“Oh? So you’re planning to give up on blocking?”
When the score reached 16–7 and Team Asuto regained the right to attack, Iwaizumi and Shigeru Yahaba both retreated to the backcourt. This left the net completely unguarded, allowing Asuto to spike against an open court.
It was indeed a smart decision.
In volleyball, defense was not limited to blocking alone.
When facing an opponent whose attacks could not be stopped at the net, focusing all your efforts on receiving was also a legitimate defensive strategy.
Only…
“Is that really okay? Can the two of you really cover the entire court?”
BAM!
The volleyball dropped at an almost perfectly vertical angle, smashing down inside the three-meter line before either Iwaizumi or Yahaba could react.
17:7.
The expressions on Iwaizumi’s and Yahaba’s faces stiffened.
Meanwhile, the surrounding Aoba Johsai players also held their breath, feeling an overwhelming pressure crash towards them as they watched the match.
“So strong!”
‘This guy’s incredible. Has his offense really become completely flawless?”
“Iwaizumi and Yahaba are no match for him at all!”
…
Even someone who knew nothing about volleyball could see that Iwaizumi and Yahaba were being completely overwhelmed by Asuto alone at this point in the match.
In fact, the only points that Iwaizumi and Yahaba had managed to score were when Asuto did not participate in defense.
The gap between the two sides was simply too enormous.
In terms of offensive technique alone, Iwaizumi, as a wing spiker, could still contend somewhat against Asuto.
However, the difference in physical ability between the two was obvious.
However, the true factor creating the massive score gap was actually the serve.
And just so happened, after Asuto scored this point, the right to serve rotated back to him once again.
As Asuto carried the volleyball towards the baseline behind Position One, not only did Iwaizumi and Yahaba on the opposite side hold their breath, but the surrounding spectators did too.
The next moment…
BOOM!
Accompanied by an explosive sound that echoed throughout the gymnasium, the volleyball shot out of Asuto’s hand and flew straight towards Shigeru Yahaba.
SMACK!
The ball blasted past Yahaba’s arms and flew far out of bounds.
18:7.
Although everyone had already witnessed this scene several times before, they still could not help but feel suffocated when it appeared once again.
Such unreasonable and tyrannical power…!
It was as though the simple word “talent” had brutally ground down all of Iwaizumi’s hard work over the past three years.
BOOM!
Without pausing for long, Asuto’s next serve followed immediately afterwards.
This Serve had even better placement than the previous one.
It landed precisely between Iwaizumi and Yahaba, causing the two of them to hesitate for a moment over who should receive it.
And within that single moment of hesitation… the volleyball had already slammed into the floor.
19:7.
The serve was the only attack in volleyball that was completely unaffected by outside interference.
For this reason, it is also known as the ‘ultimate offense.’
And clearly…
Today, Asuto had displayed this ‘ultimate offense’ to perfection.
Standing on the court, Iwaizumi was breathing heavily, and a dark shadow was gradually appearing across his face.
At that moment, he finally understood what Oikawa had once felt:
The helplessness and despair of facing a ‘genius.’
The overwhelming pressure of someone rapidly catching up behind you, not leaving you a moment to breathe.
However, Iwaizumi felt that he might still be luckier than Oikawa.
After all, Oikawa’s junior had slowly caught up with him bit by bit.
That looming shadow had followed him for years, never fully disappearing.
But Iwaizumi was different.
After all, only a little over a month had passed since Asuto joined Aoba Johsai.
During that short period…
Just as Iwaizumi had barely begun to feel a sense of urgency, he watched helplessly as this junior sped past him like a Ferrari, racing ahead in a single burst.
“Maybe under his leadership, Aoba Johsai really will become even stronger.”
“But… before that, even seniors have their pride!”
“If we can’t even reach double digits, that’d just be way too humiliating.”
BOOM!
SMACK!
Asuto’s third consecutive serve flew into Team Iwaizumi’s court. Suddenly, Iwaizumi lunged forward and forcefully dug the powerful serve back into the air.
“Yahaba, set the ball to me.”
“Understood, Iwaizumi-senpai.”
The volleyball flew out of Shigeru Yahaba’s hands.
The two players executed a perfectly coordinated parallel quick attack with such speed that Mishita Ryuhei, who was defending at the front of the court, did not even have time to jump before the ball slammed onto the floor.
19:8.
Team Iwaizumi successfully pulled back another point.
At the very end… Iwaizumi finally displayed the fighting spirit worthy of a third-year senior.
However, fighting spirit alone could not change the outcome of the match.
25:12.
That was the final score.
The 2v2 showdown between Iwaizumi and Asuto consisted of just this one set.
And, honestly, this one set was more than enough.
After the match ended… Irihata Nobuteru gathered all the starting players together.
After a brief moment of silence, he spoke.
“That settles it. From today onwards, Asuto will be the team’s new ‘Ace’.”
“Oikawa, I’ll leave Asuto to you from now on.”
“Yes!” Oikawa responded decisively.
Although he usually acted playfully and goofily, when it came to official matches, Oikawa’s attitude was one of the most serious in the entire team.
Emotionally speaking, however, Oikawa still preferred his childhood friend Iwaizumi to be the Ace.
However, after the outcome of that match, this possibility had clearly become impossible.
This was precisely why Asuto had to crush Iwaizumi completely.
After all, people are emotional creatures.
Compared to Asuto, the newcomer, most of Aoba Johsai’s starting members naturally had far better chemistry and coordination with Iwaizumi.
If Asuto had only just defeated Iwaizumi, then even after becoming the Ace, some people might still have felt reluctant to accept him because of the importance of teamwork, familiarity, and long-established coordination.
Once even a single person had such thoughts, it would become a destabilizing factor for the team.
Therefore, if Asuto wanted to seamlessly inherit Iwaizumi’s position, he had to overwhelm everyone with his strength.
That, too, was an essential quality of an ‘Ace’.
After confirming the team’s new Ace, Irihata Nobuteru dismissed the team.
Today was the last day of the Golden Week training camp.
Once he had dismissed everyone, the players scattered in all directions and returned to the dormitories to pack up their belongings.
Asuto was no exception.
However…
Just as everyone was preparing to gather their things and leave, two figures quietly disappeared from the crowd without anyone noticing.
…
(End of Chapter)