*High School Tennis Court.*
*A quiet corner of the court.*
Right now.
The atmosphere on the court grew increasingly tense as the two players moved.
No one could have predicted this.
The match had escalated to such an intense level.
"I never thought this kid could push Echizen to this point."
"Right? If I hadn't been told he's a middle schooler, I wouldn't have believed it. Are middle schoolers this strong nowadays?"
"Seriously, he even knocked Echizen's racket out of his hand. It's hard to imagine... Wait, what is he doing now?!"
Suddenly.
As if they had seen something shocking.
One of the Ice Emperor team members widened his eyes in disbelief.
*Thud!*
*Thud!*
Ishikawa rolled down his socks and removed the lead weight plates he had been wearing. The heavy sound of the weights hitting the ground made everyone's expressions turn grim.
Someone blurted out involuntarily, "S-So you're telling me this guy was playing against Echizen while wearing *these* the whole time?"
*Gulp.*
The others instinctively swallowed hard.
"This... this Ice Emperor middle schooler is just... too much."
Mouri, whose understanding of tennis had been repeatedly shattered, looked at Ishikawa with a numb expression.
"So that's it," Echizen muttered as he switched rackets, narrowing his eyes at Ishikawa. "I thought his upper and lower body movements seemed a bit off earlier. So he was wearing weights during the match? This kid's got some tricks up his sleeve."
With that thought.
He pulled out a tennis ball, gave it a few practice bounces, and then served it.
*Boom!*
The ball landed.
It was Echizen's signature high-speed serve. Although he wasn't going all out, the speed was still astonishing.
"That serve is insane!"
The Matsudaira brothers felt a chill run down their spines.
Especially Matsudaira Yoshihiko, a fellow third-year player. He knew better than anyone that Echizen's serve was in a league of its own in the U-17 circuit.
Even though Echizen wasn't using his full power, the speed of that serve was something most players couldn't even react to, let alone return.
*Boom!*
But just as that thought crossed their minds, Ishikawa on the other side of the court swung his racket and cleanly returned the ball after it bounced.
"He returned it? And with a half-volley?!"
Matsudaira's heart raced.
He had a feeling that today, he might witness an unprecedented showdown!
On one side was the legendary captain of Ice Emperor.
On the other was Ice Emperor's new rising star.
There was a five-year age gap between them, but when it came to understanding tennis, this first-year middle schooler displayed a level of skill and confidence far beyond his years.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
Facing Echizen's relentless attacks, Ishikawa countered with ease, as if he were taking a leisurely stroll.
"Keeping up, huh?"
Echizen nodded slightly to himself, then increased the speed and power of his shots.
*Boom!*
The ball landed.
The sheer force of the shot sent dust flying into the air, followed by a gust of wind that scattered the debris across the court.
*Boom!*
Ishikawa returned the shot.
The impact at the landing point kicked up another cloud of dust, which began to spread across the court.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
As the two players continued to ramp up their speed and intensity, the court gradually became shrouded in a thick haze of dust.
"What... what kind of match is this?"
Mouri was utterly stunned.
Meanwhile, the Ice Emperor high schoolers, including the Matsudaira brothers, seemed to recall something. Their minds flashed back to a match from two years ago that had been equally intense.
Back then, the court had also been enveloped in dust, obscuring the players' movements.
And just like now, the atmosphere had been suffocatingly tense.
"N-No way..."
At this thought, Matsudaira clenched his fists, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
"Bro?"
Noticing his brother's reaction, Matsudaira Yoshio frowned. "What's wrong?"
"N-Nothing," Matsudaira Yoshihiko quickly shook his head.
His brother hadn't witnessed that astonishing match two years ago. Even if he explained, Yoshio wouldn't fully grasp the significance.
"But..."
Turning back to the court, where the two players were now almost completely obscured by the dust, Matsudaira took a deep breath, his mind reeling. "Echizen is one thing, but how could this Ice Emperor middle schooler possibly have the same level of skill as those two from back then?"
After all.
Those two had risen to the pinnacle of Japan's U-17 rankings.
And this Ice Emperor first-year, according to Echizen, was just a middle school rookie?!
It was too absurd!
Too terrifying!
So much so that Matsudaira couldn't bring himself to believe his own thoughts.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
On the court.
Despite the thickening dust, neither Ishikawa nor Echizen seemed affected.
At their level of skill.
Their understanding of the game no longer relied solely on visual cues.
So even as the dust storm grew more intense.
Their speed showed no signs of slowing down.
*Boom!*
This time.
After returning Ishikawa's shot and feeling the immense power behind it, Echizen nodded. "Your skill has already surpassed most of the players in Court 1. I wonder if you can keep up with what's coming next."
*Hum!*
With that thought.
An overwhelming pressure began to emanate from Echizen's body.
*Whoosh!*
As he returned the shot, the ball tore through the dust screen, hurtling toward Ishikawa at an incredible speed.
At that moment.
The spectators finally got a clear look at Echizen's expression.
However.
Contrary to what Matsudaira and the others expected—that Ishikawa would be struggling—the middle schooler's face showed no trace of panic.
That's right.
Though sweat was now beading on Ishikawa's forehead as the match intensified, his eyes had grown even sharper than before!
*Hum!*
In an instant.
A brilliant silver-white light erupted from Ishikawa's body, radiating outward.
*Clang!*
The next moment.
With a crisp, metallic sound, the ball Echizen had just hit was sent flying back at him.
*Rip!*
The sharp, silvery aura sliced through the dust screen in front of Echizen.
Now.
The spectators could also see Echizen clearly.
Compared to Ishikawa, Echizen was sweating less, but a faint, moonlit glow surrounded him, accentuating his already icy demeanor.
"E-Echizen actually used *that* move?!"
Outside the court.
In the eyes of several members of the Hyotei team, expressions of disbelief began to surface. They couldn't believe that, just to deal with a middle schooler, Yoshi had entered that special state of his.
*Thud!*
Yoshi returned the shot.
With a deafening crack, a tennis ball coated in a frosty, moonlit glow instantly reversed course. Its speed was so incredible that the spectators outside the court could only catch a faint afterimage.
"That's... way too fast!"
Mouri's heart raced.
Only now did he realize that during their match, Yoshi hadn't even used half of his true strength.
*Clang!*
The sound of metal clashing rang out again.
Yoshi's impossibly fast shot was instantly sliced back. The ball tore through the air, leaving behind a sharp, silvery streak.
*Sizzle!*
A razor-sharp aura filled the air.
Yoshi, preparing to receive the shot, quickly tilted his head to the side. At first, everyone was puzzled by his strange movement.
*Clang!*
The silvery streak slammed into the wire mesh behind Yoshi, leaving a clear white mark.
"Whoa..."
The crowd collectively gasped.
Especially the Matsudaira brothers, who exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with shock and lingering fear.
It was hard to imagine—if Ryo had used such a terrifying move during their match, would his body have been cut in half?
At that moment, Matsudaira Chikahiko felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
His lack of strength had spared him from Ryo's full attention.
*Thud!*
Yoshi returned the shot again.
Under the moonlight, his shot took on an almost mystical quality. Combined with its terrifying speed, no one could even catch a glimpse of the ball's trajectory.
"Is this the Moonlight State?"
Feeling the pressure emanating from Yoshi, Ryo nodded to himself. "This senior, who led Hyotei to the national stage, is clearly more than just a powerful serve."
*Hum!*
As his thoughts raced, Ryo's sword-like aura intensified. His eyes locked onto a spot just in front of him.
*Swish!*
There.
Ryo sensed a faint disturbance.
Without hesitation, he swung his racket, combining his sword-like precision with the power of his Gale technique.
*Boom!*
In an instant, the seemingly invisible ball was blasted back.
Enhanced by his sword-like focus, the Gale technique surpassed its usual limits. Its sharpness and speed were now on a whole new level.
"This shot..."
Sensing the danger emanating from the ball, Yoshi's gaze sharpened.
*Swish!*
In response, he raised the edge of his racket, using the metal frame to deflect the ball.
*Clang!*
Sparks flew, causing the spectators to flinch.
It was hard to imagine—if he had tried to return the shot with the racket's strings, would they have been torn apart?
*Whoosh!*
But there was no time to dwell on it.
The match was moving too fast. Just keeping up with the action was already a challenge.
Yet, Yoshi and Ryo continued to ramp up their speed and power, leaving the others in the dust.
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
The only way to gauge the intensity of the match was through the thunderous sound of their shots.
*Swish!*
Suddenly, as their duel escalated, it became clear that neither could fully neutralize the other's power.
The spectators noticed that with each shot, silvery or frosty streaks of light would scatter outside the court.
At first, no one thought much of it.
But then, a leaf drifted into the center of the court, right into the path of Ryo and Yoshi's clash.
*Rip!*
In an instant, the silvery light sliced the leaf cleanly in half.
"Whoa!!!"
The onlookers' faces paled.
Without a word, they all took a step back, putting more distance between themselves and the court.
"This match is way too dangerous!" one of the Hyotei members muttered.
"What kind of level have these two reached?!" Mouri narrowed his eyes.
The more he watched, the more he realized just how terrifying the players' skills were.
This match was shattering everything he thought he knew about tennis.
Was this the realm beyond the national level?
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
On the court, Ryo and Yoshi continued their fierce battle.
As their power escalated beyond what they could perfectly control, they began to sense each other's will.
Yoshi could feel Ryo's burning fighting spirit, like a rising sun, full of determination and an unyielding drive.
Similarly, Ryo sensed Yoshi's calm, unshakable will, as steady and vast as the ocean.
No matter how fiercely Ryo attacked, Yoshi's focus never wavered.
"You're impressive, rookie."
This clash between Hyotei's past and future reminded Yoshi of his younger self.
As the match reached its peak, the legendary captain of Hyotei gently brushed aside the bangs covering his left eye.
*Hum!*
In that moment, an overwhelming wave of mental energy surged forth.
"Experience... a higher level of tennis!"
*Thud!*
With those words, Yoshi unleashed a shot that surpassed everything he had shown so far, both in speed and power.
"He actually pushed Yoshi to use the *Full Moon* state?!"
The Hyotei members, including Matsudaira Chikahiko, were stunned.
Amid the shock, someone exclaimed, "There's no way he can keep up with Yoshi now, right?"
*Hum!*
But then, Ryo's aura exploded with even greater intensity.
The sharp, silvery light radiating from him was so intense that even those standing 10 to 20 meters away felt an almost tangible sting.
*Thud!*
Yoshi's powerful *Full Moon* shot was perfectly returned.
"So you've finally reached this level, senior."
Ryo's gaze locked onto Yoshi as his aura peaked.
The silvery sword-like energy around him became almost tangible.
He, too, had entered his ultimate state—the second stage of his Sword Intent.
(End of Chapter)