"You've completely lost your sense of touch, haven't you?"
"So what are you going to do next, Tezuka?"
Yukimura wore a confident smile.
He knew that the moment Tezuka's sense of touch was stripped away, the match would shift in his favor.
Smack!
As soon as he finished speaking, Yukimura served again.
The ball zipped through the court in the blink of an eye, flying straight toward Tezuka.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The two immediately engaged in a high-speed rally.
With his sense of touch gone, Tezuka's return shots lost their usual sharpness, and his Tezuka Zone began to falter.
Still, relying on observation and experience, Tezuka managed to maintain the zone temporarily and keep up with Yukimura.
But...
Smack!
After a long exchange, Tezuka's grip gave out again. His racket flew from his hand, completely out of control.
"Point, Yukimura Seiichi! Score: 30–0!"
"He can't even hold his racket anymore..."
Kiritani watched in shock, unable to imagine what Tezuka was enduring.
Yoru explained, "Without a sense of touch, Tezuka has to concentrate all his focus on gripping his racket tightly."
"But because he can't feel it, he ends up overcompensating and gripping too hard, which causes sudden muscle cramps."
"Even if he can't feel the pain, the cramp forces his hand to open up against his will, as if the brain loses control over his muscles for a moment."
Hiss~
Kiritani sucked in a breath. "How can he even continue the match like this? Just the loss of touch is causing this many problems. If what you say is true, won't his other senses be affected too?"
Yoru remained calm. "Of course. Why do you think Yukimura is keeping the pace so high?"
Nearby, Sanada's brow twitched as he overheard the conversation.
It felt like Yukimura's entire strategy had been completely seen through.
When did Seigaku get someone like that?
Sanada glanced at Yoru, now deep in thought.
He had researched Seigaku before—it was the school Echizen Nanjiro once attended—but their record was nothing to brag about. He hadn't paid them much attention.
Smack!
"Point, Yukimura Seiichi! Score: 40–0!"
Smack!
"Game, Yukimura Seiichi! 2–1!"
Four straight points secured him the third game.
That rally had lasted nearly ten minutes, with Yukimura relentlessly returning the ball to Tezuka, forcing him to respond directly.
Tezuka was caught in a trap.
Not returning the ball would cost him points, but every return sped up the breakdown of his senses.
As the match continued...
Tezuka's error rate increased, and Yukimura's attacks became even more aggressive.
The score began to shift rapidly.
Smack!
"Point, Yukimura Seiichi! 3–2!"
...
Smack!
"Point, Yukimura Seiichi! 5–2!"
...
In less than five minutes, Yukimura had gained overwhelming control of the scoreboard.
Tezuka might've looked calm on the outside, but his situation was dire.
The sounds in his ears were becoming muffled.
But that wasn't the worst part.
The real problem was his vision. What he saw began to blur and double, making it harder and harder to track the ball.
Eighth game – Tezuka's serve.
Tezuka gripped his racket tightly, hesitating to serve.
"Tezuka's eyes..." Kiritani noticed his pupils had begun to lose focus.
"Looks like his vision's been affected too. That probably means his hearing's off as well."
"What a shame... my technique's not complete yet. If it were, you'd have completely lost your sight, hearing, and touch."
"So how do you plan to keep playing, Tezuka?"
Yukimura said this calmly.
But inside, he wasn't so relaxed.
He's too calm!
Tezuka was unnervingly composed.
Most people would panic in this situation. Some might even lose the ability to continue the match.
But Tezuka remained unnaturally calm.
That unshakeable composure made Yukimura uneasy.
"Even with three senses impaired, what can you possibly do?"
Yukimura muttered to himself, then took up a defensive stance.
Smack!
A soft sound echoed through the court.
A peculiar serving motion… the inside curve… that clean spin... the feather-light bounce...
All signs pointed to that technique!
Zero-Shiki Serve!
"No way!"
The ball hit the ground, and Yukimura's expression changed dramatically.
To everyone's disbelief, the ball spun in place beneath the net instead of bouncing back.
"Point, Tezuka Kunimitsu! Score: 15–0!"
Even Yamato, who had been calling the score, was taken aback by the sudden use of the Zero-Shiki Serve.
Tezuka hadn't used it since Yukimura stripped away his sense of touch in the third game. How could he pull it off now, in an even worse condition?
"Why...?"
Yukimura stared at Tezuka, eyes locked on him.
But Tezuka gave no explanation. He simply walked to the other side of the court... and served another Zero-Shiki!
Swish swish swish—
The sound rang through Yukimura's mind like a death knell.
"Point, Tezuka Kunimitsu! Score: 30–0!"
What's going on!?
He had lost his sense of touch, and now even his vision and hearing were compromised. How could he still perform a Zero-Shiki Serve?
Yukimura didn't understand.
Neither did Sanada, Kiritani, or Yamato.
They weren't amateurs—they could all tell that a Zero-Shiki Serve required extremely high technical control.
Yet even in this condition, Tezuka was executing it flawlessly.
"Surprised?"
Yoru, who had been quiet for a while, finally spoke with a smile. "Those two kids might not get it, but you should know, right? You've seen Tezuka play before."
"Huh?" Kiritani was completely lost.
"Every one of Tezuka's techniques relies on one key factor... control."
"Most people can develop good control through practice. But some people are born with an extraordinary sense for the ball. That's what we call natural ball feel."
"Ball feel is essentially a player's ability to perceive and control the ball. It's a combination of instinct and skill developed over years of play—understanding the ball's shape, weight, speed, bounce, and being able to predict and guide its trajectory and landing."
"Tezuka has something even rarer—absolute ball feel. It's pure talent. Even without any of his five senses, he can still grasp his and the ball's position through that innate sense."
Absolute Ball Feel—a sixth sense born of genius.
A gift that no amount of practice could ever replicate.
Kiritani and Sanada stood frozen.
They'd always known Tezuka had superb control, but they'd never realized the depth of it.
"Point, Tezuka Kunimitsu! Score: 40–0!"
"Game, Tezuka Kunimitsu! Score: 3–4!"
Another Zero-Shiki Serve brought Tezuka closer to evening the score—just one point away!
"Stay calm..."
"Stay calm. I've already got the upper hand. As long as I hold my serve, I can win."
Yukimura took a deep breath and slapped his racket against the court.
He was just about to serve when Tezuka's voice echoed across the court.
"If you really want to win... just holding your serve won't be enough, right... Yukimura?"