The timeout ended quickly.
Both teams returned to the court.
After scoring several points in a row, the ball was still in Sengoku's possession.
The eighth rally began with Sengoku's serve. As usual, it was steadily received by Kitagawa's ace, and the ball was set into the hands of their setter, Tobio Kageyama.
"Are they planning a change in their offensive pattern? Or maybe they'll stick with quick attacks to dodge our blockers?"
Standing at the net, Akashi Asuka kept his eyes locked on Kageyama's fingers. In the next moment, the ball flew sharply from the setter's hands. Seeing this, Asuka instinctively gave up on blocking the opposing middle blocker and dashed sideways toward Kindaichi.
Thud!
But this time,
Asuka had just started moving when a dull thump echoed through the court. He turned his head, only to see the ball already on the floor of their own side.
The sudden shift in play left Sengoku's team frozen in place.
"What a frustrating opponent…"
Asuka glanced down at where the ball had landed. A faint smirk formed at the corner of his mouth as he turned to face the other side, only to meet a pair of eyes filled with smugness and challenge.
…
Score: 4–4
"Whoa! That was close! I almost missed that one. Hey, Kageyama! How many times do I have to tell you, stop pulling those crazy sets during a match!" Though they'd scored, Kindaichi wasn't the least bit excited. Instead, he shouted in irritation.
In the end, Tobio Kageyama hadn't taken the coach's advice. He still refused to trust his teammates.
Instead, he chose a different path as a setter, he sped up his sets. If the opponents could catch up with their current quick attacks, then he'd just make it faster, fast enough that their blockers couldn't keep up.
To be honest,
This kind of reckless setting would never be allowed on most teams.
After all, the volleyball offense relies heavily on precise coordination. Especially the rhythm between the setter and hitters, which usually takes months, or even longer, to perfect. If one side suddenly changes the pace, it can easily throw off the entire play.
But Kageyama, with his raw talent, still managed to deliver a perfect set. So even though the rhythm was off, Kindaichi barely managed to get the ball over the blockers.
"So even at that speed, they can still follow through? In that case… maybe I can push it even faster next time."
Unfazed by Kindaichi's scolding, Kageyama didn't respond. Instead, he was already lost in his own world, calculating how to execute the next play.
Seeing Kageyama ignore him completely, Kindaichi flew into a rage and looked ready to charge at him, but Kunimi and a few teammates held him back just in time.
"Hey! Kageyama, did you even hear me? You bastard, !"
…
"Uh… are they gonna be okay over there?"
"They'll manage, probably."
"Let's not worry about them. We've got our own problems. Rather than getting distracted, let's focus on how to handle the next few plays."
The commotion from the opposing side drew the attention of Sengoku's team, but Oda Miki quickly brought them back on track.
The next few rotations would be the real challenge.
Because if Sengoku scored just one more point and regained the serve, they'd rotate positions again. And that would mean Akashi Asuka moving to the back row.
As both their top attacker and main blocker, Asuka carried a heavy burden.
Forget offense for a moment, once he rotated to the back, only Oomae Masato and Jujiro Kazama would be left up front with any blocking power. But against Kitagawa's quick attacks, their blocking presence was almost negligible.
And that wasn't the only problem.
Once Asuka rotated out, Sengoku's overall offense, blocking, and even their receiving and defense would all take a hit.
After all, aside from spiking and blocking, Asuka hadn't even brought his other basic volleyball skills up to a passable level yet.
To make matters worse, Sengoku didn't have any suitable substitutes available, so replacing him wasn't an option either.
Tweet!
The referee's whistle signaled the start of the ninth rally. Kitagawa served again.
Sengoku's libero received the ball, Ryuhei Sanashita set it, and Kazama went in for the spike, only to be blocked.
Score: 4–5
Tenth rally.
After receiving Kitagawa's serve, Sengoku reorganized and launched an attack. Asuka feinted around the block and landed a powerful spike.
Score: 5–5
Sengoku regained serve. The team rotated.
Akashi Asuka moved to the back right, position 1.
That meant it was his turn to serve.
With a serve rating of 51.7 on the stat board, Asuka's abilities were… well, let's say barely functional. Power, speed, accuracy, spin, he was practically a beginner in everything.
The only thing he could manage was serving the ball in bounds.
Wham!
Kitagawa received the serve, quickly set up a play, and their ace spiked it straight toward Asuka, scoring a point immediately.
Score: 5–6
Twelfth rally.
Once again, they targeted Asuka, and scored again.
Score: 5–7
Thirteenth rally.
Kitagawa kept aiming at Asuka. This time, he managed to scrape the ball up, but it flew straight to the other side. Their opponents seized the chance, organized quickly, and spiked it home.
Score: 5–8
Fourteenth rally.
Kitagawa made a serving error. Sengoku got a free point.
Asuka rotated clockwise from position 1 to center-back, position 6.
The sixteenth, seventeenth, eighteenth rallies…
Time marched on. The teams exchanged blows, and the gap narrowed and widened repeatedly. But overall, Sengoku remained at a disadvantage.
Twenty-three minutes into the second set,
Score: 19–24
Set point for Kitagawa.
The situation couldn't be worse, and right then, it was time for their setter, Tobio Kageyama, to serve.
And just as badly timed, Akashi Asuka had rotated to the back row.
Even with all the match experience Asuka had from his previous life, the pressure pressing down on him now was immense.
There was no hiding it.
Standing in the back row, his eyes locked with Kageyama's across the net. In that instant, he knew.
The serve would be coming straight at him.
There was no retreat. Behind him was a cliff.
This rally would decide everything.
…
"Huuuh…"
Exhaling slowly, Kageyama stood behind the baseline. He gently tossed the ball into the air, took a few steps forward, jumped, wound up, and,
BOOM!
With a deafening impact, the serve thundered across the net, straight toward Akashi Asuka.
In Sengoku's backcourt,
From the moment Kageyama began his approach, Asuka's focus had locked onto the ball. As it flew toward him, it was as if time slowed around him.
He could see every arc, every groove, every rotation.
Tracking its trajectory, he moved into position, bracing himself.
And just like a miracle,
The ball landed squarely on his arms… and bounced away.
Thump… thump… thump… thud… thud… thud…
The volleyball hit the court multiple times, echoing through the gym before rolling to a stop, silent, unmoving, much like the stunned expressions on the faces of Sengoku's players.
"TWEEEEET~~~"
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