Bokuto howled and reached out to claw at Konoha, but Konoha dodged just in time. The two of them immediately started causing a scene in the stands.
Bokuto chased Konoha all over the place, while Keiji Akaashi watched from the side with an amused smile, perfectly happy to enjoy the show.
The stands were in chaos, but everything on the court remained orderly. Once the whistle sounded, Ushijima took his place at position one with the volleyball in hand, ready to serve.
He looked across the net. Shinsuke Kita and Akagi were standing in the backcourt.
Ushijima first focused on Akagi, then shifted his gaze to Shinsuke Kita and left it there.
After choosing his target, Ushijima spun the volleyball once in his hand. He had decided who to serve at. This time, he wouldn't target the libero. Serving at Shinsuke Kita made him far more excited.
Ushijima tossed the ball into the air, bent his knees, lowered his center of gravity, and began his approach. When the ball reached the right height, he swung his left hand down with tremendous force.
The volleyball visibly deformed beneath his palm before spinning toward the backcourt.
The moment the ball crossed the net, Akagi realized it wasn't aimed at him. His tense body relaxed slightly.
He was absolutely certain the serve was headed for Captain Kita.
Shinsuke Kita wasn't surprised that Ushijima had targeted him.
To Ushijima, this serve was probably a greeting. He wanted to see how much Shinsuke Kita had improved over the years.
As soon as the volleyball cleared the net, Shinsuke Kita quickly adjusted his position and fine-tuned his posture.
He shuffled his feet apart, lowered his center of gravity, extended his arms, and prepared to lift the descending ball.
This sequence of movements had long been engraved into Shinsuke Kita's body.
Over countless days and nights during the past three years, he had repeated the same motions again and again.
The volleyball reached him quickly, but Shinsuke Kita was already fully prepared.
He met the serve head-on, and the ball crashed into his arms with tremendous force.
The instant it made contact, Shinsuke Kita lifted his forearms.
"Thud!"
The volleyball rebounded into the air.
Shinsuke Kita hadn't even needed to judge its landing point. The serve had been aimed directly at him. All he had to do was receive it, just as he received every other ball.
"Whoa, he got it!"
Several players in the stands who were unfamiliar with Shinsuke Kita exclaimed in surprise.
Receiving Ushijima's very first serve after entering the match was almost unheard of.
Komori watched Shinsuke Kita pass the ball with a wry smile.
He really was as impressive as ever.
Even Komori couldn't guarantee that he would receive Ushijima's serve cleanly on his first attempt.
Komori had once had the opportunity to play against Inarizaki during a training camp. The person who had left the deepest impression on him was Shinsuke Kita, who had still been a substitute at the time.
Even as a substitute, whenever Shinsuke Kita stepped onto the court, he never made a mistake in any situation where he believed a mistake shouldn't happen.
This serve was a perfect example.
To Shinsuke Kita, failing to receive an ordinary serve would count as an error.
Back then, Komori had wanted to grab Shinsuke Kita by the head and shake some sense into him.
An ordinary person?
If Shinsuke Kita was ordinary, then what did that make everyone else?
Anyone could make mistakes. Someone like Shinsuke Kita, who never seemed to make them, was the real monster.
After receiving the ball, Shinsuke Kita sent it toward Atsumu Miya.
Not only had he handled Ushijima's serve in one attempt, he had even delivered a clean first pass to Atsumu Miya.
It was incredible.
Atsumu Miya had already been excited about playing Shiratorizawa today. Now that Shinsuke Kita was on the court, he was even more fired up.
Watching the volleyball arrive perfectly above him, Atsumu Miya was deeply moved.
Captain Kita really loves me...
It was Atsumu Miya's usual narcissism at work.
As the ball reached him, Atsumu Miya jumped to set. Osamu Miya and Aran prepared to attack, while Shinsuke Kita moved behind them to cover.
Suna immediately locked onto Ryosuke again and rushed over to obstruct his view.
Seeing Suna approach, Ryosuke quickly scanned the court and memorized Inarizaki's formation.
By the time Suna reached him, Ryosuke was already mentally calculating what kind of attack could develop from those positions.
At the same time, Ryosuke deliberately refused to look at Suna.
Since Suna didn't want him seeing what was happening across the net, Ryosuke simply stopped trying to look past him.
Ryosuke and Suna remained locked in a standoff at the net.
From the corner of his eye, Ryosuke saw Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki running in the same direction. Yamagata was also shifting into position behind Reon.
If everyone was moving toward the same place, someone was probably preparing to attack there.
Tsutomu Goshiki might not have been a strong blocker, but he could at least identify where the opposing hitter was coming from.
The position they were running toward also matched the result Ryosuke had predicted from Inarizaki's formation.
It was almost certainly there.
Once he reached that conclusion, Ryosuke immediately sprinted toward position three.
Whenever Atsumu Miya received a first pass, his first instinct was always to set the ball to Osamu Miya.
Most of the time, he didn't even need to think about who should get the set.
Omimi often criticized him for setting to Osamu Miya too frequently, sometimes almost exclusively.
When Atsumu Miya jumped, the only thought in his mind was to give the ball to Osamu Miya.
He was certain Osamu Miya would score.
Osamu Miya had already moved to position three.
The instant Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki saw him, they rushed over without slowing down.
Ryosuke had also figured out who Atsumu Miya intended to set, and the entire group raced toward Osamu Miya.
Seeing so many blockers charging at him made Osamu Miya's scalp tingle.
Would they ever stop?
They were unbelievably persistent.
The volleyball arrived from behind Osamu Miya's head.
Without thinking, he reached up and hammered it down.
Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki failed to arrive in time once again. They were still a short distance from the net.
Even though they had immediately seen through Atsumu Miya's intention, they still couldn't catch up.
The twins' coordination was simply too seamless.
Atsumu Miya didn't even need to deliberately mislead the blockers.
"Bang!"
Osamu Miya's palm struck the volleyball with a sharp impact.
The ball cleared the net and began descending toward the floor, while Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki were still out of position.
Just before it landed, Ryosuke finally arrived.
The ball had already fallen too low for him to block it.
His only option was to receive.
Ryosuke launched himself forward, diving across the floor to save the ball.
It struck the back of his hand and rebounded into the air.
Osamu Miya had already landed, certain that he had scored.
He hadn't expected Ryosuke to appear out of nowhere.
When he saw the ball rise again, Osamu Miya bent his knees and pushed off the floor, preparing to jump from a standstill and put away the overpass.
Before Osamu Miya could leave the ground, Tsutomu Goshiki came charging in behind Ryosuke.
Using the momentum from his approach, he sprang up at the net and slammed the ball down.
The moment Tsutomu Goshiki jumped, Ryosuke swiftly rolled aside and scrambled to his feet.
He was genuinely afraid Tsutomu Goshiki might land on him.
"Tsutomu Goshiki and Ryosuke have some serious nerve."
Kuroo clicked his tongue in amazement as he watched their combination.
Had their timing been even slightly off, had Tsutomu Goshiki failed to jump, or had he landed on Ryosuke, the experience could have left them traumatized for life.
Tsutomu Goshiki truly had the courage to make that jump.
Kuroo was so absorbed in the match that he casually rested an arm on Kenma's shoulders.
Kenma was looking down at his game when the sudden weight nearly crushed his slender frame.
He impatiently slapped Kuroo's hand away.
"Kuro, it's too hot."
The arena was air-conditioned, but it was still packed with people. Kenma's hair was damp with sweat and stuck to his face.
The back of Kuroo's hand turned red from the slap, but he didn't get angry. He quickly pulled his arm back.
"Okay, okay. Keep playing, Kenma."
Ryosuke's save and Tsutomu Goshiki's follow-up spike flowed together seamlessly.
In Tsutomu Goshiki's words, it had been unbelievably cool.
Despite their perfect coordination, they still failed to score.
The moment Tsutomu Goshiki attacked the overpass, Shinsuke Kita appeared beside Osamu Miya as though he had anticipated everything. He crouched and received the ball.
"Thud!"
The volleyball rebounded upward again.
Osamu Miya reacted instantly and pressed it straight back down.
"Bang!"
The rapid succession of attacks left everyone staring wide-eyed at the thrilling battle above the net.
"Beep----------!"
In the end, Osamu Miya's follow-up overpass kill secured the point.
Inarizaki scored the first point of the second set.
"Kita-senpai, that was so cool!"
Atsumu Miya howled as he charged in from the backcourt.
He looked ready to throw himself at Shinsuke Kita in a bear hug, but ultimately stopped beneath Shinsuke Kita's calm, unreadable gaze.
Kita-senpai probably didn't like physical contact very much.
That was the conclusion Atsumu Miya reached.
Instead, he stopped in front of Shinsuke Kita and Osamu Miya with a broad grin, his eyes sparkling with admiration.
Shinsuke Kita smiled and nodded at him.
"Not at all. Atsumu was impressive too."
The praise made Atsumu Miya so proud that an imaginary fox tail might as well have risen behind him.
Osamu Miya gave a dismissive click of his tongue, pretending not to care.
In reality, he kept sneaking glances at Shinsuke Kita, clearly waiting to be praised as well.
"Of course, Samu was impressive too."
After praising Atsumu Miya, Shinsuke Kita naturally had to praise Osamu Miya as well.
He felt like a very fair captain who treated everyone equally.
"Don't you think Captain Kita looks like a father with his children when he stands beside the twins?"
Aran had been holding the comment back for a long time, but finally whispered it to Akagi.
Akagi found the comparison amusing.
He studied the three of them again and realized that Aran had a point.
The two of them began snickering for no apparent reason.
Fortunately, Atsumu Miya hadn't turned around yet. Otherwise, he would certainly have come over to ask what Aran was saying.
Atsumu Miya soon noticed the laughter anyway and tilted his head toward them.
Seeing him look over, Akagi quickly smacked Aran's shoulder several times.
"Stop laughing. If those two hear us, they'll never let it go."
The mere thought of the Miya Twins causing a scene made Aran's head hurt.
He immediately closed his mouth.
"You two were incredible."
On Shiratorizawa's side, no one was upset that Inarizaki had taken the first point.
Instead, Reon approached Ryosuke and Tsutomu Goshiki with an amazed expression.
He had never seen them perform that combination during practice.
There was no way they could have secretly rehearsed something so dangerous and precise.
The only reasonable explanation was that they had come up with it on the spot.
Even so, Reon thought it was extremely impressive.
Ushijima, however, looked at them with clear disapproval.
"That was too dangerous."
One praised them while the other criticized them.
The contrast was so extreme that Ryosuke and Tsutomu Goshiki didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
They could only stand there with blank expressions, which Shirabu found amusing.
At the time, Ryosuke had sensed someone approaching from behind him.
He had intended to roll aside and clear the space, but he hadn't expected Tsutomu Goshiki to jump immediately.
Fortunately, Ryosuke had reacted quickly enough.
As for Tsutomu Goshiki, he had simply thought that jumping from behind Ryosuke to attack the overpass would look cool.
The distance had also been suitable for the jump.
All Ryosuke needed to do was move aside once Tsutomu Goshiki took off.
Even if Ryosuke hadn't moved, Tsutomu Goshiki could have jumped slightly earlier or shifted his landing point.
The accident Reon and the others feared was never going to happen.
On the sidelines, Coach Washijō finally unclenched his fists.
The moment Tsutomu Goshiki had jumped, Coach Washijō had shot out of his chair in alarm.
He had been terrified that one mistake between Tsutomu Goshiki and Ryosuke would end badly.
Now, seeing the two of them standing together and grinning, Coach Washijō silently cursed them.
Those two little brats.
Only then did his heart finally settle.
With the rally over, it was Inarizaki's turn to serve.
Atsumu Miya was standing at position one.
His dual-style serving was about to return.
Just thinking about having to listen to Inarizaki's cheering section while receiving made Yamagata uncomfortable.
It might have looked impressive, but he wasn't the one looking impressive.
Besides, it was far too loud.
Yamagata sighed quietly and returned to his position.
Inarizaki began preparing to serve.
"Atsumu, give us a good serve. Fix your attitude."
Shinsuke Kita looked at Atsumu Miya with calm, unreadable eyes.
From the sidelines, he had already noticed that Atsumu Miya's condition wasn't ideal.
He had looked lazy and unfocused.
Losing the first set to Shiratorizawa had been within their expectations, but Atsumu Miya's attitude was unacceptable.
Had Shinsuke Kita not been playing, he would have dragged Atsumu Miya aside and beaten some sense into him.
Atsumu Miya could tell Shinsuke Kita wasn't joking.
He grumbled, then nodded.
"I know. Just watch me!"
His voice was full of confidence.
"It really has to be Kita. None of us can keep Atsumu Miya under control."
Omimi laughed as he spoke to Coach Kurosu.
Coach Kurosu nodded solemnly.
He was right.
It had to be Shinsuke Kita.
Without him, that little demon Atsumu Miya would have turned Inarizaki upside down long ago.
...
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