"Kunimitsu's opponent in this match—the Japan kid on the other side—is much stronger than he looked in the match footage we collected."
Watching Akutsu dominate the court, Bertie and QP, both members of Germany Team's staff, furrowed their brows.
They knew exactly how strong Tezuka Kunimitsu was.
They wouldn't have confidently put him in the first singles match if they didn't trust him.
But Akutsu's current performance was a far cry from the information Germany Team had gathered.
His stance, his technique, and the state he'd displayed in the final game just now were enough to set alarm bells ringing in their minds.
This wasn't because Germany Team had done a poor job collecting information. Akutsu had simply kept getting stronger while Tezuka was away.
From the time he went to the training camp until the matches against Switzerland Team and Belgium,
Akutsu hadn't been able to play in any of the matches, but he hadn't wasted a moment during that time.
Muneyoshi understood his potential, so besides training relentlessly every day, Akutsu also played matches against several members of the team.
Tanegashima and Byōdōin were the opponents Akutsu challenged most often.
Oni Jūjirō had been injured, so he'd only played against Akutsu once.
Of course, Akutsu had been even more reckless on his path of one-on-one challenges: he'd sought out Muneyoshi twice.
And those two matches against Akutsu had allowed Muneyoshi to feel just how much his skill had improved.
Akutsu was a once-in-a-decade genius to begin with. With Muneyoshi's intervention, he'd started playing tennis early and built a solid foundation.
His current strength was definitely greater than it had been at this point in the original story's World Cup.
Bismarck, standing nearby, heard Bertie and QP and replied with a grave expression:
"In this match, Kunimitsu has finally