Coach Kurosu left with Hinata and Miya Atsumu. Ginjima Yui silently turned his head to look at Suna. "Atsumu's destination is already decided, Motoya and I both have our university goals. Osamu is planning to become an apprentice to learn a trade, but as for you.."
Coach Omimi followed up on Ginjima Yui's words and asked, "Do you want me and Coach Kurosu to ask about V1 teams for you?"
However, unlike Miya Atsumu, Suna's previous achievements weren't actually that dazzling; although he had been selected for the Junior National Team, his substantial results were ultimately lacking.
But being named the All-Tournament MVP for Middle Blocker is a great start; after becoming a regular starter in his Third Year, Suna's performance this time has been quite exceptional.
Before V1, several teams had also come to inquire about Suna's situation, but since Suna's personal intentions were unclear at the time, it was never mentioned.
After a brief moment of thought, Suna replied, "I.. lean more towards my previous university."
Coach Omimi asked, "Is that for powerhouse volleyball schools like Central Physical Education University or Waseda, or just any random school?"
Most students attending the former enter through recommendation. For example, Waseda has four recommendation slots for sports every year, while at institutions like Central Physical Education University and Nippon Sport Science University, nearly half of the freshmen are admitted through recommendation.
However, accepting a recommendation for admission also means that they must play for the university team for the next four years, they will only be able to join a professional team after the University League concludes.
The latter is relatively more free and is not restricted by recommendation to only a few specific majors; similarly, one can also choose not to play for a university team and instead go straight into a professional team.
If one could get into a top school through exams like at Iizuna, they could choose to study a major they were interested in while participating in the University League. If Jinnin's search goes smoothly, he could choose to join a professional team as early as the end of his third year of the University League.
Suna pulled his head into his collar, before long, he spoke: "Then I'll take the recommendation."
Making him prepare for university entrance exams.. he'd rather just be killed.
His desire to attend university was merely a form of longing for college life, combined with the fact that his individual performance in high school matches wasn't particularly outstanding, meaning he needed the University Championship to increase his market value.
Coach Omimi nodded, "Alright, we'll try to ask for you later."
He rubbed his chin. "I wonder if Waseda can try to secure one.."
You have to understand that Waseda's four annual spots are contested by all sports together. Waseda's track and field and basketball teams are both top-tier; last year, the volleyball team barely managed to secure one, which was a recommendation for Washio Tatsuki from Fukurodani.
As for Suna's generation.. Waseda really wanted Miya Atsumu, but unfortunately, he was rejected.
Recalling his previous conversation with the two coaches from Itachiyama, he felt that this recommendation slot would ultimately be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations with Sakusa.
Unabara Uta rubbed his chin. "Eh? By the way, I've never heard of Todai having recommendation spots."
In his impression, everyone got in through exams, there weren't many formidable athletes at Todai either; the ones who dominated various events year after year were Kyoto and Waseda.
Kumagai explained, "Todai is a national university; they don't allow admission through recommendation."
Unabara Uta gasped, "That's terrifying.."
Kumagai smiled and then said, "But it is indeed a bit surprising that Hinata will choose to go to university."
He had actually always thought Hinata would choose to join a professional team directly after graduation, after all, Hinata didn't like studying at all.
Rishia, who was very clear on the whole matter, explained, "Ah, it's because Coach Utsunomiya's side helped arrange a study abroad program for Shoyo; it's said he's planning to go to South America."
Fukami gasped, "That's so far—"
Nishizawa pressed his hand against his heart: "That was incredible, Shoyo-senpai!"
On the other side, Hinata and Miya Atsumu had already arrived at the National Stadium's temporary meeting room under Coach Kurosu's lead. Coach Raphael and Coach Sanjo were already there, on the other side, Bokuto and Yatsu were sitting while snacking on melon.
After greeting the two coaches, Hinata rushed toward the two of them, holding up his certificate: "Bokuto-senpai! Natsume-senpai!"
Look! My All-Tournament MVP!
Miya Atsumu stood behind him with one hand on his hip, a helpless smile on his face.
It looks like Hinata is planning to show off his achievements to everyone he meets.
Shiratori took a good look at Hinata's certificate and praised him sincerely, "As expected of Shoyo, you are truly a one-in-a-million top Ace, truly a dragon among men."
Although he didn't quite understand, Hinata knew Shiratori was praising him, so he puffed out his chest even more, trying his best to show off his chest, which was still far from broad.
Bokuto held the certificate even higher: "Ohhhhh—All-Tournament MVP—so amazing! I've never even received one!"
Glancing sideways at Miya Atsumu, who had remained silent, Shiratori leaned back slightly to look at him. "What's the matter? Atsu-kun, are you planning to come to Central Physical Education University too?"
If you're coming here, I could also switch to being a Wing Spiker or a Middle Blocker.
Miya Atsumu felt a shameful flutter of excitement for half a second, but ultimately shook his head. "No, no, no, I'm not going."
Just looking at how haggard Shiratori has become lately shows how difficult life at Central Physical Education University is; it's better to let him go to a professional team and enjoy the joy of volleyball.
Coach Kurosu sat in the seat directly opposite Raphael, chatting casually with the two of them, mostly exchanging evaluations of today's match and mutual compliments.
Not long after, the two coaches from Itachiyama entered, bringing Komori Motoya with them.
Coach Utsunomiya, who arrived carrying a folder, handed out three copies of the recommendation agreement to everyone. "Sorry, I was slightly delayed."
Coach Himegomiya pulled out a chair next to Coach Sanjo and slumped into it quite ungracefully. "I'm exhausted. I ran into some scouts from EJP Gods, they wouldn't let us leave no matter what we said."
Coach Sanjo handed her the blanket: "You've worked hard."
Coach Utsunomiya proceeded with the process: "The contract has already been verified. If you're still uneasy, you can read it thoroughly once more; once you've confirmed there are no errors, just sign and provide your fingerprints at the corresponding locations on the last two pages."
Coach Kurosu, who didn't trust these guys at all, read through everything word for word from beginning to end, fearing that Central Physical Education University might have hidden some trap for Hinata in some obscure corner.
As it turned out, although they usually teased each other for being cunning and old foxes, everyone was equally serious when it came to the children.
While it couldn't be described as a complete concession, most of the terms in this agreement were to Hinata's advantage.
Central Physical Education University was actually just seeking an opportunity to nurture future top-tier players, simply wanted to leverage Hinata's strength to achieve better results.
In Hinata's case, as long as he ensures he doesn't fail his classes, Central Physical Education University will provide him with a full scholarship.
Moreover, Hinata's tuition for Indoor Volleyball has already been waived; the only thing they need to consider next is Hinata's living expenses for studying abroad.
But this aspect could be resolved through Hinata's personal funding. The round-trip airfare between Brazil and Japan would be reimbursed by the school; after all, he would be traveling with the main group of exchange students, so the total cost wouldn't be too high.
Going through them one by one, even Coach Kurosu had to admit that the other party was truly sincere.
They even.. offered Hinata better terms than what they had initially discussed.
—Even though they were the ones who made the demands in the first place.
Under Coach Kurosu's signal, Hinata carefully signed his name and pressed his thumbprint in the corresponding spot.
The signed contract was handed over to Coach Raphael.
The red-haired French coach stood up and shook hands with Coach Kurosu. "It was a pleasure working with you."
Seemingly sensing a hint of surprise from Coach Kurosu, Raphael said with a chuckle, "Hinata is worth it."
Actually, the latter part of this contract had just been modified on the spot. After watching this final, the school was incredibly satisfied with Hinata, showing a strong intention to arrange for him to skip a grade and enroll alongside Komori Motoya.
Coach Sanjo also smiled, then turned to Hinata and brought up another matter.
The person you recommended to me before, I've already watched the footage of their first round in the Haruko Preliminary Round. To be honest, he is excellent.
“Shimizu Kanata's partner has grown too tall too quickly over the past two years, his flexibility in defense is actually much worse than before. I'm considering changing his partner; that person is the best choice in every respect.”
The corner of his mouth curled up; although his words carried a hint of uncertainty, he himself was inexplicably confident. "They haven't given me a definite answer yet. I plan to head north myself next month. If I'm lucky, you might just have a partner before you go abroad."
Knowing what the other person was referring to, Hinata's eyes widened.
He was a bit nervous, but mostly he was filled with anticipation: "That's wonderful!!"
The contract on Komori Motoya's side was also finalized. As a child Coach Utsunomiya had watched grow up, he was naturally given the best treatment in every respect.
After all, regarding this recommendation, it wasn't that they had chosen Komori Motoya and Hinata, but rather that these two had chosen them.
Before leaving, Hinata took two steps back and looked at the coaches. "Um.. if I win more impressive awards in the future, will I be able to get more prize money?"
Coach Raphael couldn't help but laugh.
He replied without hesitation, "Of course, we are never stingy when it comes to excellent players like you."
Hinata let out a cheer, said his goodbyes to the group, then skipped away following Miya Atsumu.
That's awesome!
This way, he'll have more funds for his future training!
By the way, he also needs to buy a tablet for Xiaoxia; the prize money from the National Sports Festival combined with the prize money from being the IH Runner-up will be just enough.
Once it's issued, I'll go with Atsumu-ge to shop for Xiaoxia.
Watching Hinata and Miya Atsumu leave, Coach Sanjo reached out and tapped the tabletop.
“Kurosu, let me ask you a question. That kid of yours and that blond-haired one..”
Himegomiya Satsuki froze for a moment, even her movement of stuffing melon into her mouth stuttered: "Haven't I told you before?"
Sanjo shook his head earnestly. "No."
Coach Kurosu waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry, they've been dating for over half a year; they aren't the type of people who would let a relationship get in the way of their careers."
Coach Sanjo paused. "No, that's not what I meant."
He placed both hands on the table, resting his chin on them, looked at Coach Kurosu very seriously: "I mean, couldn't we bundle them together? I think both Shoyo and Miya would be very willing to."
".." Coach Kurosu fell silent.
So that's what he was waiting for!!
He replied with a dark expression, "It's no use, Atsumu has already signed a contract with a professional team."
Coach Sanjo expressed his regret: "That's such a shame."
Miya Atsumu, who had already reached the first floor, suddenly realized something: "Coach Himegomiya and Coach Sanjo.. they don't have the same surname."
Hinata let out a sound of realization: "Because they aren't married."
"They aren't married?" Miya Atsumu was stunned for a moment, but he remembered Hinata mentioning before that the two were in a relationship.
Hinata's expression was very serious: "Coach Himegamiya said that when they got engaged, she happened to be injured, later, between her recovery and Coach Sanjo leading the team abroad for long periods, they just never had the time to hold a wedding."
Then they both thought the other person's surname sounded good and couldn't decide which one to use, so they just didn't register it.
".." Miya Atsumu fell silent.
Under Hinata's gaze, Miya Atsumu said with absolute solemnity, "Don't worry, Shoyo, I'm definitely not in the late stages of procrastination."
Our wedding will definitely be beautiful and grand.
Hinata opened his mouth, looking at Miya Atsumu's eyes, which held a hint of surprise.
He slowly raised his head, obscuring half of his face.
“That's so unfair, Atsumu-ge.”
A sudden marriage proposal..