Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty

"Oh wow—Aoba Johsai's third-years are really reliable!"

"Not only do they support their juniors on offence, but they also use their experience to neutralize the opponent's attacks on defence!"

"Nice block, Matsukawa-senpai!" Kaedehara Taichi praised in surprise.

"It's nothing special. I've been using you as a reference for my visualization training," Matsukawa Issei replied calmly.

"Ah…is that so?" Taichi let out a wry smile.

Kamomedai's strongest front-row rotation had just been countered by Aoba Johsai on both offence and defence.

"Don't sweat it! We just didn't expect Aoba Johsai to be this proficient at defending against block touches. Hoshuimi, just take the point back on the next ball," Kamomedai's captain, Suwa Aikichi, remained unfazed.

"Yes!"

Kindaichi Yūtarō continued his serve.

Boom!

Smack!

Nozawa Izuru's reception was perfect.

Suwa Aikichi set the ball high to the middle, and Hoshiumi Kōrai leapt for the spike.

"Triple block!" Aoba Johsai's front row jumped in unison.

Bang!—

A clean straight shot passed over Kunimi Akira and landed between Iwaizumi Hajime and Kindaichi.

Hoshiumi's spike scored!

[Aoba Johsai 4 – 3 Kamomedai]

Kamomedai's offence was relentless!

-----

Kamomedai High School's boys' volleyball coach, Aaron Murphy, had only joined the school three years ago.

Before that, he had coached teams in Italy's Serie A and led a Japanese V2 League team to promotion into V1. Many of Kamomedai's first and second years had joined specifically because of him.

On the first day of training camp, Aaron had looked incredibly serious. His stern expression made him seem imposing.

But the moment he spoke, everyone realized—he was actually just a warmhearted old man.

"The things I love most in this world—are my wife and daughter."

"And then, comes volleyball."

"..."

"I will teach you how to become stronger, but time in high school is limited. So aside from building a solid foundation, I want you to focus on three key areas."

"Those are—serving, blocking, and mentality."

"Serving is the starting point of volleyball. A team with strong serves is never weak. Blocking is both a defensive tool and an offensive weapon—it's the ultimate skill that bridges attack and defence."

"I don't expect you to achieve perfection. But as long as your teamwork is seamless, that will be enough."

"That's why, to ensure you can always play in perfect sync, you must learn how to think."

"No matter the circumstances, you must stay composed. Kamomedai doesn't need sudden bursts of momentum—we need consistent strength. Strength should be something second nature to us."

"Habit is a second nature!"

-----

Boom!

Hirugami Sachirō spiked the ball—score!

[Aoba Johsai 16 – 16 Kamomedai]

"It looks like Kamomedai has found a way to deal with Aoba Johsai in the second set. Their blocks have become more precise, and their offence is flowing smoothly…"

Kamomedai served—Nozawa Izuru's powerful jump serve.

"I got it!" Oikawa Tōru received it directly, sending a perfect pass to the net—Aoba Johsai had to seize every chance when the opponent's serve was manageable.

Kaedehara Taichi jumped on the right side, and Kamomedai's front-row trio followed immediately.

Whoosh!—

But the set went to the left—Kunimi Akira's spike!

[Aoba Johsai 17 – 16 Kamomedai]

"Sigh, we knew he'd do that, but if we don't use a triple block, we can't stop him," Hirugami muttered, hands on his hips.

"My bad," Nozawa said.

The issue was that his serve had been too easy to receive. Since Aoba Johsai's setter had a clean pass to work with, their #10 had too many attacking options.

"It's fine. But it looks like we'll have to adjust our defensive formation earlier," Hirugami glanced at the scoreboard.

"So tiring…"

Aoba Johsai's turn to serve.

Iwaizumi Hajime's powerful jump serve. Kamomedai's Kanbayashi Keiichirō barely managed to receive it.

"Cover!"

Suwa Aikichi set the ball high to the right. Hoshiumi Kōrai jumped in the front row.

"Double block!" Kaedehara Taichi and Kindaichi jumped up.

Aoba Johsai had already adapted their blocking strategy against Hoshiumi. Instead of relying on a triple block, they used their two tallest players to cut off his attack angles while the remaining defender dropped back for coverage.

"Hah—!"

Hoshiumi's arm swung—but it was a feint! The real attack came from the back row—Hakuba Gao spiked!

Boom!

Aoba Johsai's blockers had already landed. Hakuba Gao scored with ease.

[Aoba Johsai 17 – 17 Kamomedai]

"Kamomedai isn't planning to go head-to-head either, huh..."

As the serve rotated, Hakuba Gao moved to the front row, and Suwa Aikichi stepped up to serve.

Kamomedai was entering their second-strongest rotation.

Bang!—

Suwa Aikichi's float serve had grown sharper, drifting unpredictably as it flew toward Aoba Johsai's court.

"Is he actually the type to start slow?"

Iwaizumi Hajime stepped forward to receive, but the ball made an unexpected lateral shift to the right.

Smack!

"Save it!"

Oikawa Tōru dashed from the left, diving behind Iwaizumi to cushion the ball. Kindaichi Yūtarō had already retreated to the back row, sending it over the net without attack.

"Chance ball!"

Kanbayashi Keiichirō received the ball perfectly.

Suwa Aikichi set it to the right side, where Hakuba Gao leapt to spike.

"Triple block!"

Kunimi Akira, Kaedehara Taichi, and Kindaichi Yūtarō all rose to form a three-man wall.

Against the towering 2-meter Hakuba Gao, Aoba Johsai opted to use numbers to seal his angles as much as possible.

Boom!

Hakuba Gao spiked directly over Kunimi's hands.

Smack!

Watari Shinji dug the ball.

Oikawa Tōru quickly adjusted, setting a high ball to the middle. Kaedehara Taichi jumped to attack.

"Triple block!"

Hirugami Sachirō, Hoshiumi Kōrai, and Hakuba Gao reacted instantly, forming an unyielding wall.

Boom!

Taichi's spike slammed into Hoshiumi's arms, deflecting high toward the out-of-bounds area.

"One touch!" Hoshiumi called out.

Kanbayashi had already sprinted past the baseline, managing to send the ball back in. Suwa Aikichi set it to the middle once more.

Hoshiumi Kōrai had already completed his approach. With a solid jump, he soared above the net.

"Double block!"

Aoba Johsai's front row adjusted again, sticking to their defensive plan.

"Smash!"

Hoshiumi twisted his wrist, sending a sharp cross-court spike slicing into Seijoh's backcourt.

"Smack!"

Kunimi received it cleanly.

Oikawa jumped to set, sending the ball high toward the left.

Both Kindaichi Yūtarō on the left and Kaedehara Taichi on the right launched their attacks simultaneously.

Boom!—

—Smack!"

Oikawa: "???"

Kindaichi's spike was stuffed by Hirugami Sachirō, and the ball dropped straight back into Aoba Johsai's court.

[Aoba Johsai 17 - 18 Kamomedai]

Kamomedai had taken the lead…

Oikawa's brow furrowed. He had been so focused on Kunimi's successful dig against Hoshiumi that he failed to notice Kamomedai had adjusted their blocking formation.

Instead of their usual compact triple-block formation in the middle, they had shifted into a 2+1 setup, with Hirugami anchoring one side alone.

"Was it to target Kunimi?" Oikawa analyzed quickly.

If they were focused on stopping Kunimi, then Hirugami's solo block combined with the back-row defence could neutralize most of his attacks. Meanwhile, Hirugami had also shown earlier that he could move swiftly to reinforce a three-man block against Taichi's high sets.

"Kamomedai's blocking is really tough to crack...But at this pace, can Hirugami keep this up until the end of the set?"

Suwa Aikichi prepared for his second serve.

Bang!—

Smack!

Watari barely managed to receive it.

Oikawa quickly adjusted and sent the ball high to the right wing. Kaedehara Taichi leapt to spike.

"Triple block!"

Just as expected, Hirugami sprinted across three steps to join the other two, merging into a seamless wall. Hoshiumi and Hakuba had even swapped blocking positions—Hakuba absorbed Hirugami's lateral movement while Hoshiumi positioned himself to counter Taichi's line shots.

No gaps at all!

Kaedehara Taichi hadn't felt this powerless against a block in a long time. Every possible attack route was cut off, and the height of the wall matched his own jump.

"Should I just go for a power spike?"

But that would mean abandoning thought altogether. The longer this dragged on, the harder it would become…

Taichi swung his arm from behind, drawing a sharp arc through the air. His wrist rotated with precision, wrapping around the ball just enough before aiming toward the right side of Hoshiumi's hands.

Boom!

Hoshiumi's eyes narrowed. A tool-out shot? Was he targeting his arms?

He instinctively straightened his arms, tilting slightly to the left—

And in doing so, he opened a direct line shot!

The ball bypassed Hoshiumi's right side, streaking toward the back of Kamomedai's court.

A high-arcing, pinpoint shot toward the baseline caught Kanbayashi completely off guard.

The ball dropped past his head—

Thud!

Right outside the boundary.

"Out!"

The referee confirmed that the ball had landed just a fingertip's width beyond the baseline.

Kaedehara Taichi's spike went out. Kamomedai scored again.

[Aoba Johsai 17 - 19 Kamomedai]

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