Score: 18 - 18.
The gym was loud, but on the court, the silence between the players was heavy. It was the silence of predators circling each other.
(Shiratorizawa Serve).
Ushijima served. It was a heavy lefty spin serve.
Kai received. "Up!"
Kenma set to Ryuu.
Ryuu approached. Tendou Satori was waiting. The red-headed middle blocker was bouncing on his toes, humming a weird song.
'Baki baki ni ore... Nani wo? (Break break, what to break?)'
Ryuu jumped.
Tendou grinned. 'He's looking at the line. His shoulder is tight. He wants to blow past me!'
Tendou jumped sideways, shoving his hands into the line path.
GUESS BLOCK.
Ryuu swung for the line.
THUD.
The ball hit Tendou's hands. But because Ryuu was so powerful, it didn't stuff him completely. It deflected up and back onto the Nekoma side.
"Cover!" Yaku dove, but the ball landed.
Shiratorizawa 19 - 18.
Tendou landed, pointing at Ryuu.
"Found you~!" Tendou sang. "You're simpler than I thought, Monster-kun! You wear your heart on your sleeve. And your sleeve says 'Smash'!"
Ryuu stared at Tendou.
"You're annoying," Ryuu said.
"I know!" Tendou beamed.
_______________
(Shiratorizawa Serve).
Ushijima served again. Yaku received perfectly.
"Kenma! Middle!"
Kuroo ran a quick.
Tendou didn't even look at Kuroo. He looked at Kenma.
'The setter is looking at the middle... but his hands are tilted slightly back.'
Tendou didn't jump with Kuroo. He slid to the right.
Kenma back-set to Yamamoto.
Tendou was there.
ROOF.
He stuffed Yamamoto.
Shiratorizawa 20 - 18.
"Scary!" Yamamoto yelled. "How did he know?!"
"He didn't know," Ryuu said, eyes narrowing. "He guessed. And he's on a streak."
____________
(Shiratorizawa Serve).
Nekoma needed a break.
Ushijima served. It clipped the net tape and dropped.
Kai dove. "Saved!"
Kenma bumped it high to the left.
"Ryuu!"
It was a high ball. The entire Shiratorizawa defense had time to set up. Ushijima and Tendou formed the wall.
Ryuu approached.
Tendou was staring at him. 'Where will you go? Cross? Line? Feint?'
Ryuu jumped.
He hovered. He looked Tendou right in the eyes.
'You read people,' Ryuu thought. 'You look for micro-cues. Fear. Tension. Intent.'
Ryuu relaxed his face. He relaxed his shoulders. He emptied his mind of "intent."
Tendou's eyes widened. 'I can't read him. He went blank.'
Tendou hesitated. He didn't jump.
Ryuu swung.
BOOM.
He smashed a cross shot right past Tendou's ear. Tendou was still on the ground.
Nekoma 19 - 20.
Ryuu landed.
"Can't guess if the page is blank," Ryuu whispered.
Tendou shivered. "Ooh. That was spooky. His eyes went dead."
____________
The teams traded points. Ushijima smashed one. Ryuu smashed one.
Score: 23 - 23.
It was a deadlock.
Nekoma served. Yaku served a floater.
Reon received. "Shirabu!"
"Ushijima-san!"
It was the obvious play. Everyone knew it was going to Ushijima.
Ushijima approached.
Ryuu and Kuroo blocked.
Ushijima jumped. He saw the line was closed. He saw Yaku in the cross.
He decided to hit a Super Straight. A shot that hugged the line so tight it would bypass the block entirely.
He swung.
But Ryuu's Emperor's Eyes saw the wrist angle.
Ryuu didn't block the space. He chased the ball.
He thrust his right hand out to the side, invading the antenna space.
ONE HAND.
THWACK.
The ball hit Ryuu's palm. It wasn't a kill block. It was a one-handed deflection.
The ball popped up high into the air on the Shiratorizawa side.
"Chance ball!" Goshiki shouted.
But Ryuu's deflection had put massive backspin on it. The ball drifted back over the net... and fell into the court.
It landed on the line.
Nekoma 24 - 23. Set Point.
Ryuu looked at his hand. "Reflexes," he muttered. "I love them."
______
Ryuu rotated to serve.
"Finish it," Ryuu commanded himself.
He tossed the ball. He jumped.
He hit a jump serve with the "Whip" snap.
Yamagata (Libero) dove. He shanked it slightly.
"Cover!"
Shirabu ran to the 3-meter line. He couldn't set Ushijima perfectly.
"Goshiki!"
He set to the first-year Ace on the left.
Goshiki was fired up. "I'll tie it up!"
He jumped.
But Kuroo and Kai were there. A solid wall.
Goshiki panicked. He tried to tip it.
Kuroo read it. He touched it.
"One touch!"
Yaku dove. "Kenma!"
Kenma set the ball.
"Ryuu!"
Ryuu was in the back row. A pipe attack.
Ushijima and Tendou were at the net. They watched Ryuu approach.
Ryuu took off.
He saw the block. He saw the defense.
He saw Ushijima standing in the back row (having rotated back).
'The Ace vs The Ace.'
Ryuu swung. He aimed directly at Ushijima.
He didn't want to hit around him. He wanted to hit through him.
KABOOM.
The ball screamed through the air.
Ushijima planted his feet. He put his platform together.
THUD.
The ball hit Ushijima's arms.
But the force was overwhelming. It broke Ushijima's platform apart. The ball shot off his arms, hit his chin, and flew backward into the wall.
Game Set.
Nekoma Wins Set 1: 25 - 23.
The whistle blew.
Ryuu landed. He stared at Ushijima.
Ushijima rubbed his chin, looking at the ball bouncing away.
"He broke through Wakatoshi-kun's receive?" Tendou whispered, his eyes wide.
Ryuu walked to the bench, adrenaline pumping through his veins.
"That," Ryuu said to Kuroo, pointing his thumb back at the court, "felt like punching a tank. My hand hurts."
"You won the set," Kuroo grinned. "The tank is dented."
Ryuu sat down, draping a towel over his head.
"One more set," Ryuu breathed. "But I have a feeling the machine is about to upgrade its software."
Across the court, Ushijima stared at Ryuu. His expression was no longer just stoic. It was... focused.
"Shirabu," Ushijima said calmly.
"Yes, Ushijima-san?"
"Gather the ball to me," Ushijima ordered. "I will not let him break me again."