Komori's reaction speed was extremely fast; although Miya Atsumu's jump float serve was also very fast and heavy, he still managed to smoothly get under the ball after a single step.
He actively gave the ball upward momentum, setting it toward the highest point at the net.
Sakusa, from the back row, had already retreated to his approach position, switching places with Inamura to prepare for a back-row attack.
Suna's hands were held in front of him as he watched unhurriedly as Inamoto moved under the ball.
Inamoto faced Itachiyama's Position 4; Komori's serve was driven down the center line, making it difficult for him to track the ball's position while simultaneously monitoring Suna's movement.
Ishikawa had already adjusted his position, taking a four-step approach to rush to the net, lowering his center of gravity to jump and prepare for a spike on the high ball at Position 4.
Miya Osamu moved half a step toward Ishikawa's position, Inamoto noticed.
His brain raced, the figure that moved in sync with the ball's trajectory was Sakusa.
Inamoto, who had already jumped, stared at the ball and reached out a hand toward the side of the net, seemingly intending to tip the ball toward Sakusa's position between Position 3 and Position 4.
Hinata, watching from the side, stared at Inamoto's movements and keenly sensed that something was wrong.
At that very moment, Suna suddenly jumped up.
It wasn't until the sound of the hit rang out that Hinata finally realized where the source of that sense of wrongness had been.
This ball wasn't passed to the back of Itachiyama's court at all; it was a Second Ball.
Suna's hands slapped down, pressing the ball directly back into Itachiyama's court.
The whistle blew, the Head Referee signaled that Inarizaki scores.
The stands, which had been momentarily stunned and unable to process what had just happened, finally erupted into cheers.
Hinata's eyes widened. "That.. that was incredible! Suna-senpai!!"
Just now, he even had the feeling that Inamoto had been completely read by Suna; that Second Attack was definitely something a temporary jump block couldn't keep up with.
Suna curled the corners of his mouth imperceptibly. "It's very simple."
Inamoto felt as if an arrow had been driven directly into his heart, repeatedly grinding against his pain.
Simple, simple?? He hadn't even decided how he was going to play yet—
Thinking of this, Inamoto suddenly turned his head to look at Miya Osamu on the other side.
No, he decided to perform a Second Attack only after seeing Miya Osamu move. This meant that he had actually played that way under instructions from Inarizaki.
Was it deliberately arranged?
Glancing at Hinata, who was looking at Suna with eyes full of admiration, Inamoto silently dismissed that possibility.
No, it was just that Suna had anticipated his thoughts after seeing Miya Osamu's movement.
—How terrifying.
Inamoto pursed his lips, every muscle in his body incredibly tense.
No, he had to stay calm.
As the setter, he is the brain of the team; once his mental state falters, they are finished..
In the stands, Iizuna rested his chin in his hands and let out a soft sigh: "Inarizaki loves messing with their opponents' mental state, just like always."
Inamoto was someone he had practically raised since junior high, but even after all these years, his mental state still hadn't shown much improvement.
Facing an opponent like Inarizaki.. he's likely in for a rough time.
Amatori's entire face crumpled: "Disgusting, truly disgusting."
He pressed his hands together and prayed for his juniors, "Go for it! Work hard, pin those damn foxes to the ground!"
Starting from this Haruko, in order to simplify the match process and the overall tournament format, the officials have abolished the third-place match. The two teams that lose today can directly tie for third place and receive the third-place medals directly.
To be honest, this change is even more brutal.
And.. if they lose today, Itachiyama will have taken third place three times in a row!
Amatori's face was full of resentment, the look he gave the Inarizaki members on the court was extremely unfriendly.
He hoped no one from Inarizaki was coming to their university; he found the Inarizaki members incredibly annoying!
Miya Atsumu's second ball was still a jump float serve, this time he specifically controlled the landing point to the middle area near Itachiyama's Position 1, avoiding Komori from receiving it.
Of course, this doesn't mean he was being cowardly or didn't dare to face Komori head-on. It was more that.. yesterday, he had been pulled aside for a long chat by Kita Shinsuke, who had come to the hotel to visit him.
Not targeting Komori was actually a correct decision.
His targeting of Karasuno's Libero yesterday had no effect whatsoever; it only served as proof that the opponent's physical conditioning was superb.
Komori, who already had excellent physical conditioning, was in great form right now. Considering the upcoming schedule, there was no need for him to exhaust himself against Komori; investing too much energy into him might actually backfire. It would be better to focus on handling the much harder-to-restrict Sakusa.
Sakusa's spin serve is difficult to handle regardless of the position, since the Libero they sent out today is Nishizawa Hokuto, who lacks Unabara Uta's experience in handling spin serves, they need to avoid Sakusa's offense as much as possible.
As for the remaining Inamura, Ogihara, the others, the threat they posed to Nishizawa was nowhere near as great, Nishizawa did an excellent job of absorbing the impact.
Sakusa, being the first to react, stepped forward to handle the ball, while Inamura also pulled back to create distance in preparation for an attack.
Sakusa's skill in handling jump float serves was not as high as Komori's; in his current state, he needed more time to get the ball into position, this delay alone cost him the opportunity for a back-row attack.
But.. when it came to back-row attacks, he believed he wouldn't lose to anyone else.
The moment Inamura extended his arms to prepare for a spike, Inamoto's ball was passed to Koldorf, who was already in the air one step behind him.
By the time Hinata and Suna rushed over, Koldorf had already completed his spike.
With a loud bang, the ball landed in the front row of Inarizaki's court, Ginjima in the back row failed to keep up.
Ginjima was a bit stunned: "Wait, this is—"
After flashing a sinister smile at the Inarizaki members, Inamoto turned to high-five Koldorf. "Yeah! It worked! A simplified version of the Super Quick Attack!"
Targeting a specific position for this kind of Quick Attack really works!
No wonder the Inarizaki members like playing like this; it feels too good!
Chapter 518: The 518th Fox
Amatori in the stands narrowed his eyes: "Oh my."
Beside him, Iizuna mimicked his way of speaking: "Oya, oya."
Amatori turned his head to glance at Iizuna, looking a bit regretful. "It's such a shame Agatsuma didn't come; otherwise, he would have definitely asked something like, 'Do I get to say ohya too?'"
Iizuna smiled, neither confirming nor denying it.
He watched the two juniors high-fiving and cheering on the court and smiled, "Inamoto and the others actually managed to figure out this Quick Attack. Even though it's a set-point play, it's more than enough to serve as a surprise attack."
Of course, he didn't think this style of play could truly become Itachiyama's primary offensive method, but having a few more ways to score is always a good thing.
Compared to the helpless state he was in when he was a substitute for him last year, Inamoto is now able to flexibly utilize Itachiyama's current lineup.
Perhaps compared to Miya Atsumu, Kageyama, the others, Inamoto is indeed just an ordinary setter.
But it didn't matter; Itachiyama's spikers were strong enough—strong enough to accommodate any small mistakes made by the setter.
A great setter is certainly a bonus, but what they truly need is one who is stable enough and can integrate sufficiently with the team.
As long as Inamoto can let go and become a Swordbearer with enough courage, his sword will surely give him two hundred percent in return.
After a moment of surprise, Miya Atsumu flashed a smile at Inamoto on the opposite side. "It's just a clumsy imitation."
Inamoto, who was given a smiling look by Miya Atsumu, felt a chill run down his spine, but he did not back down.
Winning this match would send Miya Atsumu straight out of high school volleyball, he and Miya Atsumu would never see each other again!
Thinking of this, Inamoto's eyes instantly flared with fighting spirit, the momentary fear that had just surfaced was completely swallowed up.
He said to Miya Atsumu on the opposite side, "Getting one point is enough; from here on, the rhythm will be in our hands."
Hearing this, Hinata tilted his head. "Really?"
He didn't feel that way; it was just one point, he didn't think the momentum would fall into Itachiyama's hands because of it.
Because.. just as Miya Atsumu said, that last play was quite clumsy.
For a moment, veins bulged on Inamoto's forehead.
He met Hinata's gaze and replied without backing down, "We'll see about that."
Hinata, who had merely spoken the truth, blinked.
Miya Atsumu gave a thumbs-up to Hinata from the back row; he had to admit, he was no match for this level of provocation.
Koldorf, having gained the service right, had already walked to the serving position.
It is still difficult to say who truly controls the rhythm, but.. the service right belongs to him, he will bring the advantage to Itachiyama.
Nishizawa Hokuto lowered his center of gravity, quietly watching Koldorf spin the volleyball in his hands.
This senior's serve is characterized by its heavy power and momentum, he often targets the baseline, though his error rate is actually quite high; he must accurately judge whether the opponent's serve is in-bounds.
Unabara-senpai's mistake is one he will absolutely never make a second time.
In the fourth second of the service time limit, Koldorf tossed the ball.
Nishizawa followed the sound of the opponent's footsteps, looking up toward the contact point the very moment the opponent took their final step.
Itachiyama's front row didn't have such terrifying height, the serve cover they executed wasn't enough to block every single possible path; as long as one observed carefully, the trajectory could definitely be analyzed.
The moment the ball was struck by Koldorf, a complete trajectory appeared in Nishizawa Hokuto's mind through analysis.
Miya Atsumu could handle this kind of ball; he had practiced it specifically during targeted training sessions with Unabara and the others. His judgment of this ball was..
In-bounds.
Nishizawa Hokuto took a step back, rapidly shifting his center of gravity from a forward position to the rear, transitioning from a lunge-like movement into a single-knee crouch.
The front of his forearm was positioned directly in the path of the ball's trajectory, a solid thud immediately followed.
In the stands, Amatori gasped.
Before he could say anything, the ball, which had its power neutralized and some of its spin reduced, was sent steadily over the head of Miya Atsumu, who had already moved up from the back row.
“What a great first receive!” This praise for Miya Atsumu was given with genuine sincerity, unlike the perfunctory comments usually directed at Unabara Uta.
In the waiting area, Unabara felt a slight ache in his spine, but he could only join in the shouts of "Nice kill!"