But at this point, there was obviously no room to slack off.
Atsumu Miya was being marked by Tendo, Aran was still locked in a stalemate with Tsutomu Goshiki, and the moment Kita-senpai tried to attack, Ushijima would see right through him.
The two of them knew each other far too well. As soon as Shinsuke Kita moved, Ushijima could guess what he intended to do.
Osamu Miya sprinted over and sent the ball toward Atsumu Miya.
Atsumu Miya took a few steps back, preparing to attack.
Tendo raised an eyebrow.
Was he really planning to spike straight at him?
Was this little fox that bold?
Or did he still have some other trick up his sleeve?
In just a few seconds, countless possibilities flashed through Tendo's mind.
Atsumu Miya backed up and started his approach.
By the time he reached the net, the volleyball had already risen into the air.
Atsumu Miya jumped with it, looking as though he intended to challenge Tendo head-on.
Tendo waited at the net for the spike.
The moment Atsumu Miya jumped, Tendo jumped too.
He remained extremely cautious.
He had no idea what Atsumu Miya intended to do with this ball, but there was no way it would be that simple.
Atsumu Miya extended his right hand and feinted a line shot.
When Tendo shifted his arms to cover the line, Atsumu Miya immediately switched toward a cross-court shot.
Tendo had expected exactly that.
His left hand moved sideways, closing off the cross-court angle as well.
At that point, the only options left were a shot tight to the net or a tip.
Tendo stayed alert.
Atsumu Miya suddenly grinned.
Then, under Tendo's puzzled gaze, he turned his wrist and sent the volleyball toward Osamu Miya instead.
Tendo: !
A fake spike.
Then a real set.
First he sold the line shot, then the cross-court shot, only to finish by setting the ball to Osamu Miya.
The entire sequence was so smooth that it left Tendo genuinely stunned for a moment.
Following the direction of Atsumu Miya's one-handed set, Tendo saw Osamu Miya sprinting in from behind.
Aran was now opposite Ushijima, while Tsutomu Goshiki and Reon were being held in place by Suna, who had escaped Tendo's attention.
Osamu Miya had chosen to attack right beside Suna.
It was an extremely risky position.
If Suna failed to keep Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki occupied, then at that distance, Reon only needed to take one lateral step to block the ball.
Osamu Miya and Atsumu Miya were certainly bold.
The moment Osamu Miya reached the net, the ball arrived directly above him.
Perfectly placed.
At the same time, Tendo started running toward Osamu Miya's attacking position.
Tendo really hated this kind of coordination.
It was too seamless.
There were practically no openings at all.
The twins were slippery enough to make him want to pull his hair out.
Reon and Tsutomu Goshiki saw Tendo sprinting toward them and immediately realized someone was about to attack nearby.
But Suna was standing directly opposite them.
The moment either of them moved, Suna would notice.
So the two remained locked in place at the net.
The biggest problem was that Osamu Miya's attacking position was ridiculously close.
He was practically spiking right beside Tsutomu Goshiki.
But Suna completely blocked Tsutomu Goshiki's view of him.
Tendo didn't even have the breath to shout a warning.
Running there was already hard enough.
In the end, it really came down to stamina.
And no matter how hard Tsutomu Goshiki thought, there was no way he could have guessed that Osamu Miya was about to spike right beside him, practically brushing past the net.
Yamagata was already sprinting toward that area as well.
But after going to all the trouble of fooling Shiratorizawa, the twins weren't about to let them receive this ball so easily.
At that moment, Osamu Miya showed the same speed he had displayed when chasing the ball earlier.
His movements were lightning-fast.
From the instant he jumped to the moment he slammed the volleyball down, the entire sequence took barely a second.
"Bang!"
Osamu Miya snapped his arm forward and drove the ball down.
Tendo arrived just as the spike came down and jumped to block.
But in the end, he was still one step too late.
The volleyball clipped the side of Tendo's arm and ricocheted away.
It dropped near his feet.
A moment later came the sound of the volleyball hitting the floor.
Yamagata had no time to reach it.
He could only watch helplessly as the ball landed.
"Beep------------------!"
Point.
"What an incredible rally! The coordination between Inarizaki's twin brothers was absolutely brilliant! Osamu Miya handled the first contact and sent the ball to Atsumu Miya!
Atsumu Miya feigned a spike and successfully drew Tendo's attention. Then, just as he seemed ready to attack, Atsumu Miya used a one-handed set, while Osamu Miya charged in from behind for the spike!
Osamu Miya chose a position right beside Tsutomu Goshiki, whose vision was blocked, and slammed the ball down almost right next to him!
One reversal after another! Truly worthy of Inarizaki's twin aces!"
The commentator's voice rang out with obvious excitement.
Even he had been stunned by the play.
"Nice one, Pig-samu."
"You too, Dumb-tsumu."
Aran stood nearby, smiling as he watched the two of them.
Not bad.
They had managed to keep the service run alive again.
Tsutomu Goshiki, on the other hand, was miserable.
Only now did he realize that the spike had come down right beside him.
But Suna had blocked his view at the time.
If he had just taken one more step sideways, he could have touched it.
Damn those twins!
He had actually been played!
Tsutomu Goshiki was so angry that his blunt-cut bangs practically seemed to stand on end.
His cheeks puffed out as he glared across the net.
Reon found the sight amusing and pressed down on Tsutomu Goshiki's unruly bangs.
"All right. What are you getting so mad about? Just win the next point back. You're old enough to know better, so stop acting like a little kid."
Tendo drifted over like a ghost.
"But they really are awful."
Tendo was genuinely fed up with Atsumu Miya and Osamu Miya.
When those two worked together, there was practically no opening to exploit.
Worse, they were constantly fooling him.
If their hair were the same color, then playing against them wouldn't even be normal volleyball anymore.
At that point, Tendo was certain he would witness the legendary Shadow Clone technique.
"Tsutomu Goshiki's only a first-year. It's no big deal if he makes a mistake once in a while. What's your excuse?"
Reon looked at Tendo suspiciously.
Tendo replied in a deeply aggrieved tone.
"What am I supposed to do? Atsumu Miya is way too good at acting. You can't guard against him at all."
Tendo did have a natural talent for intuitive blocking.
But the kind of setters he hated most were players like Atsumu Miya and Oikawa, the type who always had one little trick after another.
None of those tricks looked particularly remarkable on their own.
Yet every single time, they left Tendo miserable for quite a while.
His intuition simply couldn't keep up with their feints and thought processes.
"Forget it. Just pay attention on the next ball. Stop acting like a bitter housewife."
With all the resentment radiating from Tendo right now, he really did resemble one.
Tendo gave a soft "hmph" and walked away, still muttering under his breath.
"So mean, so mean... Why are you so nice to Tsutomu Goshiki, but treat me completely differently... Hmph! That stupid fox Atsumu Miya is so annoying. Inarizaki is just one whole den of foxes!"
Thankfully, no one heard him.
Otherwise, they would have laughed themselves sick.
Everyone in the stands had seen the previous rally as well.
Now they were all talking about it.
"That teamwork was totally like that thing with clouds and water!"
Bokuto shouted excitedly.
Haruki Komi stared at him with confusion practically written over his head.
Had he misheard?
What was Bokuto even trying to say?
Keiji Akaashi covered his face, torn between laughing and sighing.
"It's 'as smooth as flowing clouds and water,' Bokuto-senpai. You don't even know the idiom. No wonder you always fail Japanese."
Bokuto's head snapped around like an owl's.
"Keiji Akaashi, are you calling me stupid?"
His eyes looked pitiful, carrying a clear warning that if Keiji Akaashi dared say yes, Bokuto was going to make a scene.
Keiji Akaashi hurriedly waved his hands.
"But seriously, their coordination is incredible. It feels like the two of them share one brain."
Kuroo folded his arms and leaned back in his seat, looking as rough as ever as he spoke.
Then he turned a thoughtful gaze toward Kenma.
Kenma, who had practically melted into his chair, immediately became alert.
His catlike eyes locked onto Kuroo.
"Don't even think about it. We're never going to have that kind of coordination."
"Aww, Kenma~"
"Kuroo, that's disgusting."
"Pfft!"
It was as though an invisible blade had pierced Kuroo's already broken heart.
"Kenma. So cruel..."
The commotion in the stands passed like a brief interlude.
The real focus was the match ahead.
Inarizaki had scored on the previous rally, so they still held the serve.
Shiratorizawa had originally hoped to force a side out immediately, but clearly that wasn't happening.
This next ball was definitely going to be the one that stopped Aran's service run.
Aran knew plenty of eyes were fixed on him.
But now wasn't the time to think about that.
He took a deep breath and prepared to serve.
Both teams had already returned to their positions.
The referee glanced from one side to the other, then blew the whistle.
Aran began his serve.
He tossed the volleyball into the air, opened up his body, and started his approach, ready to jump.
In Shiratorizawa's backcourt, Yamagata rested both hands on his knees, prepared to receive.
"Bang!"
Aran leaped and struck the volleyball with all his strength.
The ball carried tremendous force and spin as it flew toward Shiratorizawa's backcourt.
Yamagata narrowed his eyes.
This serve seemed better than the previous two.
The spin was strong enough that he actually had to squint to track it properly.
Aran could feel it too.
That serve had come off his hand beautifully.
It was far above his usual level.
After judging the landing point, Yamagata immediately ran toward the position he had chosen.
The spinning volleyball was already flying toward him at high speed.
Once Yamagata reached the spot, he raised his arms toward the ball.
At almost the exact same moment, the volleyball arrived at his forearms.
"Bang!"
Yamagata immediately felt how heavy the serve was.
This one had exceeded even his expectations.
He exerted himself to control the impact, adjusting the angle at the same time so the first pass would be easier for the team to use.
Yamagata received the volleyball.
It bounced cleanly off his arms and into the court.
A very solid first pass.
Seeing his serve handled so easily, Aran felt a little disappointed.
But the attack on this rally mattered more.
So he pushed the feeling aside and started moving alongside Osamu Miya.
Yamagata's pass traveled toward Shirabu.
The general direction was right, although there were still a few small details that needed adjusting.
Even so, Shirabu was already more than satisfied.
Compared to Kamomedai, he sincerely felt Yamagata was incredible.
The volleyball floated toward Shirabu.
He looked up at it, took a few steps back, and prepared to jump for the set.
Before he could even leave the ground, however, he suddenly felt countless eyes fixed on him.
Shirabu glanced sideways.
The group on the other side of the net was charging toward his position like a pack of hungry wolves.
Suna in particular was staring at him so intently that it felt like he might burn a hole straight through him.
It looked as though Inarizaki planned to search for an opening starting with Shirabu.
Being watched by that many people at once immediately made Shirabu sweat.
His movements stiffened slightly too.
When Reon noticed, he genuinely wanted to curse.
These Inarizaki players were always pulling dirty little tricks.
Anyone would feel pressured with that many people staring at them.
And sure enough, Shirabu was under a lot of pressure.
So he simply pretended he hadn't seen them.
Instead, he focused on Tsutomu Goshiki and Ushijima.
Ushijima had no idea what was happening either.
But he did know Shirabu's movements had slowed down.
Otherwise, he would have heard the set by now.
So Ushijima turned his head and glanced at Shirabu.
Their eyes met.
Only then did Shirabu remember they were still in the middle of a rally.
If he didn't set the ball soon, the referee would call him for holding.
There was no way Shirabu would allow himself to make such a basic mistake.
So he made his decision immediately and sent the volleyball to Ushijima.
Shirabu had only one thought.
They could fail to score this ball.
But they absolutely could not make a mistake.
He was a member of Shiratorizawa now.
In a sense, Shirabu represented Shiratorizawa too.
The moment Suna, who had been watching Shirabu closely, saw the set go to Ushijima, he moved.
Without even looking back, he sprinted toward Ushijima.
Osamu Miya and Aran rushed over as well.
Judging by their formation, they were almost certainly setting up a three-man block.
Everyone else had moved away.
That left Tendo alone to mark Atsumu Miya.
Atsumu Miya stood in place, looking extremely wary.
He felt as though a venomous snake had fixed its eyes on him.
Tendo knew that if Ushijima's spike was touched, then the next ball would almost certainly pass through Atsumu Miya's hands.
And even if Ushijima scored directly, keeping Atsumu Miya occupied was still worthwhile.
At least it stopped the brat from interfering.
Judging from Atsumu Miya's previous behavior, there was absolutely no way he would quietly stand around waiting to be dealt with.
He definitely had some kind of scheme brewing in his head.
That was why Tendo had immediately chosen to keep an eye on him.
By now, Tendo felt like he had figured out everyone's role on Inarizaki.
They were practically like a gang in a movie.
Shinsuke Kita was the mastermind behind the scenes, the one issuing orders.
Atsumu Miya was the guy responsible for figuring out how to carry those orders out.
He was full of schemes, overseeing the entire team while constantly watching everyone's movements and condition.
Osamu Miya and Aran were Atsumu Miya's enforcers.
Wherever Atsumu Miya pointed, they attacked.
As for Akagi, he was basically the gang's bodyguard, protecting the team and eliminating any potential danger.
Suna, like Akagi, belonged to the security side of things.
He was the team's first line of defense.
If Suna went down, he would alert Akagi.
And just like that, a complete organizational structure emerged.
Tendo analyzed it all quite seriously in his head.
Then he suddenly realized that this setup sounded perfect for a movie.
His imagination had probably gone a little too far.
Tendo tugged at the corner of his mouth in amusement.
But from Atsumu Miya's perspective across the net, that smile looked like pure provocation.
Atsumu Miya immediately flared with anger.
He silently swore that he was going to show Shiratorizawa exactly what he was capable of.
...
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