Kentarō stared at the three different serving stances of Akutsu on the other side, his mind nearly blanking out. It was all beyond his imagination—but Akutsu didn't give him any time to react.
All three of Akutsu's images moved at once—side spin, flat hit, and underhand serve stances all at the same time, making it impossible to tell which one was real. Then came the sound of the hit, and only one Akutsu remained on court.
The tennis ball shot past the net, slammed onto the baseline, spun for a moment, and then bounced high out of bounds. Clearly, it was a side spin serve.
"Game! 6-0! Match over! Winner: Fudomine!"
After the match, Akutsu flexed his ankle—it had felt slightly uncomfortable from that last move. But he recovered quickly and walked off the court without concern.
Akashi and oyaji both noticed the movement. Oyaji smiled and nodded, while Akashi frowned slightly. He remembered that in the original story, Eighth Consciousness put a heavy strain on Akutsu's ankles—during the match with Amadeus, his feet were nearly soaked in blood.
Even though Akutsu's physical stats had improved now, it still clearly stressed his ankles. Akashi made a mental note to schedule ankle strengthening exercises soon.
Still on court, Aoi Kentarō finally snapped out of his shock. He looked around, then quickly jogged over to the Fudomine bench and said to Akutsu, full of spirit:
"That last shot was incredible! Thanks for the match, Akutsu-senpai! I'll definitely beat you next time!"
"Hah? Don't joke, you naive brat!" Akutsu barked.
But Kentarō didn't seem to mind at all, which only made Akutsu more annoyed—and helpless. It wasn't like he could punch the guy. Luckily, oyaji wandered over just then.
"Young man, it looks like you haven't opened that door yet. Maybe it's a detour, but no one knows what lies beyond it. Keep at it!" Oyaji said to Akutsu with praise, then took the still-confused Kentarō and walked away.
Meanwhile, at the Seigaku vs. Yamabuki match, the score on court had shocked everyone. Yamabuki, known for its strong doubles, actually lost both doubles matches to Seigaku.
In Doubles 2, Yamabuki sent out Minami Kentarō and Higashikata Masami. Looks like Banji was trying to use the same strategy to secure a win. But Seigaku had fielded Kikumaru Eiji and Ōishi Shūichirō.
Clearly, Inui Sadaharu had predicted Banji's strategy and placed their strongest doubles pair in the Doubles 2 slot. The result was no surprise—Seigaku won 6-3.
At first, the match was neck and neck. They were tied at 3-3, but once Ōishi and Kikumaru activated their synchronization, Minami and Higashikata were overwhelmed.
As for Doubles 1, Yamabuki sent Nitobe Inakichi and Nishikiori Tsubasa. Seigaku had Kawamura Takashi and Inui Sadaharu. The final score was 6-4, Seigaku victorious.
Kawamura's Danji Mode completely shut down Nitobe and Nishikiori, repeatedly knocking the racket out of their hands. Once Inui finished collecting data, things only got worse for Yamabuki.
Now, Singles 3 was underway. On court were Sengoku Kiyosumi and Fuji Shūsuke, with the score already 5-0. Sengoku just couldn't break through Fuji's Hecatoncheires no Monban.
To be honest, Fuji's return technique left him almost unbeatable—unless the opponent had deep mastery of spin control or could dominate in all five attributes.
Sengoku was suffering. He knew how to counter the Hecatoncheires no Monban, but he simply couldn't execute it. No matter how hard he tried to hit reverse spin shots, the ball never made it over the net.
"You really don't hold back, huh, Fuji?" Sengoku said with a bitter smile.
"Sorry, Sengoku-kun. It's my duty as captain~" Fuji replied with a gentle smile.
In the sixth game, Sengoku still couldn't break through Fuji's defense. Every return hit the net. In the end, he lost the Singles 3 match unwillingly.
"Game! 6-0! Match over! Winner: Seishun Academy!"
After Seigaku and Yamabuki finished their match, both Rikkai and Hyōtei also defeated their respective opponents. The four semifinal teams for this year's Kantō Regional Tournament were now confirmed: Fudomine, Rikkai, Hyōtei, and Seigaku. But honestly, no one was surprised by the result.
The semifinal bracket was also set: Fudomine would face Seigaku, and Rikkai would go up against Hyōtei. The matches would take place next weekend, giving everyone a week to prepare.
All matches for the day had ended. Each school left Midorimori Tennis Park. On the way back, Akashi sat on the team bus, deep in thought as he looked at the second-string members.
Right now, everyone on the main team except Kintarō was already in their third year. They'd all graduate next year. Depending on Kintarō alone clearly wouldn't work, and his personality didn't suit being a captain.
So they had to pick a successor from the second-string. In the original story, Tachibana Kippei had planned for Kamio Akira to be the next captain—but Akashi didn't think Kamio was a good fit either.
Fuji Yūta and Ibu Shinji, though, were calm and level-headed. They could be a good pair—captain and vice-captain. Still, it was too early to decide. Right now, what mattered most was boosting the second-string's strength. Akashi had no intention of letting Fudomine turn into another Makinofuji.
The next day, inside Fudomine's tennis club meeting room, Akashi looked at the regulars and shared his plan to pressure the second-string team. Up until now, second-string members had only played against no-name schools. Even in last year's matches against Seigaku and Hyōtei, they weren't sent against full-strength opponents.
"So, thinking about next year, I plan to let second-string members play in the Kantō semifinals. Of course, regulars will still be present to guarantee a win. What do you all think?" Akashi looked around as he spoke.
"Yeah. That's definitely something to consider. I've got no objections," Tezuka said seriously.
"Same here. It's about time we put some pressure on those guys!" Tachibana said with a grin.
Krauser, Kite, and Chitose also voiced support. Akutsu looked indifferent—it wasn't his problem anyway. As long as he won his own match, that's all he cared about.
As for Kintarō, he wasn't even in the meeting room. Right now, he was training hard, trying to perfect his new technique. He'd been unusually focused lately.
"Good. Then for this weekend's match against Seigaku, both doubles will be played by second-string members. For singles, I'll take the lead with Tezuka and Akutsu. I believe that'll be enough," Akashi concluded seriously.
Everyone nodded. No one had objections to this setup—though Kintarō might not be thrilled to find out he wouldn't be playing in the semifinals. But well, that's what happens when you're too talented.
A week passed quickly. On Saturday, Midorimori Tennis Park was once again buzzing with energy. Today was the Kantō semifinals. Most spectators arrived early, eager to watch some great matches.
Soon, Akashi led the Fudomine team to the park gate, then registered the day's lineup with the staff.
At the match venue, he saw that Seigaku had already arrived. They seemed really fired up for today's match. What puzzled Akashi, though, was that he didn't see Echizen Ryōma or Ryūzaki Sumire among the players.
Entering the court, Akashi walked over to Fuji and curiously asked, "Fuji, how come I don't see Echizen or Ryūzaki-sensei?"
"A while ago, Tomoka got a call from Ryōma. Apparently, they saw a pregnant woman fall on the way here, so Ryōma decided to take her to the hospital. Ryūzaki-sensei went to help out too," Fuji explained with a wry smile.
Akashi glanced over at Ōishi, confused. In the original story, Ryōma had been late because he overslept. The one who helped the pregnant woman and injured his wrist had been Ōishi. So now things were completely different.
What really left Akashi speechless, though, was how Fuji called Ryūzaki. He pictured that weathered face of Ryūzaki Sumire and wondered how Fuji could smile while saying it so sweetly.
"So, Echizen won't be playing today?" Akashi asked.
"Not sure yet! Maybe Ryōma will still make it in time~" Fuji replied with a mysterious tone.
Akashi discreetly glanced at Horiō sitting off-court. Looked like they were doing the same as the original—registering Horiō under Ryōma's name. After a few polite words with Fuji, Akashi returned to the Fudomine bench.
Since Ryūzaki Sumire wasn't present, Seigaku's coach seat today was filled by Inui Sadaharu. As the team's strategist, he was basically half a coach anyway, so it felt natural.
Soon, the umpire arrived and officially announced the start of the Kantō semifinals match between Fudomine and Seigaku. The crowd cheered enthusiastically.
First up was Doubles 2. Seigaku sent out Momoshiro Takeshi and Kaidō Kaoru. Looked like Inui wasn't planning to play in doubles. Fudomine's team was Kamio Akira and Ishida Tetsu—a speed and power combo.
"Now starting Doubles 2: Kamio Akira and Ishida Tetsu of Fudomine versus Momoshiro Takeshi and Kaidō Kaoru of Seigaku! Players, please enter the court!"
All four stepped onto the court. Since they were all second-years, their greetings were casual, without the usual junior-senior formality.
The toss went to Kaidō, who won the serve. Kamio and Ishida didn't care much about that and simply moved into position to start the match.
"You better take this seriously, or I won't let you off!" Kaidō growled at Momoshiro from the baseline.
"Hah? Don't be ridiculous, you smelly viper! You're the one who better watch out!" Momoshiro snapped back without hesitation.
"You idiot! You wanna fight?!" Kaidō shouted.
"Bring it on! You think I'm scared of a stinky snake like you?!" Momoshiro marched up to him, headbutting forehead to forehead as he yelled.
The umpire quickly stepped in to stop them. On the sidelines, Fuji also scolded them both, finally getting them to quiet down. He then apologized to the umpire, while Kamio and Ishida exchanged helpless looks.
Still, after seeing it so many times during training camp, they were used to it. Momoshiro and Kaidō always clashed like this—as if they'd been mortal enemies in a past life.
Kaido calmed down, and after that little scuffle, he actually felt more relaxed. He tossed the ball high and served diagonally to start the match.
As the ball crossed the net, it flew straight toward the back-right corner. Kamio Akira blinked and appeared instantly at the baseline, returning the ball with a powerful shot while shouting loudly:
"Keep up with the rhythm!"
The ball zipped toward the back-left corner of the opposite court. Kaidō ran quickly to the bounce point, swinging his racquet from low to high, adding heavy spin. The ball curved eerily as it flew toward the other side of the court.
"Snake Shot!"
Though it looked like it was going right, the spin made it veer sharply left after crossing the net. But for Kamio's speed, that was nothing. He chased it down easily and sent it back.
Kaidō and Kamio began rallying intensely, giving Momoshiro and Ishida no room to intervene. On the sidelines, Inui Sadaharu watched Kamio seriously.
At first glance, it looked like Kamio had walked into Kaidō's trap. But Inui noticed that Kamio was keeping his breathing in rhythm, helping him conserve stamina. On the other hand, Kaidō's repeated Snake Shots were draining his own energy.
Still, the match had just started, so Inui decided to wait and see. The exchange between Kamio and Kaidō lasted for several rallies, but Kamio seized an opening and scored the point.
"0-15!"
As Kaidō served again, the situation stayed the same. He clearly intended to test Kamio's endurance. Kaidō was confident in his stamina, and Momoshiro could tell what he was planning, so he stayed out of it.
Ishida, because of his speed, wasn't good at handling Kaidō's Snake Shot, so he left it to Kamio. Meanwhile, he looked for a chance to unleash his Hadōkyū.
Despite the intense back-and-forth, Kamio still had the upper hand overall, winning the second point as well.
"0-30!"
"Oi, Kaidō! You're not trying to wear me down with Snake Shots, are you?" Kamio said with a chuckle after scoring.
Kaidō just snorted and didn't respond. He stepped back to the baseline and served again. Kamio let out a small laugh and resumed the rally.
"0-40!"
"Game! Fudomine! 1-0!"
Even though Fudomine took the first game, Kaidō felt like he'd achieved his goal. If he kept this up for a few more games, Kamio's stamina would definitely falter. Once that happened, Ishida Tetsu would be easier to deal with alone.
The second game was Ishida's serve. He tossed the ball up, muscles bulging in his right arm, and smashed down hard. The ball exploded toward Momoshiro.
"Hadōkyū Serve!"
Momoshiro ran to intercept, gripping his racquet with both hands. The instant it connected, he felt a crushing weight slam into his arms, but he managed to brace and return the serve.
Still, waiting on the other end was another Hadōkyū. Ishida had already set up for it the moment Momoshiro returned the shot.
Seeing the incoming ball, Ishida's right arm bulged with power. He swung fiercely, and the ball shot out like a bolt of lightning.
"10th-Style Hadōkyū!"
"Don't move, you stinking snake!" Just as Kaidō was about to chase the ball, Momoshiro shouted from beside him, making Kaidō freeze.
A moment later, Momoshiro charged at the ball, jumped with his body leaning forward, and swung hard in a backhand motion, both hands gripping the racquet.
"Don't underestimate my strength! Go! Jack Knife!" Momoshiro shouted through gritted teeth.
Against all odds, he managed to return the ball, just barely. Ishida was impressed. His Hadōkyū wasn't something just anyone could hit back.
But that shot had just been a warm-up. Ishida bent his knees, channeling all his strength into his right arm. As the return came flying back, he swung again with full force.
"Not bad power. Then try this! 20th-Style Hadōkyū!" Ishida roared.
Thanks to Akashi's guidance and training, Ishida could now use any Hadōkyū below the 50th-style without damaging his arm. But anything beyond that still caused strain.
Right now, the highest he could safely go was 70th-style. Beyond that, his arm couldn't handle the impact. He was still a bit behind his brother, Ishida Gin.
Momoshiro didn't back down. He ran toward the powerful shot, gripping his racquet tightly, muscles flexed, and swung with all his might.
The ball's raw energy surged into his racquet, pushing the strings inward. Momoshiro gritted his teeth, face twisting from the strain, trying desperately to send the ball back.
After holding for just a moment, the energy finally faded, but Momoshiro was out of strength. The ball dropped gently in front of him.
"15-0!"
In the end, Momoshiro couldn't fully return Ishida's 20th-style Hadōkyū. Kaidō watched silently, brows furrowed. A moment later, his expression hardened, as if he'd made up his mind, eyes locked on Ishida across the net.