Chapter 53: Shedding, Revealing the True Form

"Nan and Dongfang's coordination remains as strong as ever."

Dalin Taifu wore a smug smile; the two doubles matches were almost already secured.

From now on, as long as singles main player Qianshi Qingchun encounters no mishap, Yamabuki can enter the finals with three straight wins and contend with the Ice Emperor for the National Competition championship.

Turning his gaze to Qianshi Qingchun and seeing his energetic demeanor, Dalin Taifu couldn't help but show an expectant expression.

Qianshi's presence compensates for Yamabuki's singles shortcomings.

Maybe this year they can truly make it into the National Competition!

"Want to double up at the net again?"

Seeing Nan Kentaro and Dongfang Yamei appear at the net together, Shinji Kamio's pupils contracted, and his attempt to rush forward for a volley froze in midair.

The tennis ball, seizing the opening, bounced down and sprang toward the out-of-bounds.

"Ha!"

Shenwei Ming suddenly snapped back, planted his toe, his body turning into a blur, and with a sliding step caught up with the ball's trajectory.

Bang!

He drew his racket from his side, deftly pulling it upward, sending the ball toward the backcourt in an attempt to break through Yamabuki's double frontcourt assault.

"Too naive!"

Nan Kentaro's gaze swept, taking in the arc of the high lob, his body darted quickly to the backcourt, and his right-hand racket rose accordingly.

As the ball descended, his left foot arrived, a flash of steel in his eyes, and he swung the racket fiercely.

"This forced posture

is a cross-court shot."

Defending at the baseline, Shi Tian Tie saw Nan Kentaro's move, kept his footwork steady, and hurried to cover the right half-court.

"What a pity, even with this posture our Nan could still hit a straight ball."

Lechuan Jinzhiluo's eyes flickered as he said confidently.

Sure enough, the next moment.

Bang!

A slashing yellow streak darted into Budongfeng's court, its straight trajectory cutting a slice out of the court.

"Game, Yamabuki Middle School Nan Kentaro, Dongfang Yamei, 5-2."

"Switch courts."

Standing at the baseline, Shenwei Ming pursed his lips, his expression composed as he looked toward the two opponents brimming with momentum.

One with a hedgehog haircut, the other with a big slicked-back hair.

Although their sense of style was beyond Shenwei Ming's praise, as a doubles pair their skill was truly no joke.

Shitian's spin ball won only one game before they blocked it with tactics.

And his own speed was suppressed by their rain‑like double up‑at‑the‑net assault, leaving him momentarily at a loss.

"Why haven't you given instructions yet? We're almost at Yamabuki's match point."

Shenwei Ming anxiously glanced sideways at the coach's bench, while Jiecheng Wu remained motionless.

The spectators outside already formed their own verdict on this match's outcome.

"Sure enough, Yamabuki's doubles are still superior."

"The two sides are on completely different levels!"

A faint, inexplicable glint appeared in his eyes; despite the far‑behind situation, Jiecheng Wu stayed as steady as a mountain, showing no sign of panic.

He observed the entire match process of Shenwei Ming and Shi Tian Tie.

As singles players, their strength is certainly not lacking; they are only a hair's breadth away from the Kanto level.

But as a doubles pair, their performance falls short; clearly one plus one yields less than two.

This clash with the Potato Braves will greatly aid their future doubles play.

Exactly!

In Jiecheng Wu's mind, Shenwei Ming and Shi Tian Tie will be Budongfeng's number‑one doubles pair, a perfect combination of power and speed.

After Ju Jiping joins the team, Budongfeng's three singles matches will be handled by him, Ju Jiping, and Yiwu Shen Si.

The doubles pairs will be: Shenwei Ming & Shi Tian Tie; Neicun Jingjie & Sen Chende; and the substitutes, Yingjing Ya & Ping Minchun.

Ban Lao looked at Jiecheng Wu, a hint of admiration in his gaze.

To stay calm at such a critical moment—young people are truly becoming remarkable.

At that moment, behind him, Lechuan Jinzhiluo urged Qianshi Qingchun.

"Qianshi, you should be warming up!"

In his view, this match was already over, and Qianshi should prepare for the upcoming singles match.

But Qianshi Qingchun gave no response, propping his chin with one hand, his eyes showing a hint of confusion.

"Something feels off"

"Where?" Lechuan Jinzhiluo spread his hands and asked.

"Isn't the match about to end?"

Qianshi extended his right hand, lightly pointing at Shenwei Ming and Shi Tian Tie on the court, and said earnestly.

"But do you see the look on their faces as if they're about to lose?"

Shenwei Ming, while fiercely returning, kept glancing toward the sidelines.

What is he looking at?

The Yamabuki crowd grew puzzled, then were drawn to a sudden explosion.

Bang!

The tennis ball pierced out through the left dead corner of Shitian Tie.

"0-15!"

The referee's voice fell, and Jiecheng Wu finally stood up, requesting a timeout from the referee.

Then, he nodded toward Shenwei Ming and Shitian Tie as they came down from the court.

The implication was obvious.

"Leaving you three points of margin, no problem, right?"

Although it was a question, Jiecheng Wu's tone sounded more like a statement.

"Of course."

Having finally received the order, Shenwei Ming and Shitian Tie both exhaled; competing against the Yamabuki No. 1 doubles pair while bearing weight was indeed not easy.

"What is that?"

Lechuan Jinzhiluo narrowed his eyes, his expression stiff, feeling an utter absurdity deep inside.

"They actually?!"

Puff! Puff!

Shenwei Ming was seen removing the weight from his wrists and ankles; the sound it made when it fell indicated the weight was far from light.

Shitian Tie was even more exaggerated, wearing a black weight vest under his uniform; when he stripped it off, the robust, coiled muscles hidden beneath were revealed, an astonishing presence.

When Neicun Jingjie took the weight vest, his hands sank noticeably, showing how terrifying its weight was.

"These two guys actually wore the weight and finished seven sets?!"

The expressions of the Yamabuki crowd became especially complicated.

Not only did the two's strength exceed their expectations, but they were also surprised by Budongfeng's bold move.

They only removed the weight in the final set; do these two really still have the stamina to turn the match around?

"Phew~ finally got this thing off."

Shenwei Ming hopped in place, feeling light enough to fly.

"Shitian, we must give them a proper color."

He said coldly, the previous match had really left him feeling stifled.

"Hmm, give it your all and go for it."

With steady eyes, Shitian Tie also gave a deep glance at the opponent's slicked-back hair and spiky hair.

His fluctuation ball isn't that easy to block!

The match continues.

"Jian Ta Lang, don't be scared by them."

Dongfang Yamei, whose hair was styled in a big slicked-back look, had eyes full of disbelief, and felt an indescribable shock deep within.

"Understood."

Hearing his partner's words, Nan Kentaro clearly felt Yamei's fluctuating heart, and calmly said behind him.

"No matter what, as long as we take another three points, we win."

On the baseline.

Shenwei Ming's mouth curled into a smile, turning the match around from now on.

Here it comes!

Bang!

With a crisp sound, the tennis ball struck precisely at the inner side of the service box's bottom corner, skimming Dongfang Yamei's left cheek as it flew out.

It's my birthday today, and I only realized it in the early morning while writing, f^^*).

Then I walked onto the street to see if there was any food left, ended up buying some fried skewers, came back and strolled a while, listening to NetEase Cloud's tracks that made me a bit emo () yīng yīng yīng~.

Actually, at dawn the streets were still quite crowded; the barbecue shop was full of people, men and women gathering to skewer meat and drink beer.

I even saw someone walking their dog on the road at that hour; the silly dog smelled my fried skewers and came over.

Hahaha.

Finally, do you think it's better for me to post one chapter per update, or to post two chapters together like this?

(End of chapter)