At the umpire's signal, the four players walked to the net for the pre-match handshake. Although Akutsu didn't look too happy, he still shook hands with Niō and Yanagi. After all, his personality had calmed down quite a bit compared to before.
As for Kintarō—there was no need to mention it. A born extrovert, he got along with everyone. He bounced up energetically and shook hands with the two across from him. Not long after, the coin toss was completed, and unsurprisingly, Niō won the right to serve first. At that moment, Kintarō said excitedly to Niō:
"I remember you! You're that guy who can transform! Can you teach me how to do it?"
"No problem~ but if you can't learn it on your own, there's nothing I can do, you know! Puri~" Niō replied cheerfully.
"Wow! Awesome! You're so nice! I can transform too!" Kintarō jumped up on the spot, thrilled by Niō's answer.
"He's messing with you! Come on! We've got a match to play!" Akutsu, unable to watch any longer, grabbed Kintarō by the collar and yanked him away, ignoring his loud protests.
"Let me go, Jin-chan! I wanna learn to transform..."
"Shut it! How many times do I have to tell you—don't call me Jin-chan, you dumbass!"
Niō watched the noisy duo across from him and chuckled, but when he looked at Yanagi's still-calm face, his own expression turned serious. This match wasn't going to be easy.
Even putting aside the terrifying strength of Akutsu, that first-year kid Kintarō had already mastered the legendary Ten'i Muhō no Kiwami, and even started walking the path of the Light of Love. Luckily, it seemed like this was their first time playing doubles together, so there were bound to be coordination issues.
"Now starting the Doubles Two match! First serve by Niō Masaharu of Rikkai!"
Niō slowly walked to the baseline, took out a tennis ball, and glanced at Akutsu and Kintarō across the court. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes as his figure began to distort and change. Moments later, a figure very familiar to Fudomine's team appeared.
"Whoa! That's it, he's transforming!" Kintarō shouted excitedly.
Standing on Rikkai's baseline was none other than "Tezuka Kunimitsu." His expression calm, he spoke:
"Then, let's give it our all."
At that moment, everyone on Fudomine's bench instinctively turned to look at the real Tezuka sitting beside them. But there wasn't even a flicker of emotion on his face—Tezuka remained as stoic as an iceberg.
"Heh. That Niō kid's mental strength is something else. I've never seen anything like that in other countries. At this year's world tournament, he'll be a great lesson for those foreigners," Mifune said, clearly pleased with Niō's illusion play.
"Tezuka, huh? Planning to use the Zero Shiki Serve? Tch... annoying," Akutsu spat irritably.
But there was nothing he could do. This game's receiver was Kintarō, so he couldn't interfere. If it were him, he might be able to counter it. But Kintarō? That was looking unlikely.
"Tezuka" gently tossed the ball, jumped, and swung his racket in one fluid motion. The form was flawless—so elegant that it earned a wave of applause from the crowd. The ball wasn't fast, but everyone knew its power didn't come from speed or force.
Kintarō, despite being simple-minded, was very familiar with Tezuka's Zero Shiki Serve. He'd never once given up a point to it in training matches. His face turned serious as he moved to the bounce point just as the ball crossed the net.
The ball hit the ground and Kintarō swung hard with his racket, generating a gust of wind toward the front. But unfortunately, things didn't go as he hoped. Instead of rebounding, the ball rolled back even faster and hit the net.
"Ace! 15-0!"
"Still failed! That move's way too tricky!" Kintarō scratched his head, visibly annoyed. He hated that helpless feeling.
But the way he flashed to the ball and swung with such force made Mifune's eyes light up. The carefree expression on his face turned serious, his gaze now focused sharply on Kintarō.
By then, "Tezuka" had already begun preparing for the second serve. He tossed the ball again, same elegant motion as before, and the ball flew at a moderate pace over the net, dropping toward the opposite side.
Kintarō, who had been waiting for the chance, didn't hesitate. He dragged his racket along the ground and swung hard at the ball just after it bounced, sending up a huge cloud of dust. Unfortunately, the moment the ball touched the racket, it started spinning rapidly and then took a sharp bounce to the right, rolling out past the sideline.
"30-0!"
"Damn it! Still didn't work?" Kintarō frowned, his face scrunched in frustration. With his simple nature, he really wasn't good at handling this kind of technique.
Akutsu didn't say anything from the side. He wanted to see if Kintarō could handle this mess on his own. After all, this was doubles—Niō wouldn't get that many chances to serve. Losing a single game wasn't a big deal.
"Let's go, Niō-senpai! Take this service game!" From Rikkai's bench, Kirihara shouted out loud to cheer him on. The rest of the team looked a bit more relaxed now that Niō had the upper hand.
Just as "Tezuka" was preparing to serve the third ball, a bright blue glow suddenly lit up around Kintarō. His hair stood on end like a Super Saiyan. Even "Tezuka" twitched at the sight.
"Already using Ten'i Muhō?" "Tezuka" muttered with a hint of exasperation.
"Didn't expect this brat to master the Light of Love so easily. Looks like Akashi raised another monster," Mifune commented again, more convinced than ever that this trip was worth it. In Kintarō, he saw a flash of Akashi from two years ago—the same one who had walked into the training camp alone.
"Looks like Tezuka's Zero Shiki Serve pushed Kintarō to the edge—he had to activate Ten'i Muhō!" Chitose chuckled from Fudomine's bench, then glanced at Tezuka.
"Even with Ten'i Muhō, Zero Shiki Serve isn't easy to return. I wonder how close Niō's version is to Tezuka's?" Tachibana Jippei added thoughtfully.
"Almost no difference. It's a perfect Zero Shiki Serve." This time, Tezuka finally spoke, his tone indicating approval.
"That's not good then. With Kintarō's current strength, he might really not be able to return it," Krauser said with rare concern.
"Maybe not. Let's keep watching. Who knows—Kintarō might surprise us." Kite adjusted his glasses, a sharp glint flashing across the lenses.
Facing Kintarō in Ten'i Muhō mode, "Tezuka" didn't hesitate. He fired off another Zero Shiki Serve. Akashi, watching closely from the coaching area, immediately noticed the spin on this serve was even stronger than the previous two. Niō was clearly going all out.
Kintarō, body glowing with blue particles, teleported to the bounce point like a flash of lightning. His eyes locked onto the incoming ball, and the instant it hit the ground, he intercepted with a sharp swing. The ball popped up cleanly, but after flying a short distance, it clipped the net and fell—another failed return.
"40-0!"
"So close! I thought I had it!" Kintarō swung his arm out with a loud exhale, but his face still wore a bright smile.
'Can't deny it—Tezuka's Zero Shiki Serve is totally busted. Thankfully, only Tezuka and Niō can use it for now. It'll definitely shock the foreign teams in the world tournament later.'
'Still… Niō's illusion is getting crazy. In the original story, his Zero Shiki Serve wasn't this powerful—Mōri even countered it head-on. I wonder if Niō will make it into the First Court lineup this time,' Akashi thought to himself after watching Kintarō's miss.
As Akashi's thoughts drifted, "Tezuka" was already unleashing his fourth Zero Shiki Serve. Kintarō responded just as before, swinging the moment the ball hit the ground—but again, the return failed to cross the net. In the end, Kintarō still didn't have enough experience. A technique this precise wasn't something you could master in a day.
"Game! Rikkai! 1-0!"
Relying on Tezuka's illusion, Niō held his serve with four consecutive Zero Shiki Serves. But he didn't feel much joy—because the real challenge was just beginning. Honestly, he didn't feel confident about stopping the two on the other side.
"Next, I'll attack while collecting and adjusting the data. Niō, stay alert and cover any gaps," Yanagi spoke calmly to "Tezuka."
"Got it. Let's give it everything we've got, Renji!" "Tezuka" replied seriously.