The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

Of course, Yuki didn't know that there was an awkward atmosphere in a small section of the stand. After all, the distance was still too far for him to notice that, and his attention was still fully on the court. He took a deep breath calmly, trying to maintain his excitement after four successful serves in a row.

"Come on, Yuki!"

"You can do this! Just kill them all!"

"History is waiting for us!"

Yeah, after his successful consecutive serves, everyone started to get excited, imagining themselves witnessing history for the team to advance to the semifinal of the prefectural tournament for the first time ever since the school was founded. Of course, this told everyone how poor and terrible Tsunemori High was in the past. However, because of this, everyone inside the building was so eager to be there to witness it.

Yuki took another deep breath, trying to clear his mind again. He knew that in a moment where emotion ran high like this, he should be the calmest person in the building, seeing everything with clarity. They knew that the opponent hadn't given up this game yet. No, they hadn't even used their timeout for this set, and their eyes were still burning with determination to stop his attack. He needed to approach this with cautiousness because once this chance was over, he didn't know whether he would still have a chance to be on the service line again or not.

FWEEEEE!

BAM!

As the referee blew the whistle, Yuki tossed the ball immediately, sending a sharp, powerful spin serve toward Kaito. Yeah, after all of his shenanigans in the last two sets, he decided to go back to their original plan to target Kaito. This was the safest plan for them not only because Kaito was the opponent's weakest player in defense, but even though Yusuke managed to cover him up, they all still could guess the opponent's next move instantly.

Just like Yuki expected, though, Yusuke rushed toward Kaito's spot immediately when he saw the ball was coming to his friend, diving with both hands extended forward to reach the ball. He managed to save that, yet he fell straight into the route for Kaito to run, blocking his friend from joining the attack.

"Shit! Sorry, Kaito! I am on your way!" Yusuke gritted his teeth, trying to recover as quickly as possible.

"Don't worry! Your senpai got this!" Ayane shouted, picking up the wild ball on the right wing. He didn't hesitate even for a single second before sending the ball far to the left wing where Suzuki was flying already.

"Hell, yeah! Ayane! Nice pass!"

Seeing that Riku also jumped to block his crosspath, it was a no-brainer for Suzuki to send a straight attack. Unfortunately, the one guarding that spot was Yuki, Tsunemori's best defender who had no hard time saving the ball flawlessly.

BAM!

"Shit!" Suzuki cursed loudly.

"Don't worry, Senpai! They don't have any setter to cover it up!" Kaito shouted back, reassuring his senpai.

Indeed, since Yuki was the one who saved the ball and Riku still on the front after his block attempt, without Ogawa on the court, Tsunemori had no one to set up a counterattack for the play. In the end, Hirano who was on the front had to cover it up, setting up the ball awkwardly toward Koji whose spike was blocked by Kaito.

BAM!

"Oh, yeah, Baby! We rock!" Kaito grinned widely as he saw the ball bounce back to Tsunemori's side. Just like the usual, of course, his celebration triggered a wave of boos from the stand.

"Damn, this gay bastard doesn't know when to stop!"

"Come on! Just die already!"

"How much money do you want to get?! Come on, my parents can get it for you!"

"Hey, don't be so outrageous! Mind your words, will you?!"

While all the supporters were busy scolding Kaito from the stand, Koji approached his teammates with a guilty expression on his face. "Sorry, everyone. I mess up again this time." He clenched his fist tightly, unhappy with his current state.

All the Tsunemori players just stared at each other concernedly before Riku stepped forward and patted his senpai's shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, Senpai. We are still leading with three points. Even though it is a bit pity that we cannot extend it far when Yuki is still in the service line, this is not something we cannot afford. Just tighten your seatbelt and get ready for a wild and roller-coaster game."

Even though Riku and the other players had already expressed that they were okay with him being on the slump and promised to wait for him to get up, Koji still felt guilty. If anything, their reassurance only made the feeling worse. After all, it was better to get scolded rather than be treated nicely after making a mistake. He also cursed himself for his incompetence since he was probably the worst player on the team today.

Unfortunately, he didn't have any time to deal with that, since right a second later, the game was restarted again. This time, it was Kaito's turn to serve the ball, and as the obnoxious boy moved to the back row, some of the Tsunemori players sighed in relief. Even though they wouldn't dare to underestimate Kaito in this situation, they recognize that the boy's effectiveness from the back attack was lower than his usual offensive method.

Right when the referee blew the whistle, a wave of boos erupted from the stand, trying to distract Kaito from doing his best serve. However, the boy showed his strong mentality as he wasn't bothered by it even for a second. He just sent another powerful serve straight to Yuki's direction.

BAM!

"Oh! Nice receive, Yuki!"

"Riku! Send it here!"

Knowing full well that this was their chance to counterattack, Riku didn't hesitate to send the ball to the left side where Asahi was there. However, unlike before when Riku always sent a quick and precise ball, this time, he sent it a bit slower, letting Asahi observe the opponent's side first before taking action. True enough, Asahi managed to see a little hole cracked on Kikugawa's left side, and he didn't hesitate to send the ball there. Unfortunately, Ao, Kikugawa's middle blocker was quick enough to cover that spot.

BAM!

"One touch!" He shouted.

Asahi just clicked his tongue in annoyance before going back to his original position. Meanwhile, all the Kikugawa High players worked together seamlessly, covering up the ball before it flew back to Kaito for another counterattack.

"Oh! Nice pass, Ayane-senpai!" Kaito grinned widely when he saw the easy ball in front of him.

Of course, Hirano didn't stay idle on his spot. After his success in stopping Kaito's attack earlier, he was too eager for another quick success, and this time, when he had a chance to do so again, he jumped without hesitation, erecting the strongest wall he could.

However, right before the ball was slammed by Kaito, the obnoxious boy suddenly shifted his stance. Instead of doing a powerful hit, he changed his mind in the last second, tapping the ball gently to get through Hirano's hands.

Thud!

Everyone was too stunned to react in time, and as a result, when Yuki finally moved, the ball had already touched the ground, giving Kikugawa High their second point in a row.

Tsunemori High 4 (1) – (1) 2 Kikugawa High