Burst Mode?
Taichi stared at Tōru Oikawa in disbelief.
He vaguely recalled the system mentioning this term before, but he hadn't expected the first person to activate it in front of him to be Oikawa.
No wonder Oikawa's dition not only didn't dip after the team boost expired but seemed to improve instead.
A serve at 99 and a set at 98—Taichi's heart raced with excitement. Most crucially, Oikawa's service turn wasn't over yet!
Oikawa served his third ball!
Wakatoshi Ushijima received it, but the ball rebounded sharply into Aoba Johsai's court.
The timer on Taichi's "experience card" was tig away rapidly. Even in the back row, he had to attack! Without w about the ball's trajectory, he sprinted forward, leapt, and executed a perfect hitting motion in mid-air.
The sed, the ball—precisely delivered by Oikawa from afar—was right in front of his palm, perfectly aligned.
Taichi's spike scored!
[Aoba Johsai 17 – 16 Shiratorizawa]
Aoba Johsai had taken the lead!
"Woohoo! Taichi, that was awesome!" Yūtarō Kindaichi shouted iement.
Hajime Iwaizumi ched his fist. There was hope—they could win this set!
As the match heated up, more and more Shiratorizawa students heard the buzz and flocked over from their respective clubs.
The moment they stepped into the gymnasium, they were stunned by the se before them: the scoreboard promily dispyed Aoba Johsai in the lead—a stark trast to the dominant performahey had anticipated from Shiratorizawa.
"What's going on? How is Aoba Johsai ahead?" a boy who had just found his seat turo ask a nearby student who had clearly been watg for some time. His voice was filled with curiosity and fusion.
The student's eyes sparkled with excitement as he reted the ret highlights. "Oh, you just missed the best part! This match has been insane—everyone's pying out of their minds. Just now, Aoba Johsai's setter and middle blocker pulled off a seamless back-row attack. That spike? It was like something out of a movie!"
Several other students nearby chimed in, adding their own observations. "At one point, Ushijima-senpai was crushing them. We had a five-point lead! But then Aoba Johsai's setter and that first-year middle blocker started turning it around. Their momentum is unreal."
The newers listened in stunned silence. What they thought would be a one-sided match had turned into a thrilling, uable showdown. Adjusting their expectations, they quickly joihe spectators, and the gymnasium grew even more inteh excitement and tension.
On the sidelines, Coach Washijō stood up, debating whether to use his team's st timeout for this set.
But Ushijima shook his head from the court. The match hadn't reached its climax yet; now wasn't the right time for a timeout.
More importantly, as he watched Taichi and Oikaerformances, Ushijima felt an inexplicable thrill—a stra familiar sensation, like when he faced fierce oppos on st year's national stage.
He realized this feeli only ohing: his body aowledged the oppos in front of him as formidable adversaries.
[Ding! Ushijima Wakatoshi has entered Burst Mode.]
[Ushijima Wakatoshi (Burst Mode): Overall Ability Rating: 96Height: 189.5 cm | Power: 100 | Jump: 92 | Stamina: 100 | Speed: 92Teique: Serve: 98 | Receive: 94 | Set: 90 | Spike: 100]
Three max stats?! Hearing the system notification, Taiearly cursed out loud.
Oikawa had barely gotten two points into his peak state, and Ushijima had already caught up…
It wasn't fair. Taichi couldn't help but imagine cheg Ushijima's family register (though he knean didn't use such things). How could someone like him still be a high schooler?
Aoba Johsai's serve. Oikawa delivered his fourth—a float serve!
Even at his peak, Oikawa didn't rely solely on power. This sudden ge in style caught Shiratorizawa pletely off guard.
Ushijima dove forward to save the ball, defleg it toward the left side.
"Tendō! Finish it!"
"Iwaizumi! Block him!"
Tendō Satori's spike was met with a solid block from Hajime Iwaizumi, sending the ball ricocheting back. Reon ōhira dove and saved the ball with a desperate lunge.
"Give it to me!" To everyone's surprise, Wakatoshi Ushijima shouted for the ball.
Shirabu set the ball high into the air, giving the game a brief, tension-filled pause.
Ushijima took a step forward, pnted his left foot forcefully on the ground, and unched himself into the air.
"Boom!"
"Smack!"
Ushijima's spike was received by Tōru Oikawa, but the force sent the ball hurtling toward the back wall of Aoba Johsai's court.
Damn it! The thought barely crossed Oikawa's mind when a figure zipped past his vision with lightning speed.
Taichi Kaedehara darted uhe ball just in time. As he he wall, he jumped off one leg, pnting the other foot against the wall for leverage, and smacked the ball bato py with both hands.
"Woooah…" The staed in gasps. The newers finally uood why someone had likehe matovie full of special effects.
Takahiro Hanamaki intercepted Taichi's miraculous save, sending the ball back over the .
"Free ball!" Taichi Kawanishi shouted, easily passing the ball to Shirabu Kenjirō.
Shirabu goward Ushijima, who was already poised for a spike. His posure was admirable, almost unnerving. This is the focus of an ace, Shirabu thought to himself.
Aoba Johsai's pyers braced themselves. It was obvious to everyone—Ushijima Wakatoshi was like a ragi at this moment.
"Boom!"
Ushijima leapt, but instead of spiking to him, Shirabu sent the ball to the left. Iwaizumi reacted a split sed too te, and Tendō Satori capitalized, sg with a spike.
[Aoba Johsai 17 – 17 Shiratorizawa]
Tendō turoward Aoba Johsai's vice-captain, Iwaizumi, wiggling both index fingers with a cheeky grin.
"Ahhh, see? Shiratorizawa's offense isn't all about Wakatoshi."
He then spun back toward his own ace, fshing a mischievous smile. "Sorry about stealing your thuhere."
"It's fine," Ushijima replied with his usual stoicerity.
Shirabu let out a small sigh of relief. For a moment, he had nearly passed the ball to Ushijima, but his instincts told him that Tendō would have an easier time sg at the . Fortunately, his judgment had been correct.
Shiratorizawa's serve. Yūtarō Kindaichi received it ly.
Taichi Kaedehara sprang into a again, dashing forward. But after just two steps, he felt an unusual heaviake over his body.
[Ding! The Pyer Experience Card's duration has expired.]
Taichi's bance faltered as his legs wobbled beh him. Uhe astonished eyes of pyers and spectators alike, he dramatically stumbled forward, nding ft on his face.
Sliding across the polished wooden court in an awkward sprawl, Taichi left a faint streak behind him.
Lying prone, his cheeks burned with embarrassment as he silently cursed the system. He buried his fa his arms, pletely red from both the exertion and humiliation.
"HAHAHAHA!" The spectators on the sidelines burst into ughter.
Oikawa's set went untouched, falling to the ground, but no one seemed to mind. Aoba Johsai's pyers quickly surrounded Kaedehara.
While the fall itself wasn't too ing, the team grew worried as Taichi remained on the floor, unmoving.
The dramatic dive earlier might have caused him to sprain his ankle, and if that were the case, it would plicate matters signifitly.
_________
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