Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty

The afternoon arrived swiftly, and Aoba Johsai's players sat comfortably in the spectator stands, waiting for the semifinal match between Itachiyama and Inubushi Higashi to begin.

Aoba Johsai wasn't particularly familiar with either team, having only taken the opportunity during lunch to watch some of their recent match footage.

Logically speaking, the 'King' Itachiyama was undoubtedly the more formidable opponent. Their strength was unquestionable, and their roster remained largely unchanged from the team that won the Interhigh Nationals. With half a year of further refinement, they were likely even stronger now.

However, from a purely objective standpoint, the team that managed to win this match would, by default, be the stronger one.

Kaedehara Taichi personally hoped that Itachiyama would be their opponent in the finals.

Among the former "Top Five Aces in Japan", only Sakusa Kiyoomi remained as someone he had yet to face.

Defeating Sakusa in the finals would complete his personal achievement of overcoming every one of Japan's former top five aces—something that, as both a gamer and a mild perfectionist, he found quite significant.

Of course, such things weren't simply a matter of wishful thinking. The key lay in who would rise to the occasion in this match and secure their place in the finals.

The rest of Aoba Johsai's players didn't dwell too much on the matter. To them, regardless of which team won, the final would be a gruelling battle. At this moment, they felt none of the tension or anxiety from their previous matches, nor the excessive worry over victory or defeat.

They simply sat quietly, taking in the atmosphere of the match, studying the tactics and techniques of other teams.

After a brief pre-match introduction, the game quickly got underway. The Aoba Johsai players ceased their idle chatter and focused on the court—perhaps the key to tomorrow's match lay in the details unfolding before them.

Itachiyama Academy lived up to its reputation as a championship team. Even on the grand stage of the national semifinals, none of their players showed a hint of nervousness.

No—wait.

One player seemed a little off.

Kaedehara Taichi's gaze landed on a figure who was curled up slightly, visibly out of sync with the rest of the team.

[Mizushima Yū—Middle Blocker: Overall Rating: 86 Height: 188.5 cm Power: 80, Jump: 88, Stamina: 85, Speed: 88; Key Traits: Block: 90, Spike: 83.]

A solid middle blocker—his exceptional jumping ability and speed made him an imposing presence at the net. However, compared to his defensive prowess, his offensive output seemed relatively average.

Kaedehara Taichi shifted his focus to the rest of Itachiyama's lineup.

[Sakano Sawaji—Middle Blocker: Overall Rating: 87 Height: 191 cm, Power: 90, Jump: 80, Stamina: 88, Speed: 85; Key Traits: Block: 90, Spike: 88, Serve: 88.]

A player as tall as Kindaichi Yūtarō, compensating for some of the wing attack deficiencies. His serve also seemed to be a weapon worth noting.

[Nishimura Hiroyuki—Outside Hitter: Overall Rating: 87 Height: 180.8 cm, Power: 85, Jump: 90, Stamina: 82; Speed: 85. Key Traits: Receive: 88,

Not particularly tall, but with excellent jumping ability. Judging by his power and speed, he was likely a technical-style spiker.

[Takeshita Yūshin—Outside Hitter: Overall Rating: 88 Height: 191 cm, Power: 88, Jump: 88, Stamina: 85, Speed: 88; Key Traits: Receive: 90, Spike: 86, Serve: 90.]

Strong technical skills, sufficient power, and well-rounded in both offence and defence. Essentially, a "less extreme version of an all-rounder". However, based on footage, he lacked a consistent finisher's presence in clutch moments.

Kaedehara Taichi nodded to himself.

As expected of the reigning Interhigh champions, their entire lineup was stacked. With three other nationally recognized players rounding out the roster, this was a team with virtually no weaknesses. Their offensive firepower, defensive stability, and passing consistency were all top-tier.

On top of that, every third-year had a reliable serve—on paper, Itachiyama's strength was overwhelming.

-----

"TWEET!—"

A sharp whistle cut through the air.

The match began.

Itachiyama's starting lineup:

Front row—Outside Hitter Takeshita Yūshin, Middle Blocker Sakano Sawaji, Setter Iizuna Tsukasa.

Back row—Outside Hitter Nishimura Hiroyuki, Middle Blocker Mizushima Yū (Libero: Komori Motoya) and Outside Hitter Sakusa Kiyoomi.

Inubushi Higashi's starting lineup:

Front row—Setter Mukai Taiyō, Middle Blocker Akiha Kazuma, Outside Hitter Sanada Shunpei.

Back row—Outside Hitter Kumadō Sōichi, Middle Blocker Narita Heiji (Libero: Moriyama Makoto) and Outside Hitter Uchihigashi Toru.

Inubushi Higashi had first serve. Third-year outside hitter Uchihigashi Toru stepped up to the service line.

"Itachiyama is keeping Sakusa Kiyoomi in the back row at the start?" Iwaizumi Hajime raised an eyebrow. "It's not like they're setting up for a strong serve rotation."

"It's probably because Inubushi Higashi has the first serve," Oikawa Tōru analyzed. "Once Itachiyama wins a point, their rotation will shift. They don't want to waste Sakusa's front-row presence in the first cycle."

"Which means," Hanamaki Takahiro smirked, "they're completely confident they'll score the opening point."

Their thoughts were echoed by murmurs from the audience, many of whom seemed to have drawn the same conclusion.

"These guys…!" Inubushi Higashi's second-year middle blocker, Akiha Kazuma, clenched his teeth in frustration. "They're underestimating us?!"

Even from the bench, Itachiyama's Mizushima Yū shuddered slightly. He instinctively shrank back. Inubushi Higashi's middle blocker looked terrifying.

Sakano Sawaji, however, met Akiha's glare without flinching.

"This arrangement isn't about disrespecting the opponent," he stated calmly. "It's simply because every single player on Itachiyama is strong."

Uchihigashi Toru tossed the ball into the air.

Bang!

A sharp jump serve rocketed toward Itachiyama's backcourt.

Smack!

"Heyah!"

Komori Motoya received it cleanly, sending the ball arcing toward the front.

Iizuna Tsukasa jumped, setting the ball—

BAM!

Before the blockers could react, he executed a feigned set into a quick dump shot, catching Akiha Kazuma off guard.

The ball slammed into the floor behind him, bouncing high into the air.

Point: Itachiyama.

[Itachiyama 1 - 0 Inubushi Higashi]

"Huh?" Iizuna Tsukasa frowned slightly, looking toward the Inubushi Higashi players.

"Are they not fully awake yet? That was way too easy," he muttered.

"Yūshin," Iizuna turned to his teammate, "stop narrating my thoughts out loud."

"Come on, you were definitely thinking it," Takeshita Yūshin grinned.

Komori Motoya chuckled, "I think Takeshita-senpai has a point."

"Honestly…" Iizuna shook his head in amusement.

Takeshita stepped up to serve, laughing. "Alright, alright. Let's keep it going."

With the rotation shift, Sakusa Kiyoomi moved into the front row.

The real game was about to begin.

"Motoya-senpai really enjoyed setting with forearm passes back at the Youth National Training Camp. As long as the team is skilled enough, they can still make the play work," Kaedehara Taichi said. "Besides, I doubt their goal is simply to score points through tricks. Rather—"

"—they're trying to break through the block!" Taichi and Oikawa Tōru spoke in unison.

"Just standing there blocking Iizuna's attacks is exactly what he wants. We need to make them regret it—to force them into a situation where they hesitate to attack like that!" Oikawa growled.

Bang!

Takeshita Yūshin sent a float serve over.

"I got it!" First-year libero Moriyama Makoto didn't have much experience receiving float serves, so third-year wing spiker Kumadō Sōichi took the initiative and stepped in to receive.

"Cover!"

Setter Mukai Taiyō moved into position and sent the ball to the right wing. Sanada Shunpei jumped for the spike.

"That set was slow..."

Mukai's footwork was quick, and his set was steady, but the ball speed was noticeably slow.

Itachiyama's blockers gathered in front with ease.

"Three-man block!" Sakano Sawaji, Iizuna Tsukasa, and Sakusa Kiyoomi all leapt up to form an impenetrable wall.

Bang!—

"???"

The ball shot past Sakusa's right side.

"In!" The referee hesitated for a moment before making the call.

A straight shot right on the line, with just slightly more of the ball landing outside.

Sanada Shunpei had scored.

[Itachiyama 1 – 1 Inubushi Higashi]

"Nice one, Shunpei!"

"Mm, 10 points." Sanada calmly rated his own spike.

"10 points!" His teammates, familiar with his habit, exchanged amused glances.

"You think that was a lucky shot?" Kindaichi Yūtarō suddenly asked.

"The placement suggests luck, but his expression doesn't," Kunimi Akira observed.

"He did that on purpose," a voice came from the back of the group—Chiba Yoshika. "He's been pulling off shots like that frequently in Inubushi Higashi's recent matches."

[Sanada Shunpei—Outside Hitter: Overall Rating: 89.3 Height: 188 cm, Power: 95, Jump: 88, Stamina: 88, Speed: 85; Key Traits: Spike: 95, Serve: 95.]

So, his physical attributes weren't top-tier, but his technical skills were terrifying. A player in the same category as Sakusa Kiyoomi?

[Mukai Taiyō—Setter: Overall Rating: 85 Height: 178 cm, Power: 75, Jump: 88, Stamina: 85, Speed: 86; Key Traits: Recieve: 88, Set: 90.]

His sets were accurate, but with his strength, he likely struggled with fast sets. Yet, he paired perfectly with Sanada? A duo where one plus one equals more than two.

Set precision combined with controlled placement—meaning, if they bypassed the block, the back-row defenders would have a hard time receiving.

Inubushi Higashi reclaimed the serve. Sanada Shunpei stepped up to the service line.

"Let's see it—your 95-rated serve." Kaedehara Taichi focused intensely on the court.

Sanada tossed the ball, took a few measured steps, then leapt into the air and slammed the ball down. Up until this point, it looked like a normal serve—

Bang!—

The ball landed inside Itachiyama's three-meter line, right in the space between Sakano Sawaji and Iizuna Tsukasa. To receive it, both would have to turn and reach backwards—an awkward move.

But for the back-row defenders, Takeshita Yūshin and Nishimura Hiroyuki, the ball had landed just a bit too far forward.

"What a sharp angle..."

Sanada had aced his serve.

[Itachiyama 1 – 2 Inubushi Higashi]

"He avoided Motoya Motoya and Sakusa Kiyoomi's side on purpose. Was he worried their reaction speed would allow them to handle it?"

Control and intelligence always went hand in hand. Taichi silently acknowledged the play.

Itachiyama's front-row players took a step back, their heels now right on the three-meter line.

Bang!—

Sanada sent his second serve over.

This time, it barely cleared the net and was even slower than the previous one.

"This guy—!"

The ball skidded over the net at a sharp angle, once again targeting the space between Sakano Sawaji and Iizuna Tsukasa.

"I got it!"

Iizuna reacted a split second faster, diving forward to save the ball.

Smack!

The ball ricocheted off his hands and into the net.

Sakano followed up, forcefully bumping the ball high.

At this point, both left-side attackers for Itachiyama were out of position.

Takeshita jumped from the back row and barely managed to send the ball over the net.

Bang!—

—Smack!

Kumadō Sōichi easily blocked the ball.

Inubushi Higashi had scored off their block.

[Itachiyama 1 – 3 Inubushi Higashi]

"Nice serve, Shunpei!" Kumadō gave a thumbs-up.

"Thanks. Only nine points for that one," Sanada muttered to himself. Ideally, he had wanted the ball to skim the net and drop even lower to make the save harder.

Itachiyama was falling behind early in the set!

Even Taichi hadn't expected this kind of opening. Motoya was on the court, but the ball hadn't even come near him!

"To dominate the game purely through ball control—this is something else."

Itachiyama's coach, Yamazaki, remained calm. He still had one more chance to let the team figure it out on their own before stepping in.

Sanada launched his third serve.

Bang!!—

This time, the speed increased drastically. Takeshita, positioned in the corner, reacted quickly and reached to his left to receive.

Smack!

The ball deflected off his arm and flew out of bounds.

Another ace!

[Itachiyama 1 – 4 Inubushi Higashi]

"Tweet!—" Itachiyama called for a timeout.

Inubushi Higashi had rattled off four consecutive points, forcing an early stoppage!

"Shunpei!!!" His teammates swarmed him.

Sanada grinned as he walked to the bench, casually glancing toward Itachiyama's side.

His previous serve had abruptly switched to the back left corner. The opponent likely struggled to adjust since his first two serves had conditioned them to expect slower speeds. Still, someone had gotten a touch on it.

"As expected from the Interhigh champions—they're strong!" Sanada murmured. "But getting to play against them is amazing!"

The crowd was roaring with excitement.

"Inubushi Higashi!! Keep going!!!"

"Inubushi Higashi!! Keep going!!!"

If they could defeat Itachiyama, no one would call them lucky anymore.

The edges of the banner bearing Inubushi Higashi's name fluttered amidst the rising tide of cheers.

[Beyond Expectations]

Unshackled. Defying convention!

_________

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