The Fourth Type of Imitation

Tezuka's words gave everyone more room for thought, and also made them vaguely feel that Horio had gone there with this purpose in mind.

While everyone on the sidelines pondered, the fight on the field continued.

The two players' match was like a game played symmetrically around the net.

"I'll give you something fresh."

On the court, Horio saw Kabaji, who had already synchronized his movements with his, and a slight smile appeared on his lips.

Then he stood at the ball's landing point, his hands crossed in front of him.

"This time, it's the Deep Power behind the formation of Josei Shonan Kamishiro Reiji!"

Horio's hands glowed with purple light, then he pulled his right hand back and swung his racket at the incoming ball.

After a thud, a beam of light streaked through the air.

At that moment, Kabaji on the opposite side also crossed his arms, his arms glowing with white light, and caught the terrifying ball just like Horio.

"Horio had just used Deep Power Kabaji had already learned it! That's incredible..."

"Kabaji seems to be using that ability even more freely than he did during the Kanto Tournament..."

"Furthermore, Kabaji's massive physique endowed him with superhuman strength, allowing him to easily catch most powerful balls."

Seeing that Kabaji accepted Horio's Deep Power attack without any pressure and retaliated with Deep Power, the Seigaku members were astonished.

"Hmph, don't Kabaji. He's the most unfathomable person in Hyotei."

Seeing Kabaji's outstanding performance, Atobe flashed his signature smile.

"Very good, that's your fourth skill. Looks like you're handling it with ease."

Facing the Deep Power hit back from Kabaji, Horio forced a return with a normal swing.

Seeing that Horio didn't use any special skills to retaliate against his Deep Power, Kabaji once again engaged in a prolonged battle with Horio.

"It's hard to believe, but the fact that Horio could fight Kabaji to this extent is undeniable; he's really strong."

"Kabaji is a monster of Hyotei; none of us could beat him, yet he's fighting Horio to a standstill..."

"I really don't know whether to be relieved or worried. If it weren't for Horio playing Second Singles, it would most likely have been Fuji or Tezuka. Facing Fuji would be fine, but if it were Tezuka, I don't know how things would have turned out."

Hearing the discussion among his teammates behind him, Atobe felt a growing unease.

"I don't believe you're just testing me with all those moves... You must have some other purpose..."

Seeing Horio's performance on the field completely unaffected, Atobe kept his hand on his forehead.

"That's enough for this round, I'm not going to waste any more time with you."

After countless exchanges on the court, Horio once again delivered a Lob Shot.

Seeing the chance ball flying high in the sky, Kabaji did not choose to sprint and jump this time.

Instead, he stayed in the backcourt waiting for the Lob Shot, and then returned Horio's Lob Shot exactly as it was.

"Oh? You've learned your lesson? Since you want to retaliate, then so be it."

Horio then took the lead in sprinting and jumping in this round, and Kabaji followed closely behind after seeing Horio jump.

"No, Horio! Don't fall for it!"

Seeing Horio's actions, Oishi immediately understood that Kabaji was going to retaliate in the same way Horio had done before.

On the court, Horio jumped up and raised his racket, while Kabaji on the opposite side seemed to be waiting for Horio to smash the ball.

However, even after the ball reached the optimal hitting zone, Horio still did not swing his racket.

The best opportunity was missed; the tennis ball was already slowly falling.

Horio's body also began to fall, and during the fall, Horio spun once in the air.

Just as the ball was falling below the net, Horio finally swung his racket.

As Horio spun, he hit a backhand shot, sending a sidespin ball flying to Kabaji's left.

Kabaji jumped a step later than Horio, so he Horio a little later as well. By the time he landed, it was too late for Kabaji to catch the ball.

Moreover, even if Kabaji had time to move, the tennis ball hadn't even crossed the net; it had landed on it.

Then, with the side spin of the ball, the tennis ball began to roll on the net.

The ball landed in Hyotei's half of the court only after the spin had completely disappeared.

Even if Kabaji had enough time, the ball's bounce wouldn't be enough for Kabaji to return the shot.

Even if Kabaji will eventually touch the net.

Thump...

"Seigaku Horio scored, 30:0"

"Walk... Tightrope Walk?"

"You brat, you mocked Marui for his tricks of exploiting loopholes during the match against Rikkai Dai, and now you've learned them yourself."

The Seigaku members were somewhat surprised to see Horio perform Tightrope Walk at the last moment.

After all, everyone heard what Horio said during the match against Rikkai Dai. Horio, who had mocked Marui, actually scored using Marui's move, and a group of people below looked at him with strange eyes.

As if sensing something, Horio shamelessly ignored it.

"Tch, no matter who it is, they can never escape the 'it smells so good' phenomenon. You guys don't know anything. But this move is indeed quite flashy; Marui does have some creativity."

As for Horio himself, who finds it surprisingly good, as long as I'm not embarrassed, it's Marui's embarrassed.

"What kind of ball is that... it's still rolling on the net."

"That's too flashy. That kind of ball is just for attracting attention."

"That's Rikkai Dai Marui Bunta Tightrope Walk! You guys think it's really cool, right!?"

On the Hyotei side, despite the sarcastic remarks from Oshitari and Meido, Akutagawa Jiro remained excited.

I never expected to see my idol's tennis skills in a match against Seigaku. As a fan, how could I not be excited?

"Alright, Jiro, you're cheering for your opponent right now, can't you be a little more mindful?"

Atobe was quite helpless in the face of his junior, Jiro, whose thinking was often offline.

"Don't let your guard down, be even more careful, Kabaji!"

Although Kabaji's abilities were indeed outstanding in these few goals, they did not yield good results, which made Atobe somewhat angry.

Then, with another snap of his fingers, he gave Kabaji a new order.

Upon hearing Atobe's command, Kabaji's expression remained unchanged, but a glint of cunning flashed in his eyes.

"Yes."

As Kabaji agreed to Atobe's request, Kabaji expression changed.

His face, which had previously been expressionless, now displayed an expression that could be described as ferocious.

"Hyotei will win!"

With a roar from Kabaji, a burst of energy seemed to erupt from around his body.

"Even more powerful now? Just what I wanted. Let me experience it for myself."

Sensing the change in Kabaji's aura, Horio became even more interested.

Kabaji returned to the baseline, preparing to serve again with Waterfall Pouring Down serve.