March Towards Despair Fugue

The tennis ball flew towards Yukimura returned it with a shot close to the net, hoping to force Ochi Moonlight to volley it.

As expected, Ochi Moonlight fell for the trap; his figure appeared just as the tennis ball flew over the net.

The forehand racket is swung out, and the volley occurs.

At that moment, Atobe was also ready, and the volley was launched.

Atobe aimed at Ochi Moonlight's racket and returned the ball.

As his racket was knocked away, the tennis ball flew back, and Atobe jumped up.

"March Towards Despair Fugue!"

Bang!

"Junior high school students score, 15:0"

"Is it that kind of shot again? You really have a thing for these fancy ball techniques."

Seeing the tennis ball slide across the court, Mori Juzaburo nodded to Atobe.

"Tch, this old man is more than just a flashy guy."

"Now is when you'll truly be amazed."

Atobe was not pleased by the slightly sarcastic tone in Mori Juzaburo's teasing words.

Hearing Atobe's boast, Mori Juzaburo made no response and returned to the baseline to serve again.

Bang...

"Junior high school students score, 30:0"

Bang...

"Junior high school students score, 40:0"

Bang...

"Junior high school student scores, score 6:5"

"Great! We broke their serve!"

"Finally, we've seen the turning point of the game."

"Let's keep this momentum going and take the final game."

With Ochi Moonlight and Mori Juzaburo's serves broken, the glimmer of victory in the first game finally shone on the faces of the junior high school students.

"I told you, what's next will truly open your eyes."

"So, blue-haired Senpai, my skills as the current Captain of Hyotei are pretty good, aren't they?"

After the eleventh inning, the two players switched sides.

The two players meet when they are in the middle of the net.

Atobe first retorted to Mori Juzaburo's previous words, and then turned his gaze to Ochi Moonlight, who was standing to the side.

However, Ochi Moonlight remained the same as before, barely paying attention to Atobe.

Although he didn't say anything, he glanced at Atobe.

Atobe also felt his gaze, but it would have been better if he hadn't looked; once he did, trouble ensued.

Looking into Ochi Moonlight's eyes, Atobe felt his breath catch in his throat for no apparent reason.

In that instant, Yukimura suddenly sensed a powerful spiritual force.

Yukimura instinctively turned to look at Horio outside the arena, but all he got in return was Horio.

"Atobe, are you alright?"

After glancing at Atobe, Ochi Moonlight and Mori Juzaburo headed towards their respective areas.

Atobe, who was being glanced at, froze on the spot. Yukimura, who was standing next to him, turned around and noticed that Atobe was acting strangely, and he had his own guesses.

"Was that Atobe's Senpai's mental power just now...? That's really strong."

When it comes to his own area of expertise, Yukimura is quite confident in determining Ochi Moonlight's formidable mental strength.

So when Ochi Moonlight used his Mental Assassination, Yukimura was very sensitive to it. Seeing that Atobe hadn't reacted yet, Yukimura was very worried.

Even he himself felt that his powerful mental strength was affecting Atobe, which was quite troublesome.

"Atobe, are you alright?"

"Ah... it's nothing, let's go. It's the last game, you just focus on serving, I'll handle the net play."

Atobe, who only came to his senses after being repeatedly reminded by Yukimura, dared not show any unusual behavior, but observant people had already noticed, no matter how well he concealed it.

"Was that Ochi guy who made the move just now?"

"Well, I have to say his Mental Assassination technique is indeed very powerful."

Exploit the opponent's pressure to launch an attack, amplifying it infinitely until they ultimately self-destruct.

Off the field, Atobe's absent-mindedness was noticed by Irie, while Horio sensed Ochi Moonlight's spiritual power.

At this moment, Atobe was already caught up in Ochi Moonlight's Mental Power Ball Skill without even realizing it himself.

"That's right, that tall high school student couldn't have released his mental energy for no reason."

And I didn't expect his mental strength to be so strong. I thought I was second only to Horio in terms of mental strength. It seems that the First String is quite interesting.

Atobe... how will you react if you're hit by your opponent's mental attack...?

On the bottom line, Yukimura looked at Atobe standing in the front field, his eyes filled with a mixture of doubt and worry.

Unable to get an answer, Yukimura had no choice but to hit the ball.

At that moment, Ochi Moonlight, who was standing in the frontcourt on the opposite side, turned around and gestured to Mori Juzaburo, who immediately received the message.

Aim at the incoming tennis ball and hit it in Atobe's direction.

Atobe also moved his feet to prepare to return the ball. The tennis ball went over the net, and Atobe immediately swung his racket.

Puff...

"First String scores, 15:0"

"Touched the ball? Atobe made a mistake!?"

"How could that be? How could Atobe miss such a good opportunity!"

"And it was a volley at the net, with so much space to attack, there shouldn't have been a mistake."

Facing the ball hit by Mori Juzaburo, Atobe seemed full of confidence, hit the net accurately.

The junior high school students on court Court No. 3 immediately wore expressions of disbelief.

"Atobe... could it be because of what just happened...?"

Atobe's recent mistake gave Yukimura some clues, and to confirm them, Yukimura held back some of his power and hit a very ordinary serve.

Although it was a ball that any ordinary junior high school student could catch, Mori Juzaburo still managed to hit the ball towards Atobe.

Having learned from his mistake on the previous ball, Atobe deliberately avoided the same swing motion and angle.

Puff...

"First String scores, 30:0"

However, the result was still the same. Even though Atobe adjusted his form, he still missed the target by touching the net.

"How is that possible...?"

"What on earth is going on?!"

"Could it be that there was something wrong with the ball that Mori Juzaburo hit back?"

"No, the ball that high school student returned was just an ordinary ball; even the spin wasn't anything special."

"So it really is Atobe who has a problem..."

When Atobe for the second time, the junior high school students inexplicably vanished.

Is it because of... stress?

Regarding Atobe's mistake, and considering what Ochi Moonlight did to Atobe, Yukimura could only think of pressure as a factor.

"Atobe, you've been hit by that tall high school student's mental attack."

The reason you hit the net when you returned the ball is because he amplified the pressure in your heart by using his mental strength.

"What? Isn't that kind of mental power only you and Horio have? I didn't expect to find it in this training camp as well."

"Hmph, but that makes sense, that thing is quite torturous, so it's not surprising to find people like that in this place."

Because of two consecutive mistakes, Atobe has fallen into self-doubt.

Just then, Yukimura suddenly called out to him. After hearing Yukimura's explanation, Atobe realized why he had felt that way when Ochi Moonlight looked at him earlier.

Even though he knew that his mistake was only due to the pressure being amplified, Atobe was not good at mental strength at all.

Even knowing the root of the problem, Atobe was unable to solve it.

Puff...

"First String scores, 40:0"

Puff...

"First String scored, score 6-6"

"Damn it... I know I shouldn't rush, but I still make a mistake in the split second of my swing."

At this Atobe was very agitated, and Yukimura couldn't help him.

Because Ochi Moonlight's mental strength was stronger than his, he couldn't use his own mental strength to help Atobe eliminate Ochi Moonlight's mental strength.

"As expected of Ochi Moonlight, known as the morale killer, countless people have fallen victim to his Mental Assassination techniques."

"They actually went to a tiebreaker with middle schoolers, how long do they plan to keep playing like this?"

In the match between Yukimura and Atobe, the two, as the First String, were still unable to resolve the battle cleanly.

Even though he knew the two weren't using their full strength, Horio couldn't help but comment.

"First String scores, 1-0"

"First String scores, 2-0"

"Let's stop here. If we drag this out any longer, there'll be nothing interesting to see."

On the court, Ochi Moonlight stopped holding back and looked at Atobe was preparing to serve, and said...

After a few games of rest, Atobe's wrist pain has subsided considerably.

"A war of attrition, that's what I'm best at."

Puff...

"Mistake"

Puff...

"Two players made mistakes, the First String scores, 3-0"

Puff...

Puff...

"Two errors, First String scores, 4-0"

"Atobe actually made a service error? This has never happened before..."

The effects of the Mental Assassination hadn't worn off, and the pressure Atobe still made it difficult for him to cope with the match.

"You guys still seem confused. That won't do."

Mori Juzaburo looked at Atobe with a smile, while Yukimura was starting to get anxious.

"It seems there are some very powerful mental experts among you, managing to keep my partner making mistakes until now."

However, there's more than one person with mental strength on this court, so be careful of that Senpai named Mori.

As soon as Mori Juzaburo finished speaking, Yukimura looked at him.

As he spoke, Yukimura released his spiritual energy toward Mori.

Now, Yukimura's release of his spiritual power is not as scattered as it was during the National Tournament and the Horio Tournament; instead, he releases a concentrated spiritual power entirely onto Mori Juzaburo.

In an instant, Mori Juzaburo felt as if he had been struck by an invisible force.

Are you alright?

"It felt like I'd been hit by something, and my head suddenly felt dizzy."

"You were just attacked with mental power by that middle school student, and his mental power is very strong, otherwise I wouldn't have missed it before."

The moment Yukimura released his spiritual power, Ochi Moonlight captured its trajectory.

However, because it was so sudden, he didn't have time to use his mental power to help Mori Juzaburo defend himself, so the poor guy was completely attacked by Yukimura's mental power.

"I wonder what kind of influence that middle school student's mental strength has. It seems I'll have to try it out first to find out."

At the very least, Mori Juzaburo, who had been hit by a mental attack, was still unaware of what mental abilities Yukimura possessed.

Knowing he had been infected, he had no choice but to serve. Helplessly, he tossed the ball up, and just as he was about to swing, the racket suddenly fell from his hand.