The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

There was a long pause inside the building as everyone stared at the ball in disbelief. No, the disbelief didn't come from the ball itself, but from how it fell on the floor. At that moment, Ueno could feel blood drain from his face instantly as he realized what mistake he had just made and the consequence of it.

"Oh! He makes a fatal mistake!"

"How could the ball slip from his hand like that?! This is a rookie mistake!"

"Damn, to do it in such a crucial game like this… Poor him…"

Fortunately, this game was in a neutral place. If this were in Shirayuki's or even Shimo's home court, Ueno would face scrutiny from all over the building instantly. This time, he only received the hushes and whispers from the stand, which, even though it was enough to make him uncomfortable, at least, the people there didn't scold him loudly.

However, that didn't bring any reassurance for Ueno who had his head bowed deeply, ashamed of his mistake. After all, to panic in the middle of the game was like a cardinal sin for a setter in the volleyball game, and he had just done exactly like that. Not only would it affect his mood, but the entire team would also be affected, knowing that their setter, their command control to attack felt pressured by the opponent's defense.

"Don't worry, Ueno! It is just one point! Raise your head high and try to pay it back later!" Just like usual, Ezaki was the first one who come and reassure his friend.

Ueno had the urge to cry and even to dig a hole for himself, trying to hide from the embarrassment of having to face his friend after the foolish mistake he had made earlier. Unfortunately, he knew he couldn't do that right now, and Miura, the team's head coach, still encouraged him from the bench with a single nod. There were still a lot of people who had his back, so even though Ueno wanted to run, he had to muster his courage right now.

'So, is this what Ezaki-kun had to face when he was isolated by everyone after that incident?' Ueno thought, glancing at his friend unconsciously. At this time, he finally realized and appreciated how strong his friend was under the pressure.

After this, the game had to be continued again. However, the mood on Shimo's side was at an all-time low, feeling disturbed after how the last play went. After all, even though they weren't so sure whether they could execute the last play or not, at least, if the mistake didn't happen, they wouldn't lose their chance so easily just like that. This was such a huge blow that would be hard for the team to recover.

"Come on, Yuya! Continue the strike!"

"This is the time to send them into the shadow realm!"

"You can do this!"

Feeling the momentum was on his side after three consecutive services in a row, Yuya took a deep breath, tossing the ball high before taking off from the ground and slamming the ball hard. Unfortunately, this time, he miscalculated the route, and while the power was still there, the direction of the ball he sent was a bit too wide to enter the opponent's court.

BAM!

This time, Hideo who was the closest to the ball decided to let it go, and as the ball slammed the floor, he turned his head quickly toward the linesman, waiting for the final decision. Fortunately, right a second later, the linesman raised the flag in his hand high, signaling that the ball fell outside of the court.

"YOSSHAAA!" The captain roared wildly, celebrating one point that was so important for the team.

"Oh! Good observation skill, Captain!"

"That is how you do it!"

"Come on! We finally cut off their momentum streak!"

Meanwhile, on Shirayuki's court, Yuya clicked his tongue in annoyance, feeling pity that the ball was so close to the sideline. "Sorry, everyone. The ball slipped a little in my hand." He apologized to his teammates quickly.

"Eh, don't worry about it. While for them, one point is pretty important, for us, we can still afford to lose a few here. Just don't do it deliberately, okay?" Takumi, the team's captain, just waved his hand nonchalantly.

This was the difference between the team who was on the lead and who was chasing the score. While Shimo High couldn't tolerate any mistake like what Ueno did before, since Shirayuki was still in a big lead, they didn't put pressure on their players who accidentally made a mistake. This was the reassurance brought by the lead they had fought before.

After that, everyone went back to their original position, ready to restart the game again. This time, after the rotation, it was Ezaki's turn to take the serve. He walked onto the service line with eyes burned, filled with determination. This was his chance to help raise the team's morale, and the boy knew he couldn't waste something like this.

'Kami-sama, please, help me just for this time!'

After praying silently to whatever deity above, he tossed the ball pretty high, starting his run-up a little before taking off from the ground, leaping forward while also recoiling his arm to gather strength from inside his body. Right when the ball was within his reach, the boy didn't hesitate to unleash all of his power, slamming the ball as hard as he could. If there were a high-resolution camera that recorded this sequence, they would see that for a split second, the ball had a slight dent due to the impact of this serve.

BAM!

"Shit! Matsuena-san!"

"I got this!"

Shun Matsuena, Shirayuki High's defensive specialist, reacted quickly when he saw the ball coming toward his direction. When he noticed the ball went straight to his body, the boy stepped back a little, leaning his body aside to avoid a head-on collision with his body while also preparing himself to receive the ball. As a result, even though he flinched at the sharp pain on his forearms after receiving the ball, Shun managed to save it perfectly, sending the ball straight to the front line.

"Oh, shit! Sorry, a bit too close to the net!" Shun scowled at himself when he saw how close the ball was to the net.

"Don't worry, Shun! We got this!"

"Joust! Come on, Tsubasa! Get it first!"

Seeing the ball was so close to the net, Tsubasa rushed and leaped forward with one hand extended in the air, ready to flick the ball back to his own side. Meanwhile, Genta, Shimo's middle blocker, also reacted quickly, jumping straight in front of Tsubasa, ready to knock the ball down once it crossed the net. Even though at first glance, this looked like a classic case of an aerial duel, the truth was that the winner of this contest would be decided on whether the ball could cross the net or not.

Unfortunately, it seemed God still wanted to play joke with Shimoyawata High, as even though it was so close to crossing the net, Tsubasa managed to flick it gently first, sending it back to Shirayuki's area before the team's captain, Takumi, rushed from behind while also carrying a strong momentum, ready to kill the ball. As a result…

BAM!