The Oni Slayer

As soon as Muneyoshi finished speaking, Oni Jūjirō did not speak immediately, but stared at him coldly.

"If you can do it, you can give it a try!"

After Oni Jūjirō finished speaking, his aura was no longer concealed and soared into the sky. The surging aura was like a hurricane, which almost made Muneyoshi on the other side of the court lose his balance.

"What a powerful aura!"

At this moment, Saeki Muneyoshi's face lost all its smiles and became extremely solemn.

After a few seconds of silence, Muneyoshi grinned at Oni Jūjirō.

"Senior Ghost, this is the real you!"

Let's guess first!

"Tails!"

Oni Jūjirō glanced at Muneyoshi, who was fiddling with his racket, and said in a deep voice.

Since he had already agreed to the head coach's request, and since Oni Jūjirō himself was willing, he only showed his emotions briefly before returning to his coldest demeanor.

Cold, composed, and disdainful of nonsense!

Seeing this, Muneyoshi didn't say anything more, but held the handle of the racket with two fingers and gently twisted it.

After the racket spun a few times, it clicked.

The rackets kicked up specks of dust, the two players glanced at each other, and then each walked towards their respective backcourts.

"The match has begun..."

Behind a large tree not far from the site, the figure of Mifune Nyudo and Byōdōin came into view.

Meanwhile, taking a shortcut through the base, Irie Kanata and Tanegashima Shūji, who had been waiting for a long time, also came over.

Tanegashima Shūji observed the tense atmosphere between the two people in the arena. Having not embarked on the path of Asura Path, he couldn't quite understand all of this.

"Head Coach, why did you arrange for Oni and Muneyoshi to have a match?"

Mifune Nyudo seemed somewhat excited to see so many geniuses appearing in Japan, and then took another swig of strong liquor, saying:

"Tanegashima kid, Muneyoshi is different from you. If he had just come to the base, I wouldn't have arranged a match like this at all, but now he has the potential to embark on a different path."

"Another path... Is the head coach referring to the same path as Oni and Byōdōin?"

Irie then understood as well.

"Hmph, he only has the qualifications; whether he can actually do it is up to him."

Byōdōin snorted coldly; they weren't entirely sure Muneyoshi would succeed.

"Byōdōin is right. Muneyoshi has a very high aptitude in terms of mental abilities, but it is precisely because his mental aptitude is too high that he embarked on the Path of Darkness ahead of time, and has gone so far..."

"This is both a boon and a constraint for him. If we don't act now, he may only have this one path left to choose from in the future."

Upon hearing the head coach's words, Irie and Tanegashima understood Muneyoshi's current predicament, which was like standing at a crossroads.

Ultimately, the choice is entirely up to him.

Snap... Snap...

I gently bounced the tennis ball a few times on this completely irregular makeshift court.

With a snap, the tennis ball bounced back into his palm. Muneyoshi gripped the ball tightly again, then took a deep breath, trying to calm his excited heart.

Muneyoshi's eyes narrowed as he looked up at the man opposite him. This was probably the third strongest opponent he had ever encountered.

Compared to Amadeus and Byōdōin Hōō, Oni Jūjirō is theoretically the closest person to him, and the one he can catch up to at this stage.

This is exactly the kind of opponent he needs right now!

It allows us to see the gap, but also ensures that the gap is so large that we are powerless to resist.

Muneyoshi exhaled heavily, then tossed the tennis ball high into the air. Oni Jūjirō was not someone who needed to be tested.

Therefore, he needs to go all out from the very beginning of this match.

Swish!

Muneyoshi watched as the tennis ball gradually merged with the outline of the distant moon, his muscles tensing up as his mental energy and dense Darkness power surged forth.

In the blink of an eye, Muneyoshi successfully constructed a true dark spiritual world.

He would naturally not be careless in the slightest when dealing with a character like Oni Jūjirō.

He bent his knees, leaped up, and leaned back in mid-air. Countless black lights and spiritual energy poured into the tennis ball. Muneyoshi Yan raised his racket, aimed at the tennis ball, and swung it out with all his might.

"Dark Speed— Light Shadow Fleeting!"

Strands of light emanated from behind Muneyoshi's black shadow, but as the racket fell, everyone's vision seemed to shift for a moment.

It was a gap in the interplay of light and shadow; by the time all this was realized, it was already too late.

Compared to his initial awkwardness at the World Tournament, this shot has now taken another step forward, becoming much more refined.

As Muneyoshi swung his racket, the ball disappeared from sight, leaving only a tennis ball-sized hole in the area where Oni Jūjirō was receiving the serve.

A wisp of dust was slowly rising from it.

15-0!

Oni Jūjirō glanced at the hole at his feet, then put down his racket and stood up. His eyes flickered with emotion, as if he was savoring the ball he had just hit.

Then his eyes suddenly gleamed.

"Nice shot!"

This praise was given sincerely by Oni Jūjirō.

Watching from the sidelines can never compare to experiencing it firsthand. At first, I only thought Muneyoshi's serve was powerful, but now it seems that his explosiveness and his skillful use of the combination of darkness and mental power are even more impressive.

"Let's continue!"

Snap... Snap...

Muneyoshi gently bounced the tennis ball, his mind completely calm despite having just scored a point from his serve.

He knew perfectly well that this move might be invincible against an ordinary person, but against the person opposite him, it would only give him the upper hand.

The same movement, the same swing, the same darkness descending.

Bang!

30-0!

Bang!

40-0!

Bang!

The Light Shadow Fleeting continues...

This time, however, Oni Jūjirō on the other side moved. His figure moved at an unimaginable speed, arriving in front of the tennis ball just as it was about to fly out of the court.

"Saeki Muneyoshi, that was a really good serve!"

"Unfortunately, it's no longer useful to me!"

As Oni Jūjirō finished speaking, the racket in his hand suddenly burst into a black and red light, and the racket was swung around in a blur.

Bang!

The tennis ball flew back instantly; Muneyoshi's fourth light and shadow serve was returned by Oni Jūjirō.

Boom...

Oni Jūjirō's counterattack was like a Meteor Strike, carrying great force and spin, landing on the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.

Muneyoshi had already been on guard when the other party moved.

As the ghost retaliated, he instantly took a step, his feet moving like the wind, and just as the tennis ball flew out of the court, Muneyoshi's figure arrived in front of the tennis ball.

This was the last point of the first set, and it was also the best chance to end the first set.

Having learned from Amadeus's experience, he will not allow himself to be dragged into a stalemate when he has the advantage.

Without the slightest hesitation, the instant the Saeki Muneyoshi touched the tennis ball, countless dark forces and spiritual energy instantly condensed in his palm.

His entire body tensed and exerted force, his right hand gripping the racket and his left hand gathering a black aura. A massive wave of air began to sweep across the court, and his silver-white hair danced wildly in the air.

Sizzle... sizzle...

"Darkness Shot - Fallen Light..."

Before he could finish speaking, Saeki Sōha's right hand lashed out, unleashing an explosive force.

Boom!

With a loud bang, the huge sound of the smash echoed throughout Heart Cliff. As the tennis ball flew back, darkness began to spread, and the entire tennis ball was enveloped in burning black flames.

It was as if a wall of air had appeared around the tennis ball. After flying over half the court, the air wall began to expand, and the tennis ball grew larger and larger.

Rumble...

The mustard-yellow tennis ball vanished, leaving only a black cloud of gas and purple lightning. As it rubbed against the air, it generated waves of scorching heat and flew towards Oni Jūjirō's half of the court.

Seeing the tennis ball flying towards him, Oni Jūjirō didn't back down at all. He raised his racket and prepared to intercept the ball after it bounced up.

Then, just as he made his move, the massive cloud of energy exploded instantly.

The ghost's racket was slowed down before it even touched the tennis ball.

In that brief moment of respite, the tennis ball slammed heavily onto the court, creating a large crater.

"Game, Saeki Muneyoshi, 1-0."

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