The linesman raised the flag, signaling out.
Fukami knelt down lightly.
Chapter 522: The Five Hundred and Twenty-Second Fox
Miya Atsumu felt that cursing was a bit tiring.
He waved his hand at Fukami, signaling him to get out of there immediately.
Fukami quickly rushed off the court, completed the handoff with Tokura by the sidelines, slunk back into Inarizaki's waiting area.
Kumagai laughed and gave Fukami a thumbs up to encourage him: "Keep at it."
Fukami stood at attention. "I'll do my best!"
Sakusa took the Service Right and walked toward the back row to take his approach position. Miya Atsumu glanced at his back but said nothing.
Two points was decent enough. Since the next Service Turn belonged to him, Sakusa also rotated to the back row. If they were lucky.. they could pull ahead with a terrifying lead this round and end the match in one go.
The first thing to do was.. find a way to break Sakusa's serve.
Atsumu glanced back at Nishizawa, seeing the eager look of challenge on his face, he felt relieved.
He wasn't sure if Nishizawa would be able to handle Sakusa's serve, after all, Nishizawa had not truly received his serve before this.
But looking at it from another perspective, Itachiyama wouldn't be able to judge Nishizawa Hokuto's ability to handle Sakusa's serve, so they would likely try to find a way to avoid him.
The whistle blew in his ears, the Head Referee signaled for Sakusa to serve.
Sakusa stood quietly at the start of his approach, holding the volleyball, his gaze sweeping across every face on the other side of the net.
He can handle a time violation, but there is no need, since his serve has never relied on suddenness to score.
To defend against his serve, the most important thing is having solid fundamentals.
Adjusting his breathing rhythm, Sakusa raised his hand to toss the ball.
Nishizawa's eyes were fixed intently on that volleyball, the moment the sound of the heavy strike rang out, that feeling of being locked on suddenly descended upon him as well.
The volleyball traced a large semi-circular arc, smashing down from high above toward his position.
Sakusa did not hide his intentions in the slightest.
They had already decided before the match to use a round of serves to test the limits of Inarizaki's Libero, then decide whether to adopt a strategy focused on wearing down the Libero for the rest of the game.
Watching the ball fly over the net, Coach Himegomiya rested her chin in one hand.
Inarizaki's number 17 is a rookie; it's impossible for every rookie to possess a physical foundation as terrifying as Hinata's. I wonder if Coach Kurosu is planning to hold something back, as he didn't reveal everything to Itachiyama this summer.
But on second thought, if Nishizawa Hokuto's physical condition was truly strong enough, then Unabara Uta wouldn't be in Inarizaki's starting lineup.
A player with reaction speed, spatial awareness, enough natural talent in receiving, if you add physical conditioning that is strong enough from the very start..
Then it wouldn't just be a genius, but a true monster.
Coach Himegomiya held her breath, her eyes fixed on Nishizawa Hokuto, who was preparing for the receiving movement.
No..
If anything, there is more than one such "monster" standing on this court right now, it wouldn't be impossible for there to be one more.
Having read the trajectory of the ball, Nishizawa Hokuto took a sudden, heavy step toward his left.
Sakusa's Banana Ball wasn't limited to a forehand spin pattern; thanks to his incredibly flexible wrists, he could execute it from his backhand as well.
Even Miya Atsumu couldn't replicate this type of serve; he had only seen it on video before.
The moment his arm made contact with the ball, Nishizawa Hokuto realized he was in trouble.
To ensure every ball was handled correctly, whether it was a heavy spike or a float serve, he basically used a downward wrist motion to control any ball he received. This was due to his sufficiently stable lower body and his powerful ability to absorb impact.
As for handling the spin, he relied on using the surface of his arm to exert active force to forcefully control it.
But with a Banana Ball hit with that kind of backhand from Sakusa.. he had no idea how to completely neutralize the spin.
The frantic adjustment error directly caused the ball to be received poorly, sending it flying toward the far end of the stands outside the court.
From the side, Miya Atsumu watched the ball fly over the two barriers and land in the spectator stands, then expressionlessly withdrew his gaze.
Coach Himegomiya lowered her hands, the corners of her mouth curling into a slight, triumphant smile.
——They won the bet.
“Nice play, Sakusa!!”
Kiyoomi, Kiyoomi, that was amazing! One more!!
Sasaki took a sharp breath. "No matter how many times I see it, it feels absolutely ridiculous."
He had never played against Itachiyama, nor was he close with Sakusa.
But.. they were quite familiar with the legend of this current Junior High ace.
Hayami pointed out sharply, "He suffered from a lack of experience."
No, should it be called confidence, or arrogance?
Under rational circumstances, there was actually no need to try and receive such a heavy spin spike directly. If Miya Atsumu was the setter, one would only need to absorb the impact, Miya Atsumu could handle the spin on his own.
He frowned slightly, quietly watching Nishizawa apologize to Miya Atsumu on the court.
The ball was thrown back from the stands, having retrieved it, Sakusa walked toward the service position once again.
Having confirmed this, Inarizaki's Libero could definitely be handled as a breakthrough point.
In past matches, it was always Inarizaki's players who targeted Komori; it was time for a shift in offense and defense.
Sakusa, who was in a very good mood, lightly spun the volleyball in his hands after the whistle blew.
After adjusting his touch, he raised his hand and tossed the ball.
Nishizawa lowered his center of gravity, preparing to face the impact head-on.
Sakusa did not hit the same type of serve twice in a row.
When using a single method as a way to break through, it is very unwise to repeatedly allow the opponent to adapt to the same situation.
This time, Sakusa chose to use a forehand side spin with an extreme arc.
Even a standard Banana Ball became incredibly terrifying when delivered from Sakusa's hand.
But at the very least, Nishizawa had encountered this type of spin and had personally received it.
He slightly raised his shoulders, receiving the ball while maintaining a straight wrist position.
With his body slightly rotated, the force was smoothly transferred down through his torso, the spin was reduced as much as possible through the short, active force applied by Nishizawa Hokuto.
But the spin on this ball was still too terrifying; Nishizawa, whose center of gravity was a bit too high as he tried to face the ball head-on, was thrown off balance by it.
The volleyball from the first receive did not fall exactly along the intended trajectory toward the setter's designated position, but instead drifted closer to the net.
Miya Atsumu stepped forward quickly to try and set the ball.
The distance of this ball was a bit too much even for Miya Atsumu; he could only settle for a second-best option and push the ball out with one hand, letting it land as far from the net as possible.
Suna quickly followed up from the side. Facing Itachiyama's three-man Block, Suna lightly tapped the ball at the moment of his Spike, sending it on a tip over the net.
Miya Atsumu breathed a sigh of relief.
There weren't many options left for the target of this pass; it would be very easy for Itachiyama to assemble a three-man block to shut it down. Scoring from this position could be described as a pipe dream.
But it didn't matter; their only goal was to send the ball back.
It was much easier to deal with Itachiyama's front row offense when Sakusa was not there compared to Sakusa's sharp serve.
"Over here!" Miya Osamu called out to Miya Atsumu.
Two people jumped in front of Ishikawa, cutting off most of the routes for his spike.
Ishikawa's mind was racing, the moment the visual information captured in his peripheral vision reached his brain, he made his decision.
Although Suna did not follow up with a Block this time, Suna's own receiving skills are quite mediocre; the task of defending the front row for Inarizaki is not handled by him, but is instead managed by Hinata.
As for the back row..
Having Nishizawa Hokuto and Ginjima was enough.
Hinata was also staring at Ishikawa's movements at this moment. To be honest, because Suna had taken up space in front, he didn't actually have that much room to maneuver.
But Ishikawa hadn't faced such an extreme Short Diagonal before; he could handle any standard ball.
Ishikawa knew that as well, of course.
But he wasn't willing to accept it. Giving Inarizaki another chance to counterattack like that.. he couldn't accept it.
All the coaches said that after Sakusa-senpai graduates, he will be the next Ace, but compared to Sakusa-senpai..
He was just an ordinary, unremarkable spiker.
The closer it got to Sakusa's graduation, the more he felt a sense of panic.
He was in the same grade as Sarukari Tomomichi; back in Junior High, they ruined the seniors' championship streak, allowing Fukurodani to take the title.
Once he reached high school, he was afraid he would repeat the same mistakes.
But.. after thinking it over, he had nothing to fear.
The era of Itachiyama's reign was already far enough in the past for him, within the past year, Itachiyama's best result had not even reached the runner-up position.
Rather than "defending" some kind of honor, perhaps what he has to do is no different from pioneering.
So.. what is there to fear?
Take a bold challenge; they are already standing in their own valley, so there would be no meaning in failing to make a significant change, right?
The moment his eyes met Ishikawa's in his peripheral vision, the intuition in Hinata's brain went into a frenzy, screaming that danger was near.
Should I hit it? Should I take the challenge?
Hinata didn't even bother to judge the answer to that question.
The opponent will definitely attack, just because.. he thinks they are the same kind of person.
The moment the sound of the spike rang out, the sound of the ball touching the net was also clearly heard.