The three-day training schedule might be difficult, but since Coach Ukai had set it, everyone followed without complaint.
After warm-ups, Hinata, Kageyama, and Tsukishima stood ready on the opposite court.
The drill: ten receive per player, with Jin spiking thirty balls per round. At first glance, it looked like practice for receivers, but in reality, it was also testing Jin's stamina.
'How can a man not last long?' Jin smirked, rolling his shoulders. 'Time to show them despair.'
On the bench, Hitoka whispered nervously, "Kiyoko-senpai, why is Jin-kun the only one spiking? Isn't that too exhausting for him?"
Kiyoko shook her head. "Watch carefully. If everyone can learn to receive his spikes, Karasuno's defense will level up completely."
Coach Ukai blew his whistle from the coach's chair. "Start with Hinata on the left! Jin's spikes will come straight down the middle first."
Jin cracked a grin. "First day's goal, let them all taste despair."
The instant Coach Ukai tossed the first ball, Jin exploded off the ground. His joking air vanished, replaced with beastlike intensity.
*Boom!* The ball slammed down before Hinata could react.
"Wahhh!" Hinata tumbled back, eyes wide. "So fast!"
"Next ball! Kageyama!" Ukai barked.
Kageyama gritted his teeth, braced himself, and still, *bang!*, the spinning ball knocked his arms off angle, throwing his balance.
"Damn it!" he cursed, scrambling up.
On the sideline, Hitoka's eyes sparkled. She'd never seen Jin like this serious, powerful, unstoppable.
The second wave rotated in Nishinoya, Sugawara, and Daichi, Karasuno's best defenders.
Thirty spikes later, Jin's power hadn't dropped. If anything, his jumps got higher, his swings sharper. Nishinoya managed a few miracle saves, Daichi and Sugawara each pulled off one or two perfect receives, but most balls still tore through.
By the end of the full rotation, Jin's shirt was drenched in sweat, but instead of resting, he called for another ball. "Again! This time, random targets!"
Hitoka counted on the clipboard nervously. "That's already two hundred and ten spikes…"
Kiyoko stepped up to Coach Ukai. "Coach, maybe he should rest for half an hour?"
Ukai glanced at the sheet in her hand. Before he could reply, Jin shouted, "No breaks! I'll take all ten of them on at once!"
Everyone stared. Was he human or a monster?
Then, *smack!*
A sharp flick to the back of his head. Jin turned, rubbing the spot, and met Kiyoko's calm gaze.
"Half an hour break. With me. Now."
"…Oh." Jin blinked, caught off guard.
Across the court, Tanaka and Nishinoya nearly drooled.
"Kiyoko-san, punish me too!" Tanaka begged.
"My head's itchy too, hit me!" Nishinoya added.
"Don't want to," Kiyoko said flatly, leading Jin out.
---
Once outside, Jin tilted his head. "So? You dragging me out just to hit me?"
Kiyoko looked away, a faint blush on her cheeks. "…When training ends this afternoon, can you come with me? I forgot something at home."
Jin's grin spread. 'Going home with Kiyoko-senpai? Jackpot.' But he asked anyway, "Why not bring Hitoka along too? I don't mind."
Kiyoko's blush deepened. "…Hitoka's afraid of the dark."
Jin froze for a second, then burst into laughter. "Afraid of the dark, huh? That's… actually a perfect excuse."