—So they were talking about the same thing!
Coach Kurosu, far away in Hyogo Prefecture, sneezed three times in a row. "Who is talking about me?"
Hinata agreed wholeheartedly with Iizuna and replied immediately, "I understand!"
Iizuna nodded with relief, in the next second, Hinata's voice rang out again: "Iizuna-senpai! Please toss me another ball!"
"Alright," Iizuna agreed readily.
Author's Note:
(360-degree Thomas Flare landing into a dogeza) The food card got stuck in the kitchen, it just came out [sobbing]
Chapter 51: The Fifty-First Fox
Iizuna, who hadn't trained much today, had more than enough skill to toss balls to the two juniors, time passed bit by bit as Hinata and Goshiki discussed straight shots.
From the beginning, when Hinata could never control his direction, to later being able to hit standard straight shots, the entire process progressed incredibly fast.
Watching Goshiki's line-shot spike, Hinata raised his hand again: "Goshiki-kun, you're amazing! Can I watch that kind of line-shot spike one more time!"
"Okay.." Goshiki was about to agree when Ohira's voice drifted over.
That's all for today. Start packing up your things.
Hinata glanced at the quartz clock hanging on the wall; it was already 9:30, the time the coach had specified for closing.
Everyone responded in unison, "Alright!"
While picking up balls, Goshiki leaned close to Hinata and said somewhat awkwardly, "Just call me by my name; the seniors all call me that."
Hearing someone call him by his surname on the court, he found it somewhat unfamiliar.
Hinata's expression instantly turned into one of pleasant surprise, he immediately replied, "Akari can call me Shoyo too!"
After closing the distance with Hinata, Goshiki finally asked the question that had been troubling him since yesterday, "When the Setter's toss isn't in place, what does Shoyo usually think about?"
Before speaking, he looked around the vicinity to confirm that Shirabu had long since left before he spoke.
The absolute core of Shiratorizawa is Ushijima; when Ushijima is on the court, good balls, or those not so bad that they are impossible to spike, are prioritized for him.
Aside from necessary tactical plays, Goshiki often has to take on the responsibility of "helping the Ace digest bad balls."
But clearly, he is doing quite poorly in this regard right now, unable to guarantee the quality of every spike.
Especially during yesterday's match against Inarizaki, his weaknesses were fully exposed.
Hinata rubbed his chin in thought and said amidst everyone's shocked gazes, "Is it because I didn't receive the first serve properly? Or is it because my reaction was so slow that Atsumu-senpai had to save the ball?"
This time, it was the other side's Iizuna who had a distorted expression.
Goshiki also fell silent for a moment: "No, it's not that.. I mean in terms of spiking."
What they were discussing now was how to make amends after a mistake, rather than the cause of the mistake itself.
Hinata knows Kiryu Ya, Kiryu is currently the strongest among high schoolers when it comes to "mishitting spikes," so he might have some good methods.
Hmm.." Hinata rubbed his chin, then said sincerely, "If you spike enough, you'll naturally get it.
"Huh?" Goshiki was clearly stunned for a moment.
"Really, how about tomorrow I practice my setting, Akari comes in for a spike?" Hinata raised his hand, gesturing toward Goshiki.
Goshiki, completely unable to keep up with the rhythm, replied blankly, "I mean, I could.."
But daily training couldn't simulate the emergency situations of a match at all; after all, even Hinata himself, who wasn't good at setting, wouldn't make a mistake while just standing there.
Hinata cleared his throat and lowered his voice, imitating Miya Atsumu: "But I'm telling you now, don't you dare say my digs are bad."
When Goshiki looked over, Hinata laughed and scratched his head, saying, "Just kidding, my setting is actually terrible."
Goshiki Tsutomu, however, did not think so.
How bad could it really be?
After picking up the balls, setting up the net, finally mopping the floor, the day's training was officially over.
For his first time staying in a dormitory, Hinata Shoyo followed excitedly behind Iizuna, watching him open the door to a room located in a corner on the top floor of the Shiratorizawa dormitory building.
The double bunk beds, the separate desks, the private bathroom and shower—it even came fully equipped with air conditioning.
"Incredible—" Hinata had been sighing in amazement countless times today.
So this is what a powerhouse looks like!
The luggage for everyone from Itachiyama had long been brought inside, the bedding was provided by Shiratorizawa.
Iizuna didn't enter the room, but instead said directly, "Hinata, you go take a shower first. Yura, Shota, the others have something to say."
"Yes!" Hinata acted quickly.
Watching Hinata lead the way into the room to prepare for a shower, Yura froze for a moment. "Aren't you going to wash first?"
Their captain is also quite clean and pays extreme attention to his personal image. Although he doesn't reach Sakusa's level, he generally uses the bathroom first.
Iizuna shook his head. "I'll wash up later; I can tidy up the bathroom while I'm at it."
Compared to that, a messy bathroom is definitely harder to tolerate.
Amatori said no more, instead pulling Iizuna aside to discuss tomorrow's rotation and tactics.
However, most of the coaches had already made their arrangements, they confirmed everything quite quickly.
After confirming everything, Iizuna leaned against the corridor wall and said with some emotion, "To be honest, it's quite a surprise."
Amatori turned her head to look at him, a look of confusion in her eyes: "What?"
Iizuna replied, "I mean Hinata; his ability to adapt to the Setter is unexpectedly strong. He is really good at finding the ball."
When he sets the ball, there are actually several instances where he intentionally adjusts the distance, but Hinata's reactions are incredibly fast; he can adjust his approach path during his run-up, shortening or lengthening his stride to ensure he can spike every single ball perfectly.
Even in Itachiyama, there are many first-year players who jump without even looking at the ball, ultimately performing overhead spikes for everyone..
Amatori rubbed his chin: "True, I thought Inarizaki's Spikers would be a bit weaker in this regard, especially since the Setter is that Miya Atsumu."
Setting aside personality for a moment, in terms of technique, Miya Atsumu could be described as impeccable.
His setting can satisfy the needs of the spikers while maintaining enough of his own personal style, which already puts him ahead of most setters.
Not to mention those ball placements that could be precise down to the millimeter..
Komori and Sakusa, who had gone to find Ushijima and the others, also walked back at this time.
Hearing what the two were discussing, Sakusa suddenly spoke up: "It's precisely because it's Miya that he's so strong."
Following behind Sakusa, Komori Motoya understood instantly what he meant: "Ah.. Miya Atsumu is indeed quite strict regarding the requirements for a Spiker; you could even say he's demanding."
After all, he is the legendary person who could make someone roll off the court on the spot just because their form was off.
As for where the rumors came from.. naturally, someone in certain small groups during last year's Junior National Team would have passed the information along.
"It's still a bit hard to imagine," Iizuna said, stroking his chin.
When Goshiki asked, Hinata's answer was that he practiced a lot, but it was obvious that Miya Atsumu would never set a ball like that.
Iizuna tried to reason it out: "I remember Inarizaki's substitute Setter is Nagumo? His setting is very stable too, could it be one of their first-year juniors?"
Komori shook his head. "No, their first-year junior's setter is from Tsuruta Junior High, right? I think his name was something with Kum—I can't remember."
Tsuruta is also an established prestigious school; although their performance hasn't been great in recent years, no one questions their foundation, people even pay attention to them occasionally.
Actually, it was mainly because their coach had practically stripped Inarizaki bare in preparation for the upcoming Interhigh, including, but not limited to, potential enemies who weren't even on the court.
It is possible that Shirabu and those from Kyoto will receive the same treatment.
However, the competition in Kyoto was simply too fierce; any one of the three powerhouse schools could easily rank among the top eight or even the top four in the country, so every year, they only needed to focus on researching how to qualify.
Seeing the topic drifting further and further away, Komori proactively brought up another matter: "By the way, Iizuna-senpai, have you seen that meme?"
Iizuna was stunned: "What meme?"
Hoshiumi sent it the day before yesterday, this..
After a quick shower, Hinata tidied himself up and rushed out of the bathroom. Just as he pulled the door open and was about to call for Iizuna, he heard an explosion of wild laughter erupting from outside the door.
Hahahaha—What is this! Hahaha—
Miya Atsumu, you finally have a day like this!
Shh, you're being too loud, everyone else is already asleep..
Hinata peeked through the crack in the door, looking over with immense curiosity: "What's wrong, Atsumu-senpai?"
Ah, Sakusa is actually smiling; he thought he was a super serious senior.
Komori quickly put away his phone, saying with a guilty attempt to hide it, "It's nothing, don't worry about it."
Hinata tilted his head, a look of confusion in his eyes.
Iizuna also quickly ended the topic and dismissed everyone: "Alright, alright, everyone go to sleep. There's a practice match tomorrow."
Then he quickly pushed Hinata inside, closed the door, completely separated Hinata and Komori and the others.
Help, if Miya Atsumu finds out about this, he'll probably make a scene all the way from Hyogo to Miyagi by tomorrow.
After entering the room, I glanced toward the bathroom and noticed that the floor had already been given a quick mop, the towels were hanging back in their original places.
He was a bit surprised: "Hinata, you're surprisingly good at cleaning."
Hinata looked a bit embarrassed: "Xiaoxia.. my sister always washes up behind me, so I've gotten into the habit of cleaning up as I go."
In other words, it was the bathroom; his cleaning of his own room was somewhat perfunctory, only managing to look presentable on the surface.
Iizuna laughed, "Hahaha, just like my sister."
Taking a look at Hinata's wet hair and the water-splattered floor, he added, "I have a hair dryer in my bag; use it to dry your hair."
A hair dryer!" Hinata's eyes widened. "You actually have something like that!
His mother also had short hair, which was usually left to air-dry naturally after being towel-dried; he had only ever seen others use a hairdryer.
Iizuna raised a finger and pointed to his own hair: "Because you need hot air for styling, you can use a little less hair gel."
Hinata's hair, on the other hand, grows completely naturally; even when wet, it doesn't really flatten down..