"No way! Just the third point and Tezuka already lost all five senses?!" Tachibana Kippei exclaimed from the Fudomine bench in disbelief.
"Yukimura's strength is completely on par with Tezuka's. This kind of result makes sense. Still, I think Tezuka will recover soon," Chitose replied calmly from beside him.
Over on Rikkai's bench, Kirihara was cheering excitedly for their Captain, while the others also looked relieved. Yukimura didn't disappoint—he was still Rikkai's strongest captain.
But just as everyone was discussing Tezuka's five-sense loss, a brilliant blue light burst out from Tezuka's body, causing several spectators to instinctively squint. The glowing blue particles wrapped around him, making even his hair look ethereal and weightless.
"Ten'i Muhō no Kiwami," Sanada said gravely.
"That level of Ten'i is way beyond mine! As expected of you, Tezuka! Puri~" Niō said, looking at Tezuka with admiration.
"You're already using Ten'i Muhō? Looks like you're ready to go all out, Tezuka!" Yukimura said gently, showing no surprise at all.
"You're no different. You came in full force from the start, Yukimura!" Tezuka responded—rarely speaking during a match.
"Then let's go all out and have a proper match, Tezuka!" Yukimura said, his face turning serious.
Tezuka nodded with a stern expression. He took a tennis ball and gripped it tightly in his hand before tossing it high. The blue particles instantly coated his racket, and he slammed it down on the falling ball.
"Zero Shiki under Ten'i, huh? It's definitely faster, but its essence hasn't changed. Like I said earlier, Zero Shiki doesn't work on me, Tezuka!" Yukimura said as he flashed to the landing point of the ball.
Just like before, before the ball could begin spinning upon contact, Yukimura's racket intercepted it. Using high-level control, he gradually neutralized the spin while returning the ball—this time, pouring out a powerful wave of mental pressure.
The ball zipped over the net at lightning speed. Tezuka didn't hesitate. He rushed to the landing point and hit it back with immense zone spin.
"Zone, is it? I can't let you activate that, Tezuka!" Yukimura murmured as he approached the ball.
As the ball bounced, Yukimura suddenly switched the racket to his left hand and struck. The moment it made contact, the heavy spin was halved, and the ball shot back to Tezuka's court.
"Mirror Mirage!"
Tezuka watched the ball come at him as a massive white whirlwind formed around him. But the ball didn't curve toward him as expected. He was startled inside but quickly ran to intercept it, once again applying intense spin on the return.
Noticing Tezuka's subtle emotional change, Yukimura seized the moment and sent his mental pressure into Tezuka's body. He chased the ball and struck it again with another quick hand switch, further neutralizing the zone's rotation.
Tezuka raised another white whirlwind, but again the ball refused to be drawn toward him. That was when it clicked—his zone had been sealed.
With a calm face, Tezuka sprinted toward the ball. But just as he swung to return it, numbness spread from his left hand—he couldn't feel his arm. Although the Ten'i light quickly restored sensation, it was already too late. The racket flew from his hand.
"15-40!"
"Motor dysfunction is way more complex than you think, Tezuka!" Yukimura said softly, watching Tezuka's momentary daze.
"To steal Tezuka's five senses even in Ten'i Muhō... Yukimura, you never fail to surprise me," Sanada muttered from Rikkai's bench, a complicated look in his eyes.
"Actually, Yukimura's five-sense nullification is just an application of motor dysfunction. As long as he picks the right moment, it works no matter what state the opponent's in. But achieving that takes a level of difficulty most people can't even imagine," Yanagi explained.
"Then doesn't that mean Captain's gonna win for sure?" Kirihara said excitedly.
"Not so fast. Tezuka's strength is far beyond what anyone expects. This might be one of the most intense matches in years!" Marui said, eyes shining as he stared at the court.
'This reminds me a lot of the World Cup semifinals in the original story. Let's see if fate plays out differently this time,' Akashi thought quietly, seated on the Fudomine coach's bench.
Tezuka had already snapped back to his senses. Honestly, the sudden loss of tactile sensation had caught him completely off guard. But it also stirred up a fighting spirit he hadn't felt in a long time—something he'd only experienced before when facing Akashi.
Back at the baseline, Tezuka locked eyes with Yukimura. The glow of Ten'i shimmered more brilliantly than ever around him. He tossed the ball high, slightly leapt, extended his body into the perfect striking pose, and slammed his racket down hard.
Two rapid impact sounds echoed. Yukimura only felt a blur of light streak past his ear, brushing his bangs. He turned in disbelief and saw the ball bouncing just beyond the baseline.
"ACE! 30-40!"
'I didn't react in time just now? That's impossible! Tezuka's serve shouldn't be faster than Akashi's or Ochi-senpai's… Don't tell me… the Ten'i glow is already starting to corrode my perception?' Yukimura thought to himself.
Without hesitation, he unleashed a surge of mental force throughout his body. Slowly, his awareness of the surroundings faded. Even his vision dimmed until his entire world was nothing but a black court and a grey tennis ball.
"Zero Senses Tennis!"
Yukimura's pupils began to dull. His presence faded dramatically, and under the Ten'i glow, he became nearly invisible. Meanwhile, Tezuka had tossed the ball up again and delivered a sharply-angled, ultra-fast serve.
To Yukimura's senses, the ball shot toward his court with terrifying speed. Without the slightest hesitation, he flashed to the bounce point using instinct alone. Just as he was about to swing, he switched his racket to the other hand and struck—the ball zipped straight back to Tezuka's side.
To the audience, the two players were now locked in a furious rally. Neither yielded an inch. Their rallies were filled with dazzling techniques and wicked angles that left the spectators breathless.
"That's weird... Why isn't Tezuka-senpai using his zone? He's just playing basic tennis with Captain?" Kirihara asked in confusion from Rikkai's bench.
"It's not that Tezuka doesn't want to use it—he can't. Yukimura keeps switching hands precisely, applying reverse spin without Tezuka realizing it. That neutralizes his zone entirely," Yanagi explained.
"Exactly. That's Yukimura's Mirror Mirage," Sanada added.
"But isn't that dangerous? Doesn't the glow from Ten'i corrode the player and suppress their real strength?" Jackal said with concern.
"No need to worry! Yukimura's shut off all his unnecessary senses through five-sense nullification. Everything he has is focused on tennis alone. Not only does it cancel Ten'i's erosion, but it gives him a boost almost equal to what Ten'i grants! He's gone even further than when he faced Kintarō! Puri~" Niō, who was also in Ten'i state, commented.
As the Rikkai players discussed the match, Mifune and Mitsuya in the audience nodded quietly. It was hard to believe this level of tennis was happening in a middle school national tournament.
"Looks like Yukimura and Tezuka are already as strong as the top five of the First String. They're clearly the strongest middle schoolers aside from Akashi... though now we've got to count Akutsu too," Mifune thought excitedly. He even believed that the current Fudomine and Rikkai squads, plus Byoudouin and Oni, could crush any team outside the Final Four and the Americans.
Back on the court, the rally continued fiercely. After a hand-switch return from Yukimura, Tezuka anticipated the play and rushed the net. He moved for a half-volley before the ball could bounce. But the moment his racket touched the ball, his vision went black—everything around him disappeared.
Fortunately, Tezuka's ball sense was exceptional. Relying on his instant memory of the ball's position, he still managed to return it. A second later, his sight came back. The visual loss hadn't thrown him off too much.
Just to be safe, Tezuka returned a lob, sending the ball soaring over Yukimura's court toward the baseline. Yukimura sprinted toward it, but Tezuka grew uneasy—Yukimura was using his body to block his view of his arm movement, making it impossible to predict the return.
Then Yukimura did something completely unexpected. As he reached the ball, he turned his back, lightly jumped, switched his racket from right to left in mid-air, and swung down. The ball slipped cleanly between his legs and shot past Tezuka's feet, bouncing out of bounds.
"GAME! Rikkai! 1-0!"
'Oh? That's a highlight moment right there,' Akashi thought calmly as he watched Yukimura's move.