Atobe, I Will Beat You Back to Reality!

The yellow-green tennis ball landed, its strange and twisted trajectory sliding past Atobe's feet.

##DONE##

BOOM!!

The yellow-green light dissipated. The tennis ball, with astonishing spin, bounced upwards the moment it hit the wall, soaring high into the sky!

Atobe's gaze shifted downwards, his face stiff. Even though he knew Kamikawa would use Dancing Golden Snake at this moment, his body had only pre-emptively adopted a hitting stance and couldn't react in time.

"15-0!"

After a long pause, the voice of Genko, who was serving as the umpire, finally drifted over.

"This guy's strength might truly be above Atobe's!"

"No matter how many times I see it, I'm still shocked," Shishido gasped, recovering his senses and murmuring.

"His serve is faster than I've seen before," Oshitari said. It wasn't the first time he'd seen Dancing Golden Snake, but he could clearly feel that the speed of this serve was much faster than when he faced Akutsu.

"It's even a bit faster than the serve Tezuka hit in the JR Tournament," Mukahi mused, recalling the finals of the JR Tournament. Kamikawa had unleashed Dancing Golden Snake in the same manner then, and now, months later, the serve was even more powerful.

He had wanted to ask about this when he saw Dancing Golden Snake at Yamabuki before...

"It was clearly Dancing Golden Snake, but in terms of ball speed and the swaying arc, it was clearly inferior to the Dancing Golden Snake Kamikawa hit during the JR Tournament."

This was the first ace ball of the match. It was also an ace ball that directly shattered everyone's resolve. Forget returning the serve, some people didn't even have time to react. They only heard the two sounds of the tennis ball landing and bouncing off the wall.

"This guy..."

Atobe, who had been calm, felt a sense of fear arise in his body after seeing that serve.

Atobe suppressed the fear in his heart.

He took a deep breath, adjusting his state by repeatedly regulating his breathing.

But Kamikawa wouldn't give Atobe much time to adjust.

BANG!!

Soon, Kamikawa raised his hand and unleashed another Dancing Golden Snake.

"30-0!"

BANG!!

"40-0!"

BANG!!

"Game, Kamikawa, 4-2!"

With four consecutive ace serves, Atobe vaguely saw the trajectory of the serve and tried to resist, but his body remained frozen in place, unmoving.

His body couldn't even move, let alone return the ball. Even if he could receive the serve, Atobe wasn't confident he could hit it back.

The pressure of being broken, the pressure of not being able to return the opponent's serve, and the pressure of having to hold his own service game – under this layered pressure, Atobe's mental strength fluctuated briefly.

Atobe stood stunned, the scene of himself being broken replaying repeatedly in his mind.

"Hoo..."

Atobe tossed the ball, bent his knees, raised his hand, and powerfully hit the tennis ball.

WHOOSH!!

Screeeech!!

The tennis ball hit the center net, rubbing against it intensely before slowly falling.

"Fault!"

"Hoo..."

Atobe shook his head and took the ball from the ball boy.

Snap!

He raised his hand again and served an topspin ball.

WHOOSH!!

The tennis ball hit the center net again, rubbing intensely before slowly falling.

"Double fault."

"0-15!!"

"Tch!"

Atobe looked at the tennis ball with some annoyance, feeling the immense pressure of the moment.

"No way!"

"Atobe, he actually double-faulted! And it was a really simple topspin serve, how could he make a mistake?" Shishido's pupils widened.

Such a simple mistake, the simplest imaginable, had occurred twice in a row for Atobe.

Moreover, judging by Atobe's condition, it was definitely not as simple as it appeared on the surface. What had happened?!

After a long silence, Oshitari said uncertainly, "It's the pressure, isn't it?"

"Pressure?!"

Mukahi and Shishido couldn't believe that Atobe would make a serving error due to pressure.

"It's more than just pressure, it's mental strength."

"You could also call it willpower, state of mind, determination, conviction—things that can't be expressed in words, collectively known as mental strength," Tezuka's voice came from behind them.

With his mental strength being more profound than Oshitari and the others, Tezuka naturally saw things they couldn't.

"Strength, speed, technique, endurance. If one aspect is outstanding and reaches the national level, such a player isn't truly national level; at best, they've only stepped onto the threshold of the national level."

"Relying on their own advantages to suppress the opponent. For example, Oshitari's technique and endurance far surpass Jirou's, which is why he could easily defeat Jirou."

"Similarly, at this moment, Atobe's mental strength is far inferior to Kamikawa's. Not only that, but his strength, speed, and technique are also inferior to Kamikawa's. Under layers of pressure, he lost his service game first."

"He can no longer calm down to play."

Tezuka knew more than Oshitari and the others. Of course, these were things Kamikawa had told him.

If one's mental strength doesn't break through its limits, that player can never break through to the national level.

Bang!!

Sizzle sizzle!!

"Double fault!"

"0-30!!"

"Haa... Why... Why can't I get it in!" Sweat beaded on Atobe's forehead, his body felt weak, and the heavy pressure was almost crushing him completely.

Images of his previous service errors, of being broken, flashed through his mind. He tried his best to shake off these ingrained thoughts.

But the moment he tossed the ball, his mind involuntarily recalled them.

"Classmate Atobe!" Kamikawa held his racket in one hand and smiled slightly, "I told you, Tezuka was too lenient with you. In that match, with Tezuka's strength, he could have beaten you 6-0."

"I admit, your speed and strength have grown somewhat during this period, but it's not enough... Atobe, if your evolution is only this much, you won't be able to keep up with me and Tezuka."

Kamikawa's smile faded, and he spoke in a calm tone.

Atobe's face turned pale upon hearing this.

These words were undoubtedly a heavy hammer, smashing fiercely into Atobe's heart.

So, the gap between me and them is this huge?

No wonder, after that match, he always felt Tezuka had held back something, appearing only slightly sweaty and in peak condition.

The match continued, and Atobe did his best to adjust his state.

But the serve was like a nightmare, and he just couldn't get it over the center net.

"What... What are you thinking about! Atobe Keigo!"

Atobe was exhausted from chasing the ball on the court, forced to run back and forth, constantly pursuing the tennis ball that was just within reach. His pride was utterly crushed by Kamikawa in this match.

Bang!!

Kamikawa hit a cross-court backhand shot, precisely landing it in the 'ad' court.

The tennis ball whizzed past Atobe, bounced high, and flew towards Tezuka. Tezuka caught the ball, his eyes calmly fixed on the two players on the court.

"Match end!"

Then, Mitsuya Genko, sitting in the umpire's chair, shouted loudly, "Winner, Kamikawa Mutsu, with a score of 6-2!"

Atobe was speechless. He put his racket back into its cover and turned to walk in another direction, his eyes filled with dejection at this moment.

It was like the first time he encountered tennis, being thrashed like this. Ever since then, he had developed eyes that could see through everything, but now...

He had lost, and he had lost to someone his own age.

As for the two games he had won, they were merely points Kamikawa had casually discarded while testing him.

Just like Tezuka at that time