After arriving at the tournament area, Saki gets separated from her friends; and the current national middle school champion, Nodoka, is hounded by reporters. On the other hand, Saki crosses paths with the members of Ryümonbuchi (minus Koromo). As they pass each other, the Ryümonbuchi team senses a familiar aura flowing from Saki, an aura similar to that of Koromo. They initially mistake her for Nodoka, until Töka indicates otherwise. A couple more steps and Saki suddenly trips, and Jun muses that there is no way another mahjong player of Koromo's level could possibly exist...