Hello everyone! Sorry for the long wait and Happy New Year! As always, I'm busy with work and classes.
Last chapter, everyone found out about Mayu's sexuality and the rest of the team don't know where she has been since then. Besides, Itachiyama girls' volleyball team is coming to the camp to play against them and Nekoma. As for what will happen in this chapter, I think the title already gives some clues, so I hope you enjoy it.

hannymae: I've been a mess during these last Haikyuu chapters. I'm so excited to see how much they've grown as players and what team is winning (I'm betting for Black Jackals! haha)

Guest: You'll have to keep reading to know if the girls are going to be mixed up with the boys in Nationals. The Nationals arc is around the corner and I've already started to do some research. It's going to be hard to write the matches, but I'll try to be as clear as possible.

Rae: thank you so much for your comment! I always try to do my best!

Guest: I loved your review, you're always so encouranging. You're right, Noa's and Hinata's compare and contrast as main protagonists and the funny thing is that Noa played at first beach volley, that's why her psysichal conditions when playing volleyball are very good, and now we know that Hinata has spent two years playing beach volleyball in Brazil to improve his physical condition and technique. It was a coincidence, but a nice and convinient coincidence to say the least.
Regarding Mayu, the team needs to talk about how they feel. Things mught change between them, but they are all on the same boat.

fiqacomel: Awww thank you! I'm so glad you are enjoying this story so far.

Enjoy the reading!

I do not own Haikyuu or its characters

CHAPTER FOURTY
Acceptance

Noa had been quiet all morning. After what happened the day before, Mayu didn't show up in their bedroom, so Noa was even more worried. She closed the door of the locker with a dry sound and possibly louder than she intended. Her teammates, who were chatting away about trivialities, immediately went silent.

"How can you be so calm?" Noa clenched her fists, unable to look them in the face. "How can you talk nonsense when Mayu-san has been hurt so badly?"

"We are trying to normalize the situation," Ayako said.

"There's nothing normal about this. What if she doesn't come back to the team?"

"Honestly, I don't know if I want her back," Yoshino confessed. "I wouldn't feel comfortable"

"You have to be kidding"

"You'd think the same if you saw it as if you were the target. It's disgusting"

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Noa turned around to face her senpai. "Thinking that way is what makes you disgusting. Why does it bother you anyway? You don't want to associate with her anymore because she like likes girls? Isn't that unreasonable?"

"What is unreasonable is that you are trying to impose your beliefs on us. How can I be calm with her around? How can I know that when I change clothes, for example, she doesn't look at me differently than you would?"

"She is your friend!"

"She stopped being my friend when she hid that kind of information!"

"Girls, please," Yui spoke, seeing that the situation seemed to get out of hand.

"She hid it precisely because she was afraid you would react like that. She's not hurting anyone. You can't ask her to stop liking girls so you can feel more comfortable. It doesn't work that way!"

"Mayu-san is a stranger to me now. I can't understand her"

"Of course! How could you when you don't want to!? What you're doing is not fair!

"I can't become the same as you! Noa-san, you have to understand that not everyone is like you. There are people who think differently. I need time to accept what is happening and it would be better if Mayu-san is out of the team for the time being. If she were to return to the team, I'd consider leaving it"

"What?!" the twins exclaimed at the same time.

"Yoshino, I know you are confused and hurt, we all are, but please think about what you are saying," Noriko took her by the arm, but Yoshino stepped aside.

"Don't pretend everything's okay when you're all thinking the same"

The coach opened the door to enter the locker room and Yoshino burst out. As she walked past her, Hatsue looked at the third-year with a raised eyebrow and then fixed her gaze on the rest of the team.

"What the hell is going on now?"

Noa walked to the door to get out too, but before she did, she stopped briefly next to the coach to say one last thing.

"If Mayu-san leaves the team it will be only your fault, because you didn't know how to manage the team nor your players," she hissed.

Hatsue sighed with resignation and put her hand on her hips. "Does anyone else want to hold anything against me?" No one answered. "Good, because today we have a match against Itachiyama and I don't want my players to use their strength on throwing shit at each other instead of putting their efforts into beating the opponent"

Hatsue was clear that this was a test the girls had to go through, but if the team wasn't together, she wasn't sure they could get anything out of the match they were about to play. Why did something always have to get in the way of their performance? Couldn't they get along for once?

I hate teenagers, she thought as she watched them hopeless as they left the locker room.

Karasuno was the first to arrive to the gym, so they started preparing all the equipment to start training as soon as possible before the girls from Itachiyama arrived. Mayu didn't show up, so Noa was even more worried about her. After one of the exercises, she sat down on a bench to tie her right shoe lace.

"I'm sure she'll come, Noa-san," Tomone was standing next to her, she was handing her a bottle of water.

Noa stood up and sipped some water. "Thank you"

Tomone smiled. "Mayu-san has helped me a lot. I don't think she's a bad person, and I partly understand her. People make fun of me because of my height, without even bothering to know me. I understand perfectly that she doesn't want the fact that she likes girls to define her," Tomone put her hand on Noa's shoulder and squeezed it before returning with the rest of the group.

That gesture made Noa smile. Things might be complicated between them, but Tomone always knew what to say and, above all, she had changed a lot since she had joined the team. Noa was happy that the girl had found a place where she could be herself. Little by little she was opening up more and more to everyone.

The gym door opened again. The Itachiyama girls' volleyball team, led by their coach and coach assistant, entered the gymnasium with determination. Karasuno were silent, keeping an eye on them as they stood on the side of the court.

"It's been a long time, McCormak"

Noa rolled her eyes as she heard Okuma Ryo's voice behind her. "It's Furihata, if you don't mind"

Okuma pretended to be thinking for a few seconds. "Nah, I think I prefer McCormark." She smiled mischievously. "We saw your pathetic qualification for Nationals. I guess all idiots are lucky"

"Don't push it"

"At least I hope you show us something better than the first time we met. We have three players from the main team here. You should be honored"

Okuma turned on her heels, not giving Noa any chance to reply to her.

"What an asshole"

"Mayu!" Noa was surprised to see her friend standing next to her. "When did you arrive? I thought you left"

"I just arrived for the pre-game warm-up."

"Are you okay? Where have you slept?"

"We'll talk later"

Mayu was the first on the team to start the warm-up. The libero probably pretended not to care, but the rest of her teammates kept looking at her.

"Shiraiwa has missed our practice, so she needs to warm up harder than the rest," Hatsue called them together. "We are going to tell you who's playing this game. There will be some changes"

Jiro took out a piece of paper from his pocket that he began to read aloud as he drew the formation on the board.

"Setter: Harada Ayako. Middle Blockers: Harada Ayaka and Oka Chizuko. Libero: Shiraiwa Mayu. Wing Spikers: Michimiya Yui, Furihata Noa and Nagano Noriko"

"This will be our starting order for Nationals," Hatsue explained. "However there will be rotations based on our opponents. We have a very short squad and I don't want you to exert yourselves. Today you're up against the favorite team to win the title. I want you to give your best, but not all you have"

"What do you mean?" Yoshino asked.

"Don't show all your cards"

"For example, Furi-chan shouldn't do her super serve today or Ayako-chan shouldn't activate her Eagle Eye," Jiro explained.

"That's it," Hatsue nodded. "Be forceful, fight for every ball, but don't show them all your progress. Leave that to Nationals. Now get busy greasing up your performance as a team. Things have happened between all of you, but on the court you all have the same goal, which is to win. Alright?"

After exchanging glances, everyone nodded.

"Fine. Prove it to me then"

Yui stretched her right arm and they all formed a circle around her. "Karasuno…"

"FIGHT!"

During the warm-up, Noa noticed that Noriko seemed to be uncomfortable, something happening to her right hand. The previous day Noa noticed the third-year wincing. She had insisted that someone should check if everything was alright, but her senpai played it down by assuring her that some ointment would do the trick

"Is everything okay?" Noa leaned in slightly. Noriko jumped up slightly, surprised at how stealthy Noa had been.

"S-Sure. Everything's fine," Noriko smiled nervously and clenched her fist.

"If you have any problem, say it"

"I said I'm fine," Noriko was blunt.

Unlike previous occasions, when problems between them constantly got in the way of their performance as a team, they were able to put their differences aside. Despite having played very little with them in recent weeks, Noa, thanks to watching them from the bench, knew well the habits and movements of her teammates. She knew how to join in their dynamic and follow their rhythm. She knew how to adapt to any circumstance. She felt much lighter and more active than before and, above all, more confident. Even so, Noa was frustrated by everything that had happened the previous day and used all her brute strength to finish off every ball she was tossed. It was the best way to let off steam.

The result, perhaps, was not quite so good, but it was certainly better than the first time they faced Itachiyama. Itachiyama players' were real monsters and with very little, they were able to win with confidence.

Mayu dived. The ball rose into the air again, preventing Itachiyama from scoring another point. Ayako moved quickly under the ball and set it up for Chizuko. The middle blocker spiked. Itachiyama's setter received the ball with her body. One of her teammates had to set it up, doing a very low toss. The Ace of Itachiyama spiked. Ayaka led the three-point barrier and, on her command, they all jumped. Noriko blocked the shot, but it wasn't strong enough and the ball fell into Karasuno's field, brushing against the net. The referee's whistle, indicating that it was a valid point, was accompanied by a groan from the Ace. Noriko was squatting and holding the same hand that Noa had already warned her about.

"Noriko-san!"

Everyone approached the third-year. Jiro, surprisingly as he was sitting on the bench, was the first one to arrive. He helped her to her feet and forced her to approach the bench, from where the coach watched her with concern. The woman took the girl's hand and clicked her tongue. The thumb area of Noriko's right hand was red and swollen. Noa couldn't believe it. She knew perfectly what it was.

"For how long have you had this?" Hatsue asked.

"I don't know. I must have hit the ball in the wrong way"

"You lie," Noa mumbled.

"Excuse me?"

"I already asked you yesterday and you said it was nothing. Do you think I don't know tendonitis when I see it? It's a serious problem! If it doesn't heal well it can degenerate into other problems and obviously it's gotten worse!"

"Noa, calm down," the coach ordered.

"I don't calm down! It's December. The National Championship starts in January! Due to stubbornness like this we risk our continuity and even our participation!"

"Noa, stop," Hatsue glared at Noa. "Get out of the gym and get some air"

Noa looked at her teammates in surprise, but they looked away. The girl sighed.

"And don't come back"

"What!?"

Her coach was overdoing it.

"You're not playing anymore for today. You have to learn to control yourself"

"Are you kidding? It's Noriko-san who has-"

"And I'm the coach! That's enough, Noa. No more volleyball for you today. And for you too," the woman turned to Noriko. "It's a stupid thing you've done, but I'm sure we can fix it. Have Aoyama-kun take you to the infirmary to have your hand bound. When we get home, you'll go straight to the doctor and start your treatment, whatever it is, although I'm telling you, you won't be able to touch a volley ball for a week"

"What? But-"

"The most important thing is your health, Nagano-san"

The Ace moaned.

"Kurumizawa-san, Niimura-san, you're in. We're going to play with a strange line-up, but that's all there is to it. That's why I always tell you to take care of yourselves"

Noa left the gym in silence and sat down on a curb to wait. From outside, she heard the girls' screams and the sound of sneakers against the wooden floor. Without a doubt, that winter camp wasn't as she had imagined.

"You have to stop being so angry at the world"

Noa looked up. Mayu stood, arms crossed.

"Is the game over?"

"Yes. And we lost, but the result was much better than the first one we had," Mayu sat next to her. "Now Nekoma is playing"

"You should go change or you'll catch cold"

"So do you"

"Mayu-san..."

"I'd rather wait"

"See? How can I not be angry? Why do you have to wait until everyone's finished showering and changing? You didn't have to before"

"They didn't know I liked girls before"

"But that doesn't change anything!"

"It does, Noa-san," Mayu smiled tenderly. "I wish everyone thought like you, but that isn't common. I don't care. I will respect their space, if that's what they need. I will not leave the team, if that is what you are worried about. After talking to Mori-san I am sure about staying," Mayu stood up again and stretched her hand to Noa to help her get up. "I'm not going to leave anyone behind, especially not my best friend"

Noa smiled. She took Mayu's hand tightly and stood up. She put her arm around the libero's shoulder and they walked together to the changing room.

When they opened the door, their teammates were still inside. Mayu stood doubtfully under the hinge of the door, until Yoshino spoke.

"You can come in. We've already changed"

"The coach wants us to come back as soon as possible," Yui told them. "She wants us to watch the game to learn"

Mayu nodded. She walked to the locker where she had left her bag, but the rest of her teammates didn't move.

"Hey, Mayu-san," Yoshino spoke again, "I don't feel comfortable with you around"

"Oi!" Noa frowned.

"Let her finish, Noa-san," Chizuko intervened.

"I don't understand you either, and I feel like I don't know you. But I do admit that the team needs you, so I don't want you to leave the team. I'd like you to respect my decision to keep my distance, for all of you to do that," the girl gave a brief glance at Noa, who snorted. "Does anyone want to say anything else? Because I think this is the right time"

"Me," Noa stepped up. "I want you to meet Mayu-san"

"Did you understand anything I said?" Yoshino sweat-dropped.

"I did and I still insist on the same thing. You say you feel like you don't know her and I want you to. I'm having a meal at my house and you're all invited!" The girl pointed her finger at her. "We'll celebrate Christmas behaving as the friends we all are"

Ayako rolled her eyes, but could not help but smile. "Can you be more childish than you are?" The setter opened the door so that they could all make their way to the gym again.

"And when would we get that food? New Year's Eve is in two days, smartass," Ayaka put her hands in her hips as they walked.

"Have you listened to what I said? This is serious!" Yoshino barked, but they ignored her.

"Well, tomorrow," Noa shrugged.

"You're nuts," Ayaka scoffed.

"No, you'll see! I'll call Miyoko-san and I'm sure she and Daichi will take care of everything"

"What are you talking about?" Jiro was waiting for them outside the gym.

"Noa-san wants to hold a meal at her house to bring the group together," Tomone explained.

"I'm in! Can Nagi-chan come?"

"Sure! And I'll invite everyone! Also the Karasuno boys!" Noa's eyes glowed.

"It's getting out of hand..." Noriko huffed.

"What if I refuse to go?" Yoshino crossed her arms. "I've asked you to respect my decision and you always do what you want"

Noa blinked. "But I want you to come. If we're not all there, it won't be funny"

"You do not have to be friends with Mayu-san, Yoshino-san," Chizuko, who had been rather quiet throughout the whole thing, finally spoke. "No one's asking you to do that. If you need your space, you'll have it. I don't think Mayu-san will mind," she cast a meaningful look at the libero, who nodded. "Maybe Noa-san's methods aren't the best, but I think the meal it's a good idea for Nationals. We need to stick together as a team more than ever. I remind you that we must reach the quarterfinals."

"That's true…" Ayaka muttered.

"All right," Yui nodded. "If Noa-san's family doesn't mind, we'll do it"

"But in the New Year we have to go to the shrine too," Ayaka reminded them. "We made a promise"

"Besides, Tomone-san had never been to a shrine on New Year's Day with friends," the setter reminded them, putting her arm around the girl's shoulder.

"This is so exciting!" Jiro chirped happily.

Noa only needed to make a quick phone call to Miyoko to get her approval for the celebration and another to Daichi to invite the rest of the Karasuno. In addition, she left the purchase of food and drinks in Daichi's hands. She knew she was asking too much, especially when the idea had been hers and she planned to carry it out overnight, but Noa was convinced that it would be a great day.

Once she hung up and told her teammates that everything was already in full swing, she still held her mobile in her hand in doubt. Should she tell Ushijima as well? Christmas was about sharing, and he had helped her regain her self-confidence. She would like him to be there, but she wasn't sure whether the rest would feel comfortable with Ushijima.

"It's your party," Mayu whispered in her ear, as if she could read her mind. "You can invite whoever you want"

Noa blushed slightly, but listened to Mayu. She sent a text message to Ushijima from which she would get no response.

"Hey, Shiraiwa-san," Tomone turned to speak to her senpai. "Where did you spend the night?"

"Ah! That's right!" Ayaka jumped up.

"I welcomed her into my room!" Jiro happily chirped.

"WHAT!?" Everyone exclaimed at the same time.

"Jiro-kun saw me wandering the halls, so he offered me some help," Mayu smiled shyly.

"But don't worry, Mayu-chan isn't interested in me," the manager joked, winking at the libero.

"That's not the point!" Chizuko suddenly yelled.

They all turned to look at her. They couldn't believe that Chizuko was somehow jealous of Mayu. She was very noticeable. The middle blocker immediately regretted her words and fell silent. She and Jiro exchanged a glance, but, unlike the way he looked at the others, the manager's expression became very serious during the brief second their eyes met.

"Don't think that because of the silly thing about liking girls you can take advantage of her, you pervert," Ayako warned him, trying to redirect the conversation.

"What kind of sick man do you take me for!?" Jiro barked, which made the others laugh.

"Would you please pay attention to the game?" They were scolded by Yui. The third-years looked at all their kohai with disapproval. "This is important"

"Sorry," they all apologized.

Nekoma also lost to Itachiyama, although they were able to stand up to them and came close to winning the second set. That experience was useful for many things: to know their rivals, learn from them and continue improving and growing as a team. Itachiyama would leave quickly, without speaking to any of them, but giving them some condescending looks.

"I can't wait to beat them up so they'll stop looking down on us," Ayako hissed, fists clenched.

As for them, they had only a few days left until the start of the championship and that meant only few hours for training. That made them all very anxious, especially considering Noriko's injury. They didn't know yet how serious it was or how long it would take for it to heal completely. She was the Ace of the team, they needed her.

"We're very sorry about what happened," Nekozawa, the captain, apologized again as they prepared to get on the bus back to Sendai.

"It's all right," Yui shook Nekozawa's hand tightly. "We've learned a valuable lesson"

"It'll be a pleasure to see you at Nationals again and I hope we'll meet again"

"I hope so too"

"Girls, line up and give thanks," Hatsue commanded.

They all lined up and bowed to Nekoma's female volleyball team and her coach.

"Thanks for everything!" They said in unison, then turned around and get on the minibus they had rented.

Once seated, before starting the journey, Mori Hatsue stood, watching them all carefully.

"I know that you have grown up in these two days because I trust that you have soaked up everything you have seen and shared with your rivals, even if it was only for a short time. Internalize it, make it your own and use it to win," she made a brief pause. "On the 2nd we'll resume training and don't neglect your diets too much these days"

"We won't," Yui nodded resolutely.

Hatsue smiled and took the driver's seat. They would have their ups and downs and she had many doubts about how they would perform in Tokyo, but as much as she didn't want to train them at first and despite not having much knowledge of volleyball, for the first time in a long time she enjoyed what she was doing.

Christmas is almost here! Three chapters left to Nationals! And I warn you because drama is coming!

Next chapter: Joining forces

See you next time!