Disclaimer: Haikyuu does not belong to me. It is property of Haruichi Furudate, Weekly Shonen Jump and Shueisha.


Chapter 55: The Final Obstacle

"Eh? Hinata-kun and Moeka-san are holding hands!?" Hitoka-san squeaked as she noticed the two of us coming over to join them outside of Sendai Gymnasium, turning bright pink.

At being spotted, we both turned a little pink ourselves.

"THEY ARE!?" Tanaka-senpai and Noya-senpai yelled; whether they were shocked or excited, you couldn't tell.

"Wow, well then... Congrats!" Daichi-senpai huffed out, and smiled to us as he folded his arms, looking pleased for us.

"Yeah. Congratulations," Asahi-senpai bashfully congratulated, rubbing the back of his head.

"Took you guys long enough!" Suga-senpai said with a good-natured smile.

"You sly dog!" Tanaka-senpai wrapped an arm around Shoyo-kun's shoulder and leaned bodily on him, scrubbing his head. Shoyo-kun squawked at the sudden assault.

Noya-senpai wasn't far behind Tanaka-senpai and started jabbing Shoyo-kun in the ribs teasingly, "Getting yourself a girlfriend before you senpai do, huh? That should be against club rules!" Noya-senpai said and Tanaka-senpai nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

"E-Eh?! It is!?" Shoyo-kun yelped, face red.

"Quit teasing him you guys," Ennoshita-senpai stepped in to chide his fellow second years, grabbing them by their collars and dragging them off of Shoyo-kun.

"Yeah, you two were the ones who encouraged Hinata to confess in the first place, so you don't have the right to be petty like that. Just congratulate them properly." Narita-senpai added and Kinoshita-senpai nodded in agreement.

Wait, what? That was a surprise to hear. Although it did explain what happened during warm-ups.

I heard someone clear their throat, and looked over to Tsukishima-san and Yamaguchi-kun.

Yamaguchi-kun nodded with an encouraging smile, "Congrats, Mogami-san." He saod softly, while Tsukishima-san looked away and snorts.

"At least now you're not gonna be dancing around each other like middle-schoolers anymore." He said nonchalantly with a shrug.

"T-Tsukki...!" Yamaguchi-kun hisses, trying to hush him.

I just smiled, "Thank you for your concern and support. Shoyo-kun and I will do our best together." I told the two of them.

"E-eh? Uh, yeah, do your best," Yamaguchi-kun shyly rubbed the back of his head, unsure of what else to say to that.

"Everybody! Please hurry up! We need to get back to the school so its not too dark out for you to go home!" Takeda-sensei called, ushering everyone to the rented minibus.

"Yes, sensei!" Everyone calls out in different levels of energy and volume, and we all trekked toward the bus together.


On the bus-ride back, all of the boys were understandably exhausted, and had taken to napping in their seats.

I glanced down to where Shoyo-kun rested his head against my shoulder, snoring lightly, and drooling a little, but I didn't mind. I was too happy to care about something I could just wash out easily.

Today couldn't have gone any more perfectly!

It still feels like a dream.

Everyone worked so hard today and it paid off. Karasuno defeated Aoba Johsai, one of the top-four teams in the prefecture and had advanced to the finals of the qualifiers.

The next obstacle to Nationals would be a daunting one.

Shiratorizawa Academy. The team that held Ushijima-san as their Ace; a guy so good he can represent the whole country proudly as one of their best players.

It wouldn't be easy, but somehow I still had every faith in Shoyo-kun and the others. Maybe that's part of what love is. An unwavering faith despite the odds.

Yeah. It wasn't just Shoyo-kun but he did have a special spot in my heart.

I loved all of these guys, truly and I had a feeling that I was confident in that they'd face every challenge ahead with all that they had and they'd reach soaring heights they never though surmountable before.

And I'd watch them for as long as I was allowed to, definitely.

And with that, I drifted off into a light sleep myself...


"Eeew! Hinata, you're drooling all over Mogami-chan! That's gross bro!" I was jolted awake by Tanaka-senpai yelling nearly in my ear and the feeling of Shoyo-kun clumsily clambering off me, yelling apologies.

I blushed and waved my hands to placate everyone, "I-It's really okay! I have a handkerchief, and it can just go into the wash!" I reassured him, getting up and digging out my handkerchief; dabbing it up lightly, I smiled to him, "See?" I said.

He didn't need to know that I'd enjoyed having him lean on me, regardless of the drool.

"Hn? Daichi, were you crying?" I heard Suga-senpai ask as we all ambled off the mini-bus, back at Karasuno High-School again.

"No, I wasn't!?" Daichi-senpai gasped, shocked at the question.

"Heh, yeah, there are times when you wake up and you realize you were crying. I did it when I was younger and I'd dreamed about our pet dog that had died..." Asahi-senpai said conversationally with a smile.

"It was a pet bird for me," Kiyoko-senpai added her piece.

"I SAID I WASN'T CRYING!" Daichi-senpai said exasperatedly, scrambling after his fellow third years.

I smiled a little, and just followed everyone inside the gym. After their little nap it seemed like their energy had been somewhat restored and they were jumping about excitedly again.

"Guys, can I have your attention for a little bit?" Daichi-senpai asked for everyone's attention and we all turned to him. Sucking in a deep breath in preparation, he continued; "Our goal... is to win the Spring Tournament!" he said dramatically.

After a moment of silence as everyone took what senpai had said in, Kageyama-kun spoke up, "Well duh. What else would it be?" he asked with a drawl.

"Hey, why do you always have to be like that!?" Tanaka-senpai told Kageyama-kun off and he just blinked at the second-year.

"Yeah, well... Before, all I said was that we're going to nationals." Daichi-senpai clarified.

Noya-senpai nodded, "Course we wanna win it." He said with a grin.

"That's been the goal from the start." Asahi-senpai agreed.

"Personally, I don't care either way," Tsukishima-san said and I rolled my eyes at him. Tsukishima-san will be Tsukishima-san. I get the feeling he's not being totally honest there though... going by what I've seen from him lately, at least.

"Well, if we're going, we might as well win it!" Kinoshita-senpai blurted out of nowhere, surprising Narita-senpai.

"Hey, we don't know if we're going yet...!" he gasped.

"Well, it looks like there's no need to worry about you guys' motivation. So, what say we start talking about who we're up against next?" Ukai-san said with a grin, walking towards us with his hands on his waist.

After a moment, he continued when he knew we were all paying attention; "If Aoba Johsai are the most complete team in our whole prefecture... then I would say that Shiratorizawa Academy are... the most incomplete team in the prefecture." He said and I blinked, surprised at that remark.

I never saw a comment like that coming. But what Ukai-san proceeded to tell us about what he knew of Shiratorizawa proved enlightening, to say the least.


By the time we were all done and packed up for the night, and heading off home, the sky was already getting pretty dark.

"Moeka-chan...!" Shoyo-kun called, pulling his bike over to join me at my side. As soon as he joined me, he became a little shy, looking down with pink cheeks and peeking up at me several times before looking back down just as quickly.

It was honestly too cute to be legal.

"W-What're you being so shy for... you can look at me, you know," I said softly, blushing a little.

"I-I know, it's just... I-I didn't ever think you'd actually say yes, you know...? I dunno what to do," he said nervously, before looking to me hesitantly, "You... look nice in this light," he murmured and I only just caught it before I turned cherry red.

"S-Shoyo-kun...!" I gasped, pulling the scarf around my neck up to cover most of my red face. So bold...!

"S-Sorry!" he gasped.

"D-Don't apologise, that's not what I meant...! It's just a little embarrassing, b-but I'm happy...!" I shook my head rapidly, but trying to show I was sincere, "I'm very happy..." I repeated softly, and truly I was.

I felt a buzz in my pocket from my phone, as Tsukishima-san tsked behind me, "Yuck, could you two tone it down a little?" he sighed, rolling his eyes.

"What did you say, Tsukishima!?" Shoyo-kun turned to yell at Tsukishima-san, although his blushing face didn't help his attempt at intimidation.

"What, you jealous of them, bro? I totally understand," Noya-senpai asked him, and nodded as if he truly did understand.

Tsukishima-san rolled his eyes, "Absolutely not," he replied.

"No need to hide it. Join us in the lonely hearts club already!" Tanaka-senpai threw an arm around his shoulder.

"Let go." Tsukishima-san said disgruntledly but it did nothing to ward his senpai away.

I chuckled quietly, and I pulled out my phone to check my messages. Ah. From Kindaichi-san again.

'are you back in Torono yet? Can we meet for a few minutes? –K.'

I hummed, looking around, and realised we were at the turn for my bus stop, "Shoyo-kun," I called him and he looked to me, before looking around and realising where we were.

"Oh. Your bus stop," he realised, and I nodded. He sounded disappointed.

"I'm thinking for asking for a new bike for Christmas this year from my parents," I mentioned to him gently, and he brightened up looking excited.

"Next year we can ride to school together then...!" he enthused.

Yikes. I'm not really looking forward to that long daily bike ride...but it'll be good for me...!

I nodded with a smile; "I'll see you later? And Shoyo-kun I'll text you to let you know when I'm home," I compromised with him. He nodded.

"I'll be waiting for it...Moeka-chan!" he said, causing my poor heart to do some summersaults again.

I blushed and ducked my head in a bow, unable to keep the smile from my face, "See you tomorrow everyone!" I said, and went on my way to the bus stop, getting out my phone again.

Telling Kindaichi-san where to meet me, and letting him know I didn't have a lot of time, I made my way to my bus stop.


About fifteen minutes later, standing a little ways off from my bus-stop, I saw Kindaichi-san round the corner and walk over towards me with a half-wave.

"You're looking pretty happy," he said as soon as he joined me at my side and I jumped in surprise, blushing horribly; he quirked a smile, "It's written all over your face. Is it because Karasuno won today?" he asked evenly, though I could sense the frustration at that fact in his voice.

Bashfully, I nodded and spoke up, "Actually, um that's just part of the reason," I said, playing with my fingers nervously, "Um... after the match me and Shoyo-kun talked and... I-I told him how I felt. And he feels the same, so I think we're going to start dating," I tried to say it as gently as possible, hoping not to hurt him.

Although, it turned out that it was inevitable.

"Ouch... So I really never stood a chance against that guy at all, huh..." Kindaichi-san winced and smiled bitterly to himself.

"Kindaichi-san...!" I gasped, instantly worried.

'It's okay, it's okay. I get it. You can't blame a guy for hoping for the best though." Kindaichi-san waved his hand, urging me to calm down.

There was an awkward moment of silence, and as I was trying to speak up and say something comforting, Kindaichi beat me to it.

'Today was the last chance for my senpai – you know that already, right? It's similar for the third years of Karasuno, but not quite.

Ever since middle school, Oikawa-senpai and the others have been working themselves to the bone to be able to take on Shiratorizawa and defeat them, and get to nationals. Oikawa-senpai was especially determined to beat their Ace but even when Akira and I tried our hardest in the spring tournaments, we couldn't do anything to stop them. That guy, Ushijima... he's not going to be an easy guy to beat," he told me, furrowing his brows and gritting his teeth.

I bit my lip and nodded, "We're well aware of that too," I replied nervously.

"Karasuno better give it everything they've got and more! Not just for themselves, but for my senpai who can't do it anymore. Karasuno has to beat Shiratorizawa for all of us who couldn't, too!" Kindaichi-san said with a determined expression.

I looked at him in surprise.

"It's asking a lot," Kindaichi-san hangs his head, "But if a team we've beaten before can take those guys down, perhaps that'll help ease their...!'

I decided to cut him off by putting a hand on his shoulder and he looks to me.

"I can give you my word that Karasuno is definitely taking it seriously. I'll tell them to fight extra hard for Oikawa-san and the others sake as well. It's the least we can do, and we were going to do so anyway." I said, and flushed , pulling my hand away; "That may not sound like much coming from someone who's just their assistant manager though. Sorry."

Kindaichi relaxed, letting the tenseness slip away from his body somewhat, and shook his head, "No, that means a lot. It makes me feel a bit better if nothing else." He sighs, rubbing the back of his head in mild frustration.

With a wry smile, he turned to leave, "I should leave you be. Wouldn't want number 10 to catch me with you," he said.

"W-Wait...!" I gasped and he paused in his steps, "We... W-we can still be friends, right? I'm sure Shoyo-kun will be fine with that, since I'm friends with all the guys on his team too!" I said.

"But I'm the guy who likes you just as much as he does. Even he'll see that." Kindaichi-san shook his head, "Just... I need some time. Please... Get home safe. I'm going now," He said, and in his voice I could tell he was down.

But I couldn't do anything but watch him walk away, and hope that with time, perhaps a friendship could be rekindled between the two of us.

Not long after that, my bus ride home pulled up and I boarded without a word, my head full of thoughts.


The next day came before I knew it, and it was still pretty early on that the rental bus arrived with Ukai-san, and we all boarded and made our way to Sendai City Gym.

Today was the make-or-break game.

Either we'd beat Shiratorizawa and advance to Nationals, or we'd fall, and everything would be over.

I glanced over at my senpai from the third year;

Daichi-senpai held a strong, determined expression, covering up his nerves.

Suga-senpai, at his side, also looked prepared to give it his all today.

Asahi-senpai seemed markedly nervous, but was trying to swallow his nerves and steel himself for the task ahead.

Tanaka-senpai and Noya-senpai looked a mix of nerves and stubborn determination. They didn't want to let down their senpai either, and neither did Ennoshita-senpai, Narita-senpai and Kinoshita-senpai.

Tsukishima-san's expression betrayed no nerves or emotions whatsoever, behind what looked to be a new pair of sports glasses.

Yamaguchi-kun looked calm at a first glance, but once I looked closer, I could see him trembling ever-so-lightly. He was doing his best to keep it under wraps.

Kageyama-kun, like Tsukishima-san, showed no signs of being nervous; in fact, he was the very picture of confidence. Well, he always believed in himself, anyway. It was good to know our Setter was as cool-headed as always.

And Shoyo-kun...

I turned my eyes towards Shoyo-kun with a light blush, hoping it was just that; light.

Shoyo-kun was practically glowing with excitement. There was a sparkle in his eyes that I'd always loved ever since I met him two years ago; shining with excitement, life and enthusiasm.

I smiled to myself, turning to look at Sendai City Gym before us.

I didn't have anything to worry about. Our boys had this in the bag.

"Ah! Sawamura!" I heard a familiar voice call out to our group and I turned to see who it was. Ah! It was Michimiya-senpai, and Aihara-senpai and Sasaki-san, from the girls' Volleyball team.

Sasaki smiled and waved at me as the three of them approached us in casual clothes. It was a Sunday after all. School was out, but Karasuno still had a game to play.

"Hi, Mogami-san! We all came to cheer the boys on too," she said, coming right over to my side.

I smiled happily, "Thank you!" I said, and I heard Noya-senpai and Tanaka-senpai echo it behind me, seeming pleased themselves that some girls came to cheer them on.

Michimiya-senpai nodded enthusiastically, beaming excitedly at Daichi-senpai, "It's so amazing that you made it to the finals! Like really! So amazing! I-It's just amazing!" she gushed at him.

"What's amazing right now is your vocabulary..." Aihara-senpai teased her friend good-naturedly.

I blinked, and then came to a realisation, hitting my fist to my palm to accentuate it half-conciously. Of course! How did I not see it before, that Michimiya-senpai likes Daichi-senpai!?

"Ah, wait, your face! What happened to your face!?" Michimiya-senpai gasped in shock.

Daichi-senpai patted his slightly swollen cheek consciously, "Ah, this is nothing much. I'm fine. Had a little accident yesterday, is all. It looks worse than it actually is." He reassured senpai.

I saw Suga-senpai leading the others away out of the corner of my eye, and smiled; I should also give senpai her moment.

I leant towards Sasaki-san to whisper, "I'm heading inside. See you later in the stands?" I asked her quietly.

She smiled and nodded; she and Aihara-senpai quietly waved me off and I left as Michimiya-senpai nervously held out a charm from a shrine to Daichi-senpai.

Senpai's so cute! I hope it goes well for her with Daichi-senpai...!


I ran a little to catch up to the others inside, and rejoined them just in time to hear Shoyo-kun shout; "Izumin! Kouji!"

I widened my eyes in shock; What?!

I pushed by the others, apologizing as I did, and made my way to the front of the group to be with Shoyo-kun and...

"Yukitaka-kun! Sekimukai-kun! It's been so long!" I cried happily, running over to join them. My friends from middle-school widened their eyes at seeing me, cheeks turning red.

Yukitaka-kun smiled, "Ah, Mogami-san! It has been a long time!" he greeted.

"Even though we live in the same neighbourhood – long time no see, stranger!" Sekimukai-kun joked, smiling.

I flushed, "S-Sorry! It's been so hectic since I started going to Karasuno and all," I apologised sheepishly.

"Hey, who're these guys?" Tanaka-senpai asked, confused.

Shoyo-kun spoke up, "Oh! They're from my—Well, okay, they weren't on my volleyball team... But they're friends who helped me out with the tournament in middle-school along with Moeka-chan and Ayasato-san!" he explained.

"I was in the basketball club..." Yukitaka-kun offered.

"It was Soccer for me." Sekimukai-kun added, the blinked, "Wait—'Moeka-chan?" he asked Shoyo-kun, looking surprised.

Both Shoyo-kun and I flushed at the attention.

Sekimukai-kun then widened his eyes in realisation, "Wait, don't tell me!?" he gaped.

I gulped, and smiled a little shyly, "Yes, Shoyo-kun and I are... together. I-It's only just recently though!" I admitted.

Yukitaka-kun looked at the two of us amazed, before grinning again and turning to Sekimukai-kun and holding out a hand expectantly. Sekimukai-kun just grumbled and pulled out a 500 yen coin, pressing it into Yukitaka-kun's palm with little fanfare.

What?

Blushing, Sekimukai-kun averted his eyes from us, "Izumin said next time we saw you two together you'd be a couple," he begrudgingly admitted.

They were betting on it!?

"E-Eh?! Kouji-kun!" Yukitaka-kun redirected his friend's attention to Kageyama-kun. Ah.

"Wh-!? Him! What's he doing here!?" Sekimukai-kun yelped, truly shocked to see Kageyama-kun there. The Setter in question just blinked in surprise.

Shaking off his embarrassment, Shoyo-kun spoke up, "Ah! That's what I said on the first day, too," he revealed to his friends, "But you see, he's got his own tragic back-story and all...!" he began, but Kageyama-kun cut him off.

"Hey, quit messing around back there and let's get moving! We don't have long before the match, to warm up!" he said, striding past us and heading towards the court. The rest of the boys followed suit.

"Well, I should get going!" Shoyo-kun nodded to Sekimukai-kun and Yukitaka-kun.

"Yeah, good luck!" Sekimukai-kun nodded to Shoyo-kun, and Shoyo-kun ran off to catch up to the others. Once he was out of earshot, Sekimukai-kun spoke up; "Man, when he texted he never mentioned that guy... and now we learn that you two started dating and never told us? We're hurt, right Izumin?" he said, a teasing tone in his voice.

Yukitaka-kun nodded in agreement.

I blushed, "Sorry about that. It slipped my mind because I was so excited," I replied.

"Well, what's done is done, I suppose." Sekimukai-kun sighed out, and Yukitaka-kun shrugged with a lopsided grin.

"Ehehe... So, do you want to head up to the stands with me? I take it you're here to cheer for Karasuno," I said with a nervous smile, though I didn't need to even ask, I suppose.

"Sure!" Yukitaka-kun and Sekimukai-kun nodded in agreement.


Pretty soon, we joined my senpai from the girls' team, Shimada-san and Takinoue-san, and a squad of cheerers that the latter two must have rounded up for the big day.

It was pretty exciting to see, though something else was making it hard to get really excited about it.

That something was Shiratorizawa Academy's cheering squad that totally outclassed us; they came along with the school's cheer club and brass band club, and they were blaring their school anthem with unabashed pride and enthusiasm.

Takinoue-san said something, I think, but it was too difficult to hear over the cacophony.

Shimada-san cut him off, regardless, his words encouraging; "Get it together, guys! We can't be the first ones to crumble. Besides, check them out. They're not fazed at all.

I blinked, and looked down on our boys uncertainly. Is he so sure about that...? It seemed like the only ones who weren't bothered by this oppressive atmosphere were Kageyama-kun, Daichi-senpai and Suga-senpai...

"That's normal for Karasuno...?" Yukitaka-kun asked, as uncertain as I felt.

"I wish it wasn't sometimes," I sighed, patting a trembling Hitoka-chan's back; I sighed and smiled; "But even though they're like this, you can count on them to fight with everything they've got. So we've got to cheer for them with everything we've got, no matter how daunting the opposition seems." I added softly.

Shimada-san nodded in agreement with me.

"I told you I'm not a stalker, geez!" I heard a strange yelp nearing us, followed by Saeko-san's voice.

"Guys, look who I caught!" she said, dragging along a tall guy with a suspicious get-up of a cap, sunglasses and a facemask on; "He was sneaking around in the shadows all suspicious-like. When I saw him he tied to run, so I nabbed him! I bet he's some sorta Shiratorizawa Spy!" she said loudly.

"What?! Whoa, whoa...! I'm with Karasuno! Look," he began as he took off his sunglasses and pulled down his facemask, revealing golden eyes, "I'm Kei's—I mean Tsukishima's older brother...!" he said in frantic whisper.

I gasped in surprise.

"YOU'RE TSUKISHIMA'S BROTHER?!" Shimada-san exclaimed loudly.

Tsukishima-san's older brother hushed them frantically, whispering, "Shh! He told me he didn't want me to come!"

I chuckled a little, glancing down at the court. Looked like Tsukishima-san had already spotted his brother, and didn't look happy at all.

I stepped towards the older blond, "It's nice to meet you. My name is Mogami Moeka, I'm in your brother's class at school." I told him, bowing in greeting.

He relaxed his shoulders a little, and smiled, "Ah, yeah, nice to meet you too. I'm Akiteru." He replied.

All of a sudden, the roaring cheers raised in volume significantly, and we all looked down to see what was going on.

Shiratorizawa Academy's team had arrived on the court, and at the front, was their Ace – Ushijima Wakatoshi, one of the best players in the prefecture.

I swallowed nervously. This was it. The final obstacle.


Onigiriri: Hi, everyone! I'm so so sorry for the unplanned hiatus! -.-'''' I really didn't mean for this to take nearly 2 months to write. I put a lot on my plate this year with volunteer work, hospital appointments and starting a dance fit class, etc. I've been super tired!

I still am tired, but I really wanted to finally get this chapter out.

I hope you're all still here and enjoying this fanfic! Let me know what you thought of this chapter! This is the final arc of the story - we're almost finished!