(I tweaked it.)
BAM—!
Yoru scores, 4-3!
Every point was a one-shot kill.
After entering Glowing Mode, Yoru unleashed his full potential while releasing all his rune power, amplifying his abilities to an absurd degree. Even a casual return shot exceeded the limits of what most middle schoolers could handle.
But the real problem?
It was now Yoru's serve game.
Bounce… bounce… bounce…
The sound of the tennis ball echoed across the court, casting a shadow over the members of Mizunoe High. If they couldn't even return his shots, how could they handle his serve? Sure, they'd have more time to prepare, but the ball would also be faster.
SWISH—!
On the court, Yoru swung his arm, sending the ball soaring into the air with a flick of his fingers. He bent his knees, leaped, and stretched his body into a flawless serving motion—so textbook-perfect it was almost artistic.
Then, just as his racket approached the ball—
BAM~~~ BAM!
Only one impact sound was audible, but if you listened closely, a faint second echo lingered in the air.
A fresh black mark scorched the court.
No reaction.
He couldn't react at all!
Byoudouin Houou stood frozen, rooted to the spot like a wooden pole—utterly useless.
On the sidelines, Oni Juujirou muttered, "In this state… Yoru is invincible."
He still remembered that night—after Yoru's match against Q·P, he'd activated this exact same state, but at a level far beyond Q·P's. Even when Oni had been in Pinnacle of Perfection (Kijin no Kyouchi), he couldn't react to a single shot.
Byoudouin shot a suspicious glance at Oni. In the middle of all this noise, how had his voice come through so clearly? It was almost as if he could hear Oni's thoughts.
But before he could dwell on it, the next serve came flying.
"Yoru scores, 15-0!"
...
BAM—!
"Yoru scores, 30-0!"
...
BAM—!
"Yoru scores, 40-0!"
...
BAM—!
"Yoru scores, 5-3!"
...
Four serves. Four effortless points.
Byoudouin couldn't react to any of them. Even when he tried to swing, the ball had already whizzed past him—two of them even went straight through his legs.
"Am I really about to lose 5-0…?"
"No!"
Byoudouin gritted his teeth.
He had one last technique to try. It wasn't fully polished yet, but he had no other choice.
Chest heaving, breath ragged, he glared at Yoru's ghostly form and decided—he'd gamble everything.
On the other side, Yoru crouched low, readying his stance.
HUM—!
A dazzling light erupted from Byoudouin's fingertips.
Yamato frowned. "Another Glowing Shot? That won't work against the captain."
"No."
QP's expression shifted as he sensed a faint, ominous aura radiating from Byoudouin. "Oni… is that the technique from before?"
Oni's face darkened. "Yeah. And it feels stronger this time."
Destruction.
A technique born from expanding the Super Sweet Spot—a shot capable of annihilating everything.
Last time Byoudouin had used it, his racket had shattered before he could unleash its full power.
Even so, Oni knew how terrifying it was. If he hadn't awakened Asura's Path at the last second, even Pinnacle of Perfection might not have been enough to return it.
Now, the aura alone felt a whole tier stronger.
Oni couldn't help but worry—could Yoru's current state withstand it?
"..."
At the back of the court, Yoru narrowed his eyes.
He could sense it—this ball was different.
"What the hell is happening?!"
Byoudouin's expression twisted. Why could he hear everyone's voices so clearly? It was like he could feel their thoughts.
"Go to hell, Yoru!"
With a furious roar, Byoudouin unleashed his shot.
To push Destruction further, he'd trained for weeks in the mountains—even the slightest improvement had multiplied its power.
BOOM—!
Thunder crackled across the court, startling the audience.
Yoru, hyper-focused, didn't retreat. Instead, he charged forward, gripping his racket with both hands.
Using his momentum, he swung with all his might—smashing the racket face into the glowing ball.
CRACK—!
The sheer force exploded on impact, the shockwave blasting through the racket and into his body before slamming into the back wall.
The entire fence shuddered from the collision.
"What the—since when can tennis do this?!"
"Is that the same glowing ball as before?"
"This one feels way more terrifying!"
"What other insane techniques do these two have?!"
The crowd erupted in shock.
But the real horror was yet to come.
Yoru—struggling to hold his ground—was being pushed back by the ball's sheer force.
Then—
SNAP!
A crisp sound rang out.
Under the stunned gazes of the audience, Yoru's racket split in half, the ball carrying one half straight into the wall!
"Byoudouin Houou scores, 15-0!"
Silence.
For a few seconds, the entire stadium went dead quiet.
Then—chaos.
"That's—that's impossible!"
"His racket just broke?! No way!"
"That wasn't just a normal glowing ball—that was something else!"
The spectators were losing their minds.
But the ones most shaken were Seigaku's players.
The sudden turn of events had also caused the eerie glow around Yoru to fade, his pupils returning to normal.
"Huh…?"
"Damn it!"
QP's voice was tense. "The racket breaking disrupted his focus. Once that happens, he can't re-enter that perfected state immediately."
What?!
The team froze.
If even Glowing Mode couldn't stop Byoudouin now, how could Yoru win in his normal state?
"The state's gone…"
Yoru clenched his fist, trying to re-enter it—but failed.
Once his concentration shattered, regaining that level of focus was impossible in such a short time.
Should've used a heavier racket. If it hadn't broken, he wouldn't have lost the state.
"So this is the power of a Level 5 Destruction…"
Yoru's gaze lingered on Byoudouin.
When he'd returned the shot, he'd felt the racket reaching its limit—but instead of redirecting it, he'd tried to endure.
Big mistake.
If this had been the true perfected state (without drawbacks), it wouldn't have happened. But he was still missing that final piece of experience.
Super Sweet Spot was on another level compared to the regular Sweet Spot.
Even an unfinished Destruction had power bordering on Another Dimension—once perfected, it'd be unimaginable.
In his normal state, returning it was impossible.
Sure, Yoru had Supreme Domain (an Another Dimension-level technique), but that didn't mean he could return shots at that level.
With their base stats equal, Destruction's sheer force was overwhelming.
"Well… at least this one's worth copying."
Yoru smirked. "Guess I played myself. I could've shut you out 5-0, but I wanted to see how fun your techniques were. Too bad most of them weren't worth copying—except this one. Let's play again after you've traveled the world."
Byoudouin's eyes burned with fury.
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"
Another Destruction erupted from his racket, his voice bordering on madness.
Yoru's thoughts were flooding his mind—none of this felt real.
"Yeah, yeah, I hear you."
To the audience's shock, Yoru simply stepped aside, letting Destruction blast past him.
At the same time—
[Ding!...]
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