Even if they were seniors, once they stood on the opposite side of the net, they became opponents.

Taichi Kaedehara's response made Ichisuke Takahashi's eyelid twitch. As the most mild-mannered member of the university team, even he couldn't help but feel the urge to shut him down after such a cheeky remark.

Aoba Johsai served. This time, Akira Kunimi learned from his previous mistake and avoided targeting the opponent's setter.

The ball landed between Kazuya Sugimoto and Yuri Kobayashi, aiming to create some confusion.

"I've got it!" Yuri Kobayashi shouted immediately, with Kazuya Sugimoto shifting to the side. They had encountered this situation countless times before, and their accumulated experience ensured they acted without hesitation.@@novelbin@@

The ball was perfectly received and passed to Heiji Morita. Without overthinking, Morita immediately set the ball high above Ichisuke Takahashi—a simple and direct scoring strategy.

Ichisuke Takahashi spiked the ball with a powerful overhead strike, earning a point.

[Aoba Johsai 2 - 2 University Team]

They couldn't block him at all!

Aoba Johsai confirmed this fact once again. Takahashi's clean diagonal spikes, combined with his hitting point, which was even higher than Wakatoshi Ushijima's, made him a formidable force.

When Takahashi was in the front row, the damage he inflicted on Aoba Johsai was massive.

"Well, Takahashi-senpai has rotated to the back row now," Taichi Kaedehara remarked as though he could read everyone's thoughts. "Let's widen the score gap while we can!"

"Taichi, don't underestimate the other seniors!" Takahiro Hanamaki reminded.

"I'm not underestimating them. But we can handle the others, can't we?"

"That's true…but first, we need to deal with Takahashi-senpai's serve."

The university team served. In the last round, Takahashi's serve had rendered Aoba Johsai helpless. But this time—

Smack!

Hajime Iwaizumi braced himself and successfully received the ball.

"Nice receive, Iwa-chan!"

"Well done, Iwaizumi-senpai!"

Tōru Oikawa quickly positioned himself beneath the ball, with Taichi Kaedehara readying himself for the attack.

"The receive wasn't perfect, so they can't launch a quick attack. If Oikawa sets to the first-year, block his left-handed spike." The university team swiftly analyzed and adjusted, locking their eyes on Oikawa's set.

Whoosh!—

Yet, Oikawa still set the ball to Taichi.

Taichi's eyes followed the ball as he began his approach. He leapt, preparing for the spike.

"Double block!" Ryo Sato and Kentaro Matsumoto jumped together, arms extended to form a solid wall. Meanwhile, Heiji Morita, now rotated to the front, stayed back to prepare for organizing the next attack instead of joining the block.

"He's using his right hand?!" Ichisuke Takahashi, watching from the back, noticed that Kaedehara was about to spike with his right hand—a stark contrast to his usual left-handed playstyle he had shown so far.

"What's going on…?"

The double block gave Taichi room to manoeuvre. After a brief thought, he avoided the risky diagonal spike and instead aimed at Sato's fingertips to hit out-of-bounds—a common spiking technique.

At the last moment, Sato read Kaedehara's intention and adjusted his blocking angle slightly.

Smack!

"Touch!"

With little time to react, Sato chose the safest option, letting the ball rebound upward. Ichisuke Takahashi ran off-court and set the ball back toward the net.

Heiji Morita jumped.

"It's a setter dump!" Oikawa immediately identified the move and took a step forward, successfully receiving Morita's spike.

"Damn it!"

After Oikawa's receive, Shinji Watari stepped in to set in his place.

"I've got it!" Taichi Kaedehara charged toward the net for the third time.

How could they defend against this?

For the first time, the university team showed signs of disarray. The consecutive attacks left them no time to think. The fact that Taichi could spike with either hand only added to the confusion.

Kaedehara leapt once more, positioning himself midair for a powerful spike.

It was his right hand!

But by the time they realized, it was already too late. The university team's three blockers were spread too thin, leaving a gaping hole in the middle.

Kaedehara aimed for the gap, twisted his wrist slightly and slammed the ball down.

Boom!

The ball landed sharply in the university team's court, cutting diagonally across their defence.

[Aoba Johsai 3 - 2 University Team]

"Nice spike, Taichi!"

His teammates' praise echoed in his ears, but Taichi's expression was complicated.

The spike had gone in, but the angle was way off from what he had envisioned!

"He can't do diagonal spikes properly. Forget blocking his diagonals and let the back row handle them!" Heiji Morita quickly identified the flaw and adjusted their strategy.

Black lines seemed to form across Taichi's face as he processed the comment.

Coach Irihata watched from the sidelines, his face brimming with delight. "This group of experienced university players might just be the most challenging opponents Taichi has faced so far."

Sadayuki Mizoguchi stood silently beside him, nodding along. Whether he fully understood or not was irrelevant—maintaining appearances was key.

"Sadayuki, do you know why I placed Taichi in the starting lineup from the very beginning?" Coach Irihata suddenly asked.

Caught off guard by the question, Mukouguchi hesitated for a moment.

"Coach must have been impressed by Taichi's offensive capabilities at the time," Mukouguchi replied earnestly after giving it some thought.

"That's right," Coach Irihata said, recalling the previous Aoba Johsai lineup. "Back then, the team was a bit too mild. The biggest threat was Tōru Oikawa, which wasn't enough. Hajime Iwaizumi and the others worked hard—I saw that—but their offensive firepower wasn't sufficient against stronger teams."

"So, I thought about bringing Kentarō Kyōtani back. But Kyōtani is a double-edged sword. Without a reliable spiker to balance him out, his presence could negatively impact the team."

"But then Taichi appeared," Mizoguchi murmured.

"Exactly. Taichi changed the team dynamic—he even influenced Oikawa, something I hadn't anticipated," Coach Irihata admitted.

"On top of that, despite Taichi's weak fundamentals, his improvement was astonishingly fast. He learns quickly and isn't afraid to use what he's just mastered in real matches—often with great results."

Mizoguchi considered the coach's words. "So, you're saying he has an excellent sense for the game and a high volleyball IQ. These traits not only make it easier for him to learn but also allow him to seize opportunities effectively."

Coach Irihata nodded with satisfaction. "Exactly. Most players can't apply what they've learned so quickly, but Taichi's ability to do so is his greatest talent."

------

Smack!

Subaru Uchida's serve was received cleanly by Tōru Oikawa, the ball flying toward the net. Taichi Kaedehara rushed forward.

"Are they still going for a quick attack?" Kentaro Matsumoto gritted his teeth and leapt, blocking Taichi head-on.

"Touch!"

His jump had been too rushed, and his spike failed to seal the point, allowing the university team to regroup.

"If I had just set the ball instead…" A stray thought crossed Kaedehara's mind.

The more skills he mastered, the more directions his mind wandered, and the more things he wanted to try. Taichi was seeking new joys in volleyball.

Here it comes!

On the other side, Ichisuke Takahashi had already leapt at the net. Despite knowing it would likely be futile, Kaedehara jumped to block, hoping to interfere just a little.

Boom!

Another overhead spike from Takahashi.

But this time, Shinji Watari dug the ball in the back row!

The powerful spike sent Watari tumbling, but the ball stayed in play.

Oikawa sent up a high set.

Kaedehara approached from the back row, sprinting forward and leaping with all his might.

"Three-man block!" Ichisuke Takahashi, Ryo Sato, and Kentaro Matsumoto formed an iron wall in front of him.

This time, however, Taichi jumped even higher. He could see the blocking formation more clearly.

His left arm swung back as his body arched in midair, eyes locking onto a small gap to Takahashi's left. With a sudden burst of power, he swung his arm.

"Not happening!" Takahashi, still airborne, forced his blocking arm to the left, sealing the final opening.

I won't make the same mistake twice! Takahashi thought to himself.

But just as he braced for impact, he saw Kaedehara's faint smile.

Tap, tap, tap…

Taichi didn't spike with full force—instead, he gently tipped the ball, sending it through the gap left by Takahashi's shifted arm.

He had gambled on Takahashi committing to the straight shot block!

Taichi Kaedehara's tip scored.

[Aoba Johsai 31 - 29 University Team]

Aoba Johsai fought tooth and nail to claim the first set.

-----

[Aoba Johsai 22 - 25 University Team]

[Aoba Johsai 33 - 31 University Team]

In a gruelling three-set match, Aoba Johsai emerged victorious, 2-1, avenging their previous defeat.

In the final set, Akira Kunimi was subbed out, and replaced by Yūtarō Kindaichi, who exerted immense pressure on Takahashi with his blocking. This substitution proved decisive in securing the win.

Coach Irihata observed Kindaichi's performance thoughtfully, considering potential rotation strategies for future matches.

"Thank you for the match, senpais!" Aoba Johsai's players bowed to their seniors in gratitude.

Over the course of two matches, they had experienced higher-level volleyball and built newfound confidence.

"Good luck at Nationals!" Yuri Kobayashi encouraged the third-years.

"We will!"

"Hey, kid, confident about Nationals?" Heiji Morita teased Taichi Kaedehara.

"Don't worry, senpai. He's the one who declared in an interview that he'd conquer Nationals!" Oikawa interjected with a smirk.

"Oh?" Morita chuckled, finding Kaedehara unexpectedly likeable. "If you make it to the finals, let us know. We'll come to watch!"

"Will do! Thank you, senpai!"

As the seniors prepared to leave, Taichi ran over to Takahashi and whispered, "Takahashi-senpai, did you guys hold back to give us confidence?"

Takahashi paused, then smiled warmly.

"Take a guess."

_________

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