"Boom!"
Aoba Johsai scores, 5:1.
"Boom!"
Aoba Johsai scores, 6:1.
"Boom!"
Aoba Johsai scores, 7:1.
"Boom!"
Aoba Johsai scores, 8:1.
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With his relentless serves, Oikawa Tooru racks up four consecutive points.
It isn't until the fifth serve that Oikawa finally makes a mistake, sending the ball out of bounds and handing a point to Sanan High.
8:2.
"Beautiful. As expected from Oikawa Tooru, the human piece of trash. You're not even pretending to play fair anymore, huh?"
Two rounds of devastating serves completely shatter what little resolve Sanan's players had left.
When it comes to the third rotation and it's Akashi Asuka's turn to serve, he takes pity on them and only serves five times before pulling back.
Final score of the first set: 25:5.
Watching such a ruthless display, Akashi Asuka is overcome with guilt. Internally, he vows to uphold the good traditions of mainland ping pong in the next set.
So, in the second set, Akashi starts "accidentally" messing up.
End score: 25:10.
That score, after a whole set of acting, leaves Akashi Asuka feeling quite satisfied.
See? I'm not the same as that inhumane Ushijima Wakatoshi. Double digits always look better than single ones.
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When the Aoba Johsai team walks off the court through the player's tunnel, a swarm of reporters rushes toward them. The moment they arrive, microphones are shoved in Akashi Asuka's face.
"Akashi-senpai, it's been said that during the second set, you deliberately gave away points to humiliate your opponents. What's your response to this claim?"
Akashi freezes for a moment, then bursts into anger.
Who?
Who leaked my secret?!
His masterful acting, if it weren't for someone snitching, how could anyone have noticed?
Akashi whips around sharply, eyes scanning his teammates like a hawk. His first suspects are, of course, his own Aoba Johsai teammates.
It's not that he doesn't trust them, but Aoba Johsai does have a few blabbermouths on the roster.
But after a thorough scan, Akashi finds no suspicious behavior. Come to think of it, the match had just ended, no way word could've spread that fast, right?
After pondering for a moment, Akashi drops the matter and switches into PR mode.
He takes a deep breath, composes himself, and then responds with righteous indignation:
"Absolute nonsense! The reason Sanan High scored in the second set is entirely due to their own hard work and resilience. They fought back bravely and earned those points. It had nothing to do with me!"
"And whoever said I deliberately threw points to mock my opponents is slandering me!"
"I would never do something so disgraceful on the court. Volleyball is a sport built on fairness and respect. No matter who I face, I always play within the rules."
A reporter interjects, "But… isn't deliberately letting points go to mock your opponent technically within the rules?"
This reporter… is seriously lacking in social awareness.
How the hell did he even get this job?!
Luckily, another member of the press, clearly from the same outlet, quickly steps in to smooth things over.
"Let's move on. What are Aoba Johsai's goals for this season?"
"This year, our top priority is of course, "
The interview lasts a while. With both Akashi Asuka and Oikawa Tooru, two star players, on the team, and Aoba Johsai still riding the hype from last season's national tournament appearance, the team has become a media darling.
────────── ✦ ──────────
The Next Day
Aoba Johsai vs. Niiyama Technical High
Shiroto was also a top-eight finisher last season and is considered one of the prefecture's veteran powerhouses, far stronger than Sanan High.
But against the current Aoba Johsai, the difference is negligible.
Final score: 2–0.
Another easy win for Aoba Johsai.
And with that…
The top four of the Miyagi Prefecture Spring Tournament are officially decided:
Aoba Johsai High School
Karasuno High School
Shiratorizawa Academy
Date Tech High School
According to the tournament bracket, Aoba Johsai will face Date Tech in the next match.
Meanwhile, Karasuno and Shiratorizawa will clash head-on in the other semi-final.
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That Evening
Karasuno High Volleyball Club
The team is gathered in a circle, all eyes on the television in the center of the room. The screen is showing a replay of Shiratorizawa vs. Hakusuikan High.
The match recording is surprisingly short, less than forty minutes.
Which means, accounting for breaks, timeouts, and other interruptions, each set probably lasted no more than fifteen minutes.
In a balanced match, a single set typically stretches to around thirty minutes.
So the shorter the match, the bigger the gap in skill. Only when the match is utterly one-sided can it proceed this quickly.
Forty minutes later, the video ends.
After watching the whole match, the Karasuno team looks visibly tense.
Ukai Keishin speaks first. "Alright, share your thoughts."
"They're strong."
Daichi Sawamura is the first to respond. "Hakusuikan is a veteran powerhouse in the prefecture. While they've declined a bit in recent years, their foundation is still solid. Plus, this year they recruited several promising first-years, some of whom were quite famous in junior high. While none of them are on par with Akashi Asuka, they were all core players for top-four junior high teams."
"It's safe to say Hakusuikan is a serious contender for next year's national tournament spot."
"But even so… against Ushijima Wakatoshi, they didn't stand a chance. They couldn't even break 15 points in either set. The guy's reputation as one of the top three aces in the country is well-deserved."
The room falls into silence again.
Ushijima's presence is so overwhelming that even watching him through a screen feels oppressive.
In their match against Hakusuikan, Shiratorizawa didn't use any fancy tactics.
They just did one thing, from start to finish:
Pass to Ushijima. Let him score.
Simple. Brutal. Effective.
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria