Start of Set 2.
Set Count: Nekoma 1 - 0 Shiratorizawa (25-23).
Current Score: 0 - 0.
The whistle blew.
Nekoma had stolen the first set, but the atmosphere on the court hadn't lightened. If anything, the pressure from the purple side of the net had solidified.
Shiratorizawa Serve.
Ushijima Wakatoshi walked to the service line. He held the ball in his right hand, spinning it with his left. He was in the back row (Position 1).
"He's going to hit it harder," Yaku warned, crouching low in the center. "The first set was just him warming up the engine."
Ushijima tossed the ball. High. Consistent.
He took his approach. Thundering steps. He jumped, his back arching like a drawn bow.
BOOM.
The impact echoed through the massive gymnasium.
The ball crossed the net in a blur.
Kai reacted. He got his platform together, but the velocity was overwhelming.
CRACK.
The ball smashed into Kai's arms, blew through his platform, and ricocheted violently into the stands.
Service Ace.
Shiratorizawa 1 - 0.
"Don't mind, Kai!" Kuroo shouted, clapping his hands. "It's just one point! Cut the next one!"
Ushijima walked back to the line. His face was a mask of absolute calm.
Ushijima served again. Another cannon blast.
Yaku stepped in. He didn't try to catch it; he angled his body to deflect the momentum.
POP.
He dug it. The ball flew high into the center.
"Nice receive!"
"Kenma!"
Ryuu was in the front-left. He called for the ball.
"Bring it here!"
Kenma set high to the left.
Ryuu approached.
Since Ushijima was serving, he was in the back row. The blockers were Tendou and Shirabu.
'No Ushijima at the net,' Ryuu noted. 'The door is open.'
Tendou jumped, trying to guess the path.
Ryuu didn't use a trick. He swung with pure torque, aiming right over Shirabu's lower block height.
BOOM.
The ball slammed into the floor before the libero could move.
Nekoma 1 - 1.
Side out. Nekoma rotate. Ryuu moved to the middle-front. Ushijima remained in the back-right.
_____________
Score: 3 - 3.
The teams traded points. It was a grind.
Nekoma served. Shiratorizawa received.
"Shirabu!"
Shirabu set the ball high to the right... to the back row.
"Ushijima-san!"
Ushijima took off from behind the 3-meter line. Even from the back, his presence was massive.
Ryuu and Yamamoto jumped to block.
'He's hitting from the back,' Ryuu thought. 'The angle is narrower.'
Ushijima swung his left arm.
BLAM.
The ball hit Ryuu's hands.
In Set 1, this impact had felt uncontrollable. The spin would rip the ball off his hands.
But Ryuu had been adapting for a whole set.
'Lefties slice out,' Ryuu reminded himself. 'If I hold my hands flat, it spins away. I have to press in.'
Ryuu angled his palms inward, fighting the rotation.
He didn't kill it. The sheer power pushed his arms back. But the ball slowed down significantly, hit the top of the net, and trickled over.
"Chance ball!" Yaku shouted.
Nekoma countered. Kenma set to Kuroo for a quick.
Nekoma 4 - 3.
Ryuu landed, shaking his wrists.
"I'm getting used to the weight," Ryuu muttered to Kuroo. "It feels less like a cannon now and more like... a very heavy medicine ball."
"That's still dangerous," Kuroo pointed out.
_______________
Score: Shiratorizawa 8 - 7 Nekoma.
Ushijima finally rotated to the front row. Ryuu rotated to the back row.
This was the dangerous matchup: Ushijima Spiking vs. Ryuu Digging.
Shirabu set to Ushijima on the right.
Ryuu was in the back-left defense position.
Ushijima jumped. The Nekoma block (Kai and Kuroo) sealed the straight.
'He's coming cross,' Ryuu realized. 'Right at me.'
Ushijima swung.
The ball came screaming toward Ryuu. It had that distinct lefty reverse-spin. It looked like it was coming straight, but Ryuu knew it would curve toward the sideline at the last second.
Old Ryuu would have planted his feet.
New Ryuu took a half-step to his right.
THUD.
He took the spike on his forearms.
The spin bit into his skin. The force tried to knock him backward.
Ryuu didn't give an inch. He engaged his core, clamped his elbows together, and shoved his platform slightly forward to kill the spin.
The ball didn't shank. It popped up.
"It's up!" Ryuu roared, the impact vibrating in his teeth.
Kenma set to Yamamoto. Yamamoto wiped it off the block.
Nekoma 8 - 8.
Ryuu stood up, rubbing his red forearms. He looked through the net at Ushijima.
"I see it now," Ryuu whispered. "The rotation. It's consistent. You're a machine, Ushijima-san. And machines have patterns."
_________________
Score: 11 - 10 Nekoma.
Ryuu was feeling confident. He was digging Ushijima. He was scoring.
But Shiratorizawa wasn't a one-man team.
Ryuu rotated back to the front row.
Kenma set to Ryuu.
Tendou Satori was waiting. The Guess Monster was humming to himself.
'He's confident,' Tendou thought, watching Ryuu's eyes. 'He thinks he figured out Wakatoshi-kun. He's gonna try to hit a show-off line shot.'
Tendou jumped sideways.
GUESS BLOCK.
Ryuu swung for the line.
DOOM.
Tendou's hands were there. A perfect, suffocating roof.
The ball smashed straight down onto Ryuu's side of the court.
Shiratorizawa 11 - 11.
Tendou landed, leaning under the net with a wide, creepy grin.
"You look happy, Monster-kun!" Tendou chirped. "Did you forget about me? I'm the gatekeeper!"
Ryuu stared at the redhead.
"You guessed," Ryuu accused.
"I deduced!" Tendou corrected. "You look at the line when you feel superior. It's a bad habit!"
Ryuu's eye twitched. "Noted."
______________
Score: 14 - 14.
The set entered the middle phase. Neither team could break away. It was a heavyweight brawl.
Ushijima smashed a cross shot. Point Shiratorizawa.
Ryuu smashed a seam shot. Point Nekoma.
Ushijima blasted a straight. Point Shiratorizawa.
Ryuu tipped over the block. Point Nekoma.
It was relentless.
Rally at 15 - 15.
Shiratorizawa served. Yaku received.
"Kenma! Give it to me!" Ryuu demanded.
He approached.
Ushijima and Tendou blocked.
Ryuu jumped.
He saw the block. Ushijima was solid. Tendou was erratic.
Ryuu cocked his arm. He saw Tendou waiting to snap his hands down.
Ryuu swung.
But instead of hitting the ball at the peak, he delayed his swing by a fraction of a second.
Tendou's hands snapped down too early.
Ryuu hit the ball after the block started to fall.
BOOM.
The ball clipped the top of Tendou's head and flew into the back court.
Nekoma 16 - 15.
"Delayed spike?" Tendou rubbed his head. "Rude! You used my head as a deflector!"
"Timing is everything," Ryuu said, wiping sweat.
__________
Score: 18 - 18.
Despite Ryuu's efforts, Shiratorizawa wouldn't break. Ushijima was simply too efficient. He didn't make mistakes. If the set was bad, he fixed it with power. If the set was good, he killed it.
Ryuu was panting. His legs burned.
"He doesn't stop," Ryuu said to Kuroo during a timeout. "Does he run on batteries?"
"He runs on rice and discipline," Kuroo said, drinking water. "We just have to hold on. If we can keep it close, the pressure shifts to them."
Ryuu looked across the court. Ushijima was drinking water, staring at the scoreboard.
'Iron vs. Iron,' Ryuu thought. 'I'm hitting him with everything I have, and he just hits back harder.'
Ryuu crushed his paper cup.
"Fine," Ryuu stood up. "If I can't break the machine... I'll just have to outlast the fuel supply."
The whistle blew.