Although he didn't understand what Senior Oikawa meant by "being complacent," he did understand the rest — a new offensive strategy was necessary!
Kageyama Tobio stood frozen in place, deep in thought, not even noticing that Oikawa Tooru and Iwaizumi Hajime had already left.
"Shouyou, are you okay?" Kaedehara Taichi looked at the now-silent Hinata Shouyou, who had lowered his head.
Jeez, that Kageyama guy really has no emotional intelligence — Hinata was right in front of him, and he still shouted so loudly.
"I'm fine. I know my skills still need a lot of work," Hinata looked up, though his face still held a trace of unwillingness to accept it.
"Actually, I couldn't sleep at all last night after seeing your message!" Hinata suddenly brightened up again, cheerful as always. "Can you tell me more about Senior Nakajima Takeshi?"
"Let's not talk about Senior Nakajima for now. I actually know the 'Little Giant,' too," Kaedehara Taichi casually dropped a bombshell.
"Huh? Really? That's so cool!" Hinata looked at Kaedehara with eyes full of admiration.
Wahaha, that's the exact reaction I wanted! Nakajima is too mature to get this kind of fanboy excitement. Kaedehara Taichi's vanity was completely satisfied.
"I first saw the Spring High tournament live on TV when I was in elementary school…" Hinata fell into a nostalgic tone.
"And it happened to be a Karasuno match, and you saw the 'Little Giant,' right?" Kaedehara picked up the rest of the story.
"How'd you know?" Hinata asked in surprise.
Because I know you too well, Kaedehara thought silently.
"Because I saw the 'Little Giant's' match too. Plus, your height makes it easy to connect the dots," Kaedehara smiled.
"Wow, Taichi, you're so smart!"
Ahh, he's dazzling. This must be the power of the little sun. Keep complimenting me, I'm loving this.
"So, what's the 'Little Giant' like?" Hinata asked eagerly.
"He's really strong. I learned a move from him — aerial combat."
"'Aerial combat'! That sounds amazing!" Hinata suddenly remembered the reason he came to Aoba Johsai today. "I want to learn how to fight at the 'highest point!'"
"Eh? With me?" Kaedehara was a little flustered — his current skill level wasn't exactly something to show off.
"Haha, not exactly." Hinata scratched his head. "Our coach taught me a lot already — I just haven't mastered it yet."
"Oh, but I do have a move I can show you," Kaedehara decided to demonstrate the 'Little Giant's' playing style anyway. After all, back then, Tenma Uchinai didn't hold back when showing it to him.
"Really? Master!" Hinata looked at him with sparkling eyes.
Master? Hearing Hinata call him that, Kaedehara couldn't help but grin even wider. Crap, he was starting to want to join Karasuno now.
"Hey, Oikawa-senpai says he wants you to practice spiking." Suddenly, a scary-looking face appeared nearby, speaking stiffly.
"Huh? Why is the Great King asking us to spike here?" Hinata looked at Kageyama in confusion.
Kageyama, annoyed, pulled Hinata aside. "Not you, idiot. I'm calling him."
He pointed at Kaedehara Taichi.
…
How should I put it? I used to kind of like Kageyama, but man, that emotional intelligence…
Kaedehara pushed Kageyama's hand away. "I don't like people pointing fingers at me. Also, I'm Kaedehara Taichi, a first-year from Aoba Johsai. Hello, Little King! "
"Huh?" Kageyama glared at him upon hearing that nickname.
"Hinata gets to call Oikawa-senpai the 'Great King,' right? So there's nothing wrong with me calling you 'Little King,'" Kaedehara said with a friendly smile.
"Yeah, Kageyama! 'Little King' sounds cool too. I want a cool nickname like that," Hinata chimed in, standing between them again.
"Move, idiot," Kageyama shoved him aside again. "Whatever. Let's spike."
"Of course."
…
Kaedehara and Kageyama stood on the court. Oikawa and Iwaizumi watched from the sidelines. Hinata stood on the opposite side, ready to retrieve balls.
"Little Tobio, just toss the kind of ball you'd give to Hinata. I want to see how Taichi hits it," said Oikawa from the side.
"Yes, Oikawa-senpai!" Kageyama responded, then turned to Kaedehara. "Just jump forward to spike. When you're at your peak, swing your arm — don't hesitate."
"No problem," Kaedehara nodded.
Taking a deep breath, he sprinted from the baseline to the net. Just before the net, he jumped powerfully. His body arced beautifully in the air, and his arm swung forward.
Swish!
The ball brushed past his fingertips and landed out of bounds.
"Sorry, that toss was a bit too high," Kageyama said immediately.
His speed is just a little slower than Hinata's, but despite having the height, his jump isn't strong enough. His spike point is even lower than Hinata's…
Kaedehara noticed a faint hint of pity in Kageyama's eyes and instantly felt irritated.
Second ball.
Kaedehara jumped again. As he leapt, the ball hadn't arrived yet. He couldn't help glancing at Kageyama mid-air.
Swish!
The ball flew by so fast that it passed right in front of him. He completely missed it.
"You swing too slowly," Kageyama now blames Kaedehara.
Kaedehara didn't respond. He stood there, trying to replay the last attempt in his head.
"Taichi, try again," said Oikawa from the sidelines.
One ball. Two balls. Three balls.
Kaedehara always missed by just a bit.
Kageyama's face was starting to show signs of impatience. He stood still, holding the ball without moving.
"One more time," Kaedehara looked at Kageyama.
"No need. You don't trust me. That hesitation is what slows down your swing," Kageyama said calmly.
"Then I'll do it," Oikawa stepped onto the court and took the ball from Kageyama. "Taichi, just do what you did before."
Kaedehara didn't say anything and went straight into his approach and jump.
Bang!
He hit it!
The moment he swung his arm, the ball appeared perfectly in front of him — not even a fraction off!
"Was that... the feeling?" Oikawa looked at his hands, trying to recall that brief moment.
Kageyama, on the other hand, remained calm. He never believed he was the most special. He just wanted to win the most. Oikawa pulling it off didn't surprise him at all.
Kaedehara stood on the court, emotions surging in his chest. He never imagined he'd actually replicate that move — it felt like a dream.
He looked at Hinata and saw an emotional expression on his face, too.
He once thought that without Kageyama, he'd be nothing. But now he knew — in this world, besides Kageyama Tobio, there were other setters who could toss that kind of ball to him!