《The Birth of A Volleyball Legend》


 Chapter 1: A New Beginning

    It was a spring season, when a boy couldn''t fall asleep during the night time, kept rolling on his bed several times restlessly. He couldn''t shake off the nervous energy that had been building up since he realized tomorrow would be the new term of the school.


    This would be a truly new beginning for the boy, not just because he would be a high school student the next day, but also because it would be his first day going to school after his parents lost a few weeks ago.


    As hey in bed, the memories of that fateful day came flooding back, like a sudden downpour on a spring morning. He remembered the sound of his neighbor''s sobs, the shock and chaos in the hospital, and the numbness that had taken over his body. It was as if he had been transported back to the moment when he was told that his parents had been lost in an earthquake disaster.


    The words still echoed in his mind: "They''re gone, Yuki. You''re all alone now."


    The weight of those words had crushed his, leaving him feeling lost and alone in a world that seemed too big and scary. At that time, even the physical injury he received from his copsed house seemed to be nothing as he felt numb, realizing he lost everything from the earthquake.


    "Are you still awake, Yuki-nii?"


    The boy''s eyes snapped into focus as he turned his face around just to find a little girl, his heart still heavy with memories. The girl''s big brown eyes looked up at him with a gentle smile, his curly hair mussed from sleep.


    "Can I sleep with you tonight?" She whispered, her small voice barely audible.


    A soft, genuine smile curled on the boy''s face as he heard what the girl said. "Sure, Mai-chan. Come here." The girl jumped immediately into his bed, giggling and snuggling up close, wrapping her small arms around his waist.


    Her name was Higawa Mai, about six years old if he remembered it right. She was just like him, one of the victims of the cruel earthquake that hit their hometown thest couple of weeks.


    He could still remember the first time he saw the girl; the hollow expression on her face as she walked around the shelter, kept hugging the bear doll while asking where her mom was, her face was full of dirt and the trace of tears could be seen all over her chubby cheeks. He cringed, still haunted by that memory.


    Fortunately, she was still too little to remember the depressed feeling at that time for too long as she turned into a cheerful girl right now.


    "So, what do you think about tomorrow? It would be your first day going to school, right?" He asked softly.


    "Um!" She nodded, her hair bobbed, showing her excitement. But then, her face suddenly turned somber, an expression that was not fitting for a little girl like her. "Do you think my mum and my dad will be happy seeing me going to school? Or do you think they will be sad they couldn''t apany me for my first day going to school?"


    ''Ah, so that''s it.'' The boy widened his eyes in realization. Sometimes, it was hard to forget that behind the cuteness of the six-year-old girl, she just lost her parents too in the disaster. There was no way she wouldn''t miss them.


    "Come here, Mai-chan." He invited the girl into a big hug once again. "I am sure your parents would be happy and proud of you for tomorrow."


    "Are you sure?" She snuggled into his body, hiding her face so that he could see her tears. However, the boy could feel his shirt starting to get wet, so he hugged the girl tighter.


    "Yup, I am sure of it." He whispered softly, rubbing the back of her head fondly. "Tell you what, how about I go together with you to your school tomorrow?"


    The girl''s eyes lightened up. "Are you sure?"


    "Yup!" He nodded firmly. "I will ask for Aiko-obaasan to apany you tomorrow. That way, I can also know where is your school and I will also be able to pick you up."


    "But tomorrow is also your first day, though.." She said hesitantly.


    "Don''t worry, I can handle that easily." He waved his hand nonchntly. "So, what do you think?" He offered his pinkie.


    The girl giggled, wrapping her pinkie around his before she nodded, hugging him tightly once again. "Thank you, Yuki-nii." She mumbled through her shirt.


    The boy nodded, rubbing the back of the girl lovingly as he stared outside of the window. In this moment, he forgot about the sorrow, the fear, the nervousness, and all the negative feelings that had haunted him for so long.


    All that mattered was the gentle rhythm of the little girl''s breathing, the soft whisper of her voice in his ear, and the knowledge he just realized the moment he stared at the little girl on hisp, that he was no longer alone in this world.


    ----------------------


    "Did you bring your snack?"


    "Yes."


    "What about your water?"


    "It is here."


    "Do you remember what I told you?"


    "Always listen to the teacher."


    "Remember to wash your hands before having lunch, okay?"


    "Yes."


    "Remember to wait for Obaasan to pick you up and don''t go back alone, okay?"


    "Yes."


    "Remember-"


    "Yuki-nii!" Mai red with a slightly red face as she red at her new big brother. "I remember everything, stop reminding me again!" She huffed.


    She felt a bit embarrassed at his constant overprotective nature, something she just found out this morning. It didn''t help when she could hear some of the other kids'' parents smiling over at them, whispering how sweet and loving her brother was. Aiko-Obaasan, the matron of the orphanage they stayed in right now also giggled uncontrobly, amused to no end at the boy''s nagging.


    "You sound like a young father, Yuki." Shemented, her lips trembled. "Don''t worry, she would be careful and listen to her teacher. Right, Mai-chan?"


    "Yes, Yuki-nii! I will be careful!" The girl nodded.


    The boy called Yuki sighed helplessly, couldn''t help but feel worry for the little sister he just found out aboutst night. He rubbed her hair lovingly before saying, "Well, what are you waiting for? Go!"


    "Um!"


    The girl waved her tiny hand at them before running energetically toward the building. Yuki and Aiko stared at her for a while until she disappeared from their sight before the older woman turned to him and asked softly, "What about you, Dear? Will you be alright?"


    Yuki sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose under the sses. "To be honest, I don''t really know." His eyes had a distant faraway look as he thought of how life seemed to make a joke of him.


    It was just a month ago that he had a perfect life. He graduated as the best student from Yasuka Middle School in Fukushima, having two loving parents who always supported him no matter what he wanted to do. But with just a single vibration deep inside the ocean, all of that was swept, buried under the ground.


    Now, here he was, living in an orphanage, on the way to his new high school in the capital city of Japan.


    He would lie if he said he wasn''t nervous.


    "Don''t worry, everything will be alright." Aiko patted his shoulder reassuringly. "Just don''t go crazy with the girls, okay? One girlfriend is enough!" She giggled teasingly.


    Yuki sighed, knowing that she would bring this at some point. It was no secret that he was such a handsome boy. There was a saying among his peers in the past that only blind people wouldn''t admit that. His umon bright cerulean eyes sparkled behind a pair of round, ck-rimmed sses that made him look even more endearing.


    With his short, spiky ck hair perfectly messy and his cheeks flushed with excitement, Yuki was a picture of innocence and charm.


    It was no wonder girls would always flock to him, something that annoyed the boy sometimes.


    "Well, don''t forget to be happy too, okay?" Aiko hugged him affectionately. Even though Yuki was the recent addition in his orphan, since he was the oldest there, it didn''t take a long time for him to blend in with the other kids. He quickly took the role of the older brother for everyone, helping her take care of the children sometimes. That was why she was so fond of him. "Don''t worry about Mai.


    I will take care of her."


    "Thank you, Obaasan."


    After saying goodbye to the matron, Yuki started walking, trying to remember the way to go to his school. Fortunately, it wasn''t too far from Mai''s school and the road was pretty crowded, filled with the students with the same uniform as him. It didn''t take Yuki too long before in front of the gate of his new school.


    Tsunemori High School.


    That was the name of his school. It was a small school located in the middle of West Tokyo, side-by-side with the Edo River.


    Unlike Yuki''s expectations about the school in Tokyo that usually was portrayed as massive and luxurious, the building in front of him looked pretty old, yet the aura radiated from it was so majestic, as if saying how long the building had been standing there, the silent witness of so many historical events in Tokyo.


    It was still a bit early when he arrived, yet he was already surrounded by a lot of older students who gave him fliers, promoting their clubs.


    "Come on! Let''s join the anime club!"


    "No way! You are too handsome to join that! Go to the cultural club! We can have a tea party together!"


    "You are pretty tall, why don''t you consider joining the basketball team?!"


    "No,e to the football club!"


    It was like being the center of the war. The whirlwind of invitations left Yuki''s head spinning as he tried to keep up with the rapid-fire pitches. It seemed he wasn''t the only one though, as he found out there was also a crowd on the other side of the gate, surrounding another freshman to invite him to join their club.


    After struggling for a while, he finally was able to get out of the ufortable situation and went straight to his ssroom.


    Fortunately, it wasn''t too far from the entrance gate, the first room on the second floor. He nced for a second at the room that would be his ce to study for the rest of the year before noticing there was an empty seat in the front row near the windows. Without hesitation, he chose to sit there before anyone could pick that spot.


    Even though there was still a lot of empty space behind, there was no way he would pick that, especially the spot far in the back row near the windows. He wasn''t the main protagonist of an anime, there was no way he would do something that cringe, especially for a not-so-strategic spot like that.


    The only students who would go to the back row were the ones who tried to hide from the teacher or the one who arrived toote it was the only spot left remaining.


    "Hello, may I sit here?" Yuki asked politely to the girl who sat behind him, trying to strike up a conversation.


    "A-Ah!" The girl stuttered, not expecting someone to start a conversation. "S-Sure!" She nodded frantically, her face beet red.


    "Thanks." Yuki smiled, putting down his bag on the floor. "My name is Yuki, by the way. Kobayashi Yuki. Nice to meet you."


    "N-N-Nice to meet you too, Kobayashi-san!" Yuki cringed, pitying the girl for being a nervous wreck. She shouldn''t be that good at socializing with other people. "M-My name is Ayaka Kato!"


    Yuki smiled politely at the first person he knew in this school, then decided to turn around and not bother her anymore. He knew a bundle of nerves like her wouldn''t be toofortable having a conversation with a stranger like him, so Yuki didn''t force himself to talk to her again for the rest of the morning.


    After a while, the entire seats in the room were finally filled in. Yuki didn''t strike up another conversation with his soon-to-be ssmates though, since almost everyone had their own group of friends. It seemed a lot of them came from the same middle school.


    ''Well, it seems I am destined to be a loner in the beginning.'' He sighed.


    Five minutester, the sound of the bell rang loudly, echoed through the entire building. It was the sign that the first ss of the day would begin. And as if she didn''t want to bete and give a bad impression to the new students, the teacher appeared immediately the moment the sound of the bell was gone from the air.


    She was a woman with a warm, radiant smile strode in, her bright brown eyes twinkling behind the frames of her round, tortoiseshell sses. Her dark hair was styled in a neat bob, framing her heart-shaped face, and a sprinkle of freckles danced across her cheeks, adding to her approachable charm.


    She wore a crisp white blouse and a fitted skirt that fell just above her knees, exuding a sense of authority and professionalism. As she made her way to the front of the room, her confident stride seemed to fill the space with an air of quiet determination, leaving the students with no doubt that this was someone who knew exactly what she was doing.


    "Well, good morning, students." She smiled, pushing up the sses on her nose. "My name is Handa Emiko, but you might as well call me Handa-sensei. I will be your homeroom teacher for the rest of the week, so I hope we can get along well, okay?"


    And that was the beginning of Yuki''s colorful life as a student at Tsunemori High.

 Chapter 2: Challenge from the Volleyball Club!

    ''How could I be dragged into this mess?!'' Yuki groaned.


    Currently, he was inside the gymnasium, surrounded by a bunch of sweaty dudes wearing volleyball jerseys, looking at him with their eyes shining brightly. Next to him was another boy with blonde hair, something pretty umon in Japan just like his cerulean eyes, receiving the same treatment as him.


    However, there was a hint of unwillingness and jealousy could be seen in the boy''s eyes, and it was directed at him.


    Yuki groaned, now regretting his decision to join the challenge just for the 10000-yen prize for the winner.


    -A little shback-


    After the slow beginning, the bell finally rang once again, signaling the end of the day. Within a minute after thest teacher left the room, the room was buzzing with excitement. All the students there gathered together, nning on which club to visit next.


    The exuberant spring air was filled with excited chatter as they milled about, eyes scanning the colorful posters and flyers stered on the walls. The School Newspaper Club was boasting about their exclusive scoop on thetest celebrity gossip, while the Debate Team was promising to sharpen minds and spark witty banter.


    Meanwhile, the Music Club was luring in aspiring rockstars with promises of jam sessions and originalpositions. Nearby, the Robotics Club was touting their cutting-edge projects and coding skills.


    Yuki himself didn''t have that much interest in joining a club. For him, as the oldest boy in the orphanage, even though he had only been there for a month, he also felt a responsibility to help the matron take care of the other children.


    So, rather than wasting his time joining any club, he would rather use his time wisely, whether by helping the children do their homework or searching for a part-time job outside. Unfortunately, it was mandatory for students to join the club, so, amidst the crowd, he was also strolling over the corridor unwillingly.


    ''Well, it is better to join a club that doesn''t demand a lot of my time.'' He thought.


    That was when Yuki noticed themotion gathered in the gym. Intrigued, he came inside to take a look. However, it was hard for him to see what happened there when he was behind the sea of students who were also curious.


    Fortunately, based on the information he caught from the whispers and chatters from the other, he knew it was the volleyball team making a challenge for the freshmen toplete a cycle.


    What they meant by cycle was a full set of basic volleyball skills, from doing a service, setting a pass, spiking the ball, receiving the spikes, and finally blocking the spikes from the members of the volleyball team, and all of that had to be done at least three times each for the challenger to be dered as the winner. Honestly, it was a boring challenge to attract the students to join them.


    But the prize of 10000 yen was too big for anyone to pass the chance, and the same could be said for Yuki too.


    Even though he had never joined any sports team in the past, that was because there were not a lot who were interested in creating it from scratch. As a student, Yuki himself was pretty good in the PE ss, always at the top of the list for his grade. This was the boost of confidence he needed to join the fun as he entered the line.


    He waited patiently on the line, observing how the other students went for the challenge. Some of them did pretty well, managed to go until the third challenge before their effort was stopped by their senpai who was really good at receiving the spike. However, most of it failed just in the first or second challenge, making the line get thin quicker than he expected.


    "Man, this is so boring." Yuki heard the person in front of him mumbling. It was a student slightly smaller than him with unusual blonde hair that attracted everyone''s attention. "A bunch of rookies, they are."


    Yuki just rolled his eyes slightly, decided to ignore that boy. He didn''t know whether the boy was good at volleyball or just all talk with no skill, but no matter what, he hated the type of person like that, always looking down on the other''s effort just because he was good at it. If this was an anime or fictional story, he would be the first character to die from being too cocky.


    However, after ten minutes of waiting, his patience started to get thinner. The line was still long, yet time kept tickling as the sun was already near the horizon. Fortunately, Yuki didn''t promise to pick up Mai, or she would still be waiting alone while her other peers were already back home.


    After a while though, the unexpected happened. As if listening to hisint of how long the line was, suddenly, a group of students about ten people decided to walk away, their confidence died down after seeing no one was able to pass more than three challenges.


    "Yosh! After this, it would be my time to shine!" The blonde boy in front of him clenched his fist.


    Intrigued, Yuki decided to observe how this boy would go for the challenge. Like him, he might not, but Yuki was still a smart person. Until now, he had never seen a person who could challenge the volleyball team that seriously. Seeing how confident the blonde boy was, he wanted to see how the members of the volleyball club handled him.


    "Next challenger!"


    "Yosh!" The blonde boy rolled up his sleeve excitedly. "Riku Agostini, a freshman! Yoroshiku onegaishimasu, Senpai!"


    Yuki blinked a few times, his brain noticing the strange name and the strong ent. ''A foreigner? Is that an Italian name?''


    The blonde boy, Riku, didn''t wait for too long before starting the challenge. And to everyone''s astonishment, he decided to do it with a bang. He took a deep breath, focused on the ball, and let it sail across the. Time seemed to slow down as the ball hovered in mid-air, and then - BAM! - itnded with a satisfying smack on the opponent''s side of the court.


    Almost all the volleyball club''s members had their jaws dropped, couldn''t believe what they just witnessed. Did a freshman hit them with an ace jump serve? That shit usually only happened in a fictional story. However, this was the reality. The handsome blonde boy stole the show with his amazing disy of skill.


    "Come on, Senpai! Get ready, because I willunch it one more time!"


    The whistle blew one more time, and Riku sprang into action. His feet left the ground as heunched the ball into the air. This time, the ball soared even higher, arcing over the andnding with a resounding crash on the opposite side of the court.


    "OH! ANOTHER ACE!"


    "Who is that monster?!"


    "Is he really the same freshman like us?!"


    "Damn!"


    The blonde boy grinned widely as everyone was talking about him. Unfortunately, before he could continue once again, he was stopped by a middle-aged man who red at him fiercely - a re that promised pain.


    "Enough, Boy!" He barked. "Don''t you think it is time to stop showing off?!"


    "Sensei!" All the volleyball members reacted quickly when they saw the man. It seemed he was the head coach of the team.


    "What?! Come on, Akira-sensei! I just started to have some fun here!" The boy whined.


    "Do you want me to say that to your dad?" The coach red. Seeing that, the blonde boy folded like a wet paper, trembling under the threat. It seemed by how close they interacted with each other, the blonde boy and the coach were rtives. After that, the coach turned around and bowed apologizingly to his yers as he said, "Sorry about him, everyone.


    He is still new here and just finished his paperwork to join the school. He is my nephew, so he will probably be your teammate in the future. Is that alright?"


    "Oh, don''t worry, Coach! If his skill is as amazing as his serve, we are happy to wee him!"


    "Yeah! Maybe, with him, we can go further in the next tournament!"


    Yuki furrowed his brows, unhappy with his words. It was a tant nepotism, yet since he was the coach here, no one was able to refute what he said. It didn''t help that the boy himself was indeed very good at volleyball. If only the coach didn''t say thatst word, he would have no problem with the current situation.


    However, just by saying that, the impression he had toward the club dropped significantly.


    ''What the hell am I thinking about?'' Yuki shook his head. ''It is not my problem if it is considered as nepotism or not. Let''s just finish this challenge first and go back home as soon as possible.''


    Yeah, the 10000-yen prize was already forgotten by basically everyone, including Yuki. The challengers saw no hope to do that after the first thirty students failed to pass the third out of five challenges. Now, they were still here to join the fun and showed some respect to their senpai.


    "Okay, next challenger! Come in!"


    Yuki stepped forward with full of confidence. One of the members of the club just handed him the ball casually, not even ncing at him. Well, it was understandable. After seeing such a powerful disy from Riku before, no one was in their right mind to see the next performance they had already deemed as another disaster just like the others even before he could start.


    Yuki didn''t mind, though. He was here not to attract the other''s attention, but to grab the prize. He took a deep breath beforeunching the ball high, doing a small runup and jumped a little before tapping the ball gently in the air. The ball flew slowly, and everyone with good eyes would be able to see it had no rotation while still flying in the air.


    The coach and Riku who were still there raised their eyebrows slightly, intrigued especially when they saw the ball wobbling in the air. It was a good floater, sending straight to the back left. If a defender was standing there, he would have a hard time handling that ball.


    "Nice serve!"


    The praise given by the members of the volleyball was hollow. It seemed they were tired already after seeing a bunch of rookie serves for the entire afternoon so they would judge every serve that went in as a good serve. They didn''t notice their coach staring intently at this new challenger.


    Unfazed by the treatment, Yuki continued doing the same. To the coach''s surprise, the next two serves were done in the same manner,nding on the same spot on the court.


    ''This boy has a good talent in serve!'' The coach marveled. ''If cultivated properly, he could be a good pinch server for us!''


    However, the surprise from Yuki was not over. He did the setting challenge wlessly, sending the ball perfectly to the spot where the hitter would usually be there. By now, all the eyes finally turned to him, giving Yuki the respect he deserved.


    "Who is that?"


    "I don''t know, but his performance is not bad."


    "Well, it is still too early to judge. Let''s see how he handles the third challenge."


    The third challenge itself was to spike the ball to the opposite area. His main purpose was to score while three defenders from the regr members would defend him properly. Since this was just a challenge, there would be no blocker standing in front of him.


    This was the challenge that everyone couldn''t get through. However, Yuki was confident, especially after observing how his predecessor failed to do the challenge. They all just wanted to hit the ball as hard as possible without thinking of the route, making it easier for the defenders to anticipate.


    He didn''t want to repeat that mistake, so while in the air, he kept his eyes open, observing the whole movement of his defenders.


    ''Huh? This should be easy, right?''


    Seeing the three defenders were far on the back, Yuki didn''t hesitate even for a second before tapping the ball gently just like what he did in the serve challenge.


    ''A dink?!''


    The three defenders were not expecting Yuki to hit the ball softly. They ran forward frantically, yet it was toote as the ball dropped faster than their recovery speed. The moment it bounced to the floor, everyone stared at him like he was an alien.


    This was the first time in the day someone managed to break the volleyball members'' defense in the third challenge, and now, he had all the eyes on him.


    "Damn! That''s a good dink!"


    "He has a good head! Twice more!"


    "Don''t be na?ve! The senpai wouldn''t allow him to score again after this!"


    "Come on!"


    Unfazed by the cheers from the outside, Yuki tossed the ball once again to the setter. Once the ball was returned in a good height, he started to run and leaped through the air, coiling back his arms as his eyes moved quickly, scanning where the ball should go.


    Seeing one of the defenders wanted to cover the front area, Yuki hit the ball directly at him without hesitation, catching the defender off guard. Seeing the ball zooming into his face, the defender could only raise his hand, trying to cover his face from the hit.


    "OUCH!"


    "Oh! Another point for the freshman!"


    "I wonder who is his name and from which ss is he?"


    "He is amazing!"


    The coach who watched from the sideline crossed his arms in front of his chest, his eyes were dead-serious. "Recruit him." He said. "He has a good IQ and knows how to handle the sudden change of situation on the court. His basic is also very good. With a decent amount of training, he would be essential for our team this year."


    Even though all of them were surprised to hear their coach praise a freshman that high, all of the members of the team knew Yuki deserved that. Once was a coincidence, but what about twice? And now, seeing Yuki fly for the third time to greet the ball in the air, everyone held their breath unconsciously.


    *BAM!*


    "An untouchable spike!"


    "The senpai couldn''t handle his spike! He will go through the fourth challenge!"


    "Another monster emerged in the volleyball team!"


    "What a beast!"


    Amidst the cheers from the audience, Yuki smirked amusedly at the members of the volleyball team who were staring at him in astonishment. "So, what should I do next? Come on, I still have that 10000-yen waiting for me!"

 Chapter 3: Aftermath

    "I am home!"


    Home. Yuki still felt a bit strange at how easily that word rolled off his tongue. Just a month ago he tried so hard to reject the existence of this ce, still thinking that everything that happened to him was a dream. However, it didn''t take a long time for him to ept this ce, especially after meeting its residents.


    "Yuki-nii, you are finally back!"


    "Aiko-obaasan has been waiting for you!"


    "Yeah! Come on, dinner will be ready in ten minutes!"


    The children who greeted him were Hiko and Hina, a pair of twins about ten years old who were also the victims of the disaster. Unlike him though, they were not that lucky. Hiko, the boy and the younger one of the twins had to lose both legs as the ruins of the building fell straight into his lower body part.


    As for Hina, she lost her right eye forever in that disaster, blinded by something that hit her face which was also the cause of scars stretched all over her ce.


    It still amazed Yuki how they both could stay cheerful even after losing so much like that.


    "Well, Hina-chan, can you help me bring this bag to the dining room?" Yuki smiled. It was at that time the twins noticed two stic bags full of things that their big brother figure brought.


    "What is that?" Hina tried to peek inside the bag curiously, yet was prevented by Yuki quickly.


    "Nope! We can see it together with the others in the dining room, okay?" He smiled yfully.


    Hina pouted slightly, yetplied with his order. She took the two stic bags from his hand and ran quickly to the dining room, leaving her twin alone with Yuki. Hiko had his face darkened a bit as he cursed his sister for forgetting about him.


    "Don''t worry, let me do this," Yuki chuckled, pushing Hiko''s wheelchair.


    The so-called dining room was just a medium-sized room, about 8 X 5 meters square with the addition of a long table and eleven old wooden chairs provided for everyone to be able to sit. For a dining room, that size was pretty big.


    But since it also became one with the kitchen and it had to be able to be filled by all the eleven children who lived under that roof, it became a bit crowded whenever dinner time arrived.


    The moment Yuki and Hiko arrived, they were greeted by a small girl who jumped straight to Yuki''s tight, squealing happily, "Yuki-nii! You are back!"


    Yuki smiled softly, chuckling silently when he saw the little girl smiling brightly at him, her face was messy with rice still stuck in the corner of her mouth.


    "Hello, Mai-chan." He greeted the girl. "Don''t you want to watch what I bring back for you?"


    The girl''s eyes widened as if she just realized something before flying away from his grasp, peeking around curiously at the other children who were also doing the same, waiting impatiently for Yuki to open up the bag.


    When they received a nod from Yuki, they didn''t need to be told anymore as within a second, the stic bag was on the floor already. Looking at the box wrapped with old paper, they tore it apart immediately, curiosity had been taking over by now.


    Yuki smiled when he saw the eight children had their eyes lightened up when they saw behind the wrapped paper, it was a huge stic box with a cute Doraemon image on the front as the cover image while what was inside could also be seen from outside.


    "It is crayons!" Hina squealed happily.


    Indeed, it was a set of crayons with 32 colors that usually was used by kids who started to learn how to paint. Yuki remembered Hina begged to Aiko-obaasan several timesst week that she wanted to learn how to draw. Since her sentiment was shared by all the children here, Yuki decided to buy it for them the moment he got the money in his pocket.


    "Thank you, Yuki-nii!"


    Yukiughed cheerfully when he was surrounded by all the children there, everyone tried to have a piece of him.


    "Isn''t it the set from that expensive merch?" Aiko''s voice suddenly attracted their full attention, she seemed worried. "From where did you get the money to buy this?"


    Yuki smiled, knowing why the matron was full of concern. This orphanage was pretty new, founded only a month ago by Aiko to amodate orphan children who had to flee from their hometown after the disaster. Since it took a long time to deal with the paperwork, the orphanage had been surviving only from the society''s donation, hadn''t been deemed eligible to receive the government fund until now.


    For them, every yen mattered, so spending so much money just for a set of crayons seemed to be a bit too much.


    "Don''t worry, Aiko-obaasan. I didn''t get the money illegally." Yuki reassured the woman. "It is like this¡­."


    -A little shback-


    "Son, are you sure you have never received proper training in the past?" Akira Shinji, the coach of the volleyball team in his school asked, his eyes full of disbelief.


    It was after Yuki finished the challenge when he was called by the teacher, being interrogated in front of all the yers. Everyone stared at him in awe as if he was the next Michael Jordan of basketball graced from heaven.


    Well, their reaction was understandable. This cycle challenge was a method of training formed by their head coach to ensure their basic was above the standard. For any rookies to subpar yers, they would already have a hard time dealing with the first two, and the most they could go was at the third challenge.


    However, not only did Yuki destroy the first four challenges, but he also obliterated thest one, sending the head coach a wet dream for the prospect of the team.


    Honestly, no one expected him to be sessful in that challenge. It was designed to find a yer who could specialize in blocking, something the school seemedcking by their reaction. At first, Yuki had to face a hitter one-on-one, blocking a simple spike without any deception.


    After he managed to do that, the number of attackers increased to three people and he had to judge where the ball would go and who would be the one who attacked him. Finally, the same challenge as before, but the number of yers was increased to five, making it a full-team offense against him.


    It was a crazy challenge that was almost impossible to deal with, yet Yuki was able to read the y well and blocked all three attempts sessfully, making him the only one who was able to finish the cycle.


    That was probably why the head coach couldn''t believe he was a rookie in this game.


    "Yeah, I am sure I have never received any practice yet in the past." Yuki nodded at the question. "Well, except if you counted the PE ss when they thought the basics of it, I guess."


    "Kuso!" Akira cursed loudly. As a head coach with years of experience, this was the first time he heard something outrageous like that. "And you have never joined any team before? Was your middle school stupid?!"


    Yuki''s face hardened as he replied, "Well, I studied in a small school in Fukushima and it had no sports club before, so I would appreciate it if you don''t badmouth my alma mater like that."


    If he didn''t exin his condition first, everyone would be surprised by his cold tone when talking to a teacher or the threat implied behind his words. However, when his hometown was mentioned, silence dropped around them, everyone was shocked and some looked at him with pity.


    Riku who didn''t know anything about it grew impatient and asked, "Why are you all suddenly so silent like that? Is there anything wrong with what he said?"


    "Shut up and be more sensitive, Riku!" Akira red, his expression turned solemn. "Fukushima was probably the prefecture that suffered the most in the chain of disaster a month ago. At least more than 1000 people are dered to be dead with more than 200 people are still missing, their couldn''t be found until now."


    ''Including my parents.'' Yuki added in his mind, his thought was dark.


    What the coach didn''t say was the aftermath only Fukushima had to suffer. As one of the few prefectures with a nuclear reactor, the moment Fukushima suffered from the disaster, it was crucial to check whether there was an anomaly or not in it. And true to what most people feared, there was some problem there as almost all of the power nt''s backup energy sources were damaged due to the disaster.


    Because of that, almost all of the people there had to flee from their hometowns while the other ces started to do their reconstruction.


    Even though Riku seemed to be new in this country, he still read the news and knew about the disaster a month ago. He stared at Yuki with pity, didn''t know what to say.


    "Where do you live now?" Akira asked softly, his tone changed a lot.


    "The Hope Orphanage," Yuki said casually. Yet once again, it made everyone cringed as they realized that he lost his parents in that disaster.


    Meanwhile, Akira furrowed his brows tightly, unfamiliar with the ce. "I have never heard of an orphanage called that before, so if you don''t mind, can you tell me where is that?"


    "Just fifteen minutes walking to the south, it was pretty close to the port. The orphanage itself is new, created to help orphans like us who don''t know where to go, so you shouldn''t know about it."


    Akira nodded, epting the exnation.


    "Anyway, can I get the prize now?" Yuki asked impatiently. "It iste already and I want to go back as soon as possible."


    "Oh, sure!" One of the yers suddenly pulled 10 pieces of 1000-yen money from his wallet. Even though no one predicted someone would win, they still prepared the money in case something like this happened. "Thank you for participating!"


    "Thanks." Yuki bowed, full of gratitude. "Can I go home now?"


    "Yeah."


    "Then, bye!"


    All of the members of the volleyball team sighed as they stared at Yuki until the boy disappeared from their sight. That was when one of them suddenly cursed, attracting the other''s attention.


    "Shit! We forget to ask his name and from which ss he is! And more importantly, we forget to invite him to the club!"


    That was the time they all realized the fatal mistake they had just made.


    "DAMN!"


    -End of the shback-


    "Wow¡­" Aiko had her mouth gaped wide in disbelief. "So, youpleted the challenge the volleyball team held and did it sessfully, a challenge which no one was able to do that if I am not wrong, and the prize is 10000-yen?"


    It wasn''t just her who was shocked, but almost all the kids who listened to his story. Mai who sat on hisp just nodded her head as if it was the most obvious thing in the world while saying, "Yuki-nii is the best."


    "Yup! I am the best!" Yuki smiled smugly, tickling the girl yfully.


    "Ow, stop it, Yuki-nii!"


    "Is it okay, though?" Aiko asked again, still worried. "10000-yen is a lot of money for a high school student, right? Which club in their right mind to offer that amount as a prize for challenge?"


    Yuki shrugged nonchntly. "I don''t know, but I won it fair and square, so it should be okay."


    "Don''t worry, Obaasan. If Yuki-nii said it is okay, it should be okay." Hina said innocently. "Hey, don''t grab the red one! That''s mine!"


    "What do you mean it is yours?! Yuki-nii said this is for us to use it together!"


    "But it was me who asked for the crayons!"


    Yuki chuckled before separating the children from their arguments. "Okay, Kids. The crayons are for us to use together, don''t fight over it. Hina, we can share it with the others. Miyu, if Hina still used the crayons, wait patiently or ask politely if you could borrow them or not. No snatching from each other, okay?"


    The two girls who were about to fight over one crayon looked at each other grudgingly before they said, "Gomen, Yuki-nii."


    "Don''t worry about it." He smiled, patting their heads fondly. "Oh, by the way, Aiko-san, here is the rest of the money. I only use 1200 yen for the crayons." He pulled out a stack of money from his pocket.


    The matron widened her eyes in shock before she shook her head immediately. "This is the money you got from your effort. Just use it wisely, okay?"


    Hearing that refusal, Yuki furrowed his brows. "Well, this is me spending it wisely. With this money, we can at least eat something decent for the rest of the week and you can also buy something that you need for this orphanage."


    Aiko wanted to refuse again, yet she was wilted under the puppy-dog eyes she received from all the kids. After battling against her dilemma, the matron of the orphanage finally sighed, smiling helplessly. "Well, I will ept it this time. But there will be no next time, okay? You will save the money you get by yourself. No need to worry about this orphanage, I am not that helpless outside."


    Yuki grinned a little as he nodded. "Sure!"


    ----------------------------------------------------


    It was the next day and Yuki came pretty early. To his surprise, he found out one familiar blonde boy was sitting already in the back row as if he was an anime protagonist, trying to look cool while all the girls in the ssroom squealed like fangirls. He blinked a few times, trying to check whether he entered the right room or not.


    ''It is 1-B, I am not wrong.''


    He stared at the blonde boy for a moment until thetter finally noticed his presence. They had eye contact for a second before finally, the blonde boy reacted.


    "You are here?! Wait, does that mean we are going to be a ssmate?!"


    Yuki facepalmed, groaned inwardly. "Man, this will be a long year.." He sighed.

 Chapter 4: Volleyball Club Once Again!

    "His name is Riku Agostini. Due to the paperwork problem, he couldn''t join us yesterday, but he will be your friend for the next three years, so I hope you guys can get along with each other, okay?"


    "Yes, Sensei!"


    That was the short introduction for the blonde boy Handa-sensei gave to the ss. And as expected, it didn''t take too long before his poprity soared among his peers. Girls were already talking and whispering and ncing at him while the boys looked at him with hostility as if he just stole their limelight.


    Yuki himself ignored themotion, didn''t even nce at the blonde boy. While he might have seen the boy in the volleyball club, they didn''t know each other that well. Hell, they had never exchanged even a single word before this morning, and it was just a short greeting with the blonde boy who was too shocked knowing they would be in the same ssroom.


    However, Yuki didn''t want to be involved with Riku for too much. As a foreigner, the blonde boy was destined to be popr, and even if Yuki couldn''t see the future, he knew that poprity would attract trouble. He had been in that position when he was in middle school, and Yuki didn''t want to repeat that one more time.


    Unfortunately, what Yuki didn''t know was that his fate was already bound to Riku the moment they met in the volleyball club yesterday, and they were bound to have a crazy journey for the next three years.


    -0-


    Riku yawned, his eyes kept moving from the clock to the teacher who exined something about mathematics. Looking at the point of the clock were still in between one and two, he sighed, slumped in his chair. There was still about one and a half hours before the day was over, and he already felt tired.


    This was his first day studying in Japan, and Riku was shocked to see how different it waspared to Italy where he lived before.


    Here, almost everything was mainly centered on teachers, emphasizing the leadership of educators and paying attention to the basic knowledge with strict rules. Not saying that in Italy the rule was not strict, but at least it focused on students'' practice based on their own exploration with interest, and the teachers were also willing to include the students to learn together.


    At least, with that method, he wouldn''t have to listen to boring lessons all day.


    Unfortunately, he could onlyin to himself inwardly as it was the system that had been running here for a long time already. There was no way the school would change its method just toply with his protest.


    His eyes then started scanning the room for anything, anything at all, to shake off the monotony. But all he saw were his ssmates scribbling notes, their pencils scratching out a rhythmic beat that only seemed to lull him further into a state of boredom. As his gaze drifted back to the present, itnded on one person that intrigued him the most since yesterday.


    ''So, his name is Kobayashi Yuki, huh?''


    His mind shed back to yesterday''s challenge when Yuki obliterated all five challenges that easily. Honestly, if he was given the same chance, Riku was sure he would be able to do the same that easily. And yes, it was jealousy that took over his body. He loved to show off and to be in the spotlight, so when it was snatched from him, it hurt.


    However, no matter how he felt right now, Riku had to admit - even reluctantly - that what Yuki did was incredible.


    That cycle challenge was something that came from his uncle''s brain when he first wanted to learn volleyball, even stating boldly he wanted to do it professionally. That was a few years ago when Italy was able to get second ce in the Volleyball World Cup and the sport spread all over the country.


    At that time, his uncle promised that if Riku could persist in this training until he was able toplete all five challenges, his uncle would support his decision to be a professional.


    And yeah, if you were wondering, his uncle was Akira Shinji, the head coach of Tsunemori High''s volleyball club.


    What hurt Riku''s ego the most was the fact that he knew Yuki had never received any training, yet couldplete all the challenges the first time he did that. It showed how much talent Yuki had for volleyball. Compared to him who needed more than a month to get it done, Riku knew he was far behindpared to Yuki just in terms of talent.


    While it hurt, this also made Riku''spetitive spirit pump up more, though.


    ''Uncle should hold a sparring to assess the freshman today, right? I should bring him to the club too.''


    -0-


    "What?! You don''t want to join the volleyball club?!" Riku''s shriek attracts people''s attention.


    Yuki groaned, wanting to run away from this troublesome blonde boy, especially after seeing he was surrounded by so many people. "Yes, Agostini-san. I don''t want to join." Yuki wanted to give himself a pat on the back for still managing to be polite in front of them all.


    The school was finally over, and as expected, almost all the students there flocked into Riku, wanting to invite him to join a club or have some fun together. This was just the nature of a high school student, always felt the need to get closer to the most popr boy in the ss. And since Riku was a half-Italian with rare blonde hair, it spelled the word ''Idol'' all over his face.


    To their surprise though, not only Riku refused their offer, he went straight to Yuki''s seat in the front row and invited him to go together to the volleyball club.


    For those who didn''t go for the volleyball club''s challenge yesterday or didn''t see it until everything was over, they didn''t have any idea why Riku was attracted to Yuki. In their impression, while Yuki was a handsome boy and always greeted them politely, there was this air radiated from him that gave them an unapproachable feeling.


    With Riku asking Yuki to go together, this was like the plot from a teen novel where the popr guy was hanging out together with the loner of the ss.


    And when they thought the surprise was over, they were shocked by the second wave that came from Yuki''s rejection.


    "Why?!"


    Yuki sighed tiredly, didn''t want to exin at all. "Well, you know my condition, right? I need to start to make some money since I am 15 already." Out of politeness, Yuki still gave the blonde boy a short answer.


    Riku winced, knowing what Yuki was talking about. While he wasn''t an orphan, he knew it was basically a universal rule in every orphanage that all the kids over 14 or 15 would have to start making money by themselves. However, Riku still insisted on inviting him, hispetitive spirit was hungry after seeing Yuki''s performance yesterday.


    "I know, but please! Come with us!" He pleaded a little. "Just this time! We will have a sparring game, and after I y against you, I will not bother you anymore!"


    Honestly, the sight of him begging Yuki toe surprised the other students. They didn''t know Yuki''s background story, so the only thing inside their mind right now was Yuki trying to y hard to get, something which made their impression toward the sses boy worsened by miles.


    "Agostini-san, why do you really want him to go with you? I can do it too!"


    "Yeah! It is just a volleyball game, right? Let me be your teammate!"


    There were several of them who offered to rece Yuki''s spot. However, Riku didn''t bulge, still staring at Yuki with his bright, brown eyes. Facing such a request, Yuki finally wilted,plying with the request. "Just this one time, right?" He asked for a confirmation.


    Riku''s face lightened up as he smiled brightly. "Yes! Just this one time! Then, I will not bother you again!"


    Yuki sighed, weighing his options onest time for a second. While he could refuse the invitation, he didn''t want to do it, considering Riku did that under more than ten pairs of eyes. Riku was bound to be a popr guy, so refusing it would make a lot of enemies for him, something that Yuki didn''t want to deal with.


    In his mind, it was okay to be a loner, but being a public enemy on the second day of his school life would be bad.


    "Just this time, right?" Yuki sighed one more time. "Don''t forget your words after this is over."


    "Sure!"


    -0-


    Yuki''s eyes blinked a few times behind his sses, his mind was wandering far when he entered the gymnasium building once again. This was his second visit in two days, some sort of record considering he had never visited a school gymnasium other than for the PE ss when he was in middle school.


    Unlike yesterday though, this time, no crowds were queueing for a challenge, making it easier for him to process everything that happened inside the gym.


    It was a massive building with two courts inside it, separated by a thin line straight in the middle. The high ceiling and gleaming wooden floor seemed to reverberate with the sound ofughter and shouts, as a group of students were busy warming up for a game on one of the two courts.


    To his left, a row of tall goals stood like sentinels, guarding the volleyball court, where a few yers were already starting to toss the ball and spike it back and forth. Meanwhile, on the other court, a group of basketball enthusiasts werecing up their sneakers and preparing for a pick-up game.


    "Oi, everyone! Look at who I bring here!" Riku''s voice suddenly snapped Yuki from his thoughts. The blonde boy was waving his hand excitedly, attracting the attention of all the people on the volleyball court. It didn''t take too long before all the eyes turned to them, and everyone was excited immediately the moment they saw Yuki''s presence.


    "Oh! You bring him here! Good job, Riku!"


    "Is he in your ss?"


    "Man, with him here, today would be interesting!"


    "What is your name, by the way?"


    "Hey, move! You overwhelm him!"


    In a second, Yuki was surrounded immediately by the overly excited yers from the volleyball club. He sighed, had already expected something like this to happen. He regretted a little inwardly, questioning his decision yesterday to show off a bit.


    What surprised him more though, was the fact that all the yers here somehow were familiar enough with Riku, to the point of calling each other with the first name basis. No matter how extrovert the blonde boy was, it was impossible to be this close to about ten or eleven people just in one day.


    ''Well, that would be a question for another time.'' Yuki took a note inwardly.


    "Are you here to join us?" When the crowds finally dispersed, one of the yers suddenly approached him, offering a handshake while smiling politely at Yuki. "My name is Noriyuki Hanji, by the way, the captain of this team. Nice to meet you."


    "Nice to meet you too, Noriyuki-senpai." Yuki epted the handshake politely, trying to ignore the noisy whisper from the other yers in the background. "I am Kobayashi Yuki, a freshman. I was dragged here by Agostini-san to join the activity."


    The blonde boy gulped nervously when his name was mentioned, especially when all the eyes suddenly turned to him.


    "Oh, interesting." Noriyuki sent a sweet smile at Riku, a smile that promised pain. "Let''s talk about itter with Akira-sensei after everything is over, okay, Riku-san?"


    "H-Hai!"


    Noriyuki sighed before saying, "Well, I apologize for any disturbance he caused for you. But since you are here, do you want to join our sparring game?"


    That was a genuine invitation. Yuki knew just by one look at his eyes that once he refused the offer, the captain would let him go immediately without holding him back. This was his chance to get away from this situation. However, Yuki was a man of principle, and he had never been the one who walked away after promising something to the others.


    He knew this principle would bite him in the asster, but for now, not even a second the idea of crossing his principle shed inside his mind.


    "Well, I have already said yes to Agostini-san, so why not?"


    Hearing his response, the hopeful eyes on Riku''s face suddenly exploded, turning into an ecstatic one. The blonde boy jumped immediately, blood seemed to rush into his head as his face was red, full of excitement.


    "Yosh!" Riku clenched his fists. "Now that we are here, let''s start the sparring immediately! Come on, Captain!"


    Yuki and Noriyuki looked at each other for a second before sighing helplessly, knowing this would be a long day for both of them.


    "Well, Kobayashi-kun, do you bring a casual shirt to wear for training?" The captain asked.


    Yuki shook his head, then rolled up his uniform''s sleeves, saying, "It is alright. This would be fine. "


    "Are you sure?"


    "Yup."


    After staring at Yuki for a moment, Noriyuki nodded a little before saying, "Well, since you just arrived with Riku-kun, how about you do some warming up with him?"


    At first, Yuki wanted to refuse, the idea of spending so much time with Riku who was still bubbling with enthusiasm sent a shiver through his spine. However, the blonde boy overheard the conversation and his eyes shone brightly, dragging Yuki immediately.


    "Come on, Kobayashi! Stand on the other side! Let''s see if you can receive my serve!"


    Yuki''s face palmed, knowing this was definitely not the warming-up he had imagined anymore. The other yers just chuckled out loud, especially seeing how helpless he was facing a bundle of joy like Riku. However, it seemed no one wanted to help him here.


    The moment Riku took a ball from the floor, all the eyes suddenly turned to him, observing every little movement he made before facing the serve. Yuki narrowed his eyes slightly in suspicion. If the reaction wasn''t this intense, he would think this arrangement was a coincidence. However, now, he suspected that the captain deliberately nned this to test his ability.


    It seemed they wanted to see more carefully his capability after the disy of skill yesterday.


    ''This is what I got for showing off, right?'' Yuki groaned inwardly.


    "Oi, Kobayashi! Are you ready?!" Riku waved his hand excitedly at him. Yuki sighed, knowing he couldn''t get away from it.


    ''Well, let''s end it as soon as possible.''


    After bracing himself, Yuki gave a thumb up to Riku, signaling that he was ready. He blinked a few times, shocked at the sudden change of expression in the blonde''s eyes. Gone was that childish excitement a few seconds ago, now he waspletely locked into the game.


    ''I need to be careful.'' His consciousness told Yuki to do that.


    He kept observing Riku on the opposite side as the ball was thrown high in the air before the blonde boy jumped. With a swift motion, Riku brought his arm back, coiling his body like a spring about to release. Then, in a sh of speed and power, he snapped forward, unleashing a blistering ace serve that whizzed straight to the other side.


    Yuki could hear dramatic gasps from the sideline. However, he had no time to think about that. All he had in mind right now was the ball that seemed to zoom into his face with light speed. He swore that the ball crossed the just a second after Riku hit it.


    He didn''t panic though. Since his eyes could track the ball''s movement perfectly, Yuki just took a step back, timing when the ball woulde in his direction, bending his knees a little before stretching his arms, letting the balle to it perfectly.


    There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to process what happened. Everything happened too fast, not all the eyes could follow it. What all of them knew was the fact Yuki killed the ball''s speed perfectly, as the ball bounced from his hand toward the spot where in a normal game the team''s setter would be there.


    The silence was finally broken when Akira Shinji, the head coach of the team suddenly appeared, apuding Yuki''s perfect y with his eyes shining brightly at the sses boy.


    "Nice receive, Son! Are you sure you have never received any formal training before?"

 Chapter 5: Yukis First Game!

    "What the hell, man?! That is insane!"


    "It was a perfect text-book receive if I have ever seen one! You kill the ball''s momentum and send it directly to the setter''s spot!"


    "Are you really a rookie?!"


    As the silence was broken, it turned immediately into joyful chaos as Yuki was mobbed by all the yers from the team. They were all patting him on the back and the shoulder, going all out to praise hisst y.


    Their reaction was understandable since no one thought Yuki would be able to handle that ace serve perfectly. In fact, it was the first time they all saw such a perfect ace, that if only Yuki couldn''t receive it, Riku would be the one they flocked into right now.


    Yuki was a bit overwhelmed though. While he was a popr guy in middle school, he had never experienced something like this, with about ten people surrounding and highly praising him like there was no tomorrow. He sent a nce elsewhere, asking for help to anyone who caught it. Akira who saw that just chuckled, coughing hard to get the attention of the others.


    "Okay, everyone! That''s enough! Don''t you see how red our poor new superstar''s face was? He would pass out soon if you don''t go away! Oh, and Riku! Come here too!"


    That was when they all realized they had forgotten Riku''s presence. The blonde boy pouted, sulking because not only the ace serve he was proud of was stopped that easily, but also the fact that everyone seemed to forget about him quickly after just yesterday they all were praising his serve was like rubbing salts on his wound.


    However, his attention right now was on the sses boy who just stole the limelight. "Four-eyes! I demand a rematch!" He shouted childishly.


    Yuki had a sweat drop on his face. ''Four-eyes? Really? Can he be more creative in his insult?''


    "If you are not a coward, don''t you dare to reject it!" Riku kept spouting his nonsense, didn''t notice that everyone stared at him like he was crazy. It wasn''t until Akira knocked some sense onto him that Riku woke up from his cringe monologue. "Ouch! What the hell, Uncle!" He pouted, rubbing his shoulder where Akira just hit him.


    "Well, that is for being a prick." Akira smiled darkly. "Now, are you going to be a good boy and apologize to Kobayashi-kun for bothering him or do you want to get punished?" It seemed he heard about how Yuki ended up here and was not happy with it.


    Riku gulped, chuckling nervously while trying to make himself look innocent. "A-A_Ahaha.. I don''t know what you are talking about, Uncle¡­" He stuttered weakly, making his innocent words look weaker in Akira''s eyes. Under his uncle''s intense gaze, Riku finally wilted, bowing down quickly to Yuki.


    "I am sorry for all the inconvenience that I caused you, Kobayashi-san! This humble Italian boy hopes you can forgive him!"


    The sweat drop that had been on Yuki''s face for a while was getting more intense at how absurd the scene in front of him right now. And by the reaction everyone had, it seemed he wasn''t the only one who was dumbfounded about this situation.


    "Well, Kobayashi-kun, how about it? Do you ept his apology?" Akira asked.


    Having no idea of what happened and thinking it was no big deal, Yuki finally nodded albeit hesitantly. "Well, I guess so. It doesn''t bother me too much."


    "Thank you, Kobayashi-san!" The blonde boy was getting more dramatic, the bow suddenly turned into a kneel. "This humble Italian boy would be forever grateful for your mercy!"


    Now, Yuki freaked out, officially. He took a step back quickly, didn''t want to be associated with either the coach or his nephew. They were too strange to his taste.


    "Well, enough for that, Boy! Get up quickly and don''t embarrass us anymore!" Akira barked like he was the head of the samurai family reprimanding his son. "Now, Kobayashi-kun, there is a question I am wondering about. Can you satisfy my curiosity?"


    Yuki turned his head around, silently asking for help from anyone there. In all fifteen years he had lived, never had he experienced something so dramatic like this. Unfortunately, Yuki forgot that Akira was the head coach of the team, and no yers there wanted to get caught in this crossfire.


    ''Shit! Traitor, all of them!'' He cursed inwardly. On the outside though, Yuki tried to give his best poker face so that he wouldn''t show any inappropriate expression that could offend the coach. He didn''t want to know what kind of punishment he would receive, especially after seeing how Riku reacted when being threatened by punishment.


    "W-W-Well, A-Akira-sensei," Yuki cursed inwardly as he stuttered. "What is the question?" He smiled weakly.


    Fortunately, even though Yuki didn''t know whether Akira noticed it or not, the coach seemed to ignore his stutter and decided to ask directly, "How did you stop the serve from Riku before?"


    "Eh?" Yuki tilted his head confusedly.


    "I mean, what do you think when you are facing the ball before?" Akira amended his question. "The serve from Riku before was a nasty one, not a lot of people could stop it as perfectly as you did. Do you mind sharing with us your thoughts about it?"


    Seeing everyone was also eager to hear his perspective, Yuki pondered for a second, imagining what he did earlier inside his head before saying, "Well, I don''t really know how to exin it, but the ball came straight to my face with a high speed, so I took a step back because I didn''t want to get hit like that. After that, everything seemed to be natural for me.


    Just bent my knees slightly to distribute my weight evenly and help me stay bnced, rxing my arms to make sure they would absorb the impact and kill the speed, then I used my forearm to guide the ball so it could go toward the direction that I wanted. So¡­ Yeah¡­ If you asked me how I did that, it is probably¡­ An instinct?"


    Looking at the unsure expression on Yuki''s face, everyone twitched their mouths slightly, cursing him inwardly as Yuki himself didn''t realize how outrageous what he just said was. This was the first time everyone, even Riku and Akira felt devastated for the monstrous talent that someone had in volleyball.


    ''What are you, a monster?'' Someone mumbled from the crowd. ''Don''t you need to, what, I don''t know, judging for the ball first or something simr?''


    "I mean, yeah, I did that too," Yuki replied. The one who had that question was taken aback for a second, then blushed in embarrassment as he didn''t realize he had said that quite loudly. "Of course, I also need to observe where the ball would go. However, I saw how Agostini-san did his serve yesterday, and while it was impressive, all of them just used brute force, no trick hidden in it at all.


    I guess this time would be the same, so I just moved without hesitation the moment the ball was released from his hand."


    Riku felt like he wanted to cry. This ace serve was something that took three full years for him to develop, sacrificing time, sweat, blood, and even money until he perfected it ¨C he begged his parents to pay some professional yers to train him. Well, he thought it was perfect. Even in Italy, not a lot of people his age could follow its movement, let alone receive it perfectly like what Yuki did.


    ''Wait a second!'' Riku suddenly stopped his train of thought, lightning seemed to strike into him as he realized something. ''Follow its movement?!''


    "Anyway, since we all are ready, let''s start the sparring," Akira said. "Let''s-"


    "Wait a second, Sensei!" Akira suddenly interrupted, startling everyone. He stared intently at Yuki, making the sses boy nervous a bit. "I just want to ask one more question. You said you made a judgment based on the serve you saw I did yesterday, right?" Yuki nodded, still didn''t know what happened. "Then, can you track down that kind of fast movement in the air?"


    All the yers there widened their eyes as they also just realized that too. It was one thing to receive the serve perfectly, but it was apletely different story if Yuki was able to track down the ball''s movement from Riku''s serve.


    That showed he had a pair of dynamic eyes and an incredible brain that could process everything from Riku''s serve that happened less than three seconds before giving themand to the body to move ordingly. To put it bluntly, if Yuki was indeed able to do that, he had some sort of God-speed reaction.


    Yuki who didn''t realize it was something incredible though, just rubbed the back of his head confusedly. "Well, yeah. Is there something special about it? I thought everyone could also do that."


    Everyone twitched their mouth speechlessly, then just sighed tiredly, giving up thinking of Yuki''s ridiculous talent and decided to just ept it.


    "Well, okay, everyone!" Akira raised his voice once again. "Since we are dyed for fifteen minutes because of thisst y, let''s do our sparring for just one set."


    That was when all the yers there realized they were there to y a game.


    "Okay, let''s make the team. Noriyuki, you are with Riku, Ogawa, Ren, Asahi, and Koji. The rest of you who I am not mentioning would be the second team. Is there any question?"


    From the reaction of all of them, Yuki knew there was something unusual with how Akira selected the yers for both teams. However, since he didn''t know them well enough, he decided to ignore that and join the five yers who would be his temporary teammates.


    "Nice to meet you, Senpai." Yuki bowed politely.


    "No need to be so formal with us." One of them waved his hand nonchntly. It was a boy with a sharp face and bald head, features that could be recognized easily by anyone from afar. "My name is Yoshi, by the way. Aoba Yoshi from the third grade. I am the opposite hitter of the team. Nice to meet you."


    Yuki still nodded politely even though he had no idea what the opposite hitter was. After that, one by one, the other four yers also introduced themselves to Yuki.


    "Hirano Fuji, second grade, a middle blocker." The tallest boy out of all of them introduced coldly. Yuki wondered if he had ever met and offended his senpai or what.


    "Just ignore that grumpy, he is just like that." Another boy came in. He had this bright smile as if the sun was never going down. "My name is Okamura Daichi, by the way. I am also from the second grade and the libero!"


    Yuki nodded, at least knowing what position Libero was in. It was for a yer who specialized himself in the art of defense, guarding every inch of the court so that the other could attack with ease.


    "Hello, my name is Yori Sakai from the third grade. Nice to meet you." Another boy suddenly approached him. In Yuki''s impression, this was the politest out of everyone else. "I am the setter of the team, so don''t hesitate to ask the ball for me, okay?"


    "Ah, yes! Thank you, Senpai!" Yuki nodded, still with the same politeness.


    "And as for me, just call me Kaede! I am from the second grade!" Another bright boy came from behind, his smile was as bright as his blond hair. "Even though I am still his backup, I am also the opposite hitter! And I will grab his position sooner orter!" He said it while pointing his finger at Aoba.


    Inwardly, it wasn''t his position that attracted Yuki''s attention, but the unusual color hair that his senpai had. Unlike Riku with his natural one, it was clear that this Kaede painted his hair deliberately to make this color, and Yuki didn''t know whether it was allowed in this school or not.


    As for the position¡­.


    "Wait, we have two opposite hitters?" Yuki frowned.


    Aoba who heard that raised his eyebrows slightly. "You know what is the opposite hitter?"


    "No, I have no idea at all," Yuki admitted frankly, startling all of his teammates. "What I know is having two people in the same position is never a good idea. And I don''t know what kind of role I have here, so what would happen if somehow I fit into that position as well? Is this some sort of a team specialized in one thing or what?"


    Yuki blinked a few times when he saw the shock reaction from the five people in front of him. "Really? This is a team specialized in one thing?" He didn''t expect the random guess he threw would hit the target perfectly.


    "Well, you sure have a sharp mind," Aoba said dryly. "And yeah, this is a specialized team. Not only us, but the other is also the same. It would take a long time to exin though, so we can do that at the other time.


    But to make it short, we are a bunch of yers that were expected by Akira-sensei to survive any apocalypses, while the opposite team is the one that can break any wall in front of them."


    Yuki furrowed his brows, having a hunch about why Akira formed the team like this.


    "Well, no need to overthink it. Let''s prepare ourselves first."


    "Sure."


    -0-


    "Come on, Sensei! Start the game quickly!" Riku shouted, starting to get impatience.


    Akira who was on the sideline ignored his nephew, checking for both teams to see whether they were ready or not. After making sure everything was okay, he gave the ball to Yuki''s team to serve first.


    "Damn, Sensei." Kaede cursed. "You really want to pit our defense against their offense, huh?"


    Yuki who overheard that mumble couldn''t help but nod in agreement. While his volleyball knowledge wasn''t too much, he knew that the one who served would have to be defensive on the first y.


    "Don''t worry, everyone! Just stay focused!" Yori tried to calm down the others. "Don''t be distracted, Kobayashi-kun. Yoshi, give us a good serve!"


    After Akira blew his whistle, Yoshi threw the ball in the air, hitting it with a not-so-great power. It was just a standard overhead serve which the messy-haired boy on the opposite side received it perfectly.


    "Mine!"


    Yuki was surprised to see Riku suddenly run to the ball while all the other yers took a step away, giving him the path to get the second contact. He kept staring at the blonde boy while using his peripheral vision to track down all the opponent''s movements, trying to figure out where Yuki would toss the ball. However, what he didn''t expect was for the half-Italian boy to not toss the ball.


    Instead, he extended one of his arms high to the sky, reaching the ball with one hand before swooping it down gently over the.


    It wasn''t just Yuki who was frozen on the spot. In fact, Hirano, the middle blocker who also guarded the front line also didn''t expect Riku to dump the ball straight in the first ce. And no, it wasn''t just those two. Almost everyone had their mouth hanging open, looking at the ball bouncing on the floor in disbelief.


    It wasn''t until Riku shouted in excitement that they woke up from their daydreaming.


    "Ha! Now, our score is even, Four-eyes!" The blonde boy pointed his finger at Yuki, smiling smugly. "Come on! It is just the beginning! There will be more chances for me to beat you today!"


    Yuki just shook his head, trying to ignore the provocation. Inwardly though, he didn''t notice something burning in his heart.


    ''Well, isn''t this interesting¡­''

 Chapter 6: Offense vs Defense! A Battle of Two Different Playing Styles!

    "Excuse me! Give me a way, please! Excuse me!"


    Outside of the gym, a girl sprinted down the hallway, sweat-drenched all over her shirt. She kept running while apologizing to the people she passed through, trying to get there as soon as possible. Inwardly, she cursed her homeroom teacher for holding the entire ss back for about thirty minutes before letting them go with their business.


    When the girl arrived at the gym, she stopped immediately, panting like a cow while holding her knees to support her body.


    "I am sorry for beingte, Akira-sensei! Genta-sensei asked us to choose the representative for each ss and hold me back for about thirty minutes!" She bowed her head, trying to apologize to the volleyball team''s coach while exining what happened.


    However, she didn''t expect that not only her sensei was not responding at all, but even the yers were doing the same. It confused the girl a bit as since she was the only female member of the team, all the boys usually would be excited for nothing whenever she arrived at the gym.


    "Sensei?" The girl tried to peek at the coach carefully from her bow.


    "Ah, sorry, Ayaka-san, what are you saying again?" The coach finally spoke to her, yet his words indicated he didn''t pay attention to her. The girl called Ayaka had her lips twitched a little in annoyance before sighing, "Well, Sensei, I am sorry I camete. Can I take a seat?"


    "Oh, yeah, sure!"


    The girl huffed before throwing her body on the seat next to the coach. Her name was Ayaka Megumi, and her identity here was the manager of the volleyball team. And no, her role was not to clean the court after the activity or wash everyone''s jersey after the game. In fact, it revolved around something every person would fear, paperwork.


    Yes, she was the one responsible for the team''s administrative work; from registering the new members of the team to the school database to the point of registering the team for every tournament they would enter. Without her, the team would be just a bunch of people gathering together and ying volleyball as a hobby. That was why sometimes she was treated as a queen by the boys.


    This time though, the girl was confused when she didn''t receive the warm greeting from the other. She trailed Akira''s line of sight, trying to see what kind of event would make the team ignore her like that. Then, her eyes caught two familiar figures on the court, one with rare blonde hair and the other with sses on his face.


    "Are those two the new members?" She asked curiously.


    "Well, the blonde one is the new member," Akira replied, his eyes still on the court. "He is my nephew, Agostini Riku. You should have known about him if you checked our Facebook group for once." He added dryly.


    Megumi blushed a little, trying to avoid Akira''s gaze. Facebook was the social media that bloomed recently among the students and almost every club kinda makes one for their members tomunicate with each other. Megumi was probably one of the few people who didn''t like hanging around the group, and sometimes, it caused her to get any newster than the others.


    "Oh, is he the one who kept chatting and inviting everyone to y games togetherst night?" Megumi suddenly remembered something.


    "Oh, so it seems you still take a look at what happened in the group too." Akira chuckled yfully. Then, he cringed when the memory of what happenedst night emerged in his head. "Sorry about that one. I will try to discipline him better after this."


    Megumi just gave him a little understanding smile. While there was no etiquette rule established in social media, some people thought that it was rude to invite others to chat and y games after 9:00 PM. It was usually the time when almost all the people fell asleep to get ready for the next day.


    Unfortunately, that was exactly what Riku didst night.


    He kept inviting everyone to y some sort of online game that Megumi couldn''t understand anything about. But since the group kept ringing until midnight time, she knew there were a lot of yers decided to hang out together with him. That was probably why he could get so close with each other yers even though today was just the second day of school.


    "Well, you said only one of them is the new member. What about that sses boy?" She asked curiously.


    "That boy¡­" Akira''s face suddenly turned serious, surprising Megumi a little. "He is the person I kept racking my brain since yesterday, trying toe up with an idea of how to recruit him to join our team."


    -0-


    *BAM!*


    "Shit! It bounces to the!"


    "Yuki! Cover it up!"


    "I got it, Senpai!"


    Yuki moved forward immediately, extending his arms far away while leaning his body forward, trying to keep the ball in the air. He lost his bnce a bit, falling down to the floor after saving the ball. However, it was enough to keep the ball alive.


    "Nice cover, Yuki!"


    "Sakai-senpai, here!"


    "Kaede is about to jump! Follow my lead! One! Two! Three! Go!"


    *BAM!*


    "KUSO!"


    "YOSH! Nice block, you two!"


    Kaede cursed out loud as his spike was blocked by a wall formed by Riku and Ren, the outside hitter of the opposite team. However, when they all thought the ball was dead, Okumura, the libero and the guardian of the team suddenly dived acrobatically, saving the ball with the back of his palm before it could touch the floor.


    "Oh, damn! Pancake!"


    "Yori-senpai! Follow it up!"


    "Yuki!"


    Hearing his name was called, Yuki took a step back before running forward and jumped. Riku on the other side didn''t want to lose. He also did the same while extending his arms high, trying to set a wall that Yuki couldn''t break.


    "Come on, Riku! Don''t lose again!"


    Amidst the chaos, the duel between those two happened once again. Looking at the wall in front of him though, Yuki didn''t lose his calm. He remembered the trick Riku had done when the game just started and suddenly smirked, giving the blonde boy a bad feeling.


    "Well, how about tasting your own weapon?"


    With a mischievous grin, Yuki suddenly slowed down the arms that had coiled back and was ready to be unleashed like a whip, changing his mind from a powerful spike into a soft one. He tapped the ball gently, letting it float over Riku''s hands that was still in the air.


    While several yers from the opposite side wanted to cover, they were too surprised, didn''t expect Yuki to pull up the same stunt Riku did earlier.


    "YOSSHAA!!" Yuki roared wildly.


    "Nice kill, Yuki!"


    "Damn! Genius is really different!"


    "Good job, boy!"


    As he celebrated the point with his temporary teammates, gone was all the politeness and the fake fa?ade Yuki had always worn when facing strangers, his true self as a normal hot-blooded teenager was fully exposed.


    Everyone didn''t mind though. They preferred it when Yuki was honest with himself rather than showing his mask to them. And they were also happy, thinking that Yuki finally started to ept himself as one of the volleyball team''s members. When they heard that Yuki lived in an orphanage, they knew there was a big chance the sses boy would refuse their invitation.


    However, looking at how it went until now, it seemed the genius of the volleyball would stay longer with them.


    "So, what is the score between us two?" Yuki couldn''t help but tease Riku; he pushed his sses upward. The blonde boy just huffed, annoyed. However, he still gave Yuki the answer. "It should be 4 ¨C 1 for your lead. Don''t be too happy, though. I will beat you soon!"


    Yuki shook his head amusedly. "Well, I will wait for you. Please, take your time slowly, okay?"


    He turned his head, staring at the board to check for the score. The big yellow board showed 10 ¨C 5, his team was still leading. Then, his eyes identallynded on the bench, or to be more exact, on the girl who sat next to the coach, and he was taken aback by the familiar feeling he had for the girl.


    ''Is that the girl who sat behind me in the ss? What is her name again?'' He wondered confusedly. ''Is she also a member of the team?''


    However, he denied the idea immediately after making an eye-contact with the girl, and she waved her hand and smiled to greet him.


    ''No, that girl is too shy to do that. This girl must be someone who coincidentally looks familiar with her or her rtive.''


    "What''s wrong, Yuki?" Yoshi asked.


    It still amazed Yuki how quickly he got close to everyone on the team. They even started calling each other with their first name here, something he would never befortable enough with strangers. Maybe this was how boys made friends. It only took one game of volleyball which they fought together to change the stranger status to best friends, something which Yuki himself wouldn''tin about.


    However, right now, his mind was on the girl next to Akira. "Who is she?" He decided to ask.


    Yoshi''s eyes trailed to the spot where Yuki pointed before grinning. "Ah, I get it. Are you interested in her too?" Yuki''s mouth twitched at the soft jab he received from his senpai. "Well, she is the manager of the team, Megumi-san. You will have to step on so many corpses if you want to approach her."


    ''So a popr girl, then.'' Yuki nodded silently.


    "Well, if you are really interested in her, you can ask to Koji over there." Yoshi pointed at the yer on the opposite side with wild, spiky hair. "He ims to be her number one fan and would do anything for her. Even though I don''t know whether Megumi-san had ever asked him to do anything, I do not doubt hismitment to her. Koji would jump over the cliff if she asked him to do so.''


    Yuki had a sweat drop in his face at the information he just received.


    "Well, we can talk a lot about herter. You will alsomunicate with her a lot after this. But for now, let''s continue the game."


    "Sure."


    -0-


    Megumi blinked her eyes repeatedly, still wondering what happened. She had been the manager of the team in thest two years ¨C this year would be her third and never in her mind she thought the team would be able to y an amazing volleyball like this.


    And all of that revolved around the two freshmen who were ying on the court right now.


    "Noriyuki-senpai! Ogawa-senpai! Run!"


    That was the shout from Riku, the blonde boy who Akira imed to be his nephew. He was ying as the setter for Noriyuki''s team, the brain of every y for them. It wasn''t like anything Megumi had ever seen from Yori before.


    Unlike the third-year setter who always liked to y solid and safe, with Riku, everyone was involved in the offense, and no one knew where the ball would go until the blonde boy decided it in thest second.


    He was like a conductor in an orchestra, waving his baton tomand the others to follow his arrangement.


    "Senpai, left. Follow my lead. One, two, three, jump!"


    *BAM!*


    "YOSH! Nice block, Hirano-senpai! Kaede-senpai!"


    "Good job to you too, Yuki!"


    Turning her eyes to the other team, Megumi saw how Yuki blended perfectly with his senpai. If Riku was a master at conducting offense for his team, Yuki showed off his talent as a natural leader, taking the lead inmanding everyone to defend the ball. Megumi knew while the team had several yers who were good in defense, the biggest problem alwaysy inmunication.


    Hirano Fuji, one of the best middle blockers in Tokyo was always a solo yer. He had never been good at giving orders ormanding his teammates to do something for him. And to make it worse, his cold personality was the exact opposite of Okumura, the loudmouth libero on the team.


    The sh of personalities between those two sometimes led the defense into pure chaos, making it hard for their teammates to do it properly. Only Yoshi and Noriyuki were probably charismatic enough to take themand on defense, but their reading-the-game skill was never top-notch.


    This time though, even if he had two troublesome yers on his team, Yuki united them both under hismand, making them follow his lead to win the sparring game. Hell, even Hirano who was infamous for his cold personality was willing to listen and even ept Yuki''s high-five from time to time.


    It was at this moment Megumi realized why the coach thought highly of Yuki.


    "They are interesting, right?" Akira suddenly asked, startling Megumi a bit.


    "Yeah." She admitted, praising both Yuki and Riku. "I don''t know what kind of good karma did we do in our past lives, but to have two amazing freshmen in the same year sure is one hell of luck."


    Akira nodded in agreement, then let out a long sigh. "Yesterday, his reading-the-game ability made me think he is a good seedling to be a middle blocker. Then before this game, his train of thought when receiving Riku''s serve convinced me he would be good as a libero too. But now, I realize he is the perfect opposite hitter in my mind.


    Good at receiving, blocking, serving, defending, and even spiking, he is one hell of a yer. Unfortunately, he still didn''t have any idea to join us."


    Megumi who knew that Akira was talking about Yuki and had already heard about his background story also sighed regretfully. It would be a pity for someone this talented to miss out on the team because of this.


    "Well, let''s try to convince him again after this." She said thest part to reassure the coach.


    "Yeah¡­" Akira nodded, his gaze was far away. "Let''s do it againter¡­"


    -0-


    Back to the court, Riku was cursing so loud right now. And the subject of his curse was of course the sses boy he deemed as a rival on the opposite side. He red at him at the intensity that if it could kill, Yuki would probably be six feet under right now.


    The root of it all was simple. It was Yuki''s turn to serve the ball, and twice he did, he aimed the ball straight at Riku. And while Riku was a decent defender, he had never seen a floater from this close, let alone receiving the end of it.


    ''Damn this Bastard!'' He cursed once again in Italian. ''Never received a formal training? What a joke! Which novice can serve a nasty floater like this!'' His face darkened more when Riku saw the infuriating smirk on Yuki''s face directed at him. ''I know this bastard is targeting me! Damn!''


    "Calm down, Riku!" As the captain of the team, it wasn''t the first time Noriyuki handled teammates with a bad temper like him. "Don''t think about it too much. Listen here."


    After discussing the arrangement for the next y with the captain, Riku''s face lightened up a bit, knowing this was the chance for him to get revenge.


    "Thanks, Senpai!"


    Yuki who was on the other side of the court ignored their interaction, thinking it wouldn''t change too much. He took a deep breath, tossing the ball slowly through the air before hitting it gently, making sure it didn''t have too much spin while in the air.


    Honestly, Yuki didn''t know this kind of serve had its own name. For all he knew, he had a knack for it the first time he saw his teacher doing this serve and had used this a lot in the past whenever his PE ss was having a volleyball game to tease his opponents, and it always worked. He just didn''t expect this would work against a school team that was also preparing for a serious tournament.


    However, this time, it was a little bit different. While he still aimed at Riku, ¨C he admitted he did this deliberately ¨C the moment the ball passed over the, Riku switched position with Noriyuki to avoid his serve. The captain received it perfectly, using his overhand pass to give the ball directly to Riku on the front line.


    "Nice pass, Captain!"


    Yuki was about to run forward, going back to his position as one of the blockers. However, he was surprised by how Riku handled the ball. Instead of tossing it to his teammates, the blonde boy didn''t wait for too long and killed the y directly in the second ball, spiking it straight in his direction.


    Getting caught off guard, Yuki flinched a bit, couldn''t dodge the hit that came straight to his face. He used his hand to block the ball, yet his action made it bounce far outside of the court.


    "Ha! I got you this time!" Riku smiled smugly, showing his childishness to Yuki.


    Yuki himself just shook his head, smiling exasperatedly. This was the second time he received the same trick from Riku, and honestly, he wasn''t even that mad. The intense game made Yuki forget anyone could kill the ball at any time as long as it hadn''t been touched for more than three consecutive times by one team.


    Later in the near future, Yuki would know this so-called dump trick was Riku''s go-to move whenever the blonde boy was excited.


    "Wait over there, Kobayashi! This time, I will let you see my serve!" Riku shouted from the other side. It seemed he wanted to retaliate against the torture he received before.


    Yuki just grinned slightly, challenging him with another shout. "Well, do it if you can!"


    Even though they both were separated by 24 meters ¨C the length of the court ¨C and the eight yers on the court, it was still easy for them to make an eye-contact. The clear cerulean eyes met the brown one as the tension between those two increased rapidly.


    Even though they both were just freshmen, the other yers still gave them the respect they deserved, letting those two have their duel this time. All of Yuki''s teammates stepped aside, giving him the space to receive the ball.


    Seeing this, Riku grinned, knowing their senpai had already set this stage for him. With a flick of his wrist and a burst of strength, the blonde boyunched the ball into the air, watching with fierce determination as it soared towards its target. Time seemed to slow down as the ball hurtled toward the opponent''s court.


    *BAM!*


    After that, thest thing people heard from the volleyball court was the explosion-like sound echoed all over the gym before hell broke loose.

 Chapter 8: A Part Time Job

    "Oi, Kobayashi, are you sure this is the right ce?" Riku asked, staring at the building in front of him hesitantly.


    Yuki sighed, knowing why Riku wasn''t so sure about this at all. It was the day after the sparing game and currently, Yuki ¨C apanied by Riku was standing in front of the building Megumi said to be where her family house was, and just by looking at its exterior, he was sure this ce was older than his school.


    It was a pretty old-looking building, with the faded sign above the door read ''Paper & Pen'' in crooked English letters, and the windows were so grimy that Yuki could hardly see inside. Even though he wasn''t a Native of Tokyo and had never explored the city, he knew this kind of ce was something any tourist would never know.


    Still, since Megumi was kind enough to rmend him, someone she had met once yesterday to work here, he still stepped forward, encouraging himself to enter the building. But as he pushed open the door, Yuki was greeted by the warm and weing aroma of old books and fresh coffee, and his hesitation began to fade away.


    He took a deep breath, wiped his sweaty palms on his uniform, and stepped inside, where he was immediately enveloped in the cozy atmosphere of the store.


    "Are you Kobayashi-kun?" Suddenly, a voice snapped Yuki from his thoughts.


    When he turned around, he could see an olddy smiling at him warmly, and it took him a second to realize who the woman in front of him was. Her sharp eyebrows, the dimples that sunk the skin of her cheeks like pits, her warm gaze, everything was so identical to Megumi that if not for the wrinkles on her face, Yuki would mistake the woman as his senpai''s mother.


    "I have already heard about you, but I don''t know about the others?" Thedy tilted her head curiously at Riku. It seemed the blonde boy was also in a daze at how simr his senpai was with the old woman before him that he forgot to introduce himself.


    "A-Ah! My name is Agostini Riku! Nice to meet you, Ma''am!" The boy stuttered a bit when he introduced himself.


    "Agostini?" The olddy furrowed her brows as if she was trying to remember something. Then, out of a sudden, her expression lightened up in realization. "Ah, you are the rude Italian boy in the Face¡­ Face¡­ Face what?" She asked confusedly.


    "It is Facebook, Ma''am," Yuki exined, hiding his smirk when he saw the blush on Riku''s face. "It is the ce where people could send a message to each other without having to wait for the physical letter toe delivered by the postman.


    That''s why some could still exchange conversation with others even though it was nighttime already." Not the best exnation for what media social was, of course. But Yuki was satisfied when he saw the old woman understood his analogy.


    "You young people and your technology¡­" The olddy shook her head in exasperation. "Anyway, please sit down first."


    Hearing that, Yuki and Riku took the chairs close to the windows quickly. Their eyes wandered around the building, noticing for the first time how contrast it was to their expectation. The creaky wooden floorboards beneath their feet seemed to whisper secrets of the past, and the musty smell of old books filled their nostrils.


    Yuki looked around, taking in the rows upon rows of bookshelves that seemed to stretch up to the ceiling, their worn leather spines and yellowed pages glowing like treasures in the soft light.


    "There should be more than a thousand books here, right?" Riku whispered, staring in awe at the sheer scale of the collection here.


    "67,338 books, if you want to be more exact." The olddy suddenly appeared again, now bringing a tray with two cups of tea and a smaller cup of coffee. "That is the amount of the books my husband collected for more than 60 years during his lifetime. Oh, please enjoy the tea here."


    "You remember the numbers of the books here?" Riku asked, impressed. He took one cup from the tray and enjoyed it while his eyes were still wandering around.


    "Well, I might be wrong, of course. But I have dedicated myst ten years to take care of this building, so I am confident here."


    "Ten years?!" Riku widened his eyes in surprise.


    "Yup! This is thest work of the love of my life, so there is no way I would abandon it." She chuckled richly, her eyes gazing far away, reminiscing the past. "Anyway, Kobayashi-kun is here to ask for a job, right? Let me introduce myself first. My name is Ayaka Sachi, and as you can guess, I am Megumi-chan''s grandmother."


    "Nice to meet you, Ayaka-san." Both Yuki and Riku bowed politely.


    "Don''t be too polite. There might be a lot of Ayaka here in the future, so just call me Sachi-baasan." The olddy waved her hand nonchntly. "As for the job, honestly, I don''t see the need to do it, but-"


    "Eh?! What do you mean by that, Sachi-baasan?!" Riku interrupted before Sachi could even finish her exnation. Yuki sent the Italian boy a re for cutting her words before she could get to the point, yet his heart sunk immediately the first time he heard her words. He had already been thinking of the worst-case scenario where he wouldn''t get the job here and had to search for another ce.


    ''Well, I shouldn''t expect to get a job this easy¡­''


    Sachi herself blinked her eyes for a moment, shocked by Riku''s interruption. It was clear by her expression that it was rare for her to receive this kind of treatment. Well, at least Riku had the decency to look sheepish and apologized immediately.


    "Wow, you really are like what Megumi-chan said, rowdy boy through and through." She chuckled.


    Fortunately, the olddy wasn''t offended by Riku''s behavior. The blonde boy himself blushed, cursing the manager of the team for filling her grandmother''s head with lies. Not that he would dare to say it out loud, of course.


    "Well, before I was interrupted by your overly enthusiastic friend here," She turned her attention back to Yuki, yet still didn''t forget to throw a yful jab at Riku. "I am content with this building as it is and don''t have any n to change it.


    However, an old colleague of my husband camest year when I was taking care of the book and he advised me to make a digital catalog to make it easier to track down every book here. So, that is the job if you want to. What do you think?"


    "What about the wage?" Riku quickly asked.


    Yuki didn''t mind though. Unlike the constant rude interruption that the blonde boy did several times earlier, this time, he asked it politely, and his question was also essential in whether he was willing to do the job or not. It was good to have a spokesperson out of nothing. He just didn''t expect Riku to be such a chatterbox, couldn''t help but keep his mouth running loose.


    "Hmm¡­ Let me think about it¡­" Sachi pondered for a second. "Well, the minimum wage right now is about 700 yen per hour, and I can input at least 8 to 10 books in one hour, so I could give you about that amount of money for every eight books you input to the catalog. What do you think?"


    Yuki was hesitant before asking another important question. "What about the work time?"


    "It is up to you, of course." The olddy replied easily, surprising the two boys in front of her. Then, she smiled amusedly before continuing, "I heard that you two are members of the volleyball team like Megumi-chan, right? I know it will take a lot of your time in the future, so you can adjust it as much as you like.


    Your payment won''t depend on the amount of time you spent but how much effort you put in here, so you don''t need to be so strict about this."


    Yuki did a hasty calction inside his head before asking, "How long do you want me to work here?"


    Honestly, this sounded like a dream work for Yuki. Not only the time was flexible and the wage was good, but the employee, his senpai''s grandmother was also a kind woman who didn''t have too many requirements for him. Now, he should consider how long could he work here to n for the future too. However, what Sachi said next was something beyond his head.


    "Well, you can work as long as you can, Dear." The olddy smiled gently at him. "Out of more than sixty thousand books here, only about 2000 books had been catalogized by now. That is just three percent of all the collections in this building. It would take forever toplete this task, so I don''t mind being apanied by you in the future."


    "Would it take a lot of money to pay, though?" Riku asked hesitantly.


    Sachi just chuckled richly as if she heard the funniest joke in the world. "Even though you cannot see it, my husband and I have been working hard and made a big fortune from a lot of good investments in the past.


    The money wouldn''t run out even if the next seven generations of my family didn''t want to work, and considering all my sons and granddaughters inherited our hard worker trait, I said that money would be thest problem my family had to worry about."


    Shiughed merrily when she saw the bbergasted expression on the boy''s face. Even though she was a private person and didn''t like to unt her wealth, it still amused her to no end whenever she witnessed the reaction of the others who heard about her wealth.


    As for Yuki and Riku, they smiled at each other wryly, were too speechless to express their feeling. While they had expected her to be wealthy ¨C with the amount of the books here, of course she was ¨C never crossed their mind that this kind, gentle woman was the owner of such incredible wealth.


    Those two boys felt like they had been living in a world of ck and white, and suddenly everything had turned into a vibrant Technicolor. Their reaction was a mix of awe, wonder, and confusion. They didn''t know what to say or do next. All they could do was stare at the olddy in amazement, their mind racing with questions and doubts.


    Who was this woman and her husband?


    -0-


    At the end of the day, Yuki decided to ept the job offer from her, thinking that this was too good to be passed. To his surprise though, Riku decided to do the same. Not to belittle the blonde boy''s intelligence, but Yuki had never seen him as a person who was patient enough to work in front of aputer for too long.


    However, Riku was determined to do so, and who was Yuki to object to his decision?


    However, Yuki was amused when he overheard the blonde boy mumbling about his motivation to join here. he wanted to beat the ''four-eyes'' in everything no matter how silly it was, thinking that this was a part of their rivalry that he couldn''t run away from. Thinking about him, Yuki just chuckled, letting the Italian boy do whatever he wanted to do.


    It wasn''t like Riku was disturbing him, and Yuki was sure the blonde boy would get tired of this sooner orter.


    That was the na?ve thought that he would regret in the future.


    As for now though, they were currently in one of the rooms hidden behind all the books there, staring in awe at the fourtest releasedptops disyed perfectly on the table, their monitor was still shining and reflecting their face as if it was a new mirror. This was just another proof of how ridiculously wealthy the olddy in front of them was.


    "So, we are going to work with this?" Yuki twitched the corner of his mouth exasperatedly. He felt pity that such a cutting-edge technology like this was only used to catalog this massive library with Microsoft Excel, never been utilized at its fullest.


    "Well, just don''t touch the two in the corner. That is reserved only for my granddaughters to use." Sachi pointed at theptop she mentioned. "As for the other two, you can use it as much as you like, but don''t bring it outside of the building. Those are gifts from a dear friend of mine."


    Once again, Yuki twitched the corner of his mouth exasperatedly, now thinking what kind of friend would send thetest releasedptop as a gift to an olddy?


    Well, nevertheless, Yuki decided not to question everything too much, afraid it would fry his brain alive. He listened carefully to the olddy''s exnation of what they had to do, and Yuki was surprised at how easy it was. It was just inputting the book''s general information from its title, the writer''s name, the publisher, genre, to the synopsis before putting the book back on the shelves.


    When Yuki tried to do that, he blinked a few times, couldn''t believe how fast he could do this.


    "Only three minutes?" Riku mumbled, also in disbelief. Then, he turned to the olddy and asked, "Obaasan, are you sure you didn''t miscount your time when you did all of this?"


    A fair question, Yuki thought.


    "Well, of course, not! I have been doing it for a while, there is no way I would miscount something so simple like this." Sachi denied the idea immediately.


    "However, if I saw a book with a good synopsis, I would get distracted easily and read it first for a while until I realized there was still a lot to do before continuing my job again, so, maybe that is why my speed is not that fast." She grinned mischievously, making both Yuki and Riku have sweat drop on their face.


    ''What a carefreedy.'' Yuki shook his head in amusement.


    However, he was the one who was happiest the most here. After several times trying to do the job, Yuki found out he could do at least one book every three to four minutes, making it almost twenty books per hour. With that kind of speed, he could gain about 4200 yen just by working for three hours, and if it was a weekend, the amount of the money could be doubled since he didn''t have to go to school.


    Thinking of the financially free life in the future he imagined yet hadn''te yet, Kouki was excited. A pang of guilt suddenly appeared from the bottom of his heart though, thinking he was scamming the kind olddy in front of him.


    However, before Yuki could say anything, he could hear a shout from the outside.


    "Obaasan! We are here!"


    Shi raised from her seat immediately, an ear-to-ear smile formed on her face when she heard the greeting. "Oh, Megumi-chan! You are here!"


    After exchanging hugs with each other, Megumi''s eyes suddenly turned to Riku and Yuki and suddenly asked, "So, how is it?"


    "Well¡­"


    Although there was a chance his wage would be reduced, Yuki still told her his concern. He didn''t want to go against his morale, knowing that it was wrong to scam the elderly. However, Megumi brushed off his concern immediately, exining why his assumption was wrong.


    "As you might guess already, my grandmother has so much money she couldn''t spend even in her seven lifetimes. What she needed right now though, was a friend to have conversations with and relieve her boredom. So, this job is just a cover for her to meet new people, so you don''t have to worry about her."


    "I told you, Megumi-chan! I am not alone!" Shi''s shout from inside could be heard out loud.


    "Yes, Obaasan!" She shouted back, yet still rolling her eyes in exasperation. "It was a lie, of course. She had been crazy after herte husband ¨C my grandfather died from an old age a few years ago. Also, I hope you can be more patient with him, okay?"


    Yuki nodded slowly, still didn''t know how to react.


    "Don''t worry about her, Kobayashi-kun. She is okay." Megumi said one more time. "Anyway, where is that girl? I swear, she would always ¨C Ah, here she is! Kobayashi-kun, I want you to meet my little sister! She is also a freshman in our school.


    Come here!"


    Yuki blinked his eyes several times, not expecting Megumi to have a little a little sister. Well, he should expect that, considering the hint Shi had been dropping earlier by saying her granddaughters, as in a plural form. The next surprise though, was also something he should expect too.


    Here, stood in front of Yuki, a familiar girl frozen on the spot as she saw him too. They both recognized each other in a second, and the girl''s cheek flushed red in embarrassment as if she was caught doing something illegal.


    Megumi who saw their expression stared curiously at her little sister before asking, "Have you known about each other?"


    "W-W-Well¡­." Her little sister stuttered, stealing a nce at Yuki secretly.


    Taking pity on her wreck situation, Yuki sighed before deciding to exin, "Well, we are in the same ss and I sat in front of her, so of course, I would know about her. Nice to meet you again though, Ayaka-san."

 Chapter 11: Matsuyama Kita High, The Second-Best Team in the Country!

    -A few dayster, in Matsuyama Kita High''s gymnasium-


    "Tsunemori? I have never heard of that school ever."


    "It is a small, old school in East Tokyo. Edoagawa-ku, if I am not wrong."


    "Oh, near the bay?! Man, it''s been a long time since I have been there."


    "Idiot! We are going to y here and not going anywhere!"


    It was still early in the morning, yet almost all the yers of Matsukita ¨C the abbreviation of Matsuyama Kita ¨C were already gathered in the gymnasium, ready for the friendly game. However, no one took this seriously, for once it was not apetitive game, and two, they didn''t believe their opponent would be that strong to put them in trouble.


    While doing their warmup so casually ¨C borderlinezy, they kept chatting andughing, using this opportunity to rx. Usually, this time, they would''ve started running around the school or doing another exhausting physical torture their coach set for them, so, they knew even if this was disrespecting their opponent, they could treat this game as a way to cken off a bit.


    "So, are they any good?" One of them asked.


    "Nah." Another one just waved casually, replied, "There is no way a good team would ept our invitation. Just like us, they would try to hide their new rosters for the next tournament. The team that epted this would be a poor one whose coach wanted to motivate their yers after ying against a strong team."


    "Well, that makes sense." The one who asked before nodded in understanding.


    "Yeah. Just treat it as a spiking practice." Said another one.


    "What the hell are you doing here?!" A sudden high voice suddenly snapped them from their casual chatting. They all winced simultaneously the moment a huge, imposing figure suddenly appeared, ring at them fiercely. "Move your ass quickly! The opponent wille in the next five minutes, finish your warmup!"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    Seeing all the yers run frantically, that figure just sighed tiredly. He was Takeuchi Gondo, the captain of the Matsukita team and one of the four senior members left remained. Looking at his kouhai underestimating their next opponent like this, he just shook his head helplessly, trying to figure out what went wrong with them.


    ''Why are they so proud of themselves and looking down on the other team? They couldn''t even y as regrs here. Damn, those bench warmer are getting worse every day.''


    Or so that was what he thought. Of course, Gondo wouldn''t say that out loud. It would be irresponsible to alienate several of them unjustly, especially considering his position as the captain. However, sometimes, he hoped there would be a good small team that could knock down their ego and wake them up from their dream.


    "I want to win~ I want to win~ I want to win against Konan~"


    A thick vein suddenly popped on Gondo''s temple when he heard that yful discordant tone sung by someone behind him. He knew even without turning around who was that, and he guessed the person behind him was also the culprit behind the overconfidence developed by the others in the team.


    "Shut up, Amagi!" Gondo barked, having enough of this shit.


    "Eh?! Why?!" The boy called Amagi whined immediately. He was just a normal boy with a height of about 180 cm and long hair. "This is the song I created to keep up our motivation to defeat Konan!"


    The corner of Gondo''s lips twitched after hearing that. "Can you be more serious, Amagi?" He asked. The person he had a conversation with just sighed, tying his messy hair into a bun before starting to throw the ball in the air, keep tossing it to himself several times with amazing control. "You are our setter, the pr of our offense. If you gotzy, it would affect the morale of the team."


    "Yeah, yeah¡­ I know¡­" Amagi said that, but his eyes were locking into the ball he kept tossing into the air. He finally turned his attention from the ball the moment a bunch of unfamiliar people came inside, greeting them loudly.


    "Good morning, Matsuyama Kita!"


    Amagi''s eyes turned to his soon-to-be opponent, then a smirk suddenly formed on his face. "Well, look at that. Don''t they look like a strong team?"


    There, in front of the gymnasium, all of the Tsunemori yers finally arrived. They walked side-by-side with fierce expressions like they were about to go to war, wearing green jerseys with two white strips on the arms side.


    Their head coach and manager of the team, Akira and Megumi approached Gondo immediately to greet the host team first.


    "It''s been a long time, Takeuchi-kun." Akira offered a handshake.


    "Yes, Akira-san. It has been two years, right?" Gondo replied, epting the gesture.


    Amagi raised one of his eyebrows, interested. ''From what I heard, this Tsunemori should be a weak team, right? How could their coach and Gondo-senpai know about each other? And from Gondo-senpai''s tone¡­ There is a¡­. Respect in it?''


    While Amagi was busy with his thought, Akira and Gondo continued their conversation.


    "So, where is the old man?" Akira asked.


    "He said he wouldete. Well, you know how he is." Gondo shrugged nonchntly.


    Akira sighed helplessly, knowing clearly what Gondo meant. "Well, we will do our warmup first. Will the game start just as it is scheduled?"


    "Yeah!"


    Amagi who heard all the conversation was stunned. ''They both were talking about the old man?! Does that mean Tsunemori''s coach also knew about the old man too? Yes, it should be! Gondo-senpai had already thrown a hint that they knew how the old man was!''


    The old man they kept mentioning about was Honda Saburo, the head coach of Matsukawa Kita''s volleyball team.


    Just by looking at his appearance, not a lot of people knew that the old man who always had a smile on his face was a big figure in the Japanese volleyball world, what with him being one of the members of the legendary team of Japan National Team when they won the silver medal for the first time in the history in volleyball world cup 1969.


    That was probably the time when this sport started to spread widely in the country.


    After retiring from the professional world, Honda decided to be a coach for a small high school team in his hometown, and even though he had never won the national tournament with that team, he kept giving birth to a lot of amazing yers who went to be professional yers when they graduated from the school.


    His legendary reputation as the best trainee for young yers kept spreading in the country until ten years ago when he was recruited by Matsukawa Kita to handle the team. After that, even though he still had never won the national tournament, Honda had already won second ce eight times, something that only a few could achieve constantly.


    For Akira to know the old man, something clicked inside Amagi''s head quickly as he could take a guess that Akira was Honda''s former disciple in the past.


    ''Well, if that is so, this game should be more interesting than I thought¡­''


    -0-


    While Amagi was busy with his crazy theory, Akira and Megumi walked back to the team, the girl suddenly let out a deep, relieved sigh. "Fortunately, the jersey came in time. It would be rude if we use vests to y against the second-best team in the country."


    Akira who heard her mumble had the decency to blush and look embarrassed. He was thankful though, to have Megumi dealing with this stuff quickly. "Sorry about this one, Megumi-san."


    "Don''t worry, Sensei. Just, please, don''t forget something important like this again in the future, okay?"


    Akira nodded helplessly, knowing the ident was his fault. He was too enthusiastic preparing for strategy and a bunch of technical on-the-game stuff to the point he forgot the two freshmen, Yuki and Riku didn''t have the jersey of the team.


    In a panic, just a night before the game, Akira called Megumi''s phone immediately, asking if they still had two spare jerseys unused in their inventory, knowing there was no way they had even one left.


    Fortunately, he had Megumi as the manager. Within a few hours, the girl showed how resourceful she was by contacting a lot of alumni, asking if they still had the jerseys of the team that could be borrowed for tomorrow. And fortunately enough, four people sent their jerseys to the school this morning before they started the journey, saving them from embarrassment.


    So, here they are, wearing a ssic green jersey of Tsunemori High with Yuki using the number 19 while Riku had the number 7 on his back.


    "Okay, everyone! Gather up!" Akira shouted, signaling his yers to listen to his instruction. "Just like the briefing we had yesterday, the starting yers today would be Hirano for the middle blocker, Yoshi and Kobayashi as the opposite hitters, Noriyuki and Koji as the outside hitters, and finally, Riku for the setter spot.


    Okumura would be ready any time for the rotation with Hirano, and when that happened, Kobayashi would be our sole middle blocker. Is there any question?"


    Everyone shook their head quickly. They had already spent most of their time yesterdayining about this decision. After all, having two freshmen promoted already as the starting yers was a big deal, and it also offended the senior members like Yori or Asahi who had been working their asses off to get that position.


    However, they knew Yuki and Riku deserved that position, what with how they dominated the entire team in that 2v2petition a few days ago.


    Akira nodded, satisfied with their reaction. "Well, I know that our chance to win this game is not that big, so my only homework today is¡­ Do your best to make the second-best team in the country remember how strong we are!"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    -0-


    ''Oh, two freshmen on the team? How bold~'' Amagi raised one of his eyebrows, intrigued. He kept bouncing the ball on the floor, ready to take the first serve of the game. ''Well, if they could take the spot from their senpai, they should have some skills. Should I test them first?''


    After pondering for a second, he grinned widely. ''Well, let''s do this!''


    All the people in the gymnasium held their collective breaths the moment they saw Amagi throw the ball high into the air, jumping high before coiling his arms back just to release it like a quick whip, hitting the ball hard to Tsunemori''s side. The ball was a blur of leather and spin, flying towards Riku with an incredible speed, even faster than the blonde boy''s serve itself.


    It was a serve that would make even the most experienced yers quiver with fear.


    However, before it could cross the, Amagi saw Riku take a step outside of the line while Yuki moved quickly, covering Riku''s defensive area. The ball was now just a few feet away, and Yuki''s instincts kicked in. He dropped his knees, his body bending into a perfect diving position, his arms outstretched like a shield.


    The ball was now just inches from her fingertips, and Yuki''s eyes locked onto it withser-like precision. With a soft whoosh of air, the ballnded in the palm of his hand, and it absorbed the impact as he brought his body back up to standing while the ball was flying high on the spot.


    "Nice receive, Kobayashi!"


    As if it was just a daily operation, no one on Tsunemori''s side was surprised that Yuki could do it. Riku went back to his spot immediately to get the second touch while Yuki and the other dispersed, ready to counterattack.


    Taking advantage of Matsukita yers who were still in disbelief after witnessing Yuki receive the serve perfectly, Riku set the ball quickly to the left side where Noriyuki had been waiting.


    By now, Yuki and Riku knew that their captain was also the ace of the team. Noriyuki was the strongest and the most agilepared to the others, and his calmness always reassured his teammates that giving him the ball was the best choice.


    As Riku''s set came to him, Noriyuki sprang into action, his eyes locked onto the ball as he sprinted towards the. The ball sailed towards him, and Alex''s arms extended out like a battering ram, meeting the ball at the peak of its trajectory.


    *BAM!*


    The impact was thunderous, and the ball exploded off Noriyuki''s hands with a loud "thwack" that sent shockwaves through the court. The ball hurtled toward the opponent''s side, leaving a trail of dust and debris in its wake.


    As the referee''s hand shot up to signal the point for Tsunemori, Amagi and his teammates stood frozen in shock, their eyes wide with disbelief. They couldn''t believe what they had just witnessed. The serve, the reception, and the attack had alle together in a perfect storm of package.


    Amagi, still reeling from the incredible y, shook his head in amazement. He couldn''t believe that Yuki had made such an incredible diving reception out of his serve, and just like any veteran national team, the other Tsunemori yers executed the sequence of y perfectly.


    Amagi couldn''t help but nce over at Yuki, the one who initiated the y. He thought that the freshman would be a ring weakness, yet he was awakened rudely by that amazing save. To his surprise, Yuki suddenly turned around at him, and they met eye-to-eye for a second.


    For a moment, Amagi felt his adrenaline spike up as he grinned widely, silently challenging Yuki to do that again next time. His excitement rose astronomically. His grin spread ear-to-ear as he took a step inside the court, ready to continue the game.


    Inwardly though, he murmured, ''Well done, Tsunemori. You won the first round, but I hope you can keep it up until the end of the game.''

 Chapter 13: The Kind of Volleyball that We Want to Play!

    "So, do you understand what is your problem now?" Akira said in the ''I told you so'' manner. "How does it feel to be bested and be looked down on by your kouhai like that?"


    Hearing that, all the yers looked down on the floor, rage and depression lingering around the air. It was the intermission before the second set began, and the coach gathered all but Yuki and Riku to give them a pep-talk.


    Not only were they depressed about their loss in the first set ¨C which was quite bad considering they couldn''t score more than 12 points even after taking a quick lead at the beginning of the game, but also because they were disregarded, their presence on the court waspletely ignored by their two kouhai. It was as if they didn''t exist at all and those two decided to do it all by themselves.


    The disrespect was real, and it stung so much straight in the heart.


    "I have already told you all about this problem since Hisashi graduated, yet I couldn''t see any chance up to now. It is as if you just nod at my words but you forget about itpletely just a few secondster. If I don''t know you are a bunch of dunderheads, I would suspect you did it on purpose just to y with me."


    All the yers there clenched their fists and gritted their teeth at the insult, trying to hold back their rage. However, Akira ignored all of that and continued.


    "This problem has been lingering around for too long, right? I let it happen for a long time hoping that having freshmen as your new teammates would force you to be more mature, yet it seems I was wrong on that. I think we need to resolve this matter right now. Start from you, Noriyuki-kun!"


    "Me?!" The captain straightened his back immediately, was taken aback when his name was mentioned.


    "Yes, you!" Akira nodded. "To be honest, while I respect Hisashi as my former student, I don''t know what was inside his head when he chose you to be the captain. It is clear that Yori is a far better choicepared to you."


    His words created a sudden heavy atmosphere on the team, with Noriyuki having his mouth gaped wide in shock at this blunt insult while Yori suddenly grew ufortable when he was pitted against Noriyuki. Inwardly, everyone there thought that Akira suddenly went crazy, tearing apart the team in the middle of the game.


    "What, you don''t believe me?" Akira raised one of his eyebrows. "I know you are a smart person, Noriyuki-kun. There is no way you didn''t notice theck ofmunication problem in the team. Yet you have never done your duty as the leader even for once! You stay passive, never dare to take responsibility for anything bad that happened!


    You just stood on the sideline, watching the team crumble in silence, and walked away as if you didn''t want to y volleyball anymore! Goddamnit, Noriyuki-kun, what the hell is wrong with you?!"


    Everyone winced, knowing their coach was pissed now. It wasn''t often for Akira to raise his voice, but on several asions when he did that, it was always scary.


    "And you all are the same!" He turned his re at the other yers. "You all are here as if you don''t want to y volleyball anymore! Is that what you really want? If so, I will not hold you back here! If you want to leave, just go!"


    Silence.


    Dead silence.


    Following his roar, an awkward silence settled down in the gymnasium, even the yers from Matsukita also looked at them curiously. All the Tsunemori yers held their breath unconsciously, didn''t dare to meet their coach''s eyes even for a second.


    This was the first time Akira was so furious he drove the yers out of the team, and while most of them knew this was just a spur decision he made in anger, they still realized their coach wasn''t kidding this time.


    Akira just snorted, finally threw his body back to his seat while his face was still red from his hot temper before saying, "Think of what I said. Before the second quarter begins, tell me what do you want here."


    -0-


    "Woah, scary¡­" Yuki stared in awe at his coach. He was d he wasn''t in the position to be scolded like his senpai right now.


    "You don''t know half of that." Riku beside him mumbled, still wiping all the sweat on his face. "This is still moderate considering we are just students. When he faced professional¡­" Riku shivered as if he just remembered something that scared him.


    Unlike their senpai who were held back by their coach to get scolded, after the first set was over, those two were dragged away from the bench by Megumi who had already known first-hand what Akira wanted to do. Honestly, they should sympathize with their senpai right now, if only they weren''t that useless on the court.


    However, Yuki was still taken aback by the outburst Akira showed, didn''t expect the ever-calm coach to have it inside him.


    "Wait, what do you mean professional?" Yuki suddenly asked.


    "Hm?" Riku responded, yet Yuki could tell his blonde friend''s head was not in this ce right now. "Well, before going to Japan, he studied sports science and became a volleyball coach for the local team in Italy. Don''t you know that?"


    The corner of Yuki''s lips twitched when he heard Riku''s tone for thest question as if it were the most well-known information in the world.


    "What was he like when coaching a professional team?" Megumi couldn''t help but ask curiously.


    Once again, Riku shuddered in fear as if he just remembered something bad that happened in the past. "You don''t want to know the details, Senpai. When he was on the court, my uncle was a mafia even among the Italians."


    -0-


    Five minutester, the break was finally over, and both freshmen went back to the court immediately. Since they were excluded from the bloodbath pep talk before, those two didn''t know whether Akira set a new instruction or not. They just knew two yers wereing in, Ren to rece Hirano as the middle blocker and Yori to rece Noriyuki as the outside hitter.


    "Yori-senpai, you can y not just as a setter?" Yuki asked, surprised.


    The one who was questioned just smiled slightly before saying, "Well, I have never done that before. But it is not like I have to be anything but a setter. Riku-kun, you are willing to be a hitter for us, right?" He grinned mischievously.


    Riku groaned, clearly hating that idea. He loved controlling the game as a setter, but he knew this wasn''t the ideal situation, so he had to give up that privilege to his senpai for now.


    A few secondster, all the Matsukita yers also went to the court, ready for the second set. Amagi walked straight to the to strike up a conversation. "Man, your coach sure is scary, right? His voice echoed all over the gym. Damn, he is not afraid of embarrassment for scolding his students in another school. That''s awesome." He sent a thumbs up.


    Yuki and Riku didn''t know if it was a sarcasticment or not, yet it was Yori who replied, "Sorry about that one. There was a huge mess in our team, and it seems our sensei had enough of it." He smiled politely.


    Amagi blinked, not expecting he would be greeted this politely by a yer who had just been scolded mercilessly by his coach. "You are not ying in the first set, right? What is your position?"


    "Setter."


    "Oh? Interesting." The smile spread from ear to ear on Amagi''s face. "Please, help your two cute little kouhai to make this interesting, okay? I hate it when I have to y a game that is too easy."


    After that, he walked away immediately, leaving those three Tsunemori yers alone with their thoughts.


    "Hate to y an easy game? He is really full of himself, isn''t he?" Riku mumbled grumpily, eliciting chuckles from the other two.


    "But there is one thing he got it right though. While we are not their opponent, we need to put up a fight, at least to make it not an easy game for them. Are you ready?"


    The faces of those two freshmen suddenly lightened up, seeing hope that things would be different for the next set. It wasn''t a baseless hope, sincepared to the other senpai on the team, Yori was more willing tomunicate with them, so they were hopeful it would be the same when they were in the game.


    "Well, Yori-senpai, if you say so, maybe we could put up a better fight for the next set¡­"


    -0-


    "Ren-san, left! In my count, three, two, one, jump!"


    *BAM!*


    "Chance ball!"


    "Osh! Nice block, Ren, Kobayashi!"


    "Yori-senpai, left!"


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHAA!"


    Five minutes after the second set started, everything turned out far better than Riku and Yuki expected. It wasn''t just Yori, but the presence of Ren to rece Hirano as the middle blocker was also a game changer for Tsunemori. While Ren didn''t have the quick reaction and good game reading like Hirano, he was a team yer and willing to listen andmunicate even with their kouhai.


    "Good job, Senpai!" Yuki gave a thumbs up at Ren. The third-year student just grinned foolishly, something that was so unsuitable with the ''David Beckham'' cool hairstyle he had.


    "Okay, good job, everyone! Let''s keep it up!" Yori praised his teammates, making them all have this proud expression on their faces. "Kobayashi! Give us another good serve again!"


    "Sure, Senpai!"


    Yuki stepped outside of the court, yet his eyes were still on Yori. To be honest, he didn''t know why it was Noriyuki and not the setter who was the captain considering how different their personality was. While he admitted that Noriyuki was a good yer packing a powerful spike, he was too quiet and too awkward sometimes to talk to the others.


    As for Yori, the setter always radiated this warm aura that told everyone how ''approachable'' he was since Yuki met him for the first time, the treat that was definitely more suitable for the leader of the team.


    ''Well, it is not my problem.'' Yuki shook his head, trying to bring back his concentration on the game. ''Let''s finish the game first.''


    Yuki took a deep breath, sent a floater serve straight to the opponent''s setter. He clicked his tongue in annoyance as one of their yers suddenly came in to receive the ball, protecting Amagi from the first touch. While today was his first game against a proper professional team, Yuki was surprised to see the floater serve he was always proud of was rendered useless here.


    ''It seems I need to think of another way to serveter.'' He mused.


    He had to save that forter, as right after serving the ball, Yuki went immediately to the front, acting as a middle blocker together with Ren. Honestly, Yuki was morefortable in the back, ying defense until no one noticed his presence before suddenly joining the offense out of nowhere. However, he couldn''t help but do it.


    Since Hirano was subbed off by the coach, his position was pushed to the front considering Ren''s terrible game-reading ability.


    "Keep calm, Ren-san. Don''t be fooled by the other''s movement. Follow my lead!" Yuki kept talking while his eyes kept scanning all the Matsukita yers'' movements on the other side of the. Right before Amagi tossed the ball to his teammates, he had already guessed where the ball would go and shouted, "Go right, Ren-san!"


    Amagi scowled, unhappy that his move was predicted once again like an open book. However, he still set the ball to Gondo who acted as the outside hitter on the left. Facing the blockering from the middle in his direction, Matsukita''s captain didn''t hesitate to go for a straight spike to avoid Ren''s wall.


    His spike was so close to the sideline that if anyone with bad dynamic eyes guarded that area, they wouldn''t know whether the ball wouldnd in or outside of the court. However, before it could hit the floor, a bald guy suddenly shed there, diving forward to save the ball.


    "OH! NICE SAVE, YOSHI!"


    Yeah, it was Yoshi, the opposite hitter who suddenly appeared there. Even though he had been quiet since the bad scolding by the coach, that didn''t mean he lost his spirit already. He had been pondering about Akira''s words for a while and realized that he should be more active for the team.


    "GIVE IT HERE, YORI!"


    Seeing one of his teammates finally rise from the slump, Yori smiled, d for his friend. Now with Yoshi joining the coordination attack, it would add his option to pass.


    Or¡­ That was what he thought before a collision happened on the left side.


    *Brugh!*


    Yori and Yuki had their face palmed when they both saw Yoshi and Riku on the floor. The first-year setter didn''t expect that Yoshi would suddenly ask for the ball actively and cut off his route, making them crash into each other.


    "Ouch!"


    Having no other choice to pass, Yori set the ball to Yuki on the right side. The first-year yer tried to y another trick with a dump, yet Matsukita had already anticipated that. They had already noticed Yuki would always go for a dump whenever he had a chance, so it was easy to predict his attack.


    "Stand up quickly, you fool!" Yori shouted to the two yers on the floor.


    However, before both Riku and Yori could do that, Amagi had already tossed the ball to the middle for a quick tempo attack, and the yer with the number 7 from Matsukita aimed his spike straight at those two.


    "Shit! Duck, Blondie!"


    "Get away, Agostini!"


    Without waiting for Riku''s response, Yoshi grabbed Riku''s jersey and pulled the blonde boy down while Yuki jumped there to receive the spike. The badmunication between the three yers once again made them all crash and fall on the same spot again. Fortunately, Yuki managed to save the ball at the end even though the ball flew again to Matsukita''s side one more time.


    "Damn! Sorry! That''s a bad receive!"


    "Don''t worry about it! Just stand up quickly! You too, Yoshi! Riku!"


    There was chaos for a moment on the Tsunemori''s side as everyone''s positions scattered randomly. And the situation was too good for Matsukita to not take advantage of. Amagi set the ball far to the left side where Gondo was already doing his run-up once again before hitting the ball hard, once again to a tricky direction close to the sideline.


    Ren and Yuki who noticed Matsukita''s captain was ready to attack one moment ago jumped at the same time. However, even though Yuki managed to block the ball, the power generated from Gondo was too much for him to handle.


    *BAM!*


    The ball flew away far outside of the court. Even though Yoshi tried to hustle and save the ball, it was a futile attempt as the ball bounced to the floor quicker than he could chase it. The moment the point was confirmed for Matsukita, Gondo roared wildly, celebrating another point by him.


    "YOSSHA! GOOD PASS, AMAGI!"


    Meanwhile, almost all the Tsunemori yers fell on the floor, their chests moved up and down rapidly as they were too exhausted to get up after that chaotic y before. Their eyes were too blurry to see anything, thebination of the sweat that rolled down their eyes and the dizziness after crashing and falling to the floor over and over again.


    However, even though after all of that, they still failed to save the ball, there were identical grins shared by all the yers with green jerseys on the court, feeling blood and excitement rushed into their heads.


    Inwardly, they all had the exact same thought, ''This is the kind of volleyball we want to y!''

 Chapter 15: Gondo Ends the Game!

    Yuki knew Gondo was a good yer.


    No matter how low his volleyball knowledge, Yuki knew Gondo was one hell of a yer just by facing against his spike for one set.


    But goddamn he didn''t expect that his already high bar for Gondo was still too modest to describe how monstrous the talent the Matsukita''s captain had.


    Power-wise, while Yuki managed to stop him several times, Gondo''s spike hurt, leaving a lot of bruises red marks on his forearms. However, that was still solvable in his mind. What was troublesome was his cleverness. He could make any sets passed to him work, whether good or bad, too high or too short. His game sense was sharp too, he always knew what he had to do on a lot of different asions.


    From block-out, spiking the ball deliberately to the blocker to get another chance, to even a simple dump like Yuki usually did, Gondo had all of that in his arsenal.


    For someone who was this huge and packed so much power inside him, Yuki couldn''t believe that Gondo would have so many tricks on his sleeve, not the stereotypical heavy hitter yer Yuki knew at all.


    Gondo was also good at defense and quick with his feet. The n to target him was proven to be futile as Matsukita''s captain would always be able to react quickly and turn the situation to his advantage.


    Hell, after failing to receive Noriyuki''s spike earlier, Gondo turned into a defensive monster, saving another two spikes from Noriyuki and Yoshi before turning both into chances for him to do a quick attack.


    With all of that, Yuki had to wonder whether Gondo had a weakness or not.


    However, that wasn''t the most troublesome part. No, Gondo''s all-around ability wasn''t the thing that gave Yuki a headache the most, but it was his outrageous powerful serve.


    If he thought before that Riku and Amagi''s serve was powerful, Gondo''s serve made him re-think the definition of power. The most outrageous thing about it was that the serve itself had so much spin it curved away immediately after passing the, making it almost impossible to predict where the ball wouldnd.


    "Are you okay, Kobayashi-kun?" Noriyuki asked.


    If it was earlier, Yuki would be touched, surprised, and maybe a little bit perplexed by the sudden concern from him. After all, this was the first time Noriyuki approached him today. However, right now, he could only give the ace a wry smile, knowing it would be ruder for Noriyuki to ignore him after Yuki kept protecting him from Gondo''s serve.


    Yeah, he didn''t know what happened, but Gondo suddenly started targeting Noriyuki as if he was offended by something. It seemed the Matsukita''s captain was unhappy after getting targeted by Noriyuki before.


    "Don''t worry about it, Senpai." Yuki tried to shrug off the concern. Inwardly though, he thought, ''Goddamnit. Even with so much spin, his serve is still powerful. What would happen if he decided to go full power?'' He shook his head immediately, didn''t want to imagine something scary like that.


    "Nori, don''t worry about us. Just let Kobayashi and I handle the ball." Yoshi suddenly said. "Everyone, go forward too. Let us handle this serve."


    All the yers there looked at each other for a second before they nodded, trusting those two to receive Gondo''s serve. It was unfortunate that the rotation right now was unfavorable for Tsunemori, what with Ren on the court and Okumura, the libero of the team on the sideline.


    Without the presence of the libero, the only yers good enough defensively to receive such a strong serve were Yuki and Yoshi.


    A bit ironic considering it wasn''t even two weeks since Yuki joined the team.


    ''Just show how bad this team is.'' Yuki smiled wryly.


    "Kobayashi, focus!" Yoshi''s voice snapped him from his thoughts. "My defensive area is wider than you, so if it is in the middle, stay out of the ball and let me handle it. I will leave the left area for you."


    "Sure." Yuki nodded.


    He took a deep breath, putting all of his concentration on the court. His eyes locked into Gondo on the other side, trying to figure out where the next serve would go. The moment the referee blew the whistle, Matsukitare''s captain threw the ball in the air, jumping pretty high before mming the ball hard into Tsunemori''s side.


    The sequence of moves happened so fast that if Yuki blinked, he would definitely miss the ball in front of him.


    ''Left! Mine!''


    With his quick reflex, Yuki''s body moved automatically, leaning sideways toward the ball while extending one of his arms to reach it safely. However, the spin on the serve was too much that the ball suddenly curved wider to the area close to the sideline. At first, Yuki wanted to retreat his hand, thinking it would go out of bounds.


    However, in a split second, he removed that thought immediately before gritting his teeth, diving toward that area to receive the ball.


    ''SHI-!''


    *BAM!*


    "Oh! That number 19 received Gondo''s serve once again!"


    "No! It is not perfect! The ball flew wild to the right side!"


    "Yoshi-senpai!" Yuki shouted, standing up quickly after falling to the floor.


    "I got it!" Yoshi ran outside of the court while his eyes were up to the sky, following the ball''s movement that finally started to fall down. Fortunately, it didn''t go too far or too fast, making it possible for Yoshi to save it.


    "NORIYUKI!"


    Yoshi didn''t hesitate to send the ball in Noriyuki''s direction, knowing his friend would be able to do something to change the direction of the game. Unfortunately, his stance when passing the ball wasn''t perfect and with his eyes on the ball, he couldn''t even see Noriyuki''s position, so it went slightly higher than what Noriyuki wanted. However, Noriyuki didn''t mind.


    He took quick three step-backs immediately, then started his run-up before leaping forward to kill the ball.


    ''If the ace of the team couldn''t do anything while his teammates fought to protect him¡­ Then¡­ The ace is useless!''


    *BAM!*


    He swung his arms fast like a whip, hitting the ball straight on its center to send it back to Matsukita''s right back, the position that Gondo guarded. This spike was his answer for the targeting Gondo did in thest few minutes that put Yuki in a bad position. He put all his strength there, wanting to convey his message, ''Don''t mess with me!'' to Matsukita''s ace.


    It went straight to the area in front of Gondo which forced him to dive or at least kneel and lean his body forward to receive that ball.This was to ensure that he wouldn''tbe able to participate in Matsukita''s defense.


    Unfortunately, while that trick might work against any ordinary hitter, Gondo wasn''t the ace of Matsukita for nothing. He showed off the incredible physique he possessed by using his agility to lean his body forward and receive the ball without having to lose his bnce before following it with his quick speed, jumping even before Noriyuki''s feet could touch the floor again.


    "AMAGI!"


    Without being told twice, the setter tossed the ball to his captain, initiating a quick attack. Tsunemori''s blocker couldn''t react in time, what with Noriyuki still adjusting his bnce after spiking the ball a few seconds ago. Taking advantage of no blocker in front of him, Gondo hit the ball hard, angled it expertly with a cross spike to Noriyuki.


    "SHIT!"


    Noriyuki couldn''t even react as he saw the ball zoomed into his face with an incredible speed. The only thing he could do was to use his arm as a shield to protect his face instinctively, letting the ball hit his body before it bounced on the floor, giving another point for Matsukita.


    Yuki had the corner of his lips twitched, finally convinced that Gondo was offended by Noriyuki''s attack before. This was the sixth time Matsukita''s ace targeted Tsunemori''s ace, and this time, the cross spike was like a statement from Gondo as if telling Noriyuki how it should have been done.


    "Are you okay, Nori?" Yoshi asked. Being targeted by one of the best hitters in Japan would definitely affect someone''s psychology in one way or another.


    "Don''t worry, Yoshi." Noriyuki tried to dismiss the concern. His eyes were still zing with determination, yet unlike when he just joined the team for the second time, his expression this time told them all that he wanted revenge. "Anyone, pass the ball to me again after this. I will definitely kill it."


    Yuki rolled his eyes immediately when he heard his senpai''s words. "Well, in case you forget, senpai, the next one who serves the ball would still be him, and they are one point left to win the game. If we couldn''t save the serve perfectly after this, you might as well forget your egoistical desire to get beaten again."


    He said thest part with a hint of mocking tone, surprising all the yers there. They didn''t expect Yuki who usually was polite and respect his senpai would attack his captain with his words. Even though Akira had said before that Noriyuki was unfit to be the captain of the team, that status was still on him right now, so everyone still treated him as the leader of the team.


    Honestly, Yuki was just bitter with the team. When they all were so down and he and Riku had to take over the game, there was not a single gratitude thrown at those two, but the moment Noriyuki went back on the court, everyone acted like he would be the savior of the team. It was as if their effort to save the team''s ass was far less important than Noriyuki getting out of his slump.


    It was even worse for Riku. If Yuki still had his value due to his defensive ability, his blonde friend was stripped of all his role. Not only was he set aside from his position as a setter for his senpai, but even as a hitter, Riku waspletely ignored there, no one gave a shit about him as if he didn''t exist at all.


    Of course, Yuki knew his and Riku''s status as freshmen was far lesserpared to Noriyuki as a captain. However, to be treated like this was a bit too much. So, yeah, Yuki was bitter here.


    "Okay, please, calm down first." Noticing the rising tension around them, Yori tried to y a peacemaker. "We still have a game to y, so let''s settle everyone''s down after this."


    Yuki snorted, leaving them all and went back to his position. While it was true that they still had a game, he had a hunch Yori said that to bury all of this under the rug just like before. This was the first time he realized how toxic the team was, and Akira had a lot of work to do if the coach wanted to keep him on the team.


    Still, the game had to be resumed, so he had no choice but to back down for now. Yuki had to put all of his focus back on the game, staring at Gondo wryly as the ace was ready for another serve.


    ''Goddamn, this is his eighth serve in a row! Is he a monster or what?'' Yuki thought inwardly. He turned around at the scoreboard showed the numbers 24 ¨C 12 there and took a deep breath. ''Well, it would be embarrassing to be killed by eight serves in a row. Let''s try to stop him first before thinking of anything else.''


    Yuki bent his knee a little, trying to adjust his stance for the next y. Just like before, he was on the back again with Yoshi to receive the serve. However, like poetic justice, the ball Gondo served stuck on the first before it fell down to Tsunemori''s area, straight in front of Noriyuki on the front right.


    Noriyuki was taken aback by the sudden let-serve falling down in front of him. He dashed immediately, trying to save the ball. Unfortunately, he wasn''t quick enough as the ball fell slowly yet mockingly to the floor, sealing the game for Matsuyama Kita''s win.


    Tsunemori High912


    Matsuyama Kita High2525


    -0-


    "Boy, you have a lot of internal trouble to be dealt with." Honda chuckled out loud when he greeted Akira after the game. Akira could only smile wryly, knowing that the old man was right. "Still, they have good potential though. Especially, those two freshmen. Any chance you will give them to me?" He asked yfully.


    "No way, Old Man!" Akira retorted snidely.


    It was at the end of the game, and the tradition was for everyone to gather around and exchange pleasantry with the other team before they went back to their own business. And to no one''s surprise, Yuki and Riku were the two Tsunemori yers who got the most attention from Matsukita.


    "Really? You have just started learning volleyball in two weeks?" Amagi asked, his eyes went wide. "What are you, a genius?"


    "I know, right?" Riku grumbled next to them with a tone that was close to aint.


    Yuki just rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, a shade of red appeared on his cheek for the praise. "Just a normal operation, not worth the praise." He said, trying to sound humble.


    "Don''t be too modest. Take some pride in the talent you have. God knows there are a lot of people who would droll in jealousy for that." Amagi smiled warmly at him. "Man, with your talent, only the sky would be your limit." He paused for a while before continuing, "Well, the sky¡­ Or your teammates." Amagi added thest part cheekily.


    Riku and Yuki could only smile wryly, knowing that today, they had already offended most if not all of their senpai here. They knew it would be awkward in the next training session, assuming they both would be allowed toe back there. Well, of course, they would be allowed, considering Akira was still the head coach. But¡­ Yeah, that would be awkward.


    "Good game, you two." Gondo suddenly approached them both. He patted their shoulder before saying, "Your two-manbination in the first set was amazing. It is a pity that your teammates dismissed you in thest set." Thest part was for Riku who could only smile wryly.


    "As for you¡­" Gondo turned his attention to Yuki. "Damn, I have never seen someone so stubborn and persistent to receive my serve. Usually, it would only take two or three ace serves to break my opponent''s mentality in the game. You did really well today."


    Yuki had the same wry smile as the one on Riku''s face before saying, "Well, if you could score from eight serves in a row against my good performance, I hate to think how many points I would suffer when I am not in my best."


    "Bahaha!" Gondo suddenlyughed out loud. "Don''t be so hard on yourself. I am probably the best serve-taker in Japan right now, so for you to keep up with it is incredible. I am sure you will be able to rise more in the next tournament." There was no hint of humbleness in his tone, yet they both had no problem with it.


    Yuki kept staring as Gondo went to exchange pleasantry with others, yet his mind kept recalling being dominated by Gondo''s serve in the second set. A topspin serve, a sidespin serve, timing, where to aim¡­ Today, he learned a lot just by watching how Gondo served the ball. In fact, it wasn''t just the captain.


    He also learned a lot by observing how well they coordinated, how they established theirmunication, even to the point of how they gave their teammates feedback in every situation that happened on the court.


    If he could put half of what he learned today into reality, Yuki was sure his serve game would be elevated to a new level.


    "So, this is the second-best team in the country, huh?" Yuki muttered, then a grin spread ear-to-ear on his face. "Interesting¡­"


    -0-


    Far from Matsuyama Kita''s gymnasium, unknown to Yuki, there was a hugemotion that happened in the Hope Orphanage. All the kids there screamed in panic, crying for help from anyone who could hear them.


    "HELP! ANYONE! PLEASE, HELP US!"


    "Damn! Where is Yuki-nii when we need him?!"


    "Leave a small note for him and let''s send Aiko-obaasan to the hospital first! Quick! This is an emergency!"


    "Yeah! Go! Go! Go!"

 Chapter 16: Trouble from All Directions!

    Yuki''s appearance was a mess. His usually neat and tidy hair was now messy and unkempt, sticking up in every direction as if he had been running his hands through it in frustration. Hell, he still even wore the volleyball jersey he used earlier even though it wasn''t his in the first ce.


    However, Yuki didn''t care about that.


    He kept walking fast in panic, his eyes were scanning the crowded waiting room, trying to see the sign of any kids from the orphanage.


    It was the evening after the game, and never crossed his mind for Yuki toe back to the orphanage just to find out there was no sign of life there. He had a bad feeling when he found out the usually crowded and lively kitchen was quiet, and even the light was off there. His heart skipped for a second when he noticed a small note ced on the table.


    ''Aiko-obaasan passed out. Toshima Hospital, quick!''


    There were just two simple sentences there, yet it was enough to let everything crumble inside him. His heart suddenly beat violently, his palm was sweaty. For a moment, Yuki lost himself as his breath was frantic and a massive headache suddenly hit his head. His mind was chaos, filled with every worst scenario possible to happen that he could think of.


    The panic attack happened for a while before he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.


    ''Don''t panic, Yuki. Come on! Take a deep breath¡­ Again¡­''


    He tried to repeat those words like a charm, trying to loosen the tension inside his head. Once he was calm enough to re-process what happened, Yuki jumped from his spot immediately and rushed toward the Toshima Hospital.


    The hospital was pretty close, only ten minutes away from the orphanage if Yuki ran at his full speed. However, the journey there was more exhausting for him than two hours of ying the volleyball game against Matsuyama Kita earlier. His heart was racing the moment he entered the tall building, his stomach was in turmoil at all the negative thoughts he had right now.


    It had been a month since thest time Yuki entered this building, and honestly, if possible, he never wanted to go there again. This ce reminded him of so many bad memories, especially when he was toldhis parents were lost in the disaster. There were even times when he associated the hospital with a police station, both were the bearer of bad news.


    However, right now, he hoped that the bad news wasn''t that bad.


    "Excuse me, Nurse-Oneesan, but do you know where is Akimura Aiko''s room?" Yuki asked a nurse who was at the reception desk, inwardly cursing how shaky his voice was.


    The woman raised her head for a moment to see him before smiling kindly and nodding. "She is in the room 403. Don''t worry, kiddo. She is just too exhausted, but nothing bad happened."


    The nurse''s words of reassurance suddenly hit him like a ton of bricks. His knees buckled beneath him, and he felt his legs give way as he let out a sigh of relief. He slid down the wall, his messy appearance now forgotten in the face of relief. Tears of relief pricked at the corners of his eyes as he tried to process the news.


    "Do you want me to show you the room?" The nurse asked kindly, snapping Yuki from his thought.


    "Thank you so much, Oneesan!" He bowed deeply, full of gratitude.


    Unlike the journey to the hospital, the walk to Aiko''s room was light, as if a heavy burden suddenly lifted up from Yuki''s shoulder. He kept asking the nurse what happened to his matron, yet unfortunately, the older woman next to him didn''t know a lot about it. She just knew that Aiko was okay from her colleague''s words.


    "When nine children who are not even in their teenagers run in panic while the oldest one had a woman old enough to be their mother passed out on his back, it bounds to be amotion. Everyone was curious about what happened, that''s why the news of your matron''s condition spread quickly among the nurses." The woman exined. "Still, why not call for an ambnce?" She asked, bemused.


    "Only Aiko-obaasan has a phone in the orphanage, and I am sure no one knows how to operate it." Yuki furrowed his brows when answering the question, inwardly thinking, ''It seems I need to buy two phonester. One is for my private business, and the other is for everyone to use it together.''


    The moment they arrived at the fourth floor, Yuki was greeted by the sight of two kids he was familiar with waiting outside of the room, taking a nce from the windows on the door that was slightly higher than their height. Even though their appearance was a mess, Yuki was d their expression was as bright as ever.


    "What are you doing here?" Yuki asked.


    Those two kids were taken aback, turning their heads immediately from the windows. Their expressions lit up when they saw who was the person greeting them, a sign of relief could be found there.


    "Yuki-nii, you are finally here." One of them, a girl with a ponytail hairstyle whispered lowly. "We have been waiting for you."


    "Yeah." The other kid, a boy with bald hair nodded. "And we are just checking inside to see whether the other kids are bothering Aiko-obaasan''s rest or not."


    Yuki raised his eyebrows, taking a nce slightly at the room inside from the windows. There, he saw a heartwarming sight where Aiko was surrounded by six little children on her bed while one was in a wheelchair next to it, all of them fell asleep peacefully.


    Are you both the ones who think of going to the hospital first without waiting for me?" He also whispered, didn''t want to attract the children''s attention inside. Seeing the nods from both kids in front of them, he nodded in appreciation. "Good job, you two. You did well in this situation."


    Their face brightened up hearing the praise from Yuki. They both were Taro and Aina, the second and third oldest children in the orphanage after him. Those two were still freshmen in middle school, so for them to handle it clear-headedly like this was worth of praise.


    "So, what happened?"


    "Obaasan suddenly copsed when cooking for dinner," Aina answered. "We didn''t know what happened, but since she wasn''t responding to our shout, we knew it was an emergency situation, so we ran here as quickly as we could."


    "The doctor said she was okay, though," Taro added, a sign of relief was still there. "Just the umtion of a lot of Obaasan''s bad habits. He said she was too exhausted and her bad eating habit made things worse. Fortunately, nothing bad happened. But for precaution, she is needed here for one more night."


    Yuki furrowed his brows at the exnation, somehow feeling guilty for not noticing that sign.


    He knew his matron had three part-time jobs outside to keep the orphanage alive, so exhaustion was bound to happen. The bad eating habit, though? He had never noticed that. But when he thought about it, he couldn''t even remember thest time Aiko ate together with them.


    In his mind, Yuki knew the matron didn''t want the children to see her eating their leftovers, so he had never bothered her about that. Now, he regretted never addressing this matter before.


    ''Well, I guess, I need to be more caring toward the orphanage in the future. Should I consider my position on the volleyball team again?''


    -0-


    Riku yawned widely, trying his best to keep his eyes open. Currently, he is in the Japanese ss, and the fatigue after the game yesterday finally hit his body. Fortunately, his seat was far behind, the ce where all the delinquents sat, so no teacher cared enough to bother him.


    He took a nce at the book in front of him once again, but his mind flew to the game against Matsukita yesterday, especially to Yuki''s mocking retort toward the captain. While he was also dissatisfied with the team, Riku had never thought of antagonizing their senpai, knowing clearly even though he grew up in Italy how deeply rotten the seniority culture was in Japan.


    ''He sure had the ball of steel here.'' He smiled wryly. ''Still, it should be me who said that. Unlike him, I still have Akira-jiisan to back me up. Now, there is no way the senpai would be willing to let him join the team again.''


    Riku shook his head quickly, trying to banish the sleepiness that wanted to attack him again. His eyes wandered around the ss for another few seconds before theynded on the seat where Yuki was usually there, only to find out it was empty.


    ''Is he still exhausted and couldn''t wake up from his bed? It should be. Yesterday should be his first game ever, right? Maybe that is the case.'' He mused, then shaking his head immediately, dismissing that idea far away. ''What the hell am I thinking? It is Kobayashi I am talking about, the volleyball genius who can learn anything in a night.


    There is no way exhaustion would hold him down like this. There must be something happening in his ce. Should I check itter?''


    -0-


    "So, where are those two little bastards?" Yoshi asked, his expression was ugly. "They didn''t even dare toe here after all that insults and mockeries they threw at us yesterday! Goddamnit!"


    "Calm down, Yoshi." Yori tried to appease his friend''s fiery temper. "I am sure there is a reason why they both didn''te today. And what we did would definitely make a hugemotion. Should we try to use¡­ Milder method?"


    It was after school, and other than Yuki and Riku, all the volleyball team members had already gathered there. Their eyes were full of hostility, ready to confront their kouhai. As expected, they didn''t forget the offense they received yesterday and wanted to settle the score right now.


    "Shut up, Yori!" Yoshi snarked indignantly."Don''t you forget their disrespect yesterday? Those brats need to be reminded who is in charge of the team! I will not let this slide without any consequence!"


    Yori sighed, asking Noriyuki for help silently. However, the captain seemed to ignore him since after the game yesterday. It seemed Noriyuki also remembered suddenly that he was told Yori was more suitable as the captain of the team than him and he took offense at it somehow.


    Honestly, in a normal condition, they wouldn''t be so offended by this little thing. They would probably just call their kouhai privately and tell them to be more respectful. However, this time, they snapped. After receiving the worst scolding they had ever heard from Akira, their temper boiled silently, and it finally erupted, triggered by their kouhai.


    Now, the only thing that could appease them was retribution, or maybe for Akira toe and calm them down.


    ''Speaking of which¡­'' Yori mused. ''Where is Akira-sensei? It is not often he wouldete for the after-the-game evaluation. Is there any trouble outside?''


    -0-


    True to Yori''s thought, the one person he thought could appease the yers was still in the middle of trouble. Currently, Akira was sitting in the headmaster''s office, surrounded by six higher-ups of the school. The atmosphere there was tense as everyone was waiting for the headmaster to decide something.


    "I am sorry, Akira-sensei." The headmaster sighed.


    "So, what is the verdict?" Akira asked, trying to sound nonchnt even though a pang of sadness popped up in his heart.


    "Due to theck of achievements in thest five years you are here, we can only give you one more chance. If you couldn''t bring the team to advance to the top four of the Tokyo Preliminary Tournament, we have no choice but to give up on you, and maybe on the volleyball team too."

 Chapter 20: Freshmen VS Senior! Duel for Dignity!

    "Hello and wee everyone, to the volleyball exhibition game between the freshmen against the senior members of the team! An important game for both freshmen and senior''s dignity, because the stake is the public apology here! So, please, give me your best cheers for the yers you support!"


    "OH!"


    "Come on, Yoshi! Kill them all!"


    "Don''t lose against those bastards, Noriyuki!"


    "Come on!"


    It was a Friday evening, the time settled over by the volleyball team as to when the game would be yed. At first, Yuki and Riku thought that there wouldn''t be that much of spectators there, considering volleyball wasn''t that much popr in the country and the team wasn''t that good in the first ce.


    However, they were so surprised to see that the gymnasium was full of crowds who wanted to join the fun here.


    Hell, there was even amentator boot close to the court that was made for a member of the broadcasting club just for this game!


    "Wow! There is a lot of support for the senior team here." Thementator continued speaking. "Well, they are the boss here, so of course everyone will put their money on them. Anyway, since I will be the one who will guide you through the game, let me introduce myself here! I am Keisuke Hori from the broadcast club, and I am joined by-"


    "Matsumoto Ichika! We will be yourmentary for the game today!"


    Everyone cheered and waved at them, clearly showing how popr they are.


    "And we are not alone today, Ichika-chan. There is one more guest that will be here to apany us today."


    "Oh? Who is that, Senpai?"


    "He was the most important yer on the teamst year, the sole leader of the team, the one and only Togarashi Hisashi!"


    Followed by the introduction from thementators, a boy ¨C borderline a man with long loose hair appeared, his serious demeanor could be felt even from afar, making it easy for anyone to mistake him for a samurai. He bowed deep to the crowds first before joining bothmentators on the boot prepared close to the court.


    "Well, since everyone is ready, let us introduce both teams who will y today! First, the senior team, Yori Sakai as the setter, Hirano Fuji as the blocker, Okamura Daichi as the libero, and finally, Noriyuki Hanji, Aoba Yoshi, and Takata Koji as the three hitters!"


    The crowd cheered and apuded as six yers dressed in green and white jerseys with the huge kanji of Tsunemori written on the front stepped into the court. The fact that they wore the school jerseys made the audience feel more personal, as if they were supporting their team against an opponent from the outside.


    "Now, introducing their opponent, the freshmen team with four ringers from the foreignnd, here we go! Agostini Riku as the setter! Maria Silvestri as the middle blocker! Mattheo Silvestri as the libero! And finally, the twin sisters Gabrie and Isabe Silvestri and the captain of the team, Kobayashi Yuki as the three hitters!"


    The moment they all stepped into the court, they were greeted by boos mixed with cheers that could be heard vaguely from the stands. The boos were because¡­ Well, they were the viins here, and the cheers were from those lusting over their bodies.


    A lot of girls had this lovestruck expression as they were eyeing both Mattheo and Riku who had the ideal figure of a foreigner in their imagination, while boys had their eyes bulged, looking at the three female yers on the team lustfully.


    The team was so ridiculously gorgeous that even Yuki who got the lowest attention here was probably still on the top tier of the best-looking students in the school.


    "Hahaha! Interesting!"Mattheoughed out loud. "It is the first time I have seen a high school game that draws this much attention! As expected of Sensei''s homnd, the enthusiasm is different here."


    Yuki could only chuckle wryly as he proceeded what Mattheo just said. For convenience, the Silvestri family decided to use English tomunicate since Yuki couldn''t understand Italian. However, while the change ofnguage made it easier, that didn''t mean there was no problem at all.


    Even though Yuki had a good grade in his English ss, just like any Japanese boy, he was good at theory, yet it was still hard to apply it in real life.


    "I am sure they are here not for the game, but for the fun after that, Mattheo," Riku said wryly.


    The appearance of the Silvestri family was a blessing for Riku to show off his ability. Growing up in a multilingual family, he was able tomunicate with them fluently whether when using Italian or English.


    "Oh, yeah! I remember that!"Mattheo said in realization. "Then, we cannot lose to save your dignity right, Kobayashi-kun?"


    Yuki just nodded slightly, inwardly embarrassed since he had a hard time forming the words to answer Mattheo''s question. He took a note inside to drag Riku ¨C and maybe Kato after the game to help him learn English better.


    Meanwhile, on thementator box, Keisuke Hori had already done his homework as he exined, "His name is Mattheo Silvestri, a 37 years-old professional yer who had just retired from A.C. Parma, a historic volleyball team in Italy that fell off into the mid-tablest season.


    Then, we also have his wife, Maria Silvestri, formerly known as Maria Salimova, a Bulgarian yer who was the ace of the Catania team in Italy for so many years before she retired from the professional world two years ago.


    So, even though we don''t have any information about the twin sisters, we can bet our money they inherited their parent''s volleyball genes, so the senior team has to be more careful today."


    The information about Mattheo and Maria being former yers made everyone frown, some even thought that it was unfair for the senior team. Fortunately, Hisashi understood what the crowds thought and grabbed the mic immediately.


    "While yes, they have to be more careful today, I believe the opponent is not as strong as we imagine them to be."


    "Oh?" Matsumoto Ichika raised her eyebrows. "Why do you think so? Please, enlighten us, Senpai."


    "Well, for once, even if there are two professional yers, if you take a look at their basic information, the twin sisters are still 13 years old, a middle schooler. This will be thepensation for their parents. Moreover, we have to understand that yers retired because they couldn''t find their best form anymore, either because of age or health.


    So, no matter how good their resume is on paper, I bet they cannot keep up with the game anymore."


    "So, your conclusion?"


    "A close game, but the senior team woulde out with the victory," Hisashi said firmly.


    "Oh, we are getting underestimated here, Honey." Maria smiled sweetly as she heard Riku trante thementator''s words. "So, what should we do?"


    "Isn''t it obvious?"Mattheo had the same sweet smile that creeped Yuki and Riku out. "Just like what Akira-sensei always said, there is no problem that cannot be said on the volleyball court. So, let''s give them a lesson!"


    "Osh!"


    -0-


    "And here we go! Akira-sensei, the PE teacher and the coach of the volleyball team has finally arrived! He will act as the referee of the game today with Yamada-sensei and Nanami-sensei as his assistant! We are so close to the beginning of this game!"


    "Noriyuki, Kobayashi,e here!" Akira called the two captains first before the game began. "I want a clean game and I want everything to be resolved after this is over, so no matter who wins the game, I don''t want to hear this conflict again in the future. Do you both understand?"


    Yuki and Noriyuki nodded simultaneously, their expression was solemn.


    "Good. Now, let''s settle over who will have the ball first. Noriyuki, head or tail?" Akira asked while showing a coin.


    "Tail," Noriyuki answered without hesitation.


    "Then, Kobayashi, you will go for the head. Okay, let''s do it." Akira tossed the coin high before catching it and flipped it on the back of his palm. Without being dramatic, he showed the result immediately, as the picture of the coin showed there was a tail. "Then, Noriyuki will have the ball first."


    Both captains went back to their team, and Yuki apologized immediately for losing the coin toss.


    "Don''t worry, not much will change even if we get the ball first," Maria said.


    "Yes. Just prepare yourself for the first ball." Mattheo added.


    Yuki nodded, taking a deep breath before adjusting his stance. He stared at the opposite side to see it was Noriyuki who served the ball first, and he took a step back unconsciously, knowing it would be a powerful serve.


    True to his thought, the ace of the team hit the ball with all his might, sending it toward Gabrie on the back left. The ponytailed girl was surprised for a second to see a powerful ball zoom in her direction. She tried to receive it, yet the ball was too much for her to handle as it just bruised her skin before deflecting far outside of the court.


    "OH! AN ACE!"Keisuke Hori shouted excitedly, his voice was covered by the cheers exploding on the crowds. "Noriyuki starts the game with a powerful ace! As expected from the captain!"


    "No offense to the twin sisters, but they are the youngest on the court, and adding to the fact that they both are girls, it would be hard for them to adapt to the game. As long as the senior team aims their attack at those two, I am sure they would find this game easy." Hisashi added hisment.


    "Gabrie, take a step forward quickly after he serves the ball. Let me and Kobayashi-kun handle the ball."Mattheo ordered his daughter.


    "Yes, Papa."The girl pouted, seemed a bit upset for failing to receive the ball.


    "Sorry about that one, Kobayashi. She is still young and improving." Mattheo apologized.


    Yuki just shrugged it off before saying, "Don''t worry, it is just one point. The game is just beginning."


    Noriyuki took his second serve, and once again, it was a powerful one. However, the moment he sent it toward Gabrie, the girl ran forward immediately, and Mattheo was already there to cover the ball.


    *BAM!*


    Even though the power was good, it was nothing in front of Mattheo. The Italian man received the ball perfectly and even sent it to the where Riku was waiting. Without too much talking, the blonde boy tossed the ball immediately to the middle. Maria who was doing her run-up furrowed her brows before leaping forward, hitting the ball with the strength that no woman should ever possess.


    *BAM!*


    Everyone winced when they heard the loud sound of the ball hitting Hirano''s hand, imagining how hurt that would be. However, the middle blocker was sessful in preventing Maria from scoring the first point for the freshmen team.


    "Oh! Hirano for the block! But damn, Maria-san sure knows how to hit hard."


    "Well, she is a former professional yer, so of course her power cannot be underestimated. And it is also a good rebound to reset the ball."


    "Rebound?"


    "Yes, she spiked the ball to the blocker with the intention of recovering the ball so the team can have another chance at hitting the ball," Hisashi said, using this chance to poprize the sport.


    "So, she did it deliberately?"


    "Yes. And now, we can see the real attack here."


    "Riku, use the wing!"Maria shouted. The fact that it was in Italian made it impossible for the senior team to understand theirmunication.


    As Maria took a few steps back for another run-up, Hirano and Koji followed her movement, thinking that the ball would go in her direction once again. Poor them, they didn''t know Maria was the bait as Riku followed her order, passing the ball far to the outside wing where Isabe, the other twins had already been in the air.


    "Oh! A pass to Isabe! What a trick by Agostini-kun to deceive Hirano and Koji! Now she can hit it freely! Can she score the first point of the game?!"


    *BAM!*


    "AND SHE CAAAAAAAANNNNNN!!!!"


    The crowds roared wildly as Isabe mmed the ball straight to the left side. It wasn''t that powerful, yet the direction was tricky enough to be handled by Noriyuki.


    "Good job, Isabe!"Yuki gave a thumbs-up, making the girl blush a little.


    "Riku, don''t give me a quick. My old knees will suffer if you keep forcing me to do that. And your set is too low! Are you underestimating me?" Mariained.


    "Sorry about that one, Signora. You are in such a good position to handle the ball." Riku rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.


    Maria pouted, then huffed. "Well, just remember, go slow and high for me, okay? If you want a quick, I am sure my twins are happy to indulge your desire. And how many times do I have to tell you, don''t be too formal!"


    The game continued with Gabrie as the next one to serve. It was a pretty normal one, with no trick or power to trouble the senior team. However, she aimed it straight in Yori''s direction, making the others have to go there to cover their setter.


    "Nice receive, Okamura!" Yori praised before taking over the ball. He nced for a second to see his teammates first before sending the ball to the right wing.


    "Yoshi!"


    "Okay! Nice toss, Yori!" Yoshi jumped immediately, coiling his arms back to spike the ball. However, the moment he was about to unleash it, a big wall suddenly appeared in front of him, surprising him a little and making the power he generated lose about twenty or thirty percent.


    "SHIT!"


    *BAM!*


    "One touch!" Maria shouted as she deflected the ball.


    "Nice block, Maria-san!"


    Yuki ran to pick up the ball and gave it to Riku. Then, he also started his run-up, trying to join the attack. Riku grinned when the ball was about to fall from the sky in his direction, knowing what to do. While all the senior team''s yers were busy marking the spikers, he suddenly changed his stance from doing a set to a dump.


    "Oh! Another trick from Riku! But Okamura was there!"


    To Riku''s surprise, the libero on the other side seemed to be able to read his move. Yori picked up the ball quickly before tossing the ball to Noriyuki. Yuki narrowed his eyes, knowing that this would be the first confrontation between him and the captain. All the grievances they had for each other, they knew they could settle everything down directly at this moment.


    Noriyuki seemed to feel the same as the captain suddenly speeding up before jumping, thick veins suddenly popped up creepily on his face as he tried to generate power from inside. After doing his timing inwardly, Yuki jumped too, trying to block the spike. His timing was perfect as both his hands covered Noriyuki''s sightpletely.


    However, the captain didn''t care. He used brute force to break the wall directly.


    *BAM!*


    Yuki was taken aback by the spike. He wanted to strengthen his hands, yet the fact that he was already in the air made it impossible for him to do that. He couldn''t control the ball he just blocked it as it flew directly into the crowds.


    Silence settled over the gymnasium for a moment as Noriyuki stared at Yuki coldly. For a moment, time seemed to freeze as all the negative emotions Noriyuki held back in thest couple of days rushed into his head, his mouth was itching as so many bad words wanted to get out to attack his junior.


    However, after a moment, he only said one short sentence.


    "Please, show me that you are not just a bark and could bite too, Golden Boy."

 Chapter 21: The Twins Take Over the Game! Rikus Masterclass! (I)

    It had been ten minutes since the game began, and the freshmen team was in danger. They were currently five points behind, only able to score once from Isabe before. However, there was no panic at all in their team, and even Yuki who would lose the most if they were defeated was still pretty chill on the court.


    The only reason they were able to do that though, was because of the conversation they hadst night.


    -A little shback-


    "Listen, Kobayashi-kun.'' Mattheo said in English. ''While of course, we are willing to be your teammates, honestly, when Akira-sensei asked us toe to your school before, we didn''t expect to be dragged into this schoolyard fight.


    And since we are here to rx and enjoy our holiday, we are not prepared for a game like this, and it would take time for our old body to get used to apetitive state as you hope from us."


    "What my dear husband is trying to say is¡­" Maria interrupted. "We might be five to ten points behind at the beginning of the game, so I hope you will not panic when we are in that situation."


    Yuki who heard that nodded, before saying, "I understand. I have already expected having to chase the score from behind too, considering it would take time for us to adapt to each other''s ying style. We are at a disadvantage here, with them having been teammates for so long. Nevertheless, I am grateful that you are kind enough to spare your time to help me get out of this schoolyard fight.


    So, thank you."


    Seeing Yuki bowing deeply at them, the foreign couple just stared at each other awkwardly. Even though they were Akira''s former students, they were still not used to the formal bowing like this, thinking that the gesture was a bit exaggerated.


    Still, they understood why Yuki did this and waved their hand nonchntly. "Don''t worry, Kobayashi-kun! We will y the game seriously! And I know this will be fun too! But for now, let''s forget about everything and eat first!"


    -End of the shback-


    Yeah, the night before the game, the couple invited him to one of the fancy restaurants in Roppongi, the ce where the liveliest nightlife in Tokyo buzzed loudly until the sun rose again. Even though at first, Yuki was hesitant to go there, he was d he came and got to know about this wonderful family.


    Even though they had to speak slow English so that Yuki could understand what they were saying, they were still patient enough to deal with him. Hell, they even bought him a box full of luxurious delicacies that would have never crossed Yuki''s mind even in his imagination while saying that it was for the children in the orphanage.


    That put the Silvestri family straight into Yuki''s good book.


    Still, since they were a volleyball family, of course, the conversation would fly around that topic, and honestly, Yuki enjoyed it. Unlike Riku, Mattheo and Maria had a lot of insights, and Yuki''s favorite topic was about their professional life.


    He heard a lot about how they managed to stay fit under the tight schedule for a full year, their diet and habits, and even how they handled fans and rumors from the outside world.


    Yuki preferred talking about this rather than about the game itself.


    Of course, they also inquired about the game too, like what caused thismotion and what was Akira''s reaction. The couples guffawed when they heard the story of how Megumi silenced everyone and even put some fear on their sensei too, and after that, they were eager to meet her.


    Still, they promised to do their best and took the game seriously, which was the reason why Yuki wasn''t worried even if they were left behind.


    Still¡­


    "It seems they did their homework well, Kobayashi-kun." Mattheomented. "They were able to read your and Riku''s attack like an open book."


    "Yeah." Yuki couldn''t help but nod wryly. His eyesnded on the only female figure on the opposite team, could guess she was responsible for this. "It seems I underestimate Megumi-san''s intelligence-gathering ability here."


    "Oh, the manager girl?" Maria''s interest perked up. "Kobayashi-kun, After hearing your story about how she frightens everyone, and even Sensei too, I really want to talk to her!"


    "Maybeter, Maria," Riku answered with the same wry like what Yuki had on his face. "Now, we have to think of a way to get out of this situation first. Any idea?"


    Out of all the yers there, besides the twin girls who were being the easy prey for the opponent, Riku was probably the most frustrated one. The senior team was able to read all the offenses started by him, no matter whether it was a quick, a dump, a dink, or even the synchronization attack he initiated.


    Riku knew this meant the opposite team had already noticed some sort of behavior that he had before doing something. However, even after thinking and recalling all the ys frame by frame, he still hadn''t figured out what kind of w he revealed in his game.


    Honestly, he started to feel frustrated right now.


    "Well, if our offense is stuck, what about trying something new?" Mattheo suddenly offered.


    "Eh?" Yuki and Riku''s eyes turned to him, intrigued.


    "Yup!" Mattheo nodded, then turned his eyes at his twin daughters. "What do you think, girls? Do you want to try the new attacking move you practiced and have some revenge?"


    The twins'' eyes lit up immediately as if they were given permission to do something forbidden. "Are you sure it is okay, Papa?" One of them asked.


    "Well, we are in Japan right now, so no opponent of yours would be here to see what happened. Moreover, is this the best chance to see how effective the new movement was against the opponent?" Mattheo grinned, still ignoring Yuki and Riku''s questioning gaze. "So¡­ Just¡­ Go crazy!"


    The twins had the same identical grin as their father had as they nodded simultaneously. "Sure, Papa! Let''s go crazy!"


    -0-


    "Now, the timeout for the freshmen team is over, and they are still five points behind the senior team!" Matsumoto Ichika announced from thementary box. "Hisashi-senpai, what do you think will change after this? Can the freshmen survive and prolong the game?"


    "Well, not only they would be able to do that, but I think there is a small chance of them overturning the score." Hisashi suddenly threw a hot take publicly, triggering boos from the crowds.


    "Oh?" Keisuke Hori smiled, happy about the controversy. "Why do you think so, Hisashi-senpai? For all we know, you are on the side of the senior team, saying in the beginning that they woulde out as the winner."


    "Yeah, but you have to remember I said it would be a close game," Hisashi said calmly. "In case you didn''t notice, the two adults on the freshmen team hadn''t made their move yet. While Mattheo Silvestri couldn''t do a lot to help the team''s offense as libero, his wife is more than capable of doing that. So, why wouldn''t she help them?"


    "Why?" Matsumoto Ichika asked.


    "Because they are still adapting to this new situation," Hisashi answered his own question. "You have to know that as a professional yer, a lot is happening on the court. Not only they are retired yers who would need to turn on their engines first, but their teammates are also different. They need to get used to it first before they can contribute more to the game."


    "He is a smart one, isn''t he?" Maria smiled when she heard Riku''s trantion.


    "Well, he is the former captain of the team, so of course, he has a good insight." Riku shrugged. "Still, this would only make the senior team more cautious. Not a good thing for us."


    "Don''t worry, Rikkun!" One of the twins addressed his name yfully. "Just give us a quick on the wing and don''t get distracted by our movement! Oh, and pass the ball the moment you notice our run-up, okay? Not a second before, and not a second after. Remember that!"


    Riku could only chuckle wryly while Maria giggled silently next to him. He didn''t know why the twins who were so shy even to Yuki and still blushed furiously whenever his friend chatted with them would turn into mischievous ones when they faced him like this.


    "Well, listen to that, Rikkun! Don''t forget what they said, okay?" Yuki also took his turn to tease him with his new nickname, making the blonde boy groan.


    "Not you too, Kobayashi!"


    After a while, the game finally resumed once again, the privilege to serve was still on the senior team. Koji served the ball straight to Gabrie, still sticking with the ''target the twins'' strategy. However, Gabrie took a step aside quickly, letting Yuki receive the ball before doing her run-up.


    On the other side, Isabe also started to do her run-up too. And as ifmunicating with each other telepathically, those two suddenly crossed in each other''s direction. Gabrie on the right wing went to the left, while Isabe on the left ran to the right.


    It was incredible to see how the twins crossed right in front of Riku without crashing into each other. And this movement seemed to catch the opponent off guard as when those two jumped, no blocker could be found trying to stop the attack. Seeing that, without hesitation, Riku tossed the ball to the right wing, sending it straight to Isabe who spiked it hard near the sideline.


    *BAM!*


    Even though the power generated from her spike wasn''t that impressive, with the run-up she and her twin sister did before andbined with the tricky route she chose, the ballnded perfectly on the other side of the, and the yers of the senior team could only have their mouth hanging open.


    Seeing her attack was sessful, Isabe turned quickly to Gabrie, excitement could be seen on their face. Then, they gave each other a big thumbs up while grinning, saying, "Nice, Sister! The first debut of the Criss Cross attack, sessful!"

 Chapter 22: The Twins Take Over the Game! Rikus Masterclass! (II)

    "OOOOHHH!!!! THE FRESHMEN FOUGHT BACK!" Keisuke Hori roared in excitement from the booth. "It is not the adults who did it, but one of the twin sisters, GABRIELLA SILVESTRI!" The crowds ¨C especially the male ones cheered excitedly as if they had just seen an idoling there. "Having enough of being an easy prey, they show to everyone why they wouldn''t let this disrespect go easily!"


    "That is a smart y." Hisashi praised. "They take advantage of the fact that any yer would only lock into one opponent in defense, so by doing that crossover movement, they confused the senior team of which one should guard which one there."


    Keisuke Hori nodded his head thoughtfully as if he understood the exnation before grabbing his mic again. "Anyway, the twins finally started to show to us that they are here not just to show off their beauty! They are more than that! They are like roses, too pretty to be seen, yet too dangerous to be touched!"


    "Hey, I like that one!" Gabrie eximed excitedly when she heard Riku tranting thementator''s words.


    "He is not wrong, though, we are like roses." Isabe nodded in agreement.


    "Of course, you would say that." Riku smiled wryly. "Still, you both sure know how to name your move. A Criss Cross Attack? That is one hell of a name."


    "Of course, we know!" The twins high-fived each other.


    "Good job, you two!" Yuki didn''t forget to praise. "Show them that you are more than your pretty faces!"


    Both girls turned around, blushed furiously when they received Yuki''s praise. They whispered loudly with rapid Italian that he couldn''t understand, and when they giggled at each other, Yuki turned immediately to Riku, asking for help. Unfortunately, his blonde boy just shrugged off his shoulder here while muttering, ''Girls¡­''


    If before, Riku was confused as to why the twins would turn mischievous when they faced him, now it was Yuki who felt the same, puzzled at why the girls would be so shy whenever he talked to them. Still, he decided to not think about it too much and focused on the game.


    Meanwhile, on the opposite side of thes, the senior members gathered in a circle, discussing what to do against this new development. At first, they were at a loss and confused about what was happening. But after hearing Hisashi''s exnation from the mic, they had the basic idea of the attack, which was already half a step to figure out how to stop it.


    "Hirano, just stay in the middle. You will be the helper right now. When the ball is about to fall to Agostini, read it quickly and decide where the ball will go. Help us who are in the wing quickly, understand?!" Yori exined.


    Hirano nodded slightly, his eyes were on the girls.


    "And whoever on the wing side, just stay there! Protect your area! Don''t get attracted by that fancy move! It is a bait, so just focus on your area. Do you understand?!"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    "Good! Now, let''s stop their attack!"


    Yori smiled in satisfaction as everyone followed his order. He had the confidence that his strategy would be able to crack the twins'' attack easily. What he didn''t know though, from behind, Noriyuki stared at him, the ace''s expression wasplicated. No one knew what the captain thought right now.


    In hindsight, Yori''s instruction should be a good way to stop the attack. However, what seemed perfect in theory would always be trash in reality. The moment the twins started doing their Criss Cross move, instead of going in the opposite direction of each other, one of the twins, Gabrie, stopped in front of Riku before turning around to her normal route, creating a big V movement.


    "WHAT?!"


    Now, with two yers attacking the right wing, Yoshi who guarded that area was overwhelmed, didn''t know what to do. Hirano tried to support his senpai by moving from the middle. However, Riku tossed the ball far to where Gabrie had already jumped on the outer wing as the girl sent a straight spike close to the antenna, scoring another point for the freshmen team.


    "YOSSHAAA!"


    "Good job, Gabrie!" Riku praised, giving the girl a high-five.


    "No, I am not Gabrie!" The girl he talked to said, pouted.


    "Eh?"


    "Yes, Rikkun! I am Gabrie!" The other girl said, also pouted.


    "Hahaha¡­ Sorry, sorry¡­" Riku rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.


    "Well, we are kidding." The corner of the girls'' lips suddenly wiggled upward. "I am Gabrie." The one who said he was Isabe before confessed.


    "And I am Isabe." The other girl followed.


    Then, giggles broke there as they saw Riku had this dumbfounded look on his face.


    "Are you an idiot or what?" Yuki rolled his eyes while even the parents giggled at Riku too. "The one with the jersey number 3 is Isabe, and the number 4 is Gabrie. How could you still get tricked?"


    "Ahaha¡­" Riku turned his face away, looking embarrassed. "Anyway, let''s focus on the game first!" He tried to shift the topic.


    The next few minutes turned out to be a nightmare for the senior team. They couldn''t figure out the pattern of the twins'' attack. One moment the two girls crossed each other to the opposite wing, and in the next moment, only one did that, making the attack lean heavily on one side.


    Sometimes, they even stopped right in front of Riku before turning back and went to their original route, using the Criss Cross attack to deceive the senior team.


    And even though the girls'' spike was not that powerful, that didn''t mean they could receive it perfectly. Just like the senior team did to the twins in the beginning, the twins returned the favor by targeting the weakest link in their defense over and over again, and their victims always revolved around Noriyuki, Yori, and Koji, the main attackers of the team.


    They also tried their best to avoid Okamura, knowing the libero was the best defensive yer on the opposite side of thes, making it hard for the senior team to return the y.


    But what they forgot was that it was not the twins who were the brains of the offense, but the setter. And in this case, Riku was able to attract their attention perfectly by using the twins'' new attack to make them look like a fool.


    Yeah, when the blonde boy noticed the attack could have a lot of variations, he and the twins established a lot of signals quickly to decide what kind of attack they would use. If he raised his left hand first, that meant the girls should go to the left side together. The same could be said for the right side.


    And when he dropped down both his hands first before doing a set, they should go back to their original route. But when he nodded first before setting the ball, the girls would cross each other to the opposite wing to do their attack.


    Riku was able to stay low for so long, using the twins to manipte the y perfectly like a puppet master controlling his subjects to do what he liked without being noticed by anyone else.


    And when they were finally one point away to win the first set, the blonde boy finally made his move, announced his presence by setting the ball to the middle, something that he hadn''t done for a while since the twins started going berserk.


    "Oh, nice pass, Rikkun!"


    *BAM!*


    Maria jumped, mmed the ball immediately to the attack line where no one guarded it. Okamura reacted quickest, diving forward to get the ball. Unfortunately, he wasn''t quick enough to do so, as it bounced strongly to the floor to end the first set.


    When all the eyes of the senior team turned at him in disbelief, Riku just shrugged innocently and said, "What?"


    Senior 14 ¨C 25 Freshman

 Chapter 23: Second Set Starts, Yuki Takes the Initiative!

    "Agostini, I know that you are an idiot, but the level of idiocy you possess keeps giving me surprise." Yuki sighed while Riku rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "We have already had all the advantages in the world with you being under their radar for too long and could use the twins to manipte the game to your liking, what prompted you to decide to throw it all away? Just to show off?"


    "Hey, that''s rude!" Riku sniffed. "It is not just to show off, but also to make a statement!"


    The corner of Yuki''s lips twitched in annoyance as he sent another karate chop straight to his blonde friend''s head.


    "Ouch! What the hell?!"


    "It is me who should have said that! What the hell, Agostini?! What statement do you want to make here, that you are the biggest idiot in the room? Come on, Agostini! You are not that dumb!" Yuki ranted.


    The Silvestri family who couldn''t understand even a single word uttered by those two just chuckled at their antic, still had an educated guess as to why Yuki was so irked right now. "Okay, Kobayashi-kun, calm down first. We are still on the lead here." Maria said soothingly.


    Yuki huffed in exasperation one more time before giving onest chop to Riku''s head.


    "Ouch! What the hell, Kobayashi?!" He whined, eliciting giggles from the twins.


    Meanwhile, the three people who guided the crowds through the entire game in thementary booth also saw that, and needless to say, they had a hard time holding back theirughter.


    "It seems Kobayashi-kun is not happy with Agostini-kun''sst y, right, Hisashi-senpai?" Keisuke Hori asked, still feeling amused.


    "Well, if I was in Kobayashi''s position, I too, would feel annoyed," Hisashimented, sending his best sympathy over Yuki.


    "Oh? Please, do tell me why?" Keisuke Hori asked, intrigued.


    "Well, they have a solid strategy that works for the entire first set, using the twins as the deception for Agostini to manipte the game. And you know the second most primitive rule here, if a strategy works well and is not broken, don''t try to fix it. Agostini broke that rule and tried to fix something unbroken, which is why Kobayashi-kun looks so ruffed now."


    Several people in the crowd nodded simultaneously at his exnation as if they understood what happened. Still, those who didn''t like Yuki from the beginning just furrowed their brows, this incident just fuelled their dislike toward their junior.


    "Agostini-kun had already worked so hard to carry the team until they won the first set, yet still got scolded like that? Who the hell does he think he is?"


    "Yes! I don''t even know what he did in this game. Does he really deserve to be the captain?"


    "Now he scolds Agostini-kun to make himself look important. He is so cunning."


    "Yeah. No wonder the members of the volleyball team don''t like him."


    Riku who heard the general opinion of the crowds chuckled richly, nudging Yuki''s hips teasingly. "See, they all agree with me. Come on, don''t be too harsh."


    Yuki rolled his eyes in exasperation before saying, "So, you also agreed that I scold you just to make myself look important?" There was a sarcastic tone in his question.


    "No way!" Riku crossed his arms, making a big X with it quickly, shaking his head rapidly to deny his usation. "I am not that stupid, you know?" He said, hurtful."


    Yuki sighed, knowing he was almost crossing the line before apologizing. "Sorry about that one. I shouldn''t have said that."


    Riku''s features softened before he patted his friend''s shoulder. "Don''t worry. Even though the crowds couldn''t see your role, we noticed your presence on the court. Don''t listen to them."


    It wasn''t just an empty word to reassure Yuki. Just like he said, Riku indeed noticed Yuki''s important role on the team. Besides being the twins'' guardian whenever they were targeted, Yuki was also the bridge that connected everyone on the team.


    Yuki would always put himself in such a position that allowed him to receive the opponent''s attack and send the ball directly to Riku. More often than not, he would also try to protect the twins'' attack by following them from behind to ensure if their spike was blocked, someone would be there to recover the mess.


    It was a difficult thing to do, trying to read the game perfectly to always cover all the area around him. However, Yuki did it so effortlessly, making it look like what he did was nothing special and made him be underestimated so much by the crowds.


    To put it simply, Yuki''s role was being a libero, and he was so good at it that Mattheo, the real libero on the team had no role in the first set.


    "Well, if you are bothered so much by their opinion, what about trying to prove them wrong?" Riku asked, his expression turned into a mischievous one.


    "Oh?" Yuki raised one of his eyebrows. "Now you catch my interest. I am all ears, so please do tell me your n."


    Riku pondered for a moment before saying, "Well, while you did a good job in the first set, you still took Mattheo''s job and too focused on defending their attack. What about being more active here? Being the new pieces to add theyer of the twins'' attack?"


    "Hmm¡­ Interesting¡­" Yuki hummed lowly.


    While he was content with his role and position to defend from the opponent''s attack, Yuki knew Riku was right. This conflict revolved around him, so he needed to be more active and take initiative in the offense. At least, that would show the crowds that if his team won the game, he wasn''t just riding on the other''s shoulder to get it done.


    After a moment, Yuki nodded before saying, "You are right, Agostini. Count me in."


    Hearing what Yuki said, Riku grinned, knowing the next set would be more interesting. Even though he had only been ying together with Yuki a few times, Riku knew his friend was a creative attacker. He would roam around the front line and be willing to act as bait first, and when the ball was sent in his direction, the sses boy would always find some tricks to deceive the blocker.


    In Riku''s opinion, Yuki was probably the most interesting attacker he had ever partnered with. And that was why, he couldn''t wait to see how much fun they would have in the next set.


    -0-


    "And here we go again! The next set will be started in the next few minutes, and the life of the senior team is on the line! Would they be able to pull a miracle and prolong the game to the final set, or would the freshmen team bury them alive in this set?! We will see it unveiled in the next few minutes. But for now, please, give your best cheers for the yers on the court!"


    The crowds exploded the moment the yers went back to the court. Cheers of encouragement could be heard for the senior team as almost everyone there was rooting for them.


    "Come on, Yoshi! Where is that spirit of yours in the beginning?!"


    "Noriyuki! Kill them from me!"


    "Yori-sama! Don''t lose!"


    "Come on, Koji!"


    "You know, Honey, this situation reminds me of Monza." Mattheo smiled as his eyes wandered on the crowds, listening to the cheers around that weren''t even directed at him.


    "Oh, yes, their supporters are always the loudest and the craziest even in the league." Maria also smiled, reminiscing about their past.


    "Monza is a small city in the northern region of Italy. They also have the best team in the country, and their supporters are amazing." Riku whispered after seeing Yuki''s questioning gaze.


    Yuki nodded in understanding before taking the ball outside of the line, ready to serve the ball. The moment he heard the whistle was blown, he took a deep breath before throwing the ball in the air, pping the ball gently so it wouldn''t cause so much rotation. He clicked his tongue in annoyance though, as Okamura suddenly moved to receive the serve.


    By now, almost everyone on the senior team knew how to handle Yuki''s floater serve. They just need to step forward and greet the ball directly with an overhead pass rather than waiting for it to move around and destroy their formation. And while not everyone was proficient in doing that, since Okumura could receive it perfectly, they just let the libero wander around whenever he served the ball.


    "Good receive, Okumura!" Yori praised, taking over the ball while ncing around quickly to scan his teammates'' whereabouts.


    Yuki didn''t dwell on his failure for too long, going forward quickly while keeping his eyes on Yori. In the next second, he had already moved to the left even before the opponent''s setter tossed the ball. And right after that, true to his prediction, Yori gave the ball to Yoshi who was already doing his run-up, ready to attack.


    Maria and Gabrie jumped, trying to block the attack. However, Yoshi was clever enough to target the younger girl who was clearly the weakest one of the two. He overwhelmed Gabrie''s block, breaking the wall she created and making the ball bounce down the floor immediately.


    *BAM!*


    "OH! A tool! Nice spike, Yoshi!"


    Tool was a term in volleyball to describe the situation when the ball was blocked, yet it still fell to the blocker''s side or to the outside field to add a point for the attackers. By now, almost all the members of the senior team were ready to celebrate, especially seeing the ball was about to touch the floor.


    However, what they didn''t notice was for Yuki to dive down, trying to save the ball. He extended his arms far ahead, putting it on the floor so that the ball would bounce on it rather than the floor.


    "A PANCAKE!" A roar suddenly exploded from thementary booth, and everyone was surprised to see it was Hisashi who did that. Gone was the calm demeanor the former captain had since the beginning, as now, he rose from his seat while his eyes were still on the court, his hands trembled in excitement. "KOBAYASHI SAVE THE BALL WITH A PANCAKE! IT IS STILL ALIVE! WHAT A PLAY BY THE FRESHMAN TEAM!"


    His excitement was understandable. A pancake was another term in volleyball when a yernded on the floor with their body in an attempt to save the ball with one open hand on the floor to allow the ball to bounce off of it.


    That might sound simple in theory, but in reality, a yer had to be able to read the game right and jump at the right time while ready to fall to save that one ball, something that not even a professional could do every day.


    However, the y wasn''t over.


    "Nice save, Kobayashi!"


    Seeing the ball was saved, Maria reacted quickly, giving the ball back to Riku for thest attack. Being in the back, it wasn''t the best position for the blonde boy to attack. However, he had no choice and jumped, spiking the ball as hard as possible to get it across the quickly.


    *BAM!*


    Unfortunately ¨C or fortunately, his spike was too short, making the ball hit the first before it rolled down the other side of the court slowly. All the yers of the senior team were surprised, rushing forward to save the ball. It was Hirano who was the closest there who managed to reach it first and made it fly high to keep the ball alive.


    "Nice save, Hirano!"


    "Fall back! Let us do the rest!"


    Unfortunately, the ball flew too close to the, and before anyone from the senior team could reach it first, one yer from the other side of the suddenly shed forward, jumped, and wiped the ball first before anyone could get the ball first to make sure it fell on the senior''s side, killing the y perfectly.


    Silence settled over as all the eyes turned around quickly, just to see a cold gaze reflected behind the sports sses Yuki wore. Their junior just stared at them for a moment before letting out an infuriating smirk, breaking the silence with just one short sentence.


    "Well, what do you think after being beaten by the golden boy?"


    Golden Boy was the nickname the senior gave to Yuki since the coach favored him so much that it drew jealousy from them. Yuki himself only knew that when Noriyuki called him that with a mocking tone in the first set after the ace was able to prate his defense.


    However, that one time was enough for him to let that horrible nickname rent freely inside his head for the entire game, and the moment he had a chance, Yuki retaliated brilliantly by using his new nickname to mock them all.


    And it worked so well, as the temper of the yers on the other side exploded immediately, and hell broke loose.

 Chapter 24: Chaos! Lets End This Game Quick! (I)

    "What the hell is your problem, you brat?!" Yoshi scowled heatedly. "You think mocking your senpai like this would make you look good?!" It seems he was unhappy with Yuki''s words.


    "Oh, yes, it is funny indeed," Yuki answered with the same intensity. "You think you are the only one who can talk trash to me? Don''t be na?ve! Your captain has already done so a lot of times in the first set, keep calling me Golden Boy whenever he scores. And now I score the first time, and you snap immediately, what are you, a baby?!"


    Yeah, Yuki had been receiving a lot of banters from the senior team, and while he hadn''t said anything about it yet, that didn''t mean he was willing to let that slide. No, he just waited for the right moment, for when he was able to score against their defense to do that. After all, only the winner had the privilege to look down on his opponent.


    Yoshi''s face turned red as he was furious right now. He wasn''t the calmest person in the first ce, so after hearing Yuki''s provocation, he snapped. He crossed the immediately to the other side of the court before pushing down Yuki''s body until his junior fell to the floor, and after that, themotion erupted immediately like wildfire.


    All the yers suddenly rushed to join themotion, yet not everyone was there to soothe the situation. Some just joined the fun, adding more oils to the fire.


    "Kill them, Yoshi! Don''t let your kouhai make fun of you!"


    "Yeah! He is just a brat! Show him how to respect his senpai!"


    "Beat him!"


    Hearing the encouragement from the crowds around him, Yoshi got more excited. He rushed forward immediately tond his second blow, ready to make things bigger. But just as it seemed like a full-blown brawl was about to erupt, Akira finally stepped in, his re freezing the yers in their tracks.


    With a stern expression, he yelled "Enough!" and the yers slowly backed off, still seething but momentarily defused.


    The referee''s re turned to the two yers who started themotion, then turned again to the entire team as everyone wilted under his eyes. Then, when after a few seconds nothing was heard from the coach and all of them started to sigh in relief, thinking that Akira wasn''t that angry, they were proven to be wrong immediately.


    "You''re all acting like a bunch of children!" Akira thundered, his voice echoing across the court. "This is a game, not a yground! You''re here to y volleyball, not to engage in petty squabbles and childish behavior. I''ve seen more maturity from a group of kindergarten students!"


    The yers from both teams looked at each other in shame, yet they still red at each other, trying to put the me on their opponent.


    "Are you not ashamed of the guests here that spare their time to y with you all?!" Akira continued, pointing his fingers at the Silvestri family. The parents were at the front, shielding the twins from themotion as the girls looked at the crowds curiously.


    Apparently, the moment the chaos started, Mattheo pulled his family out of the crowd immediately,didn''t want to get dragged into themotion.


    "They are here not just to help the freshman, but also to share their experience as professionals with you! And you show them this shameful behavior! Never have I been so embarrassed in my life before today!"


    Yuki, still on the floor, grunted a bit, using his knee to support his body as he tried to get up from his position. "Sorry, Sensei." He murmured.


    Usually, Yuki would be calmer than this, handling the situation wiser under such a provocation. However, he didn''t know why, but there was something in Yoshi''s tone that always irritated him. It wasn''t just today, but even in the past, Yoshi''s loudness and fiery temper were always able to get under his skin.


    Akira''s features softened a bit, knowing that Yuki was probably the least to be med for thismotion. Banters and trash talks were always a part of the game, and all the yers here knew about that.


    Hell, he could hear so much banter directed at Yuki whenever the first-year failed to protect the ball, and that kind of pressure wasn''t something that a yer with two weeks of experience should endure.


    The fact that Yuki didn''t react at all for so long showed Akira that the freshman had the patience of a saint, and even a saint had the period when he snapped and wanted to vent out all of his emotions, so Akira understood why Yuki reacted like that.


    He was more disappointed with Yoshi''s behavior, though. The opposite hitter had always had his vtile temper whenever he yed, and it wasn''t the first time Akira saw him creating a ruckus after being provoked by the opponent.


    Akira had already talked and scolded him several times to control his emotions, yet based on what happened today, it seemed his words still couldn''t get through Yoshi''s thick head.


    Still, Akira had to make a decision here, and he had to be impartial here. After thinking for a while, he finally said, "I know the stakes here are big for you both. Your dignity is on the line in this game. But that doesn''t mean you can do anything you want like this. So, I will have to punish you both."


    After that, he took a yellow card from his pocket and gave it to both yers, eliciting gasps from the crowds.


    "A yellow card for Kobayashi and Aoba!" Keisuke Hori shouted from thementary box. "What do you think about it, Hisashi-senpai? Is it fair?"


    The whispers from the crowds died down a little, wanting to know Hisashi''s opinion. For some of them, this incident only made them believe more in the rumor that Yuki disrespected his senpai. After all, if he was alright, there was no way the senior yers would gang him like this, right?


    "I think it is a bit unfair for Kobayashi-kun." Hisashi gave another hot take again, making the crowds frown. "Banters and trash talks are parts of the game, and the senior team had already done the same in the first set. It is unfair for Kobayashi-kun to be punished for the same offense that his opponent got away from before."


    Those who yedpetitive sports all nodded, knowing Hisashi was right. Unfortunately, the majority of the crowds here were regr students, especially from sophomore and third-year, so they didn''t care about his opinion. They knew the rumor was right, Yuki did the senpai wrong here.


    "Unsportsmanlike!"


    "Shame!"


    "Yoshi, no matter what happened, never apologize!"


    "Yeah! Kill that brat!"


    As the boos grew louder from the crowds, Yuki sighed, knowing all the imagination of an ordinary school life he had at the beginning of the term had gone to the trashcan by now. Still, he didn''t care, walking toward his teammates and bowed deeply.


    "I am sorry, everyone!"He eximed. "I lost my cool and my rash behavior made this a terrible experience for you all."


    The Silvestri family nced at each other before Mattheo chuckled. "Don''t worry, Kobayashi-kun! That is how a youth should react facing such a humiliation!"


    "To be impulsive and pick up a fight against his senior? Don''t give him a bad example, Dear."Maria chided her husband. "But I am d you can be calm even after being pushed down like that. It takes maturity to not retaliate against everyone who provoked you. I am so proud of you." She praised.


    Hearing the praise, there was a slight blush on Yuki''s face, yet his face beamed in delight. Thest person to say she was proud of him was his mother, and Maria''s words reminded Yuki of her. He got teary for a moment before the feeling disappeared with the squealing from the twins.


    "Kobayashi-san, you are so cool!"Gabrie gushed.


    "Yeah! You just stared at them coldly and said one sentence, and everyone lost their temper immediately! You are like a viin in the story!" Isabe added.


    Yuki had a sweat drop on his face when he saw the twins who were so shy whenever he was around suddenly turn into fangirls, looking at him with shining eyes as if they were ready to worship him. He nced at Riku who he believed had more experience in this regard, just for the blonde boy to shake his head in amusement.


    Cursed ''traitor'' inwardly to his blonde friend, Yuki could only chuckle awkwardly at the twins.


    "Thank you, Gabrie, Isabe. Your support means a lot to me." He said it genuinely.


    Hearing his words, the girl blushed furiously before running away, still giggling while whispering with each other in rapid Italian, confusing Yuki more.


    "Girls¡­" He muttered, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

 Chapter 25: Chaos! Lets End This Game Quick! (II)

    *BAM!*


    "One touch!"


    "Oh, nice block, Kobayashi!"


    "Agostini! Left!"


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHAAAAA!"


    It was ten minutes since the game resumed again after themotion was over, and Yuki hit the elerator immediately. It was as if he wanted to vent out all his grievances for the earlier incident, kept attacking the senior team left and right, not giving them any chance to recover.


    He exposed the opponent''s weakness wlessly, kept targeting Noriyuki and Hirano who always acted as a lone wolf on the team. As long as he hit the ball there, a point was always guaranteed for the freshman team.


    On the senior team''s bench, Megumi bit her lips nervously. She had already noticed Yuki''s trick, yet she didn''t know what to do in the position. The morale of the team was hit to rock bottom, and now, everyone had already lost their spirit to continue the game.


    Honestly, it wasn''t the first time she cursed theck of leadership on the team. The two most vocal yers there, Noriyuki and Yoshi were problematic. While Noriyuki had a hard time socializing, Yoshi was too vtile to control his temper for the entire game. And while Yori might be a good candidate, the others did not respect him enough to elevate his status on the team.


    This was also the problem that gave Hisashi a headache the mostst year. Thest year''s captain of the team even considered a lottery to choose which one would inherit the status of the leader of the team from him. In the end, he picked Noriyuki since everyone listened to him more than anyone else.


    The problem was he didn''t talk andmand the team enough, thinking he could lead his teammates by giving them examples of what should they do. It might work in a good team where everyone had the consciousness of winning the tournament, but not in a mediocre team like Tsunemori.


    Just like right now, when the team needed a leader the most, Noriyuki disappeared, turned mute on the corner of the court.


    Megumi sighed, finally had enough, and decided to take over the situation by herself.


    "Kaede-kun, Ogawa-kun, Ren, prepare to y." She spoke, surprising the yers whose names were mentioned. "You will rece Hirano-kun, Yoshi-kun, and Noriyuki-kun."


    All the eyes there widened in shock, not expecting Megumi to take this bold decision. Ren who was the most experienced yer out of the three asked hesitantly, "Is it okay though, to rece them right now?"


    Megumi nodded firmly, there was no hesitation in her eyes. "While you might still believe they could do something, Ren, I don''t have the patience to wait for a miracle. I know you notice it too, that whenever things turned bad, those three would suddenly disappear. This happened several times in the past that it became a pattern, so I don''t believe this time would be different."


    Some yers turned their heads away immediately, didn''t want to be seen agreeing to her words. While they acknowledged the truth behind it, they didn''t want to be caught antagonizing their senpai.


    The moment the substitution was announced though, the three yers on the court widened their eyes in shock. Never crossed their mind they would be reced in the middle of the game, especially since they were the most important yers on the team.


    Fortunately, Megumi was probably the second most intimidating person on the team besides the coach, so no matter what she decided, they followed obediently.


    "Oh! Substitution for the senior team! Three key yers of the team are reced! What do you think of this situation, Hisashi-senpai? Is it wise to do that?" Keisuke Hori asked.


    "Not only it is wise, but I think Megumi should have done this earlier," Hisashimented. "You can see the mood of those three were worsened after the incident, and it affects the state of the team. If not reced immediately, they would be the parasites who would destroy the team from inside."


    "Interesting analogy." Mattheo nodded approvingly. "But it shouldn''t do them much, right? I mean, the game is already in our hands right, Kobayashi-kun?"


    The boy who received the question just nodded, full of confidence. "Yeah, let''s end this silly game as soon as possible."


    "Those three are reced? Does that mean the game is over?"


    "Well, even if it is not over, I doubt they could overturn the situation."


    "Man, this is disappointing. No wonder our volleyball team sucks in the real tournament."


    Amidst the disappointed whispers from the crowds, one by one started to leave. Only those who wanted to see the fun when the loser apologized in the end were still here, yet their focus wasn''t on the court anymore. More than third-quarters were gone already, emptying the gymnasium instantly. However, the game had to be continued again.


    Isabe took the serve. She sent it directly toward the back left, which was received perfectly by Koji. Yori took a nce for a second before setting the ball to the left wing, yet the moment Kaede jumped to spike the ball, Yuki was already there to form a wall.


    *BAM!*


    "One touch!"


    "Oh! Another soft block by Kobayashi! This is his fifth in a row since the brawls!" Keisuke Hori shouted excitedly.


    "Nice block, Kobayashi!"


    Gabrie, Isabe, and Yuki took a step back simultaneously, ncing at each other for a moment before starting their run-up together.


    "Ren, you go for Kobayashi! Ogawa, mark the left! Kaede, to the right! Okamura, be ready for the back attack!" Yori took themand quickly.


    "Got it!"


    The wait was so intense as all the yers on the senior team tried to predict where the ball would go, just for Riku to tap it simply to let the ball fall down the other side of the gently. Everyone had their jaws dropped, never expecting the oue to be like this.


    Since the second set began, Riku hadn''t done anything outrageous yet, always setting the ball perfectly to provide the best pass to his teammates. To see him suddenly pulling a dump when everyone focused on his teammates was like watching witchcraft from thend afar.


    Seeing the gobsmacked reaction from his opponents, Riku smirked infuriatingly before saying, "Please, don''t forget about my presence again, okay?"

 Chapter 26: The End!

    The rest of the game went one-sided, with the freshman team dominating the court without giving the senior team any chance to get out of their slumps. Yuki who was mocked by the crowds for doing nothing in the first set went crazy, taking the initiative to be on the front line.


    As a blocker, he was everywhere, always able to form a soft wall in front of the attacker to give his team another chance to attack. And as a hitter, he was unpredictable.


    While his spike might look easy to receive from the perspective of the audience, those who had experience ying volleyball knew Yuki was a troublesome opponent. He had a lot of tricks in his arsenal, from dink, block-out, wipe, and even an ordinary spike could be dangerous in his hand.


    Still, what made him stand outpared to the others was his defensive area coverage.


    Whenever Yuki was on the back, he was always everywhere. It didn''t matter what kind of trick the senior team wanted to pull off, he would always be able to read them like an open book. Even Akira and Hisashi who watched from the sideline shaking their head, couldn''t understand how Yuki did that.


    It was even more mind-blowing for Akira since he knew Yuki had only been exposed to a serious volleyball game in thest two weeks. His movement was wless, and while his technique was still rough, Yuki made it up with his cleverness. If he trained more for at least two weeks to one month to polish his basic¡­ ''


    Akira shuddered in excitement at that prospect.


    Still, it was the thought for another time, since right now, he had to observe the game closely. With Yuki''s all-around performance, coupled with the twins'' mobility when they attacked and Riku''s guidance as the control tower of their offense, the freshman team was able to push the senior team to the end of their rope.


    What amazed everyone was the fact that the two professional yers they thought would have big roles in making the game close turned into side characters, their light was stolen by their daughter.


    Until¡­


    *BAM!*


    "Nice cover, Kobayashi!"


    It was another attack by the senior team, and once again, Yuki managed to cover the hole in the wall formed by Maria and Gabrie and received the ball perfectly, sending it to Riku to turn the defense into a quick offense.


    After that, he recovered his position quickly, taking a few steps back before starting his run-up. Gabrie and Isabe also did the same, making it another one ¨C and probably thest one of their three prongs attack.


    All the senior team''s yers stepped back, preparing themselves for the attack. However, even from the other side of the, Yuki and his teammates could see their hearts weren''t on the game anymore. With the opponent''s unenthusiastic attitude, it was easy for them to pierce their defense.


    "Agostini!" Yuki shouted, asking for the ball. It was fitting for him who was the captain to end this troublesome game with this attack.


    The moment the ball was sent to him by the blonde boy, Yuki jumped, recoiling his arms to unleash a spike. Ren also jumped too on the other side of the, trying to stop his attack. However, in a one-on-one game like this, Yuki had so many ways to deal with a blocker, and thinking that this would be thest offense of the game, he decided to go with the finest trick he had on his arsenal.


    *Tap!*


    "OH! ANOTHER DINK!"


    Ren could only stare helplessly as the ball moved in a parabolic route to escape from his hands. Two teammates of his ran forward, trying to save the ball. Unfortunately, they were not quick enough, as the ball fell down the floor first, bounced slowly before it rolled over the court.


    "GAME SET ¨C ! The freshman team won!"


    Senior14 11


    Freshman25 25


    -A minute earlier-


    "Kaede-kun spikes! And ¨C OH! Kobayashi! It is Kobayashi again! He is everywhere, covering the entire court by himself!" Keisuke Hori shouted excitedly.


    The crowds also rose from their spot too, trying to have the best view of probably thest scene of the game. Even though the gymnasium was almost empty at this point, the excitement was still there. In fact, it was more intense, considering those who weren''t leaving were the ones who were genuinely interested in the game, not just nobody who joined the fun.


    "The ball flies high, and now, Agostini is in position, ncing at his teammates around him! The three yers, the twin sisters and Kobayashi have already started their run-up, ready to attack! Now, can they seal the game here? What will Agostini do, will it pass to the twins? Or to Kobayashi? Or will he surprise us with ¨C OH!


    HE PASSES THE BALL TO KOBAYASHI! AND KOBAYASHI TAPS IT GENTLY! BEAUTIFULLY! KILLING THE GAME FOR THE FRESHMAN TEAM!"


    Keisuke Hori spoke like a rapper, so many words were out of his mouth just in a minute. However, no one had a problem with it. No, in fact, he was sessful in building tension for the audience, and the moment Yuki scored thest point, cheers erupted immediately from all over the court.


    "OH! What a game!"


    "Damn! Those two freshmen are amazing!"


    "No, my goddesses Gabrie-hime and Isabe-hime are the best!"


    "KYA! MATTHEO-SAMA! PLEASE, NOTICE US!"


    "MARIA-HIME! PLEASE, STEP ON ME!"


    Yuki who was still in a daze after winning the game had a sweat drop on his face after hearing the cheers kept getting more outrageous, especially for the Silvestri family. Fortunately, Riku was still drowning in euphoria, especially when he was surrounded by his ''so-called'' who rushed into the court immediately, so he couldn''t trante the cheers for the foreigners.


    It was a fest for the next few minutes, with the students who watched the game since the beginning trying to strike up a conversation or two with them. Hell, even Yuki who was the viin of the game was also surrounded by several people too, some girls even gave him love letters before running away immediately from the spot, their faces red like a boiled lobster.


    And in that moment too¡­ They forgot about their opponent, especially the two yers who stormed out of the gymnasium silently.

 Chapter 27: Interview & Resolution

    "Well, what a game we have today, Hisashi-senpai." Keisuke Hori spoke, wiping the sweat on his face after taking a bottle of water from aside. "An impressive performance by Kobayashi-kun in the second set, what do you think about him?" He still provided an after-the-game analysis from the microphone for those who wanted to hear it.


    "He is an amazing yer." Hisashi didn''t shy away from praising Yuki. "Even if he went to a top team like Konan or Matsukita High, he would have a spot on the team with his ability."


    "Wow, for such sky-high praiseing from you, you must be very impressed with his performance, right?"


    "Indeed." Hisashi nodded. "Still, I also want toment about the senior team, the team that I leftst year. Honestly, I am disappointed. The fate of the game had already been sealed the moment they lost the first set. You can see how they approached the game. No seriousness, no willingness, it is as if they don''t want to be here in the first ce.


    I am d they lost today."


    Hisashi didn''t mince his words at all, making several students cringe while trying to see the reaction from the senior team''s yers. Some yers like Yori, Kaede, and Ren had the decency to look embarrassed after being called out like that, while some turned their heads away as if they didn''t care about Hisashi''s words at all.


    However, two people couldn''t be found there, and those were the most important ones for the next part of the event, Yoshi and Noriyuki.


    Akira also noticed that too and sighed tiredly, disappointed with his yers'' attitude. Seeing the coach''s expression, Keisuke Hori didn''t dare to ask him anything, so he turned his attention to the Silvestri family.


    "Mattheo-san, what do you think about today''s game? Is there anything you want to share with us?"He went through the crowds that surrounded the Italian man before asking the question in English with a thick Japanese ent.


    "Oh, are you thementator boy? You did a good job guiding the atmosphere of the game."Mattheo gave a thumb up at him. Even though Keisuke Hori had a hard time understanding his words since Mattheo said it so quickly, he knew by the gesture that the Italian man praised him, so he blushed a bit in embarrassment. "As for today''s game, it is amazing! As expected of Sensei''s homnd!


    Even such a schoolyard fight like this could gather so many crowds. Now, I am curious about what the national tournament Sensei kept talking about would look like."


    "What about your teammates? Any opinion about Kobayashi-kun and Agostini-kun?" Keisuke Hori asked.


    "He is good. Extremely good."Mattheo said seriously. "His reflex is insane, and his ability to read the game is second to none today. He is unstoppable!" He grinned.


    Keisuke Hori could only nod, pretending to understand his words. In hindsight, he had a headache talking to Mattheo since the Italian man had a tendency to speak fast. Fortunately, he recorded all of this so he could just listen to it againter.


    After the short interview with Mattheo, he turned his attention to the female members of the family. However, Maria shook her head at him even from afar while protecting her daughters from the crowds, signaling Keisuke Hori to skip the interview with them. Even though a bit reluctant, he still did that, respecting their privacy.


    Then, he wandered around for a moment before his eyes met Akira''s and even though he was a bit afraid, Keisuke Hori knew it was his chance to speak with the head coach of the team.


    "Akira-sensei, what do you think about this game? Especially about the yers you trained for so many years. Can you give us a word or two here?"


    All the people there gasped for the straight-to-the-point question, and now, all the attention was on Akira. They wanted to hear what the coach would say, especially since Yoshi and Noriyuki were not here, it nullified all the agreements before the game for whoever lost would have to apologize publicly.


    "I am disappointed," Akira spoke truthfully, not mincing his words. "Not because of the defeat, since I know we cannot win forever. We lose and we learn, that is my principle. What I am disappointed with is their attitude after losing the game, especially my captain and vice-captain. They didn''t even greet their opponents, not showing enough respect for the game. I would have a word or two with them."


    Everyone winced at the harsh critique Akira sent to his two yers. To receive such a word publicly, that could kill the students'' reputationpletely. Even if not among the students, at least, they were alreadybeled as delinquents by the teachers at the very least.


    "What about the performance of the two freshmen on the team? Are you satisfied with them?" Keisuke Hori asked, trying to soothe the tension.


    "I am more than satisfied with them." Akira nodded, a small smile finally curled on his mouth.


    "Then, can we expect their performance in the next tournament?"


    "Yes." The head coach nodded once again, now looking firmer than before. "They are already in my n for the preliminary tournament in the next month. You will see them shine soon." He said confidently.


    Poor Akira, didn''t know that Yuki was ready to announce something outrageous.


    After exchanging more pleasantry with the head coach, Keisuke Hori turned his attention to Yuki before smiling. "Here we are! The main protagonist of the game, Kobayashi Yuki!"


    Cheers exploded from the crowds when they heard his name was called. Even if he was the viin in the beginning, at the end of the day, it was always the winner who would steal the limelight. It didn''t help that the other focus of the game, Yoshi vited the agreement of the game by storming out immediately after his team was defeated, pushing Yuki into a good light.


    "So, tell me, how do you feel after winning the game?" Keisuke Hori asked the basic question.


    "Ecstatic," Yuki answered shortly. "Even though in the end, this game didn''t mean anything since anyone who believed I was wrong would not change their mind at all, at least I prove that even if the odds are against me, I can stille out as the winner."


    Cheers exploded one more time, and now, even some of the yers from the senior team also gave him his flowers. This kind of domineering speech was something needed to raise the morale of the team, after all.


    "What about the agreement before the game? What do you feel for Aoba Yoshi who vited the agreement right now and Noriyuki Hanji who also stormed out before shaking hands with you?"


    "I will just let Akira-sensei deal with them."


    Akira''s face beamed, appreciating Yuki''s diplomatic answer. If the freshman said anything other than that, he had no doubt the crack on the team wouldn''t heal even after all of this. But by saying he would hand this matter to Akira, Yuki basically said he still trusted the coach and respected the team to say anything bad about the yers there.


    "Before everyone goes, I want to say one more thing." Yuki suddenly spoke on the mic, stopping everyone from leaving the gymnasium. Having all the attention here, he took a deep breath before bowing deeply. "I want to apologize to everyone here for themotion I created. While the rumors are something I am unhappy with, I know there would be no smoke existing without a fire.


    This will be a good opportunity for me to reflect on whether I am too casual when talking to my senpai, making them think I am disrespecting them or not. But still, it would be a discussion for another day. For now, I am sorry."


    This was hisst attempt to fix his reputation. While Yuki knew the peaceful school life he wanted was gone, at least he could make it pleasant by giving everyone here a ''good student'' persona.


    The crowds apuded him one more time, their impression of Yuki turned drastically. By apologizing, this made him look like the bigger man, brave enough to acknowledge his mistake. Now, he threw the hot potato to Yoshi and Noriyuki, and for the next few days, it would be them who were under everyone''s scrutiny.


    "Also, I want to make one more announcement." Yuki took a deep breath as all the eyes turned to him once again. "Due to personal circumstances, after today, I will leave the team permanently. So, except if something drastic happened, I am sorry, everyone, but you won''t be able to see me ying for the school."


    "Eh?!"


    All the eyes widened in shock. Even Riku who already knew his decision was stunned, couldn''t believe his friend would announce it like this. And poor Akira, he was too stunned to say anything, yet his face grew paler in a second. It was as if he was about to pass out on the spot.


    "Well, except for sorry, what can I say in this position?" Yuki shrugged nonchntly, ignoring the disbelief stares he received. "I hope that you can still support the team even if I am not here. Until then, bye! Thank you! Kobayashi, out!"

 Chapter 28: Aftermath & Hanging Out With Friends (I)

    "Kato-neechan! You are here!"


    "Riku-niichan too! Come inside!"


    "Are you going to cook for us again?"


    Yuki let out a deep sigh as he saw two friends of hise to the orphanage once again, greeted by the happy squeals from the children. Not that he was unhappy with their presence, of course, but he knew other than visiting and bringing the stuff he requested, they wanted to talk about his announcement two days ago.


    And honestly, he had a hunch this was going to be a topic he had to repeat over and over again for the next few days.


    Still, Yuki was grateful those two were kind enough to spare their time to visit him, even bringing books, food, and some toys for the children here.


    "What do you bring here, Kato-neechan?" Hina asked, taking a peek at the bag Kato carried. Hiko, her twin brother also wanted to peek, yet he couldn''t see anything from his wheelchair.


    Noticing their curiosity, Kato smiled before putting her bag on the floor and took out the things inside one by one. The children''s eyes shone the moment they saw what was inside. The girls squealed happily when they noticed soft stuffed animals while the boys grabbed the robot stuff handed to them with delight.


    "I want the dolphin one!"


    "Hey! That''s mine!"


    "I want the bear one! It is so cute!"


    "Look over here! This mecha is awesome!"


    The room was filled with children''s squabbles as everyone wanted to show off what they just got. Riku smiled for a moment before noticing the two children who weren''t as enthusiastic as the others and waved at them. Curious, those two kids came to Riku just to find out they also had something prepared for them.


    "Well, I know you are already in middle school and wouldn''t be as interested as the others, so I brought something different for you." The blonde boy grinned brightly at them. "Fortunately, Kobayashi said that you both have the same interest, so it is easier for me to prepare this.


    Here!" He gave another bag to Taro and Aina, the two children who were always responsible for their little siblings whenever Yuki was not around the orphanage.


    Those two had their eyes shining brightly the moment they saw what was inside. It wasn''t just a toy or something simr that their siblings received, but full of books and some drawing tools that looked pretty new. Megumi took a look at the books there and shook her head in exasperation when she read the title.


    "''How to draw a manga''? Really?"


    "Hey, Kobayashi said they are interested in it!" Rik defended himself. "And it is not a bad thing to have a hobby! They like it, right?"


    "Um!" Taro nodded eagerly, his eyes were locking in the drawing tools in his hand. "Thank you, Riku-nii!"


    "Yes! Thank you, Riku-nii!" Aina echoed the sentiment before they both were busy with their package.


    Yuki could only shake his head helplessly, yet the big grin on his face told his two friends that he was pleased with the children''s reaction. "Thank you for helping me buy all of this, you two." He said it with a genuine tone.


    "Bah! Why are you so polite?" Riku waved his hand, dismissing his gratitude nonchntly. "We bought most of it with your money, after all. Kato and I just added a little more for the children."


    Yeah, even though it was Riku and Kato who brought the packages, they did it at Yuki''s request. Yesterday was his first time receiving his sry, and he was excited to buy his siblings a gift to liven up the orphanage. Still, since he didn''t know where to buy it, he asked his two friends who were kind enough to even contribute too.


    "Are you not afraid you will spoil them too much?" Kato asked teasingly, still watching the children ying with the new stuff animatedly.


    "Spoil them too much?" Yuki snorted. "I don''t have to worry about that. In fact, I want to do that someday. God knows they have already suffered enough up to now."


    The atmosphere turned somber instantly at the children''s situation right now. All these children were orphaned after the earthquake disaster two months ago, and some even had permanent injuries that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.


    And to make it worse, not even one child here was a native Tokyo, having to live in a small orphanage that didn''t even get funds from the government as they had to survive with so little they had days after day while keep thriving for a better future life.


    That was a messed-up situation that even full-grown adults wouldn''t be able to survive easily.


    "So, are you ready to go?" Riku asked.


    "Sure." Yuki nodded, grabbing his ransel before turning his attention to the two oldest kids here. "Taro, Aina, I will go out with them first, keep your eyes on the others and don''t let anyone y outside until Aiko-obaasan arrives okay?"


    "Yes, Yuki-nii!" The two kids relied, yet they didn''t even nce at him.


    Yuki sighed helplessly, yet still d that the others were busy with their new stuff. While the children were always good and obedient, he knew it was hard for those between the ages of 7 to 12 to just stay at home without anything to entertain them. Yuki knew about it from his experience in the past, that was why he bought them so many things the moment he received his first sry.


    And now, with the children busy inside, he could go out to buy the thing he had already had his eyes on for thest few days. Together with Riku and Kato, they walked for about twenty minutes to the Shinjuku district, probably the most crowded ce in Tokyo, and went to one of the stores there with its name written big on the top of it.


    NTT Do.


    "Oi, Agostini, are you sure the price here is within my budget?" Yuki asked hesitantly, getting intimidated by how fancy the store was.


    "Don''t worry, I have already checked it beforehand. Come on!" He waved his hands, asking Yuki and Kato to follow him.


    Those three entered the store together, greeted by sleek devices and shiny screens being shown on the disy case. Yuki gulped, a bit nervous looking at so many phones here that the price was something he could never afford in his life. While ncing around curiously, he also walked cautiously, didn''t want to have any idents that would bring him to his grave within a second.


    Noticing his awkward walk, Kato giggled before saying, "No need to be afraid, Kobayashi-kun, the disy case here is bulletproof, so no ident will be able to knock it down."


    Yuki blushed, embarrassed at getting caught by Kato. He turned away, decided to change his focus on the shiny phones in front of him, looking around to see which kind of phone he could buy today.


    Yeah, he was here to buy a phone. It wasn''t for the entertainment purpose, of course, but for his convenience tomunicate with the others. At first, he thought it wasn''t that urgent, seeing the only thing he had to get in touch daily was the volleyball team.


    But after two weeks of school, he noticed he was always thest one to get the news in the ss, and when he asked Riku, he finally realized everyone here was in the same group to share information, and even Handa-sensei was also there.


    That was what urged him to buy a phone as soon as possible.


    After looking around for a while, Yuki''s eyes caught a teal flip phone disyed there, and he didn''t hesitate to grab it. While it was thetest model, the price was still within his budget. Still, he cringed a bit when he got the receipt.


    ''20,000 yen in one go? I hope this is worth the money I spent for.'' He murmured lowly.

 Chapter 29: Aftermath & Hanging Out With Friends (II)

    After spending another 1,500 yen for additional features like inte and something simr, Yuki finally walked out of the store, followed by Riku and Kato. To show his gratitude toward his friends for visiting the children and apanying him today, he invited them to have a scoop of ice cream before going back.


    After walking in the middle of a sea of people strugglingly, they finally found a small caf¨¦ a bit far from the phone store and the moment they arrived there, those three sighed tiredly while throwing their bodies to the seat, their faces were full of sweat and dirt.


    "Man, this is the first time I''ve gone to Shinjuku, and I thought the lore I read on the inte is bad enough. I don''t know it could get worse." Riku grumbled.


    "Today is Sunday, and the weather in thest few weeks has been warm enough for people to go outing," Katomented, her eyes on the menu book she had in her hand. "And today is not that bad. If you go to Shinjuku in the middle of summer, you will feel what hell looks like."


    Yuki grimaced, didn''t want to imagine that. He couldn''t even stand the crowds that Kato described as not bad, let alone what she described as hell. Still, something caught his interest here.


    "So, do you oftene to Shinjuku, Kato-san?" He asked curiously.


    "In the past, maybe," Kato answered casually. "When Megumi-nee was in middle school, she was a crazy otaku. She would always drag me here whenever there was some anime event held, and that is probably why I am familiar with this ce."


    "Really?" Riku asked, interested.


    "Yeah, and if you mentioned it to her, it would be the fastest way to get Neechan embarrassed." Kato let out a small giggle. "Honestly, she was horrible in the past. I don''t know how I can stand around her for so long."


    "Oh, I am so going to tease her the next time we meet," Riku mumbled, a mischievous smile curled on his face.


    They exchanged small conversations while waiting for their order to arrive, talking about anything from Megumi''s past as an otaku until a school-rted event like the mid-term exam that woulde soon. Never during this time did they touch on the topic of thest volleyball game, knowing it was the main topic after this appetizer.


    And the moment what they ordered finally arrived, Kato finally asked the question Yuki had been expecting.


    "So, you are quitting the volleyball team?" She asked casually. Riku straightened his posture, his eyesnded on Yuki immediately.


    "Yes, and you know my reason." Yuki nodded, trying to sound casual too, yet there was a hint of defensiveness in his tone.


    Kato caught that and soothed him immediately. "Don''t worry, Kobayashi-kun. I am not here to judge you. Well, I am about to judge you, but not about that."


    "Oh? Then, about what?" Yuki asked, a bit wary.


    "Well, you always said that you want a peaceful school life, so why do you think announcing your leave publicly would be a good idea? Don''t you think it would only attract more attention to you?"


    Yuki blushed before answering, "Well¡­ Impulsiveness?" He said hesitantly, ring at Riku who stiffened hisughter beside him.


    Kato just rolled her eyes in exasperation before muttering, ''Boys¡­''


    Honestly, Yuki also had no idea why he announced his decision in thest game. Maybe, in such a heated moment like that, he wanted to make it memorable for the audience. Still, Kato was right. This was a stupid decision, especially if he wanted a peaceful life.


    "But it is a pity that you quit the team," Riku said while enjoying his ice cream. "Akira-jiisan is going crazy right now. He lost three important yers on the team just a month before the tournament. It would be hard to fill the gap."


    "Three yers?" Yuki asked.


    "Yes. It is you, Noriyuki-senpai, and Yoshi-senpai." Riku answered. Yuki was surprised to hear the two seniors who were responsible for all the troubles that happened on the team suddenly left too. "Even though they haven''t said anything yet, they left our Facebook group, and that is the biggest sign that they are not going toe back in the future."


    Yuki was speechless, somehow feeling guilty for the team that suddenly was torn apart like this.


    "Hey, it is not your fault, you know?" Kato suddenly patted his shoulder,forting him. "If a team could be broken by a freshman like you, that means it is just a timebomb that could explode at any time. It is unfortunate that you are the one who pulls the trigger, but you are not responsible for this."


    "Thank you, Kato-san." Yuki smiled at her, sending his gratitude to the girl.


    "Is there any chance for you toe back to the team?" Riku asked. "I mean, those two are not there anymore, so it would be awesome if we could y together without getting restrained by those stickmen."


    "Stickmen?" Kato tilted her head confusedly.


    "Oh, yeah, you don''t know about it." Riku pped his forehead. "I call them that since they are acting like stickmen when we y against Matsukita, trying to be invisible and running away from their responsibility."


    The corner of Kato''s lips tugged upward, amused with his analogy. "Well, you are not wrong here." She concluded.


    "So, what do you think?" Riku asked once again to Yuki.


    After pondering for a moment, Yuki shrugged. "I don''t know. I mean, my priority right now is to help Aiko-obaasan take care of the orphanage. But if our situation gets better, maybe there is a small chance for me toe back. But it is small, okay? Like, miniscule." He made a gesture by putting his thumb close to his index fingers.


    "I get it." Riku nodded in understanding. "I cannot help but feel disappointed, but I am still respecting your decision. Just, don''t ck off, okay? Maybe, there will be a miracle in the future."


    Yuki snorted. "Yeah, if a miracle happens, maybe, I will join the team again."


    -0-


    Unbeknown to him, far in Tsunemori''s teacher''s office, two people met there, trying to create the miracle to force Yuki back to the team.


    "Are you really okay with it, Mattheo?"Akira asked solemnly.


    "For thest time, Sensei, I am sure with it!"Mattheo''s tone was a sign that he was annoyed. "Kobayashi is too talented to leave this sportpletely. I don''t want him to get buried before he could even shine because of his condition, so please, let me do it." He said thest part with half-begging.


    Akira sighed, ncing at the paperwork in front of him before saying, "You know I cannot decide it by myself. Let''s talk to him tomorrow and hear his opinion first."


    Mattheo sighed, knowing his sensei was right. What he wanted to offer would be a life-changing decision for Yuki, and since Akira''s rtionship with the boy was just a student and a teacher, he had no right to decide anything outside of the school-rted thing for Yuki.


    "Let''s just hope he agrees with your proposal."


    "Yeah." Mattheo nodded solemnly before walking away from the office, leaving Akira there alone with his thoughts.

 Chapter 30: A Big Offer from the Silvestri Couple (I)

    "Pardon me, but what?" Yuki blinked his eyes rapidly, trying to process what he just heard.


    It was a new day for him in the school when in the break time, Yuki was called suddenly, being asked to meet Akira in the teacher''s office. When he was there, he was greeted by not just the volleyball coach, but also by the two foreigners he was familiar with, Mattheo and Maria.


    Although Yuki was confused as to why the couples were there too, he still greeted them politely, especially since they had helped him deal with the conflict against the senior team a few days ago. To his surprise though, it wasn''t Akira who asked for his presence, but Mattheo and Maria, and those two offered something big that he didn''t seeing even in his wildest imagination.


    "You heard us right, Kobayashi-kun," Maria said softly. "We want to sponsor your education, at least until you finish high school."


    Yuki''s mind went nk as if he was just hit by a lightning in this broad daylight. Question after question kept popping up inside his head, like was this really happening? Did he just mishear their words? Was this some sort of a new prank?


    But as he turned around to face the couple, their expression told him that it was not a joke.


    "Why, though?" Out of all the questions spinning around his head, this was what finally came out of Yuki''s mouth.


    Mattheo and Maria nced at each other for a second before Maria patted his shoulder reassuringly, then to Yuki''s surprise, she hugged him fondly. "I have heard about your circumstance from Akira-sensei, and I am so sorry about your family. No child should have ever suffered that."


    Yuki''s body stiffened for a moment as he tried to send a re at Akira. While he was grateful for the Silvestri family''s help, they weren''t that close for him to befortable sharing this story. The volleyball coach himself turned his head away quickly, walking away from his spot as he didn''t want to take any responsibility for what he told the Silvestri couple.


    "That still doesn''t exin why you want to help me, though." He murmured lowly.


    Mattheo sighed, taking over the conversation. "Have you ever heard how I met Akira-sensei for the first time?" He asked.


    Yuki shook his head quietly, didn''t quite understand the rtion between Mattheo''s past and this situation. And honestly, he didn''t even care. Outside of thest volleyball game when they were teammates with each other, the only time Yuki exchanged conversation with him was a night beforehand, and their conversation had never touched anything personal there.


    Let alone how Mattheo met Akira, Yuki didn''t even know how old the Italian man was until thementator of the game announced it publicly.


    Still, out of respect for people who had a good heart to help him ¨C and wanted to do more here, he decided to listen to Mattheo''s story.


    "Well, to put it shortly, my situation in the past was so close to yours right now it gave me a shiver when I heard it from Akira-sensei, an orphan desperate to help keep his new home alive."Mattheo hummed. Yuki was surprised to hear the Italian man was an orphan since teenager like him.


    "I will not go down into thepetition of who has it worse, since while I was lucky enough my orphanage still received funds from the government, there were too many children to be fed, forcing some of the oldest ones to drop out of their school. And as you can guess, I was one of those unlucky children."


    Maria patted his shoulder when she saw her husband started to get emotional.


    "Thank you, Honey." Mattheo smiled gratefully at his wife, his voice was thick. "Anyway, after that, I spent the three years I should have been in high school working hard in construction, gathering every penny I could to help keep my home alive. At that time, I didn''t mind working crazily like that, thinking as long as it could help my orphanage, everything would be okay.


    It wasn''t until that time when I was invited to y in a volleyball game between mypany and the neighborhood there that my fortune changed. That was the first time I met Akira-sensei."


    -A little shback-


    "Oi, Little Mattheo! Someone from the neighborhood wants to talk to you!" One of his co-workers called him after the game.


    "Stop calling me little, Fabio!" He retorted back, elicitingughter from his co-workers. Still, Mattheo was curious about who wanted to meet him. And when he saw the person, it would be a lie if he said he wasn''t surprised.


    ''Oriental face? An Asian?'' He mused inwardly. Still, he offered a handshake to the man.


    "I am Mattheo. I heard you want to talk to me?" He said thest part in a questioning tone.


    "Yes, my name is Akira, and as you might think in the beginning, I am Japanese." Akira chuckled richly when he saw Mattheo''s embarrassed face after he read his mind like an open book. "As for why I am here¡­ Here, let me show you my business card."


    Mattheo furrowed his brows when he saw a small card just given to him, reading it slowly.


    Akira Shinji


    Volleyball Scout


    "I¡­ Don''t understand¡­" Mattheo said slowly, still confused about what was going on.


    "Well, I saw the game you have just yed, and I could see a potential to be a great volleyball yer inside you. I myself am a scout working for Farmitalia Catania, and I am here to invite you to join the trial for the team in the next three days. What do you think?"


    -End of the shback-


    "That was the meeting that changed my life." Mattheo sighed as he finished his story. "Honestly, when I heard about your story for the first time, I saw a lot of myself in you. We''ve got the same drive to keep our new home alive even if we have to sacrifice ourselves in the process.


    And while I am happy now as a retired volleyball yer, I regretted not going to high school when I was young, and while I don''t think your case would be like mine, I don''t want you to have no choice if the worst situation came."


    Yuki just stood there, frozen in a mix of shock, bewildered, and maybe a little of gratitude. To get offered like this meant Mattheo could really understand his situation because even though Yuki had never told anyone about it, he was ready to drop out of the school any time the orphanage was in a bad situation. Still, he knew things weren''t that easy.


    "What is the catch?"He asked quietly.


    "We don''t ask too much from you," Maria spoke softly. "Just maintain your grade to the top ten in your ss and maybe help Akira-sensei with his team. Oh, and I demand you to contact us on a weekly basis so that we can at least know you are okay."


    Of course, they could just give everything freely. However, if Yuki was anything like Mattheo in the past, they both knew he would be too proud to receive it, so by demanding something, they changed everything from a charity to some sort of schrship, and Yuki appreciated that.


    After what felt like an eternity, I managed to find my voice, albeit barely above a whisper. " I... I don''t know what to say," I stammered. "This is... this is incredible. I just need a little time to think about it."


    It wasn''t like he was ungrateful for the offer, but this came too suddenly, overwhelming his rational mind. Fortunately, the couple were kind enough to understand his feelings right now.


    "Take all the time you need, Dear. We are not going anywhere. You can talk to your friends or the matron of your orphanage to give you a second thought. Just remember that this offer is open-ended, and you can say no whenever you feel ready." Maria paused, her eyes crinkling at the corners. "But if you''re willing to take the leap, we will be here to support you every step of the way."

 Chapter 31: A Big Offer from the Silvestri Couple (II)

    As the day went by, Yuki found himself struggling to focus on even the simplest of tasks. His mind was consumed by the weight of Mattheo''s offer, and the possibilities thaty before him. He couldn''t concentrate on his sses. It was as if he was stuck in a never-ending loop, reying the same conversations over and over in his head.


    Before he knew it, the bell had rung, signaling the end of the school day. Yuki gathered his belongings, still lost in thought, and stumbled out of the ssroom. His feet seemed to carry him on autopilot, and he didn''t realize where he was going until he found himself standing in front of the old building he was familiar with in thest couple of weeks.


    "Yuki-kun, you are here! Come in!" The rusty voice of an old woman greeted him from inside the building.


    Yuki shook his head, entering the building quickly while putting his bag down on one of the chairs there. "Good evening, Sachi-baasan." He greeted the old woman politely.


    Yuki let out a deep sigh as he was trying to take his mind off the conversation with the Silvestri couple before and started doing his work, turning on one of theptops there while checking for a stack of books on the desk. Sachi nced at him from behind her crescent moon sses before asking, "So, what is bothering you, my boy?"


    Yuki''s body straightened for a second before he shook his head. "Nothing, Baasan."


    Sachi snorted lightly. "If you don''t want to share, I don''t mind. But I hope you don''t think you need to lie to me, okay?"


    Yuki closed his eyes for a second before letting out another deep sigh. "What gives it away?"


    "Well, unlike the usual, youe here alone and not with Riku-kun or Kato-chan, and I have seen youing from afar and you didn''t even realize you were walking here, looking so surprised the moment you heard my voice. If that is not telling about a man full of problems, I don''t know what is."


    Yuki snorted back at her. "That''s funny. If I don''t know better, I would mistake you for a detective, Baasan."


    "What makes you think I am not one already?" She grinned cheekily while waving a Sherlock Holmes book in her hand. They bothughed merrily at the bad joke she made, lightening up the atmosphere.


    After spending a few seconds in silence with him waiting for hisptop to be ready while Sachi was waiting for him to say, Yuki finally sighed, decided to trust his instinct, and told her the story.


    "I received a big offer today, Baasan."


    "Oh?" Sachi raised her eyebrows, putting down the book in her hand.


    After that, without even beingmanded to, the story came out of his mouth as he recounted the conversation that he had with the Silvestri couple from A to Z. Sachi listened to her words patiently without interrupting even for once, sometimes even nodding in understanding or shaking her head in disagreement to show her stance.


    Yuki took about fifteen minutes to finish the story, and when he finally did it, he sighed in relief, and this time was a true relief that came from inside his heart. Before this, he didn''t know he needed to tell someone about it, but he was d Sachi was here to listen.


    "So, what do you think, Baasan?" He asked.


    Sachi smiled for a moment before saying, "Well, what I am thinking right now is you need a ss of water to relieve your throat first." She offered him a ss of water.


    Yuki chuckled as he epted it. "Well, you are not wrong. Thank you, Baasan."


    "As for your story¡­" Sachi waited until Yuki finished his drink. "You are offered a sponsorship that would pay your school for the next three years and still give you pocket money better than what you could earn here, and the only thing you need to do is to keep your grade in the top ten of your ss and help the volleyball team? I don''t know why you are so hesitant at this point.


    This looks like a steal in my eyes."


    "I don''t know¡­."


    "Wait, let me guess it first!" Sachi stopped him from exining more, fixing the angle of the sses on her face so she could look more like a detective. Yuki snorted, couldn''t help but smile a little at that. "If I were you, I have two reasons to hesitate.


    First, this deal is too good to be true, and second, you feel responsible for helping the orphanage, especially after your matron had to go to the hospital a week ago, is that right?"


    Yuki threw his face away, couldn''t help but feel embarrassed to get read like an open book by Sachi. Still, he had to admit the words came from the older woman was right. For the first reason, he could count the times he met the Silvestri family with one hand, so for them to be this kind was something unnerving.


    And for the second, right when he was determined to help the orphanage, this kind of offer came, and it would be a lie if Yuki said he wasn''t shaken off by it. Still, he felt guilty when he thought it would just be him who received all of this and not the others.


    "Well, if you are still hesitant about this Silvestri couple, you can research them once again after you go home, either asking your sensei or diving into the inte. They are former professional yers, right? It should be easy for you to find the information about them." Sachi advised him patiently.


    "As for your feeling toward the orphanage, hey, it is not like you are leaving them! You are still living in the orphanage, and the money you earn will be a lotpared to working here! You don''t even have to work hard anymore, just fulfill your promise to help the volleyball team and you can use your free time to apany your little siblings. Isn''t that a win-win solution?"


    "I guess you are right¡­" Yuki sighed, putting the ss on the desk.


    Seeing the hesitation still lingered on his face, Sachi rose from her seat, decided to give him one more advice. "Listen, Yuki-kun, sometimes, the more you think about it, the more hesitant you will be, always weighing the pros and the contras. But sometimes, the only need to listen about what you need or what you want is," She poked Yuki''s chest, "Right here."


    Yuki nced at the ce where he got poked. "¡­My heart?"


    "That''s right, because this," Sachi flicked his forehead then, "Is not always as helpful as you think."


    Yuki rubbed his forehead, frowning. But after a moment, he gave a tentative nod. He realized that he genuinely appreciated this entire conversation.


    "I don''t know how you wouldn''t cringe even after giving such clich¨¦ advice like that, Baasan." Yuki chuckled a little.


    "Bah! I am an old woman! I can be as clich¨¦ as I want and no one would give a shit!" She waved her hand nonchntly, making a rude gesture that would make her two granddaughters frown in disapproval.


    Yuki''s grin widened as he couldn''t help but tease her. "Should you try to prevent me from epting the offer? I mean, I wouldn''t work here as often as I do right now if my financial situation was better, you know?"


    "Bah! I don''t believe it! I know you will get dragged by Kato-chan tomorrow and everything will just go as usual!"


    Yukiughed, knowing that she was right. For a moment, they both chatted andughed with each other, the more than 50 years gap between their age was like nothing there. Inwardly, Yuki was d he had this talk with Sachi. The old woman might be strange sometimes, but she could alwayse out with genuine advice.


    And while he was still hesitant about everything, at least he could see the truth behind her words.


    Sometimes, the only thing that he needed to listen to was his heart.

 Chapter 32: Accepting the Offer, Back to the Team! (I)

    Yuki sighed, closing his flip phone before putting it on his desk. Then, he rolled over on his bed, staring at the roof silently as he pondered what he just found out on the inte, especially about the Silvestri couple.


    It seemed he didn''t have to worry too much about Mattheo. Even though his volleyball career was not the best, outside of the court, the Italian man had done so much for hismunity. He had his own foundation that helped children who dropped out of school to continue picking up their studies again, and it helped more than 30 people already in thest decade.


    More than that, at least six young professional yers were expressing their gratitude toward the man because he helped them get out of the slumps. And when Yuki checked their background, he felt a kinship with them, since they were alling from an orphanage in theirte teenager just like him.


    Yuki was relieved that Mattheo had such a bright track record in this regard. Not that he didn''t trust the Italian man, of course, but at least he knew Mattheo knew what he was doing. Still, that basically answered one of his concerns, and he needed to address the second one.


    ''Let''s talk to everyone when dinner is ready.''


    An hourter, all the children and Aiko had gathered to eat dinner together like usual. Chatters andughter echoed in the small dining room as all the children exchanged conversations about how their days went while Aiko was still busy in the kitchen. After all the residents of the orphanage sat, he coughed a little, gaining everyone''s attention.


    "So¡­ There is something I want to ask¡­"


    "Is this also the reason why you look so rumpled today?" Mei, the youngest child asked innocently while scooping rice to her te. Yuki gawked at her words while the others were trying their best to hold back theirughter.


    "Well¡­ Yes, basically." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, a bit embarrassed someone noticed his dazed state. He thought he was sneaky enough to go unnoticed, but it seemed he was wrong here.


    Still, he put a file on the table, and everyone had their eyebrows raised at it. As the oldest one, Aiko took the file from its ce and read it for a second before she stared at Yuki with sparkling eyes. Based on her reaction, the children knew it was good news, so they rushed quickly toward the older woman, trying to take a look at the file.


    "Hey, don''t push around!"


    "I am here first!"


    "What do you mean you are here first? I am the one who sits next to Obaasan! I should have looked at it first!"


    "Hey, you are the older one! You should be thest one here!"


    "What do you mean by that?!"


    Yuki chuckled at their antic while Aiko could only sigh helplessly as she took away the file secretly from the table, letting the children finish their squabble first. After arguing with each other for a while, they finally remembered why they were doing this in the first ce before rubbing their head sheepishly, trying to look at Aiko innocently.


    "Obaasan¡­ Do you mind reading the file for us?" Aina asked. This was the best solution, with none of them having the privilege to look at the paper yet everyone would know the content of it from listening to what Aiko said.


    Aiko snorted in amusement at her ''not-so-innocent'' look before coughing, putting the file back before reading it loudly.


    "Letter of Sponsorship. Student''s name, Kobayashi Yuki. Sponsor''s name, Mattheo Silvestri¡­"


    The more she read the content of the file, the more the children''s eyes widened in surprise. Yuki cringed a bit, inwardly trying to calm himself down. The biggest fear he had right now was for anyone here to react negatively toward him, either from envy or jealousy. However, what he was afraid of didn''t happen.


    "That is amazing, Yuki-nii!" Hina squealed.


    "Yeah! With this, you don''t have to worry about paying the school anymore! And you even receive pocket money! Man, I am so jealous!"


    "Yeah! It is so much! We can buy a lot of things with it!"


    "What do you mean by us? That is Yuki-nii''s money, you idiot!"


    Even though the words jealousy were thrown a lot, there was no heat in it as everyone was genuinely happy for Yuki. They bombarded him with questions, asking what kind of powers Mattheo had, and what the Italian man wanted in return for sponsoring his study.


    Yuki answered all the questions patiently, telling the story of his first time meeting Mattheo, the conflict in the volleyball team, the conversation he had with the Silvestri couple earlier in the day, to the research he did about Mattheo before going to dinner.


    Everyone listened attentively as Yuki recounted the story, sometimes interrupting here and there if there was something they didn''t understand. As he finished, the room fell silent. The children''s eyes were wide with excitement, their faces aglow with anticipation. He could see the wheels turning in their minds as they processed the magnitude of what was being offered to him.


    Aiko was the first one to react after a while, rising from her seat to engulf him in a bear hug. "You deserve it, my boy. Congrattion. I am so proud of you."


    This was the second time someone said they were proud of him today, and while it was nice, Yuki couldn''t help but feel embarrassed. He felt that he didn''t do anything worthwhile to get this sponsorship as the only reason Mattheo did this was due to pity and some sort of kinship.


    And bless Aiko, the matron noticed his under-the-weather mood and asked, "What''s wrong, Yuki-kun?"


    All the celebrations and excitements died down immediately, all the eyes turned at him concernedly.


    "It is nothing." Yuki smiled, trying to look normal. However, no one was fooled by his fake smile as they kept staring at him intently. After a while, he finally sighed, gave in to the silent pressure from his little siblings before saying lowly, "Just think I didn''t do anything special at all."


    Aiko furrowed her brows before flicking his forehead. "Why are you saying that? Mattheo-san chooses to support you because he sees something in you, and that is your wonderful character. Even though you have just lived here for two months, I am proud of myself to say I have a good grasp on you, and Mattheo-san is right.


    You will always be willing to sacrifice yourself for any children here, and I cannot be prouder of you than that. So, no matter what happens, you will always be a special kid in my eyes."


    Yuki had a lump in his throat for a moment, tears piling up in the corner of his eyes. He could also see from the corner of his eyes the children nodding at him, chiming in with words of encouragement.


    "Yes, Yuki-nii! You are the best!"


    "Just don''t forget to buy us more toys in the future, okay?"


    "Taro, you idiot!"


    Yuki let out a small chuckle, a small burden in his heart was lifted a bit. Still¡­ "Aren''t you worried I will abandon you guys?"


    The squabble stopped immediately as all eyes turned to him, looking at the boy with incredulous expressions. Then, Mei, the youngest out of all the children there stepped up and without hesitation, she headbutted Yuki, catching off everyone''s guard.


    "What''s wrong, Mei-chan?" Yuki blinked, still baffled at the sudden attack from the girl. It wasn''t hurt, per se, and he would haveughed if only the situation wasn''t serious.


    Still hiding her face on his chest, she took a nce at Yuki before asking, "Are you going to leave the orphanage?"


    "What? Of course, no!" Yuki denied it quickly.


    "Then, there you go." Mei smiled smugly, an expression that was unfit to be on a young girl. "It is not like you are going anywhere. This would only give you more free time to spend with us. You don''t have to work anymore, right?"


    Silence settled over the room as everyone was stunned by Mei''s train of thought. Still, she was right, as slowly, all the children nodded in agreement.


    "Yeah, Yuki-nii! You will still have more free time to spend with us! Maybe, you can ask Kato-neechan and Riku-niichan toe here too!"


    "Yeah! I want to show them my drawing!"


    "Me too!"


    Amidst the chatter around him, Yuki finallyughed, feeling full of relief. It was as if all the weight on his shoulder finally disappeared, letting him breathe more freely. Mei was right. It wasn''t like he was going to abandon them. He felt a bit silly right now for overthinking about it.


    Still, with two of his biggest concerns answered, Yuki no longer hesitated.


    ''With this kind of support from my new family, maybe Sachi-baasan is right. I should try to listen to my heart instead of overthinking the pros and the contras of it. And my heart knows what I want to do.''

 Chapter 33: Accepting the Offer, Back to the Team! (II)

    "I ept the offer," Yuki said, no hesitation could be traced on his face.


    It was the next day, and even without confirming it first to Akira, he knew the Silvestri couple would be at school. They had been hanging around here for thest couple of days, getting dragged by Akira ¨C who was also a PE teacher to educate the students about the life of a professional yer.


    Maria''s face beamed in delight when she heard that, then jumped on him straight while giving her best hug to the boy, squealing happily."I know you are going to ept it! Oh, wee to our family, Yuki-kun!"


    Yuki had a sweat drop on his face when he saw Maria''s excited reaction. Mattheo just chuckled a bit before saying, "Well, she was probably the most excited one when I proposed this idea. Saying that you are a good kid and some stuff like that."


    As he kept rubbing Maria''s back awkwardly, Yuki was touched by the woman''s sincerity. Even though she only knew him for a few days and it wasn''t even a full-day interaction, she still believed he was a good kid and excited to sponsor his education. If this was not screaming sincerity, Yuki didn''t know what it was.


    "So, what should I do?"Yuki asked after he was released from the hug.


    "Well, have you filled up the form we gave you yesterday?" Mattheo asked. Yuki nodded, pulling out a file from his backpack. The Silvestri couple checked it for a moment before nodding their head in a satisfied manner. "Good. You will receive the news in the next few days."


    "That''s it?" Yuki raised one of his eyebrows.


    "Yeah." Maria nodded. "It is easier to sponsor someone''s education here rather than doing an adoption, especially for an older kid like you." She said thest part while apologizing to him.


    Yuki waved his hand, dismissing her concern before asking again the same question, "So, what should I do?"


    "Well, maybe¡­ Nothing."Mattheo shrugged. "Just enjoy your school life, oh, and don''t forget to exchange your contact with Maria. She will expect you to call on a weekly basis."


    Yuki nodded, yet still a bit dumbfounded with how easy it was. His head still processing what just happened in thest couple of days. One moment he was under the scrutinization of the entire school, and in a blink, he had a backer to cover all his education expenses for the next three years.


    If he wasn''t the one who received it, Yuki would think something like this only happened in a story.


    "Oh, before we part away, here is for you."Maria suddenly offered him the stic bag she had been carrying since the beginning. "E and Be are upset they couldn''t see you since they have to go with their grandmother, but they have prepared something for you. Here."


    Yuki took a peek inside and was touched to see a pair of volleyball shoes inside. It seems the twins also noticed the horrifying condition of his ''one-for-all'' shoes that he wore at thest game and wanted to give him a present.


    "Isn''t it a bit too much?"


    "No, dear. Don''t worry about it." Maria smiled. "Even though we have already done this a lot, this will be the first time we sponsor a kid that his age isn''t that far from our daughters, so they are excited about this too. Just, be ready to get spoiled in this family."


    Yuki nodded once again, bowing his head deeply before shouting, "Thank you so much! I will never forget your kindness for the rest of my life!"


    -0-


    In the gymnasium, Riku sighed deeply, starting to feel bored. It had been a few days since Yuki didn''te again to the training session, and the situation here was getting more terrible as days went by. Only nine yers and Megumi left here, and none of them could lift the mood. They were so preupied with their own thing that they didn''t bother to take care of the team anymore.


    ''Is this really a team?'' He sighed.


    Riku even started to lose the joyful feeling of ying volleyball, something he didn''t know could happen yet terrified him to no end. Still, out of respect for his uncle, he kept going to the training session every day, even with half-assed teammates around him.


    "Megumi-san, what are we doing today?" He asked casually.


    "I don''t know. Akira-sensei said it would be a surprise today." Megumi shrugged. Riku couldn''t help but furrow his brows, starting to hate a surprise in this team. Still, anything would be better than the monotonous routines they had kept doing in thest few days in the name of practice.


    ''I wonder what that was.'' He mused.


    It didn''t take a long time though before his silent question was answered, when suddenly, the boy who said he was quitting the team a few days ago suddenly appeared once again here.


    "Yo, Agostini!" Yuki greeted casually as if nothing happened in thest couple of days. "What are you doing, daydreaming in such broad daylight?"


    It wasn''t just Riku who had his jaw dropped, but almost everyone here had the same reaction. Even Hirano, the cold middle blocker who always had no expression on his face bulged his eyes in surprise to see Yuki was here.


    "What are you doing here, Kobayashi?!" Riku hissed, finally woke up from his dazed state.


    "Of course, training. Why are you so surprised? Aren''t you going to do the same?"


    Riku nodded in understanding for a second before realizing it wasn''t the problem here. "Ni! I mean, I thought you were quitting the team. What happened?" By now, everyone leaned forward, wanting to know about his situation too.


    "Well, it is a long story. Let''s just say a miracle happens and leave it for now. I will tell you the detailster when Kato-san is here."


    Riku nodded in understanding as Yuki referred to a miracle in the conversation they had a few days ago. Still, Riku was surprised to see it became a reality, and now he was curious about what kind of miracles his friend was blessed with.


    After a while, Akira finally appeared. He didn''t look surprised to see Yuki was there, seemed that Mattheo had already informed him of Yuki''s decision.


    "Okay, everyone! Gather up!" He shouted. All the ten yers rushed toward their coach immediately, didn''t dare to let him wait. Akira stared at them one by one for a few minutes before sighing, "Well, we lose our captain and vice-captain, huh?"


    The atmosphere turned somber immediately, the senior yers couldn''t help but have their eyes cast downward in defeat. While Yuki and Riku were not close enough to Noriyuki and Yoshi, for the others, those two were their leader. Without them around, the team suddenly felt lost and leaderless.


    The prospect of having to y without them on the team would be something the yers here would have a hard timeing up with.


    "You know what? It wouldn''t be fair if I gave the chance to back out only to those two. Let me make a deal with you. If any of you feel you also want to quit, I will let you go today. No hard feelings. But after this, I hope that everyone who is still here will be the yers who really want to y volleyball."


    All the yers ¨C and even Megumi was stunned by Akira''s announcement. The team''s morale currently was low, and his first priority should be to lift it up first. However, what Akira did was the opposite, seemed to want to break the team into smaller pieces until nothing was left.


    "Come on, I will give you five minutes to think."


    Except for Yuki and Riku, everyone stared at each other hesitantly, didn''t know what they should do. Finally, it was Yori who was the one to leave first, surprising everyone. They all thought that since without Noriyuki, Yori would be the captain of the team, the setter would stay here until the end.


    But after seeing Ren, another third-year student leave the team too, they all knew it was a solidarity move to support the first two who had left the team.


    As for the sophomore yers, they were hesitant too. But until the end, no one left the team. Seeing that, Akira sighed in relief before coughing to get everyone''s attention.


    "So, only eight yers left, huh?Apart from five regr yers and libero and middle blocker who would always rotate with each other, we only have one backup." He muttered, his face was gloomy for a second. However, his expression changed into an excited one as he pped his hands. "But that''s fine! At least, we know that all the yers here are the most serious ones!


    Let''s show everyone outside that although we are short of yers, we can still make a big ssh in the next tournament! Are you with me?!"


    "YES, SIR!"


    And with that shout, the journey of the new Tsunemori volleyball team had finally begun.

 Chapter 34: Team Training

    It was Saturday morning, and the usually empty field outside the school was filled with whistles and a group of people running non-stop since a while ago.


    *FWEEE!*


    "Come on! Run again! Don''t slow down!"


    "Kobayashi, you can still increase your speed, right? Do it!"


    The shout echoed on the empty field, filling their weekend morning with sweat and tears. Inwardly, almost all the victims here cursed their coach for not warning them of how torturous this practice was. They still remembered how their coach gave the instruction.


    "Our practice menu today is interval running."


    "Interval running?"


    "Yeah. Basically, it is a practice form where you will deliberately change your pace as you run, alternating brief intervals of high-intensity exercise with periods of active recovery. To put it simply, this is a practice alternate between running and jogging, aiming to strengthen all the muscles in your body and build your endurance."


    When exined verbally, the practice seemed to be ordinary, not that bad. However, the moment all the volleyball yers started running, they finally felt the torture of interval running.


    "RUN! RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN! COME ON!"


    Yuki gritted his teeth as he increased his speed the moment he heard Akira''s shout. It wasn''t just him, but Riku and the other five yers also doing the same. The moment Akira blew his whistle for the umpteenth time ¨C that even everyone forgot how many times their coach had blown his whistle that day, the yers slowed down, entering another period of slow running tempo.


    At this time, it was clear for Akira to see which one of his yers had the best physicality and which one had the worst. He was a bit grateful for the smaller team, thinking that it only made him easier to check their condition thoroughly one by one.


    Still, looking at them whose breathing was raged and uneven and even some of them having to drag their body to keep running, Akira knew he still had a lot to do.


    *FWEEE!*


    "RUN AGAIN! INCREASE YOUR TEMPO! COME ON, KOBAYASHI! KAEDE!"


    Seeing the yers running with all their might even though they were already half-death, Megumi bit her lips nervously.


    She also felt bad for the yers there, knowing even though the description of the exercise sounded easy, increasing the running tempo for one minute, then changing it to a slow jogging tempo for another one and a half minutes before they went back for another fast tempo, if that was repeated over and over again, it would take no time for the yers to copse on the spot.


    "Sensei, when will this interval run over?" She couldn''t help but ask.


    Akira nced at her sideways for a second before saying, "It is either until thirty minutes pass or when they have reached their limit first."


    *FWEEE!*


    "JOGGING! SLOW DOWN, EVERYONE!"


    Fifteen minutes had already passed, yet everyone looked more exhausted right nowpared to one hour of ying volleyball on the court. Megumi could only pray everyone would be able to survive this kind of torture, especially when she heard Akira wanted to make this a regr practice.


    "Come on, Okamura! Increase your tempo!"


    The yer whose name was mentioned was running staggeredly, dragging his heavy body until he left the track before copsing on the ground. He was the first one to give into the situation, lying on the ground immediately. After that, one by one started to copse, from Ogawa, Yuki, Riku, Asahi, and Kaede.


    After twenty-five minutes, only Koji and Hirano were left running, still trying to fulfill the assignment.


    "Man, those two are awesome," Rikumented.


    "Yeah. They are the best in our generation." Kaede nodded proudly. "You know what? Even though we don''t like it, we admit your talents are better than us, both of you. Still, if it is just endurance, maybe, we can outperform you two."


    Riku and Yuki nced at each other before shrugging helplessly, knowing that their senpai was right. Akira who heard that smiled before saying, "You are right, Kaede-kun. In terms of endurance, you might even be the number one in Tokyo."


    "EH?!" All the eyes turned at him, shocked by the sudden praise.


    "However," The coach still had this calm expression. "You know that endurance is not the only deciding factor in the game. So, in order to elevate the team to the next level, this is not enough. I will bring you to hell and drag you back, and after that, maybe we can be more optimistic for this team."


    Thinking of the torture that they would have to endure in the future, some of them wanted to puke on the spot. However, the prospect of the improvement they would have after enduring all of this, they started to get giddy.


    ''Akira-sensei is right. It is not enough for us to be the number one only in endurance. We need to get better!''


    After a while, to everyone''s awe, Hirano and Koji were able to finish a full thirty minutes of interval running. While their condition was definitely worse among the yers, they had this big grin that showed how proud they were of their own achievement.


    "Good job, Koji!"


    "Damn, Hirano! You are still a beast!


    "Bah! It is still easy! Come on, give me another one!"


    "You brat! How could you get so cocky suddenly?!"


    Chatters andughter spread among the yers as they enjoyed the short break Akira gave. After twenty minutes, the whistle was blown again, and while they groaned and stood up reluctantly, there was something different in their eyes. Their expression changed, zing with determination. It seemed Akira''s words about the number one team in Tokyo in terms of endurance gave them a new motivation here.


    "Well, as you can see, we only have eight yers here, only one yer on the bench when thepetition began. Not an ideal situation, of course. That is why what I want to create first is an army full of restless yers, an army who will still stand tall when our opponent has fallen from exhaustion. That way, we will have the ability to fight for the entire five sets even without a deep squad.


    That is why we will increase the portion of the endurance practice until the national tournament begins."


    Everyone groaned when they heard that. At first, they thought this interval running practice would only happen asionally. But it seemed they were wrong. Akira was ready to torture them again with a more creative way to push them off their limit.


    "As for your technical ability, I will be more specific training you lot about it." Akira continued. "We only have three weeks before the tournament begins, so it is impossible for a drastic change to be made. We also lose our big gun here, so to be an attacking team is impossible.


    What I want to train you is how to keep the ball alive, because as long as it is still in the air, we are not losing yet. So, the next training session would be another survival test for you. Are you ready?"


    "Yes, Sir!"

 Chapter 35: Serve Training for Yuki!

    It had been a full week since Yuki joined the team again. The training was getting more intense, something he had never done before in his life. Every day would end up with him dragging his body back to the orphanage. Still, he persisted, did everything with noint at all.


    Yuki still remembered Aiko''s request the night he decided to ept Mattheo''s offer.


    "Even though they didn''t give you a lot of requirements, I want you to excel in everything they ask. If they want you to be in the top ten students, don''t be satisfied with that. Be the top three or even the best one. If they want you to help the volleyball team, don''t just help casually. Be the best yer possible for them.


    That way, you will not embarrass yourself in front of Mattheo-san and Maria-san. Can you do that?"


    Even though it wasn''t easy to improve his grade while keeping up with the volleyball team, since it was Aiko''s request, Yuki still did it without hesitation. In the morning, he would always wake up earlier than anyone else, start running around to warm up his body before finishing all the homework he hadn''t done yet.


    After that, he would try his best to listen to what the teacher taught in the ss so that he wouldn''t have to study more outside, then after school was over, he and the other nine yers would receive the torture Akira called practice for two full hours before finally went back home.


    Still, Yuki felt it was not enough. He still had so many weaknesses he needed to cover. And one of them was theck of special ability to intimidate opponents. That was why on Friday, when the team had a day off, he dragged his two friends to help him practice alone.


    "I get why you asked Riku to join, but why are you dragging me into this too, Kobayashi?" Kato grumbled, putting her book in her bag.


    Yuki could only p his hands, sending an apology gesture toward the girl. He knew she was not keen on a physical activity like this. Still, the boy appreciated the fact that she was willing toe and help him train.


    "So, what are we going to do, Kobayashi?" Riku asked, still doing his stretching.


    "Well, let''s work with my serve first," Yuki said. "I have a lot of ideas of how to make it deadlier, but first of all, I need to get my control better. I need to be able to send the ball where I am aiming to, not even a single inch could be missed."


    Riku had a sweat drop on his face. "Aren''t you a bit too harsh for yourself?" For all Riku knew, while power-wise, Yuki was far behind, the sses boy had far better serve uracy in the teampared to the others, and he might even be the best one there. However, Yuki was not satisfied with that.


    "I know I can still get better at it. Just bear with me." He said stubbornly.


    Riku and Kato stared at each other for a while before they shrugged and decided to help their friend. There were no people there in the gymnasium on Friday evening, everyone seemed to be busy preparing their weekends. But that worked well with Yuki, as he could modify the court as much as he wanted for a day without anyints from the other students.


    In a moment, the in court in the gym suddenly had many circles with different colors on one side of the.


    "So, how are you going to practice?" Riku stared at the modified court interestedly.


    "Well, for the first half an hour, I am going to serve toward that side," Yuki pointed at the side with circles in it. "You are going to pick a color. And I have to aim my serve at the colored circle. If my servends on the colored circle, it is one point for me. But if I miss a circle, for every miss, I will have to do five serves on the wall.


    At the end of the day, you tell me how many wall serves would I need to do, okay?"


    This time, Riku gulped nervously, clearly intimidated by the practice method that Yuki came up with by himself.


    "Once again, aren''t you a bit too harsh to yourself?"


    "No, trust me! This will work!" Once again, Yuki was stubborn that his method would work.


    Riku pondered for a while before sighing at himself. "Well, if you are sure."


    After that, the only sound that could be heard in the gymnasium was the ball hitting the floor and Kato''s shout to tell whether it was in or out. For the first ten serves, Riku and Kato still went easy for Yuki, giving him an easy target to aim. It was in the area around the middle back, which also was the easiest spot among the others.


    However, when the count was more than 10, the two suddenly up their game. From one corner to another, Riku and Kato kept giving Yuki a tough spot to aim, always ying near the sideline. The sses boy clicked his tongue as he missed five serves in a row.


    "Oi, Kobayashi! What happened? Do you really want to do wall serves that badly? It is fifteen already!" Riku shouted mockingly.


    "Shut up, Agostini!" There was a thick vein popped in Yuki''s temple as he also started to feel frustrated. He took a deep breath, knowing he needed to be calm if he wanted to do this sessfully. In his mind, Yuki recalled everything, from starting his run-up to hitting the ball slowly, trying to see which part he could do better.


    ''My wrist is a bit stiff. Maybe, I need to rx a little.''


    Yuki yed with his wrist a little before taking a deep breath, starting to do his serve again. This time, Kato gave a purple color, the sign to target far into the baseline on the left side. It was the spot where Yuki failed to aim before, yet this time, he hit the ball with confidence.


    Riku who watched from the outside widened his eyes as he saw the quality of the serve was far better than before. It flew far to the back where Yuki was aiming in the first ce. Riku kept his eyes close to the ball until¡­


    *Thug!*


    "Out!" The blonde boy shouted.


    Still, even though the ball didn''t go into the circle Yuki was aiming for, Riku knew this attempt was closer than before. The ball justnded slightly further, yet everything Yuki did was right. And it seemed the sses boy also realized that as he also had a big grin on his face.


    ''Finally, there is something here!''


    -0-


    Unbeknown to them, in the teacher''s office, Akira took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves. The drawing of the first round of the national tournament was finally over, and the result was on his desk. He hadn''t seen it yet, praying inwardly that the worst-case scenario didn''t happen.


    Unfortunately, Murphy''sw worked like a bitch here.


    The moment he saw the name of the school paired against Tsunemori, Akira widened his eyes, his mind went nk. After a while, he finally reacted, yet only one word came out of his mouth.


    "Shit!"

 Chapter 36: The First Opponent of the Tournament!

    Yuki yawned tiredly as he stretched his stiff body, having a hard time waking up early by now due to the harsh training in the volleyball team. Akira had been crazy in the past few days, kept increasing their training portion to the maximum limit, pushing them to the edge in every session. He didn''t know why the coach suddenly did that, but still, no one dared toin.


    After gathering his soul, Yuki blinked for a few seconds before checking his phone. It was his morning routine now, checking any new information either from the ss''s group or from the team''s group. He furrowed his brows the moment he saw thetest update on the team''s group.


    ''Gather up at 6:30. I have an announcement to make.''


    There was no morning training today, and Akira had never asked for a team meeting this sudden. Yuki wondered what kind of announcement his coach was going to make. Still, he rose from the bed before doing his morning routine, tidying it up and taking a cold shower before he went down to the kitchen.


    There, Yuki could see Aiko was preparing for everyone''s breakfast alone as the other children hadn''t woken up yet.


    "Are you having a morning training?" Aiko asked without even looking at him, flipping the egg on the pan proficiently.


    "No, Obaasan. But Akira-sensei wants us to have a team meeting this morning, so I have to go early." Yuki answered while chucking a slice of in bread into his mouth. "What about you? How does your day look?" He asked back.


    "Hmm¡­ Let me think about it¡­" Aiko pondered for a second. "After apanying Mai-chan to her school, I have to go with Hiko-kun for his checkup, and after that, go for some shopping to fill the fridge. After that, I will probably go to Sachi-san''s ce like yesterday. Oh, thank you for introducing us, by the way."


    "Don''t worry about it." Yuki waved his hand nonchntly.


    Yeah, since Yuki didn''t work again after getting sponsored by the Silvestri family, he brought Aiko to Sachi so that the matron could rece him there. Fortunately, the old woman didn''t mind that, weing Aiko enthusiastically. Yuki was d though that Aiko could work there, as it meant she could cut off her work as a waiter which exhausted all of her energy and reced it with the easier job.


    After checking the time on his phone, Yuki rose from his seat while snatching two more slices of bread. "Sorry, Obaasan. I have to go first."


    "Well, don''t forget to text me if you wille backte, okay?"


    "Sure!" Yuki nodded, putting on a pair of shoes that the twin sisters of the Silvestri family bought for him. "Bye, Obaasan! Say hello to everyone for me!"


    "Bye! Take care!"


    On the road, Yuki met Kaede and Okamura who came from the other side, they both had the same tired look on their face as him.


    "Good morning, Senpai." Yuki greeted politely.


    "Morning." Okamura yawned big. "Any idea why Akira-sensei calls us this early?"


    "Nope." Yuki shook his head. "But if I have to guess, it is probably rted to how anxious he was in thest couple of days."


    "You are right. And it is us who received the end of it. Life is unfair, for sure." Kaede grumbled. "By the way, I heard you have been training your serve recently. How did it go?"


    Yuki cringed a bit when he remembered his training. "It didn''t go as well as I thought." He admitted. While there were several asions where he seemed to get inspiration, Yuki couldn''t still control his serve as well as he was expecting himself to be.


    "Well, that is training for you. Not everything would go instantly even for a genius like you. Just enjoy the process and don''t be too anxious." Unexpectedly, Kaede gave him good advice.


    "Yeah." Yuki nodded quietly.


    It still amazed him how Yuki could get this close to his senpai, especially after the big mess he made that sent all the third-year yers out of the team. Fortunately, the sophomore yers had no hard feelings for him, and after getting tortured together by Akira, they were as close as they could be right now.


    It seemed it was true that only suffering together could bring people closer immediately.


    They arrived at the school ten minutester, and there were still no students could be seen around them. There was still one hour before the ss began, so it was no wonder the school was still pretty empty. But the moment those three entered the gymnasium, they were surprised to see they were thest ones to arrive.


    All the five yers together with Megumi and Akira were already gathering there, waiting for their arrival.


    "Good, you are here. We can finally start our meeting." Akira nodded.


    Yuki sat next to Riku immediately, whispering to the blonde boy quietly, "What happened?"


    "I don''t know. Jiisan has been so cranky in thest few days that I don''t want to be in his sight again until he is better." Riku shrugged, yawned big. It seemed he was also still sleepy here.


    After a while, Akira finally coughed, gaining everyone''s attention. When all eyes were on him, he announced immediately, not beating around the bush. "The drawing for the first round is out already."


    There was silence for a couple of seconds as his words were still processed inside everyone''s heads until it was Kaede who reacted first. "Really? Howe we haven''t heard anything about it yet?" He asked skeptically.


    "Because I haven''t told you anything about it yet, sorry about that one," Akira admitted freely. "At first, I want to tell you only after I have an idea of how to deal with them, but unfortunately, our first opponent would be a massive headache."


    While Yuki had no reaction on his face, the other yers were confused. The first round usually was filled with either weak teams or new teams. There should be no strong opponent there. Or even if there was, it should be a new school that went under the radar, so there was no way their coach would be this worried.


    Unfortunately, they were so wrong this time.


    "Our next opponent is¡­" Akira sighed deeply before continuing, "Shimoyawata High."


    Silence settled over once again, and this time, it was more severe. Even without knowing anything about Shimoyawata High, Yuki knew by everyone''s reaction that this was a strong team.


    Apparently, Riku also noticed that and asked the question, "So, are they as strong as Matsukita?" Since the only opponent he faced in this country was Matsukita, the blonde boy could onlypare the next opponent to them.


    "As strong as Matsukita? Definitely no." Akira snorted. "But in thest couple of years, they were probably the most famous rising star in Japan''s volleyball. Just three years after they joined the tournament, they made a hugemotion by beating everyone in Tokyo before being beaten by Konan High.


    And since then, up until now, only two teams have managed to beat them in a real game, and that is Konan and Matsukita High."


    Riku widened his eyes in surprise. "Howe such a good team dropped into the first round? Should they be qualified for the second or the third round immediately?"


    "Well, they should be, if only the incident one year ago didn''t happen." Akira nodded. Yuki straightened his back immediately, ready to listen to the story. "At that time, they have just recruited Ezaki Tachi, probably the most talented hitter in the middle school tournament two years ago.


    All their supporters were excited, thinking that it was finally the year they would beat the top two national teams. Unfortunately, in the quarter-final of the Tokyo tournament, Ezaki suddenly snapped, throwing a fist toward the referee, creating a big chaos.


    Long story short, he and the team were punished by a year ban from allpetitions and had topete from zero again, and this tournament would be theireback time."


    "And they would y against us, for fuck''s sake!" Kaede groaned immediately. "What the fuck happened to our luck?!" The atmosphere there turned gloomy as everyone also cursed their luck.


    This was the worst situation for the team. They hadn''t recovered from losing their important third-year yers yet, and the first opponent they would have met was probably the strongest team out of everyone in the first round.


    For a moment, the future seemed to be so bleak that even Riku who was usually cheerful couldn''t say a single word. However, the one who felt stressed the most was Akira. Even though he had never said anything yet to the team, he still remembered the headmaster''s ultimatum.


    ''If your team couldn''t reach the semifinal, unfortunately, we have to give up on you and the team as well.''

 Chapter 37: The Night Before the Game

    KY: We are going to have our first game tomorrow.


    Gabrie: Really? That fast?


    Isabe: What do you mean that fast? It is almost May already!


    Gabrie: Shut up, Be!


    Isabe: Make me!


    Maria: Girls¡­


    Maria: Still, I am so excited about your first game!


    Maria: Don''t forget to take a photo, okay?!


    Maria: No matter winning or lose, just enjoy the game!


    Maria: Good luck!


    Yuki shut his eyes, closing his phone after he read thest message from Maria. It was the night before the game, and while the time on his clock showed 22:12 already, he still couldn''t fall asleep. Somehow, he felt a bit nervous about the game tomorrow.


    Yes, nervous. Something Yuki had never expected he would feel. However, this feeling was understandable. While he had already yed for the team when they yed against Matsukita, tomorrow would be his first official appearance for Tsunemori. The word official seemed to put a weight on his shoulders, and coupled with how difficult the opponent was tomorrow, everything added up to mess up his nerves.


    Shaking his head a little since no sleepiness attacked him yet, Yuki opened his phone once again, operating it for a while before sending a quick text to a group.


    KY: Hello?


    KY: Is there anyone still alive here?


    It was a group created by Riku for the three tomunicate with each other. Honestly, Yuki didn''t expect anyone to answer his text, considering howte it was. However, he was wrong. Within a few seconds, someone replied to his message.


    Ayaka Kato: What''s up?


    Yuki raised one of his eyebrows slightly before his fingers flew over the keypad.


    KY: It is rare for you to still be awake thiste, let alone answering any texts. What are you doing?


    KY: And I half-expected Agostini to answer this first.


    Ayaka Kato: IMG1.jpg *check thement to see the picture.


    Ayaka Kato: Our local Lothario is probably still busy with his ''friends''. Maybe you can tell him to stop.


    Yuki couldn''t help but blush a little when he saw the image sent by Kato. It was her in a white hoodie in front of the telescope, seemingly busy with some parts of it. While he had never admitted it, it was hard for Yuki to deny that his friend was pretty.


    Still, Yuki chuckled a bit when he saw her next message. Lothario was the new nickname Kato gave to Riku since she was fuming at how flirtatious the blonde boy was toward the opposite sex. The most frustrating thing was that his charm worked perfectly for the female students in the ss, infuriating Kato more. That was why she called him that.


    KY: Where is that?


    KY: By the way, I have never seen you taking a photo of yourself. What''s up?


    KY: And for our local lothario, I don''t know where he is right now, honestly.


    Ayaka Kato: It is near Mitake-san.


    Ayaka Kato: I don''t know. Just feel like it.


    Ayaka Kato: What about you? It is rare for you too to still be awake thiste


    Ayaka Kato: Are you¡­. Nervous?


    Yuki sighed at thest message before sending back a reply.


    KY: Yeah. Any encouragement?


    Ayaka Kato: Well¡­ It is good to be nervous. Means you take everything seriously. Just do your best.


    Yuki waited for a moment for her to add more. However, after a while, there was no new message again, which dumbfounded him somehow.


    KY: That''s it? No encouragement that I have been working hard and will win tomorrow?


    Ayaka Kato: That would make you arrogant and it would hurt more when you lose.


    Ayaka Kato: Remember, it is not just you who work hard, but the opponent too.


    Ayaka Kato: If every hard work deserves a win, it will be unfair for the one who loses the game.


    Ayaka Kato: Just do your best, and let the better team win.


    Ayaka Kato: That is my advice.


    Yuki couldn''t help but smile when he read all of that. Maybe, this was the kind of encouragement that he wanted. Not the ''You will win because you work hard'' kind of speech, but the realistic one.


    KY: Thanks. I appreciate the advice.


    At that time, all the nervousness inside him suddenly disappeared. No, not disappear. It was still here, but at least, Yuki was finally able to ignore it, easing the tension that he felt for thest few hours.


    For the next hour, he kept chatting with Kato, talking about everything from Riku''s behavior to the astronomical objects she wanted to see. Without him noticing, his consciousness suddenly slipped away, as his body finally fell into the bed.


    -0-


    The next morning, Yuki woke up pretty early. Even though he stayed upte, his biological clock kicked in, not allowing him to stay in bed longer. He prepared for the day quickly, washing his face and brushing his teeth before changing into the green jersey he hung outside. It was his own jersey, with the number 19 written on the back.


    To his surprise though, all of the children were already in the kitchen, waiting for him eagerly.


    "Yuki-nii! You are finally here! We have been waiting for you!" One of them eximed.


    "Today is your first game, right? Is your opponent strong?"


    "Don''t be an idiot! It is Yuki-nii we are talking about! He is that awesome!"


    "Yeah! No one would be able to beat him!"


    Aiko chuckled richly when she heard the debate erupt among the children before staring fondly at Yuki who was still dumbfounded. "They insist for me to wake them up early, wanting to send you off for today''s game."


    Yuki couldn''t help but feel touched by their support. Looking at the children who were staring at him in admiration while some still had their debate running around, he couldn''t help but let out a chuckle too.


    "Thank you. I appreciate it." His tone was genuine.


    "Don''t worry, my boy." Aiko hugged him fondly. "Just give your best and have fun outside! No matter what happens, we will always be here."


    Yuki couldn''t help but chuckle again,ughing at how perfectly simr Aiko''s advice with what Kato and Maria said in the text yesterday. He enjoyed the breakfast with all the children amidst the noisiness that seemed to be a bit too early,ughing together whenever someone said or did silly things.


    For a moment, hepletely forgot about his nervousness. His heart was warm, knowing that all the advice he received was right. No matter what happened, this was just one game. Everyone would still be here even though they lost today. The most important thing was to have fun and do his best.


    With that new motivation, Yuki put on his shoes before nodding to the others, a smile couldn''t be hidden from his face. "I will go first. Be obedient to Aiko-obaasan, okay?"


    "Yes, Yuki-nii!"


    "Good luck!"


    -0-


    Meanwhile, in Shimoyawata High, all the volleyball team''s yers were ready for the game too. Excitement could be seen even from afar since everyone couldn''t wait for their first game after the one-year ban they have suffered.


    "Everyone is ready, right?" Their coach asked. "Let''s use this Tsunemori High as our stepping stone to tell everyone that Shimoyawata is back! Are you guys with me?!"


    "YES, SIR!"

 Chapter 38: Start with A Bang!

    The first round of the tournament would be held with one of the teams acting as the host. This would be the case for at least until the third round, and after that, everything would be held in the Tokyo Gymnasium. Unfortunately, Tsunemori''s luck on the draw was bad enough that they had to be the guest for this round.


    Yuki and the other Tsunemori yers had to gather at the school first before they went together to catch the subway in the Edogawa Station, continuing their journey to the Naka Meguro Station for about twenty minutes. It took five more minutes for them from the station to go to Shimoyawata High by walking, and the moment they arrived there, they already felt exhausted.


    "Man, the home advantage is unfair," Kaedemented, stretching his body after couldn''t move freely on the subway.


    "Well, it is what it is. If we win the game, the second round will be on our home court." Okamura said.


    "Yeah, if we win," Kaede said gloomily.


    The atmosphere turned heavy as once again, they were reminded of how strong their first opponent was. Akira sighed, knowing that this couldn''t be helped. Usually, he would try to encourage his yers, knowing thating to the opponent''s home court with this spirit meant they had already lost half of the battle.


    Still, no matter what kind of encouragement he had in his head, the coach knew it would be futile right now.


    What the yers needed right now was to experience it themselves, letting everyone know the opponent was beatable.


    "Okay, everyone! Let''s go!"


    -0-


    The moment they entered the gymnasium, all the Tsunemori yers were greeted by the sight of Shimoyawata''s yers warming up. Several of them were intimidated by how hard their soon-to-be opponent''s yers spiked the ball. Still, Yuki didn''t have that feeling at all. It wasn''t like he was calm or arrogant, but when hepared them to Matsukita''s hitters, it seemed theycked something in it.


    "Okay, everyone! Gather up!" Akiramanded after talking for a while with the opponent''s head coach. "Before warming up, I will talk for thest time, so listen carefully."


    All his yers nodded solemnly, having their attention full on the coach.


    "First, our starting yers," Akira announced. While he had already announced this yesterday, the coach still repeated his words. "Hirano-kun, middle blocker. Riku, Setter. Kaede and Kobayashi-kun, opposite hitters. Ogawa-kun and Koji-kun, outside hitters.


    Okamura-kun, be ready for rotation whenever we need a libero. Asahi-kun, you will be our weapon in the second set, be prepared to rece anyone who is exhausted first, okay?"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    Akira sighed in relief, feeling lucky that in such a messed-up team, there was someone like Asahi who had a team-oriented mind. Even though two freshmen yed over him, Asahi didn''t make a fuss, supporting everyone while always getting ready to y at any time. Akira didn''t have any intention to take advantage of his willingness, though.


    He still nned to give Asahi the minutes y he deservedter.


    "Lastly, I will not talk a lot about strategy." Akira turned solemn. "You have been in the hell training I design, so you should know how I want to approach the game. Stay connected, keepmunicating, and don''t let the ball fall. No matter how hard the opponent attacks us, as long as we can still return the ball, we haven''t lost yet. Do you understand?!"


    "YES, SIR!"


    "Good! Now, give me your best out there!"


    -0-


    After warming up for the next fifteen minutes, the official referee finally arrived. He called the Shimoyawata''s captain and Koji who acted as the temporary captain for Tsunemori to have a coin toss. After a quick coin toss, Koji won it and asked to serve the ball first. He gave it to Riku who knew what his duty was here.


    ''Riku, Kobayashi, listen to me.'' Akira called the two freshmen before the game. ''Our morale is low right now, and no one here believes we can win today. So, when the opportunity knocks in, I need you both to raise the morale of the team, making everyone think that our opponent is beatable too. Can you do it?''


    Both Yuki and Riku stared at each other before asking, ''How?''


    ''It is easy.'' Akira grinned widely. ''Just do it with a bang!''


    Riku took a deep breath, ncing at Yuki who gave him a nod of encouragement. After seeing how the opponents prepared themselves, the blonde boy knew this was the opportunity that Akira talked about.


    ''They underestimate us. If we cannot score with such a nonchnt opponent, we might as well give the win to them.''


    The moment he threw the ball in the air before starting his run-up and jumped, all the Shimoyawata yers had their eyes widened in shock. They didn''t expect there would be a yer who could do a jump serve in the Tsunemori squad.


    "Fall back!" One of them shouted,manding the others to get ready.


    Riku had no time to care for all of that. The moment his hand contacted the ball, he unleashed a powerful serve that sailed towards the opponent''s side.


    *BAM!*


    There was a panic for a moment in Shimoyawata as they didn''t see thising. In the middle of the chaos, one yer suddenly moved, taking over the serve. However, he could only receive it, not able to control the ball as it flew back to Tsunemori''s side.


    "Sorry! Bad receive!" The one who did that apologized immediately.


    "Don''t worry! Get ready to defend!"


    "Chance ball!"


    "Mine!" Yuki shouted immediately, asking everyone to take a step aside.


    All the Shimoyawata yers moved already to their base position, ready to stop Tsunemori''s offense. All the eyes were on Yuki who received the ball and Riku, the setter of the team. They wanted to know how the blonde boy would initiate the first attack of the game.


    Unfortunately, they didn''t know it wasn''t just Riku who could set a ball.


    As the ball flew in his direction, instead of receiving it to the setter like a normal yer would do, Yuki did the opposite. He received it with an overhead pass, initiating the attack directly from the first touch. He tossed the ball perfectly to the middle front, and within a second, a yellow hair shed like lightning.


    The blonde who had just done his serve suddenly appeared in front of the, and as the ball was above him, he jumped, mming the ball hard to the opposite side of the court.


    *BAM!*


    All the Shimoyawata yers could only stare at the ball nkly. From the serve to the spike, it only took Tsunemori five seconds to attack. No one from their side would expect that their opponent wouldn''t go for the regr three-touch attack to set up the tempo first, but quickly pull out their gun from the beginning.


    When they stared at the two main actors of the y, they felt shiver down their spine as both Yuki and Riku stared back at them hungrily.


    That was the stare of a predator hunting their prey.

 Chapter 39: Quick Four Points Lead!

    "Good job, Riku!"


    "Nice spike!"


    "Damn! That serve is killer!"


    All the Tsunemori yers praised the blonde excitedly. While they knew Riku had a powerful ace, they didn''t expect it would work against Shimoyawata. Well, they should have expected that, since it worked a few times against Matsukita. Still, this was a good thing for Tsunemori whose morale was low before.


    As for Riku himself, he furrowed his brows before turning at Yuki, asking, "Wha the hell is that set? Slow it down, Kobayashi!"


    "What do you mean by slow it down? You think I don''t know how fast you can run? Please, don''t be such a baby." Yuki just rolled his eyes, looking at him in disgust.


    They both red at each other for a moment, making everyone afraid that the two freshmen would make amotion. It seemed they had not forgotten yet the cause of all the chaos inside the team was those two.


    However, their worry was unwarranted, since a secondter, they both had a simr grin on his face before high-fiving each other.


    "Good job, Kobayashi!" Riku''s grin was ear to ear as he praised his sses friend.


    "Yeah! You executed the ball perfectly." Yuki also nodded, praising back his blonde friend.


    Still, they were not as excited as the others. For both Yuki and Riku, thest y was just a normal operation, built from the understanding of each other''s ability to react. Yuki knew Riku was as good as any hitter when he was given a chance, and he also knew the blonde boy liked to do a quick attack, so he gave a quick set near the to take the opportunity of the confusion from the opponent.


    The same could be said for Riku who understood his friend''s ability to set the ball really well, so he could just let the sses boy take over the ball.


    This was the connection between them both that came from always ying with each other in thest month.


    "Come on, Agostini. Give us a good serve again!"


    "Sure!"


    Riku took the ball again, bringing it to the outside of the court for another serve. The momentum was on his side, and as all the confidence in the world was in his grasp, the blonde boy unleashed another powerful serve. However, Shimoyawata was ready this time. There was no chaos on their side as they moved neatly, giving room for the yer who received Riku''s serve before to do the same again.


    *BAM!*


    "Sorry! That is a bad one!" The yer apologized quickly.


    The ball he received flew close to the, far from the setter who was on the right side. Having no choice, the on the left side had to cover for the second ball, and as he was no setter, he couldn''t set it perfectly to his teammates, wasting the opportunity for them to attack.


    "Send it to the number 19! Don''t let him get the second ball!" One of them shouted.


    It seemed since Yuki set the ball earlier, Shimoyawata thought Tsunemori''s setter was him. It was a good strategy to force the setter to receive the first ball. Unfortunately, they werepletely wrong here.


    "Agostini!"


    "Got it!"


    The moment Yuki shouted Riku''s name, the blonde boy prepared himself immediately to initiate the attack. All the opponent''s yers had their eyes widened at the gesture, looking at the blonde boy in disbelief.


    "What the hell?! Isn''t he the outside hitter?!"


    Yeah, they mistook Riku as an outside hitter since he delivered a powerful serve and spike before. Seeing the moment of confusion that hit the opponent one more time, of course, Riku didn''t hesitate to take advantage of it.


    He tossed the ball far to the left side where Koji was waiting, and the second-year hitter executed the y perfectly, sending a cross spike to the right back of the opponent''s side.


    *BAM!*


    "OSH! Nice spike, Koji-senpai!"


    "Yeah! Goddamnit, Koji! That is such a beautiful cross!"


    "Hey, don''t shake my hair like that, you bastard!"


    As the Tsunemori yers celebrated another point for them, their opponent gathered around, discussing about what to do. Gone was all the trace of yfulness and excitement that could be seen before, and now, they all had this serious expression that meant business.


    "Ueno, what do you think? Who is the setter between those two?" Hideo, the captain of the team asked.


    Ueno, the boy with ponytail hair who was also the setter of the team shook his head. "It is difficult to determine that right now. While the blondie looks more natural, the quick set the four-eyes did is not something anyone who has no experience could pull that easily. I need more time to observe."


    After pondering for a moment, Hideo finally said, "Maybe, it is their strategy to mess with us. Facing such a difficult opponent like those two, we need to be more careful to not fall into their trick. Keep your eyes on them carefully, okay?"


    "Sure."


    That was a solid approach based on logical reasoning. Unfortunately, they made a rookie mistake here. Too focused on figuring out who was the real setter, they forgot to talk about the dire threat from Tsunemori that they hadn''t solved yet, and that was Riku''s ace serve.


    That was why when the next serve came, they had no strategy to deal with it, could only repeat their mistake earlier.


    *BAM!*


    "SHIT! Someone, cover it up!"


    "I got it!"


    Luckily for them, while the ball was flying far outside of the sideline, the closest yer to get the ball was Ueno. As a setter, he had the ability to start an attack even though he was in an unfavorable position. Without even looking at his teammates, he sent the ball back to the court, straight to the yer with the jersey number 3 on the right side.


    Since it was an emergency set, the uracy was not good, and the set was too short for the number 3 to spike the ball with full power. He wanted to aim the ball to a specific spot in Tsunemori''s blockers to get a second chance to attack. However, the two big walls formed by Hirano and Yuki ¨C who suddenly appeared out of nowhere on the front line ¨C were enough to stop the attack.


    *BAM!*


    "OH! A clean block! Nice one, Hirano!"


    "Good job closing the gap too, Kobayashi!"


    "Come on!"


    As the momentum for Tsunemori was at its peak, Riku put thest nail in the coffin by hitting an untouchable powerful ace serve, straight piercing the defense area between the middle back and the left back, adding the lead for Tsunemori into four points.


    "YOSSHAAAAAA!" Riku roared wildly, followed by the other yers whose excitement went far and beyond.


    It was at this time that the Shimoyawata''s head coach finally rose from his spot and asked for the referee, "TIME OUT!"

 Chapter 40: Survival Mode! (I)

    Miura Hata, the head coach of Shimoyawata High crossed his arms in front of his chest, staring at his yers with a nk expression. This kind of nk was something that his yers knew exactly what it meant. His coach was pissed. That was why they just bowed their head, not daring to meet his eyes directly.


    After the ufortable silencested for a few moments, Miura finally sighed, saying, "It seems a part of this is also my fault." He admitted. His yers raised their heads immediately, looking at him in disbelief. He continued, "I am too excited for our first game, thinking of making a statement that we are back and the only worthy opponents for us are Matsukita and Konan.


    You are just poisoned by my thoughts, so I apologize."


    Everyone around him just stared at each other confusedly, didn''t know what to say.


    "Fortunately, this happened in the first round, so we have a chance to fix it quickly." He continued. "Let''s start thinking about our immediate problem first, and that is how to stop the ace serve from that number 7." His eyes turned to the blonde boy on the other side of the court.


    Everyone straightened their back when they heard this.


    "Of course, I can put Kubo-kun on the court this early, and it would solve everything," Miura said. Kubo was the libero of the team and probably the best defensive yer they had right now. "But it would mess up our entire rotation system. Besides, if we have difficulty ying against Tsunemori, what would we do against Matsukita or Konan? You still remember their serve squad, right?"


    The solemn nods were shared by everyone there as they had been studying about those two teams for a long time and knew how terrifying they were.


    "Since I will not bring Kubo-kun this early, that means we need to think of a way to stop the opponent''s serve. Your approach before was good, clearing the area and letting Wakamatsu receive the ball. You just need a bit more time to adapt to his serve. Sooner, you will get it. But let''s modify it a little. Hideo, you will also help him, okay?"


    "Yes, Sir!" The captain of the team nodded firmly.


    "Good. Here is what we are going to do¡­"


    -0-


    A momentter, the referee blew his whistle, asking for the yers from both teams to go back to the court. The timeout was over, and the game should be continued again. The atmosphere in Tsunemori was bright, everyone was still excited for this quick lead.


    They all heard the reputation of Shimoyawata High as a school that could break the hegemony of Konan and Matsukita in the past, so for them to dominate the game this early, it was like a fever dream.


    However, their cheerfulness was subdued a bit when they saw the expression of their opponents change. Gone was all the arrogance before, reced with the firm determination that only meant business. No one looked down on Tsunemori anymore, knowing that it could bring them to their downfall.


    "So, they are finally starting to get serious, huh?" Yuki muttered.


    "Yeah." Riku nodded with a solemn expression. "It seems we are finally going to see their real ability. Be careful."


    "You too."


    The game was restarted again with another serve from Riku. However, while it was still powerful like before, the moment the blonde boy unleashed its serve, all the Shimoyawata yers rushed forward, leaving two in the back to receive the ball. This was the perfect strategy to cut off the opponent''s serve momentum.


    By putting one or two best defenders of the team, the others rushed forward, ready to counterattack by overwhelming Tsunemori''s blockers with their number.


    *BAM!*


    "Nice receive, Wakamatsu!"


    Wakamatsu, the yer with jersey number 6 who failed a few times to receive Riku''s serve earlier saved the ball perfectly. It was true what Miura said before, that what Wakamatsu needed was time. The ball flew straight into the setter''s position on the right side, and with three yers ready to attack, Ueno, the setter of Shimoyawata had a lot of choices to pick here.


    Yuki had his eyespletely on Ueno. He observed every detail of his movement before finally reacting.


    "Hirano-senpai, left!"


    Hearing that, Hirano moved quickly toward the left. By now, everyone on the Tsunemori team had already acknowledged that Yuki''s game-reading ability was far superiorpared to the others. That was why when Yukimanded one thing, even Hirano, the proudest of them all had to listen to what he said.


    Yuki himself didn''t just stand there and do nothing. Even though he was on the right side, he still followed Hirano''s movement. It would be good for the middle blocker to have someone assisting him, at least it would cover up the space around him.


    Unfortunately, this decision was proven to be incorrect a secondter, when Hirano managed to deflect the opponent''s spike to slow it down, the referee suddenly blew his whistle.


    *FWEEE!*


    "Eh?" Yuki turned his head immediately, confused at the referee who signaled it was a point for Shimoyawata. "What happened?" He asked.


    "It is a blocking fault." The referee exined. "You touched the first before your teammate made contact with the ball."


    This was a new knowledge for Yuki. He could only nod silently, couldn''t evenin to anyone. Still, he regretted the momentum that would be gone after this since Shimoyawata finally got their first point.


    "Kobayashi," Hirano suddenly called his name, surprising Yuki a bit. In his memory, this was probably the second time hemunicated with the middle blocker directly, the first one was when they introduced each other in the past. "You don''t have toe to help me. Let me do the blocking alone, join the others to defend the back side. Just tell me where to go."


    Once again, Yuki was surprised. This was the longest he had ever heard Hirano talk, and it had been about a month since he joined the team. Still, the sses boy furrowed his brows, couldn''t agree with his senpai''s request. In his mind, blocking was a team event, couldn''t be done by only one person. However, before he could say anything, he was dragged immediately by Kaede.


    "Don''t worry, Kobayashi. Just follow his words. In terms of blocking, there is no person in this team that could beat him."


    Even though Yuki hesitated, looking at the conviction in his senpai''s face, he could only nod, decided to trust them for once. It wasn''t like he couldn''t help in the blocking, and if the worst happened, he could go back on the front line. And it would be a lie if Yuki said he was not curious about why anyone could trust Hiranopletely in terms of blocking.


    With this, he would be able to see directly, how Hirano took control of the front side.


    ''Well, let''s hope it is not a mistake¡­'' He murmured.

 Chapter 41: Survival Mode! (II)

    The game continued again, and like a phone that was just recharged, Tsunemori''s yers found their opponent came with a new spirit, kept attacking them while not giving them any time to breathe.


    *BAM!*


    "Nice save, Kobayashi!"


    Cover up! Don''t let it fall!"


    Even though Yuki hadn''t seen Hirano''s fullest ability as the middle blocker, he was able to catch a glimpse of it, and it would be a lie for the sses boy to say he was not impressed. While it took a while for him to notice, after receiving three spikes in a row, Yuki was finally convinced that Hirano yed a big role in it.


    He didn''t know what his senpai did, but the middle blocker managed to force the opponent to hit the ball in his direction.


    "Riku! Left!"


    Seeing Koji start running from the left side, Riku sent the ball there, hoping that the outside hitter would break the opponent''s blocker. Unfortunately, while Koji had the potential to be an ace, his strength wasn''t enough yet. He was not Noriyuki who had enough strength to pierce any blocker in front of him.


    *BAM!*


    "One chance! Ueno!"


    "I got this!"


    The rally had been running for at least one minute full, with Shimoyawata pressing while Tsunemori was forced to fight for their life just to keep the ball alive. Don''t underestimate one minute, thinking it wasn''t a long time. The fact was, that volleyball was a fast-tempo game. Just in that short period, Yuki had already received four spikes in a row from the opponent.


    And this time, he was already preparing himself once again to receive another spikeing from the opponent''s captain, Hideo. Unfortunately, he was too far to the middle, couldn''t reach the ball as Hideo unleashed a powerful spike straight near the sideline.


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHAA!" Hideo clenched his fist, celebrating another point he contributed to his team.


    "Sorry about that one." Yuki apologized immediately. "I am not quick enough to recover and go back to my position."


    "No, that''s my fault." Kaede shook his head. "I should''ve covered your spot the moment I saw you fought like that. My bad."


    If only Akira could hear the conversation, he would shed tears immediately. Themunication problem that haunted the team for a long time finally started to disappear. It seemed his strategy worked. By forcing all of his yers to survive together in several extreme training sessions, they would get close to each other quickly without any awkwardness between them.


    Still, it wasn''t the right time for Akira to be happy with that. The coach bit his lips, knowing that the wave of attacks woulde from the opponent after this. He pped his hands, instructing, "Everyone, always cover each other! Don''t try to y alone! Alwaysmunicate with each other when you need help!"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    The next few minutes turned into a survival mode for Tsunemori. The wave of attacks kepting from the other side of the, never stopped until their defense broke. However, Tsunemori put up a stubborn fight by keeping the ball alive. The training they had with Akira for thest few weeks was always about this, and it finally paid off.


    "Kaede-senpai! Left! He is going for a straight!"


    "Got it!"


    *BAM!*


    The ball flew once again, back to Shimoyawata''s side as Kaede couldn''t receive the ball perfectly. This happened a few times, whenever the ball was aimed at anyone but Yuki. Akira gritted his teeth, watching as the opponent was about to initiate an attack once again.


    This was the shoring that he also noticed about his team. They only had two decent defenders in Yuki and Okamura as the libero. Even though Akira had tortured his yers for days and nights about receiving, there was little he could do in less than a month. While their reflex was clearly better than before, there were still only two yers who met his requirement to be a defender.


    "Free ball! Ueno!"


    "Got it!"


    Yuki stared at the setter once again, trying to figure out where the ball would go. Fortunately, unlike Amagi from Matsukita, this Ueno couldn''t hide his intention more subtly. He would always nce a little toward the teammate he wanted to give the ball before sending it, making everything easier for Yuki to guess.


    Not an easy thing to do, of course, to notice that single second when the setter nced. But with Yuki''s dynamic vision, it was like staring at an elephant trying to cross the road.


    And when he noticed Ueno nced subtly at someone who started running from the back, Yuki reacted immediately.


    "Kaede-senpai! Stay there!"


    It wasn''t a call for Kaede to receive the ball, but for the second-year yer to step aside. Yuki had his eyes locked in, ready to handle the next y by himself. True to his prediction, the setter went for a quick attack from the middle, using two yers who also jumped at the same time on the wing side as a distraction. By now, Yuki knew he didn''t have to worry about the blocker.


    Hirano would just handle it perfectly, and all he needed to do was wait for the ball.


    *BAM!*


    Another spike was unleashed. Hirano managed to touch it first. Unfortunately, the ball deflected far outside of the court. Yuki reacted quickly, rushing outside while his eyes were still locked into the ball. When it was within his reach, he dived, stretching his arms far forward before punching the ball back to the court.


    "OH! NICE SAVE, KOBAYASHI!"


    However, it wasn''t over. While yes, the ball flew back to the court, it was close to the, threatening to fly over to the Shimoyawata''s side once again. Realizing that, Riku sprinted, outstretching his arms in a desperate bid to reach the ball before it could cross the.


    But just as he was about to get his hands on the ball, Hideo, the captain of the team, sprang into the air with an incredible burst of speed, his long legs propelling him higher than Riku''s outstretched arms. With a nimble touch, he tapped the ball, sending it fluttering down to the floor, just out of Riku''s reach.


    As the ball rolled on the floor, a sense of despair and exhaustion suddenly attacked the entire Tsunemori yers. Before Hideo killed the y, it was a long rally, with them surviving one attack after another. But when in the end, they still lost the point, they couldn''t help but curse inwardly, a thought suddenly crossed their mind.


    ''Damn! They are finally getting serious! How can we beat them now?''

 Chapter 42: Substitution to Change the Game!

    Akira sighed, ncing at the scoreboard for a moment before turning at his yers who were too exhausted to exchange conversation. After losing another five points in a row and the score was overtaken by Shimoyawata, he decided to ask for a timeout. Not only to give his yers a break but also to cut off the opponent''s momentum, just like what the other team did to them before.


    Still, the atmosphere here was so gloomy right now.


    Even though no one spoke anything, Akira could guess what they were thinking right now. The loss of thest five points earlier hurt, especially considering how hard they defended the ball. They put up a stubborn fight, not giving the opponent any easy points while also trying to strike back whenever they had a chance.


    But when all their efforts produced nothing, they would definitely start questioning themselves, can they really beat their opponent?


    "Okay, everyone! Listen to me!" He raised his voice to get everyone''s attention. "Our strategy has been working pretty well until now, keep fighting over every ball and not giving them any easy point at all. We just have to be more clinical in our offense, not wasting opportunity in front of us."


    All the yers stared at each other silently, not knowing what to say. They also learned about their offense problem, but if only it was as easy to solve as Akira said.


    "Well, since we need a change in our offense, Asahi, you will y after this." Akira continued.


    "Yes, Sensei!" The bun-haired boy straightened his back while nodding firmly.


    "Kaede, you are out for now. Preserve your energy and be prepared toe in again whenever you are needed." Akira said to the opposite hitter.


    Yuki furrowed his brows for a moment, a bit confused with the change. While it was understandable to bring in Asahi from the bench since his senpai was better at attacking, it was illogical to rece Kaede who yed well until now. If anything, it should be Ogawa who hadn''t done anything yet up to this point.


    However, it seemed Akira had his own arrangement.


    "Asahi, you, Koji-kun, and Ogawa-kun will form a three-prong attack. Riku, you know what to do. Kobayashi-kun, if you can sneak from the shadow to add chaos, do it! Right now, what we need the most is to score, especially when our opponent thinks we don''t have enough guns to break their defense. This will alert them and at least open up many options for our offense. Do you understand?"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    -0-


    The exhaustion didn''t just hit Tsunemori, but also Shimoyawata on the other side.


    "Damn, I have never thought our first opponent would be this stubborn." One of the yers cursed.


    "Yeah. I thought we have to wait for at least in the third or fourth round to get this kind of tough opponent." Someone nodded in agreement.


    "That number 19, though. He is something else." Hideo, the captain of the team shook his head while staring at Yuki. "He is reading us like an open book. That is something that even a top team in Tokyo would want their yers to have. I wonder why he joined Tsunemori."


    "Yeah! His game-reading ability is a beast!"


    Everyone on their team noticed that Tsunemori''s defense revolved around Yuki, and the sses boy had already proven to everyone else that he deserved the position. Still, knowing the fact was one thing, and knowing how to solve it was another. Miura, the coach of the team kept tapping his chin, pondering on what was the best approach for this situation.


    ''If they suddenly have a solution to fix their offense, we will be in trouble. We need to overwhelm them first before they can do anything. Should I bring more offensive yers to the court?'' Then, his eyes turned to a yer with jersey number 11 who tried his best to shrink his presence. ''Should I bring him in?''


    Miura shook his head quickly, denying the idea. ''No, he is only for emergency. If we couldn''t even beat a no-name school like Tsunemori, we might as well say goodbye to the tournament. And we are still on the lead, so why would I be so anxious?''


    After having that thought, Miura coughed, gaining all of his yers'' attention.


    "Okay, everyone! Listen to me!"


    -0-


    A few minutester, all the yers came back to the court. While there was still a bit of excitement shown in Shimoyawata''s side, they were more subdued right now. And while depression still lingered around Tsunemori''s side, they looked a bit betterpared to before the timeout.


    This was the essence of a timeout. By calling it, the coach wanted to cut off the momentum of the opponent while raising the morale of the team. That was what Miura did when Riku dominated the game with his serve, and that was also what Akira did too right now. This showed that both coaches mastered the timing of the timeout already.


    "Kobayashi, be careful." Riku patted his shoulder.


    Yuki nodded a little, rubbing his forearms a bit. By pulling out Kaede from the court, Tsunemori basically went all-attack for the game. Yuki knew why the coach did this, but it would make everything difficult for him who was responsible for defense.


    Fortunately, the opponent didn''t have anyone who could do a strong serve. Like this time, it was another ordinary one that went straight in his direction. Yuki had to wonder whether the opponent was dumb or something else, considering that he was the best defender of the team. Still, he received the ball, aiming it directly at Riku.


    "RIKU!"


    That shout was what made Yuki realize why the coach put Asahi on the court. The moment the ball went in Riku''s direction, Asahi on the right side started to sprint forward, raising his hand to ask for the ball. Meanwhile, Ogawa also did the same from the left wing, creating a perfect mirror of each other.


    Their movement was so in sync that it was impossible to predict who would receive the ball, something that didn''t happen when Kaede was there.


    Not only that, Koji also lurked from the dark, using Ogawa as a distraction to move from outside of the sideline. Hirano also did the same, stepping back a few before running to the middle, ready for a quick. At that time, Yuki remembered Akira''s message for him.


    ''If you have the opportunity, move from the shadow and create more chaos.''


    This was the opportunity that the coach talked about.


    Without hesitation, Yuki also moved to the right, supporting Asahi while spreading the opponent''s blocker thin. All the Shimoyawata yers had their eyes widened in shock, never expecting such an erratic coordination movement to be done in the middle of the game. They all stepped back except for two yers who acted as the middle blocker on the front, trying to guess where the ball would go.


    Would it be to the left?


    Would it be to the right?


    Or would it be a quick from the middle?


    They guessed wrong all the time, since Riku who went unnoticed by the opponent suddenly changed his stance. Instead of tossing the ball overhead, he reached it with one hand before flicking it gently toward the opponent''s area.


    The ball bounced once on the floor, and for a split second, all the Shimoyawata yers were paralyzed, unable to react in time. Then, they raised their head, turning their gaze to Riku in disbelief. The blonde boy himself just grins widely, wiggling his point finger yfully before provoking the entire opponent with one short sentence.


    "Don''t forget my existence, okay?"

 Chapter 43: A Tough Game for Both Teams!

    "Good job, Riku!"


    "Damn, that is awesome!"


    "How in the hell could you always have the coolest y of the day?!"


    All the yers with green jerseys on the court gathered around their setter, pping the blonde boy''s head excitedly. While they were still a bit down from being dominated by Shimoyawata, at least this y sparked a small fire inside them.


    Yuki could only shake his head in wonder when he saw Riku was surrounded by his senpai. He knew full well by now that this was the blondie''s modus operandi, always doing something shy to make everyone excited.


    "Oi, Kobayashi!" Riku suddenly called him when the blonde boy finally escaped from the crowds. "If you saw everyone moving to attack, you wait in the back for defense. If not, our team will be full of holes. Look into my eyes and you will know where I want to go, so you need to be ready to save the ball if it is blocked by the opponent."


    Yuki hummed for a second before nodding his head in understanding. That was a logical arrangement that he himself was embarrassed to admit it had never crossed his mind until now. There would always be one or two yers needed to cover whenever the team attacked, and right now, he was the most suitable out of everyone on the court.


    "Don''t worry, I will do that." He gave a thumb up toward his friend.


    The game continued with the tempo suddenly fastened, especially after Asahi joined the fun. Tsunemori shortened the gap little by little until at one point, they finally managed to tie the score again. It wasn''t like Asahi was so good that he could change the direction of the game, but he brought something different that elevated Tsunemori''s offense.


    Yeah, usually, the attack would be one-sided toward the left where all the heavy hitters gathered. It wasn''t like no one was able to do it from the right, but since most of them were right-handed hitters, they preferred to be on the left side. Whoever on the left side usually prepared themselves to get ready defending the attack from the opponent''s outside hitter.


    However, Asahi was a left-handed man, and he preferred to attack from the right side. That meant all the wing side was upied by Tsunemori yers, which activated Riku''s ability to spread out the blockers and attack the opponent with more variations.


    To put it simply, Asahi''s appearance unlocked Tsunemori''s offense from all over the court.


    *BAM!*


    "Nice receive, Wakamatsu!"


    That didn''t mean it was easier to pierce Shimoyawata''s defense, though. They were still tough as usual, proven by Wakamatsu who dived spectacrly to save the ball that was about to fall.


    "Ueno, keep calm! Don''t be hasty! We can kill it!"


    The setter nced around for a moment, looking at where he would send the ball. Fortunately, he hadn''t known that Yuki figured out his tick yet, so he didn''t know how the sses boy could read him like an open book.


    "Hirano-senpai, dump!" He shouted.


    Yuki could see the opponent''s setter was frustrated he was able to predict his movement once again. Hirano who heard the instruction backed down instantly. While it was possible to block the dump directly, he was too close to the and was not willing to risk another blocking foul.


    He received the ball awkwardly, letting it fly on the spot.


    "Senpai, move!" Riku suddenly appeared.


    Since it was still too close to the, even though Hirano received the ball well, it only turned into an overpass situation. Fortunately, Riku reacted immediately, sprinting over in that direction and jumping, wiping the ball first before the opponent could do it.


    However, one of the yers with a white jersey suddenly rushed forward, saving the ball before it could touch the floor.


    "Oh! Nice save, Senki!"


    "Hideo, follow it up!"


    All the Tsunemori yers cursed the same thing the Shimoyawata did often earlier. They both started questioning what kind of joke God wanted to make by letting two stubborn teams meet against each other in the first round.


    Still, since it was an emergency save, the setter couldn''t get the second ball, and the captain had to set the offense by himself. He passed the ball awkwardly to the left, far lower than the height of the. It was impossible to end the turn with a spike, so the outside hitter there just sent the ball toward the Tsunemori''s side once again.


    "Chance ball!"


    Having another chance to attack, all the Tsunemori yers stepped back a little before doing their run-up simultaneously. It was a sporadic attack with four yers running in all directions to create more chaos on the opponent''s side.


    By now, while all the yers with white jerseys were eyeing Tsunemori''s yers one by one, they also kept their eyes on Riku, didn''t want to receive the end of another dump trick.


    Without even looking, Riku sent the ball to his back, where Asahi was waiting on the right wing. Seeing the balling, the bun-haired boy didn''t hesitate to jump, recoiled his arms back and got ready to hit the ball. The outside hitter of Shimoyawata on the other side also moved, wanting to at least disturb the spike.


    Even though separated by the, the collision between those two was unavoidable as when Asahi spiked the ball, the opponent''s body crossed the half-court line.


    *FWEEE!*


    The referee''s whistle echoed immediately. No matter where the ball would go, it was another point for Tsunemori, considering the opponent touched the first. It was the same blocking fault that Yuki had done earlier.


    However, no one cared about that.


    "YOSSSHAAAA!!!"


    All the yers with green jerseys roared simultaneously, celebrating the point. Meanwhile, some of the Shimoyawata''s yers sprawled on the ground, their chests heaving as they struggled to catch their breath. This was another one of an exhausting rally.


    Looking at the score that hadn''t even touched 20 in the first set, they all cursed at the same time, knowing it would be long before the game was over.


    However, there was someone on Tsunemori''s side who wanted to cut the game short. He walked outside of the court line while grabbing the ball, preparing to serve. Pushing his sses slightly upward, he recalled all the sweat and tears he shed to train his serve in thest two or three weeks to reach the level of perfection.


    While it wasn''t there yet, he had the confidence the level of his serve would be enough for his team to take over the lead and even widen the gap between the two teams.


    ''Well, let''s see how effective it would be¡­''

 Chapter 44: Yukis Serve Dominating the Game!

    As he grabbed the ball from the referee, Yuki nced sideways toward the scoreboard.


    Shimoyawata High16


    Tsunemori High13


    ''Three points behind, huh?'' He muttered while bouncing the ball to the floor.


    As thest person in the rotation to serve the ball, Yuki was surprised it took so long for his turn toe finally. But that just meant once one team gained momentum, it was hard for the other team to stop it. Still, he was proud that the team could match the intensity of Shimoyawata, the so-called third-best team in Tokyo right now, and still put up a decent fight.


    However, Yuki knew something needed to be changed here.


    If all the long and exhausting rallies that had already happened in this game were prolonged until the end, it would be Tsunemori who was at a disadvantage. After all, there were only two yers avable on their bench, and one of them had to be rotated constantly with the middle blocker.


    It was farpared to the thick squad that the opponent had, which contained at least six to seven bench yers that were ready toe into the court.


    So, if nothing drastic happened, they would die first before seeing the end of the game.


    ''Okay, I have been training my ass off for this. Let''s see how effective my new serve is.''


    Yuki took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he as trying to visualize where he wanted his serve tond. The moment the referee blew his whistle, Yuki tossed the ball slightly into the air before hitting it softly. It was a normal serve, not the floater he was proud of. He saved it untilter since after three weeks, he wasn''t able to reach the level of control he wanted.


    But with a normal serve, everything was different.


    There was no twist in his ball as it flew directly to the other side of the. One of the Shimoyawata yers moved forward since the ball was about to fall into the middle front. However, he was frozen on the spot out of a sudden, letting the ball fall gently into the floor.


    *Thud!*


    "Yosh!" Yuki clenched his fist, celebrating his first sessful serve. While they didn''t understand what happened, all of his teammates also came to him for a high-five.


    "Good job, Kobayashi!"


    "Keep it up!"


    Meanwhile, all the Shimoyawata yers stared at the yer who was frozen on the spot with questioning gazes. The yer himself flushed a little before apologizing. "Sorry, that was my bad. I don''t know what happened."


    Hideo as the captain nodded before anyone could say anything. "Don''t let the same mistake happen twice, okay?"


    "Yes, Captain."


    In their mind, there was nothing special in Yuki''s serve. It was a normal one that any novice yer should be able to receive. However, when the second serve wasing and the same yer reacted toote to pick up the ball, questions came into their head.


    "What happened, Senki?" Hideo asked. "Is there anything wrong with his serve?"


    "I don''t know." The yer named Senki was as confused as the others were. "It looks like any ordinary serve, but I don''t know why I hesitate again."


    The confusion grew as the third serve from Yuki came, and this time, while Senki could receive the ball, it was a shaky, short pass. Ueno as the setter couldn''t pass the ballfortably with that kind of ball, so he could only rely on an underhand pass toward the left side.


    *BAM!*


    As Hideo tried to spike the ball to pierce Tsunemori''s blocker forcefully, the set-up was too short, making it easier for Hirano to block it. The cold-blooded blocker didn''t even move from his spot, just jumped and the ball came into his hand.


    "NICE BLOCK, HIRANO!"


    "Goddamnit, that is a clean block!"


    "Nice! We tie the game!"


    As celebrations broke on the court, Akira on the sideline couldn''t help but shake his head, looking at Yuki with a marveled expression.


    "That boy¡­ When did he learn that trick?"


    Seeing the coach noticed what happened, Megumi who had no idea asked, "I don''t understand, Sensei. What Kobayashi-kun did was just regr serves, nothing special like his usual floater. How could that Shimoyawata''s yer not able to receive it perfectly?"


    Akira nced at the girl sideways before exining, "It is because of his tricky route that Kobayashi picked."


    "Tricky route?"


    "Yeah." Akira nodded. "Do you know the base position for a setter on the court?"


    Not understanding where the conversation would go, Megumi still answered, "The front-right, right? To make it easier for the setter to pass the ball to a right-handed outside hitter on the left."


    Akira nodded once again in approval. "No matter where is his position in the rotation, right after the opponent serves, he has to move to that position quickly. It seems Kobayashi noticed that and aimed at the setter''s route to go back into that spot.


    When seeing the settering from the corner of his eyes, the yer who has to receive the ball unconsciously thinks that the setter is about to receive it. That is why he was alwayste to receive the ball."


    Megumi and Kaede who heard the exnation could only stare at their kouhai in awe. Don''t think it was easy, but it required a precise serve that someone wouldn''t be able to achieve overnight. Then, all the personal training that Yuki always did after the normal session suddenly made sense for them all.


    "So, that is why he always said that he wanted to hone his control, huh?" Kaede grinned in admiration. "What a beast."


    Akira also nodded in agreement with Kaede''s sentiment. He didn''t know how could a yer with only one month of experience in volleyball think of such a way to exploit the opponent''s rotation to turn an ordinary serve into a killer one. It seemed that he had to talk to Yuki about more tricks in serving the ball so that the sses boy could be more creative and versatile there.


    It had to wait forter though, as right now, Yuki was preparing himself to do his sixth serve in a row. He took the ball calmly before releasing such an ordinary ball. However, this kind of ordinary ball would give Shimoyawata PTSD if they lost the game.


    "Move, Senki!"


    Wakamatsu, the guy with the second-best defense in the opposite team besides the libero stepped forward. While they still didn''t know why Senki was unable to receive such an easy ball, they knew there was something wrong with it. As the best defender on the court right now, it was Wakamatsu''s duty to check it out by himself.


    Unfortunately, he was so focused on the ball that he didn''t notice the presence of Ueno that came into his peripheral vision affected his judgment. It was just like Senki before, he was frozen on the spot as if waiting for his teammates to receive the ball first. In the end, the ball fell shortly in front of him with ease, no one was quick enough to save it.


    Horrors could be seen in Shimoyawata''s yers'' expressions. It was as if they were somehow bewitched by Yuki to freeze on the spot. No logical exnation came inside their head to exin the serve, and why they couldn''t react in time for that.


    Meanwhile, Yuki who had just done another masterss serve spread his arms widely, nothing could hide the smug smile on his face. The sessful six serve in a row was a testament to his hard work in thest three weeks. Even though at first nce, nothing special in it, he could still toy with such a difficult opponent like Shimoyawata as if they were just a novice team.


    ''Now that we are on the lead with three points, let''s see what they would do. Can they figure out the secret of this serve?''

 Chapter 45: Snatching the First Set!

    Miura furrowed his brows deeply as he witnessed this disaster. One serve after another, his team couldn''t even react at all, letting it fall to the floor. This was honestly the first time he received the end of such a y, and it would be a lie if he was not afraid.


    He turned his attention back to the court once again, looking at who was the one on the back left. Seeing it was an opposite hitter who hadn''t done much, Miura sighed, pondering for another few seconds before asking his libero toe.


    "Kubo-kun,e here!"


    "Yes, Coach!" The libero with a bright, red jersey came.


    "I need you to go there and stop this nonsense," Miura said. "Form a two-yer defense with Wakamatsu on the back like before and don''t let it fall again."


    Kubo nodded, trying to fix the corner of his shirt. "So, am I going for Genta again?" He asked.


    "No, you are going for Tadano-kun."


    Kubo widened his eyes for a moment, surprised by the decision. Usually, he would always rotate with Genta, the middle blocker of the team whenever he was on the back. However, this time, Miura called him to rotate with Tadano, the opposite hitter who was good at blocking too. Looking at the position Tadano was in right now, Kubo understood quickly why the coach did that.


    "You only want me to stop the serve?" He asked.


    "Exactly." Miura nodded.


    What the team needed the most right now was to stop the strange serve from the opponent, and Kubo was probably the best one to do that. After that, when the team managed to win a point, the rotation would ur, and the libero would have toe out once again as he couldn''t be on the front line.


    This assignment was perfect for stopping the opponent''s attack while ensuring their next turn would still be as attacking as before.


    "Okay, let me do this." Kubo nodded with confidence.


    After another one of Yuki''s serve that couldn''t be stopped by Wakamatsu or Senki, the libero finally came into the court. His presence was enough to send relief to the team, knowing that he was here to cut off the loss.


    "Wakamatsu, you are with me. Everyone, move a little bit forward. Give us more space." He instructed.


    Everyone nodded, following hismand. This was not a strange arrangement for the yers. Before, when Riku was on fire at the beginning of the game, the same kind of defensive method was also implemented by the team. However, this time, with the two best defenders of the team there, they were not worried about it anymore.


    "Stop the serve for us, Kubo." Hideo patted his shoulder solemnly.


    "Don''t worry, I will."


    A momentter, Yuki served another one into the same tricky route as before. While the same thing happened with the setter''s presence affected Kubo''s judgment, his reaction was quick enough to save the ball. He leaned his body forward to the point it was almost parallel to the floor before extending his arms, receiving the ball perfectly to let it fly on the spot.


    "Oh! Finally!"


    "Nice, Kubo!"


    "Ueno! Go to the left!"


    Excitement rushed as all the yers with white jerseys saw their libero receiving the ball. Now, three yers rushed forward, waiting for Ueno to send the ball. Without hesitation, the setter tossed it toward the left side where all the strong hitters gathered.


    *BAM!*


    Hideo spiked the ball hard, trying to pierce the wall formed by Hirano and Asahi. It hit the middle blocker''s hand, yet unfortunately for Tsunemori, the ball bounced far outside of the line.


    "OOOOH!"


    "FINALLY! No more bullshit serve!"


    "Damn! Good job, Kubo!"


    As the celebration broke, Yuki could only shrug helplessly on the other side. Still, everything went beyond his expectations. At first, he thought that if his serve could at least contribute two or three points, he would be satisfied. But to his surprise, he scored seven points in a row with his serve.


    To make things better, never once he exposed that he had a floater in his arsenal, making it more difficult for the opponent in the future.


    And it wasn''t like losing the point here was the worst thing in the world. In fact, the situation was still under Tsunemori''s grasp as the mentality of Shimoyawata''s yers was shaken by his serve. The moment their next yer came to serve, it fell shortly into the, couldn''t even deliver the ball across the other side of the court.


    "Yes!"


    "Come on! Five more points!"


    The excitement in Shimoyawata''s side moved quickly to their opponent as by now, all the Tsunemori yers had this bright face. Not only was it because they reached 20 points first and only needed five more to snatch the first set from the opponent, but also because the next one to serve gave them the confidence to do that.


    Yeah, it was the blonde boy who created a nightmare at the beginning of the game.


    "Give us a good serve, Riku!"


    "Yeah! Score one or two!"


    "Don''t you dare to mess this up, Agostini!"


    Riku walked outside while bouncing the ball on the floor, the grin on his face was full of confidence. He knew this was a crucial time for the team to snatch the first set, and the setter was determined to make it happen in one go.


    The moment the referee blew his whistle, Riku came once again with his powerful ace serve. While he didn''t have absolute control like Yuki, the blonde boy always had confidence in his serve, and it was justifiable confidence as the ball pierced through the area between the middle back and the left back, causing a mimunication between the two yers guarding that area.


    *BAM!*


    "OH! THE FIRST ACE SERVE!"


    "Come on, Riku! Do it again!"


    After that, the serve came again. This time, it went directly to Hideo. Shimoyawata''s captain managed to pick up the ball, yet receiving the ball wasn''t his strong point. It was a shaky receive that flew in the direction no one was guarding.


    "Shit! Anyone, cover it up!"


    "I got it"


    Senki rushed toward the ball, trying to reach the ball before it could fall to the floor. Unfortunately, he was too slow, couldn''t save the ball which added one more point for Tsunemori.


    "Nice!"


    "Come on! Three more points!"


    "You can do it, Riku!"


    Meanwhile, Miura on the sideline shook his head repeatedly when he saw the disastrous performance his yers showed. While Riku''s serve was powerful, they were able to receive it before, and in theory, it shouldn''t be a problem too this time. However, they were still shaken up by Yuki''s witchcraft serve which made their performance far sloppier than usual.


    It wasn''t until Tsunemori got another two points and one away from winning the first set that he finally rose from his seat.


    "Wakamatsu! What happened?! Are you going to keep closing your eyes on their serve?! Wake up, you fool!"


    "Hideo, you too! Where is your voice?! You are the captain, for God''s sake!"


    "Senki, don''t just freeze there like a bloody statue! Move! Do you want me to rece you?!"


    Everyone was surprised to see Shimoyawata''s coach suddenly roar at his yers like that. He always gave the impression of a calm person, so for him to vent out like this, it seemed everything that happened on the court reached his bottom line. Even his own yers also had the same reaction, with some bowed their heads in fright as they didn''t want to be the next target of his scolding.


    Unfortunately, it was toote for him to do that, as his yer''s mentality couldn''t be fixed instantly, especially when they still had to face another one of Riku''s ace serve.


    *BAM!*


    The ball''s trajectory was a perfect arc, soaring high above the and plummeting down towards Shimoyawata''s court. In the blink of an eye, the ball mmed down onto the floor, its force sending shockwaves through the air as it buried itself into the sand with a loud thud.


    The moment he saw the ball fall perfectly into the spot close to the sideline, Riku raised his fist high, his eyes lit up with a triumphant grin on his face. After that, all the yers with green jerseys jumped into his body as they screamed in delight.


    "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT, RIKU?!"


    "GODDAMNIT, THAT IS AWESOME!"


    "WE TAKE THE FIRST SET! WE TAKE THE FIRST SET!"


    "COME ON! WE CAN WIN THE GAME!"


    Miura on the sideline could only shake his head in disappointment when he saw Tsunemori''s yers celebrate. While Riku''sst serve was amazing, he couldn''t help but feel if his yers were in their best state, they would be able to receive it. Still, no matter what happened, it had already happened, and nothing would change no matter what.


    Right now, what he thought inside his mind was how he should get away from this mess as quickly as possible.


    "Ezaki," He suddenly called the yers with jersey number 11 on the bench. "Prepare yourself. It is time for you to repay all the debtsst year."

 Chapter 46: New Character Appeared! Ezaki Nakamoto!

    "Good job, everyone!" Akira pped excitedly, his face was full of smiles.


    It was the intermission before the second set began, and the atmosphere on Tsunemori''s bench was lively. While the exhaustion after such a long set was still there, it couldn''t dampen everyone''s excitement, and Akira didn''t have the intention to do that too.


    Winning the first set against Shimoyawata High was a big deal, after all.


    Even Akira didn''t expect his team would do wonders against them. In his mind, as long as they were not behind for more than five points, everything would be fine. It wasn''t until he saw the performance of his two freshmen that Akira changed his thought.


    ''Maybe, we can really win this game.''


    "Okay, everyone, listen to me!" He shouted once again, attracting his yers'' attention. While excitement was good, they had to know that the game was still on. They had done half of the job well, and now, they had to ensure that they could finish it all. "We have done so well earlier, but there is still room for improvement. Koji!"


    "Yes, Sir!" The boy who took Noriyuki''s role as the ace of the team straightened his back.


    "You have to participate more actively in defense! We are not the old Tsunemori who gave such a leeway for one or two particr yers anymore!"


    "Yes, Sensei!" The boy replied in a military fashion.


    "And that is for you all too." Akira turned his head toward all of his yers. "Don''t think that since Kobayashi or Okamura or Kaede could cover your asses, you can do anything you want! While they are amazing defenders, they cannot do everything alone! Remember, I want you all to cover each other and stay connected! Alwaysmunicate and don''t let your teammates fight alone, do you understand?!"


    "Yes, Sir!"


    -0-


    A momentter, the referee blew his whistle, asking for the yers from both teams to enter the court again. The second set of the game would be started in a second, the fateful set for Shimoyawata''s future, whether they would survive and prolong the game to the final set or die here straight away would be determined by whether they could get 25 points first or not in the set.


    That was probably why they were so tense at the moment.


    However, Yuki who was the most observant yer in the team furrowed his brows deeply, noticing something wrong. While he could understand the gloominess on the opposite side after losing the first set, there was something else he couldn''t figure out based on their expression. It was a... Hostility?


    ''Toward whom, though?'' He murmured confusedly.


    "Anything wrong, Kobayashi?" Riku asked, noticing his friend who was in a dazed state.


    "Nothing." The sses boy shook his head. "Just thinking there is something wrong on Shimoyawata''s side."


    "Really?" Riku asked skeptically, turning around at the opponent too. "The only thing changed on their side is the presence of that yer number 11."


    "yer number 11?" Yuki''s eyes wandered for a moment before they locked into one particr yer that Riku mentioned. It was a boy with slightly curly hair and a meek demeanor that gave everyone the impression he was easy to be bullied. "Since when was he there?" Yuki asked confusedly.


    "Dunno." Riku shrugged. "Maybe the opponent''s coach is not satisfied with their performance and he thought this number 11 would be the game changer for them."


    Yuki nodded, knowing what Riku said was reasonable. But if he was the game changer, how could his teammates look at him with such an intense hostility?


    "Anyway, don''t overthink it, Kobayashi." Riku waved his hand nonchntly. "I doubt he would be able to make such a drastic change. Come on, we have to prepare ourselves too."


    Yuki nodded, yet his eyes still locked on the number 11 yer. The tiny bit of worry didn''t go away, as his hunch told him that this new yer would be someone troublesome for the team.


    ''I need to keep my eyes on him.''


    -0-


    Just like Yuki''s thought, the atmosphere on Shimoyawata was tense. It wasn''t much for the lost, but for the presence of the yer that their head coach brought into the game. While some of them were neutral, there were yers who scowled at the new boy, looking at him with a hostile intention.


    "Oi, Ueno," Senki called the setter. " Don''t pass him the ball, okay?"


    Ueno pondered for a moment before shaking his head. "I am sorry, Senki. I cannot do that."


    Senki froze on the spot for a second before his expression changed, couldn''t hide his rage anymore. "You know what he didst year, right? Because of his stupidity all of our senpai had to bury their dream for nothing!"


    "I know." Ueno nodded solemnly. "But thus opponent, Tsunemori, is stronger than we thought. We cannot win against them without his ability.


    Senki was speechless for a second. While he knew his friend was right, his heart wouldn''t let go of the hatred inside his heart. After a while, he just clicked his tongue to express his thoughts and turned away.


    "Just do whatever you like." He said finally.


    A momentter, the second set finally began with Hideo doing the first serve. While he had a powerful jump serve, it wasn''t at the same level as Riku, and Tsunemori also started the rotation with Yuki and Okamura, the two strongest defenders on the back. They did not worry that Hideo would be able to pull something like Yuki or Riku did earlier.


    *BAM!*


    A strong serve delivered toward Okamura''s direction. The libero didn''t have any problem receiving the ball.


    "Senpai!"


    Okamura knew who just called his name, and he directed the ball easily toward him. The blonde boy on the right side grinned after seeing such a perfect passing at him.


    Asahi and Koji started his run-up immediately, moving in sync. Knowing that Okamura was here, Yuki also decided to join the attack. The simultaneous movement from the three of them was enough to give the opponent a headache.


    Riku himself was calm, didn''t give away any notable tick that indicated where he would send the ball. It wasn''t until the ball was about to fall in his hand that the blonde boy started moving. Without hesitation, he sent the ball toward the left, fooling one of the blockers who tried to read his game.


    "Nice pass, Riku!"


    Koji who received the ball had the same grin as Riku before, knowing that this was such a perfect toss crafted for him. Without hesitation, he recoiled his arm back before unleashing it like a whip, killing the ball with such incredible power.


    *BAM!*


    It was a perfect spike, and with only two yers forming an iplete wall in front of him, normally, it would be easy for Koji to score. However, not this time. Before it could touch the floor, one yer suddenly dived forward with one of his arms extended far. A secondter, the ballnded perfectly on his forearm before it flew once again, high close to the ceiling.


    "WHAT THE HELL?!"


    "HOW COULD HE DO THAT?!"


    All the Tsunemori yers had their eyes widened in shock the moment they saw Koji''s spike was saved by the number 11. Yeah, it was the same number 11 that Yuki was wary of earlier.


    However, the y was not over. The number 11 rose immediately, his feet were quick enough to allow him to recover his position in a second before he was ready to join the attack. Seeing that, Ueno didn''t hesitate to send the ball high in his direction, allowing the number 11 to kill the ball.


    "Ezaki!"


    "He ising! Fall back!" Yuki shouted an instruction, snapping his teammates from their shock. Everyone recovered quickly, preparing themselves to receive the spike.


    However...


    *BAM!*

 Chapter 47: Ezakis Redemption Arc!

    Senki Haraguchi.


    Ueno Koki.


    Ezaki Nakamoto.


    Those were the three names that joined Shimoyawata Highst year. It was clear since the beginning that they were talented, at least enough to be on the bench of a national-caliber team like Konan or Matsukita.


    However, out of the three talented yers, there was one who shone the brightest, and that was Ezaki. Since he joined the team, Ezaki had already shown his talent, from a powerful ace-serve, good game reading ability, great at blocking and receiving a spike, up to his killer spike that would make any defenders tremble in fear.


    However, just like any talented yer outside, he had his own problem. He was so arrogant that he thought it was impossible for anyone at his age to stop him. He also had a short temper. Whenever someone was able to put up a decent fight, he would always lose his calm and resolve everything with violence.


    There were several asions in the past when he snapped against a strong opponent and ended up getting a warning, a yellow card, and sometimes even an ejection from the game. But since Ezaki was always the best yer on his team, his former coach had never scolded him openly, forming the thought that losing control of his emotions in the middle of the game was not something big.


    It wasn''t untilst year in the third round against another strong opponent from North Tokyo, when Ezaki faced a tough blocker who kept pestering him all the time that he finally messed up. After getting blocked three times in a row, Ezaki was so frustrated he let his intuitive thought take over him. He punched his opponent straight in the face, causing a bigmotion to happen on the court.


    Something forbidden in any sports event ever.


    "The punishment from the association would be announcedst week." The headmaster of Shimoyawata High said to the coach. "But from my perspective, we need to make a decision faster than the official did. We are a private school, and by doing that, we would be able to protect what was the most important thing for us, which is the public impression of us.


    We need to show the public that our school would never tolerate that kind of behavior here."


    Miura nodded solemnly, agreeingpletely with the headmaster''s words. After that, the school finally announced their withdrawal from any official tournament, noting that they would take care of the yers'' attitude first before going outside, and also prohibited Ezaki from any student activity for the rest of the year.


    At that time, there were still many people who thought the punishment for Ezaki was too harsh.


    However¡­


    "While it sucks to not be able to y in an official tournament again, at least we can train our asses off for the rest of the year and show everyone our might again, right?" Ezaki said nonchntly.


    What came from his mouth made all of his friends speechless before Senki scowled. "Ezaki, we are here tofort you because we thought you would be depressed. But¡­ Is that all you can think about?"


    "Eh? Depressed?" Ezaki was confused. "Why?"


    All his friends looked at each other for a moment before Senki with his face darkened said, "All of our senpai were so determined to beat Konan and Matsukita this year. But now¡­ All eight third-year students announced their retirement from the team, knowing they couldn''t participate again for their final year in this school."


    Ezaki was stunned on the spot straight away. That was when he finally realized the gravity of this situation.


    Just because of his stupidity, eight yers had to bury their dream to challenge the best team in the country again. This was something that Ezaki had never thought about. For a while, the guilt he felt was trying to eat him alive. The weight of snatching eight people''s dreams like that¡­ It was too heavy for him to carry it on. He even thought about resigning from the team.


    However, Miura rejected his request.


    "No, I will not allow you to resign. You are also not allowed to skip the training." Miura shook his head firmly. "I will never let you run away like that."


    ''Come on, Ezaki! Keep moving!'' He thought to himself after saving Koji''s spike. Then, when he saw Ueno send him a high pass, Ezaki couldn''t help but feel touched. ''Thank you, Ueno. Even though I don''t know why you are still so kind to me, but because of you, I can still be here. And for you¡­ I will kill this ball!''


    *Whoosh!*


    All the Tsunemori yers were so shocked that some even had their jaws dropped when they saw Ezaki jump. No, it was not a jump, but a flight. The boy with jersey number 11 leaped so high that half of his body was above the. And a secondter, he unleashed a powerful spike that no one would believe it coulde from such a thin body.


    *BAM!*


    "SHIT!"


    Okamura received the spike, yet his body was thrown a few meters away. It flew wildly outside of the court, which would result in a point for Shimoyawata if nothing happened in the next few seconds.


    "COVER IT UP!" Okamura shouted.


    Yuki didn''t need to be told twice, as he rushed already toward the ball, trying to track and predict where it would fall. The moment it lost its speed in the air and started to move down, he dived and punched it back to the court.


    "OH! NICE SAVE, KOBAYASHI!"


    "SEND IT BACK TO HIM!" Yuki shouted immediately. "DON''T LET HIM SPIKE THE BALL AGAIN!"


    His hunch was right. Ezaki was a troublesome guy. That kind of spike was on the same level as Gondo''s, and Matsukita''s captain was one of the best hitters in the country. Riku also realized that, and he spiked the ball that Yuki saved toward Ezaki''s direction.


    *BAM!*


    Even if the blonde boy spiked it from the back without doing his run-up, it was still a powerful hit. Unfortunately, he didn''t know Ezaki''s ability in defense. The opponent''s new yer received the ball perfectly before using his quick feet to run, even when all of his teammates were still frozen on the spot. He knew, though, that the setter would pass the ball to him.


    "UENO!"


    "I got it!"


    *BAM!*


    They did a quick tempo attack, not giving any Tsunemori yers to react and recover. Hell, Ezaki evenndedter than the ball hitting the floor, putting everyone in awe. The man in the spotlight himself also had a dumbstruck expression, his chest moving up and down rapidly.


    He had never expected that the first time he came to the court, he would be able to change the direction of the gamepletely.


    In his mind, Ezaki suddenly recalled his coach''s words before he came in, and he couldn''t help but agree with that.


    ''Now, it is time for me to repay all the debtsst year for the team.''

 Chapter 48: Ezaki VS Tsunemori!

    "What the hell is that?!" Megumi eximed, her eyes bulged wide. It wasn''t just the yers on the court who were shocked by this sudden development, but even those who were on the bench felt the same too. "His spike is harder and faster than Noriyuki-kun!"


    "I should have expected something like this to happen soon." Akira groaned. "That boy is Ezaki, the culprit behind Shimoyawata''s absence in any official tournamentst year."


    Once again, Megumi had her eyes widened which made Akira afraid it would pop out soon. "You mean the problematic guy who always picked up a fight left and right?"


    Akira snorted at her description. "Notpletely wrong, but you forget one thing, Megumi-san. He is not just an ordinary problematic guy, but a talented problematic guy. He was one of the best hitters in Japan when he was in middle school."


    The problem Ezaki possessed for Tsunemori was not how hard he could spike. If so, Akira would be happy to stick Hirano onto him all day. No, the problem herey in Ezaki''s jumping ability which was far from normal. Freakish even. No matter how good the blockers he had, it wouldn''t matter if the hitter could jump higher than them.


    Akira kept rubbing his mustache while observing the court. While he looked calm, by now, everyone knew it was the coach''s way of dealing with his uneasiness. After a while, he finally took a decision.


    "Kaede-kun, prepare yourself. You will go for Ogawa-kun after this."


    "Yes, Sir!" Kaede straightened his back and nodded solemnly


    -0-


    "Eh? Kaede-senpai is recing Ogawa-senpai? Why?" Riku asked, confused at his uncle''s decision.


    "I don''t know." Koji shrugged. "But let''s trust Akira-sensei''s arrangement."


    Riku nodded slightly, yet still confused and a bit unhappy with this decision. He had no grudge against Kaede, of course, but the blonde boy would prefer to y with Ogawa who was more active in offense, especially when Yuki and Okamura were still on the court too.


    By doing this substitution, Akira basically told his yers that he intended to go defensively and y passively at the beginning of the second set.


    ''Is it because of that guy?'' Riku stared at Shimoyawata''s number 11. ''Kobayashi is right. He is so troublesome.''


    The game continued once again with Hideo doing another serve. This time, with three of the best defensive yers were on the court, there was no worry on Tsunemori''s side. Kaede received the ball perfectly, letting it fly slightly above him.


    "Nice receive, Senpai!"


    "Riku! Here!"


    With Ogawa out of the court, now, the blonde boy only had Koji and Asahi on the wing to attack. However, an idea suddenly popped into his head. He nced sideways at Yuki, and just like any good friends, their chemistry kicked in as the sses boy also started to move.


    "They are going for a back attack! Be wary of the number 19!" Wakamatsu shouted when he saw Yuki lurking from the shadow, trying to warn his teammates.


    But as they had their eyes on Yuki and the two other attackers on the wing, they forgot about Riku''s biggest weapon here as the blonde boy tapped the ball slightly over the, dumped it gently to fool the entire court.


    Well¡­ Everyone¡­ But one yer with the jersey number 11.


    "WHAT?!" Riku widened his eyes in shock, never expecting someone to see his trick. In hindsight, he should have expected that, considering the setter would always do the same whenever the team did a synchronization attack.


    Ezaki managed to recover the ball perfectly on the front side, and after that, he ran back a little to get some space before rushing forward and leaping to the sky. No matter if it was the first or the second time they saw it, Tsunemori''s yers were still in awe at the sight of Ezaki''s upper body slightly above the. However, this time, they came prepared.


    "Kaede, tell everyone except for Hirano to fall back whenever that number 11 is going to attack," Akira told Kaede when he was about toe into the court. "His jump would render our wall useless, so rather than being stubborn and keeping the wall intact just to be ignored by that yer, let''s retreat and receive the ball openly."


    That was Akira''s instruction to countermeasure Ezaki''s threat. As for why left Hirano as the sole middle blocker instead of retreatingpletely, well¡­ Let''s just say the cold-blooded middle blocker had something inside him that could intimidate the hell out of the opponent.


    *BAM!*


    "Oh! Nice, Hirano-senpai!" Yuki shouted as he received Ezaki''s spike.


    Yeah, just like earlier, thebo between Hirano''s intimidation on the front with Yuki''s tough defense in the back was enough for Tsunemori to stop the opponent''s attack. Yuki could only shake his head when he saw his senpai just walk it off as if he didn''t do something special. Sometimes, he wondered why such an amazing middle blocker came to a no-name team like Tsunemori.


    Still, the spikeing from Ezaki hurt. A lot.


    If by the look of it, Yuki guessed it was at the same level as Gondo from Matsukita, when he received the ball, he knew he was wrong. It was on apletely different level. Like, Gondo''s spike was a child workpared to Ezaki''s. The pain in his forearms was real, forcing him to retreat after that and not join the attack.


    But the y itself wasn''t over.


    Yuki had to recover his position quickly as Asahi''s spike was deflected by Ezaki, creating another chance for Shimoyawata to attack once again. And when the attack came again, he received another one, smirking when he saw Ezaki had a thick vein popped on his forehead, fuming that another one of his attacks was received as if it was nothing.


    "Nice receive, Kobayashi!"


    "Kill the ball immediately!"


    The game went back and forth for a while, with Ezaki as the main attacker for Shimoyawata started to get frustrated after his spike was saved by Yuki perfectly three times in a row. The heated battle between Ezaki and Yuki made all the people outside of the court hold their breath unconsciously, sometimes wincing when they heard the sound of the ball hitting Yuki''s forearms.


    It wasn''t until the fifth attack Ezaki wanted to hit that everything changed. Blinded by the frustration for Yuki, he ignored everything else, and when he spiked the ball, a wall formed by two arms suddenly appeared in his sight.


    ''Wha-?''


    *BAM!*


    As he spiked the ball, it hit the wall straight away, and when Ezaki turned around, he was greeted by a cold stare from Tsunemori''s middle blocker. Yes, it was Hirano who came in clutch, blocking the shoot for the first time in the second set. He didn''t speak anything, but his eyes told everyone what he thought.


    ''Don''t think I alone cannot stop you!''

 Chapter 49: United! Shimoyawatas Full Attack!

    Miura furrowed his brows deeply, not liking how the game developed to this point. At first, he thought that it would take a while for Ezaki to receive a pass. However, Ueno did something beyond his expectations, keep feeding Ezaki passes to attack the opponent. It was what the other yers did that made him unhappy.


    The moment Ueno passed the ball, it seemed they had the same thought to boycott everything by letting them fight alone. No help to distract the opponent, no bait to spread the opponent''s blocker, no initiative to do the cover for if something went wrong, it was like watching a 2 vs 6 game, and it would be a lie if he said he wasn''t frustrated.


    Oh, don''t get him wrong, Miura knew the animosity directed at Ezaki, and he saw it as a reasonable response to Ezaki''s stupidityst year. However, Miura didn''t know it wouldst this long and even the yers from the other generation also shared the same sentiment.


    Hell, if Hideo, the calmest out of everyone and also the captain of the team did the same, Miura should have known that the hatred toward Ezaki went beyond his simple mind.


    Still, Miura knew Ezaki was needed. If it wasn''t for this game, he would definitely be needed for the game against Konan or Matsukita.


    In his mind, he wanted to integrate Ezaki into the team slowly, using the weak opponents in the early stage to let Ezaki regain the trust of his teammates. Who would have thought that the first game, the first round of the tournament would be this troublesome?


    "Hideo!" Miura finally moved from his spot and called his captain. "Tell everyone that if they don''t want to win the game, I will be happy to rece them on the spot right now."  Hideo widened his eyes before nodding frantically, rying his words to the others.


    It was not without a reason why Miura called his captain and not anyone else. Out of all the yers he currently had, Hideo was the most motivated one to win everything this year, thinking that he owed his senpai a trophy for the failurest year. Miura knew Hideo would do anything just to ensure the win, even if he had to be the best buddy with Ezaki.


    And if the captain was willing to do that, everyone would follow him no matter whether they liked it or not.


    And it was proven to be the right decision in the next y.


    "UENO! LEFT!"


    "RIGHT!"


    The moment the ball crossed over Shimoyawata''s side after Kaede''s serve, both Hideo and Senki as the wing spikers started to run even before Ezaki could do that. Their movement caught all of Tsunemori''s yers off guard.


    This was the first time they witnessed the opposite team do a synchronization attack, and it was shown by how erratic their run-up was that they had second to no experience doing this.


    *BAM!*


    In the end, the ball flew to Senki who was on the right. However, it was clear that the sophomore hitter was not used to spiking the ball from that spot as he couldn''t aim it away from the block. His attack was easily stopped by Koji who jumped at the same time as him.


    "SHIT!"


    "I GOT THIS!"


    Senki widened his eyes when he saw Ezaki covering his spike that was blocked by the opponent. His feeling wasplicated right now. On one hand, he was d that Ezaki was here since the boy with the jersey number 11 was always reliable.


    On the other hand, he didn''t want to forgive Ezaki that easily, thinking that if he did that, it would be disrespectful toward the 8 former senpai of his whose dreams were buried by Ezaki''s stupidityst year.


    In the end, Senki scowled, not even saying a thank you before stepping back a few to do his run-up again.


    "UENO! SECOND BALL!" He raised his hand, asking for the ball again.


    While Senki knew it was impossible for the ball toe at him again, he still had to ask to attract Koji''s attention. What he didn''t expect though, was for Ueno to pass the ball in his direction.


    "Eh?"


    Senki was confused. He had been ying together with Ueno for about a year, and he knew the setter had a habit of not using the same hitter who failed to score twice in the same sequence. Still, it was a weed surprise as he jumped, ready to spike the ball again.


    However, a secondter, the scene that would be repeated in his nightmare happened. As Senki jumped, two Tsunemori yers read his move perfectly and jumped at the exact same moment, their arms outstretched like giant ws, ready to crush his spike.


    Senki''s eyes widened as he realized he was staring down the barrel of a block, the pressure radiating from those two blockers like a palpable force. His usually steady hands began to tremble, and his eyes darted wildly around the court, searching for a way out of this precarious situation.


    ''SHI-!''


    *BAM!*


    Senki who was helpless already and had epted his fate was shocked, not expecting someone to kill the ball first. When he turned around, he saw Ezakinded at the same time as him, the frozen hatred inside his heart melted immediately.


    While yes, he still had a grudge for Ezaki, at least Senki noticed the boy''s effort to make it up. Since he entered the court in the second set, Ezaki had been the yer on their set who ran the most, which could only bepared to Yuki on the other side of the.


    Still, it was not the best time to think about it. The y wasn''t over as Ezaki hit the spike deliberately to the blocker to get a second chance to attack. And now, all the Shimoyawata yers had to move together to break Tsunemori''s defense.


    "UENO! HERE!"


    Those shouts echoed all over the court as five yers with white jerseys were moving in synch. This time, no matter how Tsunemori prepared for the attack, they couldn''t stop it all as Hideo killed the y with a powerful straight spike near the sideline.


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHAAAAAA!"


    -0-


    On the sideline, Miura nodded in approval as he watched his yers celebrate with each other, Ezaki included. This was the interaction he wanted to see in his team. They didn''t have to be the best buddies and forgive each other for their past mistakes, but they had to be united to face the opponent in front of them. And it was clear that his yers passed the test.


    ''With this, everything would be easier next.''

 Chapter 50: Exhaustion!

    The game continued once again with Shimoyawata having a slight edge over Tsunemori. The appearance of Ezaki changed the gamepletely, and when all of his teammates supported him, their offense became way more dangerous.


    It wasn''t perfect, per se, since they needed to adapt to each other in the middle of the game considering Ezaki had been training alone almost all the time this year. Their movements were chaotic with no coordination, no game-calling strategy, and not even a single sign of what they should do or where they should run.


    However, they were able to make everything work by bombarding Tsunemori with one powerful spike after another.


    However, that didn''t mean Tsunemori couldn''t do anything. In fact, while they kept getting pressured by Shimoyawata''s new wave of offense, there were two yers who shone the most to keep them alive. Those were Hirano and Yuki.


    Yeah, just like before, Tsunemori''s middle blocker kept haunting the opponent''s hitters with his presence. Even though he almost did everything on the front side alone since everyone had to retreat to anticipate Ezaki''s attack, Hirano was still able to scare the shit off everyone on the other side of the.


    His intimidating tactic worked perfectly, forcing the hitter to keep spiking the ball toward Yuki''s direction. Meanwhile, Yuki also did the same, trying to appear in the hitter''s line of sight so the ball would be spiked into the other direction, the one that Hirano had been guarding.


    Their chemistry worked perfectly in the second set, keeping the team alive while helping them score with a kill block or two. Their performance even made Miura shake his head in wonder and admiration, cursing Akira''s good luck for being able to get two amazing yers like them in such a weak team.


    ''How could he have all the luck in the world? Did he feed the fucking entire world in his past life or what?''


    Still, Miura was not worried. It was clear that his team was slowly taking over the control. And no, it wasn''t his team who suddenly got better, rather it was Tsunemori whose performance was declined. Their movement got sloppier, their reaction was slower, and even their defense was not as perfect as before.


    At first, all the Tsunemori yers didn''t notice the problem. They thought it was because Shimoyawata was getting better with Ezaki on the court. However, they finally realized something was wrong when...


    *BAM!*


    "Oooh!"


    "Nice spike, Captain!"


    "Goddamnit! Finally!"


    While the opponent was celebrating, all Tsunemori yers looked at each other confusedly. The spike from Hideo before was just a normal one, not as powerful nor as deadlier as the one that came from Ezaki. However, how could they all freeze on the spot and couldn''t move their body?


    "They finally reached this point, huh?" Akira muttered gloomily.


    "Eh? What do you mean, Sensei?" Megumi who was not as knowledgeable as Akira asked confusedly. "Reach what point? Was the point lost before because of something else other than the spike?"


    "Yeah." The coach nodded solemnly. "Normally, Kobayashi would be able to save such a weak spike. However... He couldn''t move his body as freely as he wanted."


    Megumi was still confused before she pondered for a moment, then her eyes widened as she finally got it.


    "Exhaustion?"


    "Exactly." Akira nodded.


    His eyes turned to his yers, especially Yuki. It was clear that the sses boy looked exhausted, from the way he held his knee to support his body and how erratic his breathing was.


    Out of everyone else, Yuki was probably the one who deserved rest right now. Not only because he was the most active yer in the second set, but because he was also a rookie. No matter how talented he was, being exposed to systematic training only for a month wouldn''t be enough to put his physical ability up to the standard.


    Still, Akira had no intention to let Yuki rest. It was cruel, maybe, but he needed the sses boy on the court right now more than ever. Yuki was the pir of the team''s defense, so if he were reced, it would hit the other yers'' morale.


    After pondering for a while, Akira finally took a decision. "Ogawa, be ready. You will y again after this."


    "Yes, Sir!"


    It was a hard decision to take, yet the only thing Akira coulde up with to keep the team alive. Rather than staying passively, it would be better for the team to take control of the game, and what was the better way other than turning the gear into an offensive one?


    Meanwhile, on the court, Yuki was still holding his knees, trying to regte his breath more steadily. Three times he yed in a regr game this month, this was probably the worst exhaustion he had ever felt. His muscles ached and were so stiff, making it harder to move.


    "You okay, Kobayashi?" Riku asked, concerned.


    "Don''t worry, it is nothing," Yuki reassured with a fake bravado that was obvious enough for the blonde boy to tell that his friend was lying.


    Still, Riku didn''t expose his friend. He just gave a simr reassuring smile that Yuki just had while patting his friend''s shoulder before saying, "Well, we better end this game as quickly as possible, okay?"


    Yuki nodded slightly before they both nced at the scoreboard. 16 - 12. While they were tailed behind, it was still within reach. But if the game prolonged into the third set, they could say goodbye right now.


    "You are right, Agostini. Let''s end this game as quickly as possible."


    -0-


    After a while, the game resumed again with Shimoyawata''s turn to serve the ball. Fortunately, while exhausted, Yuki still gave the impression that his defense was impable, frightening the opponent to aim the serve at him. In the end, the ball went to the right back where Ogawa who juste back to the court stood.


    *Thud!*


    "Nice receive, Ogawa!"


    "Riku! Left!"


    "Right!"


    While his teammates shouted to ask for the ball, Riku waited patiently until they reached their base position. The tempo was a bit slower whenever they wanted to do a synchronization attack, but Tsunemori made it up with the quantity of attackers who participated.


    After ncing at thest moment at Shimoyawata''s side for confirmation, Riku sent the ball to the right side, far away from Ezaki''s side. Yeah, he ran away. There was no way the blonde boy would do anything stupid by passing the ball in the direction of the opponent''s strongest blocker.


    "Nice pass, Riku!"


    *BAM!*


    "DAMN!"


    Asahi spiked the ball straight, aiming at the sideline. However, Oda, the libero of the team was quick enough to recover. Now, the ball flew again to the middle where Ueno had anticipated its route before.


    "UENO! HERE!"


    Even though the shout didn''te, the setter would still pass the ball there. When the team''s stamina was low, Ezaki was his best bet. And the boy didn''t disappoint, by spiking the ball in a particr direction that it touched Hirano''s block and deflected far outside of the court.


    "YOSSHAAA!"


    "NICE SPIKE, EZAKI!"


    "COME ON!"


    All the yers with white jerseys had already celebrated as if it was clear they would get a point. However, when a green jersey suddenly rushed with incredible speed, Oda realized something.


    "NO! IT IS NOT OVER! EVERYONE, GO BACK!"

 Chapter 51: The Beginning of the End!

    Yuki gritted his teeth, increasing his speed when he nced above and noticed the ball was about to fall. He dug deep into his reserves of strength, his weary legs screaming in protest as he sprinted across the court to reach the wild ball that had careened out of bounds.


    ''Come on, legs! Keep going!''


    As he felt the ball was within his reach, Yuki jumped. He outstretched his arms, trying to get the ball before it couldnd on the floor. He felt his body weight shift forward, his legs extending in a perfect arc, his arms bending to cradle the ball in a perfectly timed dive.


    The moment Yuki felt his fingertip touch the ball, with a swift flick of his wrist, he sent it soaring back toward Riku who was waiting with open arms to receive the perfectly ced pass,


    "NICE RECEIVE, KOBAYASHI!"


    Within a second, Tsunemori''s collective momentum shifted from chaos to control in the blink of an eye, and the exact opposite happened to Shimoyawata.


    "Fall back!"


    "Keep your eyes on them! Don''t let anyone slip away!"


    As chaos descended on the opponent''s side, Riku didn''t hesitate to take advantage of it. Instead of passing the ball, he jumped immediately, recoiling his arms back while getting ready to spike the ball. All the yers with white jerseys on the other side of the who were still trying to recover their position were taken aback, didn''t expect Riku to spike the ball immediately.


    *BAM!*


    The ball hit the floor instantly without anyone could even stop it, adding another point for Tsunemori


    "COME OOOOON!" Riku roared before he ran toward Yuki''s direction, hugging the sses boy excitedly.


    It wasn''t the point that triggered his excitement, but the hustle and the spirit of not giving up that Yuki showed that made his blood boil. Even though he was alone, even though the ball was far out of his reach, even with all the fatigues that were about to kill him, even if it seemed impossible, Yuki still ran, hustling through all the difficulty to save the ball.


    And when he did it, as his friend and teammate, Riku couldn''t help but feel touched.


    "Goddamnit, Kobayashi! That shit is amazing!" Riku eximed.


    "A bit gentler, please. My body feels like a jelly right now." Yuki said weakly, rubbing his shoulder that was hit by the overly excited blonde boy. "Also, Agostini, when will you go all out again? Did you say before that it is time to end this game? I have already done my part, and now it is time for you to fulfill yours too."


    Riku was stunned for a second, then nodded his head solemnly. Yuki was right. With the condition of both teams getting hit by fatigue right now, the one who was in advantage was Shimoyawata who had more yers on the bench.


    They could just rece the yers who were too tired right now and save it for the final set if that scenario happened, so he and the other Tsunemori yers had to make sure they won this set.


    Even though the team was still behind, the point he got earlier cut off the gap into three points. While it was still a lot, at least the momentum shifted into Tsunemori right now. Moreover, it was time for Riku to serve the ball, and it would be a lie for all the yers with white jerseys if they said they were not nervous.


    "Come on! Concentrate, everyone!"


    "We have done it before! We can stop the serve!"


    Riku snorted, amused at the shout of encouragement from the other side. Still, he took a deep breath, closing his eyes to concentrate while waiting for the referee to blow the whistle. The moment it sounded, he threw the ball immediately, starting his run-up and did the sequence of movement perfectly before hitting the ball hard.


    *BAM!*


    The sound of his hand making contact with the ball echoed all over the court, making everyone flinch unconsciously. It crossed the in a blink, getting through the area between Ezaki and Wakamatsu like a lightning sh before creating a little shockwave as the ball hit the floor. No one could react, let alone touch the ball during the process.


    Everything seemed to freeze before Riku clenched his fist and raised it to the sky, making a cool pose as if it were thest thing he could do.


    "OOH!"


    "Holy shit! What the hell is that?!"


    "Are you kidding me?!"


    While they were celebrating, the yers on the other side of the were hit by sudden depression. If Yuki''s amazing save before was the y that changed the momentum of the game, this ace serve from Riku was the one that ensured it would stay at Tsunemori for a while.


    "Come on, everyone! We are still in the lead! We can do this!" Ezaki pped his hands, trying to encourage his teammates. Still, no one took his words seriously.


    While they softened their judgment of the boy, it was impossible to erase the grudge that had been in their heart for about a year that quickly. And most importantly, they were all just teenagers carrying the vtile mood inside them. They could forgive someone so easily when something good happened, but when the opposite urred, the grudge would continue or even be worse than ever.


    Still, there was someone who shared Ezaki''s sentiment right now.


    "He is right, you know?" Hideo suddenly said. Everyone snapped their head, couldn''t believe their captain would show his support toward the problematic boy. "We are still in the lead, so we need to adjust our mentality. Also, I don''t care how you hate him, but it is clear in this game that he is more useful right now than anyone else here.


    So, just like Miura-sensei said before, if someone couldn''t ept that fact and didn''t want to work together with him as a team, say it directly and I will talk to Miura-sensei. I hate if we lose the game because of something stupid like this¡­"


    The expression on Shimoyawata''s side changed. Thest sentence uttered by their captain really pped them hard straight to the face. Hideo was right. It didn''t matter how much they hated Ezaki, but currently, he was the most useful yer out of everyone else.


    And if they still hesitated to y together with him even when the team was in danger, it was no different from what Ezaki didst year, and this time, they even did it consciously.


    ''Do we really be the thing we hate the most here?''

 Chapter 52: The End (I)

    Miura furrowed his brows once again. He had lost count of how many times he did that during this set, just showing that the game didn''t go in the direction he wanted. And no, it wasn''t because of Ezaki''s situation, but also for Tsunemori''s resilience. Their opponent was able to survive no matter how hard they kept attacking, even to the point that they looked like they were about to fall on the spot.


    The four-point lead they had earlier even shortened to only one this time, and the frustration shown by his yers was real.


    Once again, Miura cursed his luck to meet such a troublesome opponent in the first round.


    ''Why in the hell do they have to be in the first round too? With this kind of stubbornness, they should be able to reach a good positionst year and at least be ced automatically in the second round right now.''


    However, he wasn''t worried at all, especially considering what he heard from the opponent''s bench side.


    "Come on, everyone! Keep attacking! Riku, spread their blockers thin! Ogawa! Koji! Run more!


    Come on! We can do this!"


    ''They are anxious.'' Miura realized as he heard what Akira instructed his yers. ''They know if the game is prolonged to the third set, they are at a disadvantage. We still have four fresh yers on the bench, yet no one could rece Tsunemori''s yers right now. We need to take the initiative to win this set and kill their spirit.''


    After thinking for a moment, Miura decided to make a change too. He reced Wakamatsu, probably the best defender on his side besides the libero for a yer who was better offensively. Just like Akira, he also knew that gaining initiative right now would be crucial.


    "Oi, Kobayashi, anything wrong with this guy?" Riku asked, whispering at his friend while ncing at the new yer who juste to the court.


    Yuki stared at him confusedly before asking, "Why do you ask me that question? How could I know?"


    "Because it is you who noticed something wrong with that number 11 first," Riku answered matter of fact.


    Yuki twitched his mouth a bit, speechless at the answer he got. Still, he shook his head to answer the first question. "I don''t think there is something wrong with him. If anything, they want to intimidate us by showing they could rece anyone who is exhausted already with another fresh yer."


    "You are right." Riku nodded solemnly. "Still, we are just one point away from them. We can do this."


    "Yeah." Riku nodded, also with a solemn expression. "It is time to win the game."


    -0-


    When everyone was finally ready again on the court, the referee blew his whistle to resume the game. Just like before, Riku threw the ball high into the air before starting his run-up, jumping and doing a sequence of movements perfectly before hitting the ball straight to the other side of the.


    His serve became more powerful as time went by, making everyone wonder whether the blonde boy consumed some sort of drugs before the game or not. However, this time, Oda managed to receive the ball even if the libero had to dice acrobatically toward the sideline.


    *BAM!*


    "Nice receive, Oda!"


    "Someone, cover it up!"


    It wasn''t a perfect receive. The ball flew a bit too high and almost crossed the. Noticing that, Ueno, Hideo, and Ezaki on the front line rushed immediately to save the overpass ball. Hirano and Koji also jumped from the other side, trying to wipe it off for another point.


    Unfortunately, Ueno''s hand reached the ball first as the setter flicked it back, giving a chance for Hideo who ran behind him to spike the ball.


    *BAM!*


    "Deflection! Chance ball!" Hirano shouted.


    At first, Yuki wanted to rush forward to save the ball. However, when his peripheral vision caught Kaede did the same, he stepped back, choosing to preserve his stamina while thinking what he should do next. He nced sideways toward Shimoyawata''s side before noticing one particr yer who had been passive since a few minutes ago, not contributing anything to the team.


    ''Is he exhausted? I have to check it first.''


    "Agostini!"


    Riku who was still observing everyone''s movement while waiting for the ball to go down his direction was taken aback by Yuki''s shout. It was the first time his friend took the initiative to ask for the ball during this game, and it would be a lie if he said he didn''t want to pass the ball to the sses boy.


    Their eyes met each other for a second before Riku knew exactly what his friend wanted to do.


    Meanwhile, the yers on the front of Shimoyawata''s side also tensed a bit, observing where he would go. Even though it had been a while, they still remembered how thebination y between Riku and Yuki toyed their defense at the beginning of the game, and they didn''t want something like that to happen again, especially in such a crucial time like this.


    They kept their eyes on Yuki for a while as the sses boy kept running to the front line before he pulled a break and changed direction immediately to the left side.


    "WHAT?!"


    "SOMEONE! FOLLOW HIM! DON''T LET HIM DO ANYTHING HE WANTS!"


    "I GOT THIS!"


    Yuki clicked his tongue in annoyance when he saw Ezaki was following his movement. However, he ignored the boy''s existence and focused on the ball. Besides the fact that Ezaki''s presence as a blocker was not as imposing as Hirano''s, Yuki also didn''t want to go on a one-on-one contest against him. No, his target was the one on the back line.


    *BAM!*


    He spiked the ball through Ezaki''s left side, aiming it close to the backline. It was a short jump, followed by such a weak spike that anyone could receive that easily, showing how exhausted Yuki was at that time. However, Senki who was guarding the back at that time reactedte, couldn''t even stop the ball as it bruised his forearm before bouncing far to the outside of the court.


    Everyone was stunned, not expecting such a weak attack like that to score a point for Tsunemori. Hell, even Yuki didn''t expect that too. He aimed in Senki''s direction to test his reaction speed and see how exhausted he was. Who knew it would expose the opponent''s outside hitter directly like that?

 Chapter 53: The End (II)

    "Are you okay, Senki?" Ezaki asked cautiously.


    Normally, Ezaki wouldn''t dare to approach his ''former'' friend like this. Not because he didn''t care, but usually, he would be ignored or even mocked, and Ezaki was fine with that, knowing everything was not unfounded. However, this time, he had to ask the question since Senki looked terrible.


    Senki''s face was full of sweat while he was panting heavily, holding his jelly knees to support his body. It was clear that he couldn''t hold it anymore and needed some rest. Still, the determination shown in his eyes when they met Miura prevented the head coach from recing him right on the spot.


    The coach knew that while Senki was not the yer with the best stamina on the team, he still yed a big part as probably the third-best attacker on the team besides Ezaki and Hideo. Miura needed his presence now more than ever on the team, especially when he wanted to take control of the game.


    That was why, against his moral dilemma, he refused to rece Senki on the court, something the yer was grateful for.


    "Thank you, Ezaki," Senki said unconsciously. "Don''t worry, I am okay here." He said it casually.


    However, those words were not casual in Ezaki''s ears. While Ezaki noticed the others started to get warm at him, the boy knew it was just because of the heated moment in the game. But to hear those genuine words from Senki, Ezaki''s feeling wasplicated right now.


    Still, this was not the right time to talk about it. There was still a game that needed to be continued before they resolved all the problems in the past, and currently, they had to think of a way to stop Tsunemori''s wave of offense.


    It took a while, but after losing two more points from Riku''s serve and Hirano''s perfect block, Shimoyawata finally cut off their loss. However, no one celebrated that, considering right now, they were one point behind their opponent.


    ''Damn! This is bad! We cannot lose right now!'' That was the collective thought of the team.


    After that, the game went with a quick pace. Both teams kept exchanging one attack after another, no one wanted to lose right now. Due to the exhaustion that hit them both, points dropped from mistakes also happened a lot. The game that once looked proper now turned into a chaotic street volleyball that even they themselves wouldn''t be able to watch without cringing hard.


    When the score was tied again at 23 ¨C 23 though, Akira finally made a move. He used hisst timeout to give the instruction to his yers while also letting them rest for a while. This was the best decision in his mind, especially considering some of his yers couldn''t even move a single step again.


    "Megumi-san, please, bring us some water."


    "Um."


    It didn''t take long before the girl distributed mineral water to all the yers there. She bit her lips, worried about their state, especially the two youngest yers on the team. Yuki and Riku both had been the most active yers in this game, doing everything from defending, setting an attack, and sometimes even executing it themselves.


    All of that was taking a toll on them as right now, they looked like they were about to pass out at any time.


    "Can you both hold it?" Megumi asked, concerned.


    Yuki and Riku stared at each other for a second before they nodded simultaneously, not even hesitating to answer the question. "Don''t worry, Megumi-senpai. We are okay." While they both were on the edge of copsing right now, there was no way they would admit it, not willing to risk getting reced at such a crucial moment.


    They wanted to be on the court until everything was over, whether they won or lost the game.


    Megumi could only nod helplessly as she also knew their feeling. "Just be careful, okay?" She asked softly.


    The three didn''t notice that their interaction drew jealousy from his teammates. Koji, the self-proimed biggest fan of Megumi chimed in suddenly and said, "Don''t worry, Megumi-senpai! We still have so much stamina we could y for another five sets after this!"


    "Yes, Megumi-senpai!" The others also nodded in agreement, putting their arms on Riku and Yuki''s shoulders. "Don''t worry about them! This is easy for them, right?" Facing such an intimidating question from their senpai, the two freshmen could only nod frantically, not wanting to provoke their ire.


    Megumi giggled a little, making all the yers there blush. She knew everyone was on the verge of copsing right now, yet she couldn''t help but appreciate how they still wanted to reassure her that they were okay.


    "Well, if you all still have so much stamina¡­ Please, spend it all to get the twost points and win the game for me, okay?"


    "YES, SENPAI!"


    -0-


    Even though the score was even and Tsunemori was at a disadvantage due to its short number of yers, it was Shimoyawata who felt uneasy right now. Even though the opponent overused their yers for two full sets, they still managed to hold their ground against them, and if their opponent could score two more points before them, they could say goodbye to the tournament straight away.


    They wouldn''t feel this uneasy if only the next one who served the ball was an ordinary yer. Unfortunately, the one holding the ball right now was Yuki, and they still couldn''t figure out the witchcraft serve that seemed to cause their movement to get slower. That was why they were anxious right now.


    "Oda, move to the left a little," Wakamatsu instructed the back line. "You are only responsible for the left wing. If the ball came in between the middle and your area, let me take it over."


    "Yes, Senpai." The libero nodded.


    "Also, Ezaki, you are the yer with the best reaction speed here, so be ready if you see we couldn''t react to the serve, okay?"


    "Sure." Ezaki nodded.


    However, they didn''t take an ount on Yuki''s exhaustion and the probability that the serve would bepletely different than before. And when they saw the ball hit the top of the before bouncing a little toward their front side, they cursed at the same time while running forward frantically to save the ball.


    "SHIT!"


    Unfortunately, while Hideo on the front left and Wakamatsu on the middle back rushed immediately, they didn''t react quickly enough, could only stare at the ball bouncing at the ball gently as if it mocked their useless effort. Yuki who did the serve punched the air immediately when he saw the ballnded.


    "GODDAMNIT, YUKI! WHAT KIND OF GOD DID YOU PRAY BEFORE THE GAME?!"


    "HOLY SHIT! WE''VE GOT THE GAME POINT! WE ARE GOING TO WIN!"


    "COME ON!"


    For a moment, the exhaustion on Tsunemori''s side faded away as they all were too enthralled by the prospect of winning this game. This reaction was understandable. While Shimoyawata hadn''t achieved anything formally, they were considered the third-best team in Tokyo in thest couple of years.


    To be one step away from winning against them after such a crazy long game, they couldn''t help but feel like they were in a good dream.


    "Okay, everyone! Don''t panic!" Hideo pped his hands, trying to encourage his teammates. "It is not over yet! We still have a chance!" Unfortunately, that kind of encouragement didn''t work anymore. They were too depressed right now after being hit by the prospect of losing in the first round.


    No matter how many yers were still fresh and could be their advantage in the final set, it would be useless if they lost right now.


    And that was what Yuki tried to ensure at this point, as he changed his approach to his serve. It was a subtle change that no one noticed, but when Ezaki on the back right was about to receive the ball, it wobbled slightly before deviating its route as if wanting to avoid Ezaki''s hand and went straight to the floor.


    ''Shi-!''


    *Thud!*


    The entire court went silent as they stared at the ball bouncing slowly on the floor before it finally lost its momentum to move. For a while, there was no reaction, only disbelief could be seen on everyone''s faces as if they didn''t know what to do. Finally, it was the referee who broke the silence by blowing the whistle, announcing the final result of the game.


    "GAME SET! TSUNEMORI HIGH WINS THE GAME AND ADVANCES THROUGH THE SECOND ROUND OF THE TOURNAMENT!"

 Chapter 54: Aftermath (I)

    "YOSSHH-------!"


    "------------SSSHAAAAAAAA!"


    As the referee announced the final result, Yuki roared wildly, followed by Riku who jumped in his direction immediately with a simr enthusiasm. Then, they were followed by their teammates who rushed into their direction and hugged them tightly as if what just happened was a dream.


    Megumi who was on the sideline could only cover her mouth, her hands trembled a little as she tried her best to hold back her tears. It was an exaggerated reaction, she knew, considering this was just the first round. However, she couldn''t help it.


    Not only because the opponent they had to face was close to the final boss in terms of quality, but also the rough journey they had to take to reach this point.


    She could still remember how devastated the state of all the sophomore yers here the moment they realized their senpai left them alone with only two freshmen on the team.


    And even before that, the fight between the freshmen and the senior team¡­ The dramatic walk out from Noriyuki and Yoshi¡­ The torture they had to endure in the name of training just to fill up the nk spot the senior members left¡­ It was always a tough battle for them, and she was proud to say they overcame the situation really well.


    Meanwhile, on Shimoyawata''s side, the situation was the exact opposite. Exhaustion hit them hard as some of them let their jelly legs take over their body, letting them fall to the floor without any resistance. Tears shed on their faces as they realize that they lost the game.


    ''Is it really over?''


    ''After waiting for a year¡­. Damn¡­''


    Their shoulder trembled as they wanted to hold back the tears that kept falling down stubbornly, didn''t want to admit the reality. The first one who finally epted everything was Hideo as their captain had some sort of relieved expression on his face.


    "Don''t think about it too much," Hideo said. "We still have one more chance this year, so, just like Ezaki said in the past, let''s train our asses off and show everyone the new Shimoyawata High."


    He said it casually, didn''t intend to make a jab at Ezaki. Still, the boy who was mentioned was stunned immediately, then he bowed his head deep down to the ground with his eyes getting teary.


    "I am sorry!" He shouted, getting everyone''s attention. His body trembled heavily which made everyone afraid he would copse on the spot. However, Ezaki himself didn''t care. He still bowed his head while tears kept rolling down the floor.


    "When the opponent number 19 managed to score before¡­ Senki apologized to me for not being able to receive it¡­ That was when I realized¡­ That I¡­ That I¡­ I have never apologized to you all before¡­ It is because of me that we couldn''t y for almost a year¡­ But I¡­"


    All the yers around them also had tears when they heard Ezaki''s words, knowing this was what they had waited for a year since that incident.


    "I AM SORRY!" Ezaki finally couldn''t hold it anymore and did a dogeza pose, kneeling down on the floor while crying hard for forgiveness.


    "There are so many people who are ready to forgive you, you know?" Wakamatsu said, his voice was thick. "However, if you don''t apologize, how could we forgive you?"


    "Yeah¡­" The one who was reced by Ezaki before also nodded, his shoulder still trembling. "If only you are the one who ys since the beginning instead of me¡­"


    "No, the result would be no different than right now." Senki shook his head, surprising everyone else. "I mean, is there anyone between us who runs as hard as they did in this game? They really deserve the win today¡­"


    "Yeah." Hideo nodded, wiping the tears from the corner of his eyes. "Now, what we have to do is to start from the beginning again. The next winter tournament¡­ Let''s show everyone else, including Tsunemori, the new Shimoyawata who is better than this!"


    "Yes, Captain!"


    Miura nodded in satisfaction when he saw his yers'' interaction after losing the game. While he had a lot of dissatisfaction for the game to be voiced out, the coach could wait forter. Right now, all his yers needed was encouragement to get better, and he was sure the conversation today would help them more in the future.


    ''I am d that our opponent today is Tsunemori, the same team who is trying to climb to the top.'' He muttered. ''I doubt something like this would happen if we lost against Matsukita or Konan.''


    -0-


    "Good game." Hideo offered his hand to Yuki.


    After all the enthusiasm went down on Tsunemori''s side, they went to Shimoyawata''s side to offer a handshake. Just like anyone expected, it was Yuki who got the most attention, what with his incredible performance on the court. He was surrounded by the yers with white jerseys who wanted to congratte him or just exchange a small talk or two with him.


    It took a while for Yuki to get away from the crowds, and the moment he was able to do that, he was greeted by Hideo who looked at him with aplicated gaze.


    "Ah, thank you." Yuki scratched the back of his head shyly, not knowing what to say.


    "You catch us off guard and deserve to win today." Hideo continued. "But don''t expect you will always be able to win like this. The shaky performance your team had in the second set would be exposed in thete stage of the tournament."


    "I know." Yuki nodded solemnly as he could see that too.


    "Good." Hideo nodded in a satisfied manner. "Don''t lose embarrassingly in the future, it would bring shame to us who lost to you in the first stage. If you could, keep going on until you were beaten or Konan or Matsukita."


    Yuki arched his eyebrow a little before asking, "What makes you think we will lose against them?"


    "As if you are going to beat them." Hideo snorted. "If anyone could break those two teams'' domination, it would be us, Shimoyawata, and not you, Tsunemori. Just remember that."


    "Well, that means we have to agree to disagree here." Yuki snarked.


    They both red at each other, for a moment, the tension was heated between them. However, after a while, Yuki let out a small smirk, and it was mirrored by Hideo who chuckled merrily.


    "Good. You have the spirit. As expected from the team that beat us." Hideo nodded in approval. "Good luck with the tournament. Next time we meet, you will see the new Shimoyawata that wouldn''t be so easily to be beaten again."


    "I will wait for that." Yuki nodded genuinely.


    After that, all the yers on the court could hear the referee blow the whistle, and they formed two lines quickly before they bowed deeply without even beingmanded by anyone else.


    "SE! NO!"


    "THANK YOU FOR THE GAME!"

 Chapter 55: Aftermath (II)

    "Congrattions on the first win, Akira-sensei!" The headmaster congratted Akira excitedly the next day. "I heard it was a tough and dramatic game thatsted for about one and a half hours! You deserve the win!"


    "Thank you, Headmaster." Akira nodded, hiding his pleasant expression. "It is all because of the students we won yesterday''s game."


    By the day after the game, the news that the volleyball team advanced through the second round had already spread in the school, and once again since the game between the senior against the freshman, the team became the trending topic of the day.


    Almost all the residents here talked about them, from whispers to the excited shootout to the yers from the students they didn''t even know existed in the first ce.


    When they were talking in the school hallway though, a tall figure wearing round sses suddenly appeared. He had a gloomy expression on his face as he passed through both Akira and the headmaster rudely without even greeting them, causing a frown on their face.


    That was Shiratori, the history teacher in the school. There were so many reasons why Akira didn''t like him, but the biggest one was because the history teacher was probably the one who was the most adamant about dissolving the volleyball team. In his opinion, the team that couldn''t even achieve anything should not exist at all since it was just a waste of money.


    "Why is he so gloomy this early?" Akira muttered lowly.


    He didn''t expect that the headmaster would hear hisint though, and was surprised when the headmaster whispered, "It is like this, Sensei¡­"


    "What? He had already asked to proceed with the disbandment of the volleyball team the moment he heard our opponent is Shimoyawata?!" He raised his voice deliberately so that Shiratori could hear that too, making the history teacher freeze on the spot. "Doesn''t he know not to count the chickens before they hatch?" Akira said it mockingly.


    A thick vein popped on Shiratori''s temple when he heard that jab.


    "Urgh¡­ You are so childish, Akira-sensei¡­" The headmaster groaned embarrassedly.


    "Let me say congrattions for the win, Akira-sensei." Even though he didn''t appreciate the jab, Shiratori still showed his maturity by congratting Akira as well. "After ying against Shimoyawata High, the confidence of the team would be at its peak. Don''t let it get through the students'' heads and make them arrogant."


    Akira stared at his colleague intently before asking, "For one who wants the team to be disbanded, you sure know a lot of things about thepetition and yers'' psychology, Shiratori-sensei."


    Shiratori was taken aback, shocked while seeming to berate himself for the slip.


    Akira ignored that and asked his question, "Why does a person like you want to see the team disbanded more than anyone else?"


    Shiratori went silent for a moment before turning away, nodding at the headmaster while saying, "Excuse me." Before running away from the question, not giving any hint of an answer that could satisfy both the headmaster and Akira.


    -0-


    "Congrattion, Kobayashi." Kato said genuinely. "I heard from Megumi-neechan that you did amazing yesterday."


    "Thank you¡­" Yuki rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, still not getting used to being praised by the girl. "Anyway, thank you for your encouragement the night before the game too. It helps me beyond my expectations."


    This time, it was Kato who blushed, her cheek went red. "W-Well¡­ I-I am happy to help!" She stammered.


    Yuki tilted his head confusedly before asking, "Why are you so shy? It is not like this is our first meeting, right?" He joked feebly. This was a yful callback to their first meeting where she would always have her face so red like a boiled lobster.


    "Of course, no, you idiot!" She pped his shoulder yfully. "It is just¡­ I remember something not important Megumi-neechan said yesterday¡­"


    "Hey, Kato-chan, Yuki-kun sang so much praise for you earlier, saying he could perform really well because of your encouragement," Megumi said in a sing-song voice. "Is there anything you want to tell your big sister? Do I have to say anything to our handsome sses boy? Are you going to congratte him? Do you¡­ Fancy him?"


    Kato blushed once again when she remembered being teased by her sisterst night. She didn''t know how could Megumi connect such a feeble gratitude from the boy for her encouragement to the topic of whether she fancied him or not, but Kato was sure she didn''t want to answer that question right now.


    "Hello?" Yuki waved his hand in front of her face, trying to get her attention. "Earth to Kato-san, are you still with me?"


    Kato smiled a little before letting out a giggle. "That''s funny."


    "I know, right?" Yuki grinned, the expression that made her blush once again.


    "A-Anyway!" She cursed herself the moment she noticed her voice cracked. "Don''t you want to celebrate the win like the others?"


    "By the others, do you mean like our local lothario?" Yuki asked back wryly. They bothughed together, always loving to make fun of their friend behind his back. Fortunately, Riku knew that it was nothing personal and would always answer with a simr yfulness, so no harm was done here.


    But yeah, unlike Yuki who was a low-key student, Riku was the popr guy. The moment he entered the ssroom, he was surrounded by his fangirls who either wanted to congratte him or did something indecent toward the blonde boy that no sane teenagers would ever be brave enough to do inside the school.


    Even by now, the blonde boy was still being surrounded by five empty-headed girls who looked at him in awe. Yuki and Kato snickered when they received the pleading gaze from their friend, asking them to help him get out of his situation. They ignored the plea, knowing that Riku somehow enjoyed the attention too.


    "So, when will your next game be?" The girl asked.


    "I don''t know." Yuki shrugged. "The coach gives us two days off, so I think it should be a while before the next round begins. That is good, though. Even though it doesn''t look like that, thest game took a toll on us. I don''t know about the others, but I still have fatigue right now and I had already slept for 10 hoursst night."


    "That''s good." Kato nodded softly. "Let''s just hope that your luck will be better in the next round." She said with a teasing tone.


    Yukiughed and said, "Yeah, I don''t think I can survive the entire tournament if we have to face a tough opponent like Shimoyawata in every round. Let''s just hope that our luck will be better in the future."


    Little did he know though, that at that time, the Murphy''sw worked like a bitch against Tsunemori.

 Chapter 56: Tournament Draw! (I)

    Yuki grunted a little when he noticed dawn broke fully, shining brightly on his bed. He woke slowly, feeling something heavy that didn''t belong to his bodytched onto his chest. When he took a peek, Yuki couldn''t help but smile at the sight of a little girl squeezing onto his bed.


    ''I still got invaded again, huh?'' He muttered wryly.


    The little girl was Higawa Mai, the youngest child in the orphanage. After he decided to get more serious in volleyball, Yuki seemed to have less time to spare for the children there. They didn''t mind, of course, since the sses boy would always try his best to spare his time for the residents of the orphanage.


    The fact that he won his first game also made everyone proud and encouraged him to do better.


    However, Mai who was the youngest one out of the 11 children here didn''t think so. It seemed she was unhappy with the less time spent with Yuki and decided to invade his bed almost every night. Not that Yuki minded, though, since it was a cute invasion and he secretly enjoyed every moment of it.


    Still, Yuki had to wake up earlier than the girl, considering he had to help Aiko prepare the children for the day and go to the morning training if Akira asked the team to do that. He maneuvered the little girl to sleep on his bed before scrabbling on the desk next to him, searching for his sses.


    After finding it and stretching his body for thest time, he finally got down from his bed, found his way to the kitchen where Aiko was busy already in that room.


    His nostrils were immediately greeted by the savory aroma of Aiko''s expertly frying egg, wafting up from the sizzling pan on the stovetop. Even though every day was filled with simple dishes like this, the matron had the uncanny ability to make ordinary things look special just like the frying eggs in front of him.


    "Good morning, Yuki-kun." Aiko greeted without even turning around her head. "Are you still being invaded by Mai-chan?" She held back a giggle.


    "Yeah, yeah,ugh it up, Baasan." Yuki smiled wryly.


    "Oh, don''t worry, I will." Sheughed merrily. "Still, even though I know she would always go to your room, I don''t have the heart to stop her. And I know you enjoy the invasion more than you would admit."


    "You would never hear that from me." He sniffed, making the woman giggle more.


    There was a peaceful silence for a moment as Yuki sat on the stool. His bright, blue eyes locked on Aiko''s swift movement that left him in awe. He couldn''t help but wonder, how could the matron move so proficiently in such a small space without shing into so much stuff that was forced to fit there?


    "What is in your mind, Yuki-kun?" Aiko asked, snapping him from his thoughts.


    "Nothing." The sses boy shook his head, feeling a bit silly. "Just letting my mind wander far."


    "Hmmm¡­" The matron hummed for a while. "Well, if you have nothing to do, why don''t you help me wake up your siblings?"


    "Sure." Yuki rose from the stool immediately, having nothing better to do.


    It was strange how normal this kind of routine was for him now. If Yuki asked himself two months ago whether he was willing to wake up early without any resistance, his past self would haveughed at him. Before the disaster, he was the only child his parent had, and he was not embarrassed to say he was spoiled by them.


    From being woken up in the morning, preparing his breakfast, school uniform, bento, and everything, he had never done it by himself. That showed how much his parents loved him, and while it wasn''t good for his adulthood, Yuki enjoyed that attention much back then.


    That was probably why the first week in the orphanage was hard for him, and that was also probably why the loss of his parents didn''t quite sink in for a while as he had to adapt to his new life.


    And right now, even though his routine was different, he had to act more mature as the oldest child here while having to help Aiko with domestic chores, Yuki surprisingly didn''t find himself doing everything reluctantly. He enjoyed his new role as everyone''s big brother here. It didn''t help that everyone here also epted him pretty quickly, willing to treat the others as their new family.


    Even though they all were a bunch of broken children after losing their families, at least they could hold hands together and stay strong together for now.


    After waking up the children from one room to another, Yuki took a shower quickly before going down to the kitchen once again to enjoy his breakfast. Only Aiko was there as everyone was busy preparing for their day too. Squabbles andughter could be heard echoing through the building, making him and Aiko shake their head in exasperation.


    After a while, Yuki decided to go first, knowing he had to go for a meeting with the team.


    "Do you have a morning practice today?" Aiko asked.


    "No, Baasan." Yuki shook his head while putting on his shoes. "This morning, we will gather together to see the drawing of the tournament. I cannot wait to see which opponent would we have to face in the future."


    "Oh, I see¡­" Privately, Aiko couldn''t understand what he said.


    "Okay, I am ready." Yuki tapped his shoes on the ground for a moment before giving the matron a final hug. "I have to go first. Wish us luck!"


    "Okay! Be careful on the road!"


    -0-


    The moment Yuki arrived at the school, the atmosphere was still quiet. There were not a lot of students who had arrived there even though the sun was already high. The atmosphere of a long holiday could be felt by everyone as all the talks around were where they would go.


    Yeah, even though it was still a spring season, they had the luxury of enjoying a full holiday from thest week of April to the first week of May. That was what Japanese people celebrated as the Golden Week.


    However, that kind of atmosphere wouldn''t be found in the sports team. Instead of thinking about the holiday, all they had in mind was to use that week to train their asses off, knowing their rival would also do the same. And unfortunately, the volleyball team was included in that list.


    "So, we are at this time again, huh?" Kaede stretched his body, yawned big as he waited for the coach to arrive.


    "At what time?" Riku asked curiously.


    "A golden week time," Okamura answered. "This is the two time when Akira-sensei would go all out to either kill us or make us stronger, so be ready."


    Yuki and Riku stared at each other, couldn''t help but gulp. "So, when is the second time he does that?" The blonde boy asked.


    "It is the summer holiday." The atmosphere suddenly turned gloomy as all the faces of the senior members showed depression, frightening their kouhai more. "If you think the training up to now is hellish, you are in a rude awakening. Akira-sensei would make you stronger in the golden week, just to kill you one more time during the summer.


    And if you were able to survive all of the stages, that was when he would recognize you as a true volleyball yer."


    Yuki and Riku swallowed their saliva nervously after hearing Okamura''s story. It didn''t help that the libero was a good storyteller, had a way to tell a story with such a dramatic tone, enhancing the legend of it. Yuki asked Riku silently whether it was a true story since the blonde boy was the coach''s nephew, just for his friend to shake his head frantically.


    Fortunately, before their mind could go too far, Megumi appeared to save the day.


    *BONK!*


    "Ouch!" Okamura winced as he felt a book hit his head. "What''s wrong, Megumi-senpai?" He asked, smiling innocently at the girl.


    Megumi just snorted udylike before saying, "Don''t scare your kouhai like that, okay?" Then, she turned to reassure the two freshmen with her best innocent smile. "Don''t worry, the training is not that bad. You will enjoy it."


    Somehow, it only scared Yuki and Riku more.


    "Okay, everyone!" Akira arrived at the gymnasium, taking out a smallptop from his bag. "Before we start our meeting, let''s witness together how difficult our journey in this tournament would be!"

 Chapter 57: Tournament Draw! (II)

    As all the yers sat in the gymnasium, the live broadcast of the tournament drawing finally started on Akira''sptop. They all could see immediately four massive brackets with sixteen nk spots in every bracket.


    The four teams who won the entire bracket would be in the semifinal and fight against each other to be the number one team in Tokyo this year, and the top three teams would also be the representatives of Tokyo in the next national tournament.


    Unlike the first round where the team couldn''t know their next opponent, this time, every team would be able to predict how hard their journey would be, and everyone prayed to not be ced in the same bracket as Konan or Matsukita. The same could also be said for Tsunemori too. While Riku might love the challenge, he wasn''t crazy enough to want to meet a strong opponent too early.


    It would be better if those strong teams killed each other first and let them win against an easy opponent quietly.


    After waiting for a while, a person finally appeared on the screen, walking in front of the bracket. He had this brilliant smile that would light up the atmosphere in the room just by standing here, something that Yuki thought was impossible to do. However, it seemed everyone ¨C even Riku knew who that person was as gasps echoed throughout the gymnasium.


    "It is him!"


    "Damn! I haven''t seen or heard any news about him for a while! Would he be the one announcing the drawing?"


    "Does that mean he would say our team''s name too?"


    "Who is he?" Yuki who was the only clueless person there decided to ask. Seeing the disbelief eyes directed at him, he raised his hands quickly. "Hey, a newbie in volleyball, remember?"


    After realizing that Yuki was right, it was Koji who exined. "That person is Adachihara Ken, probably the most decorated athlete Japan has ever had in the history. He yed for the country since he was 16 for about neen years and brought back so many achievements, including one gold medal and two bronze medals in the Olympics.


    He retired two years ago, and after that, he hasn''t been exposed to a lot of news up to now. Never in my dream I would see him standing there to announce the draw."


    "Yeah." Asahi nodded enthusiastically. "He is my hero even now! It was him who made me train myself to be a left-handed yer like him!"


    "Hey, I tried that too! But I sucked, so I gave up quickly!"


    "Same! Hahaha!"


    Yuki blinked when he heard the excited conversation about the guy on the screen. Even the cold-blooded Hirano smiled a little, which just showed him how big this Adachihara Ken was in the volleyballmunity.


    "So, how do you know about him too?" He whispered to Riku.


    "Adachihara was a big name in Italy too." The blonde boy whispered back, still staring at the screen in awe. "He joined Sisley Treviso, a team based in a small city called Treviso in the northern part of Italy in 2001.


    After that, he brought back the glory to the team by winning 6 Serie A in a row and being dubbed as the MVP of the tournament 4 times, making him one of the best yers that had ever graced Italian volleyball."


    That was when Yuki realized how much weight the person on the screen carried for the Japanese volleyball.


    ''Still, he is not ying anymore. He is there as the representative of the association for the drawing, so let''s focus on that.''


    After exchanging pleasantry with the people there and greeting the audience who watched the live broadcast, Adachihara finally started the drawing. Instead of calling every team one by one, the association used a randomizing program created for this, so the only thing the volleyball legend had to do was press the button, and all the teams would be ced all over the brackets randomly.


    The moment he did that though, everyone held their breath unconsciously, leaning their body forward to search Tsunemori''s name frantically.


    "Where is our team? Do you find it?"


    "No! We are not in the first bracket!"


    "Hey! Don''t push around!"


    "It is you who push us! Don''t me the others!"


    "Hey, I found it! We are on the third bracket!"


    All the eyes suddenly turned to the third bracket to see the name of their school. It was easy to find since their name was ced in the second to top of the bracket. What they excited the most though, was the opponent they had to face next.


    Tsunemori High ¨C Tokamiyama High


    "Tokamiyama? Is that a good team?" Yuki asked.


    "I don''t know." Kaede shrugged. "I have never heard about them until now." They all stared at each other for a moment to see whether anyone knew anything about their next opponent or not. Seeing that no one voiced any information, they all grinned, knowing Tokamiyama was just a no-name team.


    "Yosh! It should be an easy game, right?!"


    "Don''t underestimate your opponent!"


    "But Koji is right! It should be easier than Shimoyawata, right?!"


    "It should be!"


    "Let''s see who will be our next opponent if we win the second round!"


    "Hey, you are right!"


    Their face lightened up when they read the names of the teams that were in the same bracket as them. The opponent they had to face in the third round if they won the next game¡­ Another no-name team! In the fourth round¡­ A decent team whose achievement kept going down in thest recent years! In the final of the bracket¡­. Konan High! Everyone groaned when they read thest name.


    "Oh,e on! We are so close to entering the semifinal!" Okamura groaned.


    "Yeah! Goddamnit! How could our luck be so bad we are in the same bracket as the best team in the country?" Kaede moaned.


    "Well, at least we would face them in the top eight, right?" Koji sighed. "Our achievement should be higher thanst year."


    "Yeah! Last year, we lost immediately in the second round! Compared to that, this year should be better!"


    "We should be able to get into the top 8, right?"


    "Yes!"


    As they chatted about the result of the draw, no one noticed the coach reacted badly to the result of the draw. His face went pale, and cold sweat suddenly rolled down his hands. It wasn''t until he spoke that everyone finally turned their head on him.


    "No, top eight is not enough."


    All the eyes turned to him, looking at him with concern as bad feelings suddenly crept into their body when they saw their coach reacted so badly.


    "What do you mean, Sensei?" Megumi asked softly, her tone was full of concern.


    Akira went silent for a while, pondering for a moment about something. The team waited in tense anticipation for him to say something, starting to hate their coach for ying with their nerve. After a few seconds, Akira finally sighed, revealing the truth.


    "There is an agreement made between me and all the teachers in the school, that if I cannot bring you to the semifinal this year, the team has to be disbanded forever."


    Silence settled over the gymnasium for a while as everyone proceeded with his words. When everything sunk in though, they had their eyes widened, only one word could express their feeling right now.


    "WHAAAAT?!"

 Chapter 58: The Agreement Revealed!

    "Sincest year, our school has been suffering from financial problems, either due to the budget from the government getting cut off more than half of what we usually received or due to the bad management from the higher-ups," Akira exined the background of the agreement he had with the school. "That was what started the purge that has been happening this year."


    "The purge?" Everyone looked at each other confusedly.


    "Should we really talk about this right now?" Megumi suddenly asked, a bit uneasy. "I mean this is basically talking bad about our school, right? Should we do it¡­ I don''t know, more secretly, I guess?"


    It wasn''t like she was not curious about the situation, but the girl was worried that someone would overhear the conversation and spread another bad rumor about them. One bad rumor three weeks ago was enough for her, she didn''t want to repeat that episode once again.


    "Don''t worry, Megumi-san." Akira waved his hand casually. "Have you not noticed that besides the PE ss, the only one who uses the gymnasium is our team?"


    "Eh?!"


    "Really?!"


    All the yers there were stunned when they heard the new information, but after pondering for a moment, they realized that it was true. The only time the gymnasium was used by anyone other than the volleyball club was on the second day of the term by the basketball team. But since then, they hadn''t seen the other teams use the facility again.


    "It is rted to the purge that I am talking about." Akira nodded solemnly, confirming their guess. "While we are far from bankrupt, our financial situation is bad. To save the school, the headmaster gathered all the teachers before the term began to discuss what to do, and the best solution provided was to close the club they deemed just a waste of money.


    Unfortunately, so many sports clubs were included in that list, and the volleyball team is one of them."


    The team was stunned, didn''t even know how to react to the revtion. Even the bright sun outside couldn''t outshine the gloomy atmosphere there as they couldn''t ept the situation.


    "Why is it only the sports clubs that are threatened here?" Kaede asked, still trying to process the information.


    "Because the sports club always requires a lot of members, and the maintenance cost is too high for the school to afford," Akira answered gloomily. "And it is not just the sports club. We are lucky the school is willing to be more lenient with us and not to close the team directly.


    The others such as the football team, basketball team, athletic team, and even a major club for the school like orchestra team and science team were reduced to the ashes, all in the name of saving the money."


    The reaction from the yers varied from shocked, bewildered, disbelief, and even worry for the future of the team. Yuki himself had eye contact with Riku, both questioning how Kato was doing currently. The girl joined the science team, so she would probably be in the same situation right now.


    "So, what is so special about our team that we were able to escape from the purge? I am sure, we didn''t do anything special. If anything, themotion we made a while ago should receive a negative review from the teacher, right?" Ogawa asked.


    Yuki couldn''t help but wince unconsciously as the incident with the senior members was mentioned again. While he didn''t regret ying against the senior team to clear his name and wasn''t embarrassed about it, the sses boy had to admit that themotion was a bad thing for the volleyball team.


    It exposed the disharmony inside the team, which should be enough for the teachers to include the team in the purge instantly.


    "Well, I don''t know the details, but it seems that our esteemed headmaster is a former member of the team when he was your age, ying as a captain for this school about thirty-seven years ago," Akira answered nonchntly as if he answered the question about the weather outside.


    "So, he is a former yer¡­" All of them nodded in understanding, the words hadn''t sunk inside their head yet. A momentter though, they all snapped their head toward the coach, looking at the man with eyes wide in disbelief. "SAY WHAT?! THE HEADMASTER IS A FORMER PLAYER AND PLAYED FOR THIS SCHOOL TOO?!"


    "Psst! Keep it down!" Akira hissed immediately. "But, yeah, he is a former captain of the team, and from what I got, he achieved good things too as a yer. That is why he is adamant about defending our team even if we are a big mess. He has so many memories here, and most of them are the good ones."


    The nine students there noddedically like a bunch of parrots, still processing the information they just received. Who knew the esteemed headmaster whom everyone respected and some were scared of was also a yer in the past, standing in their position too? This somehow got them excited for no reason apart from having a good backer for the team.


    However, it was subdued immediately when they remembered the agreement to disband the team still existed, which meant it wasn''t enough to only have their headmaster behind their back.


    "So, we are still here just out of respect toward the headmaster, eh?" Okamura asked no one, his face darkened.


    "Well¡­ Basically, yes." Akira nodded, confirming the question.


    The air turned heavy suddenly inside the gymnasium. While they didn''t like the fact that they were still here out of pity, they couldn''t help but be d they still had a chance to prove they still deserved to exist in the school.


    However, those feelings ebbed away as they remembered they had to face Konan before they went through the semifinal, a mission impossible for any team but Matsukita in the country.


    "Well, this makes everything more interesting, right?" Suddenly, a voice snapped them from their depression.


    All the eyes turned immediately to the source of the voice, and Yuki had a thick vein popped on his forehead when he saw his blonde friend grinning stupidly.


    "What are you talking about, you idiot?!" He pped Riku''s back immediately, then turned to the others and bowed, "I am sorry Senpai. You know something always goes wrong inside his head. Please, don''t take his words seriously." As the only one from the same generation, Yuki felt responsible for all Riku''s antic.


    That was why he pped Riku''s back without hesitation the moment the blonde boy uttered something nonsense again.


    "OUCH! What the hell, Kobayashi?!" Riku rubbed the spot Yuki hit sourly. He wilted immediately the moment he received the sses boy''s re, didn''t want to provoke his friend''s ire. Still, he said, "Hear me out first, will you?"


    All the students here who were essentially older than those two just snickered loudly when they saw their kouhai''s antic, lightened up the atmosphere. Noticing that, Yuki sighed, letting it slide while still ring at the blonde boy. "Well, what do you want to say?"


    Riku gulped before finally saying his thoughts. "Well, this is basically all or nothing, right?"


    "Huh? What do you mean?" Everyone tilted their head confusedly, couldn''t understand his words.


    "Think about it!" Riku said, getting more excited. "We have to face Konan High if we want to advance through the semifinal. If we lost, that would mean we were disbanded. But imagine if we won the game. It would be a legendary story! Everyone would remember our name!


    The one who destroys Konan High''s domination! The one who create the miracle! Can you imagine the glory we would receive?!"


    They all pondered his words, starting to imagine that scenario. The more they thought about it, the more they liked what they saw. Meanwhile, Yuki also nodded in agreement ¨C to his own surprise. This was basically all or nothing. They lost, and everything was over, but if they won, they would be pushed into the spotlight immediately.


    He couldn''t help but admire his friend once again. Despite all Riku''s ws, Yuki had to admit there was one thing the blonde boy had that he didn''t possess, and that was the ability to motivate the others. Just a few minutes ago they were so depressed with the prospect of the team''s disbandment, but now, the air was filled with positivity, smiles and excitement spread inside the gymnasium.


    ''Let''s just hope that our future will be friendlier to us.''

 Chapter 59: Training Camp Starts!

    "Oi! Kimura! You are here!"


    Hearing his name called, a man in his middle age turned around, just to see his old friend waving at him. "So, you came, huh, Akira?"


    "Yes." Akira nodded with a smile on his face. "Please, take care of us."


    "Me too." The man named Kimura also nodded. Then, his eyes turned to Akira''s back to see a bunch of students following his friend. "So, those are your boys? They look rather displeased."


    Akira could only sigh helplessly when he saw his yers had some sort of sour expression on their faces. He could still remember the conversation he had with them yesterday after the talk about the team''s future; when he announced their training agenda in the golden week.


    -A little shback-


    "Starting from tomorrow, we will have a training camp for one week," Akira spoke.


    "Oh!" Excitement rose immediately. "Training camp? Where?" Ogawa asked.


    "Are you an idiot?" Okamura rolled his eyes. "If you say training camp, it should be the sea, right?"


    "So, in Okinawa?" Ogawa asked once again.


    "Hey, I have never been to Okinawa before!" Kaede suddenly said.


    "Me neither!"


    "Ah! I need to buy trunks!"


    "It has been a long time since I go to the sea! What should I bring there?"


    By now, everyone was so excited at the prospect of the training camp, ignoring Akira whose face darkened as he was being ignored. Still, he didn''t interrupt the conversation, letting their imagination run wild just to let reality p them hard tomorrow.


    ''Let''s see if you can still have the same enthusiasm when you see the ce¡­''


    -End of the shback-


    Akira didn''t even tell them all their designation, just letting the excitement rise to the peak as everyone talked about the beach enthusiastically. It wasn''t until they got off the bus that all of them realized the ce was far from the beach. They arrived at Tsukumi University, Akira''s alma mater in East Tokyo.


    That was why even by now, they still red at their coach who probablyughed his ass off when he heard their excitement about the beach.


    "Anyway, where is Megumi-senpai?" Ogawa suddenly asked.


    "She couldn''te." It was Yuki who answered the question. "It seems that Megumi-senpai''s parents had some business to do outside of Tokyo and she was asked to stay at home with her grandma."


    "Hoo¡­" All of them nodded in understanding.


    Well¡­ All of them¡­ Except for the self-proimed number-one fans of the girl.


    "Howe you know that information?" Koji scowled. "Megumi-senpai doesn''t even tell me anything."


    Yuki just rolled his eyes in exasperation before answering, "She replied to my text with that when I asked her whether she would join the training camp or not. Maybe, you should ask too if you really care about her, mister ''biggest fans''?" He said thest part sarcastically.


    "Why, you?!"


    "Don''t get irritated that easily, Koji!" Ogawa rolled his eyes in a simr manner as what Yuki did before, infuriating the new ace of the team more.


    "It is because of you that we are expecting Okinawa, Ogawa!" Koji snarked. "You are responsible for this disappointment!"


    "I thought it was Okinawa because Okamura said about the sea!" Ogawa defended himself while throwing away the me on his friend.


    "What? So, I am at fault now, huh?" The libero scowled.


    For a moment, things seemed to get heated among them. Kimura nced at Akira sideways, asking silently whether this would be okay. Tsunemori''s coach himself just shrugged it off, knowing they needed to do this to blow the disappointment away. A little voice inside his heart told him otherwise, though.


    ''Is it really okay? I thought training camp was designed as something to deepen the bond of the club members, but how could it be the opposite? Their rtionships might be even worse.''


    After a while, they all finally calmed down, went to the gymnasium inside the campus and started their training. To their surprise though, the first thing on the menu was a game against Tsukumi University''s C team.


    "Togano! Here! To the left!"


    *BAM!*


    "Oh! Nice save, Kobayashi!"


    "Agostini! Save it! Don''t let the ball fly over the!"


    "I got this!"


    *BAM!*


    "SHIT!"


    "A game right aftering over?" Kimura asked. He stood next to Akira as they both observed how the game went. "To have our C team as your opponent, which even though filled by the freshmen who just came out of high school, they still are excellent guys assembled from all around the country, the difference in power is too great. Your team won''t get anything from such a game."


    Akira nodded as if he had already expected that. "I know. But it needs to be at least an opponent at that level."


    "Oh?" Kimura stared at him questioningly.


    "RIKU! LEFT!"


    *BAM!*


    "Shit! Agostini, don''t make it so obvious!"


    "I don''t need you to say that, Kobayashi!" Riku growled as his set was predicted once again by the opponent. This was probably the thing a setter hated the most, being read like an open book and couldn''t put up a decent fight against the opponent.


    "Don''t get distracted, Kobayashi! Watch the ball!"


    "I got this!"


    "So, the condition is to get into the best four in order to not abolish the volleyball team?!" Kimura stared in disbelief when he heard what Akira said. Somehow, their concentration wasn''t on the court anymore. "That would be hard, you know? In Toyo, before getting into the best four, you have to face either Konan or Matsukita."


    "I know." Then, a small smile suddenly formed beneath Akira''s thick mustache. "That is why it is worth doing."


    ''Worth?'' Kimura was getting more confused. ''Does he think this game would be enough for them to prepare themselves against the two teams that even our A team struggled to defeat?''


    Kimura stared at his friend for a moment, trying to get a hint of emotion to show on his face. Seeing Akira''s calm face, he couldn''t help but ask, "Akira, why are you doing this?"


    "Huh?" Akira tilted his head confusedly. "What do you mean?"


    "You were a first-rate outside hitter at the university in the past, and if your knee didn''t break, you should have been Japan''s representative with Adachihara-senpai. Surely, there were many famous teams that asked you to coach them, right? Why did you agree to manage such a team?"


    Akira scowled at his words. "Hey, hey! Calling them ''such a team'' is a bit awful, don''t you think? Even though we are from the same generation, what you said is a bit too much!" Seeing his friend was unfazed though, Akira sighed before saying, "I want the honor."


    Kimura widened his eyes for a moment before parroting his words. "The honor? To be the leader who raises a youth team to a champion?"


    "No." Akira shook his head firmly. Then, without exining anything to his friend, he turned around and said, "The game is about to end. Let''s separate our way first before we discuss how should we do the joint training."


    Kimura was stunned for a second before he scowled, realizing what happened. "Akira Oi! Don''t ignore me like that, Bastard!"


    -0-


    "25 ¨C 9 and 25 ¨C 7? It has been a long time since I saw this team lost with such arge gap." Akira smiled teasingly at his yers.


    He received the dirty gazes from everyone, yet nothing was said as all the yers there copsed to the floor with faces full of sweat. It was clear by their erratic breathing that they were far beyond exhausted.


    "Well¡­ This is still within my exhaustion." Akira said still with a smile, gaining his yers'' attention. "Our aim during this week would be massive physical strengthening. Endurance that cannot lose to any team would keep our chance open whenever the game is prolonged to the third set. From this point on, every day, you will have to do a lot of running.


    Look!" He pointed his fingers at the other side of the court.


    All the eyes turned in that direction, just to find the yers they just faced in the earlier game didn''t even sweat that much.


    "They still look like they have energy to spare, right?" He asked.


    "Damn¡­" The yers growled in annoyance when they saw the sight.


    "Those¡­" Akira continued. "Are the faces of you guys after this camp. Can you do it?"


    Facing the challenge from the coach, determination suddenly burned inside them. They all stared at each other for a moment before nodding their head collectively.


    "Hell, yeah!"


    "Let''s do it!"


    "Let''s show everyone the new Tsunemori after this hell is over!"

 Chapter 60: Training Camp (I)

    KY: Hey!


    KY: How are you doing?


    KY: I heard the science club is forced to close down. You okay?


    Ayaka Kato: I am good.


    Ayaka Kato: Yeah, it sucks. But my president managed to negotiate with the school.


    Ayaka Kato: Instead of being disbanded directly, we have half a year to achieve something in Tokyo.


    Ayaka Kato: Something that would make the school''s higher-ups think we are worth investment.


    Ayaka Kato: I heard the volleyball team is the same, right?


    KY: Yeah. If we cannot be the top 4 teams in the prefecture, we are done.


    Ayaka Kato: Wow, that is tough.


    Ayaka Kato: I heard Tokyo has the top two teams in the country, right?


    KY: Yeah.


    Ayaka Kato: Well, good luck with that!


    KY: You too.


    -0-


    "COME ON! RUN FASTER!"


    Even though the summer hadn''te to the country yet, today''s weather was surprisingly good for any outdoor activity. However, that only meant the torture the Tsunemori team received would be more intense. Under the scorching sun, they kept running and running, increasing and decreasing the tempo constantly following Akira''s instructions.


    They were not sure for how long did they start running today, but it felt like an eternity.


    After a while, Akira finally nodded, blowing his whistle once again to ask everyone to take a rest.


    "Good job!" The coach was satisfied. "All of you finished full thirty minutes of interval running just three weeks after I introduced it to you. This is beyond my expectation."


    Even though the yers were exhausted, their faces lightened up when they heard the praise. "Does that mean we can stop doing this again forever?" Kaede asked, his tone was full of hope.


    Akira just snorted before saying, "Unfortunately, no. In fact, I will add one more set the moment you feel morefortable, so don''t get your hopes up." All of them groaned when they heard the information.


    "Man, about how many km did we run today?" Kaede asked, wiping the sweat on his face.


    "I don''t know," Asahi answered, still lying on the floor with his chest moved up and down rapidly. "About 10 km, I guess."


    "We also run so much in the game, but why do I feel more tired from this training?" Okamura groaned, he was in a simr pose as Asahi.


    Even though they all finished the full training until the end, the exhaustion kept them at bay, restraining them from being overly enthusiastic. The fact that Akira said he would add more sets the moment they adapted kept them humble, knowing the torture wouldn''t end as soon as they thought it would. Still, not a singleint has been raised yet.


    Everyone followed the arrangement obediently even with one or two grumbles in the air.


    "You can take a break for fifteen minutes. After that, we will start our training again." Akira announced.


    All the eyes lightened up, asking immediately, "Is it another game against the university team?" Since they lost against the C team of Tsukumi University, the only thing on their mind was to take revenge. For them, that C team was the parameter they looked up right now, the team they wanted to use as a stepping stone to jump higher.


    The moment they beat that C team, that was when they knew they had already improved in everything.


    Akira smiled, knowing his yers'' thoughts and desires. Still, he shook his head."No, it wasn''t a game. You will see itter." He smiled mysteriously before leaving his yers curious about what would they do next.


    -0-


    "Alright, Folks!" Akira pped his hands to get his yers'' attention.


    Currently, they moved from the football field outside back to the gym, something that everyone was grateful for. The moment they entered the building though, they were greeted by the sight of Akira standing on the small circle on one side of the court. Somehow, they had a bad feeling this wouldn''t be good.


    "So, what we are going to do right now is called the Lone Defender drill. Each of you will have your turn to be the libero today, and for the others who are not on their turn, they will be on the opposite side of the court as the attackers. Each of you will have fifteen minutes, and you have to defend your side of the court during that time.


    Don''t let the ball drop to the floor, or I will count it as a miss and we will calcte the total in the end for your punishment. But if you can send the ball in my direction here," Akira mentioned the circle, "Your count will be reduced by one point. Any question? Yes, Koji?"


    "Why sending it to your direction would reduce the punishment?" He asked.


    "Good question." Akira nodded in a satisfied manner. Then, he turned his head to the others. "Anyone know the answer? Yes, Kobayashi-kun?" He pointed at Yuki who raised his hand immediately.


    "Because that spot is where Agostini would be on the game as a setter, right?"


    "Correct. Good observation skill." Akira praised him.


    At first, no one was bothered by that. Hell, even Riku didn''t notice the arrangement, thinking it was just another one of his uncle''s strange training methods. However, the more they thought about it, the more it made sense. That small circle was the spot where Riku would operate, so to be able to send the ball there would mean the setter could initiate an attack quickly.


    "So, do you all understand?"


    "Yes, Coach!"


    "Good! Then, let''s start the training!"


    -0-


    Since the training is designed for a libero, it was not a brainer that Okamura offered himself to do it first. He did a good job, showing off why he was the best defender on the team.


    While he missed the ball a few times, he made it up by sending it back to Akira''s circle spot, and while he also read the setup wrong a few times, the libero kept the ball in the air most of the time, and that was what made Akira satisfied the most.


    Asahi also did a very good job. It was slightly worse than Okamura, naturally. But he wasn''t the best defender in the first ce. His reaction wasn''t fast, but he made it up with his receiving ability which he had a knock on it, aiming almost all the ball he saved to Akira''s circle spot.


    In the end, even though he dropped the ball more than the libero, due to his urate aim, Asahi managed to keep the count lower than his friend.


    Kaede was also the same. As the defensive-oriented yer, he did his job well, saving the ball left and right. Unlike the first two yers who read the y first before they moved, the opposite hitter used his instinctpletely, starting to move even before he knew who would be the one to hit the ball.


    It left everyone in awe as all of them couldn''t understand how could someone''s instinct be so urate.


    The next three yers didn''t do as well as their friends, though. Koji, Ogawa, and Hirano struggled to keep the ball up in the air. The first two were attacking-minded yers, so it was difficult to read the game. As for Hirano, he was theplete opposite of them.


    He used his experience as the middle blocker to read everything well, but his ability as a receiver was abysmal, making his count the highest one currently.


    The biggest surprise came from Riku. While everyone knew he had a solid basic, they all thought since the blonde boy was a setter, he wouldn''t be that good. Who would expect that Riku was so good his count was close to the first three yers?


    And when it was Yuki''s turn¡­


    *BAM!*


    "Come again!"


    *BAM!*


    "Next one!"


    *BAM!*


    "Come on!"


    Everyone was in awe as they witnessed how Yuki moved wlessly, kept flying all around the court to save the ball. It took almost ten minutes for them all to finally force the sses boy to let the ball to drop the floor. He really showed his talent to all the yers there, making them curse inwardly at how unfair God was when giving a person such a talent like that.


    Still, even though there was jealousy, the most dominant feelings they had toward Yuki were admiration and excitement as they were d he was their teammate.


    Akira himself shook his head in wonder at the sight of Yuki saving the ball. Just like what he expected the first time he saw Yuki, Akira knew the sses boy would be the most talented yer he had ever coached up to now. Still, he was satisfied with the overall result, not just him alone.


    ''As expected, they are more suitable as a defensive team. All of them could work wlessly to defend against any kind of attack, and with more polishing, those three would be able to improve too to my standard. But this is not enough¡­ We need to have more weapons if we want to win against Konan¡­''

 Chapter 61: Training Camp (II)

    The next day started basically the same. They woke up pretty early, doing some warming-up before starting running even when the sky was still dark outside. It was just a low-intensity running to prepare their body for such a long day. After that, they enjoyed breakfast together in the campus''s canteen while rxing a little, talking andughing about everything.


    Then, they would be given free time for about half an hour to do anything they liked, either exploring the campus or just lying on the bedzily. And when the time was over, that was when the torture started again.


    Just like his promise, Akira didn''t hold back. He added more sets for the interval running, letting all the yers feel that they were still not good enough. If yesterday, they all could finish the training in full thirty minutes, this time, only Hirano was able to do that. Everyoney on the ground quickly just in twenty minutes after the training started, showing how exhausted they were.


    "God, this is impossible." Kaede panted heavily on the ground.


    "Yeah¡­" Ogawa nodded, his condition was a bit worse than his friend''s. "I¡­ I don''t think¡­ Anyone would train this hard¡­ For the tournament¡­"


    "Hirano is insane, though," Kojimented. While he was tired and decided to walk out from this session, he still looked at his friend in admiration. "He could keep up with all the nonsense training Akira-senseiing up with."


    "He is just another freak, like the two people we know." Asahi snorted, his eyes nced at Yuki and Riku.


    Yeah, after the training yesterday, they all finally realized that it wasn''t just Yuki who had an amazing talent in the team. Riku was the same, could absorb almost everything the coach gave instantly. And to make it worse, they both improved at a pace that the other people couldn''t follow, outshining everyone without even trying to do that.


    "No need to be jealous. We have our own talent and role, so it would be better if we just put our focus on that." Koji said casually. "Anyway, does the summere earlier this year? Why is it so hot in thest two days?" He groaned while narrowing his eyes at the sun in the sky.


    Yeah, just like Koji said, the weather today was still the same as yesterday, very good for outdoor activity. It was as if the God of Weather itself watched them getting tortured and decided to keep the weather as it was yesterday just because it was funny to see them running frantically as if they were chased by a wild dog.


    "Here. A drink for you." Suddenly, a soft voice knocked gently through his ears like an angel. Coupled with the pleasant cold feeling from a drink getting pressed onto his cheek, Koji blinked a few times, his mind couldn''t respond to what just happened.


    "Thank you, Megumi-senpai." That was the only word that coulde out of his mouth. Stay ahead with m v l em pyr


    "You''re wee."


    It took everyone a few seconds before they realized who just greeted them, and their head snapped immediately to the girl. "MEGUMI-SENPAI?! Why are you here?!"


    Yeah, it was Megumi who just came here and gave them a drink to relieve their thirst. She wore a in, white shirtbined with dark sports pants and white shoes, setting her hair in a high ponytail style that enhanced her beauty more, making everyone''s jaws drop and their faces blush hard.


    Megumi tilted her head confusedly when she heard the question. "Shouldn''t I be here?" She asked.


    "No, no, no, Senpai! I don''t mean it that way!" Koji shook his head frantically. "I mean, I heard from Kobayashi that you have to apany your grandma, right?" He asked while sending a re toward the sses boy. It was because of his kouhai that he didn''t expect his idol toe and embarrass himself in front of her.


    "Oh, yeah, he is right." Megumi nodded, putting Koji on the wrong foot. "But I only need to apany my grandma for two days. You know that I have a little sister too, right?"


    Koji blushed at her reminder, ring fiercely at his teammates who stiffened theirughter at his reaction.


    It was clear that Megumi''s presence lightened up the mood of the team. With her among them, the conversation seemed to run better as everyone tried their best to impress the girl with their hard work. It wasn''t until Akira blew his whistle again that they rose from the ground reluctantly to restart the training again.


    "After this, we will have a guest who will help with our training." Akira suddenly announced.


    "Eh? A guest?" Everyone stared at each other confusedly, just to receive a shrug from their friends.


    "Yeah, he was one of my mentors in the past when I was a yer here, and he is willing to help our training today." Akira''s smile was full of nostalgia. "Ah, speaking of which, here hees!"


    They all turned their head around to the direction where the coach stared, just to find an old man with a short body and some sort of wry expression on his face walking with a cane in his hand, scrutinizing them all for a moment with the sharp gaze that would put everyone ufortable.


    "Old geezer? Is that you?"Riku suddenly spoke in Italian, surprising everyone.


    The old man had a thick vein popped on his forehead as he swung the cane immediately to the blonde boy. "How many times have I told you to not call me that, you disrespectful Brat!"


    "Ouch! Stop it, old geezer! That hurts!"


    "It is supposed to be hurt, you stupid boy! Come on! Apologize!"


    "Never!"


    Everyone had a nk face as they stared at the old man who juste and started bickering with Riku in Italian while waving his cane threateningly at the blonde boy. Only Yuki among the yers had a clue of what they were talking about since he started learning Italian too, yet he couldn''t follow up the conversation that running so fast.


    Akira sighed tiredly at them before turning his attention back to the yers, decided to ignore those two.


    "Well, as you can see, there is one person who knows about the old man already." He said wryly. "But I will still introduce him to you. His name is Sekine, currently the advisor of the volleyball team here. As you can see, he also has experience with Italian volleyball. In fact, he was the one who pushed me to go there after finishing my study here."


    "Eh?! Really?" All the eyes suddenly looked at the old man in a different light.


    "Yes. At that time, you were still a brat like them too, Shinji." The old man chimed in after hitting Riku one more time with his cane. His eyes wandered around the yers once again before sighing. "So, they are your boys, huh? I have already watched the record you sent to me, and I have to say they are not bad."


    Their eyes beamed when they heard his words. After all, who didn''t like getting praised?


    "Still, there is room for improvement, though." The old man said. Then, a small smile suddenly formed on his face as he stared at the yers in front of him. "Since Shinji asks me to do this, I will do everything seriously. By the moment your camp is over, I will make sure you lot are up to my standard. Are you ready to work hard?"


    Thest words seemed to be a threat in their ears, making all of them gulp in fright. Still, they knew this was necessary, especially when they remembered they had to face Konan High if they wanted to keep the club running. With determination zing through their eyes, there was only one reaction that would be proper at this time, and that was the simultaneous shout that reflected their spirit.


    "YES, SIR!"

 Chapter 62: Training Camp (III)

    As the sun started to go down below the horizon and darkness seemed to envelop the sky, Yuki yawned, stretching his stiff body after such a long day. While today''s training was not as physical, the amount of technical knowledge Sekine thought today was insane, making the exhaustion more to his brain than to his body.


    There were so many things in the game that Yuki thought it was natural but he could make it better by changing his approach, like how to use his hips to generate more power when spiking the ball or something like that. This knowledge was new to him, that the exnation kept spinning around his head.


    It frustrated him more when the sses boy noticed he knew what he should do, but his body couldn''t keep up with the knowledge he just received. It would take time for his muscles to remember what to do naturally in a game.


    Still, Yuki was satisfied with the camp. He gained a lot in one day just by following Sekine''s instructions obediently. And it wasn''t just him, but everyone also felt the same. The old man fixed so many technical problems that everyone possessed but was unaware of, helping them get better quickly.


    As he was about to walk away from the court after cleaning the gym though, Akira suddenly called his name.


    "Kobayashi, stay here for a while." The coach said.


    Yuki blinked a few times before pointing his finger at himself. "Me?" He asked for the confirmation.


    "Yeah, you." Akira nodded. "Don''t worry, you are not in trouble. Riku will also be here too."


    For a moment, Yuki sighed in relief when he heard his words. Still, he was curious about what the coach wanted to talk about. The fact that he would be with his blonde friend made it harder for him to guess. Unfortunately, Akira went out of the gym first before he could ask anything about it.


    After a while, Riku finally came. Just like him, the blonde boy was still wearing his training attire, hadn''t taken a shower yet after the training.


    "Yo!" Yuki greeted, raising his hand.


    "You are here too?" Riku raised his eyebrows slightly before taking one ball from its rack and ying with it. "Any guess on what Jiisan wants to talk about?"


    "Not really." Yuki shook his head. "What about you?"


    "Same here." Riku also shrugged. Then, he scowled before adding, "It should be that old geezer who called us here. I know it, I can smell it from afar."


    Yuki snored. "Aren''t you a bit paranoid about him? Even though a bit cranky, Sekine-sensei is a good coach, you know?"


    "Oh, I don''t deny it. After all, he was the one who taught me how to do the jump serve. But man, the old man is so annoying!" Rikuined casually about Sekine while bouncing the ball on the floor. This bit of information was something Yuki didn''t expect.


    While he knew how familiar Riku and Sekine were with each other that he could guess they should have known each other in the past, the thought that their rtionship was teacher and student had never crossed his mind.


    However, much to Yuki''s annoyance, once again, he couldn''t ask the question in his mind as someone suddenly came inside the gym too.


    "Oh, so you both are already here? Good." It was Sekine, the old man who trained the team for this day who just came in.


    Yuki could hear the whisper of ''I know it!'' from his friends, yet he tried his best to ignore it before asking, "So, why are we here, Sekine-sensei?"


    "Well, I don''t have business with that brat." Sekine chuckled as he pointed his finger at Riku who huffed slightly. "But I guess it would be morefortable for you if he is here too. No, my business here is with you."


    "Me?" Yuki was startled.


    "Yes, you." Sekine nodded in confirmation. "Shinji had already shown me the record of yourst game, and color me surprised when I saw you have that kind of trick in your sleeves." He praised.


    Yuki blushed. "It is not that impressive." He said, rubbing his neck awkwardly.


    "It is that impressive." Sekine praised once again. "While it is good to be modest, you have to be more confident. If what you did is impressive and you deserved to get the praise, ept it proudly." The old man advised.


    Yuki blushed once again, yet he only nodded his head without saying anything to answer that. Riku who was ignored in the conversation scowled before asking, "Is it about the serve that you put a spell on it so the opponent couldn''t move in time?"


    "For thest time, Agostini, I don''t put any spell on it. It is just an ordinary service." Yuki rolled his eyes tiredly as he lost count of how many times the blonde boy asked the question.


    "Well, you don''t have any evidence to say that! You are not even telling us how you did it!" Riku huffed.


    "I did!" Yuki defended himself. "It is not my fault that all of you couldn''t understand what I said and call it bullshit!"


    "So, you call us stupid?"


    "No, just you!"


    "Why, you?!"


    Sekine smiled as he saw Yuki and Riku pushing and shoving each other about. "Well, it is good that you still have the energy to squabble like this. That means we can start our personal training!"


    "Eh?!" Yuki was stunned, not expecting that at all. "What do you mean personal training?"


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    "It is just as I said." Sekine nodded, confirming his words. "Every day after training, you will stay longer than the others for at least one hour, doing some personal training with me. There, I will teach you a lot, from the most basic things like how to hold the ball to the most advanced ones like the mechanics behind your movement. What do you think?"


    Yuki had his jaws dropped, still too stunned to respond. It was Riku who spoke first, shaking his body excitedly. "That is good, Kobayashi! Trust me, even though this old geezer is annoying, he knows his stuff! You won''t regret this!"


    "I don''t know¡­" Yuki was still hesitant. He was a person who needed time to think before deciding about something, couldn''t decide in a rush. "I mean, why me? And would it be considered as favoritism?" He asked.


    "Bah! If anyone said it is favoritism, they canin to me directly." Sekine waved his hand nonchntly. "And why you? Because Shinji thinks you have so much potential inside your body, and honestly, I am curious about it. This is the first time I heard my boy talking so highly about his yer, and I want to see it by myself. And it is not a life-changing decision.


    You just need to stay longer than anyone else every day, nothing more and nothing less. So, what do you think?"


    Honestly, Yuki didn''t really care about favoritism. He knew that while it would draw jealousy from the others, they all would put that aside because right now, any improvement on the team would be weed. He was also convinced by Sekine''s words that this was indeed not a life-changing decision.


    After pondering about that while under the old man''s smug smile and his friend''s excited gaze, the sses boy could only sigh and smile wryly.


    "I don''t have a choice but to do this, right?"

 Chapter 63: An Unexpected Offer!

    The news of Yuki having a personal training session with Sekine after finishing the regr one spread quickly among the yers. To Yuki''s surprise though, no one made a fuss about it. Their reaction was either pity for him having to do more training, excitement that he could improve more for the team, or curious asking what Sekine thought in private.


    The only one who reacted negatively was Hirano ¨C to his surprise once again who stared at him with aplicated expression before turning around and pretending this had never happened.


    The training Yuki did with Sekine was also an unexpected one. They spent most of the time analyzing the video that the old man brought rather than training directly on the court, only using thest fifteen minutes to put what he just learned into action.


    "More training would be no use for you. What you need the most right now other than physical improvement is knowledge and experience, and the best thing to imnt that into your head is to watch a professional game and analyze it like we did right now."


    That was what Sekine said.


    While at first, Yuki couldn''t understand his words, after watching so many games that the old man brought, he realized why he did this. It was an eye-opening experience, to witness so many amazing ys born even though what he just watched was just a record. The way those professional yers approached the game was something beyond his understanding.


    One moment one team got momentum, and without anyone noticing, it swift to the opposite side, just to turn back at them again in a blink. Thepetitiveness there was insane.


    But since the main focus of his training with Sekine was the serve, Yuki had to put aside his desire to watch all the games and focus on his task. It was still amazing though, leaving him in awe after watching so many amazing tricks shown on the screen.


    "What do you think?" Sekine asked.


    "I don''t know a serve could be this tricky," Yuki admitted openly. "I thought the trick I pulled against Shimoyawata was clever, but now, I doubt it is clever enough to fool another team."


    "Don''t sell yourself short." The old man patted his shoulder reassuringly. "What you did is still amazing, especially considering you found it by yourself. Even those professionals would find it troublesome when they didn''t notice what you did. We call that ''a serve to the traffic''."


    "A serve to the traffic, huh?" Yuki hummed. "I like that."


    "Still, just like I said before, there is still room for improvement." The old man continued.


    "There are so many tricks you can adopt here for your arsenal, like serving right after the whistle blows or waiting a little bit after the whistle blows to mess up the opponent''s timing, aiming very close to the or the endline, aiming at the weakest receiver, the setter, or the area between two yers to cause chaos and misunderstanding, things like that.


    Many people out there think that the service ace means a powerful serve, but that is not true. As long as you can score consistently with your serve, it can be called service ace."


    As he was immersed in the training camp, Yuki didn''t notice the time flew. Days change pretty quickly, and in a blink, Saturday finally came. This would be thest day of the camp before tomorrow, they would have to face the same university team that beat them before everything started.


    Everyone was so excited to get revenge, especially when they all remembered how smug the university yers were after the first game.


    However, it had to wait until tomorrow, as currently, they did theirst 4 vs 4 sparing in the camp.


    *BAM!*


    "OH! Nice receive, Koji-senpai!"


    "Riku! Left!"


    "Ogawa-senpai, keep your eyes on the left!"


    "I got it!"


    *BAM!*


    "NICE BLOCK, OGAWA!"


    "Follow it up!"


    As the y kept going, Akira nodded in a satisfied manner at the progress shown by his yers. "Their reaction speed is getting faster and their technique is also getting better. Koji''s game reading is also improving. As expected, bringing them here is a good decision."


    Sekine beside him just nodded his head silently, not giving anyment about the game. After an awkward silence befell among them for a while, he finally spoke his mind. "So, what do you n to do with Yuki?"


    "Yuki?" Akira had a sweat drop on his face with the closeness shown by the old man toward the sses boy, even calling him his first name. Still, he didn''t understand the question. "What am I going to do with Kobayashi-kun? I don''t understand."


    "Don''t y stupid, Shinji, it is not like you." Sekine snorted. "Yuki''s talent is amazing that honestly, it scares me a bit. He received everything I thought like a sponge, and even though he didn''t notice it, his hunger for the game is getting bigger as time goes by. If nothing could be done, it wouldn''t be long before you have nothing to teach him, and it would be detrimental to his development."


    Akira fell silent as he pondered on his mentor''s words. This was the thing he was afraid of the most. He felt it too, how quickly Yuki''s improvement was. Sometimes, a tiny part of his brain told him to hold the boy a little so he wouldn''t go too far, but it wouldn''t be beneficial for the team and for the boy himself.


    He was in a dilemma for a long time, and Sekine''s words just made him hesitate more to decide what to do with Yuki.


    After a while, he let out a deep sigh of frustration before asking, "So, what is your rmendation?"


    "There is only one thing he needs to do, and you know it too, Shinji," Sekine said solemnly. "Yuki¡­ Has to join a professional team as soon as possible."


    -0-


    "You have called me four times already during this camp alone if I am not wrong," Yuki said casually. "Are you sure I am not in trouble here?" He asked cheekily.


    It was after the sparing game they had that Yuki was called by Sekine and Akira for a talk while the others went for the rest first.


    "With that kind of cheek, I am sure you will get into trouble sooner orter." Akira snorted. "But no, you are not in trouble yet. Sekine-sensei has something to tell you, though."


    "Jiisan?" Yuki tilted his head curiously. Akira had a sweat drop on his face once again when he heard the closeness between those two, with Yuki even calling the old man ''Jiisan''.


    "Yuki, I am sure you have already noticed your amazing talent in this game." Sekine started talking, ignoring Akira''s weird expression. "What you don''t know, though is how amazing it was. In my opinion, if we are only talking about talent, you can be one of the best in Japan. It would be a waste if you keep staying on this team.


    I know a good professional team that has a junior team around here that owes me a favor, so you don''t need to worry about anything else. Your job is just to go to school for the next three years while training hard to improve yourself, and the moment you graduate, you will be able to enter the professional world directly. What do you think?"


    Yuki was startled by the sudden offer from the old man. Even though in thest couple of days, he heard a lot about what a professional yer''s life looked like and the prospect of being one had been mentioned by the old man several times, he always thought it would be for the far future, not like this.


    And unlike when he chose to do extra personal training a few days ago, this was a life-changing decision, and he had to think about it carefully.


    Seeing the hesitation on his face, Sekine decided to give him thest blow by mentioning another one of the benefits of joining the professional team that would make any boys who loved the game drolled.


    "With your talent and the right environment, Yuki, it wouldn''t be a dream for you to be the yer who represents Japan National Team in the future. Think about it."

 Chapter 64: Life-Changing Decision! (I)

    ''Japan National Team, huh?''


    It was already dark, not just outside, but also inside the gymnasium. Like how they usually ended the day, the lights in the gymnasium were switched off after 9 PM, and the yers were already inside their sleeping bags, curling around as they tried to sleep quickly. Even though it was a fulfilling week, the training camp still took a toll on them.


    The fatigue umted from their training forced their body to take a rest the moment they could do it, and that was probably why they fell asleep quickly without even chatting anymore the moment they were allowed to.


    However, amidst the quiet night, there was only one person who seemed to be a bit restless there, and that was Yuki. He kept recalling the conversation with Sekine and Akira about the thought of joining the professional team and the prospect of being the representative of the national team in the future.


    "Go join the team, Kobayashi," Akira said after Sekine left the conversation. "Even if he looks like that, Sekine-sensei is one of the pioneers of professional volleyball athletes in Japan. He learned the fundamental rules for volleyball coaching in Italy for almost 20 years, and since he returned to Japan, so many famous yers appeared under his wing, only second to Honda-sensei from Matsukita.


    If he said you should join the team, that means he recognizes your talent. So, join the team and aim higher, Kobayashi."


    Yuki groaned once again when he remembered those words. It wasn''t like he didn''t want to, but everything happened so quickly that his head couldn''t keep up with what was happening.


    Just two months ago he lost all of his family and had to flee to Tokyo to start a new life, then now he was called one of the most talented yers and the future national yer by a big-shot in the volleyballmunity in this country.


    What a roller-coaster experience.


    ''Should I call Obaasan to ask about her opinion?'' He mused.


    Even if people sometimes forget about it due to the maturity he always showed, Yuki was still a teenager. Just a few months ago, he was still in middle school, so for anyone to ask him to make a life-changing decision right now, it was a bit too much for the sses boy to do it alone.


    He needed an adult to talk to right now, either just as a listener or it would be better if one could give him advice on what he should do now.


    For a moment, Yuki wanted to talk to Aiko. However, he rejected that idea, knowing the matron would be so excited and encourage him to do that without hesitation, thinking it would bring him to a sessful way quickly.


    Then, he remembered how Kato had given good advice before the game against Shimoyawata and wanted to talk to her, yet he rejected the idea once again considering Kato was also a teenager like him too.


    When he was about to give up and decided to sleep first, though, Yuki suddenly remembered something. Without hesitation, he jumped off his sleeping bag, startling Riku next to him.


    "Urgh¡­ What is wrong with you, Kobayashi?" The blonde boy groaned, his eyes still closed tight.


    "Sorry, I need to make a call first."


    Without waiting for his friend''s response, Yuki went outside of the gym quickly to find a quiet ce. After walking for a while he arrived at the quiet canteen that looked a bit shabby with only a smallmp that was a bit dimmed already in the middle of it as the source of light. On a normal day, this ce would be crowded, or not so quiet like this no matter what time of day it was.


    However, since this was a golden week, there were so many students here that went back home, leaving the canteen peacefully at night.


    Yuki unlocked his phone quickly, looking out at the time zone first before sighing in relief. After that, his hand flew with agility, moving quickly to find a single name he saved on his contact. The moment he saw it, he pressed the call button without hesitation.


    *Beep¡­* *Beep¡­*


    With the beeping sound that could be heard from his phone, Yuki waited patiently, sitting there while keeping his eyes on the name on his phone. After a while, someone finally picked up his call.


    "Ciao, Yuki-kun!" A soft voice greeted him.


    "Buonasera, Maria-san."Yuki smiled a little. "Come stai?"


    "Sto bene, grazie!" Yuki could hear the surprise and delighted reaction from the tone he heard. "I see you start picking up Italian too. Good job!"


    Yuki snorted. "It is just for a simple daily conversation and I am still not doing that well, Maria-san. Don''t praise me too much." They switched the conversation to an English one.


    "Oh, don''t sell yourself short! It is incredible already that you are taking the initiative to learn by yourself. It wouldn''t be too long before you talk fluently with me and the others." The person on the other side said casually. "Anyway, as much as I and the girls love receiving your call, it is not a social call, right? You have already done that earlier this week, after all.


    Did you tell us at that time that you will have a training camp? What happened? Something went wrong? Should I call Akira-sensei? Or should I ¨C "


    "Maria-san!" Yuki cut her words before she could go overboard, sighing exasperatedly while a small, fond smile curled on his mouth unconsciously. "I am okay! Calm down!"


    Yeah, the one he just called was Maria, the matriarch of the Silvestri that sponsored his education. Yuki called her since he knew she was a former yer too, and he wanted to hear her opinion about this. What he didn''t expect though, was to get bombarded by a million questions like that the moment she had a chance to do that.


    He remembered Aiko was the same, and his deceased mother also did the same for him when he was in middle school. It seemed that was a mother''s instinct to fuss over her children.


    "Sorry about that one, Yuki-kun." Her tone was sheepish. "So, what''s up?"


    Yuki took a deep breath before starting to exin. "So, it is like this¡­"


    After that, he spent about thirty minutes retelling the story of how Sekine gave him personal training, their conversation about the professional world, and even to the point of thest conversation together with Akira too about how he should go to a professional team and not waste his time in his school.


    Maria on the other side of the call didn''t say anything when he told the full story, just kept humming to show she was still listening until he finished talking.


    "So¡­" Yuki coughed, his voice hoarse after telling the story. "What do you think, Maria-san?"


    There was silence for a moment before the woman asked carefully, "Before I give my opinion, can I ask what is holding you back from epting the offer?"


    "I don''t know. Everything, I guess." Yuki sighed tiredly. "Everything happened so fast that I couldn''t even proceed with what was going on. I don''t even know whether I am enjoying the sport or not, yet the others keep pushing me to do it. It is so frustrating, I guess."


    Maria snorted at his answer. "You are so like Mattheo that it scares me a bit."


    "Really?"


    "Yeah. He also had an astronomical leap during his early career, went from doing a construction job to keep his orphanage alive to having more than a thousand euros per month wage. He was like a blind chicken at that time, didn''t know what was right and what was wrong."


    "So, what did he do?" Yuki asked, immersed in the story.


    "He talked to a lot of people, of course."Maria snorted. "But his condition back then is not like you right now. He was a legal adult his 18, eager to have a high-paying job that the moment he was encouraged by his matron to do that, he epted Akira-sensei''s offer instantly."


    Yuki nodded ¨C even if Maria couldn''t see it, agreeing with her words. The condition was different. Even though he entered a professional team, it would still be a junior team and he wouldn''t get paid for it, nothing different than ying in Tsunemori right now.


    The only advantage was he would be in a professional team with professional treatment from the training facility to everything he did on a daily basis. Still, he didn''t know whether he was ready to make amitment for a professional life or not.


    "So, what do you think I should do?"He asked, his tone was lost.


    "Well, usually, I will advise you to follow your heart or to do what you want or what you like. But it seems this time you don''t even know what you want to do, right? In this case, you can do this¡­"

 Chapter 65: Life-Changing Decision! (II)

    Thest day of the training camp finally arrived. The yers were so excited, not just because they would be out of the torture soon, but also because they would have a chance to get the revenge they wanted against the university team that beat them on the first day.


    This time, they all wanted to see how much improvement they had during the camp and whether it was possible or not to go as far as the best 4 teams in Tokyo in this tournament.


    However, there were two people who seemed not as excited as the others.


    One of them was Akira who had a dark circle around his eyes. He spent thest night sleepless, kept thinking of the scenario of losing Yuki to the professional team. Even though he kept encouraging Yuki to do it, that didn''t mean the coach was willing to do so. Right now, the team was short of yers, and the sses boy was the best defensive yer on the team.


    His presence alone worth almost all the yers on the courtbined.


    And the other one was, of course, Yuki. Even though he had already consulted everything to Maria and received so much feedback from the woman, he still felt no matter what decision he made, it wouldn''t be perfect.


    Personally, he didn''t want to ept the offer.However, by rejecting the offer, it would look like he was ungrateful to the old man, and some of his teammates might think he was arrogant for doing that. The dilemma he faced right now was something that gave him a headache all night long.


    Thirty minutes before the game, Sekine arrived first before the university team came. All the yers greeted him politely, yet the old man''s eyes wandered around for a while until theynded on the sses boy. After staring at each other for a while, he finally dropped the bomb.


    "So, what is your decision? Do you ept my offer to join a professional team?"


    ''A professional team?!''


    All the eyes widened in shock as they heard the news. It wasn''t just the content that they didn''t expect, but also the timing. The fact that Sekine asked for confirmation meant the old man and Yuki had already talked about this, and they didn''t like that they were kept in the dark by their kouhai. However, before they could say anything, it was Riku who reacted first.


    "What do you mean joining a professional team, old geezer?! Kobayashi is our teammate, and you cannot snatch him like that!" The blonde boy eximed.


    "Shut up, Riku!" The old man raised his voice, making everyone wince unconsciously. "You know how amazing your friend''s talent is, right? It would be a waste if he spent it on this team. If he joined a professional team, he would be able to shine more there, making it easier for him."


    All the yers there bowed their heads unwillingly, knowing that the old man was right. Still, they were so frustrated by the fact that they didn''t know anything about it until the end and couldn''t do anything to keep one of their best yers on the team.


    "So, what do you think, Yuki?" The old man asked again.


    Yuki sighed, his head remembering what Maria told him yesterday.


    "Whatever the decision you make, make sure it ising from your heart, not from the other people''s opinion. At the end of the day, their opinion doesn''t matter, as you are the one who does the action. And don''t be afraid of offending someone with your decision. Just exin clearly why you decided that, and if they don''t ept it, that was their problem, and not you.


    Just remember, you will never be able to satisfy everyone with your decision."


    Holding her words as his principle, Yuki took a deep breath once again before smiling, shaking his head firmly. "I am sorry, Jiisan. I cannot ept your offer."


    "EH?!"


    Not just the yers, but even Sekine and Akira were stunned at his decision. In their mind, this wasn''t something Yuki could refuse. For any yer who wanted to be a professional yer, being offered to join a professional team ¨C even though it was still a junior one was like a dream came true.


    Only a stupid person would refuse the offer, and the fact that Yuki just did that put him immediately into that category.


    "You might think I am stupid, right?" Yuki smiled, could see what everyone thought. "But if you think about it, I am still apletely rookie in this sport. I have just trained for less than two months, so to join a professional team, I think I am not ready for that leap yet right now."


    Sekine furrowed his brows, not liking his reasoning. "No one is born ready, Yuki. Sometimes, you need to be brave enough to jump through the cliff even though you don''t know whether you can arrive at the other side or not."


    "I know, Jiisan. But in this case, I think it is a bit early for me to join a professional world." Yuki smiled at the old man. "Besides, I still owe the team something big, you know?"


    "Eh? You owe us something?" Everyone looked at each other confusedly. "Are you sure, Kobayashi?"


    "Yeah." Yuki nodded at his teammates. "Everything happened inside the team¡­ The walkout of the third-year members is my fault. If I jumped the boat right now without helping the team recover¡­ I don''t know, it seems irresponsible, right?" He shrugged.


    All the yers, especially the sophomore one were touched by his concern. Honestly, they were not that mad about Yuki didn''t tell them about the offer, or whether Yuki would join a professional team or not. They all knew his condition in the orphanage, and if it would help him, they would let him go so easily.


    They were just desperate to keep the team running, and if Yuki was out, they would have no chance to be one of the top four teams in this tournament.


    "What a fool¡­" Sekine shook his head. Yuki smiled when he saw the old man''s reaction. He knew Sekine wasn''t mad or disappointed, but just too surprised about his decision. Before he could say anything though, the old man suddenly muttered, "One day per week."


    "Eh?" Yuki was confused.


    "One day per week¡­ I will go to Tsunemori to coach you and see your progress." His words shocked all of them. "But just one day in a week, okay?! Even if you beg me with tears on your face, I won''t make it two days!"


    "Jiisan!" Yuki''s smile went ear-to-ear. "Thank you very much!" He bowed his head deeply, showing his gratitude to the old man.


    "Man¡­ It is good to have a private trainer¡­" Riku muttered, staring at Yuki enviously. "I also want to have one too." The others nodded in agreement. Still, they all knew that if Sekine went to the school, they would also get the benefit of it. There was no way the old man would only train one person and leave the others alone watching from the sideline.


    After the drama was over, Akira pped his hands, his face was full of smiles. While Yuki''s decision was unexpected, he was happy that he didn''t lose his best yer. But now, they had some business to do here.


    "Well, since everything is over, let''s prepare ourselves for the next game. Don''t forget, if you lose, I will double up the count of your punishment. So, show me how much you improve this week and win the game, understand?!"


    "YES, COACH!"

 Chapter 66: Akiras Story

    *BAM!*


    "Nice save, Kaede!"


    "Riku! To the left! Go high to the left!"


    "Don''t get blocked again, Senpai! Here!"


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHAAA!"


    Kimura, the head coach of Tsukumi University''s C team stared in awe as he saw how much improvement all the Tsunemori yers had over the week. Gone was once chaotic offense, and now, everything seemed to be organized carefully.


    They had a signal now on how they wanted to attack, and even though their coordination still needed to be polished, at least he could see the intention behind every attack they did today.


    Tsunemori''s defense also improved. In fact, the biggest improvement they had after the camp was mainly in this department. If before, they were always counting on Yuki, Kaede, or Okamura, the lone defender practice they had always done two hours per day ensured that everyone could be a libero now.


    They suddenly became the most stubborn team on earth, didn''t want to let the opponent get even a single point that easily.


    But what surprised Kimura the most was how well suddenly Tsunemori worked as a team. By the glimpse he had seen for a while until now, even though there was not so much improvement jump on individual''s ability, as a whole team, they worked well, too well if he had to say, like a well-oiled machine.


    They knew each other''s strengths and weaknesses and knew when they should cover the others, when they should take advantage of their teammate''s position, when to let the others take over the ball, and something like that.


    Unlike the first gamest week, they acted like a bunch of veteran yers who had already been together for a while, not a high school team anymore.


    ''Is it really¡­ The same team as the one from a week ago?'' He muttered in disbelief.


    "How about it?" Akira asked smugly. "You are surprised, right?"


    Kimura could only nod his head stupidly as he stared at Tsunemori yers whose performance was getting better as time went by. He turned his head and looked at Akira in awe for managing to improve the yers this much just in a week. The one he stared at himself had his eyes on the court, looking at his yers with eyes full of pride.


    Curious, Kimura decided to ask, "Akira, a week ago, you said that you want honor, right? What kind of honor were you talking about?"


    Akira didn''t expect Kimura to ask the question at this time. Still, a soft smile formed on his face as if he was reminiscing the past while his eyes were still locked into the game.


    "HIRANO-SENPAI! LEFT! COVER UP THE WALL! KOJI-SENPAI! STOP THE STRAIGHT!"


    Those two yers clicked their tongues in annoyance when they heard their kouhai take themand and instruct them about where to move. While they admitted Yuki''s brain worked faster in recognizing the game pattern, that didn''t mean they liked being told what to do, especially by their kouhai.


    Still, they did as the sses boy asked, jumped at the same time to form a two-man wall to stop the attack.


    *BAM!*


    "OH! Goddamnit, Koji! That is a clean block!"


    "Nice cover from you too, Hirano!"


    "You said the honor you want is not for making a team strong from nothing, right?" Kimura asked, his eyes were also on the court, staring at the Tsunemori yers who celebrated with each other. "Then, is there a higher honor aside from that as a leader?"


    Akira kept silent for a while before saying, "Do you know what kind of school I coached the first time?"


    Kimura raised his eyebrows a little. "I don''t think I can remember that, honestly."


    "I don''t me you." The coach chuckled richly. "If anything, I would be surprised if you remember it, but the first school I ever coached was a small school in Kyushu, filled with a lot of delinquents as its members. Smoking, brawling, bullying, any crimes you can think of that teenagers could do, they had already done that by the time I signed to coach the team. Experience magic at m v le mpyr


    At that time, the school had already lost their patience giving me an ultimatum to get into the best 8 in the prefecture tournament."


    "Just like right now?" Kimura arched his eyebrows slightly.


    "Not really." Akiraughed merrily. "They were by far the worst team I have ever coached. Not only they have never touched the ball even once, but they also didn''t have the drive to y too. If anything, they just used the volleyball team as theirir to do their crime. It was so difficult back then." He smiled, reminiscing the past.


    "Then, why did you choose a job like that? I know there were several professional teams that offered you a better condition."


    "Oh, don''t get me wrong, the condition is good there. Even though it was a public school, the payment was pretty high." Akira smiled. Then, his expression turned somber. "But if I have to say why, I was rmended directly without my consent by Honda-sensei."


    "Honda-sensei?" Kimura was taken aback. "Honda Saburo, the legend himself?!"


    "Yup. I yed under his wing before I went here." Akira nodded. "But back to the story, it was after my second surgery and the doctor said I should stop ying volleyball, when all of my passion for the sport seemed to die inside me. And Honda-sensei noticed that too, I guess.That''s probably why he rmended my name for that job."


    Kimura sighed, couldn''t understand Honda''s train of thought. If he saw his students lose their passion, he would talk to them, not send them away to get a more troublesome job like that.


    "It was bad at that time." Akira smiled. "There wasn''t even one guy who yed volleyball seriously. There were even some asions when I had to drag them to train, and sometimes, I even resorted to violence, something I am not very proud of until today. And what I taught is not honorable either. I just taught them how to win the game no matter what the consequence was.


    From provoking the opponent, touching the sneakily when the opponent was about to spike or block the ball, and so on. Still, they couldn''t put into practice even a quarter of what I taught."


    "So, they were abolished?" Kimura asked.


    "No, not abolished. Demoted should be the correct word." Akira corrected. "They can still y volleyball if they want, but the school won''t help them in any official matter if they want to y in a tournament, and they won''t get any help, especially regarding funds from the school."


    "That''s harsh," Kimuramented.


    "Yeah, but that is the agreement." Akira nodded. "However, after sticking around for another year as the informal coach, when the third-year members graduated, three representatives of the team came and told me this¡­"


    "It was fun ying volleyball with you, Sensei." One of them said.


    Akira was taken aback, then furrowed his brows deeply. "D-Don''t lie¡­" He said, somehow guilt crawled into his heart. In his mind, he recalled the training he put them on and thought, ''Volleyball is fun? I didn''t teach you any of that, yet you stille saying that to me? What kind of joke is this?''


    The three students in front of him exchanged nces for a while before one of them sighed, saying, "Yeah, it is a lie."


    "It wasn''t fun at all, Sensei." Another one added, his smile was full of pain. "But¡­ You didn''t abandon us, Sensei, so we all thought hard¡­ What should we tell you to make you the happiest¡­"


    At that time, tears rolled down his face as the guilty feeling suddenly ate Akira alive. He sobbed hard like a child, bowing his head deeply toward those three. "I AM SORRY!" That was when Akira finally realized his stupidity. "Sorry¡­ I am so sorry¡­!"


    "Don''t cry, Sensei¡­" One of them also had tears on their face.


    "We were holding ourselves so much to not cry, but instead, we wanted you to feel honored¡­"


    "Our juniors¡­ Please, teach them more fun volleyball!"


    "At that time, I realized, that rather than creating a strong team, the first thing I should do was about creating a ce where anyone could learn how to have fun by ying volleyball. And after watching how the next generation trained, I understood, that just from hard practice there will be moments when kids feel the joy of volleyball."


    Kimura stared in awe at his story.


    "The following year, the volleyball team returned to being an official team." Akira continued. "And the yearter, they got into the best 8 just like the target the school set for them. But my happiness didn''te from getting good results or praise from the headmaster. It is from the joy that I saw on my yer''s face."


    He paused for a second to see the game for a while.


    "It is the same for Tsunemori." Akira continued, his expression turned somber. "Someday, when they graduate¡­ Volleyball is fun¡­ Even if it only came out of one mouth¡­ I think, there is no greater honor I can achieve as a teacher more than that."

 Chapter 67: Revenge! The End of the Camp!

    "Come on! Don''t be so slow, Riku!"


    "Shut up! Don''t get blocked again, Senpai!"


    *BAM!*


    "YOSSHA! FINALLY!"


    All the Tsunemori yers roared as they celebrated another point they got from another long rally. They defended well, keeping the ball in the air for about two minutes before Koji finally pierced the opponent''s defense by aiming his spike to get a block out from the opponent''s blockers.


    Yuki wiped the sweat on his face with the corner of his shirt, ncing sideways at the scoreboard. They had already won the first set with 25 ¨C 22, and now, they were currently on the lead with 23 ¨C 11. If only they could score five more points, they would be able to win the game and take the revenge they desperately wanted during the entire week.


    Unlike the first time they faced against each otherst week, they dominated the entire game right now. However, that didn''t mean it was easy for them to win the game.


    There were several asions where the opponent''s hitters were able to pierce their defense easily, showing that no matter how well they prepared themselves to deal with the opponent''s offense, sometimes, they could still get overwhelmed by the opponent''s raw power.


    However, that was the only way the university team managed to keep up with the pace of the game.Other than trying to overwhelm Tsunemori with brute force, they couldn''t find a way to deal with them. Hell, the stubbornness put by Tsunemori when defending the ball somehow frustrated them to no end, as it always took a long time for them to get one point.


    And now, they all groaned simultaneously when they saw Yuki walk to get the ball for the next serve.


    "Come on, Kobayashi!"


    "Give us another good serve!"


    All the Tsunmeori yers encouraged him, starting to get excited. Just in the first set alone, Yuki managed to get seven points from his serve. Even though he didn''t have a powerful one in his arsenal, his creativity from behind the baseline was unmatchable, making it impossible for the university team to stop the ball easily.


    "Oi, Kobayashi!" Riku suddenly called. "There is no need to hold back at this point. Just show everything you have here and steal the light!"


    Yuki grinned, knowing exactly what Riku meant by that. While he managed to score seven points out of his serve, that didn''t mean he went all out. In fact, it was more of a testament to how bad the opponent''s defense was. He only did a regr serve ¨C albeit ying a lot with the timing and the spot he was targeting, and never went for his floater.


    And he also had another one he just learned from Sekine this week that he also wanted to try.


    The moment the referee blew his whistle, much to everyone''s surprise, Yuki suddenly tossed the ball in the air slightly while doing his run-up. There was a little bit of panic on the other side of the court as they saw him do that.


    "Goddamnit! He has a jump serve, now?!"


    "Don''t be intimidated! Stay focused!"


    *BAM!*


    Yuki hit the ball straight to its seam with a weird chopping-like movement, aiming to give a spin on his serve. The speed of the ball itself wasn''t that impressive. At first, the opponent thought it would be easy to take care of the ball. However, the moment it crossed the, the ball suddenly moved sideways, not giving the opponent''s receiver to react as it went wider, closer to the sideline.


    "WHAT?!"


    "COVER IT UP!"


    "SHIT!"


    *Thud!*


    "YOSSHAAAA!"


    Yuki roared when he saw the ballnd in the direction he wanted without anyone could touch it. Then, he was followed by the other yers who gave a high-five, excited too about the new serve.


    "Goddamnit, Kobayashi! What the hell is that?!"


    "Is that your new serve?!"


    "You did one hell of a good job, Kobayashi! Keep it up!"


    Read first at m-v le-mpyr


    "One more! Give us one more!"


    Basking under such praise, Yuki''s cheek flushed as blood rushed into his face with the excitement that rose to the peak. That sidespin serve wasn''t like his floater.


    Even though the essence was the same, and that was to use the change of movement in the air to mess up with the receiver, he didn''t have to use so much power in a floater. His floater service was just a regr service that wobbled in the air, making it hard for the opponent to predict where the ball would go.


    As for the sidespin service, it was harder than floater in his opinion since he also had to consider which part of the ball he should hit so it would go in the direction he wanted. Even under Sekine''s guidance, it took him almost five days to get it right, and it wasn''t that perfect either.


    What he didn''t know though, was that the others would split their hair if they heard his thought. It was already good to be able to pull up such a hard serve in less than a week, so how could he be not satisfied with the result?


    Still, he didn''t think about it for now. All he had in mind was how to get another point to seal the deal. Looking at how exhausted the opponent was, Yuki smirked, decided to do the same. He tossed the ball slightly in the air, then hit it when it was at its highest while adding some spins to it.


    *BAM!*


    "Ryou! It is yours! Save the ball!"


    "Goddamnit!"


    The libero called Ryou clicked his tongue in annoyance when he saw the ball wasing at him. He waited for a while until the effect of the spin appeared before reacting ordingly. However, that didn''t mean he could receive it perfectly. The spin made the ball change its speed too while moving, making it harder for him to save the ball like he wanted to do.


    *Thud!*


    "SHIT! COVER!"


    The ball went short to the front side, and the outside hitter of the university team tried to save it by reaching the ball awkwardly. However, he wasn''t a good receiver in the first ce, so the ball only hit the and couldn''t get through the other side. Seeing that, all the university yers tried to cover it up, and one of them managed to do so by kicking it overhead acrobatically.


    "OH! Nice, Junya!"


    "Keep your eyes on the opponent, you idiot!"


    "SHIT!"


    As the ball went crossed the weakly, Riku suddenly appeared, taking advantage of the chaotic position on the other side to m the ball directly. It wasn''t hard for him to score as he just dropped the ball to the floor with all of his power, didn''t even have to aim it to aplicated spot.


    *BAM!*


    One of the opponents tried to save it, just for the ball to bruise his forearms and leave a red mark on it before the ball flew outside of the court. For a moment, the court went silent before Riku raised his fist in his trademark celebration while the others jumped straight into his body, roaring wild in celebration.


    "YOSSHAAAAA!"


    "WE WIN THE GAME! A SUCCESSFUL REVENGE!"


    "COME ON! WHO IS KONAN HIGH?! COME HERE?!"


    -0-


    As his yers celebrated wildly for the win, Akira''s smile was ear to ear as he teased his friend. "Is your team really this weak?"


    "Hey, don''t say it like that!" Kimura protested. "Victory or defeat is a matter of luck too, you know?!"


    "Oh?" Akira arched his eyebrows slightly. "Then, shall we have another match?"


    The corner of Kimura''s mouth twitched in annoyance, especially when he saw the terrible state of his yers. They all dropped to the floor immediately as if they had no more energy to do anything again for a day. After a while, the only thing that came across his mind was, "Are you trying to kill my yers?"


    "COME ON! LET''S DO ONE MORE SET!"


    "Sensei, let''s do this again! I am in a good condition today. At least, I can still y for another thirty minutes!"


    "Yeah!"


    Akira nodded in a satisfied manner when he saw his yers'' condition. Ifst week, it was them who dropped from exhaustion after the game, now, they still looked fresh after ying for about one hour, showing a significant improvement in the endurance department. This was what he hoped for, and he was happy the team achieved it.


    And with that, he felt the team was more than ready to face the next round of the tournament a weekter¡­

 Chapter 68: Rumor Again?!

    "Hey! I heard the rumor about the volleyball team!"


    "Not again! What kind of rumor was it this time?"


    "I heard if they couldn''t get through the top 4 in the prefecture tournament, the team would be abolished."


    "Really? That is horrible!"


    "Still, they are lucky. Don''t you know the football and basketball team didn''t even have the chance to prove their worth? Their team was disbanded by the school even before the term began."


    "That is horrible! Why, though?"


    "I heard it is because the school wants to save money."


    "Are we really that poor that we must disband clubs to save the money right now?"


    "I don''t know."


    By the time the golden week was over and everyone returned to their daily routine as a student, the rumor of the volleyball team''s condition to survive had already spread among the others. However, unlike thest time the rumor spread about the team, this time, the reaction was different. Everyone felt sympathetic for them, thinking the condition was unfair and something like that.


    Unexpectedly, they got unwavering support from the residents of the school, especially from those members of the team that was disbanded first by the school. And like usual, the moment the volleyball yers arrived at the school, they were pushed into the limelight immediately by the others.


    "Man, they are crazy," Yukimented, fixing his rumpled hair after escaping from the crowds. "Why would I be surrounded too if, in the end, they just going to flock around Agostini?" He shook his head wryly while looking at his blonde friend gloatingly.


    "Maybe because this time, you are not in a bad light anymore?" Katomented casually without even raising her head to look at him "I mean, thest time your team made such a bigmotion, you are still under a nasty rumor, right? At that time, they probably were afraid to approach you, didn''t want to get the backsh of it.


    But now, you are one of the justice warriors that would fight against tyranny, so of course, everyone would be on your side too."


    "Hmm¡­ That makes sense¡­" Yuki nodded his head, putting his school bag on the floor before taking a seat, ncing at what the girl was doing. "Anyway, a justice warrior that would fight against tyranny? Really?" He arched his eyebrows slightly.


    "What?" Kato asked back. "It is quite fitting, right?"


    "Yeah. Just didn''t expect it would be that epic. You sure have your way with words, Kato-san." He muttered.


    After a while, Riku finally was able to get away from the crowds. His usual tidy and handsome appearance was gone, reced by the mess he was right now. His face was pale as he panted heavily, taking his time to enjoy the free air after getting pushed around by his fangirls. Yuki and Kato just stared at him amusedly before the blonde boy noticed their stare and pointed his fingerically at them.


    "You two are horrible friends!" He shrieked.


    "Why, thank you!" Yuki smiled innocently while Kato snorted udylike. "So, are you enjoying your time with them, Mr. Lothario?" He asked teasingly.


    "Stop calling me that horrible nickname!" Riku pouted childishly. "Just wait, in no time, it will be you who will be in my position, and it will be my pleasure to watch you suffer from that." He took a seat next to Yuki, smiling charmingly at the girl who sat there to make that girl blush and scampered away immediately.


    Yuki snorted at the short interaction between Riku and the girl before saying, "There is no way I will be in your position. And you bring the problem by yourself. If only you can be less flirty toward the girls, you will have a more peaceful life."


    "No way!" Riku gasped dramatically. "Are you saying that it is all my fault?!"


    "Yes! You have this annoying pretentious personality that always brings trouble!"


    "You take that back!"


    "Anyway!" Kato raised her voice the moment she saw the boys were about to shove each other. "Have you already heard the bad rumor about you?" She asked, trying to divert the topic.


    "What bad rumor?" Yuki asked.


    "Well, even though it is not as intense and not a lot of people support it, someone basically said that your team deserved to be abolished and the only reason the school hasn''t done that yet is because of favoritism and nepotism, especially from you, Agostini."


    "Me?!" Riku was startled, pointing his finger at himself confusedly. "What did I do?!" He shrieked.


    "It is not what did you do, but what the rumor believes you have done," Kato exined patiently. "Someone basically spread a bad rumor about your rtionship with Akira-sensei as the only reason the team is still surviving until now."


    Riku scowled immediately when he heard that. "That is a bullshit!"


    "I know." Kato patted his shoulder reassuringly. "But people would believe it no matter what you said, so I tell you now so that if someone mentioned it to you, you have already prepared to breach the topic."


    "Thank you, Kato-san." Riku nodded at the girl gratefully.


    Yuki himself fell silent, pondering about the information he just received from the girl. Honestly, he was surprised to see this topic finally getting mentioned, expecting someone to do that way back then rather than now considering how obvious the rtionship between Akira and Riku was.


    Hell, even he himself was reluctant to join the team at first after seeing Riku only needed Akira''s words to enter the team without even taking any test or challenge from the team.


    Still, for someone to bring it up right now¡­ There must be someone who wanted to stir up trouble for the team¡­


    "It should be those cowards!" Riku scowled. "We haven''t heard anything about them for a while. This should be their retaliation against us!"


    Even without Riku exining who those cowards were, Yuki and Kato could guess who were the culprits. It should be the third-year yers who walked away from the team after theirst conflict, and honestly, Yuki couldn''t me Riku for ming them. This was their exact modus operandi, didn''t dare to confront directly yet hid behind the crowds while spreading nasty rumors about the team.


    Still¡­


    "You cannot just point your finger without any evidence, you know?" Katomented casually, flipping her book without even looking at the boys. "Not only it would be baseless, but you would also get a lot of trouble for using the other students like that."


    "Well, they didn''t get into trouble after spreading rumors about Kobayashi, right?" The blonde boy was still unwilling to let go of his suspicion.


    "Well, yeah." Kato nodded, admitting his point. "But you are just a freshman here. Your words against them, who do you think anyone will believe more?"


    "This¡­"


    Even without saying it out loud, Riku knew what was the answer to his question. The third-year students were already in the school for more than two years and everyone knew their character well. Compared to him who was still new here, if he used them of something, it would be a suicidal decision for him. Still, he was reluctant to let this matter go so easily.


    "And, is the rumor and who spread it really that matter?" Kato added another question.


    "Eh?" Not only Riku, but Yuki also turned their head to the girl. "What do you mean, Kato-san?"


    "Well¡­ I mean¡­" Kato pondered for a moment, trying to think of how to say it. "Just like the rumor before, it doesn''t matter who spread it, right? The most important thing is how to prove the rumor wrong. And you both should know what to do, right?"


    Riku''s eyes lightened up when he heard about that. Yuki also nodded his head, understanding what Kato wanted to say. Yeah, it didn''t matter who spread the rumor. The fact was the rumor was there, and they couldn''t change it all. So, there was only one thing they could do right now¡­


    "Be the top 4 teams like what the school expects us to be and prove the rumor wrong!"


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