Akashi watched the utterly exhausted Irie and couldn't help but admire his acting. Yes—acting. Everything Irie showed just now was a performance meant to deceive Germany and every country watching this match.
After all, the World Cup had plenty of professionals, and even more players close to professional level. The principle behind Irie's Black Hole would be exposed sooner or later, just like Volk had already seen through it.
That's why Irie's goal was to conceal his unique physique. He wanted everyone to believe the Black Hole had strict limits, so that in future matches he could catch opponents off guard, and investigators would underestimate his true strength.
Volk had already been fooled by Irie's display. Even as the world's No. 1 professional, he couldn't see through a person's special physique—unless it was something abnormally obvious, like Akutsu.
The atmosphere in the stadium had completely shifted. At first, the crowd didn't care at all about the Japan Team. Now they were cheering them wildly. The story of the underdog defeating the strong was always the most loved by spectators.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Team was on their way to their own match venue, still discussing their exhibition opponent, the Republic of Tube. That was when Rocky walked up and told them Germany and Japan's first match was already over.
"Oh? Ended so soon? What's the score?" Reinhardt asked with curiosity.
"The score was 6–1," Rocky replied in a strange tone.
"As expected of nine-time champions Germany. Even if Japan has gotten stronger this year, they still lost by a huge margin," Hopkins frowned and spoke in a deep voice.
They had already heard from Ryōma and Ryōga how strong Japan was this year, enough to be called the biggest dark horse. But to still lose so badly—this made the Americans wary.
"No… that's not it. The winner wasn't Germany. It was Japan!" Rocky finally swallowed and finished his sentence. At the same time, he glanced at the Echizen brothers, as if to say: Are all of you Japanese this terrifying?
"Whoa! Didn't see that coming. Ryōma, looks like Japan just gave Germany a slap in the face," Chico laughed as he spoke to Ryōma.
"There's nothing strange about it. The two teams likely to make the finals this year are us, the U.S., and Japan," Ryōma said with confidence—not just in Japan, but even more in his own teammates.
"Don't get too cocky, shorty! Germany has won the World Cup nine times in a row. Their strength runs deep. In an exhibition, they probably didn't even use half their power," Ryōga placed a firm hand on Ryōma's head as he warned him.
"Alright, no point overthinking. We still have time. How about we shower first?" Dodo suggested to the group.
Most of them agreed. They had been training hard on the hotel courts and could use a wash and change of clothes. But Ryōma had no such plan.
"I'm skipping the shower. I'll head straight to the stadium. Hurry up—you don't want to be late," Ryōma said flatly.
What they didn't notice was that, just around the corner, two Black men were watching them suspiciously, whispering to each other.
At the same time, back at the Germany vs. Japan venue, Q.P. was about to call Gilles to join him on court when a familiar voice came from behind.
"Hey, Q.P., hold up a sec!"
The Germans all turned. Bertie was walking slowly toward them with his racket bag. Volk glanced at his younger brother, realizing he hadn't listened to him and had come back early.
"My guess was right. You lost the first match to Japan. So for this one, let Frankensteiner play. If it's just you, Q.P., it might be risky. Gilles still needs more polishing. Of course, that's just my suggestion. Hope you don't mind," Bertie advised, then gave Gilles an apologetic look.
Gilles didn't mind Bertie's words too much, though he did feel a bit down. He knew well that compared to Siegfried and Frankensteiner, he was weaker—and compared to professional Bertie, the gap was even greater.
"Let's do as Bertie says. We underestimated Japan earlier," Volk thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.
Siegfried had just returned to the bench, looking deeply ashamed. He lowered his head, sat down, and covered himself with a towel in silence. Bismarck, however, remained calm as ever, simply nodding once to Volk without saying more.
"Elmar! You're still too impatient! Awakening the Light of Pride doesn't mean your strength is already enough. After this exhibition, you'll need further training," Volk reprimanded Siegfried sternly.
Siegfried, hearing Volk's words, no longer had time to dwell on his disappointment. He quickly stood up and acknowledged, since in the German team, Volk had always been the embodiment of strictness.
On the Japan Team's side, Akashi was the first to notice Bertie's figure. Then he saw Q.P. and Frankensteiner slowly stand up. His mind already pieced things together, so he turned to the others behind him and said:
"Then for the second match, let's have Mitsuya-senpai and Tezuka go on court."
Mitsuya and Tezuka had no objections. They stood immediately, each pulling their racket from their bag. The rest of the team watched them with envy.
"Tezuka, don't use Radiance of Strong Heart in this match," Akashi reminded suddenly before Tezuka stepped forward.
Tezuka didn't know why Akashi said this, but he trusted him completely. He nodded seriously, then walked calmly with Mitsuya to the sideline.
Akashi knew well that if Tezuka revealed Radiance of Strong Heart here, it might allow Q.P. to perfect his Ultimate Quality early. Even if Akashi thought the fusion of three Radiances surpassed Ultimate Quality, he couldn't deny its strength.
In the original story, Oni had been completely suppressed under Q.P.'s Ultimate Quality, even having his wrist broken. That might have been partly plot-driven, but Q.P.'s shortcut method was still not to be underestimated.
Q.P.'s Ultimate Quality essentially followed Nanjirō's old path—pushing the Light of Pride to its extreme. But fully awakening all three Radiances was nearly impossible without overwhelming will and talent.
Even the Tezuka of the original story likely couldn't meet the requirements. It was only because of Akashi's intervention that this Tezuka now had hope of awakening all three. So Q.P. had chosen another route.
He directly absorbed the three Radiances, battling players who had awakened them and stealing their Radiances to craft his perfect Ultimate Quality. From there, he could unlock formidable abilities and walk the path of a tennis god.
"The second match is about to begin! Germany—Q.P. and A. Frankensteiner! Japan—Mitsuya Akuto and Tezuka Kunimitsu! Players, please enter the court!"
The moment the crowd heard Q.P.'s name, they erupted in cheers again, switching sides instantly. To them, it didn't matter—it was Australia, not Germany. They would cheer whoever looked stronger.
The four stepped onto the court. Compared to Siegfried, Q.P. and Fran were much more polite. At the net, they shook hands earnestly with Mitsuya and Tezuka before turning to the umpire for the toss.
Whether it was Mitsuya's luck or Tezuka's change in fortune, Japan once again won the coin toss. But Mitsuya had his own reasons and chose not to hand the first serve to Tezuka.
Tezuka voiced no objection. He knew well Mitsuya's capabilities. When it came to intelligence and data, even ten Tezukas couldn't match one Mitsuya. If Mitsuya wanted to serve first, it was clearly part of a plan.
"One set match! Japan to serve first!"
Mitsuya walked calmly to the baseline, his mind rapidly organizing data. He already had a rough grasp of Q.P.'s habits and strength. As for Frankensteiner's detailed numbers, Mitsuya had gotten those from Yanagi Renji, though Renji never revealed the source.
"Looks like you've grown into an excellent player too, Renji," Mitsuya chuckled softly. Then his eyes sharpened like never before, and his aura began to rise.
After testing the ball's bounce once, Mitsuya tossed it high. Golden light burst dazzlingly from his left hand. The Japan Team players on the bench all stared in shock.
With a thunderous crack, the ball wrapped in radiant golden light shot across the net into the German half. And somehow, without causing any damage, the ball bounced explosively upward.
"Glowing Shot!"
Fran rushed to the landing point, eyes serious, gripping his racket with both hands as he swung hard. In the next instant, the ball spun violently against his strings, unleashing all its force at once.
An invisible shockwave burst through his racket and slammed into the wall behind him. Cracks spread across the surface, though the court's structure kept the spectators safe.
Even so, Fran failed to withstand the power. His racket was blasted from his hands, his wrist left numb. He looked across at Mitsuya with fear in his eyes.
"Ace! 15–0!"
"Super sweetspot mastery at 79.4%. Probability of returning against sudden Glowing Shot: 1.6%," Mitsuya stated calmly, reciting his data as always.