My Prince of Tennis has a high proficiency level.

at the same time.

Banta gave Shibukawa a similarly complicated look.

The opponent's performance far exceeded his expectations. Whether it was stepping forward to face Tezuka of Seigaku alone, or their daring and all-or-nothing determination in the match, Banta was amazed.

Also.

He also noticed Sengoku's reaction and couldn't help but feel a little strange.

That's right. Yesterday afternoon, he did make a bet with Sengoku, believing that Yamabuki would definitely produce a player stronger than his opponent next year.

But the person Banta was referring to at the time was not Shibukawa, but Akutsu, whom he is still trying to persuade.

Given the latter's talent, even if they start learning tennis from scratch, their growth rate will definitely be astonishing.

But unexpectedly.

Suddenly, this oddball, Shechuan, appeared out of nowhere.

With Banta's insight, it's not hard to see that although Shibukawa's strength hasn't reached the Kanto level yet, it won't be too long before he breaks through.

The stronger the opponent's performance, the more advantageous it will be for him to integrate the current Yamabuki team.

Moreover, Yamabuki's singles game already had flaws, and even with Akutsu joining, the problems persisted. But now it's different; the better Shibukawa performs, the more pronounced Yamabuki's weaknesses become.

in contrast.

The only problem now is how to convince Akutsu to join the tennis club.

Thinking of this, Banta rubbed his temples in exasperation. Araki, who was standing nearby, witnessed this and thought to himself, "My teacher is really getting the better of me and then acting all innocent."

"But it must be said that Shechuan's talent is indeed outstanding."

Araki developed a fondness for his talent.

But judging from Banta's expression, it was clear that he couldn't poach the player from the other side. However, he wasn't too disappointed, after all, the Seishundai club still had a top-tier talent like Tezuka.

The other party has had it too easy in the past, so suffering a small loss today might not be a bad thing.

"Hmm...you won."

In front of the net.

Tezuka snapped out of his shock and casually extended his hand, saying, "A very exciting match."

"Just lucky."

Shibukawa shook hands with the other party, shook his head and said, "I have given it my all, but Tezuka-kun, you didn't take it seriously at all, otherwise, the result would not have been like this."

Upon hearing this...

Tezuka couldn't help but take another look at his opponent, seemingly surprised by his opponent's composure.

"Let me introduce myself again. My name is Tezuka Kunimitsu, and I'm a second-year student at Seishun Academy."

"Nobu Shibukawa, second grader at Yamabuki Middle School."

Second grade?

Tezuka glanced at the other person again, and said as he let go, "If there's a chance, I'd like to have a real match with you, Shibukawa-kun."

"That day will come."

Shibukawa laughed and said, "I'm absolutely sure!"

Looking at the other person's meaningful smile, Tezuka had a strong, inexplicable premonition. He really might meet that person on the court someday.

Chapter 38: Settling in, New Skills

Since then.

As previously agreed, the incident came to an end. Yamabuki was naturally happy to see a way out, and the club's players dared not express the slightest dissatisfaction.

Then.

Banta appeared and led everyone away.

Before leaving, Shibukawa gave Tezuka a deep look.

He knew very well that he had no chance of winning against this person.

Even in a one-point duel, Shibukawa's chances of winning were slim. So he chose to gamble, and from the moment he launched his attack, every action and offensive was a prelude to his final smash.

finally.

He won his bet.

Despite being at a disadvantage and still wanting to win the point, Tezuka chose to apply the spin of the "Field" to the tennis ball.

Due to the information gap between the two sides, Shibukawa, who already knew Tezuka's strength and talent, and even knew exactly what special moves Tezuka had sealed, completed the final plan.

His smash was indeed aimed at the white line of the blocking net. Tezuka, standing before him, either underestimated his strength or his own chopping technique wasn't yet at the level to generate high-intensity spin at will.

In the end, Shechuan pulled off a surprise victory, narrowly winning 1 point.

However, both Yamabuki and Seigaku are schools in Tokyo, so although they are not in the same area, they will not meet in the regional preliminaries. But before the national tournament, there are two other large-scale tournaments: the Tokyo tournament and the Kanto tournament.

Especially the major competitions.

Yamabuki and Seigaku are both frequent contenders in the semifinals.

Even if the storyline doesn't follow the original plot, as seeded teams in the Grand Tournament, the probability of the two teams meeting is still very high.

With Echizen Ryoma, the main character from the original manga, gathered together and transformed into their complete form, Seigaku will undoubtedly be even more formidable than this year. One wrong move and it could end in a 2-2 tie, leading to a final singles match.

By then.

Shibukawa's opponent is likely to be Tezuka.

"Therefore, we must continue to strengthen our training and not slack off in the slightest!"

This match, after witnessing the strength of their opponents, further solidified their resolve to become stronger in Shechuan.

After returning home.

He resumed his training near the tennis courts in Yamabuki.

First came a warm-up run, followed by a routine of swings, push-ups, and crunches. Since there was no sparring partner, Shibukawa could only practice forehand and backhand smashes against the wall.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The crisp sound of the ball hitting the ground echoed around the court.

The training lasted until the afternoon. Shechuan only had lunch in between, and after a short rest, he continued to train.

Tick ​​tock!

Tick ​​tock!

Sweat streamed down Shibukawa's face.

His long black hair was completely soaked, and his body was sticky from the intense training. His muscles ached all over, and in the end, he even felt powerless to swing his racket.

But Shibukawa's eyes, hidden beneath his black bangs, were unusually bright. He really enjoyed the feeling of pushing his physical strength and limits to the extreme.

As a transmigrator, he knew perfectly well that the original owner of this body was not famous in the original Prince of Tennis world, and was not even a minor character or extra.

Therefore, he assumed from the beginning that his talent was quite ordinary. In order to catch up with those geniuses and monsters, he had to squeeze every last drop of his physical strength out of himself during each training session.

Get stronger!

Get stronger!

Get stronger!

The image of a duel with Tezuka flashed before my eyes.

That feeling of helplessness, as if facing a wall of sighs, surged up in his heart once more. The resentment in Shibukawa's chest completely transformed into a part of his will to become stronger.

immediately!

He concentrated all his will and strength into a single point, and swung his racket to smash the tennis ball.

boom!

A loud, explosive sound reverberated.

The racket, violently impacted by the tennis ball, visibly dented inwards. Under immense pressure, the tennis ball deformed continuously, eventually transforming into an oval egg shape. At the moment the racket's elastic potential energy reached its peak, accompanied by the release of energy, it suddenly shot forward.

boom!!!

A loud bang.

The white wall struck by the tennis ball was dented, leaving a shallow, fist-sized pit, with tiny, spiderweb-like cracks spreading outwards. The powerful force of the ball drove the tennis ball into the wall like a wooden wedge.

Pfft!

That shot drained all of Shibukawa's strength. He collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, but a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

At this moment, he not only vented his negative emotions, but also found the trick to concentrate his power into one point and developed a new ball skill.

You hit a powerful smash that reached the 'skill' standard. You have created a new skill; please name it.

Splash...

And this time.

The wall, struck by the tennis ball, was covered in a layer of weathered stone chips that kept crumbling down.

Upon seeing this, Shechuan's heart stirred.

Let's call it "Mountain Collapse"!

Although the sight of falling rocks is far from comparable to the collapse of a mountain, the naming of this ball skill undoubtedly represents Shibukawa's ambition.

This skill is still in its early stages.

As his strength increases, both [Mountain Collapse] and his previous smashing technique [Tiger Roar] will become even stronger.

at this time.

Shechuan was so exhausted that he couldn't even move his fingers. Only then did he begin to observe the results of his afternoon practice.

Aside from the three high-level skills only gaining experience, his serve, slice, and short ball all increased by 1 level, which also increased his five-dimensional technique by 0.3, reaching 2.9.

The power comes from his development of a new ball skill, the [Mountain Collapse], which is extremely powerful. His own power is more refined, increasing by 0.1 to 2 points.

therefore.

Currently, the total of Shechuan's five dimensions has exceeded 12 points. According to next year's timeline, it won't reach the Kanto level yet, but at this point in time, it's more than enough.

"The remaining lobs should be upgraded by tomorrow at the latest. By then, the [Rapid Swing] trait will be upgraded to level 2, which will be a significant improvement."

Shechuan thought to himself.

At the same time, he wasn't too complacent. In the world of Prince of Tennis, stats are important, but the mechanics are undoubtedly even more terrifying.

Leaving aside overpowered abilities like Time Thief and Devouring, even early-stage abilities like Demonization are terrifying to him.

of course.

After this period of training, Shibukawa is also very confident. With the existence of the proficiency panel and his hard work, he will definitely be able to awaken his own ability.

After a short rest, Shibukawa got up. He washed his face at the sink, went back to the locker room, changed his clothes, and then left Yamabuki.

"Well."

After Shibukawa left, a figure with orange hair slowly walked over and stood where he was practicing.

"Wait... what's this?!"

Looking at the wall covered with countless marks resembling bullet holes, Sengoku's brows furrowed involuntarily. But when his gaze fell upon the tennis ball embedded in the wall, his pupils suddenly contracted.

Chapter 39 Characteristic Level 2, Sengoku's Challenge (4000 words)

Since the practice match incident.

Club training continued as usual, but news of the one-ball duel between Tezuka and Shibukawa gradually spread through word of mouth.

In the blink of an eye.