Hōō Byōdōin makes his first appearance at the U-17 Camp as Japan's top-ranked youth player—basically the best U-17 talent the country has to offer. He leads the First Stringers, a group that's just returned from training overseas, and immediately establishes himself as the camp's most dominant presence.
When the First Stringers get back, they learn that middle schoolers have now been brought into the camp and have already managed to beat several players from the Top 20. Rather than shutting this down, Byōdōin actually welcomes the competition. He officially opens up the ranking challenge system to middle schoolers, letting them compete for spots on the main roster. It's a move that sets the tone for a major shakeup at the camp—no one's position is guaranteed anymore.
Content compiled by AnimeList.moe from publicly available sources.
