[The se of the Spring High Representative Tour: Aoba Johsai vs. Date Tech]
As the captains approached for the pre-match handshake, tension filled the air.
"Ah, o be so uptight. After all, you still have year, don't you?" Oikawa Tōru said with a cheerful smile.
"Tch. Whether we have year or not is irrelevant," Kenji Futakuchi replied irritably. "Only the stroeam will stand at the top in the end."
"Mm-hmm, you're absolutely right," Oikawa nodded obediently before his smile sharpened."But it's obvious who the stroeam is, isn't it?"
"Let's have a great match!"
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Aoba Johsai's starting lineup:
Front row—Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi, Middle Blocker Kindaichi Yūtarō and Wing Spiker Hanamaki TakahiroBack row—Opposite Hitter Iwaizumi Hajime, Middle Blocker Matsukawa Issei (Libero Watari Shinji) aer Oikawa Tōru.
Date Tech's starting lineup:
Front row—Setter Koganegawa Kanji, Wing Spiker Futakuchi Kenji and Middle Blocker AoakanobuBaiddle Blocker Fukiage Jingo, Wing Spiker Yutaka Obara (Libero Sakunami Kōsuke) and Opposite Hitter Onagawa Tarō.
For this first set, Coach Irihata emphasized Aoba Johsai's blog strategy. Different from their match against Shiroshikan, Oikaced in the serving position as the first rotation.
Taichi sed Date Tech's new lineup.
He had done his research: these were the very pyers who would, in the inal timeline, defeat the Karasuno duo of Hinata and Kageyama i year's Inter-High tour.
[Yutaka Obara—Wing Spiker: Overall stats: 82. Height: 186.2 cm, Strength: 88, Jump: 82, Stamina: 85, Speed: 75. Teique: Blobsp;88, Spike: 88.]
A banced powerhouse. Date Tech's wall isn't just built on Aohey maintain quality blocks in all rotations.
[Onagawa Tarō—Wing Spiker: Overall stats: 78. Height: 175.2 cm, Strength: 75, Jump: 82, Stamina: 80, Speed: 75. Teique: Recieve: 88, Spike: 90.]
He hadn't pyed during the Inter-High preliminaries, likely due to his average physical stats. Yet, his teical skills have clearly been honed in the months since.
[Sakunami Kōsuke—Libero: Overall stats: 80.2. Height: 164.1 cm, Strength: 65, Jump: 88, Stamina: 80, Speed: 88. Teique: Recieve: 85.]
A first-year libero whose teical growth sihe Inter-High is evident.
[Fukiage Jingo—Middle Blocker: Overall stats: 79. Height: 183.6 cm, Strength: 85, Jump: 75, Stamina: 80, Speed: 75. Teique: Blobsp;80.]
A first-year whose blog is strohan his offensive capabilities—a testament to Date Tech's straightforward development philosophy.
The match began with Aoba Johsai serving.
Oikawa stood poised at the service line, his expression sharp and focused.
He knew Date Tech's blog prowess was one of the best in the try, likely ranking among the top three. However, no matter how strong a block is, there's one offensive on it 't ter: the serve.
The key to defeating Date Tech y in direct sg through serves.
Oikawa took a deep breath, calming his mind and synizing with his body. He could feel it: today, his dition erfect.
He tossed the ball high into the air, took three quick strides forward, a. At the apex of his jump, his right arm whipped forward, pausing momentarily before striking the ball with a powerful snap.
Boom!
The ball streaked across the into Date Tech's court—a jump float serve!
"Obara!" Onagawa Tarō called out as he judged the trajectory.
But Date Tech's back row had already retreated to ter Oikawa's typical jump serves, leaving them a step too far from the ball's nding point.
Bang!
The ball dropped abruptly, hitting the floor just in front of Futakuchi in the front row.
Service ace for Oikawa.
[Aoba Johsai 1 – 0 Date Tech]
This was Oikawa's evolved serve. His lingering frustration from losing to Miya Atsumu at Nationals was evident—he had clearly trained hard to improve both his jump and float serves.
Despite the early setback, Date Tech's back row didn't adjust forward. Instead, their front-row pyers stepped back to form a six-persoion.
Date Teew their strengths and weaknesses better than anyone.
From the start, they had resolved to ter Aoba Johsai's powerful serves with orategy: just get the ball up.
Even if it meant giving the oppo a free ball, they were fident in their defensive wall.
Their "Golden Iron Wall".
Oikawa Tōru's sed serve.
Another jump float!
Futakuchi Kenji, positioned in the front row, immediately retreated and attempted an overhead pass. The ball swerved slightly to the left in midair before making tact with his hands.
The speed dropped sharply but tinued desding toward the floor.
"Save it!"
"I've got it!" Onagawa Tarōo from the back row darted forward and mao dig the ball up.
The final touch came from Yutaka Obara, who delivered a powerful spike over the .
"ce ball!"
Matsukawa Issei received the ball ly, delivering a perfect first touch. The ball soared toward Oikawa Tōru, who was already positioned, waiting.
With Aoba Johsai's front row—Kaedehara Taichi, Kindaichi Yūtarō, and Hanamaki Takahiro—all poised for attack, it was the ideal opportunity to strike hard.
And for Oikawa, there was no question who deserved this ball.
Oikawa sent a precise set to the left wing.
Kaedehara Taichi began his approach, leaping with power. Awaiting him oher side was Date Tech's Iron Wall at its fullest.
"Triple block!" Koganegawa Kanji, Futakuchi Kenji, and Aoakanobu jumped in unison, hands f an imperable barrier.
Even with Taichi's impressive vertical reach, he couldn't fully escape their height.
Smack!
Taichi skillfully directed the ball toward Kanji's fiips, using fiher than brute force. The ball rebounded off Kanji's hand and floated bato Aoba Johsai's court.
"Get ready for another ball!"
Taichi quickly retreated, resetting for atempt.
Kindaichi, from the side, felt his heart pound.
He had struggled against this same triple block during training camps and had never mao break through. Now, their presence seemed even more daunting.
Kindaichi had already braced himself for Taichi;s attack to be pletely stuffed, ready to step in and recover.
Yet his quick judgment and adaptability proved otherwise.
Iwaizumi Hajime stepped in, seg the ball with a solid pass. Aoba Johsai reaheir attack.
Kaedehara Taichi, Kindaichi Yūtarō, and Hanamaki Takahiro all advaoward the simultaneously.
A show of unity to share the burden of their ace.
Now, it was Oikawa's turn to make a decision.
"Was Taichi afraid of the block earlier?" Oikawa wondered. "It's been a long time since I've seen him hesitate to challenge a direct block…"
Though Kaedehara Taichi's determination was evident, Oikawa khe situation demanded a calcuted move. Right now, Taichi's presence made him the perfect decoy.
But Date Tech's blockers remaieadfast. They trusted their speed and timing, patiently waiting for Oikawa's set.
—Whoosh!
Oikawa released the ball, sending it s toward the left wing once more.
In that split sed, he recalled Taichi's words during their team's send-off rally:"I will bee the stro a the nation!"
How could he let their ace serve as a mere decoy in this pivotal moment?
If Taichi couldn't avoid the block, he would simply have to break through it.
Taichi's lips curled into a fident smile. Being used as a decoy didn't bother him much…(Well, maybe a little.)
But this py wasn't about feelings—it was about ag like an ad g the point.
With a resounding thud, Kaedehara Taichi unched himself into the air.
"Triple block!" Date Tech's iron defence rose once again, a t wall of hands.
From his elevated position, Taichi's vision was sharp. Though he hadn't pletely outjumped the block, he had found his opening.
—Boom!
Taichi unleashed a devastating diagonal spike, directly challenging the three-man block.
The ball struck the court ie Tech's three-meter lih a thunderous impact.
Kaedehara Taichi scores!
[Aoba Johsai 2 – 0 Date Tech]
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