"Oh~ So this is Aoba Johsai's campus? It's so spacious, and all the facilities look brand new."
In the early morning, a group of players in red uniforms entered Aoba Johsai's campus.
Inuoka walked beside Yamamoto Taketora who was marveling: "I heard Aoba Johsai has high college admission rates. They really live up to their elite reputation."
Haiba: "I hope their volleyball team is elite too. These past few matches have been too boring."
Kozume Kenma looked listless: "I don't really care either way..."
Captain Kuroo Tetsurou clapped his hands to get everyone's attention: "Alright alright, perk up everyone. Seijoh is one of Miyagi Prefecture's top four schools. They won't be as easy to defeat as our previous opponents, so take this seriously."
Coach Nekomata watched contentedly from the side as his team adjusted their attitudes.
The Nekoma team had barely taken a few steps into campus when two boys in Seijoh uniforms appeared to greet them.
Oikawa Tooru smiled politely: "Welcome everyone. I'm Oikawa Tooru, third-year captain of Aoba Johsai's volleyball team. Pleased to meet you all."
Iwaizumi Hajime offered a less warm but still polite smile: "I'm third-year Iwaizumi Hajime. Please follow us."
Seijoh's two leaders escorted Nekoma to the third gymnasium, where both teams bowed formally in greeting.
"Looking forward to the match!" ×N
As they straightened up, players from both teams sized each other up.
From Seijoh's lineup, Yuma Kikuzawa focused particularly on one shorter player with light-colored hair.
[Morisuke Yaku, 17 years old, 165.2cm, 60.2kg, spike reach 320cm, power 60, speed 88, stamina 86, intelligence 85, spike 56, set 75, serve 68, block 40, receive 94]
Wow! 94 in receives! With speed, stamina and intelligence all above 80. No wonder he becomes a national team dark horse in the future.
His gaze shifted to others.
[Kozume Kenma, 17 years old, 169.2cm, 58.3kg, spike reach 295cm, power 50, speed 67, stamina 69, intelligence 94, spike 55, set 91, serve 80, block 70, receive 85]
[Kuroo Tetsurou, 18 years old, 187.7cm, 75.3kg, spike reach 330cm, power 77, speed 85, stamina 83, intelligence 88, spike 80, set 73, serve 80, block 94, receive 88]
Kenma's 94 intelligence and Kuroo's 94 blocks stood out the most. All other players had receives above 80 too. Truly living up to their "Defensive Cats" reputation.
Yuma swallowed hard.
...This match was going to be tough.
"Hey Yuuki, see that short player? He's their libero. Yuuki...?"
Yuma nudged Yuuki but got no response. Puzzled, he turned to see his usually unflappable younger brother staring at the Nekoma team with a (⊙o⊙) expression.
Who?! Which unruly kitten stole my brother's attention?!
Yuma glared murderously across the court, only to find all Nekoma players huddled together chatting animatedly, none looking toward Seijoh.
"...Yuuki, who are you looking at?"
Yuma grabbed Yuuki's shoulders and turned him around.
"Tell your brother. I definitely won't tell mom."
...I'm absolutely telling mom about this!
Under his brother's intense questioning, Yuuki shakily pointed toward someone surrounded by Nekoma players—
Kozume Kenma.
"Bro..." Yuuki murmured dazedly, "A crème brûlée came to life..."
Yuma: "???"
...
While the Kikuzawa brothers created a cheerful atmosphere on Seijoh's side, Nekoma also showed some commotion upon noticing the distinctive silver-haired duo.
Kuroo: "Aren't those the Kikuzawa brothers? They joined Seijoh after leaving Tokyo?"
Haiba: "Who? You know them?"
Yamamoto: "Those silver-haired guys. They won this year's middle school championships. Pretty famous in Tokyo. Didn't expect to see them here."
Kenma: I have a feeling today's match will be exhausting...
Seijoh naturally noticed Nekoma's discussion. Kindaichi observed where their opponents were looking: "Are Nekoma players staring at Yuma and Yuuki?"
Kunimi: "They're all from Tokyo. Probably know each other."
After thorough warm-ups, both teams took positions on opposite sides of the court.
Nekoma players formed a circle, pressing their fists together.
Kuroo: "We are the blood, flowing endlessly to deliver oxygen and keep the brain functioning. Let's go!"
"Yes!" ×N
Yuma peeked over: There it is, the Blood Cult. But Seijoh won't lose!
Temporarily responsible Seijoh captain Oikawa checked each teammate's condition before flashing a confident smile.
"Everyone, I believe in you this time too!"
"Yes!" ×N
"Peeep—"
The whistle blew. Match begins.
"Practice match between Nekoma High and Aoba Johsai High officially starts!"
Starting lineups:
Aoba Johsai:
Oikawa Tooru Iwaizumi Hajime Matsukawa Issei
Kikuzawa Yuma Kikuzawa Yuuki Hanamaki Takahiro
(Libero: Watari Shinji)
————————————
Nekoma:
Haiba Lev Yamamoto Taketora Inuoka Sou
Kuroo Tetsurou Fukunaga Shouhei Kozume Kenma
(Libero: Morisuke Yaku)
Regardless of Nekoma's formation, just Seijoh's positioning radiated overflowing malice.
Serving order: Oikawa first, Yuma second, Yuuki third.
Three powerful servers in a row—Seijoh clearly aimed to build an early lead.
"Oikawa! Serve us a good one!"
"Go Oikawa!"
"Leave it to me. Let's show our guests from afar what Miyagi Prefecture can do."
Oikawa casually walked to the service line with the ball.
Kuroo warned: "Stay alert! This guy's serves might be dangerous!"
Actually, Nekoma players didn't need the reminder—they were already fully focused seeing Oikawa's professional preparation.
Boom!
With a thunderous serve, the volleyball rocketed toward Nekoma's backcourt, heading straight for Kenma in the corner.
Kenma reacted quickly, raising his arms to receive—but the ball only brushed his forearms briefly before its overwhelming force disrupted his posture, knocking the ball out of bounds.
"Nice serve!"
"One more!"
Seijoh celebrated their captain's scoring serve while Nekoma comforted Kenma.
Kuroo: "Don't worry. Seijoh's captain has sharp serves. It's normal to miss the first one."
Kenma: "Yeah, I know."
Oikawa's second serve targeted Fukunaga Shouhei, destabilizing him enough to nearly kneel. Fukunaga managed to cushion the ball, sending it high.
At the landing spot, Kenma raised both hands to set.
...Who should get this?
Kenma observed players on both sides, clearly seeing three blockers preparing their moves.
Returning his focus to the ball, he leaned back sideways with arms extended rightward—an obvious fake—before flipping his wrists to send the ball left instead.
Just as Kenma predicted, two opponents fell for the feint, shifting right—but one player hesitated before rushing left, hands perfectly positioned to block.
Slap! Slap!
Almost simultaneous impacts—first Yuuki's successful block, then Kuroo's diving save from the back row.
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