The match had been tense from start to finish. A large part of the reason the training squad had managed to hold on for so long was because of Ryosuke and Komori, their two defensive anchors. There were far too few chances to score on offense. Aside from Asano, none of the national team's blockers were pushovers, and the training squad's offense simply could not compare with the national team's.
They had only managed to maintain this strange balance in the match because Ryosuke and Komori were scrambling all over the court to dig up every ball.
Now that the national team had taken the first set, the training squad gathered during the break to discuss how they could turn the current situation in their favor.
Ushijima got two tubes of ointment from Coach Hosho. After just one set, Ryosuke and Komori's arms were already covered in bruises, and Ushijima frowned as he looked at them.
"Man... they really are amazing."
Komori rubbed on the ointment with a sigh. Yaku crouched nearby, itching to get on the court himself. He wanted to try receiving one too! Senpai Ran Takahashi's spike looked seriously thrilling.
"Mm, that set was really rough. A 23:19 score, a whole four-point gap, and it felt like they were still holding back," Hirugami analyzed very rationally.
"Is there really nothing we can do?" Atsumu Miya scratched at his hair in frustration, messing up his neat hairstyle completely. This match had genuinely dealt a blow to his confidence.
"Let's take it one step at a time."
Ushijima did not offer any other opinion, because he did not have a good way to deal with the national team either. The national team's coordination was far too smooth. They did not even need to communicate to work together seamlessly, and it was honestly astonishing.
For now, they could only feel things out and build their coordination bit by bit. There was no other way.
Training on the training squad's side was in full swing, and over at Shiratorizawa, the Golden Training Camp was also going strong. ... Today was the second-to-last day of the camp. Hinata felt that he had gained a lot from his time at the Golden Training Camp. He had made plenty of good friends and learned some very professional knowledge.
"Bang!" Tsutomu Goshiki's ball was blocked back by the other side. Standing outside the court, Hinata's eyes lit up.
It was his turn to retrieve the ball again. He jogged toward the backcourt out-of-bounds area. This ball was definitely going out!
Tsutomu Goshiki hit with so much power, and the one blocking was Tsukishima. Tsukishima's block had plenty of force too. This ball was absolutely going to fly out of bounds.
Hinata crouched down with both hands forward, watching as the volleyball was about to hit his forearms. His nerves were stretched tight.
Then the ball came straight at Hinata's face.
Hinata: "?"
"Bang!"
"Ow!"
It hit Hinata square in the face. A sharp pain shot through his nose. The volleyball slowly dropped, a round red mark appeared on Hinata's face, and blood flowed down from his nose.
"Hinata!" Tsutomu Goshiki stared in horror at Hinata's bleeding nose. Tsukishima guiltily lifted the net and ran over too. Hinata, that idiot. He had been told to retrieve the ball, not receive it. If he got hit, it definitely was not Tsukishima's fault.
Hinata lowered his head, held his nose, and waved a hand, his voice muffled.
"I'm fine... don't worry."
Tsukishima stubbornly pulled out a tissue and messily tilted Hinata's head up.
"What kind of single-celled idiot are you? The ball was coming straight at your face, and you still didn't dodge!"
"I'm not an idiot!" Hinata shouted angrily, then paused.
"But I thought... I could receive that ball just now."
Tsutomu Goshiki also circled around Hinata with a look of wonder.
"Yeah. Hinata just now... it looked like he deliberately ran to that spot."
After Tsukishima finished wiping the blood from Hinata's nose, he silently threw the tissue away and did not argue. He had indeed seen Hinata's progress. At the start, Hinata had not even been good at retrieving balls. Now, he could block off a ball's path like a Libero and predict where it would land.
That kind of progress had happened in only four or five days. Hinata's ability to learn was practically abnormal. Even Tsukishima had to admit that Hinata was a little monster.
"Hinata really is impressive. His learning ability is much stronger than Tsutomu Goshiki's."
Reon saw what happened and walked over, ruffling Hinata's orange hair. It was soft and fluffy to the touch, not inferior to Ryosuke's hair at all.
Hinata smiled smugly and hummed.
"Of course! I'm Shoyo Hinata!"
"Yes, yes, you're Hinata."
After just a few days together, Reon had grown quite fond of Hinata. No one could refuse a hardworking, passionate little sun, especially when this kid was so much easier to deal with than Tsutomu Goshiki and Ryosuke.
"There'll be a practice match after training tonight. Hinata, you should join too." This was the first time Reon had invited Hinata to a practice match.
"Really?!" Hinata shot his head up, his bright eyes staring straight at Reon.
"Of course."
"Whoa! Hinata, we have to be on the same team tonight!"
Tsutomu Goshiki was so happy he nearly jumped. Playing a practice match with Hinata, and as teammates too, was seriously exciting.
The scene looked warm and lively. Standing at the doorway, Coach Washijō watched it all and gave a heavy "hmph."
He admitted that Hinata's talent really was good, but that brat Ryosuke had actually given his dorm room to him. Just thinking about it made Coach Washijō angry.
Back then, he had spent quite a lot of time preparing that dorm for Ryosuke. He had not expected that brat to never stay there even once. In the end, he had actually given it to this kid, and even kept it from him! Once Ryosuke came back, he would definitely train him hard.
Sigh...
Coach Washijō sighed again. He wondered how that brat was doing over at the national team. According to the message Ushijima had sent back, Ryosuke had been eating properly lately and training very seriously. He just did not know whether the child had lost weight. National team training was so demanding. Ryosuke, he...
He was fine as long as he did not think about Ryosuke, but the moment he did, Coach Washijō was filled with worry. Ryosuke had been raised here for so long. Aside from when he went to school in Tokyo as a child, this was the first time he had been away from home for such a long time. ... And Ryosuke, the one Coach Washijō kept worrying about, was currently gasping for breath as he dove across the floor once again and received another ball.
"Bang!" The volleyball flew up.
Ryosuke quickly scrambled back to his feet.
This was already the second set of the second match, and the lineup had already been changed, but Ryosuke was still crouched in the Libero position.
His arms, legs, elbows, back, every part of his body was screaming that he was exhausted. But after digging up another ball, Ryosuke was happy. To Ryosuke, protecting a single point for the team was an enormous thing.
"Should we sub Ryosuke out?" Keiji Akaashi asked worriedly from beside Ushijima.
Ushijima fell into thought without speaking. Ryosuke's stamina could not compare with those monsters on the national team. The fact that he had held on until now was already beyond his expectations.
Should they sub Ryosuke out or not...
"Let's watch a little longer. Let's see where Ryosuke's limit really is."
"That kid... he's pretty impressive. But no matter how impressive he is, he can't hold on much longer, right? Why hasn't the training squad subbed him out yet?"
Watching Ryosuke pant for breath, Hibarida felt a pang of concern. This kid was pushing himself too hard. Making it to the second match was already no easy feat.
"The training squad doesn't have anyone else who can play Libero. Their other Liberos are all stuck playing opposite hitter right now. If they sub someone out, their backcourt defense won't hold."
Nakagaichi sat in his chair with his chin propped in one hand, speaking with great interest.
Ryosuke's condition honestly could not be called good. Sweat was already running from his forehead into his eyes, and every blink brought a sharp sting.
Sakusa frowned hard. He had seen Ryosuke's condition too. Unless Ushijima called for a substitution, this set simply would not end. It was such a headache.
The other side's blocking and defense were ridiculously slippery. There was no chance to force a clean head-on clash at all.
Sakusa saw the ball flying over his head and stepped back for his approach. Ran Takahashi and Shoma Tomita both moved over to block.
Asano's blocking had already been exposed in the last match. Atsumu Miya and Ushijima had each targeted Asano with a ball, and Asano's mentality was not very stable right now. He had always known blocking was his weak point, but did they really need to target him this much? Damn it!
Ran Takahashi and Shoma Tomita both had wide vision and plenty of experience. There was no way to trick them. He could only rely on technique and force his way through.
Sakusa narrowed his eyes. He still had not brought out his trump card.
Facing the national team's block, Sakusa showed no fear at all. He aimed straight at Ran Takahashi's palm and spiked. Ran Takahashi narrowed his eyes. This kid had guts, daring to hit even in a situation like this.
"Bang!" Sakusa's wrist bent at an unbelievable angle, his palm almost pressed against his wrist as he brought the ball down right along the block.
Ran Takahashi: "?"
Ran Takahashi's sharp eyes caught sight of Sakusa's wrist, and he was stunned. That split second of distraction was all Sakusa needed to slip through the opening.
"Bang!" The vertical spike left Tomohiro Yamamoto and Yuji Nishida in the back unable to react. One after another, they dove onto the floor and looked up at Sakusa from the ground.
"Beeeeep!"
Ran Takahashi and Shoma Tomita landed back on the floor, looking at Sakusa, then at the ball on the ground. For a moment, neither of them reacted.
"That was amazing, Omi-Omi!" Ryosuke's eyes were wide, full of delight.
"Hiss..." Ran Takahashi clutched his own wrist with a chill running through him. A bend like that would snap a person's wrist, wouldn't it?
"What just happened?" Shoma Tomita had not seen that moment clearly, so he naturally did not understand.
Ran Takahashi was still caught up in how unusual Sakusa's wrist was, muttering softly.
"His wrist is kind of special. It's too flexible, and the angle it bends at is huge. That spike just now should have been a tool off the block. I was fooled too. Then, in the next second, his whole wrist bent downward, and it turned straight into a spike along the net."
"Hiss... he's got something, huh?"
Shoma Tomita nodded along as well.
"Beeeeep!"
The training squad called a timeout.
Ryosuke sighed and slowly walked off the court. Sakusa jogged over and supported Ryosuke by the arm.
"You okay?" There was a hint of concern in Sakusa's voice.
"I'm fine..." Ryosuke answered quietly.
"Hey, hey, hey! Sakusa, that last ball was seriously awesome!" Bokuto chattered as he circled around Sakusa. It was just too amazing. That ball had hit the floor in the blink of an eye, and even Bokuto had not reacted in time.
"Ryosuke." Ushijima stood off the court with his arms crossed, looking a little like a coach in that instant.
"Coming!" Ryosuke heard Ushijima call and ran over with quick little steps.
"What is it, Ushijima-senpai?"
Ushijima rubbed Ryosuke's hair with a towel, then hesitated before speaking.
"For now, don't go back on court. Let Keiji Akaashi go in."
Ryosuke froze for a moment, then immediately straightened his back and prepared to protest. He did not want to come off. Ryosuke felt that he could still keep going.
Ushijima saw his reluctance and spoke before Ryosuke could.
"You have to come off. This is only the second set, and your stamina is nearly gone. I think you know best how far you can push yourself. We need you."
Ryosuke stared into Ushijima's deep eyes, his mouth open as he stammered for a long while without managing to say anything. He could not argue. Ushijima-senpai was right.
"Or is it that Ryosuke doesn't trust me?"
Keiji Akaashi's teasing voice came from behind Ryosuke, and Ryosuke whipped his head around.
"That's not what I meant, Keiji Akaashi-senpai! I just still want to..."
Keiji Akaashi looked at Ryosuke knowingly. He still wanted to stay on the court a little longer.
"Then could Ryosuke give me a chance to show what I can do? After all, your senpai wants to get on court too."
Keiji Akaashi winked at Ryosuke, smiling gently. The smile at the corner of his mouth was dazzling enough to make a person dizzy.
Ryosuke was left dazed by that smile, his face a little red. Then he obediently nodded and stopped talking. Keiji Akaashi-senpai's smile... was way too unfair!
Sakusa saw what was happening over on Ryosuke's side, and Keiji Akaashi smiling so brightly. He gave an unhappy "hmph" through his nose.
Atsumu Miya secretly ground his teeth. These people all had bad intentions toward Ryosuke! He had to break through this encirclement!
"Beeeeep!"
The one-minute timeout passed quickly. Ryosuke was subbed out by Ushijima. Before leaving the court, Ryosuke looked at Keiji Akaashi with a solemn expression.
"Keiji Akaashi-senpai! I'm counting on you from here on out!"
"Don't worry!" The two of them high-fived, and Ryosuke entrusted his responsibility to Keiji Akaashi.
"The other side made a substitution," Hibarida said lazily, copying Nakagaichi's posture and propping his chin in his hand.
"Mm... The Libero's stamina probably couldn't hold out. Besides, today's practice matches are going to last all afternoon. If he doesn't rest now, he won't get the chance later."
Nakagaichi had propped up his chin for so long that his neck had gone a little stiff, so he moved his neck around and stood up again.
"How long can the training squad last without their Libero?"
"The one who just went in is a Libero too," Hosho said.
"He is a Libero, yes, but he was originally a setter. If he can act as a Libero, why didn't the training squad put him in from the start? That only proves one thing. That Keiji Akaashi guy isn't as good at receiving as Ryosuke."
Hibarida did not mind explaining it to Hosho. Hosho was not unable to understand that logic either. He just did not quite understand. Since Ryosuke had been arranged as the Libero for both lineups, why had they not considered his stamina and instead had to add a Libero at the last minute?
The answer was actually very simple... Ushijima really had just forgotten about it. He had overestimated Ryosuke's stamina too much. The toll of one match here was far greater than what Ryosuke usually spent in a match.
...
...
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