Disclaimer: Haikyuu is not my property. It belongs to Haruichi Furudate, Weekly Shōnen Jump and Shueisha.
Chapter 26 – The Iron Wall
After parting ways with Yui, I quickly made my way back to the area Hinata had told me the team was resting. I saw that they were currently stretching; to keep their muscle reflexes alert and avoid aches. As I made my way over to the boys, I waved.
"I'm back! Congratulations on winning your first match!" I said to them with a smile and most of them nodded and smiled in return.
"Thanks!" Suga-senpai said, grinning.
"So how did the girls' match go?" Daichi-senpai asked me, and I sighed sadly, shaking my head. This caused Suga-senpai and Daichi-senpai to frown.
"They didn't make it." I told them.
"That's a shame…" Daichi-senpai sighed.
"Do you think they'll go for it the next time?" Suga-senpai asked.
"I don't know. They're probably feeling pretty down after their loss. Their morale will be shot." Daichi-senpai replied.
"Unless Michimiya can do something." Suga-senpai agreed.
Hinata, having finished his stretches and spotting me, came bounding over, "Mogami-san! We won our first match!" he said to me excitedly.
I smiled and nodded, "You told me in your text. Congratulations." I said to him.
"Yeah, but we won!" Hinata reiterated.
"We get it already. Can you stop being so annoyingly hyper…? Save that insane stamina for the match, and save my ears while you're at it." Tsukishima-san snarked as he cleaned out his ear with his pinky.
Ignoring the blond, Hinata continued, "So since we won our first match, Kageyama said we get to play another match!" he said.
He'd already told me this too in his text messages, but he was clearly excited about it. Rightly so - This'd be the first time he'd advance past the first match, after all.
I grinned, "I'll bet that feels great. Keep doing your best, okay? I can watch the whole match this time." I said and he nodded.
"Watch me! I'll score lots of points! Kageyama!" Hinata then turned to the dark-haired Setter, "Send me a lot of tosses in the next match!" he said.
Kageyama-kun gave him a look, "I'll send you tosses only when I think you can actually score a point. Don't get all entitled." He said and Hinata whined.
"Look who's talking. Coming straight from the King himself." Tsukishima-san snorted.
"Ahh?!" Kageyama glared at the tall blond.
"Oh, that's right. Who are we playing next, anyway?" I asked, finally realizing I didn't know yet.
"Date Tech." The answer came from Asahi-senpai, and his voice seemed daunted. I turned to look up at him, feeling concerned. I remembered the confrontation earlier today, when that scary guy from Date Tech zeroed in on him.
"Are you gonna be okay, Asahi-senpai?" I asked him.
He tried to put on a brave smile, "Oh? Um, I'll be fine… I think." He trailed off. That earned him a particularly strong slap on the back from Suga-senpai.
"Hey, we'll have none of that negativity around here! We're gonna win this match too, and have our redemption for last year." He said, as Daichi-senpai stepped up next to him, nodding.
Nishinoya-senpai slid towards us too, "Yeah! This time, I won't let the ball hit the ground! You do your job too, Ace!" Nishinoya-senpai said confidently. Asahi-senpai still looked uncertain.
"Senpai! You've already managed to come this far, and came back to the club even after having your confidence squashed. I know you can do it. You just need to believe in yourself, and in the team too!" I said to him.
Asahi-senpai gazed at me for a moment, before sighing and smiling; "You're right. It's not just me out there." He agreed, looking bashfully to his fellow third years, then to Nishinoya-senpai and Tanaka-senpai. They all grinned back at him.
Daichi-senpai nodded, "Right! The match is in 15 minutes. Let's make sure we're ready to go!" he said, and everyone agreed, getting ready to head off.
I jumped when I felt a pat on my back, and turned to Suga-senpai, who was grinning down at me.
"You're pretty good at pep-talks, aren't you? Thank you for supporting us as always." He thanked me.
I blushed and nodded, "It's no problem! I did what anyone would have done." I said. He nodded, and went ahead, as Shimizu-senpai approached me.
"I'll help you put the banner up this time. Come on." Shimizu-senpai said and I nodded, following her up to the stands.
"Go, go, let's go! Let's go, Dateko!"
The one thing I hadn't been looking forward to for this match was definitely the opposing team's overzealous cheering squad. I frowned to myself discreetly, willing myself to block it out as Shimizu-senpai and I hung up our banner across the court from them.
Once we were done, Shimizu-senpai bid me farewell and I waved her off. Now it was just me and the banner.
I looked down on the court, watching as both teams entered. I noticed Hinata had been looking pumped and ready, up until he had a run-in of his own with Date Tech's Aone-san. He looked a lot more concerned after that, seeing up close the difference in height between him and the giant.
'Hang in there, Hinata-kun…' I thought to myself. Hopefully, with the size of that guy, he wouldn't be able to jump too high up…
Despite the intense atmosphere Date Tech's team and cheering squad gave off, Karasuno lined up at the start of the match relatively loose, after Nishinoya-senpai's actions and words broke the ice, so to speak.
"Thank you for the game!" both teams called out, bowing. They then ran to get into position, and the referee blew the whistle to begin the game.
Date Tech's Number 1 was serving first.
Daichi-senpai managed to receive it and send it back up for Kageyama-kun, who sent it straight to Hinata right off the bat, probably hoping to catch them off guard.
But Aone-san saw right through it, and with an agility I haven't expected, he came into position to block and jumped alongside that one with the straight brown hair…Futakuchi-san, I think his name was.
"Right on! Nice placement, Hinata!" Tanaka-senpai cheered, as Hinata managed to hit it off the edge of Aone-san's forearms, and it landed on the other side of the court.
Unperturbed, Aone-san merely turned away, but I couldn't help but smile. The team was off to a good start, scoring their first point.
It was Karasuno's turn to serve now, and Kageyama stepped up. He went into for a running jump serve, but accidently sent it straight for Date Tech's Libero, who sent it back up.
They attempted a spike in return, but Nishinoya-senpai also caught the ball and it was up in the air again. Tanaka-senpai bumped it up again, and Asahi-senpai called for a Back Attack.
He went for the kill, but unfortunately, Date Tech lived up to their reputation and blocked it, sending it back down on our side. We were now tied at 1 point each.
"Sorry! I'll get the next one, for sure!" Nishinoya-senpai said.
"Yeah. I'll make the next one count, too." Asahi-senpai agreed.
"Aww, come on, couldn't you act at least a bit more disheartened~?" Futakuchi-san whined, and their Number 2 smacked him on the head, telling him to stop talking like a thug.
In the next play, Date Tech managed to do the same again, but to my relief, they ended up getting a Foul for a Net Touch, and the point was Karasuno's.
I let out a huge sigh, thankful.
Following that, we managed to score another point, putting us two points in the lead, but that quickly changed, when Aone-san's Read Block scored another point for Date Tech.
Hinata seemed frustrated, but Kageyama-kun was cool and focused as always. They looked like they were relaying a plan of attack to each other, and Hinata seemed excited about it.
They're gonna do that then…!
Hinata, without looking, ran as fast as he could to an open part of the net, and jumped as high as he could, swinging as hard as he could, and Kageyama-kun brought the ball to him.
Date Tech was visibly stunned, as Karasuno scored another point.
I smiled and cheered, "Nice Kill, Hinata-kun! Kageyama-kun! Get another!" I called out to them and the two of them turned to look at me and grin. Hinata send me two thumbs up, flushing happily for their successful Quick.
Tanaka-senpai and Nishinoya-senpai then went in to ruffle Hinata's hair and compliment him, and I noticed Aoba Johsai passing by the court as they were in my field of vision. They must be setting up for their next match now.
I noticed Kunimi-san catching sight of me, and grabbing Kindaichi-san's jacket to get his attention and point me out.
As Kindaichi-san spotted me, I smiled and waved over to him a little bashfully, and his face became pink and he turned away. Kunimi-san just laughed at him.
I sighed and shook my head, turning my attention back to Karasuno's match.
It looked like Tsukishima-san, who had switched in for Nishinoya-senpai, had done something to get on Kageyama-kun's nerves and therefore Daichi-senpai's as well, and Tanaka-senpai was trying to break it up.
Hinata was up to serve next, but he unfortunately hit the net. Looks like he still needs to practice his serves, which is an endeavor easily said than done when it comes to the spike addict himself…
Next, Aone-san served, and Nishinoya-senpai received it cleanly, sending it over Kageyama-kun's way.
He tossed to Tsukishima-san, who scored a point, luckily. It seemed like Date Tech were anticipating another Quick.
Date Tech's Number 1 managed to score another point next though, getting it past Daichi-senpai and taking away the point difference we'd just made.
It continued that way for a while, each team scoring points in tandem, keeping the point difference the same no matter what.
The match was quickly looking to become an intense, tight one.
Now, Hinata was back to the front of the rotation, which meant there was a chance for another Quick attack, should Kageyama-kun decide to.
Futakuchi-san scored another point, getting it passed our blockers, and narrowing the point gap. And now, Aone-san was at the front of the rotation again.
Meaning Hinata would face off against that giant again.
I tightened my hold on the metal bar in front of me, biting my lip. I hoped that Hinata could get his spike through again.
Date Tech's serve was received by Nishinoya-senpai, but was sent further back; Kageyama-kun adapted, and tossed from further back, and Hinata still managed to hit it. Once again, Date Tech had been caught off guard.
Maybe they thought last time had been a fluke. 'Foolish thinking,' I thought to myself, smirking a little as I watched Date Tech call for a Time Out.
As happy as I was for Hinata, to score another point against Date Tech, now that they've done their Freak Quick twice, it won't be viewed as a fluke. They'll be expecting it now, and were probably going to start adapting to it just like Nekoma had. Kageyama-kun probably would realise that too.
They're going to have to pull out that Quick wisely now, to not let the opponent get too used to it.
"Ahh, hurry! Hurry! Moeka-chan~!" I suddenly heard Yui-senpai's voice and turned to see her and the rest of the girls' running over to join me in the stands.
I smiled and greeted them in return, as Yui-senpai came up next to me, and looked down on the court.
"Great! The boys are still playing!" she said, glad.
"Oh yeah, you're the girl who was cheering for us! Moeka-chan, was it? Do you go to our school? I think I've seen you around…!" said a taller girl with her light-brown hair tied into a ponytail; "I'm Aihara Mao, third year. You can just call me Mao." She introduced. I nodded in response to her questions.
"And I'm Aoki Manami, 3rd year! Manami is fine!" said another girl, the same height as Yui-senpai, with really short hair.
"And I'm Watabe, Nozomi. 2nd year." A girl with pig-tails like mine said with a small smile and a nod.
The twin girls with short dark bobs came forward next, "I'm Sudou Rinko! This is my little sister, Eiko! We're both in 2nd year." she said with a cheerful smile.
"Excuse you! You're only 15 minutes older!" laughed her sister Eiko, hiding her laugh behind her hand. Rinko just rolled her eyes as if to say that 15 minutes is still 15 minutes. Which was true, but still a cute and silly argument.
The smaller, shyer girl, who had been singled out mercilessly for her receives during their match introduced herself next, "I'm Sasaki Chizuru, a 1st year like you. Um, thanks for cheering for us." She thanked me.
I shook my head, smiling, "It's no problem. Are you feeling better?" I asked her.
She blushed, subconsciously rubbing at the corner of her eyes, "I'm all cried out," she laughed nervously, then turned to the match, "But I can't believe it. It looks like they're beating Date Tech…!" she said with a hopeful smile.
I nodded and turned back to the match, "Yeah, but it's been a tough match so far. They're really had to fight for their points. Date Tech definitely lives up to their nickname, The Iron Wall…! But we've had some secret weapons of our own, too." I told the girls.
"Ooh, like what? You're their manager right?" asked Manami-senpai.
"Assistant manager," I corrected, gesturing down to Shimizu-senpai sitting by sensei and Ukai-san, "As for their secret weapons… keep an eye on Number 10. He's my friend from Middle School, Hinata-kun, and Date Tech haven't been able to keep up with his and Kageyama-kun's Quicks so far." I told them.
"Eh, what's so special about a Quick…?" Mao-senpai asked.
I grinned mischievously, "You'll see! Just keep an eye on him." I insisted. The girls just looked at each other and shrugged, turning their attention to Hinata just in time.
"BRING IT OOOON…!" Hinata called out for the toss, and before Date Tech could catch it, the ball hit the court again, scoring another point.
"Wh-What was that…?" Yui-senpai gasped, shocked.
"A fast attack?" Manami-senpai added, just as surprised.
"I told you! He's great, isn't he?" I said with a laugh, happy.
Mao-senpai sent a look my way, "You said he's your middle-school friend… but is that all he is?" she asked me coyly. I blushed.
"W-What do you mean by that, Mao-senpai…?" I asked her, feeling shy. She just smiled and shook her head, as a few of the girls giggled.
"Don't worry. We think it's pretty cute!" Yui-senpai smiled and patted my back.
"Yeah, Yui-chan is the same when it comes to Sawamura after all. Ooh, Sawamura said this...! Oh, did you hear what Sawamura did during Phys. Ed…? Sawamura's great, isn't he…?" Manami-senpai teased Yui-senpai, who blushed and yelled at them to shut up already.
I smiled a little, as Yui-senpai huffed and said they should get back to watching the match. Yui-senpai was so cute… Did she really like Daichi-senpai…?
And did I really look like that when I talked about Hinata…?
Feeling my face get hot, I looked back down at the game. Hinata was going in for another Quick, and Date Tech were marking him.
He through them off by going for a regular Quick, timing his jump to after they'd reached their maximum jumping height, and scored another point.
As the girls chattered around me about the match, I thought to myself.
People keep thinking that Hinata and I are dating… Was I really that obvious? Hinata had never said anything, so I'd thought…
I thought I did a good job of hiding how I felt.
Guess not, after all.
I gulped, swallowing and trying to will the heat in my cheeks away as I continued observing the match in silence.
Hinata went in for a Quick again, trying to throw off the blockers by changing his destination abruptly. But this time, Aone-san predicted it and chased after Hinata, jumping diagonally and successfully blocking.
After he landed, he let out a loud roar and I flinched.
Karasuno kept going, undeterred, and even as Hinata's next spike was blocked, Nishinoya-senpai got it back up.
They went in for another spike and Aone-san fell for Hinata's decoy, yelling out his jersey number as he jumped for a block. Only to realise the ball was going for Asahi behind Hinata a moment too late.
We scored another point…!
"Asahi-senpai, Nice!" I called out happily, as the girls around me and everyone else started cheering for Asahi-senpai's nice spike!
The match continued on with a good pace from then on, and before we knew it, Karasuno was nearly at Set Point, the score sitting at 23 – 19. We couldn't relax yet though.
This is when it really started counting. One wrong move and Date Tech could overtake us!
It was Tsukishima-san's serve. The play went on until Hinata got a One Touch after blocking Date Tech's spike, giving us a Chance Ball.
The ball was bumped back up and sent to Kageyama-kun, who tossed the ball for Hinata. Hinata managed to bounce the ball off the side of Futakuchi-san's forearms, scoring another point. Set Point.
"T-This is amazing… Set Point for us against the famous Date Tech…?" Yui-senpai murmured, amazed. I only nodded.
Yeah. The match was going well, despite the overwhelming reputation of Date Tech, and we'd even managed to get to Set Point.
Just because we were at Set Point though, didn't mean that we were in the clear. They could turn it around, right now, and get a Deuce, then win the Set out of nowhere for all we knew.
And there was still a second Set that we had to win if we wanted to come out of this match victorious.
Date Tech tried for another spike, but it was received expertly by Daichi-senpai and sent back up in the air.
As the ball came down over Kageyama-kun, he got into position, and Hinata called out for another toss enthusiastically.
Aone-san once again focused in on Hinata's jump, but the ball was sent instead to Asahi-senpai for a Back Attack.
Asahi-senpai made the Set-winning point as the ball bounced off the Libero's shaky receive. I gasped happily, and cupped my hands by my mouth.
"Asahi-senpai, you did it!" I cried out to him, happy for him.
He glanced up to me, panting lightly, and smiled a little shyly, rubbing the back of his head and nodding.
He then went to join the others for the between-set team huddle.
I smiled happily.
I hope they can keep this up. How incredible would it be if they won two sets in a row against the all mighty Iron Wall?!
Onigiriri: Here's another chapter for you~ This seemed like a good cut-off point for the chapter.
And I managed to squeeze in another HinaMi moment, yay! :D And I've decided on the love rival now, btw! He had a brief appearance in this chapter, see if you can spot him, heheh!
It was too cute to resist and I was getting a tonne of plot bunnies, ok? xD
Next time, we'll be continuing the Date Tech vs Karasuno match~!