"Hah! Serves you right, Japanese!" Elmer Siegfried sneered from the German bench. "Winning two games with a serve that wrecks your own arm—don't think that means you can actually take the match!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk~" Bismarck made his usual clicking sound but said nothing more, only watching Tezuka with a mocking look in his eyes.
"Don't underestimate your opponent's spirit, Elmer," Volk cut in sharply. "You have to understand—sometimes spirit alone can change the entire flow of a match. So crush that spirit completely, Q.P.!"
"I understand, Volk," Q.P. replied quietly from the baseline, his voice steady and low.
By then, Tezuka had already tossed the ball again. He still refused to give up, serving another Enhanced Zero Shiki Serve. But this time, Q.P. returned it effortlessly, and the two immediately entered a blistering rally.
It only took a few exchanges before Tezuka's racket was blown out of his hand by Q.P.'s overpowering shot. The difference in physical strength was simply too great—there was nothing he could do.
"30–30!"
Realizing that his Zero Shiki Serve had lost its bite, Tezuka stopped using it. Instead, he went for an ultra-high-speed serve.
Unfortunately, Q.P.'s speed as an Ultimate Quality player was on par with Tezuka even in his Ten'i Muhō state. With a single sliding step, Q.P. caught the serve cleanly. Tezuka barely managed to block it back but couldn't add the signature Ultimate Zone rotation to the return.
As their exchange intensified, Tezuka began to falter again. The damage to his left arm from the earlier serves made it harder and harder to respond to Q.P.'s explosive strikes.
"30–40!"
"Game! Germany! 5–5!"
Even with Tezuka's willpower, the fundamental difference between them was undeniable. In raw strength and speed, Q.P. still had the advantage—and that gap was widening fast.
In the eleventh game, it was Q.P.'s turn to serve. Calm and focused, he stepped to the baseline, tossed the ball high, and in a flash of white radiance, blasted a serve like a cannon shot toward the Japanese court.
At the exact moment Q.P. swung, Tezuka's eyes lit up. His body shifted fluidly across the court, blue particles spiraling around him like a vortex. When his racket met the ball, a rainbow sheen rippled along his left arm.
The next second, the ball shot back as a streak of blue light, even faster than before. Q.P. frowned slightly but reacted without hesitation, chasing it down and swinging hard.
But as soon as his racket met the ball, Q.P. felt an overwhelming force crash into his arm. The shock was so unexpected that his grip faltered—and his racket flew straight out of his hand.
"Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami!"
"0–15!"
"Whoa, give me a break!" Omagari blurted out in disbelief from the Japan bench. "He's using Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami while in Ten'i Muhō?!"
"I thought Hyaku Ren Jitoku, Saiki Kanpatsu, and Ten'i Muhō were called the Three Supreme States of Muga no Kyōchi! How is Tezuka doing this?" Irie's eyes widened in shock.
"You're all misunderstanding something," Akashi said calmly, his voice steady and analytical. "Muga and Ten'i Muhō aren't the same thing. It's just that mastering two of the Muga no Kyōchi states increases the chance of awakening Ten'i Muhō."
"But… people have always called them the three ultimate states of Muga…" Chitose said uncertainly.
"You've awakened both Ten'i Muhō and Muga no Kyōchi, haven't you?" Akashi's gaze turned to him. "Think carefully. Do they really feel the same to you?"
Chitose fell silent. He had never thought about it that way. Then suddenly, something clicked in his mind. His eyes drifted toward Kintarō—who had never awakened Muga no Kyōchi at all, yet had achieved Ten'i Muhō directly.
"Yare yare~ so you finally realized it, kid," a laid-back voice came from the stands. Echizen Nanjirō smiled faintly, eyes glinting with mischief. "The power of Muga no Kyōchi and the Light of Pride can actually coexist."
He leaned back lazily, chuckling. "And since he's already taken that step, he's not far from awakening true Ten'i Muhō... I wonder how that brat's gonna react when he finds out~"
While the Japan team was still deep in thought about the connection between Muga no Kyōchi and Ten'i Muhō, Q.P. had already fired off his second powerful serve. Tezuka met it head-on, using the unique properties of Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami to return the ball with doubled force.
But this time, Q.P. was ready. He dashed forward and, gripping his racket with both hands, swung fiercely. A thick white pillar of light erupted, blasting toward the Japan court like a cannon.
At that moment, the rainbow-colored radiance around Tezuka's body faded away. In its place appeared streams of milky-white air that intertwined with the blue particles already circling him, forming an aura that looked almost otherworldly.
In the next instant, Tezuka's figure seemed to vanish, instantly reappearing in front of the net. His left hand swung his racket in a swift, precise motion to intercept the white beam. When the ball slammed into the strings, Tezuka's wrist twisted fluidly with the impact. After neutralizing most of the force, he appeared to lose strength mid-motion—allowing the ball to rebound off his racket, soaring high toward the German side.
"Shukuchihō!"
"Void Tranquility!"
By the court, Kite and Fuji exchanged glances, smiles forming on their faces. Tezuka had clearly used the power of Muga to imitate their signature techniques.
Q.P. stared blankly for a moment, then moved. His body flickered and reappeared near the front, leaping high into the air as if gravity no longer applied. His left hand swung down hard.
The ball roared through the air like a bolt of lightning, slamming into the court and bouncing high. But just as it did, Tezuka's figure appeared above, wrapped once more in blue particles and white streams of air. His left hand swung powerfully.
"Wind Attack Technique—Aoi Fubuki!"
A flash of blue light streaked past Q.P.'s feet. By the time he landed, the ball had already struck the ground behind him and bounced out of bounds. He could only watch, powerless. After all, even with Ultimate Quality, he couldn't perform Shukuchihō. Instant movement was beyond him.
"0–30!"
"This... this ability—you showed it in the exhibition match. You can copy other players' techniques," Q.P. said, turning toward Tezuka, his voice low.
Tezuka didn't answer. His expression remained calm as he turned away, returning to the baseline. He crouched slightly, preparing to receive. Q.P. blinked in mild surprise before also stepping back to his service position.
With a sharp crack, the rally began again. But this time was different. Empowered by Ten'i Muhō and the adaptability of Muga no Kyōchi, Tezuka unleashed a storm of diverse techniques, switching seamlessly between them. For the first time, Q.P. found himself struggling to keep up.
Watching Tezuka dart around the court, the Japan team felt a strange mix of awe and disbelief. Their own techniques—skills they had mastered through years of training—were being reproduced flawlessly on the world stage. Even among the crowd, middle school players recognized their own styles reflected in Tezuka's play.
"15–30!"
"15–40!"
"30–40!"
"Game! Japan leads! 5–6!"
Tezuka, through his unexpected use of Muga no Kyōchi, had taken the eleventh game—pushing Q.P. to the edge. It was an outcome no one had anticipated, not even the Japan bench.
But Akashi knew better. With Q.P.'s adaptability, Muga no Kyōchi would soon lose its advantage. No matter how versatile the techniques were, they couldn't make up for the fundamental gap in their five attributes.
In the twelfth game, Tezuka served first. As Akashi predicted, Q.P. had already adjusted. He now countered each of Tezuka's moves with ease. Tezuka's face, meanwhile, was covered in sweat—a side effect of prolonged use of Muga. Still, his stamina held firm.
The fierce exchange continued. Tezuka began focusing all of his Muga energy into Hyaku Ren Jitoku no Kiwami, using it to clash directly with Q.P. But Q.P. had already analyzed and dismantled that technique earlier in the match. Even with the added strength of Ten'i Muhō, he managed to break through again after a brief struggle.
Yet Tezuka refused to yield. Gritting his teeth, he fought back with everything he had. But the difference in their base strength was too great. Time and again, the ball shot past him, bouncing out of reach.
"To think he can stand toe-to-toe with Q.P. in Ultimate Quality… Tezuka Kunimitsu—there's definitely a place for you in the future of professional tennis," Volk said from the German bench, his tone firm and respectful.
"Game! Germany! 6–6! Next up—tiebreak! Germany to serve first!"