The tension in the gym hit its peak after Kageyama Tobio's arrogant claim.
Hinata Shoyo trembled with anger.
His large eyes were full of fury, but he couldn't find the words to fight back.
Just then, a steady, strong voice called out from the entrance, breaking the heavy silence.
"What are you two arguing about in someone else's gym?"
Kei looked toward the door and saw three older students walk in wearing Karasuno High School tracksuits. In the front was a sturdy, reliable-looking boy with black hair.
His eyes held clear authority.
Beside him was a gentle boy with gray hair, watching Kageyama and Hinata with a worried look.
Walking in last was a young man with a buzz cut and a fierce face.
He laughed loud and said, "Well, well! So these are this year's freshmen? They look full of spirit!"
They were the seniors of the volleyball club.
Kei's memories pulled up their names right away: Captain Sawamura Daichi, Vice Captain Sugawara Koushi, and the main spiker, Tanaka Ryunosuke.
Daichi's eyes swept across the court and landed on Kageyama and Hinata.
He frowned a bit. "You two... the number one from Yukigaoka and the setter from Kitagawa Daiichi who played each other in last year's match?"
"Yes!" Hinata bowed right away and answered loud.
Kageyama only gave a small nod, keeping his cold glare.
Tanaka put his hands on his hips, flashed a big grin, and walked up to Kageyama.
He spoke in a teasing tone. "You're that 'King of the Court,' aren't you? I heard your personality is pretty terrible."
Kageyama's face went dark, and the air around him grew heavy.
He hated that nickname more than anything!
Kei watched all of this from outside the door like a quiet ghost.
His old pro habits were kicking in again.
'Sawamura Daichi, a classic leader,' he thought. 'Steady walk, firm eyes, taking charge the moment he speaks. He's the backbone, holding up the team's rules and willpower.'
Then he looked at Sugawara. 'Sugawara Koushi, the gentle peacemaker. He tries to ease the tension with just a look. He's the glue keeping everyone together. That's needed, but in tough matches, being too soft can turn into a weakness.'
Finally, his eyes moved to Tanaka.
'Tanaka Ryunosuke, the hype man charging into battle. Emotional, quick to fire up, and great at giving the team energy. But his hot head could be a weak spot for the other team to use.'
It was a very standard team setup.
They had a core, support, and an attacker.
But looking at how they stood and their small reactions, this team lacked a true tactical brain.
Their strength came from teamwork and spirit, not from smart game plans.
While Kei made his silent reads, the fight on the court got worse.
Kageyama challenged Daichi to prove his strength.
"I want to play against you. Serving, blocking, or spiking—anything is fine."
"Why should I play against you?" Daichi asked back.
"Because I want you to see that I have what it takes to be Karasuno's starting setter." Kageyama's voice was full of pure confidence.
"Oh? But volleyball isn't a one-man sport." Daichi looked over at Hinata, who had been ignored.
"Karasuno used to be strong. We even made it to Nationals. But now they call us 'the crows that can't fly.' We don't want to lose anymore."
He paused, and his voice turned very serious. "I don't think a 'king' who only cares about himself and ignores his teammates can lead us to a win. At the same time, someone who can't even handle basic receives and only waits for someone else to toss to him can't help this team either."
His words hit Kageyama and Hinata like two heavy punches.
"So..." Daichi crossed his arms, giving them his final rule. "Until you two learn how to act like teammates, I won't accept your club forms."
"What?!" Hinata and Kageyama yelled at the same time.
"Wait a minute, Daichi!" Sugawara stepped in to help. "They're good first-years!"
"Because of that, they need to learn what teamwork means even more." Daichi stood firm. He looked at the two problem kids and gave them a deal.
"Next Saturday, we'll play a three-on-three match. You two will be on one team, and we'll have a few other first-years on the other side. If you win, I'll let you join the club. But if Kageyama is setting, Hinata must play as the main spiker. Think hard about how to make the person you trust the least play at their best."
Outside the door, Kei figured out Daichi's plan right away.
This wasn't just a simple test, it was a setup to force a bond.
Daichi wanted to use the match to stick these two messy geniuses together, making them learn how to work side by side.
Inside the gym, Kageyama was pushed to his breaking point.
All the anger burning in his chest boiled over.
He grabbed a volleyball, turned around, backed up, and got into a perfect jump serve stance.
"I'll prove my strength to you!"
He threw the ball high.
His body bent back like a drawn bow. He put all his power into his right arm and swung down hard.
Whoosh!
The ball turned into a white blur.
It let out a scary whistle as it flew straight at Hinata on the other side of the court!
'It was too fast!' Hinata had no time to get into a good ready stance.
He just threw his arms up to block it.
Thump!
The ball hit his arms and bounced off at a bad angle. It sailed high over everyone's heads and flew right toward the gym doors.
"Oh no!" Sugawara yelled.
Right then, someone walked into the doorway.
It was the vice principal.
He'd been looking inside to see what the loud noise was about. He looked up just in time to see a volleyball flying right at his face.
Smack!
The ball hit the vice principal right in the face.
His fake hair flew off into the air, making a nice arc before it landed soft and neat right on top of Daichi's head.
Time seemed to stop.
The vice principal held his face, looking to be in a lot of pain.
Daichi stood stiff like a board, wearing the wig on his head.
Kageyama was frozen in his follow-through, his eyes wide in shock.
Hinata looked as white as a ghost.
Only Kei, still standing by the door, let a small smile in his face.
'What a great comedy show,' he thought.
A calm voice broke the dead silence.
"Um... excuse me, is this the volleyball club?"
Everyone turned to look at the entrance.
Kei stepped slowly out from behind the door.
He was skinny, wearing a school uniform that didn't quite fit. It made him look weak and a bit tired.
He felt out of place in the gym, which was normally full of loud energy.
"I'm here to hand in my club form," he said in a calm voice.
He held up a piece of wrinkled paper.
Daichi snapped out of his shock.
He grabbed the wig off his head and went back to looking like a captain.
He walked over to take the paper.
"Ah, welcome. I'm Sawamura Daichi, the captain of the volleyball club." He looked down at the name.
"Kitagawa... Kei?"
"Yes."
"Have you played volleyball before? Looking at you..." Tanaka stared open and hard at Kei, not hiding his doubts.
With a skinny body like that, could he even dig a ball, let alone spike it?
"No, I don't have much experience," Kei said, looking down. "I just really like watching matches, so I wanted to give it a try."
It was the lie he'd cooked up ahead of time.
Because of his weak body, it was the only story he could use.
"I see..." Daichi didn't push it, just giving a nod. "Well, that works out. You must've heard about the tryout match next Saturday, right?"
Before Daichi could finish talking, Kageyama and Hinata locked eyes on Kei.
They both needed a first-year teammate, and here was one standing right in front of them.
Kei felt the heavy weight of their stares.
They were intense and full of hope.
He got it now. He wasn't just a quiet watcher on the sidelines anymore.
In this game set up by Karasuno's captain, Kei had turned into a surprise chess piece the second he walked through the door.
'Fine,' he thought.
He lifted his head and met their eyes.
A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Sometimes, even a single piece on the board could decide the whole game.
Mostly when that piece could see the whole board better than anyone else.
"A match, huh?" he asked in a soft voice.
There was a spark of old excitement in his tone that even he didn't notice.
"Seems like... it might be fun."