---
The first problem with chaos—
Was not the opponent.
It was each other.
Hinata realized that within minutes.
---
"Mine!"
Sato called.
Too late.
Fukuda had already moved.
Both jumped.
Both reached.
The ball clipped their hands—
And dropped straight down.
Silence.
Fukuda landed hard.
"…Call earlier."
"I did!"
"No, you didn't."
"I said it!"
"Too late!"
Hinata stepped forward.
"…Reset."
But the tension stayed.
Because this—
Was new.
And new meant mistakes.
---
They restarted.
Different positions.
Different flow.
The ball came.
Takeda received.
High.
Floating.
Nakamura moved.
So did Hinata.
So did Sato.
Three players under the same ball.
No decision.
No clarity.
It dropped.
Point lost.
Again.
---
Fukuda exhaled sharply.
"…This is worse than before."
Takeda looked shaken.
"…I didn't know who should take it…"
Nakamura whispered,
"…I froze…"
Sato rubbed his head.
"…We're overlapping…"
Mori watched.
Silent.
Analyzing.
Hinata clenched his fists.
"…Again."
---
The third rally—
Didn't last long.
Miscommunication.
Bad timing.
Broken spacing.
The ball hit the floor before anything real could happen.
Silence.
Heavy.
Frustrating.
---
Fukuda stepped forward.
"…This isn't working."
Hinata looked at him.
"…It will."
"When?"
No answer.
Because right now—
It wasn't.
---
Mori finally spoke.
"You are colliding."
Sato frowned.
"…Obviously."
"Not physically," Mori said. "Structurally."
Silence.
Takeda blinked.
"…What does that mean?"
Mori explained.
"You removed fixed roles."
"…Yeah."
"But you did not replace them."
That landed.
Hard.
Hinata's eyes sharpened.
"…Go on."
Mori nodded.
"Before, you had structure."
He pointed.
"Receive. Hinata sets. Attack."
Simple.
Clear.
Predictable.
"Now, you removed that."
"…Yeah."
"But you added nothing to guide decisions."
Silence.
Because that—
That was the problem.
Not chaos itself.
Uncontrolled chaos.
---
Fukuda crossed his arms.
"…So what do we do?"
Mori answered immediately.
"We assign priority."
Hinata leaned forward slightly.
"…Explain."
"Not roles," Mori said. "Priority."
Sato blinked.
"…Difference?"
Mori pointed at the court.
"If the ball is here—who takes it?"
No one answered.
Because right now—
It was whoever got there first.
Or no one.
Mori continued.
"We define zones. Responsibilities within chaos."
Takeda nodded slowly.
"…So we still move freely…"
"But not blindly," Mori finished.
Silence.
Then—
Hinata nodded.
"…That works."
---
They reset again.
This time—
Different.
Mori drew lines on the court with his foot.
Not physical.
Conceptual.
"You cover this."
"You take priority here."
"If two players arrive—this one calls."
Fukuda frowned.
"…So we're still controlled."
"Yes."
"…But flexible."
"Yes."
Sato grinned slightly.
"…Okay, that makes more sense."
Takeda exhaled.
"…That helps…"
Nakamura nodded.
"…I can follow that…"
Hinata stepped forward.
"…Let's try it."
---
The next rally—
Was still messy.
But—
Less collision.
Takeda received.
The ball drifted left.
Sato moved.
Called early.
"Mine!"
Clear.
Loud.
No hesitation.
He set.
Not perfect.
But usable.
Fukuda adjusted.
Hit—
In.
Point.
Silence.
Then—
Fukuda smirked.
"…Better."
Hinata nodded.
"…Yeah."
---
Again.
Nakamura received.
The ball floated center.
Hinata moved—
Then stopped.
Because Takeda had priority.
Takeda stepped in.
Set.
High.
Slow.
Hinata jumped.
Hit—
Returned.
The rally continued.
But—
It didn't break immediately.
---
Again.
Again.
Again.
Still imperfect.
Still unstable.
But—
No more collisions.
No more complete confusion.
Movement—
Started making sense.
---
Halfway through practice—
The pace increased.
Decisions came faster.
Calls sharper.
Reactions quicker.
Hinata moved differently now.
Not chasing every ball.
Not forcing control.
Trusting the system.
Trusting them.
---
Then—
It broke again.
A fast rally.
Too fast.
The ball came low.
Between Fukuda and Nakamura.
Both moved.
Both hesitated.
Too close.
Too fast.
They collided slightly.
The ball dropped.
Point lost.
Silence.
Fukuda stepped back.
"…Tch."
Nakamura looked down.
"…Sorry…"
Hinata shook his head.
"…No."
They looked at him.
"That's not it."
"…What?"
Hinata pointed.
"…You hesitated."
Nakamura froze.
"…I…"
"You moved right."
"…But—"
"You stopped."
Silence.
Fukuda added,
"…You second-guessed."
Nakamura clenched his fists.
"…Yeah…"
Mori spoke.
"Priority only works if you commit."
Hinata nodded.
"…No hesitation."
Takeda added softly,
"…Even if it's wrong…"
Sato grinned.
"…Just like Hinata does."
Hinata didn't react.
"…Exactly."
---
They reset.
Again.
This time—
Faster.
Sharper.
More aggressive.
No waiting.
No second-guessing.
If it's yours—
Take it.
If it's not—
Move away.
Clear.
Simple.
Hard.
---
The final rally of practice came.
Long.
Fast.
Messy.
But controlled.
The ball moved across the court.
Different players taking second touch.
Different angles.
Different timing.
But—
No collisions.
No freezing.
No confusion.
Hinata received.
Fukuda set.
Sato hit.
Returned.
Takeda touched.
Nakamura set.
Hinata jumped—
Hit—
Point.
Silence.
Then—
Sato laughed.
"…That actually worked!"
Fukuda smirked.
"…We didn't crash into each other."
Takeda smiled.
"…I knew where to go…"
Nakamura nodded.
"…I didn't stop…"
Mori crossed his arms.
"System stabilized."
---
They dropped to the floor.
Exhausted.
More than before.
Because this—
Demanded everything.
Focus.
Awareness.
Trust.
Decision.
Constant.
---
Fukuda lay back.
"…Still messy."
Hinata nodded.
"…Yeah."
Sato added,
"But not broken."
Takeda said,
"…We're improving…"
Nakamura whispered,
"…Slowly…"
Mori concluded,
"Correct direction."
---
Hinata stared at the ceiling.
Thinking.
Before—
They lacked options.
Then—
They had too many.
Now—
They were learning how to handle them.
Not perfectly.
Not cleanly.
But—
Better.
---
He sat up.
Looked at his team.
Six players.
Moving closer.
Not just as individuals.
But as a system.
A strange one.
An unstable one.
But—
A real one.
"…We keep going."
Fukuda smirked.
"…Obviously."
---
As they left—
Hinata glanced back at the court.
That invisible wall from before—
Still there.
But now—
Cracking.
Just a little.
And that was enough.
For now.
---