Haikyuu: Zero To Almighty-Chapter 324: Am I Too Gentle?

Boom!!!—

Kageyama Tobio remained in peak form, his serves showing no signs of losing power.

The ball arced through the air in a perfect trajectory, shooting straight toward Aoba Johsai's back row.

Nakamori Daiki reacted swiftly, predicting the landing point with pinpoint accuracy. The moment the ball made contact with his arms, he adjusted the angle and strength of his wrists according to his expectations.

Smack!

The ball soared high.

"Still a little off?" Nakamori Daiki thought to himself.

"Cover!"

The ball remained in Aoba Johsai's court, prompting Yahaba Shigeru to step in and set it toward the left wing.

Kaedehara Taichi leaped up for the spike.

"Three-man block!"

Tanaka Ryūnosuke, Kita Seio, and Hinata Shōyō jumped together, their timing disorderly.

Boom!

The ball squeezed through a gap between Kita Seio and Hinata Shōyō's hands.

"Move!" Kageyama Tobio roared internally. "If we give away the serve so easily, this set will be over!"

Smack!

Nishinoya Yū flung himself forward, diving to keep the ball alive.

"Kageyama!"

"Nice receive!" Kageyama Tobio ran into position and leaped. "You know why you're on the court, right, Hinata?!"

Hinata Shōyō was already in midair on the right side.

"This kind of reckless set…?" Taichi, just landing from his attack, witnessed the outrageous play unfold.

"Not happening!"

Yūki Yōji jumped for the block, fully alert. Throughout Kaedehara Taichi's attack, he had remained wary of Karasuno's counterplay.

Hinata Shōyō's eyes locked onto an empty spot in Aoba Johsai's back row. He adjusted his hand and sent the ball in that direction, avoiding the blockers.

Bang!

Too fast!

Yūki Yōji had sensed Hinata Shōyō's shot trajectory but couldn't react in time to block it.

Smack!

Just when the ball was about to land in an unguarded area, a hand shot out from the left side, intercepting its path.

The ball struck Nakamori Daiki's arm and deflected out of bounds.

Hinata Shōyō scored with his spike.

[Aoba Johsai 21 - 19 Karasuno]

Ukai Keishin's eyes were locked onto the court. There was an undeniable gap in skill between Karasuno and Aoba Johsai. If there was anything capable of closing that gap and making victory possible…

It could only be them.

The Freak Duo: Hinata Shōyō and Kageyama Tobio!

"Taichi, thanks!" Nakamori Daiki's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Indoor volleyball is really fun!"

[Nakamori Daiki—Libero: Overall Rating: 88.8 Height: 168 cm, Strength: 80, Jump: 95, Stamina: 90, Speed: 95; Key Attributes:Serve: 88, Set: 88, Receive: 90, Spike: 85.]

Kaedehara Taichi chuckled at his teammate's enthusiasm. "Glad to hear it."

Nakamori Daiki shifted his gaze to the opposing Freak Duo before finally locking onto Hinata Shōyō.

"Hinata-senpai, bring it on!"

Hinata Shōyō froze. This was the first time someone outside his school had called him Senpai!

"Idiot, what are you spacing out for? Don't tell me you got scared?" Kageyama Tobio grumbled.

"I didn't!" Hinata Shōyō shot Kageyama a glare.

At last, he felt like he was truly competing against Aoba Johsai on equal footing.

"Tweet!—"

The whistle blew as Kageyama Tobio prepared his second serve.

Boom!!—

An incredibly sharp serve!

Smack!

The ball struck Kyōtani Kentarō's arm and deflected out of bounds.

"Taichi!!!"

The moment Nakamori Daiki rushed to chase the ball toward the sidelines, Kaedehara Taichi reacted instinctively.

Thud!

Kaedehara Taichi sprinted and leaped.

The ball was veering too far to the right!

It missed his reach by a wide margin.

The ball weakly grazed his waist before landing outside Aoba Johsai's boundary.

Taichi: "…"

Nakamori Daiki's errant receive led to a Karasuno point.

[Aoba Johsai 21 - 20 Karasuno]

The score difference was down to just one!

"Ahem, um…That was a tough distance to cover," Nakamori Daiki said sheepishly.

"You sure had a lot of confidence shouting my name." Taichi gave him a sidelong glance.

"That was my bad," Kyōtani Kentarō admitted bluntly.

Kunimi Akira was slightly surprised. He'd noticed that ever since Kyōtani became a third-year, he'd taken more responsibility for mistakes, embodying his role as a senior player.

"It's fine! Next play!" Yahaba Shigeru encouraged. "We can't let Karasuno tie the score!"

"Right!"

Kageyama Tobio launched his third serve, this time targeting Kunimi Akira.

Boom!

"This guy really distributes his serves evenly!"

Smack!

"Cover!" Kunimi Akira steadied the ball.

Kaedehara Taichi stepped in and set it toward the middle. Yūki Yōji leaped for the spike.

"Double block!" Kita Seio and Hinata Shōyō jumped together.

Boom!

Smack!

"One-touch!" Kita Seio called out.

As soon as Hinata Shōyō landed, he sprinted to the right. Kaedehara Taichi followed.

Kageyama Tobio jumped and set the ball.

Whoosh!—

"If it's here, I should be able to—!"

Hinata Shōyō swung his arm with full force, aiming to avoid Kaedehara Taichi's reach.

Thud!

Kaedehara Taichi's arm fell short—the ball soared past him.

Smack!

"Finally got it!"

Aoba Johsai's second line of defense, Nakamori Daiki, kept the ball alive.

Yahaba Shigeru rushed in to set the ball. Kunimi Akira prepared for a back-row attack.

Boom!

Smack!

The ball struck Nishinoya Yū's arm and flew backward.

Smack!

Ennoshita Chikara quickly followed up, keeping the ball in play. Kageyama Tobio, positioned in the back row, leaped and sent a powerful spike over the net.

"Chance ball!"

Nakamori Daiki received it cleanly, sending the ball toward the net.

Kaedehara Taichi jumped.

Tanaka Ryūnosuke also jumped to block.

Taichi: "?"

Boom!!!—

The ball accelerated in an instant, slamming fiercely into the center of Karasuno's court.

Kaedehara Taichi had scored with his spike.

[Aoba Johsai 22 - 20 Karasuno]

"A single blocker? Am I being too gentle?" Kaedehara Taichi muttered in confusion.

Ennoshita Chikara stood frozen. For a split second, he had actually believed he could receive that ball.

Karasuno had assumed there was no issue with a single blocker just now. After all, Aoba Johsai's first touch had been slightly close to the net, and Kaedehara Taichi's approach hadn't looked like a full-power attack. With Tanaka Ryūnosuke blocking and both Nishinoya Yū and Ennoshita Chikara watching the ball closely, they hadn't expected Kaedehara Taichi to strike so aggressively.

"Give me the ball." Kaedehara Taichi spoke calmly. "It's time to end this."

Aoba Johsai took possession of the serve.

Kaedehara Taichi stepped onto the service line.

Karasuno could sense something had shifted in Aoba Johsai's atmosphere, but they couldn't quite explain why.

Kaedehara Taichi tossed the ball into the air.

Boom!!!—

"I got it!"

Smack!

Kageyama Tobio barely managed to receive the serve.

"Unbelievable. He's serving even better than at the start of the match!"

The ball bounced back into Aoba Johsai's court.

"Chance ball!" Nakamori Daiki called out, making a perfect first touch.

Yahaba Shigeru sent the ball smoothly to the left wing.

"With such a perfect opportunity, they're not going for a second attack?"

Aoba Johsai's strategy had suddenly shifted, catching Karasuno off guard. Still, this made it easier for Karasuno to organize their blockers.

Karasuno's front row shifted left in preparation. Aoba Johsai's front-row attacker, Yūki Yōji, moved aside.

Kaedehara Taichi began his approach from the backline.

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"Watch out! It's a back-row attack!"

BAM!

Kaedehara Taichi took his final step just behind the three-meter line, his left foot quickly following. With a powerful push-off, he launched himself upward. His body stretched to its full extent midair, and at the peak of his jump, he swung his arm forward with explosive force.

"Three-man block!"

Tanaka Ryūnosuke, Kita Seio, and Hinata Shōyō jumped simultaneously.

BOOM!!!—

Karasuno's towering wall was shattered in an instant.

The ball squeezed through the gap between Tanaka Ryūnosuke and Kita Seio, drilling into the center of Karasuno's court.

Kaedehara Taichi had scored another spike.

[Aoba Johsai 23 - 20 Karasuno]

Karasuno finally understood the source of the shift in Aoba Johsai's momentum.

This—this was the Kaedehara Taichi who had defeated them countless times before.

Standing at the closest distance to witness the spike, Yūki Yōji even felt the air tremble from the impact.

"So strong…"

But Kaedehara Taichi wasn't just overpowering their blockers with sheer strength.

Kaedehara Taichi walked back to the service line, his expression cold.

Boom!—

The second serve cut through the air like a lightning bolt.

Smack!

Nishinoya Yū thought it was flying out of bounds, but at the last moment, the ball curved and dropped perfectly into Karasuno's back corner.

"Side-spin?! He still has different types of serves?!"

Nishinoya Yū's face was filled with shock.

Kaedehara Taichi had scored with an ace.

[Aoba Johsai 24 - 20 Karasuno]

The match had taken a sudden, dramatic turn.

Karasuno's spirits, which had been at their highest just moments ago, plummeted to rock bottom.

Was this…the real Aoba Johsai?

Was this…the real Kaedehara Taichi?

Even the first-years watching from the sidelines had fallen silent. Kaedehara Taichi's strength was beyond their imagination.

Boom!!!—

Kaedehara Taichi launched his third serve.

Smack!

Nishinoya Yū managed to receive it.

"Save it!"

Kageyama Tobio had already sprinted past the sideline to chase the ball. He knew that—right now, every single one of Aoba Johsai's attacks was a crisis.

Whoosh!—

The ball sailed toward the left wing. Tanaka Ryūnosuke leaped for the spike.

"Three-man block!"

Yūki Yōji, Yahaba Shigeru, and Kyōtani Kentarō jumped, sealing off the cross-court angle completely.

"You're really giving me this much respect, huh…?"

By prioritizing blocking the cross, Aoba Johsai had left Tanaka Ryūnosuke an open straight-line shot. But waiting there was—

Kaedehara Taichi.

Tanaka Ryūnosuke swung his arm down.

Boom!!!

Smack!

"Damn, that hurt!"

The ball struck Kaedehara Taichi's arm and bounced high.

Kunimi Akira swiftly moved into position.

"Kunimi!"

Taichi steadied himself and ran toward the net.

"I got it, I got it," Kunimi Akira muttered in his usual disinterested tone, but his eyes gleamed with excitement.

Whoosh—!

BAM!

The ball soared toward the left wing. Kaedehara Taichi leaped once more with full force.

"One, two—jump!"

"Three-man block!"

With Tanaka Ryūnosuke's shout, Karasuno's triple block was perfectly synchronized for the first time.

Boom!!!

A left-handed spike!

Karasuno had assumed that after Oikawa Tōru left, this technique was as unusable as their quick attack without Kageyama.

The ball shot past Tanaka Ryūnosuke's left side, heading straight for Karasuno's back row.

Nishinoya Yū reacted instantly, stepping onto the boundary line to receive it.

Karasuno had prepared well for straight-line shots, too.

Smack!

The ball struck Nishinoya Yū's arm—

—and flew out of bounds.

Kaedehara Taichi had scored with his spike.

[Aoba Johsai 25 - 20 Karasuno]

"Tweet—!"

The first set was over.

Winner: Aoba Johsai.

_________

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