I do not own Prince of Tennis.
Finished the series yesterday, and though I haven't watched much sports anime, I doubt I'll like another series in this genre as much as I did Prince of Tennis.
Noticed Efforts
Tennis balls were everywhere. Not that Kachiro Kato was surprised, or even dismayed, since the freshmen were the ones who had to clean up after every practice. But he always found himself slightly bemused, since he and his friends always got so caught up in the practices of their senpais that they failed to notice just how many tennis balls were actually flying around.
Pausing in his work, he straightened up slightly, his bare knees digging into the hardcourt. He swiped the back of his hand across his sweaty forward and shifted his gaze to peek at the sky. "Looks like rain," he remarked.
"Don't be ridiculous," said Horio Satoshi, his fellow freshman and friend, replied.
Kachiro looked around for the boy, but the only other one on the court was Katsuo Mizuno. He was sweeping on the other end, gathering up small piles of loose stones and stray leaves. "Oi, Katsuo-kun, where's-?"
Katsuo removed a hand from his broom and pointed through the chain-linked fence. Twisting on his heel, Kachiro arched an eyebrow at the sight of Horio's backside sticking out from the bushes across from the court. "Um…are you stuck?"
Katsuo giggled and an indigent sound could be heard coming from the shrubbery. "No, I am not stuck," snapped Horio. "I'm looking for the balls."
"Momo-chan-senpai and Kaido-senpai did get a bit spirited during training," recalled Katsuo.
"That's one way of putting it," joked Kachiro. He took another look at the sky and added, "But seriously, it looks like rain."
"There was no rain in the forecast for today," said Horio, wiggling his way out of the bushes. He emerged with an armful of tennis balls that had escaped during practice and fell back on his bottom with an exhausted sigh. He happened to glance upwards and his sudden certainty over good weather faltered. "Oh."
"Yeah," said Kachiro in amusement.
Katsuo leaned against the handle of his broom and squinted at the dark grey sky above them. "It was clear when the senpais were practicing," he mused. "How come it has to turn bad when we're out here?"
"The only ones out here," added Kachiro, looking around the empty court with a slightly nervous expression. "We're the last ones again."
"The other freshmen have already finished their work for today," sighed Katsuo. "Maybe we're too slow."
"It's because you guys talk too much," sniffed Horio, entering the court with his load of tennis balls.
Katsuo could not help but snort. "Oh, sure, we're the ones who talk too much."
"What's that supposed to mean?" demanded Horio, absentmindedly dumping the tennis balls into one of their plastic bins, situated at the side of the court.
Kachiro cut in before Katsuo could respond. "Never mind, Horio-kun. I'd really like to finish before it starts raining. Could you start counting the balls?"
"All right," grumbled Horio, as counting tennis balls was never his favourite job. But they always made sure to do it when they could, making sure they marked how many tennis balls they had before practice and after. "But it's just water."
Sharing a smile with Katsuo, the three freshmen continued their work. Horio counted the balls, brow furrowed in concentration and lips moving as he silently mouthed each number. Katsuo finished his sweeping and moved the troublesome objects off of the court. Kachiro finished picking up the last few balls and did his own count.
"I've got eighty-five over here," Horio finally called. "Thirty in the first two baskets and twenty-five in the last."
"Okay, I've got thirty-five in this basket," reported Kachiro, lugging the plastic bin over to where the others were. "I think that's it for out here."
Katsuo nodded, taking an intent sweep of the court. "Yeah, it looks good."
Kachiro grinned. "All that's left is to bring everything to the club room and total up the rest of the balls."
Horio wrinkled his nose. "Ew, you spit on me," he complained, wiping what he thought to be a glob of saliva off of his cheek.
"I didn't!" protested Kachiro.
Something cold struck Katsuo on the arm and he glanced up. The second he did a downpour started and Horio let out a screech. "It's cold!"
He snagged a basket of tennis balls and raced for the club room. Katsuo set his hands on his hips. "But Horio-kun! It's just water!"
"Not now," said Kachiro with a laugh, managing to pile two baskets in his arms. Katsuo took the last one, along with his broom, and the two followed after Horio.
They reached the club room, the door left wide open for them to enter. Horio was already at work, counting the balls of the other baskets the other freshmen had brought in. Not wanting to disturb his concentration, the two set their baskets quietly off to the side. Katsuo put the broom away and Kachiro went to the notebook on the old wooden table set underneath the window. He tallied up the balls they had already counted and, when Horio finished, added all the balls together.
"Same as this morning," said Horio cheerfully. "Now we can go home!"
He twisted on his heel, intending to race for the open door. But the puddles on the floor, caused by the water dripping from the freshmen trio's wet hair and clothes, were in his path. With a startled yelp he slipped and careened backwards, slamming into an unprepared Katsuo. The two toppled right into the stacks of baskets. Kachiro shrieked as tennis balls flew everywhere, ricocheting off of the floor and walls.
Dismayed, Katsuo sat up and stared at the new mess. "Oh."
"I'm sorry," apologized Horio, getting to his feet and extending his hand. Katsuo grasped it and stood up.
"Well, maybe it will stop raining by the time we're done," said Kachiro optimistically.
So they got to their knees and once more started collecting the balls, a task they were well-accustomed to. They only paused when a large shadow suddenly fell over them, and they looked up to see none other than Tezuka Kunimitsu standing over them.
"Tezuka-buchou!" they chorused, rocketing to their feet and standing up, straight-backed and feet together.
Intent, serious dark eyes swept briefly across the club room before focussing on the three freshmen standing in front of him. Blushing slightly, Kachiro lowered his head. "We are sorry for the mess. We'll clean it up right away!"
"It's been thirty minutes since practice ended."
"Tezuka-buchou?" asked Kachiro hesitantly, not quite understanding.
"Why are you still here?" clarified Tezuka, shifting his tennis bag slightly on his shoulder as he surveyed the three, the barest hint of confusion on his features.
"Um…we were doing our work," answered Katsuo, feeling nervous under their captain's scrutiny. It was rare when Tezuka spoke to them directly, and he couldn't help but feel slightly intimidated. "We were just about to leave, but we had an accident."
"I can see that," said Tezuka dryly, glancing at the tennis balls scattered everywhere. "How did this happen?"
"I fell," said Horio meekly. "I'm sorry."
"Are you injured?"
Horio shook his head. "No, Tezuka-buchou. I'm fine."
Tezuka nodded. "I see. You may continue, then."
In unison, the three dropped back to the floor, picking up balls and dropping them into the baskets. Tezuka shifted his gaze to the side, where he knew the trio kept a notebook that they used to tally the balls. Sure enough, there were the numbers for the day's practice.
I don't think we've lost a ball since they started, he thought, picking up the notebook and flipping through the pages.
"Um…Tezuka-buchou," ventured Horio. "What are you doing back here?"
"I forgot something," answered Tezuka, idly raising a hand to push his wet hair back. He set the freshmen's notebook down and went to retrieve his book from his cubby hole. He stuck it in his bag and then bent down, reaching to grab one of the stray tennis balls.
"We can do it, Tezuka-buchou," said Horio quickly, face flushing slightly. "It is my fault."
"It's no trouble."
A small smile crossed Kachiro's lips and he ducked his head. He didn't know why, but he felt pleased that their captain was assisting them with their work. It felt special, since freshmen work was exactly that-freshmen work. The juniors and seniors didn't really help with their tasks, but here was their captain, helping clean the mess they had caused.
"Thank you," he said softly.
Tezuka nodded, and they fell into silence as they focussed on regathering all the tennis balls. Tezuka would flick his gaze up every now and then, watching the serious expressions on the freshmen's faces as they moved about the floor. Despite what they thought, they were not as easily forgotten by their senpais.
They stood out amongst their fellow freshmen members. They came early and stayed later. They worked hard at everything they did. They gave all their support at every match. They were inquisitive, asked questions and listened to what their senpais told them. They were dubbed by the rest of the tennis club as the Freshmen Trio, because they were always together.
They didn't show any remarkable skill in tennis-not yet, anyway. But as Tezuka observed them, he knew that if they applied such a work ethic to their tennis training, there was no limit as to what they would be able to achieve.
"Last one!" said Horio cheerily, setting the final tennis ball into a basket.
"Thank you for your help, Tezuka-buchou!" said Kachiro appreciatively.
Tezuka nodded. "No problem. Come, this is enough for today."
The three grabbed their bags and obediently filed out of the club room. Tezuka shut the door firmly behind him and turned to see the three standing in a row. "Goodbye, Tezuka-buchou. Have a good evening," they chorused, bowing their heads slightly.
It was done in such perfect unison that Tezuka suddenly had to fight the urge to smile. Perhaps they could alternate as doubles teammates. I suspect they won't have any trouble thinking as one entity.
"You as well," he returned.
The rain had eased to a slight drizzle. The three turned to go, but they paused for a brief moment when Tezuka added, "We may not say it often, but know that we all appreciate your hard work. Your strong efforts are noticed. Keep it up."
Wide smiles dominated their faces, eyes sparkling with pride. To be complimented by the captain himself was a high honour, and suddenly all those hours spent working until they were exhausted were worth it.
"Hai!" they chorused happily. "We will, Tezuka-buchou!"
And only when Horio's, Kachiro's and Katsuo's backs were turned, as they jogged down the wet asphalt, did Tezuka allow a slight smile to cross his features.