He didn't really want to ask Miya Atsumu for help; it was better to pick out gifts for himself..
In the end, Hinata picked out short-sleeved shirts in similar styles and roughly the same sizes for the two of them.
Red background with yellow characters, reading "A bright future ahead."
Miya Atsumu expressed his affirmation regarding this: "Shoyo, your literature assignment wasn't written in vain; it has a very good meaning."
Hinata felt like he had been stabbed in the back: "Atsumu-ge.. there are some things you just don't need to say out loud."
He still cannot forget that afternoon spent writing feverishly by the volleyball court; the memory is so painful that he feels like crying even now.
It wasn't just that his brain and hands were exhausted; it was mainly because he had to watch others play volleyball..
It was even more painful.
Chapter 404: The 404th Fox
Shoyo-senpai, Yu Team!
Seeing the two of them arriving together, Nishizawa Hokuto, who had been chatting with Kita Shinsuke, had his eyes light up.
They didn't arrive together this morning; when he came out, Hinata and Miya Atsumu had just headed out to find food. Suna, Rishia Heisuke, the others didn't come at all; they stayed at the hotel.
No one brought him, so he had to come to the cheering squad on his own to find Ogata, but Ogata went upstairs to maintain order, leaving him stuck here to chat with the seniors of the seniors.
He had only met Kita Shinsuke and Aran once, so even though the seniors were kind, he still felt somewhat restless while talking to the two of them.
Now that Hinata and the others were coming over.. he was finally saved!
Hinata raised the bag in his hands: "Nishizawa Hokuto! I was looking for you!"
Aran reached out to beckon Hinata, "Sit here."
Aside from the seat originally belonging to Ogata where Nishizawa Hokuto was sitting, there was only one empty seat left near the two of them, which was the one Hinata had saved for Unai.
Inarizaki had no matches scheduled for today, so Unai didn't come; she was still working on her manuscripts over at the studio.
Nishizawa Hokuto's gaze fixed on the two bags in Hinata's hands, wondering what was inside them.
Looking at the packaging, which looked like it was from the National Sports Festival official merchandise store, it should be.. clothes or some kind of cheering gear? Something Shoyo-senpai bought as a matching outfit with Yu Team?
Hinata sat down in that Kuwase seat, while Miya Atsumu stood by his side with his hands in his pockets.
After saying hello to both Kita Shinsuke and the other, Hinata continued with his own business.
He glanced at the sizes marked on the two bags in his hands, then handed the one with the size S to Nishizawa Hokuto: "This is for you, Hokuto."
Taking the bag, Nishizawa Hokuto's expression went blank for a moment. "Eh? For me?"
Hinata nodded. "Mm-hmm, Hikari-kun gave me one around this time last year, so I wanted to give one to you too."
As he spoke, he showed Nishizawa Hokuto the clothes he was wearing. "It's this one, 'Late Bloomer'."
Nishizawa Hokuto asked, "Can I take a look now?"
Hinata also looked at Nishizawa Hokuto with expectant eyes: "Mm-hmm, of course you can!"
This was the first time he had given a junior such a substantial gift, he was actually a bit unsure whether Nishizawa Hokuto would like it.
Nishizawa Hokuto carefully opened the packaging bag and gently took out the short-sleeved shirt, examining this gift from his favorite senpai with great care.
It contained the other person's beautiful wishes for him; although the shirt itself was very light, it felt incredibly heavy in his hands.
Looking at Nishizawa Hokuto's silent profile, Hinata suddenly felt a bit panicked. He lowered his gaze toward Nishizawa Hokuto's clothing, unsure whether to speak up.
Did Nishizawa Hokuto not like this color? Or did he fail his classical Chinese studies and choose the wrong idiom?
But that shouldn't be the case; after all, it's official merchandise from the National Sports Festival, so it's impossible that they would write something with a bad meaning on it.
The sound of something dripping onto the fabric rang out, Hinata looked up, feeling somewhat dazed.
He widened his eyes: ".. Nishizawa Hokuto?"
Nishizawa raised his hand, clumsily wiping the tear tracks from his face.
He turned his head and flashed a smile at Hinata: "Sorry, I was just.. too happy."
Nishizawa Hokuto hugged the short-sleeved shirt tightly. "Thank you, Shoyo-senpai, I love it."
To be honest, his decision to choose Inarizaki was driven solely by pure passion. But having come this far, volleyball has truly become an inseparable part of him.
It was precisely because of volleyball, precisely because of Inarizaki, that he felt this sensation of being expected of for the very first time, with absolute clarity.
He will not let this expectation down.
He will definitely, definitely become stronger, following in the footsteps of his seniors to reach even further and even further.
Sniffling, Nishizawa Hokuto gave Hinata a small smile, telling him not to worry.
If he could, he wouldn't just want to hug this piece of clothing; he would want to hug Hinata himself.
But with Miya Atsumu watching him like a predator from the side, he really didn't dare make a move, fearing that if he did, Miya Atsumu would slam him into a wall the moment he turned around.
Hinata blinked and breathed a secret sigh of relief. "If you like it, that's wonderful!"
He understood; these weren't tears of sadness or sorrow, but tears of joy. Coach Nekota had taught him that.
I'll buy Haseda Katsuya a limited edition "Ace's Insights" when Haruko comes around.
Feeling Nishizawa's restlessness, Miya Atsumu looked around and then shamelessly squeezed himself in.
Shoyo, move over a bit and make some room for me.
Watching the three of them squeeze into two seats, Nishizawa Hokuto only wanted to run away.
But looking at Hinata, who was sitting very close to him, he forced his legs to stay seated.
Looking at Nishizawa Hokuto, who was almost being crushed, Hinata proactively stood up: "Atsumu-ge, the two of us will share a seat."
As he spoke, he sat directly on Miya Atsumu's legs, curling into his embrace.
Kita Shinsuke hesitated, wanting to say something but holding back.
He actually wanted Miya Atsumu to move a bit closer to him; five people sharing four seats would be more comfortable than three people sharing two, wouldn't it?
Miya Atsumu adjusted his position, resting his chin on top of Hinata's head.
His body completely covered Hinata's, so from behind, one couldn't see that there was another person in his arms.
Hinata hummed softly twice, very satisfied with the temperature and texture of this human cushion.
Miya Atsumu spoke up and asked, "Aran, I remember Hayakawa Industrial's match is also in the morning?"
Aran, who was flipping through the schedule for this tournament, nodded. "Yeah, the third round is in the morning, right here in Court No. 3 below us."
Compared to the massive Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium, the Yoyogi National Gymnasium was still a bit small. There was no extra space for people to walk between the courts, even the commentary booth was set up outside, on the side closest to the presidential stand.
Therefore, Court 3 was located right under the main stands, allowing them to see everything very clearly from this angle.
Miya Atsumu rubbed his chin. "Hayakawa Industrial shouldn't have any problems in the first round, which means they will be our opponents tomorrow."
The schedule for the National Sports Festival is relatively tight. While seeded teams are given a bye directly to the Round of 32, some teams will receive byes through the draw, ensuring that the teams advancing in the third round will be exactly sixteen.
With the schedule being so tightly compressed, they have two matches to play tomorrow, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
Studying the schedule in his hands, Aran clicked his tongue. "The tables have turned; this time Karasuno and Itachiyama are in the same district."
Miya Atsumu remained dissatisfied: "If you ask me, Itachiyama shouldn't even be a seed. They should have bundled themselves up with Shiratorizawa and Shirabu and been sent to Karasuno's district instead."
The hardships we've endured, we should make those damn Hoshiumi and his lot suffer through as well!
If the National Sports Festival officials are going to take out Fukuda General's seeds, then they should take out a few of Itachiyama's as well!
All through last year, Itachiyama consistently took Semifinals and Third Place, which wasn't even as good as Fukuda General, who managed to secure Runner-up.
Aran's mouth twitched: "I think you're going to get bagged by Sakusa and his group sooner or later."
Itachiyama's luck with the draw was already bad enough, now Miya Atsumu was going to drive the final nail in the coffin..
Hinata, leaning out from Miya Atsumu's arms, asked, "I remember the coach of Hayakawa Industrial was Coach Nekota's student, right?"
Atsumu nodded, expressing his extreme disgust toward both teams: "Exactly, their playstyles are absolutely sickening!"
But Hayakawa Industrial should be fine. Even though they mostly focus on stalling, they don't have a setter as disgusting as Pudding for tactical maneuvering.
Hinata automatically translated Miya Atsumu's words: "Kenma is indeed very amazing."
In Miya Atsumu's context, "disgusting" was practically synonymous with "amazing."
Miya Atsumu pinched Hinata's stomach resentfully. "I wasn't praising him."
Hinata shook his legs: "Yeah, I understand."
Unabara Uta from the Brass Band Club in the back suggested, "The Hayakawa Industrial match probably won't start for a while, shall the two of us go take a stroll next door?"
This gymnasium is equipped not only with a Volleyball Hall, but also a Basketball Hall of the same scale, as well as a small Sub-gymnasium that can be reconfigured at any time.
In the past, when the IH was held in Tokyo at the same time, the sub-gymnasium would be used, but since there aren't as many teams in the National Sports Festival, it is used for the volleyball teams to warm up and for the basketball teams to take breaks.
According to the schedule, only the warm-ups for the Finals will be held in the gymnasium.
Imai shook her head. "I don't think so. In a bit, the club president said he's going to hand out sheet music to us and have us cheer for Tobi and the high schoolers."
After saying that, she handed Unabara Uta a triangle: "Here, Yamamoto is having diarrhea, so you'll have to cover his shift."
Unabara Uta silently took the triangle and began working for Imai.
Seeing him take the triangle, the Brass Band Club president expressionlessly drove him into the percussion section, physically isolating him from Imai.
Standing together with the drummers, Unabara Uta felt like crying.
Damn it, if he had known he'd drag Rishia out no matter what he said, he'd be feeling so lonely here all by himself..
Rishia Heisuke, who was still in his hotel bed using video-on-demand to watch the live match on TV, felt a chill on the back of his neck.
Actually, Rishia Heisuke had intended to come, but Kumagai was still studying in his hotel room because of make-up classes, Unabara Uta had gone to find Imai, Tokura and Teruya Masato had woken up early; when Rishia got out of bed, the only person from the same grade who was getting ready to head out was Hinata.
Looking at Miya Atsumu beside Hinata, Rishia Heisuke finally decided to go back to sleep.
Mimi took a sip of juice, Rishia lay down completely.
Ah, what a wonderful bed.
Ah, what a beautiful day.