Across these two sets combined, he took three points directly from Hanae, indirectly gained seven points by preventing Hanae from catching up, also provided many assists through cover and other means.
Looking at it this way.. he won, didn't he?
Exhaling a breath, Hinata shook his wrist and said to Miya Atsumu with a tilt of his head, "Atsumu-senpai, give me one last toss for today, I'll score."
Miya Atsumu agreed readily, "Alright."
Suna sent a standard buzzer-beater, but Hanae, whose focus had been intensely sharp throughout the entire match, did not miss the ball.
As long as you can keep up, Suna's ball isn't difficult to receive at all.
Ginjima stepped forward to move alongside Rishia, extending his body with one hand to touch the ball being spiked from the opposite side: "Touch!"
"Nice touch." Miya Osamu quickly stepped back to receive the ball.
After a brief observation, Miya Atsumu sent the ball into Hinata's hands, just as they had originally agreed.
Only Rishia was performing cover for this play, so Miya Atsumu's pass and Hinata's movement were actually quite obvious.
Moreover, the pass wasn't high, so the Municipal Kobe blockers finally seized the opportunity and rushed forward to jump, attempting to shut down Hinata's spike.
Because Hinata's frequency of hitting the short diagonal was quite high, the block from Municipal Kobe was very close to the net, making it impossible for them to press down fully while trying to avoid touching the net.
Hinata's expression remained unchanged, but he silently locked his gaze onto the fingers within his field of vision.
The ball he said would be a good one was just a single ball after all.
With a heavy thud, the ball bounced in everyone's sight and landed far away, an out ball that even a layman could clearly see.
Hanae took one look and gave up on chasing it, standing in place with his hands on his hips as he let out a long sigh.
After the whistle blew, a long, drawn-out buzzer followed, announcing the end of the match.
Inarizaki 2, Municipal Kobe 0, claiming the Hyogo Prefecture championship.
Hanae spoke softly, "The fourth defeat."
Kanzaki was stunned for a moment, but immediately realized what Hanae was talking about, his expression also turned sour.
That's right, this was their fourth defeat, their fourth time being utterly crushed by Inarizaki.
Even though they had become stronger, they were still incredibly fragile.
Kito's voice rang out immediately after, his tone firm and certain: "We will definitely win next time. I will become stronger."
Higashiyama raised a hand to scratch his head and asked very seriously, "Doesn't that sound a bit familiar?"
Murata threw up his hands. "Oh, I've heard that more than once."
Whether it was Kanzaki, Hanae, or even themselves, they had all said these exact same words at some point in the past.
Even though their wishes were crushed by reality time and time again, they were still willing to hold onto hope and wait for it.
Everyone lined up and bowed deeply toward the team flag.
Thank you all for your support!!
Nice play!
Atsumu is playing incredibly well today!
Shoyo's reception was so cool!
Looking at the graduated seniors sitting in the first row of the stands, Hinata puffed out his chest and held his head high with pride.
The seniors were not stingy with their praise either, Akagi went as far as to praise everyone one by one.
Hinata chuckled.
Today was truly an amazing day!
The Inarizaki members returned to the coaches' side of the court, everyone wearing smiles on their faces.
You played well in today's match. Keep it up, let's march toward the next championship.
YES!!
Both sides left the court one after another, after seeing Hanae walk into the Players' Tunnel, Hinata suddenly remembered something and stopped in his tracks.
He thought for a second, then turned and walked away.
Watching Hinata suddenly break away from the group and walk toward a certain spot by the sidelines, Miya Atsumu, who was just about to reach out to grab him, froze for a moment. "Shoyo, where are you going?"
“I'll be right back.” Hinata left without even looking back.
He walked past the media and various people crowding the sidelines for an interview with Miya Atsumu, walking with steady steps toward the person he had noticed since the start of the match.
The tall man looked down at Hinata, a hint of surprise flickering in his eyes.
He was surprised that someone had come looking for him, equally surprised that this person was Hinata.
Coach Unabara smiled at Hinata and asked in a gentle voice, "Hinata-senshu? Is something the matter?"
Hinata opened his mouth, wanting to say something but then realizing something, so he quickly bowed. "Hello, Coach! I am Hinata Shoyo from Inarizaki!"
Miya Atsumu, who had chased after him, forced his way through the surrounding crowd. Just as he was about to call out to Hinata Shoyo, he heard a sentence.
I beat Hanae, so tell me, Coach, do I have enough qualification now?
Miya Atsumu looked at Coach Unabara standing opposite Hinata, then looked at Coach Hiya standing beside Unabara, his brain stalled for a moment.
This scene felt somewhat familiar; thinking back to when he and Hinata first met, Hinata had also used that same righteous and incredibly confident voice to ask him if he could toss.
But.. the person standing opposite him now is a national team coach.
He was not particularly close to Coach Unabara, nor was he quite sure what kind of temperament this man had, or if he would get angry due to Hinata's sudden offense.
But he was willing to believe in Hinata, willing to believe in the ability and spirit Hinata displayed, believing that all of this would win this coach's heart.
Despite not being familiar with the personalities of the two coaches in their daily lives, it was absolutely certain that both of them possessed a deep appreciation for talent.
Looking at the two coaches with their expressionless faces and the frantic members of the Publicity Club on the other side, Miya Atsumu silently let out a breath of relief.
It's fine, there definitely won't be any problems.
The next second, Coach Unabara's voice rang out immediately: "Of course, you are excellent and have enough potential; you are exactly the kind of person we need."
I look forward to meeting you this summer. I hope you can perform even better in the Interhigh tournament; we sincerely look forward to seeing an even more brilliant performance from you.
Hinata's eyes widened, his expression filled with extreme surprise and delight.
He looked at Coach Unabara before him, feeling as though the man's figure had become exceptionally imposing in that very instant.
He had been recognized; it was the National Youth Team coach who had said it himself.
And did the second sentence also mean.. that he could also join the national team training camp just like Atsumu-senpai?
Someone's voice called out from behind. Unabara waved toward that direction and turned his head back to look at Hinata.
Good luck, Hinata.
Hinata's shout came from the distance: "I will!!"
"Is this alright?" Coach Hiya asked Coach Unabara with a smile.
Theoretically, the slots for the national team's annual intensive training camps are meant to be kept confidential and are only announced on a fixed date; telling Hinata in advance is against the regulations.
What's wrong with that? Considering I asked Coach Washijo to look after him last year, my intentions shouldn't be a secret, right?
Watching the two coaches leave, Miya Atsumu walked slowly up behind Hinata Shoyo and reached out to pat his shoulder.
Hinata looked back at him, his eyes slightly red.
After a long time, Hinata's voice, sounding a bit tearful, rang out: "I did it, Atsumu-senpai."
He defeated Hanae, he has earned the right to step onto the next stage.
Miya Atsumu didn't say much more, only offering him affirmation and encouragement in a steady voice: "Great job, Shoyo."
Hinata Shoyo nodded heavily: "Yeah!"
After a brief period of stretching and rest, the award ceremony arrived as scheduled.
The championship trophies, certificates, medals were presented in order, the Best Player and Best Setter awards once again went to Miya Atsumu.
But right after that..
[Best Spiker, Inarizaki High School, Hinata Shoyo.]
Hinata's breath hitched.
Although he had already suspected it before, when his name was actually called out, it still left him feeling a bit dazed.
It was him.
The Best Spiker, the greatest Ace, it was him.
Unabara, standing beside him, quickly nudged him, gesturing for him to step forward to receive the award.
Hinata Shoyo, finally snapping out of it, stepped forward clumsily and stood properly in front of the person in charge of the awards ceremony.
Certificates and trophies were handed into his hands, the weight around his neck became even more palpable at this moment.
Applause erupted like thunder, countless cheers and shouts surrounded him, making his nose sting with emotion.
He did it.
But this is just a prefectural award; in the future.. he will win national awards as well.
—And along with the championship trophy.
The Best Middle Blocker award went to Suna, while the Best Libero went to Hanae.
Everything had finally settled, the gymnasium, which had held the joys and sorrows of countless people, returned to silence once again as night began to fall.
The Inarizaki members were all lined up and ready to leave, but Coach Kurosu had been called away by the media representative for a discussion, so they were all waiting at the entrance.
Oikawa Tooru, who had finished watching the match and the awards ceremony and was also preparing to leave, "happened" to pass by the side door of the gymnasium.
He waved at Hinata: "Over here, over here, Shoyo-kun."
“Oikawa?” Hinata looked at Oikawa Tooru and hurriedly said to Coach Omimi, “Coach, I'll be right back.”
Seeing that it was an acquaintance, Coach Omimi simply nodded. "Alright, don't get lost."
Taking Hinata to a slightly quieter spot, Oikawa Tooru reached out and patted Hinata on the head.
Congratulations, Shoyo-kun, on winning your first Best Spiker title.