[Ding! Kiryū Wakatsu's burst mode deactivated]
[Ding! The host's burst mode deactivated]
The tinuous system notifications didn't stir Kaedehara Taichi in the slightest. His entire focus was on the py.
Just one more point and Aoba Johsai would secure the victory and advao the quarterfinals.
The tension alpable on Mujinazaka's side. After all, Oikawa Tōru was still on the service line.
Boom!
"The sed serve is another onball!"
"Right wing!" Kiryū Wakatsu shouted.
Move! Bishin Haruma screamed internally, willing his body to react. His shaky hands barely positiohemselves as the serve zipped toward him, boung awkwardly off his chest and defleg into the air.
"It's a free ball!" The ball arced bato Aoba Johsai's court.
"Not so fast!" Unnan Keisuke leapt high, intercepting the ball with a one-handed spike.
Smack!
Oikawa smoothly received the ball, passing it to Watari Shinji, who jumped to make a set.
Without hesitation, Oikawa dashed forward to initiate a synized attack.
"Block him!"
Unnan Keisuke blocked Kindaichi's path in the tre, but Watari's set went to the left, where Hanamaki Takahiro unched a powerful attack.
Bang!
"Save it!" Bishin Haruma, having barely recovered from the serve, threw himself forward ahe ball in py.
Usuri Michiru skillfully positioned himself a a precise set flying across the court.
"Wakatsu-senpai!!!"
Kiryū charged from the back row, Aoba Johsai's front line f a solid double blo his path.
Boom!
"Kiryū Wakatsu delivers a stunning cross-court spike! The score is tied again!"
[Aoba Johsai 24 – 24 Mujinazaka]
"Wakatsu-senpai...?" While the entators and audience were buzzing with excitement, no one knew Kiryū better than his setter, Usuri Michiru.
That st spike…It wasn't a full-power attack.
Kiryū admitted it with a quiet nod.
The decision not to go all out stemmed from a simple truth: he couldn't guarantee his strength would break through their block. In this crucial moment, he refused to gamble on a mere possibility.
Usuri's eyes brimmed with guilt.
He realized that his over-relian Kiryū during the sed set had pushed his ace past the limits.
After all, Kiryū's spike t had far exceeded his usual workload.
Though Kiryū had mao persevere, the exhaustion weighed heavily on him. Usuri ched his fists, bming himself for putting the team at risk.
Kiryū pced a steady hand on Usuri's head, log eyes with him.
"I used to fear everyone's expectations, but today's match reminded me: it's because you trust me with the ball that I've made it this far."
The serve returo Mujinazaka, with Kiryū Wakatsu now rotating back to the front row.
"Could this be the moment Mujinazaka turns the tide?" the entator specuted.
The match had reached a tipping point. The first team to gain a two-point lead would win, and both sides were locked in a gruelling battle.
------
[Aoba Johsai 25 – 24 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 25 – 25 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 26 – 25 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 26 – 26 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 27 – 26 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 27 – 27 Mujinazaka]
It was Kiryū Wakatsu's turn to serve.
The stadium fell silent, the tension mounting to an unbearable peak. The entire audience held its breath, sensing the pivotal moment was at hand.
Would Kiryū py it safe and maintain the defensive rhythm? Or would he risk everything with a powerful jump serve?
The pyers of Aoba Johsai watched him closely. The moment they saw him lift his gaze, they already knew his choice.
As Mujinazaka's ace, there was no room for retreat.
Kiryū's serve ripped through the air like a bullet, spinning and whistling as it honed in on the far er of Aoba Johsai's court.
Smack!
The line judge raised their fg.
"Out!"
[Aoba Johsai 28 – 27 Mujinazaka]
Cheers erupted from Aoba Johsai's side as the pyers gathered in celebration.
"Shake it off! Shake it off!" Mujinazaka's pyers shouted in unison.
Kiryū looked at his teammates and saw their unshaken resolve reflected in their faces.
"Alright!" he shouted, determination burning in his eyes. "We'll take the point!"
Aoba Johsai's Iwaizumi Hajime stepped up for his serve. As expected, it owerful jump serve, refusing to give Mujinazaka any easy ces.
Bishin Haruma mahe first touch, sending the ball toward Usuri, who set it to the right. Hondo Subaru smashed a sharp line shot.
Hanamaki intercepted, and Oikawa set the ball to the left. Kyōtaarō unleashed a fierce diagonal spike.
Ezota Naoharu dove for the save and Usuri reset the py.
"Wakatsu-senpai!!"
Kiryū approached with a two-step run-up, aiming for a back-row attack.
"Double block!" Kaedehara Taichi and Oikawa rose to meet him.
Bang!
Kiryū adjusted mid-air, sending a cross-court spike to avoid the block. But Iwaizumi was already in position, the first toug the ball perfectly toward the .
"I've got this!" Taichi's eyes locked onto the ball as he raced to the left side, leaping high.
"Triple block!" Mujinazaka's front row verged to form an iron wall.
Oikawa, trusting his instincts, jumped he just as Taichi's set arrived.
Boom!
With Mujinazaka's blockers entirely focused on Taichi, Oikaiked the ball into ay gap on the court, sg the crucial point.
[Aoba Johsai 29 – 27 Mujinazaka]
In the first set of the match, Kaedehara Taichi had already attempted a daring move like this, but it was ruled as a "held ball viotion" by the referee.
No one expected that on the very st point of the game, when everyohought he was going for a quick attack, he would pull off the same move again.
"Doesn't he ever get scared?" murmured Kiryū Wakatsu. pared to Kaedehara Taichi's spur-of-the-moment py, his own risky serve seemed tame.
"Tweet—!"
"Game over."
"Winner: Aoba Johsai."
------
"We won!!" Aoba Johsai's pyers embraced each htly.
"Yesssss!!!" The pyers on the bench rushed onto the court, cheering loudly.
Coach Irihata finally let out a deep breath, relieved. o him, Sadayuki Mizoguchi thought that suerves were unnecessary—after all, the coach had experie the national level.
However, the slight tremble in Coach Irihata's hands betrayed the excitement in his heart.
Final score:
[Aoba Johsai 23 – 25 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 25 – 20 Mujinazaka]
[Aoba Johsai 29 – 27 Mujinazaka]
Aoba Johsai made an incredible eback, winning the match 2-1 and advang to the national quarterfinals.
"Thank you for the match!!" Both teams bowed to each other.
"Kiryu-senpai," Taichi called out suddenly during the handshake. "Your ability to handle a is truly admirable, but it's also important to give your setter clear requirements. Growth is never a solo journey."
Oikawa Tōru and Usuri Michiru, standing nearby, were both stunned into silence.
Oikawa was reminded of how Taichi had once demanded higher accuracy from his ows, while Usuri wondered if he himself had been relying too mu his senpai.
Kiryū Wakatsu gazed at Kaedehara Taichi with deep respeo wonder he was already the team's ace as a first-year.
"It was an honour to py against you. I hope we have another match at Spring High."
-----
"Put on your jackets quickly. We'll grab some food now," instructed Team Manager Mizoguchi as he checked on each pyer. "Dooo much; rest up and recover your energy. We have another match this afternoon."
"Got it!"
As they left the arena, Oikawa took o look back—their jour nationals was not yet over.
Wheurned around, he saw Iwaizumi Hajime waiting for him up ahead. Oikawa smiled and jogged over.
"Idiot, what are you daydreaming about now?" Iwaizumi teased, hands in his pockets, refraining from smag Oikawa because it was inve in the crowded space.
"Pying matches every day, I 't believe we've made it to the national quarterfinals," Oikalied, his smile genuine. "Sometimes it feels fast—just three days; other times, it feels slow—like it's taken us five years."
"You're such a sap, Oikawa," Iwaizumi scolded, ughing. "We're not done winni."
"Oikawa-senpai, are y to sound poetic to prepare for college essays?" Kaedehara Taichi's voice cut in at an inappropriate moment.
"Taichi!" Oikawa yelled, clearly irritated. This brat had made it to nationals as a first-year and would never uand his feelings!
"Your setting skills need work. That st ball only went in because a genius like me spiked it," Oikawa teased, smirking at Taichi.
Taichi rolled his eyes. "I'm not even a setter."
"Still, it was a great set," Oikawa said as he ruffled Taichi's hair forcefully.
Flustered by the ued praise from a top-tier setter, Taichi sprinted ahead to escape.
Aoba Johsai's match had been one of the earlier ohat day. After a quick meal and some rest, Mizoguchi Sadayuki arrived with the information they were all eager to hear.
The national quarterfinal matchups were as follows:
[Aoba Johsai vs. Inarizak
[Shunjidai vs. Inubushi East]
[Itachiyama vs. Kamomeda
[Ichirin vs. Fukurōdan
"Ah, Kamomedai and Fukurōdani made it too!" Taichi excimed excitedly.
"You know them?" Oikawa asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I ran into some Kamomedai pyers while buying T-shirts with Kenma yesterday. One of their seniors even tried to provoke me."
"Provoke you? More like the other way around," Iwaizumi g him sceptically.
"Iwaizumi-senpai, do I look like someone who would do that?" Taichi protested, only to find that Iwaizumi was entirely unvinced.
"Really, ask Kenma if you don't believe me!"
"Alright, alright," Mizoguchi cut in. "Let's focus on our oppo, Inarizaki."
"Last night, we mainly reviewed Mujinazaka's footage. Now, we'll turn our full attention to Inarizaki."
Coach Irihata picked up a stack of notes and spoke calmly. "Inarizaki may very well be the toughest team we'll fa this tour."
"Outsiders are predig that this year's national champion will likely be either Inarizaki or Itachiyama. Not only are they incredibly strong, but their pystyle is also a poor matchup for us."
"In simple terms, their paper strength far surpasses ours."
Coach Irihata wrote a few names on the board and tinued, "First, there's their setter, Miya Atsumu. While he's already being touted as the best high school setter, I believe Oikawa is no less skilled, right, Oikawa?"
Oikawa nodded hastily, smiling at Coach Irihata's encement. Although, truthfully, apart from Kageyama Tobio, he hadn't entered another setter whose talent intrigued him as much as this sed-year Miya Atsumu.
" is #4, Ojiro Aran. He's one of the top five spikers in the try, bini and power. When he's on fire, he rival Ushijima Wakatoshi or even Kiryū Wakatsu from today."
Coach Irihata turo Taichi. "I'll need you to keep up with him in offence."
Taiodded. Having already faced two of the top three spikers, he couldn't back down now.
Not that fear would help, anyway.
"And then there's #10, Suna Rintarō. Based on the footage, his arm flexibility is exceptional, and his attag teiques are highly refined. Moreover, his defensive instincts are sharp."
Hearing Coach Irihata's detailed breakdown, the pyers began to grasp just how formidable their oppo was.
"I'll do my best," Kyotaarō stepped forward. peting oional stage, he finally uood hoyers were better than him. His o temper now seemed ughable.
"Then there's Miya Atsumu's twin brother, Miya Osamu, and their third-year libero, Akagi Miari. Inarizaki is a well-roueam, much like ours, but in every aspect, they're just as good—or better."
The pyers' chatter died down. The joy of defeating Mujinazaka faded, repced by the s realization of the gap between themselves and a championship team.
"Hahahaha…" Coach Irihata chuckled. "You're all scared, aren't you?"
"A month ago, no ohought you could beat Shiratorizawa. Yesterday, no one expected you to take down st year's top-eight team, Hoshijiro. And today, you defeated Mujinazaka, who had one of the nation's top three spikers. If matches were decided on paper, we wouldn't o py; they'd just hand out trophies."
Coach Irihata always wore a kind smile, and even now, his posure was reassuring.
"The beauty of volleyball lies in its uability."
"Don't fet: Volleyball is round."
"Let's create another Aoba Johsai miracle and astonish the crowd once more!"
_________
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