in accompanied by music that gets played all the time at wedding ceremonies …… which is fine, but.

“Huuuh?! Isn’t that ……?”

The crowd parts for her to walk right down the center–––a tiny little girl.

“Walking at the head of the group is the Ryuo’s first apprentice, Ai Hinatsuru Women’s League 2-kyu. She displayed a marvelous sense for offensive timing in yesterday’s Women’s Legend Preliminary Match as this young prodigy claimed a decisive victory in her debut. At the same time, she supports the Ryuo on a day-to-day basis as his precious live-in apprentice. Currently ten years old!”

Ai is wearing a long, flowy white dress.

Yes, one that wouldn’t look out of place at a wedding ……

“Behind her is Ai Yashajin Women’s League 1-kyu, another one of the Ryuo’s apprentices. Qualifying for this season’s Mynavi Open quarterfinals, she has become the Women’s League’s Cinderella. Also ten years old!”

Although her dress is mostly black, this one looks like a wedding dress, too.

“And the last in line is …… someone who needs no introduction. Holding two Women’s Titles and the first female ever to join the Sub League’s 3-dan Division, she has garnered a great deal of press coverage after defending her Women’s Throne title for the fourth year running and underwent the Conferring Ceremony yesterday. The most recognizable name in today’s Shogi world, Naniwa’s Snow White–––Ginko Sora 3-dan, currently fifteen!!”

For some reason, Big Sis is also wearing something pretty close to a wedding dress as all three have bundles of flowers that look like bouquets in their arms.

Sure, I have strong relationships with all three, so any one of them is qualified to be the one to present me with the ceremonial flowers but ……

But, why?! Why did the chairman have to tack on their ages at the end like that?!

“Now, Ryuo.”

Holding the microphone away from me with one hand, he puts the other on my shoulder and whispers into my ear so no one else could hear him.

“Whose flowers are you going to take?”

“?! Whose ……?”

I’m sure the chairman just wanted to sound cool, but …… There’s nothing cool about this situation at all.

“Master? You’ll take my bouquet, right?”

Ai Hinatsuru, my first apprentice’s faith in me is unwavering.

“I-I’m not here …… because I wanted to be the one to give you the flowers, Sensei. But, everyone said the ceremony would be so depressing if I weren’t here to do it …… Be grateful I came all this way and hurry up and take them, you jerk!!”

Ai Yashajin looks away like she’s angry about something and thrusts the flowers out at me like a rapier.

“Ten seconds …… Nine, eight, seven, six––––––.”

As for Big Sis, she starts counting down the seconds.

This is more pressure than the late stages of a title match. I’m trembling ……!

––What am I supposed to do?! Three choices …… Which one is right?!

Hundreds of eyes are trained on me from all over the grand hall. Journalists zoom in their cameras. My apprentices are applying pressure. Big Sis’s voice, counting seconds one by one …… With all of that bearing down on me at once, I desperately set to reading.

Read.

Read. Read. Read. Readreadreadreadreadreadreadreadreadread ………

Then––––––I found it! I choose the fourth choice!

“This! Here is my answerrrrrrrrrrr––––––!!”

“?!”

Holding my arms out wide, I jump off the stage and collect all three bouquets at once!

(Take all bouquets at the same time.)

In that moment, I reversed the check path reversal.

“…… My word. Indecisive even under the perfect circumstances.”

“After all the chairman went through to provide a push, you find a way to make it all fall apart. Trash among trash, that’s what you are.”

Chairman Tsukimitsu shrugs as Ms. Oga lets out a long, frustrated sigh. Well, don’t expect any thank yous out of me!

“Mmgh~ ……!”

“…… Humph.”

“……… Tsk!”

Both my apprentices and Big Sis are making faces like they got forced into a Repetition Draw on offense. In other words, they’re not happy.

Shogi players love playing Shogi more than anything. Living in a world where everything is as cut and dry as win or lose, we develop the bad habit of making every little thing into a competition. This here has nothing to do with how they feel about me but more wanting to be prioritized, to beat the others or they’ll get angry about it. The worst ……!

“W-Well, I’ve got to say all of you are looking very cute!”

All three bouquets in my arms and the biggest smile I can muster on my face, I force the conversation in a new direction.

“Seriously, those dresses are spectacular!! They’re perfect for you! Did you borrow them from the hotel’s wedding chapel?”

“They are all designed by my hand,” an elegant voice echoes through the hall as a woman enters accompanied by a young man escorting her.

“That’s Women’s Legend, Rina Shakando ……!”

“Which means the man leading her by the hand must be Ayumu Kannabe 6-dan …… Aren’t they the picture-perfect Master and apprentice ……?”

Whispers and impressed sighs start coming from all over the room.

The woman making a grand entrance dressed like someone straight out of some ancient dynasty is a Women’s League Title holder, a living legend known as the Eternal Queen.

Owning her own fashion brand as well as running her own shop out of her Shogi classroom in Harajuku, Ms. Shakando is one of the most unique Shogi players around.

She has such an overwhelming presence that even Big Sis listens to what she has to say. Now that rare woman is pointing to each of the three girls with a fan that looks more like a peacock feather and starts describing each of her creations with pride.

“The bases were such high caliber that every moment spent coordinating was very much worth the time. There is no higher standard of beauty that these three are displaying, don’t you agree?”

“Yes! Yes! I totally agree!!” I yell loud enough to make sure the three of them hear me. “All of you are at least a hundred times cuter than usual! It made my decision so much harder~! That’s Ms. Shakando for you. There’s no mistaking her work.”

“Fufu. ’Tis the season for professional Shogi players to be distraught. Presenting beautiful flowers such as these does much to lighten the celebratory mood, do they not?”

“……!”

Now that she pointed it out, the air in here is heavy …… It’s far too tense to be called an award ceremony, for sure.

I know exactly why. It’s always this way this time of year.

“Although it cannot be helped …… I simply wanted to soothe the atmosphere. After all, my beloved disciple is to receive an award of his own this day. Yes? God Cauldron.”

“Yes, Master.”

Ayumu, graciously bowing before her, won Group 6 of the Ryuo Title Match Preliminaries.

All of the group winners have gathered at this Anointing Ceremony to be recognized. That could be why Ayumu is pulling out all the stops …… You know that picture of Napoleon when he became emperor in the history books? That’s Ayumu right now.

But everyone here is going along with his flashy outfit.

Ayumu may have lost to the Meijin the final Ryuo Title Match Qualifier, but his bold fighting style made him into a star player. This bizarreness is just making his name spread faster in the Shogi world.

Meijin Apparent.

For young Shogi pros, his nickname has to induce both expectations and fear at the same time. Though he still refers to himself as the silver saint god something or other ……

Said Ayumu looks up at me with a competitive spark in his eyes and says, “All I did was conquer the lowest ranking group, number 6. The divide between us is still far too great, Dragkin …… But, don’t you dare look away! For the season I claim your head is upon us!!”

He still calls me that.

“I’m only above you in the Ryuo League, remember? You’ve got better records than me everywhere else, have played more league matches and even have a better winning percentage. You’re so far ahead of me that there’s no point comparing ……”

Admitting it out loud really hurts.

“That is due to your right to bypass the preliminaries as the titleholder and the fact that your title constantly aligns you with only the higher-ranking players.”

“But, I still can’t measure up to your over seventy-five percent win rate.”

“If I may, my darling apprentice possesses a one hundred percent win rate in placement matches. Though it’s plainly obvious, that is the best in recorded history,” Ms. Shakando chimes in with pride.

In other words, Ayumu has won every single one of his nearly thirty placement matches since he turned pro. Sir Ayumu is just too strong in placement matches.

“You’re turning him into one heck of a beast ……”

“Because I’m raising him to meet my ideals. Players strong in placement matches are the players closest to the Meijin. Though I hesitate to say this at the Ryuo’s Anointment Ceremony, old types like us believe that the title of Meijin is the one to be revered and thus the one to strive for.”

I’m pretty sure I agree with that, actually.

Even I dreamt of being the Meijin back when I was a kid (just above being the receptionist at a hot spring bathhouse). The status of Meijin holds a special place in the hearts of everyone who plays Shogi.

Placement Matches are the long, hard-fought road of battles leading to that position.

Since those battles take place throughout the year, it takes a very long time to claim the right to challenge the Meijin. It’s completely different from the Ryuo League, where someone can come out of nowhere and claim it with one quick surge.

Overall ranking is divided into five different classes spanning from C-2 all the way up to A, and you can only be promoted once per year.

Basically, it takes at least five years to even have a shot.

Since turning pro, Ayumu has been getting promoted nonstop without hitting a single roadblock. That’s the main reason people call him the Meijin Apparent.

“Aren’t you the only person left undefeated in B-2 this season? Your promotion is pretty much in the bag already. Two months from now you’ll be in B-1 as Ayumu Kannabe 7-dan.”

“My placement is rather low. Promotion would be inconceivable without a flawless record.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Considering his Shogi skills and this current tear he’s on, I’d be willing to bet he’ll break right through without a loss.

–––Hold on a second, who’s he scheduled to play against in the final B-2 placement match again ……?

I wrack my brain to remember what was written on the placement match schedule, but Ayumu’s next words drag me back into reality.

“You’re one to talk …… Just what was that Shogi yesterday?”

“You were watching the coverage?”

Big Sis was in Tokyo for the Women’s Throne Conferring Ceremony in this same hotel yesterday while my two apprentices and I all had matches in the city, so it was like the whole Shogi family went on a field trip. Keika stayed behind because she had something to take care of in Osaka.

Everyone won their matches.

So, coming to the Anointing Ceremony today felt like a walk in the park. At least it did until the bouquet surprise just a few moments ago ……

“I saw that in the middle of the match and thought it might be a fun way to shake things up. I mean, it was getting covered all over the Internet, so I thought I should entertain the fans a bit. But, I didn’t think it’d go that well.”

“I-In the middle …… of the match ……?”

Instead of being surprised, Ayumu looks like what I just said actually hurt.

“You are saying that you broke the Natagiri 8-dan’s yagura …… Completely on the fly?!”

“Of course, a lot of research went into it. But, I was in the zone yesterday and I could see everything line up …… So, yeah, the yagura is already dead.”

Chatter!!

What I just said sent waves through the hall.

The already tense air in here feels prickly all of a sudden.

Ayumu says in disbelief, “T-the yagura …… is dead ……?”

“Yeah. Offense, defense, it doesn’t matter. Yagura castles won’t work. The balance is too lopsided. Even software won’t use it. You must have started to figure that out, right? Isn’t that why you used a snowroof against the Meijin in the Ryuo Qualifier rather than your bread and butter yagura?”

“………”

Ayumu fearfully glances around in little spurts.

Winner of the Group 1 Ryuo Preliminaries, the Meijin, is also here somewhere.

But he’s surrounded by fans per usual, so you can usually tell where he is by finding the largest clump of people in the hall.

So I highly doubt he overheard us.

“The Meijin chose to use a yagura against you, and your snowroof got checkmated in the end. But my analysis tells me that you would have won if you hadn’t messed up in the late game. Right now, I feel like I could win against anyone using a yagura, no matter who it is.”

“Dragkin, are you …… aware of how people refer to you in Kanto?”

“It’s got to be trash or loli-con or something like that, right?”

“…… May ignorance continue to shield you.”

“Come again?”

He’s not saying another word. What’s going on?

“That’s the spirit, young Ryuo. Ever so audacious,” interjects Ms. Shakando through a tight-lipped grin.

“The age of yagura is at an end …… Is it? Old types like myself will have some difficulty coming to terms with that. It was said to be the purest form of Shogi in our day, and playing any other strategy in the Meijin Title Match was considered nothing short of sacrilege ……”

“Seems like it. I remember Master telling me that a long time ago.”

I even heard that the current Meijin nearly got roasted alive because he used a Central Rook strategy the first time he challenged for the title.

It’s unbelievable nowadays, but Master said that seeing it really pissed him off when he was watching the match in real time.

That Master of mine is tapping away on his smartphone not too far away from me right now.

I bet he’s buying something in some mobile game to celebrate his apprentice getting anointed. He’s been using anything as an excuse to pour money into that game recently ……

“He seems too focused on it to have picked up anything,” I said.

Well, even if he did hear me, he’d probably just laugh it off and let it slide. I’m not lying or anything.

“Be that as it may ……”

Ms. Shakando places her hand on Ayumu’s shoulder.

“There are no longer any chinks in God Cauldron’s armor. Be it yagura or any other strategy, the Silver Chevalier is fully prepared to boldly stand against anything …… Isn’t that right?”

“Of course, my Master.”

Ayumu nods with all the confidence in the world. I can’t help but bust his chops a bit.

“Are you sure about that, Ayumu? All I have to do to turn the tables is drag out the match into a night game.”

“Fufu …… As I said, young Ryuo, he has become invulnerable. That blemish has long since been taken care of. We often play long into the night as of late, yes?” says Ms. Shakando as she runs her finger down her beloved apprentice’s chin.

“I rather enjoy being thoroughly intertwined in back and forth struggles for extended periods of time …… just like a yagura.”

“M-Mhhstaaa ……”

That’s one heck of a bond these two are showing off. It’s so out in the open, I’m getting embarrassed just watching.

Playing long into the night, being intertwined …… All of these adult ways to describe their relationship are making things awkward between Big Sis and me. My apprentices, on the other hand, haven’t made the connection yet and are just looking up with “?” in their eyes.

But that doesn’t explain ……

“Big Sis? Um, are you feeling okay? People don’t normally turn that red–––.”

“S-Shut up! I’ll end you right here!!”

“Huh?! Careful, Big Sisoufff?!”

Shoulder shaking, Big Sis spins around and flings her elbow directly into my chin. Clean hit.

I go tumbling to the floor, bouquets at all.

That night, pictures of me laying on the floor in the middle of all those flower petals were on news sites with the title Snow White Decks Ryuo at Anointing Ceremony. How’d the ceremony turn out like this ……?

Returning to Osaka right afterward, now we’ve got a party to go to over here.

“Thank you for coming tonight! Your continuous support is greatly appreciated!” says the entire Shogi family, greeting our guests as they come into the five-star hotel hosting the event. I’m used to opening night parties before title matches, but this is something completely new.

“Kiyotaki Shogi Family Celebration.”

Yes.

Master Kiyotaki is the one who set this party up.

He invited all the sponsors and fans who’ve supported us through thick and thin to come do instructional matches and have dinner with us. In other words, this is our Shogi family’s fan appreciation party.

“…… I’ve got to say, he went all out. How much did he spend on this place?”

“Of course, we’re in the red,” says Keika with a dejected look on her face. She’s been scrambling since the end of last year to get everything in place and had to stay in Osaka yesterday to make sure it all came together.

“‘We got the Ryuo, highest rankin’ player in the Shogi world, and the Dual Title Holder and strongest girl in Women’s Shogi together in the same spot, so I wanna put on the best shindig Japan’s ever seen!’ is what fath- …… what Master said.”

“It’s because Master still thinks like people back in the seventies. I’ve heard they used to break the bank to do these parties one after another.”

I’ve also heard that because they had all these fancy parties, Shogi players went from being considered gamblers to being treated as Shogi professionals.

The players themselves put the entire Shogi world on their shoulders.

“A lot of that was probably for show. But–––.”

Keika forces the tired look off her face and gives me a gentle smile.

“He was really, really happy that you beat the Meijin, Yaichi.”

“……”

I start twiddling my thumbs, too embarrassed to say anything.

I’m so glad to hear that Master was that happy for me …… My heart could just burst out of my chest.

I was nothing more than some stranger’s kid, but Master spent his own money to support me without saying a word and is now throwing this massive party.

But that’s not all. Master Kiyotaki has looked after me ever since I became a live-in apprentice, including my Shogi training. That’s hard enough to do for your own son, but he did it all for me ……

“? Is something wrong, Yaichi? Did you catch a cold?”

“Nah, just um …… I’m good.”

Keika must’ve heard me sniffling, mistook it for a runny nose, and was nice enough to ask. That mistake might’ve been on purpose, now that I think about it.

“B-But yeah …… There are all sorts of people here tonight who aren’t part of the Go and Shogi worlds. The governor and the Mayor of Osaka are here!” I say to distract her from my tears, but Keika nods like I was stating the obvious.

“You and the girls have reached the point where those people will come. You and Ginko are the faces of the Shogi world, and both of your apprentices are just starting to get noticed. Of course you’d get fans in business and political circles!”

“Which reminds me, where is Shumai-sensei? It looks like she’s not here yet.”

“She’s been banned from all Shogi events after what happened on New Year’s.”

“Ah, yeah.”

The First Move Ceremony C*ck Incident. That’d get anyone banned.

Once the greetings were over, it was on to Shogi.

“The program you received at the reception desk has a number card inside! Use that number to claim your spot for an instruction match!”

The hotel staff helps Keika do crowd control as everyone rushes toward the boards.

This event may be for the Kiyotaki Shogi family, but as is customary in Kansai where everyone is family, all the Kansai players are here.

Even though everyone is extremely busy with league matches, the Kansai Shogi family is out in full force with our father the Don of Naniwa, Tatsuo Zaou 9-dan leading the charge. Thanks to their cooperation, we were able to set it up so that all of our eager guests would be able to receive one instructional match.

But most of them are zeroed in on Big Sis and my grade school–aged apprentices.

Especially Naniwa’s Snow White, whose popularity has gone through the roof now that she’s the strongest female Shogi player in history as well as the first-ever woman to reach 3-dan in the Sub League. She’s doing three matches at once to keep up, but the line for each board is snaking toward the back of the room–––.

“Pointless.”

“Ooff ……!”

“Why make that move? Even a pig wouldn’t make a move that pointless.”

“Hooh! Ahhhh ……!!”

“Pointless. That one’s pointless, too. No point, no point, no point, pointless, pointlesspointless.”

“Gaaasp!”

“Ah, ahhhhh ……♡”

“M-Mistress …… More ……! Keep up your ruthless assault, grind me into duuust ……!”

Big Sis’s instructional matches are so strict they might as well just be called chastising. Her sharp words crack like a whip every time someone makes a mistake. It seems like the line of middle-aged male faces contorting in ecstasy will never stop. Just what kind of party is this?

“That’s too much …… is what I’d like to say, but the guests look pretty happy (?) so, I can’t just tell her not to ……”

As for Ai Hinatsuru–––.

“Here! That’s checkmate.”

“Huh?! B-But I can still do this ……”

“Yes, you can, but herehereherehereherehere …… And checkmate. Seventeen moves.”

“…………”

“That’s a checkmate, too. Thirty-five moves. It’s a little long, but it’s a simple sequence so try to figure it out on your own!”

“Uh-huh ………… Simple ………”

She’s friendly enough, but she’s checkmating everyone in the blink of an eye. Even the most confident of guests are walking away from her board hunched over on the verge of tears.

I know she’s just trying to help, so I can’t exactly tell her off, either. She’s the most vicious type of instructor out there.

“…… Compared to the other two, she’s perfect, don’t you think?”

“For sure. I never expected her to be that good ……”

Keika and I are watching a young lady dressed in black politely giving constructive criticism. What’s more, she’s doing it better than anyone else.

“I’d say that move is worth eighty points. Not too bad. But …… There’s one worth one hundred twenty on the board, so take your time and think it through.”

“…… Is … this it?”

“Yes! I knew you could find it.”

She’s making her opponents think for themselves rather than just pointing out what they should do. Once they make it to the correct answer, she showers them with compliments, all with a charming smile on her face.

“I didn’t even see that move. A good one, for sure. Looks like I’m the one who learned something.”

“N-No, no …… That was just luck! Ha ha ha!”

Since Ai Yashajin gives a lot of compliments and explains the good parts rather cutting them off and forcing information down their throats no matter how bad or bizarre her opponents’ moves were, everyone who goes to her board leaves with a satisfied smile on their face.

“…… Perfect. That instructional match was just perfect ……”

She wasn’t always like this …… Maybe some of the things I’ve been teaching her are getting through. If that’s the case, then I couldn’t be happier.

I flashed her a smile when our eyes happened to meet, but all she did was stick her tongue out and say, “Blah.” Adorable.

Just as I was basking in my apprentice’s progress–––.

A woman wearing a suit tries to sneak into Ai Yashajin’s line. So I go and put my hand on her shoulder.

“…… Akira. We’re asking that all guests do only one instructional match. You already went through Big Sis’s line, didn’t you?”

“A-Akira?! Who’s this Akira?!”

That would be you.

“Trying to hide won’t help. It’s true that a lot more women are coming to Shogi events recently, but this one is full of geezers wanting to see all the new Women’s League players everyone’s talking about. You stick out like a sore thumb, Akira. Just give up and go eat something.”

“But I want to receive My Lady’s instructional lesson as well as Miss Hinatsuru’s and Sora-sensei’s! All of the professionals here have their own specialties, so I couldn’t possibly choose a single one!”

“That doesn’t change anything.”

“Seeing my rival undergoing instructional lessons with other professionals makes me anxious! What if he’s learning some invincible technique ……?”

“You have a rival?”

“Him, right there! That little brat!”

Akira points at the boy in grade school who she always plays against in the association’s classroom. Today he’s playing against Master Kiyotaki with a four-piece handicap right now.

Even though Ai Yashajin doesn’t have to go to the association anymore after graduating from the Practice League, Akira still goes to the classroom on her days off to do instructional matches with pros and play against her rival as much as she can. She’s completely hooked on Shogi.

“Listen, Akira. I’m really happy to see that you’ve taken an interest in Shogi, but–––.”

“Then you teach me, Kuzuryu-sensei! You don’t seem to be busy at the moment.”

“Say what?! Well, I ……”

It’s true that I’m just walking around rather than doing instructional matches, but there’s a reason for it.

Just as I was trying to decide if I should explain it to her or not–––.

“Excuse me, ma’am. I would be delighted to teach you if you’ll have me.”

A tall man in a tight-fitting suit walks over to us and greets Akira with a toothy smile.

“And you are?”

“A Sub League 3-dan who just happened to be passing by.”

“Th-3-dan?! That’s one step short of a full professional!!” she yelps in surprise.

The 3-dan passing by–––Hiuma Kagamizu lowers his voice and ramps up the act.

“Well, well. You know of the Sub League …… You’re no ordinary woman, are you, ma’am?”

“Hah! I know the Shogi world like the back of my hand. I even know the difference between professionals and Women’s League players!”

“Most impressive. In that case, you might be able to execute one of my secret techniques ……”

“Really?! I won’t be satisfied unless it guarantees victory?!”

“Of course. Sub League members have mastered strategies amateurs don’t know exist. But, I’ll make an exception for you, ma’am.”

“A-an exception ……!”

Akira is so excited I’m surprised blood isn’t shooting out of her nose. Mr. Kagamizu drops his voice even lower.

“No one else can be allowed to see. I’ll prepare a board for us on that table over there. Now, shall we?”

“Yesss! The classroom will be mine!!”

Already feeling stronger, Akira starts rotating her arms as she makes a beeline for the table.

I’ve got to hand it to Mr. Kagamizu, an event staff veteran like him knows exactly how to handle difficult guests. Unfortunately, that difficult guest is here because of me …… Sigh ……

“…… Sorry about this, Mr. Kagamizu.”

“It’s fine. Titleholders stay away from instructional matches on purpose, yes? No one here thinks you are slacking off.”

“Right, I could casually sneak in a few at Mr. Oishi’s bathhouse classroom, but not when people like Zaou-sensei and Chairman Tsukimitsu are here ……”

“Guests would flock to titleholders and the most popular players, leaving lowly Sub League members like me with nothing to do. You are most gracious.”

“Huh?! Mr. Kagamizu, please don’t pray to me!”

“In all seriousness, the Shogi world exists as it is today because titleholders take pictures with fans and sign autographs for them. Even people who don’t play are starting to take notice.”

Exactly! That’s why I’m just walking around the venue. I’m doing my duty as the Ryuo!!

“…… Well, fans haven’t exactly been swamping you today from what I’ve seen ……”

“I know, right? I guess they’re still mad at me for stopping the Meijin from getting that Eternal Septuple title when everyone and their mother was rooting for him. I’m the villain now.”

“Don’t get so down on yourself. People don’t hate you or anything …… They’re just a little scared.”

“Scared? Of me?”

“Defeating the Meijin the way you did and staying unbeaten since then? Yaichi, do you know what people have been calling you recently?”

“Nah, I haven’t really looked online ……”

I’ve always felt like the Internet’s punching bag, but the entire country nailed me with a full combo after I fought against the Meijin. It was so traumatic I haven’t been on the message boards in a while.

“Now that I think about it, Ayumu said something about that, too. What am I being called? It was always something like trash or loli-con up until now, but …… Don’t tell me it’s gotten worse?!”

“…… Well, I’m sure you’ll find out sooner or later.”

I could almost see the argument play out on his face, but he didn’t tell me in the end. Why? Does that mean it’s something too embarrassing to say in person?!

I wanna know …… But, the Internet is scary!

“Um …… I’m sorry about this, Mr. Kagamizu.”

Keika, who overheard our conversation, comes up to us and lowers her head in a deep bow.

“You’ve been so busy helping us manage the event, I hate to ask you to also take part in instructional matches–––.”

“Quite the opposite, Keika.”

Mr. Kagamizu cuts her off in midsentence and gently smiles.

“As a Sub League member from the middle of nowhere living on his own, I can’t let job opportunities like this pass me by. I’m truly grateful that Kiyotaki-sensei always lets me know when plans are in the works.”

“Well, if you’re willing say it like that ……”

For the most part, Sub League members are forbidden to do part-time jobs. The exceptions are for things that involve Shogi, like match recording and helping out at events like this.

Even so, Sub League members normally never show up at Shogi family celebrations like this one without being part of the family itself.

The fact that Master contacted him directly shows how much he trusts him as well as his hopes for Mr. Kagamizu in the future.

Though I’m sure coming to one of these celebrations as a Sub League member hurts.

But of course, there will be people who say, “If it hurts that bad, turn pro already!”

“Oi! How long are you going to stand around chatting?! Hurry up and teach me!”

“Yes, yes. I’m on my way, ma’am.”

Winking at Keika and I, Mr. Kagamizu walks over to the table where Akira is waiting.

“All right then! I’m going to do some instructional matches,” says Keika, enthusiastically pumping her arms.

“Someone has to cheer up the guests Ai and Ginko broke down!”

“For sure. Oh, Keika.”

“Yes?”

“Congrats.”

“…… Thanks.”

Watching Keika head over to the instructional match area, she’s positively glowing.

She’s always worked behind the scenes at Shogi events up until now. Just like Mr. Kagamizu.

But today, she gets to be up front, teaching the guests as a Sensei.

“…… I bet Master is thrilled. Now he can finally brag to everyone about his favorite daughter.”

Shogi is everything in the Shogi world.

No matter how nice you are, how smart or good-looking, no one cares if you don’t have the Shogi skill to compete. Trying to brag about anything else will get you nowhere.

Which means that Master has never been able to brag about Keika.

He could talk about me or Big Sis as much as he wanted even though we’re not connected by blood, but not his actual daughter. That had to have been rough.

–––But now, he can brag about her anytime, anywhere.

The corners of my eyes heating up again, I try to discreetly wipe them as three young voices come up from below.

“Kujuryu-sensei! Congratulations!”

“Congratulations.”

“Congwatuwayshuns!”

I glance down to find the Grade Schooler Trio, Mio Mizukoshi (10), Ayano Sadato (10) and Charlette Isoir (probably 7), dressed in their fanciest clothes looking up at me.

Maybe they’re not used to big crowds? All three look antsy.

“You came! Thank you. Did you have a chance to do an instructional match? There’s a whole bunch of snacks over there–––.”

“Um!”

Mio cuts me off as her face turns bright red.

“We brought …… presents!!”

“Come again?”

All three hold out bags tied off with cute little bows at the same time. F-For me? Presents?

The one Charlette gives me is–––.

“Oh, wow! A cloth board!”

Mio’s present is–––.

“A piece bag? A nice one!”

The present Ayano holds out for me is–––.

“And, this is a drawstring pouch to put it all in? Yep! Really cute, too!!”

Each of their personalities comes through. The fabric Ayano chose to make the pouch isn’t flashy, but the stitching is extremely precise. Mio’s has anime characters printed on it. The black stitches that make the grid on Charlette’s cloth board aren’t exactly straight but show how hard she tried to do something new and make it even more special.

Mio takes it upon herself to explain for the group.

“Kuzuryu-sensei. You have to travel all around Japan for title matches, right? We wanted to help you practice Shogi no matter where you go, so we came up with this!”

“!! …… T-Thank you ……!! So …… much!!”

My already compromised tear ducts finally give out in that moment.

I just happen to have the cloth board Charlette gave me in my hand and use it to wipe my tears. There’s a chance they could leave behind little white stains, but a quick wash should get rid of them later.

“I have to say, this cloth board is really soft and smooth. Feels great ……♡”

So great, in fact, I couldn’t help but run it down my cheeks as I spoke. It would make the best face towel ever.

“Sniff sniff …… Whoa, and it smells so nice ……♡♡♡ Both the texture and the smell are so soothing♡ Charlette, what kind of fabric did you use?”

“Pwantees.”

……………………………………… Huh?

“You know, Cha? Cha wanted Masta to be hwappy! So Cha, Cha wanted to mwake her bwiggest pwantees into a Shogi bwoard! Swoft and swmooth, oui? And Cha, Cha got wots of new pwantees, so Cha had wots and wots of old pwantees. Now they’re Masta’s Shogi bwoard!”

“What? Pan ……… Huuuh?!”

“Guests receiving instructional matches and enjoying the festivities, please pardon the interruption. Our hosts for the evening would like to say a few words. Please direct your attention to the stage for a few moments.”

Frozen like a statue with Charlette’s handmade cloth board (panties ……?) against my cheek, and an announcement comes over the PA system and brings me back to reality.

That’s right! I need to get up on stage!

Ai Hinatsuru comes skipping by, waving at me with a quick, “Master!”

“S-Sorry, everyone! I have to get going …… Thanks … for these!!”

Slipping the pant- …… cloth board a grade school girl made for me into my pocket, I make for the podium and step in-between Big Sis and Ai Hinatsuru.

Big Sis keeps looking forward but buries her elbow in my side.

“You’re late. What kept you?”

“…… I was wiping my tears with panties.”

“What?”

“Representing the whole of the Kiyotaki Shogi family, Kousuke Kiyotaki would like to express his gratitude to everyone in attendance this evening.”

Ms. Oga hands the main microphone over to Master Kiyotaki before stepping aside. Then my Master steps forward to take center stage.

“Weeelp …… I don’t mean to be lookin’ down on everyone sayin’ this but …… Thank you for takin’ time out of yar busy schedules to attend my Shogi family’s celebration.”

Master gives a deep bow and the rest of us follow suit.

“It’s been eleven years now. My Shogi family started when Ginko Sora and Yaichi Kuzuryu here became my live-in apprentices. We became a small …… truly modest, almost like a real family that all fit under one roof.”

Memories come flooding back as he speaks. My heart is close to bursting, again.

Big Sis must be feeling the same way next to me. Our eyes meet for a brief second, and it felt like our minds were in sync …… That we’re both glad to have been his apprentices.

Then, Master goes on to talk about Ai Hinatsuru and Ai Yashajin.

“Those tiny apprentices of mine have gone on to defend their titles while one has raised two apprentices of his own into promisin’ Women’s League members. They’re real cuties, my granddaughters. I know I spoil them, but both are very talented young ladies and even …! They’re in the runnin’ for titles themselves!”

My first apprentice starts bobbing up and down like she’s got springs in her hips while my second makes a very graceful bow.

Ai Hinatsuru lost, but Ai Yashajin is advancing through the Mynavi Finals. Two more victories and she’ll be in the Qualifier.

Waiting beyond that is–––Queen Ginko Sora.

“It’s hard to watch members of my own Shogi family fightin’ for the same title. Probably somethin’ close to what a grandparent feels watchin’ their children and grandchildren have at it (haha).”

Warm laughter fills the room.

…… But for me, standing between the child and grandchild right now, it doesn’t feel warm at all. The bouquet thing yesterday was hard enough ……

“However, thinkin’ about it as a Shogi player, there’s no greater honor for a Shogi family to have. The greatest feelin’ in the world is watchin’ your apprentices grow up. As a player, I’m grateful to them for showin’ me that happiness can come from somethin’ other than winnin’. Thank ya!”

Master’s strong words of gratitude got a big round of applause from all over the room.

Once it died down, a gentler look appears on his face and he says, “And …… If ya’ll stick with this geezer for a moment, I have one more person to thank. The one who was there helpin’ me raise those two apprentices, my daughter.”

“……?!”

I bet she never thought she’d hear her named called tonight.

Keika watches, stunned, as Ms. Oga casually hands a bouquet of flowers to Big Sis who then presents them to her and says, “Congratulations.”

“Huh ……… What?”

Still not sure what’s happening, Keika’s eyes shrink into tiny little dots on her face.

She stayed behind in Osaka to help set up this celebration.

The rest of us put our heads together and came up with this to surprise her.

“What are you standing around for, Keika? Go on, stand next to Master.”

“Wha-! G-Ginko?!”

With a rather forceful push from Big Sis, Keika wobbles her way to Master Kiyotaki’s side with the bouquet of flowers clutched in her arms.

Master then continues as if talking directly to her.

“She’s the one who truly raised Yaichi Kuzuryu and Ginko Sora. Bein’ a Shogi player means many late nights and travelin’ across the country. My daughter was there to take my place and raise the two of them like members of our family. And, all while fightin’ tooth and nail in the Practice League …… I have no words for how grateful I am to her.”

That broke the dam, and tears start rolling down Keika’s face.

Even Master can’t keep his voice steady.

“Please allow me to introduce her to ya this evening. This is my daughter, Keika. Keika Kiyotaki …… Women’s 3-kyu! As father and daughter, we ask for your continued support!!”

That got a bigger, warmer ovation from the crowd than I’ve ever heard in my life.

It was for Big Sis and I defending our titles, to congratulate the two Ai’s for joining the Women’s League and also for Keika, all at the same time.

But above all else, it was an enthusiastic round of applause for the player, father and man who has worked his fingers to the bone for the Kansai Shogi Association, Master Kiyotaki. I’m sure of it.

Standing on that stage and listening to the never-ending torrent of applause, it was the best moment in our Shogi family’s history.

But it would all come crashing down.

The incident that would take us from the highest peak to rock bottom was about to happen.

“Thank ya so much for all the support. I’m Kousuke Kiyotaki.”

“Thank you very much! I’m Yaichi Kuzuryu!”

Master and I start at the head of each table, greeting the important people like a comedy duo in front of an audience and filling glasses one after another.

People are overjoyed when Big Sis and the girls just say hello, but we have to be entertaining despite all the cold shoulders thrown our way.

We told jokes, did tricks and even danced around in our underwear one time in the past.

Master was usually the one up front talking up a storm while I stood behind him, nodding and backing up everything he said like some paper tiger refilling glasses with beer …… But today, our roles switched.

“Hey there! All-powerful Ryuo, I’ve been waiting for you!”

“Yaichi! Can I get a picture with you!”

I was surrounded by powerful, middle-aged men in no time at all. What’s more, they’re happy to see me.

“Finally, a Kansai player is back on top of the Shogi world!”

“It’s been far too long …… Twenty years since that four-eyed demon stole the Meijin title from our beloved Seiichi Tsukimitsu ……”

“Yah, it’s been eons …… But now, I die happy.”

I’m used to them yelling things like, “Try harder!” and “Beat the Meijin already, will you?!” in my face, but today I’m getting enough nice compliments to make me queasy. Seriously, one guy is so happy to see me that he’s in tears.

“Huh? Say what? Uhh ……?”

They aren’t like the geezers who were totally plastered before I refilled their glasses …… But these elderly men are definitely tipsy and I’m not sure how to handle them.

Never having been in the situation before, I look to Master for help, but ……

“…………”

He stepped back after we finished our initial greeting.

Why? I thought to myself, but …… He might be teaching me what I’ll have to do in the future now that I’ve started a Shogi family of my own.

In that case, it’s my duty as his apprentice to meet his expectations. I turn back to the men with a big smile on my face and join in their conversation.

“Uh-umm …… Thank you. But I haven’t exactly reclaimed the Meijin title ……”

“True, but Ryuo is higher rankin’ than Meijin, in terms o’ titles anyway. Meanin’, Yaichi, ya’re better in skill and title. Ipso facto, ya got the Shogi world checkmated, yeah?”

“Well …… I guess.”

As far as the hierarchy goes.

“My oh my, Yaichi. A 9-dan already? Now you’re one of the big-wig Senseis right alongside your Master.”

“No, no, no! I still have a long way to go ……”

Chancing a peek in Master’s direction, he’s keeping quiet and doesn’t seem to want to jump in. So, he wants me to get through this on my own ……

The guests keep living it up and making even more claims.

“Alongside? He’s already passed him up!”

“Darn right! Claimed a title when ol’ Kiyotaki never could!”

“All Yaichi has to do is beat him in a league match and gratitude is paid back in full!”

Gah-hah-hah! Laughter explodes from the group of old men. Sure, they’re sloshed, but that level of dark humor isn’t even considered dark here in Osaka.

Staying modest won’t bring this conversation to an end, so I join in.

“Ha ha …… You’re right. So, by this time next year–––.”

That was the final straw.

WHAM!! That sound hit my ears like a bowling ball.

Looking around to where it came from, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

It was the sound of my Master slamming his fists into the table.

“…………?!”

Silence fills the room as echoes bounce off the walls. The men standing around me are frozen in place, jaws hanging open in shock.

Then Master yells at me with red veins pumping in his eyes.

“Whad’ya mean by next year, ehh?!! Ya sayin’ I’ll fall outta B-2, an’ ya gonna beat me in placement matches, are ya?! Well?!!”

In my ten years of living with him, not once has he ever been this furious at me.

But, it’s not just anger.

More like––– hostility.

“Some C rankin’ nobody takes a title an’ suddenly thinks he’s the best around …… Who da hell do ya think I am?! I’d sooner retire than play in C!!”

Everyone in the room gasps when the word retire cuts through the air.

“And what was that yesterday at the Anointment Ceremony, ehh?! About yagura bein’ dead, was it?! Keep ya musin’s to yarself!!”

So, he did hear me ……

Man, I wish I could take that offhanded comment back.

Master is such a hard-core member of the Static Rook party that he forbade Big Sis and I from using Ranging Rook when we were younger. What’s worse, Master’s playing style is to build up defenses so thick it’s been nicknamed ironclad.

For him, yagura isn’t just his best strategy.

It’s life itself.

And, even though I wasn’t trying to hurt anyone, I flat-out rejected it ……

“Yagura is Shogi at its finest! People say gettin’ to Meijin without perfectin’ it ain’t happenin’! It’s Shogi’s righteous path! And ya go spittin’ on it ……!”

“No, but Master–––.”

“Back talkin’, are ya? Then bring it on, Yaichi!!” Master roars as he slams his fists on the table again. “Wanna know who’s better? Let’s find out here and now where ever’body can see! Pros never turn tail from a challenge, eh!!”

“M-Master ……”

For a second, I thought Master had too much to drink.

But that wasn’t the case. He hasn’t had a single drop of alcohol today and couldn’t let this slide because he isn’t drunk.

It’s his pride as a player–––pride in having challenged the Meijin causing all this.

As active players, Master is still ranked above me in terms of placement. Putting it another way, he’s closer to the title of Meijin than I am.

His pride as a pro couldn’t handle hearing that he’d been passed up, even in jest from some amateur guy.

Then again, that was probably just the last straw.

The root cause might run deeper than that.

–––Could it be …… Jealousy?

Finally realizing that I’ve been absentmindedly carving out pieces of my Master’s heart, regret slams into me like a brick wall.

Even if it’s just in idle chitchat, even if just joining the conversation, the words alongside and passed up are taboo when it comes to competitors who can still compete.

However, there’s a reason I can’t yield.

Because–––I’m the Ryuo.

It’s my duty as a titleholder to act like it. I’m in the higher position. That’s especially true because the Ryuo is top title of them all. I couldn’t even yield to the Meijin if I wanted to. I don’t want to be stubborn. But, bowing out here would flip the Shogi world’s hierarchy on its head and, even worse, be extremely rude to the sponsors.

Then, there’s the fact that I’m not wrong about yagura in the first place.

As a pro, lying about my own Shogi convictions would go against who I am.

That’s why I couldn’t just lower my head to Master Kiyotaki. No one plays Shogi intending to lose. That would hold true if it were just the two of us, but in front of so many people in a place like this ……

“…………”

Master and I silently stare each other down.

All the good vibes from before are completely gone. A backbreaking silence fills the room.

Knowing that saying the wrong thing here could lead to something they might never be able to take back, everyone is staying silent.

The one who breaks that hopeless ice is–––

“Uhm, uhmm!”

Charlette, who made her way to Master’s side at some point, says with an innocent little lisp.

“You know, Cha? Cha wants ta plway Shogi with masta’s masta.”

She tugs at his pants, asking him to play Shogi with her.

Did she think that he was inviting me to play a match of Shogi rather than picking a fight to settle the score ……?

“Would’ya look at that! Whadda cute lil’ challenger we got here.”

The first one to react to what only the naïve Charlette could pull off was the undisputed Godfather of Kansai Shogi, Tatsuo Zaou 9-dan.

“Kousuke. Ya can play yar apprentice any ol’ time. Take up this young’un’s offer for today,” Zaou-sensei says with a huge grin as he looks at my Master. Then he says, “Guests are startin’ to get restless. I think it’s ‘bout time fer some more instructional matches.”

The Don of Naniwa’s words are final.

Master breaks off eye contact with me.

“…… Young lady, shall we go play Shogi over there on that board?”

“Shogi, yaaay!!”

Charlette looks as happy as can be as she follows him there.

I scramble to put a smile back on my face and go to reassure Ai and the other grade schoolers. Big Sis and Keika take that as their queue to go around the hall and lighten the mood. Things are back to normal before long, almost like nothing ever happened. People are having fun again, but the elderly men who set off the whole thing are too scared to say much.

The celebration came to a close on that note, as if nothing happened at all.

This is an awkward ride home to say the least.

Worry is written all over Ai’s face in the back seat of the taxi right next to me as I just sit there, numb to the world.

“…… Master? Umm …… Uhh ……”

“Yes. Everything’s okay …… You don’t have to worry,” I say to calm my apprentice down, but those words were actually for me.

Saying them out loud is the only way I can hide how shaken I am.

“That’s the thing about Master Kiyotaki, the littlest things can set him off. Some really silly stuff made him boil over back when I was a live-in apprentice, so I’m used to dealing with it. Yep.”

That’s a lie.

Sure, he would flip his lid at the most meaningless things in day-to-day life, but the little things never once got him angry at either Big Sis or me when it came to Shogi.

…… While it is true that he peed out the window after losing to me in a non-league match last year, all players understand that pain and won’t blame him for it. So that doesn’t count.

“Master has a B-2 placement match coming up, you see. But he’s been busy the past few weeks going to Big Sis’s and my award ceremonies and setting up the party so he hasn’t had time to do any Shogi research. The pressure must be getting to him ……”

“Isn’t Grandpa-sensei …… having a hard time … in the placement matches ……?”

“He sure is …… It’s because he got a demotion point last season ……”

“Demotion point?”

Ai tilts her head with a cute little fumyuu sound coming out of her mouth. That’s her “?” sign.

“The placement matches are built on a complex system. Each class has their own conditions for getting promotion points and demotion points.”

Out of all the different leagues, it’s the rules making up the placement matches that are hardest to understand.

It’s the result of rules being adjusted to match each era since they’re directly tied to a player’s lifeblood, league matches.

“I belong to the lowest ranking class, C-2. There are fifty of us in total. We get matched up against ten other members and those records determine which three players will get promoted.”

“Three?! That’s all?!”

“Well, going undefeated will get you promoted no matter what. If five of us don’t lose a single match, then all five will get promoted to C-1.”

“S-So strict ……!”

“It’s because there are so many of us. If five players go 9 wins 1 loss, then the two with the lowest placement won’t get promoted even though they had the same record.”

That’s what we in the Shogi world call hitting the ceiling.

“Um, Master? What placement ……?”

“It’s based on last season’s record. Players who came down from a higher class are at the top while the ones who promoted into that class start at the bottom.”

“That would mean all the professional Senseis have a placement, right?”

“Yep. That’s why they’re called placement matches.”

“That makes sense!”

…… Which makes my standing in the Shogi world strange because I stand at the top as the Dragon King Ryuo, but my placement is near the lowest of the low. I’m in both edges at once.

“And Master Kiyotaki is in class B-2. That’s third from the top. Only the top two can promote while the bottom five get hit with demotion points. Get two of those demotion points and you go down a class.”

Players get demoted from A and B-1 simply if they don’t win enough matches.

But all classes from B-2 and below have the point system, so players are guaranteed at least two years at that rank.

“Do demotion points stay with them forever?”

“Nah, they can get rid of them by either getting a winning record the next season or finishing at 50 percent two years in a row.”

“Win …… half?”

Ai looks confused.

Getting through the Practice League with only a handful of losses and taking down high-ranking Women’s League players in the Mynavi Open like she did, the idea of breaking even might not seem so difficult. I mean, kids her age get stronger every single day, like sleeping is all the practice they need.

But that’s not true for Master.

Players his age start losing their Shogi sense as well as physical endurance. They have to work at least twice as hard as younger players to climb back up in the rankings once they start slipping ……

“Master Kiyotaki fought hard when he was in A, but he got demoted to B-1 the season right after he failed against the Meijin for the second time and ended up falling all the way to B-2 the next season. Now that he’s got a demotion point there, he could wind up in C-1 this year.”

“He was winning in A not too long ago, so why can’t he win in the lower classes? Is he in a slump ……?”

“Part of it is his age, but …… That’s just how competitive the Shogi world is.”

A is a battle of gods. It’s where those who are in a league of their own gather to determine the best of the best.

That’s not to say B and C are a cakewalk, though.

“B-1, especially, is so competitive, it’s called the Demon’s Den.”

“Demons?!”

“It’s a place where veterans with enough skill to be in A clash with up-and-coming younger players in a series of death matches. Labels like former A Rank or challenged the Meijin don’t mean anything in there. Instead, they get hit with demoted weaklings are weak and other insults like that.”

Losing all but one match in B-1, Master managed only two wins in B-2 the next year and got a demotion point.

His A ranking from only two years earlier didn’t mean a thing.

That shock had to hurt …… It’s just … Master always acted so cheerful back then and I didn’t notice ……

“……… Could it be ……?”

“? Could what?”

“…… Maybe, maybe he was already planning to retire ……”

“Huh ……?”

“Tons of players would retire the moment they got demoted from A back in the old days. Master is pretty old-fashioned …… And he’s not just a former A ranking player. He’s a Meijin Challenger.”

Suddenly, I’m reminded just how much reverence Master has for the Meijin’s position in the Shogi world.

It wouldn’t be all that strange for him to think he wouldn’t just ruin his reputation getting demoted like this, he would also damage the Meijin’s reputation.

“B-But … Grandpa-sensei wouldn’t retire, would he? He’s never said anything about it before.”

“That’s probably …… my fault.”

“Your …… fault?”

“Yeah. I was in the 3-dan division, fighting for a chance to turn pro in junior high school the same year that Master got demoted from A. I think he didn’t announce his retirement so I could focus on my matches.”

Master has kept killing himself. All for my sake.

I’ve become Ryuo, defended my title and gone undefeated in the placement matches so far all thanks to him.

Despite that, I casually said that the one thing he treasured all his life was …… How could he not get angry?

“That’s exactly it. I was in the middle of a ten-match losing streak at this time last year, remember? But he kept cracking jokes, cheering me up …… And then I … damn it!!”

“Master ……”

Anger at my own stupidity boils over as I slam my fist down onto my knee. Ai looks at me with sadness in her eyes and holds my fist in her hands.

She didn’t say a word, but the look on her face is saying don’t blame yourself loud and clear. I let the muscles in my fist relax before gently placing that hand on my apprentice’s head.

Eyes glistening like a little puppy, my apprentice jumps into my arms.

She’s trembling, almost like she’s afraid of being abandoned on the side of the road.

Seeing her like this, it suddenly clicks.

“………… Me, too ……”

“? You …… too?”

“No, it’s just ……… I’ll probably react just like he did once you get stronger than me, Ai.”

“Uwhee?!”

Ai flies off of me, almost literally, and shakes her head no as hard as she can.

“H-How could I ever be stronger than you, Master? There’s no way!”

“But you’re already better than me at Shogi puzzles.”

“Shogi puzzles and Shogi on a board are different!”

…… So, she won’t deny that she’s better at puzzles than I am ……

This is the kind of straightforward honesty that makes kids so brutal.

Well, all players have this innocent brutality in them somewhere.

Sometimes it comes out like a breath of fresh air …… Other times it can make a lot of people angry at you.

This girl, a jumble of innocent yet brutal honesty, youthful energy and talent, says, “I sure hope Grandpa-sensei wins!”

“…… So do I. Really.”

My apprentice’s straightforward, dazzling smile is just too bright for me, so I look out the window instead.

Seeing the Kansai Shogi Association out of the corner of my eye as we drive past, it looks more like some kind of eerie wild animal.

A fierce beast that feeds off Shogi players’ misfortunes ……

Several days after the Shogi Family Celebration.

The events of that day still tormented Kousuke Kiyotaki as he played a placement match at the Kansai Shogi Association.

His opponent had just been promoted to B-2 the previous season, Kanto’s promising young player Yuuya Kobotoke 6-dan.

The man was ten years older than his own apprentice, Yaichi, but reaching B-2 in his twenties was proof of his potential. Record currently sitting at 6 wins and 1 loss, his placement put him in a favorable position to compete for promotion at third from the top.

Kousuke was, of course, devoting his full attention to the match, however–––.

“……… Haaa.”

Crossing his legs, he scratched his head and let out a long sigh.

Evening meal break long since passed, the witching hour late at night had arrived.

Thoughts of all varieties were beginning to seep into his lethargic and fatigued brain.

What truly afflicted him were memories of angrily yelling at his apprentice in front of their guests at the celebration.

Why did he say what he said given where they were ……? Why did he get angry in the first place? Kousuke couldn’t figure it out for the life of him.

“Focus up, now! Focus!”

Scolding himself out loud, Kousuke shifted his attention back to the board.

–––Won’t make much difference, though. This match is already mine.

Today’s match had evolved into a contest of yagura castles, which was Kousuke’s specialty. The ebb and flow of offense and defense had stretched on for many hours, but now victory was finally within his grasp.

Yuuya was already setting the scene for surrender and now was the time to make the memorable check to seal the match.

–––That there, this here, and …… Yah, that’ll do it with one move.

He couldn’t deny that things didn’t come as easily as when he was younger.

It took him longer to physically recover from long matches and there were times when his mental Shogi board got stuck in the middle of complicated sequences and he’d missed a checkmate or two.

If only he possessed the same kind of late game abilities that his granddaughter apprentice Ai Hinatsuru had at her disposal …… Jealousy had crept in from time to time.

–––But, it’s all good once the engine gets goin’. I can still stop these youngens in their tracks!

Kousuke saw many veteran Shogi players lose matches that they had a ninety-nine percent chance of winning on one extremely bad move in the late game back when he was new to the professional ranks.

These were not the same as bad moves when the veterans just overlooked something or read the board incorrectly.

It was worse because they’d have a momentary lapse and forget how certain pieces worked or pick up the wrong piece from their piece stand …… Losing in ways that only elderly Shogi veterans could.

“It’s all right …… Everything’s all right,” Kousuke whispered, reassuring himself in many different ways.

Age hadn’t taken a toll on him yet. He could still dominate an up-and-coming twentysomething like he was doing right now. Not only would today’s victory provide the foothold that would keep him in B-2, it would also send a message to his rivals watching his match on the live feed. Kousuke’s still in his prime. They would all know it after today. What’s more, all of the trust he had built up as a pro would get a considerable boost with this victory.

Kousuke looked up from the board and addressed the match recorder.

“Kagamizu. How much I got left?”

“One hour and fourteen minutes.”

“Alright …… Thank ya.”

That was more than enough time to read all the way to checkmate.

–––I’ve won for sure. Except, I can’t let my guard down.

Readjusting his posture to sit on his ankles, Kousuke focused on the board for one last read.

And–––.

“Oh?”

A move he hadn’t seen before caught his eye, a fantastic move.

––– Overlookin’ a beauty like that …… It’d be the perfect way to finish this.

Kousuke thought with a grin and decided to change course. This finishing blow would be tonight’s exclamation mark, a blaze of glory that would simultaneously restore his relationship with his apprentice and raise his spirits.

“Huuh?!”

Yuuya looked at the board several times in disbelief once Kousuke snapped the piece in place.

However–––the young man gave no signs of surrender.

Confused, Kousuke set to reading the board one more time.

“Agh ……?!”

It felt as though every drop of blood in his body had vanished.

What Kousuke thought to be his crowning moment actually was an extremely bad move that left him open to checkmate.

“……………”

Kousuke looked to the heavens and placed his hand on his piece stand, signaling his intent to surrender.

The victory that was in his grasp had slipped through his fingers …… by making a mistake that could only be explained by forgetting how pieces work, a truly pathetic way to lose.

I left Ai with Keika and came to the association once I was sure dinner break was over.

The reason I went out of my way to make sure is simple, so I wouldn’t accidentally bump into Master.

Poking my head into the Player’s Room, the mood flips like a light switch. Everyone in here saw what happened between me and my Master the day before yesterday, so that’s a given.

At the same time, no one is bringing it up. Honestly, I’m glad.

Everyone huddled around the analysis boards is saying that Master has a good lead and things will only get better …… After a while, I relax enough to start cracking jokes.

Indeed, it looks like Master has this one in the bag with every passing move.

Just one more move. Play it, and there’ll be no way he can lose–––.

But the horrible way it ended has everyone around the boards frozen in disbelief.

“H-How ……?”

I was so sure he was going to win that I couldn’t believe my eyes when he lost.

Sure, it was the late game, but to be checkmated with that much waiting time left …… Checkmated in one.

It’s like he forgot which way the pieces go. That’s the way amateurs lose.

“Master …… H-How could Master lose like that ……?”

Pro players have a sense about how pieces move.

It’s hard to explain with words, it’s impossible for us to overlook something that simple. Because we figure out what we’re doing next in our heads without looking.

“Kiyotaki-sensei, losing like that hurts ……”

“…… Do you think maybe something’s seriously wrong with his health ……?”

“His ranking’s pretty low from last season because of that demotion point …… One more loss might be enough to get him demoted again ……”

“The Kiyotaki-sensei, demoted again? He was the Meijin Challenger five years ago, remember?”

“His Shogi hurts to watch these days ……”

Whispers start circulating all around the Player’s Room. The air in here is completely different from the usual fiery intensity. It’s more of a worn-out tension, harder to breathe …… That’s what it’s like toward the end of the placement matches and it’s already starting.

That’s Master’s seventh straight loss in the placement matches. He’s only won one.

The chance Master will be demoted just went up even more.

If he was serious about what he said at the celebration, then …… it would mean retirement is starting to feel real.

“! Master ……!!”

Getting worried, I completely forget about how our current situation would make things awkward and dash out of the Player’s Room.

Racing up the stairs, I notice someone coming down.

It’s Mr. Kagamizu.

Since he was the recorder for Master’s match, he must be on his way to the third-floor offices to submit the results.

“Mr. Kagamizu! Umm ……”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s …… about my Master. How is he? Does he look angry? Did he decline a review session?”

“Nope. He did it with a smile.”

“Come again?”

I have no idea what to say.

A smile? Even though he lost?

After losing like that …… Master is smiling?

“Well, it didn’t start out that way. I don’t blame him for being depressed after getting checkmated the way he did ……”

A grimace passes over his face as if recalling the exact moment it happened.

“But, he had a smile on his face halfway through the review session. His opponent read between the lines and let Kiyotaki-sensei have the floor, nodding in agreement to everything he said. So, I’m sure he’s fine.”

“If you think so ……”

“Kiyotaki-sensei is a veteran, an experienced one at that. He’ll forget all about losing after a few rounds of sake,” says Mr. Kagamizu before giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder and continuing down the stairs.

Yes …… He’s right.

Master is three times my age and has been a pro for over thirty years. It’s not like this is the first time he’s been hit with a checkmate in one.

But, most importantly–––.

“He’s an adult.”

Yeah. Master is an adult. He’s not some teenager like Big Sis or me, and certainly not a kid like Ai Hinatsuru. Adults have ways of controlling their emotions and their hearts are tough as nails. Adults don’t pout or cry.

I bet I’m just overthinking the retirement thing, too.

What he said at the celebration was just in the heat of the moment, our war of words pushed him that far. Even if he falls to C-1, Master will keep going like he always has.

So, everything’s fine! There’s nothing for me to worry about.

Reassured, I was about to go back to the Player’s Room, but–––.

“…… Maybe I should go say hello.”

This might be the chance I need to smooth things over between us. If all goes well, he might end up saying something like: Sorry ‘bout the other day. Came to watch, did ya? As long as ya’re here, let’s go grab a bite.

Hopes soaring, I turn on my heel and head back toward the arena.

Fifth floor––– the Black Corridor is silent and still.

I recognize the pair of worn-out black leather shoes sitting on the shelf outside.

Yeah, those are Master’s shoes. They’re the only ones left.

“That means the review session is over, doesn’t it? Well …… after what happened.”

His opponent wouldn’t have much to say. He must have cleared out pretty quick. I wouldn’t have seen him if he took the elevator.

––– …… Okay then, why is Master still here?

Getting a sense that something wasn’t right, I take my shoes off as quietly as possible.

Just as I did, a weird sound came through the door.

“? …… What’s that?”

It’s not pieces.

…… Sniffle, sniffle. More like a runny nose.

Like when someone’s crying.

Board and pieces long since put away, someone is crying in there with the lights shut off.

It’s Master.

He’s all by himself, hunched over under a single lamp …… Crying.

A few words made it through the painful sobs.

It’s obvious which move he wants the mulligan for, the move he wants back.

No one can outgrow the pain of losing, being an adult doesn’t matter at all. Time doesn’t dull the pain no matter how old Shogi players get so long as they still play Shogi.

Tonight reminded me of that fact.

“No, he’s not. I have no idea where he’s gotten to.”

Morning after the B-2 placement match.

I dropped by Master’s place to pick up Ai only to find Keika with a troubled look on her face as she brought me up to speed on the situation.

“My word, he’s over 50 and still embarrassing himself …… Ai is only 10 but she was up with the sun, did some cleaning and laundry and is now covering for my father in the classroom.”

“Well, you know. Placement matches are rough ……”

Nobody would feel like coming straight home right after playing Shogi for over 13 hours straight only to lose. Keika knows all about that, but she’s probably just so worried that she has to complain to someone and I happen to be here.

Neither she nor I bring up what happened at the Award Ceremony.

Nothing about the shocking checkmate in one, nothing about Master using the “r” word, nothing at all.

While we’re talking, Big Sis shows up in her pajamas, wiping the sleep out of her eyes.

She obviously just woke up. Groggy, the prickly aura she usually gives off is nowhere to be found.

She looks totally vulnerable and kind of cute with her other arm hanging at her side …… That is, until she sees me. Her aura shoots out at full blast like she flipped a switch as she snaps her tongue.

“…… You.”

Then she disappears into the guestroom.

Keika forces a smile and says, “She was here analyzing father’s placement match until late last night …… She won’t say it out loud, but it seems she was worried enough about him to wait here.”

“Yeah. That sure sounds like Big Sis.”

The two of us used to stay up late and analyze Master’s placement matches in real time all the way to the last move back when we lived here as his live-in apprentices. We’d pretend we were pros too, battling our way through the league with more waiting time than any other, the most intense matches in the Shogi world …… To put it a different way, it felt like we were fighting alongside Master.

We called it the placement match game.

No one told us we had to, but our childish minds considered it to be our duty as his apprentices.

That and placement matches are directly linked to a Shogi player’s life as a whole.

Get demoted enough times in the placement matches and you will end up retired. Looking at it from the other angle, placement matches are the only league matches that are directly connected to retirement. That’s the biggest difference between them and the other leagues.

What’s more–––.

“Dropping down a class cuts into your salary, remember? I may have joined the Women’s League, but it’s still pretty much the same as not getting paid at all …… It’s been so hard to keep the classroom running the past few years.”

Master has been a Meijin Challenger twice and has 9-dan. That’s enough to make him a mainstay in Kansai Shogi. With a resume like that and his popularity, Master should be bringing in plenty of income outside of just playing matches.

Judging big tournaments around Osaka, instructing Shogi teams and clubs, working as an observer for title matches, the list goes on.

However, Master usually passes the cushy jobs like that onto other Kansai players.

Instead, he takes the jobs that no one wants to do, like promoting Shogi around the country. That’s how I met him for the first time, when he was judging a small tournament deep in the mountains of Fukui Prefecture doing just that.

That’s who he is. That’s my Master.

Which is exactly why …… I wanted to be Kousuke Kiyotaki’s apprentice.

“Should I take over in the classroom? If it’s just this once, no one’ll find out–––,” I say to Keika, determined to show my gratitude for everything Master’s done for me, but …

“Actually, go find him. He probably drank in Minami somewhere, knowing him.”

“Find him? Master?”

“You know where he likes to go, right Yaichi? It’s been the live-in apprentice’s job to track him down after long nights of drinking since way back when.”

“Well …… That’s true, but …”

“I can handle the classroom and I’ve got Ai to help me out.”

“Ai, yeah.”

It’s Saturday, so she doesn’t have school. And, now that she’s officially a member of the Women’s League, there shouldn’t be an issue about her being paid to play Shogi. But still ……

“You wouldn’t believe how popular she is. The older customers fawn all over her and Ai’s school is pretty close to here, so her classmates drop by saying they want to start playing as well. Oh, we have young customers who just started playing Shogi online, too–––.”

“Huh? Young customers? You’re talking about young men, aren’t you? So, more and more young men are showing up with their sights set on Ai? They’re all loli-cons! You were just going to watch them close in on her without saying a word?! Why?! They’re dangerous!!”

My face flushes redder with every word. That’s when Big Sis steps out of the guestroom fully dressed and says like the crack of a whip, “From an objective standpoint, Yaichi, you’re shadier than all of them. Loli-king.”

“Ngh ……!”

I’ve got …… no comeback!

Clap! Keika claps her hands together.

“Ginko, your timing is perfect. Take Yaichi and go find father.”

“No. Why do I have to drag this loli-con along with me–––?”

“Oh, my my. You’re all dolled up, Ginko. What’s the occasion?”

“Occasion? This is normal.”

“I wonder. Say, Yaichi, what do you think of Ginko this morning?”

Big Sis isn’t wearing her usual sailor-style school uniform. She’s in street clothes.

Definitely not one of these fancy, haughty outfits that Ms. Shakando made her wear, these are casual. Big Sis really stands out right now because this isn’t how she normally is.

“Those clothes fit really nice, and they’re pretty cute. I like that look.”

“……!”

Big Sis blushes bright red right before kicking me in the shin. That hurts, just like normal.

Did giving her a compliment piss her off somehow? Man, Big Sis is a monster when she gets up.

“Nooow, I see. Teeheehee♪”

Keika leans down and peeks up at Bis Sis’s red face and says, “Yaichi thinks you look cute in regular clothes, Ginko. He likes them, too. Isn’t that great!”

“Your ………… humph.”

Big Sis gives up on one of her usual your head on a pike threats and falls silent. Keika, however, seems to be enjoying herself.

“All right, it’s settled. Go look for father together. Oh, and yes. Take his wallet from him when you do find him and send him home in a taxi. After that, go and enjoy yourselves on a date. After all, you two don’t usually have days off at the same time!”

“Huuuh?! D-date ……?”

“A date, walking around Minami with Yaichi? Quit joking. That’s a punishment.”

You didn’t have to go that far.

“You could swing through Second Avenue in Dohtonbori if you want to!” Keika says, flashing a grin.

There’s an area of those hotels along Second Avenue in Dohtonbori.

I’m sure she’s joking, but …… Since we’ve already been to one before, thinking about that night makes the situation quite a bit more awkward.

Keika can joke around like this because she doesn’t know, but Big Sis said she flat out hates me to my face that night …… Nggghhh ……

Big Sis mumbles.

“…… You’ve been acting a lot like Master recently, Keika.”

“Really? How so?”

“Like a geezer.”

“A ge ……?!”

Big Sis leaves Keika frozen on the spot and heads off toward the station. Worried about Keika, I hang back for a second before following her out the door.

Only 10 minutes away from Master’s place in Noda on the Hankyu Line, it’s one of several entertainment districts in Osaka and one of the biggest tourist destinations in western Japan. Whenever an Osakan says Minami, they’re talking about the southern area around Namba.

Shinsaibashi is just to the north, and Nipponbashi is a short walk to the south. Go a bit further south and you’ll find Tsutenkaku Tower standing over Shinsakai, which is also called New World. That’s the lay of the land.

“We haven’t been here in ages.”

“Well, everything we need is in Umeda, so ……”

Also known as Kita, the area around Osaka station called Umeda is where the young people go. The Shogi Association is walking distance away from Osaka station in Fukushima. That’s why the younger generations of Shogi players choose to go north to Kita.

Compared to all the new, fancy buildings lining the streets in Umeda, Minami is a jumble of old shops and bars with no rhyme or reason at all.

Then again, this disorderly mess probably fits more with Osaka’s reputation.

Crowds of tourists are filling the streets and it’s only mid-morning.

Back when I lived with my parents in Fukui, I thought all of Osaka was going to be just like this, crowded and over-the-top signage as far as the eye can see. Signs like the Glico Marathon Runner.

“So, where should we start looking?”

“Let’s see …… How about over by the river?”

“The Dohtonbori River? Would Master go that way?”

“If he went with the flow.”

“?!”

That, that would mean he’s dead ……

“Wouldn’t it be faster to start with Ebisu Bridge or Center-Machi? That’s where all the bars are.”

“Well, maybe, but ……”

Big Sis frowns.

“The shopping arcades are roofed in over there … I don’t want to have to walk through those crowds. There’s nowhere to escape ……”

“It’s true you do stick out, Big Sis.”

Successfully defending the Ryuo title made me kind of famous, but that’s nothing compared to Big Sis’s popularity right now. Not even close.

Now that she’s the first female 3-dan ever, she’s on TV almost every day. Walking into a big crowd like this on a weekend is just asking for trouble …… Just when I was starting to get worried about her.

Squeeze.

Big Sis wraps her arm around mine and presses her cheek against my shoulder.

“Hey?! B-Big Sis ……?”

“Just so I don’t get hit on. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Her voice is so prickly she may as well be breathing cactuses.

“People will think we’re together, walking around like this, right? Turning down every single person that comes up to me would get annoying …… That’s all ……”

“I, uh, I see ……”

“…………” (squeeze)

Anyone looking at us now would just think it’s just PDA.

I mean, we’re both wearing street clothes, so no one would ever guess we’re actually Shogi players. Big Sis’s silver hair makes her look like a junior high student on a rebellious streak.

Part of me is in awe going, “Big Sis is so smart,” but the other part of me is saying, “Wouldn’t people seeing us walking arm in arm in Osaka give them a different wrong idea?” Back and forth over and over …… But I can’t say anything.

Who could ever say no to a cute girl clinging so close ……?

“Y-You’re right. There’re too many people! Yeah?”

“…… Don’t they have better things to do?”

We arrive at Ebisu Bridge, Big Sis still pressed against me as the Glico sign comes into view.

This spot is so well known for pickups and catcalls that people have dubbed it Pickup Bridge. Right now, though, it’s pretty quiet because it’s still early.

Most of the people crossing the bridge right now are tourists, student groups and, you know, …… couples.

Also, there are quite a few old guys with big sketch pads. Maybe they’re part of an art class? It’s a strange sight to see.

We lean out over the guardrail to get a higher vantage point and look around.

“Any luck, Big Sis? You see Master anywhere?”

“I don’t think he’s here.”

You’re not trying to look, are you ……?!

“But Master usually sticks to the same places, doesn’t he?”

Then, why are we here? …… Is what I should’ve asked, but it’s my fault for just following her willy-nilly. I kinda wanted to see what going on a date felt like ……

“To Hozenji Yokocho.”

“You got it.”

Go into the shopping arcade from the Ebisu Bridge entrance and Hozenji Temple is right there.

It’s a small temple devoted to the Buddhist deity Fudo and all the bars around here seem to have a great deal of faith in it.

Say Hozenji and zenzai soup is the first thing people think of.

It was in some book? Maybe a movie? A long time ago, but now a whole bunch of zenzai restaurants have set up shop in the area.

One of them is called Meoto Zenzai, which means something along the lines of soup for couples. There are small red lanterns hanging out front.

That’s where Big Sis decides to come to a sudden halt.

“I’m tired.”

“Already?! We’ve only been walking for five minutes?!”

“I’ll be waiting in this restaurant, so you go find Master, Yaichi.”

“All by myself?! I’d rather eat zenzai, too!!”

“…… Then why don’t you?”

And so, our search for Master was put on pause for the time being.

The restaurant is pretty cramped inside, but luckily there’s an open table.

It looks like most of the customers right now are foreigners. I guess they’re not used to traditional Japanese clothes because they’re taking more pictures of the restaurant’s kimono-wearing staff with their smartphones than the food.

I sit across the table from Big Sis and get our order in right away.

“Hot and cold zenzai, one of each.”

Those two things are all this place serves, so there’s no point looking at the menu. On the other hand, the food comes right away because the menu is so small.

Two bowls of hot zenzai, two bowls of cold zenzai and a plate of salted konbu kelp arrive at our table.

It doesn’t add up, does it? But, that’s right at this place.

I look over at Big Sis and say, “It’s pretty rare that one serving is two bowls, don’t you think?”

“Really?” she replies, “I’ve only ever eaten zenzai at this restaurant, so ……”

“Now that you mention it, me too …… Oh, and when it comes out for snacks served during title matches. Zenzai.”

Chewy, white dumplings in a sweet soup.

Cake could never be compared to the harmonious collaboration of soft and flaky sweet bean soup with the slippery white dumplings. That’s what makes Japanese sweets so awesome! Love it!

“Ahhh, good stuff! Zenzai is the best,” I say with a smile.

“…… It’s always a relief, seeing it at snack time during title matches.”

“I know, right! I can’t taste anything during the match, but the texture is there. I like rolling the dumplings against the roof of my mouth and feeling them push back against my teeth. It’s relaxing, I guess.”

Master might have come this way looking for exactly that, a way to relax. It’s hard to change gears on your own after fighting in a placement match all the way through the night ……

Master always comes to Minami to drink after his matches.

It was standard for Big Sis and I to go look for him the next day if he wasn’t home by lunch.

Since Master always went to bars owned by Shogi fans, they’d let him crash on a couch or something once he got too drunk to stand.

Then, once we found him, he’d give us an embarrassed smile while holding his head with a hangover and say, “No tellin’ Keika, ya hear?”

With that, he’d bring us to Meoto Zenzai and buy us whatever we wanted to eat. A bribe, obviously.

“Whatever we wanted, sure, but there are only two things on the menu,” Big Sis remarks.

“Well, now …… Don’t forget about the iced zenzai in summer,” I remind her.

Iced zenzai is basically like a messy snow cone in a bowl.

We’d order one topped with Big Sis’s favorite green tea sauce along with hot and cold zenzai to split.

The hot and cold zenzai was fine because we each got our own bowl, but the amount of iced zenzai I got depended entirely on Big Sis’s mood.

More often than not, I’d only get to sip the sweet melted ice in the bottom of the bowl …… What am I, a bug?!

“I really liked the cake at Café American,” Big Sis says nostalgically as she goes back and forth between the bowls of hot and cold zenzai.

“That was a nice place. We should go there again for old time’s sake sometime.”

“Do you think so too, Yaichi?”

“Yeah. The waitresses had cute uniforms.”

“……”

Café American is pretty famous around here.

The inside is designed to look like a 1970s cabaret with retro stuff literally hanging on the walls …… The atmosphere is for adults, through and through.

Master would buy me dessert or something as he sipped coffee and watched all the pretty waitresses go about their business to soothe his fighting spirit …… Players need a way to relax, so there’s nothing pervy about it. Nothing at all.

“The coffee that Master always drank had whiskey in it! Did you know?”

“Of course. It was on the menu.”

“He always said the best thing for a hangover is liquor! but do you think he was okay drinking that much? I mean, he’d eat less and less the more he drank ……”

“………”

Big Sis sips her zenzai soup without saying a word. I realized how awkward that was as soon as the words left my mouth.

–––If he were okay, we wouldn’t be out here looking for him.

Regretting bringing it up, I look over at Big Sis and say in a brighter tone, “Not bad, eh?”

“Yes. Just like I remember.”

I forgot I was addressing my older sister apprentice for a moment there, talking to her without the usual respectful tone, but she didn’t get angry at me. That by itself makes me happy.

It was almost noon by the time we finished our zenzai.

I stand up to go pay the bill.

And I happen to see they’re selling zenzai mix next to the register.

“That would make a good treat …… I’ll pick some up to take home.”

“You like it that much?”

“Nah, I was thinking it would be good for the next Grade Schooler Practice Group session.”

“…………”

“Wait, do kids these days even like zenzai? Ai’ll know.”

I pull out my smartphone and type out “Do elementary school students eat zenzai nowadays?” into the messenger app.

I thought Ai would be busy helping out at Master’s classroom, but the READ notification popped up right away. Maybe she’s on lunch break? Her answer comes back almost immediately.

“Zenzai? I like it, but …… Why are you bringing up zenzai?”

She added a cute cat stamp with a “?” over its head. The adorable thing makes me smile.

“Give me that.”

“Ah!”

Just as I was about to reply, Big Sis snatches my phone out of my hand like fixing a wrong move on the board at the last second and types out.

“At Meoto Zenzai in Hozenji now (^o^) I’ll get a little something for you!”

Then she smiles from ear to ear, something she never does, and takes a picture of the two of us before sending it right along with the message.

That’s a declaration of war.

“GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASP!!”

I grab my phone back and desperately race to cancel the message, but it was no use. As soon as the READ letters popped up on the screen, I knew the damage could never be undone ……

“Hey! W-What was that for?! Ai won’t understand you’re joking around, so seriously, please don’t!!”

“……” (Humph)

“You can’t just ignore me when I’m—?! Hey, you took my konbu! How am I supposed to get all this sweet out of my mouth without it?!”

The salty splash of konbu after eating sweet zenzai can’t be beat ……! Saying that I was looking forward to eating konbu after zenzai more than anything today wouldn’t be an overstatement! And now, it’s gone ……!

Big Sis knows that I like to nibble on konbu on the way home after leaving the restaurant, so she took that bit of happiness away from me on purpose! What a demon ……!

“Damn it! You’re evil! A witch! You knew I’d let my guard down, clinging to my arm like that! And I fell for it!!”

“…… Look who’s talking. Just when I thought we were having a good time together …… And all you think about is that little girl ……”

Big Sis mumbles something, but I couldn’t hear her at all.

That’s when my phone buzzed.

It’s Ai’s response.

I-is she angry? Or …… Maybe she’s sad?

What do I do if it says, Come home and explain yourself right away! or I’m never letting you inside the apartment again! ……? My hand is vibrating even harder than the phone. Terrifying.

But Ai will get even angrier at me if I don’t respond to her message within three seconds of reading it. That’s our three second rule. It’s set in stone.

Scared out of my mind, I look at the screen.

Even worse, she looks cute enough to throw out my back glancing up at me as she asks, “Master? Did you come out here to eat zenzai with Auntie while your apprentice was working hard at the classroom waiting for you to pick her up?”

She’s so cute I could die.

But …… She’s scaring me …… to death!!

“And, what is this restaurant, exactly? Meoto Zenzai? That means couple, right? So, that’s how you write that word in Chinese characters.”

“L-look, I didn’t have a choice! Master Kiyotaki has gone missing and Keika sent me out to go look for him …… Yes, Keika! If you just ask Keika, she’ll tell you–––.”

“Keika is reflecting on what she’s done,” Ai says the scariest thing in the world with a happy, little smile. That fear is what’s keeping me from asking exactly what reflecting means.

Big Sis follows me out of the restaurant (she must have picked up the check). Her mouth starts nervously twitching the moment she sees Ai and I don’t blame her.

“…… How did you get here so quickly?”

“Didn’t you know? There’s a GPS tracking chip in Master’s phone.”

“Huh?!”

Big Sis and I scream in unison. T-tracking chip?!

That means …… She already knows about the two of us going to that place in Sakuranomiya?!

“I’m only joking. And, since I’m not a Shogi piece, I can’t appear anywhere I want like coming off a piece stand. I was planning to come here for lunch anyway.”

“In Hozenji?”

“Yes. I’m meeting my father in front of the Splashing Fudo.”

“Your father?”

My voice overlaps with Big Sis once again. …… What is going on?

Turn right out of Meoto Zenzai’s front door and the Splashing Fudo is right there.

Ai can’t hide her surprise once she sees the stone statue standing in the middle of a small, shrine-like pedestal.

“Yep. Not what you expected, is it? Caked in moss like that.”

Seriously, the whole stone statue is covered in green moss from head to toe.

You can barely make out the shape of a person, but it’s the famous Splashing Fudo.

“Fudo is a god of commerce and entertainment, so you can ask him to improve your Shogi skills if you want. That’s one of the reasons Master Kiyotaki used to bring us here.”

“Really ……?!”

“Since we’re already here, might as well pay our respects.”

I grab one of the ladles set out in front of the statue and scoop some water out of the nearby basin.

It’s up on a pedestal, so I have to fling the water a little bit to reach the statue and, just like the name, it makes a splash.

“I just need to put water on it?”

“Want to try?”

“Y …… Yes!”

Taking the ladle from my hand, Ai gets up on her tiptoes.

“Haah! Haaah!”

Splish. Patter.

Some droplets of water make it to the statue’s legs, but most fall short. Adorable♡

“…… That was pathetic. Give it here.”

Big Sis snatches the ladle out of Ai’s grasp, scoops up more water and douses the statue with a plooosh!

“A-are you supposed to use that much?!”

“Hahaha. This is Osaka. Overdoing everything is how it’s done.”

“But, now, I’ll be a stronger Shogi player, right Master?! Does it do anything else?”

“I think it helps with relationships, too.”

“!!”

In that moment, a lightning bolt of tension shot to the air around us, one stronger than any before.

“I’ll splash it again, the right way this time!! Please move!!”

“You’re the one in the way, pipsqueak.”

Ai picks up another ladle and tries to force her way to the statue, but Big Sis blocks it with the one in her hand. For some reason, it turns into a sword fight from there. The battle has begun!

“H-hey you two! Fudo will punish you, treating the ladles like that?!”

“Huh? Want your head on a pike?”

“Whose fault do you think it is this is happening in the first place? He’ll be angry at you.”

While I have no idea exactly whose fault it is, I apologize just to be safe. Sorry ……

“But, how long has it been all mossy like this?”

Ladle still at the ready, Ai wonders out loud as she tilts her head toward the Fudo statue. That’s when–––.

“It was already like that when I started my training here.”

“Daddy!”

“You don’t look any worse for wear, Ai,” says Takashi Hinatsuru with a clumsy laugh. He’s Ai’s father.

Gently embracing his daughter as she jumps into his arms, he gives me a respectful nod.

“Kuzuryu-sensei, Sora-sensei, it’s nice to see you again.”

“H-hi there ……”

I throw my head down as quickly as I can, and Big Sis silently returns the bow.

This reunion is nice and all, but what is he doing all the way out here in Hozenji? …… Just before I could ask, Mr. Hinatsuru’s eyebrows jump as if he just remembered something and says, “Kiyotaki-sensei is resting at the bar. Please, follow me.”

The Shouben Tanbatei, a Japanesey place that also serves food.

Obviously, I did a double take as soon as I heard the name.

“Sh-shoben? As in going number one?”

“Actually, it means to correctly distinguish right from wrong. But, the name does appeal to the Osakan sense of humor.”

Stepping through the curtain-less door, the kitchen staff are busy prepping for the day. Several men wearing white bandannas are working hard without saying a single word.

Mr. Hinatsuru motions us to take a seat at the counter and all three of us sit down in a row. I’m in the middle, so it’s less than comfortable. I’m squeezed in pincerlike. Eager to get out of here as soon as possible, I cut to the chase.

“So, where’s Master?”

“Snoozing on the second floor. I’ll have someone go up and get him.”

Giving orders to someone on the staff, he steps up behind the counter across from us and pours three cups of tea.

“Now then, I’ll explain from the beginning–––.”

“We already know. Master drank himself to sleep here, right?” says Big Sis bluntly.

Mr. Hinatsuru just smiles and doesn’t say another word.

There is another question that needs asking. I take a sip of my tea and bring it up.

“If I may …… Mr. Hinatsuru, what are you doing in Hozenji?”

“I trained to become a chef right here in this very kitchen. Hozenji Yokocho is hallowed ground for us culinary artisans.”

“Say what?!”

“The man who owns this bar …… And my Master, by the way, fell ill a few days ago. There weren’t enough people to cover for him, so I came to help out.”

He pauses for a moment before saying, “Oh, yes,” like something popped into his head. “Do you know the song Moon Over Hozenji Yokocho? It’s the story of a young chef living and working in Hozenji Yokocho who journeys forth to continue his training elsewhere with only a single knife at his side.”

“Beats me.”

“Sorry, but I don’t ……”

Big Sis and I tilt our heads to the side.

“R-really …………… Well, it is an older song, after all ……”

Mr. Hinatsuru’s shoulders sink, looking dejectedly at the floor and taking a deep breath before continuing his story.

“My journey began here at Honzenji when I was in training, too. A request for young chefs came in from an inn on the North Coast. They were understaffed and looking for temporary help, a six-month contract to be exact. I must’ve been 25, maybe?”

“Was that inn–––?”

“Yes. The Hinatsuru.”

I knew that Ai’s father married into their family, but …… So, that’s how they met.

“The Hinatsuru’s kitchens were a disaster at the time. The former manager got a little too enthusiastic when a new major highway was completed and booked way too many guests, which put extreme pressure on the kitchen staff. Seriously, it was like a medical tent in the middle of a war zone in there …… I went in thinking I’d be the extra young guy helping out but wound up working as the head chef.”

“But you worked really hard, didn’t you Daddy? Mom always said the inn would’ve gone broke a long time ago if you never came! And if you’re going to get married, choose someone young with enough skill to know what they’re doing!”

Ai’s eyes sparkle as she looks my way for some reason.

Her father gives me a shameful grimace and says, “While my daughter may be exaggerating, it’s true that I worked as if my life depended on it. I didn’t return to the employee housing facility once during my first three months, sleeping in the storage room next to the vegetables instead.”

“Sounds like a rough place to work ……”

“Working at an inn is a constant fight against the clock. That being said, the human body does have its limits. Right at the beginning of my fourth month there, during a blizzard no less, I collapsed in the kitchen still holding a knife in my hand.”

Winters on the North Coast are brutal. Being from the middle of nowhere in Fukui Prefecture, I should know.

He couldn’t go to the hospital because of the snow, which of course also kept the doctors from coming to him. How did Mr. Hinatsuru get out of those dire straits ……? My palms are sweating just listening to him, and I’m not the only one on the edge of my seat.

Ai must be hearing this story for the first time, too, because she leans over the counter and yells “Daddy! Were you okay?!”

“Rather than taking me back to staff housing, I was carried from the kitchen all the way to the Hinatsuru family house. I suppose they were worried about something happening to someone else’s employee under their watch, but they took great care of me until the streets were clear enough to call a doctor. That’s when–––.”

“When?”

He takes a glance at Ai before saying with a mix of so many emotions.

“When this one’s mother ………… snatched me up ……”

He said snatched!

Just now, he said snatched, right?!

Whether his daughter understood the meaning behind her father’s choice of words or not, she seemed to be innocently enjoying the story.

“Oh, wow! You and mom getting married was destiny!”

“…… Hahaha …………… You’re the spitting image of your mother, Ai ……”

“Do you really think so?”

No doubt.

“Let me get this straight. You ended up marrying the person who took care of you after you collapsed?”

“In the end, yes …… But you have to remember that she was the heir to a well-established and highly successful inn, and I was just a chef. Not only were we from completely different worlds, our ages were fairly far apart. Not to mention, I was technically still in training. Akina …… Ai’s mother approached me first, saying I want you to marry me and stay here at the Hinatsuru, but I turned her down on the spot, finished my contract and came back to Osaka–––.”

Of course, he would. No matter how beautiful or rich the girl is, anyone would be scared before any joy set in if she opened with a marriage proposal. And doesn’t the patient normally fall for the caregiver in that situation? Very scary.

“But, that’s not where the story ends, is it?”

“That it is not. You see ……… She followed me all the way here.”

“Here?! A-as in …… Hozenji Yokocho here?! Ai’s mother?!”

“She dropped out of high school, renounced all ties to her family and insisted on working together with me.”

T-that super manager who’s devoted her life to that inn …… ran away from home?!

“Then?! What then?! What happened next?!”

“I couldn’t just kick her out on the streets, so she ended up living with me at my apartment ……”

“How old was Mrs. Hinatsuru back then?”

“17.”

S-s, 17?! That means …… he was living with a high school girl in the middle of Osaka?!

“Isn’t that against the law?!”

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, Kuzuryu-sensei, it’s far more acceptable than your current situation.”

“That’s right, loli-con. Die and repent in the afterlife, loli-con.”

I’m taking fire from both Mr. Hinatsuru and Big Sis. Kill me now.

Suddenly, Ai yells at the top of her lungs.

“Master does not have a Lolita complex! Also, that was a wonderful story about two people brought together by the Splashing Fudo! You think so too, right Daddy? That’s why you married Mom, isn’t it?!”

“W-well, that may be true …… But, thinking about it rationally, the lengths she went to back then certainly weren’t normal–––.”

“I’m telling Mom!”

“And there isn’t a better love story in the world, yep.”

Mr. Hinatsuru ……

Seeing another man totally whipped by his wife and daughter is making me embarrassed for him. He needs to stand up for himself more.

Me? I firmly believe the husband needs to wear the pants.

“Well, I have to admit that if the younger girl threw her life away all to be with me, I couldn’t say no. Any man would feel it right in their heart. Like, if Charlette gave up her French citizenship to be with me, I’d probably marry her right then and thereeeeee—ow! That hurts! Big Sis, that’s my fooooota-ta-ta-oowwwww!!”

“If it’s not one it’s another …… Men are all loli-cons …… All of them can just die ……,”

Even Ai’s upset, saying, “Why’s Charlette your example and not me?!”

“Isn’t Master awfully late?”

“Oww …… Y-Yes, he is. It shouldn’t take this long ……”

We’ve been here for quite a while now.

Mr. Hinatsuru sent someone back upstairs to check on him, but–––.

“…… It seems that Kiyotaki-sensei showed himself out the back door.”

“He what?!”

Well, I kind of expected this.

He probably thought seeing us would be too awkward. That’s how it always is after losing a match. I can relate so much, painfully so, that I don’t blame him for sneaking out.

And …… Honestly, I’m relieved.

Seeing my Master get checkmated last night was about as shocking as witnessing my father having an accident. I still need time to come to grips with him losing his skills with age.

That’s why I don’t want to see him just yet. Surely, Big Sis feels the same way.

“Kiyotaki-sensei left behind enough money to cover lunch and a taxi for all of you. I’ve got to pull out all the stops as a thank you for taking care of my daughter as well.”

Mr. Hinatsuru proceeded to whip up lunch for us. It was delicious, but Ai refusing to make me dinner when we got home was rough.

“…… Sorry ‘bout that.”

Not three steps in the door and Keika pokes her head out of the kitchen.

“You should be apologizing to Yaichi and Ginko, not me. They went out looking for you, so they deserve a thank you. Oh, and Ai covered for you in the classroom. Make sure she gets paid, okay?”

“…………… Water.”

“Already on the table.”

Keika disappears back into the kitchen. Holdin’ my head to keep the room from dancin’, I stagger in after her.

She ain’t keepin’ her distance ’cause she’s angry. Just the opposite, it’s ’cause she was worryin’ about me.

Bein’ nice to a competitor comin’ home after a defeat only rubs salt on the wounds.

There it is, a big pitcher of ice water sittin’ on the table. She must’ve gotten it ready when she heard me come in. That’s just like her, knowin’ I’d want ice water when I got home.

My body’s cravin’ it …… But I still pause before takin’ a gulp.

–––Drinkin’ this’ll bring back all yesterday’s memories once the buzz wears off ……

Gettin’ offed by a mistake I can’t believe I made, the demotion warnin’ light flashin’ red, fightin’ with my apprentice …… They’ll all catch up to me at once.

“………… It didn’t used to be like this in the Shogi world ……”

I plop down in a kitchen chair and groan between gulps of the buzz-killin’ water.

“What’s this? So, it was better in the good ol’ days?”

“Nah. It was horrible.”

“Huh?”

“Nobody knew the meanin’ of manners. All the vets would be yakkin’ about investin’ or the horse races at the top of their lungs from the crack of dawn. They’d change the rules about the Sub League or how matches were set up all the time just to make things easier for ‘em. Try sayin’ somethin’ and they’d shoot ya down: Rank up or shut up!”

Kansai bein’ so much weaker than Kanto only made it worse.

They treated us like a bunch of thugs …… Well, playin’ Shogi was pretty much the same as gamblin’ back then.

“Compared to those days, the Shogi world is heaven now. Chairman Tsukimitsu treats everyone fair and square. All the newbies know how to act. No one gets chatty durin’ matches. It’s set up perfectly to focus on Shogi.”

“Then, isn’t that good?”

“For me, right now, it’s hell. So much worse than back in the day.”

“Pardon? It’s heaven but it’s also hell?”

“Now that I’m the same age as those vets were …… watchin’ newbies pass ’em up one by one like they did, I understand how they felt. So much so, it hurts.”

“…… How do you mean?”

“The anxiety.”

I open the floodgates and let everythin’ I’ve been feelin’ come pourin’ out.

“Anxious that even stronger newbies are gonna show up, that kiddos will pass ’em by, that time is catchin’ up to ’em …… The anxiety never stops. The only way to deal with it was talkin’ with other players their age durin’ matches. Otherwise, the anxiousness got so bad they couldn’t take it ……”

They’d bark at everyone and anyone just to seem that much bigger. Couldn’t win at Shogi no more, so they went to the only weapon they had left, seniority, and swung it around harder than they needed to.

Now, I get it. I get their anxiousness, their fear.

“…… But, doin’ that all day won’t help against the strong youngens. They’ll pass ya sooner or later.”

What happened to the vets who held out to the bitter end back then?

They got pushed out of the Shogi world’s spotlight bit by bit …… Until their retirement got announced in a little article on the association’s home page …… And they fell off the map completely.

Then, lastly, their obituary showed up in the back corner of some Shogi magazine.

People forgot who they were and the last proof they existed showed up somewhere no one would bother lookin’.

“Shogi ain’t all that fun when ya ain’t winnin’. If it ain’t fun, ya don’t want to do research and ya can’t get psyched up for matches ……”

“………”

“But the competitor in ya never dies, so most go for gamblin’ or playin’ the stock market …… I went for gamin’ on my phone.”

I pull out my phone and admit the truth.

That rush that Shogi doesn’t give me anymore, now I’m tryin’ to get it from this screen any spare moment I got. I used to go to pachinko parlors, but nothin’ beats casually pullin’ out my phone and feelin’ that rush anywhere I want. Could be addicted, I don’t know.

With this much fun at yar fingertips, who would ever bother playin’ Shogi when ya can’t win?

These fingertips that have been used only for Shogi for decades …… Fingers that suffered through trainin’ intense enough to break fingernails and bleed now serve a high-rankin’ player that uses ’em for a quick fix.

All I got for workin’ my way up to 9-dan …… is constant fear and smartphone games to distract me from it.

Thinkin’ about it logically, it’s all too pitiful.

Even feels like sacrilege against Shogi itself.

“……… Players feelin’ their skills slip away can choose one of two paths ……”

“Two?”

“The first, do nothin’.”

“Do …… Nothing at all?”

“Yep. Not a thing.”

Rather than workin’ with others or joinin’ practice sessions, just cloak yarself in mystery.

“Ya can hide that ya’re losin’ a step if ya don’t do anythin’ about it. It makes yar opponent extra cautious, and they judge ya on what ya used to be …… They’ll see through ya eventually, sure, but until then.”

Keika didn’t ask what happened once the jig was up. ’Cause she didn’t have to.

“…… And, the other path?”

“Bow yar head to the youngens and ask for help.”

Easier sayin’ it than doin’ it.

“There are worse things than learnin’ from one of the risin’ stars. But, there ain’t that many of ’em, and they won’t see any point in workin’ with an old guy like me. I’d get turned down right away.”

“…… You’re probably right.”

“The only option I’ve got is to lower my head to Sub League members young enough to be my own kids or grandkids and ask for practice matches. They’re the only ones that’ll consider workin’ with me. Once rumors get out that I can’t even beat ‘em, word’ll spread overnight. Playin’ ’em in secret won’t make a lick ’a difference. Once that happens, my trust as a pro is as good as gone, I become the butt of everyone’s jokes …… Pretty much get tormented to death. I’d have a better chance prolongin’ my career by doin’ nothin’.”

“…………”

Looks like Keika is lost for words.

Players back in the old days chose to retire before havin’ to make a choice.

It was normal for former Meijin and Meijin Challengers, and players who spent a decent amount of time in the A rank to retire the day they got knocked out of it.

They knew the torment was comin’ and took their own lives before it started.

Except, I still felt up to fightin’ when I dropped to B-1, and that didn’t change until very recently …… Now? Of course, I don’t.

After a while, Keika started talkin’ like she’d been broodin’ over it a while.

“But …… Things can’t stay as they are, right? In that case, wouldn’t it be better to find someone, anyone, in the Sub League and ask for help? Aren’t we Kansai Shogi players known for our stubborn grit?”

“That we are. I think that’s the right path.”

“Well, then–––.”

“I can’t.”

I’ve asked myself the same thing many, probably hundreds of times.

“I ……… I just can’t do that. I can’t ……”

“……… Father ……”

“As a Meijin Challenger, that’s the one thing I ……”

The only thing I have left now is my former A rankin’. That, and the pride that comes with challengin’ the Meijin twice.

If I lose ’em …… then what’ve I got left to show for my life?

While an intense battle rages at the top, the fight to avoid demotion points in the bottom ten slots is just as fierce.

As fate would have it, players clashing on both ends of the spectrum assembled today at the Kansai Shogi Association’s Onjyoudan no Ma to decide their fate side-by-side.

Decorated veteran and face of Kansai Shogi for decades, Tatsuo Zaou already has two demotion points to his name. His struggles to obtain victory stars have continued and a loss today would bring retirement that much closer to reality.

His opponent is one of Kanto’s brightest rising stars and candidate for promotion this season, Satoru Hatomachi 5-dan. Hatomachi is a skilled player who currently has momentum on his side.

Zaou has made no attempt to hide how painful it is for him to maintain proper posture in recent years and today was no different, grimacing several times during the match.

The Shogi evolved into an aerial battle, Zaou’s specialty.

Their match proceeded at an unusually high pace with both formations being well defined before the afternoon lunch break. Zaou sat for several minutes once the players returned before signaling his intent to surrender.

When I inquired as to why the match ended so quickly during the review session, Hatomachi hesitantly offered this explanation.

“…… I’ve studied that sequence before, so ……”

“’At right? So, ’at’s a standard now.”

The match finished at 2:19 p.m.

“I played predictably, didn’ have no pizzazz,” said Zaou once the review session concluded. With this victory, Hatomachi increases his winning streak to nine matches and is within reach of promotion.

Yaichi Kuzuryu-ryuo’s match took place the next board over, and it also advanced at an unusually high speed.

Kuzuryu’s low placement leaves no room for error. One loss would all but end his chances to promote.

Although under immense pressure as the sole titleholder in C-2, his 11 consecutive victories in league matches show no sign of it.

He has garnered a great deal of attention as of late, introducing new twists like the   6 Five Knight and Single Knight Jump to his strategy of choice: the Bishop Exchange.

With Kuzuryu on offense, today’s match also became a Bishop Exchange.

His opponent was Kanto’s stalwart veteran, Keiji Souza 7-dan.

34 years’ experience as a member of C-2, he has the unusual distinction of never once receiving a demotion point during his professional career.

Gruffer Shogi fans have dubbed him the Ultimate Bouncer for his unusually strong showings against young and rising players. When asked about his nickname, Souza had this to say: “It’s an honor.”

He took it in stride with a positive outlook.

“Talented young players promote before you know it, so I may never have another chance to play against them. That’s why I make sure not to waste the chances I get.”

Souza even took a victory from the current Meijin when he belonged to C-2. The Ultimate Bouncer nickname truly isn’t just for show.

“I won’t have many opportunities to play against the youngest Ryuo in history. I’m even more excited to play against him than I was back when I fought the Meijin,” stated Souza just before the match got underway. This is their first encounter.

Kuzuryu advanced his Knight unusually early, on the 17th move.

Upon seeing Single Knight Jump, the fuel behind Kuzuryu’s recent surge, on the board, Souza spent a great deal of time considering his options before he decided to buffer his defenses and hold off the attack rather than meet it head on.

However, Kuzuryu denied him the opportunity.

19th move. Kuzuryu sacrificed a Pawn to force combat.

Gasps of surprise erupted throughout the Player’s Room once that move came to pass.

“No way?! With a Sitting King?”

“Think he’ll be okay like this?”

“Forgot to set a wall, did he?”

Initiating battle with the King still in starting position is so shockingly ingenious that even the young professionals and Sub League members analyzing the match couldn’t hide their disbelief. Standards dictate one move be spent setting up the King’s defense, so omitting it altogether is quite a leap of faith.

Though Souza wasn’t expecting it, he concluded that the formation was in his favor.

“Come!” he said with vigor as he took Kuzuryu’s Pawn.

His King well-defended, Souza reasoned that he could outlast a frontal assault should worse come to worse …… It was a decision he would come to regret.

“Not only was the Offense King sitting, the Golds were still in place. On top of that, a Silver Wall. That’s a picture-perfect example of a bad formation. My own Master would have disowned me if I played that way during my training days.”

Indeed, no one would have believed the Ryuo, the man on top of the Shogi world, was the one behind the board if his name had not been revealed to the audience. His formation ignored Shogi theory to the point most would believe an amateur was using it.

“However, the deeper I read …… I realized I couldn’t break it.”

Sota Kunugi 3-dan, working as match recorder, had this to say after the match.

“There’s a saying that goes Avoid the Sitting King, but the King’s defenses should be looked at relatively. Thinking the stronger the better is outdated.”

It seems that to the first elementary school aged 3-dan ever, defense doesn’t have the absolute value that modern Shogi theory states.

Kuzuryu pushed forward with the attack as if to prove this new way of thinking holds water and stripped the Defending King of its defenses in the blink of an eye. As opposed to Souza’s once-protected King now naked on the board, Kuzuryu’s starting formation was mostly intact.

The rush was on.

The 59th move. Kuzuryu was quick to advance his Rook across the board.

It landed like a straightforward knockout punch in a boxing match, Kuzuryu’s right fist connecting with Souza’s soft chin. His surrender was just a matter of time.

The players combined for 67 moves.

Of Souza’s six hours of waiting time, he used a mere one hour and seventeen minutes. The Ultimate Bouncer was overwhelmed before he could figure out where to use it.

Many in the Player’s Room who chided Kuzuryu’s strategy were now staring blankly at the monitor in disbelief at the results.

“He’s too strong,” was all Hatomachi could say upon returning to the Player’s Room following his own match. He left the association and boarded the train back to Kanto without taking a seat.

There was no trace of joy or relief in his eyes upon his exit.

Kousuke Kiyotaki stopped by the association and happened to spot Keiji Souza with a cigarette in the second-floor smoking room, a corner of the floor walled off with glass, and walked over to say hello.

“Kousuke ……”

“Talkin’ to your opponent’s Master in the middle of a match got ya feelin’ uneasy? I’m not tryin’ to figure out yar next move for him or anythin’.”

Kousuke and Keiji.

Though the two belonged to Kansai and Kanto respectively, they maintained a close relationship after becoming professionals in the same year. Whenever one was in town for a match, the other would invite him out for drinks or to play a few rounds of mahjong.

In fact, Kousuke had come to the association today for that very reason. However, Souza’s next words were the last thing he expected to hear.

“No. The match is already over.”

“It what?! It’s only four in the afternoon!”

Kousuke was on the verge of taking a dig at his old buddy, “Get checkmated in one like me?” However, the look on Keiji’s face stopped him cold.

Only then did he notice.

The cigarette was lit, but Keiji had never once put it up to his lips.

It was pinned between his fingers with the trail of wispy white smoke rising from the tip like an incense stick–––.

“…… The thing is, I’ve always been confident that I would survive. That was true when the current Meijin’s generation arrived on the scene, the one after that, and the next one, too. Don’t get me wrong, I never thought I would rise to the top. But I never thought I was going to be killed off …… It didn’t matter what bizarre strategy or new technique my opponents threw at me, I could figure them out. As they say, Shogi is a conversation, and I was a full participant.”

Kousuke found this strange.

Keiji hardly ever said a word following a match.

“But today, Kousuke. My opponent today …… It’s hard for me to say it because he’s your apprentice and all, but ……”

A hint of fear made his voice tremble as he trailed off.

“He’s not a human being like us. That’s an alien or a robot, I tell you.”

“……!!”

Kousuke was taken aback.

Keiji Souza was no dominant force. He was certainly no carnivore at the top of the food chain on the savannah that was the Shogi world.

However, the Keiji he knew was strong enough to contend with those ravenous beasts. That strength came from an ironclad will to survive.

And now, that unyielding spirit had been completely shattered.

“But, then again …… It might be better that it was your apprentice in the end, Kousuke. Had he been anyone else’s, I’d probably want to go right up to them and give them a piece of my mind: How could you have done something so stupid! …… Raising the monster that will devour us all.”

The cigarette had become little more than a stick of ash by the time Keiji extinguished it in the ashtray.

“…… Keiji, ya wouldn’t be–––.”

“Kousuke.”

“Hm?”

“It was a great run. Thanks for being part of it.”

When that year’s placement matches came to a close …

Keiji Souza received his first ever demotion point and immediately announced his decision to become a Free Class Shogi player.

The day after my placement match.

Master sent everyone a message out of the blue that said, “I’ve got news,” and all of us gathered at his place. Even his granddaughter apprentices are here.

We’d been going out of our way to avoid each other for a while, so him sending out that message has everyone on edge.

Was today going to be the day he says the placement matches got to be too much for him and he’s going to talk about retirement ……?

Except, as he looks at all of us in turn, Master goes in a completely different direction.

“Countin’ Women’s League members, our family tree has six. That’s exactly even.”

An even number.

Big Sis and I lock eyes the moment he said it.

“I was thinkin’ we’d start doin’ regular practice sessions as a family. What’cha think?”

–––Just as I thought, he is proposing family sessions ……

Tightknit, relatively large Shogi families sometimes gather together like this and try to level up the whole family tree at once.

The problem with ours is …… We may all be part of the Kiyotaki tree, but our playing styles and rankings are all over the place. Some of us will get more out of a family practice session than others.

Players only agree to do practice sessions at all because there’s merit for both parties, but family sessions only happen because they’re family. The whole thing falls apart depending on how each member reacts to the idea–––.

“Can we, please! I want to practice with everyone!!” says Ai Hinatsuru, sitting on her ankles at the end of the table. Getting up on her knees and all for it, she reaches for Ai Yashajin sitting next to her, grabs her arm and says, “You want to, too, right, Ten-chan?! Right?!”

“…… I ……”

I can tell that she’s being as respectful to Master Kiyotaki as possible, but her eyes keep jumping to where Big Sis is sitting in the corner.

“So long as there is a possibility we may meet in the Mynavi Open, I would like to avoid participating in the same practice sessions.”

“Indeed …… A most valid opinion.”

Akira must’ve been listening in on our conversation from the hallway because no sooner did her voice come through the door than she slides it open with a bang!

“My Lady! Please allow me to participate in your stead!!”

“Huh? That would never be allowed. Know your place, Akira.”

“B-But I only wish to improve! May I observe at the very least ……? I’ll record the matches, keep time, whatever you need, just please let me take paaaart!!!”

Akira takes hold of Ai’s hands, pleading her case.

Unfortunately for her, Ai yells, “Get your hands off me!” and kicks with her feet.

Master apologetically adds, “Sorry, but this one’s only for pros,” and turns her away.

Keika, who has been quiet this whole time, cautiously turns to face me and says, “Um …… This would be great for us, but …… Are you okay with it, Yaichi? I know you’re undefeated right now, but your most important placement match ever is right around the corner. We could wait until everything is said and done to start ……?”

“That’s when Ginko’ll be startin’ in the 3-dan Division. Now’s the time to get goin’.”

“B-But, Father–––.”

“Ya gotta call me Master at times like this. When will ya learn?” Master scolds her. “There’s a new software strategy makin’ waves in pro league matches these days called Sittin’ Bishop Left Mino. If we don’t get everybody up to speed sooner rather than later somebody’s gonna get tripped up when they least expect it. That’s why I’m suggestin’ we do family sessions. There’s plenty of merit for Yaichi and Ginko.”

With that, Master looks at me and cocks a confident eyebrow.

“Well? Ya had no idea I was such a researcher, did ya?”

“No. I’m impressed.”

I nod as deep as I can to make it look like I agree wholeheartedly.

“I’ve been thinking about doing more practice sessions lately. I even talked to Big Sis, saying if we’re going to do it anyway, why not as a family? Isn’t that right, Big Sis?”

“True. I’ll be going against many of Kanto’s devoted researchers in the 3-dan division, so this will help my confidence.”

“That it will. Ha ha ha!”

In the best mood I’ve seen him in in a long time, Master laughs and takes out his pocket calendar to set a date.

Hearing what Big Sis and I had to say when we came by the Gokigen bathhouse for a practice session, King Mitsuru Oishi flashes a skeptical grin.

“It’s because he used to be a lone wolf like me. But, yeah, his generation was a lot more hard-nosed when it came to doing practice sessions and I bet he can’t exactly bow down to his apprentice and say, teach me after all this time, either.”

“The whole family practicing together …… How wonderful …………”

The voice came from Mr. Oishi’s daughter, Asuka.

She’s not exactly a member of this practice group, but she’s always close by and quietly listening to whatever we’re talking about.

She’s unassuming but passionate, a great cook, and her massive boobs are …… cute, so I’m happy having her around. Big Sis doesn’t seem to like her much, though.

Drinking some of the hot milk Asuka prepared for us, I ask, “Mr. Oishi, you’re Ootsuchi 9-dan’s apprentice, right? Do you ever do family sessions?”

“My Master’s too busy snoozing all day for that. The guy doesn’t even show up at association events, so practice sessions or taking on new apprentices certainly isn’t going to happen.”

“Isn’t Ootsuchi-sensei Zaou-sensei’s ……?”

“His younger brother apprentice, yes.”

Hearing that, it’s a full-blown miracle that Zaou-sensei is still playing in the pros right now.

Daijirou The Hammer Ootsuchi used to be one of the stars of the Ranging Rook party.

He got that nickname by using his worldly senses to slam Rooks and Bishops into his opponent’s defenses like hammer blows. A popular player in Kansai, he never claimed a title but spent many years competing in the A rank.

Although he retired pretty much the day he dropped out of A, he devoted his time to training the next generation …… But Mr. Oishi is the only one of his apprentices who turned pro.

Since Mr. Oishi hasn’t taken any apprentices of his own, the Ootsuchi family tree is just the two of them.

“Then, you’ll have to work hard to revive the family tree with Asuka.”

“Y-you’re right ……! I’ll do my best ……!”

Asuka clenches her fists together with a determined look in her eyes.

But Mr. Oishi shoots her down on the spot.

“Oi, Asuka. I don’t remember taking you as my apprentice.”

“……………………”

Asuka puffs up her reddening cheeks with a defiant “Ngh!” which is pretty unusual for her and says, “…… Okay, I’ll ……… I’ll take Yaichi as my Master ……!!”

“Say what?! M-me?!”

Me, thrown for a loop by a new prospective apprentice. Mr. Oishi, fuming.

“I won’t allow it! You hear me, Asuka?!! I will never, ever allow you to apprentice to this teenage brat so high on hormones he’ll put the moves on any girl he sees, no matter how young! What if you get a bun in the oven at your age?! What then, huh?!”

“Hold up?! How would becoming my apprentice get her pregnant?!”

Offended by the accusation, I angrily state my case to the Maestro.

“I’ll have you know both my apprentices have joined the Women’s League and neither of them are pregnant!!”

“Of course not! Because you only go after the ones who are too young to get knocked up!!”

“You’ve got it all wrong! You think the rumors are true, don’t you?! Well, they’re not!! Come on, Big Sis, say something, would you?!”

“Stay away if you don’t want to get pregnant. Even I’ve gotten dragged to a shady hotel after one of these practice sessions before.”

“Why the f’in hell would you bring that up now?! Besides, you’re the one that–––.”

Pow!

Big Sis’s knuckles connect with my jaw, an epic right cross.

“Watch your language, younger brother apprentice.”

“S-Sorry ……… Please forgive me with a cherry on top ……”

It hurts so bad I’m pleading in ways I don’t even understand. I’m bleeding, aren’t I?

“Take a good look, Asuka. No matter how good at Shogi he is, becoming this pathetically horny excuse for a boy’s apprentice is as good as taking a knife to your future. Have some self-respect, for goodness sake!”

“D …… Daddy, you …… knucklehead ……!!” Asuka screams at him before running out of the classroom.

I guess being called a knucklehead by his daughter must have hurt because Mr. Oishi rubs his temple and lets out a long, painful sigh.

“Haaaa ………… Having girls that age is a never-ending headache.”

“I get that impression ……”

I scowl, gingerly running my fingers across the throbbing red spot on my cheek. Mine’s more physical, but ouch!

Big Sis glares at me but ignores what I said and turns to talk to Mr. Oishi.

“More importantly, Sensei. Shall we analyze the King Title Match?”

“Speaking of headaches.” His frown grows deeper as he says, “I lost matches one and two already. Goki Central, my ace strategy being under lockdown right now sure isn’t helping …… Have you noticed how far my rating plunged this month?”

Simply put, rating is strength. The higher the number, the stronger.

There are many ways to calculate it, but the Win-Loss record is used for the pros.

As of right now, the Meijin has the best rating at 2,014.

Crown Yo Okito is next with 1,925. Ayumu comes after him at 1,899. I’m a little lower than that with 1,881. My rating has jumped up quite a bit thanks to my 12-match winning streak.

Mr. Oishi’s rating has taken a dive because of his recent losses: down to 1,801.

That’s over a hundred points below the Crown. He has, maybe, a 32 percent chance of winning.

“Top players have a hard time improving their rating because they always get matched up against other top players. You can’t judge based on those numbers alone,” I say to Mr. Oishi to try and cheer him up. He almost never beats himself up like this, too.

Ayumu’s rating is only that high because he keeps winning against players that are comparatively weaker than him. He’s raking in the victory stars right now because he’s still in B-2, but there’s no telling what’ll happen once he promotes to A. Then again, the same could be said for me … but still.

Considering that’s how Ayumu got there, it’s truly amazing that the Meijin and Mr. Okito can keep their rating so high despite always playing against the best of the best.

But I beat that Meijin four times in a row, so rating is just a relative number.

If the rating is double, then it’s a different story, though.

“Just out of curiosity, what’s software rating these days?”

“While I don’t know the exact number ……”

I hesitate, I’m not sure if I should tell him or not.

“…… The latest programs are estimated to be between 3,000 and 4,000.”

“So that’s how it is. People can’t compete with it anymore.”

The Worldly Maestro gives a dry laugh before saying, “Suppose I’ll see what Software-sensei can teach me. Clean up my weak spots.”

I hear Big Sis’s voice come out of the bathroom as I sprawl out on the bed.

We’re in a room at a certain hotel in Sakuranomiya.

Coming here after a practice session with Mr. Oishi has become our routine.

“Hey, Yaichi. Are you listening?”

“Hm?”

She sounds irritated that I didn’t answer her.

“Bragging about the outdated Sitting Bishop Left Mino like that …… It hurt just listening to him. Master used to be so strong, and now ……”

“…… Now we know how Amuro felt ……”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t you know? Amuro’s father was a brilliant engineer who built the first Gundam, but he got sick with oxygen poisoning in outer space. By the time he’d recovered and reunited with Amuro, he insisted on equipping the Gundam with outdated weaponry.”

“Never heard of it. What’s Gundam? A new variant of the ginga snow roof?”

She doesn’t know Gundam ……?

There’s seriously nothing else in her head besides Shogi, is there? At this level, I’m seriously concerned about how she can communicate with her friends at school.

“It’s the family sessions we should be talking about. Yaichi, are you going to go along with it?”

“If that’s what it takes to make Master happy, yes. I’ve been looking for a place for my own apprentices to practice anyway.”

“…… Hph.”

Her tone just dropped like a rock.

She must be as worried about Master as I am.

“I got to see Master’s schedule when he took out his calendar to set the date, but …… He doesn’t have any other practice sessions lined up whatsoever. He’ll be cut off from the latest research at this rate. If we don’t give him bare minimum info, no one else will.”

“But you know what he’s like. No matter what we teach him, he’ll be too stubborn to use it.”

“Well ……”

Master has too much pride to consider asking his apprentices for help to begin with. I’d bet he’d play a completely different strategy to avoid doing exactly what either of us tell him to do.

What’s worse, if he ever found out those strategies came from software ……

“…… It’s also true that we can’t just let him be the way he is now.”

“For sure.”

It’s true that Sitting Bishop Left Mino did show up in league matches only recently.

However–––people have been researching it behind the scenes for over a year.

It’s fairly simple to learn how to use it with software, so everyone’s figured out how to prevent it in the first place.

… Which is why it never showed up in league matches for over a year.

But higher ranking players who don’t use software and don’t interact with younger players didn’t know about it.

They’re defenseless against software’s instant death magic …… And get destroyed.

That’s what’s happening between the veteran and younger players right now.

An uprising where lowly C-2s are sniping the big names in A and B-1 left and right …… That’s the reason why the torch is being passed to the next generation so quickly.

“Once someone knows their opponent doesn’t use software, they can cast all the instant death magic they want. Fighting in the pros without using software right now is like walking naked through a minefield.”

“……”

Big Sis doesn't say anything.

Fear of instant death magic isn’t just for the pros. Far more intense research arms races are going on in the Sub League. No matter what strategy they use, they only get proven right if they win their way through the 3-dan division.

“…… Think he’ll be okay? Oishi-sensei, too ……”

“We gave him the bare minimum he’ll need to put up a fight, but …… Honestly, it’s a long shot. I never thought Mr. Okito was researching Ranging Rook as well.”

Crown Yo Okito is a master at researching with software. He was probably the first player to get good at it, too.

That gave him a huge advantage, even more than I thought it would. His tremendous stock of knowledge had to be a big part of getting through the King League, which is so competitive that people call it the Infernal King League. Now, he’s the challenger for the title.

“I want Mr. Oishi to last as long as he can so I can get an idea how deep Mr. Okito’s research goes. There’s a good chance he’ll show up in the Ryuo League next season.”

Defend one title and the battle for the next has already begun, that’s title matches in a nutshell. I can’t let my guard down for a single second.

“Do you think you’ll beat Okito-sensei in a big match, Yaichi?”

“That depends on how efficient my research is.”

I close my eyes and mentally run through some simulations as I answer.

“I can leave the strategy research to software if worse comes to worst and just study the results. That wasn't an option before because everything would fall apart before I could pull it off in a live match. But, after the breakthrough I had against the Meijin–––.”

“Breakthrough? As in more reading ability? …… Yaichi, didn’t you say you were feeling off? Like you couldn’t control it?”

“I used software for that, too.”

“Huh?”

“I had the software analyze my play during matches. Where I spent waiting time to read the board, when my brain was firing on all cylinders or losing concentration and making mistakes, things like that.”

“………”

“It gives you all that information in numbers, so your precision during matches and research efficiency skyrockets. Human training partners will make mistakes, but machines never do. The best part is you can research with them anytime, anywhere you want.”

This discovery was a byproduct of the Ryuo Title Match.

From when I shut myself in my room and depended solely on software for research.

All I have to do after that is maintain my reading skills with all the Shogi puzzles I can get my hands on. Since I can do that with Ai, everything I’ll need is at home. Talk about a perfect setup.

“It may be efficient, but ……,” Big Sis says hesitantly, “…… going that far seems a bit much.”

“If I don’t do it, then someone else definitely will. For now, I’ve started the revolution and I think Shogi will keep changing just like this.”

The Modern Shogi system established by the Meijin’s generation wouldn't work without a great deal of cooperation between players having practice sessions and versus matches.

I’ll need an even more efficient and private way to acquire knowledge if I’m going to surpass them.

That’s my conclusion.

One or two new strategies won’t be enough to overthrow veterans like the Meijin. I need a weapon that will counter their best strategies in the blink of an eye, like what all those anime characters would do back in the day.

A world revolutionized by technology.

It’s time for the generation born into this technological age to use that advantage to overthrow the old generation. A full-fledged changing of the guard.

“…… Yaichi, um ……”

“Yeah?”

“Do you …… want to be a computer?”

Big Sis asks like she’s afraid to hear the answer, but I say exactly what’s on my mind.

“I’m not that stupid. People aren’t machines. There’s no way a person could use software strategies perfectly every single time. It’s just–––.”

“Just?”

“I just feel like my ability to calculate gives me an edge over all the other pros out there right now. At least, I think so.”

“!! …… That means ……”

Big Sis is at a loss for words.

Because, I’m basically saying I’m the best in the Shogi world right now.

Am I being arrogant?

Except that I beat the Meijin, defended my title and I’ve been taking victory stars one after another. My methods are producing visible results, so that proves I’m not wrong.

The Bishop Exchange <white> 6 Five Knight and Single Knight Jump are just the tip of the iceberg.

Start a revolution strong enough to overtake Modern Shogi and rise through the placement matches.

Then, I’ll be the next Meijin–––.

“Hey, Big Sis. Aren’t you finished yet?”

“………… I’m changed, but ……”

A ruffling sound comes from the other side of the door as Big Sis suddenly sounds shy.

“Then come on out, would you?”

“…… Sigh ……”

Big Sis and I started our own practice session after leaving one with Mr. Oishi.

This is Ginko’s Cosplay Practice Session.

Let me explain how we got here.

As people who live in a world of constant competition, players believe in jinxes and the power of a routine. When things are going well, we make sure not to change anything.

Building a personal routine is considered a valuable skill in the pros.

Big Sis and I coming to this hotel after practice sessions started as an accident, but I’ve been dominating my opponents since then and Big Sis became the first female member of the 3-dan division, too.

I want to keep riding this momentum through to promotion in the placement matches and Big Sis wants to join the 3-dan division with a full head of steam.

Both of us understand the benefits, so even though the air got a bit tense during the apprentice Asuka incident, neither of us thought about skipping this tonight.

Just to be clear, we haven’t crossed that line. After all, we’re here to play Shogi.

Which brings me to the cosplay part.

There was a sign inside the hotel entrance advertising a special deal: all customers get to wear any of the costumes for free. It’s their new marketing strategy.

The thing is that Osakans are weak around the word free. So, I did what anyone would do and suggested we try it out, to which Big Sis threatened to mount my head on a pike.

But I didn’t back down.

“Let’s let Shogi decide,” was my proposal.

I’ll wear something if I lose. Take all the pics you want, post them online, I don’t care.

Big Sis still wouldn't answer me, but once I started fanning myself and said, "Whew, this pressure’s getting to me," she jumped right in. Shogi? I won, of course. Three in a row. Hit her will a full serving of my secret software strategies!

And the finished product is–––.

Whoa …… Very dangerous ……!

“Is this …… How it’s supposed to be ……? Shouldn’t there be more fabric ……?!!”

“That’s how it’s supposed to be,” declares the Dragon King Ryuo with authority.

Big Sis spends most of her time wearing her sailor-style school uniform, but she wears kimono for title matches and dresses for Shakando-sensei, too. She’s worn all sorts of clothes before.

But this is her first move into the cosplay scene.

Not to mention those glasses! I've seen her wear glasses about as much as I’ve seen her open a match by advancing an edge Pawn, almost never.

“More fabric? No! With you wearing it, Big Sis, pushing it to the absolute limit should work ……!!”

So, I start a revolution.

Started, but …… There needs to be better balance, yeah?

This is cuteness overload.

“There needs to be less ……”

Can’t have too much of a good thing. Balance is key. That’s just as true for cosplay as it is for Shogi.

“If you do this here …… Oh and take that off–––.”

Holy! Beyond adorable!!

And hot!! Ginko is h-h-h-hooooootttttttttttt!!

“Nghh! I’ll die …… This is too embarrassing ……!!”

“No! This is great! Absolutely perfect!!”

Big Sis turns bright red, her whole body shaking as I show her what poses to make.

“More like this! More …… yes! Now, curl your fingers like a cat!”

“L-Like this?”

“Mooooore!!”

“This?”

“Yeeees!! Thaaaaaaaat!! More, moooore!!”

“Like …… meow?”

I guess all the compliments went to her head because Big Sis gets down on all fours on the bed and starts doing tigress on the prowl poses.

The Dual Women’s Title Holder is really getting into it.

“Wow, that’s cute! Amazing! Gin-kitty is the best!!”

“I-I’m cute? Are the pictures cute, too?”

“They sure are! You’re the cutest in the world, Big Sis! The cutest ever!!”

“Really ……♡ E-he-he ♡”

Well, that was easy.

As I thought. I’ve had an idea that Big Sis could be convinced to go with the flow for a while now. She usually keeps a wall up between her and the rest of the world but hit that wall hard enough and it’ll come crashing down.

–––Will she do anything if you call her cute?

Now that I've learned the cute spell and know how to use it, it’s time to use it. Gin-kitty mode is on full blast. Big Sis is meowing every chance she has and, damn, this is the real instant death magic right here! All that hot cuteness is going to make my heart explode!!

And so, after about an hour-long photo shoot …… I mean practice session.

“Whew …… How about a break ……?”

“Good me-ahh …… idea.”

I’m out of MP, casting that spell so many times, and collapse onto the bed.

Calming down must have made Big Sis feel embarrassed because she wraps herself in a blanket before plopping down next to me.

“One other thing, about Master.”

“Yeah?”

“You don’t think us giving the okay will give him any ideas about approaching young players and Sub League members in the Player’s Room, do you?”

“! Well ……”

Players can be brutal creatures.

They’ll hound you once they see you have something valuable.

If not, they’ll ignore you like thin air.

Players will hang out together as friends, but practice sessions are a whole different story. You have to have something they want or be ranked the same or higher to even be considered.

So, even if Master went into the Player’s Room and offered practice sessions with younger players, he’d be ……

“…… Sounds a lot like love,” Big Sis mumbles, but those words leave a sharp pain in my chest.

“Hiuma would be happy doin’ a practice session with me any day of the week.”

The oldest member of the Kansai Sub League, Hiuma Kagamizu 3-dan, was the only member of that group Kousuke had any connection to apart from his own apprentice, Ginko.

Nearly ten years ago now.

Back when the Sub League would take annual leisurely overnight trips as a group.

His apprentice Yaichi participated in one said trip and a veteran Sub League member approaching thirty years of age was about to wake the boy up to make him run to the convenience store for more snacks.

Hiuma stepped in to protect him.

As the story goes, Hiuma stood between them and said, “Yaichi Kuzuryu is Kansai’s … no, the Shogi world’s treasure! I will go buy anything you wish, just please don’t wake him!!”

Hearing this story brought Hiuma Kagamizu to Kousuke’s attention.

For a country boy living off a miniscule salary all by himself, devoting his waking hours to Shogi training was by no means an easy feat.

Though he was careful not to dote on the young man and kept an appropriate distance, Kousuke found ways to assist him. Hiuma, perceptive as he was, understood that.

Therefore, Hiuma couldn't possibly turn him down–––.

“Oh-ho! Everybody's workin’ hard, I see,” said Kousuke at the top of his lungs the moment he entered the Player’s Room and saw all the Sub League members playing practice matches.

The up-and-coming players didn't so much as pause. Hiuma was among them. Though he gave Kousuke a nod of acknowledgment, he shifted his focus back to his own practice match without saying a word.

–––A 9-dan goes outta his way to say hello, and not a peep ……!

Anger swelled in his gut, but Kousuke held it down.

The Player’s Room in his memory wasn’t much different from a lounge.

The TV was always on, tuned in to a baseball game or horse racing, as a constant haze of cigarette smoke filled the air from dawn to dusk. Younger players trying to practice on their own would get an earful of veterans yelling, “Yer in the way! Get out!” That kind of place.

Of course, once they did get around to playing Shogi, the coffee tab was always on the line. Kousuke had lost a great deal of spending money at the hands of the older players.

–––Scary …… But there was a warmth to it.

And now, it felt like another place entirely.

The smoke-stained walls were covered with league match schedules and announcements from the association, the bookshelves that had been littered with manga and sports magazines were now filled with Shogi puzzles from one end to the other.

It goes without saying that the ash trays were a thing of the past and the TV monitor was hooked up to a live feed of a match taking place in the arena.

This unnaturally monochromic transformation gave Kousuke the impression players these days had gone soft.

It was nothing more than a glorified classroom.

For Kousuke, adhering to the veteran’s outrageous demands while grinning and bearing their random provocations was part of the training process.

It built character and prepared younger players for the stresses that came with living in the Shogi world and they were stronger for it.

–––Looks like now I gotta be the one to teach ’em a thing or two.

Determined to fulfill his new role, Kousuke strode into the Player’s Room with vigor as he looked on at each of the practice matches in turn.

“Ohh? That’s an interestin’ style ya got there.”

Kousuke had found his way to the board where the boy who’d become youngest 3-dan the Shogi world had ever known just last month, Sota Kunugi, was playing.

Though he missed his first opportunity to promote when he lost to Ginko, the young player secured his entry to the 3-dan division the next time the Sub League met like nothing had ever happened.

Thinking it would be interesting to try his hand against the boy, Kousuke addressed him with a gentle tone.

“Kiddo, ya got a good grasp on strategy for bein’ such a tyke. Tell me, what would ya do if someone played this move instead?”

“…………”

Though he glanced up at Kousuke with a look that screamed Who is this old guy? Sota moved another piece in response.

“That’s checkmated, too.”

“Nah. Shift this out here, and the King is home free. Think hard, now.”

With that, Kousuke interrupted the review session going on one board over.

The two players were only reviewing opening sequences, but he started badgering them with questions.

The issue was that Kousuke offered no opinions or research of his own and instead one-sidedly dug for answers out of as many of the players as he could.

From Kousuke’s perspective, he was simply identifying people worthy of inviting to a practice session, but ……

“Now then, ’suppose it’s ’bout time I got in on a match myself.”

Despite not being involved in that particular match, Kousuke declared their review session to be at an end and immediately went over the one he thought looked like the weakest, lowest ranking Sub League member in the room and placed his hand on his shoulder.

“Ya. Sorry, but would ya gimme that chair?”

Jumping in surprise that a top-tier pro would even address him directly, the Sub League member had no choice but to do as he was told. His shoulders slumping, the young man gave up his seat.

“Kiyotaki-sensei.”

Hiuma had been in the middle of a review session one chair over but now spoke up for the first time.

His voice was terse, but Kousuke didn’t notice.

“Alrighty. Which one of ya lucky kiddos’ll be the first to play me, eh? I’ll learn ya a thing or two. It ain’t every day ya lot get the chance to learn from a Meijin Challenger, yeah?”

All the busy hands in the room came to a halt as the Sub League members exchanged uneasy glances back and forth.

However, not a single one of them moved to accept Kousuke’s offer.

Overcoming the initial shock, he was about to extend another open invitation when suddenly.

“Sensei! May I have a word?”

“Hm? What’s eatin’ ya, Hiuma?”

“…… I’ll turn 30 years old during the next 3-dan division season. I’m already well beyond the age limit of 26 and this is the last season I can extend my tenure with a winning record. I only have so many matches remaining. Life as I know it will end in half a year.”

With those words, Hiuma gestured out to all the other Sub League members practicing in the room.

“I’m not the only one. Every person here is willing to work themselves to death for a chance to turn professional. All of us are desperate.”

“I know just how yar feelin’. My days back in the Sub League were no cakewalk either. Actually, ya guys are lucky! The association buildin’ wasn’t even half this size–––.”

“No, you don’t understand,” said Hiuma, plain as day.

A new tension, one completely different from a match, took hold of the room.

Even so, Hiuma did not falter.

“I acknowledge that you are a high-ranking professional, Sensei. You have achieved 9-dan as well. I would follow your instructions in a heartbeat if we were in an arena. However, this room is dedicated to Shogi training and practice. Rather than people playing Shogi to kill time or for amusement, ones who seriously want to improve should take priority. It’s common sense.

“Furthermore, everyone is equal at a Shogi board. Those born into well-off houses may have grown up with more things at their disposal, but all who play Shogi have only 20 pieces to work with. Everyone battles on equal footing. People may listen to someone with a high status, but status has nothing to do with Shogi.

“That is Shogi. It treats everyone equally, including uneducated riffraff shunned by society like me. That’s why we try so hard. That’s why we devote our hearts and souls to playing Shogi. We believe it’s worth putting our very lives on the line for it. Shogi is what gives us purpose, recognizes our value as people.

“The young man you just forced out of that seat wakes up at 5 o’clock every morning and spends two hours on the train to get here. The reason he must get up so early is because every seat in here will be taken if he arrives after 7 o’clock. He may have a low kyu ranking and he may be the weakest player in this room. However, every one of us can see his determination, his drive to improve. We are happy to work with him because his persistence will have a positive impact on us as well.

“He worked hard to claim that seat. No one gave it up for him.

“Taking away a seat, asking about hard-earned research results and forcing someone to play against their will are not things anyone in this world can do. That holds true for the Meijin himself.”

Hiuma jerked his thumb toward his chest for emphasis.

“Let me ask you a question, Sensei. What we are doing here is completely different from a mundane board game with money on the table. We are carving our lives away to play Shogi. How are you going to compensate us for that, Sensei?”

“Compensate …… ya?”

Rage built within Kousuke’s chest, his voice rising.

The whiskers of his beard shook with anger as beads of spit flung from his mouth.

“That’s what I’ve been tellin’ ya this whole time! I admit I don’t got the latest info, but I challenged the Meijin, twice! Here I am, offerin’ ta teach!”

“I’ll pass. Experience is something each person builds on their own time. There’s no point listening to someone else talk about the past.”

“Ya ……! I …… a 9-dan, mind ya, I’m lowerin’ my head and askin’ ya folks to play a match–––.”

“No, you did not, Sensei. You said, I’ll learn ya a thing or two.”

Calm and collected in the face of Kousuke’s fury, Hiuma Kagamizu Sub League 3-dan’s voice was crystal clear.

“As you are now, Kiyotaki-sensei, you have nothing to teach us. In fact, you are preventing us from training. Please, let us be.”

The chorus of snapping Shogi pieces and electronic clicks from chess clocks had completely vanished by this point.

No one said a word; every player’s eyes were fixed on the board in front of them …… That is until Sota’s innocent remark, “Checkmated after all, don’t you think?” echoed through the room.

After being chased out of the Player’s Room like an old mutt, Kousuke dejectedly made his way home and passed the time not doing much of anything at all.

Even drowning the pain with alcohol didn’t appeal to him.

The shame wouldn’t let him fall asleep, so there he sat, staring at his reflection in a cup of water in the dimly lit kitchen. All the while, only a single phrase ever left his lips …… “Jus’ look at ya.”

A pair of eyes clouded from all the hours he’d spent staring at a smartphone screen and all the alcohol he’d consumed stared back at him on the water’s surface. Their lack of spirit came as a shock, almost as if he didn’t recognize his own reflection.

Shades of that veteran Sub League member’s face, the one who Hiuma had risked his own life and reputation to protect Yaichi from, overlapped with his own.

“…… Have I turned into that ……?”

There was a word that fit his situation perfectly.

“Gerontocracy.”

He had sworn in his youth that he would rather die than become like the veterans who threw their weight around for the most ridiculous reasons. But now, their faces were staring back at him alongside his own in the water.

How long had he been like this?

Back in his teens and twenties, he had enough energy to work through entire match records the night after losing a match without so much as a wink of sleep. In truth, it was the other way around. Slamming the agony of defeat onto the board was the only way he could get to sleep.

By his thirties, beer and liquor helped him cope with the pain.

He became so tired during his forties that he needed to rest after matches before he could even look at a board again.

Tomorrow’s another day.

Rest up tonight, and my energy’ll be back in the mornin’ like it always was–––.

“…… But even then, I didn’t wake up feelin’ the rush like in the old days ……”

It started taking two days of rest for his zeal for Shogi to come back when it used to return overnight.

Inevitably, his research time fell to half of what it used to be and that only sped up the aging process. Working his way back up the slope after starting to descend required many times the energy and effort it had taken in his younger days.

Even so, Kousuke still felt he had to do something about it during his forties.

The guilt of wasting away, the pain of seeing his own decline pushed him onward.

However, even that feeling began to wear away …… And eventually fade out entirely. Convincing himself that this was all part of the aging process, he accepted the fact that his skills would deteriorate with time.

Letting go of his passion for the game meant he wouldn’t have to suffer like in the old days.

He took it as a sign of maturity.

Stepping back and watching his apprentice grow ……

“………… That day, seein’ Yaichi up there ……”

What the drunken guests said at the celebration was just the spark.

The gasoline came from one day prior–––at the Award Ceremony.

Kousuke realized something that day when he saw his apprentice receiving that certificate in the spotlight.

The one thing that kept him going all this time was having Meijin Challenger on his resume.

That phrase meant he was the last one to lose when it mattered most.

It wasn’t anger or jealousy that his own apprentice had surpassed him.

Rather, it was being faced with the reality of his own failure and not being able to accept it.

And, he had vented all of that built-up frustration on his apprentice.

“………… Jus’ look at ya ……,” Kousuke repeated on a loop, over and over.

He told himself that he wanted to be the Meijin many times over. All he’d managed to achieve was to not become the Meijin but he was waving that fact around like a badge of honor.

Strong, stubborn and gritty.

No giving up until the very last move.

He drilled those lessons into his apprentices’ heads for years, telling them that was what it meant to be a Kansai Shogi player.

Had he followed through with that himself?

Fighting to the last piece on a Shogi board was common sense. Even amateurs could do it.

However …… Very few could continue to fight away from the board.

What did he do on the days when he wasn’t playing a match?

Aren’t the ones willing to devote their very lives the true professionals?

We are carving our lives away to play Shogi.

Hiuma’s words from that afternoon sounded in the back of his mind.

Those words became a strong wind that pushed Kousuke out of the Player’s Room.

Yet–––.

“…… Burnin’ up,” Kousuke whispered in the darkness.

There was an ember hidden deep within the coals that had long since gone cold, nothing more than a tiny spark.

Rather than snuff it out …… Hiuma’s words reached deep into his heart, found the flame he himself had forgotten and breathed new life into it. A new wind.

Now, it was Kousuke fanning that little flame.

“Burnin’.”

A chilly night in the middle of February. The kitchen heater had been turned off hours ago, but the man repeated the same thing like a broken record …… That he was too hot.

Keika came down from her second-floor bedroom and said in surprise as she came into the kitchen, “…… Father? You’re still up?”

“That ain’t it.”

Looking at the confused expression on his daughter’s face, Kousuke added.

“I’m finally awake.”

Hiuma Kagamizu arrived bright and early at the Player’s Room like he always did only to find someone was already there, busily wiping down the boards on his own.

“Kiyotaki-sensei ……”

“Mornin’.”

Suit jacket off and the sleeves of his collared shirt rolled up to his elbows, Kousuke stopped to wipe the sweat from his brow before looking up.

That face had so much vitality that it was impossible to recognize him as the Kousuke Kiyotaki of recent years …… This wasn’t the same person Hiuma saw yesterday.

“It’s been eons since I couldn’t wait for mornin’ to come. Wanted to play Shogi with ya so much, jus’ couldn’t fall asleep.”

“Huh?”

“Hiuma. Please teach me Shogi.”

Sliding his arms through the jacket sleeves, Kousuke politely buttoned the front before giving the man a deep bow. A 9-dan Shogi veteran to a lowly Sub League member.

“Right now, I ain’t got any new strategies to share with any of ya. Far from me teachin’ strategy, ya young folks showed me a thing or two ‘bout how to be a pro ……”

The man who had lost the courage to honestly ask his apprentice and Sub League members to teach me how to play had summoned up what courage he had left to return here today.

Kousuke kept his head down as he spoke, unable to hide the fervor in his voice.

“I’ll run errands, do the prep work, anything ya need. I’d like to take the mindset of my trainin’ days and learn from ya startin’ on square one. I’m not lookin’ to steal yar hard-earned research. I’m here to straighten myself out. I can’t go out on a loss.”

“Sensei ……”

“What ya said yesterday, Hiuma, it opened my eyes. My whole body’s been burnin’ up since then, wantin’ to play Shogi so bad I can’t sit still. Haven’t felt like this in ages …… And it won’t cool off until I get to play ya.”

“B-but ……”

“What, Mr. Kagamizu? You’re not going to play Shogi today?” a small boy who seemed to be hiding in Hiuma’s shadow said in a high-pitched voice.

Peeking out from behind the man’s back was Sota Kunugi.

He looked up at Kousuke with an innocent smile on his face and said, “In that case, I’ll play against you, Kiyotaki-sensei. There’s so much I want to know about Yaichi when he was growing up.”

“Thank ya. If ya wanna know about Yaichi, I got plenty to tell.”

“Sweet~♡”

Sota looked as genuinely happy as a kid who just got a piece of his favorite candy.

Hiuma, on the other hand, was hesitant.

Everything he had said to Kousuke yesterday was his honest opinion.

It was also how he truly felt.

At the same time, they were words that he as a Sub League member should never say to a professional. Should the incident become public, the association could very well demand his resignation.

–––All I am is a dropout 3-dan who will never, ever promote to 4-dan ……

Shame consumed Hiuma in an instant.

Though he had intended to represent the Sub League as a whole ……

–––Was I simply taking out my frustration and jealousy about not getting promoted onto Kiyotaki-sensei ……?

It was that thought, which prevented him from accepting Kousuke’s earnest invitation.

Hiuma couldn’t look directly at him.

The bright morning sunlight reflecting off the beads of sweat on Kousuke’s brow illuminated his stagnant position all too clearly.

The eyes burning powerfully behind Kousuke’s glasses were too brilliant for one who had always resided in the shadows.

–––This …… This is a professional Shogi player ……

Steel that had gone completely dull regained its metallic luster all because Hiuma put it to a small flame.

–––He’s built differently. Much stronger than me ……

Hiuma felt he’d become nothing more than a larval cicada.

Entrenched in the soil that was the Player’s Room, waiting for the day when he could spread his wings …… Not to mention the fact that he had resided in the abyss that was Sub League longer than the seven years cicadas did in the ground.

He had forgotten what should have been instinctual, how to emerge from the earth and spread his wings and was now spluttering as a Sub League member ……

“Hiuma.”

Kousuke extended his hand to that Sub League member.

Now, for the first time, he built up the courage to ask for exactly what he wanted.

“Please. Teach me how to play Shogi.”

“………… It would be an honor to work with you, Kiyotaki-sensei.”

Hiuma Kagamizu bent at the waist, deeply bowing his head as he shook the man’s hand, almost as if clinging to his last hope.

Rumors like that started circulating through Shogi circles about ten days after Master floated the idea of doing family practice sessions.

“Like, he’s inviting newbies over to his house and feeding them.”

“So then, he’s trying to get info out of the dirt-poor Sub League members?”

“Nah, he’s just on his way out the door in the pros, so he’s trying to advertise his own classroom. Don’t you think?”

“I saw him walking around Denden Town in Nipponbashi yesterday.”

“Oh yeah? I saw him dressed up like some hip-hop dancer at the association.”

“Maybe all the losses got to be too much, and he flipped his lid?”

All of those rumors made it back to me.

…… What is going on here?

“Master sent out a message saying that he wanted to reconsider doing family sessions, so I thought he called it all off.”

“Did Grandpa-sensei start doing a different practice session?” Ai doesn’t understand what’s going on, so she’s moping around saying, “I wish he’d invite me if he were doing one ……”

Even if that’s what it is, there’s too much that doesn’t make sense.

The thing is that you get ridiculed for losing streaks in this world. Draw too much attention and the rumor mill goes into overdrive. I know that better than anyone.

I got roasted during my skid right after claiming the Ryuo title, when I was losing to the Meijin in the Ryuo Title Match, got called loli-con or worse when I took apprentices …… My pro Shogi career has been filled with unjustified attacks since it began. The loli-con stuff is just cruel. I guess winning so much breeds haters ……

Which is exactly why I’m not believing a word of these rumors until I see some proof.

“…… Either way, it might be a good idea to go check on him.”

“Yes! I want to see what his new practice session is like!”

“Who in the world did he find to work with him?”

“Do you think they’re Sub League members?”

“It’s the hip-hop dancer thing I can’t wrap my head around. If you’re going to make up stories, fine, but at least come up with something believable.”

The Hawaiian shirts he bought in Hawaii: that I would get. But I can’t even picture him dressed up like that.

And so, we went over to his place on a Sunday morning and–––.

“We’re home!”

“Oh! So, ya two dropped by?”

Some guy dressed up like a hip-hop dancer–––––––––!!

“Surprised? Just had a thought and asked the young’ens to teach me Shogi startin’ from square one.”

As hard as it is to believe, the guy looking as cool as a cucumber is actually my Master.

His whole outfit is coordinated with cool colors and an oversized flannel shirt … with a hood! Look up hip-hop in the dictionary, and this is exactly what you’ll find.

No one would think this middle-aged man walking over tatami mats in oversized cargo pants was really a pro Shogi player in his fifties. Even his accessories of choice are too good to believe.

What happened to my Master ……? Can people change this much so quickly if a hole pops open in their brain somewhere ……?

Still trying to process everything, I take a look around.

The tatami room is crammed wall-to-wall with boards and the Sub League members surrounding them rank from dan all the way down to the lowest kyu guys. There are even some damn good amateurs not associated with the pros in here.

And, there’s a scroll written in Master’s vibrant letters hanging in the alcove.

“Let youth shine through.”

…… Shine? It’s blinding …………

Not just youth …… Other things, too …………

“Stop starin’, would ya? I wanted to break outta my old Shogi senses that were holdin’ me in the past ……,” Master shyly scratches his nose and says. “Just didn’t know where to start. So I decided to spice up my look. What do ya think? It don’t mean much comin’ from me: I think I look pretty cool, man.”

“Y …… you’re off the hook, yo!”

I can’t keep this up.

“B-But …… Where’d you get those clothes?”

“They were in the back of my closet.”

“Mr. Kagamizu?!”

Hiuma Kagamizu 3-dan has shoehorned himself in behind one of the Shogi boards in the tatami room. “Haa ……” He makes a shy yet noble smile and warmly says, “I totally understand Kiyotaki-sensei’s desire to change …… So I gave him the clothes I used to wear back when I played Shogi on the street.”

Huh? Come again?

Shogi??? On the street????

“Pulling those clothes out for the first time in years brought back so many memories …… Reminded me who I was back then, how I felt …… All my dreams of big money and success the day I left my hometown in Miyazaki live on in that apparel ……!”

This guy is a lot weirder than I thought …… Mr. Kagamizu never talked like this before ……

I hear someone lightly thumping their way down the stairs as all this was going on.

“Ah! Yay! Yaichi♡”

“Sota, too?! …… What’s that cable for?”

“I’m getting a new computer hooked up upstairs. Can you believe this house didn’t have Wi-Fi?! How can you get anything or do anything without Wi-Fi?! It’s like they were living in the nineties!”

“…… Were you in Nipponbashi yesterday, by chance?”

“Yep! Kiyotaki-sensei and I went to buy computer parts. He said I could get anything I wanted, so I built a beast that can run all sorts of software at the same time!”

Sota gives me the Wi-Fi ID and password before going back upstairs.

Once he did, a different Sub League member calls us from the front door.

“Kiyotaki-sensei! Today’s instructor is here!”

“Great! Let him on through!!”

Instructor?

I turn toward the front wondering just who it could be …… Only to find that today’s instructor was standing much closer than I expected. Seriously, I can feel his breath.

“Fufu! Here I am☆”

A-ranking pro Shogi player Jin Natagiri 8-dan.

“Yoooooooooooooooooouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu––––––!!” I scream, jumping back in horror.

Dubbed the Switch Hitter, he’s an all-rounder who trains with the Meijin himself.

But, on a more personal level …… he’s an all-rounder who swings for both teams, if you catch my drift.

“Wha?! Master! Why are you yelling like that?!”

“Don’t be so rude, Yaichi.” Master scolds me for panicking. “Natagari 8-dan is a full-fledged A-level pro and known as one of the best researchers in the Shogi world. Always willin’ to share a thing or two with low dan pros and Sub Leaguers, he plays practice matches with ’em out of the goodness of his heart whenever he’s in Kansai for a match. He deserves a lot of respect. That’s why I invited him here.”

Mr. Natagiri adjusts his long bangs while Master introduces him.

“Oh, it’s no biggie …… I just like young men.”

“I see. Surroundin’ yarself with passionate youth is what keeps ya young at heart, yeah?”

No, he meant exactly what he said!

When this guy says like he means like in that way!!

I try to convey that message with my eyes, but Master is nodding along with Mr. Natagiri as if he believes every word the man says. I can’t take this.

“Realizin’ somethin’ at yar age that took me until now to figure out …… I can see why the Meijin wants to practice with ya. Please, impart yar passion on all of us!”

“Fuu♡”

I don’t think Master will ever figure out that the new world Mr. Natagiri is part of exists no matter how old he gets.

Not that I want him to.

“I’ve always been quite interested in Kansai’s young ones, so this is a win-win ……… And of course, I’ve been interested in you too, Kiyotaki-sensei. Fufu. Uh-fufufufufufu ……”

The Switch Hitter looks around the room like he’s appraising merchandise.

Ai and I decide to hang back and observe the practice session to make sure that Mr. Natagiri doesn’t try to impart the participants with anything more than passion.

Sota comes down from the second floor as everyone gathers around one board.

Dan-ranking Sub League members take turns against Mr. Natagiri as he breaks down the latest trends for the up-and-coming players in easy to understand chunks. Very well done.

The thing is that Master keeps asking questions and Ai starts joining the discussion.

Everyone here was nice enough to welcome her input rather than just shoot her down because she’s in grade school. So, she’s not afraid to speak her mind and I think she’s getting a lot out of it. Master and Ai look like they’re having a blast ……

Watching all that from outside their circle ……

“What a great atmosphere, don’t you think?”

“Keika ……”

“I had had some doubts that this would all work out when he came to me with the idea. I’m sure that Father was also a bit scared of working with Sub League members.”

Scared ……?

“There was a generational wall between them. But, once everyone’s desire to improve broke it down, more young players than I ever imagined opened up to him. After Mr. Kagamizu and Sota said they were staying the night on the very first day, more and more people kept showing up, and I kept getting asked to cook ……”

It looks like Keika has been cooking in the kitchen this whole time. She still has her apron on standing next to me and I can smell fresh rice wafting out of the kitchen.

“I know people are saying this and that about Father right now, but I love this atmosphere. This version of my father is so much better than when he was suffering on his own. If it’s Shogi that’s keeping him awake at night, I can be right there with him.”

Shogi has always been at the center of this household, meaning Keika was always the odd one out.

Just when she thought she could join everyone, Master brought up retiring. Hearing him say that had to cut pretty deep. I’d be willing to bet that Keika is the one who’s been suffering the most after that award ceremony until now.

It’s true that everyone gathered here has skill levels and rankings all over the map. There are even a few girls here.

I can understand people criticizing this strange and slightly bizarre setup.

But they all have one thing in common.

A strong love for Shogi.

Seeing something important that is dying off in the pro Shogi world today, I’m almost jealous.

“…… I’m sure this’ll work out. After all, no effort goes unrewarded,” I say, meaning every word.

At the same time …… I feel like, as someone aiming for the top, I shouldn’t get involved with these practice sessions. I do feel left out, but the Shogi world isn’t forgiving enough to let me worry about it.

“Wheeeew …… I’m exhausted, but that was a lot of fun!!”

Ai sounds rejuvenated somehow, coming over to me after concentrating on Mr. Natagiri’s lectures all the way to the end.

“Umm …… Master? May I join these practice sessions? Grandpa-sensei said I could invite the other girls to join in, too ……”

“Of course. I can rest easy knowing you’re here.”

While it’s not for me, I think this is the perfect environment for my apprentice.

While yes, it does worry me that Mr. Natagiri has claimed the seat right next to Mr. Kagamizu (who would look right at home in a fashion magazine), he’s a full-grown adult and can handle himself. Who knows, he might make a few new (deeper level) discoveries himself.

“…… Well, Master. I’ll excuse myself.”

“Ah. I ain’t gonna see ya out but be careful on yar way home,” says Master Kiyotaki without looking up, rolling his shoulders sitting at the board after challenging some Sub League members to 10-second Shogi practice matches.

“I invited a Shogi software programmer to drop by tomorrow, so we can hear what he has to say. This practice session’ll keep goin’ 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Drop by anytime!”

“Indeed.”

I see Ayumu fix his cape collar on the corner of my tablet screen.

Though we stopped doing these long-distance practice sessions during the Ryuo Title Match, we started back up again once the new year came around and have done a few already.

Software-based strategies may be moving up in the world, but that doesn’t mean you can use them against a human opponent as is.

Ultrasonic magic gods use against each other need minor adjustments, a tune-up of sorts. So Ayumu and I try bouncing our own magic off each other.

Lesser players will get killed off in an instant, so I need someone of Ayumu’s caliber to know if these strategies have a chance against the best players around.

Someone at his level won’t just let the magic run its course and will point out all the weak spots, so this is good practice for both of us.

I brought up what Master is doing in the middle of one of our sessions and Ayumu gave me an interesting take on it.

“Shogi strategies are strikingly similar to fashion trends.”

“…… Come again?”

“It takes a great deal of courage to discard clothing that you found appealing and adopt a trend as your own. Even more courage is necessary to discard clothing that was once held in great esteem. I’m stating that Shogi strategies share those traits.”

“Well, when you put it like that …… You could be right.”

I’d never really thought about it, but they do have a lot in common.

Master developed his Shogi senses in a time when yagura was said to be the best around. That’s why no matter how bad yagura strategies are doing statistically, he’d never think they wouldn’t work.

It’s just like the people who flat-out refuse to upgrade to a smartphone or won’t use messenger apps.

So long as the mind isn’t willing, it wouldn’t matter if they know how useful they are. There are things that people won’t use just because they don’t feel like it.

Although, all that changes in a flash as soon as they try them out.

“However, that Master of yours is peeling off the apparel he has worn for decades in order to step into a brand-new world. He’s discarding the warmest, most comfortable attire he owns. Rejecting his former self all to become stronger …… Imagine the willpower! He should be applauded!!”

Ayumu strikes an over-the-top pose in the corner of my screen.

If it’d been anyone else, I would’ve thought they were making fun of me. But Ayumu takes everything so seriously that I can’t get mad at him.

“Perhaps Natagiri 8-dan differs from our generation in that he needs to feel new strategies, absorb them through his skin in order to adjust. From his perspective, he may be merely using the most efficient method he knows to change his own senses.”

“…… Could be.”

Just as everyone has their own sense of style, everyone has their own way of getting stronger.

But we are the young ones. We control the trends.

So long as that’s true, we should stick to what our own senses say is right.

There’s no need to adjust to anyone else.

It’s our privilege as the young–––as the strong.

“I never understood why you always stuck to those weird clothes no matter what people said, but now I think I have an idea. It gives your Shogi an edge ……”

“Kukuku …… That being the case, why not don the black cape I purchased for you in secret?”

No, I’d rather not.

“The time is nigh, Drakin! Shall we continue our clash of good and evil to determine which shall conquer the world?!”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way! And, stop with the Drakin already!”

Returning our focus to the placement matches, we get back to testing out our Shogi senses on one another.

Kansai’s Sub League started transforming as well.

“Hiuma’s stopped accepting jobs as of late ……” I swung by the association’s office to do some part-time work like signing diplomas and happened to hear Mr. Mine mumble under his breath. He’s the Kansai Association’s walking dictionary who we like to call the Principal behind his back.

“Other Sub League members are filling in, but none of them are as polite and attentive as Hiuma. Of course, part of that is our fault for depending on him too much ……”

Mr. Kagamizu changed more than anyone.

He used to take any job at the drop of a hat but now he’s rejecting everything except the bare minimum of match recording required by the Sub League. Even when it came to match recording, he introduced a new move.

Mr. Kagamizu won’t sit on a cushion anymore.

It seems that Master told him that was how it used to be done back in his day, so it’s not exactly new …… This perseverance through pain that borders on Buddhist monk training has gotten mixed reactions.

“Hiuma, why not use a cushion?” asked a pro who couldn’t ignore him any longer in the middle of a match.

“Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine.”

“…… You’ll damage the tatami.”

“Shall I remove it from the floor?” Mr. Kagamizu answered in all seriousness. He’s kept his no cushion policy going since that day.

Here’s what he said when someone asked him about it later.

“I understand he was asking out of kindness. However, I believe I am who I am today because I’ve always gone along with kind words. I want to change that in my final 3-dan division season and break through.”

Although he managed to avoid retiring last season, he wasn’t part of the race for promotion at the end.

Big Sis and Sota, even younger than her, are now at the bottom of the 3-dan division. It seems like that impending sense of doom has changed him.

What he did started a trend and soon none of the match recorders in Kansai were using cushions.

“Today I played with the other girls in our practice group, but Asuka and Akira joined us, too! It’s more fun the more people there are to play with!!” Ai tells me with a big smile on her face as we eat a late dinner.

The Grade Schooler Practice Group has stopped getting together at my apartment now that the Kiyotaki Classroom is open.

Well … the placement matches are about to hit the grand finale, so I don’t exactly have time to be looking after a bunch of grade school girls. So, yeah, that helps me out a lot.

Y-yeah! I’m not lonely or jealous at all! Not one bit!!

“Oh? Sounds like you had a great time.”

“The best! Grandpa-sensei has placement matches to worry about, but he still takes time to teach girls like us. They were scared at first because he’s been a pro for a long long time, but now everyone loves him!”

“Th …… That right …………”

I don’t care …… I’m not jealous ……

“We exchanged messenger IDs and made our own group! Now we can talk about that day’s matches even after we go home and talk about what happened at school! Grandpa-sensei said messaging with us makes him feel young again. He always says the funniest things, so everyone loves talking with him!”

“R …… Really ……………? Group messaging ……”

I …… don’t feel jealous …………… at all ……!!

“Especially Charlette! She loves his beard, calls him Gwampa♡ all day long and plays with his whiskers until he finally plays Shogi with her! Isn’t she cute?♡”

“!! Say …… what ……?”

T-that damn geezer ……! Taking advantage of the situation to make moves on my future wife?!

“Oh! Keika is going to join us next weekend for a girls Shogi night! It’s a sleepover with all girls …… May I go?”

“No!! I’d get too jea- …… I won’t let you go to such a frivolous practice session! The Kuzuryu Shogi family tree is officially breaking away from the Kiyotaki! I’m kicking them out!!”

“Uwheee?!”

Well, even though that happened, the girls’ playing styles have clearly changed since they started going to Master Kiyotaki’s practice sessions. Of course, for the stubborner and grittier.

“Practice League activities are running much longer these days, and it’s causing problems,” said the head of the Practice League, Yoshitsune Kuruno 7-dan, through clenched teeth.

“But worst of all are the mothers calling in to complain that their children’s right pant legs have strange wrinkles above the knee …… At this rate, the association should be paying me overtime.”

Or so he claims, but Kuruno-sensei himself has won a few placement matches by hanging on to the end and coming back for dramatic victories ……

While all these waves of change from the Kiyotaki Classroom were spreading through Kansai ……

A match that could epitomize the Shogi world’s revolution was about to take place in Kanto.

The competition to decide the best female Shogi player in the country, the Mynavi Women’s Open Tournament, has reached the semifinal stage.

This match pits last year’s Challenger, Women’s King Ryou Tsukiyomizaka.

Against …… Ai Yashajin Women’s 1-kyu.

A current women’s title holder going against a grade school girl, the youngest Women’s League member in its history–––that news shot its way around the Japanese archipelago and people took notice.

Judging by all the cameras jammed into the arena, I’d say there are more media people here than for pro title matches.

“Not to mention that little girl is the youngest Ryuo in history’s apprentice, so that alone would make headlines …… I was hoping she’d be able to play in a quieter place, though,” I whisper under my breath from my spot outside the arena as I keep an eye on the pre-match proceedings.

The sliding doors are wide open because there isn’t enough room for all the press to fit inside at once. They’re allowed to take pictures until the fourth move.

Normally, Masters wouldn’t come to matches like this with their apprentices, but Ai’s usual chaperone Akira got cold feet when she saw how much attention the match is getting. “I-I cannot! Sensei, please go!!” she begged through teary sobs.

So, here I am in Tokyo. Ai is still in grade school, so the association was happy that I’m accompanying her.

“Tsukiyomizaka-sensei, the piece flip is yours,” says the match recorder, Tamayo Rokuroba women’s 2-dan. It’s pretty rare for high-ranking players like her to work matches like this, but she apparently volunteered.

“…… Five Pawns face up.”

The result: Ai will be playing on defense.

A long, silent sigh flows out of the arena as soon as the words left her mouth.

They must be thinking the match would be more competitive with Ai on offense, but now she won’t have a shot …… That kind of disappointed sigh. The players themselves are staying quiet.

Ms. Rokuroba makes the announcement at last.

“The time has come to begin. Women’s King Tsukiyomizaka, please start the match.”

“I’m ready when you are,” Ai says with a polite bow, her voice strong and clear.

On the other hand, Ryou has yet to say a word. Maybe she can’t psych herself up for the match having to go against a little girl, but she doesn’t look like herself sitting at the board. Even her opening move is strange, quietly opening her Bishop Path with a gentle snap. Then she hides her face behind her fan.

Ai’s response comes right away.

Her hand reaches out like grabbing bread off the breakfast table, perfectly swift and natural.

Ryou makes a noise for the first time today once she sees that move.

“Aghh?”

Everyone who knew anything about Shogi in the room couldn’t believe their eyes. It’s like they all thought they were hallucinating.

Then they thought Ai had simply made a mistake …… Finally, the meaning behind that move dawns on them and they all gasp at once.

“Gahhh!”

Ai didn’t open her Bishop Path–––she advanced the Pawn in front of the Bishop, the one next to it! That takes guts ……!!

“Goteban kakutofu?!”

“Bishop Head Pawn, here?! Snotty little brat ……!!”

Crack!!

A thundering snap echoes through the arena. Seriously, it sounds like somebody’s arm just shattered.

It was Ryou’s fan. The two broken pieces are still clutched in her hand. That’s her way of telling the rude little girl across from her exactly what she was about to do.

But that little girl, willing to use an ambush strategy against a title holder on the very first move, just smiles and takes Ryou’s overwhelmingly aggressive aura head on.

“Now …… Shall we dance?”

The chaos had begun.

Eight hours after the match started–––it came to a silent end.

“…………………”

The one blue in the face with anger and biting down on her lip …… is the title holder sitting in the upper seat.

An avalanche of reporters representing over forty different media outlets flow into the arena and circle around her to point their cameras at the 10-year-old who conquered the chaos.

At long last, the victor opens her mouth to speak.

“I played through every one of your match records,” Ai Yashajin spoke softly, as if trying to comfort the defeated girl hunched over in front of her. “You play offensive, hair-trigger style Shogi and are particularly good at aerial battles. You never back down from a fight, even challenging male opponents head-to-head. In my opinion, you have better sense than most of them.”

“……”

“However, it’s only supported by thorough research. You play your moves as soon as you see them, but they’re not based on Shogi sense. You don’t read the board because you’ve researched it before.”

“……!”

Ryou’s head snaps up like it was shot out of a cannon and she stares Ai down.

“Today, you abandoned that completely.”

The overnight Cinderella of Women’s Shogi locks eyes with the Women’s King and calmly, confidently explains the reason she won today.

“Wings only have meaning in pairs. Only when Shogi sense is paired with research will they allow you to fly freely. But ……,” Ai let’s that word hang in the air a bit longer than she needed to, like a bold and devious little imp. “An angel with a clipped wing isn’t an angel.”

Ai then says directly to the fallen Aggressive Archangel’s face.

“That’s just a human.”

With that, Ryou’s head falls with a crack.

The match had been decided long before the final move. It was actually over eight hours ago.

The moment Ai advanced the Pawn in front of her Bishop …… And Ryou threw her research out the window all to make her pay for it.

I scroll through news sites on my smartphone while sitting in the bullet train bound for Shin-Osaka Station, and the headlines just keep coming.

“Youngest Women’s League Player in history on pace to become the youngest Mynavi Woman’s Open Challenger ever!”

“First, a Sub League member. Now, a title holder falls!”

“Kansai’s newest heroine Kobe’s Cinderella has arrived! Will she challenge Naniwa’s Snow White?!”

They’re all about Ai Yashajin.

But, it’s not just the Shogi sites. Regular news media have picked up the story as well. It’s a modern-day Cinderella story.

“Win the next match, become the Challenger and you’ll be promoted to 2-dan already. You’re Cinderella, all right.”

“…… Stop calling me that.”

That brand-new star is sitting next to me on the train, quietly resting up.

She acted so audacious back at the association. It turns out that it took a lot out of her. Well, she devoted everything she had physically and mentally preparing for this one match, so I suppose it’s only natural.

She’s so worn out that little body of hers might just disappear. She might think she’s hiding it from me, but her hand won’t stop shaking.

Eight hours …… No, weeks of nervous energy can really take their toll.

––– …… Hot.

She probably has a fever.

I can feel the heat radiating off her body from the seat next to her …… Very hot.

Not wanting to get recognized by any of the other passengers, I had my exhausted apprentice sit next to the window and bought one of those surgeon masks at a shop inside the train station for her to wear. It’s official, she’s famous.

Ai hasn’t even been part of the Women’s League for three months yet.

Despite that, she already outranks half its members.

Knowing how talented she is, I shouldn’t be surprised …… But, this still feels like a dream.

“You’ll face Machi Kugui in the finals. She’s very strong, holding the title Yamashiro Ouka for four straight seasons and earning the nickname Machi the Tormentor.”

“She’s that weird girl who keeps following you around with that grin on her face, right Sensei?”

“Following me around ……? She’s a Shogi journalist.”

Sure, she writes about me quite a bit, but there aren’t many Shogi journalists in Kansai and I’m a title holder. That’s all there is to it.

“Do you have a plan?”

“Of course,” she snaps.

“I should’ve known. It was stupid of me to ask.”

“…… On the other hand, Machi Kugui’s Shogi is unique because it looks like there are openings everywhere when really there aren’t. So, I’d like to practice attacking anaguma defenses rather than depending solely on my own strategy ……”

“Yeah, that would be a good idea.”

Go against Machi, and you know the first thing she’ll do is make an anaguma.

That should be easy enough to stop once you know it’s going to happen, but …… it’s hard to deal with once the King gets protected all the way to the corner ……

“Pulling off an anaguma in modern Shogi is as good as notching a point toward a victory,” I add.

“I don’t see any talent in Machi Kugui’s Shogi, but I think she’s aware of it. That’s why she builds walls around her King.”

“Machi spends time building up her anagumas. Breaking through one when it’s finished is more trouble than it’s worth, so taking it out early might be your best bet.”

That’s one of modern Shogi’s answers.

“That or show her an opening like Bishop Head Pawn and attack from behind.”

“I think you understand Machi won’t fall for cheap taunts like Ryou did, but more importantly, opponents won’t fall for the same move twice. That’s the kind of world you live in now, so don’t be naïve.”

“I know that …… You don’t have to tell me,” she snaps again and looks out the window like giving me the cold shoulder.

Getting concerned, I keep pressing.

“If you get a lead, stay calm and keep extending it. Keep playing until the last move even if you fall behind. Big Sis always says she gets tired even before playing against her. Machi is just that tenacious. She’s stubborn. Even her strategies don’t budge.”

“I won’t lose to anyone in a contest of will.”

She says, looking me square in the eyes before turning toward the window again.

“…… That’s the one lesson you’ve made crystal clear ……”

“Hm? Sorry, you need to speak up with that mask on. I didn’t get a word. Could you say it again?”

“I said that all a certain stupid sensei has done is make me build up my patience.”

“That’s mean!!”

This fourth grader is making fun of me! …… Not that it doesn’t happen all the time. But, considering that I was trying to give her advice, it wouldn’t hurt to be a little nicer ……

“I’ll come up with something, okay. If possible, I’d like to play against a strong anaguma user beforehand.”

“How about going to one of the practice sessions Master Kiyotaki has started doing recently? Seems like a lot of Sub League members show up.”

“Wasn’t that supposed to be a family session?”

She doesn’t sound amused.

Akira must’ve told her about it.

“The vibe isn’t bad at all. Ai Hinatsuru and the other girls go there.”

“What is it: a practice session or a potluck? Do people take them seriously?”

Ai practically spits out each word.

Well, she’s not the only one with that opinion. I mean, more than half of Shogi pros think that Master has started doing some strange volunteer program.

–––Though it hurts that my own apprentice thinks so, too ……

On the other hand, I don’t totally disagree with them. Which is why I haven’t joined in one of those sessions myself.

I guess seeing the torn expression on my face made Ai feel like she said too much.

“Also, doesn’t Machi Kugui have a lot of connections with the Kansai Sub League? It would taste bad in that sense, as well ……”

She backs up earlier statement with another reason.

Taste bad is Shogi slang meaning basically it wouldn’t feel right or feeling sick.

“I get what you’re trying to say, but …… Fighting at the top means that your opponents are pretty much set in stone. Get hung up on it now and there’ll be no end to it.”

“I’m aware. But I don’t want to on a personal level.”

“Ah, yeah. Everyone’s like that at first.”

Honestly, I don’t mind how nitpicky she is and, with talent like hers, everything could work out just fine. It also helps that many pros don’t think practice sessions with other players are as important as they used to be.

I stretch my arms and legs before sinking back into my seat.

“You’ll be all over the news tonight once we get back to Kansai. Don’t be surprised if journalists come knocking on your door, so prepare some comments now just in case.”

“…… What a pain.”

“That’s work, too, you know.”

However, there was no rush to get a scoop on Ai Yashajin that night. It just so happened she got overshadowed by another story.

The news that Tatsuo Zaou 9-dan announced his retirement.

Ai Yashajin and I got to Shin-Kobe Station and decided to wait for Akira to pick her up at a café inside the station. They’ve got the news on.

“Earlier this afternoon, professional Shogi player Tatsuo Zaou (80) announced that he wishes to retire despite being younger than the retirement age set by the Shogi Association. Along with four title seasons to his name, Zaou 9-dan has also had a successful singing career. This was the scene at the Shogi Association.”

The picture changes to a location I know very well.

Tatsuo Zaou 9-dan sat facing a wall of reporters in the Kansai Association’s multipurpose room, microphone in his hand and refreshed look on his face.

“Why I’m callin’ in quits? I gotta say first and foremost my knees can’t take sittin’ on my ankles anymore. I was thinkin’ ’at I could still play once my brain got goin’, but it’s jus’ too painful.”

Zaou-sensei keeps talking through all the camera flashes going off one after another.

“Another reason’d be all this new computer Shogi don’ make a lick ’o sense to me. I jus’ don’ get it. Kinda like tryin’ to do a two-man comedy show in English and Japanese, it don’ feel right chargin’ people to watch. Recently we’ve had the youngest title holder ever, the youngest 3-dan and the first girl in the 3-dan division. That’s a lot ’o firsts, so Kansai’s got a lot goin’ for it. Seemed ’bout time for an old solider like me to hang up the helmet and ride off into the sunset.”

Then, his tone took a solemn turn.

“I wasn’ cut out for the dog-eat-dog stuff from the start. Winnin’ in Shogi meant kickin’ some poor feller to the curb, and ’at never sat well with me. Losin’ felt worse so I put up with it. After all, a player don’ eat if he don’ win, eh? No money. But I always wanted to enjoy Shogi without worrin’ ’bout wins and losses. Shogi puzzles have always been more fun than playin’ on a board …… So yea, I’d say ’at ’bout sums it up.”

He started taking questions after that.

“Sunday Newspaper. You have provided daily puzzles for the last 50 years and become the undisputed Shogi puzzle guru. Do you plan on continuing to submit puzzles?”

“I’m the one who should be askin’ ya if I can keep goin’.”

“Hanshin Sports. Zaou-sensei, you topped the charts as a singer and became famous for your professional wrestling commentary skills. Does announcing your retirement today mean you’re going to commit more time to those ventures ……?”

“Had ’bout enough ’o singin’. An’ I don’ recognize half the techniques wrestlers use these days, so commentatin’ ain’t gonna happen. Heck, I can’t even commentate on Shogi no more.”

That got a laugh from the media people.

Once the laughter died down, a voice I know very well came out of the screen.

“Shogi journalist Mato. You mentioned Shogi software in your earlier statement. What is your opinion on professionals who are adopting software strategies?”

“Part ’o me knows it’s the changin’ times.”

The Shogi veteran started to say in the same monotone voice as before.

“But I gotta say, I don’ think the Shogi world needs to follow this trend. Puttin’ their minds to work and findin’ the answer under their own steam is what made players so great, not ’cause they can work a computer. I’m worried goin’ too far that direction could brin’ the Shogi world to its knees. Don’ matter how strong the strats get, I don’ find Shogi interestin’ at all these days.”

“I see …… Thank you.”

“Ah, yea. There’s one more reason I decided to call it quits.”

Zaou-sensei said as if he remembered something.

“It surprised me to find that tryin’ to enjoy Shogi while takin’ the competition out of it ain’t no fun at all. Playin’ Shogi without tryin’ to win is ’bout as much fun as watchin’ horse races at home without puttin’ any money on the line. ’At was a big discovery. That don’ mean I ain’t gonna try to enjoy my last bout, mind ya.”

“Am I correct in assuming that means you want to win?”

“Well, ya wouldn’ be wrong.”

That’s where the interview ended.

The news program switches to a different recording, one showing Chairman Tsukimitsu saying, “Even in retirement, I will be consulting Zaou-sensei as the director of the Kansai Shogi Association to receive his input on how Kansai Shogi should proceed from here.”

Honestly, after hearing what Zaou-sensei had to say …… I don’t know what to think.

Announcing his retirement is one thing, but his comments on software strategies almost felt like he was criticizing me personally.

But, I can’t let my own apprentice see that, so I just say, “…… His knees must be in really bad shape.”

“That reminds me, he did say sitting properly was painful during the New Year’s party.”

She sounds sympathetic, which is unusual for Ai.

“Grandp …… My grandfather also suffers from joint pain, especially on cold days.”

The news program sums up the report with this.

“This announcement means Zaou-sensei’s final Shogi match will be his C-2 placement match against another prominent Kansai Shogi player, Ryuo Yaichi Kuzuryu. Going against the player who prevented the Meijin’s Eternal Septuple Title and 100th title season last winter is sure to draw a great deal of attention from across the country.”

After keeping the Kiyotaki Classroom running like usual the day before his match, Kousuke Kiyotaki casually bid his daughter Keika farewell at the front door.

Both Kanto and Kansai had scheduled B-2 9th round matches to be held on this day simultaneously.

As the last match before the finale, players referred to it as L-B.

A simple way of saying last before the final.

B-2 plays ten placement matches, therefore making the 9th round L-B. As promotion and demotion scenarios were coming into focus, tension befitting the looming life and death matches took hold over the arena.

This was it for Kousuke Kiyotaki. Lose today, and his demotion would be guaranteed.

Even with that fact looming over him, Kousuke was much more relaxed than he usually was the morning before a match.

Playing Shogi was all he could think about–––an unbridled excitement to get the placement match underway.

“Ahh …… That’s right.”

No sooner had Kousuke slipped on his shoes than he turned to speak to Keika.

“I’m playin’ Mr. Muroga from Kanto. Ya know him?”

“Muroga 9-dan? Of course, I do. He’s Mr. Three-Sheets, right?”

This nickname was not an attempt at humor.

“Match recorders use record sheets that can hold 80 moves, and his matches last so long that the recorder needs three sheets to get everything down, yes?”

“Yeah. I’ve gone against him ten times, and we’re at a 5-5 split …… Couldn’t get more evenly matched if we tried.”

Kanto’s Muroga and Kansai’s Kiyotaki.

Considering they never met in preliminary matches, the two play against each other quite often.

With similar ages and playing styles, hard-fought slugfests ensue whenever they square off. The pair never interacted with each other anywhere other than across the board. Each considered the other to be a worthy foe.

“Playin’ him means I ain’t gettin’ home ’til real late. I’ll grab a drink with somebody when we’re all said an’ done, so don’t bother waitin’ up for me.”

“………… But ……”

“Don’t go makin’ that face. I ain’t gonna run again, trust me.”

Kousuke poked fun at the recent incident with a hearty grin and his daughter saw him off with a quick, “Good luck!” Saying any more, she feared, would result in sending her father off in tears.

Kanto’s veteran, Muroga 9-dan, was playing on defense.

Particularly adept with anaguma, his stubbornness was well documented.

“When swords break on the battlefield, I’ll fight the enemy with my bare hands. If I lack the energy, I’ll glare daggers into them. Should I become blind, I’ll stab them with my tongue!”

That was the motto he lived by. He always signs things with the word dauntless.

–––Both of us are sittin’ at 1 win an’ 7 losses. Further still, we both got a demotion point ……

Kousuke waited for Hiroshi’s arrival in the upper seat within the Kansai Association’s Onjyoudan no Ma Arena, possessing both the match’s first move and the determination to win even at the cost of losing blood.

Only the top two B-2 players would promote to B-1, the bottom five would receive demotion points.

The loser of this match would be immediately demoted to C-1, while the winner would be forced to wait for other matches to conclude to learn their fate. This battle would take place at the edge of a cliff where the margin for error was razor-thin.

“…… Or we could both fall hand-in-hand, too.”

Kousuke grinned, the whiskers of his mustache arching with his lips as Hiroshi Muroga stepped into the arena, coat still draped over his shoulders.

Removing it, Hiroshi said a few words of greeting before he sat down and began lining up pieces.

“The time has arrived. Please begin the match,” said the match recorder Hiuma Kagamizu 3-dan, sitting on his ankles without a cushion. It goes without saying he never intended to break that posture.

Both players and the match recorder radiated such an intense, focused aura that other people kept their distance from their board as if a barrier were pushing them away.

Hiroshi wasted no time in deploying an anaguma in the early game, pinning all his hopes on his bread-and-butter strategy.

Meanwhile, Kousuke decided to use a well-balanced attack similar to his apprentice Yaichi Kuzuryu’s playing style rather than his own well-defended yagura castle.

–––With youthful vigor!!

That thought filled his mind, front and center.

Each player was granted six hours of waiting time for placement matches. That’s more than players received for one-day title matches.

However, that time melted away at a surprising rate.

Sun setting before they knew it, the lactic acid buildup in their brains weighed their bodies down like unseen shackles.

Neither player was aware of their own posture, be it sitting on their ankles or cross-legged, as everything from the waist down had gone numb.

Sense of balance fading, Kousuke placed his fists on the tatami mat to support his upper body as he leaned forward and continued pondering his options.

Fatigue was starting to set in as the last of his waiting time slipped by.

“…… Oops, bumbled that one up.”

Kousuke lightheartedly smirked at himself after trying to abbreviate his new outfit. As it went with fashion styles, learning how to coordinate new fresh off the shelf strategies was going to take some time.

“But …… Nobody breaks them in without wearin’ them!!”

“Kiyotaki-sensei. Please proceed playing one-minute Shogi.”

“Alright!!”

The late game had arrived. Kousuke held the advantage, though just by a thread.

However, not only was Hiroshi’s anaguma solid, he had over an hour of waiting time on his side.

A winning recipe for anaguma. All Hiroshi needed to do now was draw out the match until his time-constrained opponent made a mistake.

Yet, Kousuke was strong from here on out.

Revitalizing his reflexes and battle instincts through numerous training clashes with younger players resulted in one of the most accurate and precise sessions of one-minute Shogi ever played.

Above all, Kousuke forgot about everything except the match in front of him in that moment.

He was entirely focused on getting through one-minute Shogi in his yet-to-be-broken-in clothing.

He forgot to be scared. He forgot what was riding on this match, what he would gain with a win and lose with the loss. Shogi was all he thought about. He was youthful.

Meanwhile.

“Two options ………… Two options ……,” Hiroshi mouthed to himself, barely making a sound, as he tended to do when reading deep into the board.

The options were to attack or to defend.

So long as he chose correctly, the anaguma would win. That’s how Hiroshi saw the big picture.

Unfortunately for him.

“Two …… aren’t there?!”

Hiroshi’s two options had disappeared from the board without him realizing it.

His chance to turn the tide of battle slipped through his fingers at some point while he was defending, waiting for his opponent to make a mistake, right along with his waiting time.

Only then did Hiroshi realize the weight of the battle had shaken him.

That quiver deprived him of distance, the most important aspect of playing an anaguma. He was unable to attack when it was necessary.

Then came the recorder’s emotionless countdown.

“50 seconds–––one, two, three, four ……”

Hiroshi’s panic reached its zenith. The two options that normally came to him on the spot were nowhere to be found in the chaos that had overtaken his mind.

“Seven, eight, nine–––.”

When Hiuma called the 59th second.

Hiroshi reached out to the board to move a piece, any piece, to avoid losing. However, his hand came to a halt over the board once he realized that it was already too late and said:

“I have lost.”

12:14 a.m. Kousuke Kiyotaki claimed victory after 209 moves.

“……… I’m incredibly sorry.”

“Not ya fault ……”

Hiroshi apologized right after his surrender.

Whether he was apologizing for running out of time, to all the fans who had been supporting him, or to the Shogi gods …… Kousuke wasn’t sure.

There was one thing he did know.

––– ………… I won ……

Only that.

Since all other matches had concluded, the review session and interviews with reporters all took place over the next 30 minutes in the arena.

Then, the review session over and pieces neatly returned to the box, Hiroshi Muroga donned his coat but continued to sit quietly in front of the piece-less board with his arms folded across his chest.

Which two players would promote from B-2 was left to be determined on the day of the final match.

“Cheers! …… Thanks, Mitsuru.”

Clicking together cups filled with hot sake, Kousuke downed the rice wine sake in one quick gulp.

–––When was the last time I was drinkin’ to celebrate rather than drown out the pain?

Kousuke had invited Mitsuru Oishi, who was analyzing matches late into the night at the association, out for a drink at the Shouben Tanbatei and was now thoroughly enjoying the taste of victory along with exquisite sake.

“Care to join us for a round, Takashi?”

“I’d be honored. There we are ……”

Takashi Hinatsuru prepared a cup for himself from his spot in the kitchen without a word of protest. Raising the cup to Kousuke, he drank it all in one swift swig.

Happily grinning as he watched, Kousukse said, “I gotta ask …… How long’s it been since we came to Hozenji, Mitsuru?”

“Just the two of us? I’d say around ten years, give or take. Still, I drop in on my own every now and then. In this area at least.”

Mitsuru poured himself another cup, refilling it yet again.

“Minami is actually a bastion for jazz music, it’s just not many people know about it. Hozenji Temple’s grounds play host to a jazz festival each summer.”

“That right?”

“Back in the 1920s, musicians displaced by the Great Kanto Earthquake rushed into Osaka and jazz took hold right here. The scene has all but disappeared by now, but I used to have a part-time gig playing piano in Minami back when I was in the Sub League.”

“That’s how ya met yar wife, ain’t it? Make sure ya treat her right.”

“Haaaa ……”

“The old vets always said the key to winnin’ title matches was havin’ a stable house. A guy with yar skills countin’ wins and losses just ain’t right.”

Mitsuru was currently caught between a rock and a hard place in the King Title Match after losing consecutive matches to Kanto player Crown Yo Okito.

Including the A division placement match, Mitsuru had dropped three straight to the Crown. Momentum was clearly against him.

“Things are fine at home, and I don’t have anything personal against that Okito guy, either …… It’s just that I can’t get my head around all this software stuff.”

“Software, eh?”

Yo Okito may have been the first professional player to lose to a computer, but it’s also said that this event triggered Shogi software’s incorporation into modern research methods. Many of the top players, including Kousuke himself, were fiercely against this trend at first.

However, the situation was changing now that all these new software-based strategies were producing results.

“The newest programs don’t bother with human match records and spit out match data they made by goin’ against themselves. Gettin’ stronger that way, too. That’s why people say they’re beyond us and why their senses are totally different. I took a close look for myself, and the things come up with some interestin’ ideas.”

“Well, you sure sound well-informed.”

“Been researchin’ with the youngens. The strategy makin’ waves against Rangin’ Rook right now is called Silver Halo Anaguma–––.”

Kousuke leans across the counter, excited to impart his knowledge.

Stuck listening to an explanation of the very strategy making his life miserable, Mitsuru grimaced and kept downing cups of sake.

“Good grief. Here I thought I was doing a favor for Keika, but …… Who’s supposed to be doing the cheering up here?”

“Keika?”

“Not just her. Even Ginko and Yaichi have been worried about you.”

“That so ……? Some Master I turned out to be.”

“No, I’m jealous, to tell the truth. I’m not exactly a people person, but those kids you raised up are an exception. They don’t beat around the bush, just like their Master.”

Mitsuru has never been one to mince words. What he said could be taken at face value.

Trying to hide his loosening tear ducts behind another cup of sake, Kousuke asked, “What about yar little girl? …… Asuka, yeah? She’s as good a kid as they come. Was nice enough to drop by my practice session the other day.”

“She’s a quiet one. Spitting image of someone I know.”

Shades of a father peeked out from the competitor’s visage for a brief moment as Mr. Oishi continued.

“Only thing is that she’s figured out how Shogi works as of late. She can get the gist of how her father is doing just by looking at the match record …… Hard to play like that.”

“…… I know what that’s like. Went through it myself.”

The two men now shared a bond that was absent in their younger days, both were Shogi players and fathers of Shogi players.

“Here you are, kantodaki oden,” said Takashi Hinatsuru, sensing a break in the conversation and putting bowls of piping hot compressed seafood, vegetables and eggs on sticks in front of them.

Kousuke’s eyes lit up the moment he took a bite and asked, “Tell me somethin’, Takashi. Is it just me, or is the flavor a lot stronger than the one I had after losin’ my placement match ……?”

“…… You noticed?”

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but …… Do ya change the flavor based on wins and losses?”

“It’s called the Flavor of Kyoto, Taste of Naniwa–––.”

Takashi leans over the counter as he explains.

“The classy dishes served to nobility and the Imperial family all started in Kyoto. Since that cuisine plays a role in ceremonies, proportions must be equally balanced while maintaining gorgeous presentation at the same time. In other words, preserving the traditional form passed down through the generations is important and bringing out each ingredient’s flavor is what defines elegance.”

“So, that’s Flavor of Kyoto, eh ……?”

“Yes. On the other hand, Naniwa–––cuisine here in Osaka doesn’t have a definite form. Actually, sticking to form will get you nowhere.”

“Following patterns …… won’t work?”

“Osaka is a city of commerce. Wining and dining potential clients at restaurants or catered events happens all the time, and business people are counting on the food to help close the deal. Every person has their own preferences already and each individual person’s tastes will differ depending on how they’re feeling at the time.”

“……”

“That’s where a chef shows what he can do. Of course, being able to satisfy the customer’s pallet is a must, but what taste is the customer looking for in the first place? Figuring that out and adjusting the menu on the fly is his chance to shine.”

“A contest of strength with no standards to follow? That’s Kansai Shogi right there,” said Mitsuru with a grin.

Kousuke followed him up with a serious look in his eyes.

“What taste do customers want? The only way to know that is to step into their shoes. That’s where it all leads. Which makes me think the chefs with the richest life experiences are in demand. Your bout lasted much longer today than last time, Kiyotaki-sensei, so I added more flavor.”

“Flavor of Kyoto, Taste of Naniwa ……,” Kousuke repeated several times, letting the words roll off his tongue.

His final placement match opponent was one of Kanto’s most prominent young players. He would never win by employing the latest strategies. This was the world of Kyoto cuisine.

However, that would not be the deciding factor in this battle.

–––Experience I got in spades. The experience of fightin’ through the Sub League, risin’ through placement matches and standin’ on top of it all in A.

He was fully aware of his strength at the time, as well as his weaknesses.

Where he was weak then …… That’s where his opponent would be weak now.

Even if he couldn’t compete in terms of youth, everything he’d built up over the years …… Couldn’t he bring out that flavor? There would be plenty of waiting time during the placement match to stew.

With all these thoughts going through his head, Kousuke found it strange.

–––How long’s it been since I was still thinkin’ ’bout Shogi right after a match?

What’s more, not the agony of defeat …… but having this much fun.

“Mr. Kiyotaki.”

Mitsuru spoke up after Kousuke fell silent.

“There’s a jazz bar on the way to Dohtonbori. Care to join me?”

“Nah. Sorry, but I’m callin’ it a night,” said the cheerful Kousuke Kiyotaki as he slid into his coat. No matter where he was, the snap of Shogi pieces was all he would hear.

“…… Rejected, eh? Here I thought rejecting was always my part to play.”

Mitsuru cracked a joke with a somewhat rejuvenated look in his eyes as he watched Kousuke say a quick thank you and walk out the door. Then he started bringing his cup of sake up to his lips to down what was left.

However, his hand stopped halfway, and Mitsuru didn’t take another sip of alcohol.

It wasn’t a stiff drink or music that he needed right now.

“That was delicious.”

With that, Mitsuru was about to make his own exit when he turned on his heel.

“Are you sticking around for a while?”

“Yes. Another two weeks, I’d say.”

“Then you should drop by my bathhouse sometime. Sure, it doesn’t have all the bells and whistles you’ve got up at the Hinatsuru, but …… I think you’d enjoy the sting of a nice hot bath at mine.”

“Thank you very much. I will.”

Bowing his head, Takashi was satisfied with his performance today.

For warriors, a rest was simply a way to gear up for the next battle. He was just happy that his cooking had lit a flame within Kousuke and Mitsuru’s hearts.

Cuisine wasn’t the star in Osaka. The spotlight belonged to the people who dine.

“…… I wonder what kind of food Ai makes for Kuzuryu-sensei ……,” Takashi Hinatsuru mumbled to himself as he watched Mitsuru disappear into the night, his thoughts on his not-so-far-away daughter.

“Great.”

10th round C-2 division Placement Matches are today–––the finale.

The breakfast that Ai whipped up for me this morning is a full assortment of all my favorites. She went all out.

But, I give her a stern warning as soon as I see karaage fried chicken on the table.

“Ai …… How many times have I told you it’s too dangerous to make fried food on your own?”

“It’s okay! I made these in the microwave, so I didn’t have to fill a pot with oil!”

She tells me that it’s possible to let the oil sink into the chicken skin and then fry them up normally in the microwave, which apparently has a setting just for that these days.

Her well beyond grade school level cooking skills never cease to amaze me ……

“Now I see. These are a lot less oily than the usual karaage chicken is. Actually, this style might be better for breakfast anyway.”

“I really wanted to give it that extra crispiness that only oil can give so you’d be extra crisp for today, but ……”

“…… Thanks. Placement Matches are a battle of endurance. I need to fill up in the morning, so I have enough energy to make it to the end. This will help a lot.”

My apprentice’s superstitions adding a little more pressure, I take my time and start filling up my stomach.

I’ve won all nine Placement Matches so far.

What has me worried is that, including me, four players in C-2 are undefeated right now. Two of them are ranked higher than me and there are tons of people with one loss above me as well, so losing today makes promotion pretty much impossible. Talk about rough.

–––It’s all good. I just need to win. Considering who I’m playing, the chances I’ll promote are pretty high ……

I organize my thoughts while chewing the homemade breakfast my apprentice made just for me.

By the way, there are so many people in C-2 that Placement Matches are usually spread over two days, but L-B and final matches are all played at once.

This is done to prevent any mental advantage someone might get from knowing their opponent’s state of mind during the match. Other divisions do it the same way. So many fates are intertwined between the Kanto and Kansai Associations that the arenas take on a vibe like the Roman Coliseum right before gladiators fight to the death.

In the middle of all that, the Don of Naniwa is playing his final match.

–––Not the most serene way to go out, but ……

Only then did I notice my palms are soaked with sweat and realize how nervous I truly am.

Wiping my hands on my shirt out of my apprentice’s line of sight, I try talking about the food to get my mind off Shogi.

“The chicken is great, but the ohitashi greens in soy sauce are top-notch. Let’s see, there’s spinach, chrysanthemum, and …… Is that parsley?”

I can taste the savory spinach with every bite of the three-green mixture, the parsley adds a little extra crispness to every bite. The chrysanthemum’s aroma adds an extra flare.

The soft flavors help me relax all the way to my core.

“I thought too much fried food would upset your stomach …… And, I need to prepare for your party tonight, so I’ll make sure there’s plenty of karaage then!”

Ai sounds like she can’t wait for tonight to come.

“The whole Grade Schooler Practice Group is coming over after school today to help get everything ready! We’ll be analyzing the match along with you and be ready to celebrate when you get home!!”

The girls had been getting together at the Kiyotaki Classroom all the time recently but decided to have a party over here this time. Was it because I got a little jealous the other day?

I’m so happy—blood could shoot out my nose, but–––.

“There is no such thing as a guarantee in a competitor’s world.”

Holding that happiness back with sheer willpower, I calmly say to my apprentice, “The difference between victory and defeat in the pros is always paper-thin. You can’t let your guard down until the moment your opponent throws in the towel.”

“S-Sorry ……”

All Ai’s excitement disappears before my eyes.

“You’re under a lot of pressure, and here I am, your apprentice, making a big fuss …… You’re right. Getting ready to party before the battle even starts is weird ……”

“Yeah. No match is set in stone. The only thing you can do is get yourself as ready as possible and go into battle at your best. Just like what I’ve been doing for today.”

Keeping my strict master face intact, I say, “…… Which means, be as ready to party as possible, got it?”

“……!! Yes!! Master!!”

Her eyes, so close to tearing up, suddenly shine.

I give her a gentle pat on the head as I go over all my reasons why I’ll win in my mind …… All so her party preparations don’t go to waste.

Zaou-sensei is retiring because sitting on his ankles hurts.

In a battle of attrition like Placement Matches, he should be dying by the end. Surely, he’ll be in no shape to play Shogi.

Then, there’s the difference in our rating.

I’ve got more than 500 points on him.

–––Statistically speaking, I should be able to take him even with a piece handicap in his favor ……

Making a mistake is what scares me. If I’m going to lose, it won’t be from getting outplayed.

Which is exactly why …… I absolutely can’t let my guard down.

That’s what people call the last day A Division Placement Matches take place.

Since the best players in the world clash with their lives hanging in the balance and the most waiting time allotted for any Shogi match on their side, the matches tend to run long–––that’s why.

“…… Which would make today the most painful day in the Shogi world, wouldn’t it ……?” I mumbled to myself, killing time in the Kansai Shogi Association’s Player’s Room.

It doesn’t matter what division it is, there’s always a tense vibe on the last day of the Placement Matches.

“TV cameras get to the association at the crack of dawn, wait for A division players to show up and follow them inside the building …… The break rooms overflow with people and fans come in droves to listen to live commentary ……”

It’s like there’s a festival going on or something.

But, it’s not like that for C-2 …… We don’t get all the fanfare.

Only three out of the fifty of us will promote. Talk about a tiny window.

Plenty of Meijin hopefuls get stuck in C-2, spend their best years going nowhere and end their careers as just that: hopefuls.

Retirement is waiting for them should they lose–––death as a Shogi Player is a real possibility.

This is the second time I’ve felt this heavy atmosphere, but I’m also getting déjà vu. This vibe …… Where else have I felt it ……?

“………… That’s right. Granddad’s funeral was just like this ……”

The Player’s Room heater is still off, so it’s cold enough in here to see my breath.

Considering that so many more media and players than usual are at the association right now, the whole building is eerily quiet.

That’s especially true around the players in line for promotion or demotion, everyone is being extra cautious and giving them plenty of space …… Which is why no one even tries to come in here despite the fact that I’m in the Player’s Room.

That’s exactly the same as what happened at Granddad’s funeral back when I was in junior high.

He loved Shogi and spent more time with me than all of his other grandchildren. I remember everyone keeping their distance, quietly watching me as I went up to his casket.

The first person to speak to me in the middle of all that was–––.

“Huh? Why aren’t you in the arena yet?”

Big Sis comes into the Player’s Room dressed in her usual sailor-style school uniform.

It’s 9:52 in the morning. The match will start in eight minutes.

“Look who’s talking, Big Sis. What about school?”

“Third year students don’t have to go if they don’t want to. Graduation is coming up anyway.”

“Oh yeah …… I remember those days.”

I nod, reflecting on my own time as a third year.

Since I was already set to turn pro, I barely went to school at …… Wait.

“Hm? Are you sure? There are still classes going on, right?”

“I already know what I’m going to do next year, so I should be able to do what I want.”

“So, you’re skipping classes ……?”

I stopped right there once I realized there was something I couldn’t overlook in what she’d just said.

“Come again?! You’ve got plans?! I haven’t heard anything about that!!”

“What’s wrong with you, Yaichi? Are you boycotting your own match?”

“Of course not! I’m asking you what you’re going to do after graduation! High school? Or are you–––.”

“Looking to get married, if that’s what you’re going to ask.”

Damn. She’s not going to give me a straight answer, is she?

“…… Normally, I’d just walk right in and take the upper seat, but ……”

Giving up on it, I glance over at the monitor and start talking.

Dragon King Ryuo is the Shogi world’s strongest title so, logically, the upper seat should be mine …… It’s just.

“Today is Zaou-sensei’s final match, right? Forcing the Don of Naniwa to take a lower seat in his last pro match would be kind of ……”

The board where I’m scheduled to play is on the monitor right now.

But I can’t see where Zaou-sensei is sitting from this angle. It’d be so easy if he would just set a watch or his fan next to the board on one side or the other ……

“And? What will you do?”

“Right now, I’ve got no choice but to let him decide.”

“Sounds about right …… That would make things easier.”

I bet Big Sis is working through her own seating problems right now, nodding in all seriousness like that.

She has two of the highest-ranking titles in Women’s Shogi all to herself, but she has to take the lower seat most of the time since she’s still training in the Sub League.

I’m sure she knows when to sit in the upper seat, but …… Worrying about this kind of thing before the match is like trying to fight with a thorn in your foot. Concentrating is impossible.

“Seven minutes left …… I should probably get going.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, that’s right. Big Sis?”

“What?”

“How long are you going to be at the association today?”

“I’m planning to be here until you get your results.”

“In that case, would you leave with me after my match is over?”

“You’ve got your promotion interview, right?”

“Zaou-sensei is the star today. Even if I do win and get promoted, I don’t think the media people will spend that much time talking to me ……”

“Say we leave together, where to?”

“My apprentice says the Grade Schooler Practice Group will be throwing a party at my apartment. I was wondering if you’d like to join us.”

“Are you sure? The average age will go up if I go.”

“H-H-How would that be a problem?! I’ve already told you many times before, I don’t think of little girls like that–––.”

“What you getting all defensive for, perv? Idiot,” says Big Sis, sticking her tongue out and making a rare attempt at humor and then adds with a heart-racing smile that could end up distracting me from the match. “Sure …… I’ll wait for you.”

The old man sitting on the other side of that media wall casually takes a sip out of a clay teacup before giving me a quick wave.

“Sorry ’bout this. The seat was open so I jus’ plopped on down.”

“Of course, Sensei. I don’t mind at all.”

It’s weird for players to smile at each other before matches, but Zaou-sensei’s heartfelt grin is just so infectious I can’t help but smile along with him.

“Pardon me,” I say as I work my way through the media people and sit down in the lower seat with my back to them.

In all honesty …… Zaou-sensei picking the upper seat like this took that thorn right out of my foot without any pain at all.

Now, I can focus on the match.

–––Being the Ryuo won’t protect a young guy like me from getting roasted online for stealing the upper seat from a decorated veteran like Zaou-sensei ……

According to regulations, the Ryuo takes the upper seat. It’s common sense in the Shogi world.

But there are a lot of people who don’t know that.

Pictures of the arena will be printed in newspapers all around Kansai and I’m sure it’ll be on TV, too. It’s like that saying: departing birds leave a clean nest. Think of it as the old veteran wanting to go out on a high note.

I’d love to send him off with a good death, but ……

–––Stop, stop! I can’t get caught up in appearances. I need to win, no matter how ugly it gets ……!

“It is time to begin. Please start your matches,” say all the match recorders the moment I finish lining up the pieces … as if they were waiting for me.

“I look forward to our match.”

“Yea. As do I.”

Zaou-sensei lowers his head, returning the respect I showed him. Then, with countless camera flashes going off all at once, he and I hold our bows for the same amount of time we would for a title match.

Offense and defense for Placement Matches are all determined beforehand.

I’m on defense for this one–––and I’ve got a plan up my sleeve.

“Now then ……”

First move.

Taking another sip of his tea, Zaou-sensei almost lazily opens his Bishop Path.

Then says, while all the camera shutters are clicking away, “Sorry, but I’m gonna break posture. All the pins an’ needles in my knees won’ let me stay upright ……”

He winces in pain as he crosses his legs on the floor mat.

It looks like he’s really hurting. There’s no way he could keep that up during a ten-hour all-out match like this one.

“Though, I’ve been goin’ on mountain hikes rather than bein’ stuck rehabbin’ these days. The knees ain’t as bad as they used to be. That don’ mean I’m takin’ back my retirement, so rest easy, ya hear?”

The journalists managed to stifle their laughter at the most Osakan of Osakan jokes from the elderly player, but I can see it in their eyes.

Once I was sure the giggles and camera clicks had died down.

“……”

I quietly open my own Bishop Path, too.

My specialty, the Move Loss Bishop Exchange.

“…… The Ryuo’s drawing his legendary sword!”

“So, he’s not showing the old man any mercy in his last match, I take it ……?”

The journalists whisper amongst themselves as they leave the arena. Zaou-sensei may have his legs crossed, but his spine is straight as an arrow as he moves to attack.

But.

Zaou-sensei’s hands keep speeding up the further we get into the match. Soon a strange situation develops on the board–––one that I’d planned on happening.

“…… Repetition Draw, eh?” says Zaou-sensei quietly under his breath, masking his emotions completely.

Defenders playing to trigger Repetition Draws is a brilliant tactic in modern Shogi.

Even better, I can whittle down my opponent’s waiting time by sticking to my research and playing as quickly as possible.

It doesn’t matter if people call Repetition Draws Shogi’s cancer. If forcing one increases my chance of winning by even a fraction of a percent, I’m doing it. That’s modern Shogi.

The match recorder’s monotone voice sounds as soon as the same move repeated itself the fourth time.

“The match will be replayed in 30 minutes.”

I stand up from my seat at the board and leave the arena. The hallways are filled with erratic footsteps going off the walls. Other matches aren’t even close to reaching a climax.

“The time has arrived. Kuzuryu-sensei, please start the match on offense.”

Even more media people are crammed in here at the start of the rematch than there were at the beginning of the first one.

First move. I advance my 7 Six Pawn to open the Bishop Path. Countless cameras flash. I stay still for as long as I would during a title match so that the media people can get the pictures they need.

The wall of reporters and journalists turn their cameras to face the Don of Naniwa as soon as I let go of the Pawn.

Zaou-sensei’s first move–––advancing the Pawn in front of his Rook to 8 Four.

“……!!”

“?”

It sounded like he said something as he moved his piece. “Last time, so migh’ as well” or something like that?

First move–8 Four Pawn–––.

“…… King’s Fist, hmm ……”

Hardcore members of the Static Rook party love doing this. The philosophy is show your intention and watch the opponent. Considering that keeping things closer to the vest is the better strategy in modern Shogi, it goes without saying that the King’s Fist has gone out of favor.

–––Is he trying to show me how confident he is as the veteran player? That’s generous of him ……

Being so forthcoming is fatal in modern Shogi.

It’s the exact opposite of me aiming for a Repetition Draw to wrestle the first move away from him. Is this his way of backhandedly criticizing my strategy?

“Alright then ……!”

I play my next move just as the media people were leaving the arena. 6 Eight Silver, just as I planned.

A journalist who happened to see it absentmindedly mumbles to himself.

“Yagura ……”

Shock and surprise race around the arena like waves through water.

“The Ryuo’s using a yagura?”

“Huh? Not a Bishop Exchange?”

“Didn’t he say yaguras are dead ……?”

The players and the Sub League member working as the match recorder across the way in the Ongedan no Ma are staring this way …… I can feel their eyes on my back.

Zaou-sensei wastes no time opening the Bishop Path and I use the Silver I just advanced to stop him from taking my Bishop.

With both sides on board–––this match will be fought with yagura castles.

Of course, there’s a reason why I abandoned the Bishop Exchange Single Knight Jump that’s won me so many matches in a row and went with the dead yagura instead.

–––Modern Shogi theory.

Single Knight Jump is nothing more than a curveball. It only hits home until people get used to seeing it, and my research is not quite complete just yet.

It’s hard to use a strategy like that with so much waiting time because eyes will adjust.

And, while it’s true that the defender usually determines how the match will unfold, it’s also a fact that offense has a slightly better winning percentage overall.

Using an offensive yagura against our younger players researching with software would be dangerous …… But, this is the Placement Match with tons of waiting time and I absolutely cannot afford to lose. Having a yagura castle on my side is reassuring.

–––I know the yagura standards like the back of my hand. I’ll let it all come to this ……!

Phase two of my secret plan.

Just as I visualized, the match turns into a Double Yagura.

But, Zaou-sensei makes a bizarre move and changes up his strategy in a way I didn’t see coming.

–––Rapid Attack Yagura? Isn’t that formation ……?

It’s nothing new.

But it’s certainly nothing I’m used to seeing.

Kind of like hearing a song that was popular when you were really little, you know it but only the gist. That kind of strategy.

I have no idea what made it popular or why it disappeared …… It’s one of the many bubble strategies that have popped up in the Shogi world.

Vanished strategy.

That’s what we call them.

The last time someone used it has to be more than ten years ago. Everyone knew how to deal with it by then and that defense became part of the standard.

–––Which means I should be safe as long as I stick to the standards, but ……?

Something doesn’t feel right.

Things are lining up and I can feel the red flags going up in my fingertips.

–––What to do ……? Go with my gut or play standard ……?

I leave my hand hovering over the board and commit a lot of time to thinking this through.

But I’m not retracing my steps or reading the board to figure out what to do next. I’m trying to step inside my opponent’s head.

–––Think! Zaou-sensei has to be going for something, but what ……?!

Then again, playing 8 Four Pawn on his opening move like that, I highly doubt Zaou-sensei has a strategy fully researched and ready to go. No matter how hard I think about it, I can’t come up with a reason not to stick with the standards.

“…… Which reminds me ……”

In his last placement match, Zaou-sensei lost because he didn’t know the standard and played himself into a trap.

Which makes it highly likely he simply doesn’t know this one either.

“…… Alright.”

I’ve made up my mind. I’m playing standard.

I shift my King and prepare to change my castle combination.

Zaou-sensei has been a Shogi pro for over 60 years. That makes my two years and change look like nothing. The experience gap is enormous.

However, I have more experience in one area …… an overwhelming understanding of standard knowledge shared among pro players and the ability to use any one of them.

Modern Shogi theory.

In other words–––build up a stronger defense and hit the other guy until they fall!

“…… Fuuuu ……”

Zaou-sensei sometimes makes these long sighs still sitting cross-legged and playing fast rather than using his waiting time.

He looks almost indifferent, moving the pieces like that.

–––He doesn’t have much waiting time left, so I suppose he can’t help it.

I match his pace and charge ahead. It’s what the standard calls for. The more waiting time I have in the late game, the less likely it is for Zaou-sensei to come back and beat me.

His formation is so old, it almost smells like the 1960s. We’re 30 moves in, and I bet that’s how far back you have to go to find another match like this one.

Sticking to modern Shogi theory’s build a stronger defense than the opponent way of thinking, I slip my King down behind a rock-solid wall …… but …

–––My 7 Seven Silver is getting in the way ……