140. Atobe doesn’t look nearly this flamboyant.

"Fuji's movements are much more agile than before, as if his feet were never injured at all..."

Seeing this, Shibazori momentarily wondered if her eyes were playing tricks on her. Previously, Fuji's leg injury had hindered him from reaching the ball despite his desperate running, but now he was actually teaming up with Akutsu to go head-to-head against Kiryu.

"He is indeed more agile, but pay close attention, Shiba, especially to the shifting of Fuji's left and right feet," Inoue Mamoru said, lowering his gaze.

"Ah... That footwork, haven't I seen it somewhere before?"

Shibazori recalled something through her camera lens and suddenly said, "That's right, Inoue-senpai, didn't Kiryu use that kind of footwork at the very beginning?"

"Precisely. That is the basic split-step, but Fuji's execution is even more refined than Kiryu's. This is a single-foot basic split-step. His speed in reaching the ball is half a step faster than the standard split-step, and a step and a half faster than normal footwork."

Inoue Mamoru nodded. Fuji Syusuke's tennis style was flamboyant and eye-catching, but pulling off such stunning and dazzling maneuvers required extraordinary physical talent. The remarkable, soft flexibility between his arms and legs was simply incomparable to ordinary people.

"Alternating his left and right feet to execute the single-foot split-step while controlling the rotation of his upper body—this is a technique he grasped right there on the court after witnessing Kiryu's playstyle," Sadaharu Inui explained.

"Although it's thrilling to see Vice-Captain Fuji use the single-foot split-step, won't that just increase the burden on his injured knees? After all, both of his legs are hurt," Shishido Ryo asked, looking at Inui.

"A prolonged confrontation might indeed increase the strain on one leg, but let's not forget, there's only one game left. In less than two minutes, utilizing a single-foot split-step like this actually cuts the burden in half," Inui pushed up his glasses.

"As expected of Vice-Captain Fuji... If it were us, we'd have zero chance of winning..." Akazawa Yoshirō remarked with a sigh.

"With Akutsu joining in, coupled with the fact that Uehara over there simply cannot integrate into Kiryu's playstyle, no one can stop our doubles pair anymore."

With that, Matsubara Mei stripped off his long-sleeved jacket and picked up his racket to begin warming up.

"What is going on... Fuji Syusuke, is he a monster?!"

Watching the score shift to 40-0, Kiryu completely doubted his own sanity. Why on earth could a Fuji in that condition still fight? Was it possible that his injury had been an act from the very beginning, or perhaps he hadn't been injured at all, or was he pretending to be hurt just to trick him into thinking he was?

"Game, Seishun! Fuji and Akutsu win! 6-1!"

The final point was secured when Akutsu created an opening for Fuji to score. Facing an utterly ordinary return shot from Fuji, Kiryu was no longer capable of hitting it back.

"Kiryu, tennis... cannot be used as a tool to harbor hatred. Though I may be unqualified to lecture someone older than myself, I at least hope you can understand this principle."

Fuji suddenly remembered saying these exact words to Ohtori, then cast a few glances at the speechless Kiryu before walking away gently amidst the blowing breeze.

"Hey, if you have any complaints about today's match, you can come find me at Seishun. I'll accompany you anytime," Akutsu said coldly, lifting his eyelids slightly.

Startled back to his senses by the murderous intent in Akutsu's gaze, Kiryu lowered his head slightly and remained silent.

Outside the court, deafening cheers erupted. Kiryu's red-rimmed eyes gradually faded to normal as he looked at Uehara standing motionless nearby and softened his tone. "Uehara."

"Uehara."

Seeing that Uehara didn't seem to hear him, Kiryu drew out his voice and called out again.

"Ah... Oh, are you alright now?" Uehara asked, noticing that Kiryu appeared to have returned to normal.

"Sorry about earlier," Kiryu nodded, offering a slightly apologetic smile.

Click, click, click!

Shibazori aimed her camera at Fuji and Akutsu, snapping picture after picture, while a crowd of girls gathered around them. Inoue Mamoru smiled and said, "What a thrilling match, Fuji."

"Ah, yes. I honestly thought I was going to have to withdraw because of the injury," Fuji replied gently with a faint smile.

"Well played, Fuji, Akutsu." Tezuka looked at the two of them with an approving gaze.

"Yeah, it took some time, but we finally won. Akutsu was a huge help in this doubles match," Fuji said softly before glancing at Akutsu, who merely wore his usual expression of indifference and said nothing.

"The bones should be fine; it's likely just soft tissue damage."

Inui disinfected and wiped down Fuji's injuries, then pressed gently around his left and right knees. Seeing that Fuji didn't react with pain, he spoke with certainty.

"Really? That's quite fortunate." Fuji smiled slightly as he sat on the grass.

"Just to be safe, you should still get it checked out at a hospital. After all, I'm not a professional. If Renji were here, he might be able to give a more precise diagnosis," Inui added.

"Hmm, but let's wait until the matches are over before going. It feels alright for now," Fuji nodded, his tone suggesting he was eagerly anticipating something.

"Hey... Is that really okay..." Akazawa Yoshirō strongly agreed with Inui's suggestion; shouldn't they avoid taking risks with this kind of injury?

"It's fine. After all, the next two matches are going to be spectacular. I'd regret it immensely if I missed them," Fuji smiled, shaking his head as he looked at Akazawa.

"I suppose Vice-Captain Fuji is simply looking forward to Captain Tezuka's match, isn't he?" Matsubara Mei teased, resting his hands behind his head.

"Well, you could say that."

Fuji turned his gaze to the young boy. Matsubara Mei froze for a moment, then let out a wry smile. True to form, the black-bellied bear prince didn't bother hiding his thoughts at all when he spoke.

Seeing Matsubara awkwardly rubbing his nose, Fuji flashed a brilliant, sunlit smile that felt as refreshing as a spring breeze. "Just kidding."

"Hahaha!" The people around them couldn't help bursting into laughter.

"With this, the doubles matches are one win and one loss. The rest is up to you, Matsubara," Inui said.

"Yeah."

The young boy finished his brief warm-up, returned, and nodded in acknowledgment.

He glanced at Hitoshi Wakato, the boy with the crab-claw hairstyle who was similarly surrounded by adoring girls, and Matsubara Mei shook his head with a wry smile. If it were Atobe, would he really allow so many girls to swarm around him?

"Still, Atobe doesn't look quite as flashy as Hitoshi Wakato..." the boy couldn't help muttering to himself.

"The singles matches are about to begin! Will the players for Singles Three please take the court immediately!"

A woman's voice echoed loudly through the athletic field via the loudspeaker.

"Ah! Wakato-kun!"
"So handsome!"
"Do your best!"
"Seiseki Shonan's side is so noisy..." Shishido Ryo frowned.

"Yeah, compared to the cheering from the girls on our side, their noise is just obnoxious. They're basically brainless fanatical fans..." Shibayama Kumakiri nodded in agreement.

"It's like a celebrity making a grand entrance," Inui stated flatly.