Keiji Akaashi had expected Hoshiumi to at least lose his temper right in front of him, but to his surprise, Hoshiumi only stood there sulking.
Then he gave a huff, turned around, and walked away.
Keiji Akaashi was a little surprised. He was just leaving? That didn't seem right.
"Keiji Akaashi, that was amazing!"
The goofy owl tried to come over and nuzzle him, but Keiji Akaashi pushed away Bokuto's swaying head and said with perfect seriousness,
"Bokuto-senpai, we're still in the middle of a match."
"That was awesome, Keiji Akaashi! Your second-touch attacks are getting better and better."
Konoha came over too, joining in to praise Keiji Akaashi.
Keiji Akaashi shook his head helplessly. Everyone really was enthusiastic.
Then, at the referee's signal, they all returned to their positions.
"Fukurōdani scores again in succession, and this time they've overtaken Kamomedai. Can Kamomedai catch up and tie the score? Let's watch and find out!"
The match continued. So far, neither side had called a single timeout, and both teams were still in decent shape. No one needed a break, and nothing unexpected had happened.
After scoring again, Fukurōdani was still serving. Konoha stood at the service line. Thanks to everyone's efforts, he had already stayed there for three rotations.
He tossed the volleyball, took his approach, jumped, and swung hard.
Bang!
The ball cut through the air above the court and flew toward Kamomedai's side.
Keiichiro started moving again. Throughout this set, he had been diving and scrambling all over the court. By now, he was covered in dust and looked completely battered, but he still hadn't stopped running.
The serve had been aimed at Keiichiro, but for some reason, the landing point was a little different from what he had predicted at first. That was fine. Keiichiro's reactions on court were still sharp.
He dove across the floor. Just as the ball was about to drop somewhere else, he braced his wrist against the ground and twisted, using it to turn his whole body in the right direction.
Then he swung his right hand back again.
Bang! He got the ball up.
The volleyball flew back into Kamomedai's court. Kazuyoshi Bessho and the others were already in position. They had to break Fukurōdani's service run. If this kept going, the set would be over. They absolutely could not let the first set end like this.
"Side out on this one!"
"Go!"
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Kazuyoshi Bessho and the ball in his hands.
Kazuyoshi Bessho sighed. Were they really expecting that much from him? The opposing Middle Blocker was no pushover.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Hoshiumi ran out from behind Kazuyoshi Bessho's right side and entered everyone's view. As he brushed past Kazuyoshi Bessho, Hoshiumi said in a low voice,
"Give me the ball."
There was no room for argument. It was not a request, but an order.
His voice faded as Hoshiumi ran farther away.
Kazuyoshi Bessho suddenly laughed. This guy really wasn't polite at all. Back in first year, Hoshiumi had been such a courteous kid.
Every time, he would say,
"Could you please set this one to me?"
And now he had become like this. Sure enough, everyone had spoiled him so much that even his temper had grown.
Behind Hoshiumi, Kazuyoshi Bessho raised his hands and sent out a long, flat quick set. Just as Hoshiumi reached the front of the net and crouched to prepare for his jump, the volleyball arrived right above him, perfectly placed.
Hoshiumi crouched low, power gathering in his legs. Then, like a seagull taking flight, he sprang up hard.
Washio and Konoha formed a double block. The others were either moving to organize the next attack or running while constantly looking over at this ball.
Hoshiumi showed no fear facing a two-man block. What kind of challenge had he not seen before? Back when he was with the national youth team, he had already experienced the national team's double blocks. Was he supposed to be afraid of Fukurōdani's block now?
A double block might look impressive, but if the blockers' form was off or their jump timing was wrong, there was a good chance they would come up empty.
Hoshiumi also blocked in practice, but he knew very well how he should block if he did not have Bokuto's strength.
It came down to one word: speed.
Move before the blockers finish their side step. Jump before they jump. Seize every opening first. It required both prediction and speed. Without either one, it would not work.
Hoshiumi understood this deeply. Only when a specialty was pushed to its absolute limit could it become a finishing move.
Washio had just reached the net and was about to jump. Konoha had followed too, but Hoshiumi was too fast. By the time they arrived at the net and were preparing to jump, Hoshiumi had already risen into the air and spiked.
Bang!
Washio jumped, only to realize his hands had not even been set properly before the ball had already hit the floor on the other side.
Konoha had already jumped too. When he realized the ball had crossed the net while he was still in the air, he instinctively stretched out his foot, trying to scoop it up. But Hoshiumi was fast, and the ball was just as fast. In the blink of an eye, it had already landed.
Konoha stuck out his foot and scooped up nothing but air.
Haruki Komi had sensed something was off the moment Hoshiumi prepared to jump. They said a Libero's eyes were like a ruler, and Hoshiumi was clearly running much faster than before.
At that point, Washio and Konoha still had not gotten into position. Haruki Komi hurried over from the backcourt, moving incredibly fast too, but there was no catching Hoshiumi when he looked like he had activated Flash.
Seriously, Hoshiumi was small to begin with. Most of the time, he was far more agile than those 1.9-meter or 1.8-meter giants.
"Beep-------!"
The whistle signaled the point.
Haruki Komi and Washio, one lying on the floor and the other standing, looked at each other in disbelief.
Seeing the confusion in their eyes made Hoshiumi want to laugh. It felt amazing. He had already scored, and the opponents were still standing there wondering what had happened. It was just too satisfying.
Hoshiumi could probably understand how Keiji Akaashi had felt after scoring that last point. He had to admit, it really did feel great.
"Hoshiumi from Kamomedai successfully takes back a point. There was no real trick to that play. He was simply incredibly fast. From the looks of it, he could probably go compete in professional sprinting. It's just like that saying from Huaguo: among all martial arts, only speed cannot be overcome."
Hoshiumi's speed shocked everyone all over again.
"Nice one, Hoshiumi. Have you been secretly practicing behind our backs? How come I've never seen you move that fast before?"
Hakuba's face clearly said, "Not bad, you little punk."
He did not say anything outright, but Hoshiumi could still see how eager Hakuba was. Hakuba had absolutely no resistance to flashy, attention-grabbing moves like that.
Hoshiumi lifted his chin.
"How should I know? Maybe my little universe suddenly exploded."
Hakuba obviously did not believe that excuse. As he adjusted his position, he kept looking at Hoshiumi, trying to make him soften up and tell him the secret to running that fast.
But Hoshiumi was Hoshiumi. Neither soft nor hard tactics worked on him. He ignored Hakuba outright and went back to his position. Even from behind, anyone could see how smug he was.
"What exactly is going on with Kamomedai and Fukurōdani...?"
There was confusion in Shinsuke Kita's eyes. It was like everyone had made an agreement beforehand, each one showing more obvious improvement than the last. Were the National Youth Team's training methods really that good?
Thinking that, he turned to look at Atsumu Miya, only to see Atsumu Miya grinning like an idiot because of something Ryosuke had said. Shinsuke Kita fell silent too.
How should he put it? Atsumu Miya had gone to the National Youth Team, but after coming back, Shinsuke Kita had not really noticed any major improvement in his training. If anything, he had become a little more patient. His technique had not changed much. Still, for Atsumu Miya, becoming a bit more steady was probably a good thing too.
Hoshiumi strutted back with his head held high, acting like he was unbelievably impressive, and everyone could not help laughing.
They had finally ended Fukurōdani's service rotation. Next, it was Kamomedai's turn.
Suwa stepped up to serve for Kamomedai. Suwa had a good serve. Not exceptionally brilliant, but consistently excellent.
His powerful jump serve had always stayed at the same level: fast, accurate, and sharp. No matter what condition he was in, Suwa maintained the stability of his serve. Even the jump float serve he had only recently learned was not something he would bring into a match. Suwa's match philosophy was to eliminate uncertainty at all times.
"Yo, Suwa, nice serve."
"Good serve!"
One by one, everyone walked over and high-fived Suwa. Hoshiumi looked at him with a serious face, then said fiercely,
"I worked hard to win this chance. You'd better hold onto it."
Looking at Hoshiumi's fierce little old-man expression, Suwa chuckled. Then he reached out and vigorously ruffled Hoshiumi's hair. As Hoshiumi's eyes started to flare up, Suwa said,
"I heard that before serving, if you touch the hair of the teammate who scored the last point, you can borrow some good luck. Hoshiumi, I'll have to trouble you to make a small sacrifice."
Hoshiumi was left half-believing him. What good luck? Why had he never heard of that?
While Hoshiumi was still stunned, Suwa had already thoroughly messed up his hair. Then, looking extremely pleased with himself, he walked to his position and waved at Hoshiumi.
"With your good luck backing me up, this serve definitely won't be a problem."
As for the idea that touching someone's hair brought good luck, of course that was just something Suwa made up to trick a kid. He had simply been eyeing Hoshiumi's fluffy little white hair.
Short, white, and curled, it looked just like the pure white Selkirk cat he had seen at the pet store before. Fierce, but adorable.
Suwa, having gotten what he wanted, was clearly in a very good mood. When he walked to the service line, he looked practically radiant.
The instant he turned around, Suwa's expression became serious. His sharp brows and eyes lowered, giving him an intense, oppressive air.
Suwa had never gone to the National Youth Team, but that did not mean there was a huge gap between him and the rest of the team. The reason Suwa had not been selected was that he was not a hexagonal warrior. These days, the national team clearly preferred players like Hirugami, or rather, players like Ryosuke. Single-specialty Wing Spikers did not seem quite as popular anymore.
But Suwa did not mind at all. None of that affected his mood in the slightest. After all, he had seen Hirugami return from the National Youth Team looking like he had aged ten years, and it had scared him badly. Taking care of kids really was not work meant for humans.
His thoughts were a mess, but the moment he tossed up the volleyball, Suwa's focus locked entirely onto the serve in front of him.
Kamomedai and Fukurōdani might be old rivals, but Suwa did not know every single one of their players well. What he could currently confirm was that none of Fukurōdani's players on court could serve a jump float. The only question was whether Haruki Komi could receive one.
Suwa jumped into the air, and the volleyball steadied at a fixed height. Then his hand suddenly snapped with force, his wrist striking the lower half of the ball. If one looked closely, the volleyball had even deformed slightly under that slap.
The ball spun as it flew out. It looked unsteady, drifting and swaying, but its speed was extremely fast.
The most important word for a jump float serve was "stability." The toss had to be stable, the contact had to be stable, and the hand after contact had to be stable. This kind of serve tested a person's composure. If someone was too impatient, they would only ever learn the surface of it.
The volleyball flew toward Fukurōdani's side. As expected, none of the Fukurōdani players currently on court could serve a jump float, but Haruki Komi had received jump floats before.
So the instant Suwa served, Haruki Komi guessed that it was a jump float. Suwa had not hidden his hand motion at all. It was practically announcing to everyone: this was a jump float serve.
Haruki Komi perked up at once. A jump float serve was great. This whole set, he had almost been sick from receiving powerful jump serves. Nothing but jump serves, all kinds of bizarre jump serves. Now that a jump float serve had finally appeared, it immediately sparked Haruki Komi's competitive spirit.
The ball did have an arc and spin, but neither was very obvious. It flew straight toward Haruki Komi's chest.
Before it crossed the net, there really was nothing distinctive about it. It felt like an ordinary serve, only a little faster. But once it crossed the net, the problem appeared.
The ball was flying straight at Haruki Komi's chest, an incredibly nasty spot. He could not receive it overhand, and he could not receive it underhand either. It was awkward to the extreme.
"Ah, a flat-drive jump float."
Atsumu Miya watched the ball and sounded like he understood.
Then everyone turned to look at Atsumu Miya, including the three coaches.
Atsumu Miya: "..."
It was his first time being stared at by everyone like that, and he panicked a little.
Then he thought about it again. Wait, no. Why was he panicking? They were not his coaches anyway.
After figuring that out, Atsumu Miya began speaking freely.
"A flat-drive jump float is one type of jump float serve. You can tell from the name. The trajectory is very flat, and the spin is extremely slight. Its only advantages are speed and the fact that the ball's final position makes it hard to receive. If you take it overhand, it puts a lot of strain on your waist. If you take it underhand, you can't quite reach it. And this kind of flat-drive float is usually really fast.
"By the time the Libero reacts, the ball is already right in front of him."
Atsumu Miya paused, then continued,
"But with a flat-drive serve like this, how should I put it? You have to know the receiver's height very precisely. Otherwise, it's hard to aim for that awkward spot."
Who knew how Suwa had managed to place it so accurately?
Aaron smiled kindly and nodded.
"As expected of a dual-threat player. Atsumu-kun, you really understand jump float serves."
Atsumu Miya had not expected to get praised for an offhand comment, especially with so many people hearing it. He immediately became a little uncomfortable.
He looked just like an elementary school student being praised by the teacher in front of the whole class.
Shinsuke Kita glanced at Atsumu Miya's hopeless expression and sighed.
"Not at all. Suwa-kun is very impressive too."
...
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