["Good afternoon to all the fans here at the venue and watching on TV!"]
["We're live at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium for the National High School Comprehensive Sports Tournament, the third round of the boys' volleyball national championships, round of sixteen to quarterfinals."]
["The match features Mujinazaka High from Oita Prefecture versus Aoba Johsai Private High from Miyagi Prefecture."]
["Mujinazaka High is a familiar face in the national tournament, having qualified 29 times in a row for nine years. Over the years, they've delivered solid performances and are considered one of the country's top-tier traditional powerhouses."]
["Meanwhile, today's opponents, Aoba Johsai, are newcomers to the national tournament. Yet in their last match, they stunned everyone by defeating Fukurodani Academy, home of a nationally top-five ace, two sets to none."]
["No doubt, Aoba Johsai has become the biggest dark horse of this tournament."]
["This upcoming match promises to be a fierce battle, let's all watch closely…"]
["The opening serve belongs to Aoba Johsai. With three powerful servers on their roster, Aoba Johsai clearly prefers to keep serve control in their hands, quite different from most other teams competing! Mr. Oda?"]
["Absolutely, Mr. Ota. But today, Mujinazaka also boasts impressive serving ability. It will be interesting to see how this match unfolds."]
Beep~
The two commentators continue as the referee blows the whistle to officially start the match.
Aoba Johsai's starting lineup includes Hajime Iwaizumi as usual. Since the start of the nationals, Irihata Nobuteru has rarely risked starting with both Oikawa Tooru and Akashi Asuka because, although serving can score points, it also carries significant risk.
At this level, minimizing risk is wise.
The ball soars over the net.
Mujinazaka's libero receives and passes to their setter. Unsurprisingly, the setter directs the ball to their ace, Wakatsu Kiryu.
Standing 188 cm tall, muscular build, with four horizontal stripes shaved into his bald head, Wakatsu's fierce, determined face alone puts pressure on opponents.
Iwaizumi, Akashi, and Kindaichi quickly position themselves directly in front of Wakatsu.
As Wakatsu leaps over the block, all three blink in surprise.
"So high!"
Wakatsu's reach surpasses 340 cm.
Still, since Akashi's is even higher, they only show slight surprise before leaping together to form a massive triple block in front of him.
Yet Wakatsu's eyes don't even flicker as he swings his hitting arm.
THUD!!!
The next instant,
A deafening crack explodes near their ears. Even Akashi's mind blanks for a second.
Suddenly, Akashi and Oikawa feel a brutal force slam through their hands.
Despite their preparation, the block shatters instantly.
The ball punches through and crashes down powerfully into Aoba Johsai's backcourt.
At the crucial moment,
Watari Shinji scrambles to save the spike, but the moment the ball hits his hands, his face changes drastically.
"So heavy!"
BANG!
The ball rebounds off his hands, soaring tens of meters past the sidelines before finally dropping slowly onto the court four courts away.
After that, Watari's legs give out and he collapses to the floor.
For a moment,
Everyone on Aoba Johsai's side is stunned.
The crowd falls into a stunned silence, too.
Several seconds later, the arena erupts,
"Wow! What was that? Such a heavy spike!"
"Terrifying! That's even stronger than Aoba's ace!"
"Don't be ridiculous! Aoba's ace can't compare to Wakatsu! Wakatsu is ranked top three nationally and has the strongest power among them!"
────────── ✦ ──────────
Breaking news!
Wakatsu Kiryu's overwhelming power, strong enough to leave defenders collapsed on the floor, breaks through two lines of Aoba Johsai's block and scores the first point for Mujinazaka in this set.
Truly deserving to be one of the top three power aces in the country.
"Huh~~!"
In Aoba's backcourt, Issei Matsukawa shivers, clutching his arms.
"That's insane! Even Ushijima wouldn't hit that hard!"
Akashi shakes his head.
"Matsukawa, you can drop the word 'seems.' In terms of raw hitting power, Ushijima can't match Mujinazaka's ace."
Wakatsu is the only pure power hitter among the nation's top three aces.
While Ushijima is also strong, he's more of an all-around player. Wakatsu, on the other hand, is a genuine power specialist.
According to system data, Akashi estimates Wakatsu's power at 86 or even 87 points, true super-high school level strength.
Plus Wakatsu's unique technique of using his full body weight to enhance his spike.
In a sense,
Wakatsu is the only ace who can smash through a triple block without flinching.
────────── ✦ ──────────
Oikawa grins at Wakatsu's one-shot block break.
"No wonder this tournament is full of 'monsters' of all kinds!"
"Then we can't just lie down and give up. Let's score back immediately!"
"Yeah!!!"
Though Wakatsu's spike is terrifying, Aoba Johsai's mindset is no longer fragile after two tough national matches.
Soon, the serve rotates back to Aoba Johsai.
The ball crosses the net.
Watari passes to Oikawa, who instantly coordinates a quick parallel attack with Akashi.
The ball flies straight to Akashi.
But just as Akashi is about to swing,
A towering figure suddenly appears at the block, as if teleporting…
==========
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