Sota Fujii poses with a replica shogi piece bearing the characters for "Osho," after winning a game against Seiya Kondo to become the challenger for the Osho title, at Shogi Hall in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward on the evening of Nov. 19, 2021. (Mainichi/Naoaki Hasegawa)

       TOKYO -- Teen shogi star Sota Fujii won his fifth straight game in a league tournament to determine the challenger for the Osho title on Nov. 19, putting him on track to face the current title holder Akira Watanabe in a best-of-seven championship match in January.

       Playing in the 71st ALSOK Cup Osho League to determine the Osho title challenger, Fujii, 19, faced 25-year-old seventh-dan player Seiya Kondo in his fifth game at Shogi Hall in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward, and won in 91 moves. The victory kept Fujii at the top of the table and secured his place as Osho challenger before the league had run its full course.

       Fujii only recently won the Ryuo tournament to become the youngest player to hold four of the main titles in shogi, or Japanese chess. He will go up against Watanabe in the Shizuoka Prefecture city of Kakegawa in the first game of the title match to be held over two days from Jan. 9, looking to win his fifth crown.

       When the Osho championship match begins in January, Fujii will be aged 19 years and five months, making him the youngest ever challenger for the title. Previously the youngest challenger was Masayuki Toyoshima, who did so in 2011 at the age of 20 years and eight months, when he held a sixth-dan ranking.

       Commenting on his advancement, Fujii said, "I couldn't produce many results in the Osho league, so I'm happy to secure the challenger title. Looking back, I think perhaps I was able to produce an outcome beyond my ability."

       Ryuo shogi title holder Sota Fujii reflects on his win over seventh-dan player Seiya Kondo in the Osho challenger league at Shogi Hall in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward, on Nov. 19, 2021. (Mainichi/Naoaki Hasegawa)

       Watanabe and Fujii have faced off in nine games to date, with Fujii winning eight of the encounters (excluding TV games not aired). It is rare for Watanabe, who holds three of Japan's eight major shogi titles -- Osho, Meijin and Kio -- to have a lopsided losing record against another opponent. Last year Fujii claimed the Kisei title from Watanabe by winning the best-of-five championship match 3-1, and this year Fujii defended the title with three straight wins. Next year, each game of the Osho championship match will be played over two days for the first time for both players.

       "My impression is that Osho title holder Watanabe is versed in strategy, with excellent strategy in the opening and middle game. Particularly with a two-day game I think he'll be playing his moves with deep thought, so I want to do my best to respond effectively to that," Fujii said.

       In the Osho challenger league of seven players, Fujii defeated strong opponents including Toyoshima, 31, and Yoshiharu Habu, 51, to take the lead, while Kondo was at his heels in second.

       (Japanese original by Hideki Yamamura and Ryo Takeuchi, Cultural News Department)

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