Tachibana Kippei looked down at the tennis ball lying on the ground in front of him. He realized that shot just now really had been too impatient. Telling himself to calm down, he turned around and walked back without replying to Kimijima.
"Na~ Negotiation doesn't necessarily need the other side to respond~" Kimijima murmured softly as he watched Tachibana's back.
Kimijima quickly served again, and Chitose intercepted cleanly. He gathered all the power of Muga no Kyōchi into his brain, and faint starlight appeared around his hair.
"Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami!"
Countless simulation images instantly formed in Chitose's mind. At the same time, Tachibana shared those thoughts through the Beast Synchronization ability. Chitose hit a baseline passing shot, the ball flying fast past Toono straight toward Kimijima at the baseline. Clearly, Chitose didn't plan to waste energy rallying with Toono, since exchanging blows with him would take too much effort in dodging.
But Kimijima's next move shattered Chitose's simulation completely. The images in his mind collapsed instantly. Smiling calmly at the incoming ball, Kimijima held his racket horizontally in front of him, letting the ball bounce off and shoot straight upward.
"One… like the uncertainty of fate!" Kimijima said softly, still smiling.
This caught Chitose off guard. In all his simulations, Kimijima would never intentionally play such an easy ball. But the ball was already crossing the net, and Tachibana instinctively leapt up and smashed it down hard.
In the very next moment, Toono appeared at the net as if he had been waiting. Before the ball hit the ground, he swung his racket frame sideways, striking the descending ball. With an irregular spin, the ball slipped under Tachibana and shot toward Chitose in the backcourt.
"Execution Method No. 6—Cement Shoes!" Toono grinned wickedly as he shouted.
Chitose, though surprised by Kimijima's move, reacted quickly. He intercepted the ball, but the moment it struck his racket, he felt an unnatural weight—as if he were holding up cement instead of a tennis ball.
He quickly placed his right hand over his racket to keep it from flying out, but the ball spun violently in erratic motion. Suddenly, it kicked upward, striking Chitose's chest with a heavy thud that knocked him backward.
"30-15!"
"You bastard!!!" Tachibana's aura exploded like an enraged lion as he roared at Toono.
"Oi, did you think you were the only target of this blood sacrifice ritual?" Toono sneered without a hint of fear.
"Tachibana! I'm fine, don't lose your head!" Chitose's voice came from behind just as Tachibana was about to explode.
Tachibana turned. Chitose was rubbing his chest as he stood back up. That blow had left him short of breath, but it wasn't serious—just unexpected.
"To an outsider, it looks like Toono is recklessly attacking, but the one really steering the match is Kimijima. That's exactly why the head coach paired them in doubles!" Mitsuya said quietly from the stands.
"No matter the reason, I'll never accept this kind of tennis that deliberately attacks the opponent's body!" Tokugawa said darkly.
"Ma~ I'm not a fan of Toono's tennis either, but I'm not against it. Against enemies, sometimes you need to be even harsher than they are," Ōmagari suddenly said to Tokugawa.
"Targeting the opponent's body is one of the most common tactics in the World Cup! For the honor of one's country, no method is too much!" Ochi, who had regained some stamina, spoke coldly.
"Hmph! You're still too naïve, Tokugawa!" Byoudouin sneered, shooting Tokugawa a scornful look.
At that moment, Ryōma walked in from outside the court. His expression was complicated. Silently, he went to the middle schoolers' seating area, pulled down his cap, and watched the match without a word.
From the coaches' bench, Akashi glanced at Ryōma indifferently. He could already guess what Ryōga had said to Ryōma earlier, but now was not the time to dwell on it.
By now, Chitose had already dropped Saiki Kanpatsu no Kiwami. Seeing how Kimijima instantly responded the moment he activated it, even turning his simulations against him, Chitose couldn't help but admit—this really was a player who had endured the baptism of the world stage.
But Kimijima gave Chitose no time to dwell on it. He fired off a high-speed serve, and Chitose cleared his mind completely, sprinted to the landing spot, and sent the ball back.
The rallies turned fierce again. After several exchanges, Tachibana and Chitose both felt something off. Their combined strength was clearly above Kimijima and Toono, yet a strange sense of imbalance hung over them.
Kimijima's poetic phrases kept echoing in their ears, mixed with Toono's manic laughter and the names of his Execution Methods. Without realizing it, both Tachibana and Chitose's emotions began to shift.
Suddenly, Tachibana instinctively dodged one of Toono's Execution Methods. But then a thought struck him, and he quickly turned to check behind—sure enough, the ball was shooting straight at Chitose's throat. Concern tugged at him, and he unconsciously stepped back a few paces.
Thankfully, Chitose blocked it with his racket and sent it back. Toono clicked his tongue in annoyance, but that sound alone let Tachibana breathe easier. The very next second, Kimijima appeared at the net and dropped a short ball.
"One… as calm as the water's surface!" Kimijima's even voice reached Tachibana's ears.
Only then did Tachibana realize he was too far from the net. He sprinted forward, but still came up a step short. The ball rolled a few times after hitting the ground and stopped.
"40-15!"
"Focusing too much on your partner's safety can sometimes cause you to lose sight of what's in front of you. Think of this as a small lesson from your senpai, Tachibana-kun!" Kimijima said with a smile after scoring.
But instead of calming him, Kimijima's words only fanned Tachibana's anger. Still, he didn't lose his cool completely. A cold glare at Kimijima and Toono, and the dark crimson aura around him began shifting toward fiery red.
Seeing this, Kimijima's smile deepened. He turned back toward the baseline. This negotiation was a complete success—Tachibana's thoughts were exactly where Kimijima wanted them.
In Kimijima's view, those with extreme emotions were harder to negotiate with. Take his partner Toono, for example—either wildly excited or boiling with rage. But a personality like Tachibana's, calm yet brimming with hot-blooded pride, was Kimijima's favorite—much easier to steer and manipulate. Even Chitose, though steadier, wasn't beyond reach.
With Kimijima's next serve, the flow of the match slowly fell under his control. Tachibana and Chitose still held the edge in raw strength, but Toono's Execution Methods constantly forced them to split their focus on defense.
At last, Kimijima seized his moment. While they were busy reacting to Toono's attack, he struck the ball into the gap between them. Both were too late to intercept.
"Game! Japan Representative Team! 2-1!"
Tachibana and Chitose glanced at the ball outside the court, then at each other. They released Beast Synchronization—no more holding back. They would unleash everything and end this match quickly.
Brilliant blue light suddenly burst from Chitose, while Tachibana's fiery red aura shot sky-high. Both activated their strongest states together.
"Ten'i Muhō no Kiwami!" "Beast King's Aura!"
"They're coming! Against absolute strength, all the mind games in the world mean nothing!" Oni Juujirou said gravely as he watched Tachibana and Chitose.