He certainly knew that Hoshiumi had actively lured him into hitting a short diagonal, but if he had a second chance, he would make the same choice.
The distance between the block and the net is actually easy to observe; would it have been better to press down and hit a Woguo..
Right at that moment, a voice descended from above, sounding as if a god had arrived.
“What are you thinking about?”
Hinata leaned back slightly, looking up at Hoshiumi Hikari, who was leaning over to look at him.
The moment he met those eyes, Hinata was instantly delighted: "Hoshiumi-senpai!"
Miya Atsumu sat up abruptly.
This wasn't right. He had left Hinata here to avoid running into certain people, so how was someone still actively seeking him out?
Before Hoshiumi could say anything, Hinata lunged straight at him: "Help!"
Hirugami glanced at Hinata, who was already prepared to cling to Hoshiumi's leg at the doorway, finally reached out to pull Hakuma Mebuki inside as well.
What's wrong?" Hoshiumi glanced sideways at Miya Atsumu before looking down to meet Hinata's eyes again. "Let go and sit properly.
Hinata sat down properly: "I'm studying the Short Diagonal, trying to figure out how to make it feel unexpected."
Seeing that Hoshiumi's mood seemed just okay, Miya Atsumu, who was already too tired to get up, lay back down.
Anyway, he was the winner just now, so he would let Hoshiumi feel a little proud for a while.
Hoshiumi raised an eyebrow slightly. "Your Quick Attack is already surprising enough; wouldn't it be great to just combine them?"
Hinata froze for a moment. "By senpai, do you mean having Atsumu-senpai extend the hang time of the set so there's a chance to hit a short diagonal during a Quick Attack?"
But Hoshiumi-senpai already guessed it, didn't he? He even blocked a ball just now.
"No, what I mean is that if you're going to pursue the element of surprise, you should carry it through to the end." Hoshiumi crossed his arms over his chest.
In any case, anyone using a short diagonal is doing so when they can't hit over the block. Since a standard diagonal isn't effective, it would be better to just adjust your body orientation and spike the ball at the most natural angle for you.
Miya Atsumu, who had been listening intently, sat back up with a sudden movement.
Watching Miya Atsumu doing sit-ups like a zombie, Hoshiumi's mouth twitched.
He looked at the confused Hinata. "Speaking of which.. you just beat us, now you're coming to ask for advice?"
Miya Atsumu added mercilessly, "You came to us on your own."
Hoshiumi ignored Miya Atsumu completely and asked Hinata directly, "Shall I try setting for you? Just a flat quick attack to Position 2."
Hinata stood up: "Okay! Thanks, Hoshiumi-senpai!"
Hirugami patted Hakuma beside him: "Watch the short diagonal more; what if you learn it?"
Hakuma, who was in a bad mood due to several mistakes during the recent match, nodded, did not show the same particular resistance to learning new techniques as he had before.
Watching Hoshiumi and Hinata circle around to the other side to prepare for practice, a question mark slowly appeared above the head of the only setter on the court, Miya Atsumu.
Like this? Turn a little to the left?
Right. Anyway, most people can't react to your speed, so if you still get blocked like that, there's nothing more that can be done.
Watching the volleyball smash down beside him, Miya Atsumu hurriedly scrambled out of the court.
He looked up at Hirugami, feeling that Hoshiumi had ulterior motives: "Is he really that kind-hearted?"
“How is that possible?” Hirugami smiled, “If I spoil your little one, we'll just be the ones winning the next match.”
Miya Atsumu didn't believe it: "That sounds even more fake."
Hirugami also sat cross-legged beside him: "I'll help you win the championship; that way, losing to you won't feel too unfair."
If Inarizaki wins the championship, then they are essentially the runners-up.
The corridor outside became chaotic, Hirugami tilted his head slightly. "The match is over; it's likely 2-0."
And given the speed at which it ended, the score difference must have been quite large.
Although there were no more matches left, the Women's Volleyball Semifinals in the adult division were still ongoing, so the venue wouldn't be closing anytime soon.
Hikari! Yukihito! Mebuki!
He's leaving!
Suwa's voice drifted in from outside. Hirugami stood up and patted his pants. "Good luck, you guys. We're off to have the losers' bracket meal."
After seeing Hoshiumi and the others leave, Hinata once again fixed his entire gaze on Miya Atsumu.
Looking at Hinata, whose eyes were filled with nothing but "Give me a toss!" and "Give me a toss!", Miya Atsumu felt like he couldn't handle it anymore.
Suddenly, Aran's words from the testing at Itachiyama flashed through his mind.
If Shoyo asks you for extra practice, can you keep up?
The answer has now appeared.
—He can't keep up.
Suppressing the urge to agree immediately, Miya Atsumu closed his eyes. "I'll practice with you tomorrow morning.. I'm taking a break today."
Don't you still have to go say hello to Suzuki Nanao? You won't have time later.
It was just the right chance for him to see who this mysterious entity was.
Just as Miya Atsumu expected, Hinata's attention was quickly diverted to something new.
He put down the volleyball: "That's right! The people from Sannomiya Industrial will be leaving in a bit, so it's the perfect time for me to introduce Nanao to Atsumu-senpai as well."
Miya Atsumu was even more confused.
—And introduce him to him?
After tidying up the secondary gym, Hinata walked ahead, muttering, "Coach Kurosu wants me to try and subtly scout them, but it probably won't work. The other coach from Sannomiya Industrial is his mother.."
“Huh? Coach Kurosu wants to scout them?” Miya Atsumu was bewildered.
No way, could someone from Sannomiya Industrial really be scouted?
It wasn't until Miya Atsumu stood face-to-face with the fifth-year little guy that he finally realized why Hinata said the coach was still thinking about poaching players.
At the entrance of the other side's auxiliary gym, which Karasuno had used before, Suzuki Nanao was jumping up and down around Hinata: "Hinata-senpai! That last set was so cool!"
How did that Quick Attack even happen? It just went through in a flash!
Suzuki Garaku, who had just lost a match, had originally intended to come out and call out to his younger brother, but as soon as he poked his head out, he saw Miya Atsumu's face.
The words got stuck in his throat, Garaku finally pulled his head back in.
Forget it, he didn't want to talk to Miya Atsumu at all; he was too terrifying.
But before he could take two steps back, Hinata's voice came from the doorway: "By the way, do you want to come to Yako for junior high? You can be directly recommended to our Inarizaki for high school."
With a bang, the door behind Miya Atsumu was pushed open.
Suzuki Garaku pulled his fiercest expression yet: "What do you think you're doing? You looking for a fight!"
Why are you kidnapping children! This is my brother, did you get my permission?
Suzuki Nanao, who had just been about to agree readily, was grabbed by the collar of his shirt by his brother and was pitifully hauled into the gymnasium.
Suzuki Garaku glared fiercely at Miya Atsumu, then said earnestly to his younger brother, "Stay away from Inarizaki, they have ulterior motives.."
Miya Atsumu's expression twisted.
It's not like he's poaching players, so why is he glaring at him!
A sneer came from behind him. He turned around and found it was Iizuna and Amatori who couldn't hold back their laughter.
Hinata immediately greeted the two people closest to him: "Kami-senpai! Gen-senpai!"
You played well," Komori said, raising his hand to pat Hinata's shoulder, "See you on the court tomorrow.
He had not yet faced Hinata in an official match; back when they were at Shiratorizawa, Hinata was still in a period of technical growth, but now he had shown immense progress.
As someone who had learned many technical plays by watching Hinata.. he was quite looking forward to it.
Hinata nodded vigorously: "Yes! I will definitely hit balls that you seniors won't be able to receive!"
By the way.. he wanted to try and receive one of Sakusa-senpai's spikes.
You're a pretty good core too, but I've already memorized everything about you," Komori said, teasing Hinata. "Tomorrow, I'll have Agatsuma-senpai keep an eye on you at Position 4.
Hinata froze for a moment; it seemed he wouldn't be playing in Position 4 tomorrow.
Thinking about it, he spoke subconsciously, "Tomorrow, I.."
Miya Atsumu was quick, grabbing Hinata from behind and covering his mouth: "You're the ones who should be careful; I might break your reception.
While both sides were engaged in their subtle struggles, the Itachiyama coach had already arrived at the entrance of Sannomiya Industrial.
Coach Himegomiya, in a wonderful mood, clicked her tongue: "How the tables have turned—"
She leaned over and shouted to her best friend in the adjacent gym, "Hime! Watch your kid, be careful or the fox will carry him off!"
A response came from inside immediately: "Got it!"
As they were leaving, Komori gave Miya Atsumu a thumbs up.
Watching the Itachiyama people disappear down the hallway, Miya Atsumu finally let go of Hinata.
It was the first time he felt such a headache: "We need to be a bit more cautious; don't just say everything out loud.."
Not only was he physically exhausted, but he was even more mentally drained.
He suddenly realized how the Kita Team usually viewed them..
Hinata blinked and looked up at Miya Atsumu. "No, I probably won't be playing tomorrow."
Osamu-senpai will be able to play as a starter tomorrow; at most, he will only go in as a substitute to create opportunities.
Listening to Hinata's completely wrong conclusion, Miya Atsumu fell silent for two seconds.
—If only I had known, I wouldn't have stopped him.
Itachiyama should have heard all this!
"Forget it.." Miya Atsumu raised his hand to scratch his head, suddenly remembering that his hair still looked like a bird's nest.
He gave up struggling: "I'll just go back, take a shower, go to sleep."
Meanwhile, Komori, who had already walked to the other side of the auxiliary gymnasium, felt his phone vibrate.