Creak!
The referee's whistle blew, and everyone on Matsukawa Tech gasped, their eyes instinctively turning to the giant screen outside the court.
Karasuno 24:15 Matsukawa Tech!!
Karasuno only needed one more point!
If they scored it, the match would be over!
Sweat dripped down their foreheads.
And on the opposite side of the net, in their line of sight...
The figure of Karasuno's No. 7—Akira—seemed to rise higher and higher, looming like a giant.
No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't shake him!
But!
The result and the process are two completely different things!
Only if you fight to the very end do you have the right to say you lost!
If you give up halfway, you can only be called a deserter!
"One more point!"
"The next point could be ours!"
"One more play! Maybe we can score again!"
"Maybe we can pull this game back??"
"How do you know it won't work if you don't try??"
"If I give up like this, I'll definitely regret it forever!"
"One more point!!"
Creak!
The referee's whistle sounded again!
The server in Karasuno's back row was already in position!
At that moment, Hiroshi Nishikai's arms began to tremble slightly.
But he knew he could still fight!
He had to fight!
Now was not the time to give up!
Smack!
Seeing the serve fly from the other side of the net, Nishikai's eyes widened!
It was coming right to him!
He slid to the left and received the ball steadily!
A perfect pass—not a hint of spin!
Haruto Kyunai had already reached the front row, positioning himself under the ball!
He had three options:
Left-wing spiker! Right-wing ace! Middle blocker!
And on the other side of the net, the sight of Karasuno's No. 7—Akira—put tremendous pressure on him.
Earlier in the match, under Akira's gaze, his sets had been read and blocked countless times!
Now, Kyunai just wanted to bypass Akira's block!
Even once!!
The rest of the team had fought so hard—how could he, as setter, be the one to hold them back?
As that thought filled his head, his peripheral vision caught movement.
Akira suddenly shifted slightly to the left side of the court!
Kyunai's heart jumped. He was about to send the ball to the right wing!
But at the last second, he hesitated!
Because something inside him—his setter's intuition—screamed:
It's a trap!
If he passed to the right, Akira would surely be in position before their attacker could even jump!
On the other side of the net, Akira's eyes flickered with surprise!
He had begun to shift toward the right, but now he stopped.
If this were earlier in the match, Kyunai would have fallen for that trick.
But now, at the end of the game, he'd seen through it.
In that moment of hesitation, Kyunai launched the ball to the left!
And it was fast!
Crunch!
Akira's feet moved instantly!
But on the opposite side, Nishikai had already leapt into the air!
Karasuno's captain, Sawamura, had also jumped to block!
But there was still a clear opening in the sideline path of Nishikai's spike!
With no one there to cover, it was a dangerous vulnerability!
From the back row, Nishinoya and the others gritted their teeth, staring at the open space!
We have to stop it!
Nishikai saw the gap too!
While still in the air, he smashed the ball with everything he had toward the open lane!
Because that was the only hope they had left!
Boom!
In that critical moment, a pair of strong hands flew in from the side!
It was Akira!
He had arrived a second later than ideal, but he still made it in time!!
Smack!
"He touched it!!"
Akira turned what could have been a game-losing point into an opportunity for Karasuno!
"Mine!" Nishinoya shouted from the back row!
He smoothly passed the ball to Kageyama!
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, Kageyama set the final ball to Akira!
"Here it comes!" Nishikai shouted!
There was no need to explain—every time they faced a spike from Karasuno's No. 7, Matsukawa Tech felt like they were facing a giant.
Even then, the number of times they managed to receive his spikes was limited.
As Akira swung his arm, the players of Matsukawa Tech could only see a shadow streak across the air!
Bang!
Rishi Akikawa tried to receive it!
But his arm barely brushed the ball!
Akira's spike bounced high after making contact, flying out toward the sidelines!
And in the helpless eyes of everyone on Matsukawa Tech, the ball landed cleanly on the court!
Creak!
The match was over!!
Winner: Karasuno High School!!
"We won!!"
The first to cheer were Nishinoya and the others!
This was already their second victory in the Nationals!
As long as they kept winning, they could keep going!
They could continue meeting stronger opponents! And fight them!!
And this time, they were lucky enough to win again!
They could stay in this arena just a little longer!!
Victory had smiled on them once again!!
"Let's keep winning from here on out!!"
"Yeah!!"
...
On the other side of the net, as the final score froze on the screen...
Haruto Kyunai collapsed onto the court, completely drained.
"Phew..."
"It's finally over."
"Time to go, stinky brat!"
The Matsukawa Tech players gathered around him, and Hiroshi Nishikai grinned.
"Not bad today!"
"That last set was beautiful!"
"What good is that? I still couldn't get it past their No. 7 blocker!"
Kyunai sighed heavily.
"As expected... people like me can't compete with geniuses."
"Wrong!"
This time, Nishikai didn't stop him from speaking such downcast words.
Instead, along with the others, he pulled him to his feet, and they slowly walked off the court.
"Didn't you notice?"
"When you made that set, Karasuno's No. 7 was surprised."
"Haruto, you're not ordinary. You're a genius."
"That's why we can entrust the team to you."
"Huh? You're not playing anymore?"
"I told you already, third-years only go as far as Nationals."
"From Spring High onwards, the team's all yours."
"Then..."
Kyunai's voice trembled slightly.
"Won't you regret it if today was your last game?"
"Hahaha!"
"Quite the opposite!"
"We're beyond satisfied with this tournament!!"
...
Matsukawa Tech, IH National Tournament: Eliminated in the Second Round!!