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Karasuno and Shiratorizawa both had a Set each. They were evenly tied.

Now all that remained was for them to win the next set, and another one after that! And you had every faith in them!

“Hey, wait, are you crying!?” Saeko-san suddenly gasped, and you instantly went to rub your eyes again; she patted your shoulder, “No, not you, [Name]-chan, this guy!” she clarified, and you turned to see a bawling Akiteru-san.

“E-Eh?? Are you okay, Akiteru-san...!?” you gasped, worried.

“It’s j-just that...! Kei fits in with his teammates!” Akiteru-san managed, through sobs.

“Aha, that part, huh!” Saeko-san laughed a little, “Still, that was really amazing!! He managed to roof the Ushiwaka!!” she said, sounding impressed.

Akiteru-san gathered himself, blowing his nose, and then spoke up; “I think what happened is that Shiratorizawa’s Set was just a tiny bit off.” He input.

“Huh? It was?” Shimada-san asked.

“Yeah, but it was so slight that you almost wouldn’t know it had happened,” Akiteru-san nodded.

“Huh? Then...” Saeko-san blinked, looking like she was getting it.

Takeda-sensei seemed to have gotten it, too; “So that block was, in part, thanks to an error made by their setter?” he asked Ukai-san.

“I wouldn’t go so far as to call it an error. But that’s not the point.” Ukai-san shook his head, “When opposing blockers get deflection after deflection, and your offense isn’t getting any clean attacks through... where do you think all the stress and frustration from that lands the hardest?” Ukai-san asked.

You widened your eyes in realisation. Of course...! You yourself knew that feeling well from middle school, too.

“Smack on the Setter. It’s natural that a Setter would then want to find some way to steer their hitters around those blocks.” Ukai-san added.

“So, then you’re saying that Tsukishima-kun goaded them into making an error?!” Takeda-san gasped, surprised.

“Maybe. Though I bet his main priority has been scaling back the power of Ushiwaka’s attacks. And in that respect, he’s been doing a bang up job this whole set. But I got the feeling... that right from the beginning, that guy wasn’t going to be happy just leaving it at that.” The coach explained.

Yeah, that’s right. Tsukishima-san has a lot more pride than anyone initially thought...

“Man...! But that block seemed like some sort of super miracle play that just kinda happened... But I guess it wasn’t as completely out of the blue as I’d thought! I’m surprised he can think that far ahead while running all over the court.” Saeko-san commented.

You nodded, humming, “I think, Tsukishima-san’s always thinking about one thing or another. Even when he’s not out on the court, playing volleyball. Like in class, he often stares out of the window, looking miles away,” You added in.

“I-I’m sorry. He can be pretty antisocial, huh?” Akiteru-san felt like he needed to apologise for his little brother.

“N-No, no! I’m sure that’s not the case! He’s always with Yamaguchi-kun after all! And at the Summer Camp he was hanging out with a few of the players from Nekoma and Fukurodani,” You tried to reassure the older blond.

Akiteru-san blinked at me, shocked, “Really?! With Tokyo elites like that?!” he hadn’t been expecting that kind of information.

“Does he not talk to you about it? You’re his big brother.” you asked him, tilting your head.

Akiteru-san nervously scratched his cheek, “Like I said, he’s always kept to himself. He’s not one for small talk, even with me,” he said.

You hummed, “I see. Then, I’ll just have to talk to him more often. That was pretty mean of me, in hindsight... Talking to Yamaguchi-kun but not Tsukishima-san as well,” you said with a rueful smile.

Well, you’d definitely remedy that once we were back at school again!

You turned back to watch the match again, and after a few moments, Akiteru-san spoke up, softly;

“Thank you, for being his and Tadashi’s friend,” he thanked me and you blushed a little.

You hesitated a little. If you were being honest, so far, you’d kinda favoured Yamaguchi-kun... you felt a little bad.

Shaking it off, you gave Akiteru-san a smile, nodding, “Right!”

You’d make sure that changed, after this match. Tsukishima-san had been full of surprises lately, so maybe becoming friends could be surprisingly easy...?

The guys had all rounded up for a team huddle before getting sent back onto the court. Daichi-senpai was giving them a pep talk, to keep his team-mates’ spirits up and going.

“The saying is ‘go for broke’, but we aren’t going to come out of this broke at all. Now... is the greatest chance we’ve got! We can do this! Let’s go!” Daichi-senpai said, and then they all threw their hands up into the air.

“YEEEEAAAHH!!”

...

The third set went over much the same as the second set up until now. It’d been nearly half an hour, and the points were in Shiratorizawa’s favour, with a score of 15 – 20 after Ushijima-san had made another great kill.

Shiratorizawa’s cheering squad was going wild, their voices echoing off of the gymnasium’s tall ceiling.

They were on a roll at the moment, and that continued in the next rally despite Karasuno’s persistent enthusiasm.

Their Setter tossed the ball for their number 5, Tendou-san, who spiked the ball, getting by Shoyo-kun’s block and hitting off of Asahi-senpai’s forearms before hitting the ground of the court.

Not even ten minutes later, frustratingly, Shiratorizawa had just scored their 22nd point while Karasuno was still struggling behind them by 5 whole points.

But Karasuno's luck changed a little, when Noya-senpai finally managed to receive a spike nicely, sending it back up into play and allowing Kageyama-kun to go in to toss the ball.

Shoyo-kun jumped and spiked, scoring Karasuno’s 18th point, and you let out a breath of relief. It provided a little more breathing space, at least.

Hopefully, this good fortune would stick around for a while and let Karasuno even out the scoreboard a little. Then you could stop being on the verge of a heart attack...!

But then Goshiki-san spiked, during the next rally, and widened the point gap once again by getting past both Kageyama-kun and Shoyo-kun.

“Aaaargh..! This can’t be for real!” Saeko-san complained, “Don’t go telling me ‘they were just getting warmed up’ or some BS!”

Akiteru-san shook his head, “No, it looks more like they’ve taken a step back,” he mused.

Saeko-san looked at him quizzically, “Huh??” she asked, confused.

“Last set it was like they’d gotten caught up in Karasuno’s speed, getting faster themselves. But now they’ve settled back into their own rhythm.” Akiteru-san explained.

You frowned, “Yeah, I thought so too. They’re not so flustered anymore. I think it may be down to that Setter of theirs,” I commented, “Like, he’s forced them back on track or something...?” you added musingly.

Akiteru-san nodded, agreeing with your theory.

The referee then blew the whistle, calling for a substitute from Karasuno’s side as Noya-senpai and Tsukishima-san were switching places between on and off court.

It was Yamaguchi-kun, who was being called on as Pinch Server again, and he was subbing in in place of Shoyo-kun.

Oh. This might be a chance we needed, if Yamaguchi-kun can pull this off.

“Give ‘em a good one, Yamaguchi-kun!” you called out encouragingly as he stepped onto the court with a serious expression.

Shoyo-kun, Noya-senpai and the rest of them in reserve echoed my encouragement with a “Server up!!” as the referee blew his whistle to signal for Yamaguchi-kun to go.

And with that, Yamaguchi-kun did so, throwing the ball up into the air and spiking it across the court....

...Only for it to land out of bounds...

“Oh, no!!” you gasped out-loud, wide-eyed as you looked down to Yamaguchi-kun in sympathy, while in your peripheral vision you saw the scorekeepers adding on Shiratorizawa’s 24th point, the set point.

“It’s okay! It’s okay, guys! Stay pumped!!” Daichi-senpai rallied his team-mates, trying to not let the odds get the better of him.

Maybe you let negative thoughts sneak up on you, and slip into your head... but as Shiratorizawa soon bagged their 25th point and won the third set you just sighed out the breath you’d been holding onto. It hadn’t been too surprising to you.

After all, this was Shiratorizawa Academy they were facing. Of course, it would be a grueling battle, down to the last point of the last set. Or at least it would be, if Karasuno wanted to have a chance at victory, and at nationals.

...

After the third set finished up, with a 2 – 1 advantage on Shiratorizawa’s part, the teams switched sides on the court and Karasuno returned to the side just below your group.

Noya-senpai looked angry, but not at the opponent. It seemed more like he was angry at himself, and determined not to let things end like this. After all, Ushijima-san had scored that 25th point by hitting it off of Noya-senpai’s shoulder; it looked painful, but his pride was probably more bruised than his shoulder was.

Ushijima-san seemed to have said something to Shoyo-kun as they switched sides as well. Shoyo-kun was dragging his feet, but looking annoyed.

You hoped this wouldn’t have any negative affects on Karasuno’s plays... well, but Shoyo-kun and Noya-senpai were incredibly resilient people. You guessed that you shouldn’t worry... too much.

“All right, sit down, all of you. Get as much rest as you possibly can.” Ukai-san had the boys conserve their energy, as it looked like they’d be in this game for the long haul.

He stretched out his back, taking in the chants of Shiratorizawa’s supporters. “Oof! This atmosphere, huh...? But I’m betting you’ve all gotten used to it by now, right? Both the crowds, and Shiratorizawa’s South Paw Cannon.” He commented, and sighed out;

“Look I know I’m harping on about this, but what you’re doing isn’t wrong. Don’t start second-guessing yourself. Even though I know, it’s painfully apparent that we’re the team at a disadvantage.” Ukai-san said, acknowledging the situation, “Now, let’s talk nuts and bolts,” he gave a strange analogy, piquing your interest.

Kiyoko-senpai stepped forward to stand next to Ukai-san, displaying a diagram of a formation to the boys. Ukai-san continued to dive into a plan of action with them in a hushed voice that you couldn’t quite make out. And so you, and the rest of Karasuno’s supporters were forced to wait and see what they’d do next.

After their group huddle, Shoyo-kun approached Ukai-san again, asking him a question in private, and after it looked like they agreed on something, Shoyo-kun rejoined the others and prepared for the next set.

Karasuno had to take this one, and the next one too. There was no other way, at this point. First, they had to even out the respective sets won between themselves and Shiratorizawa, and then, they had to beat them again, dragging this out to an exhausting five-set match, to secure their path to Nationals like they’d set out to do at the beginning of the school year.

“All right, guys! Unless you’re reeeally looking forward to some salty and soggy food on the way home we’ve got no choice but to win this set!” Daichi-senpai told the others, and they sounded in agreement.

Both the boys in the reserves, and us up in the stands; we all cheered for Karasuno’s starting team going into the fourth set, praying for a miracle to happen.

And that miracle was Goshiki-san’s overenthusiastic serve. It shot right across the court like a rocket and only landed when it smacked off the wall on our end of the court.

All right...! That’s the first point of the fourth set in the bag!

Daichi-senpai stepped up, the next in line to serve the ball. After he sent the ball over the net, Ohira-san jumped up to pass the ball in the direction of Shiratorizawa’s Setter.

The Setter set up the ball for Ushijima-san, who jumped up into the air in front of the net, reading his dominant arm to spike.

Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai dashed into position to attempt to block the Ace, jumping at the same time as Ushijima-san threw back his arm to bring it forward in a spiking motion.

But he spiked to the outside of Asahi-senpai’s block with a loud smack; what he hadn’t anticipated was that Noya-senpai was also in position, ready to receive the ball flying towards him like a missle.

The sheer force of it brought Noya-senpai down onto is knees, but he managed to send the ball hurtling back up into the air again, and back to Shiratorizawa’s side of the net.

Kageyama-kun jumped up just in time, with a Set that looked more like he was passing spontaneously, and sent it back Asahi-senpai’s way.

He gave the ball a hard smack, sending it past Shiratorizawa’s blocking efforts and slammed it off the ground of the court.

A second consecutive point...!

“YEAHHH!!” Noya-senpai and Asahi-senpai gave each other an enthusiastic high-five, congratulating each other on their successful teamwork.

Noya-senpai then went on to smack Tsukishima-san harshly on the back, shocking the glasses-wearer.

Ah, so maybe that whole thing was his idea? Heheh, Noya-senpai always had a strange way of showing his appreciation with the guys for their plays...!

“Man, but Yuu really is amazing, huh!” Saeko-san commented.

“Yeah, he is! But Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai’s blocks were really on point. I think it’s thanks to Tsukishima-san’s planning that we made that point!” you said.

“No kidding. That kid’s really been spreading his wings and showing his stuff lately.” Shimada-san nodded in agreement.

After a brief moment, Daichi-senpai was brought to do his second serve in a row.

“Front! Got it!!” Shiratorizawa’s number 4 lunged forward to catch the ball, successfully bringing it back up into play.

From there, the Setter sent it to Ushijima-san again, unpeterbed by what happened the last time he did that. And his thinking was right. This time, Ushijima-san scored the point regardless of Karasuno’s blocking efforts.

Karasuno widened the gap in points back up in the next rally, when Daichi-senpai scored a point, but that was answered in the following rally by Tendou-san who scored Shiratorizawa’s 2nd point to Karasuno’s 3.

The game continued like this for a little while, each teams exchanging opportunities to score a point until Shiratorizawa finally tied up the points thanks to Goshiki-san’s spike.

“Awww...” you pouted.

“Mr Bowl Cut over there just managed to squeeze that line shot thrugh a really narrow gap between Kageyama and the antenna at the edge of the net. It had looked like Kageyama had closed it off pretty well, too...” Shimada-san commented, for those who might have missed what Goshiki-san had done; “By the way, hitting the ball from outside the antenna, or letting the ball or players touch the antenna is considered out.” He added.

“Yeah it was so close! That he even considered trying that in the first place shows that guy really has some guts, or he’s just that confident in his spiking.” you agreed.

It was super close...!

You might’ve been annoyed that they’d tied up the points but you couldn’t deny talent like that.

All of Shiratorizawa’s players had talent in spades, actually, and they’d continued to make it known for this entire game so far.

But Karasuno wasn’t one to back down from a challenge just ‘cause it’s a tough one. They continued to trade points evenly, and even a few minutes later, there were 7 points to each team.

Ushijima-san got the spike once again, and Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai tried to block him again – the ball bounced sideways and back a little off of senpai’s palm, but Daichi-senpai dove to receive the ball and keep it in play.

He caught it, and Tanaka-senpai joined Asahi-senpai and Tsukishima-san in a synchronized run-up, while Kageyama-kun got ready to set the ball.

Asahi-senpai tried to spike, but Shiratorizawa’s 12 predicted correctly and managed to push the ball back to Karasuno’s side of the net. It fell without meeting any resistance and Shiratorizawa took the lead again.

“KAWANISHI....!!”

“SHIRATORIZAWA TOOK THE LEAD!!”

The crowds cheered out in excitement but you and the people around you didn’t feel like joining in. You all simply watched with anticipation. Could Karasuno turn the match back in their favour as quickly as they had been doing within the last 10 minutes?

If they let the gap widen again things could get ugly.

“Man but that Number 12 is pretty good...” grumbled Takinoue-san, folding his arms; “I think he noticed right away that Sawamura hadn’t gotten all the way back into position from his dig in time... so he immediately disregarded any possibility of an attack coming from te right.” He added on, explaining.

Shimada-san adjusted his glasses, nodding, “It’s not that it was imposible for Sawamura to make that hit, but it wasn’t very likely Kageyama would force the ball to a guy out of position.” He said.

Akiteru-san hummed, “That kind of quick analysis and decision making requires a lot of experience. These guys aren’t a powerhouse for nothing, I guess.” He agreed.

“T-Triple combo analysis...!” Saeko-san uttered, surprised by the barrage of theorizing from the three males with you. You laughed a little, seeing why she’d be surprised.

“Now if only you three had used your heads that much when you were actually playing in high-school, hmm?” a new voice suddenly jumped in from behind us, surprising everyone.

You turned around to see who it was along with the guys, and saw an older man coming down to join your group.

“C-Coach Ukai...!!?” Akiteru-san practically yelped, and quickly moved into bow, alongside Shimada-san and Takinoue-san.

You widened your eyes, “Coach Ukai?” you repeated, “Like the same Coach Ukai that coached when the Small Giant was in high school?” you asked.

Coach Ukai-san gave you an appraising look, “That’d be me indeed. Though it surprises me that you’d have heard of that kid. And who might you be?” he asked you curiously.

“A-Ah, I’m sorry! I’m {Full Name], sir. Shoyo-kun’s my boyfriend – I think you trained him a little bit. T-Thank you so much, for that!” You bowed politely to him in gratitude.

He stroked his beared chin, humming, “The squirt never mentioned having a girlfriend,” he commented.

“A-Ah well it’s a-a new relationship, you see.” you explained, blushing.

“And yet you’re already introducing yourself as ‘the girlfriend’,” he added and your blush grew hotter; Coach Ukai Sr laughed at your expense, “Well, it’s nice to meet you. Name’s Ukai Ikkei.” He nodded, then turned to the guys who were formally under his coaching; “Anyways, all of you were the kind who’ move first and let your brain try to catch up with you second.” He commented with a laugh.

Takinoue-san, Shimada-san and Akiteru-san all looked appropriately sheepish.

“Um! W-Well, there was just so much to take in, Coach! Y-You know, we were worried about hitting our spikes hard and making sure our serves were in and digging the ball properly and... and well, all kinds of individual stuff like that...!” Takinoue-san spluttered.

“Yusuke, stop while you’re ahead already,” Shimada-san groaned, looking embarrassed.

Well, you would have never thought that you’d see those guys get so flustered. It just went to show what kind of effect Ukai Ikkei-san had on them as their former Coach.

Coach Ukai took a seat next to Akiteru-san on the end, his old bones creaking.

“Well, let’s see... Washijo-sensei has his team stocked with a pack of good-looking prospects again, I’ll bet. They must’ve been giving Karasuno’s guys a hard time, but seeing as they’re still playing at the fourth set it’s not a one-way struggle. Bet Washijo-sensei’s loving that!” Coach Ukai Sr cackled a little, probably imagining what Shiratorizawa’s coach must be thinking at this point.

With Coach Ukai Sr all settled in and comfortable, you all watched the match in relative silence for a little while.

Soon it was Daichi-senpai’s turn to serve again, having rotated around fully. He served the ball, sending it over the net, and again, Ohira-san was there to pass the ball to their Setter.

And again, the Setter faithfully tossed it Ushijima-san’s way, getting it through Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai’s guard, again. It was getting frustrating, though probably more so for those two than it was for me up in the stands, you guessed.

Shiratorizawa took their ninth point from that spike, and Asahi-senpai gave it right back, tying up the points again as if in retaliation.

With the point scored, Asahi-senpai was next up to serve the ball. He threw the ball up, going in for a jumping Serve, and sent the ball over the net.

Goshiki-san dove and received it successfully, and Ohira-san passed it, sending it Ushijima-san’s way again.

Kageyama-kun, Tanaka-senpai and Tsukishima-san got into position to block the ball, and Noya-senpai also waited, a little further back, in the event that Ushijima-san got the ball past our blockers again.

And he did get it through, almost as if he was punching through their guard, as Tanaka-senpai’s arm flew back from the force of the impact.

Asahi-senpai refused to let Ushijima-san take this point, however, and caught the ball with the side of his hand, keeping it in play.

“YEEAAAAH!!” you heard what I thought might have been Suga-senpai yelling out excitedly from the reserves, as Daichi-senpai caught the ball second, keeping it up.

“Last hit, Tanakaaa!” Daichi-senpai called as the ball went Tanaka-senpai’s way.

“Bring it on!!” Tanaka-senpai yelled in response.

“An emergency set coming at him from behind. Those are pretty tough to hit!” Akiteru-san commented excitedly.

Tanaka-senpai jumped and attempted the spike, but Tendou-san decided that now was the time for his come back as the ‘Guess Monster’...!

Tanaka-senpai was completely shut out...

“MIRACLE MAKER MANNN! SA! TO! RIIII!!” Tendou-san obnoxiously cried out, making a pose as he yelled the English words.

“Aggh, he could have gone anywhere with that hit. How do you manage to stuff that!?” Shimada-san groaned, frustrated, while Tendou-san lapped in the limelight after his latest move.

“Not bad, though! Not bad at all.” Coach Ukai Sr hummed, watching with interest, “Maintaining that high-level of ‘we can do it’, in spite of it all isn’t bad at all!” he added.

Ah, for a second there, you were wondering whose side was on, or if he was a neutral audience or something. Look like he was still supporting Karasuno, though, despite Shiratorizawa’s lead with 10 points to 9.

Next up to serve was up to Ushijima-san himself. He further proved his rightful place as Ace by easily scoring a Service Ace, widening the gap of points to a 2-point difference.

Exactly what we didn’t want.

“GIVE THEM ANOTHER ONE! U! SHI! JI! MA!!” Shiratorizawa’s cheering squad was going wild for their star player, encouraging him with enthusiasm.

Daichi-senpai wasn’t having any of it though. Faced off with Ushijima-san’s second serve in a row, he caught it and managed to send it back up again.

Following his lead, Kageyama-kun tossed the ball from the back line to Tsukishima-san; despite Tendou-san and his team-mates’ attempt, Tsukishima-san got the ball through, scoring Karasuno their 10th point.

“WHOOOOO!!” Karasuno gathered and did a group cheer, keeping spirits high.

Tsukishima-san was next up to serve, which only meant one thing; it was time for Noya-senpai to step off the court, and time for Shoyo-kun to take his place.

Tsukishima-san got into position to serve, not looking very enthusiastic about it. Well, it wasn’t his greatest skill after all. His aim tended to be shaky when he did serves... but he still managed to get it over the net so all’s well that ends well. Hopefully, at least.

Two of Shiratorizawa’s players were moving in to try and catch the ball. It was Goshiki-san who got it, trying to pass it. It was a bit of a shaky one, but their Setter got it anyway.

“Ohira-san!” the setter called out, signaling that he was going to pass to the tall, tan player.

Shoyo-kun, who had been raring to go while he waited in the reserves area, was intent on making his first move back on the court right away, which he did.

He sped off to the opposite side of the court, joining on the end of Karasuno’s wall of spikers at the last second and blocking Ohira-san’s spike at the last second, sending it flying back to Shiratorizawa’s side and landing just inside the court’s boundaries.

“Whoever said I can’t fight with height, huh!!?” Shoyo-kun yelled out as if challenging someone on the other team, his smile wide and bright.

That’s right, Shoyo-kun! You show them all!!

Description
Karasuno and Shiratorizawa both had a Set each. They were evenly tied.

Now all that remained was for them to win the next set, and another one after that! And you had every faith in them!

“Hey, wait, are you crying!?” Saeko-san suddenly gasped, and you instantly went to rub your eyes again; she patted your shoulder, “No, not you, [Name]-chan, this guy!” she clarified, and you turned to see a bawling Akiteru-san.

“E-Eh?? Are you okay, Akiteru-san...!?” you gasped, worried.

“It’s j-just that...! Kei fits in with his teammates!” Akiteru-san managed, through sobs.

“Aha, that part, huh!” Saeko-san laughed a little, “Still, that was really amazing!! He managed to roof the Ushiwaka!!” she said, sounding impressed.

Akiteru-san gathered himself, blowing his nose, and then spoke up; “I think what happened is that Shiratorizawa’s Set was just a tiny bit off.” He input.

“Huh? It was?” Shimada-san asked.

“Yeah, but it was so slight that you almost wouldn’t know it had happened,” Akiteru-san nodded.

“Huh? Then...” Saeko-san blinked, looking like she was getting it.

Takeda-sensei seemed to have gotten it, too; “So that block was, in part, thanks to an error made by their setter?” he asked Ukai-san.

“I wouldn’t go so far as to call it an error. But that’s not the point.” Ukai-san shook his head, “When opposing blockers get deflection after deflection, and your offense isn’t getting any clean attacks through... where do you think all the stress and frustration from that lands the hardest?” Ukai-san asked.

You widened your eyes in realisation. Of course...! You yourself knew that feeling well from middle school, too.

“Smack on the Setter. It’s natural that a Setter would then want to find some way to steer their hitters around those blocks.” Ukai-san added.

“So, then you’re saying that Tsukishima-kun goaded them into making an error?!” Takeda-san gasped, surprised.

“Maybe. Though I bet his main priority has been scaling back the power of Ushiwaka’s attacks. And in that respect, he’s been doing a bang up job this whole set. But I got the feeling... that right from the beginning, that guy wasn’t going to be happy just leaving it at that.” The coach explained.

Yeah, that’s right. Tsukishima-san has a lot more pride than anyone initially thought...

“Man...! But that block seemed like some sort of super miracle play that just kinda happened... But I guess it wasn’t as completely out of the blue as I’d thought! I’m surprised he can think that far ahead while running all over the court.” Saeko-san commented.

You nodded, humming, “I think, Tsukishima-san’s always thinking about one thing or another. Even when he’s not out on the court, playing volleyball. Like in class, he often stares out of the window, looking miles away,” You added in.

“I-I’m sorry. He can be pretty antisocial, huh?” Akiteru-san felt like he needed to apologise for his little brother.

“N-No, no! I’m sure that’s not the case! He’s always with Yamaguchi-kun after all! And at the Summer Camp he was hanging out with a few of the players from Nekoma and Fukurodani,” You tried to reassure the older blond.

Akiteru-san blinked at me, shocked, “Really?! With Tokyo elites like that?!” he hadn’t been expecting that kind of information.

“Does he not talk to you about it? You’re his big brother.” you asked him, tilting your head.

Akiteru-san nervously scratched his cheek, “Like I said, he’s always kept to himself. He’s not one for small talk, even with me,” he said.

You hummed, “I see. Then, I’ll just have to talk to him more often. That was pretty mean of me, in hindsight... Talking to Yamaguchi-kun but not Tsukishima-san as well,” you said with a rueful smile.

Well, you’d definitely remedy that once we were back at school again!

You turned back to watch the match again, and after a few moments, Akiteru-san spoke up, softly;

“Thank you, for being his and Tadashi’s friend,” he thanked me and you blushed a little.

You hesitated a little. If you were being honest, so far, you’d kinda favoured Yamaguchi-kun... you felt a little bad.

Shaking it off, you gave Akiteru-san a smile, nodding, “Right!”

You’d make sure that changed, after this match. Tsukishima-san had been full of surprises lately, so maybe becoming friends could be surprisingly easy...?

The guys had all rounded up for a team huddle before getting sent back onto the court. Daichi-senpai was giving them a pep talk, to keep his team-mates’ spirits up and going.

“The saying is ‘go for broke’, but we aren’t going to come out of this broke at all. Now... is the greatest chance we’ve got! We can do this! Let’s go!” Daichi-senpai said, and then they all threw their hands up into the air.

“YEEEEAAAHH!!”

...

The third set went over much the same as the second set up until now. It’d been nearly half an hour, and the points were in Shiratorizawa’s favour, with a score of 15 – 20 after Ushijima-san had made another great kill.

Shiratorizawa’s cheering squad was going wild, their voices echoing off of the gymnasium’s tall ceiling.

They were on a roll at the moment, and that continued in the next rally despite Karasuno’s persistent enthusiasm.

Their Setter tossed the ball for their number 5, Tendou-san, who spiked the ball, getting by Shoyo-kun’s block and hitting off of Asahi-senpai’s forearms before hitting the ground of the court.

Not even ten minutes later, frustratingly, Shiratorizawa had just scored their 22nd point while Karasuno was still struggling behind them by 5 whole points.

But Karasuno's luck changed a little, when Noya-senpai finally managed to receive a spike nicely, sending it back up into play and allowing Kageyama-kun to go in to toss the ball.

Shoyo-kun jumped and spiked, scoring Karasuno’s 18th point, and you let out a breath of relief. It provided a little more breathing space, at least.

Hopefully, this good fortune would stick around for a while and let Karasuno even out the scoreboard a little. Then you could stop being on the verge of a heart attack...!

But then Goshiki-san spiked, during the next rally, and widened the point gap once again by getting past both Kageyama-kun and Shoyo-kun.

“Aaaargh..! This can’t be for real!” Saeko-san complained, “Don’t go telling me ‘they were just getting warmed up’ or some BS!”

Akiteru-san shook his head, “No, it looks more like they’ve taken a step back,” he mused.

Saeko-san looked at him quizzically, “Huh??” she asked, confused.

“Last set it was like they’d gotten caught up in Karasuno’s speed, getting faster themselves. But now they’ve settled back into their own rhythm.” Akiteru-san explained.

You frowned, “Yeah, I thought so too. They’re not so flustered anymore. I think it may be down to that Setter of theirs,” I commented, “Like, he’s forced them back on track or something...?” you added musingly.

Akiteru-san nodded, agreeing with your theory.

The referee then blew the whistle, calling for a substitute from Karasuno’s side as Noya-senpai and Tsukishima-san were switching places between on and off court.

It was Yamaguchi-kun, who was being called on as Pinch Server again, and he was subbing in in place of Shoyo-kun.

Oh. This might be a chance we needed, if Yamaguchi-kun can pull this off.

“Give ‘em a good one, Yamaguchi-kun!” you called out encouragingly as he stepped onto the court with a serious expression.

Shoyo-kun, Noya-senpai and the rest of them in reserve echoed my encouragement with a “Server up!!” as the referee blew his whistle to signal for Yamaguchi-kun to go.

And with that, Yamaguchi-kun did so, throwing the ball up into the air and spiking it across the court....

...Only for it to land out of bounds...

“Oh, no!!” you gasped out-loud, wide-eyed as you looked down to Yamaguchi-kun in sympathy, while in your peripheral vision you saw the scorekeepers adding on Shiratorizawa’s 24th point, the set point.

“It’s okay! It’s okay, guys! Stay pumped!!” Daichi-senpai rallied his team-mates, trying to not let the odds get the better of him.

Maybe you let negative thoughts sneak up on you, and slip into your head... but as Shiratorizawa soon bagged their 25th point and won the third set you just sighed out the breath you’d been holding onto. It hadn’t been too surprising to you.

After all, this was Shiratorizawa Academy they were facing. Of course, it would be a grueling battle, down to the last point of the last set. Or at least it would be, if Karasuno wanted to have a chance at victory, and at nationals.

...

After the third set finished up, with a 2 – 1 advantage on Shiratorizawa’s part, the teams switched sides on the court and Karasuno returned to the side just below your group.

Noya-senpai looked angry, but not at the opponent. It seemed more like he was angry at himself, and determined not to let things end like this. After all, Ushijima-san had scored that 25th point by hitting it off of Noya-senpai’s shoulder; it looked painful, but his pride was probably more bruised than his shoulder was.

Ushijima-san seemed to have said something to Shoyo-kun as they switched sides as well. Shoyo-kun was dragging his feet, but looking annoyed.

You hoped this wouldn’t have any negative affects on Karasuno’s plays... well, but Shoyo-kun and Noya-senpai were incredibly resilient people. You guessed that you shouldn’t worry... too much.

“All right, sit down, all of you. Get as much rest as you possibly can.” Ukai-san had the boys conserve their energy, as it looked like they’d be in this game for the long haul.

He stretched out his back, taking in the chants of Shiratorizawa’s supporters. “Oof! This atmosphere, huh...? But I’m betting you’ve all gotten used to it by now, right? Both the crowds, and Shiratorizawa’s South Paw Cannon.” He commented, and sighed out;

“Look I know I’m harping on about this, but what you’re doing isn’t wrong. Don’t start second-guessing yourself. Even though I know, it’s painfully apparent that we’re the team at a disadvantage.” Ukai-san said, acknowledging the situation, “Now, let’s talk nuts and bolts,” he gave a strange analogy, piquing your interest.

Kiyoko-senpai stepped forward to stand next to Ukai-san, displaying a diagram of a formation to the boys. Ukai-san continued to dive into a plan of action with them in a hushed voice that you couldn’t quite make out. And so you, and the rest of Karasuno’s supporters were forced to wait and see what they’d do next.

After their group huddle, Shoyo-kun approached Ukai-san again, asking him a question in private, and after it looked like they agreed on something, Shoyo-kun rejoined the others and prepared for the next set.

Karasuno had to take this one, and the next one too. There was no other way, at this point. First, they had to even out the respective sets won between themselves and Shiratorizawa, and then, they had to beat them again, dragging this out to an exhausting five-set match, to secure their path to Nationals like they’d set out to do at the beginning of the school year.

“All right, guys! Unless you’re reeeally looking forward to some salty and soggy food on the way home we’ve got no choice but to win this set!” Daichi-senpai told the others, and they sounded in agreement.

Both the boys in the reserves, and us up in the stands; we all cheered for Karasuno’s starting team going into the fourth set, praying for a miracle to happen.

And that miracle was Goshiki-san’s overenthusiastic serve. It shot right across the court like a rocket and only landed when it smacked off the wall on our end of the court.

All right...! That’s the first point of the fourth set in the bag!

Daichi-senpai stepped up, the next in line to serve the ball. After he sent the ball over the net, Ohira-san jumped up to pass the ball in the direction of Shiratorizawa’s Setter.

The Setter set up the ball for Ushijima-san, who jumped up into the air in front of the net, reading his dominant arm to spike.

Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai dashed into position to attempt to block the Ace, jumping at the same time as Ushijima-san threw back his arm to bring it forward in a spiking motion.

But he spiked to the outside of Asahi-senpai’s block with a loud smack; what he hadn’t anticipated was that Noya-senpai was also in position, ready to receive the ball flying towards him like a missle.

The sheer force of it brought Noya-senpai down onto is knees, but he managed to send the ball hurtling back up into the air again, and back to Shiratorizawa’s side of the net.

Kageyama-kun jumped up just in time, with a Set that looked more like he was passing spontaneously, and sent it back Asahi-senpai’s way.

He gave the ball a hard smack, sending it past Shiratorizawa’s blocking efforts and slammed it off the ground of the court.

A second consecutive point...!

“YEAHHH!!” Noya-senpai and Asahi-senpai gave each other an enthusiastic high-five, congratulating each other on their successful teamwork.

Noya-senpai then went on to smack Tsukishima-san harshly on the back, shocking the glasses-wearer.

Ah, so maybe that whole thing was his idea? Heheh, Noya-senpai always had a strange way of showing his appreciation with the guys for their plays...!

“Man, but Yuu really is amazing, huh!” Saeko-san commented.

“Yeah, he is! But Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai’s blocks were really on point. I think it’s thanks to Tsukishima-san’s planning that we made that point!” you said.

“No kidding. That kid’s really been spreading his wings and showing his stuff lately.” Shimada-san nodded in agreement.

After a brief moment, Daichi-senpai was brought to do his second serve in a row.

“Front! Got it!!” Shiratorizawa’s number 4 lunged forward to catch the ball, successfully bringing it back up into play.

From there, the Setter sent it to Ushijima-san again, unpeterbed by what happened the last time he did that. And his thinking was right. This time, Ushijima-san scored the point regardless of Karasuno’s blocking efforts.

Karasuno widened the gap in points back up in the next rally, when Daichi-senpai scored a point, but that was answered in the following rally by Tendou-san who scored Shiratorizawa’s 2nd point to Karasuno’s 3.

The game continued like this for a little while, each teams exchanging opportunities to score a point until Shiratorizawa finally tied up the points thanks to Goshiki-san’s spike.

“Awww...” you pouted.

“Mr Bowl Cut over there just managed to squeeze that line shot thrugh a really narrow gap between Kageyama and the antenna at the edge of the net. It had looked like Kageyama had closed it off pretty well, too...” Shimada-san commented, for those who might have missed what Goshiki-san had done; “By the way, hitting the ball from outside the antenna, or letting the ball or players touch the antenna is considered out.” He added.

“Yeah it was so close! That he even considered trying that in the first place shows that guy really has some guts, or he’s just that confident in his spiking.” you agreed.

It was super close...!

You might’ve been annoyed that they’d tied up the points but you couldn’t deny talent like that.

All of Shiratorizawa’s players had talent in spades, actually, and they’d continued to make it known for this entire game so far.

But Karasuno wasn’t one to back down from a challenge just ‘cause it’s a tough one. They continued to trade points evenly, and even a few minutes later, there were 7 points to each team.

Ushijima-san got the spike once again, and Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai tried to block him again – the ball bounced sideways and back a little off of senpai’s palm, but Daichi-senpai dove to receive the ball and keep it in play.

He caught it, and Tanaka-senpai joined Asahi-senpai and Tsukishima-san in a synchronized run-up, while Kageyama-kun got ready to set the ball.

Asahi-senpai tried to spike, but Shiratorizawa’s 12 predicted correctly and managed to push the ball back to Karasuno’s side of the net. It fell without meeting any resistance and Shiratorizawa took the lead again.

“KAWANISHI....!!”

“SHIRATORIZAWA TOOK THE LEAD!!”

The crowds cheered out in excitement but you and the people around you didn’t feel like joining in. You all simply watched with anticipation. Could Karasuno turn the match back in their favour as quickly as they had been doing within the last 10 minutes?

If they let the gap widen again things could get ugly.

“Man but that Number 12 is pretty good...” grumbled Takinoue-san, folding his arms; “I think he noticed right away that Sawamura hadn’t gotten all the way back into position from his dig in time... so he immediately disregarded any possibility of an attack coming from te right.” He added on, explaining.

Shimada-san adjusted his glasses, nodding, “It’s not that it was imposible for Sawamura to make that hit, but it wasn’t very likely Kageyama would force the ball to a guy out of position.” He said.

Akiteru-san hummed, “That kind of quick analysis and decision making requires a lot of experience. These guys aren’t a powerhouse for nothing, I guess.” He agreed.

“T-Triple combo analysis...!” Saeko-san uttered, surprised by the barrage of theorizing from the three males with you. You laughed a little, seeing why she’d be surprised.

“Now if only you three had used your heads that much when you were actually playing in high-school, hmm?” a new voice suddenly jumped in from behind us, surprising everyone.

You turned around to see who it was along with the guys, and saw an older man coming down to join your group.

“C-Coach Ukai...!!?” Akiteru-san practically yelped, and quickly moved into bow, alongside Shimada-san and Takinoue-san.

You widened your eyes, “Coach Ukai?” you repeated, “Like the same Coach Ukai that coached when the Small Giant was in high school?” you asked.

Coach Ukai-san gave you an appraising look, “That’d be me indeed. Though it surprises me that you’d have heard of that kid. And who might you be?” he asked you curiously.

“A-Ah, I’m sorry! I’m {Full Name], sir. Shoyo-kun’s my boyfriend – I think you trained him a little bit. T-Thank you so much, for that!” You bowed politely to him in gratitude.

He stroked his beared chin, humming, “The squirt never mentioned having a girlfriend,” he commented.

“A-Ah well it’s a-a new relationship, you see.” you explained, blushing.

“And yet you’re already introducing yourself as ‘the girlfriend’,” he added and your blush grew hotter; Coach Ukai Sr laughed at your expense, “Well, it’s nice to meet you. Name’s Ukai Ikkei.” He nodded, then turned to the guys who were formally under his coaching; “Anyways, all of you were the kind who’ move first and let your brain try to catch up with you second.” He commented with a laugh.

Takinoue-san, Shimada-san and Akiteru-san all looked appropriately sheepish.

“Um! W-Well, there was just so much to take in, Coach! Y-You know, we were worried about hitting our spikes hard and making sure our serves were in and digging the ball properly and... and well, all kinds of individual stuff like that...!” Takinoue-san spluttered.

“Yusuke, stop while you’re ahead already,” Shimada-san groaned, looking embarrassed.

Well, you would have never thought that you’d see those guys get so flustered. It just went to show what kind of effect Ukai Ikkei-san had on them as their former Coach.

Coach Ukai took a seat next to Akiteru-san on the end, his old bones creaking.

“Well, let’s see... Washijo-sensei has his team stocked with a pack of good-looking prospects again, I’ll bet. They must’ve been giving Karasuno’s guys a hard time, but seeing as they’re still playing at the fourth set it’s not a one-way struggle. Bet Washijo-sensei’s loving that!” Coach Ukai Sr cackled a little, probably imagining what Shiratorizawa’s coach must be thinking at this point.

With Coach Ukai Sr all settled in and comfortable, you all watched the match in relative silence for a little while.

Soon it was Daichi-senpai’s turn to serve again, having rotated around fully. He served the ball, sending it over the net, and again, Ohira-san was there to pass the ball to their Setter.

And again, the Setter faithfully tossed it Ushijima-san’s way, getting it through Tsukishima-san and Asahi-senpai’s guard, again. It was getting frustrating, though probably more so for those two than it was for me up in the stands, you guessed.

Shiratorizawa took their ninth point from that spike, and Asahi-senpai gave it right back, tying up the points again as if in retaliation.

With the point scored, Asahi-senpai was next up to serve the ball. He threw the ball up, going in for a jumping Serve, and sent the ball over the net.

Goshiki-san dove and received it successfully, and Ohira-san passed it, sending it Ushijima-san’s way again.

Kageyama-kun, Tanaka-senpai and Tsukishima-san got into position to block the ball, and Noya-senpai also waited, a little further back, in the event that Ushijima-san got the ball past our blockers again.

And he did get it through, almost as if he was punching through their guard, as Tanaka-senpai’s arm flew back from the force of the impact.

Asahi-senpai refused to let Ushijima-san take this point, however, and caught the ball with the side of his hand, keeping it in play.

“YEEAAAAH!!” you heard what I thought might have been Suga-senpai yelling out excitedly from the reserves, as Daichi-senpai caught the ball second, keeping it up.

“Last hit, Tanakaaa!” Daichi-senpai called as the ball went Tanaka-senpai’s way.

“Bring it on!!” Tanaka-senpai yelled in response.

“An emergency set coming at him from behind. Those are pretty tough to hit!” Akiteru-san commented excitedly.

Tanaka-senpai jumped and attempted the spike, but Tendou-san decided that now was the time for his come back as the ‘Guess Monster’...!

Tanaka-senpai was completely shut out...

“MIRACLE MAKER MANNN! SA! TO! RIIII!!” Tendou-san obnoxiously cried out, making a pose as he yelled the English words.

“Aggh, he could have gone anywhere with that hit. How do you manage to stuff that!?” Shimada-san groaned, frustrated, while Tendou-san lapped in the limelight after his latest move.

“Not bad, though! Not bad at all.” Coach Ukai Sr hummed, watching with interest, “Maintaining that high-level of ‘we can do it’, in spite of it all isn’t bad at all!” he added.

Ah, for a second there, you were wondering whose side was on, or if he was a neutral audience or something. Look like he was still supporting Karasuno, though, despite Shiratorizawa’s lead with 10 points to 9.

Next up to serve was up to Ushijima-san himself. He further proved his rightful place as Ace by easily scoring a Service Ace, widening the gap of points to a 2-point difference.

Exactly what we didn’t want.

“GIVE THEM ANOTHER ONE! U! SHI! JI! MA!!” Shiratorizawa’s cheering squad was going wild for their star player, encouraging him with enthusiasm.

Daichi-senpai wasn’t having any of it though. Faced off with Ushijima-san’s second serve in a row, he caught it and managed to send it back up again.

Following his lead, Kageyama-kun tossed the ball from the back line to Tsukishima-san; despite Tendou-san and his team-mates’ attempt, Tsukishima-san got the ball through, scoring Karasuno their 10th point.

“WHOOOOO!!” Karasuno gathered and did a group cheer, keeping spirits high.

Tsukishima-san was next up to serve, which only meant one thing; it was time for Noya-senpai to step off the court, and time for Shoyo-kun to take his place.

Tsukishima-san got into position to serve, not looking very enthusiastic about it. Well, it wasn’t his greatest skill after all. His aim tended to be shaky when he did serves... but he still managed to get it over the net so all’s well that ends well. Hopefully, at least.

Two of Shiratorizawa’s players were moving in to try and catch the ball. It was Goshiki-san who got it, trying to pass it. It was a bit of a shaky one, but their Setter got it anyway.

“Ohira-san!” the setter called out, signaling that he was going to pass to the tall, tan player.

Shoyo-kun, who had been raring to go while he waited in the reserves area, was intent on making his first move back on the court right away, which he did.

He sped off to the opposite side of the court, joining on the end of Karasuno’s wall of spikers at the last second and blocking Ohira-san’s spike at the last second, sending it flying back to Shiratorizawa’s side and landing just inside the court’s boundaries.

“Whoever said I can’t fight with height, huh!!?” Shoyo-kun yelled out as if challenging someone on the other team, his smile wide and bright.

That’s right, Shoyo-kun! You show them all!!