"Let's go! It's our turn to take the court now."
The second set of the match between Kitagawa Daiichi and Yukigaoka Middle School also ended quickly, in about ten minutes.
Akashi witnessed Hinata Shouyou's final, incredibly fast flat spike. However, that single point only elicited a minor sigh from the onlookers; against the massive score disparity between the two teams, one point was barely noticeable.
Of course, for Kageyama Tobio, who was directly across the net, the experience was likely quite different.
...
"Our opponent this time, Senkoku, was the dark horse of the Prefectural Tournament this year. Honestly, after I carefully reviewed the tournament footage last night, I realized that if this team hadn't run into Kitagawa Daiichi in the round of 16, they might have gone even further." In the waiting area of Shirogawate Middle School, a middle-aged coach was giving a serious lecture to his players.
"What? We've run into another strong team this time?"
"That's terrible luck!"
"Sigh, looks like we're going out in the first round again."
"Don't be so defeatist, let me finish talking..." Seeing the team's morale already collapsing before the fight even began, the coach's expression hardened, and he spoke sternly.
"Senkoku is indeed strong, but they are not unbeatable. Based on my analysis last night, this Senkoku team revolves entirely around one person, their number one wing spiker."
"Their number one is undeniably a top-tier spiker in the prefecture, but apart from him, the rest of the Senkoku players are fairly ordinary in skill."
"Therefore, in this match, all of you only need to do one thing: strictly contain their main spiker. As long as we can limit his scoring ability, we have a hope of winning. Understood?"
"Understood..."
...
"...Bullshit!"
THWACK!
"Alright!"
Another spike grazed past the Shirogawate setter, smashing onto the floor with a dull thud.
Watching the opposing team's active number three score again, the Shirogawate setter couldn't help but recall his coach's words before the match.
Something's wrong!
Coach,
This Senkoku team is definitely not as weak as you described!
However, one part of your plan is definitely correct: we absolutely cannot give their number one a chance to hit.
Thinking this, the Shirogawate setter couldn't help but glance across the net at the tall figure in the number one Senkoku jersey. That player hadn't taken a single swing since the start of the match, yet his player's instinct was screaming a frantic warning.
"This guy is far too dangerous!"
Another bead of sweat ran down the Shirogawate setter's forehead. Even though the score was already 9:4, the Shirogawate setter wasn't overly nervous about the points themselves.
But whenever he stood near the opposing number one, the Shirogawate setter felt as if he was constantly being stalked by a beast.
BAM!
Omae Masato spiked for another point, clenching his fists in excited celebration.
Akashi, however, felt no excitement. On the contrary, he was getting a little bored.
Akashi was unaware of the opposing setter's inner thoughts, but if he had known, he would have definitely told the Shirogawate setter, "Kid, you're overthinking it."
Since the start of the match, Akashi's lack of hitting wasn't due to being strictly contained by the opponent.
Given Shirogawate's strength, even a triple block would have a low chance of stopping Akashi.
The reason he hadn't hit was simply due to the coach's tactical arrangement.
Leveling.
This was Senkoku Middle School's main strategy for the early rounds of the qualifiers.
During the Prefectural tournament, Senkoku employed a similar strategy, but at that time, the other players were too weak, and Akashi's individual skill was too overwhelming, leading to the complete failure of Shimokawa Sando's "use the expert to boost the newbies" tactic.
This time, however, the strength of the other Senkoku players had all improved by one or two tiers, giving them the ability to "clear the dungeon" on their own.
Therefore, it was essential to use the first few matches to give the others more experience in a formal tournament setting.
The intention was good, but reality always introduces infuriating accidents.
Because they were so wary of Akashi's presence, as long as he was in the front court, Shirogawate always had at least two players strictly guarding him. Even when Akashi rotated to the backcourt, the opponent remained distracted by caution.
This resulted in glaring holes in Shirogawate's defense everywhere else. Omae Masato and Kazama Juujirou were spiking without any pressure whatsoever.
Twelve minutes later, the referee blew the final whistle for the set.
25:16.
Senkoku finished the first set with a large score difference.
During the timeout, the Shirogawate coach frowned, pondering: "It seems the opponent intended to use their main spiker as bait in the first set. Since that's the case, we'll slightly relax our—"
"We cannot relax."
The Shirogawate coach was about to suggest relaxing the defense on Akashi in the second set, but before he could finish, the Shirogawate setter suddenly interrupted him.
"Coach! We absolutely cannot let that number one attack, or we will lose even worse."
The Shirogawate setter's expression was unusually grave, and sweat was continuously dripping from his forehead like rain.
The coach's gaze narrowed at the sight of his setter's intensity.
...
While Shirogawate was discussing how to deal with Akashi in the second set, Shimokawa Sando made a tactical adjustment on Senkoku's side: "Akashi, you won't be playing in the second set."
"What?"
At this statement, before Akashi could respond, the other members of the team were instantly stunned.
"Why, Coach? Did Akashi make a mistake?"
"That's not the reason."
Shimokawa Sando shook his head and explained, "The primary goal for the first few rounds of these qualifiers is to get everyone besides Akashi accustomed to the intensity of National-level play. However, our opponent is focusing too heavily on Akashi, causing the others to miss out on experiencing the true nature of this tournament."
"So, for the rest of the matches up to the Round of 16, I'm going to keep Akashi off the court. This also conveniently allows us to keep some of our cards hidden."
"I understand!"
Akashi nodded, agreeing to Shimokawa Sando's plan.
In fairness, Shimokawa Sando's strategy carried some risk, as one never knows when a dark horse might emerge in this kind of tournament.
But there was no alternative. A match could not rely on Akashi alone.
If they couldn't quickly elevate the skills of the other players, Senkoku would easily fall into the same predicament they faced during the Prefectural tournament once they faced tougher opponents.