The first game was Oni's serve. He walked to the baseline without saying a word, tossed the ball up, and blasted out a powerful high-speed serve straight into Yukimura's court.
Faint blue lightning flickered in Yukimura's eyes. A shadow trailed behind him as he instantly appeared at the landing point. Just before swinging, he switched the racket into his left hand, then hit a forehand drive to return Oni's serve.
That sudden switch disrupted Oni's original prediction, but after their last rally, he had already started to adapt to Yukimura's Mirage Mirror. He immediately shifted direction and sprinted toward the ball's landing spot.
As he ran, the glow of the Asura Path around him kept flickering, looking unstable. This made Byoudouin frown on the bench. If anyone had dug deepest into the Asura Path, it was Byoudouin without a doubt.
"You still haven't stepped through that gate, Oni?" Byoudouin muttered quietly to himself.
The Asura Path, like Ten'i Muhō and Zone, wasn't complete without entering the gate. Without that step, it was nothing more than an enhanced state that boosted one's mental strength and somewhat raised other attributes. Only by choosing a path beyond the gate would even greater power awaken.
Like the three Radiances of Ten'i Muhō, or the deeper layers of Zone. For example, Kagami from the Kuroko Basket only unlocked one ability because of his choice—it leaned toward team enhancement. If it had been Aomine, it would've manifested as a completely different power.
Akutsu was already an example. He had fully entered the Asura Path's gate, and by chance chose the same road as Byoudouin, eventually awakening his Eighth Consciousness.
On court, the situation was nearly the same as the first set. Every possible return Oni could make was predicted in advance by Yukimura. As their rallies dragged on, visions of losing points flashed again in Oni's mind.
But Oni's thoughts weren't fully on the match. He kept turning over Coach Mifune's words, trying to recall his own reason for playing tennis. Yet the more he tried to grasp it, the more it slipped away.
Not only did he fail to reach any breakthrough from that reflection, it even quickened his downfall. The vision of losing in his mind became reality after only seven or eight rallies.
"0-15!"
"Did my words backfire? Don't tell me Oni's stuck in his own head now!" Mifune muttered uncertainly from the bench.
"Don't worry, head coach. Oni is the type who grows stronger the more he's pushed into a corner. His Dimension God Descent is proof—it's concentration pushed to the very limit," Saitō Itaru suddenly said behind him.
"I hope so. Tokugawa may have been trained well by him and Irie, but Oni's strength is something Team Japan can't do without. Same with Irie, though I can't figure out what goes on in his head. Acting's not worth more than winning a match!" Mifune rubbed his temples unconsciously.
The so-called Diamond Generation of Japan was terrifyingly strong, but each came with strange quirks. Irie was the most obvious, but even the seemingly steady Ōmagari and Tanegashima were like that. As for Tōno and Kimijima, Mifune had already given up on fixing them. Byoudouin was a special case of his own.
As for the Golden Generation—now better called the Generation of Miracles—they were a bit more grounded under Akashi's lead. Though if anyone was the least normal of them, it was Akashi himself.
While Mifune and the other coaches talked, the match hadn't changed. Oni was still completely suppressed. In the mental world, the armor of the Demon God was shattered by Morpheus, leaving only a scarred upper body.
Even as Oni refocused on the match, all he could do was prolong the rallies. He had no way to win points and kept losing them instead.
"Game! Second String Selection! 1-0!"
At the start of the second game, the Dimension God behind Oni suddenly dissolved. The entire Dimension disappeared, replaced by a blinding azure glow. Countless lightning-shaped particles swirled around him.
"Ten'i Muhō—Radiance of Strong Heart!"
"Why did Oni-senpai suddenly drop his Dimension? And now he's using Radiance of Strong Heart… is he planning to use this against Yukimura-kun's Takeover of the Future?" Fuji said, confused by Oni's intent.
"Or maybe… Oni-senpai wants to learn the Radiance of Pain like Tezuka-senpai did, to counter Captain!" Kirihara suddenly blurted out.
"Use your brain! Oni-senpai isn't someone who'd fully follow the Ten'i path. How could he aim for Radiance of Pain?" Sanada snapped, giving Kirihara a merciless Iron Fist of Love.
"Ouch, ouch! I get it, Vice Captain!" Kirihara whimpered, clutching his head.
"I think Oni-senpai's trying to activate Ten'i Muhō and the Asura Path at the same time… purr~," Niō suddenly grinned, his eyes glinting with excitement.
"Is that even possible?" Shiraishi looked shocked at Niō's words.
"Not sure. I don't think any of us have ever mastered both Ten'i Muhō and the Asura Path at the same time!" Jirō, awake out of nowhere, jumped right into the conversation as if he had been there all along.
"Oni-ossan is amazing! I tried that… that Aro Path thing before, but it was so hard, I didn't get it at all!" Kintarō blurted out his own experience.
"It's Asura Path! You idiot!" Akutsu couldn't help snapping at Kintarō.
As everyone discussed, their gazes turned to Akashi on the bench. Even though Akashi neither used Ten'i Muhō nor the Asura Path, the middle schoolers were already used to it—if they didn't understand something, asking Akashi was always the right choice.
"Ten'i Muhō and the Asura Path can coexist in theory, but it's nearly impossible for anyone to achieve. That's because the state of mind required to awaken them follows two completely opposite roads. If someone tries to open both at the same time, they inevitably fall into conflict with themselves." Akashi saw their eyes on him and didn't hold back, directly explaining his understanding.
Before Nanjirō appeared, tennis in Japan was extremely ordinary. In many world tournaments, Japan was almost always crushed. Especially against foreign players who mastered the Light of Restraint, many Japanese players gave up tennis altogether after those defeats.
Only after someone developed a power to resist the Light of Restraint did things start to change—that was the origin of the Asura Path. But those who could truly master it were as rare as phoenix feathers, so Japan's status in the tennis world didn't really shift much.
Later, with Nanjirō's rise, the name of Ten'i Muhō spread. Although it was the same ability as the Light of Restraint, most people in Japan only knew Ten'i Muhō. The Asura Path was even more forgotten.
And the one who first developed the Asura Path was someone they all knew—it was none other than Rokkaku's old man! Together with Granny Sugi and a few others, they laid the foundation of Japanese tennis. Granny Sugi even won the world doubles championship and a Grand Slam in singles. Unfortunately, attention to women's tennis was far less than men's.
On court, even with Radiance of Strong Heart activated, Oni's situation didn't improve—in fact, it got worse. Without the boost of the Asura Path, Yukimura's Five-Senses Nullification took effect again, leaving Oni struggling badly.
"Game! Second String Selection! 2-0!"
"Game! Second String Selection! 3-0!"
In the blink of an eye, Yukimura had already taken three games. Watching from the stands, Kaji could hardly sit still. He couldn't understand why, even now, Oni still chose to hide his strength.
"You've got it backwards, Oni Juujirō!" During the break, Mifune spoke sharply.
"Sorry, coach. From here I'll give it my all. I just hope Yukimura-kid can handle it," Oni sighed, a little guilty but also worried.
"No matter what, that kid's a world-class player. He won't fall that easily. Go all out, Oni!" Mifune clapped Oni on the back, his tone hearty.
The break ended quickly. Returning to the court, Oni immediately activated both the Asura Path and his Dimension. An endless demonic aura seemed to spread out from him, making the Demon God's domain more sinister than ever.
"Yukimura-kid! A Dimension isn't as simple as you think! From here, open your eyes wide and watch carefully—don't die on me~" Oni suddenly spoke, his words chilling.
Yukimura didn't answer. Calm as ever, he tossed the ball and served. The match once again surged into fierce rallies. After only a few exchanges, visions of lost points flashed back into Oni's mind.
"Future? I'll shatter it all! Golden Great Broadsword!" Oni roared. At that moment, the Demon God's shadow behind him underwent an earth-shaking change.
The once old-fashioned armor became sleek, yet far more menacing. The sinister aura around him thickened into a tangible lake. The reborn Demon God stood within it—just one glance was enough to chill the soul.
Dimension—Second Stage Demon God.
The ball transformed into a massive golden pillar of light, blasting toward Yukimura. This time it completely broke through Mirage Mirror. Even with both hands, Yukimura couldn't stop his racket from being blown away.
"0-15!"
"Oni Juujirō! You bastard… I didn't think you'd awaken this kind of power!" Byoudouin suddenly stood up at the sidelines, his face unusually grim.