Reference:
Wakutani Minami High School (Wakunan):
Coach - Onikōbe Masaomi
#1 Nakashima Takeru (Captain & Ace) - 3 - WS / Outside Hitter
#2 Kawatabi Shunki - 3 - WS / Opposite Hitter
#4 Shiroishi Yūki - 3 - WS / Outside Hitter
#5 Hanayama Kazumasa - 3 - S
#8 Naruko Teppei - 3 - MB
#10 Akiu Kazuteru - 2 - Li
#11 Matsushima Tsuyoshi - 1 - MB
(Nakashima Isamu - Former Captain & S)
19-15, Karasuno's lead.
As the second set against Johzenji resumed, Ai saw an improvement in their attacks. The players in yellow uniforms were doing well since their time out, solidly observing their opponents. They strategized as they played, even while continuing to have their fun.
They didn't need to take it slow and steady. However, "playing" didn't equal "not thinking."
Coach Ukai had advised that when the guys weren't sure if they were going to hit, they should take a step back. But, Tsukishima read correctly and blocked it anyway.
"Shut out!" Yamaguchi and Hinata screamed.
Playing freely meant knowing how to move and having the skill to actually do it. The higher up they went in the tournament, the more groups ended up being that way.
When it was Tsukishima's turn to serve, Hinata came up to the front row.
"Johzenji hasn't been able to stop Hinata's fast attacks yet," Takinoue said, crossing his arms. "Take it all here in one swoop!"
But as Terushima called his teammates over for a quick discussion, Ai felt that it wouldn't work as easily as that.
The yellow-uniformed team gave up blocking Hinata's spikes as Aoba Johsai once did. If a block couldn't stop it, they figured that they were better off having everyone receive it.
The libero wearing white somehow got it, and Terushima used his foot to keep the ball in the air. Numajiri spiked the ball, landing on Karasuno's side of the court in a counterattack right after Hinata's quick.
20-18.
"A two-point gap, huh?" Takinoue frowned, making Yachi look up at him. "This happened to them with Aoba Johsai, too. You remember, right?" the electronics shopkeeper asked Ai.
She nodded. Of course she remembered. "I have the notes from that day here." The second-year offered the notebook to Yachi, who gladly flipped through it.
"Hinata's spikes are still pretty light, so it's easy to receive," Takinoue explained.
Karasuno's shortest middle blocker hated being blocked, but he was, for some reason, more pissed off when the blockers ignored him. Hinata grabbed the back of Kageyama's shirt and pulled it down so he could whisper their next plan of attack.
The opposite Number 4 served and Nishinoya received. Kageyama tossed it to Hinata, and he saw it clearly. The first-year aimed for the corner, just out of the libero's range of reach, and scored. It was all thanks to their evolved fast attack.
"Nice kill!" Yachi cheered.
"I guess this means things have changed since the Seijoh match," Takinoue enthusiastically commented.
23-19.
"Hinata, give 'em one more!" Tanaka yelled.
The first-year aimed again, but the yellow team's captain jumped up to tap it first this time.
A receive from close range. And if they could touch it, they could control it.
The other Number 9 spiked it after, and the ball shanked off of Tanaka's arms. The Johzenji team celebrated.
The blond alumnus observed the strategies at hand. "So, their play is to touch the ball before we can hit it into a space they can't reach."
23-20.
Ai could see that Hinata was getting irritated. Just when she was about to remind the first-year of his new weapon from Bokuto, Daichi stepped up to talk to him. He hadn't used his special move yet today.
"Nice receive!" the captain said.
"Go, Hinata!" Tanaka encouraged.
Kageyama bent backward, tossing a perfect set.
"Bring it!" Terushima screamed loudly.
The orange-haired boy tapped it over the net, and Terushima and Futamata dove for it unsuccessfully.
When he scored the feint, the first-year gasped and turned around toward the third-year who suggested it. Daichi grinned and gave him a thumbs up.
She smiled. Their captain was so perceptive.
"Matchpoint!" Yachi observed hopefully.
"Alright you guys,... Let's play seriously." Terushima wickedly grinned.
Tsuchiyu, the libero, received, and the yellow team started moving for another synchronized attack. The guys didn't think about when they mess up, not even for a second. All that they thought about was the ecstasy of success. It was bold and exciting. And Johzenji's captain didn't lose his burning flame of motivation until the end.
"Be careful! It's different from before!" Ukai shouted from the bench.
Terushima spiked past between the striped left antenna and Daichi's attempt at a block. There was a millisecond of gasps before the ball bounced and resonated. Hinata and Tanaka stood in the back, unable to move in reaction. The referee at the back line raised the red flag. The whistle blew twice.
The game finished with Johzenji trying to mimic Karasuno's Synchronized Attack again, going out of bounds. It was a fitting last scene for them.
"Alright!!!" the guys downstairs cheered.
"We did it!" Yachi squealed, and Takinoue gave them applause.
"Now, they're in the top eight!" he said.
While the scoreboard announced 25-20, Johzenji's athletes looked like they still wanted to play.
She watched the third-year on the other silver bench. A manager who knew the players better than the coach himself, preventing them from completely breaking down. Ai thought that it was the most admirable thing. Next year, when she found herself in Misaki's shoes, Ai hoped that she could be like that, too.
The teams bowed to each other, thanking everyone for the game.
She saw people from Date Tech in the audience, standing from their seats and getting ready to leave.
Johzenji's coach talked about how it was all right to get psyched up, but they should be cautious so they don't lose control.
Misaki warned the second-years not to make too much trouble for the first-year manager next in line, and confessed that she liked the guys' style of always going all out with playing around.
.
Ai packed her things, bowed goodbye and thanks to Takinoue for coming to the game today, and had Yachi go on ahead of her. The players also took some time to do their stretches before leaving the stadium.
She wandered downstairs around the doors to the gymnasium, her black hair loose and untied down her back, and searched for their recent opponent. A voice rang in her head.
There's nothing for a winner to say to a loser.
She ignored it quickly and heedfully approached the team that was preparing to leave. "Excuse me, Yūji-san?"
Johzenji's members in their yellow jerseys looked her way. Their coach and two managers were with them as well.
"Oh, you're the girl who was with Glasses-chan," Terushima replied. "You're from Karasuno too, huh?"
"Yes." He must have not noticed her watching from Karasuno's balcony just now. She looked to his side. "Hello to you too, Kazuma-san."
They flinched at her knowledge of their names, but Bobata tipped his head back at her.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with your team?" The second-year captain came closer. "Or, are you here to give me your number?" he joked, grinning.
She considered this. "Very well. I will. Shall I give you my boyfriend's number, too?"
Terushima spluttered. "Aw, man! You're already taken?"
"Terushima-kun!" the third-year manager scolded him.
She giggled. "It's fine," Ai assured her. "Originally, however, I only came to congratulate you on your volleyball." She smiled sincerely. "It was very fun to watch, and I enjoyed seeing you and your team play. I wish I'd seen your playstyle when I was in middle school."
Terushima laughed. "I'll take it."
They exchanged numbers, and she shook hands with the team. "I hope to see you all next year."
The buoyant captain grinned. "You bet."
She shook their hands and left.
.
When she joined the team of crows, Ai found Daichi smiling fondly at Ennoshita, Tanaka, Nishinoya, and Yachi.
"Tomorrow, I will stop you," Aone said to the small Number 10.
"And, I'm going to get through!" Hinata grinned, and he started screaming in excitement. "Whoa!!!"
"Shut up!" Kageyama barked.
"Was he waiting here just to tell Hinata that?"Yamaguchi wondered as he held a small rack of water bottles.
She passed by Aone on her way to her first-years cleaning up. She gave him a wave of her hand, to which he nodded back.
"You were all amazing, as always." She congratulated them all and gave them a hug.
"Thanks, Ai." Daichi smiled sheepishly.
Nishinoya and Tanaka waited their turn to hug her as well.
"Did I miss something?" she asked.
"Nothing much. Just the usual, you know?" Ennoshita smirked.
The libero nodded. "We learned our lesson."
"Where'd you go, Ai?" Kinoshita asked.
She turned to him, hoisting a bag of water bottles onto her shoulder, and pressed a finger to the center of her lips. "A secret makes a woman, woman, Hisashi," Ai quoted in English. She winked, and the boys around her blushed.
Just then, a whistle blew, and a roar from the crowd captured Hinata and Kageyama's attention. The game on Court B had ended, determining their next opponent. They saw that Wakutani Minami High had won; the team Coach Ukai had said they needed to look out for before the Interhigh prelims.
The middle blocker and setter were also surprised at the cheering coming from the audience, seeing that one of the player's family had come to cheer him on.
"In order to fight Date Tech again, we need to beat them first!" Hinata exclaimed. Determination settled on their expressions.
Ai tapped them on their shoulders where she could reach. "How's your nose, Tobio? Did the bleeding stop okay?" she asked, directing their attention elsewhere. "Shōyō, how was it playing against Johzenji? Did you have fun?"
She herded the two towards the group and gathered their things to leave.
Ai walked with Kinoshita, Ennoshita, and Narita as they went back to the bus. She sat and chatted with the second-year middle blocker on the way back about his contribution to the game that day.
.
Back in their Second Gymnasium, they had a quick meeting at school.
"Thank you for all the hard work on Day One!" Takeda-sensei said.
"Thank you!" the boys repeated.
Coach Ukai started professing information about the next team without further ado. "Wakutani Minami, our next opponent, is not like any previous opponent. They have their third-years like us. They're a highly polished team. Their defense and tenacity are close to Nekoma's."
Hinata's mouth formed an "o", and Tanaka grimaced and drew back a little.
"Don't lose your temper just because you can't get your attack in. Especially you guys, you psyched-up simpletons."
Nishinoya sat next to Hinata with a tightlipped smile, and the orange-haired middle blocker and Tanaka seemed to know the coach's words were directed at them. Kageyama, however, tilted his head, not realizing that he was part of the same group, too.
"It'll be all right. We've got their backs." Daichi smiled, and the three awed at the captain.
"W-were counting on you!"
"You bet. You can rely on us."
With the meeting over, Daichi stood up. "All right, we're going to make it through tomorrow, too."
They all huddled in a circle, including the managers, teacher, and coach. Ai held Yachi's back next to Kiyoko, and they all extended a palm face-down in the middle.
The captain led the cheer. "Karasuno, fight!"
"Yeah!"
They were dismissed after that and went home. Everyone needed to rest after their victorious match, before going to the next game.
.
That night, she texted Momoi back with a smile, as her friend in Tokyo asked how the first day of Qualifiers went.
Victory wasn't all that mattered, and winning didn't mean having a good game. Both managers knew that painstakingly well.
Satsuki: Ai-chan! How'd it go today?
Ai: It was a fun game, and we won. Thanks for asking. And thank you for the bit of insight on Johzenji High.
Satsuki: No problem! I could've done more for you if I had physical access to the school
Ai: You were more than enough help. I should probably look into basketball teams here in Miyagi, too.
Satsuki: Yamanoe High School was the Miyagi prefecture representative team that Mukkun beat in the Winter Cup last year. Hold on, I can get the score for you…
Satsuki: 0-81, second round of the tournament
Ai: I see Atsu-kun and Tatsuya didn't show mercy. Thank you, Satsuki.
Satsuki: Yup! Can I send you the videos of our recent games, too?
Ai: Of course, I'd be happy to look through them. I can't promise that it'll be the same as watching it and picking up cues in person, but I'll see what I can find for you.
Satsuki: You're the best! Dai-chan and I'll be keeping up with your tournament. Good luck!
There was also a message from Kuroo, and she responded to him before falling asleep.
Kuro: Chii, where do I stand to you?
Ai: What do you mean, Kuro?
It was a question seemingly out of the blue, but Ai thought back to when they'd met earlier that month. It must have been the question he had wanted to ask her when she was in Saitama, when they sat together on the floor of Shinzen High's First Gymnasium.
He took a few minutes to get back to her, and she brushed her teeth and combed her hair in the meantime.
Kuro: What am I to you?
She made a troubled smile. How could he ask that?
Ai: Isn't it obvious? You're family.
.
On the other end of the conversation in Tokyo, Kuroo let out a laugh while lying on his side in his bed.
Family.
That was good enough. He should let her go.
Kuro: Right
———
The next morning, they went back to Sendai City Gymnasium.
Ai stopped by to look at the tournament chart, taking a quick picture to refer back to later.
Shiratorizawa had been victorious with straight sets yesterday, 25-15 and 25-12. Aoba Johsai beat Niiyama Tech by 25-20 and 25-21. Wakunan won with 25-22 and 25-19, Date Tech won with 25-22 and 25-23, and of course, Karasuno won 25-21 and 25-20.
Hakusuikan, Mine Nishi, and Kesenike Nishi high schools were also going onto round two of the Qualifiers.
Karasuno set up their banner in the corner of the gymnasium again, opposite of Wakunan's "Show Tenancy."
"There's more today than yesterday?" Sugawara looked up at the supportive family during their warmups. "A younger brother?"
"Why do you look kind of jealous?" Tsukishima asked the orange-haired boy staring in awe.
Daichi clapped his hands a few times. "Come on, concentrate."
"Sawamura-senpai's right. Warm up properly, or you'll pull a muscle or something," Ai warned, applying lavender onto their uniforms again. "Ryu, we didn't work on your flexibility for the past couple of months for nothing. Don't slack with stretches."
Ukai was worried about this match. Although it was just his intuition, he had the impression that this Wakunan team was probably a bad match against Karasuno.
Ai and Yachi went up to the stands, while the captains were called to shake hands before the match.
"Hey!" Shimada came to watch their game.
"Oh, Shimada-san, hello there!" Yachi peered behind him, and Ai nodded to the grocery store owner. "Are you by yourself?"
"Takinoue has work today. He did say he might be able to swing by in the afternoon, though."
"Man, this psyches me up! Stuff like this gets a rise outta me!" An additional person soon joined Karasuno's gallery and cheering squad. "Hey, Ai-chan!"
Ai smiled and nodded again. "It's good to see you again, Saeko-san."
"Hello!" Yachi also greeted politely.
"Hey! Thanks for always taking care of Ryūnosuke. I'm his older sister, Saeko." While Shimada was convinced that the siblings were alike, Saeko waved down at her younger brother. "Ryu! Ryu-chan!"
"Oh, Big Sister!" Nishinoya yelled, waving back.
Ennoshita smiled too, but the younger Tanaka didn't seem too happy about his sibling coming to watch.
"I came to cheer you on!" Saeko continued, not noticing his discomfort.
.
Takeda-sensei, Ukai, and Kiyoko were on one bench, but the other only had the coach.
"Let's play!" the guys recited.
"Go get 'em!" Saeko called down to the boys.
"The second day begins… They better survive." Shimada grinned, but Yachi seemed nervous.
"Bring it!" Hinata shouted.
The Number 5 third-year setter served first, and Daichi received.
"Got it!"
"All right, start off with a fast attack and give them a good scare!" Shimada said.
The two went in for it and seized the first point.
"Right on!" Sugawara exclaimed.
"Hinata, nice kill!" Yamaguchi complimented as well.
Shimada and Yachi chuckled evilly, but the other captain wasn't fazed at all.
"All right, we'll just cut the next one!" he said, and his teammates didn't show signs of panic or fret either.
"What? Wakunan isn't surprised by that fast attack?" the male alumnus pondered.
Ai spoke up then. "I would be surprised if they weren't, Shimada-san."
The others looked at her as she continued. "Wakunan seems like a good team, and they're ranked in the prefecture's top four. Frankly, I'd be concerned for them and their coach if they weren't aware of other strong teams. We fought Aoba Johsai in the Interhigh Preliminaries and defeated Kakugawa with Yūdai's two-meter height. We were bound to get some attention from other schools soon."
Indeed, nobody called the current Karasuno the "Clipped Crows" anymore. They were now the most surprising team in the entire prefecture, and Nakashima felt super lucky to be able to go against them.
Additionally, it looked like their opponents had planned how to work against Hinata before the game.
The more Takeda-sensei thought about it, he realized that it wasn't so much a bad match for Karasuno, but more like the type of team they struggled with. Based on how things had been, they had dealt better with teams that attacked aggressively with prominent weapons. But teams who braced up and kept their pace, while looking at what they did, and handling everything appropriately… Seijoh and Nekoma were precisely that, and it wasn't the the black and orange team's strong suit.
"An opponent that isn't surprised by that first fast attack… Now, what will you do?" the former pinch server wondered.
Hinata was a little upset that his attack didn't have as much of an impact, until Daichi brought up that he was being watched closely and researched by a powerhouse school.
"Man, he's totally upstaging us!" the captain faked a sigh.
The orange-haired first-year was fired up and ready to surpass yesterday's self, and Tanaka, who had overheard, was irked. Just as a captain should, he knew what buttons to push to get his players all psyched up.
"Hey, if you guys are only being wary of Hinata, I'm gonna peck your eyes out," the second-year with exceptionally good hearing threatened.
Karasuno vs Wakunan, 1-0.
"Kageyama, nice serve!" Asahi yelled, expelling some nervousness.
The ball flew over with intense force, but the opposite captain got it up. Multiple spikers ran forward, distracting Hinata. Kawatabi ran around and spiked through.
"Whoa! From behind the guy in the back?" Yachi wowed.
"A delayed attack, huh?" Shimada furrowed his brows under his glasses.
Wakunan's weapon was their combination. Their average height wasn't that tall, but this proved why they're always at the top tier of the prefecture skill-wise. It also wasn't Wakunan's only weapon.
"Don't react to each and every thing the spikers do! Go after the ball!" Kageyama yelled at his first-year partner.
"I-I know that, in my head!"
1-1.
The following volley finished with a block out, targeting the edge of Hinata's hands. Nakashima's aerial techniques were just as troublesome as their combination play.
"Shiro, one more nice serve!" someone shouted.
Nakashima Takeru. Out of everyone in the prefecture, his playing style may be the most similar to the former Tiny Giant.
.
14-15, Wakunan. The two schools were neck to neck for the most part.
"They've been maintaining this pace the whole time. They're not leaving us behind, but they won't let us take the lead!" Shimada groaned.
Rather than aiming for small spaces like Hinata, the captain wearing pink changed the angle of his spikes. For example, he used different angles to hit the hands of the blockers and made the balls bounce off with a huge arc, leading to block outs.
Tsukishima looked speechlessly disgusted. As a blocker, it was natural to be sick of spikers like that.
Wakunan had one person committed to Hinata for the time being, but their stance was to not chase too far. Dealing with Hinata using a tall middle blocker, they choose to narrow the shot course instead of stopping it so it was easier to receive. They were rationalizing that it's impossible to completely shut Hinata down. Yet with this defense, they weren't letting Hinata do as he pleased, either. It was tricky.
However, although they were in the middle of aerial combat between the next generation of Tiny Giants, Kageyama couldn't forget about their kingly ace, either.
Daichi knew what he was doing, so Ukai didn't need to say anything.
A first-year middle blocker, Matsushima, marked Hinata, and the other two dealt with all the other spikers. But, if they were going to stop Karasuno's ace, they needed to bring an Iron Wall.
"Yeah!" Daichi and Asahi bumped fists, ...perhaps a little too hard.
"Asahi-san!" Nishinoya yelled.
"Nice kill!" Hinata said.
Everybody was calm, and that was how they'd proceed.
17-17.
Karasuno increased their left-side attacks, and Tsukishima blocked perfectly next to Kageyama, when the tall blond got to the front row.
19-17. Finally, a chance to gain some momentum.
"Tenacious Wakunan! Our best is yet to come!" Nakashima stated.
"Yeah!" his teammates shouted.
The other captain seemed to be a pretty good foundation for his team as well. If the last match was a competition of play, this was a competition of their captains.
Their captain was also on a roll. Daichi knew exactly what to say to his team members and had been enthusiastically vocal for the past couple of days. He must have been taking lessons and learning provocations from Nekoma's best middle blocker.
She was happy to see this development but couldn't shake off the creeping bad feeling, a premonition. "Sawamura-senpai..."
Two points ahead, Karasuno connected a long rally. Tsukishima hit, and the Number 2 received. Number 8 spiked, but Tanaka got it up nicely, connecting the ball. Asahi spiked, and Number 10 saved it.
"Nice, Akiu!"
"They dug it up again!" Yachi shivered.
"It's hard to even watch," Saeko sighed.
"This is the longest rally we've had today. Whoever gets this point will gain the momentum!" Shimada narrated.
"Don't let it end, don't let it end! Let's make sure to get this one!" Daichi yelled.
"Takeru, I'm counting on you!" the Number 5 setter said.
"Yeah!"
Kageyama, Tsukishima, and Asahi jumped, a tall triple block.
The ball flew off of Tsukishima's fingertips, heading out of bounds for another block out. Daichi slid to get the ball, and Nishinoya followed up, but it was still short and didn't go up very high.
"Go!" Yachi screamed.
"Get the last shot back at them!" Shimada cheered.
Everyone's eyes followed the ball, but Ai watched as the captain got up and ran to hit it again.
She screamed instinctively when she knew what would happen. "Daichi-san! No!"
It was too late. While Tanaka managed to hit the ball towards the net, barely making it over. he had collided with Daichi. Nakashima dove for the ball and missed.
Her pencil dropped over the low wall overlooking the courts. She threw her notebook to the side and sprinted downstairs, leaving Yachi behind on the balcony. Her mind raced as fast as her pounding heart.
Reference:
Oikawa's nephew (from Season 2 Episode 6) is also named Takeru!
Oikawa Takeru 及川 猛
Nakashima Takeru 中島 猛
Also, Nakashima's mom is named Nakashima Ai (with the same kanji character 愛). This was completely unplanned and a total coincidence on my part. ToT
Happy birthday to Karasuno's Guardian Deity Libero, Nishinoya Yū!
Total Word Count: 4126
(Let me know if the episode recaps are too tedious and boring)