A three-on-three volleyball match is quite different from a six-on-six.

With fewer players on each side, the tactical options for offense and defense become limited, making multi-rally exchanges rare. Usually, the outcome is decided in just one or two rounds.

Also, the fewer the players, the more obvious the gap in individual skills becomes.

So although the Green Team showed more stability overall, the Red Team's Kageyama, relying on his personal talent, still managed to hold his own against them point for point.

That said, having a tall blocker like Tsukishima on the Green Team gave Hinata a lot of trouble during attacks.

To get around the block, Kageyama demonstrated live in the match how to break through under pressure by inventing a new move he called the "Freak Quick."

Honestly, when Oda Mikio saw this, he was completely stunned.

Not because the move itself was shocking, but because Kageyama's progress felt like watching human evolution on fast forward, it was simply astonishing.

This moment finally made Oda understand what it truly means to be a "genius."

Akashi Asuka wasn't a genius, Oda had known that for a long time.

Not just him; every player on the Sengoku Junior High team knew it.

Because geniuses don't need to train as monstrously as Akashi did. Although Akashi's progress in Junior High was fast, relative to his insane training regimen, his improvement was rapid but not genius-level.

Still, Akashi was exceptional in his own way, since even the coach said a normal Junior Higher would've broken down under that training.

That's why in the Sengoku team, Akashi was more often called a "monster" rather than a "genius."

After being shocked by Kageyama's performance, Oda was also surprised by Hinata. He didn't quite know how to describe him.

Calling Hinata "stupid" or "naive" didn't seem right, yet somehow it felt fitting.

After all, it's hard to imagine a normal person hitting a volleyball midair with their eyes closed.

The "Shadow Duo's" performance in this practice match left Oda deeply impressed, and at the same time, a growing sense of unease began to take root inside him.

Half an hour later, the match ended decisively, 2–0.

Though the "Freak Quick" was newly created, there was no doubt it was a skill beyond the level of typical high school players. Despite the Green Team's stability, this move alone was enough to break through any defense.

Of course, the reason the Green Team lost so quickly was partly because Oda had held back a bit to speed up the match's end.

But really, just a little.

"Since you won, then as agreed... welcome to the volleyball club."

Daichi Sawamura took back the applications from Kageyama and Hinata and formally accepted them into the club.

Well, to be precise, from the moment Kageyama and Hinata created the "Freak Quick" during this match, the actual outcome didn't matter much anymore.

Sawamura's boundaries were usually strict, but when a ticket to the national tournament was on the line, sometimes lines could be bent a little.

Since it was Saturday, after the match everyone except Kageyama and Hinata was preparing to leave.

Oda was the fastest to leave, greeting several senior players before heading home.

But just as he reached the gym's exit, a young teacher in a tracksuit and glasses rushed in excitedly.

"Found them! Found them...!"

Everyone froze, looking at the newcomer.

"Found who? Takeda-sensei, found what?"

Ittetsu Takeda was out of breath but visibly excited, waving a sheet of paper.

"It's the opponent for our next practice match. Aoba Johsai High School agreed to play us after school next Tuesday."

"Aoba Johsai?"

Hearing the name, everyone was surprised. Oda, who had almost left, stopped in his tracks.

"Seriously? Aoba Johsai is one of the top four schools in the prefecture. How did you get them to agree, Takeda-sensei?"

"Don't tell me it's because of Ushijima again?"

Takeda's face flushed slightly as he shook his head.

"No, not this time. I sent the message as usual, just hoping for a chance. Unexpectedly, this time they actually said yes."

"But..."

Takeda looked down at the paper, a trace of puzzlement in his eyes.

"They have a strange condition: they want Kageyama to be their main setter for the entire practice match."

"...Huh?"

Everyone looked at Kageyama, then at their regular setter Sugawara, and suddenly the room went quiet.

…..

Meanwhile...

On his weekend break, Akashi Asuka was pushing himself hard in training when his phone suddenly pinged with a new email.

During a break, Akashi checked the message and was surprised to see it was an invitation from a publisher he had sent his manuscript to a couple of days ago.

The gist was: after review, the publisher believed Akashi's novel had potential for publication. The editor wanted to meet him in person to discuss contract details.

Traditional print media was still big in this island country, so face-to-face meetings for novel contracts were common.

Akashi glanced over the sender's address, which was definitely the publisher's official email, and the meeting spot was a well-known café, so he was confident this wasn't a scam.

He'd sent the manuscript to several publishers at once a few days ago, and this one was from MF Bunko, while MF's sales couldn't compete with Dengeki Bunko at the moment, it was still a major player in the light novel market.

Besides, Akashi's goal in submitting was mostly to earn some quick money, so he didn't hesitate to agree.

After a moment's thought, Akashi replied, arranging to meet the editor the next morning.

Once settled, he tossed his flip phone aside and resumed his training...

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