Shitenhouji is shown to be the strongest team from Kansai as they are winners of the Kansai Tournament, having defeated Makinofuji in the final this year. They were runner-ups to the Japanese National Tournament, losing to Rikkaidai under the leadership of then second-year student Kuranosuke Shiraishi, who remains this year as captain. They also have two new additions: Senri Chitose and Kintaro Tooyama.
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General
- Boke and Tsukkomi Routine: The entire school is into comedy routines. Former captains, Hara Tetsuya and Taira Yoshiyuki, are well known to be this, and also, Zaizen is the Tsukkomi for most of his team.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Don't underestimate them. The team might be composed of a bunch of clowns, but Shitenhouji reached the Semifinals, placing in the Top 3 schools in the Nationals.
- Foil: The entire team has a lot of similarities with Rokkaku. Both schools are a lot more relaxed in comparison to the other teams, both have eccentric coaches, a boisterous first-year regular, and a Boke-Tsukkomi pair (although Shitenhouji's entire school is composed of Boke with the sole exception of Hikaru Zaizen).
- The Idiot from Osaka: Most of the team (for that matter most of the entire school, except for Zaizen). Everyone isn't above making fun of themselves, and the more notable examples are Koharu, Yuuji and Kintaro.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The team mostly consisted of Class Clowns (which isn't uncommon with an entire school made of them). Shiraishi realizes during his second year that they needed Zaizen to balance their variety.
- Shiraishi is The Ace and Jack of All Trades thanks to his Tennis Bible.
- Kenya is the team's speedster.
- Koharu and Yuuji are the clowns and token "gay duo"note , with Koharu as the Depraved Homosexual and Yuuji as the Crazy Jealous Guy.
- Gin is The Stoic Bare-Fisted Monk.
- Koishikawa is the Ridiculously Average Guy.
- Zaizen is The Smart Guy and Straight Man, who also is known as the only person in the entire school who doesn't laugh.
- Kintaro is the Wild Child rookie.
- Chitose is the New Transfer Student.
Kintarou Toyama
Voiced by: Yuu Sugimoto (JP)
Kintarou Toyama is the youngest member of Shitenhouji and the team's strongest player. He is very carefree and naive, and has trouble speaking, often messing up names and sayings. He forms a rivalry with Ryoma, though they only get to play a single point. He uses a "Wild" tennis style (and acrobatic play) that takes advantage of his natural stamina and strength, being able to lift a scooter over his head and throw it with ease. Kintaro is extremely afraid of Shiraishi, after reading a manga about monsters with poison claws, and as such, his unbound imagination comes up with the peculiar idea of Kuranosuke having poison claws under the bandages that he always wears around his hands and arms. This fear is used to keep him in line.
- Badass Adorable: He is a first-year, very naïve and gets excited at anything. And he is the only one who could tie with Ryoma with a single point.
- Boisterous Bruiser: Always smiling, laughing, and cracking jokes.
- Big Eater: He is willing to eat anything as long as it’s still edible. After Sakuno accidentally drops the onigiri she made for Ryoma, Kintaro still eats them, both because he didn’t want to waste food and to cheer Sakuno up. During the Yakiniku mini arc, he is so excited about the grilled meat that he declares that he would eat the entire cow.
- Challenge Seeker: If he hears the opponent is strong, he is quick to ask for a match.
- Ditzy Genius: He is a really good tennis player (his tennis was originally stated to be equal or even superior to Ryoma's), but he is very clueless and really innocent towards many things.
- Fiery Redhead: Coupled with leopard t-shirts, which complete his "Wild Child" theme.
- Foil:
- Ryoma's most prominent rival of the same age, he's his complete opposite in personality (cheerful, friendly, unrestrained).
- He is also a rework of Kentarou Aoi from Rokkaku. Both are more boisterous and Keet, and both are rivals who are the same age as Ryoma. Even their given names sound very similar. But unlike Kintarou, Aoi was originally planned to play against Ryoma, but ended up dueling Kaidoh, and in the anime, Ryoma manages to beat him. However Kintarou never has an official match against Ryoma, but both still get to play one point, which somehow ended in a draw because the ball splits in two, and each half fell in each side of the court, therefore Ryoma never got to officially defeat Kintarou.
- Keet: Small? Check. Cute? Check. Hyperactive? Check. Very loud? Why, yes, of course. He is also the only 1st Year in the tennis club, so he is the youngest team member as well.
- Malaproper: Apparently, he got off the wrong train due to being unable to read kanji well. He also always refers to Ryoma as "Koshimae", using the Alternate Character Reading of his name, despite Ryoma openly correcting him. "The Prince of Naniwa, Part 2" OVA shows that he does this on purpose, though— he accidentally greets Ryoma as "Echizen!" before 'correcting' himself and calling him Koshimae.
- No Sense of Direction: Getting off the train in the wrong city?
- Non-Uniform Uniform: The only part of his tennis club uniform he wears during a match is his team jersey. Underneath he wears a leopard print tank top and black shorts.
- Odd Friendship:
- Him and Sakuno.
- Also with Horio's older cousin Junpei, who joined him on his wacky trip to Tokyo.
- One Degree of Separation: In his introductory chapter, Kintarou gets off the train in the wrong city, so he has to walk all the way from Mount Fuji to Tokyo. The cyclist he meets on his road trip and who helps him get in the right direction turns out to be Horio's cousin.
- The Rival: He is very enthusiastic about being this to Ryoma.
- Signature Move: "Super Ultra Great Delicious Giant Swing Mountain Storm".
- Skilled, but Naive: He's the best player on the team, even stronger than the club captain, Shiraishi. Literally, everyone on the team is scared of his power. Even his signature move, "Super Ultra Great Delicious Giant Swing Mountain Storm" is stronger than Gin's "108th Level Hadokyuu". He's one of the few who can mix this and Unskilled, but Strong. Yeah, he's super strong and all, but seriously lacks skill as well.
- Super-Strength: He can lift a motor scooter over his head.
- Trademark Favorite Food: He adores Takoyaki.
- Wild Child: He is often seen (he has an unexplained super strength) and treated as such (he is the most innocent out of the Shitenhouji Tennis Club's guys). His clothing style also reflects it.
- The Worf Effect: He easily shows himself to be Ryoma's equal, holding his own against a Muga No Kyouchi Ryoma in a single-point match. Yukimura easily defeats him without taking the jacket off his shoulders.
Kuranosuke Shiraishi
Voiced by: Yoshimasa Hosoya (JP)
Kuranosuke Shiraishi is the captain of Shitenhouji. He is heralded as having "Perfect Tennis", and is referred to as "The Bible of Shitenhouji." Due to Shiraishi's hard work, he masters the basic forms of tennis and gradually obtains the skill where he can perform strokes without mannerisms or habitual actions that can lessen the use of stamina, which has a great effect. Shiraishi himself believes that perfect tennis is a silly notion and finds his own style boring, but he realized that only winning matters, so he continues to employ his style. He is also the first person to ever beat Fuji in an official singles match, as well as defeating all of Fuji's counters. Shiraishi is often shown sporting white bandages on his left arm, for some unknown reason. There are several instances where he attempts to take them off, but never really finishes the process and winds them back up. In the manga, it is later revealed that a gold gauntlet or arm guard-like material is found under the bandages. When the gauntlet has been removed the speed of his left arm skyrockets.
- Beetle Maniac: It's mentioned in the fan books that Shiraishi likes beetles very much. He even has a beetle as a pet and takes extreme care of it. Funnily, he also has a whole song dedicated to it!
- Big Brother Instinct: Develops one of a sort for Rikkai's Kirihara in the sequel. While his taking care of Kirihara started out as a favor to Yanagi he actually started taking the whole thing personally. During their doubles match, when the high schoolers start targeting Kirihara deliberately textbook Nice Guy Shiraishi is furious.
- Big Brother Mentor: As Sanada is to Kin-chan, Shiraishi is this to Kirihara. At Yanagi's behest.
- Big Eater: Mentioned in the fan books. He eats an extravagant meal during lunch and finished 2nd in Shitenhouji's "It's New Year! Eat Until You Drop Complete Swimsuit Competition!" behind Kenya during his second year.
- Birds of a Feather: With Fuji and Yukimura. Aside from being The Aces from their teams, they also are cordial and nice outside the courts, and they love plants (Fuji has cacti, Yukimura plants flowers, and Shiraishi breeds poison grass).
- Boring, but Practical: His "Bible Tennis" is not as flashy as some of the other characters, but he has refined it to the point where he easily crushes fancy techniques such as Fuji's counters.
- The Captain: Shiraishi is the captain of the Shitenhouji's tennis team.
- Catchphrase: "Mmm, ecstasy."
- Chick Magnet: In Pair Puri, he is shown to be as unintentionally successful as Saeki, and this is further confirmed by Kenya in one of the fanbooks.
- Cloud Cuckoo Lander: He wears a one-bandage mummy costume to avoid having waste.
- Clueless Chick-Magnet: He's also completely at a loss when it comes to dealing with assertive girls. Hilariously, his profile in the fan books all say that he doesn't like or is bad at dealing with girls that hit on guys.
- Foil: He and Fuji are both among the strongest players on their team, only edged out by a more famous teammate (Tezuka and Chitose respectively). Nevertheless, they're considered much more intimidating. But whereas Fuji is someone who enjoys the thrill of tennis without going all out, Shiraishi considers his own tennis style rather boring but refined it so he can win matches.
- Master of All: While he doesn't have an area of specialization, he also doesn't have any weaknesses and is a very well-rounded player overall. His 'Bible' tennis is capable of rendering special techniques like Fuji's counters and even Gin's Hadoukyuu ineffective.
- Jack of All Stats: On the world and professional U-17 stage, he is this in comparison to other players that are above him. Eventually, went back to the above by pushing his Bible Tennis into another level known as Star Bible!
- Nice Guy: He's fairly polite and amicable, even as an opponent.
- During the National semifinals, when Zaizen calls Kawamura Seigaku's weakest link, Shiraishi chides him for it.
- In The New Prince of Tennis, Yanagi asks him to keep Kirihara from going into Devil Mode. Though reluctant at first, he still ends up keeping his promise.
- Poisonous Person: His knowledge of poisonous herbs is insane. He also likes to plant them and keeps Kintarou controlled by telling him his bandaged arm is poisoned.
- Power Limiter: What's under the infamous bandages.
Senri Chitose
Voiced by: Jun Oosuka (JP)
Senri Chitose is a regular of the Shitenhouji tennis club. He originally played on the Shishigaku team with his close friend, Kippei Tachibana where the two guided Shishigaku to the National semi-finals in the previous season. This ended after the Nationals when Tachibana injures Chitose's eye during a practice match. They both leave tennis for a time, and Chitose eventually transfers to Shitenhouji, though at a lesser level due to blind spots in the injured eye. Chitose and Tachibana eventually get reunited in the National Quarterfinals, where Chitose defeats his old friend in a close match. Although he intended to quit tennis after that match, he gets drawn back in to play Tezuka in the semi-finals, where he loses.
- 10-Minute Retirement: After playing against Tachibana, he leaves the team prior to the National semifinals. It's not until the start of Doubles 1 in the semifinals that he rejoins them, as Kenya volunteers to give up his spot in Doubles 1 so that Chitose can play against Tezuka. Turns out Osamu threw Chitose's resignation letter into the trash.
- Afro Asskicker: His hair is big. REALLY big.
- Bishie Sparkle: Courtesy of his "Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami".
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Always acts as if he was stoned. He also tends to wear geta sandals instead of tennis shoes.
- Eye Scream: Almost lost an eye when Tachibana hit him with a ball.
- Childhood Friends: To Tachibana.
- Combat Clairvoyance: "Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami" lets him predict how the point will play out.
- New Transfer Student: It's revealed that he was still playing doubles with Tachibana at Shishigaku when both were in 2nd year of middle school. After the accident with Chitose's eye, both changed schools, with Chitose moving to Shitenhouji.
Gin Ishida
Voiced by: Masaya Takatsuka (JP)
Ishida Gin is a very serious, honorable, and stern player who is the older brother of Fudomine's Ishida Tetsu. Gin is the inventor of the powerful shot, the Hadoukyuu, which is composed of 108 progressively stronger techniques. He can also nullify other people's use of the Hadoukyuu. He is thought to be the strongest power player in Japan, until he loses his match against Takashi Kawamura in the Nationals after an extremely strong smash.
- Always Someone Better: A far stronger power player than his brother Tetsu (whose Hadoukyuu injured Kawamura's wrist), his weakest hadoukyuu is enough to overpower Kawamura's best move Dash Hadoukyuu. Kawamura eventually unleashes something even more powerful.
- Anti-Magic: He is capable of countering any and all kinds of Hadoukyuu except Kawamura's final shot.
- Gentle Giant: A more stoic version, similar to a monk. He is still very kind and wise but has great strength in his techniques.
- Honor Before Reason: Could have easily won with only Hadoukyuu counters, but decides to honor Kawamura's determination.
- Perpetual Frowner: He is rarely seen smiling.
Kenya Oshitari
Voiced by: Jun Fukuyama (JP)
Kenya Oshitari is famously known as the "Speed Star of Naniwa". Kenya is even faster than Shiraishi Kuranosuke and Kamio Akira. He is Hyoutei's Oshitari Yuushi's cousin.- Adaptation Dye-Job: He's a blond in the manga, but the anime makes him more of a brunette.
- Big Eater: Stated in the fan books. He eats three meals in 16 minutes at lunch and was crowned the Eat-Until-You-Drop King in his second year after winning Shitenhouji's "It's New Year! Eat Until You Drop Complete Swimsuit Championship!" He beat out Shiraishi.
- Catchphrase: "No speed, no life!"
- Counter-Attack: He's a counterpuncher who relies on his speed to return shots.
- Country Cousin: Subverted. While he and Yuushi used to live in the same town when they were kids, Yuushi eventually moved to Tokyo. Also by personality, Yuushi is more refined and calm, while Kenya is more relaxed and goofs around with his teammates.
- Dye Hard: In-Universe. His hair used to be rather dark when he was younger.
- A Friend in Need: During the National semifinals, he volunteers to give up his spot in Doubles 1 to Chitose so that the latter can play against Tezuka.
- The Idiot from Osaka: Averted, as he is fairly smart.
- Lightning Bruiser: The best example in the series.
- My Dad Can Beat Up Your Dad: A common argument between him and Yuushi is which of the two super rookies is better, with Kenya bragging about Kintarou and Yuushi bragging about Ryoma. When this argument breaks out in their dorm room at the U-17 camp, Kamio tells them to shut up.
- Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: The manly man to Yuushi's sensitive guy. Yuushi has longer, sleeker hair and enjoys romance novels and movies whereas Kenya has a more unkempt hairstyle to match his active and outgoing personality.
- Speed Echoes: Shown to be so fast that he creates afterimages of himself when he runs.
- Thicker Than Water: He and Yuushi argue a lot, but in Pair Puri, they band together quickly after finding out their respective teammates (Zaizen and Gakuto) have been insulting them behind their backs.
- Walk on Water: Both exaggerated and played for laughs in the sequel series. Kenya's so fast that he can actually run on water, but he can only hold out for so long.Kenya: I might be faster than you, but my balance is terrible!
- Weaksauce Weakness: Waiting time and slowness in general. Exaggerated and Played for Laughs in a Pair Puri omake, Yuushi exploits this by showing Kenya pictures of things that require long wait times and uttering the dreaded Arc Words:Kenya: D-Don't tell me it's that destructive magic word. Stop it! That's as far as you'll go!Yuushi: Slow life.Kenya: Gyaaaaa!
- Taken a step further when he tries to counter Yuushi by sending him a picture of a caterpillar (which Yuushi hates)... Except he gets done in by its slowness.
Koharu Konjiki
Voiced by: Ryo Naitou (JP)
Koharu Konjiki uses data tennis and is said to have more data than Seigaku's Inui Sadaharu. With an IQ of 200, he stores all of the information inside his head. Konjiki and his doubles partner Hitouji Yuuji are known as "Naniwa's Baka Couple".
- Badass Bookworm: Although Koharu has a goofy personality, he uses "Data Tennis" as part of his techniques on the court as a way to intimate his opponents.
- Depraved Homosexual: Played for Laughs, as he would make gay-joke routines with his doubles partner, Yuuji, and scare the opponents. In the Pair Puri omakes, he is seen fawning also over Kamio, Atobe, Tezuka, Saeki, and Sengoku.
- Ditzy Genius: By his goofy personality, is difficult to guess that he has an IQ of 200.
- Improbably High I.Q.: Has an IQ of 200.
- Lovable Sex Maniac: Especially in the manga. He enjoys teasing poor "Bandanna-kun" Kaidoh.
- Master of Disguise: Parodied without any kind of mercy, especially on the court, since it's part of his and Yuuji's "Comedy Tennis" techniques.
- The Nicknamer: He especially calls Shiraishi by the Affectionate Nickname "Kurariin".
- No Sense of Personal Space: With many of the Bishōnen members of the rest of the schools, Kaidoh included.
Yuuji Hitouji
Voiced by: Suguru Kumabuchi (JP)
Yuuji Hitouji appears to be the star of this doubles team, attracting all the attention with his genius and his hilarious antics. While Konjiki is entertaining the crowd (and his opponents), Hitouji is actually studying his opponents. He can then imitate their mannerisms, voices, and techniques.
- Achievements in Ignorance: Along with Zaizen. His initial intention was just to visit Koharu at the U-17 camp, but both arrive unknowingly at Mifune's Mountain Training Camp, end up joining the group, and also being accepted into the U-17 camp once they survive the training.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: He is a very capable player, who also goofs around on the court with his doubles partner Koharu.
- Crazy Jealous Guy: Played for Laughs (maybe) to Koharu. "THAT'S ADULTERY!"
- Martial Arts Hairband: He uses a Hachi Maki in his head.
- Mask Power: Uses a mask when performing his comedy routines and his Comedy Tennis on the court. Apparently, as shown in an illustration for the complete edition of the manga, he has been using one since he was a kid.
- Power Copying: As part of his comedy techniques inside and outside of the court, he is an incredibly good voice impersonator.
Hikaru Zaizen
Voiced by: Hirofumi Araki (JP)
Hikaru Zaizen is considered to be a genius. He is also the doubles partner of Oshitari Kenya. Zaizen is rather disrespectful, calling Kawamura Takashi Seigaku's "extra baggage" and insulting Chitose Senri after his loss to Kunimitsu Tezuka.
- Achievements in Ignorance: Along with Yuuji. Yuuji's initial intention was just to visit Koharu at the U-17 camp, taking Zaizen as a tagalong, since he didn't want to arrive alone, but both arrive unknowingly to Mifune's Mountain Training Camp, end up joining the group and also being accepted into the U-17 camp once they survive the training.
- Boke and Tsukkomi Routine: He is Tsukkomi for his entire school (where even the principal is goofy). He is the only student who doesn't laugh at any of the jokes there.
- Deadpan Snarker: Compared to the rest of his teammates, his dry humor is his selling point.
- The Gadfly: The only time he openly smiles is when he gets the chance to take some embarrassing photos of Kirihara being scolded by Sanada, or when he notices that Kaidoh is afraid of ghost stories, taking notes to put it in his blog later.
- Mouthy Kid: He isn't on good terms with his sempai (he doesn't like their jokes, either)... he even calls them gross (especially to Yuuji and Koharu).
- Perpetual Frowner: He never laughs at any of the jokes at school. He even says that he would have chosen another school if he had known it was going to be like this. When Shiraishi asks him then why he enrolled at Shitenhouji, he replies, "It's closer to home".
- Straight Man: After all the tennis club attempts to make him laugh, Zaizen simply says "If you wanted me to join, then you should have asked to begin with". All the others are perplexed since they never thought about that.
- Teen Genius:
- Subverted. Gets mentioned as one, though we never see him play a match.
- Played straight when the 2nd lot of the "Another Story" OVAs came out. We see him team up with Koishikawa and he does pretty well.
- The Unfought: He was meant to play doubles as Chitose's partner in the Nationals against Inui and Tezuka, but the match ends up being singles between Chitose and Tezuka, with both Inui and Zaizen deciding to step down and let them have their duel.
- When He Smiles: The only time he slightly chuckled at a joke, Shiraishi is quick to point it out, which Zaizen completely denies.
Koishikawa Kenjirou
Voiced by: Satoshi Hino
Koishikawa Kenjirou is Shitenhouji's vice-captain.
- Ascended Extra: In a similar case to Hyoutei's Taki Haginosuke, in the All-Stars Shitenhouji Character Album that was released in 2014, he is finally given a song for himself.
- Demoted to Extra: Koishikawa was supposed to have a larger role in the series, but Chitose's appearance shot that opportunity to hell. He is also often forgotten in every team-depicted merchandise of the Shitenhouji, too.... when it has been stated that he is the vice-captain of the team.
- Overshadowed by Awesome: Lampshaded in an anime omake, he knows that the rest of the cast often forget his role and position, when compared to his teammates' personalities. He just doesn't want to be forgotten.
