Feeling Restored
Puff...
"Double fault, Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High School's Yukimura scores, 15:0"
"I finally got used to not having any tactile sensation, but then I lose my vision during my serve. It's really troublesome."
After another double miss, Horio shook his head, somewhat helpless.
He then walked to the other side and took another ball out of his pocket.
Based on his mental image of the stadium, combined with his previous experience without tactile sensation.
Horio hit a shot that wasn't great, but it landed in bounds.
"Success! Horio's serve was successful!"
"After two games, has he finally adapted to playing without touch?"
Momoshiro and Kaitou, watching from the sidelines, breathed a sigh of relief at Horio's successful serve, but before they could even celebrate for two seconds, Yukimura's return brought them back to reality.
Horio's vision was gone, and Yukimura hit the ball towards the farthest point from him on the baseline.
Yukimura even managed to reduce the ball's friction with the air until the tennis ball bounced off the ground, at which point Horio knew the ball had rebounded.
Upon hearing the sound, Horio moved Inch Step to the point where the tennis ball would land, but the ball was already outside his hitting area.
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High's Yukimura scores, 30:0"
"What a pity! We were a step too slow, otherwise we would have had a chance to return that ball."
"It would have been better if Horio had moved immediately after Yukimura retaliated."
"He can't do it."
Just as Momoshiro and Kawamura were feeling sorry for that last shot, Fuji refuted them with certainty.
"Horio should be unable to see anything by now."
"I can't see... anything? What are you talking about, Senpai?"
"Look at Horio's eyes. His pupils are unfocused, which proves that he is now completely blind."
Kane accepted Fuji's words, but Momoshiro was still puzzled.
Gan pushed up his glasses and pointed out the most direct proof to everyone.
"Just now, Yukimura deliberately hit a ball with little friction with the air, so the tennis ball would only make a very small sound during its flight."
However, the stadium was quite noisy, so Horio couldn't hear the sound of the tennis ball flying through the air at all.
Yukimura aimed at the baseline, the furthest point from him, so even if Horio used Inch Step after the ball landed, it would be difficult for him to return the shot.
"That little brat finally got used to not feeling touch, and now his sight has been taken away too. What are we going to do?"
Upon hearing Gan's explanation, Kikumaru immediately deflated.
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High School's Yukimura scores, 40:0"
"This is really troublesome. It seems we'll have to back down a bit more. If we succeed, Yukimura will probably have to lose his hearing too."
After the third ball was hit, Horio's attempt yielded results.
To successfully return a ball after it bounces, you need to be further away from your ideal hitting point.
Horio walked back to the baseline, showing no negative emotions despite the loss of his sense of touch and sight, which made Yukimura on the other side hesitate.
"Both feelings have disappeared, and he's still so calm... Isn't that enough?"
Well, he can't get the ball now, so let's end the game like this.
As Yukimura pondered, Horio's serve was already upon him.
With another precise aim at the baseline, the racket is swung out.
The fast-flying tennis ball was so quiet it was almost inaudible until it landed on the baseline.
As soon as the tennis ball hit the ground, Horio immediately launched Inch Step.
This time, he didn't appear at the baseline, but rather one meter away from it.
Guided by his intuition, Horio swung his racket.
The sound of a ball being struck caused Yukimura's expression to change slightly.
"You can still return the ball even without touch or sight; it seems I underestimated you."
Although this might be cruel to you, I won't allow any weaknesses in the game for Rikkai Dai's three-peat.
Yukimura then swung his racket again, and the tennis ball did not fly towards the baseline, but instead flew towards Horio's feet.
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High's Yukimura scores, making the score 3-0."
The tennis ball landed at Horio's feet, and this time Horio didn't move.
Even after the referee announced the score, he remained standing in place, as if waiting for the sound of the tennis ball hitting the ground.
"This time it's hearing; Horio's senses have completely disappeared, whether it's touch, sight, or hearing."
"So he can no longer determine the position of the tennis ball by the sound of it hitting the ground."
"Little one probably doesn't know it's time for the next game yet, still standing there waiting."
"Damn it! Is there really no way to deal with Yukimura's Five Senses Deprivation?!"
"Calm down, Momoshiro! Do you think you're the only one suffering? Horio's situation is even more difficult right now!"
On Seigaku's side, the person sitting on the sidelines was the first to notice Horio's strange behavior.
Then Fuji guessed that it must be because of the hearing loss, and their words Shatter the hopes of the others once again.
Momoshiro pounded on the railing in frustration, while Kaitou, standing beside him, adopted the demeanor of a prospective Captain.
"All sensation has vanished; he probably only feels like he's in endless darkness now."
"It remains a silent, boundless darkness; no matter what I do, there will be no response."
"In that case, a three-peat is practically guaranteed!"
Seeing Horio's appearance, Sanada and Yanagi felt a little scared, while Kirihara, who had never experienced the Five Senses Deprivation, only had the championship in his mind.
"They really have deprived him of his hearing too. But for a middle school student to be able to use his mental power to this extent is truly admirable."
On the field, Horio remained motionless, completely absorbed in his own world.
"Without touch, sight, or hearing, if the opponent cannot break this move, then all they will face is the irresistible loneliness lurking in this silent, boundless darkness."
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High's Yukimura scores, 15:0"
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High's Yukimura scores, 30:0"
"But that's about enough. If it drags on any longer, I won't even know the game is over."
On the court, Yukimura served the ball and scored without hesitation.
After experiencing the strange sensations of Five Senses Deprivation once again, Horio decided not to delay any longer.
He mobilized his mental energy to erase the mental energy within him that had been corrupted by Yukimura.
Horio then felt the racket grip in his hand and sensed the muscle activity in his arm.
The vision that had been dominated by darkness became bright again, and the scene inside the stadium reappeared before my eyes.
Bang!
"Rikkai Dai Fuzoku Junior High School's Yukimura scores, making the score 4-0."
Of course, the sounds from the surrounding stands also reached Horio's ears, along with the referee's calls.
"He took another game so quickly. Luckily, he recovered in time, otherwise it would have been embarrassing to lose the match."
Yukimura kept scoring by Five Senses Deprivation, and the score eventually reached 4-0 when Horio returned to normal.