With the referee's signal, the third set officially began. The first game was Sanada's serve. As he walked slowly to the baseline, a black aura surrounded his body, obscuring his facial expression.
Sanada picked up a ball, tossed it high, and his right arm turned into a blur as he slammed it down. A violent gale shot toward the opposite court.
"Swift as the Storm!"
Ochi stepped left and swung, instantly dispersing the windstorm. The ball flew sharply toward the left baseline, but Atobe was already in place, ice crystals filling the court.
"Atobe Kingdom!"
After reading Ochi and Mōri's blind spot, Atobe went a step further, predicting their future movement. He smashed the ball toward the center baseline just as Ochi and Mōri crossed positions to cover each other's weaknesses.
In that instant, a yellow afterimage flashed. The ball threaded precisely between their rackets and landed on the baseline before bouncing out.
"15-0!"
"No way… he even predicted our running path?" Mōri stared in disbelief at Atobe.
"Don't overthink it. Stick to our rhythm," Ochi said, tapping Mōri's back with his racket.
Sanada didn't hesitate, firing off another Swift as the Storm. He knew it wouldn't work, but his mind wasn't fully on the match right now.
As expected, Ochi returned it easily, sending a clean down-the-line passing shot. The ball crossed the net, racing toward Sanada near the baseline.
Even distracted, Sanada wouldn't give up so easily. His black aura expanded, golden light flaring within. He swung with force, striking the incoming ball.
The shot, wrapped in black energy, shot across the court. Ochi and Mōri frowned. Without seeing any follow-through from Sanada, they couldn't tell whether it would refract—or if it even was Black Dragon Slash at all.
Now the technique showed its true strength. Before, opponents could predict refraction by watching his swing. But Sanada had eliminated that tell, leaving Mōri and Ochi at a loss.
The ball suddenly accelerated as it crossed the net. Mōri rushed forward, locking onto it. He didn't dare use sleep mode here—without reading the shot, his instincts would only be deceived.
The ball refracted right. Mōri shifted quickly in pursuit. On its second refraction upward, he leapt high but held back his swing.
Then came the third refraction, this time left. Mōri's expression tightened midair, but Ochi was already moving beneath it.
At the fourth refraction, downward, Ochi lunged forward, stretching with his long reach. He barely caught it, managing only a lob.
Immediately, a crushing wave of pressure surged from the opposite side. Ochi and Mōri were too late to respond. The ball slammed into the backcourt and bounced out.
"30-0!"
On the third point, Sanada abandoned Swift as the Storm. He didn't even use Swift as the Wind. Without a visible backswing, he sent a pure super-high-speed serve. Most of his focus now was sunk into that strange state of realization.
Still, Atobe's power was peaking. After Mōri returned the serve, Atobe stormed the net, unleashing his ultra-aggressive stance. With perfect predictions and relentless smashes, Mōri and Ochi were left scrambling.
"40-0!"
"Game! Second String Selection! 1-0!"
With Atobe's explosive form, they quickly secured the first game. His expression grew proud, though he steadied himself remembering Ochi's serve was next.
"Vice-Captain doesn't seem in it at all… did he burn too much stamina?" Kirihara said worriedly from the stands.
"No, he's brewing something big! Perfect, that'll give me more material, puri~" Niō said as he stared at Sanada on the court.
Ochi walked to the baseline, breathing lightly. The full moon in his eyes had vanished, and after two consecutive matches his stamina was wearing down. Still, it wasn't enough to affect his Mach Serve yet.
Without hesitation, Ochi unleashed two consecutive Mach Serves. Sanada, already unable to react, stood frozen in place.
"Ace! 15-0!"
"Ace! 30-0!"
Atobe glanced at Sanada. He knew exactly what Sanada was doing, so he didn't scold or complain. Instead, a trace of excitement showed on his face as they switched positions. His eyes locked firmly on Ochi across the court.
Even though Ochi had recognized his flaw and varied all his serve placements, it meant nothing against Atobe, who could now predict the future. The moment Ochi tossed the ball, Atobe was already moving.
Two sharp sounds rang out almost together—the crack of Ochi's serve, followed instantly by the thud of the ball meeting Atobe's racket. Just like the previous set, Atobe predicted perfectly, bracing his racket against the ground to absorb some of the serve's force.
Ochi watched his Mach Serve blocked, his expression calm as ever. He had expected this. A second later, Mōri appeared at the net, swinging hard at the rebound.
The ball shot crosscourt toward the right sideline. But Sanada, sparking with lightning, flashed into position. His black aura wrapped around the ball as his right arm whipped forward to strike.
At that instant, Mōri's aura flared, his eyes glowing purple. Sanada's figure filled his vision completely. Mōri suddenly retreated just as Sanada's Black Dragon Slash began to refract midair.
He ignored the ball's early arcs, dashing to his left baseline. By the time he arrived, the ball completed its fourth refraction—flying straight at him.
Sanada's eyes widened in disbelief as Mōri calmly swung a backhand. The ball blurred past his feet and skipped out beyond the sideline. Mōri turned with a smile to Ochi.
"Ability Synchronization—Insight!"
"40-0!"
"Sorry, Sanada-kun, but your Black Dragon Slash won't work on me anymore~" Mōri said with a cheerful grin.
"Impossible! Before, your limit was only triple refraction!" Sanada stared at him, at a loss for words.
"That guy's eyes… he's seeing something he couldn't before. This feeling… it's just like…" Atobe trailed off, his gaze shifting toward Akashi on the coaches' bench.
Indeed, through Ability Synchronization, Mōri's newly awakened Insight was practically a weaker version of the Emperor Eye. It let him read minute movements and reactions, completely locking onto his opponent's techniques and intercepting them without fail.
"Interesting. No wonder Ochi chose you as his partner. The two of you truly make a remarkable doubles pair," even Akashi couldn't help but acknowledge. He knew full well, too, that their Ability Synchronization enhanced not only Mōri.
"Then I'll leave the next point to you, Tsukimitsu-san," Mōri said with a smile as he strolled forward to the net.
"I don't know what you two just did, but your serve is already cracked. This time, you won't score so easily!" Atobe said coldly as he backed up to the baseline, eyes sharp on Ochi.
Ochi gave no reply. He simply tossed the ball. Just as Atobe prepared to block again, the ball vanished from his vision, then reappeared suddenly at the baseline before bouncing out.
"Ability Synchronization—Teleport Serve!"
"Game! Japan Team! 1-1!"