"What… what is this?"
On Hyotei's side, the regular players were utterly shocked by the transformation they saw in Tachibana.
"Such overwhelming pressure!"
Shishido narrowed his eyes. At this moment, Tachibana felt like a beast that had broken free from its cage, exuding an intense aura of danger.
"Tachibana Kippei!"
Atobe, standing beside him, spoke with a grave expression. "Is this your true form?"
During last year's national tournament, the two had never faced each other directly, but as the ace players of their respective teams, they had swept through the competition, defeating other top players with ease.
Back then, Tachibana had been like a ferocious lion, leaving a deep impression on Atobe.
Now, as he watched the dark red aura swirling around Tachibana, even someone as confident as Atobe felt a deep sense of pressure.
"Is this Tachibana's true state?"
On Seigaku's side, the team was equally stunned.
Many of them recalled the regional preliminaries a month ago, where the two teams had battled all the way to the second singles match. Fudomine had been defeated by Seigaku before they could witness the showdown between Tezuka and Tachibana.
At the time, they had felt a sense of regret.
But now, seeing Tachibana radiating such an intimidating aura, they couldn't help but feel a sense of relief.
Especially Vice-Captain Oishi.
While others might not have known, he was well aware that Tezuka's condition a month ago hadn't been ideal.
Back then, Tezuka hadn't undergone his final medical check-up.
If he had gone head-to-head with Tachibana and aggravated his old injury, regardless of the match's outcome, it would have had a devastating impact on Tezuka's career.
"Thank goodness," Oishi sighed inwardly, his gaze shifting to Hyotei's first-year regular. "This kid must be feeling pretty conflicted right now."
Like most people, he had subconsciously assumed that Ishikawa was one of those confident, rising star rookies.
He had probably thought he could defeat one of the Kyushu twins and make a name for himself.
But now, it seemed more like he had stirred up a hornet's nest, unleashing a beast he couldn't control.
A classic case of overreaching!
*Tap! Tap! Tap!*
On the court, Tachibana continued to bounce the tennis ball.
His movements were quick, and as he bounced the ball, he looked up at Ishikawa's position.
At the same time, Ishikawa's gaze was locked onto Tachibana.
He had noticed that his opponent's state had changed.
**[Tachibana Kippei (Boss): Lv50]**
After removing his self-imposed limits, the Kyushu twin had finally revealed his true level.
On the other side, Tachibana raised an eyebrow as he observed Ishikawa's calm expression. "Be careful," he said in a low voice. "I'd hate for you to get hurt."
*Bang!*
With that, he unleashed a powerful serve.
The ball shot forward with incredible speed, enhanced by his beastly aura, like a blazing bullet.
*Thud!*
In the blink of an eye, the ball landed in Ishikawa's backhand zone, then rebounded with sharp precision.
Fast. Accurate. Ruthless.
This was Tachibana's true serve.
In his beastly state, his focus and explosive power had reached new heights.
*Thud!*
Sure enough, when Ishikawa swung his racket to return the ball, he immediately felt an overwhelming force.
Compared to before, it wasn't just heavy—the ball felt like a wild beast, relentlessly slamming against his racket, as if trying to tear it apart!
*Whoosh!*
But Ishikawa was no ordinary player.
His strength was considerable, and with his 4.5 technical skill, he adjusted his wrist upon contact, using finesse to dissipate some of the force and return the ball.
"He… he returned it?"
Seeing this, the Hyotei players cheered loudly.
"No."
Atobe, however, shook his head. "The angle of control is off, and the power is scattered. For a national-level player like Tachibana, this return has a fatal flaw."
*Whoosh!*
As soon as he finished speaking, Tachibana appeared in the path of the ball's trajectory, raising his racket and smashing it with full force.
*Thud!*
The ball landed squarely in the left sideline.
Point scored!
"40-30!"
As the umpire announced the score, the morale of the Hyotei players plummeted.
In contrast, the Fudomine players erupted in cheers, energized by Tachibana's display of dominance.
"Go, Tachibana-senpai!"
"That's it! Finish the match in one go!"
"Brother…"
Outside the court, Tachibana's younger sister, Akira, smiled with relief.
Her brother had finally overcome his inner struggles and regained the form of the Kyushu twin.
From there, Tachibana grew even more aggressive, completely dominating the match.
Within just four or five exchanges, he charged forward, unleashing a powerful smash to score another point.
*Bang!*
"Game!"
"Fudomine's Tachibana leads, 1-0!"
**Second Set.**
After switching sides, the serve rotated to Ishikawa.
However, under the puzzled gazes of Atobe, Shishido, and the rest of the Hyotei team, he simply delivered a high-speed serve.
The result?
The first ball was fiercely returned by Tachibana.
"0-15!"
"Strange!"
Shishido frowned and said, "Why isn't he using that serve of his?"
"Yeah!"
The second-string players, Kano and Kurokawa, were also anxious, pacing like ants on a hot pan. "If Ishikawa used his [Star Trace], he could definitely score directly!"
In their eyes, Ishikawa's serve, whether in terms of speed, power, or accuracy, surpassed Otori's cannonball serve.
Yet, it seemed as if Ishikawa was determined to break through head-on. Even on the second serve, he still didn't use his signature [Star Trace] serve.
*Bang!*
The result?
In less than three or four exchanges, Tachibana seized the opportunity, charged forward, and ended the rally with a single shot.
"0-30!"
"Fudomine!"
"Fudomine!"
"Fudomine!"
Outside the court, Kamio, Ishida, and others excitedly chanted Fudomine's rallying cry.
The other spectators were also intimidated by Tachibana's overwhelming dominance. Watching the fierce and aggressive play of the young player, they were too stunned to speak.
"It's over," Inoue from *Tennis Monthly* shook his head lightly. "This Ishikawa is quite good, but Tachibana in this state is too strong. He's completely taken control of the match."
"Hmm."
Beside him, Inui's eyes behind his white glasses revealed a hint of disappointment.
Indeed, having been defeated by Ishikawa, Inui naturally hoped that Ishikawa could turn the tables and defeat Tachibana, the top player from Kyushu.
Unfortunately, from the looks of it, not only was Ishikawa unable to break through, but he also couldn't even manage to hold his ground as he had earlier.
It couldn't be helped.
This wasn't Ishikawa's fault. As a newcomer, he was already outstanding. It was just his misfortune to face Tachibana, the Golden Lion of Kyushu, one of the two top players from the region.
Not just Ishikawa.
In the entire Tokyo Metropolitan Tournament, the only players who could stand toe-to-toe with Tachibana were Tezuka and Atobe.
However, this wasn't necessarily a bad thing for Seigaku.
At least in the Metropolitan Finals, they wouldn't have to face the powerful Hyotei team but rather Fudomine, whom they had already played against in the regional tournament and had a better chance of defeating.
*Bang!*
At that moment, Tachibana broke through again.
He effortlessly tore through Ishikawa's defense and scored with a straight shot.
"0-40!"
"What is this kid even doing?"
Seeing the situation spiral out of control, even Atobe's expression turned grim.
He was disappointed in Ishikawa.
He had expected Ishikawa to prioritize the team's interests, at least holding his serve. Then, when the time was right, he could launch a counterattack.
Because Atobe had observed that Tachibana's breathing was erratic, and his sweat had increased significantly compared to earlier.
If he wasn't mistaken, Tachibana's [Beastly Aura] state consumed far more stamina than his normal state.
And if Ishikawa had remained calm, he should have noticed this as well.
But the reality was that this Hyotei newcomer, the one Atobe and Coach Sakaki had internally designated as the next captain, had choked at a critical moment in the match.
"No, that's not it!"
Suddenly, Atobe's furrowed brows relaxed. He noticed Ishikawa's expression—it was still calm.
More importantly, Ishikawa's sweat was far less than Tachibana's.
Unlike others, Atobe's vision was exceptionally sharp. Combined with his extensive match experience and maturity beyond his years, his ability to pick up on details was remarkable.
Thus, he could infer from the two players' sweat levels that Tachibana, in his [Beastly Aura] state, had already reached his peak performance. In contrast, Ishikawa's breathing rhythm and sweat levels remained at a low level.
In other words, this guy wasn't even trying!
"Hmm."
At this realization, Atobe's expression became somewhat uneasy.
It was simple.
If his deduction was correct, and the boy in front of him hadn't even shown his true abilities, then didn't that mean Ishikawa had already reached a national-level skill, posing a genuine threat to him?
But how could that be? It hadn't been that long since their last match!
At this thought, Atobe's mood grew complicated, even a bit irritable.
*Bang!*
At that moment, Ishikawa served again.
Just like before, it was a high-speed serve with sharp spin but relatively moderate speed.
*Tap tap!!*
Tachibana sprinted forward, chasing after the ball.
**Boom!**
He chased down the tennis ball and without hesitation, smashed it back with a powerful shot.
"Great shot!"
The Fudomine team members clenched their fists in excitement, cheering loudly.
At this point in the match, it seemed to them that the scales of victory had already tipped in favor of their captain, Tachibana.
"Wait!!"
But just then, Ibu Shinji's expression suddenly changed, as if he had noticed something. "That move... is he using that technique again?!"
What?
Everyone quickly looked up.
They saw Ishikawa, standing at the baseline on the opposite side, holding his racket to the left side of his body in a stance reminiscent of drawing a sword.
"What's this?"
The Seigaku team, who had never seen this move before, looked on with curiosity.
*Clang!*
In the next moment.
As Ishikawa swung his racket, a flash of silver light sliced through the air, sending the tennis ball flying at an incredible speed. The ball was so fast that it was almost invisible to the naked eye.
"So fast!!!"
Kikumaru and Echizen's expressions changed. Even with their exceptional dynamic vision, they could only catch a faint afterimage of the ball.
"Not bad," Tachibana said with a low growl. "But that's all you've got!"
*Thud! Thud!*
With that, he dashed forward like a beast.
*Boom!*
The ball landed on Ishikawa's side.
But Tachibana was already there, raising his racket and smashing the ball back with a powerful stroke.
*Boom!*
The ball split into multiple afterimages, whizzing past Ishikawa, who seemed frozen in place, unable to react.
*Boom!*
"Game!"
"Fudomine's Tachibana leads, 2-0!"
"Woohoo!!!"
The Fudomine team erupted in cheers.
"Dammit!"
Shishido couldn't help but curse under his breath. He was furious, watching Ishikawa standing motionless on the court, as if his spirit had been crushed. It felt like such a waste of potential!
They had a strong hand, but now it seemed like they were throwing it all away. This was the decisive match that would determine Hyotei's fate. If they lost, they would have to return in disgrace, becoming the laughingstock of other schools.
At this moment, Shishido wished he could take Ishikawa's place, grab a racket, and face Tachibana himself. Win or lose, at least he would have given it his all, with no regrets!
But seeing Ishikawa lose so inexplicably was unbearable.
"Are we... losing?"
The other Hyotei team members also sensed the shift in momentum. They exchanged uneasy glances, their faces filled with bitter smiles.
Especially the second-string players—if they lost to Fudomine, they would bear a heavy responsibility. The thought of returning home in defeat, like stray dogs, made their hearts sink with an indescribable heaviness.
"Senpai."
Just then, Ishikawa spoke.
Despite having lost two games, there wasn't a trace of panic on his face.
"This guy's putting on quite a show," muttered Horio, a first-year from Seigaku, with a smirk. "If you didn't know better, you'd think he was the one leading the match!"
"Horio!"
Kachiro and Katsuo quickly pulled him back. "Don't say things like that."
But even they, along with the rest of the Seigaku regulars, couldn't help but agree with Horio's observation. The current situation clearly favored Fudomine, yet this first-year representative seemed unnaturally calm. It almost felt like he was bluffing.
"Hmm?"
Unlike the others, Tachibana's gaze locked onto Ishikawa. "What do you want to say?"
As his opponent, Tachibana knew better than anyone that this young player was anything but ordinary. Many underestimated him because of his status as a first-year, but Tachibana wasn't fooled.
"I was thinking," Ishikawa said, meeting Tachibana's gaze with a faint smile, "this must be your strongest state, right?"
"What... what does that mean?"
Even the Hyotei team members were confused, looking at their teammate in bewilderment.
*Crack.*
*Crack, crack.*
Ishikawa tilted his neck slightly, the sound of his joints popping like frying beans.
"He's... he's..."
Inoue's face suddenly showed a look of shock, as if he had realized something.
"Could it be..."
Dry's expression also changed dramatically.
"Hey, hey!!"
Kikumaru, noticing their reactions, couldn't contain his curiosity. "Mr. Inoue, Dry, what are you two talking about?"
"Finally!"
Tachibana, sensing a change in his opponent, narrowed his eyes with a hint of seriousness. "Are you getting serious now?"
What?!
The crowd erupted in murmurs.
"Serious?!"
"You've got to be kidding!"
"There's no way that first-year wasn't giving his all... right?"
*Hum...*
At that moment.
A faint silver glow began to emanate from Ishikawa's body, flowing along his skin like starlight.
The spectators, especially those with sharper senses, felt a chilling, razor-sharp aura radiating from him, sending shivers down their spines.
"It's about time I got serious," Ishikawa said, holding his racket with a slight smirk. His eyes locked onto Tachibana, burning with fighting spirit.
(End of Chapter)