A moment later.
Both players stood on the court. Kamikawa looked at the slightly youthful Fuji and chuckled, "Shusuke Fuji, with your skill, you should be above those Seigaku regulars, shouldn't you?"
"I'm very curious, with such strength, why haven't you sparked a revolution at Seigaku?!"
Outside the court, everyone collectively turned to look at Fuji.
"Hmph!"
Takei snorted lightly, "Just a first-year brat..."
"Takei, shut your mouth!"
Yamato glared fiercely at Takei.
This guy, a third-year, cowered behind everyone in that situation, and now that Fuji stepped up, he's still mocking from the back. He shows no care as a senior, but acts more like a superior than anyone.
Through that match, Yamato finally understood that Seigaku's corruption was influenced by these second and third-year parasites. Regardless of whether Fuji wins this match or not, he will kick those useless parasites out of the regular spots.
No matter who it is!
Nothing could change Yamato's resolve at this moment.
"Yamato, you..." Takei still wanted to say something.
What met him was Yamato's murderous gaze, a look even Coach Ryuzaki had never seen on Yamato's face.
The usually friendly and good-natured captain seemed like a different person today.
"Oishi, do you... do you think Fuji will win?"
Kikumaru whispered to Oishi beside him.
Oishi shook his head, "Well... I'm not entirely sure. Why don't we ask Inui?"
Inui sighed, closed his notebook, and said, "Fuji, he's different from us. In the information I've gathered, Fuji has the least.
"However, since he's stepped forward, it means he has confidence."
Inui had investigated almost every player in the Seigaku tennis club, but there was one person he had investigated for a long time without finding much information. The only records he had were from a match a year ago where he appeared.
And that person was Shusuke Fuji, currently on the court.
"A revolution, huh!"
Standing at the service line, Fuji's mind replayed Kamikawa's words.
The next second,
Fuji raised his hand, tossed the ball, and swung his racket!
Thwack!!
"So fast..."
Seeing where the ball landed, the faces of the Seigaku members changed dramatically.
The tennis ball landed precisely in the back corner of the service box. The serve's accuracy was incredibly high, just barely touching the sideline, and its speed was immense...
"Our team actually has a first-year with such hidden strength!"
Coach Ryuzaki's pupils involuntarily widened. She had never imagined that a first-year in this batch could hit such a serve.
"A serve of such high quality, even if the opponent has the skill of a Hyotei regular, they probably..."
Before Kikumaru could finish.
Thwack!!
A crisp hitting sound echoed.
Under Kikumaru's gaze, Kamikawa stood perfectly at the ball's landing spot.
Thwack!
He raised his racket, hit a counter-slice, and the tennis ball flew towards the opposite dead corner of Fuji's court.
"That serve, was it returned so easily?"
Before they could think further, Fuji had already chased down the ball, and under everyone's watchful eyes, the tennis ball was hit back again.
"Step... step-step..."
Almost simultaneously, Kamikawa stepped closer and made another hitting motion.
Thwack!!
Another high-quality cross-court shot.
"His level... is very high!"
Fuji opened his eyes, feeling the spin of the tennis ball on his racket.
From the beginning, he felt Kamikawa was not simple. Now, it seemed Kamikawa might be even more formidable than he imagined.
However, Fuji was no ordinary player.
A baseline rally suited his playing style.
Moreover, in the first game, both sides needed to continuously hit to gather information. Some players would even sacrifice five entire games just to gather information on their opponent, though there might be some acting involved.
But, undeniably, as long as they could extract information and understand their opponent's hitting habits, when they truly launched an offense, it could put significant pressure on the opponent's psyche.
Thwack!
Thwack!!
On the court, both sides engaged in an intense offensive and defensive battle.
Even though the server had the advantage, Fuji showed no desire to attack.
It slowly turned into a rally, and neither side wanted to lose this point.
Thwack!!
Another ball landed on Fuji's side of the court.
It bounced back at high speed, and the angle of the bounce was particularly high.
"Topspin!"
Watching the rapidly spinning tennis ball, Fuji's eyes flashed.
The spin angle of this ball was clearly topspin, and a very high-quality one at that.
Fuji quickly moved forward, seized the opportunity, and before the ball bounced to its highest point, he quickly sliced it along the direction of the ball's spin. The moment the ball landed, it created intense friction, bouncing slightly at an angle, and flying out quickly, tightly hugging the ground, in a strange manner.
"15-0, Fuji!"
Kamikawa glanced at the ball mark that slid past his feet and did not attempt to hit the ball.
This brilliant technique also caught the attention of everyone outside the court.
"What was that just now?!"
Shishido frowned, "A technique that slides tightly along the ground, very similar to Kamikawa's Maple Leaf Drive."
"It looks similar, but the power is on a completely different level."
Oshitari slowly shook his head and said, "And, Kamikawa's move, I think Atobe, you should have experienced it deeply, right?"
Atobe nodded faintly, "That guy is far more terrifying than you imagine. The only tennis players who can defeat this magnificent me are him, and that guy."
The "that guy" Atobe referred to was naturally Kunimitsu Tezuka, the current captain of Hyotei.
Thwack!!
With a counter-slice, Fuji once again aimed the tennis ball at the dead corner of the baseline.
Smack!
Kamikawa quickly hit the ball back. Fuji turned, aimed at the ball's landing angle, spread his arms, and the moment the ball touched his racket, Fuji's pupils widened, and he froze in place.
Whoosh!!
Almost instantly, the tennis ball was returned. Kamikawa had just landed when the ball slowly fell, landing out of bounds, less than three centimeters from being in.
But it was those three centimeters that cost Fuji the point.
"15-15!"
"Just now, that was the Bear Drop, wasn't it?"
Shishido and Mukahi's faces were filled with confusion.
That Seigaku kid, he could use that move too.
And judging by his stance, it was exactly the same as when Kamikawa and Oshitari used it. It was clearly a nearly perfect Bear Drop, so why did it suddenly go out?
If it were them, the moment they landed, they would definitely rush towards the baseline, a timely sprint, and there would still be a chance to return that ball, but Kamikawa didn't move, as if he had seen through the Bear Drop, and was certain that this return would go out.
"That was the Bear Drop just now, right?!"
Oshitari frowned.
A technique that only he could hit in Osaka.
Now that he's in Tokyo, this technique seems to be everywhere, any few tennis players can hit such an astonishing technique.
"Mm."
Atobe, beside him, nodded, "The trajectory of this technique is very obvious."
"Kamikawa's smash just now had a bit more topspin, and it was a very strong topspin."
"That guy's technique is indeed flashy, but his power is far inferior to Kamikawa's."
Indeed.
Fuji's biggest advantage was his array of flashy techniques.
Each technique, if singled out, could earn a regular spot in a tennis club.
Not to mention Fuji, who possesses a multitude of techniques; this is why he is called a genius.
However, in terms of power, Fuji is far inferior to Kamikawa, just like in Kamikawa's previous match against Atobe. For Kamikawa's smash, without a certain amount of wrist strength to support it, it would be difficult to hit a perfect Bear Drop.
This is where that guy's strength lies.