After the receiving test came the reach test.
When it came to reach, Ryosuke was thrilled. He'd never officially measured his reach before—everything about it felt new and exciting.
The freshmen being tested moved over near the basketball backboard. With a running approach and a jump, they measured how high their fingertips could reach.
Magnesium powder was laid out on the ground. Before jumping, everyone had to coat their hands with it so they could leave a clear mark on the backboard.
Ryosuke looked around and quickly spotted Goshiki. Full of energy, he hurried over to line up behind him. After all, Goshiki was way more outgoing than he was.
The moment Goshiki turned around, he was met with a pair of big, sparkling eyes—Ryosuke's.
Ryosuke leaned in close to Goshiki's ear. "Goshiki, aren't you nervous with so many people watching?"
Goshiki snorted, completely unfazed. "I'm going to become the ace. There's no way I'd get nervous over something like this."
"Ohhh~ that's amazing," Ryosuke said with open admiration. Hearing that, Goshiki's bowl-cut bangs practically fluttered with pride.
The advisor's eyes swept back and forth across the students. Spotting two heads pressed together whispering, he interrupted, "Focus, you two. No chatting."
They instantly shut up.
The advisor narrowed his eyes and smiled faintly. Youth really was something.
The reach test itself was relatively simple. At the advisor's call of "Next," Goshiki—standing right in front of Ryosuke—strode forward with his chest puffed out.
He dusted his hands with magnesium powder, took his run-up, jumped, and left a clear white handprint on the backboard.
Goshiki shot exaggerated looks toward Ushijima, who was watching nearby. See that? See that? I'm the ace.
Ushijima looked at his junior seriously and asked Tendo, "Is his eye twitching?"
Tendo froze for a second, then burst into a loud, duck-like laugh. "Ahahaha! He's provoking you, Little Ushijima!"
Shirabu, who was measuring the height, glanced coolly at Goshiki and announced, "330."
Then he shot Goshiki another glare. Damn it—he must be thinking something disrespectful about Ushijima-senpai.
Goshiki was completely baffled by the look.
Tendo, meanwhile, was already laughing so hard he was clutching his stomach. He added between laughs, "Little Ushijima is such a scumbag."
Ushijima frowned and said solemnly, "I'm not, Tendo."
Tendo only laughed harder.
Ushijima: …
Next up was Ryosuke.
The big cat padded forward excitedly. He'd never done anything like this before—so cool!
He rubbed some magnesium powder onto his hands, looked up at the backboard, stepped back two paces, took a deep breath, and started his approach.
His body leaned forward, arms swinging back in rhythm. After two steps, he bent his knees sharply and jumped.
Yamagata, watching from the side, couldn't stay calm. "Hey, hey—two steps into a jump is a bit much, isn't it…?"
Ryosuke's sneakers screeched against the floor. Feeling the hard ground beneath his feet, he launched upward with a heavy thud.
He soared high.
Shirabu's pupils shrank. That's… really high.
Yes—this feeling! At the moment of takeoff, Ryosuke felt his blood boil. This is it. I'm… flying.
A sharp smack echoed as his palm struck the backboard, leaving a clear handprint. Ryosuke landed smoothly back on the floor.
Yamagata almost imagined wings sprouting from his back. Semi's eyes lit up—he suddenly really wanted to set for him.
"339."
Shirabu spoke, his gaze slightly unfocused.
The advisor felt like he'd hit the jackpot.
A player with a 339 reach who could also receive Ushijima's serve—this was, without exaggeration, a lethal weapon.
Coach Washijō nodded in approval. Not bad. Didn't embarrass himself.
Off the court, Goshiki looked completely shattered, grabbing Ryosuke by the shoulders and shaking him wildly. "Aaaaah! How can you be this good?! Damn it, you totally outclassed me!"
The big cat's eyes spun into dizzy spirals as he struggled to speak.
"Go… Goshiki, stop shaking me. If you keep going, I'm going to throw up…"
Yamagata, who'd been watching Ryosuke closely the whole time, sensed something was wrong and stepped in to stop the impending disaster.
"Cut it out. Coach Washijō is watching you."
Successfully rescued, Ryosuke looked at Yamagata with watery eyes full of gratitude and silently awarded him a mental "good guy" badge.
Yamagata, of course, had no idea he'd just received a good guy card.
After the reach test came serving—and this was where Ryosuke truly met disaster.
Because his serve was… really bad.
(Not actually, but Ryosuke himself was convinced it was awful.)
One serve clipped the net and barely made it over. Ryosuke's face instantly turned red enough to steam. So embarrassing… wah… the big cat was practically twisting in place from shame.
Coach Washijō couldn't bear to look. That serve was… well… even he couldn't find the words. He'd known it—this brat was bound to mess up on serves.
"Serve properly! What kind of garbage was that?! Is this how I taught you?! Have some confidence! How do you usually practice?! One more mistake and you're doing two hundred extra serves!"
Mid-jump, Ryosuke heard the familiar scolding. His hand trembled, and reflex took over—he sent a light, floaty jump float serve over the net.
A chill ran through him. He really didn't want extra training from Washijō—who knew what kind of suffering awaited him afterward (scared cat).
Only then did Washijō's expression ease slightly.
The others weren't nearly as calm. They'd thought Ryosuke's serve was terrible, but now it looked… barely… barely impressive.
They stared at Ryosuke with uneasy expressions. The competition was getting fierce—no one knew if they'd still be able to grab a starting spot.
Ushijima watched the freshman who clearly had the coach's favor and made a quiet judgment.
This was a talented junior.
More and more people gathered to watch the freshmen's physical tests—upperclassmen whose classes had already ended.
They clustered together, chattering excitedly.
And at the center of every conversation was Ryosuke.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser