The Setter's Command
"Karasuno vs. Seijoh, the match officially begins!"
"Karasuno to serve first."
As the referee blew the whistle for the official start of the match, the atmosphere in the entire arena instantly became serious.
...
"Alright~ let's get on the court! Today, I also... believe in you!" In the first half of the sentence, Oikawa Tōru sounded somewhat flippant, but when he reached the latter half, his expression suddenly became incredibly earnest.
Just this simple statement instantly changed the entire mood of the Seijoh team.
In the substitute area.
Mishita Ryuhei stared blankly at the scene, instinctively saying, "Incredible!"
Yahaba Shigeru was startled: "What?"
Mishita Ryuhei said: "I mean Oikawa-senpai is incredible. He can change the entire team's atmosphere with just one sentence. He's simply a natural-born 'Setter'!"
Only those who are also Setters could truly grasp Oikawa Tōru's brilliance.
"Does Oikawa-senpai truly worry about losing to Kageyama Tobio?"
"Hmm? Ah, well, I'm not entirely sure about that, but I did hear something from Iwaizumi-senpai before. Apparently, Oikawa-senpai went through a period of dejection in Junior High because of a certain 'Genius,'" Yahaba Shigeru paused, then replied.
"A Genius? Perhaps in terms of technique that's true, but in my opinion, Kageyama Tobio still has a considerable distance to go to catch up to the current Oikawa-senpai."
...
The Opening Plays
The match started.
Seijoh's formation for the opening set placed Akashi Asuka, Oikawa Tōru, and Kindaichi Yūtarō in the front court. The back court was defended by Iwaizumi Hajime, Watari Shinji, and Matsukawa Issei.
The height of Seijoh's front three was 185{cm}, 184{cm}, and 189{cm} respectively.
Yes, that's right.
During his time in Seijoh, Akashi's height grew by another centimeter, something he measured accidentally last night.
This measurement was a huge shock to Iwaizumi Hajime, whose height hadn't changed in a full year.
Across the net.
Karasuno's front row consisted of Tanaka Ryūnosuke (178{cm}), Hinata Shōyō (162{cm}), and Kageyama Tobio (181{cm}).
The height difference between the two sides formed a stark contrast.
The first point was served by Karasuno.
The volleyball flew over, was received by Iwaizumi Hajime, and passed high above Oikawa Tōru's head.
Instantly, Akashi and Kindaichi in the front row moved simultaneously, and Iwaizumi Hajime in the back row also made an approach and jump motion. This successfully fooled the Karasuno defense.
For a moment, the opposing players found it difficult to determine who the final attacker would be. Then, in the next moment, Oikawa Tōru suddenly reached out and slapped the ball over the net into the Karasuno court.
THUD.
The volleyball hit the floor, letting out a dull sound.
In that instant, the entire court fell silent.
After a moment, the arena erupted in intense cheers.
"A Setter spike right off the bat!"
"Incredible!"
"Aaaahhhh... Oikawa-kun is so cool!"
...
"Hey, hey~~ Stop standing there daydreaming. Stay alert; I'll use the same attack method on the next ball! Defend well!" Oikawa Tōru smiled and spoke to the Karasuno players behind the net.
This blatant provocation immediately enraged Kageyama Tobio and Tanaka Ryūnosuke opposite him.
"Uh... is Oikawa-senpai's personality always this awful?"
"You get used to it."
Seijoh scored the first point.
Score 1:0.
The serve then returned to Seijoh. Seijoh served a ball, which was also received by the opposing Libero Nishinoya Yū, and then Kageyama Tobio organized the attack, quickly executing a quick strike with Hinata Shōyō.
However, since this was just a normal quick, the ball was received directly by Watari Shinji, who was defending the Seijoh back court.
Seijoh reorganized their offense.
Oikawa Tōru once again adopted the 'Setter spike' posture. After drawing in the Karasuno blockers, he suddenly changed his stance in mid-air and set the ball to Akashi Asuka.
"Damn it!"
Tanaka and Hinata, who had been fooled by Oikawa Tōru, quickly returned to defense, but they were ultimately a step too late. Akashi spiked a line shot, helping Seijoh score another point.
2:0.
Seijoh held onto the serve.
The third ball was still served by Seijoh. The ball crossed the net, was received by Karasuno's Sawamura Daichi, and passed high above Kageyama Tobio's head...
In the next second, all the Karasuno players moved simultaneously, just like Seijoh's opening play.
After drawing in the attention of the Seijoh players, Kageyama Tobio, without the slightest warning, suddenly initiated a "Setter spike."
However, the moment the ball left Kageyama Tobio's hands, a hand suddenly shot out from behind the net, slapping the ball back over the net and onto the Karasuno court.
THUD!
The sound of the ball hitting the floor was exceptionally harsh.
Kageyama Tobio's pupils contracted. He turned his head to look opposite, and at the same moment, Akashi Asuka landed back on the ground from the air.
Akashi looked at Kageyama Tobio and said calmly: "I'm sorry, the Setter spike won't work on me..."
In Junior High, during his match against Kitagawa Daiichi, Akashi had been fooled by Kageyama Tobio's "Setter spike" several times. He started to be wary of this offensive tactic then.
However, the true "qualitative shift" in Akashi's attention to this attack only occurred after joining Seijoh.
There was no helping it.
If you also have a big-hearted teammate who uses the Setter spike at least three or four times in a single practice set, anyone would pay extra attention to that method of attack.
"Ara ara~~ So Little Tobio was trying to imitate my attack style? What a shame, it looks like you failed, didn't you?"
Oikawa Tōru was stunned for a moment because he, too, had been tricked by Kageyama Tobio just then. But as a Setter whose heart is mostly black, Oikawa Tōru instinctively launched a 'taunt attack.'
The effect was noticeable.
Kageyama Tobio clenched his fists, nearly losing his composure.
But at the critical moment, Kageyama Tobio managed to restrain himself, turned back to the court, and continued to defend.
The referee blew the service whistle.
Seijoh launched the third serve.
The ball crossed the net and was received by Nishinoya Yū. Then, Kageyama Tobio organized the third offensive sequence. Akashi stood at the net, watching the opposing Hinata Shōyō start his approach run towards his position.
But in the next instant, Akashi watched almost open-mouthed as the opposing Hinata Shōyō suddenly shifted sideways by a large margin. The speed of the movement was practically like teleportation.
BAM!
The volleyball brushed past Akashi's side and landed on the floor.
Oikawa Tōru, seeing this, was slightly taken aback, seemingly confused.
And Akashi, feeling the light breeze created by the ball flying past his ear, gradually developed an unusual gleam in his eyes.
"I see. So this is the [Minus Tempo]? The speed is indeed very fast!"
...