Chapter 3

I ended up oversleeping the next morning. I woke up to my phone ringing from a call from my aunt. "Are you planning to sleep all day?" she asked. "You're gonna miss the match."

I quickly got up and took a shower. Packing just as quickly, I went downstairs and checked out. I ran out and practically threw my bags into the back of the car. My aunt quickly drove me to the gym that was rented out for this. I only grabbed my duffle bag from the back and ran inside. My aunt was going to take my other bags home.

I opened the door and took deep breaths from running as Kiyoko approached me. "Sorry I'm late," I apologized quickly. "I overslept on accident."

Kiyoko only smiled. "You're just in time. They haven't started yet."

I looked out at the court and saw a few of the boys facing off with those of Nekoma. Tanaka and Taketora were both glaring at each other while Suga and Yaku both looked exasperated. Daichi and Tetsu were shaking hands, but both of them had deceptive smiles on their faces. I pointed to them and looked at Kiyoko. "How long have they been like this?"

Kiyoko sighed. "Since we got here."

I nodded to Kiyoko, and she nodded back as she moved to the bench while covering her ears. I put my hand up to my lips and let out a loud whistle. It startled everyone to look towards me as I put my hands on my hips. "Everyone, you need to calm down and act more professionally," I scolded. "Tanaka, straighten up and quit picking fights. If you don't, I'll have you run suicides, so save it for the match. And you Daichi! You are supposed to set an example, so act like a captain."

There was silence after my outburst. The Karasuno boys looked scolded, but the Nekoma boys all looked shocked at seeing me. "Kiki!" they yelled out and ran at me, shocking Karasuno.

The first one to get to me this time was Tora. He picked me up in a tight hug, crying heavily. It made me gasp and yell at him. "Tora! Let me go you big lug! You just saw me last night!" I then turned to the boys as they approached as well. "Yakkun! Kai! Help me please!"

"You brought this on yourself Kiki," Kai chuckled at me. "You didn't tell us you were going to be here today."

"Yamamoto, put her down!" Yaku scolded. "She was super sore last night! You could hurt her!"

Tora immediately let me go and Kenma was there with Tetsu to steady me. I nodded to both of them in thanks before turning back to an apologizing Tora. "Calm down Tora," I told him. "No harm done. I promise that I'm fine."

"What are you doing here Kiki?" Fukunaga asked in curiosity.

"I'm Karasuno's student coach," I answered simply, picking up my duffle bag and shocking Nekoma.

"EH?!" they all shouted.

"You go to Karasuno?!"

"Since when?!"

"Student coach?!"

"Why didn't you tell us?!"

I sighed and then growled at them with a glare. That got all of them to quiet down. "My family is near Karasuno, so it's easier to walk to," I explained, my left hand going to my hip. "I've been going there since I transferred. My cousin was asked to be the coach, so he asked me to be the student coach and help out. I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to ask me for insider information."

"But did you give—" Tora started but cut himself off when I turned my glare to him.

"Do not insult me or your own intelligence by finishing that question Tora," I growled at him from what he was implying. "That's not how I am, and you know it."

Tora deflated and Tetsu sniggered. "Now, what are you all doing standing around for? You all should be warming up." When they all just stared at me, I snapped my fingers. "Now! That wasn't a suggestion!"

"Yes ma'am!" they all replied and ran to their side of the net to warm up. I sighed and walked over towards the bench with the other coaches and Kiyoko.

"Kitamura-chan?" Daichi's voice made me look over to him and the rest of the team. They were all looking at me in confusion. "What was that? How do you know them?"

"I would have thought that was obvious," I countered. "I went to Nekoma for my first year of high school."

"And did you manage the team?" Suga asked.

There was a loud laugh from the Nekoma team, and we all turned to see Tetsu sniggering with the third and second years, even Kenma was laughing. I narrowed my eyes at them. "Focus on you own stretches boys," I called. They all jumped and kept going with their stretches. I then turned back to Karasuno. "Listen, don't worry too much about it. Just know that I didn't tell you so you couldn't ask me for insider information, and I didn't tell them that I went to Karasuno for the same reason. I trust you boys."

They all looked shocked at me but that quickly turned into smiles. "Now, you need to do stretches and get ready. Go."

"Yes ma'am!" they chorused with smiles.

They all went to do their stretches and I turned at hearing the familiar laugh of Coach Nekomata. "Still formidable and intimidating, aren't you?"

"Of course," I replied with a smirk as I set down my duffle bag. "Why would I be any other way?"

He laughed again before calming down. "By the way Kaneko-chan, since we don't have a manager, would you be willing to help us out today?"

My smirk turned into a genuine smile. "Of course, I will. I'd be happy to do that. Let me just let my team know."

He nodded and I walked over to Karasuno's side just as they were finishing stretches. I tapped Daichi on the shoulder causing him to turn to me. "Nekoma doesn't have a manager, so I'll be helping out during the match."

"Uh, sure," Daichi replied, unsure as to why I was telling him.

"I'm letting you know out of respect Daichi," I smiled gently at him and then turned around to walk back. But I threw one more comment over my shoulder. "You might as well get used to it."

As I walked over to sit next to Coach Nekomata, both teams were giving speeches. I noticed that Tetsu was giving the same speech that he came up with last year. I smiled, glad that he was doing well as Captain. Kenma said something to Hinata that had me tilting my head at how they knew each other.

The first one to serve was Kenma. Asahi received it but it was a little short, to which Nishinoya scolded him for it. From that, Kageyama then set the ball to Hinata, who didn't look at the ball again. Everyone was shocked at it, and some started to complain. "What the heck was that?" Coach Nekomata questioned me in shock. "He wasn't watching the toss."

I only giggled at their shocked looks, but I could see the look in Kenma's eyes from across the court. I smiled to myself as I watched the back and forth. From the decoy and Asahi's spikes to the multiple points they made off of the freak quick. The entire time, Kenma had his eyes analyzing the team.

With the constant points, this forced Coach Nekomata to use one of their time outs. "This is ridiculous," he complained.

As the boys came over, I stood to hand out water bottles. As I was doing that, Coach Nekomata began to speak to the team. "Their libero and spikers are good," he started. "The most ridiculous of all is that setter. He's a monster. He tosses with incredible speed to the highest spiking point. His control is as if he's threading a needle. So, he's a genius. We can't help that. But a genius in their midst doesn't guarantee their victory."

Some of the boys looked at me and I just shook my head. "Sorry boys. You're on your own."

They nodded and turned to Kenma, who looked down at the attention. "If Shoyo is the heart of their offense, all we need to do is stop Shoyo," he theorized.

"Shoyo?" Tora asked confused.

"That speedy number ten," Tetsu supplied.

"That number nine and number ten are, in a manner of speaking, an Oni and his iron club," the coach explained. "For starters, we steal the Oni's iron club."

"We can't let Shoyo move around so much," Kenma explained next. "From what I've seen, Shoyo simply dashes to where there are no blockers. So, if the blockers move to one side, he'll move to the opposite side." He then looked at Inuoka. "Then all we have to do is chase him."

"Got it!" Inuoka confirmed.

"I think anyone would be shocked the first time they see that attack," Kenma went on. "But even a game that seems impossible to beat a first, if you keep paying it, you get used to it."

With that, the time out was over, and the boys returned to the game. I noticed that there was a bag sitting next to Coach Nekomata and my curiosity got the better of me. "What's in the bag Nekomata-sensei?" I asked.

He only chuckled at me. "You'll find out soon enough."

I huffed at his answer but shrugged it off and returned my attention to the game. Inuoka began to follow Hinata relentlessly. There were several times that he almost got him. There was a lot of back and forth between getting points.

It was funny to me that Karasuno was getting surprised by the little things. Kenma doing a setter dump which shocked everyone. It was really funny to me that Kageyama called for a toss. He got a straight down the side past Fukunaga and Tetsu. I even had a little laugh at Tsukishima getting faked out by Kenma. He had looked one way but then tossed to the other.

"He's not very good with people, so he's concerned about what other's think," Coach Nekomata said out loud, talking about Kenma.

"He's been that way since we were kids," I commented. "But that's why he's good at observing people. He's always coming up with theories on others, and most of the time, he's right."

"But that alone is not the strength of our team," Nekomata smirked at me. I smirked back, knowing all too well how the Nekoma team works.

As the game continued, Inuoka kept following Hinata and almost getting him a couple of times. What I learned with Nekoma; was they would play a patient game. Even if they don't have an outstanding ace or any other players, they would slowly put the pressure on their opponents. Scoring point by point carefully.

Eventually, the game came to match point for Nekoma. At the last point, Inuoka managed to finally block Hinata's freak quick.

Because the first set ended, the teams got a small break before the next set, and switched sides. As I passed out water bottles and towels, I couldn't help looking towards Karasuno, specifically Hinata. Suge had filled me in on Hinata's middle school volleyball experience, which wasn't much honestly.

"Worried about your new team?" Tetsu asked from behind me. I turned to look up at him, Tetsu being a good six inches taller than me, to find his usual cocky smile in place. "Or are you just worried about the shrimp?"

"Neither actually," I replied simply and held up a towel for him.

"You have that much confidence in them already?" Kai inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Confident that they'll get back on their feet, not that they're going to win," I retorted.

"Ow, that wasn't every nice," Yaku teased.

I only shrugged with a smirk. "I'm just being realistic. They're good and can get better, but they lack the experience as a team that you all do."

"Good to know that you still have faith in us," Tora commented with a large smile, placing an arm around my shoulders.

"Always you goofball," I retorted with a smirk. I reached up and rubbed his head down with force. He wiggled out of my strong grip with a pout on his face and the boys laughed at him.

"So why aren't you worried about the shrimp?" Fukunaga asked with a raised eyebrow. "We are focusing on breaking him after all."

I gave him a sneaky smile. "Hinata won't be broken so easily."

"Oh, and why is that?" Tetsu inquired. "Don't tell me you have a thing for small guys?"

While Tetsu's voice sounded like he was teasing me, I could see a small shred of worry in his eyes. I made a face at that though. "No way," I denied vehemently. "No offense Yakkun, but I like to look up, not down, at my man."

I looked between both Tetsu and Kenma before looking back at Hinata. "He reminds me of Kaito," I explained, and with the exception of the first years, everyone gasped lightly in shock. "They all have that fire that he had, but Hinata probably has the most alike with him personality wise."

They were all quiet at that and then the whistle blew for the second set was about to begin. Most or that set was Inuoka blocking Hinata every time, and Hinata was breathing heavily from running around so much.

"The 'human wall' that breaks the will," Nekoma commented. "The more you run into it, the more discouraged you feel."

"Hinata's different," I muttered. I looked to Hinata and smiled at what I saw. Hinata was smiling with an excited gleam in his eyes. That shocked everyone. After a few words were said between Hinata and Kageyama, to which I was glad that Kageyama agreed to still give him a toss, the next time that he set to Hinata, his eyes were open.

Hinata missed completely on the spike, but he saw it. 'Hinata you're finally trying to expand your talents.'

Keishin was forced to use one of their time outs. I could tell that they were gonna try something. Sure enough, they tried to have Hinata hit a softer toss than before. Unfortunately, he kept missing the ball, either missing it all together or barely touching it. If he got anymore panicked, he was going to mess up even more.

Luckily, my cousin seemed to recognize that and used their second time out. I watched as Tanaka, Nishinoya, and Asahi all cheered up Hinata. A monotone voice behind me snapped me out of my thoughts. "I'm glad that you found them."

I jumped a little and turned to find Kenma looking at Karasuno as well. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Kenma looked over at me and looked directly into my eyes. "You have a smile on your face that we haven't seen since the accident."

I blinked in confusion. "I always smile when I talk to you guys, so I have no idea what you're talking about."

"That smile is usually sad though," Yaku spoke up, and I turned to him. "You used to have a very happy smile, especially when we would play."

"But after the accident, it became more sad than anything," Kai continued. "Now though, you've had a happy, genuine smile when you talk."

"That's why I'm glad that you found them," Kenma reiterated. "They were able to help you when we weren't able to."

I was too stunned to say anything, and the whistle rang that the game was back on. I sat back down in a shocked silence. 'Did I really have a different smile after the accident?' I asked myself.

"We're all thankful that you have that smile back," Nekomata commented casually, and I looked over at him in shock once again. "We were all worried that being told you wouldn't be able to play again would break you. Especially when it seemed as though you weren't making any progress."

"And I'm making more progress because of them," I muttered.

"Exactly."

We went back to watching the game with that out of the way. Hinata continued to miss the ball. I was reminded of my older brother, Kaito, when he would try to get a new play down. He would work endlessly to get it right with a determined fire in his eyes, like the one in Hinata's eyes. Eventually, Hinata managed to do a small variation on a cross shot, causing the ball to spin around the block. It was out, but the fact he did it at all was amazing.

"Did he learn that from you?" Nekomata inquired, still shocked.

"No," I replied breathlessly. "We hadn't gotten to that yet. I don't even know if I could do that anymore." I caught Nekomata looking at me with a calculating look. "What?"

He only shook his head with a reassuring smile and turned back to the game. I shrugged it off despite being suspicious but turned back to the game all the same. The boys were going back and forth in a volley that ended with Tora getting the point for Nekoma.

"Taketora-san is more fired up than usual," Shibayama commented with a smile.

"Karasuno's team has a similar kind of guy," Nekomata agreed. "Maybe that's why. Or maybe he got inspired by the battle between Inuoka and their number ten."

"Since meeting Karasuno, I knew that they could be great friends and rivals," I mentioned.

"Already thinking like a coach," Nekomata teased, and I laughed at that. Nekomata then turned his attention to Hinata. "Speaking of number ten, he's a quick learner. And once he has a unique set of skills that duo will cease being an Oni and his iron club. They'll be a pair of Oni."

After he said that, Hinata nearly got hit in the face more than receive the ball. Tanaka got a point and I giggled at how they teased and provoked each other. On the next serve, Hinata was able to get a one touch off Inuoka's spike. They both ran to keep up with each other.

"They influence each other in a tight battle," Nekomata commented out loud. "At times, they push each other's abilities to new heights. They are indeed rivals."

Even though Hinata got one in for a point, I noticed that the set was still a little too high. Inuoka went to serve and Tetsu came up to the front. It looked like Tetsu was trying to rial Hinata up. 'Go a little easy on him Tetsu," I thought with a sweat drop. I knew how bad his taunts could get.

The next play, Kageyama and Hinata did there freak quick in order to get it past Tetsu. They were all shocked by it, but I knew that Tetsu was already plotting to get that point back. And they did. They did a backrow attack with Fukunaga and three spikers in the front as decoys. The ball ended up hitting Hinata in the face and I was glad that I brought my medical things with me. They managed to do a fast A quick right after that.

Right after that, Tetsu was able to do a perfect personal time difference attack that confused the Karasuno blockers. That gave them twenty points while Karasuno only had sixteen. Coach Nekomata was sniggering and smirking at Keishin, making him irritated. I sweat dropped at their immaturity. It was then that Keishin shouted out at the team.

"We've just gotta give it all we've got!" he shouted as he stood up. "Pound them with your power and speed!"

Tanaka immediately jumped on the bandwagon. "In other words, force them to surrender?"

The others were kind of scared of that, but Keishin just kept going. "We'll make up for our lousy quicks and receives with sheer brute force! You guys are rough around the edges and awkward, so use that as your weapon!" They all kept playing and Karasuno started to put more power behind their hits. "Wield your weapons with all your might! Attack, attack, and keep on attacking!"

Karasuno managed to catch up and reached twenty points as well. At that point, Coach Nekomata called a time out. As they all gathered around, he looked around at each player. "You're not panicking, are you?"

"No, sir!"

"Good," he smiled at them. "Keep your connections solid."

"Right!"

They all ran back to the court, and they managed to get a few more points, but Karasuno caught up with them. Now, it was twenty-three for Nekoma and twenty-two for Karasuno. Nekoma through was able to get ahead again with Kenma doing a setter dump, putting them at match point. However, Karasuno got another point by Asahi.

Coach Nekomata growled at that, and I giggled at his annoyance. "That number three is up front now."

Nekoma served and it went to Asahi's spike, but it was saved by Yaku. It turned to a chance ball for Karasuno. Keishin called for a direct spike, but it was saved again by Fukunaga, only for it to go back to them as a chance ball again.

"That's how it is," Nekomata stated as we watched the volley. "Even if we lose our bearings or can't get an actual attack over, as long as the ball is still in play, we haven't lost."

Kageyama tossed Hinata to finally get a good hit in, but it was saved by Yaku. It hit the net though and Kai hit it, and surprisingly Kenma lunged forward to get the ball.

"The team with the stronger spikes doesn't win," Nekomata explained to Shibayama. "The team that drops the ball loses." The ball went over the net and behind where Karasuno was, falling to the ground. "And that's what it means to connect."

Nekoma won the game. Despite Karasuno losing, I was very proud of them. They had put their all into those two sets. And Hinata managed to get the hang of a softer toss. Living up to his personality, Hinata shouted out, startling everyone. "One more time! One more time! Let's play!"

"Yeah, I was planning on it," Nekomata agreed with a wide smile, and Hinata smiled at that. "The only time you can play one more time is a practice match. There is one condition for the next game though."

"And what would that be?" Keishin asked suspiciously.

"Kaneko-chan plays with us," he suggested looking at me as I blinked in shock. "On the Nekoma team of course. You did say that you could play in a practice match."

I blinked a couple of times in complete shock. "But-But I don't have a uniform," I started. "I don't have any of my things other than my volleyball shoes."

My last uniform had been destroyed in the accident that I was in. Coach Nekomata only smiled and handed me the bag that I saw earlier. I took it hesitantly and looked inside. My eyes widened as I saw what was inside. I put down the bag as Hinata asked what was in the bag.

Slowly, I pulled out a red and black Nekoma jersey with the number thirteen on it. The same number I had when I was on the team. I had a number of emotions running through me. From shock to panic to the warm fuzzy feeling that filled my chest that they would get me a replacement. Being the only girl on a boys team, I had to have a custom uniform made for me.

"Come on Kiki!" Tora called from the court, and I looked up in astonishment. "Come play with us again!"

"So, you played on the boys team?" Suga asked. "Not as a manager?"

"Of course, she did," Yaku acknowledged. "She was way too strong for the girls team."

"She broke a girls arm in middle school," Tetsu told them. "She wasn't allowed to play on the girl's team."

"It was only a fracture," I corrected, rolling my eyes. "And that was only once. It wasn't my fault that she didn't have her arms in the right position."

"I wanna receive a serve from you!" Nishinoya shouted, his eyes sparkling. "You must be really good."

"Might as well," I heard Daichi say, and my head snapped to him. Daichi smiled at me. "We need to know what you are able to do."

A smile made its way onto my face as I looked back at Nekoma. I nodded as I stood up with the uniform. "Let's do this."

"Well, go get changed," Coach Nekomata instructed with a wide smile. "The sooner you get changed, the sooner you stretch, the sooner you get to play."

I went to the locker rooms with a large grin on my face.

*Cat Among Crows*

I had a grin on my face the whole time that I was changing. I had to let out a loud laugh when I found knee pads in the bag as well. What made me really laugh was that the jersey and shorts fit perfectly, even around the chest. I remembered when Tetsu had asked if I had grown any and I had, looks like he was in on this. I was glad that I decided to wear a workout compress bra under my clothes today. Unfortunately, I had a slightly larger chest than most Japanese women.

Quickly doing a high ponytail, I braided three small braids and wrapped them in a bun in order to keep it out of my face. I ran back to the gym to put my volleyball shoes on and didn't really notice the excited smiles that Nekoma and Karasuno had. I began to do stretches, doing a few extra ones that my doctor had given me. Tetsu came up to me to let me have a stable for stretching out my legs. He helped me stretch out my arms and helped to spot me when I did a back bend.

For me, being limber and flexible was a part of my recovery and was essential if I wanted to play. As I came out of my backbend, I noticed the worried look in Tetsu's eyes, even though he had a confident smile. I gave him a reassuring smile that I would be okay. I wanted to vocally reassure him, but everyone was listening. However, it would seem that he understood what I was trying to say as he smiled back with less worry in his eyes.

We both walked over to the rest of the team who were either smiling wide or smirking. We turned to Coach Nekomata as he smiled at us. "Kaneko-chan will be taking Inuoka's spot," he instructed. "You don't mind being a middle blocker, do you?"

I shook my head with a smile. "As long as I can play, I don't care what position. I'm just glad that I'm good at that position." The boys all laughed and Tetsu patted my back. I then turned to Inuoka. "Sorry that you won't get to play with me."

Inuoka shook his head with a wide smile. "Getting to watch the Alley Cat play at all is an honor."

I sweat dropped and rubbed my neck as I turned to the third and second years. "You all need to stop hyping me up so much. You make me out to be a legend."

"Stop being so down on yourself," Yaku scolded. "Just because you haven't been playing, that doesn't mean that you're bad. You've been practicing and training with Karasuno, right?" I blinked at him, realizing he was right. "You've got this Kiki."

I smiled at Yaku. "When did you get good a motivational speeches, demon-sempai?"

He only laughed at my tease. I was one of the only ones that could get away with calling him that. We all then turned back to Coach Nekomata for the lineup. I was going to be up front on the vanguard first, while Tetsu would be in the back. We all got into our spots with Karasuno across from us.

I smiled, knowing that they were going to be watching me to see how well I could play. It was going to be interesting. I knew how they were going to be, and they didn't know how I could play in an actual game.

"Kiki," Tora's voice drew me to where he stood to my left. He turned to me with a wicked smile. "I know that they're your team now, but let's crush this."

I gave him a wicked smile in return. "Just like old times."