The third set had just begun when Aoba Johsai made a substitution, Hanamaki Takahiro was taken off, and Kyotani Kentarou was sent in.
This change weakened Aoba Johsai's blocking at the net but significantly boosted their offensive firepower. On the very first play, Kyotani fired off a powerful jump serve that immediately threw Kamomedai's formation into disarray.
Kamomedai barely managed to return the ball, which gave Aoba Johsai an opening to counterattack.
As soon as the ball landed in Oikawa Tooru's hands, Kamomedai's players instinctively focused on Akashi Asuka's position. But before they could react, Oikawa launched the ball across the court, not to Akashi, but to the opposite side, where Kindaichi was waiting.
Boom!
Before Kamomedai could adjust, Kindaichi slammed the ball straight down.
"A quick attack?!"
"So fast! That setter and his teammates are in perfect sync!"
The Kamomedai players were visibly rattled by Oikawa's pass.
Quick attacks are one of the most fundamental strategies in volleyball.
With accurate sets and seamless teamwork, you can strike before the opponent's defense is fully formed, scoring clean points.
But even among quick attacks, the results vary wildly depending on the players and the team executing them.
So far, the scariest quick attack Aoba Johsai had ever faced was Karasuno's first-year duo and their "Monster Quick."
The sheer speed of it was beyond normal human reflexes.
Second to that would be Inarizaki's "Twin Quick", executed by the Miya brothers. While slightly slower than Karasuno's, it surpassed them in technical finesse.
In truth, those two schools were neck and neck when it came to elite quick attacks.
And after those two?
Aoba Johsai hadn't seen any other school with quick attacks better than their own.
In terms of set accuracy, no one besides that monster Kageyama Tobio had surpassed Oikawa. Even Miya Atsumu from Inarizaki was only on par with Oikawa in this regard.
1–0.
After securing the first point, Aoba Johsai wasted no time and launched into their second attack.
Kyotani served again, but this time Kamomedai managed to receive it cleanly.
Akashi Asuka, Kindaichi, and Oikawa all fixed their eyes on Aikichi Suwa. As Kamomedai's captain and setter, he might be technically inferior to Oikawa, but anyone who plays setter has a cunning streak, he wasn't someone to underestimate.
The ball descended.
Oikawa and Kindaichi mentally raced through their options, trying to predict Suwa's next move.
"Left side? Right side? His center of gravity is leaning back... that means the set will go left."
In a flash, Oikawa's eyes gleamed. He moved left without hesitation.
But just as he did, Suwa suddenly sidestepped, and from behind him, Korai Hoshiumi emerged, taking Suwa's place and immediately pulling off a back set to the right wing.
Boom!
Kamomedai's right-side hitter had been waiting. He caught the set and delivered a crushing spike.
1–1.
"What the?!"
Oikawa stopped in his tracks, eyes wide, staring at the two on the opposite side of the net.
Even he hadn't expected Kamomedai to pull something like this, swapping their ace in to act as a temporary setter.
"As expected of Korai Hoshiumi. He's a full-blown all-rounder. Not only is he an ace on offense, but he can also fill in perfectly as a setter."
"Woooo! There it is!"
In the stands, Kotaro Bokuto, who had been eliminated by Kamomedai just the day before, let out a dramatic yell.
"That move gave us hell yesterday! Let's see what kind of answer Aoba Johsai can come up with!"
To be fair, Kamomedai's tactic wasn't technically a "two-setter system," but in practice, it was even harder to deal with.
The surprise hit Aoba Johsai hard, but only for a moment. They quickly regrouped and scored again with a quick attack on the next play.
2–1.
Of course, Kamomedai didn't back down either and responded right away.
The two teams clashed point for point, neither side giving an inch.
The score soon reached 4–3.
Perhaps it was the lingering exhaustion from the grueling previous set, but Oikawa and Akashi's serves this round were less effective than usual.
Akashi's serve made it over the net, but lacked power, it was easily received.
Kamomedai immediately countered.
Their libero made the first pass, and as the ball descended toward Suwa again, Hoshiumi slipped in behind him.
"That move again?!"
Oikawa's face darkened.
It wasn't a particularly fancy trick, and it wasn't hard to read. But it was incredibly hard to counter.
The issue was Hoshiumi's height, he was short.
So short, in fact, that when he hid behind Suwa, even if Oikawa could tell who was going to set the ball, he still couldn't clearly see which direction the ball was going.
In this scenario, what should have been a weakness, Hoshiumi's height, actually became a tactical advantage.
"Ugh, I really hate short guys," Oikawa muttered, visibly annoyed.
The frustration reminded him almost instinctively of Hinata Shoyo, which of course led him to think of Kageyama Tobio, whom he hated even more.
And once Kageyama appeared in his mind, he couldn't help but remember Ushijima Wakatoshi, the monstrous left-handed ace from Miyagi.
And standing right next to him was Akashi Asuka himself.
In that brief instant…
Every single person Oikawa disliked the most had gathered in his head.
But ironically, it was thanks to this bunch of pests that a lightbulb suddenly went off in his mind. The corners of his mouth curled up in a slow, satisfied smirk.
"Persistent little bastards. But I've gotta thank you. Because now I've figured out... the most infuriating way to attack."
Meanwhile, Aoba Johsai's front-line trio, Hajime Iwaizumi, Matsukawa Issei, and Kyotani Kentarou, were also deep in thought, trying to determine who would make the next set.
Even though they were in the backcourt before, Kamomedai's deceptive tactic had given them a headache as well.
As they pondered their options,
Kamomedai made their move.
This time, Aikichi Suwa stepped forward ahead of Hoshiumi, took the ball himself, and sent the set flying without hesitation...
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria