Illusion Ball

"What's wrong with you, Kevin? Now's your time to use that move."

Billy was getting a little anxious and couldn't help but shout at Kevin on the court.

"I understand... I've strived to reach the level of Echizen Ryoma until now, and I've studied your skills repeatedly until the videotapes were worn out."

I practiced and practiced until I mastered it completely, and I became Echizen Ryoma!

Moreover, I'm going to surpass Echizen Ryoma!

As Kevin's tone grew increasingly filled with resentment and anger, he finally retaliated after shouting those words.

He held the racket with both hands, swung it backward, and then hit the incoming ball with the racket frame, just like hitting a baseball.

The ball, when hit, deforms due to the force of the impact from the racket frame.

The ball that flew out kept shaking in the air, and slowly it turned into several balls appearing at the same time.

Facing Kevin's shot, Ryoma's dynamic vision couldn't keep up, and he could only watch as the ball flew past him.

The tennis ball flew behind Ryoma, and after landing, it maintained a strong spin, causing the ball to not bounce but instead draw a circular trajectory on the ground.

"West Coast team score, 15:30"

"Did you see that..."

"Three balls... you're going to do this with me?"

Sanada and Atobe were on the sidelines, were also stunned by the ball. Kevin's teammates on the other side were as well.

"What was that ball...?"

"Was it a miracle ball?"

"No, no, no, that move was a secret technique that Kevin and I trained together, called the Illusion Ball."

"Is it another case of using a frame to deform the tennis ball? But no matter how many balls are created, it's still just one ball in a game."

Kevin's Illusion Ball reminded Horio Tachibana Kippei's Explosive Ball Dance, but the Explosive Ball Dance was more lethal.

"Heh heh, that's more like it, Kevin Smith. Now my dream can come true right away."

"I predicted years ago that tennis could bring business opportunities, so I became the owner of a tennis club, but only by becoming the largest tennis club in the United States can I bring huge profits."

Therefore, a strategy is necessary, such as hiring famous professional tennis players as Coach. This would definitely generate a lot of buzz and attract many players.

However, the cost of hiring professional players is quite staggering, so I realized that I didn't need to pay them that much money at all.

"Wouldn't it be enough if our club could produce star players?" So I started searching everywhere for tennis prodigies.

First they found Mike Lee, and then they found the Griffith Brothers.

Next was Bobby Marx, while Arnold Iglijef came to him on his own.

Finally, they found Billy Katie and Kevin Smith and poached them as well.

After that, I began to train them thoroughly and planned this goodwill match, all in order to make my tennis club more famous.

Miss Takayama, you promised me that if Kevin Smith wins this game, you'll sponsor my team, so we can't afford to lose this game no matter what.

Kevin, you have to win!

As Coach Baker pondered, the situation on the field changed once again.

Kevin assumed the Illusion Ball stance again, a dull thud was heard, and the Illusion Ball was hit once more.

Ryoma tried to return the attack, but having not yet grasped the technique of the Illusion Ball, he was completely at a loss.

"West Coast team score, 30:30"

"Ryoma, how many balls do you see in your eyes?"

Bang...

"West Coast team score, 40:30"

Another Illusion Ball, Ryoma has successfully conceded another point.

"Hey, Echizen Ryoma."

Kevin suddenly called out to Ryoma, Ryoma looked up at Kevin.

Kevin gave Ryoma a thumbs-up and then spun him 180 degrees.

Such a mocking gesture made Ryoma somewhat uncomfortable.

Bang...

"Kanto team scores, 40-40"

"Hey, you seem to be getting a little too cocky."

After landing, Ryoma returned the gesture, just like Kevin had done on the previous play.

"Kevin! Don't let your guard down, you idiot!"

Because Kevin was once again Tornado Smash, Beck had completely lost his previous gentlemanly demeanor.

He stood up, fists clenched, and roared at Kevin, his eyes bloodshot.

"What did you look like doing during the game? Were you trying to break the rules Coach Baker?"

Horio wouldn't tolerate such behavior that disrespects players, and he directly spoke out in mockery.

The referee in the middle, hearing Horio's reminder, also spoke up in warning, and Beck immediately deflated like a frostbitten eggplant.

"Mr. Baker is so excited..."

"Mr. Baker really took good care of us brothers, and we are still very grateful to him, but..."

Tom was very grateful to Baker for recognizing his talent, but he felt uncomfortable thinking about how they had lost the game because of Baker and for the sake of the match's effect.

"To be honest, I really can't stand Mr. Baker's actions."

"Um..."

Hearing Terry's words, Bobby also thought of his previous game when he was exhausted, only to be met with a cold look from Coach Baker, and he felt somewhat disheartened.

Everyone who hadn't been abandoned by Beck thought so, let alone Arnold had already been kicked out of the team.

"Damn it, I won't let you hit that Tornado Smash again."

On the court, Kevin avoided hitting Lob Shot on every return in order to win the game.

Another dull thud was heard as Kevin hit another Illusion Ball.

"West Coast team scores, Smith's advantage"

"You need to learn to see through appearances to the essence. No matter how many illusions there are, the real ball still has its own characteristics."

Ryoma still hasn't found a way to deal with the Illusion Ball, and Horio is considering whether to give him a hint.

Bang...

"West Coast team scores, score 6-6, tiebreaker."

Kevin ultimately forced the game into a Game 7, which was not good news for Ryoma, who was already exhausted.

"Ryoma, remember this: no matter how many balls appear in your eyes, there is only one ball on the field."

During the break, Horio decided to give Ryoma a reminder, and Ryoma only thought about it briefly before returning to the court.

On the court, Ryoma dribbled the tennis ball, his mind replaying the image of the Illusion Ball.

Suddenly, he noticed the shadow cast on the ground by the tennis ball he was hitting, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Ryoma, come on."

At this moment, Kevin was unaware that his Illusion Ball was about to be broken, and was excitedly thinking about his chances of turning the tables.

Ryoma then dribbled the ball a few times before unleashing Outer Spin Serve.

However, the Outer Spin Serve was no longer effective at this point, so Ryoma deliberately hit the ball to a place that was difficult to reach.