After landing, Ichinose Guren didn't make any unnecessary movements. He simply stood there, expressionless, scanning the players across the net. His eyes swept the court without a word.
Yet every Kitagawa player who met his gaze felt an unprecedented sense of pressure. It was as if they were adrift in the middle of an ocean, facing a tsunami that could swallow everything in its path.
Waves of overwhelming intensity surged toward them. Ichinose, radiating astonishing presence, turned back and gave his teammates high-fives in quiet celebration.
Then, calm and composed, he returned to his position, hands resting on the muscles above his knees, head raised, eyes locked on the opponents.
"All right, everyone, the warm-up's over."
"We're going to keep winning, right?"
The calm, quiet words carried to every teammate.
Hinata was the first to respond.
"Of course! Now that we're on the court, we're going to fight all the way!"
As always, the Little Giant's fiery spirit, combined with Ichinose's overwhelming spikes, ignited the morale of everyone at Yukigaoka.
On the other hand, Kitagawa Daiichi faced a heavy blow to their morale. Kageyama Tobio's serve, though flawless, only earned a single point.
Everyone knew Kageyama could be difficult to deal with, but his skill was undeniable. Whether spiking, receiving, or blocking, his volleyball level was clearly the top of his team.
Yet here was this ultra-offensive ace, and on his second serve, the opposing captain received it smoothly, followed by a seamless approach, jump, and spike that scored immediately.
Meanwhile, the opposing captain's serve had already earned four points.
This meant that, in single-rotation serving attacks, their strongest point surpassed Kitagawa's. Combined with Ichinose's previous high spike, the Kitagawa players realized that, in spiking as well, Ichinose's ability likely exceeded Kageyama's.
By comparison, Kitagawa's strongest player, the offensive setter Kageyama, couldn't match the opponent's strength in his area of expertise.
Unexpectedly, Kageyama said nothing.
He knew that the start of this exchange was his serve. If the serve didn't score or disrupt the opposing formation, and the end came with his team failing to receive the opponent's spike, there was nothing to say.
He understood the height Ichinose reached during that jump. Even if Kageyama switched to the front row to block, it wouldn't matter.
At that height, only a block of equal skill or height could have any effect. Close or far, a spike could bypass defenses freely.
Even scratching his head, Kageyama couldn't figure out how to break through this situation.
Fortunately, he was single-minded: if he couldn't stop it, he would attack to gain points. Offense must compensate for defensive shortcomings, attacking was defense.
Thinking this, Kageyama grew frustrated.
If his teammates could reach the speed and height he needed, they could produce attacks on par with the opponents. But without sufficient support, they were in this position.
The match continued, and the only constant was Ichinose's unstoppable scoring. No matter the formation Kitagawa fielded, even their strongest block, Kindaichi and the captain, both over 185 cm, with Kageyama's elite vertical jump, couldn't stop him.
Until a certain height was reached, Kitagawa's blocks were meaningless against Ichinose. He could spike anywhere he wanted, straight, diagonal, every strike was a genuine threat.
Meanwhile, Kageyama, frustrated, fully unleashed his passing speed. Disregarding team coordination, he dictated the rhythm of every attack. Though they still scored, this caused dissatisfaction among his teammates.
His unconscious acceleration increased the likelihood of errors, and a passing mistake would directly give points to Yukigaoka.
The score climbed relentlessly:
9–7
9–8
10–8
10–9
11–9
12–9
===========
After Yukigaoka reached 20 points first, the Kitagawa players could no longer sit still.
"What is he doing?"
"There are four blockers who can't cover enough, and he's still pushing for fast sets, what's the point?"
"Well, it's the captain. Who can understand him?"
The hot-tempered Kindaichi could no longer hold back. Ignoring the ongoing match, he strode toward Kageyama and grabbed his collar.
"What are you doing?! You think faster sets are useless?!"
"What's the point of sending balls you can't even reach?"
"Are you trying to hand points to the other team? Do you even want to win?!"
The first two remarks were fair, Kageyama had indeed miscalculated and let frustration affect his passing. But the last one truly enraged him.
His competitive spirit, like his skill, was arguably the strongest in Kitagawa Daiichi.
He could accept criticism for mistakes, but never for not wanting to win.
"Ah? What are you saying?!"
Infuriated, Kageyama shoved Kindaichi away, intending to argue that he did want to win.
The referee, however, would not tolerate violent actions on the court and immediately blew the warning whistle.
Teammates quickly stepped in to separate the two.
Kitagawa's coach also spoke up, telling both to calm down.
But Kindaichi, hot-headed, ignored all of that, repeating his previous complaints to the coach.
"Coach! Why keep a setter who just does whatever he wants, without thinking about teamwork, on the court?!"
"Take him out! Our team will be stronger without him. I don't want to touch a single set from him!"
===========
Kindaichi's shouting stunned the entire arena.
The first to react were the spectators in the stands.
"Huh? What did he say?"
"You heard right. He said he won't play the balls that the captain sets."
"Are you kidding? The ace and the setter are clashing?!"
"Is this… a team conflict?"
=============
98+ Advance Chapters Available on Patreon! Patreon.com/Veltoria
250 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter
Add to Library to support