Eiichiro is unable to answer Natsu when she asks him what he enjoys doing most. He becomes interested in tennis and returns to STC for another free trial.

After defeating Miyagawa, Eiichirō returns to STC for some training that will make him better in 1 day. Eiichirō is teamed up with a Coach Mike from Florida who specializes in pyschological training.

Eiichirō participates in a tournament after 3 months of hellish training. He learns about active rest while participating in the tournament and makes it to the final. Terashima is his opponent.

The gang begins their third and final year of high school in different classes. Eiichirō and Natsu both realize their classes seem to be moving on without them as they are getting ready for cram schools and entrance tests.

The Kanto Junior Tennis Tournament begins at last, and Eiichiro is facing Yakabe Tadanori in his first match. Although he had watched videos of Yakabe's matches from a year ago, Eiichiro is bewildered by his opponent's much taller stature and completely different play style, and all the unexpected factors lead him to consider blanking all his mental data and starting from scratch.

The match against Takagi begins. Just as Yukichi warned, Takagi's style is unique.