Episode 22

THE UNDERGROUND TENNIS TOURNAMENT: THE CAMPBELLDON (MISSION: 22　地下テニス大会 キャンベルトン) is the twenty-second episode of the SPY x FAMILY TV anime series and the tenth episode of the second cour.

Synopsis
The secret files called the Zacharis Dossier may cause a war between the East and the West. In order to obtain a painting that is supposed to be the hiding spot for these files, Loid and Fiona enter an underground tennis tournament run by the owner of the painting, Campbell. If they win, the art piece they're after will be presented. Loid and Fiona enter as a married couple and play various skilled players including pro players!

Summary
At Berlint General Hospital, Fiona reflects on how Loid being with his family has led him to develop inappropriate emotions and become a worse spy. While seeing this new version of Twilight aches her heart, Fiona still finds this adorable and endearing and still yearns for him. Because of this, she is determined to usurp the wife position from Yor.

Fiona details their new mission to Loid. She tells him of a man by the name of Cavi Campbell, a world-renowned art collector. Their mission is to acquire the painting Lady In The Sun, worth roughly one million dalc. The painting's previous owner was the late Colonel Erik Zacharis, who worked in the East's military intelligence division during the war and played a major part in ending it. It is rumored that Zacharis was in possession of secrets that could reignite the flames of war in documents known as the "Zacharis Dossier," containing information about human experimentation by the East and evidence of prisoner of war massacres committed by the West. It is believed that the painting holds the key to finding the dossier, so agents hope to retrieve both before the Eastern government learns of its existence and gets it for themselves. However, the painting is kept beneath Campbell's mansion, which has tight security. Loid asks if Fiona has a plan, which she confirms.

The agents arrive at an underground tennis tournament, with audience members betting large amounts of money on each team. Disguised with tennis rackets in hand, Loid asks Fiona if this was the best option, and Fiona says she believes it to be the most promising one. While some of the competitors may be skilled, the winner of the tournament can take an item of their choice from Campbell's collection. Partaking in this tournament also removes any risks of trying to steal the painting directly.

As part of Fiona's cover story, she and Loid get announced as a married couple "Twain and Nafalia Foney." Their opponents for their first match are Walson and Bobble, a famous duo that dominated the Grand Slam Circuit a decade ago. Loid tells Fiona that he has not played much tennis, but had practiced with his family beforehand, so Fiona tells him to stay in the corner and out of her way. Fiona believes by showing off her tennis skills she can prove how much of a better asset she would be to Operation Strix. With the odds heavily against the "Foneys," Walson and Bobble declare to win this match with years of training behind them. Loid wishes them a good game, to which they respond that it will be a slaughter.

Loid serves the ball and immediately does a service ace, slamming the ball onto the ground before his opponents could react. On his own, Loid wins the first game without letting the duo score any points. Walson and Bobble are shocked but target Fiona since they have not seen her play. To their surprise, she returns the ball with a powerful backhand slice and earns a point. After Loid compliments her, Fiona decides to keep showing off how amazing she is until the completion of their mission, imagining Loid picking her up into his arms and asking her to be his "doubles partner for life." Going into a frenzy of excessive moves, Fiona wins the rest of the match herself, bringing Walson and Bobble to their knees in defeat.

Watching from their balcony seats, Campbell and his associates discuss how the newcomers have shaken things up. One of them says that, unlike ordinary opponents, the pair will have trouble against his Bolic Brothers. Another man dismisses them as drug addicts, but the man claims that his company's new drug, "Oso-R," is being given a trial run in the next match. This drug transforms the scrawny Bolic Brothers to hulking men with lots of muscle. Upon seeing them, Loid asks whether this is really risk-free, and Fiona responds that they just need to do their best.

Elsewhere, Anya and Bond play tennis at the park with Yor. Anya notices Yor is lost in thought, which the latter denies when asked. Yor thinks about the tennis competition Loid is at and wonders if Fiona is with him there. As she contemplates their relationship and what it might mean for her, Yor considers getting rid of Fiona but quickly shakes those thoughts away. Anya, reading her mother's mind, assures her that she has nothing to worry about. Yor asks what Anya meant by that and wonders if she knew what she was thinking. Realizing her mistake, Anya quickly covers it up by saying that Loid will win and "bring home the trophy." Yor smiles, agreeing that Loid can accomplish anything and will give any opponent a beatdown, and the two cheer him on.

Back at the tennis tournament, Fiona explains to Loid that anything goes in the tournament, from modified rackets to the steroids the Bolic Brothers have taken. After the brothers display their monstrous strength, many audience members scramble to place their bets on them. The brothers then approach Loid and throw insults at him. While Loid is unfazed, Fiona snaps and completely dominates the match, denying them any points while hitting them with every smash. Loid asks if that was necessary, but Fiona claims her hand slipped. While most of the audience is amazed by the Foneys and believe they could win the tournament, Cavi thinks otherwise.

Loid and Fiona continue to make their way through to the finals, with Fiona making lots of flashy plays to try and impress Loid. A butler escorts them to a waiting room, telling them to wait until the finals start in 20 minutes. The agents discuss their next opponents, Cavi's son and daughter, Carrol and Kim. Despite being high schoolers, they have been training with the best since early childhood, and Loid and Fiona will need to watch out for any sabotage attempts from them since their father runs the tournament. Fiona is confident in their victory and wants to hurry things up. Pointing out Fiona's bruised hand, Loid can see that she is pushing herself and instructs her to keep herself under control, saying that "losing your cool can mean losing your life."

Fiona gives in and thinks how great it is to have Loid fret over her. Once again declaring her love for him in her thoughts, Fiona stares at Loid with an intense glare, which he interprets as her doubting his methods. Suddenly, the agents notice the room being gassed in an attempt to inhibit their abilities. With no way out without garnering suspicion, Loid and Fiona continue their discussion in Morse code and try to prevent themselves from taking in as much gas as possible before their match in the next ten minutes.

As the final match begins, the Foneys come face-to-face with the Campbell twins. The crowd cheers in favor of the Foneys, which Cavi is pleased about since he will get more money if they lose. Having been behind the gassing of the room, he confidently bets ten million on his children. Loid asks Fiona how she is feeling, and she says her heart rate and breathing are a little off. Meanwhile, the Campbell kids look forward to winning the match and reveal their modified rackets. In the first game, the siblings beat the Foneys with their rackets, Carrol with his rocket-powered racket, and Kim with her whip racket.

During the second set, Loid and Fiona's strengths return to them and they take the lead. Carrol quickly looks to a man on the sidelines, who gives him a nod before fiddling with a control panel. In the next game, Fiona attempts to return the ball, but the tile under her foot sinks into the ground, causing her to hit the ball out of bounds. Loid and Fiona realize that the entire court is made up of these tiles. Loid says this will not be a problem and declares not to lose to some dumb gimmicks. Fiona stares in admiration as she thinks about how this is the Twilight she fell in love with. Fiona walks to Loid's side and tells him they will crush their opponents together while once again declaring her love for him in her thoughts.

Anime Notes

 * The first tennis match shown features an anime-original scene with the Bolic Brothers, who win the game.
 * The flashback scene of the Forgers practicing tennis together is expanded in the anime.
 * Like in the manga, Daybreak appears briefly being beaten by Nightfall. In the anime, he appears being hit with a ball.