"What's wrong, Tezuka!"
Kamikawa glanced sideways at Tezuka and smiled. "You've gotten slower. Don't tell me you're holding back?"
Slower?
Of course not. Tezuka's speed hadn't changed at all during their exchange just now. If anything, it had even seemed to increase slightly.
And that ball...
Kamikawa had simply sped up his attack.
"That was a beautiful smash."
After speaking, Tezuka turned and walked toward the baseline.
Thump!!
Tezuka served.
Kamikawa's gaze flickered. He chased down the ball and sent it flying toward the right half of the court.
"If you want to use a Domain Technique, you can keep trying."
Kamikawa smiled.
After trading several shots with Tezuka, he could clearly feel the unusual spin on the ball growing stronger and stronger.
Tezuka was eager to use Tezuka Zone!
Once he activated the Zone, Tezuka would have to run back and forth less, conserving his stamina. It would also seal off his blind spots without him even realizing it, giving him more time to watch for his opponent's mistakes.
"Strange..."
Sanada watched Tezuka running back and forth.
His brows drew together.
He'd played Tezuka once before and knew exactly how powerful that move was. Yet from the start of the match until now, Tezuka hadn't used it even once. Was he going easy on his opponent?!
No!
If Sanada faced Yukimura in the final, he certainly wouldn't go easy on him.
Going easy on a friend during a match was disrespectful to him.
Smack!
Tezuka hit a high-quality crosscourt shot, and Kamikawa quickly chased after it. Lowering his racket slightly, he adopted the stance of someone about to hit a slice.
Seeing this, Tezuka immediately rushed forward. The instant the ball bounced, Kamikawa flicked his racket and forced a high lob.
"Step... step-step..."
As he ran, Tezuka leaped into the air and surged forward, smashing the ball down.
Thump!!
Kamikawa had anticipated where the ball would land. He turned his back to the net, spread his arms, and caught the smashing ball with his racket.
"That's!"
Shishido gripped the chain-link fence in front of him, his eyes flickering.
It was the same technique Kamikawa had used against him earlier: Giant Bear Return.
Smack!!
The ball ground fiercely against the racket, carrying an astonishing amount of spin. Then it shot backward, sailing over Tezuka's head.
It landed softly near the baseline.
"0–30!"
"That was?"
This was the first time Sanada had seen such a shocking technique.
Even his own powerful smashes might not be able to break through it.
That technique was practically designed to return smashes. Right after making a smashing motion, the body couldn't react in time.
Unless the smash was a shallow jump and carried a great deal of spin, causing the ball to linger on the racket for a moment, returning it was nearly impossible.
"And yet!"
Sanada still couldn't understand why Tezuka hadn't used that move even now.
At the age of twelve, both players' stamina was bound to be limited.
Even if the match reached a deciding tiebreak, the player with more stamina would still have the upper hand.
The two continued their fierce rally.
Thump!
"15–30!!"
Thump!!
"30–40!!"
Thump!!
"40–40!! Deuce!!"
The score kept seesawing.
Since reaching deuce at 40–40, neither player had managed to win two points and take the game.
(After the score reaches 40–40, one player must win two points in a row to take the game. The player who wins the first point has the advantage; if he scores again on the second point, he wins the game.)
Smack!!
Tezuka lowered his racket and hit a high-quality slice.
The instant Kamikawa saw the slice, he stopped moving.
"What's wrong?"
As everyone watched in confusion,
the next second, the ball dropped near the net. With a unique spin, it bounced slightly backward.
"Game, Tezuka. 1–0!"
"A fledgling Zero-style Slice?"
Kamikawa watched the Zero-style Slice bounce back up. With Tezuka's arm strength at this age, managing that much was already remarkable. His body was still developing.
But it wouldn't be long before the guy could hit a perfect Zero-style Slice.
He really was frightening.
Even after falling two points behind, he'd clung on and caught up.
"Kamikawa!"
A fierce fighting spirit flashed in Tezuka's eyes. "You're not showing me everything you can do. Let me see your true strength."
They switched serves.
Kamikawa lightly bounced the ball in his hand, then tossed it up. He bent his knees and lowered his center of gravity, pushing off with both legs. His body sprang halfway into the air as he swung his racket forward, smashing the ball overhead with all his might!
Bang!!
So fast!
Tezuka hurried toward the spot where the ball would land.
The ball shot off at incredible speed. It was a textbook topspin serve.
Tezuka returned it.
Kamikawa moved forward. The player with the serve had greater control over the match and could take the initiative more easily.
Smack!
The two traded shots, and Kamikawa had already claimed the net, giving him an earlier chance to attack.
Suddenly, Kamikawa struck a backhand smash. His high-quality volley flew toward the sideline.
Tezuka rushed forward and lowered his body, but the ball still shot past him.
"15–0!"
What a beautiful volley!
The spectators couldn't help exclaiming. Kamikawa had rarely come to the net in his earlier matches.
Who would have thought he was so good at volleys, too?
A volley was different from a half-volley. A volley was a shot taken at the net, favored by players who came forward. It meant returning the ball before it touched the ground.
A half-volley was essentially a groundstroke, hit the instant the ball bounced. The player had to catch the right angle as it came up and return it.
Both of them had incredibly solid fundamentals.
Thump!!
Kamikawa raised his hand and hit another topspin serve.
The two players on court began a new rally, giving everything they had to fight for each point.
The sounds of the ball being hit rang out without pause. The spectators outside the court fell quiet, their eyes fixed on the ball. The usually lively Lawson Tennis Center seemed unusually silent at that moment.
Thump!!
"15–15!"
On the court, Tezuka hit another beautiful slice. It was just like before, but its bounce was getting lower.
Thump!!
"30–15!"
But on the next shot, Kamikawa answered with a slice of his own, keeping the score firmly in hand.
Thump!!
"30–30!"
Thump!!
"40–30!"
Thump!!
The ball sailed over the center of the net, dropped rapidly, and bounced slightly toward the left.
"Game! Kamikawa, 1–1!"
Kamikawa took the second game decisively.
Both of them had incredibly steady control, and their techniques seemed endless.
They were both exceptionally good at slices, hitting them with incredibly low bounces. But there was still a considerable gap between their slices.
"He still hasn't used that move?"
Sanada stared intently at Tezuka, his eyes full of confusion.
"What's wrong, Sanada?"
Yukimura looked at his friend with a hint of puzzlement. "Does he still have some move he hasn't used?"
"Yeah."
Sanada nodded firmly.
That morning, when he'd played against Tezuka, he'd seen Tezuka's slice, too.
But compared to that Domain Technique, the slice was nothing. What was more, when Sanada broke through his limits and entered Muga no Kyochi, he'd clearly sensed that Tezuka had already entered Muga no Kyochi as well.
At that, Yukimura narrowed his eyes, apparently deep in thought.
That special aura he'd sensed earlier—the unique "aura" belonging to Tezuka Kunimitsu—had indeed yet to be used.
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