The match is over!
Gazing at the volleyball rolling on the floor behind them, the White Team players were momentarily stunned.
Although they had a premonition they might lose, now that this outcome had truly materialized, the third-year upperclassmen still found it somewhat unacceptable.
The members of the Red Team were also taken aback.
"We... we actually won?"
Kindaichi felt a sense of disbelief. As Oikawa's former junior at Kitagawa Daiichi, he knew exactly how strong his upperclassman was, yet he had personally defeated him.
"Just how strong is this guy?"
Kindaichi looked at Akashi, but Akashi was looking across at Iwaizumi.
Iwaizumi had lost his initial fiery passion and appeared slightly subdued.
In the original work, Wakatoshi Ushijima's assessment of Oikawa had one correct statement: "Poor soil yields no rich harvest."
The setter is indeed the brain of the team, but the actual punching fist in the match is the "Ace Spiker."
If the fist itself is weak, then no amount of manipulation by the brain will be effective.
The ability to score at crucial moments is the value of an 'Ace.'
Unfortunately, Iwaizumi's fist did not possess sufficient power. It wasn't because he didn't try hard enough or lacked fighting spirit; it was purely a lack of talent.
It was harsh, but it was reality.
Watari was laughing loudly, mocking his fellow second-year, Yahaba, while Akashi and the other rookies politely shook hands and greeted their upperclassmen one by one.
During a match, it's normal to use every means necessary within the rules, because giving your all in competitive sports is the greatest respect for your opponent.
However, continuing to gloat after the match is over is a sign of a genuinely flawed character.
"You arrogant first-year brat, I won't lose to you next time." When Akashi reached Oikawa for the handshake, Oikawa firmly squeezed his hand and spoke with a rather "fierce" expression.
Akashi was silent for a moment, then flashed a brilliant smile: "What are you talking about, Oikawa? We're teammates now, so there's no such thing as winning or losing between us."
Oikawa: "..."
...
The Roster Promotion
"Mmm~ Everyone played wonderfully in today's match, especially the newly joined first-years. They all possess excellent fundamentals. Therefore, I now announce that Akashi Asuka, Mishita Ryuhei, Kindaichi Yutaro, and Kunimi Akira—the four of you—will train with the first team starting tomorrow." Irihata Nobuteru gathered everyone and announced.
The first team is essentially the main roster of the Seijoh Volleyball Club.
In formal volleyball matches, the standard team composition is twelve players, including starters and reserves. However, since substitutions are quite frequent in volleyball, even in a match without many accidents, the number of players who actually take the court is often seven, eight, or even more.
Oikawa and the others showed little reaction to the promotion of Akashi and the others to the first team.
After all, the so-called 'Initiation Match' was effectively a player selection event, and given the performance of these rookies, it would have been strange if they weren't promoted to the first team.
"Alright, we will now begin training. If the rookies still have stamina, they can join the team. If your energy is exhausted, you may head home for today."
This Initiation Match ended slightly earlier than Irihata Nobuteru expected, so the remaining time could not be wasted.
Hearing this, the first person ready to bolt was Kunimi.
His energy expenditure for the day had already exceeded the limit. Right now, Kunimi just wanted to go home and lie on the sofa, moving as little as possible.
However, after glancing around, since none of his three teammates showed any intention of leaving, Kunimi had no choice but to temporarily suppress his urge to 'slack off.'
"Oh~~ It seems this year's first-years have a lot of guts!"
Seeing that none of the rookies intended to leave, Hanamaki said: "But training is a different matter from a match. Don't think that just because you managed to win against us once, you can easily keep up with our training rhythm."
It was evident that some of the third-years were still somewhat bothered by the outcome of the match.
"That won't happen. Please don't worry, Hanamaki."
Kindaichi, the earnest one, spoke up.
Akashi chose to stay because his usual training volume was already immense.
Mishita Ryuhei stayed because he knew Akashi would need a teammate for his extra practice.
But Kindaichi stayed purely because he wanted to train harder, nothing more.
Spiking Practice
As a traditional powerhouse, Seijoh does not employ many flashy techniques in its training. Or rather, precisely because it is an established powerhouse, it focuses even more on fundamental training.
The first training drill was spiking.
Although the rookies were told they could join the upperclassmen's training, even among the upperclassmen, they often split into small groups based on closeness, let alone the rookies who had just joined today.
Therefore, to improve training efficiency, the groups were ultimately divided into three teams:
* Oikawa, Iwaizumi, and Matsukawa (three members).
* Yahaba, Kindaichi, and Kunimi (three members).
* Mishita Ryuhei, Akashi, and Hanamaki (three members).
Each group consisted of one setter assisting two spikers. As for Watari, as a libero, he didn't need to practice spiking; he only needed to practice receiving on the other side of the net.
...
"Akashi, Hanamaki, are you ready?"
"No problem!"
"Relax, first-year. You can set whatever ball you want..." Hanamaki declared confidently.
Hearing this, Mishita Ryuhei looked at Hanamaki with slight surprise, then silently nodded.
The training officially began.
First, Akashi tossed the ball to Mishita Ryuhei, and then Mishita Ryuhei set it for Akashi to spike. After Akashi finished spiking, Hanamaki stepped in to take the next set, and Akashi returned to the starting position to prepare, forming a cycle.
Of the three training groups, the Oikawa group progressed the smoothest in the beginning. Since the other two groups had rookies, they needed some time to find a rhythm.
Because of this, Hanamaki seemed to have found a 'source of enjoyment,' shouting constantly:
"Hey, rookie, speed up the rhythm a little more."
"Faster! At this slow speed, I can't even break a sweat!"
"What's wrong, first-year? Are you already done? It looks like the gap between you and me is still huge!"
...
After about ten minutes of this.
Mishita Ryuhei gradually found the training rhythm. He and Akashi exchanged glances, and after a subtle nod, he said: "That's enough. The warm-up is over now, Hanamaki. Are you ready? Our training is officially starting."
Hanamaki, whose forehead had just started sweating: "??????"