Chapter 188: Intense Duel

Accompanied by the crisp sound of the ball being struck, Tezuka watched a yellow streak of light flying back and forth across the Court.

Even his eyes could no longer keep up with the trajectory of the tennis ball.

He could only hear the sound of rackets swinging and the ball hitting the ground.

This speed and power far exceeded the strength Takahashi had displayed during the National Tournament.

So, just how much strength had Takahashi been hiding back then?

And to think that Takahashi, while hiding more than half of his strength, had actually been able to shut out him, Tezuka Kunimitsu.

Tezuka had originally known that the gap between him and Takahashi was large, but he had not expected it to be this large.

How on earth did Rikkai cultivate such a monster!

Beside him, Bismarck couldn't help but exclaim, "Although I had already guessed Takahashi's strength, I didn't expect him to be able to reach such an evenly matched situation with Q. P."

"The two of them have been rallying for two or three minutes now, and they still haven't determined a winner."

Borg said, "Pay attention to the landing spots of Q. P.'s shots."

Following Borg's indication, Tezuka cast his gaze toward where the tennis ball landed.

Because the power behind both players' shots was immense, the ball marks left on the ground were very distinct.

But Tezuka was surprised to discover that around Takahashi, all the ball marks were almost in the exact same spot.

And this spot was the midpoint of the Court's baseline.

"Senior Q. P.'s ball control is so strong!"

"All the balls are landing on the same point."

Tezuka exclaimed in surprise.

Making a tennis ball consistently land on the same spot is not actually difficult.

What is difficult is maintaining corresponding accuracy under such astonishing speed and power; this kind of ball control is extraordinarily powerful.

Bismarck replied, "For a long time, Q. P. has practiced hitting the tennis ball to a fixed point every day."

"This is just one manifestation of his Perfect Tennis, but don't underestimate this point."

"Having all tennis balls land on the same spot, ignoring any influence brought by the opponent's shots—this kind of performance-like hitting unconsciously demoralizes the opponent's consciousness."

"It makes the opponent submit to Q. P.'s flawless tennis technique."

Borg said in a deep voice, "Look at the landing spots of Takahashi's shots now."

Bismarck said in surprise, "Takahashi is also consistently hitting the ball to the midpoint of Q. P.'s baseline."

"Does he also possess such powerful ball control?"

Borg said, "This is the reason why the two of them are continuing to rally."

"Q. P. wants to dismantle Takahashi's inner resolve through an impeccable hitting style, and Takahashi is using the same method to return the favor to Q. P."

"In terms of fundamental strength, Takahashi might not be weaker than Q. P."

Tezuka muttered to himself, "Fundamental strength not weaker than Q. P.?"

Bismarck said, "What a terrifying player!"

"However, he is only 12 years old after all, and his body has not fully developed yet. If the battle remains deadlocked, Q. P. has the greater advantage."

"Q. P. is 17 years old, after all, and his physical development is nearing maturity."

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

The two on the Court were still rallying continuously.

Facing the rapidly approaching tennis ball, Q. P. frowned slightly; for some reason, he had an indescribable feeling.

He had to be the first to break this situation and take control of the match.

The strength of this middle schooler opposite him could not be underestimated, and his mind was even more formidable!

Thinking of this, Q. P. lightly flicked his arm and dropped a Short Ball.

As the tennis ball drastically reduced its speed and headed toward Takahashi, he ran quickly and immediately moved to the net.

Watching Q. P.'s movement, Takahashi also flashed forward, leaped up fiercely, twisted his wrist slightly, and delivered a Smash at the tennis ball.

Q. P.'s eyelids twitched; he was actually forcing a Smash against a Short Ball?

Having already reached the net, Q. P. retreated again, preparing to use a Half-Volley the moment the Smash bounced.

It must be said that the latest scientific training Q. P. had received since childhood played a major role at this moment.

Whether it was the angle of his body rotation or his movement speed, it was all perfect, as if he were deliberately showing off his skills, drawing rounds of applause from the spectators.

"Q. P.'s brain is calm enough; he can react immediately and resolve any accidents that appear on the court."

"Takahashi's Smash is useless now."

Bismarck watched Q. P.'s rapidly moving figure and couldn't help but praise.

Tezuka Kunimitsu watched the slightly downward angle of Takahashi's racket after the shot and felt a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen it before.

At this moment, Q. P. had already quickly returned to the left baseline in front of the net, and just as he prepared to swing his racket the moment the tennis ball landed and bounced, his gaze froze.

How could there be such spin on the tennis ball?

Something is wrong!

Then, in his eyes, the tennis ball did not bounce at all; after spinning in place for a few rotations, it rolled backward along the ground toward the net.

"Zero-Style... Smash!"

Tezuka Kunimitsu blurted out.

"A Smash that doesn't bounce after hitting the ground?"

"With such speed and weight just now, how did Takahashi impart spin to the tennis ball?"

"Could his strength really be above Q. P's?"

Bismarck was also stunned.

The few rallies between Q. P and Takahashi just now were entirely a contest of speed and power; in other words, a contest of their fundamental strength. At that level, he could still add spin to the tennis ball?

This means that in those few shots just now, Takahashi still had energy to spare!

Borg said in a deep voice, "No."

"Takahashi took advantage of the opportunity when Q. P hit a Short Ball. That Short Ball didn't have such astonishing speed; it was just in that instant that he added the spin belonging to Zero-Style to the tennis ball."

"Q. P wanted to use the Short Ball to break through the blockade, while Takahashi used this opportunity to score directly."

"What a terrifying calculation!"

The umpire announced loudly, "0-40!"

"Japan Team scores!"

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

The two people on the court once again engaged in an intense rally.

"What a fast ball!"

"What an astonishing duel!"

"Is this Takahashi's true strength?"

Shiraishi watched the match and sighed.

In that doubles match at the U17, Shiraishi had already felt that there was a huge barrier between Takahashi's strength and them, the middle schoolers.

But Shiraishi never imagined that when facing the No. 2 of the D-Guo Team, Takahashi could also trade blows back and forth!

That is the D-Guo Team, the nine-time world champions!

Moreover, when mentioning Q. P, even the other high schoolers of the First String were very wary.

Oni Jujiro sighed, "I didn't expect Takahashi's fundamental strength to be comparable to that Perfect Quality."

Byodoin frowned and said, "This is an evenly matched game."

"The strength of both sides is not much different, so the details become even more important."

"Although Takahashi just took a point relying on a Smash, if he has a moment of relaxation next, it will lead to losing points, or even a crushing defeat, because the pressure that Q. P's tennis brings to people invisibly is truly not small."

"This is Takahashi's first time participating in a world tournament; I hope he can hold on a bit longer under such heavy pressure."

Irie listened to Byodoin's words and, looking at Takahashi, who had a serious expression on the court, fell into deep thought.

"Oni, do you remember what happened the last time Takahashi played a match this seriously?"

Oni was stunned for a moment and said, "Are you saying that Takahashi is preparing to use Spirit Power to break through the current situation?"

"But Q. P's Spirit Power is far above Tanegashima's!"

While speaking, Oni calmed his heart to feel everything on the court.