Infinity Starting with Hikaru no Go

Page 33

Finally, someone seemed to notice something unusual and exclaimed softly, "This is... Imitation Chess!?"

This soft exclamation, like a chain reaction, sparked a series of soft exclamations.

Meanwhile, at a shogi club booth not far from Tsutsui Kimihiro's booth, the club's captain and president, Kaga Tetsuo, noticed the unusual activity at the go club booth.

This unusual movement made Kaga Tetsuo narrow his eyes, then he got up and walked towards the Go club's booth.

During this process, Kaga Tetsuo chewed gum while waving a paper fan in his hand, giving off a rebellious and unruly vibe.

Not only Kaga Tetsuo, but also Hikaru Shindo, who had not waited for his childhood friend Fujisaki Akira, was complaining about Fujisaki Akira breaking his promise while taking Fujiwara Sai to find Chen Anxia.

During this process, the sharp-eyed Fujiwara Sai noticed the Go club booth and the unusual activity there.

At the same time, Fujiwara Sai also saw Chen Anxia playing Go and exclaimed, "Hikaru, Anxia is over there, playing Go at that Go booth!"

Hikaru Shindo was taken aback when he heard this, he really didn't expect Chen Anxia to choose to play Go at the school festival.

Then, as Hikaru Shindo walked toward the Go club's booth, he curiously asked Fujiwara Sai, "Isn't Anxia a beginner like me? Does he even know how to play Go? Or is he just playing randomly?"

Fujiwara Sai shook his head slightly and replied, "For beginners, there's no such thing as betting recklessly or not betting recklessly; there's only the distinction between daring to bet and not daring to bet."

"Only beginners who dare to play can go far on the path of Go and truly grow."

Hikaru Shindo nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Soon, Hikaru Shindo brought Sai Fujiwara to the Go club's booth.

Chen Anxia was so engrossed in the game that he did not notice the arrival of Hikaru Shindo and Sai Fujiwara.

Hikaru Shindo now understands a little about the etiquette of watching chess, so he doesn't disturb Chen Anxia but instead watches the game.

Perhaps it was his talent, but with just one glance, Hikaru Shindo noticed the anomaly in the game and couldn't help but ask himself, "Sai, why does this game feel so strange? It's like looking in a mirror?"

Seeing this, Fujiwara Sai glanced at Shindo Hikaru with some satisfaction, then looked back at the chessboard, his brow furrowing slightly, and replied, "Because Anxia is playing a mock game..."

Meanwhile, Ryoko Kurozuki, who was experiencing the old-fashioned school festival, unknowingly wandered over to the vicinity of the Go club's booth.

Soon, Ryoko Kurozuki spotted the Go club's booth and couldn't help but show a look of surprise on her face, muttering softly, "Yase Junior High School actually has a Go club?"

As she spoke, Ryoko Kurozuki muttered to herself, somewhat puzzled, "Then why did no one else know about the Go club when I asked them before?"

As she spoke, Ryoko Kurozuki walked toward the Go club's booth.

The winds of change converge at this moment!

......

Chapter 48 The True Chess Player, A Sudden Turn of Events!

When Ryoko Kurozuki arrived at the Go club's booth, she saw Chen Anxia and Kimihiro Tsutsui playing a game.

However, Ryoko Kurozuki was not interested in the players; she only glanced at them before turning her attention back to the game.

Upon seeing this, Ryoko Kurozuki frowned slightly and murmured, "It's just a copy game?"

As she spoke, Ryoko Kurozuki had already lost interest in the game in front of her.

While imitation chess can put a lot of pressure on the opponent and easily affect their mindset, it can also be very effective.

However, imitation chess is essentially imitating the opponent's moves and strategies, which is a disguised way of stealing every move the opponent is thinking.

Therefore, in Ryoko Kurozuki's world, both amateur and professional players consider imitation chess to be a way of playing that lacks artistry and disrespects the opponent.

Therefore, aside from seeing imitation games in novice games, imitation games are almost never seen in amateur and professional games.

Of course, the reason why we don't see imitation games is not only due to the factors mentioned above, but also because there is already a set of rules in the Go world specifically designed to counter imitation games.

The method is also very simple. If the player is playing white and making a mimicry move, then the player can break the mimicry by occupying the center point at the right time.

Because there is only one center point on the chessboard.

If Black takes the initiative and occupies the center point to imitate the opponent's moves, White can create a capture pattern on the center point at the appropriate time and then use the capture to break the opponent's imitation.

After losing interest, Ryoko Kurozuki decided to leave and continue exploring the old-fashioned school festival that gave her a sense of novelty.

Just then, Ryoko Kurozuki suddenly caught sight of Hikaru Shindo and was taken aback.

After realizing what was happening, Ryoko Kurozuki immediately brought up her personal panel and connected to her world's network through the Truth Superbrain.

Soon, Ryoko Kurozuki found the post by Tairyu Uemura about the solution to the deadlock.

Then, Ryoko Kurozuki found photos of Hikaru Shindo and Akira Toya in the post.

Only then did Ryoko Kurozuki finally realize that Hikaru Shindo, standing before her, was one of the players in the Truth Chess Game.

Furthermore, Hikaru Shindo was the black player in the Truth Chess Game, and his skill was even rated as the pinnacle of the old era by his own teacher.

Ryoko Kurozuki never expected to run into Hikaru Shindo here.

As if she had just thought of something, Ryoko Kurozuki muttered to herself, "I remember he was an elementary school student, so his appearance at the Yase Junior High School festival means that his home is near Yase Junior High School?"

As she muttered to herself, Ryoko Kurozuki noticed Hikaru Shindo's expression and gaze, and couldn't help but frown slightly, muttering with some confusion, "Why is he looking at this game of Go so intently?"

"Could it be that there are some aspects of this game that I haven't noticed?"

As she spoke, Ryoko Kurozuki turned her gaze back to the chessboard, trying to find out why Hikaru Shindo was taking it so seriously.

However, Ryoko Kurozuki could never have imagined that the 'seriousness' she saw in Hikaru Shindo was actually due to Hikaru being distracted by his conversation with Sai Fujiwara.

At this moment, while looking at the game, Hikaru Shindo asked himself curiously, "Sai, what is imitation chess?"

Fujiwara Sai explained, "Imitation chess is about imitating your opponent's moves on the symmetrical parts of the board, ultimately creating a perfectly symmetrical game of black and white stones."

After learning what imitation chess was, Hikaru Shindo exclaimed in surprise, "Eh, Go can be played like this?"

As he spoke, Hikaru Shindo seemed to have thought of something and asked in his mind, "Sai, are there any rules in Go that prohibit this kind of move?"

"I feel that this move is simply foul. If you think about it carefully, even a novice like me could compete with professional players if I used this move, right?"

Fujiwara Sai was surprised that Hikaru Shindo would think this way. After a slight pause, he smiled with some relief and said, "Hikaru, I'm very happy that you thought of this."

"But you must remember that on the chessboard, there are no invincible styles, patterns, or moves, only invincible players."

"So, if you, Xiaoguang, were to use a copy game to play against a professional player, you would have already lost from the very beginning."

"Because in the eyes of professional chess players, there are too many flaws in your moves."

As he spoke, Fujiwara Sai turned his gaze back to the board and continued, "If it's just a matter of imitating a game, I have many ways to break the deadlock."

"But if this imitation game is played by someone of similar skill level to you, then my methods of breaking the game may not be effective."

"Because what you can think of, your opponent can also think of."

"Once things have escalated to this point, the only options besides forcibly breaking the deadlock and engaging in a fierce battle with the opponent at the center are to wait patiently and compete with the opponent in terms of mental fortitude."

Hikaru Shindo nodded, seemingly understanding, and then looked at Chen Anxia.

In Hikaru Shindo's eyes, Chen Anxia appeared calm and composed at this moment.

Whether it was a misperception or not, at that moment, Hikaru Shindo saw Akira Touya's shadow in Chen Anxia.

They all possess an aura that is that of a chess player.

No, not only that, but Chen Anxia's movements when placing the chess pieces looked just like those of a real chess player.

At this moment, Hikaru Shindo was somewhat dazed, not knowing why he had such a misconception, when Chen Anxia was clearly a novice just like him.

Subconsciously, Hikaru Shindo looked at Kimihiro Tsutsui.

Upon seeing this, Hikaru Shindo was stunned.

Even Hikaru Shindo could see the pressure that Kimihiro Tsutsui was under.

At the same time, Hikaru Shindo recalled what Fujiwara Sai had just said, and unconsciously murmured, "A contest of mental states...?"

At this moment, Kimihiro Tsutsui's face was already covered in sweat.

Sweat was even dripping down his cheeks, soaking Tsutsui Kimihiro's collar.

However, Kimihiro Tsutsui was completely unaware of this, and kept flipping through the joseki book in his hand, trying to find a suitable joseki to place.

Kimihiro Tsutsui's anxious movements as he turned the pages of the book revealed his inner state at that moment.

However, Kimihiro Tsutsui's efforts were destined to be in vain.

The standard opening moves are too weak when facing imitation games.

Because any set pattern can be imitated in a game of imitation.

Of course, Kimihiro Tsutsui also knew how to break the Imitation Chess game.

However, Chen Anxia put too much pressure on Tsutsui Kimihiro, so much so that Tsutsui Kimihiro did not have the courage to fight Chen Anxia at the center.

Just as Tsutsui Kimihiro was hesitating and constantly searching through the book of formulas, a hand suddenly reached out and snatched the book away.

At the same time, an unruly voice rang out, "I've said it before: joseki are static, but the game is dynamic. If you want to truly play Go well, you can't rely solely on joseki."

As they were talking, the sound of books being torn rang out clearly.

Before people could react, the voice rang out again, "Kid, playing chess with him is too boring. How about a game with me?"

As he spoke, a cold smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he continued, "Of course, I will let you continue to play the black pieces and continue to play imitation games."

......

Chapter 49 Embarking on the Path of Chess, A Beastly Aura!

This fiery voice caught Chen Anxia's attention.

Chen Anxia looked in the direction of the sound and saw Kaga Tetsuo, dressed in the uniform of the captain of the shogi club and exuding a bad aura, looking at him with a sneer.

It was only then that Tsutsui Kimihiro suddenly came to his senses. Looking at the joseki book that Kaga Tetsuo had torn to shreds, he clutched his head and cried out in anguish, "Aaaaah! My joseki book! Kaga, you bastard, I'll fight you to the death!!"

As he spoke, Kimihiro Tsutsui charged toward Tetsuo Kaga, looking ready to fight to the death.

Seeing this, Kaga Tetsuo sighed helplessly and said, "You're certainly showing a lot of courage at times like this..."

As he spoke, Kaga Tetsuo slightly turned his body and extended his right foot at the same time.

The next moment, with a scream from Tsutsui Kimihiro, unsurprisingly, he was tripped by Kaga Tetsuo and fell to the ground, even his glasses falling to the side.

Kaga Tetsuo seemed to be very familiar with this, and ignored Tsutsui Kimihiro, just looking at Chen Anxia and waiting for her response.

Upon seeing this, the people around them began to murmur amongst themselves.