Chapter 513: The 513th Fox
Inarizaki was highly skilled at maintaining their advantage, leaving Karasuno with almost no opportunity for a counterattack.
Tsukishima Kei's several attempts at blocking failed to score, on one occasion, he was even outmaneuvered by Hinata, nearly being lured into an attack over the net.
But Tsukishima's reaction speed was very fast; he pulled his hands back the moment he touched the ball, allowing Hinata to tip it over the net.
Blind blocking will only have the opposite effect; first, one must ensure they don't lose points before they can even talk about scoring.
Tsukishima and Kageyama's Quick Attack is even more effective when they are positioned in adjacent spots, but because it is so powerful, Inarizaki keeps a very close eye on it, Tsukishima's own ability to play technical balls is actually far from being that strong.
Under the heavy pressure of Inarizaki's block, he had no chance to use tooling the block, could only hit a Sharp Cross into Inarizaki's court.
This kind of low-power volleyball was easy for Unabara Uta to handle; the received ball was passed to Miya Osamu, who successfully scored with a spike, breaking Tanaka's Service Turn.
As the score approached the end, the atmosphere on Karasuno's side grew increasingly anxious.
After another fruitless rally, Tsukishima also left the court after switching positions.
24:21, Inarizaki match point, the Service Right passed to Miya Atsumu at this moment.
The atmosphere in the entire Karasuno cheering area was so heavy it could almost drip with water, some people could no longer hold back their tears.
In such a score deficit, it was Inarizaki's turn for a Service Turn, their most powerful serve was almost impossible to counter.
In a great mood, Miya Atsumu walked to his approach position as if taking a leisurely stroll.
He could already see their victory; the opponent's resistance was nothing more than a futile struggle.
However.. he was very satisfied with this performance.
The whistle for the serve sounded at this moment.
Miya Atsumu did not hesitate for long; after adjusting the rhythm of his breathing, Miya Atsumu raised his hand and tossed the ball into the air.
He had focused more on the Libero, Nishinoya, during these two sets, this time he decided to target Nishinoya again. Even though he had already realized that this strategy was useless, he simply wanted to see it through to the end.
Besides—
Thud!
Miya Atsumu's power serve had a clear target. After being almost certain that there wouldn't be any intense struggle following the hit, he put one hundred percent of his strength into the ball, almost letting himself go.
Seeing the speed of this ball, Nishinoya silently lowered his center of gravity even further, ensuring his body wouldn't be knocked over by the ball.
As a small-statured Libero, he had a lot of experience in this regard.
A heavy thud occurred again, the ball flew steadily, landing toward Karasuno's front row.
Kageyama raised his hands to set up a Second Attack toward Inarizaki, but Rishia reacted quickly, stepping in to bump the ball back up.
Narita received Suna's spike, Nishinoya, given the chance to receive the pass, stepped up almost immediately.
In the very end, Karasuno still adhered to their high-risk, high-reward playstyle, once again choosing to attack from multiple directions simultaneously.
Suna was startled by Tanaka's unusually strong presence, at that moment, the ball was passed into Kageyama's hands.
Kageyama stared intently at the gap in the block that hadn't fully recovered, raised his hand, spiked the ball.
His strength was immense, even superior to most spikers.
The moment his arm made contact with the ball, Miya Osamu realized something was wrong: "Sorry!"
The ball had a very strong spin on it, he completely failed to control it upon contact.
Rishia from the side of Inarizaki rushed out to save this ball, but he was unable to reduce the spin, failed to send the ball to the front of the net.
Kageyama, who had spiked the ball from the other side of the net, landed, his eyes tightly following the ball.
Fast and high.
The bumped ball flew directly out of bounds near the net. Regardless of whether it could even be chased down, simply attempting to hit the ball back inside the boundary line from such a position was practically an impossibility.
But at this moment, Kageyama had no chance to catch his breath at all.
The moment he caught sight of that figure in the dark jersey, a certain afterimage from his memory surfaced before his eyes once again.
Yes.
From that moment on, he knew that the only thing on this court that could help him catch up to that person was volleyball.
That orange shadow was brighter than the orange jersey he was wearing at that moment, forcing him to move, to chase after it.
Nothing is impossible.
Creating miracles.. some guy is the best at that, isn't he?
But he knew, so he had the ability to stop miracles.
Win this point, then..
In the split second that Tsukishima's gaze shifted from the Coach's bench, Kageyama, who had been positioned in the center of the net, had already stepped forward, charging toward the far end of the net near Karasuno's Position 4 with a speed that was incomprehensible to ordinary people.
Unai Aman, watching from the stands, pursed his lips, his eyes having turned red at some unknown point.
It was a ball that was almost impossible to chase down, but the judgment Kageyama gave Hinata was that the opponent could pull off an extreme Short Diagonal in this situation, ensuring the volleyball would clear the net and stay within the lines.
The sound of soles hitting the floor rang in everyone's ears; no one could fail to recognize it—it was the pulse triggered by the floor at the exact moment the spiker jumped.
—He jumped.
Tsukishima's eyes widened, his aching legs delayed his movements, preventing him from standing up immediately.
But.. do you really have to spike a ball like this?
Inarizaki held a massive Score advantage and had already reached match point; they should have chosen a more stable way to play.
Shiratori, on the steps, propped his cheek with his hand, his gaze toward the court gentle. He narrowed his eyes, concealing the emotion within them.
That's right, exactly like that.
No matter what, he never gives up his time in the air, constantly challenging even more distant peaks regardless of time or place, always capable of bringing about miracles—
The volleyball in his field of vision seemed to pause for a split second at the peak of its arc, its rhythm perfectly synchronized with the boy's leap into the air.
He watched the yellow and blue volleyball, looking past the ball, he saw Kageyama already jumping to the side.
Yamaguchi's movements were a bit slow, but he had already followed them over there.
The best way to get this ball into the court would be to challenge the most extreme Short Diagonal, but.. he had no reason to necessarily hit a Short Diagonal.
There is never just one way to solve a problem; this is the most practical conclusion he has reached after playing volleyball for so long.
There are so many different techniques, there is certainly more than one that could be effective at a time like this. Right now, he only needs to follow his second intuition.
The opponent had clearly judged that he was going to hit a Short Diagonal, so this kind of ball was worthless; a surprise attack only works if it's sudden enough!
Thud!!
The sound exploded in everyone's ears. It wasn't a heavy sound, nor was it crisp, which meant.. this ball hadn't been spiked directly.
The ball traced an arc at the edge of everyone's vision, its side spin causing it to arc in a semicircle, passing inside the antenna and into Karasuno's court before dropping onto the ground behind the three-meter line.
Nishinoya Yu's body reacted before his brain could, as his legs extended, the ball slammed into his ankle joint.
The uneven contact point caused the ball to lose control the moment it bounced, sending it flying toward the net at an extremely low angle.
Kageyama, having landed from the block, decisively lunged in the opposite direction, getting his hand under the ball to attempt a desperate dig with all his might.
The sensation of the ball hitting the back of his hand was incredibly clear; the volleyball in his field of vision landed on his joints, yet everything gradually blurred.
The Setter has the clearest perception of his own touch; he knows..
This dreamlike journey has come to an end.
The ball flew under the net into Inarizaki's court and then hit the ground.
Beep—
The long, drawn-out whistle echoed throughout the entire arena, followed immediately by an explosion of cheers and applause from the stands.
Inarizaki's orange flash—
It's just like a ninja!
Shoyo—you were the best!!
In the quiet Karasuno stands, where even faint sobbing could be heard, Unai wiped the corners of his eyes with the back of his hand and then clapped with all his might.
The voice, which had grown somewhat hoarse from cheering, was still shouting with all its might, "Nice kill!!"
The members of Karasuno on the court were already helping each other up to their feet, scattered applause rang out behind Unai, gradually growing in volume until it almost swallowed the entire stands.
Nice play!!
What a great match!
Good job everyone—
The Karasuno faculty advisor, who had long ago taken off his wig and was waving it around because of the sweat, was now sobbing uncontrollably.
Azumane Asahi, standing beside Unai Aman, had long since been reduced to a weeping mess, Sugawara Koushi, who had been trying to comfort him, was also gradually losing control of his own emotions.
They had already worked so hard.
The result of the match no longer mattered at this moment; they could see the players giving it their all, that was enough.
Hinata panted, small beads of sweat trickling down the sides of his face, looking almost like tears.
He straightened his body, his gaze burning like fire.
“I won.”
That block that could never be overcome in my memories, that King who was as powerful as a mountain.. has completely become the past.
Only he, only they, will be crowned as kings.
Because they are strong enough.
Kageyama walked away from the rest of the Karasuno group, stepping toward the net one step at a time: "Next time, it will be me."
The King frowned, his eyes filled with resentment and anger at his own lack of strength.
A soft call reached his ears. Kageyama gave Hinata one last look before turning and walking away.