"One more time!" Like the joy of pulling off a combo in a game for the first time, Kaedehara Taichi felt like a butterfly breaking free from its cocoon — every cell in his body was cheering.
"Alright!" Oikawa Tooru also felt a sense of personal breakthrough, a smile he couldn't suppress tugging at the corners of his mouth.
With each sprint, jump, arm swing, and spike, Taichi gradually got used to the rhythm in mid-air. He began consciously controlling his palm to spike the ball from different angles.
Although it wasn't the same as using body twists or wrist movements to create straight or cross shots, it still integrated his aerial skills, and in some ways, even refined the attack style earlier than the original "weirdo combo."
Hinata Shouyou had been watching eagerly from the side for quite a while. Finally, he couldn't resist anymore and spoke to Oikawa Tooru:"King, can I try your tosses too?"
They say "sincerity is the ultimate weapon," and even Oikawa Tooru couldn't resist the radiance of the little sun.
"Fine, you can try a few too." Oikawa reluctantly pursed his lips.
"Thank you!" Hinata spread his arms and leapt into the air excitedly.
Watching Hinata leap up — almost clearing more than half of his own height — Taichi felt a bit wounded inside once again.
"Start with what you usually do, the regular 'weirdo quick attack'," Oikawa said after confirming Hinata's spiking point.
"Okay!"
Hinata responded and started moving at the baseline.
In almost an instant, he dashed to the net and shot up into the air. His eyes were closed, and his arms swung without hesitation.
"Boom!"
The ball connected perfectly on the first try!
Standing nearby, Taichi experienced Hinata's speed firsthand — the small body combined with that vertical leap created a stunning visual impact.
Kageyama Tobio gritted his teeth, further confirming that it was hard to surpass Oikawa Tooru. Oikawa-senpai seemed to have a kind of magic that could bring out 100% of his teammates' potential.
Really — it felt the same as when Kageyama tossed the ball. Hinata was shocked to the core.
Little did he know, Oikawa was even more surprised. Hinata's ability to trust so completely on the first try was like a drug to a setter — dangerously tempting.
Taichi couldn't do that. Even with Kageyama's high-precision sets, Taichi couldn't open his heart. He still trusted his own senpai more.
Thinking of this, Oikawa felt a bit moved. Looks like he should treat Taichi better from now on. He turned and smiled at him.
"What is it, Oikawa-senpai? That smile is seriously gross," Taichi said, missing Oikawa's sentiment completely.
Oikawa was stunned. This guy!Decision made — cuteness ranking of juniors:Hinata Shouyou – FirstKageyama Tobio – SecondKamihara Taichi – Dead Last
"Shrimp, next try spiking with your eyes open," Oikawa said, deciding to ignore Taichi and focus on teaching Hinata.
"Oh!" Hinata was eager to try.
"Whoosh!" The ball flew over — Hinata was a beat too late with his swing."Whoosh!" His jump height dropped."Whoosh!" His timing was still off.
Ten balls passed, and Hinata didn't connect with a single one. The best he could do was barely graze the ball.
Hinata lowered his head, arms hanging, unsure what was going wrong. Kageyama also wore a serious expression beside him.
"It's not about trust," Oikawa paced as he spoke. "It's about technique and rhythm. Shrimp, you and Taichi are different. Taichi started spiking with his eyes open, so he could adjust his movements in mid-air. Later, he added speed. So what he needs is for me to deliver the ball exactly where he wants it."
"But you and Tobio's attacks started out relying on his precise sets. Now, if you want to take control of the ball mid-air, naturally your movements will slow down when you try to think and adjust."
Oikawa turned to look at Hinata and Kageyama:"I know what to do!"
Kageyama listened seriously, but noticed that after turning around, Oikawa didn't say anything.
Here we go again...Seeing Oikawa hold his head high and wear a proud expression, Taichi knew exactly what was coming — this guy just wanted to show off as a senpai again.
Taichi winked at Hinata, signaling him.
Hinata understood instantly and pulled Kageyama into a deep bow toward Oikawa:"King, please teach us!"
Only then did Oikawa nod slowly. He turned and whispered, "Iwa-chan, take a picture of this moment for me."
Iwaizumi Hajime didn't move.
"Iwa-chan! One bowl of ramen!"
No response.
"Three bowls!"
"Tonight's on your tab too," Iwaizumi finally pulled out his phone and snapped a photo of the "weirdo combo" humbly asking Oikawa for guidance.
"Ahem," Oikawa cleared his throat. "Since you've so sincerely asked, I'll be merciful and tell you…"
"Hurry up and say it," Iwaizumi glared at him.
"Shrimp, what you need now is to spike more balls — not just the ones Tobio sets, but tosses from all kinds of different setters." Oikawa turned to Hinata. "You need to train your body to remember the movements so you can reduce the time spent thinking and adjusting mid-air."
"And Tobio, you need to slow your tosses down a little. That bit of extra time won't affect your attack rhythm, but it will give Shrimp time to think mid-air."
"Slow down? Oikawa-senpai, how exactly should I do that?"
"How should I know? That's for you to figure out," Oikawa replied nonchalantly.
To be honest, even the original weirdo quick attack was difficult — producing sets as precise as Kageyama's wasn't something just anyone could do. Oikawa initially didn't think he could pull it off either.
And now, trying to take it a step further was basically just theoretical.
Oikawa knew he couldn't do it, but if it was Kageyama Tobio — maybe it really was possible. Oikawa was looking forward to it.
It wasn't about winning or losing — he was simply curious how far this quick attack could evolve.
Kageyama and Hinata sank into deep thought. Taichi watched them with interest — the evolution of the "crows" was happening much earlier than expected, and right before his eyes.
"Thanks, Oikawa-senpai!"Kageyama and Hinata snapped out of their thoughts and sincerely thanked him.
"No problem. We learned something too," Oikawa said, unusually generous in recognizing Kageyama.
Taichi stood there, feeling like he had forgotten something. Oh right — he was supposed to show Hinata the "Little Giant's" moves.Oh well, next time. For now, practicing different rhythms in quick attacks should be more than enough for him to work on.
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