Takahiro Hanamaki's unexpected spike surprised several members of the Red Team.
This was a brand-new technique for him, one he hadn't even fully mastered by the end of their intense summer training.
"Now this is getting interesting."
A flicker of intrigue flashed in Akashi Asuka's eyes.
The match resumed.
In the next few rallies, Akashi repeatedly unleashed his signature power spikes, tearing through the Blue Team's blocks one after another and racking up points for the Red Team.
Soon, the score had climbed to 7–5 in Red's favor.
"Huff… Damn it… Why does he feel more and more like Ushijima or Wakatsu now?" Hanamaki and Matsukawa were both breathing heavily. They had thrown everything they'd gained over the summer into these exchanges, but against Akashi's monstrous height and power, all their efforts had been effortlessly crushed.
It felt exactly like how Aoba Johsai used to struggle against Shiratorizawa.
"Actually… it might be worse–" Hajime Iwaizumi suddenly spoke up, his tone unusually serious. "Maybe it's just my imagination, but to me, Akashi might be even tougher to deal with than Wakatsu or Ushijima."
"His spikes already pack the same punch as Ushiwaka's, but in terms of technique, Akashi might even have the edge. The only real difference is that he doesn't have the natural advantage of being a lefty like Ushijima."
Hanamaki choked for a second, then forced out a weak laugh. "Heh… Hajime, hearing that from you makes me wonder, should I be impressed… or just completely crushed?"
From the big-picture perspective, Akashi getting stronger was undeniably good for Aoba Johsai.
But if they were just talking about this match, his overwhelming performance only filled them with despair.
As Iwaizumi chatted briefly with Hanamaki and Matsukawa, something suddenly felt off.
Wait a second…
Where was Oikawa?
At a moment like this, when everyone was talking, it was unlike him not to chime in.
The three of them quickly turned to look.
Sure enough, Oikawa Tooru was near the net, one hand on his chin, brows tightly furrowed as if deep in thought.
"What's wrong, Oikawa? Something is bothering you?" Iwaizumi frowned and walked over.
"No, no… I'm probably just overthinking it."
Oikawa blinked, then quickly smiled and brushed it off.
The game moved forward.
Akashi rotated to the back row, and now it was the Blue Team's turn to attack. Oikawa pulled off another brilliant fake on Ryuhei Sanashita and sent a sharp set to Issei Matsukawa.
Matsukawa was up against Yutaro Kindaichi's solo block.
Height-wise, Kindaichi had the edge. And after some specialized training with Coach Washijo during the summer bootcamp, his blocking presence had leveled up drastically from last semester.
Despite facing only one blocker, the sheer intensity of Kindaichi's jump made Matsukawa hesitate midair.
"Whoa~~ The first-years this year are no joke!"
"But if you think one guy can stop Matsukawa now, that's a bit too optimistic."
Smack!
Akashi and Kunimi were covering defense.
Given Kindaichi's current blocking prowess, he could fully shut down one specific hitting lane. Normally, this would make it hard to punch through head-on.
But this time, Matsukawa did push through front and center.
The ball grazed just past Kindaichi's fingertips. Even midair, Kindaichi's eyes widened in surprise.
The ball traced a wide arc behind him, then sharply dipped down like a drawn bowstring and slammed into the backcourt.
"A parallel spike?!"
Ryuhei Sanashita blurted out in astonishment.
A parallel spike is a rare technique that targets the backline with a flatter angle. Unlike the usual top-down trajectory of spikes, this type cuts horizontally, used specifically to bypass blockers whose hands are at the same level as the hitter.
But it was hard to control, often going out of bounds, and it lacked raw power, so most spikers didn't bother practicing it seriously.
No one had expected Issei Matsukawa to have secretly mastered it.
Not just Akashi.
Even Oikawa and Iwaizumi were taken aback. Neither of them had any clue Matsukawa had been working on that.
"Hehe~~ Surprised you, huh? I've been practicing in secret for this exact moment!"
Matsukawa scratched his head with a sheepish grin.
Meanwhile, Oikawa's fingers started trembling.
Unbelievable.
So even you, thick-browed, honest-faced Matsukawa… played dirty like this, huh?
Here Oikawa thought they'd all been secretly training together to handle Akashi's insane improvement. But turns out, Matsukawa had gone a step further, he'd even kept him in the dark.
That spike?
A clean backstab, right into Oikawa's trusting heart.
Akashi, on the other side of the net, was left speechless too.
Damn.
He couldn't help but blurt out in his head: Damn, man.
He had thought Oikawa was the king of tryhards.
But Matsukawa?
He might be even worse.
Who the hell taught him this?
Score: 7–6.
Blue Team to serve. Red Team to attack.
Kunimi handled the serve cleanly. Ryuhei set the ball to Akashi in the back row for a pipe attack.
Ryuhei might not be as technically refined as Oikawa, but when it came to finding Akashi's absolute peak point, he was second to none.
Boom!
Another thunderous spike.
Even from the back row, Akashi's vertical and raw power were enough to punch straight through the Blue Team's block.
8–6.
"Something's off."
"Something's not right."
Those words came out of both Ryuhei and Oikawa's mouths at the same time.
Oikawa had sensed it earlier, he thought it was just in his head.
But now… Akashi's swing just now made it crystal clear.
Even Ryuhei had noticed.
He stared at Akashi carefully, then his eyes were drawn to the bandage wrapped around Akashi's arm.
"Hey… what's that on your arm?"
Akashi raised the arm, glanced over at Ryuhei, and smiled. "This? Secret."
Ryuhei didn't press. He wasn't as nosy as Komori Motoya.
"Does it affect your spiking?"
Akashi nodded. "Yeah, a little. But for a practice match like this, it's no big deal, don't worry about it."
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria