"Isn't this guy going in?!"
Kageyama stood at the net, but his eyes never left Hank, who was sitting on the bench. The moment he realized Hank had no intention of taking the court, anger immediately showed on his face. He hadn't expected Hank to stay out of the match today.
"Kageyama seems really focused on Aoba Johsai's number 23. Does he know him?"
Sugawara noticed what was going on with Kageyama. Ever since they entered the venue, Kageyama had been watching Aoba Johsai's number 23 the whole time. If someone said those two had never crossed paths before, probably no one would believe it.
"That's the ace from North River Middle School—the same North River that knocked Kitagawa Daiichi out of the junior high tournament."
Daichi had heard Kageyama mention Hank's name before, so he had looked into him a little. That was when he found out Hank was the absolute ace who had single-handedly eliminated Kitagawa Daiichi back then. He hadn't expected Hank to end up at Aoba Johsai.
Whether that was good news for Karasuno or not, he really couldn't say.
"All right, everyone, get ready."
Daichi clapped his hands, then jogged onto the court to prepare for the next match. As Karasuno's captain, he shook hands with Iwaizumi on the other side, and the match officially began.
With the referee's whistle, Karasuno took the opening serve, and the match officially started.
"Just like in the original story, Hinata's already getting nervous. The first set will probably be over soon."
Watching the action on the court, Hank more or less got a read on Karasuno High's current level. It hadn't exceeded his expectations, but even so, Karasuno would still win the first set soon enough. Once the second set began, the coach would probably send him in.
And when that happened, he would finally get to face Kageyama and Hinata.
...
"All right, let's keep this momentum going and finish them off!"
Soon, with the referee's whistle, the result of the first set between Aoba Johsai and Karasuno was finalized. As expected, Karasuno defeated Aoba Johsai. After that came the brief gathering of both coaches and the switch of sides.
"Kageyama, why don't you look happy at all?"
"Is something bothering you?"
Once Daichi and the others came over, Sugawara couldn't help asking. Even though Kageyama had performed as well as ever in the previous set, it was obvious that he seemed sullen, and there was even a sense of pressure hanging over him.
No one knew why.
"They never sent out their best lineup. That guy never stepped onto the court from beginning to end!"
Kageyama glanced sideways at Hank, who had already started warming up to enter the court, and for some reason, he began to feel nervous. He didn't know why, but he had a strange feeling that Hank's strength would far exceed anything he had imagined.
"Don't worry too much. Even if he's the strong player who beat you before, volleyball is still a team sport. No matter how good he is individually, he can't change the final result of the match by himself."
"Besides, trust your teammates."
Sugawara smiled and tried to reassure him.
"Right."
Kiyoko also nodded silently. Karasuno had great momentum right now, so even if Hank entered the match next, he probably would not be able to change much.
"Stop thinking about it and get on the court already!"
...
Tanaka could not help urging him on. Right now, he was in great rhythm and playing extremely comfortably. He was already impatient to get back onto the court.
"All right then, everyone, get ready to go on!"
After confirming with the other side that they were ready to continue, Daichi led the Karasuno players back onto the court, fully prepared for the next set.
"I didn't think Karasuno would be this strong this year. That really is a little beyond my expectations."
"In that case, Hank, you're going in next. Show them the strength of Aoba Johsai. Don't let anyone look down on us."
Coach Irihata deliberately walked over to Hank and patted him on the shoulder, signaling that he should go in next. They had already lost one set, so if they wanted to preserve Aoba Johsai's pride, they had to take things seriously now.
"Okay."
Hank nodded, then walked up to the net and officially joined the match against Karasuno High for the first time. The moment he entered, Aoba Johsai's overall momentum immediately surged, and the people behind them all grew excited. Cheers started ringing out across the entire court.
All the club members began pounding the cheering sticks in their hands.
"Hank! Hank! Hank!"
The cheers were so loud, and Hank's entrance brought such a clear change to Aoba Johsai as a whole, that everyone on Karasuno could not help but start taking him seriously.
At this point, even an idiot could see that Hank was special.
"Who exactly is this guy? Why is there such a huge commotion the moment he steps onto the court?"
"And this pressure... it's making me feel nervous."
The excitement in Tanaka's heart was instantly doused, like ice-cold water had been poured over him from head to toe. He could feel an enormous amount of pressure.
(End of Chapter)
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