Moreover, Hinata clearly understands Kageyama very well, even going so far as to proactively adjust his own movements to coordinate with Kageyama.
So.. what kind of ball was that Kageyama setting?
How does Kageyama have the nerve to make their Ace spike a ball like that?
He's practically embarrassing the Setter!
Coach Unabara, standing by the sidelines, stroked his beard: "Hahaha, truly spectacular. I'm looking forward to this more and more."
Chapter 380: The Three Hundred and Eightieth Fox
Staring at the blankly-eyed Kageyama for a moment, Hinata blinked and waved him off, "Anyway, Kageyama, don't worry about all that. Just focus on your setting, I'll adjust myself."
Actively adapting to every setter's set—that is what a qualified Ace.. or a spiker should do. But.. that didn't stop him from feeling that Kageyama's set lacked passion.
Kageyama wanted to say something, but there was no extra time in the match for him to speak.
At the Head Referee's signal, Kageyama turned and walked toward the back position to serve.
He knew that his setting was different from Miya Atsumu's; even when Miya Atsumu was setting that kind of Quick Attack, he tended to set a parabolic ball.
Under precise control, that kind of ball can make the ball's trajectory reappear, which would otherwise not exist due to the pursuit of speed, but it requires extremely high technical skill from the setter.
Kageyama never thought of himself as weaker than any other setter, so he also believed that he could definitely achieve it.
But.. it's also impossible to achieve overnight.
He didn't know how much time Miya Atsumu spent training that kind of set, but he knew that he himself would likely need a week to adapt to that kind of set.
Moreover, he wasn't quite sure if he even needed to practice that kind of set, since Karasuno doesn't require that kind of technique at this stage.
Then.. what about this match?
As his gaze swept over Hinata, who was performing a serve cover alongside Hakuma in his field of vision, Kageyama slowly lowered his eyes.
Hinata is not a player limited only to the Quick Attack; even if he needs to use a Quick Attack to break through the opponent's block, a simple negative-tempo Quick Attack is actually enough, he can rely on technical plays for the rest.
Besides, setting technique isn't something that can undergo many changes in a single match; we can make other plans after the game..
The moment he locked eyes with Miya Atsumu, Kageyama's expression darkened.
That's true, but he still felt a sense of frustration after all.
He craved even more profound techniques, to make matters worse, he couldn't even satisfy the needs of the spiker he envisioned working with.. it was truly unacceptable.
Noticing the change in Kageyama's expression and emotions, Miya Atsumu fell into thought.
To be honest, he could faintly sense Coach Unabara's and the others' intentions. It was precisely because of this that he felt the conversation with Kageyama was necessary.
—After all, it was all for Hinata's sake.
At the very last second of the service limit, Kageyama raised his hand to serve.
Sugawara-senpai once told him that one must never be impatient on the court; even in urgent situations, one must try their best to maintain a calm state of mind.
Most importantly—you absolutely, absolutely cannot be impulsive.
As a setter, what he needs to do is to integrate with all the players as quickly and thoroughly as possible, testing the limits of everyone's abilities and their comfort zones.
This is.. something learned from Oikawa-senpai in the past.
And this is something that the current High School's Best Setter, Miya Atsumu, also does exceptionally well.
Whether it was because Miya Atsumu had experience partnering with these players before, or for some other reason, he orchestrated a three-point attack during that last play.
He also had to keep up; at the very least, he needed to get a general understanding of his current teammates within one rotation to facilitate more varied sets.
"I've got it!" Komori-senpai shouted as he quickly moved in, extending his hand and performing a side roll to receive the ball spiked by Kageyama.
After discarding the false intelligence that Miya Atsumu's "quality was acceptable," he, having a sufficient concept, was fully capable of responding in advance; this time, he would definitely not be able to block Chikatani's approach run.
Chikatani also kept up with everyone's rhythm this time, perfectly completing his movement and offense from the back two.
Komori needs to coordinate the defense in the back row, so it is relatively more convenient for him and Aoba to move around. Aoba's setting ability is inherently superior to his, so it is best to have him handle the offense.
However..
I bet Miya Atsumu had absolutely no intention of giving the ball to him.
And that was exactly the case; Miya Atsumu immediately passed the ball to Hoshiumi, who was in a better position and better prepared.
As if knowing what Miya Atsumu was thinking, Hinata and Sakusa never spared a single glance for Chikatani from the very beginning, remaining constantly vigilant against Hoshiumi and Bai Ze.
As Hoshiumi jumped for his spike, Hakuma had already lunged in front of him following Hinata, while Sakusa was busy on a one-on-one block against Bai Ze on the other side, so he did not follow up.
One was a former teammate from the opposing side, the other was a protégé he had trained personally; Hoshiumi knew exactly how to deal with these two, one could even say he could handle them with ease.
Hoshiumi jumped very high; although he didn't quite reach over Hakuma's hands, he still forced him into a position where he couldn't spike downward.
On the other side, although Hinata had taken a distance to run and jump, he ultimately didn't have enough time for an arm extension, meaning his blocking height was inconsistent with his hitting point, Hoshiumi could have easily jumped over him.
But.. Hoshiumi didn't intend to do that.
Setting aside Hanae's predatory gaze for the moment, there was, of course, another reason as well.
Hoshiumi had a smile on his face, without looking away, he drove the spike directly into Hakuma Mebuki's fingers.
Since we are facing each other head-on, then we must strive for the most powerful and flawless crushing blow!
Thud!
After a heavy thud, the ball flew straight out of the court, leaving Hanae with no chance to even attempt a save.
The whistle blew, Coach Arakune announced a score for Miya Atsumu's side.
The moment it hit the ground, Hoshiumi and Miya Atsumu both turned and high-fived by instinct.
With a loud slap, both of them froze the moment they saw each other's faces clearly.
Before Miya Atsumu's expression could even change, Hoshiumi's face was already contorted with pure disgust.
Both of them turned their heads away at the same time, Hoshiumi even shook his hands in disgust.
He admitted that Miya Atsumu's set was indeed excellent; the height, precision, even the placement of the ball were impeccable, truly deserving of being called the most perfect set.
But.. it was almost sickeningly perfect.
Hinata clapped his hands and shouted loudly, "Don't worry about it! Next ball!"
Suna looked at Hinata, who was working hard to liven up the atmosphere in the front row, then at the expressionless Hakuma Sakusa and Kageyama, finally at.. the only one supporting Hinata, Hanae.
"I'll definitely get the next one!" Hanae patted his chest, giving Hinata his word.
Catching a glimpse of Miya Atsumu retreating to the service position after gaining the Service Right, Hanae shut his mouth.
Alright, he admitted it.
As for Miya Atsumu's serve.. he had absolutely no clue.
That kind of Dual Wielding or even Triple Wielding, combined with serves that are incredibly strong even when taken individually.. is that something that should be appearing on a high school court?
In Kanzaki's words, it was as if a Great Demon King had appeared in a Beginner Village where they shouldn't be!
Glancing sideways at Suna and Kageyama, Hanae felt even more despondent.
Without a Libero and with the Setter still in the back row, Miya Atsumu would definitely focus his sights on Suna's Serve.
After all, although Miya Atsumu had a habit of targeting the Libero, winning the match was ultimately about scoring points.
Sakusa had already retreated to assist with the first receive, but help was too far away to be of use; he couldn't possibly protect two people at once by himself.
Miya Atsumu's Serve was exactly as Hanae had expected, a Power Serve that struck Suna with such precision that the force was so great, Hanae felt as if Miya Atsumu and Suna had some personal grudge against each other.
Suna lowered his center of gravity to receive it, but the force of the serve knocked him straight down, the ball flew out of bounds.
Fortunately, Hanae's reaction speed was fast enough; he performed a diving save, pushing off the ground and using the side of his fist to strike the ball.
With a heavy thud, the ball flew directly and landed precisely in front of the net.
Glancing at the ball's position out of the corner of his eye, Hanae was quite satisfied with his own performance.
The moment he saw the ball's position, Hinata leaped straight up from where he stood, determined to defend the ball.
Hoshiumi on the opposing side had already followed up, leaping into the air opposite Hinata, their movements almost perfectly synchronized.
But.. the attacking side often holds more initiative than the defending side.
Bai Ze's follow-up wasn't fast enough, the gap that appeared in the block gave Hinata the space he needed to target.
He adjusted the angle of his wrist, pressing the ball diagonally toward the opponent's front row.
Aoba rushed from the back row, but the ball landed too far forward, he ultimately couldn't reach it.
As it landed, Hinata raised both hands high: "Yes! We won!"
He turned his head and rushed toward the man who had made a huge contribution, Hanae: "Hanae-kun! You were incredible!!"
Hanae lifted his chin slightly. "Of course!"
The two of them raised their hands high and high-fived with a loud slap.
Watching Hinata hopping back to the net, Hanae sighed softly with a hint of regret.
Setting aside his status as a rival from Hyogo Prefecture, he still liked Hinata very much.
A few months ago, he had actually received a message from Miya Atsumu asking if he wanted to be teammates at the same university as Hinata, he had agreed without a second thought.
After all, although his grades weren't excellent, he was still in the upper-middle tier of the school, he had already been struggling with the decision of whether to join a professional volleyball team or attend university.
Since someone had extended an invitation, that person was a teammate he was interested in and even felt a strong fondness for, he had no reason to refuse.
But.. Miya Atsumu, who had extended the invitation, was rejected, saying he needed to observe a bit more.
And after the IH ended, Miya Atsumu told him directly that what he had said before was void; Hinata University had other candidates for Libero, he might not be able to play as a starter there.
Hanae expressed his confusion.
Who, who is it?
Could there really be someone more suitable than him, who is in the same year as Hinata!
And he even said he can't be a starter? In their current year, besides Komori-senpai, is there anyone stronger than him in the Libero position?!
It couldn't be.. that Miya Atsumu-senpai managed to pull Komori-senpai to become Hinata's teammate in the future, right?