Before taking the court, Bokuto was absolutely thrilled, circling around Keiji Akaashi like a whole owl in motion.
"Keiji Akaashi! We can finally play together!"
Ever since the first set that afternoon, Bokuto had not been on the court with Keiji Akaashi. Playing without Keiji Akaashi there made Bokuto feel a little uneasy. Only now did he realize that every time he stepped onto the court for a match, Keiji Akaashi had always been behind him.
"Bokuto-senpai, please stop spinning around like that. You're making me dizzy."
One sentence from Keiji Akaashi, and Bokuto immediately settled down. Hoshiumi stared at them, completely dumbfounded.
He had also thought Bokuto was really restless sometimes, even a little annoying, and impossible to keep under control. But who would have thought! Keiji Akaashi had calmed Bokuto down with a single sentence. As expected of Keiji Akaashi.
Ran Takahashi and the others still looked perfectly fine right now, but! In reality! They were exhausted too. Their stamina was indeed a little better, but only a little.
Not to mention, they were fighting a rotation battle, one match after another. The training squad could still substitute players, but they had only brought six people today. Just enough for one team. They had no way to make substitutions at all.
Tomohiro Yamamoto was still doing all right. He was truly used to running around like this. Motoki Eiro and Asano, on the other hand, were not doing so well. One had been running back and forth to block because of Sakusa's troublesome spikes, while the other had to run all over the court setting the ball.
By now, they were starting to struggle too.
"Don't embarrass yourselves in front of the juniors, everyone," Ran Takahashi said, staring at the few of them who were starting to look tired.
Yuji Nishida could not even be bothered to speak. He had been running the whole match, and his throat felt like it was smoking.
"Damn it! We absolutely can't embarrass ourselves in front of them!" In the end, it was still the young, hot-blooded Asano who slammed a fist against the floor, full of fighting spirit.
"Beeeeep!" The whistle sounded, and the match began.
Both sides took the court together.
Sitting below the stands, Ryosuke still felt a little uneasy. Seeing that everyone had gone onto the court, he stood up again, but Ushijima shook his head and reached out to press him back into his chair.
"Watch carefully how your seniors play."
Ryosuke nodded. He was still a little unwilling, but he did not say anything else.
The serve still belonged to the national team this time, and the rotation happened to put Motoki Eiro at the service line. The others had not seen Motoki Eiro's serve yet. In the previous match, every time it was almost Eiro's turn to serve, the training squad had stolen the serve back before he could.
Because of that, the training squad still had not seen how Eiro served.
"Serve a good one!"
"Nice serve!"
Standing at the service line, Eiro received everyone's greetings and could not help feeling a little awkward. They were not usually this enthusiastic. What was going on? Had they gotten fired up?
Unlike the national team, Yaku was still shouting.
"Get the serve back in one!"
Keiji Akaashi stood at the very back, his face tense. He did not feel confident either. Until now, Eiro-senpai's serve was the only one he had not seen. Besides, he had not felt much during regular training, but once he stood in the Libero position during a match, Keiji Akaashi somehow grew tense all over.
Eiro took a deep breath, tossed the ball up, took a three-step approach, then sprang into the air.
Ryosuke had a bad feeling.
"Bang!" Eiro's hand covered the volleyball cleanly, and with a steady snap of his wrist, he sent it flying out at high speed. The ball carried an unpredictable spin that was difficult to see with the naked eye.
Keiji Akaashi's heart dropped. Was that a jump float? Why was it so fast? It didn't look like a jump float. Komi still hadn't taught him how to receive a jump float.
Keiji Akaashi stood rooted to the spot, both arms spread, cold sweat breaking out across his forehead.
Move! Keiji Akaashi shouted at himself inwardly. He felt like he was afraid, completely overwhelmed by the force of this serve. He could not move at all.
Yaku saw the ball flying straight toward Keiji Akaashi's face. Keiji Akaashi's feet looked as if they had been nailed to the floor, and Yaku was so anxious he wanted to shout at him.
After estimating the ball's position and the distance between himself and Keiji Akaashi, Yaku decided to switch places.
"Keiji Akaashi!"
Yaku's shout instantly snapped the dazed Keiji Akaashi back to himself. When he turned around, he saw Yaku running toward him. Keiji Akaashi immediately understood. In the previous match, Ryosuke and Komori had often switched positions like this too.
The two of them quickly exchanged positions. Yaku crouched down and used his forearms to receive the ball.
"Bang!" The volleyball slammed into Yaku's arms, then spun strangely away from them! Yaku had no time to react. Why did that happen?!
"Beeep!"
Point to the national team!
"Sorry..." Keiji Akaashi lowered his head, looking a little embarrassed. His reaction just now had been far too humiliating.
"It's okay."
Yaku grinned. Keiji Akaashi was a setter, and this was his first time standing in the Libero position during a match. It was understandable for him to freeze up a little at first.
But... that last serve.
"Hahaha, you've still got it, Eiro-senpai!"
Asano grinned and high-fived Eiro. Ah, no matter how many times he saw it, Eiro-senpai's jump float really was amazing!
Yaku was still thinking about that last serve. Logically speaking, he never missed an ordinary jump float. But with that one just now, he had not even had the chance to adjust. Was it because he had wasted too much time switching places with Keiji Akaashi?
Something about it felt off. Yaku stared at Motoki Eiro for a long time, but he still could not figure out what was going on.
Off the court, Komori was now sitting beside Ryosuke. The two sat side by side, watching Eiro's serve without even blinking. Even Eiro, standing at the service line, could feel their burning stares.
Ryosuke and Komori sat shoulder to shoulder on the sidelines, both wearing the exact same expression as they watched Eiro's serve.
I want to receive it! Let me receive it!
Yaku was also judging how he should handle the next serve. The next one should still be a jump float.
Under everyone's gaze, Eiro tossed the volleyball up again. He looked up as the ball's shadow blocked the ceiling lights, then backed up, took a six-step approach, and jumped.
Yaku had originally thought this would be another jump float, and he had already prepared himself to receive one. But the moment Eiro's serve came over, he realized something was wrong. This was not a jump float! In the tiny fraction of a second it took Yaku to process that, the ball had already grazed Keiji Akaashi's cheek and slammed into the floor. Keiji Akaashi's hands were still held in the position he had prepared to receive with.
Keiji Akaashi had not even touched the ball. That serve was a powerful jump serve. He had clearly seen where the ball was going to land, but the painful part was that even though he saw it, he still could not receive it.
Keiji Akaashi's body could not keep up with what his mind wanted to do. He also did not have the same physical reactions as Yaku and the others. For the first time in a match, Keiji Akaashi felt frustration.
"Keiji Akaashi! Are you okay?!" Bokuto rushed to the backcourt in a panic. That ball had flown right past Keiji Akaashi's cheek. If Keiji Akaashi had tilted his head even a little, it definitely would have scratched his face. Just thinking about that pretty face getting hurt made Bokuto angry for no reason.
"I'm fine, Bokuto-senpai."
Keiji Akaashi sounded a little helpless. Why was Bokuto-senpai even more nervous than he was? Keiji Akaashi sighed again, looking unusually downcast.
"Am I useless, Bokuto-senpai?"
That tone left Bokuto unsure how to answer. He froze in place, then looked to Hoshiumi for help. In the past, Keiji Akaashi had always been the one to comfort him. Now that Keiji Akaashi was upset, how was he supposed to comfort him?
Hoshiumi clicked his tongue impatiently. Why are you looking at me? I don't know how to comfort people either. But when it came to receiving...
"Keiji Akaashi, let me tell you something." Under Keiji Akaashi's puzzled gaze, Hoshiumi tugged him by the shirt and pulled him into a corner. The two of them whispered together, no one else knowing what they were discussing. Hoshiumi looked serious as he spoke, and Keiji Akaashi nodded solemnly.
This and that, then that and this.
The national team did not interrupt the kids' discussion either. After all, this was a practice match. Letting something slide once in a while was no big deal. Besides, they were also looking forward to seeing what kind of surprise these kids would bring them.
"Hiss... he's a two-style server. Atsumu Miya-senpai, Eiro-senpai's serve is really similar to yours."
Ryosuke's words left everyone a little confused, especially Atsumu Miya.
"What two-style? How come I didn't see it? Weren't they all jump floats?"
Faced with everyone's confusion, Ryosuke was confused too. Wasn't it obvious? Ushijima also tilted his head and looked at Ryosuke, signaling for him to explain properly. At that moment, Komori spoke up, rolling his eyes at Atsumu Miya.
"Atsumu-kun really is a muscle-brained idiot. You can't see such an obvious two-style serve? Your usual serves are so flashy that anyone can tell right away. Eiro-senpai's serve uses a three-step jump float and a six-step jump serve. The movements are very small. You can basically only tell the difference from his footwork, and if you watch the volleyball carefully, there are differences there too."
Ryosuke nodded repeatedly. That was exactly right. Also, to keep those two serves from giving away too obvious a tell, Eiro-senpai even added speed to cover it up. That made the powerful jump serve look lighter. From Keiji Akaashi-senpai and Yaku-senpai's angle at the time, it looked almost no different from a jump float.
"Hah? Why am I a muscle-brained idiot?!" Atsumu Miya muttered, completely unconvinced. But since Komori was one of the few Liberos, he did not dare argue back. Lately, for some reason, he had no idea how he had offended Komori, but Komori had been making sarcastic remarks at him every day.
Atsumu Miya felt wronged, but Atsumu Miya said nothing.
"I wonder if they can figure it out."
Hirugami rubbed his hair, his tone worried. Had that guy Hoshiumi figured it out? Otherwise, why would he have pulled Keiji Akaashi aside and talked for so long? He hoped Hoshiumi would not mislead him. Otherwise, if he ended up dragging Keiji Akaashi into a pit, Hirugami would not be responsible.
Keiji Akaashi stood in position, his mind filled entirely with what Hoshiumi had just told him. He knew Hoshiumi would not lie to him, but whether his own brain could trust those words was another matter.
"You adjusted that quickly?"
Motoki Eiro raised an eyebrow in surprise. He had thought that after two balls at most, the opposing Libero's mentality would almost collapse. He had not expected him to be this resilient. Tsk. Then let me dominate the court. First, I'll go for ten service points.
Under the whistle, Eiro tossed the volleyball up. For Keiji Akaashi, there was no backing out now. Fine. He had to trust his teammates. Even if the people standing on this side were not everyone from Fukurōdani, Bokuto-senpai was still here.
"Bang!" Eiro jumped and struck the ball. Keiji Akaashi stared at Eiro's steps and began counting.
One...
Two...
Three...!
Three steps in total. It was a jump float! Once Keiji Akaashi reached that conclusion, he shouted.
"Yaku!"
Yaku turned back and saw Keiji Akaashi running toward him. He was not quite sure what Keiji Akaashi was planning. Did he want to switch positions? So Yaku started running too, still a little uncertain. As they brushed past each other, Yaku heard Keiji Akaashi's quiet voice.
"Jump float."
Yaku understood what that meant in an instant. Keiji Akaashi had not learned how to receive a jump float. This ball was very likely a jump float!
Yaku quickly got into position, planting his feet firmly on the floor. As the ball came closer, Yaku leaned back, raised both hands above his head, and received it overhand!
"Bang!" Yaku could feel the jump float hit his palms, and then the sensation of the volleyball rebounding and flying out again. This ball was playable!
That touch alone made Yaku feel hopeful. The ball had not floated messily out of his hands. Instead, it rebounded steadily. Half of his heart settled. The other half would depend on everyone else's performance.
"Hoshiumi! You're running the wrong way!"
When Yaku saw Hoshiumi running toward the Wing Spiker position, he was so angry he pressed his fingers to his philtrum. Hoshiumi! You're playing setter right now!
This kid really was from Kamomedai, all right. One Kamomedai player had run to the wrong position to play middle blocker, and now another had run to the wrong position to play Wing Spiker... How should he put it? Kamomedai was surprisingly consistent.
As Hoshiumi was running, realization suddenly dawned on him. Seeing that the ball was already above his head, he decided to go all in. Hoshiumi jumped and set the ball with both hands, the direction of the set aimed straight at Kageyama.
Kageyama's scalp prickled. He really had never spiked a ball in a match before. But for the sake of scoring, playing Wing Spiker once in a while was not impossible.
Seeing Kageyama jump, Asano and Ran Takahashi on the other side locked onto him and moved to block. Shoma Tomita, however, kept his eyes fixed on Kōrai Hoshiumi, who had set the ball. He had a feeling this kid did not play by common sense. He had to keep a close watch.
Hoshiumi had indeed set the ball. That was true. But he held the volleyball like he was about to dunk, then sent it directly into the opponent's backcourt. With a whoosh, the motion was so dazzling that no one had time to react.
Shoma Tomita: "?" Where's the ball? He had just watched it fly over his head, and then it was gone?
"Hahahahaha!!" Hirugami burst into laughter from off the court. He had to admit, watching his beloved teammate make a fool of himself from this angle was really interesting. Had Hoshiumi been watching him from the sidelines like this just now too?
That said, Hoshiumi's ball was truly unexpected. His teammates had not expected it, and neither had his opponents. In his daze, Hirugami seemed to understand why the coach had made everyone play matches in this way.
Watching everyone from off the court made it obvious who reacted well and who could lift the mood of a team. Every tiny flaw looked as if it had been magnified under a lens. There was nowhere for anything to hide.
...
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