Tornado Smash

"As expected, despite possessing superhuman talent, he is still far from mature."

While both were watching the game broadcast from the locker room, Coach Sakaki, who always aimed for victory, spoke the truth, unlike Tezuka who remained silent.

"That's right. While I admire his talent, maintaining a good mindset is also an essential quality for any athlete."

Upon hearing Coach Sakaki's words, even Hanamura, who has always favored Ryoma, pointed out Ryoma's problems.

On the court, the match between the two continued.

Kevin, who has thoroughly studied Ryoma, is like Ryoma in a mirror.

Kevin knew how Ryoma would respond, and Ryoma treated him like he was playing against himself.

Bang...

"West Coast team score, 30:15"

Another B-move Serve, Kevin once again scored a point using Ryoma's skills.

"Hateful..."

Recalling the battle that just took place, it felt like a replay of the previous match against Fuji Yuta.

Ryoma gritted his teeth, his brows furrowed, and glared angrily at Kevin.

Starting with the fourth goal, Ryoma was very resistant to Kevin's behavior.

So he decided to teach Kevin a lesson on this play, to show him that his skills were unique and irreplaceable.

"You're just copying other people's moves, stop now!"

Gritting his teeth, he uttered those words, and then the Ryoma glided away along the ground.

Then, with a kick of his feet, he reappeared, but Kevin on the other side had also vanished.

It turns out that Kevin saw Ryoma preparing to hit B-move Serve, and he was also preparing to return it with B-move Serve.

Then we saw the two players slide towards the net one after the other, and Ryoma was the first to get up.

Bang...

"West Coast team scores, score tied 4-4"

"Echizen Ryoma, I've figured out your moves. I will be the one to win in the end."

Looking at Ryoma kneeling on one knee, Kevin pointed at him with his racket and said.

It's hard for anyone to accept that their signature move has been countered by the same opponent.

Especially for Ryoma, his mindset was completely disrupted at this moment.

Having lost his composure and competitive form, Ryoma appeared to be playing hard in the ninth game, but in reality, he was just returning the ball absentmindedly.

On the other hand, Kevin, using his opponent's strength to subdue him, became even more excited.

With such a significant disparity in skill between the two sides, Ryoma quickly lost the ninth game, bringing the score to 5-4.

"Well done, Kevin. Only one round left; you have to win."

"Yes, boss."

Like Kevin, Coach Baker was also emotionally moved by the victory.

Seeing that winning just one more game would secure the sponsorship contract, Coach Baker appeared calm on the surface, but inside he was incredibly anxious.

The atmosphere on the other Coach bench was quite different from that on Coach Baker's side.

"What are you doing? Is this how you treat a game?"

Seeing Ryoma somewhat distracted, Horio looked very serious, even a little angry.

"Do you know that your substitute spot squeezed out twenty other people, but any one of them would have a better attitude towards the game than you?"

"Don't you like tennis? Just because someone imitates your skills, do you not have any other talents?"

Horio's serious words brought Ryoma back to reality. Recalling Horio's words, Ryoma fell silent.

"I didn't say that. I just really hate people who only imitate other people's moves."

And what about you?

No sooner had he finished speaking than Horio asked him a question in return, Ryoma did not refute him further.

Didn't I initially imitate my father? Saying such things now is undoubtedly a slap in my own face.

Seeing that Ryoma remained silent, Horio also refrained from saying anything more. A wise person doesn't need much guidance, and a fool's explanations are useless.

After a short break, the tenth game began.

As before, Ryoma quickly conceded two goals to Kevin.

"What on earth is he doing? Is he just going to surrender like this?"

"That's really ugly; it doesn't look like something a proper tennis player would do."

"Cheer up, Echizen! If we don't fight back Echizen, we're going to lose."

Because of Ryoma's inaction, Atobe and Sanada, who were sitting on the sidelines Tonin speak up.

Bang...

"West Coast team scores, 40:0"

"Hey little one, it's game over! Cheer up!"

After losing the second goal, Ryoma adjusted his hat.

"Hmph, how could I possibly stop here? I'm not prepared to lose until I've defeated my target."

As he walked towards the backfield, he muttered to himself, Ryoma gaze no longer unfocused.

After three rounds of reflection, Ryoma finally figured out how he should play.

Kevin, who already had match point, just wanted to win one more point.

"It's the last goal. If I win just one more, I'll be able to surpass Echizen Ryoma."

With this in mind, Kevin gathered all his strength and unleashed Outer Spin Serve.

At this moment, Ryoma was no longer passive, and he returned the heavy Outer Spin Serve with ease.

Kevin was caught off guard by Ryoma's sudden change of attitude and hastily caught the Ryoma.

The tennis ball bounced off Kevin's racket and flew into the sky.

At this moment, Ryoma's figure darted out, leaping into the air and spinning in mid-air.

Then, using the force of the spin, he delivered a smash.

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, 15:40"

"What... what was that smash just now...?"

"Can that kind of smash really be executed...?"

"Like a tornado..."

"Look at Kevin's expression, he must be terrified."

"This is a technique that Echizen has never used before, and I'm sure Kevin hasn't seen it either."

"Great! Echizen, your new move that you've been practicing so hard has finally appeared!"

The crowd on the sidelines was taken aback by Ryoma's new move, but Oishi was very excited because he had helped Ryoma develop this smash.

"What kind of move is that...? Why have I never seen it before? Does he have some secret technique?!"

Kevin, on the court, looked at the obvious tennis ball mark on the ground behind him, and the shock in his heart was like an Oishi being thrown into water.

"You've figured out all my moves, haven't you? How about this one?"

Now it was Ryoma's turn to show off, and Kevin's face turned extremely ugly after being mocked like this.

But there was nothing they could do; even the rest of the West Coast team on the sidelines marveled at the power of the Tornado Smash.

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, 30:40"

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, 40-40"

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, Echizen advantage."

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, score 5-5"