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Standard disclaimer-I don't own HnGo...

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Chapter 3-First Tournaments

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November 3, 1962,Bunka no hi (Culture Day), and 5-year-old Touya Kouyo, having played but a few games in Kuwabara sensei's classes, goes to the Japan Go Instittute building for his first ever Children's Tournament.

Sign in was at 10 a.m. with the drawing for the matchups at 10.30. The drawing was begining, and the names of the players were being called out. Fairly early on, his name was called to draw a number.

"Touya Kouyo-san!"

He went up to the box with the slips of paper with the numbers for he drawing. He pulled out his number...14.

Soon would be the first games.

"Players will sit form the back of the room. Number 1 will play Number 2 and so on..." Touya Kouyo went to the second row from the back, where the seventh board was located, and sat.

Soon the player with number 13 approached the board. A boy of about 9 Hitaki, sat across from him.

"Nigiri and please begin..." The players nigiried,and Kouyo has the Black stones. He played on the star point in the upper right and so the game began. White countered with the lower left star. The play had quickly developed and soon Hitaki had a small lead.

But then in the endgame Hitaki hadn't seen that a group in the corner was not yet fully connected or alive. Soon Kouyo hit right upon the vital point (key point for the life and death of a group of stones) of White's shape, severely weakening it, then on his next play (Hitaki having not seen the danger his group was in, tenukied, or played elsewhere), Black played another stone, cutting and killing the corner White group.

"I have lost," said Hitaki, "Thank you for the game."

"Thank you for the game." at which the person refereeing the tournament,Inoue sensei, came by to discuss the game.

"Hitaki-san,had you in this corner played upon the 2-3 point, your group would have been safe and as you were within the 4.5 moku of the komi, you would have won. But you have nothing to be ashamed of, as you played well and with time will learn to see and stop such errors."

"I understand, Inoue sensei."

"You played well to see that ,Touya-san. Hmm, Touya. I know of a Touya Hitoshi, the Shogi Meijin. Are you related?"

"He is my Father!"

"Oh! It seems surprising that a man with such passion for Shogi would allow his son to play Go."

"He did not like it at first, but then he allowed me to play Go."

Soon were the pairings for the second round,and again Touya Kouyo drew his number and went to his board. His opponent was a boy a year older than him, Morashita Shigeo.

They nigiried, and Morashita went first as Black. The game went fairly quickly along and soon ended. Then came the counting.

"Black, Morashita-san,62 moku. White, Touya-san 57 moku. With the komi, Black wins by one half moku."

"Thank you very much." "Thank you very much."

"Black was able to gain an advantage in the corners early that White was unable to erase. Bith of you played your best."

"Thank you, Inoue sensei."

Upon his return home that afternoon. young Kouyo told the Meijin of his games.

"I won the first game, and lost the second by only a half moku, and the sensei compolimented both of them!"

"Did he explain the reasons you lost?" (The Meijin, while still disdaining his son's love for Go, would feign enough of an interest to discuss his son's matches.)

"He stated it was mostly from Black's having the first move,and keeping theadvantage from it. Father,do you not have a problem when you play White in Shogi, with Black having the advantage of the first move?" (Shogi,like Go, has first move for Black, unlike Western Chess where White moves first.)

"Yes, I do. But I work to overcome the disadvantage, as do Akira and Taro."

"I can't wait for next month's tournament!"

The time passed quickly in Kuwabara's classes,and soon Touya Kouyo worked himself down to only a 6-stone handicap against Kuwabara (who was currently third in the Honinbo League,behind Rin and Ichiryu.)

Soom was the December tounament,and Kouyo won his first three games. losing in the fourth round, with Black by a half moku,again to Morashita.

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More to come soon...sorry on delay.