"It looks like we've gained another rival this year!"
"No, I wouldn't worry too much about this year. But once we graduate, you first- and second-years might run into some serious trouble."
"Pfft~ Hanamaki-chan, if you say stuff like that, I won't be able to hold it in..."
After watching Karasuno's match against Jozenji, the members of Aoba Johsai became more cautious, but overall, they still maintained a relatively relaxed attitude.
Sure, Karasuno had made great strides since last year, but it wasn't like Aoba Johsai had been slacking off. Their grueling summer training hadn't gone to waste.
During the casual post-match banter, Oikawa Tooru couldn't help but burst out laughing at something Takahiro Hanamaki said.
Not because he was easily amused, but because the image in his head was just too much. He was graduating next year, leaving Akashi Asuka alone to lead the team... and to go head-to-head with that annoying guy from Karasuno. The thought made him laugh aloud.
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Afternoon.
Aoba Johsai's first match of the tournament officially began.
Their opening opponent was Sanan High School.
When Akashi Asuka first saw that name on the tournament bracket, his eyes lit up. Starting the tournament against Sanan? Now that was a good omen!
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Inside the locker room.
While the rest of the team was changing into their jerseys, Akashi Asuka began unwrapping the bandages that had been wound tightly around his arm for over two months.
The moment they saw him doing so, several teammates immediately gathered around, curiosity piqued.
Everyone had been wondering about those bandages. Whether in practice or in matches, no one had ever seen Akashi take them off. And now, right before their match with Sanan, he was finally removing them?
Actually, Akashi hadn't planned on taking them off just yet. But in an official match, the kind of thing wrapped around his arm counted as an illegal accessory. So, he had no choice.
Clink… clink… clink…
As the layers of bandage fell away, several small black rods clattered to the ground with crisp metallic sounds.
"What... is that?"
Someone picked one up, and their expression instantly changed.
"Whoa, this thing's heavy! Are these… lead rods?"
"Lead rods?!"
Everyone froze, then their faces all changed at once.
"You mean... this whole time, those bandages were actually weighted? And you've been wearing them constantly?"
The Aoba Johsai team stared in stunned silence. Even Hajime Iwaizumi and Oikawa Tooru were visibly shaken.
Tooru had always suspected something during practice matches with Akashi at the start of the semester, but now that the truth was literally laid out in front of him, he still felt like he was seeing a ghost.
Was this guy even human?
Think about it: weighted rods strapped to your arms? Maybe you wouldn't notice after a day or two, but once training intensity picked up, even a little extra weight would bring exponential "joy" to your muscles.
Yet for the past two months, Akashi had trained and competed like normal. Aside from a slight change in his spiking motion, there had been virtually no difference in his performance.
That level of physical endurance was monstrous. Even Oikawa couldn't help but shudder.
"Guh… So you're telling me... during all our practices and scrimmages, Akashi wasn't even using his full strength?"
"This is insane. I'm getting chills."
"Dude, are you even planning to stay human at this point?"
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Akashi rotated his arms lightly. With the weight finally gone, his arms felt almost weightless, as if they weren't even part of his body anymore.
Soon after, a staff member arrived at the locker room door to call the team onto the court.
Everyone quickly changed and entered the gym through the players' tunnel.
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"OHHHHHHHH!!"
"Aoba Johsai! Aoba Johsai! Aoba Johsai!"
"Look! That's either Akashi Asuka or Oikawa Tooru! I heard Akashi from Aoba Johsai is now ranked among the top aces in the nation, just like Ushijima from Shiratorizawa!"
"For real?! So Aoba Johsai has not only one of the best setters but also a nationally ranked ace? That lineup is terrifying!"
Compared to the previous semester, Aoba Johsai's popularity had clearly risen.
After all, a school that had reached the nationals was on a whole different level from one that hadn't.
But while the cheers for Aoba Johsai roared through the stadium, Sanan High's mood was... less than upbeat.
"Aghhh, seriously?! This sucks!"
"Last semester we ran into Shiratorizawa. Now this time it's Aoba Johsai?"
"Can we just forfeit already?"
Sanan High was already feeling defeated before the match even started, not because Aoba Johsai's name was that intimidating, but because Sanan's luck was just that terrible.
In last semester's national qualifiers, they had drawn Shiratorizawa in the first round. And Ushijima Wakatoshi absolutely crushed them, keeping their score in the single digits in both sets.
Volleyball scores in the single digits? That's not just a mismatch, it's a massacre.
That match shattered Sanan's fighting spirit, and most of the players were still in a state of emotional surrender. And now, just by luck, they drew Aoba Johsai.
Truly, the tournament organizers had no mercy.
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With the referee leading both teams, the players began warming up. Then, with a sharp whistle, the match officially began.
First serve of the match:
Hajime Iwaizumi, serving from Aoba Johsai's back line.
BEEEEEEP,
As the whistle blew, Iwaizumi took a deep breath, cleared his mind, and gently tossed the ball upward.
SMACK!
With a loud crack, the ball flew over the net and landed hard on Sanan's backcourt.
Not a single player on Sanan's side managed to react.
"Jump serve?!"
"That was a rocket! I don't remember him having that serve last year!"
Just as Aoba Johsai had scouted Karasuno, members of Karasuno were now watching this match from the stands, gathering intel on Aoba Johsai in return.
Iwaizumi's serve caught them completely off guard.
And for the Sanan player who had been directly in the ball's path, he stood frozen, completely stunned.
Sure, Iwaizumi hadn't scored many service points in the past, but let's not forget who their past opponents had been. After enduring Aoba Johsai's brutal summer training camp, Iwaizumi's serves had become truly lethal.
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria