hotmtlnovel Chapter 203: Command (Double-Length)
Chapter 203: Command (Double-Length)
The Reserve Team had taken the lead once again!
"Again?"
"He can even coordinate like this with Kageyama?"
"But we haven't seen them do that before..."
Even Coach Fuki Hibarida was caught off guard. "Is he trying to influence the team's setters?"
"Huh? What do you mean?" Coach Kobayashi asked with interest.
Hibarida pondered for a moment before responding slowly, "Kaedehara Taichi is already an outstanding first-year. His physical attributes are solid, and his offensive skills are well-rounded."
"However, compared to those two second-years, his individual techniques aren't as specialized. His setting and receiving are somewhat lacking. And most noticeably, when he's without a setter who knows his playstyle, his movements on the court aren't as fluid as they appeared in the footage we watched."
"Is that so?" Kobayashi stroked his chin. "But from what I see now, that doesn't seem entirely accurate."
Hibarida chuckled. "Of course. There's one key factor—he's incredibly smart. From the moment he stepped onto the court, he's been thinking non-stop, and that's a rare trait among spikers."
"Perhaps, surrounded by players stronger than himself, his thoughts were initially limited to his own play and hadn't yet expanded to the team as a whole. But now, it looks like he's trying to seize control of the team's command."
Hearing Hibarida's analysis, Kobayashi also laughed.
"A team assembled at the last minute, with players of vastly different personalities...uniting them quickly is no easy task."
"But he hasn't been directly instructing his teammates. Maybe it's not because the players around him are too strong—perhaps, he just isn't in the habit of taking command." Hibari gestured toward the Youth National Team's front row.
"After all, his school teammate is Oikawa Tōru. That kid is a natural-born commander."
The stronger his teammates, the stronger he became.
Discovering Oikawa Tōru might just be the greatest asset the Youth National Team gained this time.
-----
Sakusa Kiyoomi served for the third time.
If receiving the ball from below makes it hard to control the spin, then intercept it before its trajectory changes!
Oikawa Tōru leapt from the front row, reaching high to cushion the ball.
Smack!
Oikawa couldn't fully control it—the force of the serve sent the ball rebounding backwards.
"Iizuna!" Oikawa called out.
With two setters on the court, why not take full advantage?
Before Oikawa even finished speaking, Iizuna Tsukasa had already positioned himself.
—Whoosh!
The ball arced high towards the right wing. When playing with this team of monsters, the pass doesn't need to be perfect—it just needs to be high and stable.
Ushijima Wakatoshi jumped from the front row.
"Triple block!"
The Reserve Team's front-row trio sprang up to block.
Right in front of Ushijima, Sakusa locked down the straight shot. On the diagonal, Kaedehara Taichi was in position. And in the middle, Komori Motoya was stationed, anchoring the defence.
The entire team was fully focused on defending him!
Boom!!!
A wipe shot!
The ball grazed Kageyama Tobio's fingertips and slammed into the back row!
Smack!
Komori reacted immediately, but the impact momentarily stunned him. The ball veered right, heading out of bounds.
Sakusa Kiyoomi lunged, managing to send it back over the net.
But someone was already waiting there.
Oikawa Tōru jumped effortlessly, slamming the ball straight down.
Bang!
The Reserve Team, still reeling from Ushijima's attack, had no time to react.
Oikawa scored.
[Reserve Team 7 - 7 Youth National Team]
"Hey, Ushijima-chan~ that's two spikes in a row you couldn't score on~" Oikawa grinned smugly.
"Hmm." Ushijima remained expressionless.
The score was tied again, and even the players watching from the sidelines held their breath.
It was brutal.
Every single point was hard-fought.
And despite the tie, the Youth National Team exuded an air of control, whereas the Reserve Team already looked like they were throwing out every trick they had.
Yet the players on the court didn't seem pressured or anxious.
Judging by their eyes, they looked like they were enjoying a feast.
The serve switched—Washio Tatsuki stepped up.
Komori Motoya delivered a perfect first touch.
Hoshiumi Kōrai leaped from the middle.
"Double block!"
Ushijima and Fukurodani's Bokuto jumped.
But Hoshiumi faked the spike, setting the ball to the left instead.
Boom!
Kaedehara Taichi drove a sharp cross-court spike.
Smack!
The Youth National Team, just about to transition into defence, suddenly froze.
The ball rebounded right in front of Bokuto Kōtarō, bouncing off him.
[Reserve Team 8 - 7 Youth National Team]
???
What just happened???@@@@
Everyone on the Reserve Team—except Kaedehara Taichi—looked confused. That was way too easy.
The first to recover was Fukurodani's Washio, followed by the teammates who had been training with Bokuto these past few days.
Ah.
Here it comes again...
Bokuto Kōtarō's emo mode.
"Beep!" The Youth National Team called for a substitution—Inarizaki's Ojiro Aran IN, Bokuto Kōtarō OUT.
Without his personal owl caretaker, Akaashi Keiji, and with the Youth National Team being different from Fukurodani, Fuki Hibarida didn't hesitate to sub Bokuto out at the first sign of a mood drop.
Washio felt a twinge of sympathy, but he knew this was the best decision for the team.
Kaedehara Taichi had noticed the momentary, childlike confusion on Bokuto's face.
He didn't know exactly why it happened—too many possible reasons.
Maybe he failed to block Hoshiumi's spike.
As a setter, handling a ball dropping from such a height was the ultimate challenge.
"Right wing, give me the ball."
Sakusa Kiyoomi's voice was calm as ever.
As the ball descended, Atsumu's heart pounded, but he didn't hesitate.
With a swift motion, he stretched out his arms, absorbing the impact as he set the ball.
—Whoosh
No double-contact violation!
The ball shot toward the right wing—though a bit low.
Sakusa Kiyoomi leapt up.
In front of him—
Oikawa Tōru and Ushijima Wakatoshi's block loomed large, their hands forming an impenetrable wall over the ball!
Bang!
Sakusa remained composed. He deliberately angled the spike off Oikawa's upper palm—
Smack!
A high-difficulty rebound shot!
"Again!"
Komori Motoya had already repositioned.
Pa!
A clean pass, lofting the ball high to the left side.
Boom!
Hoshiumi Kōrai's figure appeared in midair.
Washio Tatsuki tracked him closely—
Bang!
A deep cross-court spike landed just past the baseline behind Ojiro Aran.
[Reserve Team 18 – 18 Youth National Team]
Komori exhaled deeply. Thank god—
One serve rotation from Kiryū was all it took.
That was terrifying. If he hadn't reflexively raised his arms just now, that serve might have blasted straight into his head—
And then he wouldn't need to worry about the rest of this training camp.
-----
Now, it was Sakusa Kiyoomi's turn to serve.
Boom!
His first serve targeted Ojiro Aran, curving sharply mid-air before dropping between him and Iizuna Tsukasa.
[Reserve Team 19 – 18 Youth National Team]
Second serve—
Iizuna Tsukasa stepped up to receive, but the ball deflected off his arms and sailed out of bounds.
[Reserve Team 20 – 18 Youth National Team]
Third serve—
Iizuna finally received it cleanly.
On the left side, Kiryū Wakatsu was poised to attack.
On the right, Ushijima Wakatoshi was ready to strike.
Oikawa Tōru, suppressing his urge to go for a setter dump, set the ball toward Ojiro Aran, who had been repeatedly targeted.
Boom!
Unexpectedly, Ojiro Aran launched a powerful back-row attack—scoring directly!
[Reserve Team 20 – 19 Youth National Team]
As he landed, Oikawa grinned and high-fived Aran.
Ojiro Aran suddenly thought—
Even though he couldn't banter as freely as he did with Miya Atsumu, playing like this—
Comfortably, without pressure—wasn't bad at all.
—
The Japan Youth National Team rotated to serve.
Washio Tatsuki's jump serve was smoothly received by Sakusa Kiyoomi.
Kageyama Tobio—
Faked a set.
And went for a setter dump straight at Oikawa Tōru!
[Reserve Team 21 – 19 Youth National Team]
"Ka—ge—ya—ma!" Oikawa ground his teeth. "You're really something, huh?!"
"Thank you, Oikawa-senpai!" Kageyama replied sincerely.
As the two setters continued their battle—
Another setter stepped onto the service line.
Dual-Wielder Miya Atsumu stepped up to the service line!
This was another showdown against Oikawa.
Though he hadn't had many opportunities to shine yet, that was fine.
Last time, the area where he lost to Oikawa was—serving.
Now, he had the perfect chance to make up for it.
—
Atsumu took six steps back.
"Does that even matter anymore? Everyone already knows..." Ojiro Aran muttered from the other side, internally roasting him.
Atsumu tossed the ball, took his approach, and struck—
BOOM!
"Huh?" Ojiro Aran blinked.
Atsumu's serve—
Flew out of bounds.
[Reserve Team 21 – 20 Youth National Team]
"Tsumu, you idiot!!!" Ojiro roared.
_________
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