After Karasuno scored consecutive points, the score returned to its initial state, with Karasuno leading by one point.
However, for Inarizaki, a single point was still manageable; it hadn't reached the point where their defeat was directly sealed.
Hirugami was certainly aware of this, so his goal was to pull ahead by at least two points before the time-out at 16 points.
The difference between two points and one point might seem small, but it is actually a chasm.
A single point could be tied at any moment, if the match is dragged on, there's a high probability of a deuce; however, a two-point lead means the ability to reach set point with the utmost composure.
Not to mention that in a match like this, the opportunity to score consecutive points might only occur once in an entire rotation, so the difficulty of closing a two-point gap is easy to imagine.
Especially since Karasuno is quite.. good at defending their lead.
Glancing at the position Miya Atsumu had pushed himself to the absolute limit to cover, Hirugami's smile remained unchanged.
He knew that there would be no opportunity to target Miya Atsumu this time.
Miya Atsumu can complete a Quick Attack even from near the baseline, so as long as he doesn't attempt the First Receive, the quality of the subsequent offense can be guaranteed. This positioning clearly shows that he won't attempt to receive the ball regardless, leaving everything to Miya Osamu and Unabara Uta to handle.
In that case.. I'll serve with the goal of disrupting Inarizaki's offensive rhythm as much as possible.
Hirugami's gaze shifted to the Head Referee above, at the exact moment the Head Referee blew the whistle, he raised his hand to toss the ball.
A buzzer-beater.
The moment he heard the sound of the hit, Unabara Uta stepped back, adjusted his body position, lunged toward the direction of the ball in a diving movement.
His legs aren't very flexible right now, so it's difficult for him to perform a diving receive. But Miya Atsumu can set from anywhere; he only needs to ensure the First Receive is high enough.
“What a great first receive!” Miya Atsumu decisively moved a step back, preparing to complete the set near the baseline.
Bessho stared at his movements, slightly rising onto his toes, ready to adjust his position at any moment.
With the setter being so far away from Miya Atsumu's spiking position, even if he tries to call for a Quick Attack, he won't be able to execute a negative-tempo Quick Attack, so he should just focus on normal defense.
Thinking this way, Bessho's gaze shifted toward Hinata, who was already acting suspiciously behind the Three-meter Line, preparing to make a move.
Of course, given the Inarizaki Little One's erratic playstyle.. one couldn't rule out the possibility of him coordinating with Miya Atsumu to perform a negative-tempo Quick Attack directly from behind the three-meter line.
In the split second that Bessho's brain was processing, Hinata had already suddenly leaped up behind the three-meter line.
Bessho's mind, which had been racing moments ago, went completely blank at this instant. His head buzzed, leaving him with only one single thought.
—They're actually doing it.
His body's instinct had already driven him to jump along with them, it wasn't until he was in the air that he realized this might be an Inarizaki decoy trap.
But it was already too late, he could only continue to blindly believe that Hinata would be the one to perform the spike.
Fortunately, Miya Atsumu really gave the ball to Hinata.
But unfortunately.. the direction of Hinata's spike wasn't on his side of the defense at all.
Staring at Bessho and Norikura Isao on the opposite side, Hinata's gaze shifted slightly, locking onto Hakuma Mebuki on the other side, who was not participating in the block but was instead supplementing the front-row receiving lineup.
This gaze was so intense that it caused a significant amount of sweat to bead on Hakuma's forehead.
Hoshiumi's positioning was a bit deep; if he didn't receive this ball.. it would most likely be lost.
Hinata raised his hand and flicked the ball, spiking it toward the backcourt area that Bessho had left exposed because Hakuma had not moved over to cover it.
Hoshiumi locked his eyes on the ball, stepping forward and lowering his center of gravity in preparation to receive it.
But at that very moment, Hakuma, misled by the angle of Hinata's spike, mistakenly thought the ball was meant for him and took a step backward.
His vision was completely blocked by Hakuma, Hoshiumi, who had already crouched down, realized that something was terribly wrong.
In the next second, Hinata's spike slammed into the ground at an extremely high speed, Hakuma, who had just taken his position, didn't even have time to reach out his hands.
The sound of the ball hitting the floor was crisp; Hinata hadn't put much power into this spike, it was simply the pure speed of the ball.
Although the sound wasn't loud, it caused Hoshiumi, who was focused solely on Hakuma's legs, to see stars. His lips trembled, he didn't know what to say.
The whistle blew, Inarizaki scores.
It wasn't just the Karasuno stands that went silent; the Inarizaki cheering section erupted into a massive wave of boos, mixed with mockery directed at Karasuno.
Hahahaha—is Number 3 here to perform comedy?
He's practically sitting on the Ace's head, like he's performing acrobatics!
“Nice hit at Position 3! One more time!”
Hakuma raised a hand to scratch his head, then exchanged a helpless glance with Asahina, who was standing behind him.
Hirugami let out a laugh, while Hakuma, who still hadn't realized what had happened, turned around and looked down, meeting Hoshiumi's contorted, snarling expression.
A somewhat distraught Hoshiumi flailed his arms and legs: "What are you doing?! You couldn't handle the receive and you won't let me take it either—are you an undercover agent sent by Inarizaki?"
He admitted that his positioning was a little too far back at first, but.. he could have kept up!
It's one thing for Hakuma to have no confidence in him, but the real issue is that he was standing in a receiving position and still missed the receive! He truly deserves death!
Hakuma tried to make excuses and pointed at Hinata on the opposite side, "He kept staring at me, making me receive."
Hinata, who was being pointed at by Hakuma, blinked and gave a silly grin toward Hoshiumi, who was looking over.
Seeing Hinata still grinning despite the dark aura surrounding him, Hoshiumi grew even more frustrated.
But it was true that their skills were inferior first, he couldn't get angry at Hinata; these were all just standard tactics of competition.
After all.. this two-meter rookie is just too much of a headache!
Hoshiumi almost lunged at Hakuma, "If he tells you to receive, you just receive? He also told you not to block his spike!"
Hakuma scratched his head, looking at Hoshiumi in front of him and then at Hinata on the opposite side, feeling a bit confused by the situation for a moment.
Although he really wanted to say that he had decided to receive it himself because he considered Hoshiumi's legs to be too short to keep up, saying that at a time like this felt like it would make the situation quite awkward..
Seeing the two-meter rookie standing firm and unmoving, Hoshiumi went crazy: "Aaaah—this is so frustrating!"
Don't be angry, Hikari-kun!" Hinata approached with a look of righteous indignation. "I'm just too amazing; it makes sense that Hakuma-senpai couldn't receive it.
However, among Karasuno's starters, Hakuma was indeed the easiest to handle; he might not be able to produce this kind of effect against anyone else.
Hoshiumi snapped his head around, glaring fiercely at Hinata.
That act of acting all innocent after getting the advantage.. it's a provocation! It's a blatant provocation!
"Aaaaahhh—I'm even angrier!" Hoshiumi roared.
Ginjima Yui also added solemnly beside Hinata, "Getting angry is bad for your health."
Suna, who was preparing to serve, also chimed in, "Harmony brings prosperity."
Hoshiumi pointed at Suna's hands, trembling, feeling a sudden impulse to report Suna and Hinata's actions to Miya Atsumu.
If I'm going down, everyone's going down with me!
Chapter 365: The Three Hundred and Sixty-Fifth Fox
Suna, feeling a sudden chill down his spine, whipped his head around to look at Hoshiumi. The moment their eyes met, he said instinctively, "Don't be impulsive."
Hoshiumi turned and walked toward the back row. "Tch."
Well, being angry was only temporary; there was no need to vent his frustration for a moment and deprive himself of the fun of watching Miya Atsumu later.
And it doesn't matter, he'll make a comeback later!
Thinking this, Hoshiumi turned his head to glance at the useless Hakuma Mebuki.
Being glared at, Hakuma didn't dare provoke the furious Hoshiumi at this moment; he silently averted his gaze and instead glared at Hinata.
Hinata rubbed his head and glared back just as fiercely.
Miya Atsumu couldn't help but chuckle, turning his head to make a hand gesture to Rishia Heisuke, who had stepped in for Suna to serve.
Rishia nodded and walked to the serving position, holding the volleyball.
Karuno's consecutive scoring at this moment was indeed difficult to handle, the Coach had also substituted him in to serve in an attempt to score consecutive points and tie the score.
The opponent's back row is currently Hoshiumi and Asahina.
Originally, Karasuno used a standard Double Receive formation, but after seeing him come on, they adjusted to a three-person formation, with Norikura Isao dropping back to cover the gap.
The formation is very compact, which actually makes it quite easy to target.
Unfortunately, the role of Karasuno's setter isn't absolute; there's no real point in targeting him specifically.
It would be better to learn from Atsumu-senpai, by knocking Hoshiumi down to disrupt the opponent's subsequent attack.
But unfortunately, his reason told him—he couldn't do it.
He didn't possess the natural deception built upon Dual Wield that Miya Atsumu had, nor did he have the opportunity to put his opponents in a disadvantageous position from the very start by using decoys.
After a moment of simple thought, Rishia made his decision.
As expected.. a high-arc serve to the baseline it is.
At the very end of the service time limit, Rishia Heisuke timed it perfectly and raised his hand to toss the ball.
Hoshiumi watched his movements, the moment the sound of the spike rang out, he anticipated the ball's trajectory and lunged toward Takahashi.
After rolling to dissipate the momentum, he sent the ball directly to a high point near the front row.
Although it wasn't delivered directly to the Attack Line, it was still perfectly fine.
What a great first receive!
Asahina decisively passed the ball to Hakuma Mebuki, who was in an excellent spiking position at Position 4 in the front row.
Having received the ball, Hakuma Mebuki locked onto the space above Hinata's head and performed a spike without a moment's hesitation.
Tokura wanted to try to touch the ball, but his adjustment speed was ultimately a bit too slow. In the end, he failed to touch the ball.
The ball slammed into the Inarizaki court with a heavy thud.
"Yes!" Hakuma clenched his fists tightly.
Look! He's already taken back the point he just lost!
"Next ball, next ball!" As Rishia left the court, Miya Atsumu was also clapping his hands.
Two meters.. that's really tough.