Shuffle Battle Draws to a Close

The tragic state of Tokugawa and the domineering behavior of Byodoin completely shocked the middle school students in the audience.

"We've reached our limit..."

Standing against the wall, Tokugawa tried his best to stand up, but he collapsed to his knees again due to exhaustion.

Seeing this, the onlookers knew that Tokugawa could not continue.

"You can't see hell without dying once, and you'll never be able to defeat me without experiencing hell firsthand."

Having already lost consciousness once, Tokugawa could no longer hear Byodoin's words and collapsed to his knees, unable to continue.

"Since Tokugawa is unable to continue the match, he is deemed to have forfeited. The match is therefore awarded to Byodoin."

After repeatedly confirming the situation, the referee ended the match, which was still in progress.

As the referee announced his decision, medical personnel re-entered the stadium and took Tokugawa to the treatment room.

"Come on, kid, it's your turn next."

After Tokugawa was taken away, Byodoin did not leave the court, but instead pointed his racket at Horio.

"I refuse."

"What!? You should know what the consequences of refusing me are. I tolerated you using Tokugawa as a shield before."

Now that I've cleared out the weaklings, you have no right to refuse.

On the sidelines, Horio declined Byodoin's challenge and walked off the court.

This action undoubtedly angered Byodoin, and when Horio walked onto the stands, Byodoin could not suppress his anger.

Golden light appeared in his left hand, and he unleashed a devastating attack on Horio.

Sensing something was wrong, Horio immediately snatched the racket from the high school student who had just finished training, while a purple aura emanated from his arm.

He swung his racket at the tennis ball flying towards him, and the moment the racket collided with the ball, a powerful blast of air erupted, blowing away several high school students nearby.

However, Horio remained unmoved, his purple Genesis Aura engulfing the golden light on the tennis ball.

After infusing the tennis ball with the Genesis Aura, Horio hit Shatter strike that returned destruction.

"You bastard, get down here!"

Byodoin was furious, completely ignoring the fact that there was something wrong with Horio's return shot.

He swung his racket, stopping the Shatter.

In an instant, the Genesis Aura of tennis erupted.

A purple vortex formed from the Genesis Aura clung to Byodoin's arm.

"What's this!?"

The formation of the cyclone and the subsequent pain he felt in Byodoin's arm instantly brought him to his senses.

Once he regained his senses, he immediately released his racket, letting the tennis ball knock the racket away.

As the racket flew out, the vortex wrapped around Byodoin's arm also dissipated.

Do you think your arm can support you in continuing high-intensity matches? I don't want it to be because you're injured if you lose badly.

Two days later, at the same stadium, I'll be waiting for you.

I imagine by then your arm will have recovered and the court will be repaired.

After knocking Byodoin's racket away, Horio said rudely to Byodoin, whose face was grim.

"But now that I've got the racket, there must be one number four who hasn't played yet."

You should go first. As a junior high school student yourself, you should do something for other junior high school students.

Come on, Kiriya, we haven't really fought yet, let's have a match.

Horio was about to leave, suddenly turned back to the stadium and pointed to Kiriya in the First String's formation.

"Two days from now, I will personally send you to hell."

On the other side of the field, Byodoin, having made his decision, turned and left the field.

He knew Horio wasn't as simple as the others, so he didn't reject what Horio had just said.

After making a harsh remark to Horio, he ignored the situation on the field.

"You all go to the treatment room and check on Tokugawa's condition first. I'll be there shortly, and I'll bring Tokugawa a big gift."

After Byodoin left, Horio turned to Oni and Irie and said something.

Upon hearing Horio mention the word "grand ceremony," the two immediately turned to look at Kiriya, who was making his entrance with a composed expression.

Having guessed the meaning behind Horio's words, Oni and Irie also left the stadium.

On the First String's side, after Byodoin left, everyone except Duke, who left with him, stayed behind.

Although Ochi Moonlight and Tono Atsukyo had already fought against Horio when Horio first arrived at the training camp, Kiriya was still someone who possessed the Number 4 Badge.

So no matter what the outcome, they tacitly agreed to stay.

"Go ahead and serve, don't hold back."

At the net, Horio looked at Kiriya, whose face was extremely tense, and gave him a kind smile.

Bang!

"Horio scores, score 6-0, total score 2-0, Horio wins."

Fifteen minutes later, when an exhausted Kiriya collapsed to the ground, the tennis ball landed and scored, giving Horio the victory.

"I never expected someone of your skill level to get the Number 4 Badge. That's quite surprising."

But now it belongs to me. Whenever you want it back, just ask the person who owns it.

Of course, as long as you beat him.

After vaulting over the net, Horio stood before Kiriya.

He reached out and took the Number 4 Badge off his collar, then turned and left the field.

Once all ten representatives from the First String had taken their places, this reshuffling battle came to an end.

Of the seven matches played, the junior high school students only won two, a crushing defeat.

"Has it been resolved?"

Horio, having finished his match, walked into the treatment room.

Seeing Tokugawa lying on the bed with his body bandaged, Horio wasn't too worried.

Is it over?

"Knowing I'd have to come back anyway, I didn't waste any time."

Upon seeing Horio appear, Oni and Irie casually asked a question.

At this moment, Tokugawa, who was lying on the bed, reacted. After his eyelids twitched a few times, he woke up.

He opened his eyes and, seeing that he wasn't on the court, immediately sat up.

"Are you awake?"

Seeing himself lying in the treatment room with bandages wrapped around his body, Tokugawa knew he had definitely lost, and he lowered his head in disappointment.

At that moment, Irie's voice pulled him out of his dejected mood. He turned to look to the side and realized that Horio and the others were there.

"That... that..."

It's over.

"The junior high school students only won two games; it was a crushing defeat."

Before Tokugawa could finish speaking, Oni and Irie already knew what he wanted to ask.

"But I did bring you a gift, now."

Upon hearing the news of the middle school students' crushing defeat, Tokugawa, though knowing it was an inevitable outcome, could not help but feel disappointed.

Seeing Tokugawa's expression, Horio tossed him the Number 4 Badge he had won from Kiriya.

"Don't feel ashamed. That guy from Kiriya isn't as strong as you. Besides, I told him that if he wants it back, he'll challenge you to a match. You can prove it to him then."

Looking at the badge in his hand, Tokugawa seemed lost in thought.

"I'm so sorry, you've trained me for so long, but I still..."

"It's okay, this is just the beginning."

"That's right. In this battle with Byodoin, you have already defeated the version of yourself that was trapped in a predicament a year ago because of losing the match."

The road ahead will definitely be smoother; now, let's get some rest.

Neither Oni nor Irie felt any disappointment at Tokugawa's guilt.

On the contrary, Tokugawa's performance, which surpassed his own, made the two feel that their efforts over the past year were worthwhile.

"You've already tried your best, but your competitors have also improved this year."

"Being able to close the gap with their opponents is an achievement, and they are both very satisfied with that."

Horio smiled as he looked at Tokugawa. Not only were Oni and Irie satisfied, but Horio was also very pleased with Tokugawa's progress in this match.

Nighttime, inside the training hall, Ghost finished his training and was about to return to his dormitory, waiting alone in front of the elevator.

Bite...

When the elevator arrived, the ghost was about to step inside, but the person inside made him stop.

"What, are we going to wait for the next elevator?"

Ghost hesitated for a moment but still went inside. After the elevator started moving, neither of the two people inside spoke.

"How is Tokugawa?"

At this moment, the person who was in the elevator finally spoke up, and surprisingly, the first thing they asked about was Tokugawa's situation.

"Your athletic career won't be affected, but I really dislike what you did, Byodoin."

"Hmph, still the same as before, that's where your naivety lies."

It turns out that this person is Byodoin, who beat Tokugawa unconscious Byodoin. Hearing the demon accuse him of his actions, Byodoin is somewhat disdainful.

Bite...

The elevator then stopped again.

"Oh? What a coincidence."

The elevator doors opened, revealing Byodoin and the demon standing side by side inside. Horio made a teasing remark.

As Byodoin Horio walked into the elevator, his brow furrowed slightly.

What did you mean by what you just said?

The elevator doors closed again, and the ghost continued to question Byodoin.

Byodoin thought for a moment and then spoke.

"The world is not that simple. Other countries have become increasingly powerful in recent years. If we don't accelerate our pace, the goal of rejuvenation will become increasingly elusive."

"So you're resorting to this almost extreme method? What effect will that possibly have...?"

"Only those who have experienced despair will constantly strive to become stronger."

You devil, your greenhouse-style approach to cultivating flowers has absolutely no benefits.

Put them in the world championships; they simply can't withstand the challenge from players from other countries.

Horio listened to the argument behind him about how to train his juniors without interrupting.

Because neither Byodoin nor the demons are the best.

If there's one training method that Horio felt was most suitable, it would be Mifune's Hellish Training.

It is more cruel than demons, but more humane than Byodoin.

Although it's not much, at least it gives us hope.

"I really admire your ability to still have the energy to argue about this. Right now, the middle school students in the dormitory lobby are all very agitated."

Horio couldn't help but mention the scene he saw when he left the dormitory.

Hearing this, Byodoin and the demon stopped arguing.

At this moment, the junior high school students were all gathered together in the dormitory lobby.

Their faces were full of anger, clearly dissatisfied with the match between Byodoin and Tokugawa during the day.

The crowd gathered in the hall, waiting for Byodoin to appear so they could collectively attack him.