Even with Volk's temperament, he could not help but furrow his brows slightly after hearing Akashi's reply. However, he quickly regained his composure. On the professional circuit, he had seen far too many tactics aimed at disrupting an opponent's mentality.
Thus, Volk merely glanced at Akashi, said nothing more, and turned straight back toward the baseline. Akashi, likewise expressionless, bent forward and waited for Volk's next serve. It was not that he was deliberately trying to disturb his opponent's mindset—he was simply accustomed to speaking in that tone.
When Volk tossed the tennis ball for the fifth time, Akashi could clearly sense that the ferocious aura surging from Volk's body had grown even more intense. With a sharp bang, the tennis ball shot forth as if tearing through the air, streaking into the Japan Team's half. Faintly, a white ring of air pressure spread outward behind it.
Lightning suddenly erupted from Akashi's pupils. His figure turned into a streak of light as he used momentum to whip the ball back. Accompanied by a piercing whistle, the ball instantly cleared the net and smashed toward the left sideline.
At this moment, the spectators realized that Volk was still standing in place, unmoving, and many of them revealed puzzled expressions. But in the very next second, the sound of the ball striking a racket rang out, and Volk's originally stationary figure slowly dissipated. Only then did everyone understand that what they had seen earlier was merely an afterimage.
Volk's right arm, packed with streamlined muscle, swung at extreme speed. The tennis ball vanished from the sight of all the spectators. Yet this could not escape Akashi's Emperor Eye. Almost at the instant Volk swung, Akashi had already flashed to the ball's inevitable path.
As expected, Akashi intercepted the ball cleanly. His gaze immediately flicked toward Volk across the court. In an instant, countless motion afterimages appeared around his opponent's body—Akashi had already "seen through" every possible action Volk might take next.
At the same time, Akashi subtly adjusted his own movements, then swung his racket and sent the ball back. Relying on experience and ball sense, Volk instinctively judged the trajectory and rapidly sidestepped several steps to the right.
Next, Volk gripped the racket with both hands and viciously smashed at the ball in front of him. In that instant, the racket face caved inward by a large margin. This shot blasted away all the dust and smoke on the court, leaving behind a straight vacuum corridor.
But the spectators quickly discovered that Akashi had somehow already been waiting in front of the ball. The raging winds around him blew his coat high into the air, yet it never slipped from his shoulders. No one knew how he managed to do it.
Then Akashi, also holding the racket with both hands, rushed forward to meet the ball. His footwork seemed to inadvertently indicate the hitting direction to Volk. Volk did not hesitate—he trusted the judgment he had honed through years of training.
In the next second, the ball indeed attacked from the direction he had anticipated. While running, Volk rapidly adjusted every muscle in his body so his power could be unleashed to the fullest, then swung with all his might toward the ball.
Yet at the instant the racket made contact with the ball, there was no familiar rebound force at all. This made Volk's expression change despite himself. The next moment, the tennis ball passed straight through his racket before his eyes.
At the same time, the sound of the ball striking the ground came from the backcourt on the other side. Just like the previous shot, Volk had once again misjudged Akashi's ball path.
"30–40!"
"Confidence is a good thing, but unfortunately, that judgment you take pride in will now only drag you into the abyss of error. How to make the correct choice among multiple futures—that is what you should be considering first!" While Volk stared at the ball outside the court in contemplation, Akashi's indifferent voice slowly drifted over.
Volk did not respond. He quickly calmed his emotions, his expression utterly unruffled as he walked back to the baseline. Once again, he tossed the tennis ball—another heavy cannon serve capable of snapping an ordinary person's wrist with ease.
In the stands, Ōtori Chōtarō watched this scene, a trace of desolation flashing across his face. The serve he regarded as his ultimate killing move was, in Volk's hands, nothing more than a casual strike. The vast chasm in strength between them was something he might never be able to close in his lifetime.
On the court, Akashi easily returned such a serve and once more began using the Perfect Emperor Eye to construct a false future. Now it was a matter of how Volk would choose.
As the two exchanged rapid, fierce rallies, dust and smoke filled the court. It was scarcely inferior to a battlefield of real gunfire. Although Volk had already lost two points to Akashi through the same method, he showed no sign of wavering, still steadfastly acting according to his own judgment.
"GAME! Japan leads! 0–1!"
Such a result meant that Volk lost his service game first, surprising the majority of the spectators. After all, in their impressions, Volk had always been an invincible existence.
"What is the captain thinking? He clearly knows it's a trap—why step into it willingly?" On the German team's bench, Siegfried voiced his confusion.
"That is Volk's confidence in his own strength and his belief that nothing can shake him," Q.P. calmly explained at this moment. "If he were to change because of the gain or loss of just a few points, that would be the real problem."
"The fact that you'd even ask that proves you're still too green. Keep training properly," Bismarck said as he patted Siegfried on the shoulder, his tone carrying not the slightest hint of tension or gravity.
On the other side, in the Japan Team's players' seats, everyone let out a sigh of relief after seeing Akashi break serve. Volk's two consecutive points at the start had truly shaken them. There was no helping it—Volk's reputation alone made it hard not to worry.
"Although I can more or less guess what Volk is thinking, he probably won't just keep letting little Akashi score so easily, will he?" Irie watched the two players on court and spoke thoughtfully.
"Hmph! Neither of those two has shown their true strength yet. A far more intense match is about to begin!" Byoudouin sounded dissatisfied, but the gleam in his eyes said everything.
"Even that level of exchange still wasn't serious?!" Omagari exclaimed in disbelief after hearing Byoudouin's words.
"Stop pretending. I don't believe you couldn't see that," Byoudouin replied coldly, glancing at Omagari without mercy.
"Everyone, take a close look at Volk's eyes! Right now, he's exactly like a beast judging its prey before the hunt!" Oni suddenly interjected in a grave tone.
At his words, everyone turned their gaze toward Volk. They saw a faint glow emanating from his eyes, while an indescribably heavy pressure slowly seeped out from his body.
Yet Akashi across the net seemed completely unaffected. The pressure radiating from him was even stronger. This match between the two could truly be described as a clash of gods—mere mortals could only suffer as collateral.
The second game began with Akashi serving. When he arrived at the baseline, a massive golden ripple suddenly emerged behind him. Countless spatial ripples surged rapidly across it, delivering an overwhelming visual impact to everyone watching.
'Although it's only an illusion, this level of alternate-dimension manifestation… your mental power really is extraordinarily strong, Akashi Seijurō,' Volk thought silently as he watched.
"Is that move coming out? I wonder how Volk will deal with it~" In the stands, Zeus wore a faint smile as he spoke with interest.
Under the gaze of countless spectators, Akashi tossed the tennis ball high into the air. His right hand then drove the racket down in a fierce strike. Instantly, from the golden ripple behind him, a gigantic sword phantom etched with blue patterns shot forth.
Enveloped by the sword phantom, the tennis ball flew straight into the Germany Team's half. Seeing this, Volk once again erupted with powerful momentum, attempting to shatter the sword phantom as before.
But to his surprise, the phantom was completely unaffected. It continued charging straight toward the backcourt. Volk had no time to think—he immediately flashed to the landing point and swung to meet it. Yet in the next instant, the tennis ball pierced straight through his racket.
"King's Treasury—Gram!"
"ACE! 15–0!"
As the prototype of the famous Sword in the Stone, Gram's greatest traits were its solidity and sharpness. Only Odin's scepter, forged from the World Tree, could shatter it. Using it to counter Volk's momentum was perfectly appropriate.
Volk stared at the hole in his racket face, momentarily stunned. But he quickly regained his usual composure. Without saying a word, he strode to the sidelines to change rackets, then returned to the court.
After seeing Volk finish switching rackets, Akashi did not hesitate in the slightest. He immediately tossed the ball again. In the next second, the golden ripple surged once more. This time, what shot out was not Gram, but a cone-shaped weapon with a somewhat peculiar design.
"King's Treasury—Vajra!"
Massive lightning followed the tennis ball as it blasted toward Volk. Visually, it was scarcely inferior to Zeus's Thunder Serve. Yet Volk's expression barely changed. He sidestepped one step to the left, then swung with both hands in a violent strike.
The enormous lightning phantom shattered piece by piece, dissipating into the air. The tennis ball, however, came roaring back like a cannon shell, the power contained within it even surpassing Duke Homerun.
Akashi remained utterly unmoved. Without the slightest hesitation, he swung to meet it. At the moment the ball struck his racket, the immense force seemed to be completely swallowed, causing Akashi no impact at all.
Immediately after, a spiral-shaped longsword slowly extended from the golden ripple. Then a dazzling rainbow beam blasted toward the Germany Team's half. With a thunderous boom, thick clouds of dust and smoke engulfed Volk.
"King's Treasury—Caladbolg!"
"30–0!"
"I almost forgot—Akashi-kun's King's Treasury was originally a counterattack-type tennis technique, wasn't it~" From the Japan Team's bench, Yukimura let out a light chuckle and spoke leisurely.