The Birth of A Volleyball Legend

"Oh! Rebound! Nice thinking, Koji!"

Akihiro scowled, feeling annoyed when he realized he didn't block the ball perfectly. Well, he couldn't help it, though. Even the best blocker in the world wouldn't be able to stop the opponent's spike all the time, let alone him. So, the boy decided to move on and got ready for the next attack coming from Tsunemori High.

'Let's see where the ball would go… Ah, he is grinning! That means – !'

*BAM!*

Akihiro hadn't even finished the monologue inside his thought when the ball had already flown past his ear, knocking his eardrum gently before all the sound registered through his brain was the ball hitting the floor. For a moment, he froze on the spot, only one word came out of his mouth.

"Eh?"

"OH! Nice spike!"

"Damn, that is so fast! They hadn't done any quick this good in the first set!"

"Don't tell me they still have something on their sleeves?!"

While all the Tsunemori players celebrated and all the people in the stands talked excitedly about the last play, Akihiro was still confused about what just happened here. He knew when Riku grinned, the blonde boy would never do his usual routine. However, Akihiro always thought that the grin meant Yuki would act as a setter.

He forgot that a surprise could come in so many ways, and this was also one of them.

'Well played, Tsunemori. Well played.'

"Oi, Take! What happened? Cat got your tongue?" Matsumoto asked.

If anyone outside of the team heard this, they would think it was a captain concerned about a freshman. However, Akihiro knew even without looking at Matsumoto's eyes that the captain mocked him for not being able to react in the last play. A thick vein popped on Akihiro's forehead as he realized that.

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"Shut up, Senpai!" He barked. "Just wait and see, I will stop them both after this!"

"Ha! Make sure you can do that or the coach will replace you, you hear me?!"

"I got it!"

Even though it looked like they were not close with each other, but this was basically how all the Konan players communicated in the team. Regarding volleyball, they never felt concerned about whether their teammates would be okay or not after facing a defeat, but would always say something to rile them up.

Since they didn't have any opponent that could push them to the edge, they cherished every opportunity given by a troublesome opponent that would always appear occasionally to keep them motivated.

The game continued not long after with another serve from Riku. This time, Shimada received the ball perfectly while ignoring Riku's mind game completely. After that, as if wanting to take revenge from the last play, Sawada sent a quick toss to the front side where Lucas was already flying before the Brazilian boy hit the ball straight in between Yuki and Kaede's spot.

*BAM!*

"Oh! Nice pass, Nobu!"Lucas praised genuinely.

"Good spike to you too, Lucas-senpai!" Sawada accepted the praise humbly.

Then, the setter turned his head toward the other side of the net and stared at both Yuki and Riku challengingly as if saying, 'What you can do, I can do it better.' Before turning back to focus on his teammates. Yuki and Riku could only smile at each other wryly, not knowing how to answer that provocation.

"Heh, and here I thought he was just a timid boy. It seems there is more that he hides in our last meeting." Riku snorted.

"Well, he is Konan's setter, no matter how shy or timid he is, there is no way he doesn't have any ego or competitive spirit inside him," Yuki commented. "Anyway, after this would be their turn to serve. You know what we should do, right?"

"Don't worry, I got this." Riku waved his hand nonchalantly.

Since Konan got the point, it was their turn to serve. Just like in the first set, the first one to do it was Matsumoto. He was the strongest one in Konan, but didn't have the same creativity as Lucas, so the threat he possessed wasn't too high. However, that didn't mean Tsunemori players would lower their guard.

They still prepared their best to receive Matsumoto's serve, knowing it was their chance to counterattack.

'Come on, come here! Come here! Yes!'

Just like everyone thought, Matsumoto didn't have the same creativity as Lucas. He was so confident with his power that he sent the ball straight to Kaede, the second-best defender of the team. Of course, Kaede would receive it perfectly,

"Oh! Nice receive, Kai!"

"Come on! Move!"

As all the Tsunemori players moved in sync, Akihiro observed Riku's movement intently from behind the net. He knew the blonde boy would always reveal the biggest flaw on the team, so Akihiro didn't need to worry about the other's movement. As long as he could figure out who would pass the ball, he knew he won the contest.

'Now, let's see who will get the ball… One… Two… No! He doesn't smile! It is he himself who will do that!'

Akihiro was so sure Riku would set the ball by himself, so he only watched the boy to figure out where he would send the ball. However, to his surprise, Yuki also jumped to get the ball, and while he was so focused on Riku, the glasses boy had already taken over the play by sending a long pass to the left wing where only Arizawa guarded that area.

"Shit! Arizawa!"

*BAM!*

Even though Arizawa managed to jump in an attempt to block the spike, Ogawa was clever enough to hit the ball deliberately to the opponent's hand, aiming for a block out. As a result, the ball bounced from Arizawa straight down the floor without anyone could save it, resulting in another point for Tsunemori.

"Hell yeah!"

"Nice spike, Jimmy!"

"Come on! Good pass, Yuki!"

Akihiro shook his head as he watched all the Tsunemori players celebrate the point. He was sure by now that Tsunemori had already known he knew the flaw of their combination attack and took advantage of it. However, Akihiro didn't have time to think about that, since he saw the glasses boy who just set up the attack now held the ball in the service line.

Remembering how troublesome it was to handle Yuki's services, there was only one thing that crossed Akihiro's mind.

"Damn."