"Gulp—"
"Did he just return that ball?"
"No way, did Kamikawa really see the trajectory of that serve?"
"Even though it was just a net ball, he genuinely hit it back, and the angle of the return was incredible! He just needs a little more control. To be able to decipher Minister Ochi's Mach Serve in such a short time... that guy's a monster, isn't he?!"
Even with the evidence right in front of them, they still couldn't believe what they were seeing. An absolute serve that's impossible to return? Yet, someone just returned it right before their eyes.
"It's his speed."
Tezuka's palms were slightly sweaty, his gaze fixed on Kamikawa on the court, his eyes filled with genuine awe. Even if that return was a miss, the next one might not be. Many players can't even get into a return stance, barely managing to see the serve's trajectory. That's a major reason why Ochi dominates the national scene.
"Phew—"
Ochi stared at the tennis ball on Kamikawa's side of the court. In less than two games, Kamikawa had already seen through the trajectory of his Mach Ball, and even touched the ball.
"Ochi-senpai!"
Kamikawa's expression turned serious, his gaze piercing through the net to Ochi. "Your Mach Ball just now, you weren't using your full power, were you?"
"Hm?"
Ochi paused slightly. He had intentionally held back some of his strength. After all, there wasn't just a difference in tennis experience between them, but more significantly, a difference in their bone development. Ochi's bones were basically fully developed, while Kamikawa's were not; he was still growing.
Even so, Ochi's held-back Mach Ball wasn't something an average middle schooler could return. Even nationally, that Mach Ball he just hit could eliminate most tennis players. Only a very select few could even see the Mach Ball's trajectory, and even fewer could actually return it.
"Then let's keep going, Ochi-senpai!"
Kamikawa spread his legs, lowered his center of gravity, and gripped his racket with both hands.
"Hooosh—!!"
A crisp hitting sound echoed, and a fluorescent yellow blur instantly zipped across Kamikawa's court, landing steadily in the service box, bouncing up and hitting the back wall. This time, Ochi's serve was even faster than before.
"Game, Ochi, 2-0!"
"His speed is still increasing."
After a pause, Atobe frowned, watching Kamikawa's serving motion. "Is Kamikawa still trying to hit the Golden Snake's Dance?"
"Didn't that move have no effect on Minister Ochi? Why is he still insisting on hitting that shot?"
Shishido's face was filled with confusion. The Golden Snake's Dance had already been deciphered in the first game, Kamikawa's service game. Choosing to hit it again now would only unnecessarily exhaust his stamina.
"Kamikawa has his own ideas."
"That Golden Snake's Dance, it also has ultimate speed."
Tezuka said calmly, recalling Kamikawa's previous match against Fuji. At that time, Kamikawa had demonstrated the speed within the Golden Snake's Dance—no fancy movements, just speed so fast that his opponent couldn't react. That scene was very similar to the Mach Ball Ochi was hitting now.
"Ultimate speed?"
Everyone was stunned; this was the first time they had heard such a description. Could it be that the Golden Snake's Dance had different variations?
"Phew—"
Kamikawa exhaled slowly, gripping the tennis ball tightly. His aura continued to intensify, his eyes cold as ice, fixed on Ochi across the court. A grave fighting spirit flickered in his eyes. "Here I go, Ochi-senpai!"
Kamikawa tossed the ball high into the air, bent his knees, pushed off the ground, and then leaped up. He swung his racket, powerfully smashing it down on the ball in mid-air, creating a crisp hitting sound.
At this moment.
Kamikawa felt his body lighten, his mind clear, all his mental focus placed on his arm, on that tennis ball. Speed, power, spiritual energy—almost instantaneously infused into that tennis ball.
BOOM!
With a loud bang, Ochi instinctively surged forward, his body already in a swinging motion, but that fluorescent yellow tennis ball landed instantly, sliding past his feet. Following his gaze, Ochi looked down. The ball mark left a black imprint on the court, and the tennis ball, after hitting the back wall, remained in place, still spinning rapidly.
The landing wasn't perfectly precise. But in that instant, Ochi could feel that the angle of that serve was incredibly tricky, resulting in an irregular bounce. No—the tennis ball didn't even seem to bounce at all in that moment. The moment it touched the ground, influenced by that astonishing rotational force, it hugged the court, swaying rapidly left and right. Its speed was so great that even he found it difficult to recover.
"I—I did it!"
A smile played on Kamikawa's lips, and he gasped for breath. As long as he broke through the obstacle in front of him, everything would fall into place. The Golden Snake's Dance was complete. Such a serve, even if it's a half-volley, is impossible to return. The powerful spin imparted would instantly change direction if the racket frame even touched the ball, leaving the opponent with no way to return it.
"Kamikawa! Your name is Kamikawa Muzuki, right?!"
Ochi took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in his heart, his gaze fixed on Kamikawa. "How many more serves like that can you hit?"
"Three or four times."
Kamikawa didn't hide it. "If my spiritual power is sufficient, I can keep hitting them indefinitely."
The true essence of the Golden Snake's Dance lies in the enhancement of spiritual power. Kamikawa has already met the standards for speed, power, and technique. The principle is similar to the previous Golden Snake's Dance; the only difference is the instantaneous spiritual power imparted.
From Ochi's perspective, with the use of spiritual power, the Golden Snake's Dance is incredibly fast and the ball's trajectory is incredibly exaggerated. But in the eyes of those outside the court with lower spiritual power, it's just fast, similar to the previous Golden Snake's Dance. From a sensory perspective, there's a crucial difference between the two.
However, the current Kamikawa can't use too much spiritual power. His spiritual power on the stats screen already surpasses most middle schoolers; even Yukimura, with his high spiritual power, can't compare to Kamikawa. But Kamikawa's physical fitness is far from enough. This is due to the impact of bone development. In his second or even third year of middle school, Kamikawa's bones will fully develop. At that time, he will be able to hit the absolutely perfect Golden Snake's Dance.
Kamikawa had a premonition that by then, the serves he hit would be unreturnable even by professional players. Even if they were returned, Kamikawa was confident he could score immediately after the opponent's return.
'That's incredible. The swing amplitude in that instant was astonishing.'
From a distance, Mukahi finally recovered, forcefully suppressing the restless thoughts in his mind. He simply couldn't understand how Kamikawa did it. He was a first-year, just like him, yet he could hit such an exaggerated serve in front of Ochi.
Such a serve, even just one, could instantly change the entire atmosphere on the court. Many times, in a disadvantageous situation, a beautiful ace can instantly turn the tide. And Kamikawa even said he could hit three to four of them. In crucial games, three to four serves could directly decide the outcome of the match.
"Minister Ochi didn't lose a single singles match last year. Some even speculate that even he wouldn't necessarily lose against that monster from Okayama Academy."
"I really didn't expect Kamikawa to be able to score a point off Ochi."
Genichiro took a deep breath. Even some national-level masters could barely score against Ochi, except for the leaders of Okayama Academy, Maizaka, and Makinoto, whom Ochi hadn't played against. Everyone else had been easily defeated by Ochi.
"That's enough, Ochi, Kamikawa!"
Shintaro stood up, putting an end to the match. He knew Ochi's intention was just to test Kamikawa's abilities. Now that Kamikawa had hit a serve that amazed him, further testing became pointless. It might even earn him a reputation for bullying a junior.
Of course, Shintaro also saw that Kamikawa had a chance of winning, and that Maple Leaf Drop Shot had definitely improved significantly over this period. Ochi's 226cm height was not advantageous for dealing with certain net drop shots, and Kamikawa still had some techniques he hadn't used yet.
What a monster, a mere first-year able to hit such an exaggerated serve. You know, even Ochi back in the day only hit the Mach Ball that stunned the entire middle school division when his bones developed in his second year. Kamikawa's bones are still developing; his future will only be even more brilliant.
He originally thought that Bertie B. Burkhard's talent from Germany was astounding enough, but now it seems Kamikawa's talent is even more exceptional.
"Then that's all for today, Ochi-senpai."
Kamikawa took a deep breath, adjusted himself, put the tennis ball in his pocket, and walked towards the net.
"Kamikawa, the future belongs to you."
Ochi's cold eyes softened. After all, Kamikawa was also a member of the Hyotei Tennis Club. He was just curious why Kamikawa, with such skill, wasn't the captain of the Hyotei Tennis Club.
"I still have many shortcomings, and besides, who can truly predict the future?"
He said that, but Kamikawa's face was filled with confidence. Since he chose the path of tennis, he would carve out a completely new path and stand on a higher stage.
Ochi nodded, just about to say something, when Kamikawa vanished from in front of him, appearing beside Tezuka, muttering, "These two cans of iced soda are mine. You actually secretly opened one, you rotten Tezuka!"
"Didn't you say yesterday you'd buy me iced soda?"
Tezuka said with a knowing smile, completely making things up.
"This morning, wasn't I supposed to bring you breakfast?"
Kamikawa raised an eyebrow. This guy was still lying through his teeth. Yesterday, he clearly said he'd bring him breakfast and Tezuka would bring him iced soda. In the end, Kamikawa brought the breakfast, and Kamikawa paid for the iced soda too. Tezuka, you rascal! You usually look like such a proper guy with those thick eyebrows, but you're always trying to freeload.
Oh well, since you worked hard to keep my iced soda cold, I'll forgive you. Kamikawa naturally wouldn't fuss over this with Tezuka. At most, he'd just make Tezuka get him another bottle tonight. No big deal.
Ochi looked at Kamikawa's current demeanor, then thought back to how he was during the match, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly. He couldn't find any words to describe the Kamikawa he was seeing now.
"Ochi."
Shintaro walked up, also noticing Kamikawa, and said with a helpless expression, "That guy's just like that, you'll get used to it."
"Hm."
Ochi nodded, then looked at Shintaro with a complex expression. "His talent is far superior to mine back then. Hyotei should be able to win the National Tournament this year, right?"
Shintaro nodded, then suddenly thought of something and shook his head. "Not necessarily. Rikkaidai this year also vaguely shows the aura of a king. Both Rikkaidai's captain and vice-captain are first-year newcomers."
"Besides, there's also Shitenhoji from Osaka, Shishigaku Middle School from Kyushu. And don't forget the breakout teams from last year, Okayama Academy and Makinoto from Hyogo. Maizaka from Kyoto shouldn't be underestimated either."
"Indeed! Winning the National Tournament isn't as simple as it seems."
Ochi now recalled that the leader of Okayama Academy probably received a U-17 invitation, just like him. Furthermore, the two from Maizaka probably received invitations as well. The U-17 training camp is a brand new challenge for first-year high school students like them.
"Ochi, go ahead and do your best."
Shintaro tried to pat Ochi's shoulder, but his arm wasn't long enough, so he patted Ochi's back instead. "Aim for becoming a professional player. I'll find a suitable sponsor for you."
"Thank you, Coach Shintaro."
Ochi nodded heavily, genuinely grateful for Shintaro's guidance over the past three years. After some small talk, Ochi left the middle school division. Instead of returning to the high school division, he walked towards the address shown on the invitation in his current attire.