The first showdown between Hinatsuru Ai and Yashagami Tenai began with Ai taking the first move (Sente). Ai, whose level had significantly increased after playing with the hall children in the past few days, bravely took advantage of playing first and attacked. In contrast, Tenai skillfully received the attack and carefully cut off the line of offense.
「Is her style based on counter-attacking until the crush, like Gogohan-san?」 (Kuzuryū)
「That is different, too. Fundamentally, her style was defensive, relying on evasion—defensive Shogi.
But recently, she has started leaning towards a balanced style, skewed toward defense.」 (Ōki)
「Oh, doesn't that still show a glaring preference for her master...?」 (Kuzuryū)
「In training matches, I make her attack, but she doesn't transform into an offensive player.」 (Ōki)
While the two masters exchanged conversation as they pleased, the match turned into an open power struggle (Rekisen). In such a situation, the knowledge gap narrows, and the difference begins to show in fundamental strength and the power to read moves.
Ai thought: "Things went as I planned." Tenai thought: "I allowed them to go as I planned."
Tenai decided to crush Ai after extracting her full strength. As a result, she opened Pandora's Box.
「What a remarkable sight. The match shifted from the opening to the endgame so quickly, and the sharp moves intensified. This is why the Ryū-Ō took her as his student.」 (Ōki)
「What distinguishes Ai is her ability to finish the game with a checkmate from this point. It is unlikely that there is a child of her generation who can keep up with Ai in the endgame.」 (Kuzuryū)
「It is rare for you to speak this way. But Tenai is strong in the endgame as well.」 (Ōki)
Both girls were reading the next move, looking at the board that had descended into complete chaos. The position slightly favored Tenai thanks to the opening, but Ai's pursuit was astonishing. Ōki watched Ai shaking her head (muttering: "like this, like this, like this...") and made a sound of amazement ("Hoh-eh"), but neither of them was paying attention to Ōki due to the intensity of their focus.
It was a confrontation where neither would concede an inch. Then, something strange happened to Tenai in the middle of the game.
「Wha—what is this...?」 (Tenai)
Tenai's brain resources, which could handle seven simultaneous interfaces, began to break loose, being fully utilized solely for reading the future developments of this one Shogi match. Tenai had already started to feel that one board was insufficient, but the emergence of this abnormality was happening to her for the first time.
「I feel as if the pieces' effect is appearing to me...? Is this the power Master was talking about?」 (Tenai)
Multiple boards that did not disappear overlapped with the real Shogi board. Furthermore, this Shogi board started moving on its own. The moment she was trying to read herself became tangible to her.
At that moment, the time alarm bell started ringing. The game was inherently fast, and the thinking time was not substantial. In a panic, Tenai picked up the Knight (Keima) piece from the opponent's captured pieces and placed it in her defensive zone.
「Eh?」 (Ai)
「... Eh?」 (Kuzuryū)
Immediately after the move, Tenai realized she had committed a grave error. This is because taking an opponent's captured piece and using it as one's own piece constitutes an unprecedented violation. However, in this specific place, this violation was not "unprecedented."
「Ōki! Are you making your student into a...」 (Kuzuryū)
「Calm down, Kuzuryū. Perhaps this is the first time you are seeing it. You will get used to it later. Moreover, that Knight move would have materialized only after a dozen more moves. Nevertheless, a violation is a violation. Tenai loses the game.」 (Ōki)
Saijin Ikazuchi committed a similar violation when he faced Sora Gin'ko; that violation was a reckless act of placing what should have been his captured piece on the opponent's table, but Tenai's violation now bore a strong resemblance to that incident.
And Ōki had already grasped the underlying cause. By becoming accustomed to multitasking, when the brain focuses on one situation, it starts to work automatically to support the main task. For Ōki, this was the first threshold, and Tenai had successfully crossed it.
(Talent is truly terrifying. The time frame was much shorter than it was with Master.) (Ai)
(Being this short is insane. Youth is truly a beautiful thing.) (Ōki)
(... Your latest declaration about obsessing over young girls is usually repulsive. It's a good thing you didn't say that out loud.) (Ai)
Much sooner than Ōki had anticipated, Tenai became capable of triggering an outburst of surplus brain resources. In the subsequent games against Ai, although Tenai was still struggling to control her power, she began to rapidly master it and won five games against Ai.
It did not take long for all eight of Yashagami Tenai's accounts to rise to the sixth-grade level.
Despite everything that happened, Tenai's appearance at the Hall was a success, and perhaps things went smoothly. She won every game except for her loss in the first showdown against Ai-chan, and she also awakened to her power. She also surpassed playing on seven interfaces at the fifth-grade level, and she is currently playing on eight interfaces at the sixth-grade level. It is time for her to start seeing the back of Sora Gin'ko.
... Truly, her growth is extremely rapid. For a girl in the third grade of elementary school to possess a strength equivalent to the 1st Dan level of the Promotion Society is insane. So insane that I could only say "insane."
Originally, I thought we would be lucky if we managed to complete six interfaces at the fourth-grade level before the Training School (Kenshūkai) test in May, but Tenai has already completed seven interfaces at the fifth-grade level. Her growth is very fast.
At this rate, it might be better for her to join the Training School at the same time Ai-chan joins, rather than waiting until May. Furthermore, it might even be better for her not to need to join the Training School at all, as she would likely win overwhelmingly in the qualifiers for the Mynavi Women's Open Championship and qualify.
However, this only applies if she aspires to become a Women's Professional Shogi Player (Joryū Kishi). The situation is different if she aspires to become a Professional Shogi Player (Pro Kishi). The Promotion Society (Shōreikai) examination is held annually in August, and at present, Tenai should succeed if she takes the examination at the 3rd Dan level. Her strength may even rise to be capable of taking the exam at the 1st Dan level by the time the examination is held.
「In any case, in either scenario, you will participate in the Mynavi Women's Open Championship.
In other words, it is time for you to give me your answer.」 (Ōki)
「The two options are: joining the Promotion Society (Shōreikai) or becoming a Women's Professional Shogi Player, correct?
... I will join the Promotion Society.」 (Tenai)
(Ah, that is the face of someone who says: "My talent will be negatively affected if I remain in an insufficient competitive environment dedicated to Women's Professionals.") (Ai)
(That is the reality, isn't it? This is a field where a player who graduated from the Promotion Society's 6th Dan—after joining at 5th Dan—managed to win a major title. The level of competition in the Women's Professional path is much less difficult compared to the Promotion Society.) (Ōki)
(... Please refrain from publicly stating such an offensive opinion, because the notion that the Women's Professional path is a 'comfortable hot spring' is a huge insult to the Women's Professionals, and even Tenai did not utter it.) (Ai)
(I understand.) (Ōki)
「Alright. That is fine, but the matter now is for you to go and participate in the Mynavi Women's Open Championship and play against Sora Gin'ko.」 (Ōki)
「... That means you want me to become the challenger for the Queen title, right?」 (Tenai)
「If you cannot achieve that, you will not succeed in the Promotion Society. Sora Gin'ko will not appear in the qualifiers. You must consider that you will not be able to advance in the Promotion Society unless you are capable of crushing all other Women's Professionals except Sora Gin'ko.」 (Ōki)
(Can Tenai win and advance in the Single-Elimination tournament which relies on one game?) (Ai)
(That is doubtful. It is true that she won and advanced in the original story, but can I say that the current Tenai—even at the level of the Promotion Society's 1st Dan—will definitely win?) (Ōki)
(The level of Women's Professional Players rises every year, and regardless of her technical playing strength, her mental and psychological state—which changed after her awakening, her habituation to multi-interface play, and her exposure to the "mental breakdown incident" in the match against Ai-chan—is very different from before, and this seems likely to trend towards the worse when facing real competitive pressure.) (Ai)
(Well, she can manage. That is what I thought when I saw Kuzuryū become the Ryū-Ō.) (Ōki)
After that, Tenai decided to take the Promotion Society (Shōreikai) examination. I must teach her everything I can before then, and I hope she also wins the Queen title if possible. If she does, it will be proof that my training was not wrong.