King of Tennis (POT)

"Wave Ball?!" 

The members of Hyotei Academy were visibly shaken when they saw Shishido's racket get knocked out of his hand. 

"That power... it's too strong!" 

Hiyoshi's expression turned grave. Against Kawamura's Wave Ball, Shishido's racket seemed as fragile as paper. 

"We can't take that shot head-on!" 

Mukahi said sternly, "We need to find a way to seal Kawamura's Wave Ball." 

As he spoke, he glanced at Oshitari beside him. During the quarterfinals against Shitenhouji, they had used a clever strategy to seal Ishida Gin's Wave Ball. 

"Even so... it won't be that simple!" 

Oshitari's gaze locked onto Inui from Seigaku as he spoke. "If he's chosen this strategy, he won't let Shishido and Otori seal Kawamura's Wave Ball so easily." 

Inui from Seigaku was one of the few true strategists in the nation. In some ways, his presence was as crucial to Seigaku as their top singles players. It was thanks to Inui that Seigaku's players had grown so rapidly. Since he had chosen the Wave Ball as their main scoring tactic, a simple sealing strategy wouldn't work. 

Thud! 

Sure enough, after Shishido served, Inui, who was receiving, used his deep understanding of data to return the ball with a deep topspin shot. 

"Here it comes again!" 

Seeing Shishido pinned to the baseline, the Hyotei players' expressions darkened. 

"You think you can seal my movements that easily? Dream on!" 

Shishido sidestepped and countered, his body radiating a faint blue aura—his signature move, Limit Break! 

Tap tap! 

With his enhanced speed, Shishido reached the center of the court before the ball even landed. 

Meanwhile, Otori retreated to the baseline. 

Snap! 

Inui decisively swung his racket, sending a perfectly timed lob over Shishido's head as he rushed forward. 

"As expected of Inui!" 

Outside the court, Mizuki from St. Rudolph nodded in approval. "He's pinpointed the weakness in Hyotei's doubles pair." 

"Indeed," Akazawa agreed. 

Inui's insight and ability to utilize data were on par with Mizuki's, if not better. Even Mizuki himself felt that he might not be able to match Inui. 

"Hyotei... it's not that simple," said Yanagi from Rikkai Dai, adjusting his glasses. "What appears to be a weakness might not be one. Inui's lob might be exactly what Hyotei is waiting for." 

Whoosh! 

As soon as Yanagi finished speaking, Otori leaped into action from the baseline. 

His默契 with Shishido was real, but so was their plan to create an opening to lure their opponents in. 

"It's coming!" 

Seeing Otori jump, Hiyoshi and the others grew excited. "It's Choutarou's Heavy Cannon Smash!" 

The Heavy Cannon Smash! 

A powerful move Otori had debuted during the national tournament, using his height advantage to deliver a devastating smash. Its power and speed surpassed even his new Heavy Cannon Serve. 

If Otori could connect with the ball, Hyotei would secure the point. 

However, Yanagi from Rikkai Dai shook his head. "It's a good plan, but Inui's tennis... isn't that simple." 

Swoosh! 

As Otori raised his racket to smash, the ball suddenly changed speed and dropped sharply. 

"What?!" 

Otori was caught off guard by the sudden change and couldn't execute the smash properly. He could only watch as the ball flew past him. 

Thud! 

The ball landed. 

"30-30!" 

The crowd was stunned. 

"Impressive," Saeki nodded. "Using the opponent's tendencies and abilities to create scoring opportunities. His data tennis is truly exceptional." 

Beside him, Inagaki agreed. 

Players who specialized in data tennis were rare, and those who reached Inui's level were even rarer. These two points fully demonstrated his mastery of data tennis. 

"Data tennis is particularly suited for doubles," Nanjiro added. "That kid from Seigaku is quite something." 

At this, both Inagaki and Saeki's expressions shifted. It was rare for the legendary tennis player to offer such praise. 

Saeki's mind stirred. He had already been impressed by Inui's data skills, and Nanjiro's comment solidified his decision to include Inui in the U17 training camp roster. 

Thud! Thud! Thud! 

The match continued. 

Inui completely shut down Shishido's serve, and the Hyotei pair, still adjusting to this style of play, found themselves on the back foot. Gradually, Hyotei lost control of the match. 

Thud! 

"30-40!" 

Thud! 

"Game!" 

"Seigaku leads 2-1. Change sides!" 

At the end of the game, Hyotei had been broken. 

Shishido and Otori's expressions were grim, while Seigaku's players were ecstatic. If they kept this up, a second consecutive win wasn't out of the question! 

Huff... Huff... 

During the break, Shishido and Otori sat on the bench, breathing heavily. They were still trying to figure out how to break through Inui's data tennis. 

"Shishido, Otori!" 

Coach Sakaki approached them. Seeing their frustration, he shook his head. "You're too focused on the situation. Don't obsess over breaking his data tennis." 

"Huh?" 

The two looked up, confused. 

"Remember," Sakaki said firmly, "tennis isn't just about scoring points. It's about controlling the match and not letting your opponent dictate the pace." 

"Coach..." 

Their eyes met, and they nodded. "We understand." 

"Good." 

Sakaki's stern face softened into a slight smile. "Play at your own rhythm. Believe in yourselves. If you give it your all, no one on this court can beat you." 

"Got it!" 

The two stood up, bowing deeply to their coach before returning to the court. 

The serve now shifted to Seigaku's Kawamura. 

"Do we have to win this game?" 

Kawamura glanced at Shishido and Otori, recalling Inui's pre-match instructions. 

This was their first match against each other. Normally, both sides would spend the match gauging each other's strengths before the real battle began. 

But Inui had already laid out the strategy before the match even started. The key to victory lay in the fourth game—breaking Hyotei's serve and then holding their own. 

This would give Seigaku a two-game lead. 

From there, Inui would shift from offense to defense, using data tennis to maintain the lead. 

For others, tennis was a dynamic, unpredictable game. But for a data player like Inui, it was a series of calculations. Winning was about processing data and deriving the correct outcome. 

Inui's goal was simple: use probability to reverse-engineer the match's progression. 

And now, they were at the most critical part of that calculation. 

Thud! 

Kawamura served with power, forcing Otori to switch to a two-handed grip. 

Tap tap! 

Inui quickly moved to the net, using his height and predictions of Shishido's movements to keep the ball aimed at Otori in the backcourt. 

For Inui, the strategy was straightforward: as long as he could disrupt the flow of Hyotei's doubles, it didn't matter whether he targeted Shishido or Otori. 

He knew his opponents were no pushovers. Hyotei's strategist would surely figure out his plan. So, he and Kawamura had to execute their tactics before Hyotei could react. 

Thud! Thud! Thud! 

On the court, Inui held his own against Shishido and Otori. 

The Hyotei pair, wary of Kawamura, avoided hitting the ball to the baseline. 

But this allowed Seigaku to control the match. 

However, as Inui had predicted, Shishido and Otori gradually adapted to his style and began counterattacking. 

Thud! 

"40-30!" 

Twelve minutes into the match, Seigaku secured a crucial point. 

Inui and Kawamura exchanged a glance, and on the sixth serve, they both unleashed their full power. 

Thud! 

Finally, Seigaku won the fourth game. 

"Game!" 

"Seigaku leads 3-1!" 

"Yes!!!" 

Kawamura clenched his fist and roared in celebration. 

With the score now in their favor, Seigaku just needed to follow Inui's plan to secure the win. 

"Wait, it's that simple?" 

Horio and the others were baffled. They hadn't expected the supposedly invincible Hyotei to fall behind so easily. It seemed like Inui and Kawamura hadn't done much. 

"That's the power of data tennis," Coach Ryuzaki said with a smile. "Every piece of data is carefully analyzed, and the desired outcome is achieved through precise execution." 

If Seigaku could secure a second win, they would have a three-game buffer. According to Inui's calculations, Seigaku's chances of defeating Hyotei and winning the national tournament would exceed 70%. 

Thud! Thud! Thud! 

In the fifth game, Otori's serve game ended with four powerful New Heavy Cannon Serves. 

"Game!" 

"Hyotei trails 2-3. Change sides!" 

Despite winning a game, the Hyotei players showed no signs of relief. 

Next up was Inui's serve game. 

As expected, Inui delivered four flawless Waterfall Serves, and the umpire's voice rang out: 

"Game!" 

"Seigaku leads 4-2!" 

Just as Inui had predicted, the gap remained at two games. This put Seigaku in a strong position to secure the win. 

In the seventh game, Seigaku shifted to defense under Inui's guidance, even launching a counterattack to try and win the game. 

Thud! 

However, Shishido, now accustomed to Inui's style, used Limit Break to score and narrow the gap. 

"3-4, Seigaku leads!" 

In the eighth game, Kawamura served with full power, unleashing his strongest serve. But Otori's wrist and grip strength, honed through training, allowed him to handle non-Wave Ball shots. 

Still, Seigaku, with the advantage of serving, began an aggressive offense. 

Inui played fiercely, even breaking a sweat despite his stamina. 

The aggressive play paid off, and Seigaku scored consecutive points to widen the gap. 

But gradually, something felt off. Seigaku's scoring became increasingly difficult. 

"Their blind spots are shrinking!" 

Inui's expression darkened. 

Shishido and Otori's默契 was exceptional. Over time, Inui's predictions began to falter. What worried him more was that their improvement was outpacing his data updates. 

"This isn't good..." 

Inui's face grew more serious. 

He had encountered this situation before, during the first intra-school tournament of the semester. 

When this happened, it usually meant his data tennis was on the verge of collapsing. 

"Just one more point, one more point!!!" 

Desperate to secure the game, Inui pushed himself to the limit, unleashing a relentless assault to break through Hyotei's defenses. 

Thud! Thud! Thud! 

His attacks grew more ferocious, as if trying to tear a hole in their防线. 

"Inui..." 

Yanagi from Rikkai Dai's side showed a hint of surprise. "I didn't expect you to abandon data for the sake of victory." 

Without data, Inui's tennis became unpredictable. Normally, Shishido and Otori would struggle to adapt quickly. 

Inui might just score using this chaotic approach. 

Whoosh! 

But as Inui prepared to deliver the decisive shot, a milky-white aura suddenly enveloped Shishido and Otori. 

The aura swirled like ribbons, connecting the two. 

"That's..." 

The Seigaku players' expressions changed drastically. 

"Synchronization?!" 

Inui's瞳孔 contracted. 

His worst fear had come true. 

"No!" 

But then, a fierce glint appeared in his eyes. "Even if it's Synchronization, it won't stop us from scoring this point!" 

With that, Inui stepped forward and unleashed a powerful shot. 

Swoosh!!! 

The ball spun like a tornado. 

"What the..." 

The Seigaku players were stunned. Kaidoh's Tornado Snake Shot? 

No one had expected Inui to master Kaidoh's signature move. 

This shot seemed to guarantee Seigaku's victory. 

Thud! 

But in the next moment, a yellow streak exploded at Inui's feet. 

"How... how is this possible?" 

Inui froze, staring in disbelief at the white mark on the court. "That shot... it was impossible to predict!" 

Synchronization—the miraculous technique of doubles! 

Under its pressure, all of Inui's preparations crumbled like a house of cards. 

This time, Shishido and Otori's Synchronization felt natural, as if it had been destined to happen. 

Thud! 

Thirty-eight minutes into the match, Shishido, in Synchronization, delivered a Super Half Volley to score the final point. 

"Game, set, match!" 

"Hyotei Gakuen's Shishido Ryou and Otori Choutarou win, 7-5!" 

read more inpatreon

belamy20