Kite didn't respond to Irie's words. He had indeed been thinking along those lines just now, though he hadn't expected it to work. He wasn't sure if Irie was still acting, but that wasn't what mattered at the moment.
Without hesitation, Kite once again launched a Big Bang serve. Irie casually returned it, and the two of them clashed fiercely. But Kite quickly realized that all his movements were being completely read by Irie.
No matter where Kite tried to hit, Irie could predict it in advance and move accordingly, as if he were playing Data Tennis. That was Irie's most troublesome ability—he could see into your very thoughts.
After Irie once again intercepted early and returned the ball, Kite finally stopped holding back. A dark light flashed in his right hand as his left hand smashed the incoming ball. Familiar darkness descended again, the ball vanishing completely, this time even out of Irie's sight.
"Changed your strategy? Not only making the ball disappear, but also deepening the surrounding darkness to hide the ground's shadows? Clever idea. Too bad you still can't escape Black Hole's pull." Irie's voice was calm.
But in the next instant, a loud crash came from behind him, and the darkness dispersed like smoke. Irie turned to see cracks spreading across the court, the ball embedded deep in the wall.
"30-0!"
"Why do you think Dark Side always has to hit the opponent directly?" Kite said coldly after scoring.
"So that's it… you're exploiting the fact that I can't cover the entire court with Black Holes." Irie immediately caught on to the trick.
Kite didn't answer, while Irie only chuckled softly before continuing.
"Interesting! So you want to test insight with me? On that front, I'm very confident, you know~"
At the baseline, Kite picked up another ball and tossed it high. With a twist of his left wrist, he gave it sharp spin. This time, instead of a Big Bang serve, he hit a Great Habu.
But just as the ball bounced, a Black Hole swallowed it midair. Irie appeared behind it, swinging hard. The ball turned into an afterimage, landing right at Kite's feet.
"Irie-senpai's Black Hole really is a troublesome move~" Fuji said with a hint of awe from the bench.
"Hmph! Not even close!" Ryōma shot back stubbornly.
"Don't forget, Tokugawa-senpai will probably face you. He can use Black Hole too, Echizen." Fuji turned with a smile.
"Perfect. I've always wanted to test Black Hole again." Adjusting his cap, Ryōma's voice brimmed with confidence.
Back on court, Kite and Irie were locked in rally after rally. Kite tried Dark Side multiple times, but each was anticipated. Irie laid his Black Holes precisely where needed, forcing a stalemate.
After Irie blocked yet another Dark Side, Kite's expression finally shifted. He knew this couldn't continue. Suddenly, a purple aura surged around his body, wrapping him tightly.
"Divine Path of the Asura!"
"Tch~" Byoudouin clicked his tongue in irritation from the stands. Since when had Shura become so commonplace? Back then, he had clawed his way out of hell to master it. His reaction even drew a glance from Oni.
Empowered by Shura, Kite's stats soared. Still, brute force alone wasn't enough to break Irie's Black Hole. As the ball hurtled toward him, Kite's aura erupted with overwhelming intensity.
A flash of dark light, and Kite vanished into the shadows. This time the darkness swallowed him whole, leaving Irie unable to see his movements at all.
That left Irie both surprised and a little helpless. He could only rely on prior observation, placing Black Holes at the spots he guessed Kite might strike. But the ball blasted straight through his defenses, flying out of bounds and slamming against the wall.
"40-0!"
"Hiding yourself in the darkness too? You really went all the way with this~" Irie said in a strange tone as Kite's figure slowly emerged again.
For Irie, the feeling of both the opponent and the ball vanishing wasn't unfamiliar—in fact, it was very familiar. His former teammate and close friend, Tanegashima Shūji, had exactly this kind of playstyle.
It was precisely because of Tanegashima's unique tennis that Irie developed Black Hole. While it couldn't completely counter Tanegashima's Nothing, it gave him at least some means to resist. But once Tanegashima fully understood Black Hole's mechanics, Irie could no longer rely on an ordinary Black Hole to deal with Nothing.
Of course, that was just a side note. On the court now, Irie once again felt the same sensation he had when facing Tanegashima, while Kite had already served again. With the power of Shura, both speed and strength of his shots had risen to another level.
Irie had no choice but to quicken his rhythm, going all out in rally after rally. But with Kite hiding himself in darkness, Black Hole lost most of its effect. After all, Kite wasn't Byoudouin, stubbornly trying to hit every ball directly at the opponent.
"Game! Second string selection! 4-0!"
As Kite's full strength erupted, the match quickly turned one-sided. Irie couldn't accurately predict Kite's shots and thus couldn't place his Black Holes properly. Though he managed to intercept a few balls by luck, it barely made a difference in the overall match.
"Game! Second string selection! 5-0!"
By the sixth game, Kite still attacked relentlessly while Irie fell into a purely defensive posture, surrounding himself with Black Holes in hopes of catching Dark Side.
But defense was still just defense. Without a finishing move, Irie was being pushed back, even taking several direct hits from Dark Side. Cuts and bruises marked his face and body, leaving him looking badly hurt.
"Game! 6-0! Second string selection won! Overall score 1-0!"
The first set ended quickly. Irie walked back to the bench to patch himself up. Mifune chuckled at the sight and said bluntly:
"Still not planning to use your full strength? They're not the same as the opponents you've faced before!"
"You give me too much credit, head coach! I was already giving it everything. These juniors are just unfairly strong now!" Irie smiled at Mifune, never admitting his words.
Mifune could only shake his head in frustration. There was no way to change Irie's nature—he couldn't exactly point a gun at him and force him to fight seriously. The three coaches behind Mifune exchanged glances, all showing the same helplessness in their eyes.
"But… if I keep losing to middle schoolers, that's going to look really bad…" Irie muttered quietly to himself when no one was paying attention.
On the other bench, Akashi watched Kite calmly and said:
"Irie definitely hasn't used his full strength yet. It's his bad habit, but you can't let that make you relax. I'm certain he'll show something in the next set."
"I know. The one who'll win this match is me!" Kite answered with a serious nod.
Time passed quickly, and under the referee's signal, the second set was about to begin. Kite and Irie both stood up and walked to the court. Though shuffle matches followed official rules, since this was still an internal match, there was no court change.
The first game of the second set was Irie's serve. Standing at the baseline, he drew in a deep breath as his aura steadily rose, a torrent of mental force bursting out of him. Across the net, Kite's expression instantly grew grave.
"This doesn't fit with my life philosophy at all, but it looks like I'll have to use it now. I hope you can hold on for a while, Kite-kun!" Irie said in a strange, measured tone, staring at his opponent.