SWNOVELXO Chapter 119 Protracted War
‘Could it be that just now... you were all acting? ! ’ When Atobe thought of this, his eyes changed instantly, and then he swung the ball fiercely.
"boom--"
Unfortunately, this time he didn't score as he thought. The tennis ball was hit back instantly by Irie and landed about ten centimeters away from Atobe's left foot.
Accompanying the sound of the ball hitting the ground was Irie's sentence that was quite heartbreaking for Atobe - Irie's mouth slightly raised, and he said in an extremely flat voice, "Have you been discovered~".
Although the tone is calm, it somehow gives people a strong sense of ridicule.
……
"Irie won this game, the score is 1 to 5!"
……
"Irie won this game, the score is three to five!"
……
As if he planned to attack with all his strength because he was discovered, Irie, who was still suppressed by Atobe, instantly scored several points. During this period, Atobe basically never touched the ball except when serving.
"That senior Atobe... was actually suppressed?" A certain junior high school student who admired Atobe's strength looked surprised, with a slight bitterness in his tone.
Fuji on the side opened his narrowed eyes when he saw this, and said in an incomprehensible tone: "This senior Irie seems to be a very difficult character~"
……
"boom--"
"boom--"
Maybe anger can temporarily improve a person's athletic ability? Thinking that Irie had been playing tricks on him, Atobe's anger gradually increased, and the originally suppressed situation slowly became "come and go". Although Atobe was a little reluctant to catch the ball and fight back, compared to The situation of being suppressed and beaten before was much better.
but……
"boom--"
"Irie won this game, the score is four to five!"
Although he can barely fight back, more often than not he still scores points!
"...bastard!" Atobe bent down and put his hands on his knees.
……
"Irie... Sure enough, he's playing again!" Standing behind Tokugawa with black skin and white hair, he looked at the score on the field with a playful smile, and then glanced sympathetically at Irie's 'new toy'.
Because the reversal of the situation was so shocking, some junior high school students still didn't want to believe that Atobe would be suppressed by Irie, but more people began to carefully observe Irie's every move.
"His movements...compared with just now..." A certain young man with a bright head said hesitantly, "It seems very different..."
"That guy...what's going on!" Some junior high school students who haven't seen Irie's bad nature are still confused about the current situation.
……
"Irie is not from Court No. 3." Suddenly, a "Vicissitudes of Life" voice came from behind them. The teenagers looked back and found that it was Oni Jujiro who was speaking.
They were quite curious about the ghost's words, so they stared at him with their questioning eyes, hoping that he could be more specific.
"I never said it just now... In fact, Irie's strength is much stronger than those on Court No. 3..." Oni Jujiro supported his chin with both hands, "The reason why he is on Court No. 3... is to balance and improve all aspects of the game. The strength of the stadium..."
"So this game isn't..."
"How is that possible, Atobe..."
"Atobe will win, right?"
……
After hearing what Oni said, the junior high school students began to worry about Atobe on the field, and their original confidence in winning the team competition began to disappear.
Listening to the discussions outside the court, Atobe suppressed his irritable mood and worked hard to find a flaw in Irie.
Just when he thought he saw Irie's flaw and was about to swing his racket, the transparent icicles that should have appeared on Irie's side suddenly appeared around him.
"What, what's going on?" Atobe looked around in confusion. He was about to swing the racket, but at this moment he found that his body seemed to have become stiff.
"Irie's power mainly lies in his ability to understand the opponent's psychology... Therefore, he will see through all the opponent's thoughts and actions..." Oni Jujiro explained in a low voice outside the court, his tone full of worries about Atobe. .
"Click——"
"Irie won this game, the score is six to five!"
As the icicles around Atobe were shattered by tennis balls, Irie scored another point.
Seeing that the young man in front of him who was sweating was no longer as proud as before, Irie had a scornful smile on his lips and said in a slightly mocking tone: "The whole body is full of flaws...it's you! Atobe-san."
Looking at the casual expression on Irie's face and the playful words, Atobe remembered his childhood experience abroad: At that time, the peers around him were much better than him in terms of tennis skills and everything. Every day... His body is covered with scars from tennis matches with the surrounding children...
From then on, he began to think of ways to find out his opponent's weaknesses and attack without reservation... No matter what the people around me said, this was the only way I could go. Thinking like this, Atobe's eyes became sharp, and a kind of momentum gradually rose up on his body. At this moment, the sky seemed to be falling with snow in a generous manner...
Sensing that something was amiss, Irie was already prepared. He clapped his hands with both hands and waited for Atobe's counterattack.
"As expected... I still only have that one choice!" Atobe suddenly laughed and looked at Irie.
"Oh?" Irie, who knew that Atobe had made a decision, also laughed, "It seems... you have already made up your mind~"
……
"boom--"
……
"boom--"
In the following game, the two of them played more devotedly, but Atobe seemed to have made some awakening, and his strength improved. The fight with Irie was not as difficult as before, but a real back and forth.
"Hey~ Just give up. It would be easier to give up your senseless self-esteem and admit defeat earlier~" Irie, who could tell at a glance that the other party had consumed more than himself, was quite nonchalantly persuading Jibu to admit defeat.
Atobe directly refuted that what he cared about now was not his self-esteem, but the team of junior high school students and the outcome of the game.
Feeling that Atobe was stubborn, Irie used a move similar to Atobe's 'Ice World' to find Atobe's blind spot and give him the final blow. Unfortunately, the purple prism that originally landed next to Atobe was there. It suddenly dissipated at the critical moment, which also meant that Irie's move could not find Atobe's flaw.
On the contrary, Atobe's eyesight improved under Irie's pressure. Now he can clearly see through Irie's body and see the bones and joints inside the opponent's body...
"boom--"
"Atobe won this game, and the score is currently 6-6!"
Watching Atobe score a point, Irie recalled the feeling of being unable to move at that moment, and looked at Atobe in surprise.
Atobe spoke out the name of his new move - Atobe Kingdom.
"Seeing bones and joints... isn't this clairvoyance? And a living person turned into a skeleton???" That scene... I didn't dare to think about it. Amamiya Lan shrank his neck and silently approached Yukimura.
Nioh's mouth twitched as he thought of his dear partner, Hiroshi Yagyu, the future doctor.
Nioh: Suddenly I feel... Atobe's move is a perfect match for Yagyu! Doctors and X-ray skeletons...don't they go hand in hand? Also, isn't this really an X-ray?
……
The thoughts of everyone outside the field have no meaning to the game, and the game on the field is still proceeding in an orderly manner.
Atobe and Irie, who had evolved, entered into a protracted battle - the 'tie-break' game.
……