With every ounce of strength, his fingers stretched out to their absolute limit and touched the ball at the very last second.
With a clear sound of impact, the ball flew high into the air, landing toward Inarizaki's side.
Hoshiumi didn't dare to delay for even a second; he scrambled up using both hands and feet, diving back onto the court to save the ball.
Hirugami managed to spike the ball back, but Ginjima's support was just as fast, steadily setting the ball up.
Miya Atsumu was already waiting at the Attack Line; he didn't jump, because he could no longer fully control his body's state after jumping.
Watching Hinata's position as he retreated to create enough distance for a running approach, Miya Atsumu raised his hand to lightly touch the volleyball, setting a ball that was high enough and far enough from the net.
It was light enough, gentle enough.
Take one last jump, his Ace.
He could no longer provide better cover, but.. he could provide Hinata with the best environment for a spike.
Hinata took a step forward, the sound of his soles hitting the floor heavy and solid.
—That was enough.
Thump.
He took his final step, his arms driving his whole body upward as he leaped, his hitting arm drawing incredibly close to the ball.
Hirugami stared at his movement, his expression turning solemn.
Wait.. Hinata isn't trying to use his left hand to push this ball back directly—
He instinctively adjusted his blocking movement.
But just at that moment, he saw Hinata's calm face.
Seizing that tiny opening the opponent exposed, Hinata swung his arm to spike with maximum speed without a moment's hesitation.
BANG!!
Let him take the first point of this match, let him take this final point as well.
The former is a boost to the team's morale, while the latter is the responsibility that must be fulfilled when exhausted.
To see it through from beginning to end, that is..
Ace!
The volleyball shot through the gap between Hirugami and Coach Kaku with unerring precision. Its speed was incredibly fast, so fast that it seemed like something Hinata in his current state couldn't possibly have produced.
Hoshiumi, being the closest, wanted to push off the ground to dive for the ball, but it felt as if his feet had stepped on something.
His body spun out of control, making his vision whirl. By the time he regained consciousness, he was already lying on the ground.
His breath was cut short, Hoshiumi felt a burning pain in his lungs.
The long, drawn-out buzzer sounded in his ears, announcing the end of the match.
Looking up at the ceiling, the glaring overhead lights made Hoshiumi's vision somewhat blurry.
He raised his hand to cover his eyes.
——They lost.
[Hinata killed the match! An impeccable line shot! After feinting past the opponent's block, he delivered a precise spike to score!]
[This level of control over one's body and volleyball is incomparable!]
Although Oikawa felt Yamamoto was being a bit hyperbolic, he still followed up by saying, "In the very end, Hinata's mind remained calm, he provided a perfect answer."
Ohhhhh—that was incredible!
Back to the top!! Inarizaki High School is the strongest!
Everyone—good job—
The people in the waiting area rushed onto the court one after another, embracing and cheering with the people on the court.
Hinata's vision blurred and his legs went weak, causing him to collapse directly downward, prepared to lie down and enjoy the peace of the floor.
Fortunately, Nishizawa Hokuto, who was just about to rush over to celebrate with Hinata, was quick enough to grab Hinata and stop him from faceplanting onto the floor.
After letting out that breath, Hinata was almost moved to tears. "We won—"
Nishizawa burst into tears first: "That was amazing! Shoyo-senpai, you are the strongest Ace!"
Miya Atsumu stood to the side with his hands on his hips, staring at Nishizawa.
But he didn't notice at all; instead, he hugged Hinata and wailed, "The championship! I actually won the championship!!"
Miya Osamu patted his back to comfort him: "Atsumu, I feel like your MVP is gone."
In these two sets, Hinata's performance was quite active; his score remained consistently high, he even made many contributions through assists.
Miya Atsumu spoke without missing a beat, his expression completely calm, as he puffed out his chest and said, "What are you talking about? Shoyo belongs to me!"
Kito, sitting in the commentary booth, laughed while clapping.
[Congratulations to them! Thank you both for bringing us such a wonderful match!]
[Finally, let us congratulate Inarizaki High School on winning the championship trophy of this year's 67th National Sports Festival!]
Chapter 458: The 458th Fox
Pushing himself up from the ground, Hinata almost lost his balance as his head spun for a moment.
It looked like there was a crowd around someone over at Karasuno, Hirugami was crouching with his back to them, talking to someone.
Nishizawa Hokuto, who had still wanted to hold Hinata and cry, was being hauled away and turned his head to run after Unabara Uta.
Miya Atsumu had just come to a stop behind Hinata, before he could even reach out to pat his shoulder, Hinata had already grabbed the net and stumbled clumsily underneath it.
Hearing his footsteps, Hirugami turned his head slightly to look at him.
Having finally adjusted his state, Hoshiumi moved the arm that was blocking his eyes, the first face that came into view was not his teammate, but Hinata.
Hoshiumi, who had just been trying to pull himself together and act strong, suddenly felt his eyes well up with tears.
He wanted to sit up, but as soon as he bent his legs, he felt a bit of pain in his ankle, which seemed to be a minor sprain from when he slipped on sweat just now.
But he could still move, it didn't seem serious; it would probably be fine in a day or two.
Hinata's movements were slow; he held Hirugami's shoulder for support, lowering his body bit by bit until he was kneeling beside Hoshiumi.
Hoshiumi turned his head to look at him, a hint of confusion in his eyes.
Perhaps.. he should be angry at a time like this.
The opponent, having just won the match, running over to gloat and act all smug.. it really is infuriating.
But for some reason, at this very moment, he felt no emotional fluctuations at all.
He had given it his all, as opponents, Hinata and the others had also given everything they had.
In terms of the match results, there was nothing to question.
Even if he was unwilling to accept it, but..
Nice play, Shoyo.
Hoshiumi's voice was hoarse, his words slow but without hesitation.
In truth, there were many, many times he had wanted to say this very thing to Hinata.
Setting aside their recent adversarial roles, this compliment was incredibly sincere and heartfelt.
Hinata opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but the tears suddenly streaming down his face threw his breathing into disarray.
After choking for a moment, he could only raise his hands quite clumsily, wanting to wipe the tears from his face.
Hoshiumi struggled with all his might to crawl up from the ground, looking completely lost.
No, I'm the one who lost, so why are you crying!
“Don't wipe them with your hands, your hands are covered in sweat, don't rub your eyes! Coach—towel—"
After the chaos subsided, Hinata sat on the floor with his legs crossed, while Hoshiumi sat opposite him, looking completely speechless. "So, what exactly are you here for?"
This question seemed to stump Hinata; after a brief daze, he fell into silence: ".."
Not even two seconds passed before he spoke again: "I don't know."
He had acted on a sudden impulse just now, thinking he wanted to see Hoshiumi, but now that he had calmed down, he didn't know what he was supposed to do.
Hoshiumi laughed in exasperation.
The sadness of losing the match had faded a bit. He looked at the ice pack Hirugami was applying to his ankle and said calmly, "What I said a long time ago, you've already done it."
He didn't look at Hinata, but Hinata understood clearly what Hoshiumi was saying.
Hinata froze for a moment, then asked in surprise, "Really?"
Hoshiumi raised his hand and tapped his forehead. "What else?"
Hinata's nose tingled, without hesitation, he opened his arms toward Hoshiumi. "Can I have a hug, Hikari-kun?"
Hoshiumi sighed and leaned forward to hug Hinata.
He patted his back. "I approve of your graduation, Shoyo."
The camera flashes at that moment, freezing the two figures in the frame.
Hinata, who wasn't paying attention, shook his head, his sweat-soaked hair brushing against Hoshiumi's neck: "There's still so much I haven't learned yet."
Hoshiumi was truly driven to laughter by exasperation this time.
—Is he learning more things just to use them all against him?
Is he trying to teach his disciple, or is he trying to craft his own greatest life enemy by hand?
He signaled to Hirugami with a look, Hirugami quickly reached out to grab Hinata by the back of his collar, lifting him up.
Hoshiumi looked at Hinata with an expressionless face: "Get lost, hurry up."
Hirugami tossed the person back toward the Inarizaki side, then looked at Hoshiumi with a smile. "How was it? Was today's match interesting?"
Hoshiumi used the hand Hakuma extended to pull himself up, hopping on one foot to check his condition.