Miya Atsumu's sternness: "It's because you failed yourself, Aran."
He had given Aran many chances, but Aran often failed at critical moments, so over time, he would no longer instinctively pass the ball to him.
Aran was shocked: "Do you even hear what you're saying?"
When would Miya Atsumu ever give him the ball?
Aside from the opportunities to spike into an open net with a Double Quick as cover, most of the remaining opportunities involved giving him the ball for a Strong Attack when he couldn't shake off the opponent's block.
He admitted that Miya Atsumu's setting was indeed flawless, but in that situation, they couldn't score..
Aran completely lost the battle after locking eyes with Miya Atsumu's protesting and frustrated gaze for several seconds.
Fine, it really was his fault.
He is the Ace; in that situation, he really should have taken the responsibility to break the deadlock..
But that didn't stop him from feeling wronged!
Aran settled for the next best thing, rubbing his hands together as he whispered, "Atsumu, give me some good spikes."
He obviously wasn't talking about height or anything like that; he was saying not to use him as a decoy.
Let others be his decoy, so that he can enjoy his spikes comfortably.
Under Miya Atsumu's sternness, Aran completely retreated.
Kita Shinsuke raised his hand to pat Aran, able to offer him only spiritual comfort.
After all, handling pressure is indeed an important task for an Ace, especially since their Inarizaki wouldn't revolve around a single Ace like Shiratorizawa, Shirabu, or Fukurodani. It is perfectly normal for Aran to become a target for the opposing team.
And the opportunities for the Setter to set were essentially all competed for within Inarizaki.
Only by satisfying Miya Atsumu would he be chosen more often in subsequent attacks.
So, Aran, who has been under so much pressure..
It was quite difficult.
Aran, feeling frustrated, stood at the service line once again.
The cheers from behind erupted, shouting and cheering for his serve.
Aran's serve is a great one!
The whistle blew, without waiting, Aran tossed the ball straight up.
He admitted that, compared to the other top five Aces, his performance was somewhat inferior.
Because.. he isn't a star like Ushijima or Bokuto.
If one had to use an analogy, he and Sakusa are of the same kind.
They are the foundation that builds the team, the springboard that helps others soar.
But when they need to perform a spike, they will follow up without any hesitation.
It is perfectly normal for the setter not to give him the ball after considering all the options, but that doesn't mean he has to give up on scoring.
On the contrary, the best scoring opportunity was now laid out right before him.
Seijo's first receive has always been a weak point.
So.. let his serve end the match!
Bang!!
The serve, carrying a heavy spin, slammed down in front of Watari Chikaharu almost instantly.
Even though his dynamic vision had been forced to adapt throughout this entire rotation, Aran's serve was still far too heavy.
The volleyball lost control the moment it hit his arms, spinning wildly as it flew out of bounds.
The ball flew over the sideline barrier and finally slammed against the wall.
The whistle blew, Aran's serve scored.
The frustration in his heart was relieved.
Aran raised both hands high, declaring his victory: "Yes!!"
Hinata cheered along as well, "Aran-senpai is so cool!"
It was truly so cool.
He didn't know if he would be able to hit an ACE serve with even half the intensity of Aran-senpai's serve in his lifetime.
"Don't worry about it." Oikawa Tooru clapped his hands, comforting Watari Chikaharu, who was feeling a bit frustrated due to the frequent defensive errors.
But to be honest, even Oikawa Tooru's own mood at this moment was not particularly pleasant.
A four-point gap is practically an insurmountable chasm, making it hard to stop oneself from feeling a sense of despair.
But having come this far, one cannot help but long to go even further.
Even knowing that the mountain ahead is insurmountable, still..
So what?
They had already climbed one of those mountains that once seemed just as hopeless.
Aran's serve was spiked once again, maintaining its previous high quality.
This time, Watari Chikaharu had already adjusted his position forward in advance, turning and performing a diving back receive to send the ball back into play.
In a situation where the strength of both sides is severely mismatched, a diving back receive is the most reliable method.
Even if they couldn't control the trajectory of the ball, they could at least guarantee a minimum level of "getting it up."
"Great first receive!" Oikawa Tooru quickly stepped forward to follow up.
Iwaizumi Hajime raised his hand to call for the ball: "Give the ball to me!!"
With Inarizaki's current front row blocking configuration, even if he doesn't choose to break through with a direct strong attack, he can still break through using a tooling the block or by changing the ball's trajectory.
Miya Atsumu inconspicuously shifted a step toward Iwaizumi Hajime.
Watari Chikaharu's set was far from the net, given Oikawa Tooru's own raw ability, it was basically impossible to pull off a Quick Attack.
So the best choice was still the Ace.
Catching Miya Atsumu's movement in his peripheral vision, Oikawa Tooru couldn't help but curl his lips into a smirk.
In the next second, he used one hand with force, sending the ball sideways toward the High Point at the net.
Kindaichi leaped up with a thud, reaching his hand out toward the ball.
A very standard high ball to Position 3.
Position 3 itself is a position that no spiker particularly likes to spike from.
When there isn't enough space on either side, the opponents move toward the middle even faster; normally, they mostly rely on Back Quick attacks after the blockers have been drawn away by the spikers on both sides.
But.. for a player capable of maintaining a stable overhand, it isn't all that difficult to control.
Oikawa Tooru scanned Miya Atsumu's slightly stunned expression, feeling in extremely high spirits.
Isn't it just using the Ace as a decoy?
He can do it too.
Iwaizumi landed without any expression on his face.
He knew all too well about wasting one's feelings.
Oikawa Tooru was never an honest setter.
As soon as Kindaichi got the ball, he immediately locked onto Hinata, lightly tapping it toward the sideline near Hinata to force him into a diving receive.
Hinata's diving back receive went wrong, the volleyball flew directly over the net.
"Little Mad Dog!" Oikawa Tooru called out to Kyokutsu.
Kyokutsu and Miya Atsumu chased after it almost at the same time, but at the High Point, Miya Atsumu's single hand could not overcome Kyokutsu's two hands.
The volleyball was pushed over by Kyokutsu, smashing onto the floor.
The whistle blew, Seijo scored.
Oikawa Tooru raised his hand to force a high-five with Kyokutsu.
While waiting at the net for the staff to mop the floor, he turned his head to observe Inarizaki.
In terms of the number of offensive options Inarizaki possesses, it is truly quite troublesome.
And just as Coach Kurosu judged, one must eventually sacrifice either the Double Quick or the Ace's Strong Attack.
By comparison, the threat level in this rotation is still much greater with Hinata.
Oikawa Tooru lowered his gaze, meeting the eyes of Hinata, who had just scrambled up.
Anyway..
First, let's tie one of the fox's paws.
Chapter 190: The One Hundred and Ninetieth Fox
"Nice one, Iwaizumi! Smash it right through Inarizaki!" Oikawa Tooru shouted, cheering Iwaizumi Hajime on.
Right now, Hinata's positioning is quite far forward, so there's no way to target him with a serve.
Moreover, there is no need for Iwaizumi Hajime's powerful service turn to turn into a net touch; instead, it would just be a waste of the value of such a serve.
Currently, none of the three people in Inarizaki's back row responsible for the first receive are easy to suppress; relatively speaking, the Ace Aran's receive is slightly weaker.
"I've got it!" Aran shouted, quickly moving to prepare for the receive.
Miya Osamu coordinated with Hinata to execute a Double Quick to quickly score a point, the service turn soon passed to Oori Ren in the next rotation.
Rishia Heisuke and Oori took turns serving.
Oikawa Tooru said in a low voice, "Power Serve, be careful."
Iwaizumi Hajime did not seek cover from the others this time, but instead moved into position to receive the ball.