Parental Pride
After Akashi Kana's aggressive behavior, Akashi Asuka experienced for the first time in his life the concept that "close siblings have no sense of gender."
That evening, Akashi Asuka and Kana's parents, perhaps knowing the family would be reunited, also unusually managed to skip overtime work.
"My proud son! Come see what Dad bought you!"
Just as Akashi Asuka and Kana were preparing dinner, a distinctly "show-off" voice came from the doorway. Akashi Asuka was initially stunned, then his forehead creased with dark lines.
"What kind of ridiculous thing is he saying?"
Walking to the entrance, Akashi Asuka saw a smiling middle-aged man, holding a watermelon while changing into his slippers.
"Huh? Watermelon? Dad, is there a special occasion today?"
Akashi Kana also came over, looking delighted at the sight of the watermelon held by the middle-aged man, Akashi Hisanobu, their father.
Due to geographical and environmental factors, fruit yields in Japan are low, and most fruits rely on imports, making prices generally high.
Watermelon, in particular, reaches the status of a luxury item among fruits.
Summer had been underway for a long time, but since his transmigration, Akashi Asuka had yet to eat a single slice of watermelon.
"Ha ha ha..."
Akashi Hisanobu was laughing, seemingly in high spirits, about to say something when the front door opened again. A woman in office attire, also carrying a watermelon, walked in.
This was Akashi Hisanobu's wife and Akashi Asuka and Kana's mother, Akashi Kyoko.
"Asuka, hurry, look what Mom bought you—"
Before Akashi Kyoko could finish, she saw the watermelon in Akashi Hisanobu's hand. Their eyes met, and the atmosphere instantly fell silent.
...
"Here, Asuka, you worked so hard at your club activities recently. Eat more beef to build up your strength."
"Asuka, this watermelon is especially for you from Dad. Have another piece."
At the dinner table, Akashi Kyoko and Akashi Hisanobu constantly piled food and fruit onto Akashi Asuka's bowl, their faces radiating unending pride, leaving Akashi Kana to look like an outsider.
In a family of four, she had no name at the feast.
Finally, Kana couldn't take it anymore.
"Dad, I want some watermelon too," Kana pleaded with Akashi Hisanobu.
"Oh! If you want some, why don't you get it yourself? Do I need to feed you at your age?" Akashi Hisanobu replied without turning his head.
"Don't mind her. Her term-end scores were so poor, and she still has the nerve to eat! Can't you take a page from Asuka's book and raise your grades? Come home with a second-place ranking in the grade," Akashi Kyoko said, rolling her eyes.
"Now, now, that's enough," Akashi Hisanobu gently patted Akashi Kyoko's hand. "Perhaps our daughter's talent doesn't lie in academics. I heard her teacher mention that Kana's club activities are going well, too. Didn't she participate in a competition recently and achieve a respectable result?"
Hearing Akashi Hisanobu's defense, Akashi Kana's eyes welled up with emotion.
"My father still loves me, after all."
Just as Akashi Kana considered giving her father a hug, Akashi Kyoko shot Akashi Hisanobu a fierce look.
"Respectable result? Their club didn't even make it to the quarterfinals! But Asuka, as the volleyball club captain, already matched the club's historical record last time and is about to lead the club in a charge for the Nationals—"
"Ah, well..."
Akashi Hisanobu's voice faltered. He looked at his teary-eyed daughter and sighed, unable to speak further.
Akashi Kana felt like she'd been hit by lightning.
She was now seriously questioning her reality. She simply couldn't understand why this family had become so utterly unfamiliar after just two months away.
Especially her younger brother. In her memory, he had no redeeming qualities other than his good looks.
But now...
What was this second-place in the grade?
What was this talk of leading the club to the Nationals?
"Did I lose my memory?"
...
Akashi Asuka, currently being besieged by Akashi Hisanobu and Akashi Kyoko, felt a little helpless.
Based on their behavior, Akashi Asuka knew his recent exploits at school must have reached them, likely during the training camp, otherwise, they wouldn't be showing this level of enthusiasm today.
To be honest, Akashi Asuka felt like he should be happy, but in fact, he was quite awkward.
Although he was the one who achieved these things, Akashi Hisanobu and Akashi Kyoko were essentially celebrating the original Akashi Asuka. As the replacement, he felt stuck in an uncomfortable middle ground.
Fortunately, dinner ended quickly.
The System Returns
The next morning, Akashi Asuka woke up early for his routine morning workout.
Just as he finished his warm-up, he heard the system notification chime in his mind, instantly lifting his spirits.
It was back. It was back!
This feeling was right!
Vacation truly was the best time for Involution.
Even those few sneaky teammates who trained secretly weren't dedicated enough to maintain high intensity during the summer holiday.
Time to grind!
...
"Achoo!"
In his sleep, Nishimori Tomohiko suddenly sneezed. Drowsily rubbing his nose, he drifted back into his dreams.
...
With a month remaining in the summer, Akashi Asuka's training plan remained the same: simultaneous reinforcement of strengths and compensation for weaknesses.
With his external aid (the system), he could perfectly achieve this balance.
In addition to his regular routine, Akashi Asuka also planned to begin learning advanced techniques, focusing primarily on advanced spiking and serving techniques.
While basic skills could be trained solo, advanced techniques required real match situations. Akashi Asuka was already prepared for this.
After his morning foundation training, Akashi Asuka read for a while in the afternoon to relax. As evening approached, he grabbed his volleyball and headed toward the nearest public gymnasium.
Upon arriving, Akashi Asuka sat in the rest area with his volleyball.
Volleyball wasn't an especially popular sport in Japan, certainly far less popular than baseball. So, even though the gymnasium was quite busy, it was common for courts to be short of players for a game.
He hadn't been sitting for long when he heard someone from a volleyball court shout: "Hey, young man over there! Want to play some volleyball?"
Akashi Asuka looked up, grinned, and replied, "Sure!"