The serving machine moves along a track, there is a very distinct sound the moment it hits the ball.
But.. in truth, it doesn't really matter anyway.
The whistle blew again, Coach Suzaku signaled that the second ball was about to begin.
In the final eight seconds, the sound of a strike appeared once again.
Hinata's pupils contracted, the moment his vision caught the volleyball, he quickly stepped forward. While maintaining a high center of gravity, he reached out his hand to position himself for the ball.
Unlike the first ball, this one was a jump float serve that landed further forward.
The sound of the volleyball making contact with a body rang out, under the controlled force applied by Hinata, the ball flew toward the front-side of the Attack Line.
The whistle blew again, Coach Suzaku signaled that Hinata had scored a point.
Hinata clenched his fists tightly. "Yes!"
The youth, who had just stepped into this gymnasium, exclaimed in shock, "A jump float serve? And a dual wield?! Is the last event really this difficult!"
Adler doesn't plan on giving them the highest tier of prizes, do they?! Can a human even catch that!
On the other side, the data analyst coach said with a hint of emotion, "Their adaptation speed is unexpectedly fast.."
The person beside her said, "After all, Inarizaki has two Dual Wield masters, so he must have had plenty of contact with them during regular team practice."
But even so.. this reaction speed could be called top-tier.
Recalling the matches of Inarizaki he had watched before, a cold sweat suddenly broke out on his back.
Wait.. once this event's difficulty is increased, it tests ultimate reaction speed as well as the speed of adjusting strategies to counter the Dual Wield's serve.
The latter, Hinata, already possesses a certain level of proficiency, as for the former, one can tell from his speed in supporting the quick attack and adjusting his spikes on the fly that he is definitely not weak either.
If I had to say.. this test project seems almost tailor-made for Hinata.
He asked with doubt, "But isn't this a project designed to screen Libero? How could it be so perfectly suited for a Spiker?"
Hearing his voice, the person who had spoken first replied, "It shows that his potential isn't limited to just spiking; with that kind of reaction speed and adaptability, he has a bright future in defense as well."
It's a pity.. It's obvious that Hinata's receiving proficiency is nowhere near that high.
She said softly, "After all, he is a player specializing in the Quick Attack, so he might not have put much effort into training in this area, but I see a great future for him."
The man remarked with emotion, "That must be terrifying."
The third ball was still a power serve, this time coming from the wing, with a speed that remained essentially consistent with the very first ball.
Hinata was positioned in the center, the moment his vision caught the ball, he decisively dove forward to bump it up.
With a loud thud, he bumped the ball forward.
But unfortunately, the ball did not fall within the successful range.
Hinata gave a small smirk.
Although this point wouldn't count because the set was too far forward, in an Inarizaki match, this was already enough to ensure Miya Atsumu wouldn't scold him for his first receive.
Being able to pass to this extent, he felt that Unabara Uta would definitely praise him!
This project was a bit easier for him to handle than he had imagined, after all.. whenever he participated in defense for the team, he could never quite see what the opponent was doing.
Even if the serve cover wasn't specifically targeting him, he couldn't see much of anything amidst the aftermath.
Those big guys are really.. so hateful!
Meanwhile, Unabara Uta, who was shopping with Imai far away in Ginza, let out a violent sneeze.
He quickly put down the goose-patterned scarf Imai had just purchased and rummaged through his pocket for tissues.
Who's talking about me..
Chapter 463: The 463th Fox
On the court, Hinata was already prepared to receive the fourth ball, while Coach Suzaku, who had blown his whistle to signal the opposing staff to start the machine, watched Hinata quietly.
From the perspective of a head coach of a top-tier V1 team, Hinata's receiving movement is undoubtedly unrefined.
But they weren't testing his receiving technique itself; as long as there is enough space for an effective bump, whether his technique is mature or not doesn't actually have a huge impact on the final result.
To receive such a power serve, the first thing one must do is judge the ball's trajectory and speed, moving oneself into a position to handle the ball before it lands.
Then comes the absorption of force, which is the crucial part for controlling the ball's landing point.
Hinata had this awareness of absorbing the impact; he knew that a Jump Float Serve must be handled by keeping the arms as taut as possible to actively provide resistance.
Regarding that recent power serve, Hinata relaxed his arms; this is the most correct way for a player who lacks sufficient body weight and power to handle a power serve.
Just from this one point alone, it is clear that Hinata's fundamental skills are essentially without issue.
Receiving is just like serving; it is a long-term training project. Considering Hinata's age, being able to spike to that level is already quite remarkable; the remaining improvement of his overall strength will be an even longer-term project.
To be honest, he could truly understand now why his old friend wanted Hinata so much.
Unfortunately, as far as he knew, Hinata had already refused before. After he brought it up this time, Hinata didn't say anything more, likely meaning he was still uninterested.
As for the Adler's.. they have already reserved Hoshiumi Hikari; compared to Hinata, Hoshiumi's overall ability is even stronger.
After all, the tactics of the Adler's have never leaned toward the Quick Attack style; as an Opposite and a core of the Left Wing, they actually need a player like Hoshiumi, who can stabilize the overall state of the Right Wing, more than an ultimate Quick Attacker like Hinata.
But speaking of this ultimate quick attack..
For some reason, he felt that Coach Sansou might like Hinata.
He has never been able to understand the Black Jackals' selection strategy; they basically pick players who are difficult to integrate into other teams, possess extremely strong individual styles, are hard to tame.
So he could understand why Coach Sansou was so desperate to get Miya Atsumu.
Compared to all the setters currently in the high school, university, professional ranks, Miya Atsumu's playing style is perhaps the most versatile.
Just those spikers from Inarizaki alone would give most setters a headache, let alone the Black Jackals, who have taken things even further in this regard.
It wasn't just the quick attacks and standard tactical plays; even with a player like Suna, Miya Atsumu could utilize him perfectly, which couldn't help but command admiration.
Considering it from this perspective.. the Adler's are indeed not a very good fit for Miya Atsumu.
Thinking of this, Coach Suzaku silently let go of his obsession.
Bringing back a player who isn't a good fit for the team would be the ultimate waste of team resources; he might as well go look at other players..
On the court, Hinata missed the fourth Jump Float Serve, which was hit quite poorly by the machine, aiming directly at the corner.
When defending the entire court alone, a ball at this distance could only be handled through a diving save, but this was another jump float serve.
Hinata has not yet mastered the ability to control the ball's landing point while diving; most of his diving saves during practice are simply bumping the ball up, with his teammates covering the rest.
Watching Hinata's face full of frustration as he got up, Coach Suzaku gave a light cough.
He made a gesture toward the staff member on the opposite side, who was clearly having a blast playing with the machine.
They did say they wanted to increase the difficulty, but that's not quite how you'd put it; even if Heiwajima were here, he probably wouldn't be able to bump a ball like that right over the setter's head.
It was obvious that the parameters for this machine's jump float serve mode hadn't been changed; they were the ones set when Heiwajima was practicing on their own before.
Miya Atsumu lowered his arms from his chest, swapped their positions, then crossed them again.
He tilted his head slightly and saw two heads peeking in, one above the other, through the doorway. However, because it was very dark over there, he couldn't make out their appearances, though he could faintly hear them seemingly speaking ill of Adler's.
What kind of difficulty is this? They're really not planning to give out this award, are they..
I also think so. Is the difficulty really like this? Or was there a mistake?
Adler is being too mean, here I was wanting Hirugami-senpai's autograph..
Miya Atsumu hesitated, wanting to say something, but ultimately withdrew his gaze.
The head above stared at Miya Atsumu's back: "He looks a bit familiar.. He's a bit far away, but that hair color.."
The head below also narrowed its eyes, trying hard to make out the figure: "Could it be.. Miya Atsumu-senpai?"
The next second, the person below was about to charge straight out, but was grabbed by the collar of his shirt by the person above: "Stop! You're not allowed to go!"
The person above gasped, grabbing the excited junior by the collar and preparing to flee.
What kind of crappy event is this? Can he just not participate anymore!
Just at that moment, a voice came from behind: "Since you're already here, aren't you coming in?"
Inamoto turned around, he felt a sense of relief upon seeing it was Ushijima Wakatoshi.
Although he was still a substitute back when Ushijima was in junior high, he had still spoken a few words to Ushijima because of the exchange between Itachiyama and Shiratorizawa.
He let go of the junior he was holding by the collar and greeted Ushijima, "Hello, Ushijima-senpai."
The person he was holding also stood up straight, greeting Inamoto: "Ushijima-senpai!!"
This is.. the number one player among Japan's new generation!
Ushijima greeted Inamoto, then looked at the person following him. "Hello, this is??"
Inamoto introduced to Ushijima, "He's a junior from the junior high division, his name is Ningshaqing."
Mingsha bowed to Ushijima: "Nice to meet you! I am Mingsha!"
Ushijima nodded to the two of them. "I've heard of you. If you're here to participate in the event, come on in; you can line up behind me."
Mingsha followed Ushijima into the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium as quickly as possible, leaving Inamoto alone behind, hesitating and afraid to move.
Damn it, Ushijima-senpai really is a good person, but.. but—
There's a terrifying guy in there!!
Nice!
At that moment, a slightly high-pitched cheer rang out from inside the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium.
In just 0.1 seconds, Inamoto identified it was Hinata.
This made him want to run away even more.
As a player in the same year as Hinata, he had also met Hinata privately a few times with Komori-senpai and the others; although they weren't close, he knew clearly that the other was an easygoing person.
If Hinata were there himself, he would be willing to have some exchange with him.
But.. it's obvious that Hinata is currently on a date with Miya Atsumu-senpai. If he goes in to disturb them.. he'll be roasted by Miya Atsumu during the Haruko tournament, won't he!!