Chapter 79: After the Competition
Nippon Budokan.
The Emperor's Cup was a silver statue standing about twenty centimeters tall. It depicted a figure in Kendo armor with a long sword tucked into its waist, staring straight ahead with a gaze that felt remarkably lifelike.
The base of the statue was a rectangular crystal, engraved with the name Chishima Akishin. Below his name, the inscription read: Champion of the 59th All-Japan Kendo Championship.
Alongside it was an official certificate of merit, stamped with the formal "Buwu no In" seal and the highest-tier seal of the Kendo Federation.
Shizuka toyed with the small statue in her hands—the highest honor in the world of Japanese Kendo—before handing it over to Hachiman, who was standing beside her.
She looked at Akishin, her expression turning uncharacteristically serious. "Congratulations, Chishima-kun. You actually did it." Then, she gave him a gentle, brief hug.
"It's a small thing. At least one goal has been checked off the list," Akishin said, shaking his head slightly.
He pulled a camera from his pocket—one he had borrowed from Vice Chairman Kiyohara after the match—and made a suggestion. "Let's take a photo."
"A photo?"
Hachiman looked up, still clutching the Emperor's Cup.
"Yeah! Hurry up and get over here. I figured this was a moment worth commemorating."
After setting the camera's self-timer and placing it on a nearby table, Akishin pulled Hachiman and Shizuka into their positions.
Hachiman stood in front, holding the silver statue, while Akishin and Shizuka Hiratsuka stood side-by-side behind him.
"Cheese!"
The camera captured three wide smiles. In the frame, Akishin and Shizuka each had a hand resting on Hachiman's shoulders.
Shizuka's eyes were darting slightly toward Akishin, while Hachiman looked somewhat nervous as he stared at the Emperor's Cup in his hands...
Once they checked the photo, Shizuka's face turned a faint shade of pink.
To be honest, it looked like a family portrait of three. Even though she didn't look old and Hachiman was a high school student, the photo somehow radiated the vibe of two parents out with their son.
Akishin felt the photo lacked a bit of the "right" atmosphere, so he dragged them both back to the Kendo arena for another shot. This time, it finally felt like a proper memento of the achievement.
Of course, they kept both photos.
Beyond those, there were plenty of others—group shots with the Chiba delegation, and various Kendo practitioners lining up to get a picture with Akishin, including Takanabe Susumu and Uchimura Ryoichi.
Those were taken before the ones with Shizuka and Hachiman, back when he was still wearing his Kendo uniform.
After saying their goodbyes to Vice Chairman Kiyohara, Akishin led the other two back to the hotel. It was already six in the evening; night was fast approaching.
The last streaks of the sunset lingered on the horizon, and the birds that had ventured out were returning to their nests, weary from the day.
After having dinner at the rooftop restaurant, the three of them put on slight disguises to avoid the reporters lingering by the entrance. They took a short stroll along a nearby stream, enjoying the night breeze and sampling a few snacks.
By the time they returned to the hotel, it was ten o'clock. As Akishin soaked in a warm bath, he remembered that tomorrow held the press conference—a mandatory procedure following the end of the tournament. He asked Hachiman to let his parents know they would be delaying their return by one day.
He then called Shizuka over so they could contact Hachiman's parents together.
"Mom, yeah, so... I'm going to be late coming home because I have some stuff to handle in Tokyo for another day. I'll be back the day after tomorrow... Don't worry, I won't be a bother to Sensei... You guys are watching the match right now?... Okay, I'll tell them... Komachi, what do you want for a souvenir? Big Brother will buy it for you..."
When Hachiman called home, it turned out his parents were watching the replay of the Kendo Tournament and had spotted Hachiman on the television.
Afterward, Shizuka chatted for a few minutes with Hachiman's parents. They seemed completely at ease, even asking Hachiman to pass on their congratulations to Chishima Akishin.
Akishin went to bed at eleven that night, an hour earlier than usual. The string of matches against such powerful opponents had forced him to maintain absolute concentration, leaving him exhausted.
Both his body and mind needed the rest. The feeling was similar to how he felt after fighting in the System Space, but this had lasted longer and was far more draining.
When Akishin opened his eyes again, it was eight in the morning. Morning sunlight spilled over the windowsill. Hachiman was already dressed, sitting cross-legged on the bed and fiddling with his phone.
"Sensei, you're finally awake."
"Yeah. Did anyone come by?"
Akishin threw off the covers and climbed out of bed. He stripped out of his pajamas and began putting on his clothes, one piece at a time.
Hachiman glanced at the two scars on Akishin's body—scars that were supposedly from a run-in with a drunk mugger on a rainy day. "Vice Chairman Kiyohara came by about half an hour ago," Hachiman said. "He asked if you were up. I told him no, so he left a message and took off, not wanting to disturb you."
"What was the message?"
Akishin pulled on his shirt, followed by a jacket, patted down his trousers, and started changing into his shoes.
"Vice Chairman Kiyohara wanted me to tell you that there's a press conference at ten. He's hoping you can make it. Once you're up, you're supposed to send him a message. As long as you're at the Budokan before ten, it's fine."
"Right. Got it."
After finishing up, he headed to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. Once he was done, he stepped out of the room and knocked on the door next door.
After a minute's wait, Shizuka—whose hair was still a messy nest—opened the door and said, "Give me a second."
She shut the door again. Ten minutes later, Shizuka emerged, fully dressed and wearing light makeup.
The three of them planned to eat downstairs. The top floor was better suited for lunch and dinner.
However, as they reached the stairs, they spotted a swarm of reporters in the main lobby. The three of them immediately retreated back to their rooms and asked room service to deliver breakfast instead.
The breakfast was simple but elegantly prepared: a bowl of white rice, Natto soup, a golden-grilled Sanma fish, and a small side of vegetables.
Natto soup was a standard staple, present at almost every meal in Japan, whether in a budget inn or a luxury hotel.
Japanese people have a genuine, deep-seated love for Natto. They're used to eating it with sliced green onions, soy sauce, and wasabi, or mixing it with rice and a raw egg.
The process of stirring the Natto with chopsticks until it creates those long, sticky strings before eating is a ritualistic pleasure at the dining table.
For most Japanese people, they could go without rice, but they couldn't go without Natto. It's added to so many dishes, it's as if they want it to be the primary food group.
The main reason is the widespread belief that Natto extends one's lifespan. People say the reason Japan has the highest life expectancy in the world is because of Natto...
Akishin often used Natto when running his Izakaya—it was Japan, after all.
However, Akishin couldn't bring himself to enjoy the common way of eating it. Just looking at that slimy, stringy texture was enough to kill his appetite.
That said, he actually quite liked the Natto soup. With just some green onions and salt, it tasted richer than anything enhanced by MSG or soy sauce.
(I really don't like Natto, please 😭)
After breakfast, he sent a message to Vice Chairman Kiyohara. The federation sent a private car to help them bypass the reporters at the hotel entrance and whisked them away to the Budokan for the press conference.
Akishin brought Director Okazawa along to help field the barrage of questions from the media.
Meanwhile, back in Chiba Prefecture, the news "bombing" had already begun. Sobu High was suddenly becoming famous, leaving other schools drowning in envy.
The school's board of directors even called personally to offer their greetings.
Kondo Yuika and Sakurai Kaiko also called to offer their congratulations.
Once the press conference wrapped up, Hachiman prepared to go buy some Tokyo-specific snacks or trinkets. Akishin didn't hesitate—he immediately decided they were going out to have some fun.
Shizuka didn't object; in fact, that was exactly what she had in mind from the start.
Who comes to Tokyo without doing a bit of sightseeing?
It was only noon, and they had plenty of time since they weren't heading back until tomorrow.
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