Breaking Through the Heart's Demons

"Selflessness... Chitose..."

Watching the fleeting burst of multicolored light, Tachibana Kippei, his gaze filled with complex emotions as he looked at Chitose Senri in front of him.

At this moment, time seemed to rewind to the time after the National Tournament last year, when Chitose had fully mastered the concept of selflessness and attempted to open one of the doors.

To put pressure on himself, Chitose invited Tachibana Kippei to spar with him.

And they used their true strength.

For the sake of his friend's advancement and to test his own abilities, Tachibana Kippei readily agreed.

However, the outcome of the match turned out differently than expected. Perhaps it was his own mistake, or perhaps it was Chitose's superstitious belief in the state of State of Selflessness that led him to believe he could escape.

The tennis ball hit his right eye hard, causing temporary blindness.

It can be said that Chitose's state of selflessness and restraint is both his inner demon and Tachibana Kippei's inner demon.

Bang!

Tachibana Kippei served again, and the tennis ball, which flew into the air, was struck hard by Tachibana Kippei racket the moment it fell. This time, it landed to Chitose's left as well.

However, Tachibana Kippei didn't realize that the more he thought about it, the weaker the ball became compared to the first one.

As the tennis ball flew over the net, Chitose Senri had already moved laterally to the landing point of the ball.

It could be said that Chitose, whose eyes were filled with multicolored light, had completely seen through Tachibana Kippei's playing style.

As the tennis ball bounced back from its landing point, Chitose swung her arm.

Boom!

With a loud, explosive sound, the tennis ball flew back suddenly.

A straight afterimage was left in the air above the court, once again passing through Tachibana Kippei's body as he rushed towards the frontcourt, and the tennis ball landed on the boundary line.

"Chitose Senri love brings the score to 30-15."

The game continues.

Tachibana Kippei's situation seemed to be getting worse and worse. Against the outburst of Chitose, Tachibana Kippei only managed to win a small point on the first ball before being broken by Chitose Senri.

"Game, Chitose Senri wins, score 1:0."

Everyone stared intently at the two figures radiating a terrifying aura, afraid of missing a single exciting moment.

This is especially true for players from Shitenhoji, Shiraishi Kuranosuke Hara Tetsuya and Shitenhoji, who participated in the National Tournament last year.

They noticed that Chitose, who was usually quiet and gentle in the Tennis Club, seemed to have completely reverted to her behavior during last year's National Tournament.

At that time, Chitose Senri, who was the ace of Shishigaku Junior High, showed no mercy and completely defeated her opponent with her powerful strength.

Ultimately, Shishigaku advanced to the semi-finals.

On the referee's bench.

As he gazed at the increasingly powerful aura of the Chitose, a glint of shrewdness flashed in Watanabe Osamu's eyes.

With Chitose's addition, Shitenhoji's strength has undoubtedly reached a new level. However, due to the injury to her right eye and the obstacles in her heart, Chitose has not been able to unleash her true strength since arriving at Shitenhoji.

Unexpectedly, he defeated his inner demons first in the match against Tachibana Kippei.

In contrast, Tachibana Kippei seemed somewhat hesitant in the face of Chitose's outburst, even directing all his attacks towards Chitose's left side.

Moreover, as the white light surrounding Chitose grew stronger and stronger, eventually bursting forth with multicolored light, Tachibana Kippei almost met Chitose's gaze.

Those from the Fudomine who had witnessed the State of Selflessness naturally understood what Chitose had unlocked.

However, at this moment, they had no time for sentimentality and were all looking at Tachibana Kippei on the field with worry.

Whether Tachibana can resolve her inner conflict truly depends on you, Chitose!

Saeki Muneyoshi's gaze also fell on Chitose.

The opponent's mastery of this State of Selflessness was exceptional; it was certainly not a preliminary awakening. Moreover, the white aura of selflessness continuously converged towards Chitose's brain.

The second door of Talent Limit, reappeared.

It was precisely because of his Brilliant Talent in simulating the future, and Chitose's familiarity with Tachibana Kippei, that he was able to suppress Tachibana Kippei so ruthlessly.

However, on the other hand, if we look at Japan, who would most like Tachibana Kippei to recover from that accident? Besides Muneyoshi and Tachibana An, it would probably be Chitose Senri.

Even Chitose, as his friend, hoped more than Tachibana Kippei himself that he could emerge from the shadows.

"Tachibana, Chitose has overcome her inner demons and her strength has increased even further. It's time for you to overcome yours too!"

Muneyoshi turned his gaze to Tachibana Kippei, who was squeezing the racket so hard it was making a cracking sound.

After the change of sides, it was Chitose Senri's serve.

On the field.

Chitose stood tall in the center of the court, racket in hand, his eyes calm and deep, surrounded by an aura of multicolored light.

Beyond the multicolored light was a ring of white air currents.

At this moment, Chitose is arguably the strongest player in Shitenhoji at this stage.

Just then, Chitose's body moved on the field.

The tennis ball is tossed high into the air, and the player jumps straight up.

With a loud bang, air currents surged, and a flash of white light streaked across the sky above the stadium.

The next second.

The tennis ball had already landed on the bottom corner of the Tachibana Kippei, and then, the instant it hit the ground, it disappeared from sight.

The sound and sight of the tennis ball didn't arrive until it hit the ground again and stopped rolling.

Divine Concealment!

"The tennis ball has disappeared!"

"Is this the same serving technique as Fuji from Seigaku?"

What exactly just happened?

"I can't see it at all!"

Kamio Akira, Ibu Shinji, Ishida Tetsu, several first-year students, and Zaizen Hikaru from Shitenhoji all widened their eyes.

The first-year students, who hadn't seen much of the world, were utterly astonished by Chitose's serve.

Even from outside the arena, they could clearly feel Chitose's immense strength and the overwhelming pressure emanating from him.

"No, it's not the same as Fuji's disappearing serve!"

Muneyoshi shook his head and said:

"Chitose's move is called Divine Concealment. It involves adding a vertical spin force perpendicular to the ground to the ball during the serve, causing the ball to rise rapidly after being hit, as if it were invisible;

Moreover, this move can be used not only when serving, but also when returning the ball; "Divine Concealment" can be used in the same way.

"Juping!"

"I've moved on from that and I've become stronger."

Chitose Senri raised her racket and aimed it at Tachibana Kippei, exuding an aura of silence that was also extremely suppressed.

"I don't care anymore, how long are you going to wait? Don't let me underestimate you!"

Chitose Senri leaped lightly into the air, his racket suddenly swinging out to meet the falling tennis ball.

With a whooshing sound, a ring of white air exploded on the racket of Chitose Senri.

The tennis ball whistled through the air and cleared the net in an instant!

"Here we go again!"

"Explosive Ball Wild Dance!"

Step... step...

"Kippei, your Explosive Ball Wild Dance is way too slow compared to before!"

Chitose started at high speed, her body moving like a whirlwind, the intense running causing her team uniform to cling tightly to her body.

Before the tennis ball could bounce, it was intercepted by Chitose's racket and hit at an angle towards the other baseline of Tachibana Kippei.

At the same time, as the tennis ball left Chitose's racket and flew into the central net, it vanished instantly.

Divine Concealment!

Tap tap tap...

The sound of hurried running rang out again, Tachibana Kippei went online once more.

"Your Chitose! This is your resolve, I have already felt it!"

As he ran, Tachibana Kippei's gaze drifted towards Chitose Senri in front of him.

A violent and domineering aura emanated from Tachibana Kippei, the black and red aura almost enveloping half of the arena.

"You're right, Chitose. We shouldn't be stuck in the past. Now that you've moved on, I won't fall behind!"

"Such momentum!"

Outside the stadium, sensing the change in Tachibana Kippei's aura, everyone from Shitenhoji subconsciously swallowed.

"It seems like ever since Chitose said those words, Tachibana Kippei on the other side has become a completely different person!"

"Looks like this match isn't over yet!"

"Rampaging Mighty Lion!"

A dark red aura enveloped Tachibana Kippei's racket; his speed allowed him to perfectly adapt to this tactic.

Bang!

Just when everyone thought that Tachibana Kippei would lose points again.

As Tachibana Kippei swung his racket towards an open area, the tennis ball that had disappeared reappeared on his racket net.

With a light touch of his toes, Tachibana Kippei's forward momentum quickly transformed into the driving force of his feet.

Bang!

The tennis ball has been caught!

Tachibana Kippei's body sank, and he hit the tennis ball back with a furious swing.

"Tachibana Kippei scores, 15-30."

Standing at the net, Tachibana Kippei raised his racket, aiming it at Chitose, exuding a dangerous, violent, and oppressive aura.

"My counterattack is about to begin, Chitose!"