[Aoba Johsai 25 – 22 Noheb
"What an impeccably precise line shot!"
"Aoba Johsai's ace, Kaedehara Taichi, did not disappoint his teammates, g this set with a decisive and spike!"
"Throughout the first set, #10, Kaedehara Taichi primarily relied on diagonal shots, but at the crucial moment, he surprised everyoh a spectacur straight shot to finish things off. Such a well-prategy…"
"Let's take a short break before the sed set begins."
------
Meanwhile
As the match had es final tug-of-war, two familiar figures to Taichi arrived iands.
"...The first set's almost over…"
Kuroo Tetsurō found two adjat seats and pulled Kozume Kenma along to sit. "Not surprising, sidering you woke up at 2 a.m. to py games and ended up oversleeping this m…"
"Well, it was the final boss. I didn't expect it to take five hours to beat." Kenma reminisced with lingeriement. "Taichi would definitely uand."
Kuroo didn't respond, iurning his attention to Nohebi's captain, Suguru Daishō, whom he had known for years. Every time they met, it would iably lead to some bickering.
"In some ways, Nohebi is simir to our Nekoma—both teams are stable and sistent." Kuroo watched as Nohebi repeatedly ralized Aoba Johsai's attacks. "Solid defence, unyielding spirit, f the oppoo uhemselves."
Kenma curled into his seat, noting that it had been years sinekoma st faohebi. Judging by the match so far, Kuroo wasn't wrong.
"But the atmosphere of this game feels pletely different…" Kenma muttered, relying on instinct. The Aoba Johsai bench seemed charged with an undercurrent of tension and anger.
Smash!
On the court, Taichi ehe set with his decisive straight shot.
"Oh wow—Taichi's straight shots are already this refined." Kuroo clicked his tongue in amazement. "If I told people that a month ago, he couldn't even pull off this move, no one would believe me."
"Kuroo, that was a left-handed spike." Kenma sat upright, his cat-like eyes narrowing as he fixed his gaze on Kaedehara Taichi. Every time they didn't see him for a while, Taichi seemed to evolve in astonishing ways.
He was like a relentless monster, dev every oppo and turning them into sustenance for his growth.
"Beating Taichi is only going to get harder." Kuroo quickly grasped Kenma's meaning.
"Yeah, so we o study him thhly a him soon!" Kenma thought to himself—it was like defeating a boss before it fully powered up.
Aoba Johsai's Bench
"Oikawa-senpai, I have something to say to everyone."
Kunimi Akira, who had worn a scowl during the match, finally spoke up. Oikawa Tōru had inteo sole him but was caught off guard by Kunimi's serious tone.
The team gathered around to listen.
"Nohebi picks their targets for provocation carefully. It's obvious they prefer going after straightforersonalities and first-years." Kunimi kept his head down as he spoke. "Previously, they focused on Kyōtani-senpai. Now that he's on the bench, I'd guess their argets will be—"
"The first-years, Kunimi and Taichi." Iwaizumi Hajime pleted the thought.
"Seems like this set isn't ideal for Kindaichi to py. With Matsukawa-senpai on the court, we rex." Kaedehara Taichi grinned cheekily.
"???" Kindaichi looked baffled.
Unluckily for Nohebi, most of Aoba Johsai's pyers were analytical thinkers. In some ways, Aoba Johsai was the team best equipped to ter Nohebi's strategies.
Sed Set Begins
Aoba Johsai's lineup:
Aoba Johsai's lineup:
Front row—Setter Oikawa Tōru, Middle Blocker Kaedehara Taichi, Wing Spiker Kunimi AkiraBack row—Wing Spiker Hanmaki Takahiro, Middle Blocker Matsukawa Issei(Libero: Watari Shinji) and Outside Hitter Iwaizumi Hajime.
Nohebi's lineup:
Front row—Middle Blocker Hiroo Kōji, Setter Sakishima Isumi, Wing Spiker Suguru DaishōBaiddle Bluro Akihiko (libero Akama Sō), Wing Spiker Numai Kazuma and Outside Hitter Naoyasu Kuguri.
Aoba Johsai served. Iwaizumi's powerful serve was expertly received by Akama. Sakishima set the ball to the right wing, where Nohebi's aumai Kazuma, leapt to attack.
"Double block!" Kaedehara Taichi and Kunimi Akira rose together.
Smash!
Numai Kazuma's spike soared over Kunimi Akira's read nded ly inside Aoba Johsai's court.
[Aoba Johsai 0 – 1 Noheb
"Sorry, that's on me!" Kunimi called out.
"Don't worry about it. Focus on the ball!"
"Hey, kid, your blog is pathetiumai Kazuma shot Kunimi a ptuous look. "With skills like that, you're actually pying at Nationals? Your teammates must have it tough."
Kunimi ched his teeth, lowered his head, and stayed silent.
"Wow, no fight in you at all." Numai smirked and walked back to his position.
Nohebi's trash talk wasn't random—it was calcuted, desigo hit pyers where it hurt the most.
The sting didn't e from their devilish whispers alo from the uling truth they forced pyers to front: the fws within themselves exposed on the court.
By pnting seeds of self-doubt, Nohebi ehat the more serious a pyer, the more devastating their colpse.
But this tactic didn't work on someone like Kunimi Akira, who uood his limitatioer than anyone else.
The reason he held a starting spot despite g standout skills was simple: he had mastered the ability to maximize his potential.
Nohebi served. Hiroo Kōji sent the ball deep into the er, but Iwaizumi Hajime received it with ease.
Taichi sprio the middle of the a. Nohebi's blockers didn't react, leaving only Suguru Daishō in the back row watg Taichi's every move.
"Damn, they didn't fall for it…" Oikawa Tōru quickly set the ball, sending it past Taichi toward the right wing. Kunimi Akira ran up, gathered momentum, and jumped.
"Double block!" Sakishima Isumi and Numai Kazuma positiohemselves firmly in front of Kunimi.
This was their moment to crush Aoba Johsai's first-year pyer. From Nohebi's perspective, Kunimi's hunched shoulders and downcast expression indicated he was already teetering on the edge of a breakdown.
But...
"Finally," Kunimi thought, the libero's absen Nohebi's back ro in their defence."
With a feathery touch, Kunimi tipped the ball over the blockers, aiming it just behind Numai Kazuma. The ball floated gracefully above Numai's fiips before dropping sharply into the empty space.
"Damn it!" Naoyasu Kuguri sprinted forward, diving for the ball. His usual lethargic expression gave way to shock as he missed the save by a split sed.
How is he still so calm uhis kind of pressure?
The ball hit the court, and Kunimi finally let out a chuckle. Maintaining a fa?ade of deje was exhausting, even for him.
"I get it—you guys think you're so clever, right? Holy, it's just a bit too simplistic." Kunimi returo his usual posed demeanour, his fidenshaken.
[Aoba Johsai 1 – 1 Noheb
"You little punk…"
"Let's build on this momentum and pull ahead!"
"Yes!"
"Feels like the match is already over…" Kozume Kenma suddenly sighed.
Kuroo Tetsurō g the scoreboard. It was only 1-1 in the sed set. "Already over? What are you talking about?"
"The Aoba Johsai pyers are too rexed—especially Taichi. It's like Nohebi 't stop their offenymore." Kenma murmured. "Besides Taichi, both Oikawa and that wing spiker just now are extremely intelligent pyers."
"Nohebi's been pletely figured out."
Kuroo thought back to Nekoma's practice matches with Aoba Johsai. It had always been the same—the lohe match went on, the harder Aoba Johsai became to deal with.
The entary reflected the same:
"#10, Kaedehara Taichi, fakes a middle attack—Oikawa sends the ball to the left wing! #4, Iwaizumi Hajime, scores!"
"Aoba Johsai's offensive variety is incredible!"
"And here it is again! With a perfect first touch, third-year setter Oikawa Tōru delivers a precise toss. #10, Kaedehara Taichi, leaps for a diagonal quick attack—what a powerful and synized py!"
"Nohebi's blockers had already formed a double wall at the wing, but they were just a fra too slow!"
"This is a pletely different game pared to the first set. Aoba Johsai has taken full trol of the tempo, and Nohebi 't keep up with their offence!"
_________
[T/N] - If you guys want to read 50 Chapters in advance of the current story, you support me on my Patreon. Trust me, it's awesome!
Link - (P)atreon./Iseebck [Remove the brackets]