[Full text] Satoshi Fujii Kisei "Shogi has no summit"

[Full text] Satoshi Fujii Shogi "There is no summit in shogi" July 22, 6:10

Satoshi Fujii Gosei who won one of the eight major titles of Shogi, "Koiseisen", won his first title. At the age of 17 years and 11 months, great attention was paid to the achievement of winning the youngest title in history. In response to the NHK interview, Seisei Fujii talked about his thoughts on looking back on the fierce battle and his future feelings as a player.

Acquiring the title "pointing to good shogi" wins the title

On July 16, Satoshi Fujii, who won the title of the youngest player in history, defeating Akira Watanabe with 3 wins and 1 loss in the fifth game of the “Go Ki Sen”.

I turned 18 years old on July 19th and accepted an interview the next day.

First of all, I talked to Kisei Fujii, who appeared in his everyday clothes, turning from the kimono shown in the title battle, from the thought of looking back on the fierce battle.

Q. Looking back at the fifth match with Watanabe Triple Crown, please tell us your current feelings again.

A. I am very pleased with the result of winning the title, and I think it was a great experience for me to experience the fifth match with Professor Watanabe. I think that I was able to fully demonstrate my performance through all four stations, but among them, Professor Watanabe often pointed out good points that I did not notice, and it was a great learning experience.

Q. Win the title with "3 wins and 1 loss". How do you perceive this result?

A. I think I was able to produce more than my ability. Mr. Watanabe has always been a top player in the game world, so I was looking forward to being able to play this time. I think I was fortunate that I came to the game because I wanted to make shogi that I could point to more firmly than the result.

Q. Do you feel deeply moved that you won the "title" that you have often talked about in your goals so far?

A. Well, of course, I'm very happy with that, and it was a long-cherished wish from the generation of Professor Susumu Itaya (Master teacher of Kisei Sei Fujii / 1988, 47 years old) to say "Tokai region title", so I achieved it. I think that I was able to give back one thing to Master Sugimoto.

Q. What did you get from your first title match?

A. I often didn't have any experience with playing in kimono, and I felt that there were many things I would like to learn about Mr. Watanabe's moves and standing behavior, so I will make good use of this experience as a title holder in the future. I want to do it

Q. What do you think of your teacher, Masataka Sugimoto Hachidan, who has been instructed since you were in elementary school?

A. I've been taking care of my mentor since I was a beginner, so I think I could have made one repayment by winning the title. However, I don't think it's enough, so I think it will be a great reward for us to aim higher.

New Corona to stop playing at a meaningful growth time

Kiyoshi Fujii who won the title in less than four years since becoming a professional in the second year of middle school. Regarding the growth during this period, the "mid-range power growth" is mentioned.

He said that the period during which he could not play due to the new coronavirus was a meaningful time.

Q. In recent interviews, I have cited the power of the midfield as my growth point. Specifically, how do you feel that you have grown?

A. In the middle stage, I think that both "reading" and "positional judgment" are very deeply questioned, but in that situation, I rely too much on reading and make imbalanced judgments, or the reading It was a game I had played so far that I missed it and I overlooked it, so I wanted to improve it. First of all, I think it is important to recognize that there is such a problem in my shogi, and I think that I was able to improve it by also using shogi software.

Q. Due to the influence of the new coronavirus, the game was interrupted for about 50 days from April this year. How did you deal with shogi during this period?

A. I haven't made any major changes to the methods I've used up to now, but the fact that I haven't had a chance to play for a while has allowed me to face one issue more carefully. After all, there are aspects that I have to be aware of when playing games, so I think it was good that I was able to spend a lot of time carefully.

Q. What did you notice when you looked at your shogi?

A. Looking back at my past games, especially those that I lost, there are developments where mistakes are made in the middle half and differences are made from the middle, and developments that fall behind the opponent at the entrance of the middle half I thought there were many, so I wanted to improve it.

Q. How did you overcome it?

A. As my own tendency, I thought that when I was uncertain about the decision, I would dig too deep into one reading line, so I decided to round up the reading at an appropriate point and move on to the position decision, and depending on the situation, use as many hands as possible. I was conscious of picking up and reading.

Q. In the fifth round of the game this time, hands such as "3 Ichigin" from the 2nd station and "8 Rokkei" from the 4th station were surprised. How do you find these hands?

A. In the middle stage, I am thinking about picking up as many hands as possible, or in the final stage, I am reading without relying too much on the shape, so I think there is something out of my own characteristics. ..

Q. There is no aim to hit a surprise.

A. Yes, that's not the case. I would like to think firmly in my own way in any situation and point out the hand I think is good.

Q. The number of games played by top players has increased, but do you sometimes feel the difference in experience?

A. When you play against the top, there are many situations in which you will point out good moves that you do not notice, so I think it can be said to be your task. However, I think it is possible to learn and improve from such a point. I would like to interpret and incorporate the feeling of the other person obtained through the game.

What kind of "nickname" do you want to call?

Q. So far, the famous shogi players have been synonymous with the shogi style, such as "Hanyu Magic", the original work of Zenji Hanyu's 9th dan, and Koshi Tanigawa's extraordinary final stage force, "Hikari no hayaku." What kind of name do you think would be better for your shogi in the future?

A. Well, I don't have any particular hopes for this. I would be happy if you could give it a nice name. (Laughs)

Q. What kind of chess do you think of your own shogi?

A. Well, I don't really think about Kifu because I think that there is a place where I get caught or bound when I'm aware of Kifu. However, for those who want to see it, I would like to point out a unique and interesting shogi.

Aiming to be the "strongest player"

Q. When I talk to the top players, some say that after taking the title, it became a pressure. Do you think title acquisition can affect your shogi?

A. There is no such thing as "shogi that seems to be a title holder," so I think that I have no choice but to refer to my own shogi. I think that what we will work on will be the same before and after taking the title.

Q. Now that you have won the "title" you have been aiming for, what do you want to aim for next?

A. I feel that this game of holy battle and throne is a very good experience for me, and I would like to make use of that experience to grow. There are scenes where I can see my problem through the game, so I would like to improve it and work to become stronger.

Q. The goal of being the "strongest player" is written on the colored paper that Kisei Fujii wrote when he entered the professional scene. How close do you think you are to this goal now?

A. Shogi thinks there is no end to how strong he is, and in that sense, I don't think there is a true summit. It's nostalgic for the original four-tiered colored paper, but I thought it was a good goal, so I would like to continue working on this goal.

Q. From a long-term perspective, is there any kind of player image that Fujii Gosei aims for?

A. There are really wonderful seniors in the world of shogi, such as Tanigawa, Hanyu, and Watanabe, so I would like to learn more about those people's attitudes while being able to convey the appeal of shogi to more people. I am.

"Question" on board from now on

At the end of the interview, I asked Shikishi for a stroke on his future attitude as a shogi player.

Gosei Fujii wrote the word "inquiry" that he showed at a press conference the day after the title was won.

Q. What are your thoughts on the word “inquiry”?

A. I wrote "inquiry" when I got the title, but I still think that feeling does not change, or shogi is a very deep game, so I do not change my desire to work with an inquiry.

Q. The goals of the "strongest player" I wrote when I was a professional, and the "question" I just wrote. Is there any change in your mind?

A. It's been less than four years since I became a shogi player, but there were many new discoveries through many games, and I think that I had many chances to feel the depth of shogi, so I will continue to be an explorer on the board. I would like to continue working on it.

Q. That inquisitiveness may lead to the goal of being the "strongest player".

A. I agree. I don't think the desire to become stronger and see new scenery has changed since then.

Q. At present, the 7th game of the "throne match" is in progress, and we have won 2 consecutive games so far. Please tell us your enthusiasm for the future.

A. Of course, I have the desire to win the title, but that is the result, and I think it can only be achieved by improving our ability. Even up to the second station, there were many places where Kimura (one)'s throne could be very much learned, so I would like to look back on those points and make the best use of them after the third station.