Tokura Yukihito squeezed his arm: "I went to see someone."
My teacher happens to be in Tokyo for a competition; he heard I was playing a match, so he came by to take a look.
Hinata thought back for a moment, ruling out the Inarizaki teacher, then asked further, "Teacher? Do you mean your ballroom dance teacher, Tokura Yukihito?"
Tokura Yukihito nodded. "Yeah, that's right."
After speaking, he fell into silence.
Coach Kurosu, having probably guessed something, said nothing, merely watching the child across from him, whose face was etched with conflict.
Tokura Yukihito picked at his hands, somewhat afraid to look up at Hinata. "Actually.. sometimes I really envy you, Shoyo."
Hinata froze: "Eh?"
Staring at the teacup in front of him, Tokura spoke in a very low, quiet voice: "Shoyo, you are amazing no matter what or when. Even though you aren't suited for playing volleyball, you've managed to stand on the court as a powerhouse all this time.."
But no matter what, I can't do it.
Hinata opened his mouth, but in the end, he said nothing.
Perhaps he shouldn't have spoken at this moment; he should have listened to what Tokura was about to say.
Tokura Yukihito's voice trembled slightly, making it clear that he was very nervous. "I started learning Ballroom Dance when I was four, at eight years old, I won the first award of my life.. Everyone said I was a genius, so I once thought that I could dance for the rest of my life."
Because of this, having been sentenced to death, he had actually joined a club with a sense of self-abandonment, yet he was inexplicably scouted by Coach Kurosu and had made it all the way to his current position.
He finally raised his head, his eyes slightly reddened: "After seeing Shoyo, I've also wondered many times if I could have stood on stage again without hesitation, if only I had been a little more courageous.."
So when I met with Coach Kurosu today, I mentioned my thoughts to him.
Hinata had already guessed what happened.
"He rejected me." Tokura Yukihito's smile carried a faint bitterness as he lowered his eyes, no longer looking at the coach and Hinata opposite him.
He felt somewhat unable to look the two people opposite him in the eye.
To have the urge to run away during such an important match, he couldn't bear to imagine how he would be perceived if he became a "deserter."
Coach Kurosu could understand the mindset with which Tokura's teacher had rejected him.
In truth, if there were even a one percent chance, the other party would likely not have refused his beloved disciple.
But unlike Hinata, Tokura's situation was actually much more dangerous.
Hinata's height is indeed considered short among volleyball players, but since there is no physical contact in volleyball itself, he is actually safe most of the time, even with his petite stature.
What Hinata uses to compensate for this is the excellent jumping and running ability brought by his sufficiently long Achilles tendons; although overexertion might lead to physical wear and tear, the damage can be minimized through protection and mastery of technique.
But Tokura's height issue was the exact opposite.
Just as there are rarely players on the volleyball court who possess both excellent height and extreme flexibility, Tokura Yukihito's destined growth to over 1.9m, or even taller, would become a fatal problem that would prevent him from continuing to dance.
His already unstable center of gravity would become even more difficult to control due to the massive amount of movement inherent in Ballroom Dance itself; if he were to fall and get injured, the consequences would be extremely severe, something that training and protective gear could not resolve.
To be honest, as a senior himself, he greatly admired the other's decisive and resolute attitude.
To let go decisively while Tokura Yukihito still had time to explore other disciplines was not something that could be done easily.
Tokura frowned, lowering his head until he was almost buried in the shadows.
Actually, I'm very scared.
Because it seems like I..
I think I've actually started to like volleyball a little bit.
He is truly a terrible person.
He feels right now.. he doesn't even truly like Ballroom Dance or Volleyball; he just enjoys this seemingly smooth life, where no matter the circumstances, his physical advantages allow him to be the teacher's favorite.
He wasn't firm enough in anything he did.
He neither gave up as decisively as Ogata, nor did he choose without hesitation like Hinata.
He had given up on Ballroom Dance so easily before, now he was being half-hearted about Volleyball.
He was afraid his teacher would be disappointed in him for falling in love with volleyball in such a short amount of time, because he harbored the hope that he might still be able to go back and be accepted by his teacher again, he could never fully commit himself to volleyball.
Finally.. even he couldn't understand what he actually liked.
Actually, he hadn't originally intended to tell Coach Kurosu about this, but seeing Hinata, he felt he should speak up after all.
It's better to just say it.
That was what he thought.
But knowing that his thoughts were so spineless, that they were unpleasant or even touched upon "betrayal," he didn't know how his good friends and mentors would view him.
“Isn't that great?”
Hinata rubbed his chin and spoke after being quiet for a while after Tokura.
He sighed softly. "It really is a shame that we can't go back, considering all the different factors.."
But..
It's wonderful that you have a little bit of a liking for volleyball, Yukihito.
Tokura Yukihito stared at the reflection of the hall's ceiling lights in the teacup before him, unsure if it was the steam from the tea stinging his eyes or the brightness of the light itself, but he suddenly felt his vision grow blurry.
Someone stood up, walked around the table, sat down by his side.
The elder gently patted his back, conveying a sense of comfort bit by bit.
—Since your previous goal can no longer be achieved, you have chosen to walk this path of Volleyball.
—Rather than continuing on with nothing but resentment and frustration, it is certainly better to have even a single shred of "love" for it.
And Coach Kurosu trusted his own judgment, he also trusted the Inarizaki team.
He believed that Tokura's sufficient height, along with his exceptionally long legs and arms even among ballroom dancers, would become his greatest asset on his journey through volleyball.
He also believed that this team of theirs would not let Tokura Yukihito down.
In short, just go for it boldly; it doesn't matter even if you make a mistake.
Let the past be the past, do not regret any of your choices.
“Isn't that exactly what we've been saying?”
Tokura wiped his face with his hands, trying to wipe away those tears.
“I will, I will work even harder.”
Perhaps he should also try to make a firm choice about something.
At the very least, he likes it right now.
Besides.. it's quite cool, isn't it?
Aren't you doing quite well right now?
I'll come to watch the matches the day after tomorrow, I'll take some photos for your mother while I'm at it.
You look very handsome, Yukihito.
By the way, you should contact her once in a while and not throw a tantrum.
Chapter 430: The Four Hundred and Thirtieth Fox
[Next up is the first match of the High School Men's Volleyball Semifinals, between Karasuno, representing Nagano Prefecture, Itachiyama Academy, representing Tokyo.]
Hinata and the others took their seats in the first row of the stands.
In the morning, Inarizaki had no matches, so only banners were hung in the cheering area, the members of the Brass Band Club were not lined up and ready to perform.
After all, the cheering sections for Karasuno and Itachiyama Academy were already massive in scale, so they didn't need their help. Furthermore, the cheering area on this side of the stands had been allocated to Itachiyama Academy for the morning, they would switch over during the midday break.
Miya Atsumu was the first to hold out his hand. "Come on, a delicious stick. I'm betting on Karasuno to win."
He didn't even ask who everyone was betting on; instead, he turned and asked directly, "Is there anyone betting on Itachiyama to win?"
A silence fell over the crowd; not a single person spoke.
Aran, at the far end of the very first row, turned his head to look over. "At the very least, we're old friends; you guys should show Itachiyama some respect."
Miya Atsumu leaned back against his chair nonchalantly, spreading his hands as he said, "Who would want Itachiyama to win?"
This no longer concerned the true answer to whether Itachiyama Academy or Karasuno was stronger; they simply wanted a real revenge.
They have already had enough revenge against Itachiyama over the past two years; they have new enemies now.
As he scanned over Tokura Yukihito, who for some unknown reason was wearing sunglasses, Miya Atsumu's inner吐槽 ultimately failed to be suppressed, he asked directly, "What are you doing? Is there a sun inside the venue? There aren't even any lights over here, can you see clearly?"
For some reason, he had the vague feeling that the other person's purpose was purely to act cool.
Aran silently turned his head to look at Miya Atsumu, his eyes filled with a clarity that suggested he had seen through everything.
Atsumu, wake up. Not everyone has beautiful girls on their mind all the time like you do, right?
Miya Atsumu snapped his head back toward him, eyes wide, said, "Aran! What are you talking about!"
Actually, it was just because Tokura Yukihito, whose eyes were red from crying, silently shrugged his shoulders, trying to make himself disappear from Miya Atsumu's line of fire.
Kumagai searched his pockets and handed him a pair of blue-light blocking glasses for studying at night.
They weren't as eye-catching as sunglasses, but in this already dimly lit area, they should be effective enough to keep Miya Atsumu from noticing.
Tokura Yukihito took the glasses from Kumagai and fell into silence.
Even so.. he felt it was a bit too late. Atsumu had already noticed him, it was too late to do anything now.
He actually wouldn't have minded letting his senior know he had cried yesterday, but except for Miya Atsumu.
Crying itself wasn't a big deal, but he felt that the reason he cried would be nagged and mocked by Miya Atsumu until his graduation.
Fortunately, Aran's remark was very timely, completely diverting Miya Atsumu's attention and allowing Tokura Yukihito to shrink even further into himself.
Glancing at Tokura Yukihito, who was trying hard to shrink behind Shoyo despite being much larger than him, Aran hesitated to speak.
Forget it, his junior's life is hard enough already; he wouldn't add fuel to the fire.
The warm-ups on the court had already concluded. After the draw determined the venues and the final pre-match preparations were made, the players from both sides had returned to the waiting area to await their turn to take the court.