Konoha was not planning to do anything excessive. He only needed to keep Hirugami marked. The best way to mark someone was to keep your eyes on them. Wherever Hirugami went, Konoha would go too.
Hirugami glanced at Konoha, then ran toward the place where Washio was about to spike. Konoha saw that and, unwilling to back down, followed Hirugami over.
Speaking of which, for a blocker, Hirugami's running speed really was not slow. Of course, Konoha was not exactly slow either.
The two of them faced each other across the net once again.
When Bokuto saw that the ball had not been tossed to him, he felt a little angry and a little wronged. His gaze darted around until it locked onto Hoshiumi, who was running over and ready to join the attack at any moment. Seizing the chance, Bokuto fixed both eyes firmly on Hoshiumi.
At that moment, Hirugami's view was blocked by Konoha. All he knew was that, in the instant just now, Washio had broken out. Looking around again, he saw that Bokuto was now facing Hoshiumi at the net, while Onaga had also taken the opportunity to run to Konoha's side. As for the remaining Suwa and Nozawa, no one was marking them at all.
Using Konoha and Onaga's cover at position two, Washio successfully jumped from position five.
He had already started preparing and beginning his run-up when Komi received the ball, because their original plan for this point had been a back-row attack.
Since Bokuto could not run the back-row attack at this moment, Washio had to fill in. Still, everything else was the same. The cover and the timing of the toss were both excellent.
This ball was stable.
Washio's back-row attack was not as outstanding as Bokuto's. He could not guarantee that every back-row attack he hit would score, but with the outside factors supporting him, it was not that difficult to make this ball score.
Hirugami was slightly taller than Konoha. The moment Washio jumped, Hirugami saw him and instantly understood what they were planning.
"Hakuba!"
Hirugami knew he could not block it alone. After all, there were still two blockers in front of him.
He called for Hakuba to come block with him. Hakuba had already been diagonally behind Hirugami, so even without Hirugami calling him, he came over on his own. From his angle, of course he could see Washio running in from the three-meter line.
Then he ran toward Hirugami without looking back. But the moment Hakuba stepped away from his own position, he felt that something was strange. Why? Why did he have to spike from that position? It was not as if a back-row attack from position six or position four would not work.
That thought flashed through his mind and disappeared just as quickly.
Washio nodded in satisfaction. Good. Just like that. The defense's focus was all gathered on one point, and Keiichiro was also peering out from behind position three.
That left Kamomedai's right backcourt empty.
Keiichiro froze for a moment, then took off sprinting toward position six.
Washio would not give Keiichiro the chance to react. He immediately swung his arm and spiked.
"Bang!"
The volleyball shot out from Washio's hand at high speed, aimed toward the area between Kamomedai's current position three and position six. His arm swung down diagonally, driving the ball straight into the position three area.
Keiichiro hurried over and even threw himself into a dive, but he still could not catch up. The volleyball hit the floor two palm lengths away from him.
Seeing the volleyball land, Washio also let out a breath of relief. Heaven knew how panicked he had been just now, afraid that this ball would hit the net.
When Washio had practiced back-row attacks many times before, his most common mistake had been hitting the net. Because of that, every time he attacked from the back row now, he would worry a little over whether this ball would hit the net.
Seeing the ball land successfully, Washio's heart finally settled too.
"Beep!"
"Fukurōdani pulls one point back after Kamomedai scored two in a row. Washio and Keiji Akaashi worked together for a back-row attack from position five, but the volleyball ultimately landed in position six.
"Fukurōdani lured away Kamomedai's blockers and Libero, then successfully scored in the completely open right backcourt!"
Fukurōdani without Bokuto participating in the attack was still Fukurōdani. They had simply changed their offensive style. In the current situation, Fukurōdani was even more conservative than before. They could not afford to lose a single point.
"Washio, you were hiding that pretty well. I didn't know you had that move."
Standing on the opposite side of the net, Hakuba looked at Washio with a grin as he spoke.
This was not sarcasm. Hakuba was simply genuinely surprised. Washio's back-row attack was like Hirugami's spikes. Both were very rare.
Washio smiled shyly and waved his hand.
"No, no. You guys are still better."
Meanwhile, Hirugami stood to the side listening to the two of them exchange polite compliments, a rare trace of frustration on his face.
He had actually been tricked on that last ball. Of course he was not happy about it. It had been a long time since someone had managed to make Hirugami suffer when it came to blocking.
"Let's go. The next rally is about to start."
Kazuyoshi Bessho stood beside Hirugami as he said this. Hirugami nodded to him, and the two returned to their positions together.
Fukurōdani had taken this point back, and now it was Bokuto's turn to serve.
Everyone on Fukurōdani looked at Bokuto as he walked to the service line, and they were all a little worried. Could Bokuto really serve in this state?
Keiji Akaashi also saw everyone's worried gazes, but he did not say anything, nor did he comfort Bokuto.
Bokuto-senpai was not that fragile. Once he got the volleyball, all those little emotions would disappear.
Just as Keiji Akaashi thought, the moment Bokuto got the volleyball, all his little emotions vanished. In the previous rally, everyone had not let Bokuto participate in the attack, so of course Bokuto had felt a little awkward about it.
Now that the volleyball was in his hands again, Bokuto naturally focused even more on the ball.
Walking to position one, Bokuto looked at the volleyball with eyes that were practically shining.
With the volleyball in hand, Bokuto slapped it hard against the floor a few times to get a feel for it. Then, under everyone's expectant and somewhat fearful gazes, he tossed the volleyball into the air, began his run-up, and jumped.
Seeing Bokuto's expression as he served, Keiji Akaashi knew everything was fine. As long as this serve scored, Bokuto-senpai's condition would come back up.
"Bang!"
Bokuto leaped into the air, his golden pupils shining. The next second, he put strength into his arm, snapped his wrist, and slammed the volleyball out with full force.
Keiichiro watched the volleyball come roaring toward him, and his scalp went numb.
Haruki Komi saw the sudden change in Keiichiro's eyes and felt genuine sympathy for him. He understood Keiichiro's feelings very well now. It was just like when he had received Hoshiumi and Hirugami's serves earlier. Difficult, troublesome, and packed with power. Haruki Komi admitted that he was feeling a little pleased at someone else's misfortune right now.
In the blink of an eye, the volleyball was already in front of him. Keiichiro steadied his center of gravity, crouched down, and stretched both arms forward.
His read on the landing point was correct, but whether he could receive this ball was another matter entirely.
Keiichiro's pupils shrank slightly, and his arms trembled a little. He knew his current state was not quite right. He was a little afraid of Bokuto's serve, yet also a little excited. Those were two very contradictory emotions, but when they appeared in Keiichiro at the same time, they did not seem so contradictory after all.
Being afraid of Bokuto's serve while still itching to try receiving it was very easy to understand.
The volleyball had already reached him. Keiichiro held his breath, then suddenly put strength into his arms, trying to receive the ball.
"Bang!"
The volleyball slammed into Keiichiro's arms. Keiichiro felt the force come through them, as if someone had suddenly yanked him hard. He almost failed to steady himself and nearly sat straight down on the floor.
Fortunately, his reaction was quick, and he stabilized his lower body. Before Keiichiro could even lift his arms, the volleyball had already flown away.
His arms had also been knocked off course by the volleyball, completely out of his control.
"Beep!"
The whistle meant the point had been scored.
The moment Bokuto heard the whistle, his eyes lit up. He was a completely different person from the gloomy one earlier.
Bokuto turned back cheerfully to look at everyone, only to find them all watching him with relieved expressions. Keiji Akaashi was smiling so brightly his eyes curved.
This was the fastest Bokuto had ever switched from negative mode back to normal mode. He had broken his own record.
"HEY HEY HEY!! I knew I was the best!"
Before everyone could even cheer for Bokuto, Bokuto had already raised both hands and cheered for himself. Only then did everyone snap back to themselves amid Bokuto's shouting.
The Fukurōdani cheering section in the stands also became lively.
"Fukurōdani! Fukurōdani! Fukurōdani!"
"Bokuto! Bokuto! One more! One more!"
The neat, unified cheers made Bokuto's cheeks flush red. He tilted his head and looked at everyone from Fukurōdani with shining eyes, looking a little like some fluffy animal waiting to be praised.
Everyone instantly understood what Bokuto meant. He was waiting for them to praise him. Fukurōdani's ace needed to be encouraged gently.
"Bokuto, that last serve was amazing. You really looked like a superstar!"
Konoha did not hold back at all as he offered his praise, and Keiji Akaashi nodded too.
"Bokuto-senpai really is incredible."
In Keiji Akaashi's eyes, Bokuto had always been incredible.
After hearing Keiji Akaashi's praise, Bokuto became even prouder.
Bokuto had calculated it before. During regular daily training, Keiji Akaashi praised him an average of twice a day. But matches were different. In a single match, Keiji Akaashi had already praised him three or four times. This match was seriously worth it.
Bokuto's clever head was already thinking about how he could get even more praise from Keiji Akaashi.
On Kamomedai's side, Keiichiro's face wrinkled up like an orange. He felt a burning pain in his arms, as if a swarm of tiny ants were gnawing at them.
Hirugami walked over worriedly, circled behind Keiichiro, and pulled out the arm he was hiding behind his back. Sure enough, Keiichiro's arm was already hard to look at.
There was a bruise here, a purple mark there. His whole arm had become a mess of colors. It was almost unbearable to see.
Hirugami's brows knitted together, and he asked with some concern,
"Are you really okay like this? Can you keep going?"
Hirugami's tone made it sound as if Keiichiro were his own son.
Keiichiro looked at Hirugami's worried expression, then suddenly smiled. His smile was full of teasing.
"What about you? Are you okay? Need a rest?"
Hirugami froze for a moment before realizing that Keiichiro was talking about his own arm.
Looking at his own arm, which was in an equally miserable state, Hirugami felt helpless. Keiichiro was clearly teasing him. Hirugami gave him a light pat on the head and huffed.
"I'm fine. Your arm is fine too. Focus on the match."
Keiichiro nodded with a grin.
Then Hirugami checked on everyone else's condition, and after the whistle sounded, he returned to his original position.
Once the whistle sounded, Keiichiro's expression turned serious again. What he had to face next was still Bokuto's powerful jump serve. He had to find a way to receive it, or the advantage Kamomedai had finally gained would disappear.
Bokuto walked to the service line again. When the spectators outside the court saw Bokuto step up, another wave of cheers broke out.
"Bokuto! Bokuto! One more!"
"Score five in a row!"
"Go for it!"
Bathed in so many people's encouragement and praise, Bokuto's eyes grew brighter and brighter. It was as if his whole body had endless energy.
Then, before the whistle for the serve had even sounded, Bokuto turned toward the Fukurōdani stands and shouted,
"HEY HEY HEY! Watch me! I'm definitely taking five points!"
The crowd fell silent for a moment when Bokuto spoke, then erupted into even louder cheers.
The referee looked at the obviously overexcited audience, then glared fiercely at Bokuto. This kid caused the most trouble. He never let anyone relax.
Then the referee blew his whistle several times.
"Beep beep, beep!"
Bokuto's attention was instantly pulled back.
Bokuto shrank his neck in fright, then turned to look at the referee. Seeing the referee glaring at him fiercely, Bokuto gave an awkward smile and returned to his original position.
Luckily, this referee had a pretty good temper. If it had been a referee with a worse temper, Bokuto would have been shown a yellow card on the spot.
Aaron saw Bokuto like that and kind of wanted to laugh, but Takurō was right beside him. If he really laughed right now, Takurō would definitely beat him to death. Aaron still had a little survival instinct.
As for Takurō, his expression did not look good at all. That brat was getting too carried away. There were still matches during this period, so Takurō decided not to go looking for trouble with him for now. Once the IH ended, it would be time to settle accounts.
On the court, Keiji Akaashi helplessly covered his face. Bokuto-senpai really had gotten too excited.
After being warned by the referee's whistle, Bokuto obediently stood at the service line to get ready. Once he was prepared, he nodded at the referee, and only then did the referee blow the whistle in satisfaction.
"Beep!"
After hearing the whistle for the serve, Bokuto did not move. It looked as if he planned to serve right at the edge of the whistle.
Across the court, cold sweat was already dripping from Keiichiro's anxious forehead.
Bokuto's move really messed with people's heads.
It was like that old saying. When a child suddenly goes quiet, they are definitely up to something.
Just seeing Bokuto like this was scary enough. He was definitely holding back some big move right now.
Keiichiro felt uneasy, then told himself inwardly that it was fine. This serve would definitely be the same as the last one. Only the timing was different.
And just as he thought that, Bokuto began to move. He tossed the volleyball in his hand, then began his run-up and jumped.
Keiichiro instantly snapped back to attention, both eyes fixed tightly on Bokuto's movements.
After Bokuto jumped, he saw the volleyball in the air and stretched out his right hand again without hesitation.
"Bang!!"
The volleyball flew out as if it had been fired from a cannon.