Hikari-kun is blocking the line and the dump behind the net. From a broader perspective, the Karasuno setter's position is slightly exposed behind Norikura Isao, so if the ball control is sufficient, a short diagonal could be used..
Ah.
Hinata opened his eyes and looked at Miya Atsumu with a hint of surprise. "That setter, he moved half a step toward Karasuno's Position 4 after jumping for the block, didn't he?"
A very subtle, unnecessary movement.
But for the Ace of Fukuda General who initiated the attack, a lack of prior observation could lead to missing the opponent's movement, causing him to mistakenly believe it was a point that could be broken through.
Then.. he was blocked completely by Hirugami.
He had done it many times before as well, but rather than relying on the natural advantage of his position as a setter, he had only been able to achieve such results by taking advantage of his previous weakness in receiving, which made him an easy target for attacks.
After his receiving skills improved significantly and he demonstrated the ability to receive and attack on his own, there were fewer people specifically targeting him.
Miya Atsumu lowered his eyes slightly, a look of satisfaction appearing in them: "Exactly."
He rested his chin in his hand, his eyes darkening as he looked at Hinata. "So, what is Shoyo's answer?"
Swallowing the food in his mouth, Hinata spoke directly, "Even though I really want to say Atsumu-ge's setting is very delicate and I could hit a Line, with Hikari-kun behind me, I'm afraid it won't be that easy to score."
If I were on the court, I would choose to tip it over the block with a backspin dump to score from the front court.
Miya Atsumu couldn't help but laugh. "They bullied Hoshiumi because his legs are too short to rush over and save the ball in time?"
Shoyo looked righteous: "They bullied me like that too."
Miya Atsumu gave Hinata a thumbs-up. "Very good, I support you."
He decided not to single out Karasuno's Little Libero this time either; after all, it was much more interesting to pick on Hoshiumi.
Just then, the phone Shoyo had placed on the table buzzed.
Hinata froze for a moment, reaching out to grab his phone to check the message he had received. "Eh? It's Inunari-senpai."
He said he has something to bring me, that he's coming to watch our Finals while he's at it.
Hearing this name, this time it was Miya Atsumu who was stunned: "Huh?"
Wait, wasn't he the one preparing to sign with the Black Jackals? Why is Hinata so close with Inunari?
Oh, right, Inunari and Unai are roommates..
Hinata looked up at Miya Atsumu and reported to the Captain, "Inunari-senpai said to send him a message when we head to the gymnasium, he will come find us."
Miya Atsumu nodded in agreement, "Alright."
It's likely that Inunari came along with the team's scout, or perhaps he wanted to see how he was doing and scout for any potential talent at the same time.
“To put it simply.. his presence is much stronger than Kamibayashi's." "Let's continue then. This final number 12 Libero is also a freshman from Karasuno, his skills are very solid." Miya Atsumu pointed his finger at the second shortest person in the video.
To put it simply.. his presence is much stronger than Kamibayashi's.
Now Hinata understood completely: "Then isn't that incredibly amazing?"
The main reason Kamibayashi's presence is low is that his receiving skill is slightly inferior to Hoshiumi's, he participates in fewer defensive plays, so naturally, he doesn't leave much of an impression.
His presence is higher than Kamibayashi-senpai's, which at the very least suggests that this person's receiving ability is likely on par with Hoshiumi's.
Miya Atsumu nodded. "Yeah, you could put it that way."
Among the current generation of Libero players, besides the already rising Hanae, the ones receiving the most attention are Nekoma's Shibayama, Star First's Hayami, after them, Karasuno's first-year Takahashi.
Shibayama is gaining attention because he is a Libero scouted and trained by Coach Nekota. Regardless of Nekoma's overall performance over the past few years, their starting Libero from every class has essentially gone on to play in professional leagues.
The same applies to Star First, Hayami himself has great natural talent. However, he suffered a ligament strain and patellar damage during last year's National Sports Festival and has been in rehabilitation recently; his performance has been unsatisfactory, Star First was also eliminated in previous matches.
Therefore, the remaining Takahashi is the only relatively stable Libero among the new generation; if he is trained well, it is possible for him to go straight into the V2 League upon graduation.
However.. personally, he is quite optimistic about Nishizawa Hokuto, who emerged from the cracks in the rocks.
Even though the first-year freshmen might lack experience, Takahashi is proactive enough, his solid fundamentals combined with decent setting skills have relieved a lot of pressure from Hoshiumi.
This is also why Hoshiumi's condition remains so good even after playing so many matches for Karasuno.
Thinking of this, Atsumu turned and said, "However, the physical condition issues of the first-year freshmen are still an issue; this Libero and that Setter are both in much worse condition than they were the day before yesterday and yesterday."
Well, he admitted that it seemed to be more effective when targeting the Libero.
“Coach's intention is for you to go head-to-head with Hirugami directly..”
After briefly explaining the details of the meeting to Hinata Shoyo, it was almost time to head back to the court.
Sitting in the lobby waiting for the others, Hinata felt a bit nervous.
It wasn't because of the afternoon match, but rather because he heard that Unabara Uta would be playing in the afternoon as well.
After he woke up, he wanted to go check on Unabara Uta immediately, but Miya Atsumu told him that Unabara Uta had gone to take a nap, so he hadn't seen how he was doing with his own eyes until now.
Even though he knew that Coach Kurosu allowing Unabara Uta to play meant everything was fine, he was still worried.
The moment he caught sight of Unabara's figure, Hinata jumped up and lunged forward: "Unabara!"
Unabara Uta smiled and greeted him, "How did you sleep, Shoyo? You must be exhausted from this morning."
Noticing the worry in Hinata's eyes, Unabara Uta simply reached down to tug at his pants, showing him the compression brace on his leg. "I'm completely fine, you don't need to worry about me."
He also showed off his agile and swift movements to Shoyo.
Hinata finally felt relieved: "That's great then—don't worry, Unabara, I will definitely, definitely help lighten your pressure!"
Unabara Uta froze for a moment before raising a hand to pat Hinata's head. "There's no need for that."
Shoyo, you just focus on taking flight; this is my job.
Hearing these words, Miya Atsumu, who had been glaring since Unabara Uta placed his hand on Hinata's head, withdrew his gaze.
After taking a head count, everyone returned to the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium.
The third-place match had concluded, with Itachiyama defeating Fukuda General 2-1.
The members of Itachiyama were worn down by Inarizaki during the morning matches and played with somewhat less energy during the afternoon matches, but in the end, they still managed to win by a narrow margin.
And Hinata and Miya Atsumu also saw the people coming to find them in the lobby of the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium.
Seeing the two people standing together talking, Hinata's eyes widened: "Giant-senpai! Inunari-senpai!"
Hearing Hinata's voice, Inunari-senpai waved to him. "Hinata, you've arrived at the perfect time."
Hinata jogged up to the two of them. "What are you two doing here?"
Inunari gave a brief explanation: "Captain Minka was invited to do special commentary for the finals, so Aman and I hitched a ride here."
Unai smiled at Hinata and, getting straight to the point, handed Hinata a file folder: "The sign-in for the Finals should be starting soon, so let's hurry. This is for you."
Hinata opened the folder, which contained a shikishi roughly the size of an A4 sheet of paper, protected by a transparent sleeve.
On it was a drawing of a boy's back as he jumped, the lines minimalist and full of dynamic energy, with an autograph from Unai Aman next to it.
And the boy in the picture was none other than him, wearing the number 10 Inarizaki uniform.
Shoyo's eyes lit up instantly, he looked at Unai with eyes full of pleasant surprise: "This is—"
Unai's smile was incredibly gentle: "I heard that one of the sketches I gave you before got wet and ruined, so I drew a new one. It's not just a practice sketch, though; it's specifically for you."
He reached out and patted Shoyo's shoulder: "Good luck in the Finals."
Hinata nodded heavily: "I will!"
Inunari glanced at his watch and said to Hinata, "Time's up. I'll see you after the match."
Coach Kurosu called for Hinata to go sign in, Hinata said goodbye to the two of them reluctantly, walking toward the Players' Tunnel while looking back three times.
Watching Shoyo's retreating figure, Inunari-senpai laughed heartily. "I'm really looking forward to today's match."
Don't you agree, Aman?
Unai smiled with his eyes lowered. "Yeah, I'm really looking forward to it."
After everyone signed in and changed into their uniforms, they waited in the Players' Tunnel for the staff to let them onto the court for warm-ups.
The third-place match had only recently finished, the court was still being tidied up.
Listening to the unfamiliar, fast-paced music being played by the Inarizaki Brass Band in the gym, Hinata was a bit dazed: "Eh? Did they change the playlist?"
Normally, during the halftime break, they would play some relaxing music or perhaps the Inarizaki school song, but this was the first time he had heard such a highly rhythmic song.
It's a bit.. blood-pumping!
Following behind, Tokura felt a bit of a stomachache.
Shouldn't the Brass Band Club's signature piece be the Toreador March from Carmen? Why are they playing the Toreador March right now!
They aren't going to play another dance tune in a bit, are they!
No way!
Meanwhile, having separated from the main group, Miya Atsumu also intercepted the members of Itachiyama as they were leaving through the other side of the Players' Tunnel.
Looking at his fierce rival, whom he had just played against this morning, Inamura's expression was not friendly: "Miya Atsumu? What are you doing here?"
Miya Atsumu ignored him, instead looking past the crowd toward Komori Motoya in the back.
“You haven't forgotten about spring, have you?”
Having long since guessed Miya Atsumu's intentions, Komori Motoya gave a helpless smile: "Of course."
You won, Miya Atsumu.
Author's Note:
Inarizaki High School Tokura Yukihito (August 2013)
Position: MB Number: 11
Height: 187.2cm Weight: 70.7kg
Recent troubles: Whether or not he can average his height with Shoyo's
Ability Parameters [Inarizaki High School Second Year Summer]
Strength: 4 Serve: 2
Vertical Jump: 4 Receiving: 2
Explosiveness: 5 Dig: 1
Intelligence: 1 Setting: 4