At a time like this, this Number 10 little brat would be more inclined to rely on his precise ball control to seize any opportunity to hit a line.
The volleyball fell behind Hinata, but the quick-reacting Miya Atsumu stepped in to set it again: "Kuniharu!"
On the other side, Kumagai Kuniharu covered in time, sending the ball back toward the net.
Hinata frowned slightly as he landed.
Lev's blocking technique could truly be described as "quite terrible," but he possessed many unique abilities that most people his age did not.
—In addition to his extraordinary height, he also possesses quite decent jumping ability.
This advantage ensured that even without skilled technique, Lev could complete the tasks assigned to him by relying on his height to exert dominance.
Especially when it comes to blocking Quick Attacks.
That leg length and arm length.. it's practically cheating!
"Aran-senpai!" Kumagai called out, supplementing with the Ace's name.
Miya Osamu had to take over Akagi's role to handle the overall defense, so the task of supporting the setter should be fully handled by him, a substitute setter.
After creating some distance, Aran moved toward the net, timing his jump perfectly as he rose right in the middle of the Nekoma block.
But because Miya Atsumu's ball itself wasn't delivered well, both Kumagai's set and Aran's spiking motion were quite obvious; consequently, the Nekoma block, which had been closely watching Aran, converged in front of him almost instantly.
Lev's arms swung over instantly, but because he wasn't focused on tensing his body, he was sent flying by Aran's heavy spike.
The volleyball flew high into the air, landing outside the court.
Yaku reacted incredibly fast, leaping as he sprinted forward to send the ball back into the court with a back set.
“Nice receive!”
Kenma shouted, adjusting his position while observing Inarizaki out of the corner of his eye.
He only glanced at Hinata before shifting his focus back to the center of the court.
"Give me the ball!" Lev called out urgently, asking for a toss.
But Kenma couldn't possibly pay attention to Lev's toss; instead, he immediately passed the ball to the back-row attacker, Kashiinayuki.
Hinata lowered his center of gravity slightly, staring at Kashiinayuki's movements.
When we were watching the footage this morning, Atsumu-senpai said that this person is also very good at spiking.
Before the current second-year Yamamoto Takeo took over the Ace position, this person was Nekoma's most important offensive powerhouse.
Given the opponent's current body orientation and the motion of the spike..
This should be a sharp cross spike, the landing point will be near the edge of the court.
The moment he made his judgment, Hinata took a step backward.
Atsumu and Suna had already rushed over, jumping to attempt a block.
But at that very moment, Kashiinayuki instantly changed his movement, lightly patting the underside of the volleyball.
With a soft sound, the volleyball flew over the net and the block, landing in front of Hinata.
His body moved before his brain could even process it; Hinata lunged forward, forcing a save on the ball before it could hit the ground.
Nice save!
While Miya Atsumu offered praise, the Itachiyama members on the sidelines frowned one after another.
"Is Nekoma planning to suppress both Aran and Hinata at the same time?" Komori muttered, rubbing his chin.
Use blocking and receiving to induce Aran's spiking motion, thereby reducing the intensity of his spike.
On the other hand, they used serves and spikes to force Hinata into receiving, restricting his movement speed and frequency.
"That's a dirty trick.." Amatori bared his teeth.
That's only possible because it's Inarizaki; any other team with only two strong offensive options would likely be completely stifled by Nekoma.
However, Inarizaki is different.
Even if Suna is not present, at least the movement between the setter and the opposite can be guaranteed to be free, allowing them to still execute ingenious attacks.
Thinking of this, Amatori was somewhat puzzled.
The core of Inarizaki can also be the Twins' quick attack.
No, it would be more accurate to say that Inarizaki's core was always built around the Twins' Quick Attack.
Miya Osamu's mobility and tactical thinking are superior to Aran's, his strength and application of various techniques are superior to Hinata's; he is, without a doubt, an all-rounder.
If one had to suppress a single player, Miya Osamu would be the more difficult one to deal with compared to Hinata and Aran, who both excel to the extreme in specific areas.
.. No, no, no, is it actually because of their balance that it favors Nekoma's more conventional, comprehensive defense?
Thinking so hard, Amatori almost got himself lost in his own thoughts.
On the court, Miya Atsumu watched Hinata, who was once again forced into a run by Fukunaga's dump, frowned with some irritation.
Although Inarizaki also loved using this kind of playstyle to force movement, when it was used against them, it was truly quite disgusting.
They couldn't keep being led around by the nose like this; they had to find a way to do something about it.
Hinata's mobility and Aran's powerful spikes are the weapons they rely on to survive; they cannot allow themselves to be controlled by Nekoma like this, becoming restricted in their movements.
So..
Miya Atsumu quickly ran through all the stakes in his mind, in the end, there was only one possible answer.
—By himself, as the setter, he would assist the spikers in breaking free.
Helping the spikers take flight was one of the responsibilities of a setter, so he should have provided even more daring tosses at a time like this.
In his field of vision, Miya Atsumu, positioned in the middle of Inarizaki, took a lateral step to his right, exposing his entire body to the sight of the Nekoma members across the net.
Kenma watched Miya Atsumu with a calm expression as he prepared to set the ball.
Watching him, he feigned a back set before switching to a high ball with a large, sweeping motion toward Position 3.5.
Just as before, the setter's role itself is to control the overall rhythm through lateral speed.
Many setters are unable to maintain the ball's hang time at its highest point while simultaneously providing speed, which in turn affects the entire quick attack process.
But Miya Atsumu is different; when it comes to this kind of micro-control for a setter, he could be considered the strongest in high school at this stage.
Therefore, this ball had both height and absolute speed.
Of course, this kind of ball isn't something just any spiker could hit.
Even at Inarizaki, this kind of ball belongs to Hinata alone.
A thud echoed in everyone's ears.
Hinata, who had already caught up to the volleyball, leaped into the air, moving countless times faster than the block.
Hinata stared at the ball that had been set in front of him, having already cleared all the blockers.
The perfect set inevitably brings an even more perfect offensive state, so.. he must win this point.
The arm swing he had been practicing since enrollment became Hinata's most solid weapon at this moment.
The ball he spiked was fast and carried an incredible spin, crashing straight down near the Nekoma three-meter line after clearing the net.
But just at that moment, Yaku, who had just rushed out of the court to save the ball, dove back in just in time. In an almost incredible diving posture, he sent the ball back up.
"Kenma!" Yaku called out to their brains countless times.
He looked up at the same time, meeting Hinata's shocked gaze.
Sorry, but he had to defend this point as well.
"Good save." Kenma's emotions remained steady, as if he wasn't surprised that Yaku could save this ball.
He scanned Inarizaki's formation once again.
Unlike before, when Hinata had dropped back for defense, this time Hinata moved to the net to prepare for a block, leaving the back row defense entirely to Aran.
With Suna acting as a blocker, Hinata and Miya Atsumu were positioned on either side of the net, one on the left and one on the right.
But at this moment, both Nekoma's setter and ace were in the front row, Nekoma wasn't particularly skilled at executing absolute spikes from the back row by Kashiinayuki and Fukunaga, so Hinata and Suna stood close together to defend against Yamamoto's spike from Position 4.
Miya Atsumu was on the other side, staying alert to Haiba Lev's coordination with Kenma for a sudden Quick Attack.
However.. it was beyond anyone's expectations at Inarizaki.
This time, Kenma didn't pass the ball to anyone.
With a soft sound, the volleyball flew over the net, dropping just past Miya Atsumu's shoulder.
Atsumu reacted quickly, raising his arm to immediately send the ball back into play.
Kuniharu!
Miya Atsumu was calling for his substitute to attempt a recovery set while cursing inwardly.
What is going on now? He felt like as this set approached the later stages, the frequency of others needing to perform a set was only increasing..
Atsumu's ball could be described as being quite terrible.
Kumagai Kuniharu, who already had a gap in setting skills compared to Miya Atsumu, was unable to orchestrate a complex attack.
Hinata, who simply spiked a Back Quick, was pinned down by Yamamoto and Lev, who teamed up to block the ball back.
With a loud thud, the volleyball hit the floor.
The long rally finally came to an end, Nekoma scored with a block.
Up until this very moment, Kenma, whose emotions had never wavered, curled his lips into a subtle smile, looking at the stunned Hinata across from him with a slightly amused gaze.
Catching a fox is actually quite simple.
—It only takes two steps.
Set a trap.
Then, filling it with a decoy of sufficient value would be enough.
And now.. the target has taken the bait.
In an instant, Amatori felt his scalp go numb.
He didn't know if the people from Inarizaki had noticed anything was wrong, but as a bystander, he had already guessed what Nekoma was planning to do.