On the German Team's bench, Bertie Borisovich Volk and Dankmar Schneider showed traces of tension for the first time. If they lost even one more game, this Doubles Two match would end in Germany's defeat again.
"Did you forget something, Bertie Borisovich Volk?" At that moment, his older brother's voice suddenly came from behind him.
Bertie turned around and saw Jürgen Borisovich Volk looking at him seriously. There was a hint of gravity in his eyes, but even more trust. With the tacit understanding the brothers had built over many years, even without another word, Bertie already understood what his brother meant.
"Man, that's kind of embarrassing. I didn't think I'd still need my brother to remind me at the most critical moment," Bertie said self-mockingly. His tense expression vanished, and he high-fived Dankmar beside him.
Dankmar didn't know what the brothers had exchanged with just their eyes, but out of trust in Bertie, he pulled himself together and threw away the last bit of pressure in his heart.
When the timeout ended, Bertie and Dankmar returned to the court. The eighth game was Dankmar's service game. Mōri Juuzaburō unconsciously tightened his grip on the racket. A faint sheen of cold sweat appeared on his forehead, but his gaze stayed firm as he prepared to receive.
As Dankmar walked to the baseline, his body instantly grew enormous. At the same time, his racket and the tennis ball in his hand also expanded. With his tossing motion, the huge ball slowly rose into the air.
In that instant, Ochi Tsukimitsu suddenly widened his eyes. The massive tennis ball in Dankmar's vision abruptly turned into a gigantic full moon. Dankmar froze for a split second, but he still swung his racket and smashed down hard.
The next second, the sound of the ball hitting the net rang out across the court. Dankmar's serve didn't clear the net at all. Clearly, Ochi-san's Mental Assassination had worked again.
"FAULT! Second serve!"
Dankmar frowned, but didn't think too much. He quickly tossed the ball again. The result was the same. The net was like a curse, still refusing to let the ball pass.
"FAULT! 0-15!"
After losing the point, Dankmar instinctively looked at Bertie in front of him. Bertie gave no hint at all. He just stood there quietly. But if you looked closely at his line of sight, you'd notice his eyes were locked tightly on Ochi-san.
Seeing this, Dankmar could only toss the ball again. No matter how much he focused, the ball he tossed still turned into a full moon. It made him extremely uncomfortable, and naturally, the ball couldn't clear the net.
"FAULT! Second serve!"
"FAULT! 0-30!"
"Two more points!" "Two more points!" "Two more points!" Cheers suddenly erupted from the stands. Even some Japan Team players showed excited expressions.
'You've gotta be kidding me… don't raise flags at a time like this. Don't you know this is a fatal debuff for players?' Akashi Seijurō thought as he heard the cheers, his mouth twitching while he complained furiously in his head.
But things often move in the worst possible direction. After losing two points, Bertie finally made a move. He didn't say anything to Dankmar, but subtly adjusted his positioning.
Soon, urged by the umpire, Dankmar tossed the ball for the fifth time. Ochi-san also launched Mental Assassination without hesitation. Just as Dankmar, affected by the full moon, was about to force his swing, Bertie's figure suddenly flashed across his vision. Dankmar reflexively twisted his wrist slightly.
Right after that, a deafening "bang" echoed out. Ochi-san, along with the racket in his hands, was blasted backward. Mōri immediately ran outside the baseline. It was obvious that Dankmar's shot carried terrifying power.
"ACE! 15-30!"
"Are you okay, Tsukimitsu-senpai?" Mōri rushed to Ochi's side and asked anxiously.
"Sorry, I got careless for a moment, but I reacted at the last instant. I'm not injured," Ochi replied calmly as he stood back up.
"That's good. But that big guy's serve is way too dangerous. If it comes down to it, we can back off a bit. After all, we still have an absolute advantage right now," Mōri said with lingering fear after confirming Ochi was fine.
"No. You and I both know we can't hold out much longer. This is the best chance. If we can take this game, the match ends right here," Ochi said, clearly aiming to finish the match outright.
"But—" Mōri tried to say more, but before he could finish, Ochi pressed him back toward the court with his racket.
Seeing Ochi return to the court, the umpire immediately signaled Dankmar to continue serving. Dankmar didn't hesitate and tossed the ball right away. Even though Ochi had already guessed that his beyond-limit Mental Assassination might have been cracked again, he still stubbornly activated it once more.
When Bertie noticed the subtle movement around Ochi's eyes, he shifted a small step to the right. At that exact moment, an explosion-like impact sounded behind him. The massive tennis ball soared over the net and slammed toward the Japan Team's court.
Ochi clenched his teeth and stepped in, gripping the racket with both hands. But the immense force on the ball was still more than he could fully handle. Ochi no longer had any spare mental power to activate ZONE.
"ACE! 30-30!"
By the court, Tanegashima Shuji spoke with a serious expression. "He actually adjusted his teammate's serve angle through his own positioning… that's probably beyond what simple Data Tennis can do, right?"
"Seriously, give me a break," Omagari Ryuuji said irritably as he looked at Dankmar. "If that body size is an illusion, then why is the serve power still this insane?"
"Strange… even though Ochi Tsukimitsu's Mental Assassination is aimed at Dankmar, Bertie should be affected too," Kimijima Ikuto suddenly raised a different point.
"You still haven't noticed?" Irie Kanata narrowed his eyes behind his glasses and replied gravely. "From the very start of this game, the two of them already canceled Ability Synchronization."
"Ochi and Mōri have been completely read by the opponents…" Byoudouin Houou, who had been watching intently the whole time, suddenly spoke.
While they were talking, Dankmar had already fired his seventh power serve. Even though Mōri Juuzaburō went all out, he still couldn't intercept the ball, let alone return it cleanly.
"ACE! 40-30!"
As Mōri gritted his teeth and picked up his racket, Dankmar didn't give him any time to adjust and immediately tossed the ball again. Even after failing so many times, Ochi still forced Mental Assassination to activate. But the instant he used his mental power, a wave of dizziness hit him hard, and his vision went black.
When Bertie noticed the tiny eye movement from Ochi, he repeated the same trick and shifted his stance slightly. But the result caught him off guard. This time, Dankmar didn't see the full moon at all and smashed cleanly. Because of Bertie's positioning, the ball instead slammed straight into the net.
"FAULT! Second serve!"
'A feint? No… his condition seems…' Bertie watched Ochi shaking his head and seemed to realize something.
The next moment, Dankmar didn't hesitate and tossed the ball again. Another thunderous impact rang out. Bertie didn't move at all and stood calmly in place. Sure enough, the ball cleared the net smoothly and blasted Mōri's racket away without resistance.
"GAME! Germany! 5-3!"
"The worst outcome still happened. Ochi-senpai is probably already in a state of mental exhaustion," Yukimura Seiichi sighed softly from the Japan Team's player bench.
"Even so, the situation is still very favorable for us. We just need to win one more game, and next is Ochi-senpai's service game," Sanada Genichirō said. His tone stayed stern, but it was filled with refusal to give up.
Akashi Seijurō didn't say anything at this point. In his view, the upcoming ninth game was the final chance for Ochi and Mōri. If they couldn't take it, this match would likely have no suspense left.
On the court, Ochi finally recovered a little. He knew his current condition well and that he probably wouldn't be able to activate Mental Assassination anymore. Even so, he had no intention of giving up. He slowly walked to the baseline, and a faint aura gradually connected with Mōri.
The next second, all Dankmar saw was Ochi swinging his racket. But the sound of the ball landing had already come from behind him. It was a teleport serve, and the ball speed was far faster than the ones Mōri had just hit.
"ACE! 15-0!"
"Schneider!" Bertie immediately shouted Dankmar's name. Dankmar understood at once. Dense grid lines instantly spread across the entire court as the two activated Ability Synchronization—Satellite Perspective.
But Ochi didn't have the mental space to care anymore. He tossed the ball again. With Ochi's swing, the ball once more appeared as if by teleportation outside the German baseline. Dankmar didn't even seem to react in time.
"ACE! 30-0!"
"From here on, it's up to you, Bertie Boy~" Dankmar smiled at Bertie, not bothered by losing the point.
"Don't worry, Schneider~ Don't forget, we're the No.1 doubles pair in this tournament!" Bertie replied with absolute confidence.