Chapter 25: I Have a Friend
Inside Aoba Johsai's third gymnasium, the players' roars echoed relentlessly. Recent match victories acted like a catalyst, injecting the team with brimming confidence and morale.
The air was thick with the scent of effort. Every player ran and jumped tirelessly, pushing their limits to hone skills and sharpen team synergy through grueling practice.
The sounds of spikes, shoes squeaking on the floor, and volleyballs hitting the court mingled together.
"Last thirty balls!"
"Yes!"
The players squeezed out a response, sprinting and leaping with even more intensity.
Beep! As the whistle signaled the end of practice, sweat-drenched players exhaled their pent-up breath, collapsing onto the floor as if melting, their energy spent.
"If only we had a pretty team manager right now. She'd have towels and sports drinks ready," Yahaba Shigeru sighed.
"Yeah, Karasuno's manager is super cute—a real beauty," someone added.
"Hold on, why don't we have a female manager anyway?" Kindaichi Yuutarou asked bluntly.
The second- and third-years all turned their gazes toward Oikawa Tooru.
"Why're you looking at me? I didn't do anything!" Oikawa protested, feigning innocence.
Meanwhile, Kaedehara Taiichi, having rested briefly, approached Oikawa with a volleyball.
"Oikawa-senpai, let's practice the 'Freak Quick.'"
Though Oikawa had been considering practicing the Freak Quick, Taiichi suggesting it first irked him slightly.
"Nope."
"Oh, Kunimi, help me practice spiking," Taiichi said without hesitation, turning toward Kunimi Akira, who was curled up nearby.
Kunimi pretended not to hear, shrinking further to minimize his presence.
"Hey! That's no sincerity!" Oikawa stood up. "Shouldn't you beg your senpai a bit more?"
Taiichi thought for a moment. "But I thought Oikawa-senpai was too~ tired~ to go on, so I didn't want to push."
"Taiichi! Who's too tired?!" Oikawa roared. "Let's practice! First one to say they're tired buys ramen."
"Got it, Oikawa-senpai." Taiichi turned, a smile tugging at his lips.
Matsukawa Issei glanced at Iwaizumi Hajime. "Didn't expect Taiichi to handle Oikawa so easily."
Hanamaki Takahiro nodded. "Having someone to keep him busy's nice."
Iwaizumi's mouth twitched. "Just hope we don't end up with two problem kids."
"Why do the senpais say that? Don't Oikawa-senpai and Taiichi get along great?" Kindaichi whispered to Kunimi nearby.
Kunimi, still balled up, looked half-asleep.
…
Oikawa and Taiichi began practicing the Freak Quick on the court.
After a few balls, Oikawa asked, "Taiichi, is your attack point higher?"
As expected of the ace setter, he noticed quickly.
Taiichi nodded. Last night, he'd measured it—his attack point had risen by about 5 cm.
"That's more like it.. I always thought you were a late bloomer. Otherwise, your jump was too weak. You usually cover it with speed, and your spiking style doesn't rely much on height, so I never brought it up."
"Naka's and Karasuno's little shrimp's attack points were higher than yours," Oikawa said casually.
An arrow pierced Taiichi's heart. Facts like that hit him deeply.
He was improving steadily, diligently completing system tasks, and his technique was progressing rapidly. But his physical attributes—how to boost those—was still a mystery.
Taiichi was already eager for the next match.
Oikawa, meanwhile, was wrestling with a dilemma. The Freak Quick wasn't hard to grasp conceptually. The attack's speed depended on the spiker's assist-run timing.
Kageyama Tobio and Hinata Kirara's Freak Quick relied on the shrimp's near-freakish speed and Kageyama's pinpoint sets.
In terms of speed, Taiichi, at 180 cm, matched the shrimp's ability to attack before defenses could react, as proven in the practice match.
So, it boiled down to whether Oikawa could adapt fast enough to deliver the ball Taiichi needed for the attack!
Oikawa's eyes blazed with determination. No way he'd lose in this.
"Excuse us!" Three figures appeared at the gym entrance.
"These two kids were sneaking around campus, especially Kageyama Tobio, looking all menacing and scaring students,"
Mizoguchi Tetsuyuki said, standing behind Hinata Kirara and Kageyama Tobio. "Luckily, they looked familiar. I asked, and sure enough, they're here for you, so I brought them over."
"We're so sorry!" Hinata and Kageyama bowed in unison.
"But I'm here for Taiichi," Hinata added quickly.
"Oh, Kirara!" Taiichi waved, and the two huddled, chatting about something.
"Tch, since when did he get so chummy with the shrimp?" Oikawa grumbled, glancing at Kageyama. "And what're you here for?"
Kageyama, visibly excited, started, "Um, Oikawa-senpai…"
"No way! Idiot," Oikawa cut him off before he could continue.
"Please, hear me out!" Kageyama bowed ninety degrees, head low.
"Wow, first time seeing Kageyama like this," Kunimi, now sitting up, said to Kindaichi with interest.
"Eek, Oikawa's bullying a junior again."
"Probably because he's a genius setter, so Oikawa's holding a grudge~," Hanamaki Takahiro and Matsukawa Issei teased from the sidelines.
"Hey, I can hear you!" Oikawa shot an annoyed look at his teammates, noticing Iwaizumi approaching.
"Aoba Johsai and Karasuno are rivals now, Kageyama. You know that," Iwaizumi said sternly.
Kageyama didn't lift his head. "Yes, Iwaizumi-senpai, but I have a question for Oikawa-senpai no matter what!"
Iwaizumi and Oikawa exchanged a glance, silent for a moment.
Oikawa, as if struck by an idea, said cheerfully, "Fine, ask away. But afterward, you're setting a few balls for our Taiichi."
Setting for Taiichi? Kageyama looked confused but didn't dwell on it, rushing to ask his question.
"Uh… well… it's like this. I have a friend, a setter, and his teammate suddenly wants to practice a super unreliable attack right before a tournament…"
"Pfft, Tobio-chan, what setter friend?" Oikawa interrupted unceremoniously. "If you're asking for advice, don't beat around the bush. Spit it out."
Kageyama's face flushed. "All this time, Hinata's been spiking quick attacks with his eyes closed. Now he says he wants to spike with his own will."
"Eh, give it a shot. If it works, that'd be pretty cool," Oikawa said lightly.
"Don't make it sound so easy! Hinata doesn't have that kind of skill!" Kageyama shouted.
Nearby, Hinata, chatting with Taiichi, overheard and silently lowered his head.
"Oh? So the shrimp should just follow your orders completely? Dictator!" Oikawa said mercilessly.
Kageyama froze. He hadn't considered that—he'd only thought about winning matches.
"Don't get it twisted. The one controlling the attack isn't you—it's the shrimp," Oikawa said, glancing at Hinata and Taiichi. "The battle in the air is decided by the spiker."
"If you think sticking to the status quo is best, then keep being a coward and stay stagnant!"