The solution for a situation like this.. Coach hasn't taught him yet!
In the end, he forced the ball toward Higashiyama, who had stood up and moved back toward the net.
If only the arc were increased slightly, lengthening the time the ball spends in the air.. it would be possible to coordinate.
Higashiyama also increased his speed, jumping at the net to perform a spike.
Ginjima and Miya Atsumu rushed over at the same time; the two of them jumped together and successfully made a touch.
One touch!
Unabara Uta in the back row didn't go after the ball either, because..
The whistle blew.
At the same time the Head Referee blew his whistle, he made a hand gesture, indicating a violation by Municipal Kobe, the Setter took possession of the ball.
Kito froze for a moment himself. "Huh?"
He held the ball? No? He didn't feel anything at all!
Landing, Higashiyama let out a soft sigh. He wasn't surprised by the ruling; he had realized the ball might have been a held ball the moment he saw Kito pass it to him.
When a Spiker hits the ball, there might be a longer contact due to techniques like spin serves or heavy spikes, but as long as the motion itself is a "hit" rather than a movement like carrying or pushing the ball, it will basically not be called a hold.
However, a setter's setting process is scrutinized very closely, not just for double contacts, but also regarding the judgment of consecutive touches.
The difference in whether a Setter holds the ball during a set might only be a fraction of a second, but for a seasoned volleyball player or a professional referee, it is something that can be easily perceived.
However, for someone like Kito, who had spent years throwing the ball with his hands.. he indeed couldn't perceive the difference.
Miya Atsumu couldn't help but chuckle: "Just as I expected.."
So easy to control.
He wasn't wrong at all; the ability of Municipal Kobe's setter to think for himself was practically zero.
Since he came from a background as a basketball three-point shooter, in situations requiring his individual judgment, he would easily end up holding onto the ball.
However, he hadn't expected it to be this easy; the plan was working much faster than he had originally anticipated.
Hmm.. should I say he had somewhat overestimated Kito's intelligence and his adaptability to volleyball?
A tuft of orange hair appeared in his field of vision, followed immediately by Hinata's voice: "I don't know exactly what happened, but.. Atsumu-senpai, that was a great play?"
Miya Atsumu raised his hand to give him a high five. "Sakurai Haruto's targeted spike just now and his subsequent defensive positioning were timed perfectly."
Hinata gave a thumbs up, a look of great pride on his face: "Of course!"
His hard work over the past few months had not been in vain; he felt that he was doing a bit better than before when it came to improving his defensive skills.
At least now, he was very clear about what kind of positioning he should use under different circumstances, he could also distinguish which balls he should receive and which balls he should not.
Seeing his expression, Miya Atsumu couldn't help but chuckle, but he quickly got back to the main topic: "By the way, Shoyo, in a moment you.."
On the Municipal Kobe side across the net, Captain Higashiyama was working hard to soothe Kito.
Ever since he switched positions, Coach had been constantly nagging him about ball handling, so for Kito, this was an error that absolutely could not be made.
To correct his ball handling issues, Coach specifically set a rule that anyone called for a double contact would have to perform two hundred sets of solo overhead passing drills upon returning.
But this time, it really wasn't entirely Kito's fault; the enemy was simply too cunning.
Oikawa Tooru silently covered his face in the stands: "This guy was wasted with a face like that."
Nagumo was a bit puzzled: "What's wrong with this face?"
Wakamura recalled for a moment, "Kito is the younger brother of that Mr. Kito from Tachibana Red Falcons, right?"
At that time, Coach Kuchibira had been worrying about finding a successor for him but had no leads, until finally, as if he had discovered some treasure, he snatched up a basketball player and brought him back.
I have to say, they really do look very similar.
Oikawa Tooru gave a light click of his tongue. "The generation is off; he's the nephew."
But it's obvious that this guy is nothing like his uncle; he doesn't have volleyball in his head at all.
Without dwelling too much on Kito, Nagumo quickly spotted the highlight: "So, Argentina's strongest former Setter is now your master, Japan's current strongest Setter is your half-senior?"
Oikawa Tooru, who had clearly just realized this as well, froze for a moment. After looking up and thinking it over, he found that it was indeed the case.
The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up, but he immediately gave a light cough: "Ahem, ahem, ahem, exactly."
Wakamura clicked his tongue heavily to express his dissatisfaction: "Tsk."
He didn't want to express an opinion on such a matter, because he was already so envious that he wanted to bite the person in question.
Oikawa Tooru returned to the main topic: "Oh, right, Wakamura, Miya Atsumu's technique for deceiving the blockers just now felt quite crude, it was simply hideous.."
Wakamura narrowed his eyes, not giving Oikawa even a single glance: "Don't talk to me. I don't want to deal with you for the next ten minutes."
Caught in the middle, Nagumo silently raised his hand to cover his face, sighing over and over again.
—These two childish brats!
Chapter 302: The Three Hundred and Second Fox
Kito, who was currently being discussed by everyone, felt very distressed, shrinking his neck and not even daring to breathe heavily.
It was for no other reason than the fact that, as the only first year in the team, he was essentially the target of supervision and encouragement from every senior.
It was not for anything else; after all, as the only first-year in the team, he was essentially the target of supervision and encouragement from all the seniors. Whenever trouble arose during training, as the one primarily responsible for cleaning up his messes, Hanae-senpai would repeatedly emphasize his mistakes in a very, very serious tone. It was as if Hanae-senpai scolded him often enough on a daily basis, Kanzaki-senpai would also chime in to support him.
Whenever some mess occurred during training, as the person primarily responsible for cleaning up his mess, Hanae-senpai would repeatedly emphasize his mistakes in a very, very serious tone.
To be honest.. it was still quite annoying.
But now, he actually missed Hanae-senpai's nagging a little, at least.. because that only happened when there weren't any particularly serious mistakes.
Hanae-senpai clapped his hands, soothing everyone's emotions: "It's fine, play boldly with me here."
Don't be afraid. We were just tricked by a ball handler; it's only one point, we'll get it back in no time.
Kanzaki-senpai was also by the side, trying his best to chime in: "That's right, that's right! Exactly!"
Coach Kuchibira sighed repeatedly by the sidelines: "So why can't the Libero be the Captain.."
In terms of ability, Hanae-senpai is much more suitable than Kanzaki-senpai.
Sakurai Haruto, who was sitting nearby, spoke up: "It's coming soon, it's coming soon. Didn't you say there's already a proposal?"
However.. Hanae-senpai probably won't make it in time.
But even without the position of Captain, as the guardian of the team, Hanae-senpai would still serve to soothe everyone's nerves, Kanzaki would only need to focus on boosting morale as the Ace in the future.
The Inarizaki side had already reset their positions, the Head Referee was preparing to blow the whistle once he confirmed that Rishia Heisuke was ready.
Hinata hurriedly shouted, "Heisuke, give us a good serve!"
Rishia nodded heavily, adjusting his state before preparing for his next serve.
Because the opposing team's first receive is quite high-level, Inarizaki's scoring rate from serves hasn't been very high, he himself has rarely scored directly from his serves throughout the match.
With Atsumu-senpai and Osamu-senpai suffering consecutive failures.. surely he'll have a chance to score directly from a serve!
Under the continuous cheers and shouts of the crowd, Rishia Heisuke gradually began to find that feeling of wild imagination.
Unfortunately, relying solely on whimsy is of little use when it comes to serving; Hanae-senpai, who was still in excellent form, provided another perfect answer, steadily and reliably delivering the ball into Kito's hands.
Having learned his lesson, Kito's touch this time felt like he was handling a hot potato; the pass was incredibly sloppy.
Seeing this play, Miya Atsumu couldn't help but purse his lips.
That kid's mental state has completely crumbled.
Rishia Heisuke moved up from the back row and dropped low to receive the ball: "Atsumu-senpai!"
Almost in sync with Rishia Heisuke's touch, Hinata and the front row's Miya Osamu both took their first step at the same time.
Hanae made an instantaneous judgment—it was a negative-tempo Quick Attack.
The sound of the hit rang in his ears as the red, green, white interlaced ball spun, drawing closer and closer in Hanae's field of vision.
This is actually how a Libero's field of vision always is.
A low perspective, a flying volleyball.
Teammates moved back and forth, jumped, attacked at the edge of his vision, but he had been right here from beginning to end.
The sky does not belong to the Libero.
All he could control was the brief moment from when the ball was spiked by the Spiker until it hit his arms, but that moment was precisely the lifeline of the team.
The solid sensation hit his arms again and again, time and again, he called out the Setter's name.
The match isn't over yet; he won't admit defeat.
One point. As long as they could receive just one more ball, they would have a chance to close the gap by one point—
Bang!
At the net, Hinata raised his hand to spike a short diagonal, hitting it to a spot where Hanae-senpai couldn't reach just as it flew past the block.
The score jumped to 24:22, Inarizaki leading Municipal Kobe; Inarizaki match point.
Nice play!!
Nice play, Shoyo!
Oikawa Tooru was not at all surprised by such a result.
Relatively speaking, both teams were highly complete; the only variable was the newcomers who had been substituted in.
It is glaringly obvious which is more detrimental: a severe deficit at setter or a slight deficit at libero.
Even in the same situation, a deficiency in the setter, who acts as the center of command, would have more severe consequences, since a deficiency in the libero's skill can be partially compensated for by the wing spiker.
And if the Setter's level can't keep up, then the Spikers have to adjust themselves. Kiryu Ya isn't the type of Spiker who can handle everything, not to mention Kito is still an inexperienced rookie.
The fact that Municipal Kobe could still trade blows with Inarizaki in this situation, relying on their defense, the Ace's adaptability, their own skills, actually made him think they were quite impressive.
I wonder if this Setter can grow; otherwise.. there's still no chance of winning.
Hinata stared intently at Hanae-senpai, who was looking down at the floor on the opposite side.