Komori also added, "If Karasuno can keep their setter stable this set, we still have a chance."
It is understandable that Karasuno failed to react to Inarizaki's somewhat subtle formation in the previous set.
If they can break free from Inarizaki's control in this set, Karasuno, who holds an absolute advantage in defense, will ultimately maintain control of the game.
Of course, that is on the condition that Hakuma, whose physical stamina isn't particularly exceptional to begin with, can guarantee he won't be worn down.
Sakusa softly questioned, "Can you hold it steady?"
Komori wasn't sure either: "Probably.. I guess."
Unabara Uta steadily received Hirugami's serve. His ability to control his receiving position was decent, but he could easily be knocked off balance by a heavy ball when fatigued.
Watching the ball fly toward the front row's attack line, Miya Atsumu, who had originally been positioned near Position 2, stepped forward quickly, extending his hand at the same time.
Hinata stepped up from Position 4, quickly sprinting across the net to the edge of Position 2.
Bessho Chigen made an instant judgment; the height of this ball wasn't quite enough, Miya Atsumu's setting motion clearly indicated he was preparing a back set for Hinata.
His body leaned slightly toward Inarizaki's Position 2, ready to rush over and block at any moment, while Norikura Isao, who was also on his side, focused all his attention on Hinata.
But in that very instant, the sound of a touch suddenly reached Bessho Chigen's ears.
He instinctively turned his head and saw Miya Atsumu, building on that previous movement, setting the ball toward Position 4.
A sense of absurdity welled up in his heart; it was already too late for him to adjust his position. Over there, Rishia Heisuke had already spiked the ball, scoring a precise point right on the sideline.
[A miraculous set! Miya Atsumu delivered an unconventional set, Rishia scored under Hinata's cover!]
Someone muttered under their breath, "That set was way too careless.."
Watching the back-and-forth exchange on the court, Shiratori frowned slightly in the stands: "The score is very close."
Compared to the previous set, Karasuno played even more flexibly. They further enhanced the setter's flexibility within their existing defensive formation. In the face of Hoshiumi and Hirugami's frequent use of quick attacks, Tokura failed to make accurate judgments and missed many balls.
Tokura stood there, starting to reflect on his life.
Is Hoshiumi-senpai's Quick Attack really this good? Not only Hirugami-senpai, but his coordination with Bessho is also quite excellent, he can even perform feigned spikes and second balls.
Wait, this wasn't in the pre-match study materials! Why is he suddenly testing me on something way beyond the syllabus!
Chapter 456: The 456th Fox
Karasuno took the lead with eight points, the match entered a time-out.
Watching everyone return, Coach Aran nodded repeatedly. "You all played well."
Then he looked at Asahina: "Kongming, don't play so restrictively. Be a bit more flexible; there's no need to completely expose yourself to your opponent. Being in a state of fifty-fifty is best."
Asahina nodded. "I understand, I'm adjusting as quickly as I can."
Kito commented from the commentary booth, 【Inarizaki hasn't been able to pull ahead in the score since the start of this set, making it difficult to play later on.】
Yamamoto added, 【Karasuno's playstyle is very suitable for counter-attacking; as long as they can catch Inarizaki making a single mistake, they can pull ahead in the score all at once.】
It looks like Karasuno is leading right now, but in reality, the score is still tied.
Oikawa Tooru rested his chin on one hand: 【But Karasuno's current way of playing isn't actually within their comfort zone either; it's not a long-term solution.】
To be honest, he was a bit tired of sitting.
Glancing sideways at the cushion Kito had stuffed in, Oikawa Tooru also reached under the table, pulled out a seat cushion, rolled it up to place behind his lower back.
Mm, much more comfortable.
Yamamoto looked at the two of them and said nothing, only letting out a light chuckle.
A prompt sounded by the sidelines as Inarizaki requested a substitution, with number 15 Masaru Haseda being replaced by number 11 Tokura Yukihito.
As Tokura left the court, he patted Masaru Haseda's shoulder. "Give them a good serve!"
Masaru Haseda nodded solemnly. "I will."
[Inarizaki is changing the server for this crucial point; it looks like they are preparing to actively seek a weak point.]
Hinata cheered loudly for Masaru Haseda: "Serve a good one!!"
Masaru Haseda took his position for the approach, quietly watching the Karasuno players on the opposite side.
The coach substituted him in at this moment, clearly wanting him to break the deadlock through his serve.
He knew that his serve wasn't as strong as others', nor had he undergone specialized training for serving.
The coach hoped he could become a more all-around player, capable of substituting for Miya Osamu and the others at critical moments, so his usual training regimen focused primarily on standard receiving and spiking.
But now, as a substitute, he has an absolute advantage in physical stamina, an advantage that can be completely converted into energy for him to score at this very moment.
He didn't know if his grandmother was watching his match, but it didn't matter; worst comes to best, he'd just ask Suna-senpai to help him make a highlight reel, once the holidays came.. he would show it to her ten times.
Of course, that's assuming he can score.
Haseda Katsuya closed his eyes and calmed down, the fierce expression caused by his appearance also became more composed.
Behind him was the continuous cheering of the Inarizaki supporters; everyone was helping him take flight.
Therefore.. he would never let these people down either.
The whistle sounded in his ears, the signal from the referee that he could serve.
He remembered Rishia Heisuke telling him that he absolutely must not be nervous when serving; he just had to let go and do it. No one would blame him for failing; instead, they would ridicule him for his lack of boldness.
After adjusting his state, Masaru Haseda tossed the ball without hesitation, then took a large step forward, preparing to jump for his serve.
The feel of the toss was fine, the jumping position was also confirmed to be correct.
Next.. he just needs to spike the ball with all his strength, just as he does during his usual training.
The man in the spotlight, the man who at this very moment bears the task of scoring—
Was he being watched closely?
The moment the heavy thud exploded, Takahashi's focus also tightened.
Masaru Haseda's serve didn't have particularly strong rotation, making it a ball trajectory he could judge.
His current physical condition cannot fully keep up, so what he must do is accurately judge the ball's trajectory and move in advance to plant his center of gravity and stabilize his body.
Takahashi shouted, "I'll take it!"
A solid sensation traveled up his forearm. Although the ball hit the front of his arm under his control, the force was greater than he had anticipated; without being fully absorbed, the ball bounced high and far, flying over the net toward Inarizaki's side.
“Opportunity Ball!” Unabara Uta shouted, while slightly turning his head toward Miya Atsumu.
Miya Atsumu pressed his hands down at his sides, signaling that he didn't need to receive the ball.
Unabara Uta stepped back in response, while Miya Atsumu also retreated quickly to handle the ball.
Hinata, positioned near the sideline of Position 4, had already stepped forward quickly. He leaped lightly behind the Three-meter Line, preparing to coordinate a Quick Attack with Miya Atsumu.
Hirugami and Asahina stared at Hinata's movements, quickly moving over to that side to follow him.
But Hoshiumi-senpai was in no rush to act; from his position on the side, his role in defending the front court and covering for the block was the same.
Moreover, he also had to be on guard against some of the unpredictable plays that Hinata and the others might pull.
For example..
Just as Hirugami and Asahina were chasing after it, Hinata, who had already jumped, twisted his body and sent the ball flying with a quick flick of his hand.
Although the movement was somewhat unrefined, Hinata successfully completed the process of a fake spike turned into a set.
Miya Atsumu, who had already moved back to a suitable position after the initial set, stepped forward to chase the ball. While Hoshiumi scrambled to catch up in a panic, Miya Atsumu jumped and performed an arm extension to spike the ball directly.
Miya Atsumu's power was inherently superior to Hoshiumi's, not to mention the current confrontation between the spike and the block; Miya Atsumu easily smashed through Hoshiumi's block, slamming the ball into Karasuno's court.
The whistle blew, the Head Referee signaled that the score for Inarizaki was valid.
Landing on the ground, Hinata looked at his hands in shock: "Ohhhhhh—I did it!!"
“Atsumu-ge, Atsumu-ge! I did it! Did you see that!!”
Miya Atsumu walked over and gave him a high-five: "Not only did I see it, but you actually spiked it."
Hinata continued to stare at him with great excitement, his face practically screaming, "Praise me, praise me!"
Atsumu chose to satisfy him without hesitation: "You were amazing, Shoyo! You had that big idiot on the other side spinning in circles—"
Hinata laughed quite happily: "Hehehe."
In the stands, Amatori couldn't help but complain, "Inarizaki is playing way too wildly."
Originally, during the first set, he thought Inarizaki had changed their nature, playing strictly according to the pre-match plan.
After Karasuno started playing without restraint at the start of the second set, Inarizaki was indeed led astray as well.
Trying out some high-difficulty new things on the court during the Finals..
You can only say that Inarizaki truly lives up to its reputation.
Amatori clapped expressionlessly.
Hoshiumi's fingers moved back and forth between Hinata and Miya Atsumu, his lips trembling, yet he said nothing.
Looking at Hoshiumi, who looked like he was about to die of frustration, Hirugami quickly spoke up to comfort him: "It's fine, it's fine. We'll get the next one back. The opponents' play was just very unrefined; they just haven't seen it much before, so they didn't react in time."
Asahina stared at Hinata and said in a low voice, "It feels like.. fighting fire with fire."
For some reason, he could sense that Miya Atsumu had the desire to show them that Inarizaki also had several people who could serve as setters.
Hinata turned his head to look at him: "What does this mean?"
He remembered that Shiratori-senpai seemed to have said something about it before, but at the time, he was focused on how to deal with Shiratori's block and hadn't asked him about it.
Asahina said subconsciously, "It's just.."
Hoshiumi exclaimed in shock, "Why are you even lecturing me?!"
Hoshiumi pushed the junior away from the net in a huff, then turned his head to glare fiercely at Hinata. "Never mind him, never mind him! Let him go wherever he wants!"
Hinata tilted his head, his eyes momentarily filled with confusion.
But he soon cast aside the fact that Hoshiumi-senpai wouldn't let him attend class, turning his head toward Masaru Haseda. "Masaru Haseda, that serve was amazing! Keep up the hard work on the next one!"
To be honest, after playing so many rallies against Karasuno, they had very few Opportunity Balls, after all, Karasuno's defense was quite intense.