"Huh?"
"I know that person!"
Looking at the group of people from Karasuno, Akiteru Tsukishima said with some surprise.
"Who?"
Udai Tenma looked puzzled.
"Tsukishima-senpai, you still recognize the current Karasuno players?"
"It's not that."
Akiteru Tsukishima shook his head slightly.
"I mean their current coach."
"The guy with the blonde hair!"
"Speaking of which, you should know him too!"
"Huh?"
Udai Tenma was confused.
"I..."
He racked his brain, but still couldn't recall the person standing in front of the bench.
"I don't know him!"
"His name is Keishin Ukai! He was also in the volleyball club back then, just a few years older than me."
"He's the grandson of Coach Ikkei Ukai!"
"What?"
"Ukai... Coach Ukai's grandson??"
At the mention of Coach Ukai, Udai Tenma suddenly trembled.
It was under Coach Ukai that he completed his transformation.
Therefore, for this strict, intense coach, he had more respect than anyone!
"This..."
Udai Tenma said in disbelief:
"To think that Coach Ukai's grandson has come to Karasuno to coach now!"
"No wonder... Karasuno's results are so good this year!"
"I bet Coach Ukai must be guiding him behind the scenes!"
"Ahem!"
Akiteru Tsukishima cleared his throat lightly and corrected:
"Whether or not the old coach is guiding him, I don't know."
"But according to what Kei and I have said, the reason Karasuno is so strong this year is because they've got an incredible guy on the team."
"Incredible guy... huh?"
Udai Tenma paused for a moment, then chuckled:
"Even if he's amazing, he can't be the only reason Karasuno's doing so well!"
"I still think it's because Coach Ukai is secretly supporting them!"
Akiteru Tsukishima didn't argue further.
In truth, he also had some doubts in his heart.
But knowing his younger brother's personality...
If he said someone was strong, then that person likely wasn't weak.
That said, Akiteru hadn't watched many of Karasuno's matches, so he didn't know much about the current team firsthand.
"Well!"
"Whatever the case, we'll just have to keep watching!"
...
While they were talking, the match on the court had already begun.
It's no exaggeration to say that Inarizaki is a strong contender for this year's championship.
The passes from their setter, Atsumu Miya, were absolutely suffocating.
He's known as the strongest setter among high school sophomores—not just because of hype!
It's a title he's earned with every serve and set!
After watching the match for a while, even Kageyama on the sidelines had to admit:
Atsumu Miya's setting is insanely good!
And when it comes to teamwork, he and his twin brother Osamu Miya have a rhythm all their own.
The two of them always seem perfectly in sync!
Leaving the defense across the net completely helpless!
Their opponents this time, Ichibayashi High, were no slouches either.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have made it to the top eight in a national tournament packed with powerhouse schools!
In this match against Inarizaki, they only fell slightly behind.
Most of the time, both teams were neck and neck!
In the end, it took three grueling sets before the match was decided.
Inarizaki 2:1 Ichibayashi!
Inarizaki barely edged out the victory!
And with that, they advanced to the national semifinals!!
Just as Inarizaki wrapped up their third set, the Karasuno team began their warm-ups.
There wasn't much downtime between matches—they were called to the court almost immediately!
At the same time, from across the venue, Inubushi Higashi's team began to file in as well.
"Phew..."
"When there were a bunch of teams, it didn't feel like this..."
"But now that there's only one match left on this court, the pressure really hits you all at once."
Yokoyama, the team's main attacker and only first-year, muttered.
This was his first time on the national stage.
"Hahaha! Don't worry!"
Yōsuke Fumizuki smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
"If you're nervous, imagine how nervous the Karasuno players must be!"
"This is their first time on the national stage in five years!"
"In other words, their whole team is full of rookies, just like you!"
"Exactly!"
Keiichi Daigo grinned and added:
"We're going to be playing on Center Court next!"
"If you're this nervous already, you might just pee your pants out there!"
"Y-yeah..."
Yokoyama's voice trembled slightly.
"Are we really... allowed to play in a place like that?"
"I never even dreamed of it before..."
Hearing that, the others fell silent for a moment.
"We will."
Fumizuki's tone was calm but resolute, his gaze fixed on Karasuno across the net.
"There's only one match left."
"If we can beat the team in front of us... we'll be on that court!!"
...
Meanwhile, up in the stands, Kuroo and the others were watching the preparations with growing impatience.
"Hey, has there been any news from Fukurōdani's side?"
Kuroo asked, sounding bored as he stared at the court.
"Hmm..."
Hearing this, Yamamoto checked his phone again.
"Nothing yet!"
"Guess their match isn't over."
"But it should be wrapping up soon."
At that moment, Kai suddenly said:
"You don't think... something went wrong?"
As soon as those words came out, everyone around him went quiet.
"It won't!"
Kuroo rubbed his chin, speaking with some hesitation:
"As long as Bokuto plays like he normally does, then they'll definitely—"
Halfway through the sentence, he suddenly paused.
Not just Kuroo—the rest of Nekoma's crew were stunned too.
"Bokuto..."
"Accident..."
"Ah-haha..."
Kai chuckled nervously.