Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty

"This…this—Aoba Johsai scores again!"

"After a receiving error sent the ball spiralling toward Itachiyama's side, Kaedehara Taichi slammed it down at an almost vertical angle!"

"Despite relying only on his wrist strength, the ball's placement was so precise that even Komori Motoya, who had rushed in from the back row, could do nothing but watch!"

"This is bad news for Itachiyama! Because stepping up to serve next for Aoba Johsai is none other than the player who racked up consecutive points with his serves last set—Oikawa Tōru!!"

The serve switched—Aoba Johsai's turn.

"Damn it! Another powerful serve run!" Even Itachiyama's supporters could see the predicament their team was in.

And Itachiyama's response—Sakusa Kiyoomi shifted back from the front row, increasing their reception formation to four players, with both Sakusa Kiyoomi and Komori Motoya keeping a close eye on Oikawa's serve!

"Ooh, I can feel your determination to receive it!" Oikawa nodded in approval.

"Tweet!—"

The referee's whistle blew.

Oikawa tossed the ball, took a running start, jumped—contact!

"OHH—HEYYY!"

BANG!

A jump float serve aimed at the front row!

"This guy is enjoying this way too much!" Iizuna Tsukasa read the trajectory and moved quickly. "Wait, can I even fall back in time?!"

Iizuna Tsukasa leaned his upper body slightly backward, stretching his arms in line with his torso. His fingertips barely made contact with the ball.

"Motoya! Cover me!!"

Iizuna Tsukasa pushed the ball upward as high as he could. Komori Motoya, already anticipating it, jumped from the back row and set it up.

Sakusa Kiyoomi leapt from the middle, preparing to spike.

"Double block!" Kindaichi Yūtarō and Kaedehara Taichi jumped to meet him.

Sakusa's gaze flickered toward the sideline, where Iwaizumi Hajime stood ready. If he couldn't get enough height, would he choose to receive instead?

Boom!—

Smack!

The ball struck Kindaichi's forearm and ricocheted out of bounds.

"That guy…he's actually starting to read my spikes?" Sakusa frowned.

Both teams were growing accustomed to each other's attacks, adapting in real-time with countermeasures!

Oikawa dove for the save, Kyōtani Kentarō scrambled to keep it in play with a desperate set to the middle, and Kaedehara Taichi took to the air once more—

"Triple block!" Mizushima Yū, Sakusa Kiyoomi, and Iizuna Tsukasa formed a towering wall.

Kyōtani's set was a little low, leaving Taichi entirely covered by their defence.

BOOM!!!

Taichi broke through with sheer power!

The ball blasted past Sakusa's arms and slammed toward the court.

Smack!

Komori Motoya was already there!

He deflected the ball toward the left wing—Nishimura Hiroyuki launched into a back-row attack!

Boom!

Kindaichi's block was a fraction too slow.

Nishimura Hiroyuki scored from the back row!

[Aoba Johsai 4 – 2 Itachiyama]

"Oooohhh!!"

"A brilliant quick attack! Komori Motoya with the dig and Nishimura Hiroyuki with the follow-up spike!"

"Itachiyama dismantles Oikawa's service turn in just one rally!!!"

"Komori not only dug Taichi's spike but also delivered a precise set to the left wing—he was clearly prepared…On the other hand, while Aoba Johsai managed to receive Sakusa's spike, their transition was too forced. With their setter under pressure, their offence suffered greatly."

"Sorry!" Kindaichi Yūtarō called out. If only he had been a split second faster, he could have at least sealed off one attack angle…

"Idiot." Taichi nudged him lightly with his foot.

…Was Kindaichi's mentality shifting in an odd direction?

His teammate was undeniably strong, yet he was being overly cautious? His reactions to Sakusa's attacks had already been impressively fast—once disrupting his spike, and once nearly closing in on the quick attack.

Was he…expecting himself to only succeed if he outright blocked a spike for a direct point?

-----

The serve switched. Itachiyama's turn.

"To strengthen the offence, there will inevitably be gaps in defence. Is he still a double-edged sword?"

Iizuna Tsukasa tossed the ball, aiming straight for Aoba Johsai's back row—targeting Kyōtani Kentarō!

A jump float serve!

Kyōtani wasn't weak at receiving, but he lacked experience handling top-tier float serves at the national level.

Front or back?

As he hesitated, the ball plummeted in front of him.

Smack!

Kyōtani had no choice but to dig it from below—

The ball deflected off his arms and shot toward the floor…

Iizuna Tsukasa scored directly off his serve!

[Aoba Johsai 4 – 3 Itachiyama]

"As expected!" Iizuna clenched his fist.

"Nice serve, Iizuna!"

"Let's go again, Iizuna-senpai!"

"Damn it!" Kyōtani gritted his teeth.

"Don't worry about it. Kyōtani, shift your position slightly further back," Iwaizumi calmly instructed. "If the next serve lands in the same area, I'll take anything in front, and you handle anything behind."

Kyōtani nodded silently.

"We have to secure the next point."

"Understood!"

Aoba Johsai subtly adjusted their positioning. Kyōtani moved closer to the baseline, while Oikawa and Watari Shinji edged inward—forming a protective layer around him.

Iizuna Tsukasa served again.

Bang!

Same target—between Iwaizumi and Kyōtani.

"Iwaizumi-senpai!" "I got it!"

With his teammates' call, Iwaizumi took a quick shuffle step backwards and received with an overhead dig.

"Great receive!" Oikawa swiftly repositioned and set the ball high.

Thud!

Kaedehara Taichi launched from the front row.

"Triple block!" Nishimura Hiroyuki, Mizushima Yū, and Sakusa Kiyoomi all leapt simultaneously—confident after their previous successful block.

—Boom!

A wipe-off shot!

The ball slipped over Nishimura's fingertips and landed on Itachiyama's backline.

Kaedehara Taichi scored!

[Aoba Johsai 5 – 3 Itachiyama]

Landing smoothly, Taichi merely cast a fleeting glance toward Itachiyama's front row—silent.

Aoba Johsai reclaimed the serve.

"This brat…he's annoying whether he talks or not…"

-----

"Itachiyama is really clinging onto Aoba Johsai in this set!"

"Yeah! If this continues, they might have a chance to take the lead! They can't let Aoba Johsai win this second set, or the match will be in serious jeopardy…"

"But isn't it weird? Why is Itachiyama the one trying to catch up?"

"Now that you mention it…Aoba Johsai might be even stronger than we thought…"

Sitting in the front row of the audience, the Inarizaki players listened to the murmurs from behind.

"Tch, do they seriously think Aoba Johsai is weak?" Miya Atsumu grumbled. "If they don't understand, they should watch more carefully."

"There he goes again…" Suna Rintarō muttered. "Honestly, since we lost 2-0, the audience doesn't really have a reason to remember us…"

"Forget about that idiot," Miya Osamu said, rolling his eyes.

"Hah? Doesn't this make you mad? If Aoba Johsai gets underestimated, then that means people will look down on us even more!" Miya Atsumu fumed.

"Atsumu, you don't seriously mean that," their captain, Kita Shinsuke, said coolly. "Since when do you care so much about what others think?"

"Uh…" Atsumu instantly felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over his head, sobering him up.

"I just…it doesn't sit right with me. No—it's really frustrating."

"Understandable. After all, we only made it to the Round of 16 this time," Kita stated matter-of-factly. "But where you go next has nothing to do with where you are now, nor with how others perceive your strength."

"…Yeah, I know," Atsumu muttered weakly.

Getting scolded by their captain wasn't a great feeling, but what stung even more was that when Kita spoke about "next time," he had said you instead of we.

BOOM!—

"Taichi scores again—an unbelievably precise cross-court attack that lands cleanly inside Itachiyama's three-meter line!!"

"Itachiyama's triple block is completely useless against Kaedehara Taichi!!!"

The commentator's excited voice reached the ears of the Inarizaki players.

"Damn, that guy's terrifying," Ojiro Aran muttered in disbelief. "After going up against Bokuto from Fukurōdani, his cross shots have gotten even sharper."

"It's more than that," Kita added. "I think he's been digesting everything he learned from facing Kamomedai since the first set."

Although Kita wasn't an overwhelmingly intimidating player due to his physical limitations, no one had ever doubted his keen observation skills.

"Hmph, he's got guts, I'll give him that," Atsumu scoffed. "But no matter how strong he gets, I will get my revenge next year!"

"Although Oikawa Tōru will be graduating, if you only focus on Taichi, you still won't be able to beat Aoba Johsai," Kita reminded him.

"Yeah, I know," Osamu said, glancing toward Aoba Johsai's bench, where Kunimi Akira—who hadn't played in the second set—was sitting. "Their first-years have more than just Taichi. He just happens to be the flashiest one."

"And that guy—Kyōtani Kentarō," Atsumu added. "He's evolving too. His playstyle wasn't nearly this adaptable before. The Nationals really do push players to their limits."

It was clear that they weren't ignoring how their opponents were growing stronger. Next year's Inarizaki would undoubtedly go even further.

Kita simply smiled and said nothing more.

-----

"Kindaichi Yūtarō's serve is getting sharper—he sends a powerful jump serve straight to Itachiyama's back row!"

"Komori Motoya receives it cleanly, pushing the ball to the right side—Sakusa Kiyoomi is going for the spike!"

"No—wait! He changes the set to the left instead! Nishimura Hiroyuki initiates the final attack!"

"Kaedehara Taichi follows him—perfect solo block! Nishimura avoids the block and goes for the kill—"

"But Aoba Johsai picks it up! From the right-side baseline—Kyōtani Kentarō! Beautiful receive!"

"Oikawa jumps to set! Aoba Johsai's front row has a triple attack option—who will it be?!!"

"It's Matsukawa Issei on the far right! But—"

"Komori Motoya reads the play and digs it up—perfect anticipation!"

"Itachiyama fires back, launching another multi-angle attack!"

"Sakusa Kiyoomi from the right—Kyōtani picks it up again!"

"But the ball flies out of bounds…"

Sakusa Kiyoomi scores.

[Aoba Johsai 18 - 17 Itachiyama]

"It looks like Aoba Johsai's second-set substitute, Kyōtani, is being targeted as a weak point in their defence," the commentator Aoi remarked.

"But he's actually holding up quite well," commentator Ōtomo countered. "I wouldn't say it's an easy weakness to exploit."

"Haha, Ōtomo-sensei makes a good point. In fact, the fact that Aoba Johsai is still maintaining their lead speaks for itself," Aoi added with a chuckle. "However, this might be Itachiyama's best chance to turn the game around."

The serve rotated. Sakusa Kiyoomi stepped up to the service line.

"Hold the line!"

"Yes!!!"

Sakusa swept his gaze across Aoba Johsai's formation before tossing the ball up.

Boom!—

A short serve! Targeting Matsukawa Issei!

Smack!

The ball flew out of bounds.

Sakusa Kiyoomi aces the serve.

[Aoba Johsai 18 - 18 Itachiyama]

"Sorry!" Matsukawa shouted.

Too fast…

From the serve to the lost point, it had only been a second or two…

Itachiyama tied the score.

"Don't worry about it! Next one!" Iwaizumi Hajime called out to reassure him.

Everyone on Aoba Johsai had been expecting another serve aimed at Kyōtani in the back row, but the ball had suddenly dropped into the front instead.

With so many possible targets, Sakusa Kiyoomi was nearly impossible to predict…

It was difficult to adjust…

Sakusa's second serve came.

"Kyōtani!"

This time, as expected, he went for the baseline target—Kyōtani Kentarō.

Smack!—

The ball was deflected out, but Matsukawa was already sprinting to the sideline to save it.

Smack!

He managed to keep it in play, but there was only one hit left.

Boom!

Oikawa sent the ball over from the back row.

"Chance ball!"

Komori sent a perfect pass to the net. IIizuna Tsukasa jumped from the back row.

Would he spike it? Or set?

He had only a split second to decide.

"Double block!" Iwaizumi and Matsukawa leaped up.

Boom!

IIizuna faked the spike and set it left—Mizushima Yū slammed the ball down.

[Aoba Johsai 18 - 19 Itachiyama]

"This is practically an open scheme. Even if only one blocker jumped, it's unlikely they could have stopped IIizuna's spike anyway."

"There's no other way. The only thing we can do is make sure their first touch isn't so easy."

Itachiyama had taken three points in a row.

For the first time in two sets, Itachiyama had taken the lead!

The Itachiyama cheering squad erupted in excitement—they were finally seeing the team they were familiar with.

Seeing Aoba Johsai on high alert, Sakusa Kiyoomi finally let out a laugh for the first time in this match.

"It's not over yet."

He tossed the ball up.

Boom!—

A powerful jump serve!

The ball landed precisely on the back line—a perfect line shot!

"What an incredibly precise trajectory! The ball slipped right between Oikawa Tōru and Kyōtani Kentarō, and neither of them could react in time!"

"Sakusa Kiyoomi scores another service ace!"

[Aoba Johsai 18 – 20 Itachiyama]

Four consecutive points! Itachiyama was the first to reach the 20-point mark!

"Damn it, this guy was hiding a serve like that?" Oikawa muttered in frustration.

Aoba Johsai had gotten stuck in rotation at a crucial moment—every single point from here on out was going to be dangerous...

Clap, clap, clap.

Iwaizumi Hajime clapped his hands to draw his teammates' attention.

"Don't panic. Just receive the ball as planned," he said firmly. "We're not the kind of team that falls apart over a single point!"

"Yes!"

Sakusa Kiyoomi went for his fourth serve.

The ball skimmed the net, barely clearing it before dropping sharply!

He was trying to crush Aoba Johsai's momentum completely!

Iwaizumi lunged forward to receive, but there wasn't enough time to adjust his hands properly. Even a normal underhand pass might not make it in time!

Thud!

Smack!

Iwaizumi dove into a sliding kneel, arms braced in front of his chest, forcefully pushing the ball upward.

This was a ball they absolutely couldn't afford to waste!

Oikawa and Kaedehara Taichi both sprinted toward the falling ball.

Taichi leapt up on the left side.

"Three-man block!"

Itachiyama's front line had all jumped to stop Taichi's quick attack.

Boom!

The ball ricocheted high off Itachiyama's right side.

Oikawa went in for a second-touch attack—a direct spike!

"Oikawa scores with a setter dump!"

[Aoba Johsai 19 – 20 Itachiyama]

"Was that a decoy quick attack from their ace?"

"Wait…Aoba Johsai's setter can spike like that too?"

A completely unexpected play had finally interrupted Itachiyama's momentum.

"Nice receive!" Oikawa grabbed Iwaizumi by the arm and pulled him up.

"With Iwa-chan's pass, of course I'd score!"

_________

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