But on the second ball, Miya Atsumu didn't use a powerful serve at all; instead, he sent a jump float serve that landed very far forward.
"Jump Float Serve! Move up!" Sawamura Daichi shouted instantly.
But they were still a step too late, in the end, Nishinoya Yu, who had performed a diving save, only managed to barely touch the ball.
"Kageyama!" Nishinoya Yu called out to Kageyama, who was close by.
Kageyama stared at the ball above his head.
Should he set it? Can he set it? If he sets it, will someone be there to spike it?
In an instant, several questions flashed through his mind.
The next second, the Ace's voice rang out: "Give the ball to me!"
Startled, Kageyama jumped, reaching out toward the ball from outside the court.
—Azumane-senpai is good at balls that are a bit higher and further from the net.
Suna's expression remained unchanged; he simply timed it perfectly, jumping to block alongside Miya Osamu from the other side to restrict the ball's path.
The paths for both the straight shot and the diagonal shot to the right were completely blocked, Akagi also moved into position to cover the defensive gap left by the block.
Hinata, who did not follow up with a block, stared intently at Azumane's spiking motion.
With the orientation of the wrist and the body, the volleyball should ultimately land in his..
He took a step to the left, shifting his center of gravity forward as he reached out to receive the ball.
With a loud thud, the volleyball hit Hinata's arm.
But Hinata, still lacking strength and experience, couldn't control the ball, it wobbled erratically out of bounds.
Sorry! I've got it!
After shouting, Hinata immediately got up and moved directly toward his left side.
Never stop, no matter what. Aran-senpai and Kiryu-senpai had both told him that the only thing one needs to consider after receiving the ball is the subsequent attack.
Seeing Hinata successfully receive the ball, Miya Atsumu was also somewhat pleasantly surprised: "Great receive, Shoyo!"
He rushed over in three steps, lowering his center of gravity and raising his hand to touch the ball just outside the court.
Coach Omimi almost burst into tears by the sidelines: "Shoyo can even receive a spike now!"
—Even if he missed the receive.
Sugawara Koushi was filled with shock.
Miya Atsumu is going to set the ball in this posture?
Miya Osamu, who was originally in Position 4, Suna moved toward Position 2 at the same time. The two of them stopped and retreated one after another at the 2.5 position, preparing to exploit the positional gap.
And the space left behind at the back of Position 4 was the route where the Ace, Owari Aran, was preparing to spike.
Kageyama, blocking at the front row, quickly scanned Inarizaki's formation, finally locking his gaze on Miya Atsumu.
But in the very next instant, the volleyball had already flown over.
It flew past Suna, past Miya Osamu, was tossed toward the position of the number four marker before Aran could even step forward.
——Wait?
In a daze, Kageyama seemed to see a version of himself from the past, setting the ball exactly as he wanted, only to find that not a single teammate was there to receive it.
And Miya Atsumu's serve was just like that; there was no one at the ball's landing spot..
An orange figure burst into his field of vision at that very moment.
In this instant, Hinata's sun-like radiance outshone everyone on the court.
Without giving anyone time to react, the volleyball smashed into Karasuno's court with a crisp striking sound.
From the moment the volleyball left the setter's hands until it hit the ground, the entire process took absolutely no more than a second.
Hinata landed on the ground, his eyes meeting Kageyama's with a sharp, involuntary look of doubt.
"Shoyo-kun." Miya Atsumu called out to Hinata from the other side.
At the same time, Hinata also pulled his gaze away from Kageyama and jogged over to high-five Miya Atsumu: "Atsumu-senpai, that was a great set!"
"Eh?" Kageyama heard himself let out a soft gasp.
That kind of ball.. is it actually possible to catch up to it?
So high, so fast—it was countless times more powerful than the most stunning spike in his memory.
At this moment, Kageyama suddenly felt a strange sensation of impulse.
—He wanted to know if Hinata could spike his ball.
—He wanted to give him a back set.
Author's Note:
[Confetti]
Chapter 40: The Fortieth Fox
Thinking this, Kageyama called out Hinata's name across the net: "Hey, Hinata Shoyo."
Hinata looked back in confusion, gazing at the King who had never paid him much attention from the very beginning.
He even thought the other person had already forgotten him, so he was planning to reintroduce himself through this match.
By casting aside his past dark history, he could establish a much more imposing image here before the King!
But at this moment, Kageyama Tobio called out his name without error.
This meant that.. this guy remembered him perfectly and was intentionally ignoring him.
In an instant, Miya Atsumu's words, "All the setters outside are bad people," flashed through his mind.
Just then, Kageyama's next words reached him: "Are you playing with me?"
Miya Atsumu looked over, what met his eyes was Kageyama's face, which was clearly filled with anger.
What is he angry about? Did Hinata offend the King?
Hinata instantly felt a sensation rush from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.
He suddenly retreated two steps, moving from the net to the same level as Miya Atsumu. At the same time, he looked at Miya Atsumu as if seeking help and whispered, "I didn't even do anything, right?"
The King's gaze was terrifying; it felt like he would charge over from the other side of the net to hit him in the next second.
Miya Atsumu reached out and patted Hinata's shoulder to comfort him.
He locked eyes with Kageyama, the smile on his face remaining only on the surface: "Could you please stop intimidating my Wing Spiker?"
“If you play poorly, even intimidation won't help.”
Hinata stood beside Miya Atsumu: "That's right, that's right!"
It's no use! And he won't be intimidated!
Aran reached out and hauled Hinata away: "Shoyo, stop using others' authority to stir up trouble."
No, it would be more accurate to say that Hinata himself was the fuse that ignited this war.
Kageyama completely ignored Miya Atsumu, his eyes still fixed on Hinata: "In that match, were you letting me win on purpose?"
The Hinata of now is practically a different person from the Hinata of back then.
If Hinata at that time was a waste of natural athletic talent, then the Hinata who could coordinate with the Setter to spike that last ball had, without a doubt, maximized the advantages of his speed and vertical jump.
How could someone reach this level in just one year?
Even Kageyama Tobio, who comes from a powerhouse like Kitagawa Daiichi, could not have imagined it.
Hinata was still looking confused, but Miya Atsumu had already realized.
Because the gap in strength between Hinata and himself was so vast, Kageyama wondered if he had been played and mocked by his past self.
Miya Atsumu admitted that when he first learned that Hinata, who claimed to have practiced volleyball for several years, relied entirely on Unorthodox methods, he was also very shocked and felt as if he had been deceived.
But it was only for a brief moment; after all, what mattered more to him were Hinata's present and future.
With the support of Inarizaki's extensive experience and resources, polishing a diamond with sufficient potential into something that shines brilliantly was no difficult task.
Not to mention Coach Kurosu himself is extremely skilled at this kind of thing.
And Kageyama.. would he actually feel angry over something like this?
As the initial impulse faded, Kageyama was now exceptionally calm.
—Anger?
Of course.
Every single ball should be played with everything he has; that is Kageyama Tobio's creed in life.
He and Hinata Shoyo had been enemies on opposite sides of the net from the very beginning, but they should still respect one another.
Just as he used to feel angry because he thought Hinata was wasting his talent, now he also feels angry because his past self's sincerity was betrayed.
Sugawara Koushi raised his hand and tapped Kageyama on the top of his head with the side of his palm: "Calm down, Kageyama."
Kageyama Tobio felt that he was very calm.
But he didn't want to cause any trouble for his seniors, so he could only shut his mouth and turn to leave.
Regardless.. I'll finish this set first.
That kind of Quick Attack was indeed terrifying, but it certainly wasn't just mindless hitting. He had to observe carefully to find the flaw within it.
Miya Atsumu served again.
Because they had been caught off guard by a jump float serve, Karasuno's formation was not positioned very far back.
Sawamura Daichi and Nishinoya Yu positioned one in front of the other, which was a relatively conservative defensive formation.
Generally speaking, it's impossible to form this kind of receiving formation with only one skilled Libero.
One can only say that number 1.. his receive should be no different from a Libero's.