"A diagonal shot? No way!"
The moment Karasuno executed their Monster Quick from the usual Freak Quick, the players from Aoba Johsai watching from the stands were stunned, but no one was more shocked than the ones on the court from Shiratorizawa.
Oikawa Tooru's face darkened visibly, his eyes locked onto Kageyama Tobio below, filled with disbelief.
"Hey, Oikawa, what was that just now? Do you have any idea?" Hajime Iwaizumi asked, but Oikawa didn't respond. His attention was still wholly captured by the set that had just been made.
At that moment, Akashi Asuka, standing nearby, suddenly spoke. "If I had to guess… the ball probably stalled mid-air for a split second."
"Stalled? That's impossible," Iwaizumi frowned at Akashi, clearly skeptical of the explanation.
It did sound absurd…
But the next second, Oikawa exhaled deeply and said in a low voice, "No… Akashi's right. That ball really did pause in front of Karasuno's little guy. Even if it was just for a brief moment."
"…Huh?"
"Are you kidding me? What is this, a video game? Since when can a volleyball stop in mid-air? What, gravity doesn't exist anymore?"
For a few seconds, the air went silent before Iwaizumi shouted in exasperation. And honestly, you couldn't blame him, what Oikawa and Akashi had just said sounded completely insane.
"No, theoretically speaking, it is possible," Akashi replied calmly, clearly expecting this reaction. Stroking his chin, he began to explain, "A set is essentially a pass from a lower to a higher point. That applies even to Karasuno's Monster Quick."
"And when something is tossed upwards, it always slows down slightly before reaching the apex. At that exact moment, it can appear to stall, very briefly. If you can make use of that instant with perfect timing, you can pull off a 'suspended' set."
But that's only in theory. In a real match, even setting aside the difficulty of consistently placing the ball perfectly at the apex, the synchronization between the setter and spiker is already a massive challenge.
Not even Oikawa himself could pull it off reliably.
And yet… Kageyama Tobio just did it. Not only that, he did it in a high-speed quick attack, stopping the ball right at the apex of its trajectory.
Calling it genius didn't even come close. That was something only a prodigy, or a monster, could accomplish.
"H-holy crap… Is Kageyama even human?" someone muttered.
Thanks to Akashi's breakdown, the Aoba Johsai players collectively gasped, finally realizing how terrifying that set really was.
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Meanwhile, back on the court...
Even Shiratorizawa's players were visibly shaken by Karasuno's New Freak Quick.
18–18.
The score was tied again.
With this new tactic, Hinata Shoyo's threat level on court had skyrocketed.
After all, there's a massive difference between an attacker who can be stopped with a single blocker… and one who requires two to be held back.
With this secret weapon finally unveiled, Karasuno's overall offensive power had surged to match Shiratorizawa's.
Next rally.
Ushijima Wakatoshi hammered a spike down to make it 18–19.
But Karasuno struck back, using Hinata as a decoy to pull most of Shiratorizawa's defense away, then launching a clean attack through Azumane Asahi.
19–19.
Ushijima responded with another cannon-like spike.
Karasuno countered again, constantly exploiting Hinata's overwhelming presence to bait Shiratorizawa's blockers. If they didn't fall for the feint, Kageyama would simply set it to Hinata for real, and he'd score.
The scoreboard kept climbing.
20–20.
20–21.
21–21.
21–22.
Hinata's potential as a decoy was awakening, combined with his growing mastery of consciously drawing opponents' attention, Karasuno's ultimate decoy was finally taking shape.
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In the blink of an eye…
The score had reached 24–24.
Neither team could break away by more than two points.
And now, it was Kageyama Tobio's turn to serve again.
Karasuno had worked hard over the summer to improve their serving techniques. However, it seemed Shiratorizawa had practiced against some truly reckless servers, forcing their receive game to level up dramatically.
So despite Karasuno's improved serves, they weren't yielding much advantage in this match.
Even Kageyama hadn't scored directly off his serves.
So… he changed tactics.
Tossing the ball lightly into the air, Kageyama suddenly launched a powerful serve directly toward Ushijima's position. The speed wasn't overwhelming, but the placement was surgical, slamming down at Ushijima's feet.
Smack!
Caught off-guard, Ushijima had no choice but to receive the serve himself. But because of the low trajectory, he ended up squatting down, and couldn't join the attack immediately after.
Forced to adjust, Shirabu Kenjiro passed the ball to Goshiki Tsutomu.
But just as Goshiki swung for a spike, a tall figure leapt into his path and shut it down cold.
Tsukishima Kei.
After a summer of getting crushed by powerhouses like Fukurodani and Nekoma, Tsukishima's blocking had made huge strides.
He hadn't managed to stop Ushijima even once before, but that wasn't because Tsukishima was weak. It was because Ushijima was a beast.
Against a more normal ace like Goshiki? Tsukishima was more than ready.
25–24.
Karasuno finally took the lead.
The players from Aoba Johsai watching from the stands all had strange expressions. They turned as one to look at Oikawa, then glanced back at Kageyama on the court.
Oikawa Tooru, are you sure Kageyama's not your disciple?
Because honestly, between his serve mechanics, playstyle, and offensive tactics, you two are basically carbon copies of each other.
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Shiratorizawa's players also couldn't shake a weird sense of déjà vu from that last rally…
Until they glanced over and saw Aoba Johsai in the stands, and it finally clicked.
That bastard!
That's Oikawa Tooru's favorite tactic!
Nice one, Aoba Johsai.
Scheming little brats.
You're dead next match.
Kageyama stepped up to serve again.
Match point.
Everyone on Shiratorizawa was locked in.
And right at that decisive moment… Kageyama unleashed a soft serve.
Tap.
The gentle sound of the hit echoed like thunder in Shiratorizawa's hearts.
The libero's face twisted in disbelief. "You bastard… You seriously think you are Oikawa Tooru, don't you?!"
From the sidelines, the Aoba Johsai crew winced collectively. Damn, that serve felt way too familiar.
Like dancing on the edge of a blade.
The serve completely threw Shiratorizawa's defense into chaos. Libero Yamagata Hayato dove like his life depended on it, and barely managed to save the ball just before it touched the floor near the net.
But the ball went sailing high into the air… and drifted toward Karasuno's side.
"Watch out, defense!" Goshiki shouted.
But he didn't even finish his warning.
Because the instant the ball crossed over, a small black figure shot up like he'd been waiting for this exact moment.
Under the stadium lights, his compact figure looked just like a newly fledged crow taking flight, fearless and unyielding as it challenged the white falcon soaring in the heavens.
Smash!
With a crisp crack, Hinata Shoyo slammed the ball, just barely over the net, right back into Shiratorizawa's court.
It struck the floor hard.
Point. Game over.
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria