After the match between Karasuno High and Fukurōdani Academy, the match between Inarizaki High and Itachiyama Institute begins!
Itachiyama is a team rooted in tradition. Since the time they rose to fame, they've faced countless challengers.
Some teams have managed to defeat them, but most have been crushed underfoot.
And even those few who did beat them often burned out quickly, while Itachiyama would steadily reclaim its place on the throne.
Their team banner bears only two characters:
"Effort."
That single word perfectly encapsulates Itachiyama's style—
Unassuming, yet powerful.
But their opponents are no pushovers either.
The clash between these two teams ignites the crowd into a frenzy.
Karasuno's players, who remained in the stands to observe, watched the match with unwavering focus.
After all, the winner between Itachiyama and Inarizaki would be their final opponent tomorrow.
They had to pay attention!
"Inarizaki's defense is incredible!"
"It's like a wall!"
"Yeah! Their libero... I think his name is Akagi? He just picked up an absolutely impossible ball!"
...
The chatter from the audience buzzed nonstop.
Both Inarizaki and Itachiyama have their own strengths—and their own weaknesses.
Over the past few months, Inarizaki has dedicated themselves to refining their receive-and-transition defense.
This training helped stabilize players like the Miya twins, Rintarō Suna, and the others—who had once been known for their impulsiveness.
Originally, Inarizaki's flaw had been that its core players were all second-years.
Compared to experienced third-years, their temperaments still needed honing.
But through months of focused training, especially in serve receive and digging, that weakness gradually disappeared.
Now, Inarizaki had undergone a complete transformation.
In the first set of the match, they caught Itachiyama off guard and secured a swift victory.
Everyone thought Itachiyama's era of dominance might be over...
Then the second set began.
At first, Inarizaki maintained the upper hand.
But as the match progressed, Itachiyama seemed to find a breakthrough.
With Kiyoomi Sakusa as the offensive centerpiece, they tore open Inarizaki's defense and turned the tide.
They snatched the second set right out of Inarizaki's hands.
The third set kicked off with the intensity cranked even higher.
It was clear neither side had any intention of surrendering this victory.
As a school with a prestigious legacy, Itachiyama had only reached the quarterfinals in the last Spring High tournament.
This time, they needed a strong result to prove themselves.
Like a wounded wolf king in a pack, they had to show they still had what it took to lead.
To reestablish their dominance.
Otherwise, wave after wave of challengers would come for their crown.
Meanwhile, a powerhouse like Inarizaki, despite their past success in reaching finals, had only a handful of championships to their name.
If they could reach the finals again, beat Karasuno, and win it all—
It would be more than just an improvement over past results.
It would be revenge.
But regardless of the motivation behind either team...
Only one can win this match.
If you want it, you have to fight for it—with your own strength and sweat!
"Watch their back row!"
A sharp warning came from Komori.
As Itachiyama's veteran libero, he sensed something off in Inarizaki's formation.
Sure enough, just as the Miya twins set the ball, Sakusa soared in from the back row.
Boom!
A powerful spike burst past Inarizaki's blockers.
But thanks to Komori's earlier warning, Akagi was already prepared.
He launched himself to the side—
And made the dig cleanly!
Smack!
He picked it up!
Seeing this, everyone on Itachiyama's side frowned.
They knew Sakusa's spikes like the back of their hands.
Ordinarily, no one should be able to dig that shot.
Even if someone managed to touch it, the spin alone would send it flying off course.
And yet...
This libero from Inarizaki was something else entirely.
Throughout today's semifinal, he had already dug Sakusa's spinning spikes several times.
The reason Akagi was able to handle these shots traced back to their crushing loss to Karasuno.
After that defeat, Akagi had vowed to overcome his weaknesses.
He studied techniques for handling spinning spikes online and began training intensely on his own.
Though he hadn't fully mastered the technique over the past few months, he had trained it well enough to use it reliably in matches.
That's why Itachiyama had struggled early in the game.
At the start, most of Sakusa's attacks were dug by Akagi—
And without quick points, Itachiyama lost their rhythm.