Ghost Ball

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, score 1-0"

"That wasn't Ghost Ball... was it a disguise...?"

"What's wrong with you? This isn't like you at all. If you don't pull yourself together, I'm in trouble."

"Yes, boss."

After losing the first game so easily, Coach Baker, eager for victory, once again criticized Kevin.

"This guy is even stronger than I imagined..."

At the start of the second round, during the changeover, Kevin looked at Kirihara was walking over.

"Hmph, I heard you were strong, and I've been looking forward to sparring with you for ages. Turns out your strength is just this much, you've made me happy for nothing."

Kirihara, who was passing by Kevin, stopped and turned to look at Kevin.

What did you just say?

"Since you can't put on a decent performance, you might as well go back home as soon as possible."

Hearing Kirihara's dismissive words, Kevin gritted his teeth again.

"You've really angered me!"

At the start of the second round, Kevin, who had been Kirihara, finally showed some fighting spirit.

"Coach Sakaki, now I finally understand why you chose Kirihara to play."

No wonder you didn't let Echizen the field, and instead chose to deal with the left-handed Kirihara.

"No, my reasons go beyond that."

In the locker room, Coach Hanamura, seeing Kirihara's performance, assumed that Coach Sakaki had deliberately arranged for Kirihara to deal with the left-handed Kevin.

However, what awaited them was Coach Sakaki's denial.

"Oh? So you mean?"

"Not only must one have the fighting spirit to strive for further progress, but one must also have the ability to turn that fighting spirit into results. Kirihara possesses both of these qualities simultaneously."

On the other side, in the players' tunnel, seeing his teammates full of fighting spirit, Sanada had a faint smile on his face.

Bang...

"West Coast team scores, score 1-1"

"Hmph, the competition is finally starting to get a little interesting."

Despite being caught up by Kevin in one round, Kirihara wasn't in a hurry; instead, he was quite excited.

"I'm determined to win this match."

At the start of the third game, Kirihara adjusted his strategy once again.

Stop dreaming, I'm definitely going to win.

Kirihara Kevin was equally determined, and their fight was filled with tension.

No matter how good your Ghost Ball is, I won't let you win.

Thinking about preventing Kirihara from winning, Kevin was momentarily distracted.

This resulted in some errors in returning the incoming ball; the power and angle were not optimal.

The ball, which should have flown smoothly over the net, grazed the net, but still managed to get over it by chance.

What was initially a mistake turned into a great net shot, and Kevin was somewhat relieved.

However, Kirihara didn't miss any opportunity to return the ball, and Kirihara kept running towards the net.

Finally, he pushed off with his right foot, lunged forward, and hit a Ghost Ball.

"Kirihara, don't..."

Horio was on the Coach bench, immediately tried to stop him, but before he could finish speaking Kirihara had already done it.

"Kanto team scores, 15:0"

Kevin was surprised that Kirihara could hit Ghost Ball with such a diving motion, but when Kevin turned around, his expression changed again.

At this moment, the expressions of everyone on the sidelines changed. Kirihara had dove out to catch the ball, but due to inertia, his right shoulder had collided with the net post.

"Are you alright, classmate?"

Upon seeing this, the referee immediately went to check on Kirihara's condition, and Kirihara lay on the ground for a while before getting up.

"It's alright, I just rushed too hard. Look, I'm perfectly fine."

Kirihara pretended nothing was wrong, turned his shoulder to the referee, and seeing that there was nothing unusual on Kirihara's face, the referee continued the match.

"Kirihara..."

"Alright, the show is about to begin..."

Although Kirihara acted as if nothing was wrong, Horio didn't think so, and was interrupted by Kirihara just as he was about to speak.

After returning to the baseline, Kirihara prepared to serve.

However, his expression was clearly off when he swung the racket, and Horio also noticed the moment Kirihara paused during that swing.

"He was injured after all... It looks like he won't last much longer."

Horio's words were proven true; in the rounds that followed, Kirihara did not use the Ghost Ball again.

"Huh? It's not Ghost Ball."

The people on the sidelines also found it strange that they couldn't score despite having such a good opportunity.

However, Kevin saw Kirihara's behavior as an act of disrespect.

Enraged once again, Kevin launched a counterattack.

Faced with Kevin's counterattack, which was now even stronger, Kirihara even more pain.

Gradually, Kirihara's face, which had been able to endure it, began to show signs of pain.

"Something's not right now."

"Why doesn't Akaya use the Ghost Ball anymore?"

"What are you doing? Hurry up and hit the Ghost Ball, or he's going to win."

Fuji and Sanada, who were on the sidelines, were also unclear about Kirihara's intentions. Kikumaru, seeing that Kirihara was not hitting the Ghost Ball, shouted anxiously.

"It's not that he doesn't want to play, it's that he can't. The Ghost Ball requires powerful spin, but Kirihara simply can't generate that much power right now."

Horio had already realized that Kirihara's shoulder was seriously injured in the collision.

Bang...

"West Coast team score, 30:15"

Bang...

"West Coast team score, 40:15"

Bang...

"West Coast team scores, score 2-1"

"It must hurt a lot."

After the third set ended, the players returned to the Coach bench to rest, Horio suddenly said something to Kirihara.

"What are you talking about, Horio? I'm perfectly fine."

"Your shoulder must be having trouble even returning the ball now. If you keep going like this, your shoulder will be ruined."

Even if my shoulder is ruined... I won't give up the game easily.

Realizing he had been seen through, Kirihara stopped trying to hide it.

"Since you're going to do it, then go ahead and do it, but I'll stop you when you reach your limit."

Hearing Horio's words, Kirihara somewhat unwilling, but unfortunately, it was his right as Coach.

In order to end the match before Horio calls it off, Kirihara no longer cares about anything else.

At the start of the fourth game, Kirihara was no longer as composed as before.

This time he switched to a two-handed grip, temporarily compensating for his lack of power.

This action finally caught the attention of the crowd, but since Kirihara won the fourth inning, no one thought much of it.

In the fifth game Kirihara still used a two-handed grip, but Kevin began to dominate Kirihara again.

The fifth set quickly reached 40-0, becoming Kevin's set point.

Seeing that gripping the racket with both hands was no longer effective, Kirihara knew that if he didn't hit Ghost Ball soon, the match would be over.

Despite the excruciating pain in his shoulder, Kirihara once again unleashed the Ghost Ball.

Unable to distinguish between truth and falsehood, Kevin could only guess, but he guessed wrong.