"Make sure to catch it!"
Oikawa Tōru delivered his words like daggers to the heart, then served the first ball.
Bang!
Tsuchiyu Arata didn't even catch a glimpse of the volleyball's trajectory.
The only clues were the soni in his ears and the faint white mark left on the floor near his feet, signalling that Oikawa's serve had nded right beside him.
Bobata Kazuma turned his head, his expression stiff and beads of cold sweat f on his forehead.
This guy—he's like a pletely different person from the previous set!
Oikawa Tōru had scored with a service ace.
[Aoba Johsai 2 VS 0 Johzenj
The sed serve followed, thehird, the fourth...
It wasn't until the fifth serve that Oikaower started to wane. Johzenji had to deploy four pyers just to ter his serves.
"terattack!"
The ball rebounded from the first toud flew toward the he setter, Bobata Kazuma, dashed forward a up.
Another one-handed set?
No! It's a spike!
Bobata Kazuma's mind fshed back to Oikawa's ued setter dump earlier. Now that the opportunity had arisen, he was determio return the favour!
Smack!
Thud!
Bobata Kazuma's spike smmed into Kaedehara Taichi's blod ricocheted back to his side of the court.
"Your movements are far too predictable," Kaedehara Taichi said early.
...
[Aoba Johsai 20 VS 9 Johzenj
The differen level was undeniable.
Terushima Yūji could deeply feel the gap in strength betweewo teams.
Both teams were among the top four in their respective IH preliminary brackets, but Terushima khe truth—Johzenji -four-level team in their prefecture, while Aoba Johsai was on national level.
"There will be times when you just 't have fun anymore. What will you do then?"
Terushima recalled the words of Johzenji's former captain, Okudake Seiji, a third-year who had stepped down before the season began.
"When that time es, I'll still enjoy it, and I'll show you how!"
That had been his response back then.
But now, staring at the scoreboard and at his teammates, who were already physically aally draierushima couldn't vince himself of those words anymore.
"This hurts so much...I just want this match to end. Even if it means losing…"
Terushima hung his head. This match was no longer fun.
"Don't give up!"
A sudden shout came from the sidelines. It was Johzenji's team manager, Misaki Hana.
"Misaki-senpai…?" The pyers on the court turo look at her.
"Even when you're not having fun, don't give in to despair!"
"Stick to your own style and py until the very end!"
Their own style?
Terushima's gaze shifted to the team banner hanging on the sidelines—'Simplicity and Fortitude.'
He couldn't help but smile.
Not long ago, they had debated whether the team's current style had diverged so much from the past that they should ge the motto.
"Let's take this point with everything we've got!"
Determinatinited in Terushima's eyes. Losing a match was ohing, but abandoning their style was another matter entirely!
"Yes!!"
------
Tweet——
The long whistle marked the end of the match.
[Aoba Johsai 25 VS 12 Johzenj
Aoba Johsai advao the finals.
Just oep away from Nationals!
After pag their belongings, Kaedehara Taichi and Oikawa Tōru headed to the restroom. As they walked in, they entered a tall, imposing high schooler walking toward them—it was her than Ushijima Wakatoshi.
Well, of course. The restroom ractically a hotspot for ued enters. Running into Ushijima here wasn't all that surprising.
"So, you've e this far, Oikawa," Ushijima said calmly, his tone unreadable.
"Hmph. Is that so rare?"
Oikawa bristled at Ushijima's posed demeanour.
Oh, so it's perfectly natural when Shiratorizawa advances, but when it's Aoba Johsai, it warrants a remark?
Ushijima paid Oikawa no mind. Instead, his gaze shifted to Kaedehara Taichi, aated with an unging expression, "I saw yesterday's interview. The winner will be Shiratorizawa."
To Ushijima, this was simply stating a fact.
Taichi decided against repeating his championship decration—it wasn't worth it in front of someone so certain of his beliefs.
The finals were only a couple of hours away. They would let the results speak for themselves.
------
"Wow, the stands are almost pletely full!"
By 1:00 p.m., the pyers had reehe arena. Kindaichi's eyes widened as he took iightly packed audience. In addition to the supporters of Aoba Johsai and Shiratorizawa, many elimieams had also e to watch.
"There are so many cameras, too!"
Kaedehara Taichi sed the venue, noting at least four official camera setups. Among them was the familiar female reporter from Hello, Miyagi, along with several other journalists running around.
Shiratorizawa's team began emerging from the opposite entrance, and a surge of excitement rippled through the purple-and-white sea of their supporters iands.
First came the double-row cheerleaders in short skirts, lining up along the staircases oher side of the crowd.
Then, from the tre of Shiratorizawa's se, a drumbeat began to resonate. A boy standio the drummer led the t:
"Shiratorizawa! Shiratorizawa!"
"Shiratorizawa! Shiratorizawa!"
"Victain! Victain!"
"Victain! Victain!"
"Today's oppo is—"
"Aoba Johsai!"
"Please take care of us!"
"Please take care of us!"
The energy was overwhelming and grandiose—worthy of a king's academy. Kaedehara Taichi gnced over at their banners, which boldly read "Intense Force"
But Aoba Johsai's supporters were equally formidable, responding in kind:
"Aoba Johsai! Reign supreme!"
"Aoba Johsai! Stro of all!"
"Go, go, go, Aoba Johsai!"
"Win, win, win, Aoba Johsai!"
Even before the warm-ups began, the atmosphere in the arena was already crag with tension.
[Shiratorizawa 25 VS 18 Wakunan]
[Shiratorizawa 25 VS 16 Wakunan]
Shiratorizawa had also crushed their semifinal oppos in straight sets.
Standing to the side, Oikawa Tōru was secretly calg scores in his head. Shiratorizawa had allowed Wakunan to score 34 points, while Aoba Johsai had only let Johzenji score 33. Oikawa grinned smugly, sav his tiny victory in the numbers game.
Though the two teams were well-acquaiheir retionship was more one of rivalry than camaraderie.
As the captains, Oikawa and Ushijima refrained from initiating any iion, and naturally, the other pyers followed suit.
The only sounds in the arena came from the teams' occasional shouts during warm-ups. The growing quiet among the spectators only added to the sense of an impending storm.
Tweet!
The referee's whistle pierced the air, and both teams quickly lined up on their respective sides.
"Please take care of us!"
Aoba Johsai's lineup:
Front row—Middle Blocker Kaedehara Taichi, Wing Spiker Hanamaki Takahiro, Setter Oikawa TōruBack row—Wing Spiker Kunimi Akira, Outside Hitter Iwaizumi Hajime and Middle Blocker Kyōtaarō (Libero: Watari Shinji).
Shiratorizawa's lineup:
Front row—Middle Blocker Kawanishi Taichi, Outside Hitter Ushijima Wakatoshi, Outside Hitter ōhira Reon.Baiddle Blocker Tendō Satori (libero Yamagata Hayato), Setter Shirabu Kenjirō, and Wing Spiker Goshiki Tsutomu.
_________
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