Watching Leonard and Minka Shugo step up one after another across the net, along with Oliver preparing for a back-row attack, Atsumu-senpai's expression twisted even further.
The Black Jackals' back-row formation for the first receive compared to the regular season can be described as a major overhaul; the reaction speeds of these two newcomers are quite fast.
Oda raised his hand and sent the ball to Oliver.
The momentum generated by the Ace in his prime as he jumped from the back row caused Hinata's expression to sharpen.
Suna and Miya Osamu jumped together, following Oliver's jump to block in the next instant, ensuring that their timing for reaching the maximum height would coincide with the arrival of the ball.
Hirugami Fuku rubbed his chin and said softly, "A double block?"
Hoshiumi explained, "It's a very standard 2-1 formation."
Hinata, who stayed on the left side of the net to guard against Leonard and Minka Shugo's attacks, Suna, who was positioned in a place where he could adjust his lateral movement at any time, ensured that support could be provided as quickly as possible.
Once he knew it wasn't his block, Hinata could step back and adjust his position, preparing to defend the subsequent front-court ball.
This was a very standard follow-up movement for a one-on-one block when the setter is in the back row; Inarizaki's execution could be described as exceptionally high.
But.. can Inarizaki really handle an Ace's strong attack like that?
Despite trying their best to keep their hands flat to touch the ball, neither Suna nor Miya Osamu could ultimately control it, after hitting their hands, the ball flew out of the court at an extremely high speed.
Unabara Uta, who was nearby, bolted after it, holding onto the chance that he only needed to touch it; the moment the ball struck the railing, he swung his foot and kicked it.
Arima Shuji sighed in the waiting area, "Akagi-senpai would be very pleased."
Beautiful!
Hanae had a serious expression. "Amazing, you actually managed to save that."
But he also knew that the reason the ball could be saved was mostly thanks to the block; Miya Osamu and Suna's touches were clean and crisp, providing the Libero with the space needed to save the ball.
Miya Atsumu quickly moved into position, doing everything he could to lower his center of gravity.
He managed to step in and set the ball, even though its speed was out of control and its angle was extremely low.
Across the net, Coach Sansou couldn't help but clap his hands. "As expected of Miya Atsumu."
Suna, having secured the ball under Hinata's cover, instantly twisted his waist and spiked the ball past the Minka Shugo block.
Maekawa quickly followed up from the back row to receive the ball: "Oda-senpai!"
After performing a beautiful fake set toward Position 4, Oda decisively sent the ball to Minka Shugo in the center for a Quick Attack.
Suna and Miya Osamu jumped to block again, while Hinata also adjusted his position behind the block following Miya Shugo's movement, ready at any moment to receive a dump.
But Captain only executed a casual line spike that bypassed the block.
On that side of the defense, Rishia Heisuke raised his center of gravity and actively applied force in the opposite direction, sending the ball flying toward the attack line at an extremely high speed.
Suna and Miya Osamu both shouted almost at the same time, "Give me the ball!"
Minka Shugo, positioned at the center near the Black Jackals' Position 4, watched Miya Atsumu across the net with caution, while simultaneously keeping an eye on the movements of the orange shadow behind Suna and Miya Osamu.
But just a second later, the ball, which already had an extremely high initial velocity, flew off at an even greater speed the moment it touched Miya Atsumu's hands. As he lifted his foot to chase it, someone had already jumped near the sideline.
That shadow appeared from behind the cover of his teammate like a bolt of orange lightning, carrying an unstoppable momentum that enveloped the entire court.
But those eyes were incredibly calm, just like..
The eye of a hurricane.
There were no other emotions or thoughts, only two words—score.
No matter who the opponent was or how strong they were, he was going to score.
Oda, being nearby, was startled, but instinct was already driving him to jump for a block.
But..
So high.
Inunari's pupils suddenly contracted as he rapidly assessed the situation of the ball.
—Oda-senpai will be blocked.
Hinata's gaze locked onto a spot near the sideline, putting all his strength into spiking the ball straight down the line.
Inunari reached out, but he couldn't keep up with the ball.
The ball grazed his hand and flew off, landing near the sideline.
The court fell silent for a split second, followed immediately by an explosion of earth-shattering shouts.
Huh? What was that just now? What just flew past?
I didn't see it at all! By the time I snapped out of it, I was already spiking!
Hinata, having landed, couldn't quite bring himself to feel happy.
Despite the cheers and applause ringing in his ears, he felt a chill run down his spine.
This was already the best Quick Attack he could perform at his current stage.
He had already achieved the best possible height, speed, ability to maintain opportunities for basic play, in the past, even a simple fast ball would have been enough to make those opponents lose points the moment they faced it.
But that ball.. was almost touched by the opposing Libero.
And he knew that the opponents probably hadn't done much homework on them; it seemed as though only the Minka Shugo Captain remained consistently calm.
After all, people were already gasping at Suna-senpai's spike just now, so the fact that they could even touch a ball like that was truly terrifying.
Is this the Libero of a top-tier V1 League team?
Seeing that scene just now, Maekawa's eyes went wide: "Huh? How did he jump up like that?"
And wasn't he just over there receiving a front-court ball? How did he get back? Does he know Body Flicker Technique?
Does this Little One have some invisible wings behind him that they can't see? Or is he some kind of ninja from Mokoba?
Otherwise, how could someone with a height of 165 cm surpass Oda's touch and leave Minka Shugo behind?
Oda-senpai is a veteran Setter in the V1 League; although he's only 1.88 meters tall, his experience is absolutely vast!
As for Minka Shugo, it's even more obvious—how could they be left behind?
Inunari narrowed his eyes and smiled.
No, he took Hinata very seriously; he had even just gone to find videos of Inarizaki's Haruko Finals this year to watch.
After all..
He is truly someone worthy of the title "Little Giant."
Chapter 257: The 257th Fox
Lowering his eyes with a smile, Inunari looked up and said to all his teammates, "Sorry, my bad."
Maekawa Shintaro scratched his head. "That just couldn't be helped just now.."
Those two were the ones responsible for receiving just now; Inunari was lucky to have almost touched it, but if it had been him, he probably wouldn't have been able to react at all.
That kind of quick attack just now.. he hasn't even seen anything like it in professional matches!
No, no, no, the point right now is that he can't quite imagine how that last play was executed.
It couldn't be that the spiker found a position and an opportunity to jump first, then the setter sent the ball over, right?
No way!
Oliver was also very excited, constantly talking to Minka Shugo: "What was that? That was incredible!"
Coach Sansou chuckled by the sidelines, his eyes filled with admiration as he looked at Miya Atsumu, even carrying a hint of determination.
But Miya Atsumu didn't notice the gaze being cast toward him from the Black Jackals side; he was only looking at Shoyo with a bit of worry and nervousness: "Why isn't Shoyo happy?"
He waited and waited for Shoyo to come over to give him a high-five or a hug, but when it didn't happen, his excitement froze instantly.
When he turned around and saw Shoyo's expression, his heart instantly tightened.
Hinata's expression was serious as he stared intently at the opposing Libero, Inunari: "That last ball.. it was almost received."
“The opposing Libero anticipated my movement and the ball's trajectory; he knew I was going to spike that ball.”
Miya Atsumu was speechless.
He smiled with a hint of helplessness, reaching out to rub Shoyo's head. "Didn't you just fail to receive it? Shoyo, you scored such a cool point."
In terms of the result, it was a play that ignited the whole stadium; you should be cheering for it.
“But..”
Hinata looked at Miya Atsumu with some anxiety, but he was ruthlessly interrupted by Miya Atsumu.
As soon as Atsumu-senpai spoke, he pointed out that Hinata's current state was a bit off: "Is little Shoyo-kun feeling a lot of pressure right now?"
“Because the opponents are strong, you're the Ace? Their blocking is incredible? Their Libero is flawless? Do you feel like you're being left behind?”
Hinata froze for a moment, the fists he had been clenching at his sides slowly relaxed at that very moment.
It was indeed true; from the moment he saw the opponent's Ace spike, he realized that this match might be lost..
“Please, Shoyo-kun, Oliver is already 26 years old this year, nearly ten years older than you. He is at the peak of his experience, technique, physical condition.”
“He is an Opposite who ranks among the best in the world, a 2.07-meter super Ace.”
“And besides, he has teammates around him who are also at a national top-tier level. That Libero's current achievements are even greater than someone like Komori or Yaku."
Miya Atsumu's voice wasn't loud, but it allowed Hinata to feel a gentle yet powerful energy flowing toward him.
Hinata struggled for a moment before refuting him, "But we're in the middle of a match right now, we have to win."
Of course," Miya Atsumu said, spreading his arms toward Hinata. "So what I mean is, no matter what the opponent does, we can deal with the reflection part later.
What you need to do now is celebrate that last play of yours, okay?
Hinata looked up and met Miya Atsumu's eyes.
He knew the other was right; his current mindset was a bit off, a bit.. overly nervous.
It might not affect anything in the short term, but if he can't adjust in time, he will definitely make mistakes because of this later on.
After all, Atsumu-senpai and Suna-senpai are both very good at exploiting their opponents' psychology, let alone these V1 League star players..