Sorry late update :(
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"Starting the offense from the right side and immediately following up with a jump serve—it's almost too comfortable, isn't it?"
At the service line, Hayato rotated the ball in his hands, testing its weight, his expression calm.
From across the court, Oikawa frowned. If they score here, Karasuno's momentum will snowball. We can't let them pull away.
Before he could rally his team, Iwaizumi had already stepped forward with fire in his voice. "Bring it on!"
Hearing his partner, Oikawa's irritation eased. This was the bond of three years—they could trust each other completely.
"Serve it strong!" someone shouted from the stands.
And then Saeko's voice rang out clear: "Soar, Fierce Bird!"
Hayato twitched at the nickname—his face heating for a split second—but the whistle cut through everything. His focus snapped in. Predator's eyes.
The ball soared high. His body coiled, bowstring-taut, before unleashing a cannon of a serve.
"Don't underestimate Seijoh!"
Iwaizumi darted into place, his reception crisp and steady. His core locked down, his legs absorbing the force—he didn't yield an inch.
"Ah, they got it…" Sugawara muttered from the bench, a little disappointed.
Karasuno had expected Hayato's serve to score again, but Seijoh wasn't the type to crumble. Two grueling sets had tuned their rhythm; even Hayato's firepower wasn't unstoppable.
Hayato felt it the moment his palm struck. Trajectory's off. He landed and immediately retreated into position, ready for defense. Seijoh wasn't going to give them free points.
Only Tsukishima was blocking at the net. If they faltered even slightly, Seijoh's attack would spread wide.
The spike came cross-court, skimming past Tsukishima's fingertips. But Karasuno had anticipated this.
"Mine!" Tanaka lunged low, arms firm, popping the ball up.
"Shoyo, cover!"
"Attack, attack!"
Daichi and Hayato both shouted, energy flowing back into Karasuno's side.
Hinata leapt, Kageyama's toss rising toward him—but Seijoh's double block was already there.
"Damn!" Realizing he was trapped, Hinata changed mid-air, softening to a tip.
But Oikawa read him like a book. Sliding into position, he popped the ball back with a deft fingertip. It tumbled right over the net into Karasuno's court.
"Phew… lucky," Oikawa exhaled, posture awkward but effective. He hadn't planned for such a cheeky return, but the ball fell their way.
"Sorry!" Hinata apologized immediately.
"Don't worry. Next one." Daichi clapped his back. No one could've expected Oikawa to tip it instead of recycling the attack.
Karasuno reset. Daichi shifted fully into defense, anchoring the back with Hayato and Tanaka. Tsukishima alone pressed the net, his block narrowing Seijoh's spiking angles.
The gamble paid off—Seijoh's attack was slowed, and Karasuno regained control.
"Leave it to me!" Hayato shouted, backing up for a back-row approach.
"Give it to me!" Hinata called too, springing for a Quick.
Two offensive threats, perfectly overlapped—Seijoh couldn't tell who the real target was.
At the net, Kageyama's hands shaped forward, body angled like he would set Hinata. The blockers reacted—
But in the last heartbeat, his wrists flicked back. The ball flew past, clean and sharp, into Hayato's strike zone.
Unopposed.
Hayato launched, hammering the ball into an open gap. No hands touched it—point to Karasuno.
The gym erupted.
"Unbelievable!"
"I thought for sure it was going to number 10!"
"That back-set was lightning—so precise!"
Spectators gushed as they pieced it together. The fake, the timing, the sheer speed of execution.
Koyuki and the cheer squad led the charge, their synchronized chants filling the air. Even Saeko and Hitoka waved pom-poms in rhythm, the energy spilling over Karasuno's side of the stands.
"Tobio, nice pass!" Hayato hooked an arm around him, grinning wide.
Kageyama's face stayed neutral. "That's just normal."
But his high-five with Hinata betrayed a spark. Without Hinata's decoy pull, Hayato never would've had the lane.
"Shoyo, nice bait."
"Hehe~ thanks!" Hinata beamed.
From the stands, voices roared again—this time for Kageyama. Five girls shouted his name in unison, pom-poms shaking.
For a moment, even the stoic setter looked dazed. Not by the attention of girls—though Tanaka and Nishinoya immediately turned green with envy—but by the simple fact of being cheered for.
"Well, we're still just high school kids," Hayato teased, trying to act mature.
"Don't pull that old-man act," Daichi laughed, clapping him on the back. "You're a second-year too."
The mood on Karasuno's bench lightened instantly. Coach Ukai exchanged a relieved glance with Takeda.
"They're relaxed again. Much better than earlier."
"True, but Seijoh hasn't flinched either." Takeda's eyes stayed sharp. Across the net, Oikawa and his team spread out in formation, as calm and focused as ever.
The battle was far from over.
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