Hinata said nothing until he stood in line by the sidelines behind Miya Atsumu, bowing to the opponents to show respect for the match results and to signal the end of the game.
Returning to the Coach's bench, Coach Kurosu almost immediately handed a towel to Hinata and pressed him down to sit on the bench to check the condition of his knee.
The Inarizaki members were also subtly watching Hinata's condition, their gazes filled with worry and concern.
Miya Atsumu used a towel to carefully dry his hair, then turned his head slightly to look at Hinata.
In the entire current Inarizaki First String lineup, Hinata is the only one who has never lost in a match that could be considered official.
Hinata's Junior High matches were too absurd to be of any real reference value.
But even so, in Miya Atsumu's memory, it left a scar on Hinata that spanned his entire volleyball career.
As the perennial runners-up of the past, they had actually long ago grown accustomed to falling just one step away from the finish line.
So he was very worried, worried that Hinata wouldn't be able to properly process this defeat.
He put down his towel, turning his body slightly to lean closer to the still-dazed Hinata.
The spot on Hinata's knee where the broken knee pad had initially scraped him was already bleeding slightly; although the injury wasn't serious, it looked quite frightening.
After confirming that Hinata was fine, Coach Kurosu turned his attention to Unabara Uta on the other side.
Miya Atsumu gently pressed his hand over Hinata's, as the other person cast a confused look his way, a soft voice drifted down like the most gentle breeze.
“Don't be afraid.”
Hearing Miya Atsumu's voice, Hinata's eyes widened slightly.
Something broke free from the shackles of body and mind, streaming down his cheek and dripping onto Miya Atsumu's arm.
“Eh?” Hinata raised his hand, subconsciously trying to wipe his face, but he only felt wetness all over his hand.
He tried hard to wipe it away, but he just couldn't get it clean.
Miya Atsumu leaned down slightly, reaching his arms around Hinata to pull him into his embrace.
He stroked Hinata's head, soothing his emotions.
“I'm here, don't be afraid."
Do not be afraid.
Do not fear failure.
Or perhaps.. failure isn't so scary.
Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war; winning or losing is merely a temporary result, that feeling of failure is also just a momentary pain.
Rather than a scar, it was perhaps more like a growing pain, an inevitable part of growth.
As he had said in the past, losing to an opponent you shouldn't have lost to is the only unforgivable thing.
And at this very moment, given the gap in actual strength and luck, they were indeed outmatched.
So.. there is no need for regrets.
Remember it, feel it, take it with you to go even further; that is what should be done.
Sadness, frustration, regret.. countless emotions surged up at this very moment.
Surging emotions nearly overwhelmed Hinata's brain, his breathing, which had not yet fully stabilized, became even more difficult as tears flowed.
“Ugh.. I'm sorry..”
Listening to Hinata's deathly sobs that sounded as if he were about to run out of breath, Rishia Heisuke, who had been suppressing his own emotions all along, finally could not control his tears either.
Tears streamed down, that sense of unyielding frustration ultimately spread to everyone.
Unabara Uta gave a bitter smile, looked down at his legs, secretly clenched his fists.
It's okay, next time..
We will definitely win it back.
Suna drank quite a lot of water and slightly adjusted his condition.
Taking a glance at the Inarizaki supporters on both sides who were still clapping, he spoke softly, "It's been a long time since I've seen a scene like this."
Miya Osamu looked up at the many people who were already in tears, then lowered his gaze helplessly. "Perhaps being booed a few times would have been more comfortable."
Regardless of the actual circumstances, they had failed to achieve their goal of becoming champions, so they deserved even the boos and jeers.
Being like this now.. was actually somewhat unsettling.
Taking a glance at Ginjima, who was already huddled together and crying with Rishia and the others, Miya Osamu turned his head to look at Miya Atsumu, who was still comforting Hinata. "Atsumu, your five consecutive championships are gone."
Not only was the five-consecutive championship gone, but they had even stopped at two consecutive championships, following completely in Itachiyama's footsteps.
Hearing Hinata cry even louder, Miya Atsumu, who had just managed to soothe him a little, snapped his head around. "You're so annoying!"
Miya Osamu withdrew his gaze, no longer adding fuel to the fire.
Even so, the originally heavy atmosphere was more or less changed.
Coach Kurosu breathed a sigh of relief, nodding inwardly in approval of Miya Osamu's ability to shift the atmosphere.
He glanced at the time on the big screen, clapped his hands, said, "Alright, let's go thank the Inarizaki supporters who traveled so far and worked hard for many days."
“Yes!”
Komori, who had witnessed the entire match come to an end, let out a deep sigh and said with some regret, "In the end, their condition was just a bit lacking."
It's mainly because the match against us this morning drained too much energy. By the final set, Hinata and his team's condition was clearly not as good as Hakuma and his team's.
Sakusa nodded: "It's the same for the Libero; once a starter is injured, there's no one to step up. With the flaws in our defense, losing the Second Set and Third Set was too much of a loss."
If Inarizaki had won the Third Set, the final result would have been truly hard to predict.
Iizuna pursed his lips.
He thought back to the Haruko at the beginning of the year; if he placed Itachiyama in that situation, wouldn't it be exactly the same..
Right at that moment, Inamura Gen suddenly raised a finger and said with an air of feigned profundity, "Do you know what this is called?"
The gazes of the Itachiyama members turned toward him, a hint of confusion in their eyes.
Clearing his throat, Inamura spoke with utmost seriousness, "This is called the curse of the three-peat."
Coach Himegomiya, who was just about to take a sip of water at the front row, choked slightly and turned her head, saying, "You should just shut up."
Iizuna agreed with this.
This kind of curse.. No!!
The Inarizaki members lined up to leave the court, walking toward the area below the Inarizaki banners where the Inarizaki supporters were gathered.
The applause, which had been gradually dying down, turned into thunderous cheers at this moment. Even though it was mixed with cries, the applause was still a celebration and an affirmation of the match itself.
Right next to the Inarizaki supporters, Unai Aman shouted loudly, "What a brilliant match!"
But there were so many people shouting that sentence that his voice was drowned out, failing to catch the attention of anyone from Inarizaki.
Hinata, who was already unfocused, scanned the stands in his field of vision with a vacant gaze, but because his vision was blurred, he failed to recognize him.
Everyone from Inarizaki bowed deeply. "Thank you all for your support throughout this journey!"
Captain Miya Atsumu led the way, saying, "We've let you down!"
No one travels all this way just to watch them take home another runner-up trophy; this apology had to be expressed.
“What are you talking about! The match was incredible! No disappointment at all!!”
“Right! No disappointments!”
“Stay strong! Keep your heads up! Crush them at the National Sports Festival!!”
Listening to those familiar voices that had accompanied them through many years, Miya Atsumu's nose tingled, the calm expression he had always maintained in front of everyone cracked at this moment.
He raised his head, trying his best to keep the tears from falling.
Hinata's voice, thick with tears, echoed throughout the entire arena; his voice, which was originally so piercing, had become hoarse, but it still reached the ears of everyone present.
I will—
You can definitely do it!!
Thunderous applause erupted; no one was stingy with their cheers.
After all.. everyone had done the best they could.
Returning to the coach's side, Coach Kurosu simply clapped his hands toward them. "Alright, you must all be exhausted. This is the first time we've played an all-day, eight-match tournament like this."
“Do your stretching by the sidelines, no slacking off.”
At this point, Coach Kurosu's voice paused slightly before he continued, "Slacking off isn't a huge problem; I've also arranged for a therapist this time to help you loosen up your muscles and bones properly."
The Inarizaki members, who had been standing solemnly waiting for their briefing, suddenly let out a chorus of wails; even Hinata lost the mood to cry after hearing those words.
Coach Kurosu smiled as he looked at everyone: "Stop standing around like fools. The award ceremony starts in less than half an hour, nobody wants someone else to collect their award on their behalf."
Hearing this, everyone quickly stepped back and lined up to leave the court. Under Miya Atsumu's lead, they arrived at the sidelines and began stretching.
After packing up all their belongings, Coach Omimi followed behind Coach Kurosu, after handing the items over to several substitutes, the two of them headed toward the judges' table.
The outcome of the Finals can no longer be changed; at this moment, what is more worthy of attention are the results regarding the individual awards.
"There shouldn't be any question that Atsumu's the best Setter." Coach Omimi reflected on the performance of both teams' Setters during the match.
Whether it was his overall involvement, his overall performance, or the number of assists and points scored from serves, Miya Atsumu was superior in every aspect.
Overall, Miya Atsumu's performance could be described as nothing short of impeccable.
Coach Kurosu nodded, speculating, "The MVP will undoubtedly be Hoshiumi, there's no suspense regarding the Middle Blocker being Hirugami, as for the Libero, it's hard to say, but it will likely go to Komori."
Unabara Uta and Takahashi performed poorly, Arima Shuji was even worse.
At this, Coach Kurosu's steps faltered slightly. "As for the Wing Spiker, I expect Hoshiumi will handle everything himself, but.."
"What?" Coach Himegomiya looked toward Coach Utsunomiya beside him.
The awards ceremony and closing ceremony for Men's Volleyball were about to take place. Since all the teams in the Semifinals needed to line up on the court to wait for the presentation, they had already left the stands and were preparing to head toward the Players' Tunnel.
Recalling the notice he had seen earlier, Coach Utsunomiya said with a hint of uncertainty, "Um, the matches for the new school year should be starting to be established, right.."
Having finished their stretching, the other two teams from the Semifinals were also waiting in the Players' Tunnel.
The court had already been cleared, microphones were set up in front, the attendants holding medals and certificates were already prepared by the side of the court.