Chapter 124: The Curtain Falls, Challenger Keigo Atobe!

"I never expected to see the emergence of Synchronized Resonance in a scene like this."

A flicker of surprise flashed through Taizo Kise's eyes; such a scene could be called a rarity in this world.

Synchronized Resonance is a rare miracle that only has a minuscule possibility of occurring when a doubles pair faces a desperate crisis with no way out.

Even for pairs who have been partners for many years, if they lack sufficient tacit understanding and potential, they will never be able to trigger it voluntarily.

Yet, such a miracle is happening in a singles match...

His gaze piercing through the viscous air, Taizo Kise's eyes were fixed on the two figures on the court whose movements were truly synchronized.

Boom!

The wine-red racket swung past, a ball shadow quietly vanished in front of the racket face, and the remaining dozen or so split tennis balls instantly passed behind Chitose. One by one, the blood-red streams of light turned into a single one in an instant, tearing through the air with a sharp whistle.

"Point to Kippei Tachibana of Fudomine, 40-30."

Before the referee's voice had even faded, Kippei Tachibana and Chitose turned simultaneously, each walking toward their own baseline.

Their movements were identical, their strides the same, and even the expressions on their faces were almost exactly the same.

Although it is said that hitting all the tennis balls will definitely hit the real one, because Shiraishi and Oshitari Kenya had returned the Explosive Ball Dance in this way.

However...

Soon, it will be soon.

Facing two national-level players who are not inferior to himself at the same time, it seems that even Atobe can only helplessly head toward the outcome of defeat.

The tie-break begins.

"It's possible."

"What a pity."

Hearing this, Taizo Kise glanced sideways, looking in the direction of the finger. A divine light that seemed to see through everything overflowed from his ink-green eyes, and Atobe, not far away, felt a chill run down his back.

Leaning his body back, the overflowing emotions dissipated like a receding tide. Taizo Kise watched the figures colliding on the court and spoke.

Although the scene before him felt extremely absurd to Coach Sakaki, he still dutifully explained to the Bing Di group what Synchronized Resonance was.

"World."

【Of course, but I won't let you have your way so easily!】

"You can do it, but he can't."

"Synchronized Resonance, simply put, is what is known as 'tuning'."

Therefore, wanting to understand the next action the other is about to take is almost as easy as turning over one's hand."

One can only say that doubles is not as simple as one imagines.

In singles, the two understand each other's thoughts very well; it is as if they are playing with open cards. Therefore, their ball paths have become more direct, and the rallies more intense.

"If those two formed a doubles pair, they would be the absolute number one in the nation."

"It's Synchronized Resonance!"

Yuuki Satoru looked up at the court and said with a smile: "Coach, after the National Competition, let's fulfill our previous agreement and have a match!"

And although he himself can deal with their attacks under Synchronized Resonance, Atobe might not be able to. He will become a flaw in their eyes, the focal point of fire on the court.

"If I formed a doubles pair with that guy, could we beat them?"

Yuuki Satoru raised an eyebrow, rubbing his chin in thought. He did not expect such an answer, but he did not doubt Taizo Kise's judgment.

Boom!

"Game, Bing Di Xue Yuan, Chitose Senri, 6-6!"

Watching such a bizarre scene on the court, Coach Sakaki finally realized it belatedly, an expression of disbelief appearing in his eyes.

Taizo Kise was silent.

"The world's top professional doubles players once said this:

If doubles does not produce Synchronized Resonance, one has no qualification to dominate the world!"

This is also what Coach Kise said: I can do it, Atobe cannot, and the match will be lost.

Yuuki Satoru shook his head slightly, as if some interesting idea had popped up, his finger pointing at Atobe on the Bing Di side.

And it is different from the mutual cooperation in doubles.

He withdrew his gaze and replied in an unquestionable tone.

【Kippei, you should know what I'm thinking, right?】

In moments of distress, by relying on a partner one can completely trust, one can exceed one's own limits. Not only can one make one's movements, thoughts, and even breathing resonate in synchronization with the other.

Boom!

The tennis ball was served from Chitose's hand, the brilliant white light precisely pressing on the service line, its speed not diminishing in the slightest.

"It's just that I didn't expect to see the miracle of doubles in a middle schooler's match, and in a singles match at that..."

In the state of Synchronized Resonance, not only will Chitose and Kippei Tachibana's physical functions exceed their own limits, but the two are as if one in body and soul, capable of combining their strengths to erupt with a level far exceeding the two of them.

A few seconds later.

You will lose."

Sweat dripped from their chins, soaking the ground. Chitose and Kippei Tachibana panted heavily, their soaked shirts clinging to their bodies. The two looked at each other with burning gazes, their consciousness communicating in an instant.

Speed, power, changes...

Every exchange was constantly climbing higher through mutual breaking and returning.

"Number one?"

"If you can take that step, there is still a chance."

With the appearance of this term, Atobe's expression became exceptionally solemn and serious. None of the methods that can be displayed on the world stage are simple.

"Haaah!"

Kippei Tachibana stepped on the ground with one foot and lunged forward, his attention highly focused. The sound of the tennis ball tearing through the air was clearly captured by his ears.

The match has been deadlocked until now, and his stamina is almost bottoming out, but when he swung his racket with all his might, the originally withered lion aura still gushed out.

"Squeak~"

The racket strings hit the tennis ball, and that teeth-grinding tearing sound reached the ears of everyone on the sidelines.

Boom!

The tennis ball flew back in reverse.

"Yaaah—"

Chitose stepped sideways, his racket backhanding a draw.

Amidst the shouting, the aura of No-Self surged violently, sucking up all the stamina that might exist in his body.

Talented Radiance activated again, the incomplete aura of Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering was moved toward his legs and left hand by his tenacious will, and he rushed toward the net at high speed.

"It's already reached the tie-break, why can they still erupt with such fierce rallies!?"

Neicun Jingjie showed deep confusion. The two people's stamina should have bottomed out. Even if their will to win is firm, it is impossible to violate biological instincts.

"No."

Yuuki Satoru shook his head, answering his question.

"From the beginning, the two of them had already planned to decide the winner in the tie-break.

Whether it is Tachibana's Explosive Ball Dance or the Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering that Chitose is trying to open, they are extremely stamina-consuming moves.

If they were used rashly, even if they won a point or two, they would be pulled back by the opponent due to lack of stamina.

But the rules of the tie-break state that the first to reach seven points wins, and in the case of a six-point tie, one only needs to win by two clear points to end the match.

They can wantonly burn their remaining stamina and launch the final battle."

"This match, perhaps it has only now reached the true decisive moment."

Sure enough.

As soon as Yuuki Satoru's voice fell, Kippei Tachibana's long-hidden ultimate move reappeared on the court.

Ex! Plo! Sive! Ball! Dance!

Kippei Tachibana leaped into the air, his racket sweeping out horizontally, and the racket frame glowing with a black-red aura slammed into the tennis ball.

Sss, sss, sss...

At the moment of impact, the tennis ball twisted and deformed, the entire ball compressed into a flat shape, and then countless tennis balls suddenly appeared on the court.

Swish, swish, swish!

The tennis balls filling the sky were like lava erupting from a volcano, countless burning flying stones splashing everywhere from the sky.

At this moment, a figure rushed to the net against this terrifying momentum.

A colorful milky-white aura appeared in his eyes, gold and white light intertwined and reflected, and the ball shadows filling the sky seemed to slow down in an instant.

A glance.

"This one will be out!"

"This one is in!"

"Out!"

"In!"

At a glance, Chitose's thoughts were intensely active. Although he couldn't see through which one was the real tennis ball, he could first exclude all the ball paths that would go out, and then—

The incomplete Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering aura was distributed on his left hand.

Swish, swish, swish!

Chitose's racket swinging speed suddenly increased, his racket instantly swept across several tennis balls in front of him, and one phantom after another dissipated.

Then, the aura continued to shift to his legs, and with a step, like teleportation, he suddenly appeared in various positions in front of the net and repeated the previous behavior.

He attempted to return all tennis balls that might land in bounds.

"It can't be done." Yuuki Satoru did not think highly of Chitose's response method.

Although it is said that if you hit all the tennis balls, you will definitely hit the real one, because Shiraishi and Oshitari Kenya had countered the "Bullet Dance" in this way.

But that was two people.

One is the Tennis Bible, and the other is the number one speedster in the nation.

Even if Chitose used the incomplete Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering to strengthen his speed, it is impossible to complete what requires two people to do.

Boom!

Chitose's racket desperately shattered the phantoms, but the tennis ball still passed through his defense as Yuuki Satoru had expected.

"Point to Tachibana, 1-0."

Boom!

"2-0."

"No! Still can't return all the ball shadows!"

When it was Kippei Tachibana's turn to serve, the situation was completely controlled by him. The changes when the Explosive Ball Dance was used were even more complex and varied, leaving Chitose overwhelmed.

And Chitose was still struggling hard.

"Since I can't return all the tennis balls, then—

I will return to the origin and find the only real tennis ball that exists!"

He shouted loudly, Talented Radiance bloomed with all its brilliance in his eyes, and the incomplete Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering aura also flowed from his limbs and bones to his eyes, different auras converging in one place.

Hum~

Chitose suddenly shook, his eyes suddenly went dark, but immediately after...

A brand new world appeared before his eyes!

"This is... the true Limit of Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering!"

In the state of Synchronized Resonance, which exceeds the body's limits, Chitose gathered the incomplete Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering into his eyes, using the double-strengthening characteristic to enhance his dynamic vision, attempting to let Talented Radiance's prediction see a clearer future.

But he didn't expect that the moment these two homologous forces came into contact, they actually resonated with each other. Under the guidance of Talented Radiance, the incomplete Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering completed the final sublimation, filling in the last piece of the puzzle needed for Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering.

"It's truly unbelievable. I never thought that Talented Radiance and Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering could actually coexist. Perhaps when setting limits for oneself...

One has already decided where one's own limits lie."

Chitose looked at it, and under the combined effect of Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering and Talented Radiance, the world he saw was completely different.

Boom!

His racket drew forward, all the ball shadows produced by the Roaring Lion dissipated, and the tennis ball shot back rapidly.

Feeling his own power, Chitose thought of Tezuka Kunimitsu, whom Atobe had mentioned.

"In such a helpless situation, I relied on Synchronized Resonance to exceed my limits, only then could I fight to the death to open the two doors of No-Self.

How on earth did that Tezuka Kunimitsu manage to coordinate the two perfectly?"

At this moment, Chitose felt endless curiosity about Tezuka, whom he had never met.

Perhaps...

That guy might be the person closest to the 【Heavenly Seamless Ultimate Move】!

"Haaah!"

In the state of Synchronized Resonance, Kippei Tachibana could clearly feel Chitose's suddenly changing aura. The sea area that had been broken free seemed to drag him into a cage once again.

And facing such a sudden change in the situation, the only thing he needed to do was—

Attack!

Attack!

Attack again!!

Take down this final match point!!

Watching the flying tennis ball, Kippei Tachibana moved instantly.

Under the blessing of Synchronized Resonance, the dark red lion aura became even stronger, the airflow rolled his shirt, and his body surface was dyed with a layer of blood-red halo.

He knew that now, relying solely on the Explosive Ball Dance could no longer guarantee the gain or loss of the next point.

The tennis ball approached him, his peripheral vision sweeping over Yuuki Satoru.

"I haven't completed the third stage of the Wildness stance yet, but...

I'm going to try to use that move!"

The lion's aura suddenly retracted into his body, the pressure on the court dissipated by more than half, and Kippei Tachibana let out a roar, like a roaring male lion.

Chitose sensed Kippei Tachibana's next plan immediately, the aura of the two doors running to the limit. The ball that would decide the outcome was coming, and there was no room for the slightest slack.

"Lion's Roar·Explosive Ball Dance!!!"

The racket left a whistling afterimage in the air, accompanied by a soundless critical strike, and the tennis ball flew toward the opposite side of the court.

After the silence.

Roar—!!!

A bloody, primitive aura suddenly struck. The male lion, stained with blood, roared at the sky. The tennis ball instantly tore into countless split phantoms, the ferocious and terrifying momentum making people's teeth chatter and shiver.

The ball shadows filling the sky, the blood-colored male lion.

Chitose stood alone on the court, looking helpless, just like prey in a movie waiting for a beast to tear it apart, about to fall into a bloody mouth.

Under the blessing of Thousand Hammer Hundred Tempering and Synchronized Resonance, Talented Radiance erupted with nearly three times the effect, the gold and white intertwined eyes seeing through the countless ball shadow changes.

Pop, pop, pop!

The ball shadows filling the sky shattered like bubbles one by one, and the only real tennis ball had its coat peeled off.

Slash—

The racket swung out, and because the speed was too fast, only a blurry white light could be seen in mid-air!

"Kippei—"

"Chitose—"

Boom!

A blast that made the eardrums ache suddenly sounded, and an invisible air wave spread from Chitose to the entire court, kicking up a layer of dust and smoke that blocked everyone's vision.

The venue was dead silent, everyone stretched their necks, trying to see through the scene behind the dust.

"... Did I win?"

Someone asked cautiously, not knowing who it was.

However, before the dust had dissipated, the referee's verdict had already reached everyone's ears via the broadcast.

"Game, Fudomine Middle School, Kippei Tachibana, 7-6!"

"The match is over, Fudomine Middle School wins, total score 2-1."

At this moment, people noticed a wine-red racket lying far away at the edge of the court, with broken lines on the racket face, as if it had been attacked by the sharp claws of a beast. ===== CHAPTER 125 =====