Ogata was also promoted to the starting lineup; his impressive height and burgeoning predictive blocking style allowed him to smoothly take over the Middle Blocker position.
And as the candidate originally intended by the coach for the Vice-Captain position, his jersey number was also quite low.
His mind worked quite well on the court as well; the combined effect of him and Kumagai was, to a certain extent, greater than Miya Atsumu's, so Coach Kurosu was quite confident in his tactical adjustments.
“Number 5, Tokura Yukihito.”
Number 6, Libero, Unabara Uta.
The starting lineup's jersey numbers were originally arranged in order, among the first-year students, only Haseda Katsuya had been promoted to the starting lineup; his jersey number was number 8.
Coach Kurosu intended to give the number 7 to Nishizawa Hokuto, who would rotate onto the court with Unabara Uta, but Nishizawa himself specifically requested number 10. The coach did not object and happily agreed to his request.
The Inarizaki First String numbers went up to number 13. Coach Kurosu has already decided on two students via recommendation, so the First String roster will consist of 15 members when the next school year begins.
With a staggering four starters graduating this year, Inarizaki's lineup will undergo a massive restructuring.
Especially since Atsumu, who had personally handled the planning of Inarizaki's tactics over the past three years, was graduating; the workload for subsequent tactical planning would be quite substantial.
Fortunately, Hinata's popularity within the Volleyball Club was quite good, he held significant authority in front of the lower-grade students, so Miya Atsumu's work was handed over very smoothly.
Even though Hinata was still inexperienced as Captain, no one raised any objections.
While Kosaku Ginjima and Miya Osamu were preparing for exams, Suna and Miya Atsumu stayed behind to help the Volleyball Club.
With the help of Ogata and Kumagai, who still had plenty of free time at this stage, the Inarizaki Volleyball Club quickly got back on track.
The coordination issues remained severe, but at the very least, every position was filled, the new tactics were being implemented in an orderly fashion.
During this period, Coach Kurosu also scheduled two practice matches with a school from neighboring Aichi Prefecture to observe the current level of the starting lineup.
The temperature this year was unexpectedly high; the date on the calendar had only just reached mid-March, yet the cherry blossoms near Inarizaki had already bloomed.
There is a large cherry blossom tree at the main entrance of Inarizaki, Hinata heard from other classmates that the tree is already nearly a hundred years old.
There were many people under the tree, most of whom were taking photos to keep as mementos.
Hinata only took a quick glance before walking toward the direction of the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium.
Miya Atsumu sent him a message this morning, saying that he would be waiting for him at the entrance of the Second Gymnasium.
He's gone.
It's gone, just as I thought.
Damn it, who on earth took it?
The closer he got to the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium, the more these sounds increased, causing a flicker of curiosity to rise in Hinata's heart.
—What's missing?
When there were still about a hundred meters left to the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium, Hinata had already spotted Miya Atsumu standing against the wall by the entrance. Even though the Inarizaki school uniform was itself in warm tones, that splash of golden yellow was still exceptionally eye-catching.
Good morning, Captain.
"Good morning, Captain Hinata!
The closer one gets to the Volleyball Club's gym, the more club members there are nearby.
Unlike how everyone used to avoid Miya Atsumu back then, most of the members of the Volleyball Club would come over to say hello when they saw Hinata approaching.
Hinata also responded to everyone with equal enthusiasm.
Seeing him approach, Miya Atsumu, who had been leaning against the entrance for a long time, straightened up and walked toward him, holding a rolled-up diploma and a graduation photo in his hands.
Stopping less than 2m away from Hinata, Miya Atsumu smiled and said, "Good morning, Shoyo."
Hinata took two steps toward him, approaching to stand side by side with him. "Good morning, Atsumu-ge."
There were many people near the Inarizaki No. 2 Gymnasium, over in the adjacent Basketball Hall, some were still clutching their graduating seniors and crying; it was truly quite boisterous.
Miya Atsumu pulled Hinata into the Second Gymnasium.
Miya Osamu and the others had already headed ahead to the Volleyball Club to reserve a spot for photos, while Ginjima and the others went to Coach Kurosu's office to pick up the original copies of their certificates.
After looking Miya Atsumu up and down—noting how meticulously he had dressed himself today—Hinata, having guessed something, spoke up proactively, "Atsumu-ge, do you have something for me?"
Miya Atsumu tilted his head toward him, a pleasant smile playing on his lips. "You guessed it?"
Hinata nodded. "Yeah."
He had heard Unabara Uta mention it before, so it wasn't difficult to guess.
Atsumu didn't keep hiding it either; instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out that tiny shirt button.
Hinata reached out his hand, allowing Miya Atsumu to place the button in his palm.
I might not be able to continue traveling with you for a while, so I'll let my heart accompany you instead.
Atsumu's expression was very solemn; he was the kind of person who cared about rituals, so he had already rehearsed these words in his heart many times.
“I'll be looking forward to your arrival in the professional leagues.”
Clenching that button, Hinata pressed it against his chest, feeling his own heartbeat.
“Don't worry, I won't make you wait too long, Atsumu-ge.”
Just as he had sworn countless times before, he would definitely, definitely climb to even higher heights.
This is also what Atsumu yearned for, isn't it?
Hinata raised his hand, pulling Miya Atsumu down, pressed a gentle kiss against the other's lips.
His brownish-red eyes were bright, yet held a trace of imperceptible reluctance; however, what they held more was anticipation and longing.
Anyway..
The youth's voice was firm and powerful, his hand pressed against the other's chest, as if linking their two heartbeats together.
Happy graduation, Atsumu.