After Shiratorizawa took the opening point, the atmosphere on their side relaxed slightly, even if the change was almost imperceptible.
They had lost the previous set. Although no one had said anything about it, the mood had still been somewhat subdued.
Ushijima's spike just now was like a boulder crashing into a still lake. The stagnant atmosphere immediately began to move again.
"Ushijima-senpai really is the one who keeps everyone steady."
Tsutomu Goshiki stood beside Reon, murmuring to himself. He did not seem to realize just how envious he sounded.
Reon glanced at Tsutomu Goshiki.
Was the kid feeling discouraged?
Out of concern as an upperclassman, Reon still offered him some reassurance.
"Goshiki, stop staring. Someday, you'll be the one taking that opening attack."
Tsutomu Goshiki looked up in surprise, as if he could hardly believe what he had heard.
He was about to ask something, but Reon shook his head and reached over to ruffle his hair.
Tsutomu Goshiki did not understand why Reon suddenly refused to elaborate.
Still, being comforted felt good enough.
"Ah, sorry. That was my mistake."
Shinsuke Kita got up and brushed the dust off his clothes, looking slightly apologetic.
Aran immediately waved his hands.
"No, no, that was my fault. If I'd managed to hold Ushijima's spike at the block a little longer, that wouldn't have happened."
Aran might not genuinely have believed he had done anything wrong, but he really could not stand seeing Shinsuke Kita apologize.
Who was Shinsuke Kita?
He was their captain.
How could they let their captain apologize like that?
Aran suddenly felt as though he really had done something wrong by treating his inability to stop Ushijima as something inevitable.
"Quit trying to take the blame. Just focus on the next point. Who's serving for them next?"
Atsumu Miya walked over and asked.
The moment the question left his mouth, everyone fell silent.
Ushijima was serving next.
Akagi's face immediately scrunched up.
The words "Ushijima is serving" hung over his mind like a dark cloud.
Of course, Ryosuke's serves gave him headaches too.
Fortunately, Ryosuke was not playing this set.
When Coach Washijō saw Ushijima heading to serve, he suddenly realized something.
By taking Ryosuke off the court, Shiratorizawa had also lost one of its strongest servers.
Earlier, he had been so focused on blocking that he had completely forgotten about serving.
Coach Washijō smacked himself on the forehead.
Ryosuke, standing beside him, stared in confusion.
What was Coach Washijō doing?
Coach Washijō felt truly senile.
How had he managed to forget such an important source of points?
What a miscalculation.
Still, it was not a serious problem.
With Ushijima and Reon, Shiratorizawa's serving was still more than strong enough.
And they also had Tsutomu Goshiki.
Tsutomu Goshiki's serve was quite good too. He had simply run into Akagi.
As long as Tsutomu Goshiki polished his serving a little more, he would be fine.
Coach Washijō might be harsh with him, but his expectations for Tsutomu Goshiki were extremely high.
He was looking forward to raising another ace like Ushijima.
"Ushijima-senpai, good luck!"
Tsutomu Goshiki made an encouraging gesture toward Ushijima.
Ushijima nodded.
Holding the volleyball, he began walking toward the service line.
After taking two steps, he seemed to remember something and turned back toward Tsutomu Goshiki.
"Watch carefully. See how I serve."
Tsutomu Goshiki froze where he stood.
What did Ushijima-senpai mean by that?
Was he teaching him?
Tsutomu Goshiki was still standing there in a daze when Reon came up from behind with a smile and patted him on the head.
"Stop spacing out and get back into position. Ushijima's definitely going to score with this serve. Watch carefully how he does it. It wouldn't hurt to practice with him when you have time either."
Tsutomu Goshiki's eyes instantly lit up with startling intensity.
What Ushijima and Reon had just said could only mean one thing.
He had finally caught their attention.
And this was Ushijima they were talking about!
Tsutomu Goshiki was so excited he could barely calm himself down.
There were practically sparks flying from his eyes.
Shirabu shook his head slightly.
Ushijima and Reon really knew exactly how to fire Tsutomu Goshiki up.
In the blink of an eye, Ushijima had already reached the service line.
Everyone else hurried back into position.
Once the referee saw that both sides were ready, he blew the whistle.
Ushijima held the volleyball against his chest and stood still for two seconds.
Then he tossed it into the air.
As the ball rose, Ushijima looked up at it and began his approach.
Across the net, Akagi tensed his body again.
Mentally, he kept telling himself not to be afraid of Ushijima's serve.
It was just a normal serve.
His body, however, still could not help shrinking back slightly.
Akagi absolutely hated how uncooperative his own body was.
Ushijima jumped, raised his arm, and drove his left hand hard into the volleyball.
"Thud!"
The ball shot forward.
It tore toward Inarizaki's court, moving even faster than before.
It was probably close to 120 kilometers per hour.
Akagi's pupils trembled as the approaching volleyball reflected in his eyes.
He quickly dropped into a crouch, adjusted his stance, and stretched both arms forward.
In the few short seconds it took him to prepare, the volleyball was already upon him.
To be fair, Akagi was not slow at all.
Ushijima's serve was simply faster.
Akagi was clearly struggling to keep up with its speed, which made his movements look more frantic than they actually were.
Ushijima's serve had become even stronger.
Akagi was gradually reaching the point where he could no longer handle it.
The volleyball slammed into Akagi's arms.
The impact knocked his outstretched platform sideways with a deafening sound.
"Thud!"
The sound of the ball seemed to explode in everyone's ears.
Then it ricocheted off Akagi's arms.
"Beep------!"
Point.
Akagi remained standing there blankly, staring down at his arms.
They felt like they were burning.
To put it more vividly, he felt as though smoke should have been rising from them.
That had been brutal.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!"
Tsutomu Goshiki froze for a moment, then suddenly burst into shouting.
That serve had not struck the opposing libero.
It had struck Tsutomu Goshiki straight in the heart.
It was just that cool.
"Ushijima-senpai is so cool!!"
Tsutomu Goshiki stared at Ushijima with burning intensity, practically unable to tear his eyes away.
People naturally admired strength, and Tsutomu Goshiki admired it more than most.
"You're too loud, Goshiki. Shut up."
Tsutomu Goshiki's screaming had left Shirabu's head ringing.
He frowned and snapped at him.
Tsutomu Goshiki immediately went silent, like a chicken whose throat had been grabbed.
He stood there stiffly, unable to get a word out.
Unfortunately, the excitement in his eyes was still loud enough to annoy Shirabu.
"Wow. That serve almost broke my arm."
Akagi stared wide-eyed at his forearm.
Aran leaned closer with helpless amusement.
"That serve looked powerful, sure, but it shouldn't have been enough to leave you like this."
Then Aran saw Akagi's arm.
He immediately stopped talking.
Akagi's entire forearm was bright red.
It looked alarming, and it even seemed like it might start swelling.
Aran sucked in a breath.
No wonder Akagi's expression had looked so bad earlier.
So that was why.
Akagi really was tough.
Aran could not help marveling inwardly.
"All right, just watch out for the next one. He's not going to be serving forever. Akagi, show him the same spirit you use when you receive my serves."
Atsumu Miya ran over with a grin.
Akagi wanted nothing more than to roll his eyes and tell Atsumu Miya to try receiving Ushijima's serve himself.
Instead, he reached out and shoved Atsumu Miya's big face away.
"Got it. I'll try to receive the next one."
At this point, Akagi did not even dare say that he would definitely get the ball up.
If he failed again, remembering those words later would only make him feel embarrassed.
Both teams returned to their positions for the next rally.
Ushijima walked to the service line once more.
Everyone's gaze instinctively settled on him.
They all seemed wary of Shiratorizawa's left-handed cannon.
Ushijima reached his position and nodded to the referee.
The referee immediately blew the whistle.
"Beep----------!"
As soon as the whistle sounded, Ushijima tossed the volleyball up.
Then he began his approach after it.
It looked like another powerful left-handed jump serve.
Akagi instantly went on high alert.
Ushijima jumped just as the ball reached the perfect height.
Once again, he loaded his left arm with power and struck the volleyball with the same force as before.
The point of impact visibly caved inward.
At this point, Akagi felt as though that volleyball were his own head.
"Thud!"
The ball flew straight toward him.
It was not any slower than the previous serve.
If anything, it seemed even faster.
Akagi's head started to ache just looking at it.
He shifted several steps to the right and extended both arms.
His read on the position was correct.
Whether he could actually receive the ball was another question.
The volleyball smashed into his arms.
"Thud!"
Akagi felt as though the impact had knocked all sensation out of them.
On the previous serve, he had at least been able to feel how much his arms hurt.
Now they were completely numb.
The volleyball hit his arms like a rock.
They felt so heavy that he could not lift them at all.
Akagi clenched his back teeth and strained with his entire body.
Veins bulged along his neck.
He looked genuinely miserable.
"Ugh!"
Akagi roared as he tried to force the volleyball upward.
Even with his face turning bright red from the effort, he could not get his arms up.
The ball simply knocked his platform aside and flew into the backcourt.
"Beep-----------!"
Another service point for Shiratorizawa.
"Ushijima of Shiratorizawa scores another ace! Only a few minutes into the set, Shiratorizawa has already taken a three-point lead!
"Inarizaki is now in a difficult position. How will they manage to close the gap? Let's see how they respond!"
Just as the commentator said, Inarizaki was now being pushed onto the defensive.
It felt much like the first set.
"Akagi. Receive the next one."
Shinsuke Kita looked at the visibly deflated Akagi and spoke with absolute certainty.
The moment Akagi heard that tone, he immediately straightened up.
That tone meant one thing.
He absolutely had to receive the next serve.
If he failed, something terrifying might be waiting for him afterward.
Extra practice.
A beating.
Or perhaps being ignored.
No matter which one it was, Akagi wanted no part of it.
So he had to get this serve up.
Akagi nodded with a serious expression.
Even so, he still did not say, "I'll definitely receive it."
He was about to say that he would try his best.
Shinsuke Kita saw through him immediately.
"Don't say you'll try. Say you'll receive it."
Under that unwavering gaze, Akagi could only swallow hard and nod.
Then he returned to position.
Both teams quickly got ready.
The referee blew the whistle again.
"Beep--------!!"
Ushijima continued serving.
The players across the net watched him closely, especially Akagi and Atsumu Miya.
One handled the first pass, while the other had to take the second touch.
Both needed to stay alert at all times.
Seeing Inarizaki's fighting spirit rise again, Ushijima figured they would probably receive this serve.
That did not affect his serving in the slightest.
At the whistle, Ushijima raised the volleyball again.
A moment later, it was already in the air.
He followed it into his approach and jumped.
His left hand rose.
Then it slammed into the volleyball.
"Thud!"
The instant his hand struck the ball, Ushijima noticed that something felt slightly wrong.
Maybe he had not controlled his power properly.
Maybe the angle had been off.
Something about it was wrong, but he could not identify exactly what.
He would probably have to review the footage afterward to see what had gone wrong.
For now, Ushijima could not tell.
The volleyball left his hand spinning.
It brushed past Tsutomu Goshiki's hair in the front row.
Tsutomu Goshiki's heart immediately leaped into his throat.
For a moment, he genuinely feared the ball might smash him to death.
After all, his teammates had put him through plenty during practice.
Fortunately, this was an actual match.
The volleyball skimmed past Tsutomu Goshiki's cheek and tore toward Inarizaki's court.
Akagi still felt fear rise inside him when he saw it coming.
He gritted his teeth and took several wide steps sideways.
Once he confirmed the landing point, he stopped and made a few final adjustments to his footwork.
Then he stared ahead with determination, waiting for the volleyball to slam into his forearms.
The ball struck Akagi's arms.
"Thud!"
The instant he felt that enormous force, Akagi deliberately tilted his platform.
By following the direction of the ball's spin and guiding it upward rather than fighting it head-on, receiving it would be a little easier.
That was what Akagi had learned from the previous two serves.
Before, he had always kept his arms completely rigid.
He had been afraid that if his platform loosened even slightly, the volleyball would deflect off course.
But now, simply getting the ball into the air was already difficult enough.
Compared with that, sending it slightly off target did not seem like such a serious problem.
As long as he could keep it alive.
The volleyball finally popped upward in an awkward, crooked arc.
It was not pretty.
But he had received it.
The instant the ball rose, Atsumu Miya took off from the left side of the court.
There was still some distance between him and Akagi.
But when Atsumu Miya saw the volleyball go up, his eyes practically lit up.
Shiratorizawa had scored every point so far.
Atsumu Miya had not even gotten a chance to set.
Now that his opportunity had finally arrived, how could he not be excited?
...
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