1:2.
Thanks to Iwaizumi Hajime’s straight shot along the baseline, Aoba Johsai High School finally managed to turn around the second set after a poor start.
“Oh my! He actually managed to hit a ball like that?”
Tendou Satori said in surprise.
As one of Aoba Johsai’s long-standing rivals, Tendou knew Iwaizumi fairly well. In his memory, Iwaizumi was certainly strong, but under normal circumstances, executing such a high-difficulty spike was still extremely difficult for him.
So was it luck?
“It looks like the other side isn’t going to let us take this set so easily after all.”
“Please don’t worry about it, Ōhira-senpai.”
Shirabu Kenjiro replied calmly.
“Our strategy won’t have any problems. As long as we keep their number six locked down, the tactical options available to Aoba Johsai’s setter will be very limited.”
Shiratorizawa Academy and Aoba Johsai were already extremely familiar with each other’s strengths and playstyles.
Although Aoba Johsai’s coordinated offensive combinations had always been varied and highly synchronized, allowing every attacker to perform at one hundred percent.
From another perspective, however, this also limited the true potential of Oikawa as a setter.
However, after Asuto joined the team, Aoba Johsai’s offensive patterns suddenly became dazzlingly diverse.
It was like a newlywed discovering that his pure and adorable bride had transformed overnight into a mature, alluring beauty.
During the first set, Shiratorizawa was caught off guard by Aoba Johsai’s transformation and failed to react in time, resulting in their loss of the opening set.
In the second set, therefore, Shiratorizawa identified the key point and chose to shut Asuto down completely.
As long as Asuto could not perform effectively, Shiratorizawa could rely solely on the offensive power of the others.
Even if Tendou Satori could only stop half of them, or even just one-third… Aoba Johsai would inevitably lose.
Boom!
An utterly unreasonable spike blasted through the block and landed directly on the floor, earning a point.
1–3.
“Tch!”
Oikawa clicked his tongue irritably.
He had made a mistake with his previous serve. Although the ball had cleared the net, it had lacked its usual speed, which had ultimately handed Shiratorizawa a perfect attacking opportunity.
The next rally began.
Shiratorizawa served, and Aoba Johsai gained another offensive chance.
Oikawa organized the attack, and the set went to Kindaichi Yuutarou once again.
Relying on his extraordinary instincts, Tendou Satori moved forward early to set up a block.
However, Kindaichi and Oikawa executed a perfectly timed delayed attack, which prevented Tendou from timing his block correctly and allowed Kindaichi to score.
2:3.
The next serve was Aoba Johsai’s.
After Shiratorizawa received the ball, Shirabu Kenjiro handed the attack over to Ushijima Wakatoshi once again.
Asuto, Kindaichi, and the recently rotated front-row player, Iwaizumi Hajime, formed a triple block together.
Ushijima then attacked directly against all three of them, unleashing an ultra-sharp cross shot from inside the three-meter line.
2:4.
‘Damn it… Ushiwaka’s attacks are completely unreasonable.’
Despite being accustomed to Ushijima Wakatoshi’s unmatched ‘absolute power,’ Iwaizumi Hajime still felt his mentality cracking a little when faced with attacks this absurd.
The serve was returned once more to Shiratorizawa.
And this time…
It was Ushijima Wakatoshi’s turn to serve again.
BOOM!
The volleyball, tossed into the air, was struck heavily and flew towards Aoba Johsai’s court.
Oikawa was closest to the landing point and lunged desperately to save it. However, because he failed to handle the ball’s spin properly, the volleyball flew directly out of bounds.
2:5.
BOOM!
Ushijima Wakatoshi’s second serve immediately followed.
Whether by luck or sheer skill, the serve landed directly in the outer corner, grazing the sideline before smashing into the floor for another point.
2:6.
BOOM!
Ushijima Wakatoshi’s third serve flew out and hit the blockers, enabling Aoba Johsai High School to just about survive the rally.
Nevertheless, the score gap had already widened to three points:
3–6.
Three consecutive serves from Wakatoshi Ushijima had almost completely suffocated Aoba Johsai.
For the third-year players, such as Oikawa, this feeling had practically become a psychological shadow over the years.
It was always the same.
No matter how brilliant Aoba Johsai’s strategies were, no matter how perfect their teamwork appeared…
Ultimately, Ushijima Wakatoshi would simply use his overwhelming strength to crush all their hard work.
A shadow gradually fell over the faces of Oikawa and the others.
At that moment, Aoba Johsai rotated positions, bringing Asuto to Position One.
BOOM!
An explosive sound rang out.
Asuto launched his first serve.
Its sheer power surpassed even that of Ushijima Wakatoshi as it tore through the air with a violent gust, flying straight towards Shiratorizawa’s court.
And then…
Smack!
The serve was returned.
Shiratorizawa Academy immediately launched a counterattack.
Shirabu Kenjiro and Goshiki Tsutomu executed a quick combination attack, and before anyone on the Aoba Johsai team could react, Goshiki spiked the ball for a clean point.
3–7.
The gap widened even further.
However, at this moment, the Aoba Johsai players no longer cared about the difference in the score.
Every single one of them stared at Asuto, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.
BEEEEEP!!!
Coach Irihata Nobuteru immediately called a timeout.
Back in the rest area, the atmosphere among the Aoba Johsai players had become gloomy, and their earlier momentum had completely disappeared.
Perhaps Asuto’s Serve being received had merely been a coincidence.
After all, given the current power of his serves, there probably wasn’t a single team in the country capable of receiving them consistently one hundred percent of the time.
But, at this point, it no longer mattered whether it was a coincidence or not.
Because one fact could not be changed:
The two best servers on Aoba Johsai, Oikawa and Asuto, had both had their serves received by the opponent.
And in both cases, Shiratorizawa had immediately converted the receive into a counterattack point.
This dealt a massive blow to Aoba Johsai’s overall morale.
“A volleyball serve is an extremely unstable offensive technique. Even in professional matches, players make countless serving mistakes.”
Irihata Nobuteru swept his gaze across the team before finally stopping on Asuto.
His tone softened slightly as he continued:
“Asuto, getting scored on after your serve is perfectly normal. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. You should know that even Oikawa, a third-year senior, has been scored on through his serve as well. So for the rest of the match, just keep playing as you normally would.”
Oikawa: “…”
‘Coach, if you’re trying to encourage him, why drag me into this?!’
Compared to the third year, Irihata Nobuteru was more concerned about Asuto’s mindset.
No matter how talented he was, or how much others called him a ‘monster,’ he was still only a first-year high school student.
If he lost his confidence because of that last play, Aoba Johsai would lose the entire match. However, after Irihata finished speaking, Asuto simply raised his head and scratched his hair in confusion.
“Huh? Coach, what are you talking about?”
“Losing points during a match is normal, isn’t it?”
“It’s not like I’ve never lost a game before. Why would I feel pressured over something like this?”
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(End of Chapter)