Manga Vol 31 - Kisaku!? Kikumaru no Singles

This volume completes the Higa arc at long last so that we can finally move on to the Hyotei arc in the Nationals! I must say that Higa gets on my nerves even more than Jousei Shonan which did not appear in the manga. I'm quite neutral towards Jousei actually but Higa makes my blood boil. They appear as barbarians on court and I think they really lack the grace of sportsmen by using tennis balls to hit people as and when they like. I guess Konomi-sensei might receive some backlash from Okinawan people since Higa is from Okinawa but I don't think he actually meant that people there behave like those bunch of idiots of Higa. Surely the school must belong to some place so it just happened that he chose that place...Anyway, this is simply my conjecture though so I don't know how Konomi-sensei actually came up with the plot. To be frank, other than Hirakoba Rin who gets into my good books, the rest of the members simply put me off. The captain, Kite Eishirou gives me the impression that he is just a pretender and I can't stand him looking like a sukebe ojisan when he should be a junior high student. I can't comprehend why Konomi-sensei gave him half opaque spectacles too so this makes Kite look even weirder. Their coach resembles that bald guy during the Karuizawa OVA and is such a scumbag. I'm just glad that we are finally done with this school and I certainly do not hope to see them again.

As for the matches, there's Singles 3 where Kikumaru took part in his first singles match against Kai Yuujirou. Kikumaru was having the upper hand initially since he had improved his stamina and used acrobatics play to his advantage. However, when Kai used Viking Horn (I couldn't see what he was trying to do and can't be bothered to examine the move), things started to change so Kikumaru did a doubles style' singles play which stunned everyone. And he won by a stroke of luck during the tiebreaker at 7-6. Doubles 2 wasn't explored in detail since Inui and Kaidou won pretty easily by 6-3. As for Singles 1, Tezuka makes his comeback against Kite and won by 6-4. That oyaji was said to be a koroshiya (yeah, right!) but against the mighty Tezuka who simply turned invincible immediately through this state of Hyakuren Jitoku no Kiwami which seems to be more powerful than Muga no Kyochi, Kite was powerless to do anything. Actually, from what it seems, Tezuka reacted by instinct and this makes him very powerful by counter-using the opponent's moves with increased power and precision. Anyway, there's no reason for our dearest bucchou to lose after being out of action for so long. I look forward to seeing this match in the OVA DVD to be released in March.

Another happy thing for me besides Tezuka winning his match was to see Rikkai again! OK, their matches were not featured though but seeing Genichirou and gang plus Yukimura back in the limelight is simply thrilling. Based on the match schedule, it will be no surprise that Rikkai will head to the finals to meet Seigaku since their block doesn't have any notable opponents.

The other block's competition will be stiffer since Fudomine will face Shitenhouji in the quarterfinals while Seigaku will face competition from Hyotei, their longtime arch rival. Well, I feel sorry for Hyotei since there's no reason Konomi-sensei will let Seigaku lose at this stage. The latest issue of Jump was just done with Doubles 1 where Shishido and Ootori won against Oishi and Kikumaru so that leaves Singles 1 which should involve Atobe vs Echizen. To think that I was looking forward to a repeat of Tezuka vs Atobe again...

With regards to Fudomine and Shitenhouji, for novelty's sake, Shitenhouji might face Seigaku in the semi-finals but if Konomi-sensei wants Fudomine to get a chance to face Seigaku again, the reverse might happen. I feel that Shitenhouji's chances are higher simply because they are a new rival school in the series and a lot of attention has been put on them. I doubt Konomi-sensei is just introducing them for the fun of it especially with regards to that 1st year Kinta who should face Echizen. Actually, I think Oshitari Yuushi facing his cousin in Shitenhouji might be a fun match too but the condition is that Hyotei must beat Seigaku or else both schools won't be playing each other. By the looks of it, this seems impossible.

In the end, we might just see a Seigaku vs Rikkai final which actually suits me perfectly. Either Genichirou or Yukimura vs Tezuka will be like a wish come true for me. I've been dying to see these guys playing against each other. I can only wait since the quarterfinals arc are not completed yet. Who knows how long the Atobe match is going to take? I like Atobe-sama but...the Hyotei arc has been dragging for too long though. Maybe it's time to move on.