Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty

"He actually called it," Hirugami Sachirō murmured as he watched Kaedehara Taichi's back.

Though the final point of the first set had come from Taichi's block, the one who had truly turned the tide was Oikawa Tōru. First, he used visual misdirection to create a scoring opportunity for an overlooked attacker, then capitalized on the momentum with his serves.

After tying the score, the match, which had been tilting in Kamomedai's favour, shifted entirely.

The last two points had come directly from Oikawa's serves disrupting Kamomedai's offence. Taichi's block had succeeded, but at least half of the credit belonged to Oikawa.

If Taichi hadn't been the deciding factor, then how could he have been so certain? Or did it mean that, even if Oikawa hadn't performed so brilliantly, Taichi still had a way to end the set?

Hirugami shook his head. Even with his past obsession with winning and losing, he couldn't comprehend Taichi's confidence in the match. It was something beyond reason.

-----

[Aoba Johsai's Bench]

Despite winning the first set, Aoba Johsai's players didn't look particularly happy. In the latter half of the match, Kamomedai had controlled the tempo, making it increasingly difficult for them to attack. A heavy atmosphere loomed over the team.

"This feels really off..." Mizoguchi Sadayuki muttered anxiously. "Coach Irihata, is their blocking really putting this much pressure on everyone?"

Coach Irihata, studying his clipboard, considered the lineup for the second set before replying, "Most of our past matches have been offense-focused. In those kinds of games, both teams trade points back and forth, and the constant scoring fuels excitement. Every point is an immediate positive reinforcement, which keeps morale high."

"But against Kamomedai's block, our players aren't scoring. On top of that, the repeated hitting errors are making them more and more self-conscious."

"In the end, it comes down to experience. This is their first time facing a team with such a dominant blocking system at Nationals. It's natural to feel overwhelmed."

"Then...what do we do?" Mizoguchi frowned slightly. If it was about Nationals experience, then the only one here who had any was Coach Irihata himself. (Well, that's one benefit of being old...)

"Haha," Coach Irihata chuckled. "There's still soGaone who hasn't been affected, right? We just need to get everyone fired up again."

Oikawa Tōru was pacing circles around his teammates.

Strange. This was really strange.

"Oi, shitty Oikawa, quit it already!" Iwaizumi Hajime snapped, launching a kick at him when he passed by for the third time. "Save your energy for the match!"

Oikawa dodged the kick effortlessly. "Mm, mm, okay. At least you're still acting normal."

"Kindaichi! Why didn't you praise me after the set ended?" Oikawa suddenly demanded in a stiff voice.

Kindaichi Yūtarō jolted upright. "Huh? Oikawa-senpai?"

"I gave you that perfect set, and you didn't even compliment me! I tricked three blockers, you know!" Oikawa pressed.

"Um, Oikawa-senpai is amazing! Your set was incredible..." Kindaichi stammered.

Normally, he was part of Aoba Johsai's mood-making squad, but today, his performance had been lacklustre.

He hadn't made an impact in either attacking or blocking, so he was feeling down.

"Oikawa-senpai, if you had organized our offence sooner, no one would be feeling like this," Kaedehara Taichi stated flatly.

"Eh?" Oikawa turned to Taichi in surprise. "You're blaming me?"

"Of course. Aren't you our most reliable setter? In theory, breaking through Kamomedai's block should've been easy for you. But even though everyone trusted your sets, we still couldn't score." Taichi's tone was matter-of-fact.

Oikawa furrowed his brows. Was he being praised or criticized? But...Taichi did have a point. If he was the best setter, then toying with Kamomedai's defence should've been effortless, right?

Taichi stepped forward, positioning himself directly in front of the entire team.

"Has anyone noticed? Today is the fourth day of Nationals. That means—we're already in the Final Four."

The second and third years turned to him. Wasn't that obvious?

"When you were first and second years, you only made it to the Top Four in Miyagi. Shouldn't you be a little happier?"

"Hmph!" Kyōtani Kentarō scoffed, turning his head away. He hadn't been on the team back then, so it had nothing to do with him.

The rest of Aoba Johsai's players were now beginning to understand Oikawa's usual frustration when talking to Taichi. Even if they knew he meant well—

It was still infuriating!

"I see all of you acting like you can't afford to lose," Taichi continued, his gaze shifting toward the massive banner hanging behind them. "But the real mindset should be—"

"We have to win."

"The reason we've made it this far is because we kept winning. Forget the Top Four—even being the national runner-up won't be good enough for us!"

A moment of silence fell over the bench.

Then—

"Tweet!—"

The referee's whistle signalled for the players to return to the court.

Huh? That didn't work? Taichi found himself in a slightly awkward position.

Smack!

Hanamaki Takahiro passed by and clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Talk is cheap, Ace."

Matsukawa Issei came from the other side, giving him a pat as well. "If you get blocked even once, you owe us breakfast, Ace."

"I don't have any special requests," Iwaizumi said offhandedly, "as long as our ace

"Taichi, do your best!" Watari Shinji encouraged softly.

Taichi let out a helpless chuckle. As expected, only Watari-senpai was an angel.

Oikawa and Taichi walked onto the court together. One by one, Aoba Johsai's starting players took their positions. The second set was about to begin.

Kamomedai's lineup:

Front row—Outside Hitter Nozawa Izuru, Setter Suwa Aikichi, Middle Blocker Hirugami Sachirō.

Back row—Middle blocker Bessho Kazuyoshi, Outside Hitter Hakuba Gao (Libero: Kanbayashi Keiichirō) and Outside Hitter Hoshiumi Kōrai.

Aoba Johsai's lineup:

Front row—Outside Hitter Kaedehara Taichi, Middle Blocker Kindaichi Yūtarō, Outside Hitter Iwaizumi Hajime.

Back row—Outside Hitter Kunimi Akira, Middle Blocker Matsukawa Issei (Libero: Watari Shinji) and Setter Oikawa Tōru.

Both teams had adjusted their rotations. Aoba Johsai was using their secondary lineup, while Kamomedai had clearly tailored their setup to strengthen their strongest blocking formation against Taichi.

On the sidelines, Coaches Irihata and Aaron exchanged glances.

Both had the same thought—

"We'll fight fire with fire."

-----

Aoba Johsai served first. Oikawa stepped onto the service line.

Kamomedai set up a four-man reception, but it was obvious that Hakuba was being hidden at the baseline.

Oikawa tossed the ball, took three steps, and slammed his serve.

Boom!

Smack!

"Cover!" Hoshiumi called out as he received the serve.

"Gao!" Suwa set the ball high into the middle.

From the baseline, Hakuba sprinted forward, each step exuding sheer power. Yet despite his massive frame, his movements were perfectly smooth.

"Triple block!"

Taichi, Kindaichi, and Iwaizumi leapt up.

This was Aoba Johsai's strongest blocking formation.

But—

Hakuba soared above them, his outstretched arm hammering down the ball.

BOOM!

A wipe shot!

Both the force and the angle were terrifying!

In practice, Kunimi would've never wanted to receive this ball.

Smack!

Yet, Kunimi read the trajectory perfectly, cushioning the impact as he sat back on the floor.

"I got it!"

Oikawa stepped in, sending the ball to the left wing.

Even if Kamomedai had targeted Taichi, a single blocker like Hirugami wasn't nearly enough.

THUD!

Taichi exploded into the air, returning their triple block with a wipe shot of his own—only sharper!

BANG!—

The ball shot past Nozawa's left side, landing right on the sideline.

A line shot!

Kaedehara Taichi scores.

[Aoba Johsai 1 – 0 Kamomedai]

"Sorry!" Kanbayashi Keiichirō called out.

Against Kaedehara Taichi's overhand spike, it was impossible to predict which angle he would aim for.

"Don't worry about it! Next ball!"

During the timeout, Kamomedai had discussed how to break through Aoba Johsai. Their conclusion? Strengthen their offense!

In volleyball, victory belonged to the team that reached 25 points first (not entirely accurate), meaning scoring was the most important factor. However, for Kamomedai, blocking was also an integral part of their offensive strategy!

Oikawa Tōru served his second ball.

Boom!—

Smack!

Suwa Aikichi received it cleanly. In situations without a setter, the usual substitute was Hoshiumi Kōrai.

"I got it!" Hirugami Sachirō rushed into position, determined to maximize Hoshiumi's offensive threat.

Both Hakuba Gao and Hoshiumi Kōrai launched an attack from the back row.

Thud!

The ball soared toward the right wing. Hoshiumi leaped.

"Double block!" Aoba Johsai's blocking coordination couldn't compare to Kamomedai's precise synchronization.

Bang!—

Hoshiumi executed a sharp cross-court spike, scoring directly.

[Aoba Johsai 1 - 1 Kamomedai]

"Taichi, you're not the only one in the top three aces of the nation!" Hoshiumi boasted.

Service switched—Kamomedai to serve.

Nozawa powered a jump serve, but Watari Shinji received it smoothly, perfectly setting up the first touch.

Aoba Johsai launched a synchronized multi-position attack.

Oikawa Tōru jumped, his setting stance revealing no weaknesses.

Boom!

Kunimi Akira struck from the back row and scored.

[Aoba Johsai 2 - 1 Kamomedai]

"Him?" Kamomedai's blockers were momentarily thrown off by Oikawa's deceptive play.

Aoba Johsai reclaimed the serve.

Iwaizumi Hajime unleashed a powerful jump serve, forcing Nozawa to make the reception.

Suwa Aikichi set the ball to the right wing—Hoshiumi Kōrai leapt for the spike.

"Triple block!" Kunimi Akira, Kaedehara Taichi, and Kindaichi Yūtarō jumped up in unison.

Bang!—

Smack!—

The ball deflected off Kindaichi's arm and flew out of bounds.

Hoshiumi's spike brushed off the blockers' hands and landed out.

[Aoba Johsai 2 - 2 Kamomedai]

"Hehehe~" Hoshiumi grinned, pointing at Kindaichi. "Kid, my touch-outs are even trickier than Taichi's!"

"Mhm, of course," Kaedehara Taichi cut in, stepping between them. "After all, a small guy like you gets way more chances to use it."

Hoshiumi: "???"

Kamomedai rotated again—Suwa Aikichi to serve.

Their front row was now stacked with Hirugami Sachirō, Hoshiumi Kōrai, and Hakuba Gao—their strongest formation.

If they could shut down Aoba Johsai (or more specifically, Taichi) in this rotation, Kamomedai's chances of winning the second set would skyrocket.

Bang!

Suwa Aikichi sent a nasty floating jump serve.

"I got it!" Oikawa Tōru jumped ahead of Watari to receive it.

With Kunimi in the front row, Aoba Johsai had more attack variations available.

The ball arched toward the left wing—Kunimi leaped for the spike.

Hirugami was ninety percent sure it was a feint set, but he hesitated for half a second and still went up to block.

The speed of Kamomedai's blocking was insane—it was nearly impossible to sneak a clean hit past them.

Whoosh—!

Kunimi redirected the ball sharply to the far right.

Kaedehara Taichi sprinted into position, jumping from the front row.

"Double block!" Hoshiumi and Hakuba squared up in front of him.

Even with one fewer blocker, they weren't greedy—they simply sealed off his straight and deep cross-court angles.

Boom!—

"Taichi!!!"

—Smack!

Taichi attempted a sharp cross-court shot—but an unexpected pair of hands blocked it.

"If I already knew that side was a feint, of course, I had to block you." The ball struck Hirugami's forearm and dropped straight back into Aoba Johsai's court.

"It's not over yet!"

Iwaizumi had already dove forward, making a desperate dive to pop the ball back into the air.

"Aoba Johsai's ace isn't alone—"

"Taichi! Again!"

Oikawa launched the set high to the left wing. With no time to backstep for a proper approach, Taichi had to make use of the court's width instead!

For a split second, Kaedehara Taichi hesitated—then immediately sprinted left.

He had grown strong. Looking at the system stats, he knew he was better than most second and third-years…But at this moment, he truly felt it:

His senpais were absolutely reliable in critical moments.

BAM!

Kaedehara Taichi leaped.

Two blockers had already caught up!

"Double block!" Hirugami and Hoshiumi braced for him.

But compared to Kamomedai's pressure, what Taichi felt more clearly was the support behind him!

—Taichi, spike it with confidence!

—Boom!—

The ball struck Hirugami's arm and dropped right in front of him.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[Aoba Johsai 3 - 2 Kamomedai]

"Nice hit, Taichi!"

Service switched—Kindaichi Yūtarō to serve, and Matsukawa Issei returned to the front row.

"Thanks, Iwaizumi-senpai!" Taichi's gratitude was more heartfelt than ever.

"Tomorrow's breakfast, I want ramen," Matsukawa stated flatly.

Kaedehara Taichi: "???"

Did that count as getting blocked too?

Kindaichi unleashed a powerful jump serve—Kanbayashi received it cleanly. Suwa Aikichi then set the ball high in the middle.

Thud!

Hoshiumi leapt for the spike.

"Triple block!" Matsukawa Issei, Kunimi Akira, and Kaedehara Taichi formed a solid wall.

With Kunimi's overhand block limiting high shots, the only available angle was a straight shot. Aoba Johsai's #4 was covering that zone in the back, and Taichi's block on the right side added even more pressure. Hoshiumi wasn't ready to challenge him just yet.

Bang!—

He aimed for Matsukawa's fingertips!

Targeting a fresh substitute—a seemingly ordinary third-year middle blocker—Hoshiumi intended to secure the point right here!

Whoosh—!

Hoshiumi: "???"

Matsukawa's arms suddenly retracted, letting the ball fly far out of bounds.

Hoshiumi's spike was out!

[Aoba Johsai 4 - 2 Kamomedai]

Matsukawa Issei gazed at Hoshiumi expressionlessly.

"Well, we have to get some payback for our ace, don't we…"

_________

[T/N] - If you guys want to read 50 Chapters in advance of the current story, you can support me on my Patreon. Trust me, it's awesome!

Link - /Iseeblack [Remove the brackets]