A Chance Encounter Changes Everything.
Chapter 1: The bitter taste of defeat... But Salvation is found in the West.
"Come on, Iwa-chan! Or we'll be late for my dear Tobio-chan's first match! I want to see how much he's grown since I left Kitagawa Daiichi." A tall brunette bound energetically up the steps, looking over his shoulder to his best friend and teammate, Iwaizumi Hajime.
"Shittykawa..."
Oikawa Tooru laughed and waited on the top step for his friend to catch up, walking at a more sedate pace through the corridors.
"I don't see why I have to come along with you, Oikawa. Time could be better spent training, we do have matches coming up soon, you know."
"Shush, Iwa-chan. We're only staying for the first match anyway, then we can go back to Aoba Johsai."
Iwaizumi sighed and rubbed his temples in exasperation. "Fine." He grumbled.
Oikawa smiled smugly and skipped through the hallways, deftly avoiding collisions with the other people transversing though the corridor.
"Oh Oh! There he is!" Oikawa pointed down to the moody setter of the Kitagawa Daiichi team. The third year was shouting at his teammates apparently, pointing roughly and pushing his teammates into position. "Rude as ever... King of the Court indeed."
"Are they playing against Elementary Students? The opponents are so tiny." Iwaizumi leaned against the railing beside Oikawa, a program book in hand. He looked though it a second and raised his head up to meet Oikawa's curious gaze. "Yukigaoka Junior High."
"Never heard of them." Oikawa murmured. "Must be first timers." The whistle blew sharply and the game began with Kitagawa Daiichi serving.
The ball was received rather sloppily by the other team and it was rising in the air again, though the boy who received it was thrown back with the momentum. 'Amateurs, this is the first time they've played... Oh?' The setter was a novice as well, but he managed to get the ball up.
"Get it, Shou-chan!" The captain ran forward with a speed that surprised the two and set himself up for a jump. 'He's going to spike it? Someone that small can't jump high enough to do that–' Oikawa's thoughts were cut off by the little captain's jump
'He flew! Was all that he could think, his mouth dropping open in surprise. Though it was an impressive jump and a fierce looking spike, the little guy was shut off by the three man block that he was up against. He oh'd under his breath and watched as the boy's face fell. The teammate who set started to talk to the captain, probably apologizing. It's a hard feeling when a spiker gets blocked from one of your own sets, he would know as he was a setter himself. Soon they were cheery again with a few words from the captain, who had somehow managed to pull the team back from their woes.
After watching for a while, Oikawa had figured out that the only thing holding the Yukigaoka team together was the orange haired Chibi-chan, as he called the energetic little ball of sunshine. Even just watching a match he had grown a little fond of him.
After all, Oikawa was starkly reminded of himself when he looked at the boy.
Chibi-chan, like Oikawa, was not a genius like Tobio-chan. Chibi-chan had the look about him of a determined volleyball player who just hadn't got the right environment to flourish and be trained properly. Oikawa had Kitagawa Daiichi and Seijoh, but it seemed like Chibi-chan hadn't got the support Tooru himself had. Chibi-chan could be great, even on the level of himself and... Ushijima, he just needed the right training...
And a good setter of course.
Yukigaoka got demolished in both sets, with the score currently sitting at 22 for Kitagawa and 7 for Chibi-chan's team in the second set.
Though Kitagawa was winning, Oikawa and Iwaizumi could see the tensions were running high in their former team. Kageyama was becoming increasingly irate and was beginning to show some of his... Less desirable traits.
Where Chibi-chan was playing with his team, and bringing the best out of what he had, Tobio-chan was the opposite. Tobio-chan was playing by himself and had seemed to have forgotten that there were six players on the court, not just one.
Chibi-chan went up to spike again, and was once more shot down by the opposition. The team reassured the small boy and they got back into formation. The game resumed and Oikawa was witness to one of Kageyama's 'King' tosses, a toss that no one could spike. Oikawa grit his teeth at the sight of the toss, it was the height of Tobio-chan's genius that he was able to toss that.
"Move faster!" Tobio-chan roared, his voice heard even in the stands. Kunimi and Kindaichi said something to the genius setter, which seemed to set him off again. "Then how long are you two going to wait until you get serious about it?! The finals?!"
The captain said a few short words and calmed Tobio down, bringing the focus back to the match.
Number 10, a new player, served a normal serve, sending it straight to the weakest receiver among Yukigaoka. The ball bounced over his shoulder and headed for the outside of the court, a service ace. "Not yet!" Tobio-chan roared again, seeing as Oikawa did. Chibi-chan was running after the ball.
A botched flying receive and a hard collision with the wall later, Kitagawa Daiichi was at the match point. Chibi-chan and number 3 were talking to each other, luckily Oikawa was positioned right above them, so he could hear what they were talking about.
Chibi-chan groaned from his upside down position on the ground and 3 was stuttering with his words.
"I-I'm sorry. That was my fault." Chibi-chan got up and stood a little warily, the orange haired boy swaying slightly as he got up too fast.
"Sorry, I'll get the next one." Chibi-chan assured 3.
"Um... C-captain?" Number three looked to the side bashfully and avoided Chibi-chan's startled gaze. "It, um, It would be really bad if you got hurt... And to be blunt, we aren't going to win this game. So why are you, um... Going so far to...?"
"Huh?!" Chibi-chan exclaimed. "Umm... Well... I dunno. It's just..." Oikawa leaned forward eagerly and the sudden silence of the court and the audience made the words carry further than they would of originally.
"We haven't lost yet, right?"
Oikawa shivered at the sheer intensity of those five words and his fondness for the Chibi-chan grew into something, something more than what it should be.
He wanted the little one. He wanted to keep him to himself, to train him in all he knew, to hear the words 'Tooru-senpai' come from those lips, for the Chibi-chan to only look to him when something went wrong, to spike only his tosses. The Chibi-chan would be Oikawa's. His brown eyes narrowed and focused on the little captain with a look that Iwaizumi had never seen before.
To be honest with himself, Iwaizumi was scared.
Oikawa focused back on the match where ... Shou-chan was it?... Was going up for a spike. And god was Tobio-chan's face torn in such beautiful irritation and angst, Oikawa smirked darkly and his eyes gleamed. Shou-chan, for that was what he would call him now, Had jumped up again to spike...
And scored a wipe.
"Tipped it! Cover!"
Kunimi didn't look at all that bothered about getting the ball back in the air, and so it fell to the ground.
"Chase it down!" Tobio-chan roared again. Really, he should be working on that temper of his. Tobio's dark mood descended on the Kitagawa side of the court and a muttered something from Kunimi set Tobio-chan off again?
"The game isn't over yet! Quit slacking off!" A few muttered words and Kageyama was screaming back, "That last point wasn't a miracle! It was taken." Tobio-chan turned round and pointed roughly at Shou-chan's retreating back. "He!... Stole!... A point!... From us!"
Oikawa was inclined to agree, as much as he hated to do so. Shou-chan, though it was probably luck of chance, managed to score a point. Though there was no chance of winning with the team he had, little Shou-chan was still trying his best to stay on the court.
"Good serve!" One of the nearby girls shouted. "Good luck, Shorty!" The serve was saved before it hit the ground and it flew back over the net as a free ball. But unluckily for Yukigaoka... The toss was messed up.
Yet Shou-chan ran for it. Ran for it like the hounds of hell were dogging his feet. Then, as fast as he could blink, Shou-chan was on the other side of the court, having jumped off his back leg, and slamming down that spike. His body was still tumbling through the air and landed with a crash of water bottles and towels.
"Shou-chan! Are you OK?!"
The Ref blew his whistle and held his hands up for an out of bounds.
The game was over.
Shou-chan was still standing where he was, seemingly out of it, as he stared in shock at the floor. Oikawa watched as Tobio-chan gritted his teeth and glared at the captain of Yukigaoka. The blue haired boy spin round, grabbed the net and roared in Shou-chan's face.
"You! What the heck have you been doing the last three years?!" Number 5 got enraged and attempted to lunge for Tobio-chan but 6 held him back.
"Oikawa." Tooru spun round and 'geeeh'd' at the sight of his coach.
"When did you get here?" He asked, pointing at the sitting form of Nobuteru.
"I was here from the start," the man dourly responded. "You two were the ones that came after me. It's your fault for not noticing me."
Oikawa laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head, looking down to the floor nervously. "Sorry." He murmured.
"It is no matter." Sensei waved him off, "It's good to get an eye of next year's competition as well. Kageyama Tobio refused our offer to come to Aoba Johsai, staying that he was applying for Shiratorizawa. But we got a few from Kitagawa Daiichi."
"Coach..."
"Oikawa." Nobuteru cut him off. "How much practice did the doctor say you could do after your knee flared up last month?"
Oikawa looked up confused. "Four days a week. Why?"
The head coach of the Aoba Johsai volleyball team looked at Oikawa with a hesitant look, as if he was stuck between two decisions. "That captain of Yukigaoka. He interested you, didn't he?"
Oikawa's eyes widened and he glanced at Iwaizumi, seeing the same look on his face. "...Coach?"
"You have Eight months, Oikawa. Get that captain good enough to be a starter on next year's team and convince him to come to Aoba Johsai. I trust you enough to handle this task. Potential such as that captain's will go to waste if this opportunity slips through our fingers. I shudder to think of what his peak could be, aimed against us. We still have our 3rd year setter so you can have a break for some of the matches."
Oikawa smirked and bowed towards his coach. "Thank you very much for this opportunity!" Then he ran off to the doors, a happy skip to his step.
"Was that wise?" Iwaizumi asked, his lips pursing in thought.
Nobuteru turned back around and faced Iwaizumi, his hands coming up to massage his temples. "I don't know." He admitted. "This could end with Yukigaoka's Captain joining us and reaching the peak of his potential...or it could result in a disaster. It's all up to Oikawa now."
"Then someday I'm gonna beat you! And I'm going to be the one who gets to stay on the court longer than anyone else!" Eh, Shou-chan?
"Only the winners get to stay on the court. Only the best." Tch, of course. Tobio-chan. "If you want to win, then get stronger! Get better!" Oikawa got up to the top of the steps and saw Tobio-chan stalking away, his feet smacking against the ground as his walk progressed into a run to try and catch up with the rest of his team.
Oikawa blinked and looked down to where Sho-chan stood, his hands clenched at his sides. He narrowed his eyes and came up with a plan to begin convincing the young captain to join his team.
"Yukigaoka's Captain!"
The orange haired boy whirled round and locked his honey brown eyes on Tooru, widening when he caught sight of the uniform he was wearing. Oikawa held back a smug smirk when the boy visibly freaked out at the sight of him.
"Eh? Who're you?!" Chibi-chan pointed to him rudely.
"Isn't it rude to ask for someone's name without introducing yourself?" Oikawa drawled, his arms crossing against his chest. Chibi-chan's eyes narrowed and a cute pout appeared on his lips.
"Hinata. My name is Hinata Shouyou."
Oikawa smirked this time and held out his hand to the Small spiker. "My name is Oikawa Tooru." Hinata took his hand wearily and shook it gently.
"Why are you here, Oikawa-san?" Tooru smirked again, freaking Hinata out.
"I'm here to invite you to the Aoba Johsai volleyball team."
So, what do you think? I was a little weary when I wrote this as I didn't know if it would be that accepted as it's my first Haikyuu fic, but here we go. Let me know what you think.
- Madara.