Eiji Kikumaru
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Eiji Kikumaru
Eiji Kikumaru (菊丸英二 Kikumaru Eiji) is a fictional character in the anime and manga The Prince of Tennis. Kikumaru is a third year student at Seishun Academy Middle School (Seigaku).
He is part of the "Golden Pair" along with Shuichiro Oishi. Using his acrobatic play, he can return almost any ball that no one would normally be able to get. Eiji is also known to have the sharpest vision on the team. This proves to be both a strength and a weakness, especially when matched against St. Rudolph's Akazawa, the captain of that tennis team. His most famous move is the "Kikumaru Beam", which is essentially a high, behind the back return launched directly at he opponent as he is hitting the ball. Though the Golden Pair seldom play without each other, Eiji has been paired with Syusuke Fuji, Seigaku's genius, as well as forming a makeshift pair with Takeshi Momoshiro when Oishi suffers an injury to his right wrist when he was trying to save a pregnant woman from rolling off the stairs before a match. In the most recent chapters of the Manga, Eiji also plays a solo match during the Nationals after proclaiming he no longer plays doubles.
Eiji's main weakness is a lack of stamina. However, Eiji seems to have overcome this weakness later on in the anime. His main rival is Hyoutei Gakuen's Gakuto Mukahi, another acrobatic player who is extremely light and excels Eiji in acrobatic play.
Although Oishi and Eiji get along well, and the two together forms the famous "Golden Pair" They do have their disagreements. When Momoshiro was dropped from the Regulars and stopped attending practice, Eiji was making jokes that Oishi found insensitive. Eiji then made fun of the fact that Oishi's shirt was inside out causing the vice-captain to snap and slap Eiji across the courts. The Goldern Pair stopped talking to each other until Momoshiro returned to team practices.
The Golden Pair met in their first year at Seigaku. Eiji was a flashy singles player and found Oishi's play style boring. When he challenged Oishi to a match, he lost and couldn't figure it out. Retreating to the greeen bins at the park - a place the Golden Pair always go to when they need to think things over after losing a match - he saw Oishi practicing there. Eiji then told Oishi he would play doubles with him until he was able to defeat Oishi at tennis.
He is a friendly and outgoing character and the youngest of a large family. So unlike most of the characters, Eiji is usually referred to by his given name.
FET (http://s87312194.onlinehome.us/fet/index.php) A good source for info on all the characters