“WIZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!”
A man’s yell blares through Naniwa’s streets.
This is Osaka. A rather strange building with Shogi Kaikan written in big, bold letters on the outside wall.
Said man loosens his belt and leans out the fifth-floor window, pants falling to his knees, exposing his boxer shorts for all to see, and yells at the top of his lungs.
“Wizz! Gonna wiz!”
“Kiyotaki-sensei! Get down from there, it’s dangerous!!”
“You’re a full-fledged 9-dan! What’s a fifty year old like yourself doin’ up there?!”
“WIZZZZZZ!! WIZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!”
All the staff members here at the Kansai Shogi Headquarters and other pro Shogi players like myself rush in to stop him, but the man—Kousuke Kiyotaki 9-dan (50 years old)—didn’t listen. He was actually getting even louder, more insistent.
“That a jumper?!”
“Huh?! Underpants?!”
Office workers, men and women alike, stopping to gawk at street level down below. Heck, they’re taking pics with their smartphones.
“Master!! Please, stop!! This is madness!!”
I, Yaichi Kuzuryu, grab hold of my Master, Kousuke Kiyotaki’s waist to keep him from falling out the window and pull with everything I’ve got.
“Hands off me, Yaichiiiii!! I’m gonna … gonna wiz right herrrrreeeee!!”
My Master yells with his skivvies fully exposed and clinging to the windowsill. Practically howling.
“WIIIIIZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!”
Why has he gone off the deep end?
Why is a fifty-year-old man bound and determined to relieve himself out the window of our workplace?
It all started a few hours ago—.
✦ ✦ ✦
That day at the Kansai Shogi Association Headquarters was supposed to be a special day for both of us: a match was scheduled between me and Kiyotaki 9-dan.
“Master versus apprentice.”
The first sanctioned match between us since I became a professional.
“I would like to show my Master how much I’ve grown, and to complete a Gratitude,” I told the reporters just before the match got underway.
After turning pro at fifteen years old in October two years ago, I shocked the world of professional Shogi by becoming only the fourth junior high student to do so in history and the youngest person to ever hold the title at the same time. Everyone’s attention was on me.
And although my Master, Kousuke Kiyotaki 9-dan, only has a few titles to his name, he’s a seasoned veteran who’s gone all the way to two major title matches.
With his deep, complex strategies and burning desire to win, he’s a prominent figure in Kansai’s Shogi scene.
“The opponent may be an apprentice of mine, but he’s a title holder as well. I relish the opportunity to test my abilities against such skill. I want to unleash my youthful spirit, let it flow freely during today’s match.”
He sat on his ankles, grinning at me with his eyes while talking with the reporters. I swear his fighting spirit was spewing out from behind that new suit he was wearing.
After we agreed to shake hands over the Shogi board to satisfy a reporter’s request, the air in here took on a somber, but kind of warm tone: my first real match against my Master got underway——.