The King's way of thinking was as usual..
Seeing the block closing in, Rishia did not panic; instead, he lightly tapped the bottom of the volleyball, sending it on a soft tip over the net.
Hinata from the back row lunged forward in a diving motion, but he pulled his hand back at the very moment he was about to touch the ball.
Out!
Kindaichi, passing by the sidelines, looked down and made a gesture to indicate it was out.
Kageyama clicked his tongue lightly. "Tch."
Did he sacrifice the ball's height just to try and outrun the block??
Rishia immediately spoke up: "Mine, mine, I tipped it in the wrong direction."
It's been a while since I played such a fast-paced, flat game; I'm a bit out of practice.
Tsukishima Kei narrowed his eyes.
Indeed, the King had never handled such a short, flat ball at Karasuno, Rishia wasn't the only one who was out of practice.
"Heisuke, you've been neglecting your technical training." Hinata huffed, having judged it to be out.
Rishia sighed, "It's clearly because of you.."
If it weren't for that physical monster in his same grade, would he have spent the last month and a half being constantly pressed into physical training, causing his skills to become rusty?
Hinata and Rishia looked at each other, then Hinata turned decisively to look at Kageyama: "Kageyama, give it a bit higher, Heisuke can reach it."
This time, it was Rishia's turn to beg for mercy: "Shoyo, are you trying to kill me?!"
He still wanted to slack off legitimately!
Kageyama rubbed his chin upon hearing this, looking thoughtful.
So this is what they mean by.. forcing out all of a Spiker's potential at the right moment?
But, what exactly constitutes the right time?
Tsukishima, feeling a faint sense of foreboding, lowered his eyes, meeting Kageyama's gaze head-on.
While undercurrents surged between the two, Rishia and Hinata on the other side were still busy blaming each other.
Is the King difficult to deal with?
Perhaps a little, but for Rishia and Hinata, it wasn't much different from usual.
After all..
In a sense, Miya Atsumu was the most difficult one to deal with.
Chapter 148: The One Hundred and Forty-Eighth Fox
Tsukishima, serve a good one!
Hinata placed his hands skillfully behind his head; even though it was useless, he still had to act like he was providing cover for the serve.
Tsukishima Kei frowned again: "It's Tsukishima."
Staring at the volleyball in his hands for a moment, he raised his hand and tossed the ball into the air.
He doesn't know how to do a jump serve, but that doesn't mean his serves lack threat; on the contrary, in terms of precision, his serves are quite difficult to handle.
Rishia Heisuke took two steps back, carefully observing the ball.
Although it looked like it was on the line, fortunately, the ball wasn't moving fast, giving him plenty of time to judge whether it was out.
After quickly reaching a conclusion, Rishia lowered his center of gravity to dig the ball: "Kageyama-kun."
Kageyama prepared to set the ball once again.
Glancing at Tsukishima Kei on the opposite side once more, Kageyama tossed the ball toward the edge of the net again, though this time it was much higher than before.
—Nice one.
After receiving the ball, Rishia quickly stepped forward, taking a running start aimed at the ball's position.
Hinata didn't prepare to block, but instead stepped back to prepare for the receive.
Generally speaking, Quick Attacks rarely occur in two-on-two, because one of them needs to deal with the reception, most of the time, they are unable to keep up.
So he only needed to observe Rishia's spike, without needing too much anticipation.
The feeling of this spike..
Hinata decisively stepped to the right, bending one knee and using his arm to receive the ball head-on.
He was incredibly familiar with Rishia's spike; from the spin to the power, everything was exactly as he knew it, so.. there wouldn't be any problem.
"Nice receive." Tsukishima raised his hands, preparing to set the ball.
He actually wasn't very good at setting; compared to those professional setters, the difference was like heaven and earth.
Tsk, I thought someone just said he was going to set the ball, so how did it end up being him?
Fine, his reception was a bit problematic.
Tsukishima and Hinata aren't close, but having watched the footage, he knew what kind of plays this guy would make, so.. he'll just give him a simple center high ball.
But the moment the ball slipped from his hands, he felt that something was going terribly wrong.
Damn, the set was way off.
This ball was too high, so high that it wasn't at a level a normal human could even hit.
While Kageyama was dazed on the other side of the net, Rishia's voice had already rang out: "Kageyama-kun! Block!"
Kageyama snapped out of his daze and chased after him directly.
He wasn't chasing the ball, but Hinata himself, because.. he didn't think this kind of ball was within the Spiker's reach.
The normal defensive direction should be to prevent Hinata from tipping the ball over the net or lightly touching it to send it over.
But logically speaking, Rishia Heisuke shouldn't be this anxious, right?
Hyakuwa, who had gone out to buy sports drinks, stepped into the gymnasium, his gaze involuntarily drawn to the court.
—So high.
He wasn't talking about the ball itself, but about someone who had already leaped into the air.
Kageyama's pupils suddenly contracted.
Wait, even if Hinata jumps that high, there's no way he could reach this ball. He should wait for the ball to pass its peak, then..
The next second, the volleyball passed its peak and began to fall, then..
—It overlapped with Hinata's left-hand hitting point.
With a loud bang, the volleyball zipped past the side of Kageyama's arm, crashing straight down near the sideline.
Rishia Heisuke had already dove for it, but he couldn't reach it.
Hinata landed, his center of gravity slightly off, but the balance training from the past few days had already shown significant results. He struggled to adjust himself, ultimately stumbling two steps before managing not to fall.
On the other side, a first-year student from the Shiratorizawa Team passing by shouted loudly, "In!"
"Yes!" Hinata, having successfully regained control of his body, let out a cheer, then raised both hands toward Tsukishima Kei, signaling for him to come over for a high-five.
Tsukishima hadn't come to his senses yet, looking at the rushing Hinata with a face full of shock.
Wait, did this guy just spike the ball he received? And with his left hand?
Is that even human?!
Tsukishima's expression changed rapidly, while Hinata, standing before him, went from excitement to confusion, now he had no idea what he was imagining, his face filling with desolation.
That look seemed to be asking him—aren't you going to give me a high five?
In the end, he raised his hand and slapped it firmly: "Nice play."
A tiny voice from Rishia Heisuke came from across the net: "Show a little more passion—"
Although this guy wouldn't fail to survive without praise, the fact that everyone in the team was never stingy with their compliments usually resulted in..
Once he doesn't receive the praise he deserves, Hinata might feel that he didn't play well enough.
Looking at Hinata, who still looked a bit disappointed, Tsukishima's expression twisted even further.
Finally, under the gaze of the two from Inarizaki, Tsukishima raised his voice and said stiffly, "Nice play."
That's ridiculous, can you really chase down a ball like that?
Hinata gave Tsukishima a big thumbs up: "Tsukishima-kun's toss was also amazing! Super fast!"
He shook off Kageyama's block so perfectly!
Scoring a point directly against Kageyama's block felt amazing!
Rishia Heisuke, feeling inexplicably exhausted, raised his hand and covered his face.
—Is that a compliment? That's mockery!
Standing by the sidelines, Hyakuwa Takehiro clenched his fists, after a brief moment of daze, he watched the match with even greater focus.
He turned around and found a good spot by the wall to sit down.
On the court, Kageyama received Tsukishima's tool, then Rishia moved forward from the back row, raising his hands to set the ball toward Position 2.
Kageyama's movement was also very fast; the moment he caught up to the ball, he put all his strength into the spike, smashing it straight through Tsukishima Kei's block.
The volleyball flew out of the court, Hinata sprinted at full speed to chase it, but unfortunately, the ball hit the wall first.
Watching the footage on the monitor, Coach Saito sighed, "Kageyama-kun.. he's performing unexpectedly well in the Spiker position."
He rubbed his chin. "Would it be better to let him change positions?"
Moreover, for some reason, he always felt that Kageyama didn't seem very happy when he was playing as a setter, his condition was actually much better when he was spiking.
Coach Washijo said nothing, merely watching the ongoing match on the court in silence.
Rishia Heisuke sent another high ball over, after Tsukishima blocked it, he quickly reached out to set the ball up.
Hinata lightly licked his lips, moved to the area near where the ball would land behind the three-meter line, jumped, raising his hands to set the ball.